Moving From Physical Sight To Seeing | 1Nov2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Moving From Physical Sight To Seeing | 1Nov2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Well, we'll continue your Sunday teaching on the end Times and kind of just going to give a chronological order of where we are, because that's the day that we're in right now. I'm going to go back to a familiar verse and second Timothy chapter two, and here we go. Good evening. Welcome to Gracelife Church. And those of you who, us. We're going to get into the word tonight. Have a good time. If you've got your Bible, if you will go with me to Second Timothy chapter two. And I'm going to read verse 25 and 20, 24, five and six and 24 goes like this. It says in the servant of the Lord must not strive. But be gentle unto all men, apt to teach and patient. Verse five. In meekness, instructing those who oppose themselves. If God prevents your will, give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth. That they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive at his will. That's a at last verse he says that they may recover themselves. Out of the snare of the devil. Who has taken people. Who has taken. You know, Paul writing this letter to Timothy. Telling them that they they need to understand the truth of certain things. He told them. Timothy, he said, you need to instruct them. He says, because without truth. He said they will be in opposition. To themselves. You know, it's one thing to fight an enemy.

Pastor West:
It's another thing to fight yourself. And he doesn't need much help. We know saying is, you know, if you're stuck in mud after a while. Let off the accelerator. If you're getting deeper and deeper and deeper. Don't just sink the car down to the axle, should you? Well, so he said they're opposing themselves, but God will give them repentance by the acknowledging of the truth. That they may recover themselves. So we taught on this a few months ago. We just really fell to my heart. Maybe it's going to go a little different way tonight. If not, it'd be good just to hear some of this again, because it still applies to us in a big way. What does it mean? What does it look like? And what does it mean for us to oppose not someone else? What does it look like for me to oppose me? Now you have to. When you just read the scripture, you can see here that people aren't even aware that they're in opposition to themselves. So Paul is telling Timothy, you're going to have to give him instruction because their problem is not the devil so much. Although we see he's involved, he'll take them captive, but they had to turn and not acknowledge the truth to put themselves in this position. So the question is, what is it look like to oppose myself? Well, wrong thinking always opposes yourself.

Pastor West:
Wrong. Wrong thinking or not having understanding. Matthew 13 of the parable of the sower. You know, he says, when when the word goes forth, he says, if the one who hears it doesn't have understanding, he says, that's just easy prey for the devil. Not just he might have. He or she might have heard the word, but if they only have an understanding of what they're hearing, he says, then it's easy for him to take the seed away. So oppose means that you're working against you. So how can we how can we do that? Well, just put it in any area of life that you want to, you know, whether it's the financial end, whether it's in relationships or a marriage situation, you know, whether it's a physical situation going on in someone in your family or in your own body when you elevate anything. Of its place in the natural, and you're looking for a spiritual answer, but you're you're gauging this thing, you're grading it by anything that you can touch, taste, hear, smell or feel. Then you're in two different worlds. Two completely different worlds. Both worlds were made by God. You're living as a Christian. You're living in two worlds simultaneously at all times. Now, you may just. We we're in Alabama, so we're we're say, well, no, I'm right here in Alabama, in the United States of America. You are. But you're living in two worlds at all times.

Pastor West:
And I'll say it this way if you ever want to know if the supernatural is present, then all you've got to do is you can either take your two fingers and go up to your neck, or you can go to your wrist. You can just see until you can feel your pulse. And then, you know, the supernatural is happening around you all the time because we're all just one breath away from not being here, aren't we? And so you're living in two worlds, the spiritual world and the natural world. And we and we do live in a both times. It's not like you say, well, I should just be in the spirit realm. Well, you can't just be in the spirit realm. You have to be in a natural world. You have authority here on earth and that's the reason why you're here. You have authority to be an a master in Christ, to be a representative of Christ. As the days get closer and closer to the end, the more I think display, the more demonstration that we'll see of those who know who they are in Christ. We'll see it not just in teaching. It won't just show up in sermons, but those who have the understanding of who they are will begin to demonstrate, not just articulate, but they will demonstrate it. And so we are in. We're not in the end days. We're in the end of the end days.

Pastor West:
We're at that small time frame. Someone said, well, you know, I've heard that all my life, and, you know, I've heard all. Jesus is coming soon. Morning, night or noon. Well, the Bible talked about you when you say that. It said in the last days there will be scoffers saying, yeah, we've heard that all of our life that Jesus comes soon. But then he came. But then it came or they left. I haven't been with a lot of people who said, yep, I'm leaving. I picked this time. Most of them were fighting the tooth and nail, trying to stay here. So not everyone leaves when they when they would pick the time and said, this is the day. We know a few. I mean, Charles Capps kind of it's kind of impressive to hear his story. You know, he met with his family on Friday and he says, I want the Lord said, I can go and I want to go Sunday. So they spent three days together. And he walked down the hallway, told them all goodbye and give him a hug and kiss. And they talked. Bitterness over everything had to be done. The whole family didn't even have a funeral. And the kids said, well, why wouldn't you? Have I, as well known as he was as a national and international speaker, why would why wouldn't you have a funeral? I said, well, we shared our dad with the world all his life and this was our time.

Pastor West:
But we didn't need to have a funeral because dad told us that he was going. And we spent three days with him. So we said to him everything that we would say about him. So there was nothing to do. So the funeral home just came and they already had the place ready. And they said. And so they just came. And within they said two hours. He was he was prepared and put it in the ground. And the family went on. That's. That's kind of unusual, isn't it? That's not the norm. But it could be. But it could be. Well you say well, I just I think that's nuts. Well, you might be someone who poses yourself in other areas when you think something like, that's nuts because you're living in two worlds all the time. You know, Jesus said everything the father has, he said he's given to me. He says, and I'm I'm holding nothing back from you. That means that Jesus acts just everything the father has and knows, and he's willingly, willingly wanting to share it with us. Well. So what do we have? Well, we have the same Holy Spirit, don't we? We do have the word. We have a greater advantage than the disciples did. We have this word? They you know, Peter didn't look up the book of Peter, and John didn't look up the book of John.

Pastor West:
And some of them were too immature. If you told them that they'd had their own book, they'd have been so puffed up they'd never got nothing done. You know, they didn't start off as apostles. They started off with some some roughneck disciples, and Jesus was constantly having to say, you go sit on this side and you go sit on. You're in time out, both of you. And John would cross room. He says, well, I'm still the one he loves most. Well, you know, you can just see humanity everywhere in this book, and I'm glad that he let us see this. I mean, you see, when they went to the tomb, when Mary went to the tomb and she said, the tomb is empty. I mean, John is telling you the whole story about how he ran down there. And then he tells you in his book, he said, he says this. He said that disciple, he's talking about himself. He said, this disciple outran Peter. Well, why did you have to mention that? Did that you that you beat Peter on the foot race? So you see humanity in there everywhere in the Bible. So if we elevate a situation or we elevate a, let's just say, a symptom that you might be having in your body. If we accept that and we elevate it above the truth, we put ourself in a place of opposition. You should never let a situation or a symptom convince you of what you know to be true in your heart.

Pastor West:
Don't let don't let a symptom convince you that you're not healed. Though the situation in your home. You can apply this anywhere you want to. I'm just I just use it right there. But don't take a situation that Jesus paid for. No matter what you're dealing with, then elevate it to the place to where it becomes a reality. I'm not saying it's not happening. I'm not saying that if it's an x ray, it's not on the x ray. I'm not saying faith is never denial. If someone's teaching you, if you have faith, you just you just deny it and say it's not. It's not really true. Well, if if they find a tumor in your body and it's there, then it's probably there. But we're not denying. We're not denying the fact that it's there. We're denying the fact that it's going to stay there. Right. So your physical senses, your five physical senses, they know only physical reality. That's all they can know. Your senses can't pick up on anything spiritual. Your five senses does not even know a scripture. One. Your foul senses have never had a prayer meeting. Your five senses have never operated in the gifts of the spirit. You say, well, I'm going to give the I'm going to give the gift of smell, you know, to give a tongue interpretation.

Pastor West:
Well, you'll have to smell that one out because I don't know how that's going to work because they can't they've only been made to assist you for physical reasons and for physical benefits, but they do not. Your physical senses will not accept spiritual truth. Now say it that way on purpose. I didn't say it would be hard to. I said won't. It's not that it's hard for them to accept truth. It's that it's impossible. Your body. Your body does not accept spiritual truth. We know where our three part being spirit, soul and body. But your body does not do that. So your so your your your spirit's trained. You train your spirit. And you trained your, you know, your human spirit. You renew your mind. And then your body is brought under subjection, Paul said. I put my I, the real Paul, I the real man in Christ. I put my body under. Someone's going to be in charge. So spiritual truth will decimate physical reality every time. If you're not swayed by your situation, if you're not swayed by your by your body, if you're not swayed by the the bad report, then if it's a physical thing or a mental thing, emotional thing, if you're not swayed by that, those situations, they will line up with the truth. How will they line up with the truth? Because the truth of God is in you. It's in the word.

Pastor West:
It's in your spirit. You make the channel open for it to flow into wherever it needs to flow to, whether it's into the physical body or whether into the emotional realm. It has to. It has a channel to get into. But if you put your senses as king, then what's there for you to bless you, to help you to change the situation and the spirit realm? It has it has no opportunity to get to you. So we need to stop imposing our self. The Word of God says, by his stripes you were healed. Now. So here's a few questions. Are we waiting on an event to happen to be healed on this side of Calvary? Are we waiting on an event that would make it spiritually true for us to be healed? Because bias traps for what? We are healed. So would we be waiting on some type of event? Do we have to wait till we get to heaven to be sure that we're forgiven? If you're not sure, you won't get to ask Kevin because you won't. You won't be there. I don't suppose. I mean, if you're if your sins are forgiven the moment that you're saved, you won't make heaven to find the answer. So why? Because these are present tense truths, aren't they? You were forgiven. You were saved. You were healed by your stripes. You were healed. There is no condemnation to those who in Christ.

Pastor West:
It didn't say there will be none. It says there is none. Now, to those who's in Christ. Yeah, but you don't know what's been going on in my life. I don't know what's going on in your life, and you don't have to tell me. But the greater truth is me to tell you this, that in Christ there is zero condemnation. Every evil thing in our life, everything that's not of God. What's evil? Well, that which is, you know, that which is not heavenly. Has its root in evil. Every evil thing in your life has the same source, and it's called lies and deception. What is a demon? Well, demon is a spirit. What does he do? He carries a lie. He doesn't have anything different from his father. You know, Jesus told people, he told scribes and Pharisees. He said, you're of your father, the devil. Can you imagine? You know, they talk about. He's saying things I never heard no one say. He said he called them the father of the devil. You know why I did that? Because they were. Huh? So, so every every spirit he carries, he carries the lie of his father. Every cause of sickness is demonic. I didn't say every sickness was caused by demonic activity. But in the root of it it is. There was no sickness in the world until the fall of man, right? So if you want to just trace it back, every form of sickness or disease is started in the Garden of Eden at the fall of man.

Pastor West:
So every you could say every cause of sickness is demonic because it's alive. When it boils down to is this the lie that you aren't healed? Well, if you ask someone, well, are you healed? They say, well, not yet, but I know God's going to heal me. Well, what does that mean? That means you don't believe you're healed. No, no, no, I believe I'm healed. I'm just waiting on the manifestation of it. You know what I mean? Yeah. I mean, I know you don't believe it. Not criticizing anyone. I'm just saying. Let's. Just. Because the question I beg to differ was where I started. What would need to happen? What event needs to happen for you to be healed? Well, I'm just waiting for God to. Touch my body. Well, well, well. When did he start doing that? What Scripture says that he needs to come touch for you to be healed today in this covenant. Jesus believed they touched his body. And it wasn't just a love tap. So all we can go back to. According to the word is something has already taken place, something that has already happened. What are you doing? You're taking your. You're taking your body back to a place to where this has already happened. You're taking your emotional realm back to the place where something has already taken place.

Pastor West:
My emotions were, was given to us, to serve us, to be a gift from God. Not not to torment me. But you bless me, to help me, to assist you in life, but not to torment you. So it comes down to a truth or a lie. The truth set you free and a lie will bind you. If you say that I'm. I believe that I'll be healed. But I'm still sick. Then you're telling me sickness still has power? Ask you to say that. I believe that I will be healed. But right now I'm not. Well, then you're telling me that sickness is still empowered, right? If you. Oh, yeah. But I believe I'll be healed. Okay, well, then when will you be healed? How will you know it? This is not to critique or criticize anyone. It's just maybe to help them. Sometimes you ask the right questions. I mean, this question came up. Uh, two weeks ago. Here. After service and you know, and I wouldn't have thought I needed to have the conversation. I said, well, then how will you know you'll be healed? And they said, I don't know. That's a good question. And I'm thinking, I know I didn't after ten years. Oh, God. No. I said, no, how will you know when you're healed? I said, well, I don't know. That's a good question. Well, how will you know where your heel.

Pastor West:
Do you know that you're going to go to heaven? When we leave here, or when we or when we leave from this earth. Do you know that? How do you know that? You say, well, I've accepted Jesus. Well, what did Jesus have to do for you to to be able to accept him? Didn't he have to die and go the cross to die for your sin? For you to become new creature in Christ Jesus. Does he do that again? Is he going to go back to the cross for anyone? So you're basing your entire attorney on being salvation on something that has already happened. But in that same verse in Isaiah 53 says, he was wounded for your transgressions, bruised with your iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him. By his stripes you are healed. You had a dual provision happen at the same time, the same moment that he provided salvation for your spirit. He provided healing for our body. That's what we're pointing back to. That's what you're banking your entire eternity on, is what Jesus already did. And then you accepted it and put faith in him. And your evidence is the only evidence that you have going to heaven is you ask him to come into your heart. Based on what? Because he died for you. That's your only evidence. True. Why would you have other evidence for for healing? You don't. You don't say well said.

Pastor West:
Well, but if I was healed, I'd feel better. Well, you ever felt not saved, I have. You say, well, do you do you feel saved every Sunday? I don't know if you all do. I don't feel saved every Sunday. I mean, there are Sundays. If I just went on feelings, I wouldn't even be here. Now I know you all never felt that way, but I'm just going to be honest with you. Tonight's testimony tonight. There had been some Sundays. If I would just on my feelings, I would not be here. I've had people here who wasn't here. But he's glad to have their body and their spirit here. But. But they weren't here. I know I've been. I've been that person myself one time. Once you've worked out outside and it's winter, you've been outside all day. You sit down in the warm room the first time you're like, oh, I'm going, I'm going and going and going. So let's have mercy. Let's give mercy. Well, all we're trying to say down, say, here is what does it boil down to. It's going to come down to the demon carries a lie. But the spirit is the truth. That's where. That's where you have to settle it. If you have to say what faith has to do is it has to settle. It has to put a period there instead of a question mark. Put a period and you put some exclamation points.

Pastor West:
The Word of God settled. Why? Because he said it was. How do we know he's the way? Truth and life. Because he said he was. How do you know? By his stripes, you're healed. Because he said we were. How do you know the mountain will hear you and obey you? Because you said it would. Amen. You say you're so narrow minded. I'm getting narrower all the time. I'm closing the gap up every time, every chance I get. It's been too wide for too long. I thought I was narrow. Listen, I know you need to close the gap. I mean, y'all probably didn't notice. About two years ago, I made a big change in the ministry. He said you got way too much commentary and too few scriptures. And he says, so the more commentary that you have, the more opportunity that you have to talk from your soul. And the more human error that you can make. I don't know if you notice how much more scripture that I use than I do commentary. Because a lot of sermons are just are based out of, you know, it's a story. And and you know, if it's scriptural and it's good and it can be good. Like Brother Hagan know, he could tell stories that help you just as much as the Scripture was. And he goes down the road, you know, go on the side road and then come back to the very place that he started off with, and, and and you'd really get it.

Pastor West:
But sometime people get off down the road, they get lost themselves and GPS can't even find them. I sit in the service one time with a guy who had a he was a he knew Greek and Hebrew and it was interesting. But after a while he got so far down in Greek and Hebrew, we all forgot the topic because he said, well, now, now what? That word actually means that he went to explain it and then that broadened the subject. And he said, and actually, what that word of that word means this. Then that's what we we let the Book of Maps. And we was out there in the pasture somewhere and we forgot what the what? We didn't even know what his title was after a while, but we knew that guy knew some Hebrew and Greek. We flat knew that, you know, because this thought made that thought come. And he's out there and he says, you know, he says, well, just take a little side journey. It's like we way outside. Way outside, you know, when you put a pizza in and it says cook for 35 minutes, don't go two hours with it. It'll be burnt and burnt. So it's got a time. It's got a time limit on it. Now. So for waiting for situation or say something like a symptom to change.

Pastor West:
Can I just be real plain? I talk to me too. If I'm waiting for a sympton or circumstances to change. And I'm really. I'm really not in faith yet. Because. Why? Because I'm not really believing what the word says to me yet. I've got a mental understanding of it. But it's about believing in your heart and saying with your mouth. So I'm waiting. Now we want the situation to change. You can be tired of the situation, whether it be physical, whether it be financial, whether it be mental, whatever it is. And we say, well, I'm just I'm tired of this thing. Well, we joined the club. But if I'm waiting for that circumstance to change, then I'm really not in faith about it. I'm not really believing yet what the word, what Jesus has already done about it. And did it apply to me? And did I make it mine? Because the bottom line I started to say, well, I'll go. The bottom line of faith is it has to come down to just to put it real plainly, is. I got it. Saddle. It means I got it. That's the bottom line of faith. What did you. You said. What did you get here? I shared here. Well, you don't look any better. And I put the thermostat in your mouth. No, you're still 102.9. You couldn't. You couldn't. Got a jet? Well, I thought you said you got it.

Pastor West:
Was he lying? Here. Man. You still burning up? You still got them whips all over your body. X rays still shows it. Which every day. See you're opposing yourself because you're pointing back to the physical. Jesus doesn't heal through the physical, although the physical gets healed and emotions get blessed, but he doesn't. He's a spiritual or a spirit. He deals with you, spirit to spirit. He doesn't go. Jesus didn't say, well, I'm going to go. I'll get with you in a minute. Mean you mean your liver is going to have a conversation first and then I'll get around to you after a while? No, it's not spirit. Deliver spirit to esophagus. Spirit to kidney. The spirit to spirit. All right. You get the spirit in the mind working congruently one with another. Thinking just the same. Then you open up the channel for the life of God to flow now. So it's been shut off and someone's got to open the valve. The only way that you can open the valve is to get the mind. The soul. To think exactly what is actually true in the spirit. I put a thing on. I don't hardly ever post anything on Facebook, but I did today because I just thought it was funny. It's a simple little truth, but. Let's see what. This is called a pause on the video for station identification. I navigate Facebook so well. I to have helped myself.

Pastor West:
Oh, yes. Granny from Beverly Hillbillies. Y'all see granny? Yo! Over here! It says. She says it don't matter what you think. If it don't match up with the Bible, you're wrong. That's great. So? So go eat some more possum stew and think about it. Put Jethro back in that cement pond. Baptize your head. Well, if it don't line up with the Bible, you're wrong. I've had. I've had spiritual helpers before. Mentors, teachers, pastors, whatever. And you know, they're kind as they can be. And that's why he says, he says, well, what's the problem? He says, you're wrong. And I said, well, you know, he says, yeah, you're wrong. You know, my flesh didn't like that when I was real young. I didn't particularly like it any time. But the older I got, the more I appreciated it. Because I'm looking. I'm looking for help. I'm not looking for credit. When you get in a situation long enough, you're not looking to be right. You just want help. You know, Peter, we can figure out how Peter sunk after a while, but right now, he's drowning. You know, it's not the time to find out. It's time to get delivered now. So if you say that. Well, I'm waiting for the situation to change. It ain't changed. And that just means we're having come to a place of faith. See? Faith. Faith knows it, and it becomes fully persuaded about it.

Pastor West:
And then it talks about what it knows. We're not talking about confessing unto healing. We're talking about confessing because of what Jesus already did. See the it's not it's not completely wrong, but a lot of it has to be straightened up. You say, well, I'm by my by my confession. There'll be a possession. Well, it depends on what you mean by that. If you don't come to the place of faith that you receive, that your confession is not bringing it to you. Your confession is as an admission in your in your in your heart that you speak with your mouth of something that has already happened. A real situation has happened through Jesus Christ. And you put faith in that just like you did for salvation, because your banking your eternity on it. And the other stuff don't work any other way. It's just this is in the physical realm. So you see it and feel it. You just don't see the other. You don't see. You don't see salvation or feeling. I mean, you can have, like I say, kid, a while ago, you can feel more saved, more like, ooh, I feel good day. I mean, I feel like I mean, angels are here. Well, they here whether you whether you feel like they are or not. Right. I mean, well, if you don't feel like there's oxygen in the room. Well, thank God there is, whether you feel like it or not.

Pastor West:
I was counting on it when I got here. So it's the same. It's the same exact thing. But we're not confessing to possess. I say, well, I'm. I'm calling them things that be not as though they were. But you have to understand. But but the things that you're calling are. You're confessing is not creating. And they already are. Now you're saying, is it wrong to confess? No, it's not wrong to confess. But you have to. You have to understand that that Hebrews six talked about going back to the very foundations and going back over the same things and calling some of these things, call them dead works. A dead work would be trying to take the faith of God. And cause God to do something with confession that is dead. Works, is taking the Word of God and confessing it, using it as a leveraging, leveraging mechanism to get God to do something that you're really saying he hasn't done yet. I'm mentally ascended. You're close, but you're all the way away from it. You're so close, but you'll never get any of it. I'm going to confess the word by my confession, which I believe to be true, that Jesus did this for me. I believe that, and they do believe it. I do believe Jesus did this. But by my confession, I'm going to leverage God with His Word and agree with God and begin to speak these things and say these things, and until it be so.

Pastor West:
Oh, until it'll be so. Well, it is so. So faith has to come to the place. You know, when God told Abraham, he said, this is your new name. He says, you're no longer Abraham. You're no, you're no longer Sarai. Your Abraham and Sarah. That's just God's mode of operation. When God wants to make a change in your life. He changes something about your speech. He changes your identity. He changes your name. When we moved in 2010, he told me to rename the church and I was thinking, why would I do that? I'm just moving seven miles. Then I was in a meeting with David Ellis, which is. You all know who David is, I guess. But he's Brother Copan's worship leader at the piano and all these major events and David's pastor, and comes from a long line of pastors. And I was in a meeting and, and David walked up to me 2 or 3 times in that service. And he said, in so many days you're going to know what to do about this. Which is exactly what I told my wife in the car on the way to the meeting. She looked at me, I looked at her, and then? Then he said, and then he got back. He says, why eight weeks? Lord, why did I say in eight weeks you'll know what to do. He went on preaching, come back.

Pastor West:
And he said, oh, because eight means new beginning. You're about to have a new beginning. So I said, well, Lord, I mean, I'm not going to argue with you, but okay, if you want me to change the name I said to what? Well to what it is now. I said, well, why would I name this church Gracelife church? I mean, shouldn't it have something to do with your, you know, your the emphasis of your ministry? You know, I mean, you ought to be a ministry of grace, or it ought to be like your main thing. And he'd say nothing. I'm thinking, well, that's just kind of strange. So I'd go check with the state of Alabama and I'd check with the attorneys. I'd go check with all this. They said, well, it's pretty easy for your state. You can do this and do DBA, whatever. So we're still living Word Bible Church, DBA Gracelife church. So he never answered me. So people ask me sometimes, you know, friends of mine, Minister said, hey, no, should change Navy Church. I said, yeah, I said, why did you do? I said, I don't know. I said, what do you mean you don't know? I said, I just felt like this is what the Lord told me to do. You teach a lot on grace? No, I don't. I hardly ever teach on grace. I mean by grace. By grace.

Pastor West:
You're saved through faith. What else is there to know? Then? Then April 2011. Come along. And everything changed. So. God changed my name. Then change me. God changed Abraham. Sarah's name. Then it brought about a baby. God will change your words and it will change your situation. But it wasn't the word that was causing it to come to pass. It was his word. It was his plan. It was his path. My confession is just the recognition of it. I'm not leveraging God to do something that's like, now, Gordon, you got to do this now because I said my, my I said today, I know I said I counted, I know 112 times. I said, by you shall supply all my needs and you know that lot bills to do so 112 times already, Lord. So we leverage. We think we're leveraging God that he's he feels like we have paid the you know you know there are enough payment spiritual payment. Because his scriptures motivate him, because he you know, God has an ego and he likes to hear what he wrote. And the more we can stroke his ego, the more maybe he'll do for us. You say, well, now that God created the world with words. So. But see. And that's right. So you don't want to misunderstand. I'm not saying don't confess the word, but I'm saying. But you can take the word and confess it with the wrong understanding, and it'd be nothing but a dead work.

Pastor West:
See, the confession is supposed to be the. It's supposed to be the fruit of it. Not the root of it. I'm confessing it because it is. So I'm not confessing to trying to make it. So I'm saying what God said because God's right. And how could I? How could I be lying? Telling you what God is saying. You can't be. So if I said, by his stripes I'm healed, you say, well, you don't look healed and the x ray ain't no no different. You still got a kitchen. You get along, you say, well that's just. Well, so my body's just catching up. I'm already healed. I mean, that woman, she was pretty famous, you know, when Smith Wigglesworth came to church. I forgot what part of the world he was in. But she had huge goiter on her neck. Huge. And he and she he prayed for her and he cursed it. And then she'd get up after Smith was gone, and she'd just think before she said, oh, I'm just so thankful. She said, I had that goiter for years, she says. And I'm so happy. She said, you know, you all know. She said y'all was here. You all saw it. She said, you know, three weeks ago, Smith was laid hands on me and she said, curse that thing. And she said, I was just gloriously healed. She she wasn't no different.

Pastor West:
She gave that. She gave that confession for almost a year and the goiter is getting bigger. So they was embarrassed. And, you know, they'd have they'd have they'd have guests come in and they they'd hear this woman stand up and give this testimony. And they, the deacons. Told the pastor said, now this has got to come to a stop. This woman, she needs help. I mean, you know, look, we're four, but we can't have her stand up in our service and thanking God for something that ain't never happened. Now we all can see that. Now, pastor, you went to have a talk with her. So the pastor said, I hate. And I said, I know, but this guy stopped pastor right now. So he he went to go deal with her and she went home crying. And she told Laura, she said just it just hurts me so much that that they can't see what's true. She said, Lord, they can't see that you heal me like I know that I'm healed. She said, Lord, would you just do whatever they need? Will help them to know what's true with our nose. True. The next morning she woke up and the guard was gone. And Schumacher, she said. Will this help you all? And I said, well, you got healed last night. She said, no, I got I got healed when Smith came. And that's like, well, she's still loony.

Pastor West:
But thank God it worked out. Somehow. God just felt sorry for her. You understand the principle I'm trying to say. So faith has to finally get down to the end of the whole thing and say, well, well, how would you know when you get saved? Well, you anyone in this church right now could tell you. Well, I said, give us Bible evidence that you're saved. You say, well, this is this is what it says right here. And I was in church and I was 14 years old. I mean, last week, I mean, on the way here. And then you take us to the verse and you say, and I did this and now I believe. Now I'm saying, I said, and that's what you're going to make your journey on. Well, yeah, but that's what the Bible says. And I believe that Jesus lives in me. I say, well, you heal. No, no, I ain't never been get healed yet. But it. But it's the same verse. That's what he said when he saw this. He said, I went back and I started preaching so I would preach both at the same time. He said, I preach salvation, healing at the same time. And since they didn't know anything, they said, oh, we can get saved and healed same day. Oh yeah, it works that way always. They said really? He said, and he says so his percentage of healings went up about 97%.

Pastor West:
He go. He'd be in India somewhere. He preached salvation and he preached healing at the same time. And they'd say, he said, God, do either one for you. And he'll do it either salvation first or healing first. Well, that was some religious. He's having to overstep some places. You didn't do that in America. That was you had to preach and they got to get their heart right. And they got to qualify and they got to get sent out of their life. God ain't got to heal. No one was in their life. Really? He saved you with sin in your life. Yeah. Have you ever thought about that? Well, God, God can't answer your prayer and heal your body until you get sent out of your life. Well, how'd you get sent out to get saved? Oh. See, we we're just religiously stupid sometimes. Not y'all. Just some some people. So he said he found out that he he did that in India one time and he says so I said, everyone who's blind come up here right now. Someone help him up here. He said, if ever one of y'all aren't healed in just a few minutes, when I pray for you, y'all ought to run me out of your country and get y'all to just put me on a plane and get me out here in just a few minutes if you ever want. Y'all aren't heal every person he laid hands on.

Pastor West:
I popped him boom boom boom boom boom boom boom. Now he's talking to Buddhists. Lindy Garrett salvation called. Who wants to get saved? Just everybody. In other words, what he did. He says it's like going to a fruit stand. I mean, as a kid, I used to sell fruit, you know, and I'd peddle it out. And the guy who owned it, he said now and he said, don't. Not every time he says. But if they're kind of like, decide like, I don't know, he says, then take 1 or 2 peaches and break them open and said, well, here, just try this. And then they said, man, that's good. I said, yeah, you know, these things only hang around for loggers and they're gone. Yeah. Let me have a basket two. What do you do? He whet their appetite. What's he going to do? It whets your appetite. So easily. It's easy to believe when you've seen the goodness of God. It's the goodness of God that leads many people to repent and to believe. So faith has to come to the place that says, well, I got it now. Romans eight six, if I can. We're running out of time. So let me get here real quick. Romans eight six. Y'all anywhere around there? I'm in the Passion Steel. This is the mindset of your flesh. Now I'm going to change the word flesh. I'm going to leave it there, but I'm going to give you some other words to go with it.

Pastor West:
That won't change anything, but it'll just every one will be Scripture. The mindset of your of your senses. The the mindset. In other words, like if let's say your knee hurts, the mindset of your knee hurting. Or let's say, emotions, the mindset of your emotions right now to use death. But the mindset controlled by the spirit is life and peace. Now that's not hard to understand. In other words, the five senses out of control. Not controlled by the Holy Spirit, but but controlled by human thinking. Brings you one thing. Death. But the mindset controlled by the Holy Spirit brings you life and peace. Now somebody is going to be in control. Something or someone's going to be in control. Now verse seven and the passion says, in fact, the mindset focused on the flesh or the physical or the symptoms, I'm getting just as plain as I can get it. The mindset focus on your symptoms right now fights God's plan. Well that's good. The mindset focused. So you got a you got a passion, right? Is that in your Bible? So same thing. I just I want people to know I'm not making it up. The mindset focused on the flesh, which is your physical, all your five senses. Or if you have a symptom of. If you have physical senses, you have symptoms, right? So the mindset focused on your physical symptoms is fighting God's plan and refuses to submit to his direction.

Pastor West:
Your body fights and your emotions is fighting his plans and your emotions refuse to submit to him. Well, tell me what's there, because. Cannot. Say it's hard. It can. Your physical senses cannot submit to God. And won't. Because it cannot watch here. Verse eight. No matter how hard they try, God will find no pleasure with those who are controlled by your symptoms. Your physical situation, your emotional situation, your financial situation. Try as hard as you want to. No matter how hard they try, God can find no pleasure with those who are being controlled by your flesh, by those who are opposing themselves, by giving place to their anything, to their carnal nature. Carnal nature. Flesh. Nature. Census symptoms. But when the spirit of life empowers your life, you're no longer dominated by the flesh or the symptoms. But you're dominated by the spirit. And if you're joined and you're not joined, it says. And if you are not joined to the spirit of the Anointed One, you're not of him. Verse ten. Now Christ lives in you, and even though your body may be dead because of the effects of sin, his life giving spirit imparts life to you because you have fully accepted your fully accepted by God now. Verse 11. Yes. God raised Jesus to life. And since God's Spirit of resurrection lives in you, he will also raise your dying body to live by the same spirit that breathes life into you.

Pastor West:
Now, said this other day, I want to say it again. It's not just that the same spirit that raised Christ dwells in you will quicken your mortal body. Does that. But the bigger picture is not. If the same spirit that raised Christ from dead dwells in me, then he'll quicken or he'll heal my body. It includes the healing. But don't make the object healing. What was the what was the what were the what was the subject that he said? It's the same spirit that lives in you. That was in Christ. That spirit raised him from the dead. And if that spirit raised him dead and lives in you. What? Healing? No, that's not what he's talking about. What is he talking about? The same spirit. So if you had the same spirit in you that was in Christ, everything that that spirit has, he just carries with him. So don't make it just about healing or whatever it is that you're needing in your life. Know what you're carrying is the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead. And just so happens that same spirit has everything that you need in the physical and emotional and the financial realm and the relational. It carries everything. Amen. How does it work? I've become aware of it. Right? If it's just paper and ink and pages, like I told you, I mean, I know how they print this book.

Pastor West:
I did it for a living for 2 or 3 years. But this is just a book. That's all this is. Let's just pages and that's. This gives about I know 12 people. 12 different departments make this book right here. 12 different departments. 12 people pay their house mortgage because they know how to put this book together. And they know how to get where that paper comes from. And they know how to make them letters show up on that page. I was the guy responsible to make sure there was ink in there, and there was paper in there so it could go through it, through a cylinder. And the coolest thing is to watch the people who make the templates for the words right here that are embossed in that ink and whatever. But all this is, is a book. So what is he saying? It's the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead is living in you. He says he'll quicken your mortal body. But we don't want to just get to the place where, say, man, I've got healing in me because that's what the life giving spirit does. Well, he does do that, you understand? He does do that. He he'll heal, quicken your mortal body. But the big thing is, the good news was the same spirit that raised him from the dead.

Pastor West:
He's not in heaven. He's in you. He's in you. What does that mean? That means I'm becoming God inside minded. I'm God inside minded. What does that mean? I mean that greater is he that's in me. That he that's in the world. What does that mean? I can do a couple of things through Christ who strengthens me. Now I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Why? Because the greater one lives on the inside of it. Why? Because I'm in union with him. Why? Because he's the vine and I'm the branch. Why? Because I have one life with him. Why? Because I've been enjoying the Lord. I'm one spirit with him. Why? Huh? I've been grafted into Christ. Why? Because Christ in me, the hope of glory. Well, I need peace. Well, I've got the Holy Ghost. Who is. Who is the author of peace? Well, I need joy. He's the author of joy. Well, I need the grace of God. The Bible says he's the spirit of grace. What is it that he's not? He's all that on the inside of you. Where's it at? It's lying dormant on the inside of there. Well, I've been confessing it. I know you've been trying to leverage God. Like, you know, like on the Western. They got there, and they try to get the water. Cuckoo, cuckoo, cuckoo. We thought confession would leverage God. So you hear this or we have a good worship team.

Pastor West:
We've got some really good music now. Lord, you ain't heard no music till you heard our praise team. I mean, I know you got music up there, but you you fixing to be blown away in a good way. We have put together five songs today. I don't even know if you're going to be upset and you're throwing them, or you may just slip out. In other words, go ahead. I probably sound like Ned the reader to him. In other words, is. Here. You know what? I'm through. I'm talking about the reason why we're doing it. The reason why you would speak the word. Because your hearts and minds in agreement with it. But if you just use this as a tool to leverage God, to try to get him to do something that he knows he's already done, or people say, we're going to, we're going to have a worship night and we're just going to seek God and we're going to then the Lord come down, come down, come down, come down. And you're just going to beg his presence down. We're going to the praise is going to go up, you know, before God. And is there anything wrong with praise and worship? No. But what is your motivation for? Are you doing it because you just love the Lord, and you just want to worship him and acknowledge him and glorify his name? Or are you trying to create an atmosphere that you think the glory will now come down? In other words, man has to create a glory that God thinks he could live in.

Pastor West:
And Bam would decide this is adequate for you. Come on down. Yeah. This is like. Well, okay, I want to get some goldfish. Well, baby, you have to have a tank first. Okay, go get the tank. Then we'll bring the goldfish. So we're going to build a goldfish tank for God to come down so he can swim in, so he can survive when he gets here. We're going to put up a fence in the backyard so God don't run out in neighborhood. Man's going to build something that can contain God. And all of our wisdom and all of our glory. And the Lord says, that's good, I'm going to come visit y'all. Hmm. And take a lot of pressure. We're not doing that, he said. We're not saying any more. He said we're doing this different. The others not working. At least he had enough sense to know that wasn't working. He said, from now on, we're going to do it this way. We're going to pray for people on the front end. Because they have a beautiful Koran. I mean, it's got leather, it's gold on the outside, you know, and it looks good. They have nice motivational things in there. They got kind things to say in the Quran.

Pastor West:
They say, you know, you know, we we got a book like, you got our books pretty, your books pretty. We already have a god. How long you had that cancer? Oh, about three years. Your God healed you. Now, God, don't do that. Your God don't do that. No, he said, My God does that where I go? Do what? Oh, yeah. Then they pray for him. Then they get healed. Then they demonstrate the goodness and the love of God. Then do you think they not want to know that God? Of course they do, because they get a sample of him. But the church has been working it backwards. We're thinking we've got to leverage God somehow to come down. Come, Holy Spirit, come. Come Holy Spirit. I was invited to a meeting two years ago and I didn't really want to go, but I went with some friends of mine and they said, we'll just go with us. And it's just going to be a praise and worship, and it's going to be a bunch of leaders in the room. And I said, okay, okay, I'll go. I don't know who any of them are. Let's go. So we went no names and they just. I know they mean well, but I'm not. I'm not criticizing them. I'm just thinking. I just felt sad about it. And about an hour and I said, I'm free to go. I said I'm sorry.

Pastor West:
I had no idea. And as well, meaning people would just I mean ministers and worship leaders, and they were just pulling their shoes off and telling God they're on holy ground and. And they were begging God to come to the church and beg him to meet them there, and making him all kind of promises if he would just come and be in their midst and just tell him how unworthy that they all was. And but if he would just come visit them. And I know they meant it. I know their feelings was real. But I'm just thinking that's that's where the church has been for a long time, that we're coming together to do something. But but you know what that's really called? That's really called manipulation. That we think through some type of religious jargon, that we can manipulate God to come down, or we could and and some don't even know it. I mean, I was with Pastor Buzzy one time and the guy didn't understand his message and he says, man, I'm going to start speaking that word. Get that? He said, what do you call that? He says, our life. He says, yeah, he said, he said, I'm going to start speaking that word. And he says, he says, I'm going to confess. I'm going to confess it in. Pastor Buzz said buddy. He said if it ain't already in you, confessing ain't going to bring it in.

Pastor West:
You know what I'm talking about. Now, if he hadn't already done it. See? Finished is finished. So when you go to court and when attorney. They're always going back to the books. They're a lot like ministers. They're a lot like believers because they have to have proof and they have to have evidence. But a lot of times, you know, to get a verdict on something, they'll have to have a presence for it. They'll have to say, you know, back in the case of Smith versus Johnson, back in 1947, judge, this was this I mean, very similar to our case. And there's presence for what I'm asking you to do here. And then I can tell you about something that in 1963 and I can tell you about something happened 1978. And so the judge has presence to rule a certain way because it's been done before. All I'm doing, I'm sitting here holding a book and said, the judge, George Carter, did it. I'm telling. I'm telling you what the judge already did through his son. Huh? And all of it's already finished. Amen. So my faith just gets lined up with that and says, I'm not. I'm not confessing it. Then I'm not even having to believe it. Then I just believe it. I feel bad, I'd feel bad. I'd feel bad if Dennis come and asked me if church. He says, could you let me borrow $20 till Sunday? And I say, yeah, let me, let me get with you a few minutes after service.

Pastor West:
And he'll say, okay. Then I find out he runs around, asked for you all to agree with him, and Alex would do it for he and Alex. I feel bad about that. If it's the other way, wouldn't you feel bad about that? That that didn't care. So you can borrow 20. That's the. We got to go talk to someone. So we'll meet you over here in 15 minutes. Then I go over here about half dozen. Y'all. Would y'all would y'all agree with me that they'll actually do this in 20 minutes? I used to, that's just nuts. It's the same thing. It's same thing. I'm going to get a human to agree with me that God will do what he said he's going to do. I'm going to get a human to make God do what he says he's going to do. If any two shall agree, we can make God do it. Think about it. I know I'm teaching this just in a sense, it's just kind of whatever, but but if you don't break it down to the most natural state, then then you end up with mental. When you finally get up to the place, you say body. You don't look any better. You don't feel any better. If I was going to put you on a scale of 1 to 10. It don't look good.

Pastor West:
You say, but I'm not putting you on a scale. I went to the word. And this is what. This is what I found out. Now I'm going to adjust my mind. In my believing to be true with God. From this day forward, I'm come to an agreement with God about this. So no matter what you do, emotions, no matter what you do, body, no matter what you feel like. I'll do natural things if I need to do it, to get to do what I got to do. But here's what. But here is what is true. I'm not confessing this to to make it so. I'm just speaking it because it is so. Okay. I mean, how many times does a policeman have to tell you, you under arrest, that he feels like it took. He called, I mean, I was, I was, I was here one night a few years ago, had music practice. Scott was here. I didn't stop him. He got to go home. He stopped me. I asked her, I said, why don't you stop? That guy just left there. He said, well, we just figured, you know, if we get one member of a gang, then, you know, we. I mean, that's what he told me. He said, if you hold one, they'll tell you. The rest of them was. And I said, so you think I'm part of a gang? Well, the policeman was right there, just building down here.

Pastor West:
We was having music practice up here and and I said, well, why would you stop me? I said, well, first off, you didn't stop me. I'm parked. I ain't even moved yet. Well, why why are you why are you in this churchyard with the blue lights on? I got to crank up yet, he said. Do you know why I stopped you? I said. I said you could put that gun to my head. I couldn't tell you. I ain't even cranked up. And he said, so I said, you want to go inside? I said, I probably could show you my name on all kinds of things. He said, well, how do I know that you hadn't? How do I know this is your place? I said, because I'm more open door, he says, if you take someone's keys, you can open up any door. And he says, and if you have their wallet, their name can be on whatever he said. Do you have a picture of you on the inside? I said, well, no. He said, well then how do I know what you're saying is true? I said, how do you know what it ain't? I said, well, he said, well, let me ask you a question. I says, go ahead. I said, this is getting real funny. He says, why did you hit the door locks twice on that vehicle? On my truck out there? I says, because if you want to unlock the front cab, you do the once.

Pastor West:
If you want to unlock something twice, you go to the back, you go to the back. And I had my Bible, I put it, I put in the back seat. I said, my Bible. And so he said, okay. So he let them go and he called his police. Another one in and they come in and he says, oh no, we can't let him go. He said, we need to further question. I said, question me. I said, and that's why I said, did you not see that guy just leave here? I said, no, he's my neighbor. He said, he is. He says, well, we didn't want to stop everybody. Like I said, if we get one, we'll get all of them. He said, the reason I stopped you, because there's all type of cars being stolen right now, that people just coming up and they're stealing the cars. He said we've already had 22 this year. How do I know this is your church? How do I know you are? How do I know you're not stealing the car that someone left at the church and they're gone on to do some type of church event? I said, because I told you and I got my license. And if you want to go inside my office, I'll show you my ordination plaque on the wall, which will go with his driver's license. He has been me.

Pastor West:
Oh.

Pastor West:
So we got all through, he said. Well, I guess you still feel good that we're patrolling it like this, I said, not really. Not not not not to this degree. No, no, I said, man, I ain't crank my car up. And you all have three cars out here in a church parking lot, and I need to crank that truck up. I couldn't done nothing wrong. You couldn't tell me my my tail. I said I didn't have time to crank it, so. So, I mean, I mean, how many times would you have to be under arrest before it took. You're under arrest? Well. Keep on. Then you have another policeman come up. John? Yes, sir. You're under arrest. You say something? Yeah. Well, I know the Bible says 2 or 3 a.m. or two, y'all. So they calling someone else that? I guess I'm under arrest. Now you'd be under arrest for one of them.

Pastor West:
Huh?

Pastor West:
You can bind the devil with one person.

Pastor West:
Huh?

Pastor West:
I'm just trying to fix a few things. In other words, I want you to agree with me. Nothing wrong with agreeing. What? You want me to agree with that I'm healed. You want me agree the Bible is true? No, I know the Bible is true. Well, then, what are we agreeing about? Oh, okay. You may agree with you. God will do it because he ain't done it yet. Well, now I know he's done it yet. But then you do know he's done it. Yeah, yeah, I know he's done it. Okay, well, when did it happen? Well, I know it's on its way. I thought you said it happened. Oh, I know Jesus paid the price. So it's kind of paid. Unpaid? No, it's paid. But, you know, it's kind of. I said, you really kind of confused, aren't you? Is he did. He ain't done. He's done. He's working on it. He's working on it. But he's finished. He was paid. But it's not. But it's not, it's not. Well, you know, we're still working, you know. How does anybody get healed like that? You don't, do you?

Pastor West:
Huh?

Pastor West:
So when you just stand there and say, well, by his stripes, I'm healed. You say, oh. I had someone tell me five years ago. He said, you know, this goes on. He says, you know, you won't ever be able to stand in the year. Well, that's what he told me four years ago. Well, he's gone by medical knowledge. I get that. I wouldn't I wouldn't criticize him, I got that. If this was to go on, this is what it would look like. And one year, that's four years ago. I don't you say, well, what did you do? I just didn't I don't believe nothing you said. Why would I? I don't believe that. I stood on this. If he says, you can't stand. I just stood on this. And if there was a day that I physically couldn't seem like I couldn't do whatever, I just, I just, I just believed it in my heart. Paul was under arrest. He didn't leave his house. He's under arrest. He's under house arrest. He said, but the word of God can't be bound. He said, you can chain me up like a criminal. He said, but you can't chain the word. He says, I'll speak the word of God. He said, try to chain it. Put the Word of God in handcuffs. Frisk the word of God. Tell it's under arrest. That's what Paul said. And Timothy he said, you can't chain and bind the Word of God. He said, you can bind me up like a criminal. You can't stop anything. Hmm. You say, what if you were to lose your voice? You couldn't speak the word. I can think it. Holy Ghost. Goodbye.

Pastor West:
Your thoughts? Huh?

Pastor West:
As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he. Didn't he say speak that time? He said think. You just think this stuff will start happening.

Pastor West:
Praise God. Amen. Well, Hallelujah.

Pastor West:
It's working. It's working.

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The Great Tribulation | 29Oct2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

The Great Tribulation | 29Oct2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Amen. Let's give him praise. Father, we just praise you this morning. You're so good. Father, we just magnify you. We thank you, Lord, for the Spirit of God in this house today. We lift up the name of Jesus. The name that's above every name. We thank you, Lord, for the precious blood of Jesus. We thank you that he has redeemed us. He has saved us. He has sealed us. And he. From a place as the high priest makes intercession for us according to the will of God, for each of us, individually and corporately. Father, we just put ourselves in your hands this morning. You, we know from the Word of God that you don't look on the outward, but you look on the inward. You see what's on the inside. You see the heart. From our heart this morning. Putting everything aside and everything that we could give attention to, we choose not to do that. We choose to focus on you. We thank you, Lord, for your goodness, your mercy, your love, your compassion. We thank you this morning for all that you have done for us, all that you are doing. We thank you, Father God, that our name is written in the Lamb's Book of Life. We thank you, Lord, that your mercy is being great upon us. We thank you, Lord, that even in times of trouble, the Word of God is true. You have truly overcame all the trouble, all the conflict in our life.

Pastor West:
We give you praise and honor and glory. Thank you for the name. Thank you for the glorious name of Jesus. Amen. Amen. You may be seated. Praise God. Thank you Christian. That was really good. God is good all the time. We're going to begin this morning. But we're going to begin with prayer, so we're ready to go whenever you're ready to go. So. Good morning and welcome. Glad you're here with us, Grace Life Church. Glad to have you here. And those of you joining our service, by the way, that you do, that we speak the blessing of God upon you and your family right now in Jesus name. If you have needs, just know, no matter whatever the need is, the answer is Jesus. Amen. Jesus is the best answer. He's the only answer that you need. So we call you blessed in Jesus name. Before we begin our service this morning, we want to. If you have your Bible, if you'll get it out to you and go to Psalms 122, we're going to pray for what the Bible instructs us to pray for, especially what's going on in the world right now. You know, you could be on an airplane and within a few hours, if they'd let you, you could you could go to Jerusalem, but you wouldn't want to be there, would you? As you know, if you've been following the news there and I guess you could call the next phase.

Pastor West:
So Israel has entered into the Gaza with tanks and the ground forces are coming in. I'm telling you, the Bible is coming to pass each and every day right before our eyes. But in Psalms 122 and verse one, he said, I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the house of the Lord. I still think that Scripture is just as true and just as pertinent today. How many was glad? Amen. How about the rest of you? Amen. He said, our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem. Jerusalem is built as a city that is compacted together. Whether the tribes go up the tribes of the Lord unto the testimony of Israel, to give thanks unto the name of the Lord. For there are, for there are set thrones of judgment, the thrones of the house of David. Then the instructions in verse six, pray for the peace of Jerusalem. They shall prosper that loveth thee. And we say unto her, peace be upon thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces. For my brethren and companions sake, I will now say, say that with me. I will now say, peace be. Can we say that together? I mean, I need to hear you, too. So not in your mind. Peace be upon thy walls and prosperity within thy places. For with my brethren and companions sake, I will now say.

Pastor West:
What peace be within thee, because of the house of the Lord our God. I will seek thy good father in Jesus name. This morning we just we pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Father, we thank you, Father God, that we understand that we are in the end of the end. We're not in the end times. We're in the end of the end. And we understand that things are coming to pass as they will have to come to pass. But father, this morning we just pray for your peace upon Jerusalem. We pray for your safety and protection upon its inhabitants. Father, we thank you, Father God, for the blood of Jesus. We thank you, Father God, for the love that you have for the Jewish people. We thank you, Father God. We know that Jerusalem is the place that you reign in the millennium reign. We thank you, Father God, that as these things come to pass, we thank you that the testimony of Jesus, the witness of Jesus, can still be shared. And I thank you, Father God, that there are still people in Israel, father, that will still hear the Word of God and be able to see that Jesus Christ is truly the Messiah. Now we just pray the protection upon the people, upon all people, young and old. Father, we pray the protection upon the military, a strength upon them. Father God, it safety and protection that the angels keep them safe and keep them protected.

Pastor West:
We thank you for the wisdom to give to the the military generals and the commanders who command the armies. We thank you, Lord. We speak safety and protection upon them. We thank you, Father God, that the plan of the enemy will be revealed, and the plots that they have for Jerusalem will be exposed to those who need to know what and where and when and how it will be miraculous. We thank you, Father God, that there shall be peace within her walls, safety within her walls, in Jesus glorious name. And everybody said, Amen, Amen. Well, we're in our third teaching. I hope that's okay with you. We're talking about end time events, and certainly there couldn't be a better time to talk about end time events than in the. In times that's real deep in it. And so I'm going to go a little bit slower today on purpose. And so I want you to, if you will turn to your Bible. Well just a minute. If you want to, if you want to go there, you can go to Daniel 724. Give you a little heads up. That's on page 1226. If you have a Bible just like this has to be read to, the Bible has to be read. So if not, do the best that you can. And so we're we're going to kind of continue from last week.

Pastor West:
We were last week our subject was mostly about the the tribulation, the Great Tribulation and the Antichrist. We're not trying to do an exhaustive study, verse by verse, but we're giving you a chronological order of things that will come to pass. It's important that we know these things. This is not history in one sense, because we're doing something. This is a subject when we get into a lot of times when we're talking ministering the word, we're talking about what Jesus has already done. But this is something. Remember the old, the old, the old movies go back to the future. We're going into the future today. For things that shall be that has not happened yet. And so we're looking at these things. Sometimes people say, well, why spend a whole lot of time studying about the tribulation if we're not going to be here? Well, I hope I answered that question a little bit last week because the Scripture says in several places. But first John two, we won't go back there, but it talks about the spirit of Antichrist is already here. You can see the spirit of Antichrist happening every day now unfolding in the news in not not just Israel, but other places of the world, but certainly Israel as the terrorist group Hamas has attacked Israel and its people, funded mostly by a terrorist group of all terrorist group, Iran. And that is that is Hamas, which is the spirit of terror, which is the spirit of violence, which is the spirit of Islam.

Pastor West:
And if I'm still on, I'll try to keep going. So anyway, sometimes they key words into you. So but but in Daniel 924. This is the the tribulation period and which will be the. This is the the fulfillment of Daniel's 70th week. These weeks aren't in consecutive. We haven't taken time just to teach about the the you know, all the Daniel's 70th week. We will get there. But this verse is talking about the 70th week of Daniel that's reserved, which is the Great tribulation. And so we'll just start right here. We'll just dive in. Daniel 924 and it says, 70 weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city to finish the transgression and to make an end of sins, to make reconciliation for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the holy city. Notice there's there's six things here that Daniel is prophesying the prophet Daniel and he's he prophesies things, things, six things that will happen here. First, he said during the, the the 70th week, the seven year, you know, week being seven days. But actually he's talking about seven, you know, seven years. So number one, he'll finish the transgression. He'll make it. Number two, he'll make an error. He'll make an end to sins. Number three, he'll make atonement for iniquity.

Pastor West:
In other words, they'll accept Jesus as sacrifice eventually. Number four, he'll bring in an everlasting righteousness, which is the reign of King Jesus. Number five, they'll set up vision and prophecy, which is the fulfillment and the prophecy about Jesus in Israel. And then number six, the North, the Most Holy place. And and so that's this is the this is the 70th week of Daniel. Now we're going to go systematically upon this. Things don't want to speed through this. I want you to have an understanding of the times. Why do we need to understand one about the Great tribulation? Because we understand this place. The church has already been removed. She's gone. We're going to hit that in every, every no matter what chronological order. We're going to continue to preach that. And I want you to minister that everywhere that you can. There's still people that believe, you know, you got people trying to leave the planet all during the time. They're pre-trib mid-trib post-trib, no trib at all. Go, go through the whole thing. Well, I'm according to the word and I'm sure I know they're using scriptures also. But but the basic understanding is if you have to understand who is the Scripture is talking to, is he talking to the Jews or is he talking to the Gentiles? He's talking to the church. So when you lift a scripture out of its context and where Jesus is talking to the Jews and not to the Gentiles or something that's being spoken to the church, then you'll totally misinterpret exactly what Jesus is trying to speak.

Pastor West:
And we're going to get into that a little bit today because there is the the the Second coming is completely different than the rapture of the church, isn't it? And sometimes people just throw them in together, but it's two totally separate events. And so the the return of Jesus in the sense of not the second, but when he raptures the church, which is the word harpazo because they, you know, people say, well, you know, rapture is not even in the Bible. Well, I always kiddingly say, well, the word Bible is not in the Bible either. But you believe there is one, right? But it is, you know, in the Latin, Latin teaching in the scriptures that you'll see the harpazo, which means it just means to catch up or to seize. And so it's throughout the Scripture. And so we're going to systematically put some things in order so that we see because the, the coming back where Jesus, when he raptures the church is imminent. In other words, it's it's going it's going to happen. And it doesn't have any events. It has it has zero signs. So the rapture of the church could happen now, at any moment. Someone said, well, there has to be a great harvest. And that would be glorious that we have a great harvest.

Pastor West:
But really when you read the scriptures, you don't have nothing has to happen. No great harvest has to come in. If Jesus were to come today, I suppose billions would leave here, but billions would be left. And when you read the scriptures in revelation, you see basically half the planet will be saved and many will be will have to die as martyrs, many will be beheaded, many will just simply starve to death. Many will die in nuclear war instead of taking the mark of the beast. So we want as many people to go in the rapture. We don't want them to have to be saved in the tribulation. But there will be, there will be. So the greatest harvest that will ever take place is probably going to happen during the seven year tribulation. So we want to go through these, these things because we just need to understand that, that we are so close to it. We are so close to the end. I hope that's good news for you, because the Scripture tells us to get excited about that and I am. How about you? And so the tribulation is a period of time when God Almighty is going to pour wrath. It'll be his wrath and judgment upon the world. And. You can't find in Scripture one instance where God has ever in the old covenant. Of course, in the old covenant where he ever poured wrath upon the world, that the same time he poured wrath upon his own people.

Pastor West:
Can't find one place in the Bible that he did that. In fact, in Second Peter the Apostle writes about how God spared Noah, right? Remember that how God spared Noah and his family, and he gave them safety in the ark before the flood began. In other words, when the rain came down, the ark came up. The rains come down, the ark goes up. Then Peter cites how God delivered. Peter also talks about how God delivered righteous lot from Sodom and Gomorrah before the judgment came. He delivered them. So the same is true of you. Now, without going there this morning, because we looked at this scripture before, we're going to look at several times, but I'm going to quote part of first Thessalonians five nine. First Thessalonians five nine he says, God has not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation is not appointed you to wrath. The church is not appointed to wrath, but salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ. Now Second Peter two nine also says that the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of the temptations and rescue the unjust for the day of judgment. God knows how to deliver us. You're not appointed to wrath. God always delivered his people. He took Noah out. He took his family out. He took righteous lot out before judgment.

Pastor West:
Come. If judgment come, you can't find one instance in the Scripture where God ever let judgment be poured out, that he poured out upon his own people, and he is not going to start in our covenant, which is a better covenant. So okay, so the church is raptured. Okay then what? When the church is raptured, the Antichrist will begin to emerge. And this is this is called the tribulation period. And sometimes people say, well, what do you mean the tribulation, the great tribulation? Well, they're both correct. In other words, you have a seven year period, but it's broken into 42 months or 160 days, or if you want to be exact, three and a half years. Each one has a three and a half year period, which is 1260 days. And the first three and a half years is called the tribulation, the last because the intensity of the tribulation is so much worse. It's called the Great Tribulation. And I want us to go in our Bibles this morning, and I'm going to turn with you to Matthew chapter 24. Matthew 24. I'm in the King James I think I am, but whatever you have there. And we're going to see what Jesus said, because he's given us scriptures here that talk about when they ask the questions about how will we know of the times. Now, these scriptures are scriptures that really apply to the Second Coming, not the rapture.

Pastor West:
At the rapture we go to meet him in the air. He never he never touches the ground, so to speak. We go to meet him. So assuming it really no one sees him, but we go to be with him. And the second come, second coming. When he descends, everyone will see him and we'll be with him. Everyone will see all of us. But in the rapture, no one sees him. Only the believers go up. And so in Matthew 24 and then verses four through eight and Jesus answered and said to them, take heed that no man deceive you for many we're going to read through verse eight, for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ. And there's going to be a lot of people. He says, that's going to come and say, I'm him. And shall deceive many. And you shall hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you be troubled, not be troubled. For all these things shall come to pass. But the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes in divers places. And all these are the beginning of sorrows. Now, as he said, these are just the beginning of sorrows. And and you could say, well, all these things have happened before. Well, they have happened before, but the intensity will be much greater. In other words, he says, when these things begin to happen, he says, he says, do not be troubled.

Pastor West:
In other words, there has been wars, we've had great wars. And if you ever do the study of the wars, you'll you'll see. I was looking at several things this week. When you look at the different, the different wars that we've had even in this country, but other wars that claimed so many lives, almost every one built upon the other one. In other words, the intensity of has become greater and greater and greater. And so the climate is being supercharged here. And so he says, when you see these things, he says, know this. He said, these are just the beginning of sorrows. It's just the beginning of sorrow. And so we're we're not once again, I'm reiterating the last time. So he's talking about a time where the tribulation has begun. Here. You're not here. You have been totally removed. If you're a believer in Jesus Christ, if Jesus Christ has come to live in your heart, you are not here for anything, I'm telling you. Where are you? You are in heaven with the Lord. You are in heaven with King Jesus. You are in the Kingdom of God. You are at the marriage supper of the lamb, where the you know where the bride and the groom come together and you are at the reward seat, not a judgment seat. You are being rewarded for the things that you have done simultaneously at the same time on earth.

Pastor West:
The worst time ever in the history of the world is taking place while the church is rescued and raptured. Someone said, well, you just preached an escape. Yes you did. You want me to apologize for that? I mean, you say, well, well, I heard your house caught on fire. You just tried to run out so you didn't get burned. Yes you did. You're waiting for an explanation. Sometimes it's just harder to help some people. Do you ever noticed that? So. So what we're reading here in Matthew 24 is really a description of the Great Tribulation period. So it begins with Antichrist and it ends with Jesus Christ. It begins with the Antichrist. But but it ends in seven years with Jesus Christ. Now there's a parallel. We'll come back to Matthew after a while, but let's go to revelation chapter six, if you will. Revelation chapter six and revelation chapter six is the is the parallel Scripture to Matthew 24. When you're studying the Second Coming, this is the parallel scripture that goes back and forth in Matthew 24 through revelation chapter six. And we're going to read verses one through eight. When you get there, say I'm there. Okay. Verse one. And I saw, if you don't know revelations right before the last book of maps. Okay. Revelation six. And when I saw the lamb opened, one of the seals, and I heard, as it were, the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, come and see.

Pastor West:
And I saw, and behold, a white horse. And he sat on him, had a bow, and a crown was given unto him. And he went forth conquering, and to conquer. And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, come and see. And there went out another horse that was red, and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace, to take the peace from the earth, that they should kill one another, that there was given unto him a great sword. And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, come and see. And I beheld, and lo, a black horse. And he that sat upon him had a pair of balances in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the fourth beast, saying, A measure of wheat, and for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny. And see thou hurt not the oil, nor the wine. Verse seven. And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast, saying, come and see. We're going to finish the verse eight here. And I looked, and behold, there was a pale horse. It his name that sat on him was death, and hell followed with him, and power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beast of the earth.

Pastor West:
And so this is the parallel scripture of what Jesus is teaching about the. In other words, in revelation six, you see the beginning of the tribulation. I know I've shared this with you before, but revelation one, the revelation for the church is mentioned 19 times after revelation, for the church is not mentioned again until revelation 19. Now why would that be? You're not mentioned because you're not here. So this is the tribulation time. The parallels with Matthew 24. It's an overview of things that we'll that that are come to pass. Now, these four horsemen are called the Four horsemen of the apocalypse. And the apocalypse, you know, just really means revelation or to reveal or to lift. In other words, to lift the lid off something. To open the seal. To lift the lid off something. And so revelation six is the four horsemen of the apocalypse. And it starts with a rider on a white horse. Now, this rider on the white horse sometimes is mistakenly to be Jesus himself. But it's not because Jesus does come on a white horse. But that's revelation 19. But this will give you a little insight of how the enemy works, because he has no original thought whatsoever, and all he does is take something that God has done and try to twist it around.

Pastor West:
So he would like to show up on a white horse to make you think he's Jesus, but he's not Jesus. So it gives you a little end look into, you know, into his twisted brain anyway. So he's he's he comes in on a white horse, but it's not Jesus. It's not Jesus Christ. It's Antichrist is who it is. And so you see what his agenda is. Just simply widen the right horse. Now remember we talked about this last week last week. Antichrist. Antichrist anti means against. He's. In other words, we see the spirit of Antichrist in the earth now. What are they? What is Hamas? They're Antichrist. Antichrist also means also means doesn't mean just against. It means instead of. We're anti we're against this. But we're not just against it. We're instead of this. So so we see we see the Antichrist coming in. He's Antichrist instead of in his mind. He wants to be instead of Christ. In other words, the Antichrist is sort of like a imitation Messiah as what he is. If I if I may, he's Satan's son. He's Satan's version of Jesus, who he is. Dwight Pentecost, a great Christian theologian, theologian, and an expert on the End Times, made this statement. He said, and I quote. Satan is seeking to give the word of a ruler in the place of Christ who will be in opposition to Christ, so he can rule the world instead of Christ.

Pastor West:
That's his agenda. That's his plan. That's what he'll work towards. It'll never happen. It will never happen. So when the Antichrist emerges and comes on the scene, there's going to be a lot of catastrophe, just like billions of people is going to be gone off this planet. Wow. If you can just I mean, just if you just think of the little things that's happening with people are intersecting all the time doing things. I mean, you could have a you could have a basketball game or you could have a football game, or you could have someone throwing and one's going to catch it. And and then all of a sudden, you know, the receiver is gone or, you know, just people interacting all the time working together. And then one's there, then the other one's not, and they're completely gone. So there's going to be such catastrophe all over the planet for quite a while. And then because every Christian is going to disappear at one time. Boom. Gone. And then there'll be wars in all different parts of the world. And so this man, the Antichrist, he'll come and he'll come as some brilliant politician. In one sense, he'll be, of course he'll be a politician. Like he'll have every kind of brilliant move that the Earth is going to need, because it's going to be a catastrophe. And the Scripture tells us he's a man of great charisma.

Pastor West:
In other words, he's not going to come across as some satanic, crazed wild man. You know, there's just he's not going to have on. He's not going to come with a pitchfork and a red tail. He's going to be suave and debonair, and he's I mean, he's going to fit the part. He's groomed for this day. Is he on the planet, I guarantee you. I can't prove it. I guarantee he's an adult. He's. He's in the earth right now. Today. The Antichrist is is sharing this planet with you. Now you're about to go home. Amen. Praise God. And so he'll have such powerful influence. And he'll be able to do and accomplish what no one, no world leader has ever had. They've tried Alexander the Great tried, and Napoleon's tried. You know, Adolf Hitler tried. And mostly they all tried, but they all failed. They were subjects, I'm sure, of Satan. But this is this is going to be his best. This is the one that he has groomed him for, for such a time as this. And so he can't come on the scene. He'd like to come on the scene sometimes, but he's held back. What is he held back by? He's held back by the Bible, says the great Restrainer. When? Who is the great Restrainer? The great Restrainer is the Holy Ghost, and the Holy Ghost lives where he lives on the inside of you, so he can do nothing until the Holy Ghost removes the restraint and then he can make his play.

Pastor West:
And so until that time, he is totally sealed off from you now. So. But now, Daniel chapter eight. You don't have to turn there. But if you want to make notes, you can if you want to. But I won't be there that long. Daniel 824 and 25 says, his power shall be great. But not by his own power. He shall cause fearful destruction and shall succeed in what he does, and destroy my demand in the people. People who are the saints. So we see there he has success. We see he comes with power. It's not his power. Where does he gets his power from? Well, he gets it from Satan himself. In other words, it's just. It's just the puppet. And the puppeteer is what it is. Then verse 25 says, and through his policy he shall craft to prosper in his hand, and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace he shall destroy many. How? How will he destroy? He's going to do it through peace. Can you see that? Can you see the deceiver? Has anything ever changed? What is Satan's number? One tool has always been its deception. So even during the times of the tribulation, here you have you know, you have the Antichrist and then you're going to have the false prophet.

Pastor West:
But here he is going to destroy many, but he's going to do it by peace. And then we know that he orchestrates a peace treaty with Israel and in verse, and they're going to look at this and say, this is the answer. This man with great charisma, great influence, answers to the chaos in the world. All of us are gone. And, you know, he's he's going to bring order to the whole thing. It looks like. And then first Peter, I'm sorry. First Thessalonians five three. This is from the passage translation. But it says, for while some are saying, finally, we have peace and security, our peace and safety, then sudden destruction, sudden destruction will arrive at the door like labor pains seized and a pregnant woman with no chance to escape. So it will come at a time when they're saying great peace and safety, no destruction. Everything's put in order. And so this is first Thessalonians five three and so but suddenly destruction will come. So the tribulation period doesn't begin violently. Actually the first, you know, the first part of the first three and a half years, kind of well, if it could be, if it could be peaceably, it's the most peaceable time. The first part of the first three and a half years comes peacefully because the church has been caught up once again. Did I mention that before? Yeah. The church has been caught up and we're with the Lord.

Pastor West:
Just want you to know that you're at the marriage supper. Lamb. This is a seven year nonstop buffet. But praise the Lord. Carbs doesn't matter. Would you like some pie? Yes. Which one? Yes yes yes yes yes yes and yes. Heavens, I'm going to like this place. Amen. So, so the Antichrist, like he say, he's he's. He'll be a great world leader for a while. A very suave individual. And he gets the Jews and the Arab nations to sign this peace treaty. And it seems to be their answer. And they're actually and they're they intend to abide by this peace treaty, which seems to answer the problems of the world and of that part of the world. And then the Antichrist, he he, you know, he stops the conflict around the globe. In other words, it just looks like, you know, the world's been in chaos. There's just trying to explain, you know, what happened to us. There'll be all kinds of theories out there. That's why Hollywood movies, all kind of movies, I believe about the great disappearance. And, you know, we're going to be on some planet, and the Antichrist will be glad to be rid of us, but they actually won't wish they hadn't been rid of us. Can you imagine without one ounce of Christians on the world for a while? No salt on the earth, no light on the earth? You think some you know, because I know it can be discouraging sometimes as a believer to live, you know, when, you know, I guess every generation has seen things change and seem to be, you know, you've, you know, things move back, you lose ground.

Pastor West:
In other words, how could the world have changed so much in your lifetime? That's with us here. Can you imagine when every one of us is gone and there's darkness? And then after that darkness and after that darkness, what it'll be like. Well, so you can see when he steps up the suave, debonair guy that comes across who's who's very. The Bible says he's very eloquent in speech, well versed in Scripture. He'll be a religious leader. He'll be a political leader. He'll understand world events. He'll understand the economy. He'll be a great leader of people he'll pause himself to be. And many people will believe he's the Messiah because he's a deceiver. And he'll stay on, he'll be on, he'll be on that platform. And so the Jews and the Arab nations will come together and they'll sign this peace treaty, he said. Finally, peace and safety has come. And he says, as soon as that happens, not long after that, suddenly destruction comes right behind it. He set them up for the biggest fall they're ever going to take, and they'll begin to hail him as the Messiah. But he's really a satanic superman at all. He is.

Pastor West:
He will succeed, but it'll all come through deception. And so this peace treaty, you know, he'll get the love. He'll get the support of the people for quite a while. But then after a while, he'll effectively begin to show his true colors. You know, the enemy will always. If you'll just hang on, he'll always show you his true colors. He'll tell you all kinds of things about you your life, your marriage, your this, your this and and then. But, but you know he if he uses scripture, all he can do is twist it and pervert it. He used a scripture. He used it on Jesus. Did God say he used it on Adam and Eve? Did God say? Well, Jesus told him exactly what it said, and all we have to do is tell him exactly what it says. So when he comes to you and he comes to tempt you, he comes to bring harm to you, to your life, to your family. All you have to do is get the Word of God, Word of God, the sword of the spirit, and begin to cut with the sword. And he's been cut before. He doesn't like it, I'm telling you that. And so but so during the end of the first half of the three and a half years, the tribulation, the Antichrist, he'll be there to help the people, it looks like. In other words, he's going to help them rebuild their Jewish temple, the third temple.

Pastor West:
He's going to help them rebuild the temple. And that puts them in his favor even more, because in their in their thinking, you know, we now that we have a temple again and the person Jewish mind you really can't worship God without the temple. And he's going to help them rebuild this temple, and he'll win their favor right then, but then into the at the end of the three and a half years, he's ready to change the whole flow of things. And he goes into the temple and he desecrates the temple at the halfway point of the tribulation period. And this is called the abomination of desolation, which is a whole subject within itself. But this is when this happens, when he goes into the temple at the three and a half year point, he desecrates this temple. And I'll read this to you from Daniel 927 says he will make a firm covenant with many for one week, which is seven years. But in the middle of the week, three and a half years, he will put a stop to sacrifice and offerings, and the abomination of desolation will be on the wing of the temple until the decree destruction is poured out on the desolator. In other words, there will be some type of image here on the wing. There'll be there'll be an image that he'll build many places. It'll be of himself.

Pastor West:
In other words, he'll say, this is who you're going to worship. He'll put an end to sacrifice and offering, and he'll say no more. In other words, he's going to come and say, I'm God. Now the Jews know that they bought something that they can't get their money back on. They now buyer's remorse is really set in. So he's destroyed their temple and he ends sacrifices and offerings. He has this image erected, probably of himself, and commands that you bow down and worship him. Now, the drama of the last three and a half years intensifies greatly. So we'll go on to this point. So at this point in time, this is what called the Great Tribulation. Now let's go back to Matthew 24 and pick up so we can see it better here. Matthew chapter 24. Are y'all doing okay or are we making any sense at all? Okay. Matthew 24, in the verse 21, and this is Jesus talking here. Jesus is doing speaking in verse 21, for then there shall be great tribulation, such as the world was not since the beginning of the world to this time no, nor ever shall be. Can you imagine the the weight of that of that statement? You think about what's happened there in the world as we know it. You remember when Herod had every male born child of two year old down died? He says, not on that scale.

Pastor West:
You think of the atrocities that's happened in the world? And Jesus says, verse 21, for then shall be great tribulation. See these scriptures aren't talking. Pre rapture. This is talking second coming. If you pull scriptures out of context and you put them in the wrong place, talking to the wrong people, you'll come up with the wrong answers. These are second coming scriptures. Once again, what are the signs that we know of the rapture? There is none. Nothing has to happen for Jesus to come today. His coming is imminent. Now for those who say, well. No, we're I believe we're going to go mid-trib or through the tribulation. Then don't you think they should? Don't you? Then why would you tell me that his coming is imminent? But but don't you think some of these signs you should have told us about it if it's coming is just imminent. But are you going to do with all these signs? In other words, if you're telling me that we're going to his coming is imminent. When he comes and receives us even after seven years, don't you think that they should have mentioned some of these signs that we're going to read before he comes? Because these are a lot of signs. For then shall be the great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time. Nor should ever be that way. The world has never been in this bad of shape, ever in the history of the world since the beginning of time.

Pastor West:
Nor should it ever be after this. Do you want to be here? No. And except those days would be shortened. No flesh would be saved. But for the elect's sake. These days are short. Now the elect here he's talking about. He's talking to the Jews he's talking to. Now go with me. Back up to verse 13. But he that shall endure to the end shall be saved. Now? Is that is that how you got saved by enduring? No, no. That's works. See. You're not here. So when he says, but he that shall endure to the end shall be saved, he's not talking to you. He's talking to the people and the Jews that are here, and the world population who's here during the great tribulation. So you and I are living in the dispensation of the gospel of grace, right? He didn't tell you to endure. He told you to believe. But here in the tribulation time. Jesus. What's he doing? Jesus is encouraging people to hold on, to endure to the end. In other words, don't give up. I want you to know that when you're raptured, your Bible won't be. And they'll be searching for Bibles and any notes that you might have. I believe broadcast just like this one is going to be. I know it's going to be. A matter of fact, when I was studying for those things, that's exactly what I heard, he says.

Pastor West:
He says, take your time on this. He said, after you're here. He said, this broadcast will be here, and it'll give hope to people that you'll never know until you until you meet them there. And I tell you, the weight of that came on me is just like I couldn't do nothing for about 30 minutes. But here in tribulation time, he's encouraging people on the planet to endure, to hold on, to don't give up. Verse 14 and the gospel of this kingdom shall be preached into all the world for a witness unto all nations, and then the end shall come. See how that's been taken out of context. In other words, we we have to preach the gospel to every person on the earth. Everyone's got to hear the gospel. Everyone's had to have an opportunity or Jesus can't come wrong. And we'll prove this wrong as we keep on reading. Everyone will have the chance, but it won't necessarily be before we're raptured. So that means the tribulation times, the gospel, what Jesus is talking about the tribulation. The gospel is the good news. What's good news to them during the tribulation? This is going to end. This is going to end. In other words, what is he saying? The kingdom is coming and the king is coming. Amen. It is going to set up his kingdom.

Pastor West:
So he's telling you. So endure to the end. If you endure to the end, you'll be saved. Now some say, well, who's going to do the preaching? Well, God has sealed 144,000 Jews, 12,000 Jews from the 12 tribes of Israel. He sealed them up with the protection that you can't harm him. You can't hurt them. You can do whatever you want to with them. It'll bounce off them like a rubber ball on a wall. You cannot you cannot kill these 144,000 and you got 144,000. While Jews preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. Imagine that the Jews preaching Jesus Christ, 144,000 of them are preaching around the world. Who else do you have? Well, then you got the two witnesses that come. We'll get into give more context to them a little later. You got the two witnesses. Many believe theologians believe this to be Moses and Elijah. Don't know that for sure, but they believe it'll be Moses. And Elijah will come back and they'll be preaching. Boy, that's going to be a wild thing to see with 144,000 Jews. Then you got the converse of the 144,000. And if that's not, then if that's not enough, there's angels that are preaching the gospel around the planet. Some. So I don't know about no angels preaching. Or you don't think I'd mention it without scripture, do you? You want you want the scripture? I don't really have one. Just kidding. No no no no.

Pastor West:
Revelation 14 six. Revelation 14 six and I saw another angel fly into the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach. Woe unto them that dwell on the earth to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. Angels are crisscrossing this planet preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ with 144,000 Jewish evangelists. The two witnesses, if it's Moses and Elijah and all the converts, and they're saying, hold on to the end. The king's coming back. We don't have much longer. You understand? It's going to be atrocious. Absolutely atrocious. Many won't take the mark of the beast. They'll be beheaded or they'll be slaughtered. Or they'll just literally starve to death. But they that endure to the end. They that endured, then they'll kind of have their time frame when they find this. If you're hearing this broadcast, I wish you wasn't there hearing it, but I want to encourage you, I want. I never preached like this before. But if you're listening to this broadcast and it's the tribulation, I want to encourage you. And we've already prayed for you. I want I want to encourage you to hold out to the end, hold out to the end. You see, we didn't know the exact day or month or hour, but they're going to know this is 42 months at tops. The last three and a half years. They'll know when the Antichrist goes in, when you get word that the Antichrist goes into the temple and the abomination of desolation takes place, and he sets up an image, you know, you have no more than 42 months.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
So if you look in my cabinet there, there are some crackers. And some other stuff that I'm going to leave around. Praise God! I don't mean to be kidding, I'm just saying. But this is actually going to take place. This is going to take place. And so this is the message during tribulation to hang on, hang on, the king is coming, the kingdom is going to be set up and he's coming back. So and the angels are crisscrossing the nations now he says, so when you verse 15, we're back in Matthew verse 15. Wherefore when you therefore see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet. Now this is Jesus talking, standing in the holy place. Whosoever readeth, let him understand. So Jesus is speaking to people after you're gone once again, because your Bible is not going to rapture and he's going to be speaking to people right here, and they'll read you who are here. Hang on. You are here. Don't give up. He's coming. He'll save you and he's going to come set up his kingdom. And he is will come back with him. So we know these two witnesses are eventually killed. Whoever they are, they're eventually killed. And they're lying in the street. Well, we're laying you know, we're we for a number of years now, you could turn on your TV. And just like this morning, I was watching, you know, Israel go across and tanks and and bomb Hamas, which has set up their headquarters underneath the hospital.

Pastor West:
Like all cowards do, with tunnels going into the hospital underneath and from the underneath into the hospital so that, you know, people who are who are Antichrist, Antichrist instead of Christ would do stuff like that. In other words, they're counting on you. Being merciful and humane and sane would never bomb the sick and the and the the dying or the children. So they set up their, you know, as a as a shield of protection, a hospital of all places. Well, I've been praying each and every day for those people, and I'm sure that you are too. And there's a way to rescue all of them. And there's a way that God will deliver the evil into our hands, into their hands there in Jerusalem now, so that we know that the two witnesses are eventually killed, and the Antichrist and the false prophet, and we'll get to him later. There's a lot of false people running around the Antichrist and the false prophet. They're having a party. They're like, we have killed the two witnesses. I mean, we we have done the big deal, man. We have. Really. We pulled it over. These two people who's been a thorn in our side. Look at them. They're dead and they're in the street. And then they hang them, even though they're dead. And they will not let you take their, their, their bodies off the off the street because they want you to see that they are absolutely dead.

Pastor West:
So they keep cameras on them around the world so the whole world can see these two witnesses are dead. There's going to be a little problem that because the cameras still rolling and three days later, they're kind of like a pattern. Jesus rose after how many wet days? Oh, that was three. They said, let's do that again. So three days later, they just rise up and say me back. Woohoo! Me back. And then they ascend like Jesus did into there and then and then excuse me for saying this, but then the Antichrist, you know, pulls one of those rebirth things and says, oh, crap. And so here they are, raised up in the air and game on, baby, game on. And so yeah, they were partying. But then the cameras revealed everything. So the future is so bright. I mean, God has made the future so bright and glorious that you can't hardly even make this stuff up, even during the Great Tribulation. He's made it really awesome. And so then verse 16 in your Bible, are you still there? Then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains. Verse 17, let them which is on the housetop not come down to take anything out of the house, neither let him which is in the field return back to get his clothes.

Pastor West:
Verse 19. And woe unto them that are with child. And to them that give soccer nurse in those days. Now let me stop. Did I mention y'all were in heaven? Okay, I just want to make sure I mentioned that before. Verse 20, but pray you that your flight not be in winter, neither on the Sabbath day. Now he's writing to the Jews about the Daniel's 70th week. Now, don't take this because you're here this morning, but you know, it's not writing to the Jews, because on the Sabbath day, there's no Jew leaving nowhere. You can't hold a gun to a Jew's head to make him not be in the temple. But you give a Christian three day holiday. You won't see him at church for weeks moving around. That's every pastor would be your life. Just head off when he reads that scripture like American. Oh, yeah. We got a Jew. You could put a knife to his throat. Ain't no way you're going to leave the temple. So we go on verse 21 for then moving right along just makes me feel better. Say that, for then there shall be great tribulation, such as the world, not since the beginning of the world for this time, nor shall it ever be. Verse 22. And except those days would be shortened. There should be no flesh be saved. But for the elect sake the Jews, those days shall be shortened.

Pastor West:
Then if any man shall say unto you, lo, here is Christ, or there, believe it not, I'm telling you, if you listen to this teaching, you'll hear this. There'll be many people who come in his name, and they'll say, lo, come here. Christ is here because there's going to be people doing signs and wonders. In other words, Lucifer through the Antichrist is going to be setting people up and it'll look like they're doing than they are. They are they're doing miraculous things by his power. But it's not Christ. So don't go there. Stay where you are. So he says, they'll say, come see. But believe it not, believe it not. Verse 24, for there shall arise false Christ and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders, insomuch that if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Okay. Verse 25. Behold, I told you before, and then verse 26, wherefore if they shall say unto you, behold, he is in the desert, go not forth. Think about this. Why would Jesus be telling us all this? If he's answering the disciples questions and they're not there and we're not here. This is an instruction for whoever's reading the scripture and for the ones who are listening to the broadcast just like this. Don't go into the desert. Behold, he is in the secret chamber. Do not believe that. Verse 27. For as the lightning comes out of the east, and shineth even unto the west.

Pastor West:
So shall also the coming of the Son of Man be. So he's telling them he's coming back to set up his kingdom. That's what he's doing. And in the rapture we leave here. We go to be with him. In the rapture. We got to be with him. And when we come back with him in the Second Coming, we come back with him. We go to be with him in the rapture. But in the Second Coming we come back with him on a white horse. Verse 28 for wheresoever the carcass is, there were the eagles be gathered. Now what's that about? Well, there's going to be maybe dead bodies all over the planet, and there will be a great slaughter of people, and the fowl of the air will be there to do the cleanup job. The Lord thought of everything. Verse 29, immediately after the tribulation, those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. And this is believed to be the the evil powers of the heavenlies. In other words, the satanic realm of the power of the air that will be shaken out. Now, what about the church? Well, what's for the church? Well, the New Testament letters are for the church. When God speaks to you, he's speaking to you through the letters of the church.

Pastor West:
So we'll end this morning with these two things. Romans five nine tells you much more. Then maybe you ought to see this. Romans five nine much more then. Being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. God is speaking to you through the letters. You. You've been justified. By his blood. If you've been justified by his blood, you shall be saved from wrath. Through him. Well, you say, what are you trying to tell us? The church will not endure the wrath. The church will not endure the wrath. The revelation 617 says, and this is the sixth seal is opened. This is verse 17 617. This is after the sixth seal is opened. For the great day of his wrath has come. And who shall be able to stand? But this is not the church. This is for the Jewish people, and this is for the people on the planet that did not leave in the rapture. So they cannot they they it says, in other words, when this day of great wrath has come, who shall be able to stand? Well, that will be the message that will be preached by the 144,000. They'll preach Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the Savior of the world. The two witnesses will preach. The converts, I believe, will preach. Of the 144,000 angels once again will crisscross the nation preaching Jesus Christ and tell him he's coming back soon.

Pastor West:
Endure to the end. When? The close this morning. Finishing where I started. First Thessalonians five nine says, For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. So we'll we're going to set a chronological order as we go forward, you know, in the Second Coming and the battle of Armageddon, the millennium. And on forums such as this, we need to have greater understanding so that we can minister to people, help them along the way, help them to understand in times of great tribulation, like the world is in right now, and continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, its safety, its protection. I'm telling you, this thing is unfolding so fast. It is going so fast. This is the time not to slow down. This is the time to pick up your pace. This is not a time to lay back. This is time to get up. This is not a. This is not a time to be timid. This is a time to preach like you never have before. Jesus Christ is coming back now. He is coming back soon. Can I get a lot better? Amen than that. Jesus Christ is coming back. Are you ready? Well, if you're ready, then you have. You know, he says, when you see these things happen, he says, don't be sorrowful. He says, look up. Your redemption draws real nigh. Amen. God bless you.

I know, I said. And I will walk with you. Knowing you'll see me through. You and I see.

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The Antichrist & The Tribulation | 22Oct2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

The Antichrist & The Tribulation | 22Oct2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Praise God. You may be seated. Good morning. How are y'all? Great. How's the rest of y'all? Let me ask the third. How are y'all on the balcony and overflow room? You know, Jesus makes everything wonderful. Yes. Amen. Do you know that? He's. He's just. And he's right. The scripture says that the throne of God is established on two principles righteousness and justice. And he'll get your justice because he's right. And when he gives a verdict, it's right. You say, well, not everyone believes it doesn't change that. He's right. He's just right. And heaven's going to be just right. And you're going to be so glad that you went there. Amen. Well, we're glad that you're here this morning. We had a good time yesterday morning with the men. Our theme was The Uncommon Man. But really, we have uncommon people here today. You know, God uses ordinary people, but when you get born again, you're just not ordinary anymore. Amen. I mean, you just ask the Lord you. One time when he ran out of horses, when he outran the king's horses. I mean, the storm was coming up, and. And the king said, we better get out of here. I think the king probably had the best horse. He didn't have a broken down mule. And the spirit of the Lord came upon him. And he says, you know, we really should get out of here. And he passed. He passed the king and his horses, I mean, making a go for it.

Pastor West:
I wonder if that look like, you know, you say, well, he wasn't 18. He was up in the years. So age has nothing to do with it. But the spirit of the Lord was upon him. We'll go back. This is our number two. We're talking. You can call it in in times, whatever you want to call it. But the revelation. But the revelation, it actually tells you, you know, in the, in the very first chapter because, you know, there's several components to it that we'll talk about it, but it starts off and tells you this is not about the devil. This is the revelation of Jesus Christ, not about the devil. Now, he's mentioned in here in the beast is mentioned here, the Antichrist is mentioned in here, several characters in here. And today we're going to be talking about the Antichrist and the seven year tribulation. We can all exhaust all that in one teaching. But we're going to we're going to we're going to leave the dock today and we'll, you know, we'll go out so far as we can go today. But this is the revelation of Jesus Christ. It says, who gave himself to his servants things which he told them, things which must shortly come to pass. And he went and signified it by his angel unto his servant John. And so we we talked about, you know, last week, we know Jesus is coming sooner than he was yesterday.

Pastor West:
Someone said, well, we don't know the exact day or the hour. Well, you might you might wake up one morning and says, I don't even know why I know this, but today is the day. You might not be able to say, it's 1147. He said, When Jesus comes, it'll be it'll be dark and light. Well, what does that mean? Well, it meant it meant that somewhere in the world it's light. Somewhere else, it's dark. So on both sides of the world, they'll both be right. For some, he'll come in the night, and for some he'll come in the noonday. So it could be today. So I'd better pay attention. Amen. Amen. He might ask you, did you have any notes today? I'd like to see your notes for before we can let you come in. You're like, oh, I didn't know I'd have to have that. But just. First Thessalonians chapter four. We left you last week raptured. There are some groups who want to stay here. Or they will stay through half of it. They want to go through the, you know, they want to go post trip and then others want to stay here for for the whole seven. They don't want to, but they feel like, you know, we're supposed to. They they see they see other scriptures different way. Whatever they believe won't change the word. Whatever you and I believe won't change the world.

Pastor West:
I mean, you could say, well, I don't believe God always was. Well, that won't really won't change whether he was or not. What? You can say, well, I don't know if God is really omniscient, knows everything. What would that change anything about him? His IQ won't increase or decrease because of what we believe, so we'll just choose to believe the word right? But we kind of left you in heaven. How many are for being raptured? In First Thessalonians chapter four and we'll start in verse 13 through 18, I'm just going to dive in there from last week and then we'll pick up this week. It should be that verse 13 I'm reading from the ESV says, but we don't want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep. That you may not grieve as others do, who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus. God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and who are left until the calling, the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ shall rise first.

Pastor West:
Those who are alive, those who are left, will be caught up together with him in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore I said last week, therefore scare one another with these words. So it just scares me to hear about the end times. No, he's talking to believers here. He says, do what? Encourage one of these with these words. Now we know this and we'll just make a few points. So for for the rapture, the signs of the rapture, there's absolutely not one sign for the rapture. There's tons of signs. They're signals, but there's no signs. All the signs that you read in Matthew 24 and 25 is not for the rapture. It's for the Second coming. So in the rapture, we go to meet him in the air, right? The Bible says, in the clouds we rise from the earth. Go meet him in the air. Then we go to be with the Lord. And then we're in heaven for seven years when he comes. So when we hear, when we read Matthew 2425, other places like that, the book of Luke he's talking about when we come back in the Second Coming. And so we'll, we'll he'll descend and he won't actually touch the planet. You might say, well, go to be with him. Then he'll come down and he'll descend to Mount Olivet and we'll come with him.

Pastor West:
We'll be with him forever. And so. So while the worst time in human history is ever going to take place during those seven years, which the Bible says, if God didn't cut it one day short, not one person on the planet would survive. That's got to be bad. In other words, if he goes seven years, that'd be 84 months. If he goes 84 months and a day, there's nothing to come back to. That's not a that's not a recession or depression. That's not just nuclear. That's that's a complete meltdown. So we know that that when you read the scriptures revelations, you'll find out when you put them all together. It looks like basically there's about 8 billion people on the planet today. Don't know what the percentage will be. I hope everyone will go, but we know everyone won't go. If you read the scripture, you know they don't all go. And so we our job is to tell the story, to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. Give everyone the opportunity to go. I mean, sometimes it's okay just to push the envelope just a little bit. If you knew the Lord was coming this afternoon and we knew that somehow we got the word right now we would just pray and close down and say, I'll see you. I'll see you there in a few hours. And we would all go out and be Paul Revere, wouldn't we? Would you get a little aggressive with somebody? I mean, if they were just like I said, I had to way to prove it to you.

Pastor West:
But I know he's coming. He's coming tonight at 715. And man, you ain't God. And how many you get on the verge of in their face? How many? You might even take Smith and Wesson with you. You believe? Sucker. Now I'm trying to save your life. Well, I mean, it's got to be from their heart. I'm just saying we would get aggressive. I wonder why the church doesn't ever get in that mode anyway. Because they think, well, you know, one day. Well, one day he'll come. And if you never got to that place, it never happens. So we have a job to do, you know, like Joe Morris says, he says we're in the fourth quarter. He says. And when he gives an analogy of football, he said, when you're in football and you get down to two minutes and if you're you're 17 points behind, you got to throw the playbook aside. I mean, you know, you're you're going to have to run plays that, you know, that you wouldn't normally run and you got to do the clock and you got to get to the bounds, and you got to get out, because you ain't got two timeouts and you got to throw passes when you may not be that great a passer, and you got to do things that you don't normally do because it's not.

Pastor West:
It's only because this you're running out of time. So it may not be how you would start the game. It may not be your strategy for the middle of the game. But in the last few minutes we throw the playbook out because time is running out. And so we're at that time now. So sometimes things happen in the world, like what's happening right now. I mean, who would want to be a people on the live on earth who would want to attack Israel? How would you like to be on that side? Attacking God's God's people? You know, that just didn't go good for you. That does not go good for you at all. And so some say, well, why would we study so much about the Antichrist? Because if we're not going to be here and then the whole seven years, then what's the big deal? Because we're not going to meet him because we need to give answers to people so they will know. And you actually will see him because you're coming back at the end. When this whole thing gets wrapped up. I mean, you're you're only going to know who he is for a day. Well, actually, it's about 60 minutes. About 60 minutes. Hollywood never put anything out like this. It'll be about 60 minutes and the whole thing will be over when we get back.

Pastor West:
So I just thought I'd tell you a little bit about him today. He's the worst thing this planet will ever know. And if you took the Adolf Hitlers and the Mussolinis and all the terrorists and all dictators who's ever tried to rule the world, and you rolled them all up into one like a burrito, and you multiply them times 100, they they'd come out like a little whip pump to what this guy's going to come out like. And he's going to come out with great understanding of Scripture. It gives you an indication of what you may. You think, he says, and he doesn't go the way of his family. It gives you an indication that if I can use the word religious, his family was. But he won't go that way. And it says he has no use for women. Which makes you wonder. Maybe he's got some other preferences. That's just speculation here and there. That doesn't really matter. But the reason why we want to talk about this, other than that, we need to know it. He is the Jesus is the central figure of the Bible. But other than that, this is the false Messiah. It is false messiahs today and so we don't. The Antichrist, someone said, well, could he be alive today? Well, absolutely. And and if you're at the end, he is already on the earth. I don't know if he's a teenager. I don't know if he's a 40 year old man because this thing may trigger off next Tuesday or today.

Pastor West:
So he's he's he won't come on as a teenager. He'll be an adult. He won't come across as some kind of satanic madman. He'll come across as a skilled diplomat. Skilled. The fools, the very elect of God who's left here. So. But the Bible says, but you need to understand these things, he says, because you have the spirit of Antichrist working now. So I'm not saying the Antichrist has showed his cards yet and come on the scene yet, but you have the spirit of him already in the earth. So if we could get a seat, if we could look and see what that looks like, then we could recognize it. Well, if you just had a TV, you've been watching any for the last two weeks. You know, you have you have an an evil regime. And and I hope I stay on Facebook today. Praise the Lord. But I'm going to say what I'm going to say, whether we whether we go dark on the screen or not. Because time is changing. Everything's changing. Everything's changing. You know, it's. We are living in times that probably the mass population doesn't even know these things, nor do they recognize them, or they give them any place whatsoever to even recognize the signals that you're at the end that you thought could never happen in the United States of America.

Pastor West:
You thought it would happen in countries, you know, with evil dictators or communist countries and such as that. And then when you get into all these little groups and you think, well, that's just some crazy people picking this and all that. It's much bigger than that. It's just not an isolated location. When you have the beginning of a police state and you think, well, what's that? Well, I'd like to stay on there, so I'll just go real easy about that. Just. But when you can see what happens, when you can see what's happening to a former president, and you're sitting there watching it and you're thinking, how could that be happening? How could that not be illegal? How could someone who comes against who Donald Trump run against for president a female, if I don't call him names, maybe won't show up. But when he ran against her, there's people who have said things about her on a social platform who is serving time in prison. They didn't speak to her. And arrested, not making threats about her, just speaking things that they know to be true of her. And they're in prison. There's no jury. There's no court case. You just. You're on the list. And because you're on the list, they pick you up. That's a police state. That is a police state. And when someone comes to Washington and they're going to attack the. That that. See, that's deep and wide and corruption.

Pastor West:
Believe me, you woke up a sleeping giant. So they're doing all they can to make sure this man won't exist any longer, much less come to the prize of the United States. I'm not. I'm not campaigning for anyone. I'm telling you, the spirit of Antichrist is in the earth. And so, you know, we won't be here with him. And I will tell you some things about him from the scripture that tells you he's serious. No one in history has ever seen the evil that this one person who was the false Messiah will bring to this planet. And. But I'm telling you, his spirit is already here. Has always been here. But it's in greater measure than ever before. And if we sleep through it. And that's what he wants you to do is just not recognize. And you think, well, that's just way over there. Well, yeah, it may be true in some sense of that word when you say, well, it's way over there, just like, you know, you're not going to build a snowman there on a desert. It just can't happen. It won't exist. And but, you know, you're not going to go sunbathing, you know, at the North Pole either. That doesn't work there either. But these things are just coming closer and closer and closer. And then when you see what we went through, you know, and, you know, from, from the pandemic, I mean, I'm sorry, a pandemic then, then you then you see how you see people now getting out of certain cities and they're wanting to come.

Pastor West:
The South is becoming much more popular. Because people getting out who never thought they could lose their business, never thought pastors who never thought someone could tell them your church is officially shut down. Yeah, but we know. No, but but but the Constitution says so. So you're shut down. That's prison or shut down. You think. But you can't do that. You're on the list and then you don't see or hear from them. So you don't really know about it. But these things are happening everywhere. They're happening everywhere. And, you know, there wasn't signs of it that you could really see, you know, going back, you know, a couple of decades ago, no one was. But, you know, when you got the development of social media, you know, my generation saw the internet coming in, you know, and we had electricity, you know, we had all that. So you want to get me off service? We had electricity, praise Lord. But so that's a lot of change. Well, Daniel tells you that the generation who lives during a time where there's so much advancements in technology, I mean, I was I got on my phone for historical dates when I was visiting a cemetery where some relatives are. I was trying to put some dates together, and I was just sitting there thinking, well, now see? Okay, there's my grandmother.

Pastor West:
And there's her mother. So I called my mother and I says, you know, I don't know, you know, why he even ask these questions? Who? Who's whose? Granny's mother. Mother. She says. She told me and I said, well. She's from Alabama. She says, where are you at? I said, I told her, I said, I'm at so-and-so church. And she says, get back in your car. And she says, go about a mile to the next church. And that's where her mother is. You know, you go down there and they're born 18, 40, 50 something. My grandmother was born in 1904. She married a man born in 1895. Her mother was born, you know, 1870 something, 1880, something like that. Well, I mean, Barbara would have been a little bit older. I mean, I think I was she died, what, 90? No gravy. 75. So I would have been 13. And you had been in the fullness of all knowledge. You would have been 18. Yeah. We was ruling the world. Well, if you just go back one more grandparent, you got the making of this nation. You know. You used to make my grandmother my grandmother, not great grandma, but. But my great grandmother. So mad. You talk about NASA would. Come on, you know, if they were doing a shuttle here and shuttle that she just didn't believe that she didn't like it.

Pastor West:
She turned that off. I said, what about that? That ain't happening. She said. They ain't going anywhere, she says. She says, you know what that is? Well, I mean, you know, she she she plowed with a horse and mule, as did my she had four daughters and my mother being one of those. So their dad would never was home. He, he partook a strong drink all the time. So you got four girls who's just basically working and living to survive. And so she didn't have time for any foolishness. So she said, she just said, well, I'm saying she's never traveled out. This is the grandmother. So she my grandmother. So she says that's that's somewhere on Red mountain. Well, when you're when you're when you're getting there by walking or riding a horse, you ain't seen Red mountain much. Much less let the state. And she said, that's just some kind of make believe thing. There's no such thing as a rocket. Or, you know, she said, God don't want you to fly. Don't tend you for the fly. Well, well, you know, even the well, you know, they had a vision of air and, you know, Henry Ford and they said, you know, God, you know him before he was chastised, you know, for even trying to invent the automobile. They said, God wants you to go that fast. You know, he said, they said, man is not designed to go over 30 miles an hour because he would suffocate with the wind down.

Pastor West:
I was going down the interstate 65 and 459, and I was going the speed limit. Someone passed by me like I was hitting that stop sign. And I'm thinking, well, I know you're speeding because it was like, and I'm like, I'm doing speed limit. So. But he did look like he was suffocating. With the nation that's alive. Who says so? Just ask anyone who's. 60 plus 7080. How how much have changed have you seen in the world? I'm just talking about technology. I'm not talking about the good, the bad. I'm just talking about technology. I mean, this, this little. Phone looks like a TV camera. I won't never get one this big again, but that's that's basically $1,000, right? Or more. Now in the lease function it does is call. You can make a phone call on this. Now you say I'm going to get me a phone. Now you're really going to buy a computer that you can make a call on. And there's a lot of great advantages to them. We're able to broadcast around the world. If we didn't even have that camera, we just use this one. So there's great advantages to them, but this close to the borders in much more. So it's a lot easier for people to know who you are and what you're doing because you have one of these that even when they're turned off, they're not really turned off.

Pastor West:
Because if you have a Facebook account or stuff like that, you can talk about things with your phone in the room, sit down, and you ever notice within a few minutes the thing that you're thinking about buying, you're talking about pops up an ad on your phone. They already know, and they had to finally admit that your TV can listen and watch you while you're in the house. Am I still online? Okay. Very good. I'm talking about you. So I just stopped me a prison ministry. Hallelujah. But people need to hear. And they need to be warned. They need to know we're living in. I mean, I mean, wouldn't it make sense to you that the generation that's alive right before Christ comes back is looking kind of hairy out there? Right? I mean, if he was born in and lived in the 1950s, you know, I mean, I go back and watch TV and, you know, I don't know what it was like other than, you know, what I read. But, you know, if he was there during the 1950s and early 60s, you know, when Beaver Cleaver was on, I mean, it looked, you know, like pretty good. You know, it just I don't think that's the way life was just because they all dressed that way, you know, and she'd come home like. I mean, she lived every day, you know.

Pastor West:
What was her name? June. Yeah, I mean, she I mean, she just worked around the house like she's going to a dress party all the time, you know? And it was just everything was in its place and proper. And I know everyone didn't live like that, but, you know, if you just go back. In other words, when I was in school, I could remember one of the things that people got in trouble for all the time was chewing gum in class. And you have to write lines. Of course, there were people fighting and fussing and carrying on about stuff like that. And, you know, you had the unruly all the time, but there was a lot of people who had to write gums or write lines for chewing gum in class, and we never had to write lines. And then we all. I had a friend who taught me how to use three pencils at one time. Did you all ever do that? She said, write 300 lines. I got to where I could take three pens and I write out, you know, so that was. But then the teachers learned that. So she said, give me 600 lines. And then I thought, well, if I could just but you couldn't read, you go with this one. But anyway, it changed. So the good news for the believers is it's all good news. Amen. Now, let me let me get to today and we'll move on.

Pastor West:
I know I'm going to give you some. We're not going to turn to all the scriptures for sake of time, but I want you to have Scripture. I don't want to say, well, pastor, I said this, so it must be that way. I don't ever want you to take that away from me. So I'll make some statements and we'll we'll take time to read some of them, but I will give you the scriptures for it. So here's a statement. So revelation 13, there's a lot of information about the Antichrist in that chapter. We'll read some of these verses after a while, especially during the last three and a half years of the of human history on the planet. Revelation 13 gives you a description of who he is. It gives you a great description of his agenda. It gives you a great description of his strategy for the whole seven year period of the tribulation. The Holy Spirit is a real person. He's flesh and blood. Now this is this. The word Antichrist comes from two Greek words anti and Christos. Ante is a preposition which can mean either to substitute, to be in the place of, or to be in opposition of, or to be against. So ante something right? If you're ante, then it could mean a substitute. But a lot of times ante, you think about being in opposition to rather than in place of or to be against something.

Pastor West:
If you're ante something on a political platform, you'd be ante this platform because of your beliefs and their beliefs, or they don't line up. They're against each other. Christos Christ means the anointed one, so anti Christ. So the anti Christ is against. He wants to be the substitute in place of and he's against the Christ. And that spirit is working in the earth right now. He's anti Christ who is attacking Jerusalem, who's attacking Israel, anti the spirit of Antichrist. Now we would say Hamas. That'd be true. That's the term you put it in. But who's really doing the attack. The anti Christ, not the Christ the anti Christ. And so. The one who will come and whoever the Antichrist is. He's not. He's not doing this right now, but his the spirit of him is is the one who's attacking ultimately, is Satan, right? We're not wrestling with flesh and blood. We're wrestling against him. Principalities and powers. So Satan has structure and authority and organization. He got it from God. That's where he learned it in heaven. You ever read revelation? Said there was a war in heaven. You know how it went. We didn't go. Good for him. And he's going to make a big splash right here. This is like a guy who's like £450 jumps in the pool. They're going to move some water around. Am I going to get wet? But ultimately, when I get to the end of this in just a few minutes, like a fire brimstone.

Pastor West:
But he's going to make a big splash and a lot of people are going to lose their lives. He's going to save even the most elect. But his spirit, the one who of deception. He is the false Messiah. He is the one who will be handpicked by Satan himself. He will be the puppet of the puppet master. And so he will be the one who flesh. He will be the flesh and bone of the false Messiah, the Antichrist himself. Just the puppet. And so. But he'll be in a flesh suit. Okay, so now, Antichrist, you put those two words, they they form a new word that describes a people or a religious system that acts as a counterfeit or in opposition to Jesus, God's anointed one. The Antichrist will be the most powerful world leader in the history of all mankind. And so we're going to talk just a little bit about him. He'll he will come across and he will be seemingly very brilliant. The most evil political leader in human history is what they will find out, not in the beginning of his reign, but through the middle of it. They'll find out just how evil this person is. He will be a military genius. He will be an oratorical genius. His speech will convince and move masses of people across the planet. He will be absolutely a political genius, mind.

Pastor West:
He'll be an economic genius. He'll be a religious genius. He'll be. He's well versed in Scripture and in religious doctrine. He is a genius of the occult. He understands all these things very well. I mean, you know, the devil knows Scripture. The devil knows more Scripture than most Christians do all put together. He just doesn't use them the way that you need to use them. The devil will tell you what the Bible says. He'll quote the word to you. He'll just twist it. He'll in other words, he'll he'll pervert it. He'll just give you a whole different look at it. You know, God said so and so. And God did say that. But. But he's not working for your benefit. He's taken the Scripture and twisted it, just like any of us can take. You know? That's why you need to pay attention. Just don't go to church and hit the clock and say, well, we did that. Well, I could just pull something from the Book of Maps, and I can go over here to the index and I can go to Leviticus, and I can go to revelations, and I can come back and dip in the pistols. And now and I can put four different things together and make the Bible say whatever I want to say. And that happens sometimes every Sunday in pulpits. And you have people whose, you know, they're not students of the Bible.

Pastor West:
So they'll say, well, it must be so. Preacher said it. Well, just because the preacher said it don't mean it. So. Huh? Mean, I have notes of things that I've taught that I burned. In other words, I was walking in the light of what I had, but now I don't agree with myself. I'm like, I'm sorry, I apologize. I saw what I saw for that day and that's that's wrong. I can at least respect someone who does that. You know, to say, you know, I watched someone. I won't mention the name because you all would know him a pastor of anyway. Anyway, so he he had to say what I'm doing wrong and now this is the right way. But he didn't really apologize for it. He just said, you know, I had to go down this road to get to this one. Well, you did you? I mean, you said he said you have to go down. You have to go down that road to ever get to this one, even though that was wrong. That's just like saying I got to be a homosexual before I can be straight. I mean, to me, I mean, that's just the way I think. I just like, I've got to be an alcoholic before I can know how to live sober. I got to be a drug dealer. I have to go to prison, so I don't have to be in one.

Pastor West:
Do you have to do that? Do you have to be anti-Christ before you become. No, you don't have to. That's just a choice. Most people are living their choices, not their destiny. I mean, sometimes you may have a kid that goes straight or a grandkid or whatever. They're not. They're not living their destiny. They're just living. Today's choice. The problem that child has, I don't care what age they are, is because Mom and Dad has already seen them. They can't get the seed off. See. Don't rot. It's incorruptible. So even while they're running around looking like hell, you're acting like all this. That cedes all the time. Just talking to them. And the hardest time they have was at night time. You can try and drink it away. You drug it away. Snort it away. Shoot it in. Take it out. Whatever and you can't get rid of. My mother told me one time at 16. She said, why don't you just give up? She said, because I don't care how. She says you like speed. You like this. You hanging out with these? She says, I'm seeing where you're at. I'm thinking you can't see me. Then she told me what she saw. I'm like, I can't. No one knows that. But you and God. Oh my God. I mean, just me and God. It sounds like, oh my gosh. And I was like, wow, thanks. Of course it landed me grounded for a half a year.

Pastor West:
She said, you might as well give up because she said, you'll never outrun my prayers. Well, I can tell you she was right. She was right. I didn't like it when she said that I was 16. You know, she's trying to make me be some kind of preacher. I ain't gonna be no preacher. I mean, my gosh, what do I want to do something like that for? I said, I said, I'm going to have a real life. As I said, why do you think I'm going to be a preacher? She said, well, the Lord told me he was. I said, mom, I, I guess that's just something that you really want when your kids do. I said, but I'm not going to do that. She said, what do you think you're going to do? I said, well, I just something normal. I'm going to get out and I got connections. I'm going to get on with the power company, and I'm going to work as backup. And, you know, I'm going to go to church, you know, I'm going to go to church, I'm going to I'm a Christian. I won't be a Christian. I'm going to love God. I'm going to raise my kids in church. You know, I'm going to help people and I'm going to die and go to heaven. But I don't know, you got this thing about wanting a kid as a minister, a preacher.

Pastor West:
I said, that ain't mom. It just ain't going to happen. She said, okay. She said. You're still grounded for half a year. She said, don't do the crime if you can't pay the time. Well, she got the last laugh, you know, and that's kind of the way it went. Well, this this guy that's coming, you see, he's all these things wrapped in one. But he's a master deceiver. So we won't turn there. But. And after the rapture of the church, you see the church is removed. And I think I was telling you last week, you don't see any mention of the church past. Revelation chapter four. To verse 19. Because the ones who say that we're going to be here, they're sometimes I'll study both sides because I say, I want to hear your point. I wouldn't suggest everyone do that until you're well versed in some things, but, but but I'm kind of like reverse engineering. I'll take it apart because I want to know how it works. And so I'll take your doctrine. But I will match it up against this. And I want to see how your doctrine works. And and and I can see some validity of what they're saying. But it's like so when you read that that's what you saw. Yeah. Well, yeah, but God didn't take the people in the ark off the earth. He took the other people out, but he.

Pastor West:
But he didn't take them off the earth. I said it wasn't time for them to go nowhere. He kept my point. His point was was solemn and solemn. Gamar lot and his family, except for salty, his wife. She she she she was a lot of trouble, I just tell you. And. Anyway. The goal wasn't to translate them to heaven, was it? It was to protect them when destruction came. So every time there's been major destruction. Sodom and Gomorrah. You know, the flood gods always came in, and he, you know, go back to Egypt. You know, when the death angel came. God had a plan, didn't he? Told Moses what to do. When the death angel came. Who? Who didn't lose any people that night? Israel. Why? They were protected because of the blood. To be a type and shadow of the blood that will come not over your doorpost, but over your heart. Your heart. So no wrath came to those people. Because when wrath came, God protected the people. And the revealer. I mean, he's not been revealed yet who he is, and he can't come do what he wants to because the Bible says he's being restrained. And so he can't he can't play his hand yet because he's, he is restrained from acting out his will till this day now. So when that day comes, God comes. He takes us off the planet. So we find in Romans chapter four, actually, you can't find the church anywhere.

Pastor West:
You can. You can find it in revelation one two he wrote the churches, you know, to the seven churches. He wrote a letter to each one. But after that you can't find the church anywhere from chapter four of revelation to chapter 19, when we're coming back with him. And the reason why he is you can't find the church one time in revelation 419 is because you're not here for any of that. You're there, you're with Jesus. You're with your family. You're at the marriage supper of the lamb. You're at the reward seat of Christ. You're being rewarded. While the worst time in human history has ever taken place right here. Revelation four doesn't record you because you're simply not here. Isn't that good news? That's good news. Comfort. Not scare. We know those words, but comfort one another with those words. Okay, let me move on. So. So revelation four one says, after this I looked and behold, there was a door standing open in heaven. Revelation five says in verse 13 it says, and I heard every creature in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth and in the sea, and all them that in them saying to him who sits on the throne, and to the lamb, be blessing, and honor, and glory, and might forever and ever. That you're part of the people on the throne who's saying this? And revelation? So revelation four were there.

Pastor West:
Revelation five were around the throne, and we're saying 10,000 times, 10,000 times, 10,000 times ten. I mean, you know, billions of people who sits on the throne to the lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever. Revelation six the Antichrist comes riding on a white horse. Some people says Jesus is not Jesus and this is the beginning of the tribulation. Revelation chapter six. And like I said, he's he's he's he's a man. He's not a machine. And he's nothing more than Satan's demonic Messiah. All that he is now in Daniel eight, if you're making notes in Daniel eight, verses 24 and 25, I'm going to be in the ESV and I'll move through this quickly. But I'm just trying to give you a timeline of what happens here. This is the Antichrist. His power shall be great. But not only his own, but not only by his own power he shall cause fearful destruction, and he shall succeed in what he does and destroy mighty men and the people who are the saints. Next verse. By his cunning he will make deceit prosper under his hand, and in his own mind he shall be great. In his own mind he shall be great. I kind of saw that gardein, didn't you? In his own mind, he's pretty great. Yeah, in his own mind, he's pretty great. So you can you can see the character of this guy.

Pastor West:
You know, this is the Antichrist. This is. This is who Satan who has picked. And he's found someone just like him. And who thinks he's great. Remember how Satan wanted to exalt himself above the God's throne? Well, you must think you're pretty great when you tell God, hey, I'm taking over. I mean, I'm glad we get to see him for a day when we come back that, you know, the Ezekiel 38 war, because, I mean, that's like I've never met someone yet who who said, I'm tell God I'm taking over. I've seen people with that attitude, but just I mean, can you imagine? I mean, Lucifer actually told God we are exalting our throne above yours. Basically, we're taking over. And the Lord said, okay, when you want to start, he says, I guess now. And the Lord said, it kicks you in my head and said. What's for lunch? Maybe something like that. Well, so he says he, he shall. In his mind, he becomes great without warning. He shall destroy many, and he shall rise up against the Prince of princesses. Who's that? See. Jesus is the Prince, but we are the prince of the princesses. Hmm. And he shall be broken. But by no human hand. There'll be people being saved during during the tribulation. More than probably ever. I mean, it will be the greatest evangelism going on that you ever saw, because the the Jewish people is going to know instantly that Jesus was the Messiah.

Pastor West:
Many of them. And they're going to turn to Jesus. And so we just read that, so I won't. Second Thessalonians two if we're going there. Are you all doing the screen? Do do the ESV and second Thessalonians two, verses one through 12. And I'll read this. Quickly to you because it's important. I don't want to go so fast that we like. I don't even remember what he said, but we can't take a half a year to do this because we need to get to the the why we're here. Verse one. Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by spirit or by spoken word, or a letter seeming to come from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Verse three. Let no man deceive you in any way, for that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first. And the man of lawlessness, the man of lawlessness is one of the names of of the Antichrist is revealed. He's also called the Son of Destruction. He's also called the son of perdition. In verse four. Watch this. Who opposes Antichrist? Remember instead of. Instead of. Who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called God or object or worship. So that he takes his seat in the temple of God, he will proclaim himself to be God.

Pastor West:
So this was written thousands of years ago, and the Lord tells you exactly what's going to happen in the future. No one can do that but God. He said he will come because he will oppose every force on the earth. Every religious person on the earth, and anyone that anyone's worshipping of any religion on the earth, he will oppose himself against any of them and he'll come into the seat. This is in the three and a half years where he he finally makes his he makes his big play and says the worship is over. I'm God. And so he'll he'll stop the the sacrifice of animals that will go on for the first three and a half years. He'll play up to it. He'll play with it. He'll he'll he'll allow it. But after three and a half years, he'll stop it. He'll go right in there. He'll have every Amos tore down that anyone worships. And he'll say, I'm God, you'll worship me. And if you'd like to eat, you'll take this mark. And otherwise you'll not be able to do any commerce or anything. So verse five, do you not remember that when I was with you I told you these things? Verse six, and you know what is restraining him now, so that he may be revealed in his time. He's so he's being restrained now. Now people say, well, it's us.

Pastor West:
We're doing it well. Well, yes and no, in the sense of who's who's actually restraining him as the Holy Spirit. He? I mean, the Satan's not waiting for by chance. He's not waiting for God to say it's time to go. Then he puts his plan into action. He would like to choose his own time. See, just natural things happen there. What's happening in Israel right now? That's that's him getting the jump on it and trying to get this thing because he he may think he's got his best shot right now. If there's like a team you're trying to win the championship. You're like, well we got the best players right now. So let's let's do it now. So he he tries to jump start this when he feels like he's in best shape to go do it. But the great Restrainer is the Holy Spirit. But but he lives in you. You're the light of the world. So darkness can't come and call the shots while lights in the world. But you're the light of the world. Because the Holy One is in you. And He's the Holy Spirit. He's not the unholy spirit. Amen. He's the Spirit of Christ. He's not the anti spirit of Christ. So you have nothing to fear. He's afraid of everything. That's why you don't have a spirit of fear. He has a spirit of fear. If you had his future, I'd be afraid to.

Pastor West:
So he's anti. He's anti everything that you stand for and you believe and hate you for it. He hates God and you're the object of his love, so he hates you with a passion. Because God has such a passionate love for you. It makes Lucifer. It makes Satan so mad. He hates you because God passionately loves you and gave his son for you. So every time he can hurt you, it's how he hurts. He thinks he hurts God. He comes after you, but his object is against him. Every time he can turn your head and get you to walk the other way and make that decision, that choice, he says, see there. See there? See there. You think they love you. You think you give them this unconditional love. Look what she does. Look what he does. You've got nothing down here. He's got. He's got a little attitude or a big attitude. But but here we see that he's being restrained. Now verse eight, and then the lawless one will be revealed. And the Lord Jesus will will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring nothing by the appearance of his coming. Now here we see that not only do we, we see that he's being restrained, but we see now that he comes, but he gives us a little indication that Jesus is basically just going to breathe fire. Scripture revelation says his eyes will be bright like fire.

Pastor West:
Jesus will and he'll just he'll open his mouth and we'll be with him when we come down. And he'll and it'll be the Ezekiel 38 war. And Jesus will open his mouth on his horse, and his eyes will be like fire. He'll and all them be consumed. I don't think we fight at all. We just like, whoa, you just see the whole show from your horse. You're like, giddy up, man. Let's go to Jimmy. And. He's like, wow. And you got all the birds. You know, the show up now in the Middle East, Israel. They got hundreds of migratory birds and all they do is they're carnivores and they just get fed so well for 184 miles of dead, of dead bodies. The Scripture says where the the blood flows in the streets up to the bridle of a horse. So we're there for that day. How about that? And with all the wicked, verse ten. Deception for those who are perishing because they refuse to love the truth. Oh, here it is. See? Do you see that spirit alive in the earth today? Those who refuse to love the truth and so they would be saved. Therefore, God sends them a strong delusion so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who not, who do not believe the truth but had pleasure. They have pleasure in unrighteousness. That's anti. You have pleasure. You have not.

Pastor West:
You have pleasure in unrighteousness. That's anti. So the Antichrist, he has several names. I'm only going to give you about 7 or 8 actually has 25 different names. Each one will depict a facet of his character. He's called the Antichrist. Of course, in first John two eight he's called the man of sin. The second Thessalonians two three he's called the son of perdition. Same Thessalonians two three he's called the lawless one. In second Thessalonians two eight he's called the beast of revelation 13 four he's called the little horn in Daniel seven eight he's called the vile. And Daniel 1121 he's called the willful king in Daniel 1136. And he's got many more names. So when he comes on the on the scene, like I say, he doesn't come as some kind of satanic madman. He comes as a skilled diplomat. That's how he introduces himself. And we know this an illustrated in Daniel eight. Are y'all. Are y'all okay? Am I going way too fast? Okay, Daniel 823 and 2523 says. And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance and understanding with dark sentences shall stand up. Now. So you're getting an introduction to him. So in the latter time of the kingdom, when the transgressions are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance and understanding of dark sentences shall stand up. Now, if you look up that phrase, dark sentences, it has a twofold meaning.

Pastor West:
It means trickery and craftiness. That's him. Right? The same Hebrew phrase was used. Dark sentences was used about the Queen of Sheba when she came to visit Solomon. Remember? And she looked at all his kingdom, and she said, wow. And then the Queen of Sheba asked Solomon hard questions, which is the same thing as dark sentences. So in the same manner, Daniel is telling us that the Antichrist, instead of in opposition to Christ, the Antichrist, will. He'll possess solutions, supposedly solutions to the world's hardest questions. He'll have the answers to dark, the dark sentences. Same thing. You know, when when the Queen of Sheba, she saw Solomon's kingdom and all his wisdom and all the glory and all that he had built the temple of God. She said, wow. And she had all these questions. It was the same thing as saying she had. How is this possible? How did you know this? How could you even have the wisdom to know how to do something like this? And so the the son of perdition, the Antichrist himself, the beast, the little horn, the willful king, the vile one, the man of sin, the man of perdition. He will have answers to the dark sentences he will be. He will have solution to the world's problems because they're going to have many. We're not here. They got they got to explain that. And it's not just the three of us are going to be gone.

Pastor West:
There's going to be a lot of people gone. And so he'll have answer to all those kind of things. And he'll have he'll have the he'll be a political genius. He'll understand religion, every part of it. He'll he'll have he'll have a he'll have an answer seemingly for every problem. And it'll be with such wisdom. They'll say, wow. Well, so they're being they're being deceived all the time. And so he'll he'll deceive them and navigate them through the most volatile situations. Now, here's just a few facts about the Antichrist. His entrance will be peaceful. He'll come on the scene. Peaceful. That's in Daniel 1121, it says, and in his estate he shall stand up as a vile person to whom they shall not give the honor of the kingdom. But the Antichrist shall come in peaceably. He'll come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by Flatteries. Boy, I wish I had time to talk about Flatteries, but I don't. And then she'll come in peacefully and he'll come in and it'll be a false flattery. And then it says, of course he'll be an orator. Genius. I mean, he'll he'll be his words will persuade everyone. And that's in Daniel seven eight. I won't stop to talk about that. But it says his mouth will speak great things. And then he brings temporary peace to the Middle East. In other words, he's going to broker a seven year deal with Israel or a peace treaty.

Pastor West:
That's Daniel 927, so that you'll know that. Then he sets forth the platform of change in Daniel 725. In verse 25, it says, and he shall speak words against the Most High, and he shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times, and he shall change their laws. So it comes on peaceably. But as time goes on marches forward. He begins to make changes. He begins to become more aggressive. He begins to be intolerant. He's already answered all our questions. He's already put out the fire, so to speak. It looks like he's the solution for the world's problems. But then he sets forth a platform, a change, and he changes. It says their times and their laws. Then, three and a half years into the peace treaty that he made, he breaks his own treaty. He breaks his covenant and he and he proclaims himself not to be a great man. He proclaims himself to be God. He's the puppet. Who's the puppet master? The devil just has his guy down there doing his bidding. And this is called, which is another. So it says, and he shall make a strong. This is Daniel seven 927. Daniel 927 ESV. It says, and he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week. That one week is Daniel's 70th week, that God still owes the Jews and won't get into all that right just yet.

Pastor West:
Because I can take side journeys and I'll get off my point. But, but, but this is Daniel's. You know, one week is talking about seven years here. And so the seven years, the seven year tribulation. That's Daniel's 70th week that God has promised the Jews. And for half of that week, they call it the Scripture calls it a half week. What they mean is the first 42 months or the first three and a half years, he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. That's what the Scripture says. He's going to put an end to that. We're not making sacrifices to God anymore because I'm him, I am God. Stop that. But he but he controls all commerce. He controls all political, all social. He controls the grocery line. And when you when you control the food line, you have control. You know, when you have oxygen and food you control. Do you see the setup for that in the earth today? Do you see that? Well, that's the spirit of this one who is actually going to be. So his spirits are already working in the earth. What is it here doing to you is desensitizing you to this one? So when he comes, no one even knows who he is. I mean, they don't even know who he is after we're gone. That ought to be a big clue. So if we don't recognize this one because of the spirit of him who's in the earth now, today.

Pastor West:
You can see how they're so deceived by when he comes and waxes eloquently. So how the Message Bible says halfway through the seven years he will banish worship and desecrate obscenity and and will set up and remain until finally the Desecrator himself is deceitfully destroyed himself. So we know destruction is the end for him. But at mid tribulation the Antichrist walks into the Jewish temple and he demands to be worshiped as God. Second Thessalonians two four tells you these things in the ESV of it says, second Thessalonians two four says, he opposes and exalts himself against every so-called God and object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. You don't. You don't have to understand revelation to understand Thessalonians de. He stops and says, that's it. There's no more worshipping anything or anyone, no object to be worshipped any longer. I am God, you will worship me. Then. You see the two terms, you hear the tribulation, tribulation, and then you hear the term the Great tribulation. You're familiar with that. And all it is, is just the last 42 months, the last three and a half years after he makes his play and changes the rules and says, I'm God, it intensifies on the earth so bad that if God doesn't come back, Jesus or we don't come back with Jesus.

Pastor West:
And the Second Coming. No. No person would survive it. So things great tribulation means it just intensifies. That's all it is. It's not. It's not two different kind of tribulations. It's bad. But after the last 42 months, it's really bad. See? Now, where will you be? Oh, that's right, you're in heaven. The marriage supper of the lamb, right? Huh? Yeah. Now the Antichrist watch here. He will be assassinated. He'll have the Scripture says he'll he'll have a bad head wound and he's apparently dies. But then he's brought back to life, which will be his fame. He's going to allow himself to be killed. And then the Lucifer, Satan's going to raise him back up from the dead. So that'll just like he has to be. This has to be. I mean, we see he's died. But he will be raised from the dead. Revelation 13 three says, and I saw. And I saw one of his heads, as it were wounded to death. And as his deadly wound was healed and all the world wondered after the beast, and they worshipped the dragon who gave power to the beast. And they worshipped the beast, saying, who is like unto him? Who is able to make war against him? And there was given unto him a mouth, speaking great things, and blasphemies, and power was given unto him to continue for 42 more months. That hard to understand.

Pastor West:
And he opened his mouth and blasphemy against God, to blaspheme God's name and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them. And power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues and nations. Verse eight, and all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him whose names are not written in the book of Life of the lamb slain from the foundation of the world. And he causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand or in their foreheads, and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Verse 18. Here is wisdom let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is six, and his six threescore and six, which is six, six, six. And without that number you're not going to buy, you're not going to sell, you're not going to. They're looking for you. And the man who takes the number. Who takes it in the forehead. The hand. He sealed his fate forever. You know that. So at this point, the mark of the beast will be instituted, and all those who refuse will be beheaded. How do we know that? Well. Revelation 24 says, and I saw these things.

Pastor West:
And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them. And I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshiped the beast, nor the image, nor the image, nor would they receive the mark upon their heads, their foreheads, or their hands, and they were beheaded. That's revelation 24. Is that hard to understand? Revelation 14 nine through 11. And I got a quote here. Revelation 14 nine through 11 says, in the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, if any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead and in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of the indignation. And he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the lamb. And the smoke of the torment ascends up forever and ever. And they have no rest day nor night, nor forever. They have no rest. Who will worship this beast and his image? And whoever received this mark in his, in his name. You know you're going to be. You're going to be in heaven. The Antichrist will control the world's economy according to revelations 13, 16, and 17. The Antichrist will desecrate God's temple according to Matthew 2415 and Daniel 1211.

Pastor West:
The Antichrist will cause the Earth's armies to fight against Christ in Revelation 1919. And it says, and I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies. They gathered together to make war against God and his army. And the world will be united under the Antichrist. The remaining world will be united under him, and will wage war against Christ and his army. And the final destiny of the Antichrist we find in revelation 1919 through 21. If you want to go, read that the Destiny of the Antichrist. Revelation 1919 through 21 he is cast into the lake of fire and brimstone. So. The spirit of the Antichrist. Where do we see that? Well, all over. But in first John 218 through 23, it says, little children in this last hour. This is John, who is the elevator? The elevator on the island of Patmos. He has this vision. He writes the Book of Revelation. But this is the same John at first. John 218 through 2018 through 23 says little children. It is the last hour, and as you have heard, that the Antichrist is coming, even may many antichrists have come by which you know that is in the last hour. They went out from us. They went out from us, but they were not of us. For if they had been of us. They would have continued with us, but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.

Pastor West:
But you have an anointing. From the Holy One. And you know all things I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it. And you know that there's no lie of the truth. See, anti. Anti, he said. But but you have the anointing from the Holy One that you know all things and because you know it. Then you know what? That no lies of the truth. Who is of a liar? But he do not. Who? What is the spirit Christ do? He denies that Jesus is the Christ. He doesn't deny that he was. I don't mean to say this against any people. But I'm going to say it. I don't gear this towards people because people are deceived. But the but the greatest face of people that you that today willingly or unwillingly, knowing or unknowingly who is who would be the face of this or the Antichrist is Islam. They would tell you that Jesus Christ. Some would even say he was a messiah. They will never tell you who's he's the Son of God because they say God needs no son and he was not the Son of God. And that is fighting words to to the people of Islam. Do you know who is attacking Israel right now? Those people. Why is the spirit of Antichrist who's alive in the work in their day? Do you see how close you are? Because see, all the all the signs that you have for the Second coming is in is is in the Gospels, when Jesus answered, how do we know when we're near? He tells them the signs.

Pastor West:
That's not the sign that when he's when he's going to be raptured, that's the sign that when when he's coming back with us. So you have to you have to factor in seven years that we're with him. In heaven. And now you see the scriptures of when he's coming back. So if you can see the signs of what it's going to look like on the earth when we come back after seven years and we're on this side. How much closer are you to leaving when you can see the setup of the Ezekiel 38 war before we leave? So he will control the economy. There will be a one world government. It will not happen while you're here. Oh, but you're seeing the center of it everywhere. The cashless society. Because you can't control the Earth unless you control the food, the political, the religious. And you have to control all the all sectors of life to have control of the earth. When someone's hungry, they'll do what you tell them. They'll get hungry enough. Not every one, but the vast majority will. When you control their, you know, their going and their coming and their oxygen.

Pastor West:
And what are they going to live in? They're homeless or not homeless. They'll bow down and worship a dog or a stick. You know, rather than watch their children go hungry. Our job is not to say, hey, we're going to just be out of here. Our job is to get the gospel preached and make sure that the people know that Jesus is coming. We have to be alive, and the church has to be in as a carrier of the gospel of Jesus Christ, always proclaiming the truth, because there's people who's ready to go now. They just need some time, someone to preach the gospel so they can say yes to the presentation of what you are presenting to them. Amen. Your goal is not just to escape this planet. Your goal is to invade this earth with the gospel of the good news of Jesus Christ. Amen. Because this one. Who's coming. I mean, I mean, this makes Adolf Hitler, you know, look like he's a kid in kindergarten to what this guy's going to do. But they're going to somehow. I mean, I don't know what's going to be, but he's I don't know if it'll be some type of weapon he's going to have. And and it says the scriptures, the whole world is going to see it. Well, how are they going to see it? Well, does anybody have a phone? You know, I grew up in a time where a lot of you, when the news went off, it went off at midnight, and then you had this screen and you just kind of smoky grey, you know, till, you know, till, well, kind of the ball had a milkman came on the radio station, but until, you know, until the news came back on it, whenever it came on, was it 4 or 5? I don't know when it came on, but there was nothing to watch, you know, after midnight, I mean, the nation went to sleep.

Pastor West:
It's like, good night, everyone. I don't even know why you stayed up this late. And they pulled the shade down, y'all. And y'all don't raise your hand, okay? Okay. Well, you might know someone old enough, but I remember all that. I don't care how you turn your rabbit ears. You put tin foil, wrap them 14 times, but that 12:00 is gone. It's gone. But now it's ongoing, 24 hours a day. News goes on 24 hours a day. The gospel being preached 24 hours a day. You can watch I dream, Jeannie, I guess 24 hours a day. If you want to, you can listen to anything you want to. You have no excuse for not knowing the truth. That's why we're doing what we're doing. We're preaching the gospel here into our community, but we're also joined into the world, you know, preaching to at least 40 different countries.

Pastor West:
Don't you? Don't you even imagine somehow, supposedly, that some of these broadcasts right here in 2023, someone will find these broadcasts that have been stored and archived, whose people were going to be alive, and they'll be able to tune in and listen to understand what's happening to them. And they'll know the warning and who he is and what it looks like and what it's going to sound like. God forbid, I don't want you to be here. But if this helps, then, I mean, there's still time for you. The way is not easy, but there's still a time and a way. But the spirit of Antichrist is alive at work today. Where is it at? It's in the schools. It's in the universities. In every political realm that you want to go to, it's being pictured as race. It's everywhere. It's in every sector called life. While most people are just sleeping. Well, you know, my daddy always voted that way and I don't know what's wrong. I just don't get involved in political stuff. I'm not talking about politics. I'm talking about the Antichrist. Most of us could go to Washington right now. We could find someone to be the House speaker. Which most of them wouldn't qualify as up there. They're like, sit down. Sit down, sit down, sit down, sit down, sit down, sit down, sit down. If you were able to go to Washington and you were able to see the spirit room, you'd see.

Pastor West:
You'd see demonic spirits, I believe everywhere. You'd think I'm talking about around Halloween time. A haunted house, a haunted house. I'm talking about in your Washington's capital. I think a lot of them was like Miss Smith, the movie Miss Smith. Mr. Smith goes to Washington, and he, you know, he's like, I'm going to do this and do it right. They went up and found out how corrupt it was. I think a lot of them went up there with the intention of wanting to make a change. They just had no idea. When I get out there, this thing is already being run in the back rooms and they're like, that's right, we're going to go on a city on a shining hill, a bright America for today and then tomorrow. And they're like, they make your speech. It goes good for us constituents and all that. He don't know. Come on from Sequim. When we get through we'll tell him how the whole thing works or we'll send him packing. Signed here. Are you done with buddy? Most. Most elections are bought. Am I still on? But they just are. I mean, it doesn't do any good for most people like you. It doesn't do any good for me. I don't care how much you. I don't care how much someone who's anti-Christ. I don't care someone who's anti. What you know to be right and true. I mean, you're like, well, we're going to spend billions of dollars, you know, to change people's votes.

Pastor West:
You don't have to spend any money for me. All I got to ask you is about three questions. And when you can answer them honestly, I mean, I care for you as a person. I'll pray for you. But. But there's no way in the world I'm going to vote for you. You think? Well, y'all just so simple minded, you know? I mean, y'all y'all just about abortion just takes everything out of y'all. No. Well, okay. I'm simple. I'm simple. I could like your economic policy. I could like your foreign policy. I could like your education policy. But if I got to sign up to get that, that I give you the right to kill children and babies. You lost me. I don't care what your education policy is. I don't care what any of that is. And if that makes me simple or stupid, let me be the president of that club. Maybe I already am. I don't know, in this area. So no amount of ash that you that you play during the Super Bowl is going to like. You know, maybe, maybe we ought to vote for old Jim Bob over. You know, I like the way he parts his hair. He looks real honest. What does that mean? What do you think the Antichrist is going to look like? Okay here. So we will close.

Pastor West:
Praise the Lord. Did we get through that verse? Not all of it. You are anointing from the Holy One. Do all things that I've not written to you because you okay? Who is the liar? But he that denies Jesus is the Christ. He is the Antichrist who denies the father and the son. Whoever denies the son. If you want to ask someone. Islam. Is Jesus, the Son of God. Don't stand too close to when you ask him that. Anyone who denies the son does not have the father and the son. He opposes you. He's anti everything against you. And is the attacker who's attacking Islam is what's attacking. The Jewish people. They deny the Son of God. They do not have the father. He who acknowledges the son. Do you. Do you acknowledge the son? Oh, look! Ah, there you have the father. Also you have the son. You have the father. You have the Holy Spirit. Amen. Amen. Now, I hope that made some form of sense to you. You can go back. Watch. There'll be. You know, after a little while, there'll be a PDF. You can go back and print it off if you want to and go back. I mean, I covered a lot of stuff I know that I did, but these are the days that we're in. These are the days that we have to be awake. These are the days that we're like, well, you know.

Pastor West:
Well, I got to be ready. Well, are you born again? Yeah. Well, then you're ready now. Help somebody else get ready. I mean, if it's just as simple as saying, hey, I just want to let you know that Jesus is coming and saying, are you ready? Or something like this. Could I ask you this? If. If Jesus was to come today, do you know that you'd go to heaven? And by experience what I found out through the years, even in the Bible Belt. You'll get you'll get a mixed bag of things, but it'll be something like this. They'll say, well, I believe it would. But you can't stop there. And they said, well, that's great. That's awesome. Greg, can I ask you, why do you why do you believe that you would? And this is almost word for word what they'll tell you. Well, you know, I'm not trying to be, you know, prideful, but I'm a pretty good person. And they might be a pretty good person. Did you know there might be some pretty good persons in hell who never accepted Jesus Christ? As a matter of fact, there will be. And then. And then that's where you can come in and say, I'm sure that you are. But did you know that the Scripture says this, this and this? And this, this and this that all have come short of the glory of God. That would mean Billy Graham.

Pastor West:
Most of them know who Billy Graham is. I met one fella one time who didn't you know? He asked me, you know, did you live around here? And I said, no, but he's in heaven now, so maybe he's met Billy by now. But. So there you can preach the gospel. It's almost like you're using the law sometimes, even though Christ and the law when, when, when they feel like they are a pretty good person, that they go to heaven. They've never heard the gospel. They don't understand it. So they're basing it on, you know, I don't see why. Why God would send me to hell. Well, he won't send anyone to hell. You do that yourself without him. But they're basing it on, you know, they're judging themselves against, you know, the worst of the worst and saying, well, you know, I mean, I mean, when we were out doing a lot of street evangelism a few years ago, I mean, a lot of it. I was always amazed to hear, like, I mean over and over and over again. Two things. Mostly they said, well, of course I'm going to go to heaven. I said, well, that's awesome, but can I ask you why? Oh yeah, well, man, I'm an American. I live in a Christian nation. I said, yeah, but what's your reason? I just told you, I'm an American. This is this is a Christian nation. Or the other one was, oh, yeah, we we give blood at least twice a year.

Speaker2:
Yeah, but.

Pastor West:
Do you know the one who gave his blood? Because your blood won't work. But that was their train of thought. That was their train of thinking. I'm a pretty good person. I'm not shooting anybody. I'm not stealing from people. I'm not hurting anybody. I'm just doing my job. And, you know, just trying to have a good life. I'm just trying to have my best life right now. And God's nowhere in it. But then they never heard the gospel of Jesus Christ. We have a responsibility to preach, and we have a responsibility to warn people. Ezekiel said. He said, if you don't warn them, he said, the blood will be on your heads. So we have a responsibility to to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with people everywhere that we go. I don't want anyone left here to, you know, one left here. And so we need to be aware of that. I don't mean just to try to get people in church and build up a church. I'm talking about his church. We are the church. We are the voice. We're the ones who's been commissioned. We are the ambassadors. We are the representatives of Christ. And if we don't preach the gospel, angels can't come do what we're supposed to call. We are called to do it. Amen.

God bless you. A shout out. There's joy in the house in the.

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Jesus Is Coming!! Are You Ready? | 15Oct2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Jesus Is Coming!! Are You Ready? | 15Oct2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Not only giving us information. But you also reveal and then your revelation. You're revealing truly that you are good. And even when we live in the world, such as time as we are, where things do not look so good. We understand they're not of your doing. They're not of your making. But we understand that the time is short. We understand from the Word of God that the that the word itself says in the book of Revelation. For the enemy knows when his time is short. And so he acts as one. Who's out of time. But I'll thank you, Father God, that you are the God of time. And you have put us in time even when he's out of time. And I hear by the Spirit of God to say to you this morning when I woke up, I heard it when we come in, heard when we prayed together this morning before church together. He said, this is the time of acceleration. He said, I am excelling all that I am and all that I do, and all the word that you have put in to you. He says, no, this I am not a God, that I will be mocked. He said, but for my word is good. And he said, I have watched over my word to perform it. And every word that you have said, yes and amen to every word that you believe in your heart and every word that you speak out of your mouth, and every word that you are holding on to this morning, even concerning the healing of your body.

Pastor West:
Know this, that, that word. I stand behind my word and know this. Now there is a time of acceleration. The enemy pulled the trigger, but I knew that before he did it. But when he pulled the trigger, he pulled it against himself. And now acceleration is going on throughout the planet. It's going into the nations of the world. And now you shall see some some miraculous signs and wonders. You've seen it before. You've seen it here. You've seen it there. You've read about it. You've even seen it in your own midst, here and there. But now you shall see. It shall become the norm. It shall become the norm. So great. Great, great expectancy this morning. Great expectancy you should have in your heart. Great expectancy for the miraculous. For Jesus is my son and he is the same yesterday, today, and forever. And he is the head of the church. And you are his body, and you are the body of Christ. And I will do this work, and I will give a complete. Expression of who I am through you. I'm here this morning and I have it. Your praise. I know you, I see your heart, I receive your praise. Father. I thank you, Father God, that there is an acceleration taking place right now in every person in their body, wherever they need strength, wherever they need healing.

Pastor West:
In the name of Jesus. I curse every thing against them. I curse everything that's come against them. I curse every demonic spirit that comes against them, not only in the physical realm, but in the mental realm and the financial realm. Every area of life. Yes, seed, time and harvest shall remain as long as the earth remains in the word. The seed is the Word of God. And now, by the Word of God, it is being accelerated, as it said in the book of Amos, that when the man puts the seed in the ground, the plowman coming right behind the reaper comes right behind him. As soon as he puts the seed in the ground, you say, how is that possible? Well, I can only tell you this with God all things are possible. Glory be to God. So great. Thank God. Thank God that we're in the time of great harvest. We give him all the praise and the honor and glory in Jesus mighty name. Amen. You may be seated. Good morning and welcome. Praise God this is the day that God hath made. We shall rejoice and be glad in it. Amen. Well, is the rapture near? Amen. Jesus is coming soon, isn't he? Are you ready? Are you ready? Jesus is coming soon. Are you ready? You don't have to turn there.

Pastor West:
But this morning I want to read a little part to you out of the book of Ecclesiastes. If you want to make notes and look at it later that you can. You can go there. By the time you get there, I'm going to be gone, probably. But in Ecclesiastes chapter two, verse 26, I'm to read this from the amplified. It says, for the person who pleases God, he gives wisdom and knowledge and joy. But to the sinner he gives the work of gathering and heaping up that he may give to the one who actually pleases God. In other words, everybody's got a job to the one who pleases God. You know, he gives you joy, he gives you peace, he gives you wisdom, and he gives you knowledge. But the one who doesn't give, the one who doesn't love God, the one who who's not seeking his knowledge, the one who has at this point refused him. He said, I'll give him a job to what's going to be his job. He said, I'll give him the work of gathering up the resources. Gathering up all the world's resources. It's going to take resources to bring in the last time harvest. I'll give him the work of gathering and heaping up that he may just give to the one who actually is pleasing God. Then it goes right into Ecclesiastes chapter three, where we know so well there's a time in every season.

Pastor West:
See? There's time again. There's time once again talking about Ecclesiastes 20. Ecclesiastes three. It talks about without going into it. It says, there's a time. Well, it starts off, you know, to everything. There is a season, a time, a purpose under heaven, a time to be born, time to die, a time to plant. Time to pluck. Time to plant. Time to kill. Time to heal. Time to break down. Time to build up. Time to weep. Time to. There's 26 opposites. How many have mourned? How many have wept? Huh? How many have you been? How many have hurt? How many have lost? How many you feel like you cast away. How many? You felt like you know a time of war. Anyone ever felt like. But on the. On the negative side of time. Why are y'all here? This is. Yes. This is. No. This is. Huh? Well, if you've been there, I'm telling you an acceleration today. You're on the opposite time. You're on the opposite time of the world. Come on, man. You're on the opposite time of what will happen when Jesus come catches his bride away. You'll be on the opposite side of things. Amen. So I'm going to stick really close to my notes, which I don't like doing, but I'm going to. Or I won't get this done as I need to.

Pastor West:
It could be informational, but I don't want it to be just informational. I want you to catch the spirit of this. So it's in times now God has set a time to deal with the nations of the world. He's always set the time and Israel as we know it is. And you've heard many people say Israel in that history is God's prophetic time clock. Israel is. If you want to know what time it is, look at Israel, see what's see what's going on with Israel at any time. Then you'll know what time it is on God's clock. And the clock didn't start until the Jewish people come back to get their land. And and so we believe that we are in the birthing pains. You know, birthing pains is not birth. Jesus talked about the beginning of sorrows. Well, we are in the beginning of sorrows. I mean, how do you believe it gets better than this? How have you believed that? You know, I've heard. Sometimes I hear people say, well, actually, we are in heaven now. How many know this is not heaven? How many hope? This ain't heaven. How many? Sometimes it felt like. Almost like the other side. Well, it's because you're in the birthing pains. And the birthing pains is the Gog Magog war, which is the Ezekiel 38 war is what it is. Now, why should we care? Why should we know these things? Why should we study these things? Because we need to know and understand the time because of the rapture of the church takes right place before the Ezekiel 38 war.

Pastor West:
And in Psalms 102 three, you don't have to go there, but Psalms 102 three speaking of this, this is the reference to it. This verse gets used a whole lot. And people talking about favor and it could, but that's not what he was talking about. But in Psalms 102 three he says, you will arise and have mercy on Zion. How many know Zion's symbolic of the church for the time to favor her? Yes. The set time, the God. The God has set a time, and he is going to favor his church. Now I know we live in favor, but he's talking about pre rapture days. Now don't turn to this either but familiar scripture. But in Isaiah 46 verse 910, and this is the ESV, do we ever see if we have that, we got it. But anyway, Isaiah 46 910 the ESV says this. He says, remember the things of old, for I am God, and there is none other. For I am God, and there is none like me. I declare the end from the beginning and from ancient times not yet done. Saying, and this is the one who's who says, there's none like me. My counsel will stand and I will accomplish all of my purpose.

Speaker2:
Hallelujah!

Pastor West:
So. There's the prophetic time clock. And I won't get much into this scripture today, but there is going to there is going to be a generation who's going to be alive on the earth when Jesus comes back. Everyone wants to be that generation. Well, there is going to be a generation of people. So he gives us signs. You might say there is no signs for the rapture. The rapture can take place before I can get through reading the scripture, because there's not one sign for the rapture. There is signs for the Second coming when it comes back after the seven years. But there is no signs for the rapture. You can see the setup of the Second Coming, and if you can see the setup for the Second coming, the seven years while the world, while the earth and the people who is left here on tribulation. If you can see the setup for the Ezekiel 38 war on this side before we leave. No, we're going seven years before that. So if you can see the parts coming together for the Ezekiel 38 war while you're still here, no, we have to go there for seven years and come back before that to happen. So how close are you? What time is it? In Matthew 24, verses 32 to 34, he says, now learn the parable of the fig tree, when his branch is yet tender and putteth forth leaves, you know that summer is nigh or near. So likewise, when you see all these things, know that it is near, even at your door.

Pastor West:
Jesus said, for verily I say unto you, that this generation shall not pass till all these things shall be fulfilled. You know, Israel is the only nation on the face of the earth that's actually been in and out of existence twice. A little bit of. When the whole world changed. Annihilator. And in the last time, as we know, she became a nation that recognizes the nation, a sovereign nation. May the 14th, 1948. So I ask you today, what time is it? Is the rapture near? I want to tell you, Jesus is coming soon. Amen. They used to. I grew up in church and we had a lot of hymns. Jesus is coming soon. How many went? Morning, night or noon? Many will go to heaven. Well, but him told the truth. But it was always on the negative side. Many will meet their doom. Troubles all around. Well, you know, a lot of people want to stay out of the book of revelation because it says it scares me. I've seen a lot of Hollywood movies. A lot of people say, even ministers say, I just don't. I don't have a prophetic type of ministry. I stay out of revelations because who can understand it? Well, the Lord said. You can understand it because I named the book revelation. Which means revealed. Why would God write a book that you can't understand and hold you to it? Does that make sense? No. So we're going to take some time today and and we want to say what time is it? We're going to give you a picture of what it looks like at the rapture versus the seven year tribulation.

Pastor West:
And we'll see our time that we're in. But we need to know this, that everything for the believer is good news. There's a lot of problems in the world, but everything for the believer. If you're a Christian, if you're a believer, if everything that's going to happen for you forward is good news. I mean, it is great news. You don't have very long to ever live in a mortal body for eternity. You do realize when you leave here, you'll never have a mortal body for eternity. Amen. I know that don't mean much to you when you're nine years old, but I'm talking. I'm telling you, when you get closer to 99. Amen. So what time is it? And do we understand the time and seasons that we're in? Because history is unfolding, which is God's redemptive plan, which is the beginning. It's always beginning. God's plan is beginning till end. Now everyone's aware of what's going on in the world. If you have a TV. History is unfolding is what is happening. The events that happened in Jerusalem, Israel, the Gaza Strip, you understand Iran's part and all this. And in other countries, which I won't name like Russia. Oh, I'm sorry. And we know that Israel was attacked, wasn't they, by Hamas terrorist group? These aren't friendly people. They don't like Israel. They don't like you. They don't like God. They like nothing to do with it. So if we understand, if we can have understanding of the times that we're in, then then we're just better equipped.

Pastor West:
We're like the men from from Israel, called the tribe of Issachar, that you could read about in first Chronicles 1233. It said these were men that had understanding of the times to know what Israel ought to do. Don't you think that the church today should know the time that we're in, so that we know how to to to know what to do? How should we respond and not just respond? That's let's playing defense, but how we should go on the offense. There's no need to fear. I want to I want to keep interject. There's no need to fear. Jesus said, when you see these things happen, he says, get excited because now this your redemption is going, is drawing real near to you now. So do not fear. You probably heard of the Corrie ten boom and it was quoted for saying years ago, never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God. Amen. God's not in the dark because he is light. Now, you know, Iran has publicly stated, and I know you know this many times, that their objective is to destroy Israel. And I don't mean just win a war. They said they want to wipe Israel off the face of the earth. Their parliament and lawmakers have chanted, I know and I don't know here recently, but in 2020, under a different administration, who dealt with them differently. They chanted Death to America and burned him. You know, and as a what do you call it? You know, a make believe of President Trump? Oh, yeah.

Pastor West:
That word right there. Yeah. An effigy right there. So they I haven't heard them because right now they've got it seemed like a friend in the white House. But anyway I'll get right off that. So the Bible has but the Bible has accurately predicted all this. This is not come on as some type of. Well, we didn't know. We couldn't see it. It was always here. So he told us thousands of years ago and about terrorist. That's what they are. But did you know that we're also terrorists ourselves? Yeah. Did you know that Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil? Destroy? You know, we didn't come to give the devil a bad day or a bad day. We come to terrorize him. You're just a Holy Ghost terrorist, is what you are. That's right. Huh? That's why you get up some mornings barking. I don't mean like a dog. I mean, you got a little growl in your voice. What's wrong with you? I'm a terrorist. I'm. I'm. I'm a terrorist, you know? And so all these things, these end time events, they're all revolving around Israel, Jerusalem and Jerusalem is this little bitty, tiny city about the same size, approximately to new Jersey. Her Jerusalem's population is 970,000 miles, or 970,000 people. Jerusalem. And she covers about 48.3mi². And the whole world is trying to put her put her lights out and can't do it. Now, you know, we're around 5 million. And to give you a little to give you a little difference, you know, square mile Alabama covers eight, 8522 miles and Jerusalem covers 48.

Pastor West:
She's 16.25% the size of Alabama. And God loves this place and has his eyes on it all the time. Amen. Now, what has God said about Jerusalem? There are several things, but I want to read you one verse. If they they might put this up on the screen for you. But Zechariah and 12, in verses two through four, and this is going to be in the New Living Translation. And I'll tell you if you want to look at the screen. If not, you can turn to it. But Zechariah 12 verses two through four says, I will make Jerusalem like an intoxicating drink that makes the nearby nations stagger when they send their armies to besiege Jerusalem and Judah. On that day I'll make Jerusalem an immovable rock, and all the nations will gather against it to try to move it, but they will only hurt themselves. On on that now. Now you understand their analogy was camels, horses, stuff like that. Right. So I'm going to do a little reiterating. I'm just going to kind of just play with some, you know, this is how many you got. Half a camel. No one has a camel. So well here it uses horse talk. But that was, you know, several years ago. So he says they will they will only hurt themselves. Verse four on that every horse. I'm also a tank, rocket or missile will panic in every rider, which is every tank missile will lose its nerve.

Speaker3:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Could it lose its nerve? When you read about the Red sea, when it saw God approaching it. It said. It said the water. The Red sea became terrified. Well, I didn't make it up. I mean, just I'm quoting the Bible. You say, how could that happen? It's not a person. Well, Jesus said, if you don't want to worship me, he said, it's okay. He said, I'll just have the rocks do it. He said, the trees will clap their hands and the rocks will cry out. So if if a rock can worship the Lord, the Red sea could be terrified. And it was, he said, and I will, I will, I will blind all the horses, bombs, and the ides of their enemies. And in other words, he said, I will cause I will cause every horse to panic and every rider to lose his nerve. Every driver. Not just the one who sends the missile, but the one. Not just the missile, but the one who sends it. He'll deal with both of them. Now, give you a little thing. It's like, well, if all this is going to happen, then just let it happen. Why take time to talk about it? Why should we study prophecy? Well, only because 30% of this book that you brought today is prophecy. So that's just one little reason. Just 30% of this book is prophecy. That's why we should study prophecy. And of the 30%, the vast majority of the 30% is talking about the very end times.

Pastor West:
See, we're not in the end times. We're in the end of the end. We're in the we're in the we're in the rapid up stage. We're in there. Just. Just don't have much time left. And so when we understand that, it affects our thinking, but it also affects our actions. When you know you're running out of time to do something, sometimes you just can't do all the other particulars. In other words, you just like what I want to do this, this and this. You know, you've got guests coming. You know, I didn't have time to paint the whole house and get rid of every leaf out of the yard and do the bushes and da da da da da. So we're just going to have to give it a little makeover and put the rest and throw in the bedroom and on the bed and in the closet till they all go. Then when they go to the closet, don't go getting everything falls out again. It's not your fault. They shouldn't have come over. But anyway. So. But why should we study prophecy other than it's 30%? Well, revelation one three would tell you one good reason. It says, blessed is he that readeth. And you can read. We have a class starting in a couple of weeks. For the rest of you that didn't raise your hand. So. So it'll help you. So he tells you.

Pastor West:
Blessed is he that just readeth he didn't say even understands. Blessed is he that readeth and that hear the words of this prophecy and keep those things which are written in for the time is at hand. Now the Apostle John penned those words two millennia ago. How much closer are we now? If the time is at hand, why study prophecy? Because the end is near. How do we know that? Because Jesus himself gave us signs to know what that day would look like. And then the apostle Paul said in first Thessalonians five four, but, brethren, that includes Sister Sistren you are not in darkness. Don't fear. He says, you are not in darkness, that. Day. Not a day, not some day, not some. He said there's going to be a day that day. He said, do not be in darkness. Don't be in fear of that day that would overtake you as a thief. He's not talking to you. You're not a thief. When you read the. When you read the scriptures in the Gospels, they're always talking about the Second Coming. When you read the scriptures in the epistles, they're always talking about now they're talking about the rapture. People think it's quite opposite. Now there are scriptures that have double reference to it. I'm not saying that that they equally mean the same thing. I'm just saying. But you can say something sometimes it's like you can say a word like I can say hello, dear.

Pastor West:
You think, well, who are you talking to? Your wife's not here. Now, I was talking to the dear. That's outside the door right there. Outside the window. Well, a dear could be a dear. Could be a person, or it could be an animal. Well, the Scripture has things that has double reference to it, in other words. Or Jesus would talk in parable or it'd be an allegory. And in that parable, in that allegory, he would teach a lesson, and he would use a natural illustration to teach a lesson, which would be a parable or an allegory. So when you're when you read the what we call end time scriptures in the Gospels, they're not talking about pre rapture, they're talking about pre second coming. When you go into the pistols like in Thessalonians like we're talking about he's talking about pre pre trib. Now I know there's people who want to go think they're going to go in the middle of it, and there are some people who just determined they're going to that we're supposed to live all the way through it. So if I can convince you, I'm not going to go into all those theories. If you want to study down that road, you can go down there. But if I can't convince you, I'm just going to go ahead and say bye now. Amen. And we'll hold your seat and believe that you'll make it so. So First Thessalonians is don't let that overtake you as a thief.

Pastor West:
Why study prophecy? Hilton Sutton has gone to be with the Lord, but in his he was one of the foremost authorities of of end time eschatology taught around the world. Many Bible schools use his his teaching for for their schooling. And he wrote he's got a study guide called Revelation Reveal. He said in the Old Testament, Jesus was known as the Messiah. In the Gospels, he's known as the Lamb of God, sacrificed for the sin of the world. In the epistles, the epistles reveal Jesus as the risen Savior in the head of the church, but only revelation unveils him as the triumphant Lord. Only revelation. When you study the book of Revelation, you will see Jesus as the conquering King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. He's the King of kings. Who's the other king? That's you. Who's the other Lord? That's you. And only revelations will tell you that every knee shall bow to him. Everyone. The day will come when Lucifer himself will will bow before Jesus himself and say, you are Lord. You say? Do we get to see that? Yes. And if not, I'm going to ask to praise the Lord. Amen. Now. A real modern day census taken says that 40% of Americans believe that we're living in the end times. Well, I don't mean 40% of Christians. I mean 40% of Americans. Secular or not. So we're living in different times.

Pastor West:
We're living in difficult times. We're living in the Bible says in perilous times. Of course we are. They are difficult. They are severe, but they're nothing compared to the seven year tribulation. So I'm going to do a little contrast here. And so at this point Jesus has come and we have been raptured. And I know people say, well, you know, the word rapture is not in the Bible. You're right. It's not. Neither is the word Bible. But in the Latin the word is rapture or harpazo. And that means to catch away, to snatch quickly, to seize to yourself, to be caught up. So yes, it is in the Bible. And so when these things happen. Because we're living in the dispensation of grace now, that will end when the church is wrapped with the dispensation of grace. What is the dispensation of grace? Is God's kindness and God's goodness. We're singing a song about how good God is, a good, good father. In the years. Good. And he'll always be good. So he's not dealing with you according to your sins. He's dealing with you according to what Jesus paid for your sin. He's not judging you right now. I know there's many churches who will and many people who will, but. But he's not. And he's the head of the church. God thinks that Jesus paid the price for all sin. He thinks it's paid for. He thinks it is. And so Jesus paid the whole sum total of our sins past, present, and future.

Pastor West:
Not that we can just go live any way we want to, because that's not what grace was given to you for. Just go out like a fool. Was it? I mean, would Jesus go to the cross and die for our sins so that we could just do whatever our flesh wanted to do? No, that's not what it is at all. He doesn't want you to be. He doesn't want you to live in such a way that you that you you have to live with addictions and all such as this. No. He came to free us, not to bind us. Amen. So, so so. We are living in perilous times. So here are some scriptures. I want you to see them. Let's go to revelations six eight. These are all going to be in the ESV. Uh, we're going to start off with revelation six eight. And here's what you're going to find out about some things that transpire quickly during the seven year period during the tribulation. In revelation six eight, we're going to see that the rider of the pale horse, he will kill one fourth of mankind. One fourth of mankind and it goes like this. And I looked and behold, there was a pale horse, and his writer's name was death. And Hades followed him. And they were given authority over one fourth of the earth to kill with a sword, and with famine, and with pestilence, and by wild beasts on the earth.

Pastor West:
One fourth of mankind dies like that. There's approximately 8 billion people on the earth. So right now to be and just died right there. Gone. Boom! That fast. Revelation 918. You see that three plagues kill a third, another third of mankind. Revelation 918 ESV. Verse 18 says, by these plagues. A third of mankind was killed by the fire, the smoke and the sulphur coming out of their mouth. A third of mankind killed by fire, smoke and sulphur coming out of their mouth. Some listed. Some believe this to be a meteorite or a comet. As in the days of Sodom and Gomorrah. They believe that would be a meteor in revelation 16 three. Just giving you some reference. Not here to preach on that. Revelation 16 three we see that every we see all life. See all. See life dies. Gone. Revelation 16 three ESV. The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became like the blood of a corpse, and every living thing died that was in the sea. Well, Bill won't be here anyway. But, you know, if it was. Ain't nothing to fish for. It's gone. That's enough reason other than the love of Jesus to go. Brother bill. Yeah. Now you do. So while this is happening simultaneously, you're not here simultaneously. You're in heaven simultaneously. While this wrath is being poured out. The worst wrath that the earth has ever known.

Pastor West:
The worst of the worst, as bad as you think it's today is, which is not bad by any standards of if you went around the world we think about as Americans because we live in America. But I'm talking about in countries where you go to some countries where where they still deal with capital punishment. I mean, what would you think if they brought crucifixion back? You would think, surely the end's come. Well, before Saddam Hussein was killed, he he chemically killed thousands of his people. If they lied to him, he would have their tongues cut out of their head and nailed to a poster. Everyone would know it. And him too. You say that's barbaric. Yes. Well, that wasn't the United States of America. So here, you know, we got a lot of problems, you know, like people can't decide what the bathroom to go into. But that's not what's going to pause Jesus to come back because there's confusion over a bathroom. That's just all that we know about. And there's a lot of things going on here in the world. But in comparison, if you go to Saudi Arabia and you go there and the women still wear and they, you know, their heads covered and all such as this and, and if you steal over there, the way they deal with you is they just cut your hand off, that stops stealing. It's a great deterrent to crime.

Pastor West:
It's worked for them really well. They keep the law very well. So if a man doesn't know how to treat a person or hurts a woman or rapes the woman, they just cut off certain things and that cures that problem. It's a great deterrent from crime. And there's a lot of people. Bring it back, bring it back. So we want to be on the wrong side of that. So but this is seems difficult. But it's not difficult compared to what we're talking about here. So during during this seven year tribulation where a fourth of the mankind dies, then another third dies, then everything in the sea dies. In the Scripture says that if God didn't cut the seven days short, if he didn't cut the I'm sorry, the seven year short, he says not one person left on the earth could survive it. Can you imagine? If God didn't, if God didn't come back and he knows exactly when he has to come back. If I don't come back within that seven year, the day he says, there will be not one person left on the earth to survive. Do you want to be here so you will not be here? So what are you going to be doing? Well, you're going to beat the marriage supper of the lamb. We're the bride of Christ. Then when you do that, then you go into the reward seat, which is also called the Bema Seat. That's where you're rewarded for all the good that you have done, all the things that you've been called to do, that you've done.

Pastor West:
You go there and you're rewarded. So when we go to the judgment, you know, you know, know you was in Christ, you're judged. Yeah, but won't there be a big screen up there? No. I'm sorry. If you want one, you might dig one up for you, you know. But no, he's already dealt with all of your sin. See, you're not in sin. You're in Christ. You're not in Adam. You're in Jesus. Amen. He's put that away, and he's nailed your account to the to his cross. And then he closed your book. Amen. He's. The Lord's not keeping up with your sins, right? That's the message. I don't know why the church won't preach it because they're scared. Well, you tell people that they'll go do all kinds of crazy things. You just give them a license to sin. We said no, man. They don't come to me to get no license to sin. They do it without me. And they. So simultaneously, here we are in grandeur. So what time is it? Where will you be on that day? Luke 2136 says, watch ye therefore, and pray that you might be counted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass. He's not talking to you. He's talking to the people that's on the earth, because you ought to see a third of them die.

Pastor West:
You ought to see a fourth of them dies. You ought to see it so horrific that almost no one, no one would survive if he doesn't come back. He said, if you're left here, he said, you better pray. Pray that you will be able to escape this. Well now, Jesus was asked when the end was coming, and I'm going to read some verses here about that. We won't take time to turn to them, but if you make notes, Jesus was asked when the end is coming. And this is Luke 1728, 29, and 30, then I'll back up Mary 27. Now I want you to notice that the conditions were the same as it was for the time during Sodom and Gomorrah. Jesus draws a comparison because they want to know what will it be like? How will we know when the end is coming? In verse 28 he says, likewise, as it was in the days of lot, they were eating and drinking and buying and selling and planting and building. But on that day. See here. There it is then that day. But on that day when lot went out from went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all. So will it be on that day, that day when the Son of Man comes? Not sometime on that day. There is a time appointed. It's not a day, but it's that day. So he's saying there'll be business as usual.

Pastor West:
People will be marrying. People will be building. People will be working. People will be investing. People will be having children. It'll just be Tuesday. It'll just be Thursday. It'll just be whatever it is. Life will go on just as normal. What are the signs of the rapture? For the rapture, there's no signs whatsoever for the Second Coming. There's tons of signs. The rapture is imminent. It will happen. Nothing triggers it off. There is no sign ever. For Jesus can come before we can even get out here. There's no signs for that. All the signs are for the second coming. So when you read these things, you say, well, but he said these signs right here, he's talking about the Second Coming. The Second coming. See, when we're raptured, he doesn't come. Touch the Mount of Olives. He's in the air. He's in the clouds. And the Bible says we go to meet him. Where? In the air, in the clouds. But when we come back, we come back with him. And we come down to the Mount of Olives, and we are with him. But now, as we go to rapture, we go to be with him. Second coming. We come back with him. Meet him. Come back with him. So when you see these signs that he talks about, these are not signs of. Here's how you know he's about to come. When he tells you about the signs, he's telling you this is the signs of me, of you and I coming back to the earth before the seven years or after the seven years.

Pastor West:
So there again, if you can see the setup for everything that will happen Ezekiel 38 war and you can see it from where you're sitting right now. How close are you to leaving? And how do you prepare yourself, and what do we do and how do we how do we minister the Word of God to other people? Is there any urgency? He went on to say in Luke 1726 he said, it will be the same as the day of Noah's day, just as it was in the days of Noah. So it will be the days of the Son of Man. Verse 27 says, they were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark and the flood came and destroyed them. Let me read that again. They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage until the day. Because when Peter, it talks about scoffers who talk about. We've heard all this before. We've heard Jesus is coming. We always we've heard this is going to be this rapture. We heard all these things, and they just scoff about it. They were scoffing Noah. How old was Noah when the Ark sailed? 600 years old. How long did he preach? A really long time. Did he have any converts? He had zero.

Pastor West:
Well, if he was a bad preacher or just some really, really kind of have a rough crowd, didn't he? But 600 years old. And it said. And it said they were eating, drinking, marrying and giving in marriage. Until that day. Until or until the day. Not someday. Not whenever there was a day when Noah entered the ark. So when did the rain start? Did the rain start while he was building? Maybe when he was outside policing the grounds around the ark. Did the rain start then? No. It says when he entered the ark. In other words, when he was finished with the ark, he completed it. And all the animals come two by two, you know, whatever that looks like. That would have been a clue for everybody, you know, like this man is wild, crazy preacher and building this large boat. There had never been rain on the earth. You know it all came from the ground. Had never come from the sky. So when you got a man say it's going to rain, which means it's actually going to flood and the rain is going to come from the sky. They're like, man, this old dude, his son, I mean, his brain's been baked in the sun. He's out there building the ship, and he has no utility trailer to get it to the ocean. You're thinking this guy, this guy is tripping. There ought to be a sign when you see two skunks.

Speaker4:
Huh?

Pastor West:
And they're wagging their tail like. And they're like, we're going first. Let the skunk go first. You know, just that ought have been a clue, but it didn't move anyone enough to act. He finished. It was loaded. God closed. God sealed the door. The rain came into store. What does God do when calamity comes? He comes in Noah's day. He put him in. He sealed him. He protected him. He kept him away from the wrath that was on the earth. What does God do when wrath is going to take place on the earth for you? He catches you up. He removes you from the wrath. What did he do with Sodom and Gomorrah when they was going to be destroyed? Because there was not one righteous man. He took them out of the city. The angels told lot says we can't do any damage. We can't destroy this city while you're here. How come the Antichrist has not come and taken over yet? See, he he does preemptive strikes. That's what. That's what's happening right now in Israel. That's a preemptive strike. He would be like the one who decides when I'm going to send my Antichrist. Think about it. Satan's always had to keep someone, always had to keep someone in the bullpen to be the Antichrist all the time because he doesn't know when it is and he's had some good ones. Hitler would have been a good one. Mussolini would have been a good one.

Pastor West:
And and there are some others. So he has someone that's always ready. He has to have them ready. I believe he would. This. This is Eric. This is not. But this is my opinion. I believe that he would like to do the preemptive strike instead of having to react to what God's order of plans. He would like to get God out of his order. But you can't get God out of the order because he created order. When God created you, you don't change order. I mean, when you're the mother and you have a child, you don't get the next day. So I'm going to be the mother, and you're going to be the child. I mean, you might can do that for fun. You wouldn't have done it to my mother. But once. But anyway. So he got in and then it quit writing. It started raining. Now, here's the rapture of the church. Let's go look at this. First Thessalonians 413 through 18. In the ESV, y'all doing okay? Now. The rapture of the church is what Christians, the believers in Christ and it becomes. It comes before the time of wrath, which is also called the day of the Lord. Judgment upon the wicked. Dispensation of grace is over. Could you still be saved? Yes. You're going to be saved. Where's the Holy Spirit? He's not in heaven. He's on earth. All during the tribulation. Oh, no.

Pastor West:
He couldn't be here because we're not here. Then how does anyone get saved? You can't get saved without the Holy Spirit. Well, isn't the Holy Spirit afraid that a meteor might hit him? Probably not. Isn't he afraid of the wickedness? I don't think so. But the Holy Spirit remains here on the earth, even while we're in heaven, because the greatest revival will ever take place will be after we're gone. Then they'll know. Then the Jews will know who the Messiah was. Then you'll have the, you know, the trail drive in the 144,000 preaching boy. That'll be some sermons. So the rapture of the church. We see it here in first Thessalonians 413. The ESV says, we do not. We do not want you to be uninformed. King James says, ignorant brothers about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do and have no hope. That starts off good, doesn't it? We don't want you to be ignorant. We don't want you to be uninformed. He says, we don't want you to grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, though Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, and who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, and the voice of the archangel with the sound of the trumpet of God.

Pastor West:
And the dead in Christ shall rise first. Those who are alive and are yet are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will also will we always be with the Lord? Amen. I like that so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore scare one another with these words. Oh, no. Encourage, encourage. No scare in here, right? Because it's only good news for the believer. Believers have no need to fear. We are removed from all the wrath from the seven years of tribulation. Now, can I swap gears just a little bit? Here's here's some things to think about this. Because in revelation chapter one, if you read revelation one, you'll see this. You'll see the glory of Christ in the church. You see the glory of Christ coming down in the very end of time. When you read revelations two and you read revelations chapter three, which you'll see there is you'll see that John writes a letter to the seven churches, to the saints that are Asia minor. He writes one to each of this. Not only was it to the churches, but the churches were to take the letter and to read each other's letters. Those letters need to be read.

Pastor West:
Today. I want to say this, if you will read the the letters that Paul wrote to the seven, to the churches, the the seven different letters to the churches, you will find yourself in one of those letters. That's a whole series right there. And that could be a warning to you if you find yourself in the wrong church in the wrong letter. You need to move your letter. That's right. Amen. Not from here. Because you're not going anywhere. Praise the Lord. I got the FBI watching you all the time. And. But you'll find yourself in the in the mindset of the kind of people, the mindset they had in each one of the churches, everywhere. I'll just say this as a side note, everywhere they were doing good. The Lord Jesus Christ said, I commend this. But where they were off and they were off in your thinking, they were off in your doctrine. They were off in their their morality, everything. He dealt with them harshly, but first he told them what they were doing well. So you will find yourself in one of those mindset of one of the churches. Now let me go past that. So now here's something very interesting. When John continues to talk about this, that's revelation two and three that I was talking about. Then you come to chapter four. Chapter four through chapter 18 of revelation describes the end time seven year tribulation. Chapter four through chapter 18 describes the the tribulation in its entirety.

Pastor West:
Chapter one through chapter three. The church is mentioned 19 times in chapter four through chapter 18. The church is never mentioned one time. Now why is that? It's because the church isn't there. The church is with him. Amen. Amen. Now, where are we mentioned again? Where we're mentioned later after that in chapter 19. Because in 19 we come back with him at the end of the Second Coming. But there's the whole absence of the church from chapter four to chapter 18, because you're seeing what's going on on the earth in the tribulation. But you're at the marriage supper of the lamb, you're at the Woolwich seat. It's a great time for you. You're reunited with your family, you're with the Lord Jesus Christ, and you are in your you are in your, your your brand new body forever, your resurrected body forever. And those who have died and went on before us, they come back and they get their new body put all put together. People all used to say, well, I just hope I live until Jesus comes back because I wanted to be able to go out with him. Well, let me give you a little insight in that. I mean, you probably know this, but let me remind you this. Even if you even if you go by the grave when Jesus comes back, doesn't it say the dead in Christ will go first? Well, that means the ones who died first.

Pastor West:
He comes. He takes their spirits with him in a spirit body form. He brings them back with him to catch us up. But before he takes us up, he comes to their grave. There remains wherever they are. He takes that, puts it with the spirit. And they get a brand new body. And they get to go to heaven in a rapture first. And we're just right behind him, like, hey, I fixed a pasture. So they still get to go first. Amen. So there's just no dying. God's just cool. He's just cool from inside and out. He's always good. He's so good. He's telling you how to miss all this other stuff. Amen. Amen. So just a powerful way to diminish the people is tell them that God loves them. Teach them the gospel. If they say no, then just ask him. Are you stupid? No, I mean, that probably wouldn't be real effective, but I mean, it's just like, well, you know, when you run out of time and you care about what happens to people sometimes you got to get a little bit of both. Just like that little dog Smith Wigglesworth talked about when he was talking about demeaning authority. He said Smith said he'd go to the boss and the little little dog would come behind this woman, and he was talking about this lady that was getting on the bus.

Pastor West:
Smith Wigglesworth was and he says this is how authority works and this is why it don't work. He said, sometimes the little pup will follow them all the way to the bus station and she'll say, go back, baby. Go back home. Go back home. And they'll walk and they'll look behind. And that puppy, she'll go back home, go back home. And then he said, finally the woman got to the bus and got to get on the bus, and the pup was right there. And she said she looked down and she said, get it, dog? Sometimes you just have to have it. Did say fool. Amen. They'll thank you forever. Don't you think so? Amen. So 19 times you can find the church, but after four you can't find them anywhere because they're not here. We come back in chapter 19 because Jesus comes back with us to settle things on the earth. He brings the church with him. Now, how did we get there? Well, we were raptured. We were caught up in the clouds. First Corinthians 1551 and 52 says this. Behold, I tell you a mystery that we shall not all sleep, but in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet, for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this body must put on imperishable, and the mortal body must put on immortality.

Pastor West:
When the perishable puts on imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then it shall come to pass the saying that is written, hey, death, you've been swallowed up in victory. Amen. You've been swallowed up in victory. So this is the rapture again. This is what this is talking about at that time, those who's dead. Christ, they're going to they're going to reunited once again with their body to be a spirit body. We're going to go while we're on the web. He says he's going to come in a twinkling of an eye. I'm just a guy who does facts. Sometimes the twinkling of an eye is 1/40 of a second, so you won't have time to pray. 1/40 of one second is a twinkling of an eye. Make your decision today. If you haven't made it, decide today. Today is the day of salvation. The scripture says so. That's the rapture. Now let's finish this morning because I'm out of time. Let's go to John chapter 14 and I believe you'll enjoy this John chapter. Y'all doing okay? Is this okay? Let's finish today. John 14 one through three. El Rey. Jesus said, do not let your heart be troubled. You believe in God. Believe also in me. In my father's house are many trailer parks. It's not the revised translation, that's the reversed. Don't get mad at me. I lived in a trailer for years. There was a lot of fun. Especially, I would say, when we were washing clothes and it started spinning.

Pastor West:
I was on the other side of the trailer and it's anchored down. It's like she said, what's that? I said, she says, is there a tornado? I said, no, we're just washing clothes. But they got machines to put around your stomach. And I said, we're just losing weight right here. So let me change that. In my father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, he said, I would have told you. In other words, he says, I'm in the habit of telling the truth. Yeah, right. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself. And there where I am, you will be also. See, he has this thing of saying, where I am, you are. He's always with you. Remember he said where 2 or 3 are gathered here. Where's he at? Greater is he, that's where. See? He's always with you. Amen. I mean, would he marry a bride and say, I love you so much? I love you so much, but I'm going to leave you for seven years, and it's going to be hell down there. And I hope you survive. Don't. Don't start liking seafood, because there won't be many days. There won't be any. But now I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you.

Pastor West:
Watch out for meteors. But no, darling, I love you. So if you want to go through the trip, I guess if I can't talk you out of it. And. I go to prepare a place for you? Does that sound like wedding talk to you? It does to me. You know why it was. Jesus was teaching this to a Jewish person. To a Jewish young man. He understood that Jesus was describing a Jewish wedding ceremony. This is what Jesus described as a Jewish wedding ceremony. Now, so the word phrase I shall receive you to myself is the same Greek word that we read in Matthew 2442 41, where one is taken and one is left. Remember that Scripture mean it means to take to joy one to join oneself. The Greek words para limbo or para limbo. So every Jewish boy understood that Jesus is talking about a Jewish wedding ceremony, and but the Bible is actually talking. Jesus is talking to you about the rapture, what he's talking to you about. I know this gets used in the funeral, but but this is this is a really good way to share it if you're going to share it at a funeral. Here's why. There's different steps to the to the to the Jewish wedding ceremony. There were several steps to it, and I can quickly give them to you, but we won't go there. But in Genesis 24, Abraham sent his servant Eliezer to find a bride for Isaac.

Pastor West:
Do you remember that? And Rebecca agrees to marry Isaac, and she doesn't, and she never meets him. So step one of the Jewish wedding ceremony is this. The groom's father always chose the bride to be. He chose his son's bride, and he sent an agent to go do it. That's what Abraham did for Isaac. Step number two. When the couple meet, after the father decides who she's going to be when the couple meet, the groom has to pay a would call a bride's price, or some countries, they still do this. They pay a dowry. I know Pastor Sondergard talked about when he got married. I didn't realize that there he paid a dowry to her family for his wife. I've been on the payment plan for 40.5 years and I'm still paying. Amen. Amen. Check their mama. Check their mama. So I know I'm still paying. Because every time when we're together and she's going, she's going to go into usually Publix more than Walmart. She always says, I'll be right back. I'm going to get a couple of things. I remember when I used to believe that that she was going to go get a couple of things. Now, to a man, when you say we're going to go get a couple of things, you know, how am I going to get we're going to get a couple of things and we're not shopping. We're buying.

Pastor West:
We're not walking up and down saying, well, look at how where are you? Now I understand. I understand that that we get ourself in a mess. And without y'all, I understand that we couldn't even find ourselves walking around, you know, because, you know, y'all are shopping and you're looking and you're you're whatever. But we we was at a she told me this about a month ago. We was in clear at Publix and I said, just go ahead and I want the car. I got some things I can do in here, and I'm reading some things here on my phone. I'm studying. I'm reading something all the time. I don't I don't know what the top 40 is. I don't I used to know. Casey Kasem used to tell us I did that as a kid. I don't. Is probably not even alive. Surely he's not. He'd be 184 years old. He was alive. I mean, he was borrowing oxygen when I was here. I mean, you know, and I was listen to him. So she. She was gone for about 40 minutes. I knew there was more than two things. So she comes out pushing this whole buggy. And so I get out the car and I pop the trunk. And about 20 foot behind her, there's this. There's this young boy, and he's pushing this buggy and and I'm looking to see who he's following. He's following my wife and and all I said to her, I didn't say nothing.

Pastor West:
I said, hey, as they were coming to the car, I said, are you with her? He said, I said, yeah, I knew it a couple of things. And she said they had some really good sales and she said, I saved this much money. Now I work retail all my life. You don't save near as much as they tell you that you save. I know in retail they can tell you this normally is whatever the normally means. I can set it up to say anything. I want to say what it normally was. That means normally we would like to get this if we could find someone a fool enough to buy it. So we just said we could just say normally like this, and we're taking 70% off of it in the industry that I was in for covering, you know, mostly back then it was more carpet than it is hard tile or laminate floors back then. They always run sales. So, you know, get carpet now the best time. Free padding, free installation. Well, I have sold millions of dollars of floor covering, but I have never bought pad free and I've never had an installer work free. So I'm like, man, they must have some really nice folks work with them. Free help. You know, Nathan, I'm sure you got people just working for you all the time, because the bottom line is they're just there to help you.

Pastor West:
That's right. So you just have to find the right employees. Matthew, you've been fishing out the wrong pool. Yeah, they're just there just to please mister Nathan. That's all they're there to do. Now, I don't know how come you all got me off on all that, but. So the groom eats, he pays the dowry, and then this is what actually happened. They spoke words of covenant, and they sealed the covenant with a glass of wine. In the covenant. They were betrothed. They weren't actually married, but legally they were. They were betrothed, but it had not yet been consummated with the wedding yet. So he meets his bride to be. They meet. He pays the father the dowry. They speak words of covenant. They seal it with wine. He leaves the house. The wedding doesn't take place yet. Now notice. Notice the cross over. Jesus left his father's house. He came to the earth. He gave his life for our sins. And then he paid the bride's price. The groom now says to the betrothed in a Jewish wedding, after sealing the covenant with a glass of wine, he tells his bride to be, I will not drink wine. I will not drink this again until I drink it with you in my father's house. And then the groom leaves. Where have you heard that before? Yeah. Third step. The groom goes back to the father's house where he builds a Hoopa.

Pastor West:
In a bridal chamber. A hoop is a thing that they'll stand under and say, have their wedding ceremony. And it has. And he builds a bridal chamber. This generally takes a year to do so. And so Hattie builds the hoop, which is a canopy. It's a Jewish couple stands during the wedding ceremonies. Father's house. Now, after he builds that, his father again has to come to inspect it to see if he approves of what's been built by his son. If he if he if he inspects it and gives them the approval. The father now sets the time. This is a Jewish wedding for a man. The father sets the time to go get the bride. He can't say, well, dad, on three, I'm gone. No, the father still tells you. Now you can go get your bride to bring her home for the marriage ceremony. Watch you. So he tells his son when to go back for the wedding ceremony. Nobody knows the time the son will go back. Not even the son. Only the father. At the proper time decided by the father. He tells the son to go get your bride. Once the son was given the command to go get the bride, he and his company would go through the streets with bright shining torches, blowing torch or blowing trumpets to announce his coming. What does that sound like? He generally came during the night time.

Pastor West:
Now. The bride never knows when it's going to come, so she has to stay in her bridal gown. She sleeps in it. And so do her bridesmaid. Man, I wouldn't want to be in someone's wedding if I had to sleep for a year. But, I mean, I have a lot of questions when I get there. Like, what did that dress look like? Well, I'm assuming she knows it takes about a year, so I don't know the ins and outs. I'm just telling you what I've known and what I've heard, what I've read and what I've studied. I don't take people's word for anything. It's like, that sounds really cool, I said, but I have to find out for myself. That's right. That's just the way I made it. I just can't preach something because someone said, this is what happened. You know, someone said, what's a hoop? And I'm like, well, how do you spell it? I had to go look at hoop and see. I mean, I know about throwing hoops, but I found that they went about doing hoops, so I need to know for myself. So the father tells the son to go get his bride. The commands given she is wearing her bridal gown, so are all her bridesmaids, and they have to have torches lit because they have to be ready at any time. So they'll be ready when he comes. 24 hours a day. She keeps the lamp ready and it's usually at night.

Pastor West:
Like I said, it's usually a year in the making. When the groom arrives, he takes her back to his father's house and they have a seven day wedding. That's almost like you'll be gone for seven years. Oh. So when Jesus says in John 14, I'm going to go away to my father's house, build a mansion. As surely as I go. I'm going to come back to receive you. Palumbo. I'm going to come back and take you. I'm going to come back and snatch you up. I'm going to come back and I'm going to take you out of this. Be ready. It's a picture of the rapture of the church as a Jewish man left to build a house for a year. Remember to God, a thousand days is a year. Our days are a thousand years. A thousand years is a day. So he's been gone two days. Can you imagine what your mansion is going to look like? At the Last Supper before Jesus was crucified, he made covenant with his disciples. They had they made communion with the wine and the bread. And Jesus said these words to his disciples in Matthew 2628, this is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine until the day, until that day, that that day which, when I drink it new with you in my father's house.

Amen. Amen. Hallelujah.

Pastor West:
So I'll finish where I started. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a loud command. With the voice of the archangel, with the trump of God. And the dead in Christ shall rise first. After that we who are still alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so shall we ever be with the Lord. Can I get an Amen in the house? Amen. Praise God! Amen. I'm telling you, it's nothing but good news for you. There's no sorrow here, but it needs to put us on ready? It needs to not only put you on ready, but it needs to put you on busy. Who would you want to be here on the earth for seven years? No. We have a story to tell. We're going to do it in love. But we got to be bolder. And we. And we got to understand there's not much time left to work. There's not much time. Elliott said when we receiving the offering, we have some time left. We have some time for preparation time. There's still some things we got to do, but we got to pick the pace up. The enemy pulled his hand. He said, I'm going to go this. I'm going to go trigger this thing. Our thing is we're going to the Iran is set for years. We want to annihilate them. We want to annihilate who? Who? Therefore we want death to America.

Pastor West:
We want every American person to die. We want America to go away, and we want to wipe Israel off the face of the earth. Now we don't wrestle with flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers. So who actually is telling you that? The enemy himself. He says, I hate God and I hate Israel, and I hate Jerusalem, and I'm anti everything he is. I'm anti Christ, and there will be an Antichrist. That is the seven year tribulation. It's broken into 42, three and a half year sections. The first is called the the tribulation, the second is called the Great Tribulation. You say what's the difference? It's tribulation all the way through. But the last, the last three and a half years, the intensity is so bad that if once he didn't come back before the end of the 42 months, no man could stand it. When it comes on the scene, when the Antichrist comes on the scene, which he can't come on the scene until you're here. That's why you see everything coming together. That's why you see war coming together. That's why you see Israel being attacked. That's why you see the homeland. All the Jews who's been scattered out through a whole that now have now come back to their homeland. What are they getting ready for? They're getting ready for the Ezekiel 38 wars. What they're getting ready for.

Pastor West:
There'll be such chaos on the on the world. And can you imagine what the news is going to be like after we're gone? I mean, try to explain that on CNN. Ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba. So the Antichrist, he'll come. He'll come as a man of peace. I don't know if he'll be the peace for the whole 42 months, but he'll come as a man of peace. He'll come. Be eloquent. He won't come as some sadistic madman. He'll come. He'll be eloquent in speech. He'll be well refined. And he'll seem to have a peaceable solution for every problem on the face of the earth. And then that's where he will draw people to himself. What does he want? He wants control of the entire planet. He'll never get control of the entire planet. Actually, he'll. He'll fight wars against those. Who's against him? He'll have war in his own war of those who fight against him. But his game will be to control the entire world. He still thinks he's going to win this thing. He still thinks he's got a hand in this thing. He still thinks that he can get there. So he'll do this. So he'll. He'll be this diplomat. He'll come and he'll have solutions. And then to buy and sell, you're going to have to make decisions. Are you going to take the mark? Are you going to do this? You're going to do that.

Pastor West:
But the end of the 42 months, you'll walk back into the temple and he'll say, no more sacrifices. He says, actually, I his tune will change. He says, actually I'm him. And he says, what you worship from now on is me. And they'll like, oh, and then he'll have war on his hands. That last 42 months, even the first 42 months, no one on the planet has ever seen the horrific living conditions ever, ever in the existence of mankind. I know that you're saved if you're here. But even if you're not saved, today is the day of salvation. And I want you to know that today is the day that you can you can know that you know. How do you escape these things? How do you make sure that you're you're not here? All you do is you receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. If you haven't made that decision, if you're watching, you're listening. In another time, you're in another country. We broadcast over 40 countries. If you don't know with assurance that you're born again. I don't mean that you had a perfect A grade last week that you don't ever think, right. I'm talking about do you know Jesus? Have you asked Jesus to be your Lord and Savior? Have you asked him to come into your heart and to be your living Lord and living Savior? If you've done that, your name is written in the Lamb's Book of Life.

Pastor West:
And if the rapture happens this afternoon, you're going to go to meet Jesus in there just like that. And so you shall ever be with him. At the end of seven years, he comes back on the white horse and the Bible says, we all come with him. So giddy up. If you don't like courses, you're going to learn too. I mean, can you imagine all the attempts that people go to the different planets, whatever, rockets and all this kind of stuff? But you're actually like, you know what NASA can't do? You're going to do on a horse. I mean, they're like, well, we got this. We got it. I know there's people like, they've never been to the moon and all that. And maybe they had I don't, I don't know and I don't care. I don't even want to have that discussion. I could care at my age. I could care less about stuff like that. I mean, when I hear about all that, all I want to do is go eat Mexican food and forget about it. But I can tell you this whether they went or not, we're going to do it in space on a horse like NASA's, like we was trying to get it. What's the trajectory and what do y'all do for oxygen? And when you got to the ozone layer, it's like, I don't know. We just kept saying giddy up.

Pastor West:
We're just following our commander in chief. Then we got them here with them, like. And here's all here's all the countries that's arrayed around Little Jerusalem. And if Jesus didn't come on that day, she'll be gone. It'll look like all hope for her is gone, and it will be the countries that surround her, which will be Iran and probably Iraq. Turkey for sure. Syria, Russia, all of them will come to destroy little bitty Israel. Little bitty Jerusalem. But all of a sudden, you and I come back with the King of kings and the Lord of Lords, and we say, not so. And the blood will flow. And the Bible says, the blood will flow for 184 miles to the height of the bridle of a horse. If you do any study, you can look at Joe stuff. Joe Mars stuff on the end time things. The birds, for now have been migrating. Over 184 species of birds or so have been flocking into Israel for the last two decades. Don't even know why they're all there. It's the setup because the Bible says the birds, the vultures are the clean up crew for all the dead bodies of those who will be laying in the streets for hundreds of miles out of the Ezekiel 38 war. And then we'll have a new heaven and new earth, and we'll live with him forever. There so be it. In Jesus name, Amen. God bless you.

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The Enemies of Faith | 8Oct2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

The Enemies of Faith | 8Oct2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Good morning and welcome to Gracelife Church. Glad to each one of you here. And we want to welcome those who joined us on the Internet, by whichever way you do that. If you have your Bible, will you go with me to Psalms? 122. We want to pray before we. Get into our our teachings. Psalms 122. You're very much aware. I know, of what's going on in the world today in Israel. And how do we know that? We're closer than we've ever been. Yes. Psalms 122 I'm going to read all nine verses. Said I was glad when they said, Let us go into the house of the Lord. Our feet shall stand within thy gates o Jerusalem. Jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact together, whether the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord unto the testimony of Israel to give thanks unto the name of the Lord. For there are set thrones of judgment and the thrones of the House of David. Verse six, he says, Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. They shall prosper that love thee. Peace be within thy walls and prosperity within thy places. For my brethren and companions sakes, I will now say peace be within thee. Because of the House of the Lord our God, I will seek thy good. What you say this with me concerning concerning here, the instructions that we've been given to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. We know there's n times. We know we know things that they asked Jesus, his disciples, How will we know when the end is near? And he gave many indicators of those things.

Pastor West:
And of course, he said there will be wars and rumors of wars. War within itself is not good for any country, is it? Would you want to be the would you want to be someone who started war with with Israel and. No. So here we're instructed to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. And let's say this together. Peace within thy walls and prosperity within our places. In verse seven. Say it with me. Peace be within thy walls and prosperity within thy places. Peace be within thee. So, Father, in the name of Jesus, we have assembled ourselves here together to honor, to worship and to acknowledge you this morning. Father, we pray for the peace. We pray for the peace of Jerusalem. We pray for the the peace of your people. Father, we pray protection. We thank you, Lord, that the angelic host encamps around the walls within the city and the people. We plead the blood of Jesus over them, over their hearts and minds. We pray that this will also be a ways and means that eyes will be opened to hear truth. Even in in times of hardness and even in times of enduring such things as war. Jesus is still always present, and he's always answers the cry of those who ask him to be Savior and Lord.

Pastor West:
And so right now we just pray for protection upon Israel, upon his people. Father, we just pray protection upon his military. We thank you, Lord, for giving the right strategy. We thank you, Father God, for giving insight and wisdom to the military leaders, to the president of that nation. We thank you, Father God, that for complete protection upon Israel. We thank you, Lord. We bless her. We bless her in the name of Jesus. And we say peace unto her. We give you praise for it in Jesus mighty name. Amen. This morning, we're going to talk about something that that I know you should be familiar with, but sometimes what you need is a little tune up. Have you ever had. You ever had a need for a tune up? And sometimes you don't need an overall, you just need a tune up. Of course, if you need an overall tune up won't work. And but if you want to give it a title, we're going to talk about the enemies or at least one of the enemies of faith. And so we're going to start this morning in Romans chapter ten. If you want to go there, Romans the 10th chapter, and we're going to read verses four through ten. So there's several things that we could talk about, the enemies of faith, but we're going to kind of focus in on on one part this morning and kind of go line upon line precept upon precept and not in a hurry to to cover everything today.

Pastor West:
But we want to start and lay a good foundation for this. Romans Chapter ten, verses four through ten says for Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, that the man which do these things shall live by them. But the righteousness which is of faith speaks on this wise say, not in your heart, who shall ascend into heaven, that is to bring Christ down from above, or who shall descend into the deep, that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead. But verse eight says, But what? Saith it. The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth and in thy heart. That is the word of faith which we preach. That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth, the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thine heart, that God hath raised him from the dead. Thou shalt be saved. For with the heart, man, believeth unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Notice, he said in verse eight. The word is near you. Well, you had. You have a problem. You have a situation. You always need to know that the answer is real. As a believer, the answer is always real near. Where's it at? Well, it says we can find it in two places in our mouth. The word of faith, which Paul said, we preach.

Pastor West:
He said, the word is near you in your mouth and in your heart. Jesus said, Man shall not live by word alone, but or by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. So we can't we can't just live by natural means, can we? Well, there's a natural part to it. You know, part of our life is natural. But he said that the word, the word of God or the words that came by Christ. One translation says is found in two places. It's in your mouth and it's in your heart. If it's not found in in both places, it's not faith. It will be the enemy of faith. Once again, verse ten says, For with the heart, man believes unto righteousness. With the mouth, confession is made unto salvation. We're going to talk about this one for a few minutes. Is a term that we'll give it 2 or 3 different terms, but one that John Wesley called something he said that was so close to faith that few men could recognize the difference. He said, But it's not faith. But even though it sounds like faith, it may even look like faith. It's so close to it. Most people can't tell. That's not faith. And he called it mental faith. Are the words for this. You could call it head faith versus heart. Faith. And so he went on to say, John Wesley said he said this is he called this mental assent.

Pastor West:
He said, this is a substitute for faith. By some it looks and sounds so much like true faith that few people can tell the difference. Faith that is of the person's head, but it's not in their heart. It's mental faith. And he said it's dangerous to live that way. Well, someone said that you can miss heaven or you miss your healing, miss your blessing, Miss your inheritance by 18in. What's the 18in it's about? It's the approximate distance between your mouth and your heart is 18in. You can miss the best by approximately 18in by living from your head and not in not in your heart. So what does mental assent look like? What does it sound like? What is some of its characteristics? Well, this is some of it. M.s. claims the whole Bible is true. It says, I believe the Bible is the inspired word of God. I believe it's the truth. Well, when someone says that you most time take them at their word might be a very good person. And they say, well, I just believe, you know, if God said it, that's the way it is. Well, that sounds the same as a person who who does actually believe that. But could they actually believe that in their head but not but don't believe it in their heart? Absolutely they can. We know this that they'll say that they believe every word of it.

Pastor West:
But the thing is, do they ever make it a part of them? Or in other words, do they act upon the word that they say they believe every word of Second Corinthians five seven? Paul said, We walk by faith and not by what? Not by our sight. Or we walk by the the Bible kind of faith. The real faith, the faith of God. But we do not walk by our senses. Everyone in here, every one of us here has walked by our senses. At some point, we picked our senses more than we picked the Word of God. We could have come. We could have raised our hands and shouted and sang, clapped and, you know, and did all the things that we do, but yet still be living in our senses. I didn't say that was easy. I'm not saying it's easy not to live by your senses because you know you are a three part being. You're not just all you know, you're not just all spirit. You. You do have a soul and you do have a body. And one day, you know, if you don't even know it Now, some some people are so young. I remember an 18 year old told me one time, he says, Man, I got this healing thing down. He says, He says, I've never had to deal with any sickness. He says, my faith has just kept everything at bay. And I said, How old are you? He said, 18.

Pastor West:
I says, You don't even know you have a body yet. He says, Not really. I says, Well, just keep on living, brother. I believe you. Just keep the word in your mouth and in your heart. But I said, But give it just a little bit more time, just to give it a little bit more time. And so and that's not to say that, you know, you have to become a wreck and fall apart, but we're just saying the five senses, you know, being the you know, the physical, Paul said we cannot live by the things as Pastor Matt was saying. We cannot make our choices. We cannot let a decision move our heart away from what we truly do believe. And you'll have many opportunities in life to let go and let your focus and your attention go another way when everything is pulling for your attention over here. But it's exact the exact opposite of what? Of what. The truth is, is Pastor Matt was saying a while ago, in other words, you make your experiences the word of God and then you'll couple that by justifying it somehow saying, well, you know, God just expects us to use common sense. Well, I've just never read that verse. Now, there's nothing wrong with with common sense, but no common sense sometimes gets you killed. God has had me do some things that are very uncommon. If I use common sense, I would have stayed in a world of hurt.

Pastor West:
So since knowledge faith requires, if you're going to live in the sense of a person is in sense knowledge, faith or mental faith or mental agreement, in other words, they're mentally they're mentally agreeing in their mind that the word is the word is truth. That that I believe the Bible. I mentally agree that by his stripes I am healed. I mentally agree that as I've given it will be given back to me. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together. I mentally agree to every bit of the word. I believe that in my mind. But yet in their heart, it has not taken root. It has not become their core belief. And so this is kind of what Thomas had. He had what some called the Thomas kind of faith. And we can see that in John. You can read all of its entirety in John 2024 through 29 when he said he told the disciples who had seen Jesus, whom he had not yet seen. Thomas said this, he said, Except I see in his hands the print of the nails. And I put my finger in the print of the nails and I put my hands in his side. I will not believe. This is one of Jesus's disciples unless I see seen for myself and I place my hand where they put those nails. I will not believe. Eight days later, after he made that statement, eight days later, they were all together, the disciples with him.

Pastor West:
And Thomas was there also. And it says, Jesus just kind of appeared in the room. He didn't open the door and come in. He was just he just kind of came into the room and it kind of got all their attention. When someone just walks through the wall and comes into the room. And so he appears in the room and he and the first thing he says is peace. Well, he had to peace be unto you. Then he said unto Thomas, Reach hither thy finger and behold my hands. And reach hither thy hand and thrust it into my side and be not faithless. But believing. Be not faithless. See. Thomas would have said he was a believer in Jesus. And he was. Thomas would have said he was a believer in Christ. And he was. But Jesus says, But you are faithless. And I'm asking you not to be faithless. I'm asking you to be a believer. This is by Jesus's own words about Thomas and Thomas. Thomas answered and said to him, My Lord and my God. Jesus said to him, Oh, now that you have seen me, you have believed. But blessed are they which have not seen and have believed. So the man ruled the man or the individual man? Woman that's ruled by the census. Only only believes what they can hear and feel and see and touch. Faith is the product of the spirit.

Pastor West:
Faith is of the heart. It's not. Not of the mind. Faith is of the spirit. You're born of the Spirit. You are a spirit. God is a spirit. You're born of the spirit. Faith is the byproduct of the born again heart. Faith means you actually believe the Word of God. You're in agreement with God in your heart. Apart from your senses. And generally it's going to be apart from your senses. If there's not a conflict, then you haven't come into a situation yet to where you need to imply faith. Quit. Why? Because faith is the substance of what? Thinks. What? Hope for. But what? Not seen as of yet. Where? Where do you see it? Where you can't see it in the physical realm at that moment? It hasn't appeared in the physical realm. But if it doesn't appear in the physical realm, does that mean it does not exist? No. It's just as real as everything. I mean, you can't you can't see the oxygen in this room. But if it's not here, we're going to be in trouble in about 2 or 3 minutes. We're all going to be gone. Well, we know, but no one woke up this morning and said, I'm just going to go to church and believe in God. There'll be enough oxygen in that room for me to survive. No, we don't do that because we know that it is God's provided it. So the spirit real man, what he what he does is he walks completely apart from his his five physical senses.

Pastor West:
He's aware of it. He has all the feelings that you have. He has the same experiences that you have. He could give sway to any of those things, like maybe you have. But yet on the other hand, it's not because he has greater faith. We all have the same faith Jesus gave to each one of us. What the measure of faith. It's not that someone has small faith and someone has large faith and someone we don't have all these sizes. Now. A person can exercise their faith more than someone else. It's the same way when a child is born. You know, we we have somewhere around 206 bones in our body, somewhere around there. And so if someone doesn't have 400 and someone else to have 180 and someone to have 200 and something and somebody else have 1500. Now we all have the same amount of bones in our body the way that we're born. We've all been given the measure of faith by Christ. But some people have developed their faith more than others. They don't have more faith. They've just more developed. So some people are just more highly developed, some people are less developed. Well, here here we are seeing this, that the spirit ruled man who's not walking in mental sin. Not only does he believe it in his mind, not only does he believe it in his in his thinking, but it's rooted into his heart.

Pastor West:
It's his core belief, his absolute core belief. And you say, well, I don't really see much difference in this. Well, the difference is receiving and not receiving. The difference is being a believer and really not being a believer. I don't mean that you're not saved. I mean, a person is they say they believe in God and it's so closely associated, just like John, just like John Wesley said. He said it's almost hard to recognize at first, in other words. They're saying the people are saying the right things. You know, they're saying everything that agrees with the person who believes it in their heart and in their mind, but their actions do not support it. Eventually they'll come to a place where they will not take the action that the person who believes in their heart and their mouth believes. So born again man is a spirit. Well as a born again spirit, that that means that your you is created in the same class of God himself. First Peter three four. We won't turn there. But it says our spirit. In first. Peter. Three four says your spirit is called the hidden man of the heart. The hidden man. The heart's not the physical blood pump that sends blood throughout the body. But your spirit, your human spirit is the hidden man of the heart. In Romans 722, that's called the Inward Man.

Pastor West:
He's the hidden man of the part, the inward man. And so you've been made in the same class of God himself. You're. He's a spirit. You're a spirit. You have his life. You have his nature. You have his ability. It's with the spirit that we contact. God. Jesus said they must worship me. How? In spirit, not in truth. You can go through all the motions of worship. You could lift your hands and praise God and shout Amen. And run around the room and it can be completely in your flesh. You could have someone over just as quiet as I say, as a church mouse, seem to have no expression whatsoever. And they could and only God would know the difference. And from their heart they could be the biggest worshiper in the entire room. The Word of God says in First Samuel. He says, God does not look on the outward man. He looks right on the on the inner man. He looks into your heart. So we're talking about the difference once again between someone who says, I believe God in their in their mind and someone who believes God in their heart. In their mind. John Wesley once again called this. He said it's mental assent. He said it's hard to detect at first. And then we'll I want to read to you this morning from first Corinthians 214. It says, the natural man understands not the things of the spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him.

Pastor West:
Neither can he know them because they are spiritually understood. Now let's look at this a little bit closer. The Natural man. He understands not the things of the spirit of God. To him, they're just. They're foolish. Well, there's some scriptures that coincide that First Corinthians chapter one. You know, that talks about the difference between. The wisdom of God and the wisdom of man. But you can't. You can't spiritually, you can't understand with your natural mind. This word. You can interpret it. You can't discern it. You can't get the truth from it. It's a book. I mean, I know I used to work in a printing company. I understand every I understand every aspect of how this physical book is put together. I worked in every department. I know how they put the binding on here. I know where the letters came from. I know what the plates look like. That impresses the letters. I know what it looks like when it goes through the ink. I know what it looks like when the paper and the ink touch together. I know this press is at least 100 foot long. It takes six men to run it. But this book by itself is is just paper and ink. Just paper and ink. But it's like all of us. We have a Bible falling apart. It's like, well, what do you do with them? You know, no one wants to throw a Bible away, do they? And just like but, you know, it's fell apart in every place, but we don't know.

Pastor West:
So we just stack it up somewhere or we take it to the thrift store. You know, we just pass the problem on, but we just can't throw the Bible away. So the the natural man, he just can't understand you sometimes. Why are you doing that? Why would you do that? I mean, that doesn't make any sense at all. Why would you be saying those things? My God. Can't. Can't you see? Can't you see what's going on here? How could you actually believe that? Well, you know, what's your opinion? Well, I don't really have an opinion. Well, you've got to have some kind of opinion. Well, you're right. Let me go read my opinion. Oh, I see. My opinion is right here. Then you read the word of God. You see, Then you begin to separate. So the natural man cannot receive the things, the spirit of God. I didn't come up with that. This is not my opinion. The natural man cannot receive the things, the Spirit of God for to him, they are foolish. He can't know them because they are spiritually understood. So when you separate the spirit, soul and the body, you could say it this way with your soul, with your mind, your will and your emotions. You contact the intellectual realm. With your physical body that says you contact the physical realm, but your spirit with your spirits.

Pastor West:
You're. You're in contact with the spiritual realm all the time now. So the problem is knowledge of the mind or intellect has taken the place and and or thrown. It was the the soul of man. The soul of man is wanting to put the crown on and wear the crown. And the spirit has been locked away and put in silence somewhere. Well, this is out of order. It's spirit, soul in body, spirit, soul and body. In other words, your. Your spirit is supposed to rule. Your spirit is of God. So that is the divine order. That God's spirit. I'm a spirit. Yes, we have a soul. We have a body. But the spirit is supposed to rule your life. The difference between someone who says We believe God and now the person who says I believe God to one's a mental agreer and the other one is a spiritual believer. They sound just alike the same time. But there's oh, what a big difference. Now living from your mind can cripple you. Revelation knowledge is when you do this, when you live from your mind, then you stop the flow of revelation. Knowledge come into your life. Revelation. Knowledge does not come into your body, doesn't come into your mind. It doesn't come into it doesn't come through intellectual facts. So revelation now ceases to flow from your spirit and then alienates yourself from the life in your spirit.

Pastor West:
Well, who wants to be alienated from the life of God? Well, no one does. And from the life that's in your spirit. Your spirit has life in him. Is life in him. Is life in Him is life. And that life was what? The light of men that lights up the whole world. Amen. Amen. So since knowledge, faith has faith in experiences, this is what Pastor Matt was talking about. Since knowledge, faith has faith in experiences he didn't know what I didn't know what he was going to minister on this morning. He didn't know what I was going to minister on this morning. It's almost like, well, I'm almost close to preaching this. I'm about ready to bring it out. After years of study, it looks like God knows everything. It almost looks like that. I know that's kind of strong, but I'm going to put it out there. People with sense, knowledge, faith always require some type of physical evidence or they won't believe. Why are we saying this? If you notice, I'm going in a circle this morning. I've really I've almost said everything I'm going to say. Now I'm just going back around and saying it again and again and again. Why? Because faith comes by hearing. Hearing by the Word of God. Brother Hagan said, If you want a church to get something, if you want a group to get something, he said, it has to be preached at least 14 times. Say the same thing, use the same examples, use the same scriptures, and then you'll get close to getting about half of it.

Pastor West:
Because people are people. Sometimes people go to church to make their grocery list. Sometimes people go to church, you know, and because it was just, you know, they felt like they ought to do it. Some people go to church to get a rest. Whatever they go to church for. And sometimes, you know, you just, you know, you've had a long week. Well, that's where we get robbed from because we're living in a natural world. But I'm still speaking to your, you know, your spirit can get fed even if your your body is out of contact right now. Your your spirit's just. Just jumping. You know, your spirit doesn't need any. Never needs rest. What you arrested last night was your physical body. But your spirit has never taken, nor will ever need a lamp. We think about what that must be like sometimes. Say, I know in heaven we don't require sleep. Maybe if that's our hobby, God will let us do it. He probably will. But if that's your hobby, he might let you sleep for a couple eons of years. I don't know. I mean, it's not like you're going to waste time because there's. There's time. Then after that, there's time. And then after that, there's a whole lot more time. And so there's just a lot of time. So we think it's kind of hard to grasp what it's going to be like to be in heaven and not have require sleep.

Pastor West:
Well, your spirit is thinking, that's not hard to grasp. I do that all the time. Your spirit has never went to sleep. Hmm. Never. I mean, how many knows that your physical body hasn't. Hadn't got on that yet? I mean, it's not a it's not a whole different program. Yeah. And so the sense knowledge person always requires some type of physical evidence or they just won't believe. They do not believe they're healed until the sickness or pain leaves their body. Now, a good word person knows how to talk about it. Or not talk about it. And you think if I don't mention it, I'm in faith? No, not necessarily. Well, because I refuse to say I'm sick. That remains. I'm in faith to be healed. It doesn't mean anything. It just means you ain't talking about it right now. It's so close, you know? Identical twins is. Sometimes it takes their parents to say, no, this one's Frank, This one's, you know. But the rest of us, we don't know which one's which. Faith in mental assent are identical twins. They're hard to tell apart, but they'll always give little clues along the way. And so they don't believe God heard and answered their prayer until they seen some physical evidence of it. How do you how do you know? Whether your in faith about your healing.

Pastor West:
Well I'm still believing God, you know, for the full manifestation of it because I know by his stripes I'm healed. I know Jesus took my you know, Jesus took my place. I know Isaiah 53. I can quote I know first Peter 224 I can I can quote it. I know Matthew 817 I can quote it. I know about the atonement. I know about the blood. I know that he was raised up. I know the same spirit raised Christ from dead dwells in my mortal body. I can quote that backwards and forwards and 3 or 4 different translations. Well, are you healed right now? Well, not yet, but. But I'm telling you what I know. It's mine. You don't know anything yet. You said everything that was right, but you're all together wrong. Y'all. Y'all quit shouting because I'm doing such good preaching now. Since physical knowledge people who's living in their carnal mind. Carnal means the physical senses. Carnal is not a it's not a bad word. It's not. I mean, if you ever if you ever ordered chili con carne, you know, you've. You've done carnal, right? If you like any kind of meat, you're carnal, right? Carnivores are, you know, they're meat eaters. Right. So the physical. But the the person who's ruled by their physical senses is always needing some physical evidence to know that they're healed. If they're saying, well, I believe that I'm healed by faith, but but I haven't received it yet in my I'm waiting on the manifestation of to come.

Pastor West:
Well, then how will you know when it comes? Now you have to answer me. And the only answer you could give me when you say that is because things will change in my body. And then when things change in my body, I'll know I received it. So you're telling me you're waiting on a physical manifestation to believe with your heart? You're telling me you're waiting on the. You're telling me. You're telling me you're waiting on a natural. Something natural to change so that you can believe this by the spirit? Now, we've all heard that. I believe. I'm just waiting on the manifestation. So you're waiting on something physical? Well, by by your stripes you were healed. Were If I. Unless they changed the English definitions. I think it's past tense. You can't. You cannot receive. You cannot receive healing through the physical. Everything you're healing is always spiritual. It's not. It's never physical. When I when Isaiah spoke of these things, of speaking of Christ before he was born, Jesus had not even been born into the earth as of yet. And all these things he saw, he saw by the Spirit. When he saw Jesus on the cross and Isaiah 52 and he says, this person who who will give their life when when they have crucified him, he will not even resemble a human being. When they talked about the stripes, how many stripes have they placed upon Jesus's back? Zero.

Pastor West:
So this was by the spirit. She was healed? Yes. There was a physical part. Jesus come too. But it can't be a natural remedy. It can't be a physical thing that a Roman did to God to be how we would know whether we're healed or not healed. All year. Healing comes to you first spiritually before it gets to your natural body. Always. You can't wait on the manifestation of it. Will there be a manifestation? Absolutely. There'll be a manifestation, but that will not be your evidence. What is the evidence that you know that you're healed? Because the word says by his stripes, we were healed. That is your evidence that that is the evidence. Faith is the evidence of things. What not seen? Faith is the evidence of things not seen as of yet. So if you have evidence of something, that means you have to you have to have some kind of proof. If you go to court and they require evidence, that means you have to have some type of proof. What is the proof that you would know that by your stripes you are you are healed? What would be the evidence that you would know that what you have prayed for actually belongs to you? Well, first, John 514 said this is the confidence that we have. If we ask anything according to his will, we know that he hears us.

Pastor West:
And if we know that he hears us, then we know that we have. We know that we have. Does that mean that it showed up in the natural realm the same time that we know that we have? Possibly. But more times than not, usually not healing sometimes denotes a process, but faith has to receive it. When faith is the definition, if you want to give it the most simplest definition, I know how to give it it. If it's ever going to be faith, it has to come down to this. I got it. I received it. Right. Think about it. Mark 1124 What things soever ye desire when you pray. Do what? Believe that you have received them. What things soever ye desire when ye pray, believe that you have received them. When was I supposed to believe that I received? When I prayed. Well, when you pray, did you receive then? Well, you didn't receive it naturally. She was believing God for a different vehicle. You go out on the yard and the vehicle is not out there. Well, when did you actually believe? You believe it when you prayed. But what is your evidence based upon? Well, I just really want one. Well, that's. That's natural. Well, we just really want to move into a different home. Well, that's just natural. But when do you actually receive the promise? You have to have a promise from this word that says it's yours, that it's been paid for.

Pastor West:
That it belongs to you in the New Covenant. That has to be your evidence. That has to be your proof. When you have two attorneys going at each other, they're always bringing back judge. Back in 1947 and the Kate and the versus, you know, Smith versus Johnson, there was a precedence for what I'm asking right now, that there was a real they're always bringing you back to where something has already happened to say I have legal precedence to ask for this or to do this. What we're doing is we're always going back to this word because the Bible says this word of God is settled in heaven. Now what are we going to do? We've got to settle it on the earth. This is my evidence. This is my proof. This is how I know. You can't ask your body. How's it doing? Now your senses will tell you how your body is doing. It's given the report all the time. But the scripture says, Whose report are you going to believe? You can't change the spirit realm. You can't change the spirit realm with your body. But you can change, huh? But you can change your body with the spirit realm. Who made what? Did our bodies make this world? No. The spirit realm did. Which one existed first? The spirit existed first. Which one takes precedence over the other? The spirit does. So that's why the natural man cannot receive the things of God.

Pastor West:
They're just foolish to him. He can't understand them. He can't discern them. Y'all doing okay? Yeah. So there will always be a conflict between our senses and the word. The word demands that we walk by faith, doesn't it? Y'all, y'all hear the five senses demand. But your five physical senses demand that you walk by sight. Does the demand on both sides. The word demands. No. We walk by faith. Body says no, we don't. No, we want proof. Walking by faith is simply walking according to God's word, believing and then being steadfast. Faith is just being steadfast. And what what you believe in your heart to be true. It's by faith that you're led away from the sensorium and to the realm of the spirit. Second Corinthians 418 says, While we look not at the things which are seen, but the things which are not seen. Man How do you look at things? Something's not seen. Now when I was quoting a while ago. First Corinthians two, the natural man can't receive the things of the spirit of God because they're spiritually understood. There's a good example right there. Ask a natural person, What does this mean? While we look not at the things which are not seen, but we look at things that are not seen, They're like, That's crazy. You can't look at things not seen. Now, how would you naturally understand that scripture? No, I don't. Don't be looking at what you're seeing.

Pastor West:
Look over here to what's not saying. It's like chicken. You want some kind of medication? Yeah, I've been heavily. I'm. I'm under a heavy anesthetic of meditation. I'm in medication right now. Medication. Thank you. Jesus. Heavily medication. But that's where the conflict begins. Now, watch here in Second Corinthians. Will you put this up for us? I didn't ask for it. Second Corinthians ten verses three through five. Would you stay in the King James? If you want to. It doesn't really matter. There's there's a there's. 12 more Sundays this this year. If tariffs lasted two hours, that's as 24 hours. The rest this year to have. If you don't miss a service. And then we got to do Thanksgiving and Christmas out of all that, you know, and, you know, and we got to sing Santa Claus Ain't Coming to Town. No, it ain't. It ain't just Daddy's and Papa's wallets. What it is. It's usually pop on because I can't say no. They don't have any no genes in them. We had it in the first go round. We don't have too much of the rest. Just leave us alone. They said, Well, that ain't good for the kids. Well, you all work it out anyway. Second Corinthians ten verses three through five. I don't know if this is King James or not. I wrote it down, but let's just for though we walk in the flesh, we don't war according to the flesh for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal or the not flesh, but they're mighty through God and the weapons of your warfare.

Pastor West:
The weapons of your warfare are not physical. They're not flesh. They're not natural. They're not sensorial. God wants you knows you're going to be in a war. He says the only way you could succeed is put down physical weapons. Get away from sense knowledge, get away from mental faith, mental assent. You'll have to get away from that, because all those are tools of the flesh. None of those tools are mighty before God. To the casting down of strongholds, casting down reasonings. Now where do we reason? In our mind, we reason things out, you know, like this. And, you know, I think two of these be better than three. You know, let's see. Seven times four, 28, 28, 29, 22, 56, 56, 56. Okay. And then I don't know because, you know, yesterday, you know, well, we could go down there, but gosh, if we did that, let's see. So we think about things just like this attack on Israel. They said that. They said they didn't see it coming. Best intelligence in the world. Well, who created their intelligence? Man. He. You can have a $70,000 vehicle and it works fine until it don't. Then it's sitting in the shop. Well, who created that vehicle? A man. Now you need a man to try to fix it. So the greatest intelligence of the world couldn't pick up what was about to happen.

Pastor West:
But did God know? Was God in the dark? Did they catch God napping? The scripture says, I don't know how this works. He said, God, the Scriptures to God. The dark is just as light as the light is. Now, do you know anyone who could make that claim? He's just as bright to me, you know, at midnight as it is, you know, 8:00 in the morning. I see. Just as good. God has more than cat eyes. Right. So. So they just look went in on him. What's actually happening. The fulfilling the prophecy which which must be fulfilled. And it will be fulfilled. And there will be the war that one day will come. Israel. This little bitty, little bitty place on the map. Shi shi shi. So minute, so little compared to the rest of the world. But God has such love for this, this, this land and these people that the world, when it comes to the attacker, He shall come defend her himself. And then in the skies. It won't be these things and all this great inventions that they've made, you know, to shoot down rockets. It'll be you and me on horses. God's going to take a step back in history and put you on a horse. Huh? You see, I don't know much about horses. Will, you need to start reading up on them a little bit? You going to come back on one? Amen.

Pastor West:
Well, so it says still casting down regions and every high thing that exalts itself against the Word of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. Now, so to walk according to this verse, I'm going to break it down to walk in the flesh. To walk in a sense. Real mind. To walk in a carnal mind. To walk in a natural mind is to walk in agreement with your senses, which is an unrenewed mind. Now he tells you there's a battle going on and you can't win it with natural weapons. So he says, if you walk in the flesh, you're walking in the natural, you're walking in a sensual mind, you're walking in mental ascent, which means you're not walking in agreement with God. You're walking in agreement with your soul. To walk in the spirit means exactly that. To walk by your spirit, in your spirit, which is God. Because the Word and the Spirit agree, the Scripture says the Word of God is Christ, and Christ is the power of God unto salvation. The weapons of our warfare are the weapons of the word. Every strong coal comes through the channel of your five senses. What is a stronghold? It's. It's a mental fortress. It's a house of thoughts. You ever heard, Bill? House of Cards. It can come tumbling down. He said you have to cast down. The stronghold. The channel is the five senses. We bring every contrary thought into the obedience of Christ.

Pastor West:
The vain reasonings and the vain imaginations are the enemies of walking. In the spirit vain reasonings and vain imaginations is the enemy of walking in the spirit and truth. The moment you see these things and you get them in your heart and in your mouth, your body will respond. You're not waiting on a time. You're not waiting on an anointing. You're not waiting on a special day. You're not waiting when someone comes to town with just the right anointing. You're waiting on you. I'd rather know that I thought I was in faith to learn that I wasn't. Than just keep on thinking that I was and not, you know, not spare my feelings get hurt. Since knowledge is always worried, it's always scared. It's always afraid. It's always a need. It's always a lack. It's always got a poverty of mind. It requires you work hard, try harder, use your wits, make something happen. Sense knowledge. Faith tells you mental faith tells you to use all your cognitive skills. But faith. Trust. Faith believes. Faith knows. Faith rests in the finished work of Christ. Faith is born of the human spirit, not of the mind. Mental sin or head. Faith can be one of the greatest enemies of the life of faith. I want to read. Let's go here, guys. Matthew, 16. If you put that up for me, I want you to see it. I'll give you an example of it right here.

Pastor West:
Matthew 19. Excuse me. Matthew 1916 through 22. Can y'all hold on ten minutes? How many watched the ball game yesterday? I held your attention for three hours. Surely we can go 60 Minutes talking about things. It's like, surely. Well, yeah, but I was being entertained there. Okay. That's what I'm talking about. Matthew. 1916 through 22. Y'all ready? When you found it, say, Got it. If you're not there yet, say, Oh, me. Okay, we got them. Verse 16, and behold, one came and said unto him, Good, master, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life? And he said unto him, Why do you call me good? There's not one good but God that is God. But if thou will enter into life, keep the commandments. And He said unto him, which Jesus said, Thou shalt not murder. Thou shall not commit adultery. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shall not bear false witness. Honor thy father and mother, and thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. The young man said unto him, Jesus, all these things have I kept from my youth up. What lack I yet? Jesus said unto him, If you will be perfect, go and sell what you have and give to the poor. Then you shall have treasure in heaven and then come and follow me. When the young man heard these sayings, he went away sorrowful for he had great possessions. This is one of the poorest mans on the planet.

Pastor West:
See he mentally agreed to all these things. I've done all this from my youth. I know there can't be anything lacking, but if you see something, let me know because I'm ready. Jesus offered him a discipleship. Now, you would have a hard time if Jesus come to your home and said, Would you come be with me? Would you come go with me? And he says, Well, I want eternal life, but I but I'm going to have to hold on to natural life. Because I have a lot of stuff. I can't bring my Ferrari. Well, he didn't have. I can't bring my double humped camel. And that's luxurious, you know? I know y'all. Some of y'all don't even have camels. Some of y'all doing pretty good. You just got your first hump. One humper. We got a carport full of double humpers out there, and he wants me to sell all that and just follow him and give to the poor. Oh, boy. Instead, he went away. Sad, grieved for he had great possessions. He didn't have nothing. They had him. Here's a here's a man who goes to him, calls him good master and believes that he is who he is. Mentally. Mentally. He believed it. Mentally. He believed it in his mind. He believed it. Jesus says they honor me with their lips. They say, Hosanna. Glory to God on the highest peace on earth. Good will to men.

Pastor West:
Hallelujah. And Jesus says, But I only know that their heart is far from me. Depart from me. You workers of iniquity. I don't even know who you are. No one wants a shadow of that verse. We know this man had mental faith by the way he reacted. He proved it, didn't he? Mental assent Going to close here, Mental assent is a subtle form of deception because you're just one step away from hypocrisy. Hypocrisy is knowing what we ought to do, but choosing not to do it. We know what's right. We know right from wrong, but we choose not to do it. Mental assent is just is just one step away from that. But it's even harder to detect sometimes. It's believing something in your head. In other words, you agree. You approve, you confirm it's right. You confirm it's purpose, you confirm it's the righteous holy thing to do. In other words, the idea carries your endorsement. It bears the seal of your approval. The problem is you'll never commit to the offer and you refuse to sign the contract. But you agreed to it. You mentally agree with it? In Luke 12 one, Jesus said to his disciples, Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Hypocrisy is choosing not to practice what you preach yourself. Mental sin is just a crippling, more than it's more than crippling. It's more hidden from the awareness of it. In other words, it doesn't.

Pastor West:
You say it and no one sees it. You've come to believe it in your in your yourself. But, John, I think it's 647, somewhere in there. It says, he says a believer is a possessor believing is having believing is possessing. Believing is not just. I agree to that. So. So what if you believe that and you died? Well, I'd be in heaven. I would be here. I am. He'll. Huh? We're going to get into some of these things. Not that they're altogether wrong, but they need to be they need to be cleaned up a little bit like, you know, confession brings possession. Not necessarily. I know a lot of folks confess to all kinds of things, all the way to the grave. They didn't possess nothing. I mean, you can't just say this and necessarily, I mean, can can you make some if you put a gun up to someone's head and made them say something against their will, might they? They might say, right. If you had a gun up to their head, does that mean that they agree with that and they choose to agree? No, they're just saying, well, you may not be doing it because you're coerced or, you know, with a gun up to your head, but you might just be saying something mentally. In mentally, it makes sense. But it doesn't mean it's of the heart. Remember. We believed in our heart. And we said with our mouth, we believed in our heart.

Pastor West:
We said it with our mouth. What Paul said. He said, The spirit of faith. We have the same spirit of faith, which is what we believe. That's why we spoke. Well, there it is. What is the spirit of faith do? Paul It says, we believe we have the same spirit of faith, which is we believe. That's why we spoke. We wasn't confessing to possess. We already saw it and possessed it in our heart. That's why we're just saying these things. Because we know to call something is to summon something. When you summon something, it better show up. If your summons the court, unless you got an excuse, you better show up there or else you'll have your own court case. It'll be your court case, you'll be fined, called means summons. I'll call things that be not as though they were. Well, they don't be, not they be not insensitive. You don't see them with your physical. But, but, but in the spirit they do exist. It's yours. It's already been provided. Hello. So Mendelssohn is just as crippling, but it's more hidden from your awareness. Only by acting, which is signing the contract do you actually express what you believe. Healing can be blocked by mental assent and will give you the three witnesses in close here. What are the three witnesses? It could be anything but what to say have to do with healing? Well, the word because the word declares what? By stripes you're healed.

Pastor West:
That's the word of God. Is that true? Then there's another witness, y'all. This is a little bit foreign to some people, but, you know, let me give it to you. There's something called pain. The pain is the sensual, physical evidence of the body and the pain. The pain makes a declaration which says, I am. I am not. He'll. I know I'm not. I know I'm not. And I went and got an x ray and see, I'm not I'm not healed. I'm in a lot of hurt. But the word says, Yeah, but you were healed. The pain says, Not yet. I wasn't. I mean, I'm in a lot of pain. Yeah, the pain versus. I just. Believe this and say this. Believe this in your heart. Get in the word. Meditate on the word. Find out what belongs to you. Find out who you are. Get your heart established on the Word of God. The Pacers. I'm not going to believe anything until I can feel it. I'm going to go with Thomas on this one. Maybe Jesus walk in the room like he did for him. The sick one declares. Then you got the person who's sick. But they're a person of the word. The three. This is the third witness. The sick one declares by his stripes. I'm healed. He or she declares this in the face of sense. Physical evidence. Their confession, agrees with God, agrees with the word, and then the body has to come into physical alignment.

Pastor West:
When you are born again, the Bible says your spirit was made alive with Christ. Your spirit was. Which means you're a new creation in Christ Jesus. Now your spirit is in fellowship with God. Who is spirit, right? Now your spirit can grasp and lay hold of what your mind cannot grasp before. Now your spirit can take the proper place because your spirit has been crowned king and your spirit is the master of your being. Boy, this is good preaching, and I'm about to begin. Here, y'all going to be saying, please don't do that, but I'm going to have to. Romans 811 in the Nlt says, so you should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin. Towards the power of sickness or to the power of doubt, or to the power of lust or to any kind of the result of sin. Consider yourself dead to those things and alive unto God through Christ Jesus. Verse 12 says, Do not let sin control the way you live. Do not. Do not let doubt control the way that you live. Do not let sickness control the way that you live. Do not let a poverty mindset control the way that you live. Do not. Let it control the way that you live. Do not give in to it sinful thoughts and desires. Verse 13 Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin.

Pastor West:
Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead. But now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what's right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law because you're under the tree. You're under the freedom of grace. Oh, you switched. You switched? Amen. Now we have a great promise in Romans 814 said it said If the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead dead, it's the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwells in your mortal body. What can happen. What's happened. If the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead, from hell, from the grave and raised him up. He said he will quicken your mortal body. This is a whole new I'm in this with a whole. This is a whole teaching. But I'll make an end statement with what should be a beginning. It's the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwells in your mortal body, which it does in your spirit. He said That same spirit shall quicken make alive your mortal body. The day will come when you go from a measure of what Christ had that's in your spirit now to the full measure, and your body will be changed in a twinkling of an eye. In other words, mortality will put on immortality, right? This flesh will have a spirit body.

Pastor West:
You have a measure of that already in you right now. Now, what we're not doing to be healed is we're not. We're not releasing an object. From your spirit into your body. We're releasing the person. But at the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead quicken your mortal body. What makes you alive? The same spirit. Now what comes with that spirit? Who not what lives in your mortal body, in your spirit. Holy Spirit. Not the object of healing. We're not moving a benefit from from there and say, now I need you to go over here and I got a boo boo here and I got out here and I got, you know, we're not moving healing throughout our body out of our spirit. We think that's a great revelation. And it is. So now we're going to move objects around. Now it's the it's the spirit of God. He's on the inside of you. He says it was Christ. It was him that raised Christ from the dead. Now, now, if he's alive in you, he said he can quicken all your mortal body. He. He can quicken all your mortal body. Doctors don't know what to do, but. But he hasn't even been to school yet. He doesn't need. He created school. He just lets them in all the things right here. And they think they invented some. Like this just came to me. No, it didn't come to you.

Pastor West:
He didn't come, you dumb as a rock. It didn't come to you. God just awakened a part of your natural brain. And you thought you created something. Hello? Well, you know, man had invented anything. The poorest countries on the earth. A lot of times the third world countries, not all, but most of them are. You know why they are? Because they never see Christ, you know. Is he punish them? No, they don't. They don't have the born again spirit of Christ. They have no their intellect is dead. That's why they're in such poverty. It's not it's not because they don't have resources. Some of the poorest people on the earth have some of the greatest resources on the planet. I mean, you go to India, some places where they're starving, but they can't eat a cow because that might be Uncle Ned. I mean, they're not going to eat a chicken. I mean, that might be their brother who passed two years ago. How are you going to eat? You know, brother Chick. I mean, of the heart. They believe these things. So here they are, starving. And a bull could walk right through their house. And you could slap a whole case of A1 in their hand. And they won't. They won't even make a stab at it. Well because their spirit is dead. But when their spirit becomes alive unto God, they begin to see what he sees. No, what he begins. They begin to know things that he knows.

Pastor West:
They begin to have spiritual discernment for the things that they could not discern before. And they begin to say, Oh, I see. Because now I'm not a natural man. The natural man receiveth not. But we're not of the natural. We are of the spirit. We are of the spirit. Because you are spirit. So we don't mentally agree. We agree. Who's taking orders are you? Does your spirit give orders to your body or does your body give orders to the rest of you? Well, you may not do that because you know you know, now, that didn't go good with your mom and you. And you remember Granny? Well, she always said. Well, she always did. Now you better rub some of that. Concentrate, you know, go get your fifth of this, a little of this and a lot of this. Get you a little bit of honey for that cough and, you know. Go on. You know now. Well, we know you don't drink, but get you a little Jim Beam and then put it in there with that honey, stir it all up like that. That's how you get rid of that cough. That's just a good excuse for drinking. Jim Beam. That's right. You don't know about your cough because you're stoned. That's all. That's all that is. You. You just want to take. You just want to partake of strong drink. Call it a bottle of cough remedy. Hello? Well, praise God. We've won on every side. We've won on every side. Who has heart? Faith instead of head faith? Who believes God still have mental sin?

Pastor West:
Huh?

Pastor West:
I believe Paul said, therefore. Have I spoken? Amen. God bless.

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Heart of Compassion 1Oct2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Heart of Compassion 1Oct2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
You don't know sometimes because it's just internal. You can't. Sometimes it can be seen, sometimes it can be felt, sometimes it's not. But right now, this morning, someone came here believing God for a turnaround, believing God for a miracle, believing God for a breakthrough. And the Lord says he says the breakthrough is already in the house from this time forth. That's over. From this day, from this time forth, that's over. You say, Well, I want to believe that for a long time. Yeah, well, forget about yesterday. Today is the day of salvation. Amen. From this time forth, that is over. Thank you.

Pastor West:
Lord.

Pastor West:
Now we're just in the increase in the overflow. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. So just ride the wave out so you're healed in Jesus name. So, Father, I bless you this morning. Praise you, Lord, and give glory and honor to you, Lord. Father, as we give this morning, we know that it's already been given to us. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over shall men give into our bosom. But we thank you, Father God, that you're the God of increased, not decreased. You're the God of addition and multiplication, not the God of subtraction and division. We thank you, Father God, that everything that you have done and everything that you do is greater than you're not the lesser than the hope to be then equal to you. You're the more than enough. You're the exceedingly abundantly above increase. So we command increase to come forth into the hands of the people, into the homes, of the people, into the lives of the people who put their self in agreement with this word in Jesus name, that you won't be just good to them because you're already good to them. But Father God, that you'll be able to do exceedingly, abundantly above all that all all that you have in your heart because of the power that worketh in us and worketh in you, which is love. Love is a giver. Grace is a receiver by faith. So we receive your goodness With Thanksgiving, we receive it with praise. We give you glory.

Pastor West:
Come on, someone say we give you praise and honor. You know the Scripture says the Lord goes up with a what? A shout, not a holy hush. The Lord, the Lord hears high. He said He inhabits your praise, not your holy hush. He said, Well, it's not my personality where the Lord didn't say, I'm going to come to bless your personality. Blind Bartimaeus you know, he heard about Jesus and he was blind. That's why they call him blind Bartimaeus I learned that Bible school that's deep one them and they said, That's Jesus of Nazareth coming down the road. And they said, That's him. That's him. He said, Yeah, this is Jesus. And he started crying out, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, how many ever read that story? And you know, you know, you know who taught me to be quiet? Jesus disciples. They said, we're trying to have church. My God, this is a holy man coming down the road here. We're trying to have church. Pitch to a judge and he's just. Oh, it is Jesus. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He. He just screamed Jesus. And Jesus stopped. He says, I'm getting my message. He says. Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus, when he heard Have Mercy on Me, Jesus said, Oh, no, you did. And he turned back around to see who said that. He said, Come to me. He threw off that. He threw off that beggar's garment. It's time for you to cast off some garments, the garment of heaviness and put on the garment of Woo hoo! Woo hoo! Glory to God, Huh? Smith said if the spirit's not moving, I'll move it.

Pastor West:
I'll move him. Hallelujah. Did you know you can command your body and your mouth and your hands and your legs into obedience? Oh, they tell us that you have to, in your brain with the impulse of the brain, has to give command to the body for the hand to go up. Can you, without a struggle with your brain, make your arm, your hand go up. My God, I'm not some sharp, intelligent people. I didn't even hear. I didn't even hear it like. Ah, hallelujah. Praise God. Well, glory to God. You happy? Are y'all happy? Happy. Are y'all happy? Who's the happiest? Amen. Hallelujah. Thank you, Lord. I can beat all that. I got a microphone. Hallelujah. Yeah. There you go. Get the offering free. Run away with it now. Glory be to God. Blessed in Jesus name. Being forever. Amen. You can be seated this morning. Praise God. Hallelujah. God is good all the time and all the time. Good morning and welcome to Gracelife Church. All of you here and those of you who joined us by ways that you do that. Glad to make you part of our service here this morning. If you have your Bibles with me, let's go to Psalms 145. Psalms 145. We're going to put up some scriptures. I'm going to read this from the passage translation, starting at verse one through nine and.

Pastor West:
I know this will be a blessing to whoever is going to really help. I had a friend call me last night said, What are you doing? I said, I'm in the office. And he said this after 8:00. What are you doing in the office 8:00 at night? I said, Well, I was through, I thought Friday and I looked at some things Saturday, Friday to go do some things. And then all of a sudden on Saturday it disappeared. And I says. Or what about this? He says. Oh, you think you're studying this week? He said that was for you. And I said, Oh, so I'm out there and this is what the Lord gave me. Amen. Well, I just need to. You ever heard of oral knowledge? You'll make it come to you, but you just get it. We don't. We don't ever know if it's here or someone watching. We broadcast about 40 different countries. So you don't you don't ever know. They could begin it in audio format at another time. I command the deaf spirit. A deafening spirit if you're dealing with situations with a lack of hearing. I deal with the deaf spirit. In the name of Jesus, I take authority over you. You have no place in their body. Their body is the temple of the Holy Ghost. In the name of Jesus, I arrest you. I command you to stop.

Pastor West:
Gone, be removed. And I command them to be able to heal or hear normally without any aid. In Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Some said. Is it that simple? It's actually simple in that I use about two times. Two times too much words. I found out when you go into the hospital, sometimes if they have something that's called real severe by those who say, well, this is minor and this is major. People want long prayers for long illnesses. And I understand. But but if you really just read the scriptures and Jesus never ministered that way when he when he's when he's dealing with devils. He just said two things. He said, get out or come out. Right. That's all that I did. And so they had to obey him. Not because of all the scripture you could quote, but they obey you because of who you are. Psalms 145 And we're going to talk about. The compassion of Jesus. The goodness of God. How do we know God is good? And you'll say amen. And I think and I appreciate that you say amen, but sometimes we just say amen because that's just what you say. I mean I mean, you really can't disagree. You shouldn't disagree with anyone. And let's say God's good. I don't care what your denomination is. I think across the across the board church world would say God is good, right? But do you really know how good he is? I said this a few weeks ago when someone asked me a number of years ago.

Pastor West:
They said, Now that you've been in the ministry, I said, Yeah, almost 30 years now. They said, if there's one thing that you could go back and teach, the younger you that you wish you would have known more about starting out is if you just had to pick one thing, could you could you just say that this is the one thing or would you have to think about it? I said, No, I wouldn't have to think about that at all. I said the one thing that I wished I had a better understanding of than I did when I was starting the ministry and even up to the last ten, 15 years, as I wished, I had understood more about the goodness of our God. Amen. We say God's good, but we really don't understand how good he is. You see, you know about things and can give testimony from things that he's kept you out of, that he's delivered you from how he spared your life of things that you know about, but you don't know all the times that he spared you the things that you don't know about. Amen. When the car didn't crank, when when you when you heard you was having a bad hair day and it wasn't going to go this way and go that way. I mean, I remember when I was 17 because I had mine down by here and I curled it because I didn't want it to flip up like Marlo Thomas on that girl.

Pastor West:
I didn't want to be that boy with that girl's hair. So sometimes you're at the house a little bit longer and you're, you know, you're just like you're wondering, you know, how did that happen? And yeah, I was thinking about Dennis. He got a phone call apparently from Pastor C a few weeks ago, and they're at the house. And so, you know, he answers and they talk for a while. And then, you know, Pastor C kind of wondering why Dennis called him and Dennis said, I didn't call you. But they didn't. Neither one call each other and his phone was just sitting off to the side. He's not sitting there holding it. And it just it just kind of goes off and it's like, well, sure, you call me. No, I didn't call you. Well, I mean, you don't really know, but how do you know? How do you know that those little things that happen just like that, just to keep you out of something for a five minute span? Amen. That's the things that you don't know what God's done for you. Amen. So, Psalms 145 we're in the passage. Translation verse one, he says, My heart explodes with praise to you now and forever. My heart, my heart bows in worship to you, my king and my God. Every day I will lift up my praise to your name with praises that will last throughout eternity.

Pastor West:
I want you to get the spirit of what I'm reading and not just words. See what he's saying. Every day I will lift up my praise to your name with praises that will last throughout eternity. Lord, you are great and worthy of the highest praise. There's no end to the discovers of the greatness that surrounds you. Generation after generation will declare more of your greatness and declare more of your glory. Your magnificent splendor in the miracles of Your Majesty are my constant meditation. Your all inspiring acts of power have everyone talking. I'm telling people everywhere about your excellent greatness. Are you? Our hearts bubble over as we celebrate the fame of our marvelous beauty bringing bliss to our hearts. We shout with ecstatic joy over your breakthrough for us. Amen. Wow. Verse eight You're kind and tender hearted to those who don't deserve it. Can I get an amen? Amen. And very patient with people who fail you. Can I get a double? Amen. Amen. I mean, I'm not about you, but, you know, you know people. Yeah. That's a joke, right? Your love is like a flooding river overflowing its banks with kindness. God, everyone sees your goodness for your tender love is blended into everything that you do. Your tender love is blended together like making a recipe is blended into everything that you do. So Psalms 145 talks about his gracious. But King James said, you're full of compassion.

Pastor West:
Said he was slow to anger and of great mercy. The King James said the Lord is good to all of his tender mercies are over all of his hands. I'm just going to read you a couple of verses here that I wrote down. We won't turn there. It's for the Psalms 105 said, The Lord is good. The Lord is good, His mercy is everlasting and his truth endures to all generations. So you have to be in one of those generations if it's all generations. Can I get a better. Amen? Amen. I know I'm doing a lot better preaching than you all doing. Amen. And praise the Lord. Now, if you sit on your Amen and your hallelujahs, you will expand somewhere, either in the jawline if you're a man or in the hips if you're a lady. So, you know, I'm giving you an opportunity to to get it out. You can come to church and lose weight. Praise the Lord. Hallelujah. Psalms 107 one says, Give thanks to the Lord for he is good and his love endures. Until Friday. I'm sorry. Forever. I'm sorry. So God is good. But. But what does that mean? That God is good? We say it. It can almost be a slogan. God is good. It could be a bumper sticker. We would agree with it. But, you know, it's just like if someone sneezes, we say, God bless you. And that's just that's a response to a sneeze.

Pastor West:
But what does God bless you really mean? You know, bless means you have been empowered by the most high to prosper in anything that you need prospering in that would include your include your sneeze. But it goes far beyond that. So when we say God is good and his love endures forever, what does that mean? God is good. God is good is really just his essence. It's who He is. It's God's nature. God is good all by himself. Amen. If God never did anything good for mankind from this day forward ever again. The essence of who he is, the nature of God is just good. He's not good because he does good. He's just good. Amen. Right. And so. But thank God he does. Good. Amen. But good is not what he does. Good is who he is. So God's nature is His essence is his divine attributes of goodness. He's not considered good because he does good things for us. And thank God he does. Psalms 34 says the Lord thy God, merciful and gracious and long suffering and abounding in goodness and truth. Abounding in goodness. What does abounding look like when you have something abounding and you have a surplus of it? I mean, could you handle a surplus of what God thinks is good? Amen. I mean, if you were to ask a millionaire on Earth or a billionaire on Earth, what's a lot of money, they could tell you what they think a lot of money is.

Pastor West:
But if you ask God, what would you consider rich to be? Well, I don't know. I mean, this man couldn't grasp. Of the mind of God or what God thinks is other than Genesis, chapter one, when he created the world, not just Earth, the world, he says, That's good. That's good. God likes what he does. And he bragged on himself. He said, That's good, that's good. Then he made it. He made Eve or made Adam. Putting to sleep. Took a rib out created. He says he woke Adam up and he says, This is your wife. He said, what you want to call her? He says, Whoa, man. He says, God said, Well, just put that together like one syllable. He says, Well, man, well, woman. He says, Well, that'll work. Woman He's like, Whoa, man. Amen. Amen. When I met my wife, she was engaged. I knew she was engaged, too, but I just. We worked at. I was an assistant manager at a Fred store, and she she worked there. And I just eventually I just told her, I said, we use an employee. You have to have management. If you wanted to buy something in the store, you know, during your off time or use on break or whatever, you had to have a member of management to to check you out. It couldn't be another clerk by a store policies so she buy these things and and I just kind of messed with her and I says well that's nice.

Pastor West:
I said, What in the world are you going to do that? She says, I put that on my hope chest. I said, What? You mean your hope chest? She says, You know, hope chest, what you do when girls do you know when they get married? And I says, Well, who do you hope to marry? And she told me his name. And I says, No, you won't never marry him. She looked at me like, What do you mean ain't gonna marry him? I says, You're not going to marry him. She said, How would you know? I said, Because I've already decided. You're going to marry me. She said, You're nuts. I said. Could be. I'm just telling you what's going to work. So I grew up in the years of Steve Urkel, but I wore her down. It did take a half a year. It took a half a year. And I was kind of just kind of shameful, one sense, because she completely gave up. She she she she wanted to get married. And she asked me it scared me because I'm a hunter by nature. Right? I'm like me, hunter, you know, like me, Tarzan. But she turned the table on me and she says, she said, Will you marry me? And I said, Oh, oh. I said, I think maybe we need to see some other people. And she had a date and I had a date.

Pastor West:
And when you're in Clanton, you know, 31 got wore out all the time and I passed her twice. I kid I said I knew who that little cabin boy was. I says he was sitting on what to Sears catalog just to see over the steering wheel. But I could see, you know, she's in the car with him. And it made me mad. It made me mad. So I took my date home. She said, You want to go somewhere? I said, No, I don't want to go nowhere. I took her home like ten minutes too late and that was late. So we found each other later on in town that night and drove into the yard, her mom and dad's yard. And that's when it happened. So we was married in six months. But. She was putting things away for the future, for a hope. You know, and. Sometimes people put things on layaway in their life like they're going to get to it. We're going to do this one day just after this, this and this. Then we can start doing this, this and this. And you live your life away waiting. Barring your tomorrows. That's what dead is. You're borrowing on your future. Right. I'm not saying it's wrong to borrow, but I'm just saying. But that's what it is. You're saying I'm going to borrow this money against my future. But then when people get older, they look at their capability or ability to produce income.

Pastor West:
Then that that can flip, that can change. So then they make different decisions based on their ability to produce income. Now, I don't know why this is not on my notes, but I don't even know why. We would want to live that way. It's good to have a plan. It's good to use some basic understandings. But if you were going to. Finance and evangelistic effort that would change the the landscape landscape of a country or or a community. When we started working in Africa just a few years ago, that just started off with helping someone during Covid, you know, just I was helping someone else. I just said, here, here's two $300 to help buy people rice during Covid. Who's in Africa? Who doesn't have anything? There was no intention of building a church. There was no intention of building a pastor a home. And he wasn't even a pastor. I basically had to help him understand that you are a pastor. You have the pastor's heart. And then through several hours of just spending time, you know, ministering online, not in person. And so like three, three, four weeks ago, we we started helping with other partners, a school where they don't have any they don't have any school for their children and girls aren't allowed to go to school. I mean, they legally can go to school, but but because they're so little ability to do it, they think if one's ever going to be the breadwinner, then we need to get whatever education we can to the man.

Pastor West:
So we it started off with up to age three, but then the problem was two weeks ago. But how how do we feed them when they're here? What do we feed them with? And I said, Well, can't they just bring something from home? Because if they was home, they would have something. Can't they bring that? He said, You don't understand. They don't always get to eat at home. They don't eat three meals a day like most people do. Sometimes they do, but a lot of times they don't. So I sent me some pictures last week because they were at school and they had rice one day and a little bowl with some with some broth in it. And the next day they got a banana and some kind of melon and milk and to get milk was whatever. So then we we're paying teachers to come to that school. And but these teachers, because they have a they have a college education to teach these 50 kids, you know, you have to pay them. And because they have a college degree, I mean, it's going to be $30 a week. Code. But that's so far out of their reach. They can't do it. So you're helping us. You don't even know that you put a school in place that's been in place now for about three weeks and you're feeding kids. That doesn't always get to eat, even even if they're at home.

Pastor West:
And I don't stand up here and tell you all these things all the time, but it's just through your faithfulness and your kindness and your generosity that puts us in a position to even do that. See? God is good to all. Amen. It may look different from this side of the world to the other, but God is good to all. Amen. The Bible says the mercy of the Lord is new every day. You might have felt like you spent all years yesterday. Well, it's okay if you did, because today you've got a whole new batch. He daily loads you with benefits, right? Amen. So God is just good because he is good. It's just his nature. It's his divine essence, who he is. And but we read in Psalms 145 that his gracious compassion, he's slow to anger. Aren't you glad he's slow to anger? Amen. How many know? I know some people who's been quick to anger. Don't mention no names. No, no, no, no. The Lord is good to all. And his tender mercies are over all his works. Now the phrase compassion and the phrase merciful. Not every time, but most of the time they're interchangeable words. If you study in the Strong's or just look up the Greek, the Greek words, you'll find out the word compassion and mercy. Most of the time are interchangeable. So when you say the Lord's merciful, you just said he's compassionate.

Pastor West:
If you say compassionate, you say the Lord is also merciful or so mercy and compassion are always interchangeable. Almost, almost always. And so I want to read it this morning to Hebrews four. Want you to see this. Hebrews four. In verses 14 through 16 Again, I'll be in the passage Translation So we'll put this one up, I suppose. Hebrews 414 through 16. We'll give them just a moment. Verse 14 says So then we must cling in faith to all we know to be true. We have a magnificent King priest, Jesus Christ, the Son of God who rose into the heavenly realm for us and now sympathizes with us in our frailty. The Arabic says, who has sorrow with us in our affliction. Verse 15 In Jesus Understands Humanity. For as a man, our magnificent King priest was tempted in every way, just as we are and conquered sin. Verse 16. So now we draw near. Freely and boldly to where Grace is enthroned. I like that. We. We draw how freely and boldly to where grace is enthroned or the throne of grace to receive Mercy's kiss and discover the grace that we urgently need to strengthen us in our weakness. The amplified translation says that that last verse that we might receive mercy for our failures and find grace to help in good time. Now listen to this. For every need, this is the amplified, appropriate help. Well-timed help! Help! Come and just when you need it.

Pastor West:
I mean. It might not be the the best time, but. But when we need help is when we need help. Right. I mean, you couldn't put it on the calendar. You couldn't have planned it that way. But sometimes we just need help when we need it. The good news is you can come to the throne, the throne of compassion, the throne of all grace, the throne of all mercy. Now, if you're going to the throne of mercy, should you be expecting judgment? Should you be expecting God with a big stick and say, Why would you think I'd give you mercy? The way that you do, the way that you act, the way that you been. Does God have the big flyswatter? Does he have a slingshot to put it between your eyes? No, he's. He's the God of all mercy. He's the God of all compassion. God is good. He's infinitely good. Let that sink. Let's go forward now. When the Bible speaks, us speaks this It clearly shows us that Jesus spoke to the Father on our behalf. I want to read you this in. Romans You don't have to turn to Romans. 834. It says, Jesus is now today. What is Jesus doing today, October the 1st, 2023. Today Jesus. Now today is at the right hand of God who indeed is interceding for you. Take that personally. We can take it corporately, but let's take it personally. What is Jesus doing right now? He's at the right hand of the Father of God, where he is interceding.

Pastor West:
Jesus is in prayer for you at this moment. I always say it this way Do you think Jesus gets his prayers answered? Do you think that Jesus has an expectation of having his prayers answered? I don't know. I mean, it's good. I mean, make you feel good, know people are praying for you. But I'm telling you, Jesus, the king of King, Lord of Lords is praying for you this day. Right now, today verse John two one says that we know Jesus is our advocate with the Father. So now we know he's interceding for us. He's praying for us. But we also know that he is our advocate. He is our attorney. Amen. He's the one who looks out for you and then Hebrews seven. And this is going to be the passion. If you want to put it up, you can. Hebrews 722 through 28. Hebrews 722 through 28, it says. So all of this magnifies the truth. Amen. We have a superior covenant with God. Then what they experienced about the Old Covenant. For Jesus himself is this guarantor. So why is it superior? Because Jesus says this one. The father said this one. I'm going to guarantee because I'm going to make I'm going to make my covenant with my son. Jesus. Amen. It's it's, you included, but it's not based on you. It's based on the father and the son. Why did he do that? So man can't break this one.

Speaker3:
Hey, man.

Pastor West:
You didn't make so you can't break. Amen, man. Man, He been breaking the covenant with God. But God made this one with his son, Jesus. You included. It's all inclusive. It comes with the package. It comes with the package. All you have to do is say yes. I mean, there's some things. It's supposed to come with a car, right? You wouldn't think nowadays. I mean, some of us who's a little bit older can remember when you bought a vehicle, it didn't necessarily have electric windows. It had the real deal. It didn't necessarily have. I don't want to age myself, but my first new vehicle was a little Ford Courier truck, 1981 Red. Cheapest thing I could buy $6,300 a Am Radio four speed and the floor heater. But are not having heat. And the heat worked in the summer, too. It worked. It seemed like sometimes the summer I didn't even have to turn it on for it to work. It was just working all the time. Good little heater I had in that truck. But you know, what does our covenant include? So he said, Here Jesus is the guarantor of this covenant, verse 23, as additional proof. We know that there were many priests under the old system, for they eventually died and their office had to be filled by another priest. Verse 24. But Jesus, he permanently, permanently holds his priestly office since he lives forever and he doesn't need a successor. All these priests, naturally, they died. Jesus, he said, I've already died through dying. Amen. So he is now alive and well forever.

Pastor West:
And he's still holding office as the high priest. He is your high priest. Amen. Amen. I had a lady years ago. Many years ago. Many years ago. I was about three years in the pastoring. And she said she said, I want to give my tithes to you personally. And I said, Well, come again. She said, I want to give my tithes to you personally. And I said, Well, there's the time in the service to do that. She said, No, I don't want it to go and I want it to go to you personally. I said, Why would you want to do that? She said, Because you're my high priest. And I said, No, I'm not. No. I found out later. I was just young, you know, I said I was about 32 or 3. And so I found out that she she was paying me to do yard work. Or whatever kind of works that she could think of. Yeah, the high priest was raking the leaves and all. Like, I would just help you. But, but, but we're not going to move the tithe over here and call me High Priest. I said, because high Priest also can rebuke. Why not? I'm not paying for no rebuke. I said, I know you're not well, you know I know a thing or two. Because I've seen a thing or two. Hallelujah. So he's permanently holding this office. Verse 25. So now watch here. So now he's able to save fully from now throughout eternity. Anyone who comes to God through him. Why? Because he lives to pray continually for them.

Pastor West:
Isn't that good? That's a big claim. Say, I can help anyone who comes to God through him. Verse 26, He is the high priest who perfectly fits our need. Holds us without a trace of evil, without the ability to deceive. Incapable of sin and exalted beyond the heavens. My gosh. Verse 27 Unlike the former high priest, he is not compelled to offer daily sacrifices. They had to bring a sacrifice first for their own sins, then for the sins of the people. But he finished the sacrificial system once and for all when he offered himself. Verse 28, last verse. The law appointed flawed men as high priests, but God's promise sealed with his oath, which succeeded. The law appoints a perfect son who is complete forever. Amen. So you can come boldly to the throne of grace to get compassion, to get mercy, to help you in your time of need. I don't care what the need is. The doctor don't know how to help you then. Then just look to the right doctor. Amen. He's not a guesser. He's just not a guesser. He's a knower, you know, And the Lord knows he's a know it all. But some people think they are. But the Lord is a know it all. Holy Spirit's a genius. And if you listen to him, you could be genius. And. But if you don't, well. Okay, so now how many other God doesn't change? How will you improve on perfection? You can't improve on perfection. How many know Jesus is the same Yesterday. Today. Forever. Right? So he's not in heaven with this big stick to whack you.

Pastor West:
So if you want to know what the will of God is in minor, all we have to do is always just look into the Ministry of Jesus. You always know the will of God by looking to what Jesus did, because people say, Well, you know, the mysteries of God, you know, we don't ever know what the will of God is. Well, that's not true. I grew up hearing that all my life. All my life go to church. And I said, Well, Lord, we don't know what the will of God is. I'm thinking, okay. It's a shame I had to be much older to find out that those were untrue statements. How many know the Bible simply means the will. Amen. I mean, if you if you have a Bible, you have a copy of God's will. Amen. It would help to read it and not just have someone else read it for you and tell you what it says. I mean, that's like going to a restaurant and then you're sitting there deciding what you want to eat and then the guy over sitting next to you, he says, I'll decide what y'all having. You may not unless you're buying. I told Win when he was here last week. We took him out to eat our last meal and I said, Now this is our last meal together. I said, So you feel free to get anything up to $12. I did it real serious and going to looked at me like I said, it's just a joke.

Speaker3:
Just a joke.

Pastor West:
Oh, praise the Lord. But God doesn't change. You can't improve on perfection. So we look at Jesus, the heart of God, in a matter because Jesus, the Bible says, is the complete expression of God. The complete expression of God. What is the complete expression of God? The verse. You know very well, John 316 For God so loved the world that he gave his only son. He gave his best. So Jesus was the will of God in action. That's what it is. The will of God in action. And in His earthly ministry, Jesus moved with compassion. In Matthew 936 to 8, 36 to 38, it says. But when he saw the multitude, he was moved with compassion on them because they fainted and they were scattered abroad as sheep, having no shepherd. Then said he unto his disciples, the harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few. Jesus said, Pray ye, therefore the Lord of the harvest that he will send forth laborers into the harvest. These are scriptures that talked about how he healed the sick. Not because he was had the power, which he did. He did it because the motivation was he was moved with compassion for those who were hurting. If you're hurting in any way this morning, the Lord is very aware of it.

Pastor West:
And he's moved easily. Moved by the feeling of your infirmities. The enemy would like to tell you that he doesn't care. And and we don't say that. But that thought comes sometimes when people are dealing with something for a long time, the enemy just comes. He doesn't come to you with a red suit and a pitchfork and he's never going to come that way. That's too obvious, right? But he comes to you through thoughts and feelings and emotions, and he says, you know, where's God and where's this and where's that? And look how long this has lasted and all that. He he's trying to question in your mind the goodness of God. But you're working on a very limited revelation. When we do that. We've all had the temptation to go there Sometimes when things didn't go the way that we thought they would or that they should. And so it begins to question the same thing that Adam and Eve did in the garden when the serpent came to them and says, God knows that if you just do this and you would just eat this, then you would be just like him. But they were just like him, even though they didn't understand, they were like him.

Speaker3:
Mm. Amen.

Pastor West:
They partook of the fruit because I guess they were fruit nibblers. They saw that they were naked and God asked the question to him. He said, Who told you guys that you were naked? Who told you that? Who told you you wasn't going to make it? Who told you that? You're at the end of your wits. Who told you you can't take any more of this? Who told you there's no way out? Who told you you can't live without this, this or this or without that person or this person or whatever. See, the Lord is my strength. He is my source. He's my supply. My heart's supposed to belong to him before it goes to another. The Lord. You know why? Because he's good.

Speaker3:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
He's your manufacturer. He should know everything about us. When you know someone before they're born, you know something? We've known people after they were born. I like to know. Who did you know? Now, you mothers have a little insight into that because you've had these kickers. You know, in the first few weeks, you know, we down there and you're hugging the portion of receptacle like, oh. I always said I mean, I know y'all heard me say this downtown, but I always thought on a kid's birthday when they get old enough, that kid ought to buy their mother a birthday present, too. Because, you know, mother was kind of highly involved in that day. Way involved. Well. God this morning. Is just want to get across just the idea. To tell each one of you that he he personally understands your situation. He he is already anticipated your need before your need arose. He's already been at your crossroads before. They put two roads together. Hallelujah. He knows the way from here to there. It may seem to you and to us to be very complicated. And it can be sometimes very complex when you begin to think of how this and how that and how this could be and how that could be. But I want to tell you, the answer generally is pretty simple. Kirsten. Now we're talking about something this week about a question that comes up in people's minds sometimes, even if they don't say it. About even in America and those who have been Christians all their life.

Pastor West:
And sometimes it begins in childhood or they get older, they say, well, how do we know the Bible is true and how do we know that God's God and how do we know? And if we was born in Islam or if we was born in a family of Buddhist, would we just believe like this? Or wouldn't we believe like that? How do we know that God is actually God? And then if you're going through some situations, you could feel like you could feel maybe the feeling of his absence. We were talking about that this morning or the other day. And while she was telling me some things that she had studied along those lines, the Lord said, he said, now listen real closely to what she's saying, because we obviously weren't in conflict about it. But she said he said, listen closely to what she says. He says when she gets through, he said, I'll give you the answer to that question forever. And I'm like, I think you said that, but that's pretty deep. I mean, if you're going to give me an answer to that forever. And I said like, okay. So she talked and she was telling me about some things that she was studying along those lines. And and now this is so simple. But to give it to me, it had to be simple. So if you're looking for something deep, it won't come deep. Have you ever heard or you know, someone or maybe you've even felt those feelings before? Some age, like, I mean, how do we know what we believe is true? I mean, if you was on the other side of the world and you was right this way, we might all be down on the road going, you know, whatever, right? So how do we know? You know, if use the wall and kiss the rug and kiss the finger and whatever.

Pastor West:
For me, it's been real easy to know. I mean, the same way that Jesus said. He said, if I hadn't done the miracles, then he said, then it wouldn't be held against you. But. But you've seen the miracles. So. So you had to know. I've seen so many miracles. How can I not know? When you've been privileged to put your hands on people's eyes as blind, and then when you pray and they're not, you know, I went to Christian camp, by the way. I went to the trade school for three years to learn carpentry. That's funny, Scott. He knows. He knows of all people how funny that is. But you got three free credits and whatever. You know, I went to AG AG Department. Anything that would get me out of, you know, school. I did like school, mostly lunch. And in the bell that said I could go home study hall so I could get a little rest. I landed in summer school quite often by necessity. And and I landed there for sure when they said this. Your whole grade will be an oral book report which you'll stand up and give.

Pastor West:
I said, I ain't going to do that. She said, You'll flunk. She said, with your grade point average. She says if you don't get up and do this, she says, you're going to flunk. You have to go to summer school. I says, Well, I guess I'll be going again this year because I ain't going to stand up, speak in front of nobody. I can't. She says. That's just ridiculous. She said, You're going to let yourself fail just because you won't stand up and be uncomfortable for a few minutes. I says, Yes, ma'am, I can't do that. And I said, You know, I said, Miss Talbot, I'm never going to do anything like that in my life. I'm more for Alabama Power Company. I'm going to work for Alabama Power Company. I will have me a brick house is going to have a two car garage. I will have a color TV and I'm going to have a dog and and two kids. Life will be good. I will have pizza on Friday night. We're going to go to the movies now and then, You know it's going to be good. We'll save money for a boat. We may go skiing. I don't need to stand up and give no report to anybody. I said, So just give me an F And I put my head down on my desk like this and I went to sleep. When I went there, there wasn't no air conditioning. There was just box fans. And she had a voice that was like.

Speaker3:
Mom.

Pastor West:
You the hospital, When someone dies, go home. She read like that. So she just let me sleep. I woke up one time, 4:45, Explain that to your mother, how you missed all buses. But I went to summer school because the summer school, they don't have time for you to do book reports. And I got past it. Except for today, last 28.5 years. How me? Right. Well. That plan for your life, see, is just as awesome and it's just good. It's packed full of goodness is what it is. It's packed full of surprises. And it's not just in your youth. It's all through the life. Sometimes until you get older, you don't even know what to appreciate. Hey, man. I mean, you really don't. I mean, you understand things, but I'm saying until you get older, you don't even know what to say yes or no to sometimes. So you just do all kind of stuff. But when you you know, it's really fun when you have kids, they have kids because that is a form of payback. Just go ahead and just say that. So now it's not really that, but but it's just fun to watch them like, like, Oh, you just don't know. Said Yeah we would. Yeah we know, we know we can remember so but it's just there's so much there that God wants to enfold into your life and to bring to you to show you his goodness. Not just for you, but for those in your life, those in your midst. You can't even get to all the layers of it.

Pastor West:
When we get to heaven for eons and eons of years, God will just be unpacking his goodness to you over and over and over and over again. Let me finish here this morning with this. In Matthew 1532 says Jesus or Matthew 1414 says Jesus was moved with compassion and he healed the sick. In Matthew 1532, says, Jesus compassion led to the feeding to the 4000. In Matthew 2034 said in his compassion, Jesus healed the blind man and Matthew one 4241 Jesus led to the healing of the leper and Matthew eight verses one through three. One of my favorite stories. It says when he Jesus was come down from the mountain, great crowds followed him. Verse two says, And there was a leper came to him and knelt before him saying, Lord, if you will, you can make me clean. In other words, Lord, I know you have the ability to do it. I know you have the power to do it. I hear of all the things that you've done. I know that if you just wanted to, if it was your will, I know that you could. And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, I will be clean. And immediately the leprosy was cleansed. The Passion Translation He said this. He said, Of course I want to heal you. Can you hear that? Of course I want to heal you. The message says, I want to be clean. The amplified said, I am willing be thou cleansed. So our God is more than willing. It's not what God can do.

Pastor West:
I mean, what is it? God can't do. It's not what God can do, but it's what he yearns to do that inspires our faith. Modern theology magnifies the power of God over the willingness of God. A lot of modern day preaching and God is powerful. God is power. But there is no scripture that says God's power. But there are all kinds of scriptures said that God is love. God's ability. What is God able to do? All things. God's ability always listen. God's ability always, always equals his willingness. Amen. Whatever he's able to do, he's willing to do. Amen. For this is the confidence that we have in him. That if we ask anything according to his will, which he wills, we know that we have the petition that we desired of him. That is so good. Amen. So the Bible reverses the order of the power. To want us to see the willingness of God's heart. The Bible magnifies his willingness to use the power more than the power itself. It's not faith in God's power that secures the blessing, but faith in his love and faith in his goodness. Micah, 718, says he delights in mercy. Not only is God able to do exceedingly, abundantly above all that we ask or think, but He's willing to do exceedingly, abundantly above all that we ask or think. He's no respecter of persons. What God has done for one He'll do for another. If God ever healed one person, He's willing to heal you this morning. Amen. I'll let that sink for a moment.

Pastor West:
The Lord is good to all. He's no respecter of persons, and his tender mercies are over all his works. Paul said in Second Corinthians, He says, the God, the father of mercies and the God of all comfort. Jesus said, Blessed are the merciful. Interchangeable with compassionate, for they shall obtain mercy. Amen. This morning. I want to tell you this morning. And this is a very simple message. When you say God's good, you say, Well, we knew that before we came here. But I want you to hear it. See. Many people here, but they don't listen. But they don't hear. I'm telling you, when you feel like you're in, you're in that crisis.

Speaker3:
Remember.

Pastor West:
Remember once again, what do you do when you're in the crisis of your life? The simplest answer is this Remember that heaven has never been in crisis mode.

Speaker3:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
You know, all the problems that you have. You're just one of his kids. And the law is not on some Prozac somewhere, you know, trying to like, woo. He's like, let me have three days. We'll open up the lines again.

Speaker3:
Hello?

Pastor West:
He's not smoking herbs somewhere, you know, just trying to like. Whoa! God has never been in crisis mode. He's just been in mercy mode. Compassion mode. The more that you begin to think about those things and feed your thoughts on those things. See, because your life will always flow in the direction of your most dominant thoughts. The more you think about the God as the God of all mercies, then you'll be looking for mercy. And if you know that He would give mercy to you, then you know you should know that he wants to give mercy to someone else. The Scripture says the God lets the rain fall on the just and the unjust. Now, with our lack of rainfall, I hope I hope we still should be the just But but I'm just saying. But the sun shines every day on all of us.

Speaker3:
Amen.

Pastor West:
He doesn't have any favorites. But we put ourselves when we're trying to earn God's love and earn his mercy and earn his goodness. Which one of your kids, if you have one or more, which one of your kids did you require? Did you require something of them for you to love them? Did you have some list of requirements that you must do this, this, this and this and this and this before I will love you with all my heart. And we're better than him. Did you love him when they made a mistake? Yes. Did you love when they made it again? Yes. Did you love when they made it again? Again and again. Again. Again. Amen. Well, are we better than God? Well, of course we're not better than God. So his mercy is from everlasting to everlasting. Don't disqualify yourself for what Jesus has already qualified you for.

Congregation:
Amen. Amen. That's good.

Pastor West:
Quit trying to analyze why the problem is and just look to Jesus who is the answer of all problems. If you feel like you're drowning, don't sit there and think, I should have took swimming lessons and trying to figure it out. You're doing the dog paddle and you're running out of oxygen quick and you're thinking, Well, I should have done three years ago. They tried to get me. It's too late for that. You just be like, Peter, Help! Peter always had a whole lot more to say than that. He wouldn't run out of words. He's running out of time. I don't even know if he got the whole word out. Jesus picked him up, walked him back to the boat. If you just knew how much God really loved you. And I have no way to tell you I can read to you, but I have no way to tell you, even in my very limited, limited vocabulary. But even if I could expound on it in great ways and methods, no one would be able to tell you the length, the breadth and the height and the depth of God's love towards you. Amen. Of how your picture is in the throne room. And every time he looks, he's got that smile on his face. That's my kid. That's my girl right there. That's my boy. That's my kid. That's my family. Amen. That's right. Peter and John had a little different viewpoint of this. You know, Peter was always quick, you know, to speak. Before Jesus was crucified, Jesus told them what was going to happen, and Peter basically rebuked Jesus.

Pastor West:
I wouldn't go that route if I was you. But he basically rebuked Peter. And what happened was Jesus was reading the Scripture. I think it's in Matthew 24, but he was coming out of the Old Covenant and he was talking about when they strike the shepherd, he said, the sheep will scatter. And he was telling them what was about to happen within a few hours. And Peter says, And so they're all here in this disciples around the table hearing how they will not be faithful to him. And Peter says, that is not so, Lord. He said, If every one of these around here fails you, he said, I'll go with you to them. I'm willing to die with you. Do you think that Peter actually meant that? I do. I think he actually meant it. But of course, he was the first to say it. He said, In other words, if everybody here fails you, which they might. Jesus, you still have me. Who was the first to fail him? Peter. But you know what? It was different about John. They all ran, including John. John came back at the end to be with Mary's mother. Right. But they all was afraid for the life. They all ran. John knew more, probably had a different relationship with Jesus and intimate relationship with Jesus. We see him with his head upon Jesus's chest. And he said, I'm the disciple that Jesus loved.

Speaker3:
Peter.

Pastor West:
Put his faith in how much he loved Jesus. John put his faith in how much Jesus loved him. Amen. Amen.

Speaker3:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Peter was self-focused. John was Christ focused. When yourself occupied with yourself, then you'll do all kinds of things to try to earn the father's love. But you would never do it to your own kids or your grandkids and will miss it every time. When I say God is good, I mean God is good.

Speaker3:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Mercy is when you don't get something that you deserve to get.

Speaker3:
Oh.

Pastor West:
Thank God his mercy is from everlasting to everlasting. Now, it doesn't say his mercy is from October 1st to October the 7th. After. Then it's you know what to pay. It's from everlasting to everlasting. Praise God. So that doesn't make you want to fail, does it? That. We love him. Why? Because he loved us first. If we could see like John saw. Instead of what Peter saw. Did Peter come to know the love of the Lord? Yes, he did. But he all his focus on I will not fail you. I will not fail you. That's not a scripture coming from human to God. That's a scripture from God to us, to his family. I will be with you to the end of the earth, and I will be with you always. I will never leave you nor forsake you. I will. I will stick closer to you than a brother does to a brother. If all others forsake you, I will still be with you. I will lift you up. I will hold you. I will mend your heart. I will heal your diseases. I will supply your every need. Father, we thank you this morning. As this sign says, who shall separate us from the love of Christ that was revealed to us in Christ Jesus? This is the angels Can't.

Pastor West:
The demons can't. Your problems here today, your worries about tomorrow. Nothing can separate you from the love of God that's in Christ Jesus. Amen. In this room today. There's many facets of healing, and they're not all physical. Some are things of the past. Some things are those of the emotions. Some of the things that you have felt in some of the things that be, quite honestly, is just disappointments. All disappointment is, is just you expected something different and it didn't happen that way and you became hurt or disappointed because of the outcome, because you surely thought it was like this. But you don't know all the variables. You don't know the whole equation. You only you're. You're working on a limited knowledge. And God doesn't need me to defend him. He's the defender. I'm not the strong tower he is. All I do on Sunday morning and what I do. I'm just like on the interstate. I'm just the sign that says, Get off right here. This is Cracker Barrel. Get off right here. There's a Shell gas station. Get off over here. There's a Hampton Inn. I'm a pointer. All I'm doing is just pointing to him. And then. Because he's the one who's good. He doesn't have to do anything once again to be good.

Pastor West:
He just is good. It's who he is. It's his nature just to be good. God so loved the world. There's people that we all had in life that we said, I just can't, you know, me and them, that's it. That we would cast them from our relationships every which way. That's it. But the Lord never stops with anyone. He never quits with anyone. He's always looking for a crack or some way to get in some way to go forward with this relationship. Some way to save. Some way to heal. Some way to redeem. Some way to heal the hurts of the past. Some way to bring them into the glorious future. This morning, I want you to take your heart to God. We can't do this for 30 minutes. We have to go. But I want you just to give God. Your heart. We've all had times where we've doubted. And that something we can say amen to and I say amen to. But everyone in here has been like Peter. Everyone said what they wouldn't have said, and they did what they said they wouldn't do. But God, it says even though we fail Him, even though that we're unfaithful, it says God will not deny himself for God himself is faithful.

Speaker3:
Amen.

Pastor West:
God himself is faithful. This morning. Father, we just cast our cares upon you. Father, I so thank you for the opportunity to be in the presence of. Your children, those that you love so much. Those that you gave father your best. Your only begotten son. Father. You know every situation, you know every need in this room. You know everything that represents, you know every situation. You're easily fooled. You're easily moved with the feeling of their infirmities. This morning we come and we bring our heart to you. We come to the place not just to God, but we come to the place of ABBA. Father. We come to the throne of grace. Become set upon the father's lap. We come with all of our needs and all of our frailties and all of our weaknesses and all of our our hopelessness, sometimes all of our lack of faith. Sometimes. And father, we say, as the man said to Jesus one time, I believe, but Lord, please help my unbelief. And we come to you this morning and Father God, we thank you that we're going to come to the throne of great mercy and compassion and grace where we are received with love. We don't come as the prodigal, but we come as the son. We come as the daughter. We come as those who's the closest to the bosom of the heart of the Father. Father, I thank you, Lord, that you see every need. I pray for each one under the sound of my voice and those who are watching or listening at another time. And, Father, I thank you, Lord, that as they bring their heart to you.

Speaker3:
Hurting.

Pastor West:
Broken. Their feelings, their in their body this morning. They need healing. They need strength. Maybe it's a financial need. Maybe it's something in their home. Maybe it's their marriage. That seems like there's just no way for that marriage. Seems like there's no way for it to be restored. But you are the great restorer. You're not a restorer, but you are the restorer. You'll make it better than it ever could have been. So this morning, we're asking you to do what only you can do. To be only who you can be. And so we give our heart. I want you to be able to see in your mind's eye just you taking of yourself, of your heart, sitting in the father's lap and just handing him your heart, handing him that situation, handing him that care, handing him those, that hopelessness, feelings that you have, sometimes handing him that depression that you feel sometime that weighs down upon you. That situation that has gone on for so long, that just feels hopeless. Like there's just no way it's going to be answered. He knows all about it. He understands everything about it. He knows what you don't know about that.

Pastor West:
He's not chastising you for it. He just saying, trust me, trust me with all of your heart. Don't don't lean to your understanding, but just trust me. I will direct this. I will cause my word to come to pass. All my promises are yes and amen. So, Father, I thank you, Lord, for healing everyone this morning. Healing their hearts, healing their homes, healing their families, healing their children. That child that has gone the other way, the other path that looks like there's there's not a way for them to be reached. It looks like the taunting thoughts of what may happen, the phone call that may come in. No, no, no. We thank you for sending the laborers to that child. We thank you for the blood of Jesus keeps him protected. We thank you that you speak to them in the day and in the night seasons. We thank you, Lord, you're bringing that child back in. We thank you for all the God that you are restoring relationship and fellowship with us in the mighty name of Jesus. We thank you. You're so good. For the Lord is good. In his mercy endures.

Pastor West:
Forever.

Pastor West:
Amen. God bless you. We appreciate you coming today to be a part of the service. Good to see everyone here this morning. We will have service this Wednesday night. First and third of every month. If we don't see you, then, man, if you if you sign the list, if you know that you can come or think you should can come so we can know how to prepare for the men's meeting in October. God bless you. Have a great day.

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Progressing In Christ 24Sep2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Progressing In Christ 24Sep2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Begin. Quick announcement for the men. May the that I may. October the 21st would be a Saturday. I'm going to have a men's meeting. Pastor Billings is coming. We will we will have donuts and coffee, but we're actually going to serve a lunch. But, you know, if you if you eat a big breakfast, eat before you come, it's going to start at 9:00. We'll have we'll have coffee and and donuts, but we'll have a lunch going to have three sessions to two sessions break and then a lunch. I think the men from his church are coming to join us. If you never met them, they're going to come be a part. Going to be a mini man of fire conference. That'll be October the 21st, 9:00. If you can't stay for all of it, then maybe you can come to eat lunch. And if you have to take off, then I would think we'd be through by 1:00 with all of it. And then he'll give us some details on next spring's magnifier conference where several churches come together. But that's October 21st, Saturday at 9:00, two sessions. And then we'll have a lunch together, then one session after that. So let's get right into the word in Matthew chapter 16. Hello, Good morning. Welcome to those of you who've joined us. However you join us, praise God. If you have a car, you're close. You could do it in person. I'm reading from the passage translation verse 13.

Pastor West:
Whatever you have, do the best you can. Verse 13 says, When Jesus came to Caesarea Philippi. He asked his disciples the question, What are the people saying about me, the son of man? Who do they believe that I am? And his disciples answered and said, Well, some are convinced that you're John the Baptizer. Others say you're the Elijah reincarnated. Or Jeremiah or you're. Or you're one of the prophets. That's. That's who they say that you are. And then Jesus asked a question. He said, But who do you say that I am? Simon Peter spoke up and said, You're the anointed one. You're the son of the living God. And Jesus replied, You are favored and privileged. Simon, Son of Jonah, for you didn't discover this on your own. But my Father in heaven has supernaturally revealed it to you. I give you the name of Peter a stone. And on and on and on. Isn't it funny how when they ask the question, he says, I know you're hearing things about me, rumors about me, speculation about me. Tell me what they're saying. Well, they did. And maybe there were some other things said about them they didn't share with you. But what he really want to know is. Who do you say that I am? Who does the. Who does the family say that I am? Who does the inner core say that I am.

Pastor West:
It seems as if he was looking for a different answer, don't you think? I mean, if you turn on the news right now, if you just listen to the you just looked at the report of the world, if you just someone asked me one time, they say they asked me recently, I said, what's which news network do you watch? And I said, Right now, none of them. Right now. I don't want to get any news from any of them. Right now, I mean, this is just me right now. This is my news. Amen. You know Jesus is not fake news, huh? And he knows the past and the future. That's right. So when he says, who do? Who do men say that I am? It. Look, it looks as if he's looking for a different response. So if you were to if you were to watch the news and they say this, this and this, that and it's going to be like this and and there's going to be a recession and there's going to be all this stuff going on. Jesus might ask you, what do you say? Well, are you going to grade them? There's going to be recession for your life. Absolutely not. If the world wants to go through one, I guess the world can go through one if they want to. But we don't have to, do we? You know why? Because we're in the family.

Pastor West:
Like the song we just sang. We're in the royal family. Amen. Amen. And everything about it is supernatural. You ought to get hold of the supernatural part. Are you all here or not? Yes. How do you believe the Holy Spirit is a is a miracle. Holy Spirit. Amen. There's no such thing as a non miracle Holy Spirit without such a thing. God is not just supernatural, he is also miraculous. Why? Because he's miraculous. Miraculous just by his nature. So that means that everything he does has to be miraculous. To have the Holy Spirit living within you is to expect the miraculous. There ought to be an expectation because you have a miraculous spirit on the inside of you. Why do we say these things? We're always bringing to your remembrance the things that have already taken place. Most people a lot of times or a lot of people when they when they think about these things, they go to church. They talk about what God can do as if he has done anything. They said, Well, I know he went to the cross. Well, he went to the cross, but don't stay at the cross. I mean, if you went to the cross, you that's a place of defeat in one sense. But how many know that he was also buried and how many know he actually paid the price? How? You know it was your price. My price? How many know he got up? How many know he walked away? He walked out.

Pastor West:
Amen. Have you ever read anyone who went to hell and walked out of there? No. Jesus walked out. He was at the lowest place and he got elevated. So we'll talk about that a little bit. Elevating or moving up higher. So to believe in the spirit is to believe in the miraculous spirit. To walk in the spirit is to walk in the miraculous. Why? Because you're made for signs. And you're made for wonders. Thank you. Those two people who believe that praise God, the Holy Spirit that Jesus promised you is a miracle spirit. That's the only promise He made you the Holy Spirit himself. Like I said, there's no such thing as a non miracle spirit if you claim to. If you claim to possess the Holy Spirit and deny his very work that he does, which is always distinguish him when He created this world. The power of God by the Holy Spirit created that which we see, and that's what we see around us. And so he operates. Three individuals. He operated in a different way through Moses. He came to Moses and he said and Moses said, Well, who are you? And he says, I am. Our names at. He said, When I go when I go and I tell and I tell the fairy to let two and 2.5 million free employees go, they want to know who who's asking, who made the request.

Pastor West:
He said, Tell them I am making the request. And it's not really a request. Think about it, 2 to 2.5 million free employees. And Moses was a stutterer. Moses said, I'm not eloquent in speech. I always said, no one's that eloquent to tell someone to let go with 2.5 million free employees. No, not not that eloquent. Now we might look. Ordinary. We might look inconsequential. Innocuous. Real time. We might just look sweet. And we are. But because the Holy Spirit in you. It's the same miracle. Holy Spirit, remember you didn't get a non miracle. Holy Spirit. So if you didn't get a non miracle Holy Spirit and greater is he that's in you than he is in the world. Then how would you live a non miracle life? You are a carrier of the supernatural realm. The carrier. For the last three years, we've had so much thought about diseases and and all the things. It's not minimizing, you know, things that happen with people. And some people lost their life. But there's been so much attention on the news about a, you know, a an infection or Covid, Covid 19, not Covid 2023. This. Let's come into the day that we're in. You know, I don't know. Could you see the Holy Spirit on the inside of you wearing a mask on the inside of you? You think he's concerned about disease or a germ? What we're going to talk about just a little bit.

Pastor West:
We've talked about several times in different ways is is putting into our thinking and let let what's send your spirit elevate and come out into your soul and into your body. Most of the problem is or all the problem is not if you're born again, it's not your spirit. You've been made one with him. Everything that God is. He is in you in your spirit. If you got one more drop of God in you from this day forward, you'd have more God than he is. Thank you, Mr. Elliot. Praise God. You say. Now, now, now, wait a minute. Well, Is God 100% God? When now, When Jesus came to the earth. Was He. Was he God and man? Yes. Well, some people say, well, I think it was like a 7030 split or an 8020 or maybe he was 6040. Now he was 100% God and he was 100% man. The Scripture says in heaven, Jesus will always be known as the son of man. He had to become human so that he could die as a human to represent the human race. We know that. But he couldn't be born of any man on the earth because every man was sin. So he had to be born of his father. But Jesus didn't come out of his mother's womb walking on the water.

Pastor West:
I never read those scriptures. Hmm. He wasn't turning water into wine. He wasn't cursing fig trees, you know, when he was 18 months old. Was he? He wasn't. He wasn't healing the withered hand. He wasn't doing any of those things. He wasn't multiplying fish, and he probably was thinking about it. So he didn't even know who he was for a while. How did he come to know who he was? He found himself in the word of God. That he found himself in the Word of God. Let me say it one more time. Just a little bit better. The Word of God. Jesus is the word, John one. Jesus is the word, right? And the word was God and the word. And nothing was made without the word. Jesus called the Word of God. So Jesus, the Word of God found out that He was the word of God in the Word of God. Guess who? Guess. Where you going? To find out who you are. Not Reader's Digest. Nothing. Not The Enquirer. Not watching Oprah Winfrey. Huh? Man, they don't even know who they are. You know, when I was reading this thing, it says when electricity was discovered, it was considered to most observers to be the most amusing novelty. Keith Palmer knows much more of this than I do, but the Alabama came into being somewhere around 1904 to 1906 is what I may be wrong, right? It's what I what I looked up.

Pastor West:
But different parts of the United States, you know, had usage to some form of what we would call electricity. But everyone just thought this is just some kind of crazy fare. This is nuts. I mean, it's like it was the same like, you know, we have crude oil. You know, we have kerosene. We have wood stoves. It was good enough, Granddaddy. It ought to be good enough for you and good enough. My dad. I'll be good enough for your dad. And why mess with this? And farmers was greatly concerned about it. If the world was going to go this way, you know, would it be profitable to their farms and to the into the industry and all such as this? I mean, this was a huge change. Just like if you owned the industry and you're and you're using electrical manpower or whatever it is and they're wanting you to swap over to the cost of this and it's what it's called What now? So you didn't. I know my grandmother was born in 1904. Not my great great grand grandmother. My grandmother was born in 1904. When she was born, she didn't have electricity. Now you want to look at how fast and quick the world has sped up in technology. Well, Daniel told you that's what it was going to be like. That generation who sees so much advancement or what we would call technology in a span of a generation.

Pastor West:
We are that generation. I mean, 19. Well, so it was if you look, you can do a little research, but electricity wasn't really prevalent in the United States and it still wasn't even some places into the 1930s and a few 1940s. There's a few states that fought it. But 19. In the late 1920s, most of the United States had some form of. That's just 100 years from now. When you think about our country, it's young. I mean, you think about the Roman Empire being, you know, it's you know, it goes into the thousands of years. You know, the United States is just 200 something years old. She's a baby. But yet she's led the nation. She's led the nation's. The baby has led the nations. That can only be for one reason. It's because of the people that was here before you and before them, before them. And when they came here, what they had in their heart to do and how God used this nation. Isn't it amazing how God has used 6% of the population to bless 94% of the world? You. And actually, we're the six. The 6% controls 94% of the world's wealth. That as a former president said, you have enough crude oil under your feet. If you never had electric car, which they'll be here. But I mean, there's enough crude oil under your feet that would last for, you know, your kids and their kids and their kids that we wouldn't even have to source these things out.

Pastor West:
I mean, why would you deplete your oil supply and depend on foreign nations who hate you to be at their mercy? Anybody in this room has got more sense than that. Unless you go through some kind of scanner in Washington, D.C., after you've ever braincell that you ever had, I don't know how that works, but. But it seems like that's the way it works. I think you ought to send Joe lunch bucket up there, you know, just clocks in, clocks out. He'd have more sense. I may be off already. I don't know. But. We're talking about the potential of electricity. Electricity is here to bless you. It was harnessed to bless you. But Unharness is deadly. When the Holy Spirit is in you and you're the conduit, it flows through you is to flow to and to flow through. Now, we've had a lot of teaching and thank God it took a while to get there. But Christ in you, the hope of glory and the Body of Christ has done a fairly good job of preaching that message. We always have to be reminded of the Christ in you, but what we're sadly lacking is getting the Christ out of you. Christ in, but Christ out. And it's just it just sits there. Well, it's it's got to be accessed.

Pastor West:
So we want to go to a higher place. I don't know that everybody in this room really wants to go to a higher place. You may just want to go to lunch right now. I don't know. And we're going to give you time to do that. So we're going to just look at a few things this morning. I mean, just a few things of that process, what it might look like to elevate. According to the Word of God, Jesus found himself in the Word. Now, lest you and I find ourselves in the Word. Okay. So to elevate means to lift up, it means to make higher. Just simple terms. It means to raise in rank or or status. It means to increase the level of something. It means to increase the amount of intensity. And so. We are in a day that's very similar. It's a prophetic chapter in Matthew chapter 12. It gives us a timeline so that we would know when the disciples said, How will we know the ends come? And he gave them several things in the Book of Matthew. But in Matthew 24, verse 37, and the NIV says it this way, as it was in the days of Noah. So it will be in the coming of the son of man. Well, that was a that was a a snapshot of the past that Jesus said, here's how you'll know when these times that you're asking about are soon to come.

Pastor West:
The way it was in the days of Noah. So it will be at the coming of the son of man. Well, how was it in the days of Noah? Well, it was terrible. Had to be. If it wasn't terrible, you wouldn't need an ark. Right. And but the part that I think that we leave out sometimes we and it's rightfully its right to make the connection there because it was bad in Noah's day. Right? Obviously it was bad. It's bad in our day. I mean, the consciousness of our culture today is it seems to be absolutely seared. Well, it had to be steered there. God couldn't find but a handful of people there to rescue. But it didn't say anything about Noah. And there was what the church seems to be doing is they're they're taking the scripture and say, well, just I mean, it's just now the way it was. I mean, there's you know, there's homosexuality. There's there's all the, you know, all these things that cross reference with Noah's Day. You got adultery, homosexuality, you got perversion, you got everything going on in our day that you had and more than you had in Noah's Day. But here's the thing. Noah didn't major on the sin. The church does. No majored on the grace. See, God said. But he found grace in Noah. Oh, that would be good. The Lord would write that about you.

Pastor West:
They're seeing all over the place. It's rampant. The days are evil. It isn't our day. I mean. I mean, I remember. I mean, these things were already in the earth. But. But. But they stayed kind of behind the scene. They stayed in the closet. Now they don't even mind being out of the closet. They look at you like, What's wrong with you? Yeah, right. And so, I mean, it's in your face, but that's okay. That's all right. Because greater is he. That's in us. The heat is in the world. We're here to minister to them. We're the ones from the Heavenly Kingdom. We have authority over all the powers of the enemy. And so we're here to to minister to them if they oversee the ministry. So Noah found grace while the church finds sin. But I read in my Bible that we're seeing abounds. Grace does much more abound. I read that in there. It's in there somewhere. Have you all ever come across that scripture we're saying abounds? Oh, that's right. It's the Second Corinthians where sin abounds. Grace does it? It doesn't say a abounds more. It's just much more. Some translation says super abundance when grace comes, when sin comes in the door. Grace says you ain't nothing. And grace super abounds over sin. I mean, he puts the light out. The darkness of sin. The righteousness is light. Darkness never extinguishes light.

Pastor West:
It just can't. I mean, Charles Couch used to always say, he said, go to your local hardware store. And you say, I just got I got a room. Just got too much light in it. He says, go in there and ask him, do you want to buy some dark bulbs because you want to put out the light. They don't sell dark bolts, but they do sell light bulbs. You can't get you can't buy a dark bulb to put it in a room to make it go black. But if you're in a basement or you're in a cellar and you strike a match or flick the Bic. The most distinguishing thing in the whole room is that one. That one flame, right. You may be living or ministering or living around some people. That's in darkness. Well, when you walk in the room, I imagine they're squinting. You ever been somewhere where it's real dark or going to a The last time in a long time since I've been to what's the in childersburg The. The Soul Caverns. You ever been to a cavern like that cave and you come out and just for a few minute or two, you're squinting your eyes because it's been so dark in there. Well, that's what happens when you go into a little dark places. There's darkness everywhere. Then here you're the light of the world and you just show up. They're all like, Oh, what is that? What is that? Well, that's who you are.

Pastor West:
That's what's in you. So if I could just help us to understand a few things, or at least bring your attention to it. Then we would see. Uh, how to go from this place to that place. How many wouldn't mind elevating going to a higher place? Now, if it took a little effort on your part, you still won't do that. I lost several hands when I said that. Okay. Well, I just make sure. But you have to see it first. See, people always they seldom sees what they fail to recognize. If you don't recognize it, you won't see it. So moving up higher or reaching that summit elevation requires a shift in your perspective how you see things. So we have to go from seeing the way the world sees it, the way natural man sees it. We have to see things from God's perspective. The only way you can do that is go to His word. God does not look at things the way people look at things. He does not make decisions based on natural information. The Lord has never talked to you through your brain. He's used your soul. If it's been renewed to the Word of God to speak to you, but God never ministers to you through your brain and through your body. He's a spirit. You're a spirit. He speaks to you. Spirit to spirit.

Pastor West:
The more that you renew your mind to think like he thinks, the more he has to work with to bless you, to help you, and to shift your perspective. Some things that are that we have what we call troubles, so some things that we think are just almost impossible. When you put them on God's plate, you think he's bothered by him to that? You say, well, he don't have to be. He's not here. Well, no, he's here. He's here. So you think I can't think of one way to fix it? He can think of 2 million. You say? Well. Well, then ask him. Ask him. See? See things from his perspective. Now. And then this requires not only a shift in our perspective, but it requires that we understand that the covenant that we're in is the new Covenant, not the old Covenant, not a mixture of two covenants, but the New Covenant based on better promises that the old things of who you are passed away so that you begin to see yourself with a brand new identity. Paul was Saul. True. He wasn't the Apostle Paul at first, but he became the apostle Paul. Who was Saul of Tarsus? Saul was. Saul was a doctor of divinity. You could say double doctor. He was. He was the most educated man that they knew of. He was trained by the very best. But yet, on the road to Damascus, he had a shift in perspective.

Pastor West:
And boy, he was a shift. I mean, he met he met Jesus. He didn't go and watch. He didn't go and watch The Passion of the Christ. That that's not what happened. He met Jesus. Face to face. It was a it was a it was a shock. Knock him off of his horse. He became blind. And then he asked Jesus, He said, Who are you, Lord? And Jesus says, What? You just call me? I mean, I mean, it's pretty good when you get knocked off your horse and then you answer your own question Who are you, Lord? Then the next thing he says, What would you have me to do? Because he had, you know, he had he bore the seals and the papers to go and arrest people, stoned people. And he was the one who held Steven's or held their coats while they stoned Stephen. He gave the word to stone. Steven But yet when Paul came to know Christ and he become to understand who we are in him. Paul had to shift his identity from Saul to Paul. So if you're born again, you're not who you used to be. And that's not just a song. That's just not a little sermon title. I'm really not who I used to be. And we should know one another just after the flesh. Because we're spirit beings. You can know mannerisms and you can know personality.

Pastor West:
You can know how they like, whether they like ketchup on it, whether they don't like ketchup on all that's just natural stuff I'm talking about in the spirit realm. There's God on the inside of you. So. So, Saul. Came to the place of being Paul the new man in Christ. So Paul wrote in the Scriptures out of his new identity. He says, Now I the new man. He's talking about the new man. He says, I have wronged no one. And they're all looking at him like no. One. I mean, remember Steven and you remember the other one. You put these people in jail, you had them stoned, you killed people and you wrong. Nobody. He said, That's right. I have wronged no one. Now, what is he basing that on his whole life? Or his new life. Now, I know that you guys know this, but. But are we really living it? Are you living out of your new identity or your old. Some people give their testimony like just like they want to go back and live it. Oh, man, I used to be a drunk like this. Well, that ain't blessing nobody. Huh? Sometimes your testimony can help some people. But. But. But. I'm not going to give any glory to the devil out of that. I mean, the good story is you once was blind sucker, but now you can see. Isn't that isn't seeing better than being blind? Yeah, right.

Pastor West:
The best testimony was, you know, I guess I remember one time when I was four, I stole my sister's sucker, and. And I sucked all the red off of it. That's all you ever did? Well, it didn't matter how good you was, you had to be born again. Like I said, who wants to be the best sinner? Who's in hell without Christ? You're hell bound, right? But so we have to see our identity and who we are to him. Your value, the sum total. So you can see it in other people. If you don't see it in you, you're not going to see it in nobody else. If you don't see how much he loved you when we weren't. When we didn't qualify for that love, then we won't see someone else with that kind of value or someone that worth. So if you fail to recognize the value of who you are with your with his love and value and acceptance over you, then you will misjudge. The why of your existence. Ephesians 111 says Through your union with Christ, you have been claimed by God as his inheritance. His inheritance. God calls you his inheritance. Before you were born. He gave us our destiny that we would fulfill the plan of God, who always, always, always accomplishes every purpose and plan in his heart. That's a very powerful scripture. And so, you know, we don't want to be the crowd because sometimes people, you know, like, I just want to fit in.

Pastor West:
Well, if you're going to walk with God, then you're not always just going to fit in. You're not always going to be just accepted by the mass of the people. Sometimes it could be a lonely road to walk for a while, but God always put people in your life, put people in your path. But. But you're not always just going to fit in with the crowd. Matter of fact, I generally this has always worked for me. I'd say about 99%. I watch with the crowds doing where they're going and I go the other way and that seems to work about almost 100% of the time. Just see what the masses of people are doing and go the other way. I think you'll find that out yourself. Oh. So, I mean, that's the bad news. Some people say, well, if I'm going to become a believer and become a Christian, then I'm not going to be able to fit in. I'm not going to be able to join the crowd. Uh, but the good news is, the great ones never do. They seldom, ever do. Following the crowd is seldom a winning approach. Because the Bible says you're a workmanship. You're an original. You're your God's Mona Lisa. You know, your he didn't create he created you not to fit in. He created you to stand out.

Pastor West:
He doesn't want you to be, you know, if if, if, if, if I just want to be Mr. Mr. Beale again or I want to be Brother Dennis again, then. Then if I'm trying to be Dennis. Because I was like, Man, I like how he does this and I wish I like this. And then if I'm trying to be him in my identity. And then if it becomes if something happens that one needs to become obsolete, guess who they're going to call out? Me because he's already a dentist. I'm not supposed to be like Dennis. I can like Dennis, but I'm not supposed to try to be Dennis. I'm not supposed to. I'm not supposed to try to be you. You're not supposed to try to be me. We can. We can. We can look at people and say, well, we like how they do this and how we do that. And there might be something similar to that, but God, God made you to stand out, not to fit in. And, and, you know, you've seen these things on knees before. I've seen on some new station you can go reporter goes and I mean they couldn't tell you who the the last three presidents was. They might say Michael Jackson. No, he never was. Oh, I thought him and the Jackson five. I thought. I thought they was the whole administration. No, no, no. Dig a little deeper.

Pastor West:
No, that's not what it was. So Jesus was a 100% God. 100%, man. We only got a few minutes, so let's get to the meat of it. Now, sometimes people say, well, I think he was 5050. He was 64. He was 73. He was 83. No, he was 100% God. And he was 100% man. So how did he turn water into wine? How did he heal the sick? How did he raise the dead? How did he control storms of elements of creation? How did he. How did he walk through doors? How did he walk through walls? Now, if we just stopped and turned the camera off and I got you to answer me, you would tell me what you thought. Some people would just say, well, because he was Jesus, he was the son of God. That sounds like a reasonable answer. But you'd be absolutely wrong. According to the word, not because of me. Jesus did not perform any miracles as the Son of God. Philippians says that he deliberately stripped himself of any deity and became man. And then he had to be if you remember when he was anointed, he went to John the Baptist and he water baptized him. And then the heavens opened up and the dove came down. And the Bible says he was anointed of the Holy Ghost. Well, if he was God, then tell me who's going, knowing God. I'll wait on that a minute.

Pastor West:
If he needs to be anointed and he was God, who's going to do it? Gabriel. Could he anoint God to be God? No. So he had to be anointed of the Holy Ghost, which is the way that you're anointed. See, because he laid God down. Deity down. He was born of God. Was it born of man? So he was 100% God in that way. But he was 100% man. He was tired. He was thirsty. He had to have sleep. You know, he had a shower. He had to do all these things. And so. So what I'm the point I'm trying to make to you is how how did a man walk on water? How did a man walk through a wall? How did a man multiply the fish in the loaves? That's what I want you to think about for a moment. Because if you're going to give me a 60 over 40 split or 7030 split, you're not going to have any scriptures on that. The scriptures. He's the son of man. And he didn't come to reveal to man what he could do, the miraculous. He he came to reveal to man who man would be because of him. Now we're all familiar in John 14, where Jesus is the works that I do. You'll do the works that I'm doing. You'll do the same works and you'll do greater works. So all these things that he did, he did his man.

Pastor West:
And he told us, and now you can go do it. But you have to have a total shift of perspective and identity of who you really are. See, most people live in frailty weakness. They think I'm just human. Well, if you're born again, you're not just human. You have a human side. Jesus had a human side, but you can't say scripturally if you're born again. You can't say, I'm just human. You are part human. You are human. You have feelings. Jesus had feelings. Jesus had emotions. But he ruled. Man should not live by bread alone, but by what? Every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. Did he live now? Was Jesus born doing miracles? No. So what he had to do, he. He progressed. Now here's what we do. How do we elevate? Jesus had to progress. He did not come. Like I said, he wasn't born. And six months later, he was walking on water. We know this because Luke, we won't go there. But. Luke 252 says Jesus grew in wisdom. He grew in stature, and he grew in favor with God and man. Jesus had to grow, grow, mature. Jesus had to grow. He was born a human, 100% God, but 100% man. Jesus had to grow in wisdom and stature in favor of God and man. How can you grow if you know everything? Who told him he was the son of God.

Pastor West:
How did he know he could do the miraculous? Who told him how he would die? How does any of this apply to us now? For sake of time, we read this and we'll make a few statements. Let me go to Hebrews. I'm going to be in the Passion translation of Hebrews chapter two. I want you to get this. And we're going to read. I think starting to verse 14 through 18, Hebrews Chapter two. I want you to see the human part now. Passion Translation Hebrews two verse 14. Since says since all his children have flesh. And blood. So Jesus became human to fully identify with us. It is up there. I want you to know I'm not making this up. Since all his children have flesh and blood, Jesus became human. To do what? Fully identify. You got to put your name in there. He did that so that he could experience death and annihilate the effects of the intimidating accuser who holds against us. The. Power of death. If you go. By embracing death, Jesus sets free those who live their entire lives in bondage to the tormenting dread of death. For it is clear that he didn't do this for the Angels, but he did this for the sons and daughters of Abraham. This is why he had to be. Oh, there it is. He had to be a what? Jesus had to come be here and be a man and take hold of our humanity in every way.

Pastor West:
He made us his brothers and sisters and became our merciful and faithful king priest before God as the one who removed our sins to make us. Kind of like him. Sort of like him. Look at him through a distance. Through a telescope. Look at the front. He had to become a man. He had to take. He had to take every part of humanity. He knows the Bible says he's easily moved by the feeling of your infirmities because he understands it. He knows them. He knows every temptation because he was in a human body. But he had to be a man to do it. Man was spiritually dead. He had to be born to a man for people who had in sin, who broke the law to pay the penalty for man. But because every man was spiritually dead, he couldn't be born as a human. He had to be born as a son of God. But he didn't come here knowing he was a son of God. He didn't. He didn't do any miracles. He was 30 years old. He had to go to the word to find out that he was actually the word. I mean, I can't wait to hear that sermon today. He tells us this is the day that it happened and this is when it came to me that I found out who I was.

Pastor West:
Amen. Mm. Don't miss that day. Uh, so yeah. And became our merciful and faithful high priest before God as the one who removed our sins to make us one with him and last verse. He suffered and endured every test and temptation so that he can help us every time we pass through the ordeals of life. Wow. Now, so he had to increase in wisdom. But once again, if you know everything, you don't need the increase. Now we all know someone who thinks they know everything. I don't need to grow. I'm here. I've arrived. You remember when I was on the journey, they was traveling and they got separated from Jesus. Couldn't find him, and his mother and father went looking for him and found him, you know, on a two day journey. And they went and found him 2 or 3 days journey and they found him. And he was in the temples with with the priest. And it says he was asking questions. He was 12 years old. 12 years old, and he was asking his priests all these questions. And the high priest said they were astonished at the questions that he even knew to ask a 12 year old were astonished that he would even have these questions. And his mother and father got to him. And, of course, you know, they was beyond concerned about him. And they says, where have you been? He says, Mother, Mother.

Pastor West:
Don't. Don't. You know, I was going to be about my father's business. Was he talking about Joseph? So we don't have all the scriptures, but Jesus had to go to the synagogue and. And they're still waiting on the Messiah and not knowing as Him. Jesus read the scriptures about the Messiah when he's going to come and and He knows, He knows by the Scriptures that the Messiah is going to be born of a virgin. His mother must have told him how he got here. Yes. Berry didn't know anyone else who had that situation or experience. Have you met anybody? I know I won't tell you who it is, but I know a pastor that he had some unusual he had an unusual lady in his church. And she got tired of waiting on her husband because she really wanted a child for she got past the age and she said she got tired of it, She says. She says husband or no husband, I'm going to have me a baby. Aw, man. No, man. I'm going to have me a baby. Well. Well in our world. They'll do some of that now. Now they'll look at cloning. I met a bunch of people. They don't need to be cloned. No more of that. No, no, no, no, no. So Jesus had to grow. He knew he was born of. Because Isaiah 714 says, Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall call his name Emmanuel.

Pastor West:
These are some of the scriptures that he read. What did he do? He elevated. He began to see who he was even when he started doing miracles. I can't say this is for sure. I can say this is interesting. This is not Dr.. But when Jesus began to step out onto the miraculous. They were. We have instances. We know he raised the debt. He didn't start religious. Virus been dead for days. The first one he raised, the dead had been dead just a few hours. Then a day, then four days. If maybe I'll break this down for you next week or whenever, if we ever do it like this. But if you put the miracles in different categories, every time, you'll see this. This is just interesting. I'm not making doctrine, but you can see it goes here and then it elevates to another place and then it goes to another place and to another place. He had to grow into the place that he was. Luke, two, says he grew in stature. He grew in wisdom. Jesus found himself in the Word of God and found out he was the Word of God. Now. The that's what we're supposed to do. Not just say I'm a Christian, got my card punched. I miss Hell, thank God for that. Oh, and then just do the best we can.

Pastor West:
Go to heaven. No, you're actually supposed to be Jesus with skin on. When they see you, they see the Christ. Everyone heard in Bible school. This little light of mine. I'm gonna let it shine. And then we say, Jesus is the light of the world. But Jesus told us now. But now you're. You're the light of the world. Hmm. Aren't you? People sometimes have a hard time just accepting that, saying, Well, I wouldn't want to just, like, say, I'm the light of the world. But then what are you are the darkness of the world. Well, no, I'm not that, but I wouldn't want to say on the light. Well, I wouldn't go as far as to say I'm a light. I said, Well, how far would you go to say what you believe? Well, I'll get back with you. They don't ever come back with you. They don't ever get back with you. You're the light of the world. So. So we do this by progression. You do this through substitution, you do it through identity. You do it by speaking the word and confessing that you do these things by stepping out in action and becoming that. In other words, Peter and John finished right here. Peter and John said, Went to the gate. Beautiful. There's that man just laying there. I mean, he has a right to beg. He's never walked his entire life. And so he goes right to the light, you might say, right before the temple where all the good people are supposed to go in and pray every day, and he can beg for alms.

Pastor West:
And Peter just passed by that day and he's right there. Well, so he he says and Peter says, now look on us. In the Bible says in Acts chapter three that the man looked on them expecting to receive from them. Now we know what he was expecting to receive because he's there to ask or beg for money. So when John, Peter and John says, Look on us, what is he thinking? They're going to help me out and give me some finances to help me feed me stuff like this. And the first thing Peter says after he says, look on us, he says, we don't have any money on us. He might be thinking, Well, why did you want me to look on you? He didn't say that. But why are you going to bother me if you're not even going to help me? Peter says, such as I have in me, I can give it to you. Big talking. Such as I have, I can give to you. All I have to say is rise up and walk. What do you have? Do you have? Less than what Peter had? Peter didn't even know the message that I'm preaching to you right now. Peter had no understanding of Christ in you.

Pastor West:
Paul did. Paul, who wasn't there with Jesus in his humanity. They didn't even understand why he even had to go to the cross. Paul wasn't there to see it with his natural eyes. He saw, he says, No man gave me this revelation that came to me personally through Jesus Christ. He said, Now, here's the mystery that's been kept secret for all humanity. And you find it in Colossians chapter one, Paul said, I'm going to give you the revelation that's been held back through all times, but now it's going to be revealed. He said, This is the mystery, the revelation greater than any revelation in this book. And here it is. Christ now is in you. The hope of glory. Now I see you was born in such a time with as possible. If you say something like that back in that covenant, in his day, they stoned you. If you said, Well, God's in me. I mean, the Sadducees would have made you real sad. They had got some biscuit rocks and bouncing across your head. I mean, you couldn't say, God, talk to me, to a priest. You come to him and he'll tell you what he thinks God is saying. But if you told them, Oh, God, give me. I'm here, son. Well, the many translations King James does, too. It says it says in Romans, it says, You are the offspring of God. One translation says, you were womb mates with Jesus.

Pastor West:
He's your elder brother. Now. In other words, he came first. You understand? So what are you going to do with that? Well, that means such as I have, I can give it away. You're a need. I have something I can give. What I have will help you. What I have will bless you. I have the ability to give it away. All you have to do is receive it. Now, I think Peter had to speculate. It says Peter went and took his hand because the man's like he's still in his mind. I know this because I've seen a lot of miracles and a lot of times, even after ministered to him, prayed for him, they're still, in their mind, captivated, whether they're handicapped or whether they couldn't stand or whether they couldn't walk. In their mind, they were still like the girl I told you about too many times with the knees. She was healed, you know, shaking on the floor for several minutes violently. Well, she ended up with two brand new knees and she and she said, What am I going to do? I said, Well, let's walk and run. She said, I can't do that. Why? Because she ain't walked around in three years. She has two brand new knees, but in her mind she's still in prison. So Peter reached down, took his hand and picked him up and they said he walked and leaped and was praising God.

Pastor West:
Amen. Caused quite a stir. You don't just read Act three and out before it got Peter and John a lot of trouble, but they didn't care. Now, if Jesus had to grow in wisdom, don't you think we'll have to? And you'll have to step out sometimes. That's what Supernatural is. If you're just going to stay in natural, you won't need no super. This. Just stay in the super or just stay in the natural. Yeah, there's no praying. I mean. Why pray unless you're looking for something supernatural to happen? Because if it's natural, you could have already done it. Is that plain enough? If your answer was natural, then why don't you just go do it? Well, I'm just kind of lazy. Were you probably going to get it from God either. So if your answer is just natural, you could do it. But you did not get baptized with a non miracle spirit. The Holy. The Holy Spirit is a supernatural being. So we call it supernatural. Know what happens on Tuesday? He calls it Tuesday. In your world. So we we should be appreciative, but we shouldn't be shocked to see the supernatural. We should be shocked if we don't see it. Right. Amen. Now, that's that takes a shift in perspective. Tulsa. Well, what if I pray for someone that was dying and. And they. And they. And they still die? Well, you did kill them.

Pastor West:
They were already dying, right? What if you prayed for me and I don't? You'll have to elevate. You'll grow in it. So in Ephesians chapter four and my last comment, Ephesians chapter four, it said that we will that. We've been given the ministry and the gifts in the ministry and the offices in the ministry to help to equip us to do the work of the ministry until we come to the place of what full maturity in Christ. Jesus had to grow. He had to mature. He had to grow in wisdom. Now, Ephesians four says the mark for you. It's not a it's not a minister. The mark for you is not the evangelist. The mark for you is not Billy Graham. The mark for you is not. You know, whoever. George Meyer. The mark for you is Jesus himself. And. The disciples before Acts Chapter two did not have what you have. Sit in your seat right now. They had to grow. You can prove. You can prove that just by this. You ever heard of the Apostle Paul? You ever heard the Apostle John? Huh? But you'll see all their names. You know, whether they're a pastor or whether they're apostle or whether you ever heard of Philip the evangelist? Does anyone call him? The evangelist and the disciples? Was anybody was any Jesus's followers or disciples. Did they have a five fold title? Something happened after. His death and resurrection.

Pastor West:
There was a progression of things. We don't call him disciple Paul. We call him the Apostle Paul. Now my thing is not titles, but I just want you to see there's a progression of things. So, you know, you don't teach a kid by sending them to ride a bike, by just sending them down, you know, a hill, you know, 50 foot down and just say, learn. Then when they get really good, put training wheels on, you put the training wheels on first to learn balance, right? Then after a while, you take the training wheels off. He always starts with a training wheel, but one day you got to get him ripped off because we got people who've been saying, I've been in the way of the Lord for 50 years, but most time you've just been in the way and you get the training wheels off and go do something. Amen. Now, so so if we're going to grow, then we got to go. We got to there's got to be a go in to grow. But there is a progression here that takes place. Jesus found out who he was in the word. Now you find out who you are in the word, and then you emulate the very thing that he is. You look in the mirror to find out who you are. That's James chapter. What? So, James one. It's called the Perfect Law of Liberty.

Pastor West:
You look in the word. He said the word is like a mirror. He said just to look and see this is who I am. He said, But don't be don't become a forgetful hearer or a looker because you walk away from the mirror. You know, we go to the mirror sometimes with us at home or in the car. If you're outside and your hair blows or storm or whatever, people always look and they're adjusting, they're putting on the makeup and they're putting on their rouge or rouge or, you know, doing the pencil thing and the blush and all that kind of stuff. You know, we're shaving like this, you know, and like this, and you ain't got to shave. I mean, he's just praise the Lord. If I could grow that, I wouldn't have near as much ugly to look at. But anyway, I'll probably have to have some chemicals to get that going. But anyway. But I mean, people always looking in the mirror to make adjustments, right? So he says look in the mirror to make the adjustments. Find out who you you already are, not who not who you're going to be. Find out who you already are. Then tell your soul about it. And your soul said you are. You are. You are fruit loop. You are crazy. And say, Well, just wait until I take you to class tomorrow and tell you some more about you. After a while, your soul will go, I don't know. Maybe he's right. And then your body just had to come along for the ride because it won't have no control. Amen. God bless you.

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We've Only Just Begun | 10Sep2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

We've Only Just Begun | 10Sep2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
We know of right now, four states, people coming from four different states to be there. And of course, we're going to live in Wales. So they're hopping on a plane and they're going to fly 4200 miles to be with you. That's a that's a lot of line. If it matters to you at all, a number of years when pastored. But he's he's been in the traveling ministry and he he's not going to introduce himself this way but he stands in office of the Prophet Stone throwers to be with us. And morally we do doing the worship for us. And Sandy also will be ministering, I'm sure. And she stands there as a prophetess. And so God's going to be speaking. He's going to be saying some things to you, limited room in this place that we was able to rent a nice room, but we have very limited seating that we know we might be 15, 20 chairs left. So you need to come and take your place. Amen. So that'll be next next Sunday or next Saturday and Sunday, 2:00. And someone said, well, what about the ball games? Well, from what I saw, they ain't nothing to watch. So anyway, there's something far more exciting going on. You know, we we sing that song suddenly makes you just think about it when Jesus before he was ascended back on high, he told the disciples, he said, Go to Jerusalem and wait for the promise of the Father.

Pastor West:
What was the promise of the father that he would send the Holy Spirit? Well, we know in Acts Chapter one, he sent the Holy Spirit. And how did the Holy Spirit come? He comes suddenly nowhere. Are you ever instructed to wait again. People still waiting on whatever. Waiting. Waiting on a you know, things to to get better. Waiting on a move of God. Waiting for the glory to show. Waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting. But the scripture never tells you to wait ever again. The Holy Spirit's already here. So I want to just stir you up this morning. It'll work for you. But I want. I want. I want us to be prepared in our heart and our mind for this year and the balance of this year. I believe these meetings will catapult what God wants to say. We didn't plan it this way. People, especially in prophetic ministries like they are, you know, probably some some are more attention to some of these things than other places or other people. But next next week, we'll we'll begin, you know, the Feast of Trumpets or Rosh Hashanah and God's Way of Thinking. That's the new year. And he doesn't go by our calendar. God doesn't turn the page on January 1st. He turns the page next weekend. So I guarantee you the prophets will begin to they'll begin to speak and say things that God is saying about the new Year coming in.

Pastor West:
So it just it just so happened it just so happened that this this meeting was put together on the weekend of the beginning on the new calendar. On God's calendar. Amen. Probably just a coincidence, right? But that's just the way that it worked out. So it's going to be really good. I want to just I really felt in my in my in my heart when I was things, it just I could minister any way I wanted to. I could We could just we could do a teaching. We could do it. We could add to. We could. Here's another layer. Nothing was coming. And I learned when nothing is coming, nothing is just, you know, if you've ever ministered, you know what I'm talking about. I mean, it's all there, but nothing is like you ever looked at the menu somewhere and you're like, Well, it all looks good, but, you know, she's going to come back, you know, sometime today. And I've got I've got to make a decision. So, you know, when most people do when they can't make a decision, they look for somebody to say, what are you going to have? And I say, I don't know. What are you going to have? Well, I don't really know. The last Frank, what are you going to have, Frank? Well, I really don't know. What are you going to have? And all we're waiting on is for someone to make a decision.

Pastor West:
So these plans are put together because the decision was made and the Lord is going to honor that. But it's vitally important that we prepare ourselves, because success always happens in life where preparation and opportunity come together. Amen. In other words, you have to be you have to see it and be prepared for the opportunity that's going to be presented to you. So I'm going to say some things that really felt like I was supposed to say or a couple of years ago. And you should remember some of these things here. But they'll they'll be a springboard that'll be ready for the day that we're in. And for next week as we start these meetings. If you remember this, this is something I was given a couple of years ago. We started off New Year with, and this is something I heard on the inside. It said everything you want or need in life is already in your life. You might say, Well, not me. Well, let me finish. Everything you want or need in life is already in your life. It's merely awaiting your recognition of it. You see? You. You never sees what you don't recognize. You can't. You can't access something that you can't see coming. Well, I know we've done this before and I've used poster board paper and all this, but have you ever, whether it's a kid or you're just on a long trip somewhere? I remember we used to do this as kid.

Pastor West:
We'd be on a on the interstate for hours and we'd be traveling back and forth from Michigan to Alabama and back and forth and back and forth and back and forth til we til we moved here. But have you ever. You ever you ever been on an interstate as a kid, you know, or just done this yourself and you had a long trip and you begin to count how many cars are not how many cars or how many this you passed or you just bought another car, a new car, and then you begin to see how many cars are just like yours or how many vehicles are just like yours on the interstate after you bought it. Well, if I was to if I was to say, look here, we're going to we're going to drive for 50 miles and I want you to count every every white car that there is. And if you get the you get you get them out, Right. We're going to give you $10,000. How many? At least we'll try. You're going to be the car right here. Right. And when I got to the end of it, you might you know what? If I change it up? And I said, well, how many red cars were there then? What would you say? You're so. I don't know, because you told me to count the white cars, but, you know, red cars passed.

Pastor West:
You, too. But you know why you didn't count them. You know why You don't know the answer. You're not looking for it. You're looking in another direction. And that's where the enemy really was to work in your life. Is he? He wants to point you away from what you're supposed to be looking at. Because what you look at long enough, you'll look like, Hey, man, so he wants you to look at red when you supposed to be looking at white. And he says, See the tree over here? See, it's good for eating. And he said, Yeah, she saw it was whoever said the tree was good for eating. The guy that ever say this tree is good for eating? Matter of fact, he said, this tree right here gets you killed. That's what he said about that tree. You eat this tree. Bye bye. So then we have you looking in a whole nother direction because it's not the path that you're supposed to be on. So but everything that you want need in this life is going to be merely waiting for your recognition of it. But you can't seize it until you recognize it. The opportunity of a lifetime must be seized within the lifetime of that opportunity. Leonard Raven-hill said. In other words, there's a there's an open window for it. There's things that physically that's the way it works.

Pastor West:
Naturally, in this world, it works that way. A lot of times we have we have a time or an opportunity. It could be an age, could be a purchasing something, could be a sale on something from this day to this day. And if you if you if you make the deal during that time, then then you get to enjoy the savings. But but it's not ongoing. So the opportunity of the lifetime but it has to be seized within within the lifetime of that opportunity. Robert Kiyosaki was one of his quotes. He said most people have the opportunity of a lifetime flashed right in front of them, and they find out. They find out about it after everyone has got it right. In other words, it came, but you wasn't looking for it. You don't know how many red cars it was because you look in another direction. Well, we don't want to be in another direction. So when when and I talked and we we we was talking on Facebook Live or however we talked that day, we talked about an hour and a half. And he says, what are what's in your heart about these meetings or do they have a theme? Do they have a topic, whatever? And I said, well, we we are we want to have a summit meeting. And he was excited to hear about a summit meeting. He said, I liked I just liked the the thought process of that that you are thinking.

Pastor West:
Summit. So let's talk about just a moment. What is a summit meeting? You've heard the word summit, a summit means the gathering together between heads of government. It's the highest point on the mountain, the highest level, the extreme point of anything but the summit. Generally, what we think about it is either a company come together or nations come together, or leaders discussing ideas that change a company, a state, a government or a nation. So we don't want you just to come to participate and see what leaders do we want you to bring. We want you to bring the leader within you. This this is this is the coming together of the Eagles. I wish I had got a better rate. Thank you, Dennis. Praise God. This is the coming together of leaders for leadership purposes. You see, anyone who's ever ministered and I don't mean this as whatever, because y'all are y'all are rock solid. But, you know, when someone prepares themselves to minister, you know, whether it's traveling or pastoring or whatever it is, generally they've taken time. They've they've prayed, they sought God, they've studied, they've, they've put usually a few days or hours into preparing for a service. Not, not that they couldn't give a lesson in 30 minutes. I could I could fold this and whatever. And I could say, what do y'all want to talk about if it pertains to Bible? And I think I think I could say something.

Pastor West:
I think I could. Now, if you want to get over revelations about the Beast and the Seven Eyes and the Ram's horn, you know, I may not go up for two hours on that, but I can go wireless on it. But that's not my assignment. So there's preparation that's gone forth. Well, the disconnects happens, and I'm just telling you from my side and I'll be telling you from their side next week. They're preparing and have been preparing, seeking God for weeks about this meeting. They're going to have to leave their home and they're going to be jumping in an airplane and traveling 44,000 plus miles to come talk to you. That's the whole reason they're coming. Come to Alabama. I could have had them in June. They would have been willing to come in June when I was coming to Louisiana to do some things. But it would it would have been a whole lot of activity. And I didn't want the wear and tear, and we would be on the caboose in which would I'm sure would have been good. I said, When can you come back and just be, you know, if you want to go somewhere after us, great. But when can you come and you're coming here? You say, Well, you probably couldn't do that unless you got, you know, 1000 people or so.

Pastor West:
Well, we didn't have the qualifications on that. So if it's paid for, he doesn't care what he's talking to. Two people or 2000. I mean, he has to get here. It didn't ask us to pay for nothing. So here's the deal. When they prepare and they're ready. I always like it to be in an airport to where the pilot's ready. He's you know, he's the plane's been checked out. He got the radio tower up there. You got the guy who fueled the place. You got the you know, someone's supposed to check out the mechanics of the airplane. They got stocked full of food, snacks, whatever. And then you just get on the you know, you just get on the airplane, you bought your ticket and you find your seat, your job through. But a whole lot of people was involved to get that plane, to get ready to take you to a place of your choosing to to a different destination. When a leader, especially a prophetic leader who's a voice to nations, has prepared himself to speak to you, even though I don't care how anointed he is, I don't care what the message is given him. If there's no pull on it, if there's no desire for it, if there's not ready readiness in your heart and your mind for it, it will not come forth in the fullness that it can come forth. It just it just doesn't happen that way.

Pastor West:
So I always I always likened it, you know, when you get on an airplane and they get clearance and they begin to pull away from where you loaded and they're making their way to the runway and then they're just waiting for the air traffic controllers to tell them you're now ready for takeoff. And so when you do that, they're ready to go. And when they take off, you know, do they just take off slow so they won't you know, so they won't they don't want to bother you if you're you know, if you're have a problem with high speeds. No, they're going to they're going to go down that that runway wide open a few hundred miles an hour. That's my favorite part of flying is taking off, I guess, because I kind of like speed when I was a kid and which could get you in a whole lot of trouble at any age. But. But when you feel the G-forces of that jet taking off, that airplane taking off and you're going down on the ground, you can't you know, you can't feel it in the air. But when you're going a few hundred miles an hour, you know, on the runway, you can feel that, can't you? And it's just like whatever. But then, you know, the stewardess comes on eventually and she tells you, you know, how to buckle up and what we're going to do this and do that and then wait till, you know, don't unbuckle, don't get up from your seat.

Pastor West:
Don't do this until we get to a higher altitude. Then you remember the students comes up and she says, Now we may you know where we're flying today. You may experience some turbulence. And there's other you know, turbulence is just the action in the air, the heat and the cold, the mix. You know, it's like thunder. It's lightning. But in an aircraft, you know, you know, the law of lift has to supersede the law of gravity. Right? So you have to have enough thrust on the wings and the wind on the wings and speed to get above gravity, because gravity is the law. But so is so is thrust. But but they begin to collide. But you can be 30,000ft in the air and there'll be what you might call a bad air pocket. Have you ever been in a plane that did that? How many did. I don't like it today. I never liked it. Did you? Sometimes it goes, you look out there and it's like, is the wing still on? It feels like it broke off. And it's like I said, I think we lost both of them, but it passed by. You say Hail Mary, full of grace. Give me a Cadillac. That's what you say. So you look out and you see that they're there. But she tells you, she says, Now leave your seatbelt on.

Pastor West:
She says you may experience somewhat turbulence until we get to a more comfortable altitude. So God's wanting to take all of us up to another place, another level, and this is this is what separates the leaders from those who don't want to go anywhere. They're just happy where they are. Not that you may experience turbulence. You will experience turbulence when you want to go to a higher altitude, but it'll be okay. Just stay buckled up in Trinity Express, the father son Holy Ghost Airlines. But you but there's going to be some experience. There's going to be some turbulence because you're going to go what? To the other side Now? Now, either Jesus was having a bad day and he was out of the will of God or Jesus listened to a misinformed meteorologist. I don't know what he did, but he told me, we're going to go to the other side. I believe it was the will of God to go to the other side. But how many know on the way to the other side, things come up. What came up said a storm came up. When you look up in several different or translations, it says of hurricane proportions. I mean, this wasn't a little like, well, we got a little, you know, a little wind, straight straight line winds. Now we got hurricane proportions. Jesus puts people in the boat and sends them to the other side into a storm of hurricane proportions.

Pastor West:
You say, Jesus, I thought you prayed. You see, you thought. You just thought if you had faith, you wouldn't have no problems. No. That's why you have problems. Because you have faith. You have something the devil wants to take away from you, your faith. That's why you're having all these problems. I know the people meant well when they told you that if you just give your life to Jesus, all your problems will be over. No, you're going to get brand new ones. Brand new ones. But Jesus said, but be of good cheer for I've overcome every every one of them be of good cheer. Right. Don't be sad. Amen. Amen. You got a whole church that's ready to do the rapture. Let's practice the rapture every Sunday. Get me out of here. Get me out. I mean, I know the world looks like it's a mess. You know why? Because it is. That's the reason why it looks like it is. It is an absolute mess. Praise the Lord. But the Bible says as the days approach, he says, Our days will be like the days of Noah and and people focus. We saw in the days of Noah, and they think about all the sin that was so rampant on the earth that God just had to say, We're going to start over. And he found he said he found grace in Noah.

Pastor West:
Right. But what we focus on is the part where he says, as it was in those days, so it shall be in these days. So we think about and of course it's true when you think about all the complexities and the situations and the problems and all the things that's going on in our world, even here in the United States, we've got to look beyond the United States because we're only 6% of the population. I mean, this is your whole world, but we are 6% of the population. That's how we are. But we control about 94% of the world's wealth. Mhm. Did you hear what I said? 6% controlled 94% of world's wealth. You know why? Because 6% think different. Remember last week we talked about that? We. There's only two animals in the Bible that God likened himself to. That was the eagle and the lion. And we talked about the lion and we talked about, you know, the lion is different. They said because he's known as the king of the jungle. True. He is the scriptures that talks about that in the Bible. So God likens himself to the lion. Jesus is the lion of the tribe of Judah. But when you do a little study on the line, you find out he's fast, but he's not the fastest. The cheetah is much faster than he is. He's strong, but he's not the strongest. He's nowhere near the more intelligent.

Pastor West:
You can go down the whole list. We read it last week. You can actually watch it. And so what we found out is the lion is the king of the jungle, not because he's the fastest or the strongest or you know, it says, when I was reading this whole study on thing, it says that an elephant, when it sees a herd or what we call a, you know, not a herd, but a pride of lions, elephants run. Elephants run. When you think about that, the size and the weight of an elephant into a line, even though the lion's ferocious. I mean, but you're an elephant. You've got tusk, sucker, you're big. I mean, and you're running. It says when the elephant sees the pride of Lion come near me, he has fear and he runs. It says when a lion sees an elephant, he sees lunch. They do say one has a victim mentality and one has a victim mentality. So we got this. We got this animal who's not the fastest nor the strongest. You know, he's he doesn't weigh the most. He's not the most intelligent. But everyone in the kingdom knows in the animal kingdom knows he's the king. But it's because of a mindset. It's because of how he thinks. So you don't have to be the smartest. You don't have to have the greatest IQ. You don't have to come from the right side of the tracks.

Pastor West:
When you got born again, Jesus blew up your tracks. Amen. You got a brand new DNA. Amen. Divine nature attributes is what you got. You got a brand new. You're not your mama. You're in Christ. You're not in church. You're in him. So we prepare ourselves to get ready for things that's going to take place. Because I really do believe that this meeting will begin to set things in your life in a whole different perspective if you're ready for them. So you'll find out. You can see what will happen with anyone, but you can see people who have prepared themselves. If we come. Ready, Come, ready in your heart. So what? What do you mean by ready? Well, you're. You know, when you're not hungry, it doesn't matter how good the food is. You said, Well, why, While I trust you on purpose. Success doesn't always happen, you know, when it's the most convenient. We didn't take the meeting far away to make it inconvenient, but we have two churches come together. That's. That's the middle ground. And so, you know, you say, well, I'm having to drive 60 miles. Well, we coming forward to 200 stone throwers are coming. Almost a hundred. Surely we'll get over it. Amen. Praise the Lord. They have hotels and restaurants. I Y'all, you ought to go there. Amen. So we're going to be there in hotels because we want to need to to host the meeting.

Pastor West:
But anyway, so I just want you to be ready. Be ready, and so we can have exactly what we're believing for. Now, remember that everything happens. Everything that you ever need in life. Is already there. It's just awaiting your recognition of it. God created you with potential. He created you with a great plan. He has purpose all about you. And. And so it just merely requires saying yes to him. I mean, once you say no, What? Say yes to you. Then you know what? Say no to you right now. If you think about this, you can go there if you want to. But Genesis 13, I'm gonna read verses 14 through 17 in the NIV and. It says. And the Lord said to Abraham. After Lot departed from him. He says, Look around from where you are to the north and to the south and to the east and to the west. He said, Look at all the land that you see. He said, Look around, because all the land that you see, you and your offspring will enjoy this land forever. That's Genesis 13, 14 to 17. Time to get there. I'll be through and I will make your children offspring like the dust of the earth. So if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. Go walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I'm giving it to you.

Pastor West:
So God is giving a promise. That will go from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Because he had a covenant with Abraham. That covenant extended to. To what? Abraham. Then to Isaac. And then to Jacob. You're in a covenant promise right now. Amen. Amen. Yeah, we were singing about the blood we overcome by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony. That's a covenant promise. Amen. God keeps his covenant. Man doesn't always keep. The Scripture says that God is not a man, that he should what? He should lie. He, Jeremiah says he will watch over his word in your life to perform the word his word. Amen. The scripture says that God magnifies. Watch here the importance of the word. The Scripture says that God will magnify his word. Over. What? Psalms 138 In other words, he'll watch over his word and he'll he'll he'll magnify his word over anything else. All you have to do is believe him. When you believe in him, you believe in his word. So the promise or the or possession, the promise is based on the provision of that covenant. The covenant speaking. Now, when you think about like the prodigal son, it says the the father said to the brothers, he said to the older son who got angry when the younger son came back. And he says, I can't even believe you're doing this. He said, this younger brother of mine, he left here.

Pastor West:
He took all he took all the provisions, He took all his inheritance. And he went and squandered the whole thing. The whole thing, he says. And now he's come back with nothing. He said, and I've been here the whole time. I did my job. I did his job. I've never left you. And he says, And now you're going to take the the greatest piece of meat we got the greatest, you know, calf out here and you're going to slaughter it and have a party. And I've never left you. How could you do that? And the father just looked at him, I'm sure, with sad eyes. And he said, Son, don't you understand this is Jesus telling the story? He said, Don't you understand? This is the elder brother. He's mad. He's not happy. This brother has come back. He's angry. He says, Son, don't you understand that everything that I have belongs to you? Don't you understand that you could have had a party any time you wanted to just because you're my son. You see what Jesus was teaching us? You see, the older son saw. This is what I've done. This is what I've done. This is how I've performed. This is how I worked it. This is how I. This is how faithful I've always been. But he hasn't always been faithful. But you see, the younger son was remorseful. The younger son had had a turn of heart.

Pastor West:
He had he had a change of mind. He repented, which means he changed his mind. And it says when he began to come back, he wasn't he wasn't seeking position anymore. He didn't feel like he was worthy of the position because the Bible says when he came back, he said, well, I mean, you know, it says he came to himself. Well, when you read the story, you know, you know where he was at geographically when he came to himself, the younger son, he was he was in the pig pen eating the husk with the pig. Oh, a wealthy young man who had wasted all his all his inheritance. And he's so hungry that he's fighting pigs for the husk. And the Bible says, you know, he's down there going. And he said, Something ain't right about this. That's a clue. He said, I know what I'm going to do. I'm going to go back to my father's house and I'm going to ask him, please, would you give me just could I just be a servant in your house? She got. God doesn't want service. He wants sons. Amen. Sons will serve because that's the attitude of their heart. But God's not calling and God is not calling. He is not calling in this covenant. He is not calling employees and he's not calling servants. He's calling sons. The scripture says the whole earth, the Earth, the Earth itself groans.

Pastor West:
It know the Earth knows the time that it is. We know that's true. I mean, just. I mean. I mean there knows whether it can grow tomatoes in February or whether they can grow it in May or June. The God God put the ability for the earth to know that. In the earth. The Earth knows we're at the end. The Bible says the Earth itself is groaning. Why? It's just waiting for the manifestation of the Sons of God to come up and take their place in him to know who they are. The Earth wants that. Yeah. The father's heart was not focused on what the younger son did not do. He was aware of what he didn't do. He aware that he was aware that he was in sin. He was. He was. He understood that his young son knew nothing about his love. He didn't know nothing about his mercy. He didn't know nothing about his compassion. He didn't know anything about righteousness. But the father was desiring for the son to come back. We know that because naturally, in the story that Jesus tells, he said when the son was making his way back, he said the father was looking for him. The father was looking for him. Did you know after Adam sinned and we know that it says he sinned and then he ran and he had it's the first time we ever have any insight into Adam.

Pastor West:
Running and hiding is after sin. See, sin will make you a coward. Sin will take you to a path that you don't want to go on, and it'll cost you a whole lot more to stay there. And it'll keep you there forever if it can. But the father was looking for the son. It says. And when the father saw the son who had wasted everything that he gave his inheritance, he said the father ran to him. He ran to the son. He ran to the transgressor. He ran to the sinful one. He ran to the unrighteous one. He ran to the one who blew it all. He ran to the one who was so high up. And now he was so far down. And so the father comes, it says. And he ran. And he embraced him. And he kissed him and he hugged him. And the son began to weep and cry and say, you know, I'm not worthy. And the father says, shut up. And so he called the father called for the servants. He says, bring he says, Father, if I could just be a servant. He said, I'm so hungry and I don't even have nowhere to get out of the weather. Oh, could I could I just live in the servants quarters? And he's like, no way. He told the servants to come bring the robe, bring, you know, bring the sandals, bring the ring on his hands, which tells us who he is.

Pastor West:
And I don't care how far you've gone or how you missed it, or if it's the 17th 1000 time that you missed it this week, you say I might have sinned. Well, you can't out sin, Grace. Bosses were saying abounds. Grace does much more abound. But don't be content just to take that word and say, well, you know, I cannot send Grace, you know, because that came up in Paul's time. They said, Well, if Grace abounds every time I see it more than my sin. He said, Wouldn't it be good if we just keep on sinning because more grace will come out? Paul said, You are stupid. That's the worst translation, huh? Don't forget that Grace is not just a word. It's not it's not a theological term. The Bible said the Holy Spirit is the spirit of grace. So the spirit of grace is not there to cover things up. It's there to deliver you. Amen to take you out and then to take you up. So the son who went from high, he went to the low, but the father raised him up. I want us to see a new day that's coming that you're not going back to. Because sometimes people get like, Man, I'm just trying to get my life back to what it was, you know, five years ago or 20 years ago. I'm trying to get back to the good old days.

Pastor West:
Well, they might have been good, but. But. But you haven't seen God's, huh? They might have been good then on that. We don't want to knock that. But. But don't settle there. Come on up and let's have a business meeting of summit leaders. Amen. Amen. You know, it's just. It's just not summit talk to say, well, you know, you know, I don't know because, you know, we could get on it. You know, Walmart because they raised hourly rates $14 an hour. Well, that's good. Praise the Lord. I'm I'm glad someone making more money. Leaders aren't talking about that, huh? They're not talking about working for somebody $14 an hour. Who owns the companies? How's the company going to expand? What is it we can do now to not just our market, but get into the international market? So I'm not talking about you working harder and longer. That's what you're already doing. You stop that. You need to find a way to act like the proprietor of a business. In other words, if you're the proprietor, you doing all the work. If something's wrong, you might start out that way. And it may work that way. And I understand small business because I was in one for years. I understand all of it. I worked harder than anybody there because I had more I had more to lose. You know, when everything that you have is on the line like it was with us starting a business, you know, only thing that we lost if we ever quit was just everything.

Pastor West:
Because, you know, you just sign the house over the land, over everything over. So any time you want to quit, you could they just take your house and stuff. So it made it real easy for us to make the decision. You want to go on a little bit further? You think we could? I think we'll go on another day. But but that's not God's best by any stretch of the imagination. By any stretch of the imagination. Matter of fact, the Lord didn't even want us to know if I can say this, you might get upset with me. The Lord doesn't want you to waste your prayers on needs. Don't. Don't waste your faith in prayers on needs. Jesus tried to teach us that in Matthew six, he says. He says, Don't be like the Gentiles. He said They're always going to seek what they're going to eat or what they're going to drink, what they're going to wear, or how they're going to be clothed, what they're going to live. That's how Gentiles think. He said, don't think like that. He says your father has knows what you have need of before you even ask him. I mean, you're not bringing something to the Lord. And he says, Really? Wow. Well, let me check into that. What are we going to do, Lord? I don't know, but I'll get right on it.

Pastor West:
The Holy Spirit's never told you. He don't know. He does know. He knows all things. So why would you waste your your thinking? Time on needs. You ought to get it over into dreams and desires and goals. Huh. What do you think about it? You ever thought about the complexity of the whole universe? Which. Which would be so beyond my ability to even convey it in any terms that would do it any kind of justice? But the earth is large dust, but it's pretty small. It's just a tiny little I mean, it's smaller than the end of your finger when you compare it to billions of galaxies. How does someone who creates billions of galaxies and they're still discovering galaxies and, you know, are we the only life on any planet? Well, if there's more, it doesn't tell it and here that I know of. But if it is, it wouldn't be too hard to believe it, would it? I mean, who knows? It didn't mean to open up that can. But I'm saying. But. But if it is, Brother Copeland said they asked him one time said, Do you believe there's life on other planets? He said, I don't know, but if he is, I know they need I know they need believers. Convention, you know, whatever planet they're on. How do you have an intelligent conversation with someone who creates billions of galaxies? Think about it.

Pastor West:
I mean, I've always wondered, Lord, how are you satisfied with us in conversation? Because we don't really have one that's really can stimulate you that much. Well, the Lord helped me get some new tires and that's awesome. That's good. But I don't think that's something that the Lord really spends much time thinking about which tires, how to get tires. I've been there many times. Maybe you have. Believe me. For essentials, you know, for years. But let's. Let's move on up, huh? If we were to get together at any time next week or any time and just say, how can we how can we see our community change? How can we see 1000 people saved next year? Just just us. And I don't mean just investing into ministries that go out and missionaries. I'm talking about how can we reach the people around us a minimum of a thousand people who today does not know Jesus Christ as their Lord and savior. But tomorrow will, when we engage this new plan with purpose and we're committed to it. See, now that's that's the thought process, unless you're already doing that. But I don't know anyone who's doing that right now. And so that's a that's a God idea. So if you're not ready for a God idea when it comes, then when there's not preparedness and opportunity to come together, there'll be no transaction.

Pastor West:
It'll just be a meeting. We can just say, Hey, man, Lord God, I wouldn't trust. Had a better lunch. But if you're ready, if you're ready in your heart and your mind, if you're prepared to take off the restraints, if you're willing to at least say, Lord, I'm going to pretend like I don't know anything. He might say, Well, you won't have to pretend to me. I've done that before, so I'll pretend I don't know about this. He still had to pretend. I was like, Thank you, honey. We know in your heart at least there's got to be more than what you're seeing. There's got to be more than this, huh? Praying the same prayer. You know, just praying your 20s. And now you're not in your 20s. And we're still waiting. Still waiting. But, you know, you can't say you're waiting because that wouldn't be a good faith confession. Really? Amen. You say, Well, I'm just going to confess to them. Well, baby, if it ain't in, it ain't coming in. It's already got to be in. Amen. See, Jesus is the author and finisher of your faith. He's not the author and worker of your faith. He finished it. He's big on finishing. He is the finisher. This is this is the finished message from the finisher himself. Amen. Amen. Most people never understood Paul's preaching because even the disciples didn't. Because the disciples walked with Jesus every day for those three and a half years.

Pastor West:
They knew Jesus. Naturally. They got to see the signs and wonders and miracles. Paul may have known about it, but there's no record. There's no record that Paul ever met Jesus at all, naturally. But he did it in the spirit. First time he met him for sure was on the road to Damascus. And that's one he never forgot. It changed him so much, as Rodney Howard-browne said. He said he said when he met Jesus Saul of Tarsus, you know, he just he was just on the road. He he had letters that, you know, he could go into synagogues. He could go into people's homes. And if you was a Christian, he could have you arrested and need to. He'd have you killed. He had that kind of power and authority. Saul of Tarsus did. But on the road to Damascus, he met Jesus himself personally. Jesus appeared to him, knocked him off of his horse. And. Saul asked a question. He was so put out with what he was saying. He's like, the light was so bright, he said. He said, Who are you, Lord? He answered his own question. And the Lord changed his name. Rodney Howard-browne said, hit him so hard and knock the S off. His name replaced it with a P. He knocked the S out of him, praise the Lord and named him Paul instead of Saul. Y'all thought I said something else? No naming Paul.

Pastor West:
Paul got a brand new identity when he's born again. When you get a when you understand who you are in the spirit, you'll get a brand new identity. You'll raise up to the place of actually who you are. You start living from your spirit instead of out of your natural mind. Your flesh has had had its way long enough. But I mean the flesh. I'm talking about your five senses. I'm talking about everything that opposes you and me is found in your five senses. Because most people, that's what's running the show. And when you get tired of it. So you're not ever going to change anything until you get tired of it, or you might be frustrated with it. But until you're tired of it, until you're willing to say, that's enough, enough is enough, I'm not going to put up with any more. Well, the devil is going to test you on it. I'm just going to tell you who he is. He's not just going to give you a pass. He knows he's defeated, too, but he don't think you know it too well. He's going to make you prove it to him. Yeah. Amen. You know, all really comes down to faith when you know who you are in Christ and what belongs to you. Sometimes there is a stand. But the Bible says, having done all. What? Stand, Stand there. And you put on the whole armor of God.

Pastor West:
You have the weapon. Tree of God. But but we're not in a fight that hasn't been determined. Who won? It's already fought. That's why Paul said fight the good fight of faith. Why? Why did he call it good? Because you already won. You just need someone like me or someone like you to come around and tell people you've already won. You say, Well, I don't feel like I won. Don't look like I won. But I got all kinds of problems. Of course you do. Because you're in this natural world and natural life. There's demons all around you, but more than demons are all around you. There's angels all around you. And finally, how we know all what the people say. Oh, the devil told me this. And the devil told me that They don't ever tell you what God told them. They're more demon possessed. They're more aware. People say, Well, I don't even know. How did you hear from God? But you don't ever have to teach them how to hear from the devil. They're telling me all the time, you know, the devil told me this devil said this. So what did God say? God say anything in there? Well, I don't really know if I can hear God. Well, who trained you to hear the devil's voice? You know, like. Well, you know, it's like Jesus said. My sheep shall know my voice and the voice of a stranger. They won't follow. Yeah. He said that the people who weren't even Christians yet.

Pastor West:
Huh?

Pastor West:
Wow. Romans 814 He says Sons of God are led by the Spirit of God. I know who's leading me. Do you know who's leading you? Holy Ghost is leading me. He's a good leader. He's a good leader. He has. He has one plan for you. That's total success. Yes. Amen. Total success. Hallelujah. So when we get together next week, I want you to walk in the room like, you know, Where's my seat? Those chairs don't look like they're set for royalty. They're not quite as good as these chairs, but they are padded. Praise the Lord. I want you to walk in there. Not. Not layers. Not not pride, not arrogancy. But. But knowing who you are. Man We're getting together. I'm going to have a summit. We're not having patty cake patty game. We're not going to have a little talk with Jesus. Amen. We got a brand new keyboard. Ain't never been played yet in a meeting. So, you know, someone tries to play, have a little talk with Jesus. I'm. Oh, yeah. Praise the Lord. And nothing like that. No, we're going to worship the Lord. We're going to believe God wants to have an exchange. It's like it was put on the calendar and says, I want to talk to y'all.

Pastor West:
He said, Why don't y'all come over here and I'll bring them from over here and I'll bring him from this country and I'll bring them from this state and this state and this state and this state. And I want to talk to y'all about some things that I got on my mind for you. Amen. Whoo! Praise God. God. You know, your whole life is radically changed. Are you ready for such a time as that? Why do we say that? We are. But are we? I mean, think about it. If you if you were 75 years old. 75. No one here is 75. Don't look at me. I'm not 75. I'm waiting. I'm not even 70 yet. So how old are you? Well, you cut your grass. I cut mine. God, God showed up to Abraham or his name was Abraham or Abram, however you want to pronounce it, at 75 years old. Do you know what Abraham did for a living? When God showed up to him, he worked for his father. You know what his father did? He made idols. He carved out idols. Yeah. He had a little place on the interstate. They get off on their camels and they buy these little trinket, you know, gods.

Pastor West:
Oh.

Pastor West:
God. Picked some wild people. I mean. I mean, he picks a weird, wild people. He just saw something in there. He said, Boy, if a man sit there and carve out a piece of wood of God and thinks he's a God, he says, Wait till he meets me. I mean, he waited till he was 75 years old. And God said, I want you to leave your father's house. He said, Sir, he said, I want you to leave your father's house. I want you to go to a land that you're going to have an inheritance for. He says, Where's it at? He says, I'll tell you when you need to know. He said, Just get going. He said, okay, now you know this happened, right? Don't make it a Bible story. He's a 75 year old man working in an idle shop and his dad's still alive. You know, he's cutting his fingers all the time. Aren't you tired of that? They didn't even have band aids back then. Like we got now for the booboos. And he just says, I want you to leave your father's house and come with me. He says, I'm going to give you an inheritance. He said, you're going to be the father of all the children of the earth when I get through with you, huh? He didn't even tell him where he was going. Now, could you. Could you? I mean, forget 75, but if you want 75, would you.

Pastor West:
Would you leave home? You say? Well, I'd like to think I were. I just go and tell you. Most people would never do that. You say, Well, this is the modern world. Well, you ought to be easier. Abraham lived in tents, not even know where he's going. I bet. I bet that felt kind of foolish. And I said, Well, Abraham, where are we going? I don't know. You need to pack everything for what kind of clothes we need to take. I mean, I don't know. Where do you think we're going to spend the night? I don't know. He know anything? He just knew to leave. The only thing the Lord told him not to do. He said, when you leave here, just don't go to Egypt. What's the first place he went to Egypt? The only thing he told him not to do, that's what he went did the first thing. Then he got scared because Sarah was such a good looking woman at that age. You know, he was 75 and she was 65. He says, Pretty is my wife is. He said, We get in Egypt. He said, the kings, they're going to kill me for my wife, take her and put him in his harem. He was right. So he asked Sarah, he says, Now, when they asked you, he said, I need you. He said, I hate to ask you, but you need a lie.

Pastor West:
Tell them. Tell them I'm your brother. So. So here's the father of your faith. He starts off in disobedience and he goes to Egypt. That's the only thing he was told not to do. And then he then he has this conspiracy that tell him that you're my sister because I know they'll kill me for you. And they would have. Naturally speaking, they would have. So he goes there and she tells a lie for him. Then here you got the king, and he brings her in and he says, Honey, this is your new home. And man, they doll her all up and she's 65 years old and got his attention. That's not too normal. She didn't had no suction disc, no torque, no pulls, no stretches, no puffs. I mean, you just I mean, it was a 65, whatever. Now, I don't know what he looked like. He might look like a train wreck. I don't know what he looked like. But the king heard in his chamber that night he got real sick. I mean, he got real bad, sick. And the Lord spoke to him. He says, Abraham is my servant, He said, And that woman that you have now, he says that's his wife and he's called by me. If you touch her, I'll kill you. So we have an evil king who can hear from God. Of course, the Lord probably picked up the volume a little bit.

Pastor West:
He said, Touch your sucker, You're dead. And so he got terrified. He got sick. So he called Abraham and said, Why did you conspire to lie against me? He said, Well, I was afraid you'd kill me and whatever. So to get rid of Abraham and get the plague out of Egypt, he gathered up silver and gold and treasures and more camels. Read the story. More donkeys. You know, more chickens, more goats, more emus, more emus. And he says. And here, have some servants go with you. Abraham left Richard when he went out of a disobedience. That's pretty good for grace, isn't it? Don't go. Go where you're not supposed to go. Lie when you get there and leave Wealthier Lord says. Now, we're not saying this is how you live life, but could you say he was work in progress? Oh, yeah. I mean, you get over in Romans chapter four and, you know, boy, that's one of my favorite chapters. It says, Abraham believed God. He staggered not at the promise of God. He was strong in faith, giving glory to God. He was fully persuaded that what God said he was able to perform. Yeah, he was there, but in Genesis he wasn't. I like how the Lord don't bring up your past. Romans four He he put Abraham and Sarah in very good light. The God they fully persuaded. I just believe God I shake their head.

Pastor West:
But. But God. Pastor But you say. They say God. He said their head as long as like a Shetland pony saying it, they believed God. But did you read in Genesis where God says you're you're going to have a son and you're going to name him Isaac and he's going to be the promised son. And through him will be the lineage that I'll bring my promise. I looked around at their age and said, We're going to have a son. Well, Sarah was never Sarah never had children, never could have children. And they're both kind of old. They're both kind of old. They're not 100, but they can see it from where they're standing. This goes on 24 years. 24 years. You know, when they were born, when that child was born, he was 100 and she was 90. Would you say it's kind of old to have more children? I remember we were in our mid 30s, you know, with Christian. We thought we weren't planning on number four. I was like, Man, I'm 30 something years old. Don't don't ever tell that story to Sarah Abraham when you get up here. Oh, yeah, I know just how you mean. He he's going to laugh at you for eternity. He's like you. 30, 30. My gosh, You would not a kindergarten yet. What are you talking about? You're not old. I asked the Lord one time. You know I believe you.

Pastor West:
Tell him. I said. Why did you wait till 75 years old to even call Abraham? He said it took him that long for him to have any sense. And I said, Oh. I said, will you call me? Wait for then. He said. He said, Don't overthink it. He says, I was like, okay. He said, I'm just more like running out of time now. I was like, Oh, thank you. I was like, I thought I had a lot more sense than Abraham. He said, I don't think that one son. He said, We are out of time. I can't wait on you. I can't wait on you to be 75. So you think like the line. And he just thinks the elephant. He says, Look out there. He says, boy, it's a bunch of lunch right there. Elephant. Just run as hard as he can go. Cheetah. A cheetah is scared. Terrified of a lion and a lion couldn't catch him on his best day with a bad leg. I mean, if a hippo just laid over on I. They'd be all over. It'd just be casserole lined casserole. But the lion knows he's a lot faster than that. He said, Man, when that elephant is trying to turn around, I'm on the three quarter of his leg, you know? Why are we going on the merry go round? You know what? It's just the way that he thinks. We start off with the first worship song we want to do like we did on Kingland.

Pastor West:
When? When goes in his Bible, it says Turn in your Bible or something. So we ought to go. The first time I preached to Kayla and all those guys down there. Easiest place I ever preached to this day. You know why? Hunger was all in the room. Everywhere. Desperation was everywhere. They were losing their families. They were losing their homes. They were losing their children. Drugs and substance abuse and taking their whole life away. And now they're there because they're trying to be straight, because they was out the gate asking and crying because they had needle marks in their arm and they didn't think they'd going to live another day. But someone like Mac, who lived where they lived, thought like they thought, knew how they thought. He took them in. He took them in. So when you go. So he says, this is your answer. That's what he taught him. So anyone who ever come, ministers. Caitlin, I'm sure they'll still do it today. Let's start a Bible lesson. Say, now turn your Bibles on. And so they'll go, Yay, real. I just like to scared me out of my skin, dear. Then when you finish your lesson, you say, Well, let's be finished. They'll go, Oh, I'm thinking, they don't ever do my church. They're like, by the time. Praise God. So we're having a summit meeting.

Pastor West:
Y'all going to come? Amen. Amen. The greatest threat to being all that you could be is satisfaction with who you are. Can I say it again? The greatest threat to being all that you could be is satisfaction with who you are today. It's called complacency. See, the enemy of great is good and the enemy of good is just okay. And the enemy of okay is called double mindedness. A double minded man shall not. What? Receive anything from the Lord. The Lord will speak to you this week and He'll speak to you in the services to come. And you need to take heed to his word. Remember this? Ecclesiastes eight four where the word of a king is there's power. The king has no fear. He is fearless like a lion. Proverbs 30. Proverbs 3030 says the lion is the strongest among the beast and turns not away from anyone. Mhm. Proverbs 28 one says the wicked flee when no man pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion. You see how the Lord uses the lion over and over and over again. Hallelujah. Amen. Well, we're going to. I'll finish this right here. History reveals that individuals who impact their generation and affect their world around them were not expressly gifted or educated. They were not famous. They didn't start famous. No one was seeking them out. Who were they? They were ordinary people who, because of adversity, because of challenges, perhaps desperate or in need of a miracle, they cried out to God like in Psalm 34.

Pastor West:
And it says the righteous cry and the Lord hears them and delivers them from all of their troubles. The Lord knows your situation. The Holy Spirit knows everything about you before you got to this day. He knew what this was going to look like. He's already filtered everything into your life. You do when you read the scripture in Corinthians where Paul talks about no temptation has taken you as such as common to man. And you read it in The Passion translation. It says, The Lord filters out everything. He looks at the whole situation and he filters it out. In other words, that verse is one of the verses that gets misquoted as much as about anything that I've ever, ever heard, things that's just not in the Bible. You know, there's things that people say that's just not in the Bible. They might be good, might be good habits, might be good moral thinking, but it's not really in the scripture. And one of them is, is this God won't put on you more than you can stand. That is not a scripture. The Lord does not put her honor. He's the Lord is the taker. Offer. See the anointing lifts. It doesn't put on. Paul said, Put off the old man. So that you can put on the new man.

Pastor West:
But you know what most Christians do? They put the new man on top of the old man. They don't get rid of the old man. So then they have two minds. And that's why they have double minds. They didn't get rid of the old thinking. They just tried to put the new on top of the old. A dentist will never put a cavity, never put a filling over a cavity. He goes in there and drills it out. And then he, you know, he makes the filling what it has to be to take the place of where the tooth was. They don't they don't put a cap over a diseased tooth. Why would a Christian put on a new life on top of an old one? Why would the Lord take your old thinking and just try to cap it off with some better thinking? No, he said, be transformed by the renewing of your mind. You could say the removing of your mind. I mean, if you could do it, that's probably what needs to happen. Just remove it. Abraham had to leave his father's house not knowing where he was going. He is the father of your faith. And the same promises that he made to Abraham. He's made to you everything that he has, everything that you're ever going to need in life has already been prepared. It's just a merely waiting your recognition of it. How many red cars did you pass on the way to church? I don't know.

Pastor West:
I don't know either. You know why we weren't looking for red cars, were we? What are you looking for? Because what you look for, you'll find. And what you look at long enough, you'll look like you're made in the image and the likeness of God. If you interpret your life based on what you are experiencing in your life and you make that the definition of how your life's going to work, that's exactly how it's going to work. But the Bible says, look into the mirror of the Word of God and behold, that image for in the Word you behold the man that you are. James says. But what happens is they become forgetful hearers. They look and they see, but then they walk away. They don't look back. And then they forget, he says. And then they deceive their own self. It didn't say the pastor deceived them. It didn't say their parents deceived them, didn't say their spouse deceived them. Paul or James said, When you look into the mirror, which is the word of God, he said, This is the perfect law of liberty. He says, You're supposed to look into the word and see who you are. You don't get the identity from the world. The the world doesn't have a clue who you are. They don't even know if they're a male or female.

Pastor West:
How can the world tell you who they are when they don't even know what their sexual origin is? I mean, you're thinking, how could we even have a conversation about that, much less be in those days? That's why when I walked into the bank, I was telling you a few months ago and all this. I mean, everyone was talking about it. I went in there with my deposit and she started zipping out. I said, Now, before you open that deposit, I want you to know this. I identify myself as a millionaire. And she said, Do what? I said. I identify myself as a millionaire on my church account. And she looked at it and she said, Well, not today. You know, she was going on just facts. She says, Well, there's always tomorrow. And I said, But but I identify myself. She said, that doesn't work here. You can be that it's available. We'll protect it. We'll grow your investment. But but you have to be that. Well, what is it that you already be that you haven't decided that you be that yet? You are the exceedingly abundantly above all that you could ask or think of God according to the power that worketh in you. But is it working in you? So you'll have to change. We'll have to all change our mind about some things. Everyone has a place where they can go up to. But you have to purpose in your heart to do it.

Pastor West:
So do what you need to do to be necessary, which is necessary to make those changes. And so, come, I would suggest you have something to write with. Have something that you can write on. Because not only will things be said that you need to remember now, these these these meetings will be ongoing. You know, you'll be able to watch them on YouTube and and you'll be able to watch them on Facebook. Also, there are, as you know, if you go to our website, you can every service now you can get a written transcript of everything that's said. So that helps sometimes because you can't remember everything that said, well, you can just go to GLC, Gracelife Church, Jefferson and you you'll find a place to have a transcript. You know, it takes a little bit past the service to get to it, but I mean just you can go there, but you can get a written transcript. Sometimes it misses a few words because it's trying to get out. Alabama, lower Alabama from some of the people who speak here. It's hard to know what to say sometimes, and it's trying to translate in It's an AI program and that's good and bad. But anyway, we're going to go with the good part. So we won't see you here this week, but we'll look forward to seeing you Saturday, Saturday afternoon. Amen. Have a blessed day.

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A Mind Renewed Is A Life Made New | 3Sep2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

A Mind Renewed Is A Life Made New | 3Sep2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor Erik West:
Good morning. Welcome to our Sunday morning service. Grace, Love. Glad that you're joining us this morning. And we're going to get right into our lesson this morning. Last week, we if you're looking for a title, I think we call it the God's definition of success. And we looked at the life of Joseph. Is that right? And how he was enslaved. We know if you go back and read about his life, we know that he was loved of his father and we know he had a dream. And God showed him a great plan, a great vision for his life. He was excited. No doubt. He was excited. Why wouldn't he be excited? Except he told everyone he knew about it, especially his brothers. And in that dream, he told them exactly what he saw. And he says it was an awesome dream I had last night. Let me tell you how this works. He's the youngest of all of them. He said, I see that I'm going to be this important person and all y'all going to be bowed down to me, including Father. No one said, Praise the Lord. Actually, they put him in a pit and sold him as a slave. So don't tell everything you know, even if you're right. Well, God, it didn't stop God's plan, even though he got real, you know, out of sync with, you know, how he could have handled it, should have handled it. But he was he was young. And in his immaturity, he made some decisions that that that, you know, put him in a place where I mean, we know where he ended up in the palace.

Pastor Erik West:
Right? So there is a way to go from the prison to the palace. He was in he was in prison for 13 years. You say? Well, I hope God doesn't give me a dream or a vision. Well, the vision came forth, but there was a time in preparation for him to take the place that God had for him. It doesn't mean it had to be prison. It just was prison. And so I don't want you going off say, well, God's got in prison you and break you up and break you down. That might be true spiritually in some dimension. In other words, there's going to be a making and the remaking of everyone. And, you know, just naturally thinking, you know, most people never grow in their life spiritually for sure. Very few people grow when everything's easy. Most growth actually takes place during difficult times. We had this way in America, just like this weekend is the three day weekend. So a lot of people mean I'm gone. Well, you're supposed to stay because it's Labor Day weekend. You just stay and pull weeds or something. I don't I don't know where. It's not beach. It's pull weeds. No, I'm just joking. But anyway, he went to the palace and we read the scripture. We won't go back there. In Genesis 39, it says, though he was in prison, this is this is how God viewed it. Just when you when you read the scripture said Joseph was in prison and God said he was a prosperous and a successful man.

Pastor Erik West:
And so we contrasted that between the world's view of success versus God's view of success. This meeting coming up in Trussville is called the Summit. When large corporations get together with their stockholders and with other leaders, they talk about large ideas. So there was a reason for moving it away from the normal, be honest with you. Not just because it was halfway in between another church. It was moving the venue away so God could talk to leaders. So everyone's invited. So but we're not trying to accommodate. We're not bringing someone from Wales and asking to be through in 45 minutes because there's only two meetings. And so it's going to be really, really good anyway. So I'm y'all ready to go to that next level? Well, the truth is, you'll never straighten out your life until you straighten out your mind. Amen. And we're always talking about the mind, right? Because Proverbs 23 says a man thinketh in his heart that's who he is. Amen. That's not. I didn't write that. As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he. And where the mind goes, the person follows the body. Go right with the mind. We won't go there. But. Matthew. 1233 1233 It says a tree is known by its fruit. The same is true with your life and my life. Because thoughts bear fruit. All thoughts bear fruit. Good or bad. And so when we have emotional issues, which we'll talk about again this morning somewhat, and we have the census that talk to us. Just know this, that the word of God not attached to your soul, your mind, will and emotions is the is the will.

Pastor Erik West:
They will. In other words, if you don't attach the word to your soul, to your mind, your will and your emotions, it will not affect your soul and your body and your and your. The person will follow always their mind. And I came across this story a number of years ago and it was a really it's true. In fact. But it's a really good analogy. They'll say that what I want to say this morning, I don't know if he was the originator, but I and he might be Myles Munroe. He's in heaven now. He said there's two animals that the creator identified himself with in the Bible. One is the Eagle and the other one. The second one is the lion. I want to talk to you about the lion for just a moment. Of course, we know the eagle is the king of the bird kingdom. In the lion is the is the is the king of the animal kingdom. How many y'all would agree with that? That the lion is known as the king of the animal kingdom? So it begs the question to say this. Why is the lion considered the king of the jungle? I'm just reading you what he wrote here. He said, Why is the lion considered the king of the jungle? He's not the tallest. Giraffes are taller. He's not the biggest because elephants are bigger. He's not the heaviest. Hippos are heavier. He's not the smartest in the kingdom. Animal. Kingdom. Because hyenas are smarter. He's not the most intelligent.

Pastor Erik West:
Chimpanzees are more intelligent. When an elephant sees a lion, an elephant will run. Even though he's bigger. He's. He's bigger. He's stronger, he's smarter. And he's more powerful than this cat. The lion. The elephant is a victim because of how he thinks. When the lion sees an elephant, he charges toward the elephant. Because when he sees the elephant, he believes he's found lunch. Now, what's wrong with that? The lion is the king of the jungle because he has a different mindset. He has a different attitude. The lion's action reflects the way that he thinks. His mindset makes all the animal kingdom respect the lion more than any other animal. So he went on to say, Picture this. Two persons, same skills, same same degrees, same economic conditions, same location, same problem identified by both. One thinks lunch and the other thinks danger. How about that? So your mindset is the result of your beliefs and your actions reflect what we believe. We become what we believe and we limit ourselves by what we believe. Anyway, that's a good little story. So our lives today. Your life, My life, all of us today, they're always. They're always moving in the direction of your most dominant thoughts. That's why it's so important when we talk about renewing the mind. And when you hear a scripture that, you know, sometimes sometimes you we have a tendency to quit here and say, I know that knowing that and doing that was two different things. I know some things about. I know some things about, you know, good nutrition. I know some things.

There we go.

Pastor Erik West:
We try this one?

How about that? You're there.

Pastor Erik West:
I don't hear myself at all. Okay. Sorry about that. Anyway. So. I know some things about the physical body and working out. But without any actions. Me just driving by the gym and the health food store. That'd be awesome, wouldn't it? How much would you pay if you could just drive by saying, Look, I'm going to give you a I'm going to give you a 90 day, you know, I'll pay my membership and I'm going to drive by here three times a day and just and just breathe it in. And what's your goal? Well, I want to lose £50 and I want to build this. And, you know, I want to. Okay. But then when you come by here, you know, put your arms like this, you know, breathe in and shake your legs a little bit, you know, And I want somebody, you know, like this and like that. Well, that is going to be another $100. Okay, well, I'll drive by five times a day. I'm going to drive by the health food store, you know, and and I'll be healthy. Then I can go home, eat pizza because I already drove by the health food store. Wouldn't that be awesome? You know what I described to you? Maybe heaven, because you don't want to miss that. Do you know? You don't want to miss that. So. But we are today the result of our thoughts in the past. And who you become in the future will be determined by your thoughts today.

Pastor Erik West:
Where are you? Where you are today in your life and your is based on how you was thinking yesterday. That's just a biblical truth and you will be tomorrow based on how you're going to believe today. If this is church to you today, if you're punching the clock, if you're making yourself feel better that I came to church. We're glad that you're here, but it probably won't benefit you a whole lot. He said, the truth will set you free. But you have to you have to accept the truth, believe the truth, and adjust your life to truth. You have to be willing to release, let go and say, I have believed this all my life. My family believed this. And but the Word of God says this. Yeah, but, Grandmama. Well, thank God. So what are you going to do about your life? I mean, there's things that. That we walked along in years. This is the way it's supposed to work for anyone. Not fivefold ministry. I mean, there's things I preached, you know, 30 years ago. I don't agree with myself. Why? Because I worked. I went further and I saw more revelation. Most of the time was progressive. Amen. You see this and you see that? You see the church coming to such a place. You know, or Roberts, in his day, you know, had of course, you know, he's known for having a great healing ministry.

Pastor Erik West:
People would come under the tent by, you know, over 10,000 people and they be healed. And his ministry started because he needed healing. He was on the death bed as a kid. Brother Hagan was on a deathbed. Brother Hagan was healed after being in the bed for 16 months, had three diseases. Either one was going to take his life. He was 16 years old and he said never ran and played like a like a regular teen or child. And he had bad blood, had a bad heart. He had paralysis and by all medical means, he had to leave. He had to leave. He had no spiritual help. Everyone told him, you know, every time he was trying to tell him, he said, I only had till like 1030 in the morning because he says, you know, my mind was going this way. Then my vision would be and, you know, I lose good vision and I couldn't read the Bible, he says. He says, And I had so much paralysis, he says, Sometimes it took me ten minutes just to turn one page over my Bible. And all he wanted to know when he found certain things. Is this true? So pastors would come. He asked for pastors, and he says some of them never come. And he got discouraged. One finally came and he and all he wanted to know was he found this truth in Mark.

Pastor Erik West:
11 2324 and he wanted to know, does it mean what it, what it, what it looks like it means? And he was trying to say that and he was saying a and the pastor just grabbed his hand and just went like this. He said, It's all right, boy. It'll all be over real soon. Which is what every 116 years old wants to hear. With no help. By God. Amen. Come on, he said. You know, it didn't take 16 months to get healed. He said it just took 16 to think, right? Even with no help. And like I said before, I'm not trying to endorse him. I'm just saying. But and even though it affected our lives. But every four hours, a new Greymouth church starts somewhere in the world every four hours. From a teenager dying on deathbed. Now, the Lord didn't say, I'm going to heal you and you're going to do this and you're going to do that. And he didn't show them what the life was going to look like. He was just trying to live. Kirsten was talking about because she's wearing some of the stuff and, you know, he could hear him in there. He could hear his mom and his grandparents and the pastor and the pastor was just there trying to console the family. And they were just, you know, he was praying for the family pre-death to comfort them because he was going to die.

Pastor Erik West:
And then they asked him, his parents and grandparents, his mother, his dad left his mom. His mom had a nervous breakdown. There was other kids that had to come live with the grandparents. So he's totally bedridden, but he could hear them in there planning his funeral. And the pastor who came to see him, he was trying to, you know, comfort them. So they all accepted he was going to die. And by natural by natural thinking, he would have died. He was supposed to die. But God. And so they asked him. They said, Well, what song would you want to. What song would you want would you want sung at your funeral? He was just trying to get out in words that they could understand as Mark 11 2324 mean what it says. But they said, Well, what songs would you like sung at your funeral? And he he said, Well, I don't know. He says, he said, I don't guess I'll be there. He said, Well, why don't y'all just sing something y'all like that's like, I can't get no one to answer my question. He finally got some understanding of Mark 11 2324 and he says, oh, oh, I see it, I see it. In other words, I'm supposed to believe that I'm healed while I'm laying here in the bed with paralysis, with a bad heart and bad blood? I'm supposed to believe that I'm healed even when it looks and feels like this in the Holy Ghost.

Pastor Erik West:
Holy Spirit says, he says Now you believe. Now you see it, Now you believe. And he was excited. And no one was in the room with him, paralyzed from the waist down for a year and a half. And then the Holy Spirit said, he says, you know, most people are up at 1030 in the morning. In other words, now faith has to have some action. He said, that's right. So he didn't call for help. They had a little mechanism. He tried to pull himself up sometimes. So it took him quite a while because he was trying to move his legs. He was trying to pull them like this with his hand. He's trying to get them off the side of the bed. Took over an hour or so to do that. And he said when he when he did it and he pulled something to stand up because he hadn't stood up in a year and a half, you can imagine the weakness of the body. He said it felt. So wonderful and hurt so much at the same time. In other words, all the nerves in his body, you know, like with little needles and feeling begin to come into his body because he saw something that he didn't see the day before. And he had to change. He had to exchange information. For Revelation. And I'm getting ahead of myself.

Pastor Erik West:
But most people looking for a breakthrough and God is the God of breakthrough. But what you really need is transformation. You need to transform yourself from information to revelation. You you need exchange information for revelation. And and I'll let me say this. You can have the right information, but it's not relevant to you because you heard it from someone else. But you haven't made it church yet. In other words, you could see a truth and it be the truth. And you could say, Well, that's awesome, that's good. But you never put it into practice. So what you're trying to live you're trying to live off secondhand information. Because you never made it yours. Once again, Brother Hagan, I'll move on. He said. He said even in the ministry, he said most ministers. Most ministers. Not the laity. Most ministers, he said. They're their echoes and not voices. In other words, or most people are thermostats or I mean, they're not they're not the thermometer. They're thermal. You know, In other words, God wants you to be a thermostat in the sense of that back wall. There's a there's a thermostat on it. We can set the air or the heat anytime we want to, right. For what we want to. Now, that doesn't produce the air conditioning. It's on the other side of that wall. But when we say we're we want colder air, we want it warmer, then we put the information there and it gets in touch with it gets in touch with the compressor and the air conditioner on the other side.

Pastor Erik West:
And he says they're asking for more air. Let's go. Get to work. In other words, you're the one who sets the tone. You're the one who creates the atmosphere. Because it's who. Who's in you. Christ is in you. Amen. Where does the Holy Spirit live? In us. But the church has been busy for at least a decade or two. You know, writing songs about All Fall Down on Us. Oh, come. Oh, God, I'm so thirsty and dry. Fill me. Well, but if you and I don't mean to demean anything, I'm just saying. But it's hard to find good music in the scripture. You can find something that's emotional, that moves you, but it's just most of it. It's not scriptural. I mean, you read the stuff they're putting out now, it's just, Oh, there was an ocean and a tree and the the mist just washed over me. There was sin I could see, but God came down. So it's like, shoot that thing in the head. It has nothing to do who you are or what Jesus has done. Andrew Wong said this way, He says, I think he says like this. He says most people believe God can do anything, but they don't believe he's done very much. That is the most true statement.

Pastor Erik West:
You know, Pastor, for 2 or 3 decades and you'll say, I know, I know. That's a fact. That's a fact. Someone called me that day and I had one of these calls in years and they said, and I think they've been here twice. And they said, Pastor, how come you ain't called us? I said, called you for it. How come you ain't been checking on us? I'm like. For what? Not to name any names. And I said. I'm not your pastor. Oh, yeah. You're a pastor. I said no. You came twice. One time you got there ten minutes where It was over. You've been one and a quarter times. And I didn't do this my third. You don't take me that many words no more. As you get older, you'll use less words to get where you're going. A whole lot less words. And I said, This is the way it works for me anyway. I said, Until you take and until you take advantage of my public time, don't call me on my phone and take my private time. This is available publicly at this time. And if you don't take advantage of that, don't think I'm looking for you. If you if you have something, you need something, you call me. Because I do care and I'll be a part of that. Well, I thought pastors are just supposed to keep in touch with all the sheep. I said, Well, you thought wrong.

Pastor Erik West:
Hmm. I'll see. If I was one of those shepherds, I would have a cane with a crook on it, and it'd be around your neck, and I'd be snatching you from left to right all day long. And you wouldn't like that. Then you'd be mad at me for sure. She said, Well, I don't want to think about you. She said, I'll lie. She said, Boy, you tell it straight. I said, You want it another way? See, when I was 20 and I thought someone 80. I thought, man, that's way out there, right? Because two plus six is eight. Woo! Can you see that far? But six plus two is eight, too. So you see the you know, you see it kind of you know, it won't take as much time to say it because you want you want to help people, but you want it to be relevant, not just make them feel good. Not make them just like you or me to like you. I mean, you know who doesn't want to be liked? But, you know, sometimes when you go. I've had doctors who were I've seen doctors who were great doctors, but they had no bedside manner whatsoever. They were just write down. Rude. Rude. I had to have a surgery. What was beginning of this year or sometime last year, a kidney stone had him 20 years before that. This one they said you ain't going to pass is too big.

Pastor Erik West:
So we'll have to shock it. You know, all that kind of stuff. And I got there. They give me some things for pain before I got there and praise the Lord. I'm glad I knew some scripture. Most women tell you who had who had babies and kidney stones. They said, we've had children. We've had kidney stones. We'd have a child in there. They don't help me right now to hear that. Oh, my God. Don't tell me that. And and I got there to the the hospital, you know, and they was getting me ready. And, boy, here it come again. And you don't know what to do. I mean, you're hot, you're cold, you're hurting. I mean, you just want to. I mean, you could bite. You could bite a tenpenny nail in half. You just with your teeth. And this, the surgeon come in and I'm just in pre, you know, pre-op, and he just comes in having a bad day and I wasn't with it too well, and he's asked me all kind of technical stuff. I said, oh he said now is the is it on the left or right. Is the is the. He's asking me things that he thinks I'm supposed to know. And even in that condition, I said, I don't know. Is it not in my chart. I know there's a part that he wants to know that we're talking about the same thing.

Pastor Erik West:
But when I got through, everybody was apologizing for him and a guy came up and he had on shirt like Nathan does, had an auburn shirt, and he walked up and he was real nice and he said, I'm sorry about that. He's usually not like that. He says. And I said, It's no big deal. I said, He says, I'm going to be with you. I'm the anesthesiologist. I'm going to put you to sleep. And I said, War, eagle, war. Some people say say other ways. I said, I said, You good at this? I said, Yeah. I said, I said, I'm an Alabama fan, but War Eagle, man, I'm all for you. I said, let's let's do that quick. Let's do that quick. So they put you to sleep and then they had this machine that comes just shock. Shock, shock. They're trying to break the stone in small pieces. It was a ten millimeter and they're trying to get it down to 1 or 2 fragments. Then you just pass it out of your body. But they left me a five millimeter stone after all the surgery, which I had to pass at home, I sent them the bill. They haven't responded yet with a check. Amen. And I passed it pretty much with these. And I knew what it was and felt it was coming. And because we had to go back in two weeks later or a week later, I had to do a checkup with the doctor and he did an x ray.

Pastor Erik West:
Oh gosh, he says. They still left five millimeters there. He says, I may have to send you back in there. He said, if it ain't passed by tomorrow, I will send you back in there. So he did all kinds of things. It was going to make it pass, but it didn't pass, he says, But I want you to come in the morning. We're going to do this, this and this, because I'm going to try to make it move before I close today. I said, Why? He says, Because I don't want you to be out tonight and not have any help. He says, I'm going to try to make this thing move, and I won't go with what he did to make it move. But it did. After he closed. And all of a sudden this all of a sudden I mean, just I was just sitting there and that initial kind of like a well, you could call it fear, but just like the panic of that extreme pain's coming and they're closed and die and the surgery is over and. All of a sudden, the Holy Spirit gave me a scripture that he knew. I knew that, you know, and y'all are familiar with it here, but I've never heard but one person ever preached on it. And this is in the book of Jeremiah.

Pastor Erik West:
And it says, he says, I will break up the the stubborn places. He says he said, my word is like a hammer that will break up the stubborn pieces. The amplified says my words like a hammer that will break up even the rocks. Even the stubborn rocks will break it. Even those of the most stubborn resistance. And they'll break it into pieces. And I was like, That's right. I went and grabbed my Bible and I read it and I said, That's it. I says, This stone is going to be broken up into small fragments. And in 20 minutes later, it completely passed in little bitty, bitty granules, all that. And then the Holy Spirit said to me, he said, You know, that also works pre-op. Pre operations. I'm like, Oh, so it's good not just to have information, but to have revelation. All right. Let me move on real quickly now. Most people because you want to think like the line, remember, because he's he's the one who's comes and he's he's considered the the king of the jungle, king of the animal kingdom because because of his mindset. How he thinks. You're you're going to succeed or not succeed based on not just your work ethic, not just because you have a degree or don't degree, but because you how you think. True. True story in America. And I'm not saying you shouldn't get education. I think you should get I think you should go to school.

Pastor Erik West:
I think you should get educated. You should take advantage of whatever's available to you. But the honest to God truth, if you ever want to do a study on this, the A student generally works for the B student who works for the C student because the C student's one who owns a company in America. That's just that's just true. It's not true for everyone. But generally speaking, the B to C student is the one who had the dream, who had the idea, who had the work ethic, and he put it into practice when everything said, you know, you would never succeed at this level in doing that because, you know, you wasn't the valedictorian. You didn't graduate top of your class. You didn't go to all these schools, you didn't have all these things. That's why I've been asked by so many times through the years. Pastors would ask me, said, How do you start a church? And I just said, I don't know the way. Well, how did you start church? I said, By trying not to start one. I did everything I could to tell God this is the bad idea. I mean, I know you know everything, but you've been real busy. And if you just look at your records a little bit longer, you can see I'll be a bad choice for you. Because I can look around and see people a whole lot more qualified.

Pastor Erik West:
Huh? And you never know what something is and you never know where you are and things until you're faced with a situation, whether it's, you know, Daniel in the lion's den or is the three Hebrew men, Shadrach, Meshach and a Billy goat, I mean the Bendigo, you never know until the fire comes where you are. The test. The test will reveal where you are. The test will write. It's the same thing nationally in school. When they give you a test on Friday and it wasn't to tear you down. They're just trying to see, communicate and say, are you are you you know, in other words, are is the teaching going forward getting to you or are you receiving are you accepting? Are you are you learning? That's what the test reveals to them. And if you didn't study, you didn't pay any attention. The test. I guess it does. It might tear you down, but it really it just reveals where we are and we need that. I mean, you got Jonah who wouldn't go do what God told him to do until he got into test? And then he was swallowed by a whale. Right. And had a whale of a lot of problems and. But Jonah knew what he was supposed to do. But when he was in the belly of a whale for three days, he changed his mind. He had a new mindset.

Pastor Erik West:
Then he looked around and says, I'm not supposed to be in here. I'm supposed to be in Denver. He said, In other words, he repented and said, I'll go to Nineveh. Then he looked at his situation in the Bible, says this. He says he called his situation inside of a whale lying vanities. He said. I'm not supposed to be in here. God sent me to preach to people of Nineveh. I didn't really want to go because I don't like them people. I don't like the people of Nineveh. I know God's merciful and he's going to forgive them. I don't want them forgiven. Long short of the whole story. And he was right. God, God is merciful. God is kind. God is loving. So he wanted them to get what he thought they had coming. So he went the other way. It's funny. Who? God. Jesus. In it. And so, you know, Joe was smart enough to get a clue. He says, think I'm going to go to Denver? I think I should go to Denver. Then he called his situation nothing, nothing more than the lion vanishes. And then he went forsake the mercy that was being offered to him. Now, if you feel like a victim, then you're certainly going to act like one. That's just the way it works. You eventually talk like a victim. Develop the mentality and attitude of a victim because what you feed on will grow.

Pastor Erik West:
But what you starve will die. I like this particular if you want to call it a sermon, because it was one I was. I couldn't write fast enough. I hear. I hear and I write. I hear and I write. And Lord, he'll give you things that you know. But he also say, I don't want to talk about that part, what, you know. And so I was writing this down. Is there a connection between how I feel and what I do? Think about it. Is there a connection about how I feel about things and then what I go do about then when I go do after that? In other words, you may feel depressed. You may feel like the words not working. You may feel lonely, hopeless, you may feel afraid. But if you allow yourself to be governed by those emotions, negative emotions, then defeat and destruction for you are probably inevitable. You may say, Yeah, I feel those feelings right now. But second Corinthians five seven says We walk by faith and not by senses. Now, listen to this. This is just me writing down. Feelings are the enemy of faith because they contradict the word. We all have feelings, right? It feels good to feel good. But what if you don't feel good? What if you're going through a mental attack or a mental stress? What if you have problems on every side and those feelings always suggest something to you? In other words, they're not just feelings.

Pastor Erik West:
They're predetermined. They come with a definition. Y'all here? Yeah. So feelings are the enemy of faith because they contradict the word of God. You can't win being governed by how you feel. Amen. I was talking about the line. The mentality, the line. He's not the biggest. He's not the strongest. He's not the smartest. But he's the king. Why is he the king? I mean, can you see a giraffe looking down in the and and then the lion. He's got a big robe. He looked up at giraffe and he says, I am your king. The giraffe could just punt, kick him. All the hippo had to do just roll over on him. But the lion thinks these people are his lunch. Because he has a different mentality. What's your mentality? What's your mentality? What's your attitude? You can't make important decisions based on how you feel. Don't ever make important decisions when your feelings and your emotions are out of sync. Most of the time you'll misinterpret. Feelings didn't go to the cross for you. Feelings didn't bleed and die for you. Feelings wasn't your sacrifice for sins. So feelings can't rule as your savior. Your feelings will never bring victory to you because the walk of sight is the walk of the flesh. When you go back and read Romans eight, 14 and 16, we find out that he says he says we are sons of God and sons of God are led by the spirit of God.

Pastor Erik West:
They're not led by the flesh. They're not they're not led by the emotions. We have emotions and God wants us to have emotions and emotions are to serve you. To bless you. To help you. I mean, I thank God for the sense of taste. Don't you? Especially when you get to eat something you really like. There are some people who have no taste, and so they eat just to live. But they can taste nothing but seems kind of mean and cruel, don't it? Thank God for the ability to have physical touch. Thank God for the ability to be able to hear. But when? But when the enemy comes. And that's where he invades you because he can't fight you in the spirit realm. He knows that he can't he can't fight you the spirit realm, because the weapons of your warfare are not carnal. They're not fleshy, they're not physical weapons. Your weapons is the word of God, which he has no defense for. So he's never going to fight a war with you based on your terms. He's going to draw you away from everything. He's going to draw you into the realm of the senses. And it says, what are you going to do? I mean, and he's not introducing himself here. I'm here to fight you on the devil. He'll see my pitchfork and here's my ID He'd rather you think that he does not even exist, you know.

Pastor Erik West:
You know you can have. What was it? The Underwood ham years ago, you know, had him with the, you know, red suit, the pitchfork and had the long tail. He's never going to come that way. He would rather think that you don't exist as long as you live by based on how you feel. When you don't feel good, you won't do much. When you don't feel annoyed, you'll never stop. You'll never step out and do anything that that involves the anointed. If your activity is based on how you feel and how you feel, whether you're annoyed or not, then you'll do nothing. You'll have. You'll be dormant, you'll have no you'll have very little, very little to do with activity. So what are you going to do with these feelings? What are you going to do with your emotions? What are you going to do when they get out of check? What are you going to do when fear comes? Because fear comes to everybody about something and your feelings are real in the sense of you feel them and they're there, but it doesn't mean that they're true. So how do you do? Well, you have to bring them into a system of checks and balances. You have to you have to take every thought the Bible says, and you have to determine whether that thought or that feeling is truth based on this book, not based on how you feel.

Pastor Erik West:
Yeah, but Granddaddy died with that fact. Well, Granddaddy may not have known the truth. Fact, huh? Amen. I've done funerals that I shouldn't have. That I shouldn't have done. You say, Well, God called him home. Now, I'm not trying to get on this point because, you know, we got all these things in the South because you got a spirit of religion. If there's a spirit and there is that's over the South, the Bible Belt. It is. It is the it is the spirit of religion. And its biggest message is the sovereignty of God. And if you want to get in a fight with someone over that, you'll have one on your hands. But I just keep on saying, well, if we want to talk, I don't want to fight with you because the Bible says, No, don't argue about stuff like that. But if you want to talk about that, bring your Bible. Bring your Bible. Well, God's in charge. Oh, really? Well, if he was, he'd fill up some of his chairs. If God was in charge of everything, everybody would get saved. We'd go home tomorrow. If God, God was in charge, my deposits would look a lot better on Monday than they do some other Mondays. Because everyone don't give. They don't they don't contribute nothing. You go to a restaurant and you don't contribute.

Pastor Erik West:
They'll haul you off to the county jail, man, if you come in there and eat. So God's not in charge. Is God getting his way about everything? Do you think God is really in charge? Because if God is in charge, then this is kind of what happens is going to look like a mess, right? How many want to believe that God's not running everything the way he wants it run? That's what he puts you on the planet for. Why? Why is it such a mess? Because you're living in a fallen world. Where? Second Corinthians four. Satan is the god of this present world system. Satan is running. That's why it's a mess. He is in charge of the world system now. He has he has limited help in the sense of demons. Demons don't reproduce. So so what he does is, you know, he he sponsors people to do his work and to do his bidding. But if you're just stubborn, that's why I said, you know, Christians ought to get possessed to get possessed with the Holy Spirit. And when the devil tells you to do something, say no, no, I ain't going to do it. No, no. I did that for you for years. Now, if you don't do something quick, I'll just go to heaven. But no, I ain't doing that now. You know you better. I mean, you can't just let this thing go on.

Pastor Erik West:
Yeah, let us. Let it go on. Just let it right now. I ain't doing nothing no more. But you could die from this. Paul said die is gain. So now gain sounds better than profit. Sounds better than no profit. I'm supposed to be a no profit organization. I don't. I don't believe in no profit. Yeah, that's just a joke. But anyway, every believer will be confronted in a situation to walk by faith or walk by your flesh. Romans eight six To be part of that verse says So then they're in the flesh. They that are in their senses, they're they're being ruled by the thoughts of their mind. Cannot please God. You can't. He didn't say it would be hard. He said it would be impossible. If you're walking in your senses, it's not going to be hard. It's not going to be difficult. It's going to be impossible. I don't know how to get it any plainer than that. There's got to be some way. Y'all helped me sometime. Because the carnal mind, the Bible says verse seven is enmity. Now, the word enmity doesn't mean enemy, it just means hostile. It means in opposition to which when we're preaching, you know, a few weeks ago about stop opposing yourself, that's where this this verse was one of the verses we use. The carnal mind. The flesh, mind, the sense mind. The natural mind is in the atom mind. The fallen atom.

Pastor Erik West:
Mine is in opposition. Hostile does not agree with God, for the carnal mind is not subject to the Word of God. Neither indeed can it be. So your mind that that's not transformed, not renewed, does not agree with God. It's in opposition to him. Amen. Did I say that? Okay. Until you have your mind renewed, you might be a great person. Your parents might have been great people. But when you're when your mind is not renewed to the Word of God, your mind is an enemy, is an opposition. It's hostile to God. It cannot agree with God. Amen. Won't. Won't. Jesus was asked by his disciples, Well, would you teach us how to pray? Because your life looks pretty good. I mean, signs, wonders, miracles. I mean, what should we pray? Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth. The way it's been done there. Oh, God wants what's being done there to be done here? How does he do that? He wants to use you. Amen. But how does he get his will done with a mind that opposes him? I know. I get right to the point sometimes. You need to learn to esteem your emotions and esteem the Word of God. Amen. When you're governed by your emotions, the devil has an entryway because you're not resisting. James four seven. In faith. So you make yourself accessible to him when you don't resist the enemy.

Pastor Erik West:
By faith, you make yourself accessible for him to come work in your life. Boy, I'm doing better preaching, y'all doing Amen. I know that the mature believer conducts their life through persistent and consistent transformation of the Word of God, but they're persistent about the mature believer does. They're persistent. They're consistent because the Kingdom of God is real by spiritual laws. So if it's real by laws and you're not consistent with laws, you're going to have wins and losses. Can you see that? That's like in sports all the time, especially since football started. Most coaches say they go back and say, well, they're analyzing film. Well, how did that go wrong? He was he he wasn't in position. To make the tackle or he wasn't in a position to stop the air raid. In other words, we were on the field, but we weren't in position. And that caused that. When the enemy comes in like a flood, the spirit of the Lord is ready there to put up a banner or a wall against him and stop him. But you've got to be in position. You know the analogy that that well, I don't remember the exact name of the book, but Gloria Copeland read a book years ago that God is looking for a receiver. But in football, again, when you have a quarterback, when he's going to throw a pass, doesn't he? They've already talked about it.

Pastor Erik West:
He anticipates where the receiver is going to be. He throws the ball not to the very second of where he is. He throws it to where he's going to be in the next two seconds. That's the way it's supposed to work. When he throws the ball, usually the receiver is not there at that moment. But but the goal is for him to be there in the next one, two, three seconds. Right. That's the way it does work. So if you're not in position, it's not that God didn't give. It's just we weren't in a position to receive. Amen. Brother Hagan. Later on he said, I laid on a death bed for 16 months because I was in a position to receive what God had already give. God's already given. Now. So we need to disesteem. Sometimes your thoughts and your emotions, but you need to steam the Word of God. Something someone's going to rule. Someone is going to something or someone's going to ruin your life. I just think you ought to be in charge. Amen. Amen. Psalms 2123 says, you know, whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps his soul his mind, as well as motions from troubles. So what does that mean? It means this. Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps his soul from troubles. In other words, if I control my mouth, I can rule over my emotions. When you don't have control over your mouth and your mind, your words are just going to say, Oh, it's killing me.

Pastor Erik West:
I can't take no more of this. I just like just like, you know, you know, I forgave him, but I ain't going to forget it. You ain't you ain't forgave nobody because you keep bringing it up all the time. You keep on telling him or her every time you get into a fight. What they did five years ago. Boy, I know I hit something right there. Huh? The fact that you are remembering it means you haven't forgiven me anything. That means your your soul still has all these wounds in it. And you let them know every time it's like that. Aren't you glad the Lord didn't do you that way? Amen. Huh? But you told him about how pitiful you was two years ago, he says. What are you talking about? Aren't you glad he doesn't remember your past? Because we all had one. Without Jesus, where would we any of us be? You on the road to hell is where you and I both was on there. Oh, one might have been a little bit better than the other, but, you know. Well, I never did all those things that you did. But like Andrew Wommack said again, he said, Who wants to be the best sinner who goes to hell? Well, they're both down there, Barnum. Well, I didn't do what you did.

Pastor Erik West:
Yeah, but maybe we both here. In other words, we needed Jesus and we didn't receive him. That's why we're here. Mm hmm. Amen. So if your your habits aren't consistent, you won't just remain neutral. You'll lose ground. It's not just good intentions. It's living intentional. I said a mouthful right there. I'm using the analogy of the lion. You see? See, The lion thinks he's going to be king tomorrow, too. So he lives that way intentionally. He doesn't feel like a kitty cat tomorrow. He feels like the lion. I don't care if he's in the cat family. He doesn't feel like a Siamese cat. He just tomorrow he thinks the elephants his lunch again. He does. And he's not the strongest. He's not the biggest. He just thinks different. Y'all getting this? I know that you know this, but it helps you to hear this. Good, huh? Amen. Well, they say the they're still talking about, you know, that that we're going to go through a recession. We might. I don't know. But I'm not participating. Amen. You don't have to participate. I already knew what I knew. But the year of Covid was our greatest year to that point until the next year. And it was better than that. The next year is better than that with the least amount of people. We have. I don't know, my accountant says. He says, Well, you know, they try to keep it with things.

Pastor Erik West:
You know, they keep it with things, you know, just I guess they're good to have if you need them, but I don't really need them. And so membership and this and that and the other, they said, well look like you you get about $30,000 a year. People don't even come to your church. And I said, Well, I'm not mad at it. You want me to be mad? Mm. They all have reasons why they seem they don't seem like they can attend and some of them can't attend for for logistical reasons that I do know of. But. But they're just givers to the ministry. You know what I do with it? I do what you do with it. I pay bills. I send people to the mission field. We're helping starting the school in Liberia because they don't have they don't have they don't have any they don't have any school. The kids aren't going to school. They can't afford school. There is no school. So me and some other pastors from Michigan and this pastor's wife, she used to be an educator and had Christian school. They actually retired from pastor. And she said, well, we don't have the funds are not allocated. In other words, she went out to pastor anymore. So we don't have any say so about whatever. But the pastor wants to help some, she says. But his his needs are much greater than that, she says.

Pastor Erik West:
So all my friends, you know, she said, they're all retired, living on social Security, but they're all going to take so much of their Social Security to get these kids through school. And I said, Well, that's amazing. That's generous. She said, Yeah, they're all Social Security. And she said, But we had Christian school for years. And and so these kids don't know how to read. They don't know how to write. There's no school for them. The the government is corrupt, but we have five teachers who's going to teach start off with 50 kids. But the teachers in Liberia now, they have they have a degree in teaching and some have a college degree as a teacher. So they have to be paid. So the teacher, you know, says she has to have $30 a week. So they're paying for three. If I'll pay for two, so I can put 5050 kids in school this year if I just have $2,400. You want to know what I do with that money? The people who don't know show up. We're sponsoring kids who don't have a chance to go to school. Five, six, eight. I mean, they're going to have kids that are 12 years old who don't even know the alphabet. But in two weeks, they're going to be going to school because you sent them there. Now, is that important? I just told it because I think you ought to know some of the things that happens.

Pastor Erik West:
How about that? Is it important? I mean, what future will they have if they can't read, write, spell or do math or do anything? Right now, the goal is just go from kindergarten to third grade, you know, using the church that you already built. One day there might be a facility. That'd be great. One day you might have all the books. But it's like I told the pastor yesterday, Pastor Sondergard says faith makes plans. Vice makes plans. So we'll start here. We'll start here. So all the things that come together when the government, whatever, and for it to be legal and everyone and we got four teachers said we're coming, but we we have to have $120 a month to live on. There's some of the highest paid people. So most people in his church and Sondergaard's church works all week and they make $12. So he so they bring $1.20. His total income for the church. Right now, he takes in anywhere from 100 to $150. He has over 100 people. And then they look at your life and think they could think that that ain't fair. It just don't it ain't fair. So you have to teach them, because there's only one Bible for the world. I know it looks different than it does here, but there's a way to. If Joseph can prosper in prison and God say you're prosperous, you know, when you don't own yourself and God says you're prosperous.

Pastor Erik West:
God doesn't think like you think. Amen. I mean, when you're when you're a slave and you don't own you, that's that's seems to me poor. But God said he's prosperous. And he was a success. And it was because even for his slave owner, he saw that God was doing things in him and he put him in charge of the entire prison. They went from the prison to the palace. They'd become the vice president of the nation. With a felony. Yeah. Well, if you get a felony, your life is over. Joseph, don't even know what you're talking about. Well, what do you do? He had a dream. Talked about it. Yeah. You know, he had the. The baker and the undertaker. You didn't go too well for some of them. Okay. Oh, gosh. That lion clock in Jesus name I rebuke you in Jesus name. Stop that. This is kind of some things unusual that don't usually come out of me. I won't get to all this. So the thing is, and we'll get there next time. He wants us to learn how to trust him. He wants to go from trying to trusting. This is a little funny thing. Yesterday I thought about and I believe I just heard it this way, he says, you know, when people die, he says, he says most people talk about and they'll put it on their on their on their tombstone and say, rest in peace.

Pastor Erik West:
He said, But did you know you don't have to die to rest in peace? I said, Amen. Of course, isn't that kind of normal? People say, well, he passed. Well, just rest in peace. But he's telling you today, according to Hebrews four, he's telling you to rest in peace. He said, God work these days. He said he finished all the work of creation and he has ceased his labor from that day to this day. Then he invites you to go do what he did. In other words, all the work's been finished and God has ceased from all labor from that day to this day. Now he invites you to rest as he rest. So you can rest in peace today. Then on your tombstone they said, Rest in peace. Done. Did you, Mississippi? You can get whiter than that. Paul said in Romans 1513. I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. I pray that God the source of your hope. God, the source of your hope will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit so that you know that I'm finishing much here. I'm just writing. Some people pray prayers to me, hoping for a lucky streak. Like throwing dice in a casino.

Pastor Erik West:
Blowing on them and rubbing a red head before throwing. And I guess superstitious. I don't mean nothing, but I've never said that in my life. That's just where I heard it. It's not the dice. It's not the man or the woman or it's not the dice. It's not the blowing on the dice. It's not rubbing on the red head. Right. It's the man or the woman holding the dice looking for a new angle. Heaven. He said, Tell the people heaven has no fail. No failure policy that the king, my kingdom is run by an absolute spiritual being who is nothing but light and has no darkness at all. I am not confused in any shape or form. Praise God. So the mature believer see, he conducts his life. He's persistent. And so when these things come to your life and you just the emotions come in. The feelings come in. It doesn't look like it's going to work. It's not. It doesn't seem to work. Your accountant says it doesn't work. Your body says it's not working. You says, Well, I've been, you know, they've laid hands on me. I've had oil. You know, I had this prophecy. I had that prophecy. When I got that prophecy, everything went backwards. That's how you probably know you're on track. The enemy comes to steal the word. You know, if you go to the meeting when it may speak a word over your life.

Pastor Erik West:
Probably will. If not the stone throwers. If he puts Sandy up there. Sandy. I've had Sandy come in sometimes and she'd minister to people she don't even know. And I thought, my gosh, it's like it's like I wrote it out and said their names George and say this and it'd be exact. And I was like, wow that is exactly you just look at what God brings to someone who knows no one and just speaks to their life, to them. Only thing I've just noticed over the years is that God is a lot kinder. He thinks about them nicer than I have sometimes. I was like, Well, he didn't even mention this about three years ago. And you know, yesterday when he did all this, he said, They're a good old boy. But when the prophecy comes like that, sometimes you. You think it's going to happen that afternoon? Yeah. For me, sometimes it's been weeks, months, even years. I had a woman call me about three years ago. She said, you used to come to church with us years ago. I mean, years ago. Well, Miss Dana, she knows you. When we started in that little video building, the one that y'all came to, your family came to. I mean, we just rented that place because we. We started my home, the Bible study, and I was still, you know, running the floor cabinets that the family owned.

Pastor Erik West:
And so we had Bible study and the floor covering, and then we moved out in that little building. So it was mostly just family. So when the Joneses came in, I was like, What are they doing here? It's like, Oh my God, that looks like a visitor. When are you supposed to have visitors? That's been almost 30 years ago. So she's almost my oldest standard member. I mean, age. I mean, chronologically. So don't mess with her, because I'll be. You'll be in big trouble with me. Faithful. Just faithful through the hard times. Faithful. Faithful through, you know, things that happen in your life and all of our lives. But just. Just persistent. Just just. Just stay persistent. See, there's. There's not a big secret. Everyone's looking for a big secret. You want. Well, heck, I'll just go and give it to you. You want to know what the big secret is? There's not one. Except this. Just. Just don't quit. Just. Just keep going. Go when it doesn't feel good. Go when it does feel good. I mean, what value can you put on feelings? I always say it this way. Everyone's always felt good about something. One day. I mean, something happened to you was exciting. It was a great day. You tell him like, man. I mean, it's fun. You've been waiting on this. Something happened. Something came through. Check came in. People, you know. But did those feelings stay forever? Madden.

Pastor Erik West:
I could tell you about one time the ministry got a check and was we were in the office together and the couple came in the church on Sunday and met with us and said, This is what God's done and this is just the tithe and said, And so Matt looked at it and I looked at it. Remember, it was $275,000. That's just the tithe. And then Michelle and I argued, Who's gonna go to the bank and make the deposit in the morning? And of course, I'm bigger, so I won. So I just played it off and I was like, you know, Monday was like. She went, Well, she says, What's this? I said, What? She says, Oh. She said, Well, you know, you're positive. It's like. I said, Oh yeah. You know. She said, Did your have some big fundraising thing? I said, No, no, we just just church. She said, Just church. I said, Yeah, yeah, just tithe and offerings, which it was. It was a tithe. Just someone received a check for 2.7, $5 million. You know, tired was $275,000. I felt good. I felt real good. I felt really, really good. First thing I did is I send a $30,000 tie that into missions. And then gave a whole lot more than that. You know how much of that I got left? I got nothing. It's all been gone. Years later, I had needs. Financial needs.

Pastor Erik West:
So. So what are you going to do with feelings when you feel good? Well, you can enjoy them, right? But do they stay? Or even does even bad feeling Stay. So how much value are you going to put on feelings? Because they're fickle. You know what's not fickle? The word of God settled. The word of God settled. So every time the thoughts come and the enemy's talking to you. Okay, okay, You're right. That's happening. They did say that it's on the x ray, and I know my kids doing that. Not enough, But. But. But let me tell you about something else. Amen. It just helps me sometimes. I'm not saying it works this way, but when I'm in the church, sometimes what I'll just say I'll say Satan, Since you're here and you want to talk, then I have the ability to bind and loose. I don't even want you to go nowhere right now. I'm not casting you out. I'm casting you in, and I'm bind you to that chair. And in my mind, I just take my Bible. I said, Now I'm going to read the Bible to you. And I can hear him go, Oh, I said, I said, No, no, no, no. Shut up and hear. And I just read the Bible to him. And I said, I like your story that you ran over here with Jesus in the wilderness. I really like that story because you you picked the right time.

Pastor Erik West:
He was tired. He was hungry. He was in a natural body. He left heaven. He stripped himself of deity. He's God, but he's all man. He's the 100% man. But the Bible says he's full of the Holy Ghost is the only way he can win. Which tells you you can win when he says the works that I do. You sure you do? That'd be unfair if you didn't have the equipment that he had. Right? But he was God who became man. He was hungry. He was tired. He was thirsty. He was weary. And they said, that's a good time to attack. So he'll wait if he needs to a year on you and say the conditions are not perfect, the attack will be thirsty, bam! And you'll be like, you'll be, Oh, the devils have to be. Oh, he was after you a long time ago. He just planned it thirsty because he sees a little he sees a little crack in the crevice right there. Right. And then they'll come in. They're all kind of spirits. Lying spirits deceiving spirits, spirit of fear. But all those spirits are just what they are. I don't care. What you feel is you're feeling the manifestation of who they are. If you have a lion spirit and you feel all these things, you're like, I don't even know if this is true. I don't even know if God's true.

Pastor Erik West:
I mean, not I mean, who said it was? I mean, I just grew up they said, you know, they told me the story about being a Christian. I mean, how do I really even know? You know, you know, where you're getting all that from, Lying, deceiving spirits. That's all they are. They're just speaking to your senses of your mind, and you get a spirit of fear. No, no. That little hair thing is always afraid. That's all it is. He's manifesting who he is, which means he's more terrified than anything he's manifesting himself. When a skunk sprays, he's manifest in Skunky. The stink is him, right? The fear is the devil. I mean, see, we focus on the stink. But the stink came out of the skunk. Yeah, that's pretty good, actually. You know, think about the fear of the spirit of fear. Come out of the spirit of fear. Yeah. It's not you, it's him, you say? Well, I'm just afraid. No, he's afraid. You're thinking about you because you're thinking in your senses. What you forgot to do is take him to here and say, Sit down, sucker. Shut up. I said, shut up. Don't treat him like your mother did, not your mother. But these new parents. I stopped that one to seeing all these parents count to their kids. My daddy can count to ten. My mother counted to one. Two. Could be your funeral. She might give you the what option of the yard you want to get buried in. Well, praise God. Amen. Hallelujah.

Well, that's enough.

Pastor Erik West:
Between the offering day if you didn't get help. I don't know what you're going to do. I mean, there were so many answers between the offering today. You ought to just grab 1 or 2 of them. Just grab something, go with it. God's developing you as people and as leaders. The summit is for leadership. The summit is a place where leaders come together to hear God ideas. So if you'll sign up for us out there, if you go see, once you commit to do something, then. Nathan, will you be open next week? Your business. Yeah. Too easy to whatever, right? Well, how do you know? Because you don't know how you're going to feel. Well, I ask you, do you have customers lined up who want their car fixed? Painted? And they got they got, you know, a time frame, 5 to 8 days. Right. But but it could be longer than that because, you know, you don't know how you're going to feel Wednesday or Thursday. You know, something might come up and they just have to whatever. When you fail and you what you do, you crack that. Busted the elbow, had to put in metal and everything in there and risked everything. So you just took off for months and months and just went to the beach. Did the car still need fixing? Yes. Was you involved at all in fixing them?

Pastor Erik West:
Yes, I was.

Pastor Erik West:
Did you with your left hand. You were not left handed. Right. But you painted these cars and they had a pass inspection. But did you feel like doing it? Oh, no. See, now we do that every day because we think we have to, right? And we do. Why would you do it spiritually? He tells you. He says the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, patience, goodness, kindness, temperance. Against this, there is no end to it. But then the work of the flesh is this. Then he tells you there's. There's going to be a war between two of you. I figured that there is a war. There's a war, you said. When did it start? I don't know what? Your birthday. That's when it started. I mean, think about it. When you come out, you just already screaming and crying. Oh, and if that wasn't terrifying enough, they don't do it now. But some of us who's my age or even younger, they picked you up. I mean, you just get into the world screaming, crying. Then they pick you up upside down and beat you and bam. And then you breathe. Then they put suction. Then they get some big scissors and cut off your food supply. Less than a second. I mean, it's traumatic. I mean, it's traumatic. And you want to know why babies cry? Somebody cut off my food supply that fast.

Pastor Erik West:
I'm going to scream, too. I'm going to the Publix, where shopping is a pleasure for reattachment. How many y'all ever went against your feelings? Seriously, mentally, physically, socially. Whatever you ever felt like your life wasn't working, be honest with you. Like it was a big, chaotic mess. Like, what are we actually doing? I mean, are we making any difference at all? It's like, where are we headed? It's like I used to like you. I've even heard this. I'll admit this because y'all was kidding about that day. If you'd have done this when we was dating, you know, we probably would never be married. I was like, Well, I didn't feel like I need to ever do it till I met you. We went to Paris, Georgia, and Miss Phyllis's house a couple of Fridays ago. And, you know, he was just real quiet. Then he asked me a couple of things and I told him I was telling him some stories and I wasn't trying to, but they just all laughing and all these pastors in the room. And he said on the way he says, Eric, I don't remember. When did you get to be so funny? I said, Well, I didn't mean I don't think I was like this growing up. I said, I said, Be honest with you. I said, I think it started when I started pastoring.

Pastor Erik West:
I said it was a survival mechanism the Holy Spirit gave me to survive, just to laugh at myself and not take it so seriously. Amen. Amen. I've seen a few things. I've heard a few things. I love people. I this is the joy of my life like this. But, you know, sometimes in dealing with situations and people, as you know, it's it's wild. It's absolutely wild. I'm sure Jessica, you know, she does massage all like this. I'm I'm glad you got some stories that you could tell us. Like, I wished I hadn't even known that I wished I had never seen that. Oh, my gosh. I imagine Logan's cut some hair for us, have y'all? I mean, you probably never said it, but do you know they have shampoo? Did you think about using it before we got together? But what do we do? We just. We just keep going. See, it's not the big splash that you need to do. It's just the consistent, everyday choo choo. And we forget that because we're thinking it's going to take this big thing. But if you're just like, choo choo. If you just take the chisel and keep chipping at the rock, you know, it's the. It's the. The rabbit and the. What was it? The turtle? Yeah, the tortoise and the hare. Well, you you know, it's.

Pastor Erik West:
It's the lion and the rest of the kingdom. He's. He is the king, but he's not. He's not the fastest. You put, you put. He's fast, but you put him with a cheetah and the lion and that cheetah is going to smoke him in the dust. And when they get then he says, I beat you. And he says, I'm still king. Matter of fact, I think I'm going to eat you for lunch. I ate your brother yesterday. I've been looking at your sister, waiting for her to gain a few pounds. The rhinoceroses says you know how much bigger than I am you. I said, Yeah, That's why you're so slow. That's why I got you all three year old legs for you can even turn around giraffes. He says you ain't nothing to me. He says, Yeah, but I'm going to wait till you get a sore throat. It's going to take a while if you get hill Throat that big. So he thinks different. Same problems, same situation. You have two people sitting, you know, in the same row and one says, well, you know, I could never do that. And I said, we're going to wow, we're going to go do this. Same meat, same people, same word, same same scriptures, two different mindsets. And that the way it works. It's always worked that way. Isn't that amazing? That Tuesday through Friday, Nathan's going to fix people's cars and he don't even know how he's going to feel that day.

Pastor Erik West:
I'm all called Wayne to see if he's actually there. Thursday, I may show up to see if he's actually there, just telling the truth or just telling us the big one. You can't know what you're going to do until you see, I've already decided I'm going to go to the meeting, so now I don't have to rethink it. I'm pretty sure I'm going to be here next week. And Wednesday because I borrowed this idea. Where are you going to tithe? Yeah, I remember having to go through that. Boy, that was a big one for me to say because I was like most Americans, I was spending 30% more than I made. You said, How can you do that? It's called credit cards. It's like, oh boy, come church, here's another ten. Oh, boy. Huh? That was a big thing for me. Not because I didn't want to. I see no way I could do that. I got out my little calculator and we barely make it. Now you take ten out of that, well, you're taking a dime away from a dollar. And the Lord said, he said, Are you going to trust me with your salvation? I said, Well, I absolutely trust you with salvation. He said, You're going to trust me with your eternity.

Pastor Erik West:
Yes, sir. He says, You can't trust me with a dime out of $1 and you trust me for your eternity. I said, When you put it like that, that seems kind of silly. He said, That's what I was thinking I saw over three decades. It just seems to me like the people. Because you got the argument, Well, think new custom, New Testament. I can make a case for either side of it. Y'all do what you want to. I'll be fine either way. Amen. But I just it's just been my it's just been, you know, my recollection of just watching the people who were consistent and they were consistent givers. They they just live more blessed lives. They just had all kind of breakthroughs. It wasn't that God owed them something because they'd done that. It's just because they saw that God had already blessed them. And so they were coming out of a place of We're already blessed in Jesus. Our finances will catch up. We'll catch you up. So because Chris was asking me, you know, yesterday about the building and we bought that and I forgot a lot of things and I said, But when I go back and and remember that whole story, I said, that was wild. How do you buy a quarter of $1 million building, which would be nothing today? And I didn't have any money.

Pastor Erik West:
I mean, I had zero money. And when I went to the bank, they said, Well, we need two years financials. I said, Well, we're only nine months old. He said, Well, that's not possible. I went to 3 or 4 banks and I said, Well, Lord, see, I can't borrow the money. He said, Who told you to go to those banks? I said, Oh, well, well, you did, I guess. He says, Oh, tell me what to buy. I didn't want to buy it. I didn't want to buy that building. I said, I don't buy no funeral home. He said, Well, then do what you want to. I said, Oh, I fixed buy me a funeral home. I knew I was that smart. Gave me the prize. The price was 100 and. $65,000. I gave 165,000 less what they asked for. They just laughed him off. In the third time. You know, my realtor, she was embarrassed to make the offer again, which I would have been, too. But it's a friend of mine, so I just said, Well, I woke up one morning about a week later. It looked like nothing work and the Holy Spirit just said, he says, Well, you ready to close on that building today? Buy the building? I said. Really? He said. Oh. Just. How'd that go? What's the question? Do you want.

Pastor Erik West:
Me to show you how to get out of that? Yeah.

Pastor Erik West:
What? He said I woke up that morning. You know, we negotiated this thing, but he gave me the price. You know, negotiation is like, okay, they wanted 375, but all I had was 210. And for 8000 square foot building and ten acres of land, all 65 And they said. So my my realtor said, well, no, you got a counteroffer. I said, okay, to ten. She said, No, that's what you offer. They're still laughing about that. And I said, Don't you kind of offer. I said, I'll counter it again with 210. So they all just go away, Leave us alone. So that a week later, when the Holy Spirit I woke up, he says, Are you ready to close on the building? I says, That building? He says, I only talked to you about one. I said, That's right. I said, okay. He said, okay, now call your realtor and say this and say it exactly like this and tell her to present this offer to them. Use these words right here. Don't. Don't change the words. Say it just like this. And I said, Well, how much will I offer? He said, 210. I was like, Boy, my realtor, she's like, Eric, you just. But I said, Well, I'm sorry, it's embarrassing to you. I said, But but we're going to buy the building and this is the offer. I said, Just be honest with what the Lord told me. She says, Yeah, I know, but you know, you're buying 8000 square.

Pastor Erik West:
I mean, even, you know, 1998, that was, you know, a decent amount of money. But there's a lot to me. I had nothing. I didn't have $2,000. I didn't even have well, we had $1,600. What we had church was two years old. We was buying the first everything, you know, everything. I mean, this little thing right here, this $1,500 right here, that would have been. That would have been three weeks offering for me back then on a good Sunday. So. I picked up the phone and I called the realtor and she said, I said, we're going to want to make another offer on that building. She says, okay, all good. She says, So what are you going to offer? I said, 210. She said, Oh, she said, I can't do that. I says, Well, here's what I want you to offer and I want you to write this down word for word. And basically it was real simple. He just said, My offer you is 210, not the building and two acres, but all of it. The building and ten acres without the ten acres. I'm not interested and I'm only interested for the next 24 hours. It's 210 and ten acres. Or I'm not even interested tomorrow if it's $5. He said, Tell him to say that and you'll close on the building. So she did. She was embarrassed, but she did. And two hours later they called back and they said she said because she'd already told me, she said, well, she's a friend of mine and I had the floor covering store.

Pastor Erik West:
So I did all of her business in her home, personal home. She'd buy them, you know, flip them. And so I had that relationship with her and it was kind of embarrassing for her. I guess it it would have been, you know, and she but she had told me, you know, she was trying. She said, well, you know, it was good experience for you. And the Holy Ghost didn't like that. I knew he didn't like it when she said it. He wasn't mad at her. He just didn't like it. He said, No, the experience is not for you. He said it'll be for them. And you know, I didn't want to buy an old funeral home. And so. But this was the plan of God. And so there's a way to do that. There's a success. But you can't go with your mind and get it. There's no way you can go to your mind and get it. So I'm all involved in this. You know, I'm supposed to buy this building. And so now he says he said, this is how you close it. And so they call back and she says, Man, I've been selling real estate for years and years and years. She said, I ain't never seen nothing like this. I said.

Pastor Erik West:
Why?

Pastor Erik West:
She says they're going to take your offer. And so now, at this point, I'm kind of rejoicing. You know, I have good feelings. I'm like, man, praise God. I mean, it's just like God said. Then it just dawned on me all of a sudden, oh, I ain't got no money. They accepted the offer. I ain't got a penny. So I had to call back. I had to go back. What am I going to do? He says you're going to put a lease purchase on there, but you're going to agree on the price and they're going to come appraise it and the bank is going to give you We will give you a loan when you have, you know, if you can get a year's worth of, you know. So I didn't know the church or the building was almost in foreclosure. And it was not in the bank that I was had went to. And they were already risking because they're going to foreclose. So so I became at least a better risk than who was in there because they wouldn't get paid. Then I guess the Lord knew that.

Pastor Erik West:
He might.

Pastor Erik West:
Know it. It seems like he knows a lot of stuff. And so but I didn't know any of that stuff. So the president of the bank came to look at the building and to meet me. He says, Well, you seem like a sharp young man. I said, Well, I appreciate it. I said, This is the building. And he says, Well, there's a lot of potential. He said, We're going to make the loan, but you'll have to have a well, I have to have a year, you know, he said. He says, we don't make loan less than two years, he says. And now that, you know, he says this, this is almost in foreclosure. So that's the reason why we're willing to take the risk, he said. But we have to have a year. And I said, Well, I'm only about four months away from that and account. I need another month to pull the thing together. I said, I'll have it in six months. So it was a year. You know, two. We'll pay you so much a month. Then in a year or less, we'll pay it off. So when I call back and I presented that to him, he, he, he, he cost me like a dog. He says he come out there and said, You you stole this place. You absolutely stole this place. I said, No, I didn't.

Pastor Erik West:
I just I said, I'll just be honest. The Lord told me to buy this place and tell me how much to buy it for. He says, Well, my dad was a pastor. He said, But you still stole this place, he says. And then. And then after all that, he said, After all that, you ain't even got no money. I said, Well, the Lord has money. And I says, But didn't you take the offer? He says, I guess I have to. I said, Well, then we're all good. I said so you can at least it for this now. I said, So what would be the least every month for the year? And I said I had enough for a deposit right now. He said, Oh God, I had enough for a deposit. I had to sign a $200,000 personal guarantee to get the building. He told me to spread it out for my church and get about 15 families. I said, 15 families I ain't even seen. I didn't want to tell him, You can have 15 people at one time. He's got 15 families all signed, 5 or $10,000. He wanted to spread it around. So if something goes wrong to get the building. But they got more security, I said, No, I can't do that. I said it would be me or nothing. He said, Well, we wouldn't want you to sign the whole.

Pastor Erik West:
I said, Well, if it's going to be signed, I'll sign the whole thing. Because I said, Just be honest with the Lord told me to buy this building. So I'm not worried about it not working because he told me to buy the building. So if he can't make it, then I'm going to go to him and then we're going to trouble. He says, You sure are. He said, you, boy, you're something different. And I said, Well, I don't even want to buy this place anyway. I said, What do you want to buy this place? I said, They've been working down people down in the basement. Everyone who comes there, we try to give. I said, Oh, that's the old so-and-so building. And true. They always did. I spent I spent $200,000 on that building. I kept on saying, Now where are you at? I said, Well, the next board of Education, Oh, the old senior home. I said, Stop it. I never did stop it. And so he says, Well, we have to have $1,500 a month to do that in the insurance. And so I said, okay. So we're two years old. I'm renting a building for $400 a month using all my faith, I think, to pay $400 rent. I just went full time and I'm buying a quarter million dollar building. So I called Michelle back and I said, I need to know right now how much we got in the church that's free.

Pastor Erik West:
She said, Well, ain't nothing really free. I said, Well, I know, but you ain't been sending out in the mail. She said, Hang on. She said, I'll probably make this call back in about 15 minutes. And she says, We have $1,600. And I says, I tell her what we're doing so we can do it. She says, Yeah, yeah. So I went to the realtor and we sat down and had everything notarized and had the bank of intent to make the loan and so many months. And I paid the first month's, you could say rent, but I'm buying it, right? And I signed it and I wrote 1000 hundred dollars check and I have $1,600. And I'm renting another building too. And the people were so excited. I was excited. But they said, Well, when you want to have a work day, what do you want to fix first? And I looked at my checkbook and I'm thinking, Not much. It's $100. $100. We own a building, but we have $100. Because faith makes plans. And if I went by my senses, we never would have bought that building. But I had a word from God, and the plans of man will always fail you. But the word of God will never fail you.

Pastor Erik West:
Amen.

Pastor Erik West:
And within two months. Some of the wildest, craziest stories you ever heard in your life. People came and started giving money to the church. Some people that you couldn't agree with nothing about the Bible but the Lord told them to come give. We had an electrical problem. And I will finish with this because it's almost 1130. We had an electrical issue. And we couldn't go forward. And the guy at the church, he he knew someone and he said he come looked at it and he says it's a mess. He said, but I can fix it. Take me a couple of days. It should be about $3,000. I don't have nothing. I own a building. I'm just believing God to pay the $5,000 next month. You know, you want to get in your new building, but we don't have nothing to fix it with. Nothing? What? I mean, nothing. I mean nothing. And so his name was Duke, if I remember right, Duke come gave us a price. So this guy in the church, he goes to work in Birmingham. They work in downtown Birmingham, down there on what I call University Boulevard. You know, everything's down there, right? So the guy who owns the company asks the guy who goes to church with us, who, you know, really helped remodel the whole thing. Randy, you know, talked about he said, how's it going to the church? He said, well, it's fine.

Pastor Erik West:
He says he says, well, what are y'all doing next? He said, Well. And he said, well, you know, Duke, he works for works for you. So he said he come, looked at it. It needs rewiring. He said he said, well, right now we can't do that. And the boss, his was real kind. He's in heaven now. I believe he's in heaven. He said, How much are you going to cost? He said, 3000. And he said, Well, Randy said, you know, if we Duke doesn't work for us, he's just one of our subs. He said, Yeah, I know. Then just all of a sudden, I mean, just all of a sudden and the World Series had just been like, not before. And his he said his ministry was real prophetical everything number every time, every this, every everything meant something. And he had this book he went by and it was a magazine and I saw one of them. He sent one to the church and it had like this means this and that means that and this means and that means that. And in the World Series last night, the fourth player hit a home run and someone got on, you know, got a double and someone or whatever, and all this numbers meant all these things.

Pastor Erik West:
And I was like.

Pastor Erik West:
Okay. So in his mind, this is how it works. So Randy said, Well, we're kind of stuck. We need $3,000. He said, no. Then all of a sudden he said there was some pigeons that flew. And he says, Oh. And he went. He said, Randy. He said, Oh my gosh, look. Did you see that? He says, What? He says, Does pigeons fly? Well, there's pigeons everywhere. I said, No. They flew right in front of us. He said there was three of them. He says, Go in there and get that magazine. I'm telling my Prophetical magazine. He's he's.

Pastor Erik West:
Oh, wow.

Pastor Erik West:
Yes, Lord. He said, Go and tell my secretary. I checked your church. $3,000, he says. Lord sent them three pigeons. And I believe he did. So you say, Well, how do you get how do you get when you get stuck and you need $3,000? Then what will you do? Pastor? I said, You see how I would answer a question like that? Pigeons. That's how we remodeled the building. Crazy, wild stuff like that. This never happened before or since. But in his heart mind, that meant for him to go do this or whatever. And I know the Lord used him, but. He asked one time. He says, You reckon you want me to come speak? I'm thinking, I ain't no way in the world. And it take me six months to undo what you might do in 30 minutes. So is it possible? It's possible. It's possible. You ought to get excited about that. Amen.

Pastor Erik West:
Amen.

Pastor Erik West:
Amen. So you can buy a quarter million dollar bill with no money whatsoever, you said. What? Did you buy it with? Faith. And I had a word from God. Amen. I had a word from God and I had faith. But I had I had a divorce. All my feelings and emotions because, boy, they were talking to me. I felt like an idiot. I mean, an absolute idiot. I felt like there was no common sense to the I didn't even tell you any of the details, but there was no common sense to any of it. And then the day that Matt and I were there together. Now, in that building, just a few years forward, then there's a check can of tea for $275,000. I thought, God wonder if I quit. And then the people came and you saw them saved and healed and filled with the Holy Spirit and marriages reconciled and people's lives changed. And you thought, What if I quit? It's kind of wild that God used pigeons, you know, just to keep moving things forward. It's kind of wild the way the way things work sometimes. But we just made a decision to keep going forward. We made a decision to not quit. We made the decision that God's word is truth. Amen. Amen. Regardless of what it felt like, it looked like we just said, God said it. So therefore it's true. And what I feel doesn't really mean anything. Amen. And if Nathan can come to work next week and he doesn't even know how he feels. That's wild. Amen. How many y'all might go to work Tuesday? And you think you're going to work Tuesday?

Pastor Erik West:
Maybe.

Pastor Erik West:
Because how is he supposed to know how he feels on Tuesday?

Pastor Erik West:
Amen.

Pastor Erik West:
Well, praise God. That's good. See y'all Wednesday.

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Possessing The Promise Part 4 | Gods Definition Of Success | 27Aug2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Possessing The Promise Part 4 | Gods Definition Of Success | 27Aug2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor Erik West:
We're still in the series and you might have thought I abandoned it, but I didn't. But on possessing God's promise, you'll remember that. So we're going to add to that this morning. And if you want a title, we'll just call it well, what would you call it? See if y'all following. God's definition of success. That's exactly what I have down here. It's almost like y'all had insight into that somehow. Oh, you did? That's right. That's right. Yeah, I have to text it before I get here and say this is put it up. I have if it works out this way, I have some things that's going to build one upon the other. They tell speakers, you know, whether you're a professional or whether you just like me, you know, and just ramble on sometimes. But you people have about a 35 minute window of attention. I, I don't disagree with that, but I don't also agree with it. Hungry people have a have a much longer attention span. The satisfy doesn't have 35 minutes but but your Holy Ghost people aren't you and so you have more than just 35 minutes to avail yourself to the Word of God. I have scriptures that I want to give to you. If we if I don't get to read all of them, I'll give them to you. I I've been for the last. Whether you realize, not the last two years I've been changing kind of the way that I minister.

Pastor Erik West:
I used to just throw some scriptures if I had any, and just put them on a little sticky note and take off. And now everything's changed For me. It's like I, I don't know how everyone else does it. And I'm going to have friends who tells me how they do it. It's like for me, it's like I hear the message. And then I write it down and it comes to me word to word. Never was like that to me for years. And so when it comes out, it doesn't always go. Word for word, but it's written down. Like if you just read the book or something and it doesn't always come out that way. But, but, but I hear it. And then there's sometimes I'll go look for a scripture and all that hanging out. Know, like. Oh, thank God for good help. We're going to contrast what success is according to the scripture, and we're going to contrast that with what it looks like in the world. So we can get God's definition of it. Because if you don't have His definition of it, then you'll work to an end that doesn't have any eternal value. The Scripture says that that the Scripture says that life does not consist in the abundance of the things that man accumulates or that he owns. That's so if we can see what not, maybe the world's definition is, we're going to look at all that.

Pastor Erik West:
But. You know, God's definition of success is going to be so diversely different from from what people think about success. If you go to the scripture, so let's first define the world's view of success, or I'll call it corporate America. And a lot of times it could be an exhaustive list. But just to put it in a subtopic, the world or corporate America defines success based on what you have, what you achieved and what you what you've accumulated thus far. And it's also based on your focus of the accumulation of that. In other words, there's natural wealth, there's possession, their position, there's resources, there's people, there's human accomplishment. That is the world's view of success in corporate America. And they keep score with a financial statement, don't they? They have a financial portfolio and there's 4 or 500 companies and there's all these things that they classified as small, medium and large sized corporations. And there's people who come in and say, this is how you can make your company more lucrative. This is how you can change. And so you have analysts who come in and help with companies to streamline what they're doing. Once they define, you know, you can't increase in something until you know what you're doing. That's like the book of I hope I remember it from good to great. I forgot who the author of this. Do you know who I thought you and I talked about that book Keith one time.

Pastor Erik West:
But anyway, it's good to great. But in that book they just send in people to a company who's looking to fix problems in their company and their profit margins are down. And so they come in and study the company. And he says, We really just have two questions when we first come in, this is what is your business? I mean, tell us what you do. And he said, you think anyone could define that? He says, But they'll go and talk about everything forever. And he says they really haven't decided what they do yet. So first tell me, what is the goal? What is it? What is it that you do? And I say, What's your business? And they'll tell them what their business is. And then he said, Our second question is how's business? So we can say it this way to us. What's the business of God? The Kingdom of God. How's the kingdom? We're in what we call our neck of the woods. How's the kingdom where we live? So you have to really understand on two things. Cps just wants to know two things to help you. Where do you want to go? Where are you when you start? In Siri, the male or female voice. Either one of them can take you where you want to go. Now, my phone. I don't know. Maybe the android is different, but mine won't take me down a pig trail.

Pastor Erik West:
Take me through a pasture. If I think it's about a 10th of a mile closer, it's like there's not. There's not a road. Well, it could be. Just go down that road. So. So anyway, let's go from here. So the world system leads to greed. It leads to self focus. You know, saying, get all you can, can all you get. Then what? Sit on the can or barely can. So that model success is worldly, it's self indulgent and it's rooted in selfishness. This is all about self. That's the that's the worldview of success. It's it's the old Babylonian system the brother has been talking about for years, which is really just man's attempt to succeed. Using his own wits. Even without God, he might acknowledge God, but he's still attempting to succeed in life, in his endeavors, to do his way, to do his will. Even without God. That would be the old Babylon system. But we're going to look at just we're going to begin to look at God's definition of success. And this is a scripture that I think you're familiar with, but I want to read it in the PC Translation Amplified Classic. And it's in Genesis 39. We're going to read verses one, two and three in the Amplified Classic. And verse one says, And Joseph was brought down to Egypt. And Polyphor, an office of Pharaoh, the captain and the executioner of the Royal Guard in Egyptian brought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there.

Pastor Erik West:
Now you know who Joseph is. And you know you know the story of Joseph. And he was his father's favorite son. And all his brothers hated him for it. And God gave him a God, gave him a dream. And in his youth, he told everybody about his dream. You don't tell everybody about what God told you. Uh, because most of them don't believe you and the other half don't want it to happen to you. They want you to stay where they are. But Joseph did have a dream from God. But in his youth, his immaturity, he shared it with his brothers and the symbolism that he saw. And he said, this is I see this dream. And in this dream, he says, All all you, my brothers, older brothers, you'll be bound down to me. And even Father Will and his father rebuked him. Two. And so it wasn't very long after that dream of that he was given to his brothers that they devised a plan, you know, that said, we're out and about. And, you know, he's a wild animal. Got him. But actually they put him in a pit, didn't they? Then one for long after that. Here's this army come by and he sells them to him, take him to Egypt and he's a slave. So God gives him a destiny of a palace, but he finds himself in a pit.

Pastor Erik West:
You ever had a dream of doing something wonderful and great? And you've had a. Something the Lord has showed you for years about where he's taking you or you've had a prophecies that have been given to you about God. This is what he's going to be doing in your life. And you think, Wow, it was so amazing where you felt in that service. And when it happened, you thought the angels would meet you home and roll out the red carpet. The next day they let you go at your job or something like that, you know? And so that's kind of how that works. And so many times so Joseph went he actually went from a vision of the pit or from the palace and put him in the pit. But we know in the end, God took him from the pit and put him in the palace. And so there's a there's a time and there's a season and there's a maturity and there's a growth. Doesn't matter necessarily what you just been called to. There's not a there's not a short there's not a shortcut to success. Everyone likes shortcuts. Everyone likes the most quickest route. But there are some things that you just can't shortcut. There are some recipes that you ladies know that, Oh, I could do this faster. I could do it quicker. I could not use these ingredients. I could get the instant this and I could put it in the pan, stir it with some water, and it would still be called whatever.

Pastor Erik West:
But it wasn't like he made it. You know, it just wasn't there. And so when you when you do that, you may have a result, but you won't have the best result. You won't have the fullness of what's been set aside for you. The scripture says in Colossians or Corinthians, it says he has made things and kept them ready for for you. Just think about that. God, who knows You knew before you was born. Decided your your time and and your and how you would get here. And he decided your purpose before you were born. So he's made everything and kept it ready for such a time as this. So we're in this moment. So we have to begin to understand that if you don't understand, you'll. If you don't understand your purpose of something, you'll always abuse it. You know, that's true with people, but that's true with you can say tools if you don't understand what the purpose of a tool, you know, you can't fix everything with a hammer. And I suppose a screwdriver is probably one of the most misused tools in the tool chest. But it doesn't fix everything. Sometimes you round off a screw. Well, you know, it wasn't the metric. It was actually, you know, you know, it wasn't called for 11/16. And you're you're one up from that and you wonder why it's all rounded off.

Pastor Erik West:
Well, it kind of grabbed it and it worked. But you changed, you know, the you changed the proportion of that screw head because you didn't have the right fit to it. And when you don't understand your purpose, you don't understand why you're here. You don't understand your calling, then you'll never step into it. I was reading again this week something Brother Hagan. Jesus told Brother Hagan in one of the visions that he I think he has eight visions over the period of his ministry where Jesus appeared to him and peaceful. I don't believe that. Well, let's do what you want to at that part. I'm just telling you what he said. But I'm not going to get into the purpose for the visitation. That's not what I'm making reference to. But it had to do with purpose. It had to do with fulfilling the plan for your life. And he told him, he said that Jesus told me, he says that many, many people He said, even many of my ministers. Those. Even I've called the ministry, he said. They live and die and never enter into the first phase that I call them to. And if I thought that was true, do you think how sad that is? You would think a minister would have some kind of hold on it. But but ministers are people. We're all ministers. And so he told him, he says many, many.

Pastor Erik West:
I don't know if that means most, but he said many live and die and then never enter into the first phase. A member of Andrew Wommack, said one time, I think he Jesus told him something almost exactly to that. I couldn't remember if he was in the ministry of 15 or 20 years by then, or maybe more than that. And the Lord told me, he says, You are now entering the first phase of your ministry. And Andrew was shocked because he had a measurable success. But but he never had entered into the thing that God really had prepared for him. That's where some people talk about permissive will and three different wills. I don't think there's three different wills. I think he has one will, but certainly you can see that people can can do can have a lesser version of the better. I'll see that. So but a lot of it is not you know, if he's if he's allowing you to do something a lesser of what you will be, it's just it's because it's your training. I mean, you might be. Well, there's someone who was drafted or they volunteered into the military or they went into service. You don't go to the battlefield as soon as you get a haircut. Thank God you don't. So someone trains you and they do that by deprogramming you. They pull you out of you. They pull your mind out of you so they can put their mind in you.

Pastor Erik West:
The purpose of that is so that you will think like you're supposed to and not like you have been thinking. Because if you think like you've been thinking in battle, you're going to get killed and you're going to get everybody else killed. That's just the way it is. So boot camp is not fun. It's not hard. It's not a vacation spot. It's just not it's not a place that you take your suntan oil and, you know, and your beach chair and say, we're going to have a great time. No, it's calling for you. It's calling many times for more than you than you think that you have to give and not everybody makes it through it. Sometimes it's just it's too enduring. And so that's the way it is, You know, I know this won't be popular preaching, but that's what it is. If you're actually going to obey the call of God on your life, no one wants to hear this part. But the first week I went, the first week in 1992. Wow, that's been a while now. How time go by so fast? Sitting in room just. 30 years old. 30. Was early used almost 30 and the for the first week. Brother Hagan took a whole week of orientation try to talk you out of being there. He did everything you could to get you to quit. Because he knew if he could get you to quit an orientation, you'd never last.

Pastor Erik West:
Ministry would eat you alive. He knew that. So he started off in Timothy. Endure Hardness is a good soldier. I didn't come here to find no hardness. So you won't have to find. It'll find you. It'll come looking for you. Satan comes for the word, and he doesn't wait a long time. If I read it right, it comes immediately. What's he going to do? He's going to steal the word. How is he going to do it? Going to put pressure on you. You get enough pressure, you'll stop. You know you'll do the uncle thing. I mean, how how much further can I go? He wants to see if you'll scream. Uncle. So Brother Hagan talked about the whole week, about endure hardness as a good soldier. He went on to talk about it in those scriptures that Paul was addressing in the letter to Timothy. He said, You are to deposit these. These truths I give you to faithful men. Not to people. But to faithful people. So it depends on what you're building. If you just build it for for for fellowship, it won't take that. But if you're building an army, it's going to take everything. Amen. And so that's why you have to you have to choose who you're going to hang out with. You love everyone. No one's any better than the other. But strong people and strong leaders don't hang out with weaklings.

Pastor Erik West:
They can't. They have nothing in common. They don't even think the same way. They can't. The thing completely different. They have nothing in common other than they're all people. And so none of this is in my note, you understand? So that's just how that's how it works. So we was in verse one of Genesis 29. So he's he's bought and he's taken to Egypt, verse two. But the Lord was with Joseph. Now we're talking about we're talking about God's business or what God's definition of success. Look at verse two. But the Lord was with Joseph and he though a slave, was a successful and prosperous man, and he was in the house of his master, the Egyptian. You see up there, That's the amplified classic, though. He was a slave. He was a successful and prosperous man. Now, naturally thinking, would you call a slave a prosperous person and successful? Bobsleigh. Well, according to the Fortune 500 and corporate America, who runs everything by, you know, by their financial statement, who defines success, by accomplishments and accumulation? What did he own at this point? What did Joseph? Oh. Nothing. He was poor. How poor? He didn't even know himself. Isn't that. Doesn't that sound kind of poor? You don't even own you. But God said, though he was a slave, he was successful in the promised land and he was in the house of the master, the Egyptian.

Pastor Erik West:
Now. Now watch here. But you say, Well, God must see something that others don't. Boy, you hit it. You hit the big point right there. Look at verse three. And but now even the master saw that the Lord was with him and all that the Lord had made, all he did was cause to what? Flourish and succeed in his hand. So here you have an inmate, a slave, a prisoner, and his master. His master. He's a slave. She has a master. He sees that everything he puts in his hand causes it to increase and multiply. This guy could organize if a train derailed and a hundred cars went off. He'd be the one you'd want to send out there to get everything back together. And he could do it. They always say, if you need something done, give it to a busy person. That is a truth to that. Find someone who's already busy. Find someone who's already a signal. And you say, Well, they've got so much going on. Yeah, but. But. But they can do it. They do have a lot going on. But you give it to a lazy person and they'll have it just be like with the talents, you know, they gave them one, give them two, gave them five. And then he came back to check on them. And the one with one, you know what happened to him? He come back and he says, Well, I know you're a hard man.

Pastor Erik West:
I knew if I lost this year, you'd be mad at me forever. So I decided I didn't want you to lose anything. So what I did, I just took what you gave me a year ago, five years ago. And I wouldn't buried it. So I'd go get it and give it back to you. Now, Jesus, in that parable, said that that man was wicked. Wicked, rebellious and slothful. And he says take what he has and give it to the one with ten because he took what he had and doubled it. Jesus expects us to increase. He wants you to at least double. How? You say, Well, I went church and they know, you know, we're not supposed to have anything. Well, I don't know what Bible they were using. I mean, I don't know where you find stuff like that at. You certainly can't find it in the New Covenant. You can't. You can't find it. You can't find it. The father of your faith. I mean, Abraham lot has so much they had to separate their herds and crops grew so much that. You know, Law said, what are we going to do? He said, I think we're going to have to separate. I said, It looks like God because he knows everything. He knows the land looks like he would take the survey of the land. So this is so many square acres, so much land. Okay. And I got, you know, this covenant of increases all over them.

Pastor Erik West:
So they're going to increase. But but God produced more. He produced more herds and he multiplied more than they had land to take them. I mean, it's a little stop. A little bit. I mean, let us let us get through. Count this deposit before you bring another one in. The bank's calling me all the time. Say, now, now we only fairly sure the 100,000 and you're running around. Like, which bank are we going to use now? Oh. Somebody say that's a fairy tale. It is listening. Hmm. I know of some people not by a book, but I know because I've been in meetings, business meetings, not not churches. And these. And. That's a true story. You wouldn't know the names, but their businesses of years ago. So this business meeting and one guy was bragging about his wealth. True story. Both of them in the United States. And one of them was bragging about his wealth. And he says, you know, when I go in the bank, he said, every head turns. He said, Every teller stops. And they look at me and they always they greet me. And he said, he said, every loan officer stops and comes to shake my hand. They bring me coffee or they bring me a drink or whatever. So the bank president comes out and greets me. He said. He said. I bet he said. I mean, every time I go to the bank, I make the part.

Pastor Erik West:
That's what I do. He said, I bet they don't do that at your bank, are you? He said, No, they don't. I wouldn't know. He says, I don't go there. They come get mine. I don't have to go there. Well, that was that was a true story. Now, why would that be important? Well, God is a god of increase. We're not talking about currencies. We're talking about increase. Increase with the purpose. See, next year, instead of doing a $15,000 budget and going 18 places to get it, we might just write a check. So now you can go, go, go. It's like the feathers. They're coming, you know, there. And they've been at this thing and. Been faithful for years. Years. And here. Here they out there running around their 80s. They going to drive a thousand miles to come see y'all. You many 80 year olds going to drive a thousand miles to come see you just to spend time with you. Minister the word so they can go. He said, We've got to reach a few more people while we're still alive. We got to, he said he was telling me, he said we got to pick up the pace. He says time is short. We got to pick up the pace. When I was like, Man, I'm talking to a lady girl, man. Plus. And they live in Nebraska and go and drive all the way to come see you.

Pastor Erik West:
I'm thinking I left thinking, man, what am I doing? I better pick my game up. So. So this is what the master saw. He saw the succeeding so clearly. The contrast is not what you own, not what you possess, not your accumulations. But it said the Lord was with Joseph because the Lord was with him. That means he was successful and prosperous. Did you get that? So by just using this one scripture. Prosperity on God's terms is. I'm with you. That was not your situation. So you could have a situation that seems like it's just unnerving you. It's like, but is the Lord with you? Then if you use your succeeding. Or potentially you're succeeding because he's with you. No, I got to hurry up. So. So it's clearly God's presence in your life that creates success, not what you possess. Joseph, as a slave, as we said, owned nothing. He was a slave. He didn't even own himself. Why was Joseph considered prosperous? Because God was with him. So we probably should stop thinking about pursuing. What the creation has created, what man has created, and think about the one who created everything. And we begin to. Put our focus and our attention there. All of our focus on pursuing God in His glorious presence. It seems our relationship with Christ is more valuable than anything we could ever achieve in human terms.

Pastor Erik West:
Now I want us to go to if you can do it up there, I want you to go to Proverbs eight. And I really I know you have your translations and you do what you want to, but I really would like you to, to to see my translations on this Proverbs eight. We're going to go through nine through 21 and 33 to 35. In the Passion Translation. And I want you to listen, if you will. And. If I was reading a secular book, it'd be one thing. If this was a word of a man, it'd be another thing. If it was a word of, you know, wealthy people in our time or if it was the old Rockefeller family. But I'm going to read you. I'm going to read you the words from the creator, the one who created you, the heavens and the earth. And I know a lot of you are very familiar with these verses and the whole chapter is awesome. But I had to narrow it down to just all these verses, just to narrow it down. Listen intently now to these verses. We're talking about God's definition of success and how so much contrast in the world. And I want these scriptures, you know, the scripture says you are clean through the words. I've spoken to you. John 15 Let these words of God anointed, filled with the Holy Ghost. Let them in and let them just wash all over you.

Pastor Erik West:
Now. Here we go. Proverbs eight, verse nine. The passion translation will restart if you have it. Now, just listen. Can you receive these words from God? These words? Okay, here we go. This is God talking just to you. All my words are clear. They're straightforward to everyone who possesses spiritual understanding. If you have an open mind, you will receive revelation knowledge. Verse ten My wise correction is more valuable than silver or gold. Yes, the finest gold is nothing compared to the revelation knowledge I can impart. Wisdom is priceless. That is, that exceeds the value of a jewel. Nothing you could wish for can equal her. For I am wisdom and I am shrewd. I'm intelligent. I have at my disposal living understanding to devise a plan for your life. Wisdom pours into you when you begin to hate every form of evil. For thus with worship and fearing God is all about. Then you will discover that your pompous pride and your perverse speech are the very ways of wickedness that I hate. Verse 14, you will find success. When you find me. Is that different from the world? For. I have insight into wise plans. He didn't say some insight. I have insight into wise plans. They are designed just for you. I hold in my hands living, understanding, courage and strength. I empower Kings to reign and two rulers to make laws that are just. I empower princesses to rise and take dominion and.

Pastor Erik West:
Generous ones to govern the earth. I will show my love to those who passionately love me. For they will search and search continually until they find me. Verse 18. On Ending Wealth. In glory. Come to those who discover where I dwell. The riches of righteousness of a long, satisfying life. Life will be given to them. What I impart has greater worth than gold and treasure. And the increase? I bring benefits more than a windfall of income. I lead you into the ways of righteousness to discover the paths of true justice. Those who love me and great wealth and a glorious inheritance. And I will fill their lives with treasures. Verse 33. Listen to my counsel. For my instructions will enlighten you. You'll be wise not to ignore it. If you wait verse 34 at wisdom's doorway. Longing to hear a word for every day. Joy will break forth within you as you listen for what I say. The last verse 35 for the fountain of life pours into you every time you find me. And this is the secret of growing in the delight in the favor of the Lord. Amen. Now, these words were penned by Solomon, who had a couple of nickels. And for most of his life had wisdom beyond anyone who had ever been on the planet until his later years. And so you could just do a series. I mean, just like I feel like I'm doing a great just justice going to the next point.

Pastor Erik West:
But just the weight of those verses are just the weighty. Yeah. So when you go back and think about Joseph again, he had no degrees, he had no bank accounts, he had no 401 K's. He had no he had no connections with influential people. Except one. He had a connection with one influential person and that would be the Lord himself. So when you have Jesus in your life, you have everything. The Bible says you would be complete in him. You're one with him. You succeed in life because he triumphed over all the works of the devil. Now, when I say Jesus is with you this morning and I say He is with you, I don't mean because you feel it. We're taking a turn here now, or this thing will build just like a brick. Mason But now we're taking a turn. So when I say Jesus is with us this morning and we know the verse greater is he that's in us and he's in the world. So we know that by word. We believe that. But he's worthy whether you feel like he's with you or not. So don't. Don't make decisions based on feelings. Feelings will come and go. The word of God will remain. Like we said before, if there were some way for you to leave here and leave your Bible, sit in the chair next to you and we were gone.

Pastor Erik West:
This is hypothetical. If we were gone for 200 years and came back. The Bible would still be sitting in that chair. And I think it would say the same thing then that says now. The chair might have. They might not be green. The pages might be brittle. They might have turned brown, yellow. Whatever they are, it might just be almost dilapidated. But if it was readable, it would stay the same. God somehow wrote a book that he doesn't think needs to be updated. How do you do that? That's why people say, well, I was watching the no, I don't want to get into the names because I'll get monitored and all that. And other was I was watching this interview, someone interviewing a Christian leader and a pastor, and they said, well, don't you think the scripture needs to be put into applicable terms in the sense of this is 2000 years, you know, whether, you know, dealing with same sex marriage and homosexuality, all this kind of things. I mean, I mean, we have to understand, you have to keep up with the times. I mean, you can still have the word and you can still have, you know, Jesus, you're not going to change who he is. But even he ought to understand that for 2000 years, everything has to change. And this pastor had a whole lot more patience than I would have had. And he was kind of stumbling around for answers.

Pastor Erik West:
And I thought, man, he just threw you a question. This is just a softball baseball. The word of God is never going to change. Jesus said, I'm the same yesterday, today and forever. What's good about that is you can always count on it because you know what his position is. You say? Well, death's come to seize me. Well. Well, I've come to rescue you. Right. You know, when you need protection, he's the protector. When you need healing, he's the healer. If you need saving, he's the savior. Amen. He doesn't know where he is the way. But the church didn't seem to do that. We refer people all the time. Well, you need to go see the psychiatrist or they refer you to this. They refer you to that. They refer you to someone who can help you with the finances and this council or that council. The the church has become the great referral system. We were we were supposed to be the ones who have the answers. The government should be looking to us for answers. We're in situations. We've come to ask for your counsel. What can we do in the city? What can we do in this nation like this? That's the way this thing is supposed to operate. It's supposed to not because we're a great people, but because we have a great God. Amen. So feelings is is if you can hear it.

Pastor Erik West:
So I just I wrote down feelings is not how you know he is with you. Quite the opposite, actually. Feelings will take you down a deserted road, throw you out of the car and drive off with nothing more than feeling trying to free it. And they run over you. But back. Back over you and takes off. But the Lord Jesus Christ in Romans Chapter eight, I'm in the Nlt. You don't have to. It didn't really matter, but I'm reading verses 34. 339. In Romans chapter eight, verse Romans eight and verse 34 says. Who then will condemn us. You see, this is the contrast of the world's success. What God thinks. Your feelings. But this is what God thinks about your feelings. Who then will condemn you? For no one for. For for none. For Jesus Christ died for us. Who will condemn us? No one for Christ. Jesus died for us. Was raised to life for us. And He is seated at the right place of honor, at God's right hand, pleading for us. Now, many translations say don't use the word pleading. It uses the correct word, which Jesus said at the right hand of God right now. What's he doing? He's interceding for you. Interceding his prayer. Have you. How does it make you feel that now that Jesus right now is he is praying for you? He's praying for you. The thrust thing. I mean, I'll always makes us feel good to have someone that we that we trust, that we know at least cares for you in some measure is praying for you.

Pastor Erik West:
But I'm telling you, Jesus is praying for you. And he's not reading the book about how to get your prayers answered. He's in the habit of getting all his prayers answered. So it goes on to ask us in verse 35, Can anything separate you from Christ's love? Just think about everything that you're dealing with in your own life family finances, everything that connects life to you, that wants to define you by what's going on to you, around you, with you. See, that's looking to define you, but you are not what you are dealing with. You say, well, I'm having a problem with a kidney. Well, here's the good news. You're not a kidney. You say, Well, I'm having problems with my ears. Well, you're not. Ears. Your spirit. You have a soul and you have a body. Your body has ears, but you the spirit. You're not an ear. You're not a foot. You're not an ankle. You're not a bone. You're not a spine. You're not a brain. You're not a. You're none of those things. You are a spirit being. You have a soul. And the real you just lives in that body. But you are not that body. Amen. You know, it's hard on people when loved ones leave the world. But but when a Christian leaves, that ought to be rejoicing.

Pastor Erik West:
They're out of that body forever. Like forever. Like a really long time. I mean, in a spirit body, young spirit. Body forever. Just the moment they can depart from that. I don't want to go too much on that because you all get excited and you all be trying to leave your body today. And then we have still got some work to do. Like you mean this shed, this thing. Well, he said, can anything separate you, verse 35 from Christ love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity or persecuted or hungry or destitute or in danger or threatened with death? If it meant that I think he hates me. Any of those things ever happen to you? He said, Does this mean because you deal with these things sometimes that he does not love you as the scriptures say? Verse 36. Now they're quoting an Old Testament scripture, you know, from the Book of Psalms. And so Paul is talking about a scripture out of the book of Psalms, where it says, as the scriptures say, well, for your sake, we're killed every day. We're being slaughtered like sheep. Paul fixes that verse. The next verse? No. He said, despite all these things. Overwhelming victory is ours through Christ who loved us. Paul said, I am convinced. He said He didn't say. The jury's out. I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love.

Pastor Erik West:
He continues. Verse 38, He said, Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither fears for the day or your worries about tomorrow. Not even the powers of hell can separate you from God's love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below. Indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus, our Lord. It's revealed in Christ Jesus, our Lord. The love is revealed in Jesus Christ, Our Lord. From which you cannot be separated from. Now let's make a point out that about this love in first John chapter four, verse ten. Not sure what's translation. Just pick you one. Probably the NIV or the King James. I don't really know. But first, John, chapter four, verse ten says, Herein is love. What is love? He says, It's here. It's right in here. He says, I'm going to show you what love is. Here in his love verse. John 410. Not that we love God. But that he loved us. And he sent his son to be the propitiation for our sins. Whoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwells in him and he in God. Now, verse 16. Awesome verse. And we have known and believed the love that God has to us. God is love and he that dwelleth in this love dwelleth in God and God dwells in Him.

Pastor Erik West:
So Romans eight tells you, can anything separate you from the love of God is real in Christ Jesus? And the answer is no. First, John 416 says, Well, then believe in that love. Now put faith in that love. Put confidence in that love. Firstly, the fight. So when there's no fire, there's just. There's just. It's just. It's a fun day. It's a play day. I'm talking about when. When the physical and the the senses and the mental part come to attack very strongly, whatever the situation is. It's always saying one thing to you. God is not here to rescue you. Have you noticed? I mean, where is this great God who loves you so much and you're dealing with all this? And where is he at? You say, Well, I don't feel like I have God's presence. Did you breathe? And are you breathing? You have God's presence. Always. So never interpret what God's doing or not doing based upon the situation or circumstances around you. Don't wait to move out till you feel anointed. A lot of Christians, you know, they they remain dormant with all the ability God on the inside of them. They're waiting for the feelings of feel good. They're waiting to feel anointed. If you get the right song, I'll jump with it. I'll shout with it. But if it's not, or if there's not 500 people around me, then I can't go. Woo! Well, you may have to one day by yourself.

Pastor Erik West:
And there's no one around you to help you. It's not Sunday. The Christians aren't here. You might have to learn to go all on your own when it don't feel like. Whoa. Hmm. I hit a corner somewhere. Some of y'all know what I'm talking about. You know the praise teams not out there. And the Hammond organ is not, you know, just. It's just Mondy, and it's you in that situation. And. And all the voices that come and say, What are you going to do now? What are you going to do now? You ain't never seen like this. Oh, I know, I know. Yeah, I know. God. He said, But but. But this time is going to be different. You heard what the doctor said. You saw the x ray. You saw the financial report. They say this is on the way. They say it's imminent, that we're going to have a recession. Well, we might have one. We've had we've had them before. So if you say, are we going to have one? I don't know. But I'm telling you, if we have one, it doesn't matter. Why doesn't it matter? Because you're in the kingdom of God. So if the world is going to have a recession this year or next year, here's all you need to know. Don't participate. Just don't sign up for it, huh? If someone's going to get to work, you are. Why? Because you're a kingdom ambassador.

Pastor Erik West:
Doing kingdom business, the flow never shuts off to you. I mean, you can find out from the old Covenant. I mean, because God made a promise to your. Your father, Faith, Abraham and Isaac and Jacob. And when there was a famine and there was drought, he said, just just stay here. And so you see, well, there's no rain. Who was it? Wasn't. It wasn't. It wasn't. Who was it? Staying sober seed. Was it Isaac? Everyone was going to Egypt. You can't grow crops. And God said, Just stay here and sow your seed. You look at the ground, I look yesterday I was out in yard somewhere because of the heat and it hadn't rained. And there's a patch of just ground dirt and it was cracked, you know, like cracked peanut brittle, like you see sometimes like in a, you know, a desert or dry places where it just gets so dry and it just begins to crack. And the Lord says you have to stay and put your seat in there. He said without any water. He said, what is it going to rain? And but isn't that violating the principles? He says, I am the principles. Well, I don't need to go to Egypt. No, you just stay here. I made a covenant with your father. He died. But I got to keep my word to him. I even keep my word to dead people. Right. So Isaac, when well against all conventional wisdom and started trying to break up that dry ground but seed it with no water.

Pastor Erik West:
He said, Where did he get any kind of harvest? Bible says he got 100 fold return on his seed with no water. Yes. It's not. You know, I'm still studying this. I don't want to preach it. I want to be careful when I come out and say it. It looks Well, don't let no one out there hear me. It looks like God knows everything. You know, you ought to see it in the Word and then you ought to live it out before you just preach any kind of new doctrine. But it looks like God almost knows just about everything. So just don't participate. Our greatest financial year. Since we've been since we moved here 13 years ago this October, our greatest financial year was the year of Covid. Well until the next year. In the next year, it was a greater and greater. We were able to help more people. And more missionaries around the world. While the world lay dormant. You know. Stay home. Stay away from people. Yeah, I don't want to get down there, but I'm just saying. But, but there's a, there's a, there's an agenda behind all that and their agenda. I'm not, I'm not looking to talk about it's this person or this person or person, this party or that party. It's not it's not this country or that country.

Pastor Erik West:
You may have many players in it, but it's only really one player. You don't wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers might. The devil just uses people who's usable. And guess what? You know where he learned that from? He learned it from God. God can only use who's usable. You know, that's why I said, you know, Christians ought to get possessed like, you know, demon possessed people. You ought to get you ought to be criticized. You ought to be possessed by the Holy Ghost. Amen. Me. What kind of logic is it to sow your seed on top of concrete and walk off and say, Blessed God, we're going to have a major harvest this year? You say you're looking at your seed because you can't get the ground opened up. You know, he didn't have a massey-ferguson tractor. He went, no, John Deere. He could just tell the ground that, well, you just beat it with a stick and just beat it back at you. The Bible says, You think I'm going to plow through that? There's no way. Just go and shoot me and have me for supper. You see it on the ground? He just said Just. It just comes up everywhere. And it's a great day. Everybody's gone to Egypt and you just stay at the house. That way, when you go to restaurants, there's no waiting. You're out there on your camel. You know, the traffic's great.

Pastor Erik West:
You say, let's let's get out of our Cadillac camel. This week we're going around the two. We're going to ride the two hump this weekend. That's luxury if you've got a two upper camel. Praise God. So. So he said, You need to know this love and then then believe it. Where love is a person. God is love. Right. So what it says. And you could say. Love is God, but that don't really take you nowhere. Because you need a picture. God is love. And you could say love is God. It wouldn't be wrong, but it's an incomplete picture. It don't take you anywhere. But let me give you an accurate picture of what that looks like, love. God is love and love is Jesus on the cross dying for your sin. See, love has got to take you back to the picture of Jesus. Who is the author and the headship of of his church and of this covenant. Of who he's interceding for. It has to take you to Jesus because he everyone says, says that. Hebrews one. It says that your forefathers, the prophets, everyone in the Old Covenant only knew him in portion. That means Isaiah only knew some things about God. Moses knew some things about God, but they never really knew Him. But when Jesus come, he said, I think I'm in Hebrews one. If you want to look it up later, Hebrews one, I know I'm in verse three at least, and Amplify says He is Jesus is the express image of God in manifestation and a representation.

Pastor Erik West:
He is the express image in the likeness of God. So if you want to know what God is, then you have to look at Jesus. You can't you can't even get a right picture with God without Jesus. Because Jesus is the express image of God. So God is love. But Jesus is the love of God. On the cross. Dying for people. Who's dead wrong? How many people you want, you know, willing to let themself die for people who's dead wrong? Who's against them? Wow. I'm so two mouthfuls right now. First, John, chapter three, verse 1920 says, And this is how we know that we belong to the truth. This is the NIV. Listen to this. This is how you're going to know that you belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence. If your heart condemns you. We know that God is greater than your hearts. And he knows everything. So I put down here. Sin and condemnation will bind us. But love and compassion will free you. From all accusations and condemnation. I want to go back and read that again in the NIV. First, John three 1920 says, This is how we know that we belong to the truth because people say I have the truth. Well, here's how you know, if it's the truth and if you belong to the truth, how we set our hearts at rest in his presence.

Pastor Erik West:
What was Joseph? Why was he successful? Because God was with him. Which means his presence with him. You have God. You have his presence. Joseph Joseph is in prison as a slave and he's successful and prosperous. And one day will take his rightful place as the second highest in command of Egypt when he was sold as a slave in the dream. And the vision that God gave him would come to pass because the brothers did come because they thought he was dead. But he wasn't. And they come down because they were in a famine and they had to go. And Joseph was in charge. They found out who he was and they ended up bound down to the brother. Then a few years later. Now, my story is not about to bow down just like that. What I'm saying is just because you don't see it doesn't mean it's not working. It's still in the process. You don't put a coin in the ground and then you turn back around and say, boo. It's not hide and go seek. You don't put. You don't put a coin. And so what you're going to have for supper tonight, we're going to have coin. I'm going to water it a little bit more. Just don't come up. I'm going to pick you about 5:00. I'm going to shuck the corn and we're going to have corn on the cob.

Pastor Erik West:
Well, you might have corn on the cob, but it won't be. It won't be from that. You don't even have stock here. It's just a seed in the ground and a seed has to die first. Jesus had to go. He had to die and be put into the ground so he could be raised up. That's why the scripture said if they would have known what they were doing, it says they had any idea what they were doing. They would never crucify the Lord of Glory. Why? Because he's the anointed seed that went into the crown, the ground. And so what they planted was what they planted in death was a Christ. What they came up with was the harvest of Christ. Like if you plant tomatoes, you don't get this one. You don't get this one tomato. If you plant a corn, I mean, how many apples are in one seed? They say, Well. You just got a harvest that you can't count. So when you put Christ in the earth and you plant him the anointed one and he raises up. That he has untold numbers of the naughty ones all over the earth. They were trying to stamp out the Christ and get rid of him by killing him. You multiply them. You know, and he's talking metaphors. He's talking in parables. They don't even talk. He said, you know, he says, you know, this is going to happen in three days.

Pastor Erik West:
This whole temple is going to going to come down and I'll rebuild it in three days. They're looking at the building, thinking you a nut, you you going to tear this whole temple down? You going to rebuild the whole thing in three days? Just three days. You're thinking I mean, this guy, I mean, he has some miracles, but, boy, smoking something somewhere, he's going to tear this thing down and we're going to rebuild it in three days. How long? How long? He's raising the dead. Three days. Who's the temple? You are. Did you get raised up? But I read. You did? Yeah. You've been raised up with him. She didn't have heavenly places. So if you stay in your place, in Christ, in him, in Christ. And when the devil comes looking for you, he won't know he's attacking you or him. If you just talk like he talks and think like he thinks and acts like he thinks when the devil pushes on the door, he doesn't know who's going to answer. So. So keep your head down and just say, open the door, he says. You just say it's me. Jesus. You'll see. He's hoping you come the door. But Jesus comes to the door. The anointed Son of God, look at him. He says, You want some more? Because? Because I have a whole lot of mouth. I've got a whole lot of more.

Pastor Erik West:
Come on. If it's a fight you want, it's a fight you're going to get. I mean, you. I mean, you know, you're all familiar with scripture, but you're in Psalms two where it says, you know, they're saying, you know, we're going to destroy God's anointed, we're going to cut him asunder. And God says, you're going to do that. You're going to cut my people. You're going to cut them. You're going to cut them asunder. You're going to disband them. And just and and God doesn't say anything. The Bible says he just sits in the heavens, laughs. He laughs at the devil's plans of how he's going to destroy you, he says, And you're going to take her out. How? Oh, really? How are you going to do that? Huh? Even. Even. Even the devil couldn't get the job, he says. I've tried to get to him. He said. You've got to hedge around that old boy. You know you do. He said, Well, ain't no neat line. I do. If you don't have a hedge around you. You're on the inside. You don't need no hedges. Hinges can be cut down. Mm. Well. So here. So here we are in this low. So he said you might feel like, well, I've done so much and I've done it all wrong and I made so many mistakes. My life is just a mess. And I did this and I did this marriage and this and all that.

Pastor Erik West:
And I'm in my third marriage and God can't love me. I've been divorced two times. What, did he forgive you? Does your forgive, Sofia? Well, he didn't know you had two wives before then. See, we remember people's mistakes. He forgets them. He thinks this is your first go round. Let all be good news to somebody I don't know. That ought to help someone. Is it scriptural? Huh? Even Isaiah 43, I think verse 25 says, I, even I, he says, Forgive your transgressions. He said, I do it for my own sake. I think for your sake he forgives you for his sake. He said, I blot out your transgressions. And he says, And I remember your sins no more. Why do you keep bringing them up when he's already forgot them? Why in Jesus. It's finished. It's a finished work. So when you feel condemned about your life. Or if you make a mistake and sin, you feel condemned. But this scripture says. That we are to be at rest in his presence. And if your heart condemns you, you need to know something. God is greater than your heart. God is greater than your feelings. God is greater than the condemnation that you're feeling. Even if your heart is trying to condemn you, he said. God's greater than your heart. My goodness. What's he pointing to? Your righteousness. Not. Not your mistake. Not the failure. He's still telling you.

Pastor Erik West:
But you're my righteous one. Yes, he is. Can I go a little bit further? I'll hurry. So, verse 18. This is first. John 418. Love never brings fear, for fear is always related to punishment. So there is no punishment in him for the born again. You don't need to fear the day that you see him if you're born again. He's not going to talk to you about your past. You have no past. You only have now and present. Jesus took all your past and all your present. So he tells you love never brings fear, for fear is always related to punishment. But God's but love's perfection drives out the fear of punishment far from your hearts. Whoever walks constantly afraid of punishment, has never reached love's perfection or maturity. So if you're always afraid, you're always in fear. You're always afraid for your life. If you're if you're afraid that one day and seeing God, he's going to reject you and you're you're afraid, he says. He says that's because you've never been perfected. You're not matured in love yet. Well, boy, these are. I'm opening up all kind of cans that I'll just be. I'm moving on. So when we start practicing, a better word would be participating, acknowledging his presence. Then you experience his love, his peace, his strength, his joy. You hear him speak to your heart, his wisdom, his counsel, his assurance will begin to flow when you just begin to practice and acknowledge his presence, all these things begin to flow.

Pastor Erik West:
Joy begins to flow back in again, where there was sorrow. When you was when you was afraid, when you was disturbed. Just practicing his presence and knowing he's always with me and he never leaves me, he never fails me, he never forsakes me. God has my picture in the throne room right there. Hmm. Then wisdom begins to flow. All sudden you get counsel and you have the assurance that begins to come in. Your decision making ability will be sharpened. Change for the good begins to flow effortlessly, effortlessly. You don't have to struggle and strain to bear results. Fruit trees do not bear and strain. To produce fruit. If they are rooted properly and if they have proper water and sunlight, they produce effortlessly. We're a peach country right here. You know we are for you. Well, we're coming to the end of it, August. But you can go in any peach orchard where there's peaches. I know something about that, doesn't it? You go in the orchard and be real quiet and listen. Can I tell you what you won't hear? You won't hear Peachtree straining to produce it. Oh, Benita. Peachy. Peachy. And one comes out Peach. Oh, Peach, Don't do that. So why would you want to strain to be what you already are in him. Or it could be comes squash. You'd have to have farmers. They'd have to have headphones on so they don't even know they're hearing.

Pastor Erik West:
Oh, I hate when we have to pick this stuff, you know, leaning down to it. All that noise coming up to me. Oh, the foolishness of preaching. I said, Well, I'm trying to be God. Well, quit trying to just believe you. I'm going to be healed. What did that do? Greg? Greg did what? Oh, but don't you sometimes see that in some measures of healing lines, pick them up again. 47 times more. More. Jesus did rotting in the ground. I've heard 10,000 sermons. What He's writing. You know what? He wrote the ground. I don't know. And they don't know either. You can assume he's writing anything. He wasn't paying attention. He might have been thinking, I'm going to let all these fools talk. See, you want to eat here for lunch? I'm going to go over there. He killed that woman. After 18 years. She has a spirit of infirmity. Spirit of infirmity. 18 years. Notice they didn't call it. Rheumatoid arthritis or something like that because Blue Cross won't pay for a spirit infirmity, but they don't have the code. I mean, Barbara didn't used to work Blue Cross. You ever seen that on? Can you can you code something a tormenting spirit or Blue Cross won't pay for that. But Jesus was always casting out devils to heal the sick. But I mean, that Blue Cross will not pay for that.

Pastor Erik West:
So you have to call it something. It has a name, but it's the devil is what it is. Yeah. And they could ask us for codes and we can give it to them, go and pay it. But it says devils what it is. So Jesus healed that one with the spirit infirmity. She was, what, 18 years? They said she was bowed together like this for 18 years, and Jesus healed her on the Sabbath, which was illegal. Faith in the law. Because. Because she's like this for 18 years and Jesus delivered her on the wrong day. As the wrong day. He says there are six days you can come. Well, she been coming for 18 years. Ain't helped her at all. Now, don't you think that she'd ask for prayer somewhere in 18 years? It don't say, but I just. I can't help. My mind has to think there's more to this story than they're telling us. This ain't the first time she's been there because they know the woman. Morning. How y'all about same. Now, what has year like this? It's a devil, right? Spirit of infirmity. Yeah. 18 years. Blue Cross won't pick up the bill on their time. You put an ointment on it. What did you say? Yeah. You put an ointment on that devil? Give him a cup of Tylenol. Well, he don't want to lose his home. All devils want a home. Even devils don't like being homeless.

Pastor Erik West:
Well, when they find a home, they find rest. Well, if you don't have a home, you don't get rest either. Are you looking for somewhere to go? Rest right now? It works. Same with the devil. He's homeless. It says he's seeking rest. Well, if your home is gone, you know, and I know we take care of one another, but homeless people are always on the move. They're looking for somewhere to lay down, safe and rest. Those devils don't want to lose that body. So devils will. Oh, I didn't mean to do all this. This is true. I'm not even trying to be funny. But devils will be quiet sometimes and back away and they'll go hide over here for a while and let you think what you just did was. Yeah, they will. They'll just move around over here and you'll say. You'll say whatever you're going to say. And they'll say, Well, let's let it because. I don't want to lose my home again. This is my fourth home this year, and I'm tired of all this packing and unpacking. So let's just back off and let them think they whatever. And then we'll come back out in a couple of weeks. And they'll move around, I'm afraid, to people through the years like this. I did it for years until I found out a little bit more about it. And I thought, well, we're praying this. We get the victory over there.

Pastor Erik West:
And then two days later in the hospital and now the dying of that, then I go jump over here and over there and he just runs over there. It's like trying to it's like trying to when you don't understand how to do it, it's like going to the county fair and trying to get a ribbon for catching the grease pig, the devil. He just flies out of your hands, but he just goes over there. So what I do is I have to bring him into the obedience of Christ no matter where he's at. You have to expel him right high and seeks over. The little maze. The walls are gone. Dare you is. Massacre. Hasta la vista, baby. Amen. Okay, let me finish right here. So the chain fruit trees. We did the fruit trees. Hallelujah. Now. Let's finish this with this. Now, remember. Our relationship. With God, as we understand it, in the New Covenant, not the Old Covenant. God never changed with how he relates to you and people is different in this covenant that was in the Old Covenant. You know, David will say some things that was right in his covenant but would not be right in yours. And he did it with a right spirit. And the Lord highly accepted it. But people now take it and preach it. And then they they make songs of it, you know, like God created me a clean heart, which was right in his covenant.

Pastor Erik West:
It's not right in your covenant. I don't care who puts it at Bethel or Hillsong or or who puts it out. Because he believes he has. He has created you with a clean heart. He's on the inside of you. Right? So, David, as a king and a prophet, he saw some things here. He knew some things. So he saw your covenant. A prophet is a seer. They see a portion of things. David saw into the future. He saw your day. He was jealous of the day that you're in. Because really, David pronounced judgment on his own life and should have died. But the Lord allowed him. Really? You might say, to step into your covenant and live. That happened. You say, Well, I don't know that there's scriptural proof of that. Oh. I wouldn't have said it if it wasn't for one thing. You can see people that Jesus accepted and he let them have what belongs to you. Now when they weren't even in that covenant. I think it has something to do with it always has to do with faith. In faith is when. So like the like the the centurion that got healed. He didn't have a covenant. Jesus only talked about two people having great having great faith. And neither one had a covenant with him. That Syrophoenician woman. You remember her? She came and she had no right. Her daughter was grievously vexed with a devil and Blue Cross.

Pastor Erik West:
Don't care for that. And your house insurance won't cover it. I mean, it's like Joe said, you know that woman Grievous, the vector, the devil. He says she was hard on furniture. Hard. Hard on furniture. So? So your insurance won't come when the drapes get tore up, you know, and the scratch and paint off the walls and whatever breaking lamps. And she come to Jesus and she said, Help me. Well, she needed help because she's living with her daughter, who was grievously, grievously, grievously vexed with the devil. And so her disciple says, Send her away. Send her away. And Jesus said, Well, I'm only I'm only sent to the lost sheep of Israel. And, you know, in her kind and those they were called dogs. So Jesus is we don't cast this, you know, to the dogs. She said, I know I'm a dog. I understand who I am. But she said, my daughter is grievously vexed with the devil. Now, remember, faith is right now, right? Faith is timeless. So she does. She don't even have a covenant with God. By faith, she jumps into it, he says. He says, I'm only called to the lost sheep of Israel, which he was. She said, I know I'm a dog. She said, But even dog gets crumbs from the table. And Jesus. My interpretation said, Oh, no, you didn't. What does that mean? He said, By faith. She said, I know who I am.

Pastor Erik West:
I know this don't belong to me. But even dogs in the house don't sit at the table. But even the dog can get the crumb on the table if the master drops it. Would you just give me a crumb of help? And Jesus said, Woman, your faith is great. He said, Go. So when she went home, I mean, it was the first time, you know, that the couch is where it's supposed to be at. And it wasn't upside down. And she she quit tearing the house up. She didn't have a covenant, but faith put her into your covenant. So we have to remember how he how he deals with us in our covenant. And this is it right here. We'll finish it right here in Romans Chapter four, verses six through eight. David said this. He said, Even King David speaks to us. This is Romans four, six, eight. Partial translation. Even King David speaks to us regarding the complete wholeness that comes inside a person when God's powerful declaration of righteousness is heard. Over your life apart from your works. God's work is enough. Amen. Can you all put that up? I want them to see they're here. Me? But I'm past the time of comprehension that told me I violate it, like every week. But anyway. Romans four 6 to 8in the Passion. Translation I want you to see verse six yourself. Okay. You all read it with me.

Pastor Erik West:
Even King David himself speaks to us regarding the complete holiness that comes inside a person. When God's powerful declaration of righteousness heard over our life, apart from our works. Go ahead. God's work is. I mean, what are you going to add to it? What do you need to add to another next verse? Now. Now he's a he's a king and a prophet. So a prophet. Season to the future. Here's what David says. What happy fulfillment is ahead for those whose rebellion has been forgiven and whose sins are covered by blood. I mean, can you put that scripture into King Jimmy? James had a buzzing moment. I'm sorry. He's called King Jimmy. Okay. Saying, blessed are those who sins are forgiven, whose sins are covered. To me. Both of those translations are not quite correct. We call it. We know we're healed because of the atonement. In Christ's atoning work. The sacrifice he permitted our sins. But. But. But your sins in the New Covenant really aren't atone. They're removed. It's the removal. The removal. So the passion was good. I think I actually had it in here, but I wanted you to see it. What? Said it said. Um, verse seven and the passage says, Here's what David says. What happy fulfillment is head for those whose rebellion has been forgiven. True. Whose sins are covered by blood. That is true. But see, but. But. But our sins in the old country. They came once a year.

Pastor Erik West:
Right? Brought their sacrifice. He put the blood there and that covered their sins. There's nothing to cover in our in our. In our covenant. They removed and infirmity and the old covenant, they said because of their sins. Their conscience was never purged from their from their evil and dead. Worse because there was they always remembered, even though they brought the sacrifice, even though it was atoned for and all this, they had a hard time forgetting some things that happened. But he said, in your covenant, not only are they removed, he says they're purged from your conscience. He says, get rid of them. He said, I hold nothing against any of you and I'm not even keeping a record book anymore. So you think, Well, I wish I was born back then. Not me. I like right where I am. Well, praise God. God's God's ways and methods are different in it and our covenant. So if you feel like you're in prison, you're headed to the palace. You know, not always. And don't don't take this because, you know, some people take what they're going through and they say, well, maybe I'm going through this because, you know, and a lot of that is true sometimes. Sometimes the pressure that you're facing, the problems that you're going through is simply Satan coming to do a work and stop you before you begin. I can sit here and tell you about many ministers.

Pastor Erik West:
Um, of things that if it could be stopped, you would, you would kill it in the most important stage that it is. They knew the prophet about the Messiah would come and King Herod, they told him about that. So he believed it would come to pass. So he was going to try to stop that the way he was stopped that he didn't he didn't know who the Messiah would be. So he said, Well, they felt like he was already. On the planet. So he sent his men. To do what? To kill every male child. Two years old and down. So you didn't know who he was? Sometimes you've been preparing for something for years that you don't even realize what you've been prepared for. You're holding something. You're carrying something on the inside of you that that will be birthed at some time. He don't know all what it is. Sometimes he has some indications of it. So he comes to stop. Most of my troubles was in the first three years of ministry. Not just because of lack of, you know, doing something you've never done before. Some of it. But a lot of it was just satanic. It it helped me to go to a few ministers conference. One of the greatest helps that I had was it was we were so glad we went. It was November 1999. We went to a I was told 3 or 4 times and I finally got sharp enough to listen.

Pastor Erik West:
He said, I want you in that conference. I want you to go to Texas and I want you to go to the ministers conference of John Osteen, not Joel John. We win in November. And John Osteen died in January. That conference. It helped me so much. It matured me and things of that day and things to come. It had answers to questions I didn't even know to ask. He said, If you're kind of a new pastor here, I'll just tell you how this is going to work. So you'll know. So you won't think it's strange. Sometimes you're out there by yourself and you just don't know. He's the devil do about everything he can. Usually in the first 2 to 4 years of your ministry to to try to just take you completely out. You know, while you're still on your training wheels. And why are you still crawling around? Well, I mean, I got my mother's Bible at home, you know, and she wrote in it the date. She she says, this is the day that I died in church. Well, that was a different kind of day. I mean, that wasn't just like, you know, Sunday school and, you know, 20 minutes. And let's go to Cracker Barrel. That was that was a different day. Your mother's dead. You know, after I just get through, after I just get through saying, you know, we're going to be coming in two days.

Pastor Erik West:
We're going to see the dead race. I had no idea. We talked about 20 minutes from now. So when I talk to her about that after a few days when she had time to rest. And she didn't know anything because she of course she did. You know, and. She said. I said, Well, what was you aware? She said. I mean, I couldn't tell you. I died naturally. But she said, When you said what you said about coming into the days, the church, this place will will see the dead race even in our service. And she said, I heard this most satanic voice. He said, that will not happen here. He says, Now I will put a stop to this today. And he said, I will do it by discrediting him and you by killing you. And she says, all of a sudden, I had a pain go down my arm, whatever. And she was gone. In other words, how would you like to stand up and preach? We're coming to the days, you know, of the supernatural being natural, just being natural, and the dead are being raised. And then 20 minutes later that your mother died and they have to come pick him up. How would you like to be in one piece? They said those things. So he said for those words. I cannot and I will not happen. And what greater way to stop them than even kill his own mother? After said.

Pastor Erik West:
Well. The same thing was pronounced over my father. I mean, it was just they said, well, he has about 24 hours to live. Tops. Tops. Well, they was. They just missed that by I think it was 27, 27, 28 years, which is more than 24 hours. But he all he needed was brand new nerves in his body. Well, I just. We just prayed over. We just believe God. And God just put all brand new new circuits are authorized by brand new nurse. You know, a complex nervous system is of the body way beyond way beyond my intellect and study and understanding. And the Lord designed it and he just reached in there, just fixed everything in the nerves that was destroyed and just just fixed him. The doctor comes out and calls the medical phenomenon. He says sometimes. We have seen things unexplainable. And I said, Is my father right? Is he okay? He says, Yes. Your father. Very good. He says, That's what I'm trying to tell you. We sometimes in medical. We have unexplainable. We'll have happenings that take place that we do not have medical terminology, he says. And so we call these medical phenomenons. I. What do you tell us? He says, Well, I told you your father must die because his sugar was too high for too long and destroyed his nerves. I said, I remember that. He says, Now I tell you with no explanation other than medical phenomena, your father has brand new nerves throughout his body.

Pastor Erik West:
He not die? I know when my dad's face. I know that. He talked in tongues and interpreted them. Known tongues, mostly four letter words if he was not hot math. So I know. I know when him. I know. Because if His Holiness. I've asked the Lord. I said, Does he have to die? In my in my infancy of whatever I said, this man just told me for the first time in his life, he's sorry for this and that and the other. And he and he said he said he loved this. He loved me the first time, and then he's just going to die. I said, And that is something I mean, we're going to wait till the last 30s and say, you know, I kind of like you a little bit, then you're going to take off. I said, That stinks. I said, Does he have to die in the is like, No. So he'll come sometimes because whether you realize that you're carrying something. And there's a time to give birth to it. So the time. So what he's looking for is an abortion. He wants you to abort it. Well, naturally, if a woman who's pregnant, she does certain activities she shouldn't be doing, She can miscarriage or have an abortion. Right. By accident, not wanting one. Well, Satan is a professional con man who understands abortion very well.

Pastor Erik West:
So he just sets up your circumstances. And you. And you know what they are because he can only do it by he has to use your mind, your body and your senses to work with. It's a great advantage for him because you you feel all that know all that. Chris Now talking about this show yesterday, if you could just remove senses from your body, whichever ones you want to do for a while like if you was in pain but but of all the senses was put on quiet and you couldn't feel pain, then how would you know it? I mean. I had a spine block 3 or 4 times and she said, Are you concerned about us putting your sleep? I said, no. She said, Well, no problem. But, you know, you got to sign a form because there's a very small chance that some people never live from it. And she said, there's no way we can go into the spine and put this block in here without you being asleep. You just move. I said, No, I get it. I want to be asleep. I need. Was about that long? Yeah. You bring a needle sleep. And I'm just thinking. So the worst that could happen to me is I'm totally asleep, and then I wake up in heaven. What are we waiting on? And I said how long it take me? Go to sleep. So you'll be asleep in seconds.

Pastor Erik West:
And I told you that story. And I said, I looked it up and I said, She says, Oh, are you going to be one of those? I said, Well, I said, I don't think I'm going to fall asleep that fast. She says, You want to try? I said, Yeah. I said, I'm going to. They said, She said, about three seconds. I thought, Man, I wish I had so much at home so late already, you know, come in here and the joints right there and then they get ready. She said, okay, the doctor's in here and they mark the spot where they're going to go in and feed you, gown up and think, Oh, I'm sorry, Vice God. And then she said, Are you ready? So I'm laying on mine like this. And she said, Here we go. She's going to count and I count two. Then you wake up about 45 minutes later and you're like, you're in a different room and you kind of like And I said, Oh, she says, How do you feel? I says, I said, like, I could take a nap for about three days. And I said, Oh, how about how about the count? She says, You did better than anyone I've ever seen. I said, Did I make it to the 10th? She says, Oh, no. I said, What did I do? She said, Because she said three. She said, You said one, two, three, four, four, 444.

Pastor Erik West:
She said. Fa fa fa fa fa fa fa. But while you're going through these situations, you don't have to deal with all the problems, the pressure you can cast your care upon the Lord. He can give you that anesthesia while you're going through it, and you can rest even no matter what Satan is doing. You can go. Fdfdfdfdfdfdfdfdf. Fdfdfdfdfdfdfdfdf. Fdfdfdfdfdfdfdf. Fdfdfdfdfdfdfdfdf. Fdfdfdfdfdfdfdfdf. Fdfdfdfdfdfdfdf. To where you have the attitude. So you have this attitude. And this attitude was what Paul had. He said, he said this light affliction. He said, it's just for a season. Then when you when you look at what he calls light affliction, it's like you call that light. He says it's just light. It's just temporary. He said, if you can see it, feel it, touch it, taste it, you can know about it in your mind. He said, It's just it's just this light. It's just light pressure. He said, You can't even compare it to the eternal glory that's waiting for you. And in you, you have an eternal glory on the inside of you. That no matter what the affliction is, whatever the pain, whatever the situation, whatever the torment is on the inside, he says it's light. Just like. It wouldn't be light if you wasn't in him. He said. But when you don't consider things and you consider other things. So you're considering him? You don't consider the fires? They're real.

Pastor Erik West:
They look real. They feel real. They are real. But they're just not truth. It's like I was telling you. Well, this morning we talked about something else. I said if you was in a tent outside camping. And someone pulled a terrible prank on you. And they put a recording. Of a lion or a tiger, and it was roaring. And they would do with your teeth like this. Well, you know, a lion or a tiger just with his nails. They tear that shreds and get to a human in that second. But it'd be a terrible. Prank to play. But if you hit that record. You'd be afraid. You'd be terrified for your life. You're just in a tense. You're not in a block building. You're in a tent. A canvas. But eventually you come out with your little water pistol and got to face whatever you got to face. And you look around, you look around the tent and they're sitting on some firewood. Is a little recording out there of a line. You had all the feelings of fear and death and all it was was a prank. It had no power to harm you whatsoever. But you thought it did. You felt like it did. It looked like it was real, but it wasn't. It was just a facade. So what do you consider. What are you considering? This. Hebrews three says consider this not have you considered the apostle, the high priest, your Lord Jesus Christ? Have you considered him? Mm.

Pastor Erik West:
So the day that we leave here, we leave our bodies. If it happens that way. There's nothing to fear. You see, you've already died once. You'll never die again. Naturally, you will. But first, John three says, here's how we know that we love him because we love the brethren, because we have passed from death to what? If you've been born again, you've passed from spiritual death into spiritual life. Now, I've talked this before. When I found this years ago, it blessed me so much. I preached it at funerals. When you study passed from death into life, you know what it means. It means when death comes to you one day. And I use this example like you have 218 wheelers and lost control and they can't do nothing or two trains on the same track and they can't get off the track. They weren't supposed to be on there. Someone made a boo boo, right. And they're say the throttle is hung and there's no way out. But before those trains collide, he says, you know, you have passed from death to life when you love the brethren, when you when you look up those words passed up, it means it means picked up when death comes to you, one day to your physical body, the father will come in and he will pick you up right before the collision and you'll pass over the collision and you'll be in heaven to God.

Pastor Erik West:
I mean, the Lord even lets you leave in style. He says, So your body may look like a wreck. So that's why Paul said death. Where is your sting? Because you you passed over before. You didn't feel the sting. It's glorious. It's glorious. It's the glory of God is what it is. It's the wonders of his glory and the wonders of his person. Amen. Man Thank God for the glory of God. Thank God the glory is the way to God. The splendor of God, the wealth of God, the preservation of God. Oh, the wonders of His person, the glories of who he is, The wonderful, majestic glory of our father. So he says, Awake unto righteousness. The scripture says sin not. How? How, Lord? He said, By awaking to your righteousness. Who? I made you in me. So wake up and you'll see. Wake up and rise up. Rise and shine, for the glory has come. And it shall be seen. Within you about you and without you. Begin to remind yourself each day of who I am and who I have made you, and that we together are just one. We're just one in spirit. Which means we are to be one in truth. We are one together. When you go, I go. When you sit, I sit. When you rise, I rise when you speak. I as in this prophetic word. I give the words.

Pastor Erik West:
I give the understanding. I am the council. I am the wisdom. I am the might. I am your strength. I am the power. I am the healing. Man's wisdom. Is limited. Man's ability and capability is so limited. To know me is to know no limitations. To know me and to walk with me. To walk in. My presence is to walk in my love and my confidence and my assurance. To walk in my peace and to let the peace, my peace rule your heart. For my son said my peace I give you is not a peace that the world can give and they can't take it away. My peace rules in your heart. So think on these things that are good and pure and lovely and of good report. If there's any praise, there's any virtue. Think, think, think, think on these things. And the peace of God that passes all understanding shall keep your heart in mind, in and through Christ Jesus. Count it all, Joy. When you fall into divers, temptations, tests and trials. Knowing this, that your faith Worketh your faith Worketh your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work that you may be perfect and entire wanting or lacking nothing. For the Lord is my shepherd and I do not want. I do not lack. I lie down. In green pastures. He restores me. He restores my soul. And even when the battle comes on one side and it comes on the other, a thousand at one side and 10,000 at your right hand.

Pastor Erik West:
Yet, yet, yet. Did I not say it shall not come to you? I did not say that you would not see it. I said, but it will not consume you. For my hand is upon you. I am your fortress. I am your strength. I am the strong tower. My word says the righteous run into it and they are safe. And my righteous are as bold as a lion. In the enemy understands. The defeated foe understands. He understands he has been stripped of all authority. He has no he has no authority. He has no rights. Give him no place. Give him no place, for he cannot take the place that is not given to him. So walk. Walk. In me. Walk with me. Walk in, step with me. Walk in, cadence with me. Walk with the understanding of It's not you walking, it's me in you. It's my faith in you. It's my love in you. It's my walk in your walk. My talk in your talk. My strength is your strength. My joy is your joy. My might is your might. My wisdom becomes your wisdom. You two have become 111 in spirit. Joined together. Do not be deceived to look at you in your natural flesh. But walk in the spirit and you shall not fulfill. The desires of the lust of the flesh walk controlled by my spirit.

Pastor Erik West:
Put this mind. Put on the new man. Let this mind be in you. That was in Christ Jesus. Put on the new man's mind. Created in righteousness and true holiness. When you do. When you do. When you do every victory. Oh. Oh. Seater. Mocanita. Oh. Oh. Seater. Nabatea. Stonebrook. Asha Bhosle. Tramocar. Shoutaura. Masotta. So they shall come. They shall come in great numbers. They shall come as a mighty force. They shall come. And it shall be so terrifying to many. And when they see it on the news and when they broadcast of all the evil that's taking place, when it seems like it's impossible, when it seems like the church and the prayers shall avail much. Never, never, never, never, never consider what they say as truth. Yes, you shall see it. And yes, some of those days shall be in your times. But you are my church. You are my people. I have chosen you. I have ordained you. I have called you and I have equipped you. So this is the day of understanding of strength. When the spirit of wisdom and counsel and might shall be increased more and more and more. And you shall walk. And you shall live. And you shall be a light unto my people. The light will get lighter. The dark will get darker. There'll be a great contrast between the two. But that's what light is. In the darkness will never overpower the darkness, will never extinguish the light.

Pastor Erik West:
So walk in the light. Walk. In my word. Speak my word in your life. Speak my word into your situations. Speak my word into the calling that I have upon your life. Too many are living in. Too many are living in just. The senses of the natural life, the natural mind. They're living a natural life. When I've called you to be super natural. Not a day to fear. No fear for the Saints. No fear for the family. No fear for I send you forth into the harvest. A mighty harvest is being gathered. Time as you know it. Even as you know it. Was much shorter than what you would understand. So there will be an acceleration of things. Things that used to have taken you a year or two to accomplish Some things that might have took you five years to accomplish will be done in a matter of days and weeks. You will grow and increase in the anointing and in my might exponentially. And I will draw people to you whom I have selected who will strengthen this House. I have called people who will come not only from this area, not only from this state, not only from this nation. I say again, not only from this nation, who will hear my spirit say to them, and in the time that I have chosen will come and they will sit and they were here and they will listen and they will grow.

Pastor Erik West:
And then they will go, Come here, grow. Go, come here. Go grow, grow, grow, grow, grow, grow. Go. And the number shall increase mightily. Though you never saw it. Though you never asked for it. Though you never saw it. Possible. It's my work. All I ask for is a yielded heart. All I need is a yielded vessel. I speak to you as one and I speak to you as individuals. I ask When you leave here, I hear the Spirit of God say, When you leave here, things have been in your heart. And you said, It's not time. It's not time. I'm not ready. I'm not ready. I'm not ready. Things that you've had in your heart, that you've been praying, which is wisdom. But in your heart. In your heart. When you listen to your heart. And the piece. The time to act is now. To whomever that belongs. The time to act is now. Not because it looks like it is. Not because you feel like it is. But the time for you to move forward and to move out is now. Obey. Obedience is better than sacrifice. Time. Is the most precious commodity that you have. In the days are evil. So rise up in my strength in my might. Your eyes upon me. And move out. And go forth and begin to do those things that I have spoken to you. Over and over again.

Pastor Erik West:
He has confirmed these things to our heart. But we thought it wasn't now, and perhaps it wasn't. But now it is. Now it is. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Holy Spirit. Someone's someone's watching or you're hearing this in another time. You're actually not in the United States. But you're going to hear this. This broadcast. And you've had a club foot almost all your life or all your life. And the Lord's healing that club foot right now, in Jesus name. Someone I don't know all the medical terms, but you're the you're a singer. But it seems like there was what I hear or see. I don't know if it was a cancer in the throat. If it affected the larynx, it affected the voice box or whatever we would call it. But you're you felt like. Um. Like your life? Kind of. You. You speak and then and someone may even have some kind of mechanism through you that you speak. But you once was a minister. You once was a musician. And that seems to be lost forever. And now. And now I speak to that person. I hear it by the Holy Ghost. I know you're not in here, but I know you're there. But we're connected to the world. So now I speak healing to that. A recreation of everything that was destroyed in your body. Who? The enemy came in, destroyed, but now made new, made new. And in begins here. And then you'll see improvement. And you'll see improvement. But in a short time, you'll have the fullness of your voice restored to you. And you shall glorify God with the gift that He gave you from the very beginning.

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The Mind of Christ | 13Aug2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

The Mind of Christ | 13Aug2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Good morning and welcome to Grace Life Church and those of you who join us online. Let me read you a verse coming out of a song we just was doing Praise and Worship. There's a verse in First Peter. Chapter one in verse 19 says, But with the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot, who Verily was for ordained. Now listen to this. Who Verily was for ordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in the last times for you. Who by him do believe in God that raised him up from the dead and gave him glory? That's your faith and hope might be in God. Seeing you, you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the spirit unto unfeigned love. And the brethren see that you love one another with a pure heart. Now listen here. Being born again not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible by the Word of God, which lives and abides forever. It says for all flesh. All people. All natural human life is as grass, and the glory of man is the flower of grass. The grass will wither and the flower there will falleth away. But the word of the Lord will endure forever. And this is the word by which the gospel is preached unto you. So he said that you're not born again of a. Natural seed, but of incorruptible seed which lives and abides forever. It won't be like grass without flour.

Pastor West:
It's here today. Gone tomorrow. By the Word of God. Huh? You've been born again. It said here in the Scriptures that Jesus or I think it's Revelation 13 won't go there, but Jesus himself. Was the lamb that was slain before the foundation of the world. Before. Why was he the lamb slain before the foundation of the world? God saw your need before you was ever here. Amen. And God provided for your need before you ever came to this planet. Even before you was born as an infant child. Jesus, in the. In the heart and the minds of God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit said Jesus was the lamb that was slain before. Let there be light. Now, what is he the sacrifice for? For the redemption of mankind that would fall. Adam, hadn't he been created and Jesus had already been provided as the lamb slain before the foundation? There wasn't even Adam. There wasn't a Garden of Eden. There wasn't even a tree. There wasn't a piece of fruit. The serpent wasn't in the garden with Adam and Eve in the heart and the mind of God. God provided the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son who gave his life. He was the He was as the lamb slain before you and I, before the world ever took day one. Amen. Well, he's also the lamb slain for your healing. So before you ever came here, before you ever knew you would need healing.

Pastor West:
The lamb was already slain. That you would already be healed by his stripes. Amen. I'm glad y'all are so excited about all that. Y'all try to hold it down some, if you will. It's hard to think. Praise God. Well, it's a beautiful day. August the 13th, 2023. There'll never be another August the 13th, 2023. So get everything you can out of it. There's more juice in the seed. Amen. Put the squeeze on it. Sometimes you think you. You've read something and you know something in the scripture and you think, Well, I see that. I know that. Well, you just know something about it. You don't know everything about it. I don't care if it's the word those. It depends on what those is connected to. You know, the Bible says use the word a lot of times. Therefore, Brother Hagan always used to say, when you hit the when you see the word, therefore you better look see what it's there for. Amen. Right. Because there's more in there. Hallelujah. How many know if you didn't know this, did you know that if you actually hear the gospel preached, it's actually a scandal. And did you know the world loves a good scandal? Oh, the world does. I didn't say the church ain't supposed to, but. But the world loves a good scandal. If you don't believe so, just go to the checkout stand. Look at all the magazines, look at the Enquirer, and there's being with 14 heads over here and this one over there.

Pastor West:
And and, you know, and people who are supposedly well known, you know, and and Hollywood and who they're with and who they're not with and who's together and who's breaking up and who all the all these scandals. But the Bible calls the gospel the scandal. It calls Jesus, you know, said he was the he called Jesus the stumbling block. In other words, God's going to get your attention. One way or another. If you go to if you decide to go to hell, you can go to hell. That's because he gave you a choice. But you're going to have to trip over the stumbling block everywhere you go to get there. He's going to put something in your path every day of your life to try to get you to pay attention. If he has to cause you to stumble, to fall to the ground and say what is happening, if you just say what is happening? I mean, if you give Jesus so much as a nod, you're going in a good direction. So the scandal goes something like this, although your sin was so great, although it was completely impossible, all because you was born into this life in sin with in a sin nature. The scandal is that Jesus, whose love was so much greater than your sin, provided for himself, a sacrifice for you. You know, sometimes you're really good scandal like that with the word called a good scandal, it almost make you blush.

Pastor West:
When you read when you read the when you read the pages of this Bible here and you realize what Jesus did for you because of the love of God, it ought to make you blush. Amen. Huh? Y'all okay? Y'all check to see if you got a breath. Hallelujah. I say glory to God. Amen. Amen. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Amen. So be it. Okay. I'll just check on you every now and then. Praise God. So here we go. If you will go to Romans chapter five. I mean, now that you have the mind of Christ. Amen. Amen. We're going to talk a little bit about that and different things. You know, Hebrews won't go there. And Paul has told the church there, he said, by this time you ought to be a teacher. He said, But you're not a teacher. He said, you're still spiritual babes. He said, You're still He said, you're still sucking on the bottle. When he says by this time he said, you ought to be skillful and you ought to be skillful in righteousness. And Isaiah tells us that we need to be established in righteousness. You know, there's a difference between knowing something about it. And can do. There's people who you know. There's professions that some people that is their livelihood, that's how they make their living. There's other people who just do their own work on weekends.

Pastor West:
But when the need arises and maybe it's okay for what they're going to do. Maybe for some mechanic and they call him, what, a shade tree mechanic or, you know, whatever. A lot of people think that they can paint. You know, some of them are pretty good painters, but it doesn't mean that they can make a living somewhere with it, but they might satisfy themselves if they're satisfying their self. It's okay. I used to know a pastor who painted his own cars and he's painting them all the time. He's proud of it. He come to church one time years ago, and he said, Come here and see my I forgot it was a little convertible. And he says, Man, let's get this thing painted. I said, Who painted it? He said, I did. I said, What'd you use? He said, A roller brush. I said, Oh my God, it didn't look that bad for about two weeks. And he thought he said, Well, we'll let the paint get on it real good and let it settle. Then he went to the car wash one day and the car went through the car wash, but the paint didn't. Car come on through paint state he thought, you know, it cured. Well, not so much. He said maybe he used to tell me, he said, I think I used the wrong kind of pain. I said, No, I think you used the wrong painter. But, you know, he couldn't imagine spending over $3,400 to do that.

Pastor West:
So he he never did get a successful paint job, but he's always bragging about how much he saved. Well, you know, God, God spared no expense. He sent his best. So in Romans chapter five and actually, I want to say this. If if you want to understand about the New Covenant, if you want to understand about who you are, if you want to understand and you have to understand your identity. Paul by by unction of the Holy Ghost penned these words in the book of Romans. Romans actually absolutely is a is a masterpiece. It's some of the greatest teaching in learning to help you to understand and of who you was before and who you are now. And then you see the transfer. See people. A lot of times they misunderstand because they read Matthew, Mark, Luke and John and you'll see statements that in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John that you can't find in the New Testament. You can't, in other words, you can't find in the Epistles. And that's because when Jesus came, he was born of a, you know, a natural woman had to be you can't be the seed unless you come as a seed. But he didn't come with a seed of man. He came with a seed of God. So he was all God. He was all man. But he had to come as man. Right. He had to strip himself. He had to strip his life.

Pastor West:
He had to strip who he was. He had to strip himself of deity and become a human being. He had to become a man. And so when he came, he came. He came during the old covenant. Jesus came as the Old Testament prophet. So things that even Jesus said in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are recorded that he said does not really belong in the new man. Amen. Because Jesus came under the law and ministered to those who was in the law and by the law. So if you take statements and lift them out of what Jesus said and you try to put them in the new Covenant, they won't mesh. And I could give you several. But that's not our lesson today. You'll see glimpses of what Jesus was going to do, mostly in the Book of John that would reflect what would be true now today in the New Covenant. More John than any other of the writers. But when you get over into the masterpiece of of the Epistles and when you get into the book of Romans, you you have to study Romans mostly Chapter four, five, six, seven and eight. Because remember, this is a letter, not a it's not a book. It's not a sermon. It's not chapters. Paul didn't write chapter and verse. Paul wrote a letter. Man divided this for purpose of study. So when when when they got this letter, it didn't say chapter three, verse 21.

Pastor West:
You know this when you go back and read the you go back and see how Paul addressed them and you'd have to go to Romans chapter one. And he you know, he identifies himself. He says, Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated into the gospel of God, which he had promised a for by his prophets in the Holy Scriptures concerning his Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, which is made of the seed of David according to the flesh. And a lot of times he'll start a letter this way, but he'll also address them in the Epistles. You know, and he'll say, you know, grace, peace and comfort be unto you and like this. And he goes on with his letter. But you have to understand, especially Romans four and even closer to that Romans Five to Romans eight. And if you read them, if you get you'll get a wrong interpretation if you read them separately. They have to be understood together. There's there's some things that you it's like a recipe. If it has 12 ingredients, you may understand four of them really well, but. But you'll never get where you're supposed to go with four ingredients when it calls for toil. And and I don't really want to rush through this. So, I mean, we don't if Jesus comes, we'll talk about it in heaven if we want to, but we don't have to do it all today.

Pastor West:
So we won't even attempt to do it all day. But you let me just set the foundation because the next week the Wilsons will be here and then we'll we'll pick up back after that. And so we're going to be part of doing that and going to bless them next week. Their biggest they've already done so much, but they're probably their biggest experience is the one ahead of them. And so they've I know just in this last few mission trips they've been in, they've already seen 40,000 people saved. Amen. There's 40,000 people in Chilton County. How would you like to know? Like if you want to go out and preach, you said we'll save all Chilton County in a week, everyone. I'm just using accounting. Would you support someone who would save a whole county? I mean, so we want to we want to be supportive of that. So. So these are together and they don't want to be we don't want to isolate them. So there's a there's a foundation to these things. There's a flow to it. There's there's a sequence to it. And we want to set the foundation. Now, we talked about this actually, according to my my estimation, and I have to go in and change things that because you see more as you go further. We talked about these things in 2017. Some of you was here and some of you wasn't. So in Romans chapter five, we're going to talk about verse five, and we'll go back to four later on.

Pastor West:
5 to 8 is talking about the subject matter is talking about two states of being. Fivethirtyeight is talking about two states of being. It's talking about two positions that we're in. Romans five through eight is addressing two groups of people. Say that again. Two states of being. Two positions. Two groups of people. And here's the two groups of people. It's either talking about the first item. Or the last atom? Not second atom. Because if you have a second, you might have a third or fourth. So the scripture uses that terminology. It says the first atom, and then it says the last atom. Now we know who Atom is, right? And I think I think the ones of you here, those who are listening, are in another time, another way. If you don't know, the last atom is Jesus Christ himself. Adam was the first son on the earth. Jesus came and finished what Adam blew up. And so in other words, you'll see that through Adam's transgression. He sold us. He sold out mankind because he was the you could say he would be the federal head for all humanity. Adam would be. And Adam, when he entered into sin, the whole sin died because of Adam's transgression. But then God sent Jesus, who was the lamb slain before the foundation of the world. So the first Adam got you in a world of mess. And the last Adam got you out of it.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen. Now, I know you know that, but there's going to be some things in this next 4 or 5 weeks you may not know it's going to be so good or it's going to be so breathtaking. You might go, oh, my gosh, that could that really be true? Amen. Amen. Now, if we run through it, you won't get it. But if you get this, it'll change your life forever. But people won't like you as much. Some people will love you. The the center will love you. If you get this message. The religious people throw stones at you. The religious people is the one who killed Jesus. The centers loved him. Hallelujah. Right? Yeah. And if I veer away from the scripture, you let me know. I mean, I'm just as human as anybody, so I'm up to human error as much as anybody does. But but I'm not going to say things that I can't find and substantiate in Scripture with at least 2 or 3 witnesses that would be established. So if you come to me, make sure you're established. I'm open to have you know, I'm open to have a conversation, but make sure that you understand your point very well and make sure that you find context in the New Covenant, because you can go into the Old Covenant. And I grew up in those kinds of churches in that church when I was a kid, it said, You're your righteousness is as filthy rags.

Pastor West:
What does it say that in the Bible? Was it true? Absolutely it's true. Is it true today? No, it's not true today. Now there's some micro religious person, real man. Since I'm since I'm out there, since y'all pulled me out there, I'm a squeeze. Y'all driving the boat. So. So just don't go too fast with me. David prayed things that was absolutely correct for his day. He said, Lord, please don't. Don't take your Holy Spirit from me, He said, and create in me a clean heart. You say, Well, what's wrong with that? Everything. There was nothing wrong with it during his covenant. And your covenant just. It's obsolete. Why would David pray? Lord, don't take your Holy Spirit from me. Because he seemed. And he he didn't want to lose. He didn't want to lose the anointing of God. He didn't want to lose the presence of God. And then then because he was seeing he said, Lord created me a clean heart. You've got to be superior because I'm running out of time already. God thinks he already has. So we're going to talk about position and condition. And so you'll have to check in with your position to see what condition you're in. If you check in with your condition in your mind, you'll think you lost your position. I'm going to slow. Make sure I don't mess that up. We are we're going to talk about a position and a condition.

Pastor West:
And your condition can change based on natural circumstances or when you make mistakes. Because when you make mistakes, you feel like the conditions changed and then you think you lost your position. And in all accounts, you should have. But God. But God. Thank you, Lord. So even when you won't feel righteous one day, you're just as righteous as Jesus. When you don't. When you don't feel like you are. The Bible says you have the mind of Christ. He didn't say you have one close to it, but it says, you know all things. It didn't say, you know, a lot of things. In your spirit, not in your soul, not in your body, but in your born again spirit. You know everything that God knows. Thank you, Elliot. Hey. In your spirit, in your born again spirit, which you got from God. Is your spirit. God's spirit? Well, how would you not know all things in your spirit? Amen. You say? Well, that can't be true. I was looking for my keys the other day, and they was in my right hand the whole time I was looking for them. I know. I get that. That's in your soul. Yeah. You know, you don't want to always tell those things to everybody before you ever look for you. You ever be looking for your glasses and you found them right there? And so in the so in the old covenant, you have people that that that they were prescribed to go certain ways and they were to go that way.

Pastor West:
But that's not this day. Amen. A new day is here. A new time has come. Amen. The scripture says that which is old has now vanished away. Except there was somebody, some preacher. He pulls them back from the dead and preaches it all over again. I think this book was written a long time ago. And it says it says it says the Old Covenant. In other words, it said the Ten Commandments is vanished away, but not every week they pull right back. You know, someone does the gets the defibrillators out and boom, it brings it brings the ten back. See you. We only have one commandment in John 1334, Jesus said a new commandment, I give unto you. What was the new commandment? That you love one another as I loved you. Now he says, So you love people the way I love you. Now, if you obey that, do you need Ten Commandments? I mean, if I love you the way Jesus loved me and gave his life for me. Do I need to tell you? Don't steal, don't kill, don't murder, don't covet. Don't know. So the Big Ten got all encompassed in the big one. Hallelujah. Amen. So Jesus came to fulfill the law. Now the law is good. It's holy, it's righteousness perfect. There's nothing wrong with it. It's morally wonderful. Over and over and over again.

Pastor West:
It tells you the purpose of the law was to bring man to the end of himself because man thought maybe he could do it. Man thought maybe he could keep it. God says no. They said, Well, just just tell us what you expect of us. You know, we want to know what you expect. You don't have to be good to us because you're good. Just tell us what you expect and we can do it. He said, okay, here it comes. So the law came with the ten and then God gave him 613 more commandments to go with the ten. So he gave him 623. The 613 are what we call the ceremonial commandments. And so there's a lot of rituals and there's a lot of things. There's you know, you've heard me talk about some of them. We make fun of 1 or 2 of them. It's not fun. It's just but it was they all had a purpose. In other words, you can't eat this. You can't work this day. You can't beat this, you know, on the Sabbath, you couldn't do any kind of work. You couldn't even you couldn't even build a fire for your family and cook. But if you want to get down right down to them and one of them, you can have a bowel movement on seven, which means you need to really watch what you eat for two days before then. Huh? You know, But people want to live two laws at one time.

Pastor West:
But you're not doing it. The Bible says no man's ever kept the law. You're going to be the first one. You're going to be the first one. What if you don't keep all of it? Well, James said. James said you ought to go for the grace through Jesus Christ. You ought to let him be the payment for your sin. James said. But you don't have to. You know, you can keep the law if you want to. He said, But, but. But if you miss just one point, he says, you're guilty of all of it. Well, you know, I didn't I didn't graduate top of my class, but I went at the bottom either. And I thought, well, see, I could just receive Jesus for the payment of my sins or I could. Or I could just be the payment. No, but James said, if you still have that choice to do that, if you think you can keep the law, then. But you've got to keep all of it or you're guilty of everything. But he said, Well, you know, I know people make mistakes, but but, you know, we we're we should keep the law. Well, how many of it they said, well, you should try to keep all of us, but what if you don't? Well, I mean, you need to not do the big stuff, so it's okay to do the little stuff. I mean, they said, well, I mean, I wouldn't go that far and say I said, Well, how far would you go? Say what you believe? In other words, James said, if you don't keep every law, you're guilty of every law.

Pastor West:
In other words, you could be 99% righteous and morally. But if you steal a pencil, you're a homosexual. It didn't take me long to get to my point. I just, you know, I'm trying to let you get the full weight of it. Have I said anything on scripture yet? So James said, if you don't keep every law, then you're then you're you're guilty of the other one. So so you need to become fascinated with who you are in the spirit. Are y'all listening to me? You ought to be fascinated with who God made you in the Spirit, because in the Spirit you're just like him. I say you're not kind of like him. You don't have part of what he has. You have all what he has. Now people say, Well, that ain't true because, you know, like, I lost my keys, I lost my this, I lost my glasses. You know, they was they was hanging on my shirt. Well, that's your mind. So, so so when we come into the heavenly, things come into heaven. Your mind, which is the natural mind, will be brought into submission to that, which is true in the Spirit. But in your spirit, you know all things in the spirit.

Pastor West:
You're awesome. Yes. Amen. Hallelujah. You would like you a whole lot better if you just find out who you were. That's right. Huh? Amen. Amen. And so we still have people who want to go through a system of of, you know, having someone to pray for them and they come tell their sins to them, you know, once a week or whenever they come and they sit in the booth and the one sits in the booth and they tell them everything. And I said, Well, that's that's scriptural. That was scriptural under the old covenant. It's not scriptural under the New Covenant. You say, Well, but, but, but it was there was a priest. Yeah. In the old Covenant. But Jesus has become your high priest. Jesus is your high priest. So you don't go to a man. You go to the man. And the man already came to you before you got to him. Amen. So when you go to a man, all you do is go to some guy who turns his collar around backwards and he's got a white shiny. He just turns around backwards. And you got this collar here, and then you just tell him all about you, huh? Well, he's not the Christ. Well, if he's not the Christ and he's acting like one, he must be the. Oh, the Antichrist. In my soul. I'm sorry. Jesus didn't have to turn his collar around. He gave his back. Amen. So you would be highly impressed if you just found out who you were in the spirit.

Pastor West:
Amen. And as a side note, I wish we had a whole seminar on this. And we could one day, especially when we start doing church every day for every day. Amen. Different people will be ministering. There's things that you say, Well, I don't know all the things you don't know, all things in your natural mind. But your spirit knows everything. Everything. Everything about your life, everything about your family. Everything about your future. Everything that's about to come. All the things that you're worried about. You have no reason to worry whatsoever because all the answers is in your spirit. Because you are. You are a spirit of your spirit. You've been born again of his spirit. You have his nature. You have his likeness, and you are called to function like him and the reason why. But when you don't know who you are in Christ, that means you don't understand your identity. So you don't function like him, even though you're called to function like him. Therefore, because you don't function like him in the image and likeness which you created, you don't function that way. That means you malfunction. Amen. But you don't have to malfunction when you got the function. And in first John, chapter two, verse 20 says you have a unction from the holy one. In other words, you have a special anointing from the holy one in which, you know, all things didn't say some things.

Pastor West:
You don't say most things a thing here and there says in your spirit, you know, all things, all things. And you have no man teach you anything. Mm. Amen. That makes most ministers mad. But most people do, because most people don't read or they act like they can't read. I guess they got a reading disorder. I was like, Well, what's the matter? Well, I get sleepy when I read. Well, sleepy people are lazy people who just get defeated. You could read, right? You can read a stop sign, can't you? If not, they're going to pull your license. Right. You could read a Cracker Jack box. See what you want. Well, so. So. So here we are. We don't go to a man to tell him our sins because we are. We already have the high priest. This is the New Covenant based on better promises. So here we're talking about Romans. We're talking about two positions, two individuals to two men. So that's what really verse mostly chapters five through eight, distinguish two positions, two state of beings, two groups of people, those who are in first. Adam Those who is in last. Adam. So either you're either in the first Adam or you're in the last. You say, Well, I'm kind of in between. No, you're not. No, we're going to kill the in between. You're either in Adam or you're in the last Adam. You're either in. You're either in Adam or you're in Christ.

Pastor West:
You say, Well, I'm in church. No, you're either in Adam or you're in the last Adam. And where will you be when you get to Jim and Nick's? Well, I'm Jim and Nick's. No, you're still going to be Jim, and Nick's in. In Adam. Or you're going to be in the last time. Everywhere you go, you're going to be in one of these atoms. Now, you do know I would have a scripture for that, don't you, sir? First Corinthians 15, if you can put this up. We're going to go to the Amplified. I don't know if it's the amplified or the classic amplified. Probably the classic, but I'm not sure. First Corinthians 1545 through 49. I want you to see this in the amplified so it'll be on the screen just a moment, but I'm going to start reading til I get there. It says thus it is written the first man. No, I think I'll wait. I want you to get this. Praise the Lord. Y'all doing all right? Amen. Amen. We only got 30 minutes. We got to go. Y'all may have a date over at Subway? I don't know. Subway slices their meat. Now, what's said on TV? First Corinthians 15, y'all. Are we there? 45 to 49. Amplified. You should have already gotten me Scriptures. I'm sorry. All right, here we go. Thus it is written. Yep. The first man Adam became a living being. And the individual personality.

Pastor West:
The what? Last item. See it first. Adam became a living being. He was an individual personality. But the last Adam whose. Which is. Who became a what? A life giving spirit. He restored the dead to life. Now, the first man. He's a living being, right? He's an individual personality. But the scripture calls Christ the last Adam, not the second, the last. There was no one had to come in behind him and clean up, huh? He became a life giving spirit. Restoring. Our next verse. Which would be verse 46, I suppose. But it's not the spiritual life that came first, but the physical, then the spiritual. The first man. Which is Adam was from out of earth. He was made of dust, which means he was earthly minded. All see that? The second man is the Lord of Heaven. Go. Now those who are made of the dust are like him, who was made of the dust, their earthly minded and as is the man from heaven, so are those who are of heaven, their heavenly mighty. Can you see a contrast? Made from the dust, he thinks Dusty. Second one is a life giving spirit. They didn't make Jesus out of dust, Huh? He's. He's. He's from heaven. And what kind of mind does he have? All right. Stay right there. And I'm going to quote this to you again. First Corinthians 216 says, You have the mind of Christ. Now we all have in heaven.

Pastor West:
You do have first, John 417 says as he is now, So are you in this earth? What are you going to do with that? Ask Jesus says now. So are you in this earth? Not when you get to heaven. Colossians Chapter three and Ephesians chapter three and four says, Put off the old man and put on the new man. And you're thinking. And your what? And you're thinking not in your spirit because it's already been put on. So you already have all Jesus in your spirit. Well, you know, all things. But how do you get what you know in all things out into your other life? Well, you have to begin to to understand who you are in this. And then will you accept that? And will you agree? Will you agree in your mind, will you renew your mind to the place that that was true in the spirit already? True in the Spirit is the reality. Amen. Amen. Which will be one of the hardest things you've ever done. Because you'll have to you'll have to trump your experiences because you know, your body, your family tree, which there's always nuts in everybody, in every tree. There's some nuts in there everywhere. Right? You just you don't have to tree back forward and you'll find flakes and nuts and all kinds of grapefruit and just wow crazy people. And they'll say, well, we first cut it. I said, We don't tell nobody. All right. So we lost.

Pastor West:
It's gone. No.

Pastor West:
Oh, well, yeah. Let's keep it. Next verse. And just as we have watched Airborne, the image just as we have because we were born into this life spiritually dead. Right? Because of Adam. So when we were born, you were you bore the image of the man of dust. But so shall we also let us bear now the image of the man of heaven?

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
So you couldn't help but because of Adam's transgression? I mean, you didn't do anything, but because Adam fell, You. You were born father, and you bore the image of a dust of a dusty man. But how many got born again?

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
So now we're supposed to take place. Now you're supposed to bear the image. What of the man of the man of heaven? So you're supposed to be heavenly minded now. Amen. So you can't walk around? I don't know. How can I do all that? I don't know. I just don't know. I know I can do all things, but not me. See that? We're going to call you Dusty if you do that all the time. I think the last verse 50 will be finished there. But I'll tell you this, brethren, flesh and blood cannot. Watch it now. Can. Cannot is kind of strong, right? It's the Bible tells you something that cannot then take it to the bank. Flesh and blood cannot become partakers of eternal salvation, and they cannot inherit or share in the Kingdom of God, nor does the perishable that which is decaying, inherit or share in the imperishable. We could go home. Right there. Yeah. Say, Lord. Think about that for a week. Break it up in little bitty pieces. But we got just a few minutes, so. So, once again, Romans five is about two atoms. In other words, there's nothing you could do to put yourself in either one of those. Mhm. Did you hear what I said? What did I just say? Nothing you could do too. What? And either one of those. All of you were born into the first atom and you had nothing to do with it. You say? Well, that ain't fair. I know, but Jesus Will was going to fix what's not fair.

Pastor West:
But when you were born again, you came out of the first atom. You and you came into the last item you came into. Christ real simple. So far, your only involvement was to believe. Y'all agree? Amen. Amen. Was it to work for your salvation? No. You heard a message and you believed it. Right. And the Bible says when you believe you went from spiritual death to spiritual life. You went from first item to last item. You went from earthly to heavenly. You became a new creature in Christ Jesus. Old things passed away. Why don't you lead them away? Hmm. So we want to we want to pick them up right now and bear that image. Because we have a mind, a body and emotions. We sit there and pay someone $100 an hour to tell them how we feel all the time, what we might feel that way. But most of them say, Well, what happened now, baby? Tell me how you felt about that. Well, then you can cry a bucket of tears because that's how you felt about it. But. But what's the answer? I mean, some kind of therapy. I mean, do I get a massage or. I do. I mean, what happens? Do you massage my emotions? I'm not all that might help to measure, but it won't be the answer. It's just it's just a band aid is all it is. In other words, someone asked me about two months ago.

Pastor West:
I won't even say who it is because you all may know. They said, How are you doing? I said, Well, I'm doing I'm blessed. They said, What do you mean? I said. They said, But then they come and said, Well, you mean you blessed? I said. I said, Well, I said, I'm blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. I said, Well, yeah, I know that, but but how you really doing? And I said, Well, hang on, I haven't had my Bible with me. So I thought, I can't believe you asked me that, not you. So I went to Ephesians one three. I said, Oh, I'm really blessed with every spiritual blessing to have place across. I said, Yeah, I know how you really do. And I said, Well, let me see how I'm doing. I looked over here for another scripture and I said, Well, as he is, so am I in the Earth. I'm complete in Christ. I got the fullness of Christ on the inside of me. That's how I must be doing. I see. Well, yeah, I know that. But tell me, how do you really feel nowadays? I said, Who cares how I feel? I don't care how I feel. Feelings ain't got nothing to do anything. Why are you so worried about how I feel? How you feel? So I said, Well, hang on, I got an answer for that too. I said, There it is. Second Corinthians five.

Pastor West:
So I walk by faith and not by how I feel. Oh, well, I guess I feel great. So. Yeah, but I know, but. But how do you, as a person feel? I said, Oh, I died. I don't know how I feel. I mean, you know, dead man don't talk no more. You're supposed to die. But we got some really live ones. Like a fish. You put them on the bank and flop flopping. They're trying to get back to the water. How do you feel? Trying to get well. How do you really feel, Mr. Fish? You're trying to work its way back to the water, y'all. Okay. So you had nothing to do with it? What did you. Adam sinned and died spiritually than you were born into this world in Adam right now. What did you do personally to be born with a sin nature? Nothing. What what acts of violence are saying? Did you commit to be born a brand new baby, born to one, born with a sin nature? What did the baby do? I mean, other than kick his mom around a lot and, you know, kept them awake and stuff like that. But I'm just saying they didn't do anything right. So then people who was in Adam. They died spiritually because of Adam's transgression, not even yours. You born with a sin nature. But when you get born again, the Bible says when you believe, then you become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. Right? That's what the Scripture says.

Pastor West:
So what did you do to become righteous? What righteous act did you perform To become righteous? What? What unrighteous acts did you perform to become unrighteous? Nothing. So it's about two people. It's about two positions. It's about two conditions. It's two understandings are either in Adam or you're in Christ. Either you are in the position of in sin or you are still in the law or else you're in the New Covenant. To jump ahead just a little bit. Probably shouldn't do this, but when you get to Romans chapter seven, Paul tries to explain this through a marriage relationship. In other words, and we'll get into it a bit later. But just Paul uses a marriage relationship to talk about really. He's still talking about he's never changed subject. He's talking about two people, two atoms, two positions, two two different kind of lives. So he says if a woman marries someone, he says she is bound by law to that person. Right. And which she says she can't just go get married again while she's married. It says. But if she if that husband passes or dies, she's now free to marry another one. It still works that way, don't it? Legally. Right. So Paul was saying, well, Paul is trying to tell you is when you were born in this world, you were born to Mr. Law. But then Jesus came and fulfilled the law and the law died. Freed you up to marry Mr. Grace.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
Amen. Apostle Paul was nowhere. So if you're married to Mr. Grace, why are you acting like you're still married? Also to Mr. Law. He said, because you can't be married to both. So are you married to Mr. Law? Are you married to Mr. Grace? So he uses the word. Paul uses the analogy of this that if when you're married to the one that you try to have interaction with the other, he said. That's called spiritual adultery. So when you when you live as a person born under the New Covenant in Christ, in grace, but yet you begin to put stipulations on others and yourself after Jesus, who who died once and for all time, He says you have now committed a spiritual adultery. So now your condition changes, but your position don't. In other words, your you did nothing to become a sinner. You was born into sin because of Adam, but because of Christ. You was taken out of the sin nature and you was born with a righteous nature. What did you do to be in either one of those positions? Nothing. It was just who you was tied to.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Right. So sin is gone because Jesus dealt with the sin. So now all that just leaves you with one position. It's called being right with God. It's called righteousness, which is also justification. Justified. Justified. Just breaking up simply means just if you are righteous, you are holy, you are justified, you are just. It's just as if I'd never sinned. And awesome. Justified means just as if I'd never missed it. So in your spirit, you're born again spirit, which is sealed from all sin. From all times. That's why you're just as righteous as God in your spirit. Because He put his spirit in you, then sealed it off. So sin can't touch it. So in your spirit you're just as righteous as Jesus himself right now on the throne. Amen. Amen. Thank you for those three bolsters. Amen. In your spirit. You are just as righteous as Jesus. You're just as holy as Jesus. You know everything God knows in your spirit. Now, what a little side note for you. Take five minutes to do this. 2 or 3 minutes. Do this. If you would pray in the spirit, if you would pray in tongues, because first Corinthians 14, I think verse 14 somewhere says, you know, it talks about praying in the spirit because then your spirit in your spirit, you know, all things. And when you pray, he says, it's the spirit.

Pastor West:
When you pray in tongues, it says it is your spirit that's doing the praying. And it goes on to say, in your spirit, you know, all things. But if you back up a verse or two, someone verse 12 or 13 says, But if you're going to pray in the spirit, pray that you also may interpret. Why? So that your mind will become fruitful for what you're saying. In other words, you're edifying yourself. You're building yourself up. You're charging yourself by praying in tongues because it's by the Holy Ghost. There's a lot of benefits to it, but your mind is unfruitful. You know? You don't even know what you're praying about. Way back there in the room praying this morning. Pre-service prayer back this morning. I don't know if this ever happened to me before like this Pastor Matt. He was back there praying. We was praying in the spirit after saying, you know. In English for a period of time and then came into the spirit and pray in the spirit. And so he was praying that he came to the end of praying. And we were kind of, you know. Coming to the end of the time of prayer. And then he just began to. Before he began to say some things about what he was feeling or thinking and saying. But that's not how the Holy Ghost told me.

Pastor West:
I was sitting there when he got there, praying in the Spirit. The Holy Spirit said, Now listen to me. He said, Here comes the interpretation. But. But it didn't come like you would think. Tone, interpretation come. And I was like, I was telling them back there, sometimes you have someone has the tongue and interpretation or one person has a tongue, the other person has the interpretation. It could be either way, right? So but it didn't sound like it came from the King James Bible. Did y'all know that Jesus did not preach King James? King James didn't get here at about 1600. Jesus was born before that. He was in the ads. So Matt was saying this is what I'm seeing. But before he said anything. Holy Ghost. Now, listen here. He said, this is the interpretation of what he and y'all were praying in the spirit. And now. Now here comes the interpretation. And I thought, well, okay. And I was thinking he might go into the, you know, make it sound like an interpretation. Now, he just started taking an English what he was seeing in the spirit while he's praying in tongues, that's called the interpretation. The Holy Ghost do same thing to you about your business, about your home, about your family, about your children, because he knows all things. But see in your spirit, you know everything to Amen.

Pastor West:
But what have you got to do? You just draw it out of your spirit. Because this is not a this is not a mr. Rogers sermon. I understand that. I mean, it's not that it's real weighty or meaty. It's not that because, you know, Paul told the Corinthians, I mean, the ones he talked to you most about the gifts was the Corinthian church. And they had gifts abounding so much to where Paul had to stop and bring order to their service because, you know, they were overlapping each other. They had 2 or 3 people trying to give a tongue at one time. Paul said, This is good, but it's out of order. So he had to bring order to it. But yet he said, this is the most carnal church that I ever visit. The ones who operate in the gifts the most. So it could be it could be that the reason why there are so many gifts in the church is because there were babies. They need a lot more help. And there was they couldn't just accept sometimes who they were in the Lord. So they had to have all these gifts in operation. Thank God for the gifts we want, the gifts we desire, the gifts. But we don't have to function by gifts to. Why? Because the word is our answer.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
The word is your answer. So when I tell you, you know all things and I can give you the scripture on it, you know, First Corinthians 216 says, But but he says, you have the mind of I didn't say Paul, it didn't say Mark or James. It says, You have the mind of Christ and you know all things, Well, what are you going to do with Scripture like that? So you have to say, Well, who me? I mean, Eric, I don't know. All things. My gosh. I don't even know what eight times eight is. Well, I do. It's 81, but I'm just saying. But but, but but that's the natural brain. He's not talking about your natural brain. He knows everything. Just like Kristen was talking about, you know, when she received the offering that God went ahead of Israel and Psalm 77 and said he marked the path where they would go across and deliver Egypt from Pharaoh's army before they ever got to the Red Sea. Which makes me think God can know the future. That's the joke. You understand? But he went ahead of them and decided where they would cross over. He anticipated your needs before you knew you ever had them. So why would you freak out about needs or how you feel when he already anticipated and supplied every one of them?

Pastor West:
Ha.

Pastor West:
In a good appraisal. Can we go to. We got ten minutes. Here we go. Can you all hang in ten? Okay. So Romans six contrasts people's position of either being in sin or in righteousness because it never changes. See, most people read Romans Chapter six. They think Paul changed subjects. And now talking about can I even be born again? Now we're going to talk about, you know, either sinning or not sinning. It's not what I was talking about. Because. Romans Chapter six, it starts off that way. Romans five was a masterpiece. And I wish we had when you read verses 17 through 21, it's awesome because it tells you grace will reign through righteousness. The grace of God, which supplied you with everything. Reigns through your righteous position. So if you don't know that you're righteous, you don't understand your position. You don't understand that your grace can't reign through nothing. There'll be no reigning. There'll be domination by by the devil himself. But when you understand that you're the righteous of God and that is your position, not, not, not your condition, because your condition will try to change on you. Then it will try to change. You know, he'll try to change the coordinates of this whole thing. He likes to change coordinates because he's wanting to affect your mind. So you'll think your conditions change because you could have a really bad day. You could make him a you could make a mistake and the enemy will just you know, he's called the accuser of the brethren. He's good at it, too, but he's good at that thing.

Pastor West:
Yeah.

Pastor West:
Revelation says the accuser of the Brethren comes up before for God all the time and says he accuses you all the time. Well, you know, Jack did this and he did that. And he said that he he cursed, thirsty. He got mad. And, you know, he he told someone they're number one on the interstate. Well, you don't need to do that and you don't have to do that. But see, you might have done good for 2 or 3 weeks and all of a sudden you slipped up. So you certainly don't feel righteous. Y'all here are gone. You ever not felt righteous? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, me too. You know, sin has a way of making you be a coward. Especially when you tell the Lord for the 15,000 time that happened again, didn't it? Well, but. But it didn't change your position. Why? Because. What did you do to get the position? Oh, you didn't do nothing, did you? Well, you did do something you believed. Amen. You believed in Jesus. Who was the atonement for all sin? Have you changed your mind about that? So they would like to get you focused on this sin act. And change your condition. Hopefully the change. He can't change your position, but if he can make you think your position changed. Yeah, but you had to say, Well, now wait. What did I do to get that position? Well, you might get a position to work that you earned. You didn't earn nothing to get this position. You just. You just had good sense to believe. So when you make a mistake, have you changed your mind about Jesus being the savior of the world? Well, how would you lose your position? See, the little Hebrew word of the gospel is too good to be true news.

Pastor West:
It's not just good news. It really means Greek scholars and Hebrew scholars says this. It means the gospel means it's too good to be true. It's a scandal. It's just like it's too good. I mean, it's wild. It's wild. So your position didn't change. But remember, you either. So we're talking about two different people in Adam or in Christ. In Adam or in last Adam. We're talking about two positions. You're either in sin or you're in righteousness. You're either in the old covenant or you're in the new Covenant. So So Romans 512 says, you know, by one man's disobedience, all became sinners. Who was who was the one man who was disobedience? Who would that be? Adam. But it also tells you by by another man, you all became the righteousness of God. Who's the other man and Jesus? So he says now, because you're in Jesus, he says, and you become a new creation. All things are passed away. All things have become new. And then, you know, Paul is not writing another chapter. He's still writing the letter. So he just says in verse, chapter, chapter six, verse one, he says, What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Verse two God forbid. How shall we that are dead to sin live any longer therein. So the more that you read this, you feel like now Paul's just changed.

Pastor West:
Like, okay, Jesus got you saved last week just as I am. You came up, you know, without one plea, but that the blood was shed for me and you receive Jesus. And then the next week, you're already made a mistake. You're sinning. So you read verse six and say, Well, shall we just continue in sin that grace may abound? Well, God forbid. Well, how shall we that are dead to sin live any longer in it. So you feel like you're like, Well, how could you make a mistake? Because why would you fail? Why did you sin? Because now you're the righteous of God. Well, can can anyone who's righteous make a mistake? But can't. Can't they? Has anyone ever righteous Who is the righteous God ever seen? Wow. How much singing can you get by with? I mean, I'd like to know the answer to that. I mean. I mean, what's too much? Which ones that the Lord doesn't pay that much attention to. Picture? Well, probably the big stuff. You know, powerful stuff. Go. It's not what James said. So you missed one. You're guilty of everything. You're a murderer. You're a homosexual. You're a lesbian. You're. You're everything. You're guilty of Everything. You're a child molester. You stole a pencil. That don't make sense. Sen. Sen. But he's not. Romans six is not talking about now that you're born again. Are you saying or not saying any longer? He's never changed his mindset of we're talking about two contrasts in two people. We're contrasting old life, new life for contrast in the law with contrast in grace.

Pastor West:
Two covenants, he says. So now that we are living by the grace of God, shall we sin? That which shall we go back to the law? Because now we've made a mistake, now we've sinned. And he says, No, God forbid, because, see, he said, Remember you died to this. See, look here. Verse three know you. Not that so many of us were baptized into Christ, Christ was baptized into death. Therefore, you were buried with him by baptism into his death. Now. Now. What caused Jesus to die? Our sin. Right. And you were baptized with him because of your sin. Symbolically, you were. He died because of your sin. He was buried because of your sin. True. Watch here. That, like as Christ, you was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father. Even so, now we should walk in the newness of life. What's the newness of life? This. This is this new covenant. So Paul says, Why would you want to go back and resurrect and go back under the law? Shall we sin? Shall we go back to the law? Shall we go back to the old method? Shall we go back to Adam because we sinned? God forbid. Don't go back to Adam. If you make a mistake. Dear God, don't go back to Adam. Who do you go to? Christ. Amen. So I asked you. I asked you. Now, this is where religious people really get off. You say, Well, what sins do God keeping up with? Getting ready.

Pastor West:
None.

Pastor West:
Nada. The Lord doesn't have an account book on you. He closed it. Colossians two said he closed it. See, Grace doesn't even keep a track of your sin any longer. Oh. Oh, my God, he said. I knew one day he slipped. He's lost his mind. You're right. I did. I lost my mind. Thank God I finally lost it. Colossians 214, The law book translation says Jesus came nailed that which was against you. What was against you? The thing that you transgressed. What did you transgress? You transgressed the law. He took the law. For he fulfilled the law for you as if you did it. See Jesus didn't just come fulfilled the law. He come as your substitute, as if you fulfilled it, as if you kept it perfectly, gave you the full credit for it, and then took everything that was contrary to you. Now, from the past, present, and even to the future. And he paid for everything at one time, nailed it to his cross, the lobby translation said. And he closed the account book forever.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
So you can't carry a balance over. You said you got me confused because I still make mistakes. I still sin. I know. You may say, but. But what? Huh? Do we still make mistakes? Sometimes. Yes, you do. So what's Paul saying then? He says, God forbid, don't go back out of the newness of life and go and go into the sin of the law. Don't don't go back to that standard. He said don't go back. You're married to Mr. Grace now. Don't go back and have an affair with Mr. Law. He said, Christ died to this one time. He's not going to come die for it again. What he did was forever. So he goes on to say, Reckon yourself dead. Dead to what? Dead to the law. Dad to be a transgressor. Dad to be separated from God. Dead to there. That you need to do something. That you need to add something to what Jesus did. What are you going to do to add to what Jesus did? If Jesus is what He did ain't enough, then what are you going to do to make it enough? You think I'm going to be able to do something? Good enough. I'm going to pick up where Jesus left off. I mean, just tell Jesus appreciate you coming. But, you know, we kind of have some more problems, so we had to do some more stuff. What did you do? I mean, you see what he had to go through to deal with your sin.

Pastor West:
So. So what are you going to do? No one can die for man's sins. It's already been done. No one was worthy to do it. Only one man did it. And then he called. What he did. Finished. So when you get on Hebrews and I'll stop here. So when you get into Hebrews, it contrasts the two. Paul keeps on giving you these understandings all throughout the New Testament. Hebrews, he contrasts the priest of the Old Covenant to Jesus being your high priest. He said he said the high priest of the Old Covenant, you would come and you would bring your lamb, right? You'd bring whatever your sacrifice, whatever it is, and you would bring it and the priest would have to inspect it first. He'd have to really. You couldn't bring the worst that you had. You had to bring the best that you had because it was going to be a type and shadow of the Christ that was to come. Christ hadn't come. He hadn't paid the price. So God instituted this way of man's sins to be not removed, but to be covered. But there was always guilty in their mind because there was never removed. So they would come to the priest and he would examine your your lamb, whatever that you had to make sure it had no blemishes to it. You couldn't bring, like I said, you couldn't bring a gimpy. So. Well, you know, you got a leg about half gone.

Pastor West:
So I guess we'll just take him Sunday. You know, like people walk up to dollar bills, you know, and it's like and Bill's been Dollar General 15 times this week. Finally made his way to the church. So you couldn't bring old gimpy. You had to bring your best. And then the high priest would examine that. And then when you go into the inner court and you see what was in the court, and I don't have time to go through all this, but if you was to go in there, you would see that there was no furniture in there. He would go in there and he was, you know, cut his throat and the blood would be a type of the blood of the shed and the sacrifice that Christ would give. So we got the best sacrifice that you got. And the priest had to say, okay, we can use this one or this is not going to work. This one has blemishes all over. You go back and get your best. So he would offer that lamb's life and he would put the blood, you know, upon what we would call the mercy seat for a forgiveness for your time, whether it was, you know, once a year when you would come, you would tell this man your sins that still works in some areas today, right? With the collar turned around, just do a box. Which is once again, that's called Antichrist.

Pastor West:
Hello?

Pastor West:
It is. I'm not against people. I'm just saying it's anti Christ. I don't care who does it. No man is the high priest for Jesus. You don't go to a man and tell him what you did wrong. Please don't. Please don't come. Tell me. I'm just going to punch you. I'm just a pointer. I'm like a I'm, like, on the interstate. You know, you're traveling these signs, you know, Holiday Inn, you know, Zaxby's Restaurant or whatever. I mean, Shell Gas station, three miles ahead. I just point right ahead. Right here. Right. I'm just a pointer. I ain't never come. I'm the restaurant. I'm the hotel. I'm the gas station. I'm just a pointer. I just pointed Jesus all the time. You know why? Because he's always right. And if you act like him, you'll look smart. Whether you are or not. You don't have to be smart. You can just look like you are. Just act and talk like Jesus and they'll think you just smart because you are, because you just agree with him. So he would examine your lamb. So there was no there was no place for the priest to ever sit down that day. You know why? Here's the only reason why. When they would come lines of people and offer their sacrifice, there was no furniture in the inner sanctuary because there was no place for him to sit because his work was never finished. Hebrews said when Jesus came one time for all people, for all sins Forever did it, and sat down. He sat down to preach, never sat down because Jesus is through. It's called a finished work finished. So in the old Covenant the priest is examining your sacrifice to see if it's worthy.

Pastor West:
In the New Covenant. Jesus is your sacrifice and he don't need to be examined. He is worthy. Amen. So. So it's not someone examining you to see if you're worthy. They don't look in our company. They don't look at us. They look at Jesus. Is Jesus worthy? So now what did you what did you do to to be guilty of all sins when you were born into the world? Nothing. Who did it? Adam. Why were you spiritually dead? Adam sinned. But when you believed upon Jesus, you became the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. True. What did you do? What did you possibly do to become righteous? As righteous as Jesus? Nothing. So your position changed. So the enemy tried to takes the conditions of your world. Some of your worst days and say, well, you can't be the righteous God. You do this. You did that. You didn't do this. You didn't do that. You see, he wants to put the focus on you. And every time you put the focus on you, you take it off. Jesus. So you put the focus back on Jesus. So when I make a mistake, see first John three says, your heart tries to condemn you. Eric would say, don't let it. Don't let your heart condemn you. Now, if it's wrong, it's wrong. And say, Lord, forgive me for that. I'm sorry. That shouldn't have happened. I'm sorry that happened. That is wrong for that to happen. Thank God for your grace. To help me, to empower me. To teach me so that this doesn't go on. This. This comes to a stop. I'm empowered by the grace of God to stop. I don't live in sin because I don't live in Adam.

Pastor West:
That's right.

Pastor West:
We're not contrasting in Romans six. Either sinning or not sinning. We're contrasting law or grace. Adam or Christ. First Adam. Last Adam. Mr. Law. Married to Mr. Law. Married to Mr. Grace. Which one? Mr. Grace. So. So once you have died to this, why would you go back and commit adultery and come back into the law of things when you already have lived in the grace of God? Don't change your position because something happens with your condition one day. So when I make a mistake, when I fail, I acknowledge it. So when the enemy comes and the accuser of the brethren says, You this and you that and you that, and I say, I was wrong, but you're not my high priest. I don't confess anything to you. But even when I was wrong, I was still the righteous to God in Christ Jesus. And I was still your master. Even when you made a mistake, you were still the devil's master because he's spiritually dead forever. And you're spiritually alive forever.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Now, that's good, Preacher. That is good, preacher. Not because I said it. Because the Bible said it. Amen. Thank God. That is good preaching. Even when. Even on your worst day, your worst day, you are your foot is still on the devil's head. You are still right with God. Can you see the position and the condition? We all know that we make mistakes. And when we fail, let's just say what it is. It's sin. It condemns our heart, right? Because most of us fail on the same areas. We don't pick new ones. Yeah. Always get quiet when I say that. But I just understand human nature. Huh. Anyway, there's. There's some things that people do that you know. Then, you know there's a place to be free from that. No one says that you. You're not trapped into that lifestyle. The more that you understand who you are, your identification, the sin will lose its appeal to you. When you understand who you really are, the things that grips you and wants to and the flesh wants these things, the flesh will lose all desire for them. In other words, you'll begin to hate what God hates and you'll love what God loves. But while you're in that transition of renewing your mind, the enemy doesn't have free reign with you because Jesus has already paid for you. You belong to Jesus. So the devil don't call the shots. You call the shots. So even when I make the mistake and I fail, you are still just as right with God as you was before.

Pastor West:
Because you can't lose your position because you didn't do anything to earn it. How do you lose what you what you did nothing for? Amen. But you have to see both sides. You did nothing to become sin, but then you did nothing to receive righteous. You believed. And then you became the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. That's awesome. That's awesome. That's awesome. So don't go to these people with the collar, turned around, start talking to them. Jesus paid the full price. It's finished. It's done. So? So you ought to be, you know, if you want to be impressed with something, you ought to be impressed with, with the righteousness of God, who you are in Christ. That's the most impressive thing that I know. This message changed my life. Still changed my life. Anything that I could preach, if I if I just did what I. I preach this all the time, man. I love to hear preaching about the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. Amen. Amen. You don't even you don't even have to hear one healing message to be healed. Do you know that Jesus never preached one healing message? Paul never preached one either. We have conferences for healing. That's okay. But they never preached one message about it. Jesus went around just preaching the kingdom because the kingdom encompassed all that. The sick got healed because he was good. He was merciful. He was kind. And he paid the price. But. But sometimes we'll just preach all these sermons about different things, you know, you know, for people to have knowledge and understanding.

Pastor West:
But you don't have to preach healing to be healed. May Jesus never did it. When he sent the disciples out, all he told them, He says, Now, when you go, when you go, he says, he says, Tell them. Tell them the kingdom's come to them. He didn't say, Tell them the healers come. He didn't say, Tell them Powers Come. He said, But I'm going to send you out with power and you can tread upon every serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy. He says, Now, when you get there, Luke, nine, ten and Luke 12, somewhere in there, he said he gave him power. He says, when you when you leave me, he said, you go by twos. He says, when you go he says, Preach the kingdom. He said, Heal all the sick people. He said, There's dead. Raise the dead. He said, there'll be devils will cast out devils and I give you my name. When Peter and John went to the gate. Beautiful. Did they preach a healing sermon? They approached him. Did they preach about the power of the Holy Ghost? All they said. All they said is look on us. You got. You got a whole group of so-called believers and Christians who would never say, oh, I don't know. I would never say, look on me. I won't say that. No, I wouldn't go. I wouldn't say no. That's just blasphemous. Brother, Say, look on us.

Pastor West:
We'll tell Peter and John that when you get to heaven, you all just blasphemed. Peter said, you know, the man was blind. Right. So he's begging. And Peter said, We didn't bring any money with us. He said, Silver and gold, have we? None. But such. Such as I have. Oh, such as I was. Oh, such as he has. Who do you think he is to mark what he has? Peter said, Well, such as I had. I can give it. Oh you can give what you have. You know you can't give what you don't have. But you can't give what you do have. Said I don't have silver and gold. He said, But I have something that's even better than silver and gold such as I have. He said, Be healed the name of Jesus and took his hand and picked him up. Such as I have never preached anything about healing. The guy had never walked. He's 40 years old, never walked in his life. And Peter just said, I didn't bring money with me. The guy was asking we kid about it, Said he was asking for arms and money, but he ended up with legs. And he stood up and he was, you know, and it caused a big stir. You know who's mad? The religious people. Yeah. Yeah, they were. They were flogging Peter and John and whatever. And the church grew by 5000 people in just a few days. He's just such as I have. What do you have?

Pastor West:
Well, you know.

Pastor West:
In the sweet by and by. Well, we don't leave in sweet, by and by. There ain't no problems over there. And the sweet. By and by. When the sweet by bye by. That'd be glorious. But what are you going to do here in the nasty, here and now? He said, Well, boy, I tell you what, I'm going to learn about these things when I get to heaven. I'm going to give the devil what for? Well, he won't be there, sucker. I mean, you can't give him what for? He's not welcome there. He's been kicked out. He's homeless. Dear God, why would you listen to a homeless person all the time? Take. Take counsel from a homeless person. How stupid can you be to get kicked out of heaven? Well, praise God. So I just say right now, just be healed. Whatever it is you got going on, if you got anything on whatever you guys got going on out there, though, you those of you who listen in another time, wherever country that you're in, it's not hard to find people who are sick. All you got to do is wake up and look. So in the name of Jesus, you know, whether you're listening to this live or whether you're listening to it four years from now, or if you find this broadcast and the church has already been raptured for you or not. You know that will happen. It'll be a terrifying place for people to live in, but it will happen. People the biggest, the biggest. Don't do it this way, but the biggest harvest that'll ever take place will be when the church is gone.

Pastor West:
During that seven years. So if you listen to that broadcast at this time, still have faith in Jesus Christ. So still you can receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and savior. Still, you can become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. What does it make you feel? Good? Righteousness. Just make it real simple. What does that mean? Because you accepted Jesus and he became the atonement. He became the payment for all your sins. Past, present and future. When God looks at you, he says, There. Right. How does it make you feel when you hear the scripture says, Now you're right with God. You got even people who don't even like you. Well, not some of y'all. Some of y'all. Probably everyone likes y'all, but some of us have people who don't like us. Not all of us. Can you imagine people not liking you? That's hard to believe, because I know to know me is to love me, too. To know me is to love me. Right? But you have people who don't even like you. But you're right with God. Boy, that'll just do something to you right there. You get in a hard place and you say, Well, it all looks wrong, but I'm right with God. So this thing is going to turn out amazing. I don't know what's going to happen, but it's going to be major. It's going to be major. If God wouldn't mark the path of the Israelites, if God can mark a path underwater, what do you do above the ground? I mean, how do you get a chalk line to stay down there in the water?

Just. Wow. Mm.

Pastor West:
That little cartoon, Moses and another guy right there. The cartoon. And I was trying to get the guy to jump off the bank into the river. He's about to jump. And I said, Well, jump, jump. He says, Well, I don't want to jump right there. He said, Well, jump. Hurry. Jump. We got to go jump. He said, I ain't going to jump. You make Moses go away. He thought Moses might just chicken just part out and he'll he'll hit the dirt. Or bless God. Hallelujah. Did y'all get that?

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
We'll become established in it and become masters in it. Amen. And by this time, you ought to be teachers anyway. Amen. God bless you.

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Possessing The Promise Part 3 | 6Aug2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Possessing The Promise Part 3 | 6Aug2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Good morning and welcome to our service here this morning at Gracelife Church. Good to see every one of you here this morning. Y'all look good. Amen. Y'all must have showered and put on the good smell and shaved to mock me and praise the Lord. And I want to remind you of a special meetings we're having with Win and Glenda Goss. If it matters the win. If you want to put him in an office, he he's an office of of a prophet and a teacher. And he's always had the Ministry of Music. He's for years, he he traveled and he sang and they wrote songs and recorded music. But what an interesting testimony he had, I think, in his first book called Don't Kick the Donkey. He talked about in the beginning of the book how he was going through situations in his life and he decided life wasn't worth living. So he went up on a large cliff and begin to end it all. And before he he in the book, it's kind of funny, he said, I looked over the cliff. He made the decision while I was on the on the ground. And he walked up to the mountain and he says, we looked over. He looked a lot further down than it did when he was looking up at it. But anyway, he couldn't see going forward any longer. So he, before he jumped off, plunged to his death, the end of his life, which he thought would bring him, you know, to a place of just peace.

Pastor West:
That's not peace. He heard a voice behind him, said, This is not my plan nor my will for your life. And told him to go home and his whole life was changed. So he pastored for a number of years. Several years. He he lives in Wales and ministers a lot in that area in England. Lived in the United States for in Louisiana for a number of years. So he's well familiar. So it may be I think he said the first state that he ever ministered in was was Alabama. I think that's correct. Pastor Mike and Pam Pearson and Pam went on to be the Lord and Pastor Mike's living in Atlanta now. He they pastored a church in Sylacauga for a number of years until Pam passed. And then he's remarried. So I think they're going to be coming to the meetings. So these meetings are not church services. We won't have we will not have a service here that Sunday morning, but there will be a Saturday night and a Sunday night. We're going to be staying at the hotel because we're kind of hosting the whole thing. Along with pastors Randy and Mary Green. We're co-hosting Wynn and Gwen to Coming Together. And so they're they're flying. I could have had him, Gene, but he was he was an American, Gene.

Pastor West:
But he's doing several meetings, and I knew we'd be at the end of it. I didn't want to fatigue him doing that. And I said, Just tell me what it would cost to get you from from Wales to Alabama. And then if you want to, then actually he's going to California, but that'll be after us. Then he'll go home. But he's, he's coming for the purpose of getting on the plane, traveling almost 20 hours to come see you. Amen. That's a lot. That's a lot of traveling. And I think I think he's I think he just turned 70. So we haven't got to see him. You know, I don't think since 2018. And, you know, we got into Covid and he was not able to travel any longer. And, you know, they don't have a constitution like we do in Wales. So they they had to stay in their home and they was only given so many hours, 1 or 2 days a week during that time that they could leave their home for groceries or to, you know, run errands or see a doctor or whatever they had to do. So that went on for quite some time. So his means of income and traveling stopped in one day. But the ministry never stopped. So we're really excited about seeing him. He he he told us 3 or 4 times, he says, you know, I would never lie to you.

Pastor West:
I said, Of course. Why? He said, Well, Glenda just loves all people. Amen. And he says she loves he would come to America if she can only go to one place in America with me. She wants to come here. So she hasn't got to come in the last two times he was here. So she's really looking forward to traveling with him. But she says there's something about well, she didn't say me. She said, there's something about Michelle that I'm attracted to in this church. She said, I just feel I can't hardly wait when I get to Gracelife Church. Amen. So what was your favorite restaurant? She was kind of sad at Closed Macaroni Grill. I said it didn't make it. And she says, Well, you know, like, my gosh, is is America still open? Then I said, Yeah, it's open. But, you know, it didn't make the cut. So we'll have to wrestle the alligator the other way, turn him over. So we've been talking about possessing the promise. Y'all got 45 minutes so I could spend with you. Can you stay alert for 40, 45 minutes? Now you're thinking, can I do it in 45 minutes? But I can. It's not it's not so much me covering all the material. It wouldn't do any good if I had three pages or 23 pages. It wouldn't. It wouldn't be it might make me feel better to to deliver what was delivered unto me.

Pastor West:
But it would be better that we get it if we only covered three, 2 or 3 ideas or one idea, rather than say we covered it all. It's like Michelle was talking about and I'm not against this, and you do how you want to do it. I've never I've never liked a Bible plan that tells me today, read this, this and this. In a year you can read the Bible. That's that's okay. But I mean, what did you do? I know it'll give you a plan. And it's got some, you know, it's got some advantages to doing that. But I you know, some people say, well, I read one. I told me, I said, well, I read the Bible in the Hebrew. And I said, Well, you know, I studied Greek. I read it in the Greek. They asked Smith Wigglesworth one time said, How did you read the Bible? They said, You read in the Greek and the Hebrew. He said, No, I read it in the Holy Ghost. Amen. Turned out his way was best. So we're talking about possessing the promise. And we've been we've been looking in the old covenant. We looked at the Israelites and when they came out of Egypt and God had a promised land for them. And some people, I think, have mistakenly, through the years, have talked about their taking that idea that God has a promised land for us.

Pastor West:
We don't have a promised land. We have a promise. They had a land, a specified land that God had picked out, but he wanted them to inhabit us in the new Covenant. Everything that we have is we have because we're in Jesus, we are in Christ, and so we are to possess. Peter said all the all the great, wonderful and partaker of the precious promises through the knowledge of God and His Word and his glory. So we have to position ourself to possess. We have to, we have to possess it. It's not that he hands it to us. The New Covenant. It says he did it. He worked it. He finished it. He did it for you. But you you have to position yourself to take possession of that. I mean, someone could give you a car or give you a home, but there has to be a transaction. And the transaction that we use is two primary things. It's called grace and faith. It's the same way that you got saved. It's the same way you're going to receive any promise from God. You're not going to get it in any other way. Well, we know that the Israel Israel did not receive the promise. We know that they got over there and then Moses sent out spies, you know, to see which way they would go in. And they should come back.

Pastor West:
You see, you know, God said it's a land that flows with milk and honey. If you can get it, get some evidence. So they snuck over there. They's gone for 40 days and they brought back the evidence. There's 12 of them. He picked out the sharpest and the brightest he picked out. Now, we said before, he didn't pick out the wannabes. Hope two B's could be he picked out the sharpest and the brightest to go search out the land. And now the out of the 12 sharpest and the brightest ten came back. And and the Bible says they brought an evil report of the land. It wasn't evil because it was barren. It wasn't evil because it wasn't what God said it was. They said, we can't possess it because the giant there's giants there, there's fortified cities, there's walls there. And we are in their eyes as grasshoppers. And the Bible says what they brought up was evil because God said it was good. And they said, No, it's evil. Well, I'm really jumping far ahead. Any time you disagree with God, when God says you are good and you say, I'm not good, I'm just a jerk. Because sometimes we think when we debase ourselves and we say, well, I'm just I'm just not anything. I'm just not much. Or they'll go into the, oh, I'm just a worm in the dust. The. Well, when the word says that you're more than a conqueror and you say that you're not a conqueror.

Pastor West:
When the word says you are valuable, you are loved, you have worth, you have you have integrity, you have great value to God. And you say, no, I have no value whatsoever. I'm just this and I'm a failure. I'm this like this. Some people think that you're being meek when you debase yourself. You're not being meek. Well, I'm trying to be nice. You're being rebellious is what you're being. And the problem is, is you're full of pride. See, pride has to. Pride is you resisting God. Resisting God. And you saying the opposite of what God said about you. Based on your saying that based on your life, your experiences, maybe your childhood growing up, the sum total of what you've learned in life and done in life, you choose that as your identity. And we're in a world now that identity is so far off the radar. I mean, it's you know what I'm talking about. I won't get into all that. But it's so far from this book right here. And and now we're supposed to give them rights. And I understand that no one wants to pick a fight, and I don't want to pick one either. So why don't you just leave them alone if they don't bother you? Because I read here I was supposed to warn them. Amen. Not threaten them. Warn them.

Pastor West:
Mm.

Pastor West:
You know the New Covenant. Paul even told Timothy if he was going to be effective. He said, You'll have to live the life in front of them. He said, Then you'll have to teach them. He says sometimes there'll be others. He said, you'll have to correct. He says, Timothy, I know you're young. He said, There'll be some that you'll need to rebuke. Now if you've got to rebuke them, he said, Dude, in meekness and kindness, he said, Because a spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down. Sometimes it don't go down either way, but it's like a veterinarian time. One time they asked him a question. I know I told the story several times, but I was in this meeting. It was funny, true story. This this guy, he was a he was in the business, but another business. But he actually went to Auburn and he became a veterinarian. Then he moved to Kentucky and got into business. And actually they had a multi-million dollar network business. And but he was talking about, you know, a horse and he says and how you worm a horse and the instrument you use. And it's a big old tablet to worm in the palm. And he kind of just put it down their throat and and it blows it down and into their throat and down their stomach. And he said, of course, sometimes he says he says, it's happened to me as a veterinarian. He says sometimes the horse coughs.

Pastor West:
And I said, What happens while you're worming? And they said, Well, what happens? He says, Well, the horse worms, you, he coughs and the worm goes back the other way about that big appeal and then you get wormed. Well, I had a point to that, but I just completely forgot what it was. But it's a really good story and it's actually true. Well, we want to possess the fullness of what Jesus has. Not just for us. So we have things, but we want to we want to help people. We want to be the the blessing. When we were praying this morning, I didn't say anything while we were in there. He said. It's really important that we as believers, he said this church and he was talking to me directly just reminded me of my instructions. He says they'll need to be established. He says, for the time is short. Much shorter than what you would know or realize, you know? But even before we leave here, we'll see things that we may not have thought we was going to see. We might go through a few things normally for fear for this, but in other words, the Book of Psalms in 91 says, he says a thousand will fall at your side and 10,000 by your right hand. Now words. You'll see it, but it won't come nigh to you. In other words, it'll be close enough that you can see it.

Pastor West:
But he didn't say you'd have to experience it. So before we leave this planet, you know, there's he gave us signs. He gave us all type of things. He gave us indicators. No one no one knows the day nor the hour. But he said you would know the season. And then he rebuked. He rebuked people for not knowing the season. He said, how come? How come the sons of his car. No, no. The days that they're in. And yet my, my, my church don't even know what time it is. So he wanted us to be ready. He wanted us to understand the time and some signs that you give. You have to understand the timing of it. Some are for the second coming. Some are for the rapture. Well, there actually is no signs whatsoever for the rapture. It's the second coming. In other words, if you if you the second coming is we're in heaven for seven years, the marriage supper of the lamb and the reward seat. Then we come back to the come back to the earth after the tribulation. So when you see when you see the signs of what it's going to look like after we come back before we leave. In other words, if it was a if you were standing on this side of the of the bank and there was water out there, and then there's the other bank, if you can see what it looks like on the earth right before we come back.

Pastor West:
And you can see it before we leave. How close are you? You're real close. And so we there's things that we'll see that we might experience. And you're seeing the setup of the Civil War. I hadn't talked to Wayne about it, but I noticed in the UK a couple of years ago, they're getting they're working on getting rid of all cash and they've already got rid of some of their cash. They gave me so long in 2022 to spend this and spend this because it'll be of no value. You can burn it or turn it in. That is the setup for a one world government. Now, according to my study, if it's right, according to what I what I've heard and what I see and what I what I when I study the word, there will be a the temp for the one world government. But it won't happen while we're here. It'll happen during the tribulation if it happens at all. And it will happen, to my estimation, to my study. It will happen. But. But. But you won't see it. You'll see the beginning stages of it. You'll see it's already in progress right now. There's more going on in Washington than they're going to tell you about. That's always been true, but it's working that way right now. You know, if you could control the money flow, you can control everything.

Pastor West:
That's right, man. All you got to do is control the money. When people are hungry, they'll do anything. So this is not something for us to fear. And matter of fact, he said, we was praying and I said I had a little mini vision. We were praying about the service and all of a sudden I just had a little mini vision. Can I share it with you? He said, It'll happen quickly. He said there'll be a spread of what I'm going to do before I come back. He said, You know, just like you see a forest fire, He said, You know what started it? He said, A little match can burn. Tens of thousands of acres, can destroy homes, animals and people's lives. With a little match, someone could throw out a cigarette on the side of the road and destroy thousands and thousands of acres. He said. Such a little match. And I thought about James chapter three. But you know, the match, as small as it is, he's talking about your tongue. He said. James three says, your tongue is the smallest member of your body, he said, Yet it sets your whole world on fire. He said it can bless, it can curse, it can be a whole cursing, it can bless, have all kinds of iniquity in it. He said, Your tongue should not bless nor curse. In other words, the fountain shouldn't have bitter water and sweet water.

Pastor West:
So decide which one you're going to do. He said, Because when my people are becoming established and as they become established and as they speak their word, he said, the word will go out like fire everywhere and it will consume everything that every foe against it. Amen. So we don't have to be afraid. We can be prepared. We can even take some natural things and prepare to do things, if there's any. We were talking with the Greens yesterday about this so we can take some natural steps just to prepare if there's interruption of things. Not the absence of them, but the interruption of things. Are. You mean now? How come we get up on all that? Well. Because the generation that's alive when Jesus comes is going to look different than any generation they've lived on the face of the Earth. Amen. You know, if there was just one sign, just one sign that Jesus gave us of all assurance to know when to know the season in which he's going to come if there's just one and there's many. But if we just had to pick one, he said. The generation that's alive when Israel becomes a nation, that generation will not pass away until they see see him coming. Well, Israel became a nation in 1948. This is 2023. A generation, according to that study, is 100 years. Well, that means on the outside, you'd have 24 years. He didn't say, I'll come on the 100th year.

Pastor West:
He said that generation, which means it could be before we leave here. So it's not a time to play. This is probably a time to pray. Amen. It's it's a time of a great harvest. That's why these little tools she was showing you about the father's love letters. It's so easy to give it out. Then the QR code, you know, just takes you right here to the ministry. Not that they need to come to us, but it gives them a place to. In other words, it takes you right to the website. They could access, you know, tons of sermons then links that we have to other ministries just simply by handing out. You know, just a little track. Well, someone handed out Matt Gober a little track. He was in the hills. Hells Angels motorcycle Club. And he was he was a hell young, but his whole life got turned around. Not in one day, but but just that track. He was so far away from the God that the woman who gave him the track. You know, he he he hit her in the face with his fist. Mac did. Now, you met Mac. We've had him 3 or 4 times at our church. And Mac can't preach a sermon without crying. He's with Jesus now. But how many people's lives did Mac take? And of course, Kaneland is still down there. His sons and his wife still have.

Pastor West:
It takes people from all over the world who don't think that they can live one more day tomorrow without a fix, without a needle, without a whatever. He only has so many beds to put them in. He houses, he feeds them and doesn't charge them a dime. Well, he did that for years before he had kaneland. He took them home. How many people would take these people off the streets you don't even know into your personal home. Max said he was really concerned. He said, Because I'm traveling and trying to preach and I've got to create enough money to do this and an income. And I had these people in my home and I'm gone. I don't know how much wisdom that is, but they all lived. Let's. So he has two sons, Joshua and Caleb, and a daughter named Rachel, and they're still traveling on the ministry. But, you know, financially. So I ever preached was when I went down to Kaneland years ago. I think I went there three times and preached. Easiest place in the world to preach. No reflection of you all. But I just when I left there, I was like, Wow, that was amazing. And someone asked me, So what was so amazing about it? I said, Because I was with hungry people. Amen. And when you when you were with people who's not hungry, they're not interested. You can't hardly get it out. I don't care what you study.

Pastor West:
I don't care if you're annoyed. I don't care if you know every Greek and Hebrew word when there's no draw on it. When you do the milkshake and there's no straw. And if there's no sucker, you just stay in the cup. And what was interesting now, because they'd already told me, he said, Now you can do this either way. Have your little piece of paper. And he said, It'll be like 26 million a day in the room and you can put down row two. He said, how some have done it. Row two, row, three, row four or whatever. And he said, because if you flow in any of the gifts, he said, they're going to be in operation. You're going to get words constantly. He said, But don't do that. You're here to teach them three classes. He said, Can you do three classes? I said, I think so. Three 50 minute classes. I think I can. And he was right. I'm preaching. And all of a sudden I just see this and I just know this. And I don't even know any of them in the room. But I know by the word of knowledge or word of wisdom, whatever it is. And I had to write down row three second from the end or whatever, and then get with them after the break and just give them words of knowledge. Don't even know them. And when you get down to the preach and you say, well, start turning your Bible to whatever they say, yay.

Pastor West:
You know why? Because Matt told him. He said the word your answer, the words your life. Then when you finish the class, you say, well, that's that's three for today. They go, Oh, but but they're so hungry. Why? Because they're desperate. Because they can't live life anymore. They didn't want to steal their neighbor's lawn mower. They didn't want to pawn everything from their family that they had, but they were desperate. Their body demanded that they do certain things. Max had them out there, you know, when he was alive. He had them in the gate. He just didn't have the financial means to take all of them in. And they'd be out there, some of them, you know, with a needle in their arm and saying, please, we're going to die. Please take us in. Please. He just cried like a teddy bear. Same guy used to knock off banks. Know have a beard down right here. And he said, I have so many critters living in there. He said. He said, One time we went and robbed a Krispy Kreme doughnut store. He said, we got all the money and some doughnuts and ride my motorcycle, eat doughnuts. And he says, you know, all the you know, all the sugar and, you know, piece of doughnut. He said, Get my beer. And he says, And the critters, you know, eat it 3 or 4 days later.

Pastor West:
Break into churches hiding from the police. And he said, we we we break in churches because we knew they never looked there. He said, But we always smoking dope. So we just take the Bibles. People left there. We'd tear out pages and make papers that smoke dope in them. But God saw value in that man. Amen. Amen. Amen. He saw an evangelist in that man. Mm. Amen. He said, I got saved. And he said. He said, the whole world changed on me. He said. All of a sudden I started we I got saved when I went out and he said, I saw ants. Big Mac, you know, he only had 1 or 2. He said, I think he had two teeth. He says, like fangs. He still had the long beard. You know, it just came out of the headlines. He got saved and he said all sudden the grass was green, the sky was blue. And I looked down and there's a little bit of ants. He said, Hey, little fellers, big man. And he tried to step over him. What happened? He got a new nature. Amen. Did he know much about the book? No, But he knew. He knew Jesus came and changed his whole life. Amen. Amen. He said I wanted to help people do things that I was, you know, I hadn't got cleaned up yet. He says. I went one day and I was in the parking lot and it was raining.

Pastor West:
And I saw a woman struggling to get her, you know, her her groceries in the trunk. So I went over to help her and she says, you know, he says, I always a sight, you know, I had two teeth, fangs. And he says, Here, let me help you. And she she thought he was going to rob her. And she she screamed and she hollered. And he says, I just went away. And I cried. He said, Because I hurt that woman. I wanted to bless her, he says. He says, my appearance scared her. So he said, I went into this place. He said it was a place to get your hair cut in the mall. And he sat down and he said, What do you want to do, sir? He says, I don't know. He said, I need to look different. He says, he says, he says I need a Christian haircut. He said, Why? He said a Christian haircut. He said, Well, look at that guy going right there to the mall. He says, I think like him. He says, Yeah, he said, that's. He said, I think that's a Christian haircut. Do that to me. You know. So because he didn't want to scare people anymore, he wanted to love them. Amen. And it's funny, he had all the love in his heart, but he didn't have the looks on his face.

Pastor West:
And the world thought he was scary, but actually, he. He was a lover of Christ. Amen. It makes you think You're saying we don't, said God looks on the heart. Man, Look on the outside. We judge based on what we see, what we think we know about someone. Lord, tell me one time and I'll get back to my lesson, he says. He says, Don't ever talk about him. He said, don't ever decide who they are or what they are. He said, even if even if they're guilty of what you know about and you've come to know about them, don't ever decide that's who they still are. He said, Because you never know. He said, you never know. He's he told me, he says, I'll tell you this. The one that you think so lowly of right now. He said, You don't know how many hours he's been in his prayer closet crying out for me to deliver him. He said, and I'm forgiving him. You're talking about him? He should. It grieves me. He said. It grieves my heart. Wow. Hey, man, what are we talking about? We don't really know how much God loves people, to what extent he'll go to deliver them. And it's funny how the church needs you cleaned up before you come according to their standard, which you ought to look like. Sound like, talk like. Speak like. Getting really quiet. Just Presbyterian Church. We're not Presbyterian.

Pastor West:
I'm just some say, Yeah, I didn't know y'all's Presbyterian. Well, we're not. I just wrote this down yesterday. I mean, this just actually my I just wrote it down. Can I just read you what I wrote? It's not someone's teaching a book. It's just we called it Don't Live with an Inferiority Complex. So he wants to you to believe that you are something other than what God says you are. If your identity is unknown, your potential will be always be unmanifested. If your identity is unknown to you, then the potential that's in you will be unmanifested. The enemy. Satan has a voice that's trying to shape your image to keep you from possessing the promise. He has a voice. He speaks to you, but he's trying to shape you from the inside. An image of what he wants you to think about you. He attempts to steal your identity through feelings and emotions and other people through your past. So always go to the word God's word for your identity. It's pride. When God says one thing about you and you say another. You may feel like a certain way, you know? You know, this is true. And I've talked about this for years. You know, it's true because Jesus said it, but it's not true because of who you are now in Christ. He said, Well, well, you know, without God, I can't do anything. Well, that's true. Well, I'm just nothing without God.

Pastor West:
Well, that's true. Oh, if it wasn't for him, I couldn't do nothing. I mean, I'd be a nobody. All that's true. Then they just stopped there, and I said, Can I ask you a question? I said, Are you without him? Oh, no, no, no. He. He lives in me. I said, So why do we keep talking about what you can't do, what you don't know and all that because you if you didn't have him, would you have him? If I just went on to talk about all day long, if I wasn't married and I didn't have a wife and I couldn't do it and. Well, you're not married. Oh, yeah. I've been married 40 years. Well, why would I go on for days and weeks if I wasn't married? Hmm. See, it's one to recognize what we would be without Jesus. But it'd be better that we recognize who we are with Him. Amen. Greater. Is he? That's with you. You can talk all day long about what you'd be. How you wouldn't. Wouldn't be greater. But greater is he? That's in you. What you need is a you need a God complex instead of a grasshopper complex. So pride is pride is debasing yourself, even though the word says this is who you are. But you say. But you don't understand my life. I said. I said, yes. I understand that you have challenges like we all do. I understand that you have situations like we all do, but you're casting your vote based on the present circumstances of your life that you're dealing with and your in your five senses, which is in opposition to God.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen. See, your spirit is what? King The real you is King Your your soul, your mind, your will and emotions. It it becomes it's supposed to serve you and your body becomes a slave to what whoever rules. But in a lot of Christians lives, their spirits are not king, their soul is it? Then comes their body. And on the end, on the Ronda litters their spirit when it's supposed to be the other way. But you said, Well, I just ain't going to say I'm healed when I'm sick. Why? God said, God said you were. I mean, how could you lie saying what God said? Amen. Amen. People call for things that be not as though they were all the time. So well. I mean, you've had people here like that. Well, I've heard that speak and that faith message. You know, you don't want to call things, you know, be not as though they were you know, y'all just you say this and it's like you got God in a box and he's a genie and you going to say something, He's going to pop out and do something for you. We're not saying that at all. I mean, when God created the Earth, it was dark.

Pastor West:
He didn't want it. It was in chaos. I mean, just read read the Genesis story, the Genesis, chapter one, it was in chaos. It was dark. Is there a scripture that God says, Oh my, oh my, it is dark down here. What did what did he just say? Like me, you know? You know why he said like, be because it be dark. But he didn't mention dark. If God was sick, he wouldn't talk about being sick. He would say, health be. And then you see, I think it's 8 or 9 times in creation. It's in God said and God said, And it says And God said. And it says and God said. And then it says God said. And then it says. Then God saw all that He said. And he said, And it was good what he said. That's right. Right. How many of you went out to feed the dog or the cat one time outside and you didn't see the dog and cat, but you took the food out there and you called for them either by name or, you know, you know, years ago you used to work on a farm. And he said, feed the hogs. Or, you know, he said he said, I want you to go down and take some hay. And he said, I want you to take this feed and put it in the trough. And he says, And call the cows up. I said, How do you call the cows? He says, Of course I came from Michigan, But I mean, I've been here since I was 5 or 6 years old.

Pastor West:
He says, You Yankee. So he said, Take the food, he said, and then take this sticker here and hit the bucket and go, heel, heel, heel. I was like, Say what now? Heel, heel, heel. I went down that in Detroit. They went down. Heel, heel, heel. His house to house. To house. To house. To house. I never saw a dirt road. I got to Alabama. So I went, you know, I'm like 12 years old and I'm, you know, heel, heel, heel, heel. I couldn't I couldn't see a cow anywhere. But it wasn't very long. They knew that sound of that bucket and they. Mhm. Well you're calling for the dog and don't see him. Aren't you. Strange. You're calling for the kitty cat. The kitty cat is nowhere. So you believe in calling things that be not as though they were. Oh you just believe it in the physical realm, not the spiritual realm. But Abraham called things that be not as though they were. Why did he do it? Because it said God. Romans four said, God said, This is how you do it. He taught him how to do it. He said, It's real in the realm of the spirit. But he says, but you'll have to. You'll have to by faith. You'll have to call it if you want to possess it, it will obey you because.

Pastor West:
Because it obeys me. And I'm one with you. Amen. Now, here's my lesson real quick. All righty. Okay. There's two ways Christians live their lives. They live a Christian life or they live the Christian life. This is not going to be deep, but this is going to be life. Y'all ready? This is not deep. This is just life. Who violates This is about most Christians I know. Most Christians have several lives. They have a home life. They have a work life. They have a play life. They have a church life. When they leave church, they have a different whole life. Is just being the same all the time. You ever seen someone change? All the time. It's like everywhere they go, different people, they have a different life. They they have a new identity. And now we're in an identity crisis in the nation. I'm not. But there's a lot of people has identity crisis about everything from from religion to what you wear, who you are, who you identify with, who you're not with, you're who you're for, who you're against all this. And I never think to go to the Word of God and get God's opinion on it. So. So they live a Christian life, which is danger, but they don't live the Christian life. A Christian life is being self absorbed. A Christian life is you being self absorbed and know the thing that's on your mind all the time is you.

Pastor West:
Or this way, you mean? Well, you want to do well. You've been born again. You've been. You've been saved. But you. But you're still in the place to where you're trying to be accepted. You know, there's people looking for acceptance all over the world. We all want to be accepted, don't we? We all want to be cared about and valued and feel important. Right? So but if you live a Christian life, you live self-absorbed and you'll do things to try to gain the acceptance of people or worse, try to gain the acceptance of God. If you're a parent, should your child ever have to earn your love? Why do we try to earn God's love? You wouldn't expect that of your own kid, even on their worst day when you would like to pull out your hair and theirs, you know? I mean, there were days I can just remember, you know, you know, having a bunch of kids like doorsteps, you know, it's like, you know, go down there when they were sleeping, said they just never they just never been more beautiful than they are right now. I said, hurry, get get sleep, because I think they're going to wake up again. Make sure you give their allergy medicine. No, just kidding about that. Well, praise the Lord. So when you think what's expected of me, well, it's about working or earning when you're self absorbed, trying to keep perfectly the rules and regulations.

Pastor West:
Here's the list of some things that that I remember. I thought for a number of years that was expected of me when I became a Christian because someone like me was standing somewhere and saying some of these things. So I thought this was what was expected me In other words, they told me to. Now you're born again. I stop sinning. You heard that? Keep God's commandments. Or you would hear something like try to be a better person this week. Trial with God's help to change yourself. The thought was transform my fleshy behavior to a godly behavior. Try to become more righteous. Go out and try to accomplish God's will for your life. And I've always been a you know, I identify with this, but in personalities and studying personality styles, I guess I've always been a Type A personality or however you want to pronounce it. In other words. It was kind of I wasn't waiting. I wasn't passive. I was moving in a direction. I mean, it usually falls in the line of leadership. I don't want to confront, but I will confront. I want to be to the place, to where I can give mercy and do give mercy. But if it requires correction, I'm ready. And there's some people that's not their personality at all. They just don't want to rock the boat, ever.

Pastor West:
I don't want to rock the boat either. But sometimes you don't just rock it. You got to turn it over. So we want to identify ourselves as as as in Christ, not so much a personality type that someone gave us a type about, but if there were types, I was a Type A personality, and this is some of those personality traits. In other words, I would I would have told you that I will pursue I will produce if it's to be, it's up to me. I say it all the time. You know, 25, 30 years ago, I would tell myself, no excuses, Eric. Make it happen. Be the solution. Go for it. Get up tomorrow. Do it again. Do it again. Do it again. And at first I don't succeed. I'll double my efforts, triple my efforts, and I'll do it again. That's a snapshot of a Christian life, not the Christian life. But never arrive and never fulfilling, never experienced a transformed life, only feeling more frustrated. Everyone never been there. You just feel more frustrated, more defeat, more bondage, more turmoil, feeling, more disillusionment. Because it's all about me. I'm living a Christian life. It's not what God intended for you doesn't mean priest. It doesn't mean priest or freedom or joy, but the Christian life, But the Christian life I came to find out, was not living with an emphasis on me at all. The Christian life is not on you based on you.

Pastor West:
You're not the main subject now. Now here's just a simple key to remember. I've shared this through the years different ways, but I'll say it this way You will never live beyond what you believe. It works no other way. You'll never live beyond what you believe. You might have a day or two or a decision or two. You'll do a few things you can get out of your personality. But what you believe in your heart, which is a sum total of everything that you have been taught, experienced the people you've been with, all that you've done, you've created a belief system. Doesn't mean it's right. But everyone has one. You. Would you agree with that? Everyone has some type of belief system. But where did they get it from? Education, knowledge and experience and the people they've been around. And then they created a belief system. I mean, there are some people who just have phobias about different things and they're just, you know, just different. So, I mean, I mean, like Matt, Michelle's mother, she it's not that she I don't know if she ever does she ever fly? I don't think she did. And she she wasn't going to fly. I said, well, why don't you just go? Just fly? She said, I'm not flying. I said, Why? She said, Because she knew enough about the Bible. She said, The Lord said, Lo, I'll be I will beat you always, lo.

Pastor West:
I'll be with you. Always lo stay on the ground. Get in the car. I said, Well, that's not what that means. She said, does to me. So it didn't matter what I said past that point. And you know, I didn't have to argue with him because I was her favorite son in law. Only once she told me. But I was the favorite. So. So you can't never live beyond what you believe. And if if what you believe is a lie, if what you you know, you don't you don't go beyond what you believe. But what if what you believe is not true? What if what you believe in is a lie? Then you'll never go beyond you'll never go to the truth because you're you're caught in a lie and you don't even know it or you know, but you're not willing to make the exceptions and change it. I mean, what has you something or someone's wrong in your life? I'm talking to everybody in here. Something or someone is in control of your life. Amen. I don't care if you're four days old, four hours or 400 something, or someone is running your life. I said, Well, we know, but the Democrats are in office. It didn't change me. See, I understand there's people they go for the middle vote. You know, the undecided. I ain't never been undecided. Like you spend all the money in the world, which they do anyway, and then they print more and they run out of that to, you know, to try to put ads up and stickers and things, you know, and knock on doors.

Pastor West:
Nothing, they say, is going to change my my idea at all. I'm not looking at this candidate. This candidate and not knowing the issues and the platform, you have to understand the platform of what you're voting on. You say, well, I you know, I like their economic policy or I like your education policy. Yeah. Do you like your life policy? We made life, Life or abortion. Women's right to choose or child's right to live. Because if I. If I. If I go for their education plan, then I have to give their abortion plan. Then I'm somewhat responsible because. I encouraged or empowered them with their platform to carry out their agenda. But see, I'm not really looking to their their their financial plan because I'm not looking to them anyway as my source. I can prosper no matter who's in office. Why? Because I'm in the kingdom. Amen. Huh? I mean, Elijah. Everyone was starving. Elijah was at the brook, and a bird brought him food every day. A raven. A carnivorous bird which eats meat. Is bringing him meat. Drop it off. See if you can get a bird to bring you a cheeseburger. And he said next time with cheese. Hold the mayo down a little bit. Love you, man, or whatever you are.

Pastor West:
I mean, Raven brought him food and he had a drink, and God said, Just go here. And he says, I have commanded the Raven a raven. God can talk to a bird. And you know that God had a bird app in the bird. And so he looked and he found on his 360, he found where Elijah was, you know, had lodge on his lodge to move the bird, know where to go to. None of this is in the Bible. I've been thinking about writing my own Bible. There's a weak translation. And I thought, well, why can't there be a website? I'm just kidding. I'm not writing a Bible. Praise God. So this is a snapshot of living a Christian life. So you never arrive and never feel and never having to feel life. But the Christian life is completely different. The emphasis is never on you. It's what we live life in a way, because God is right and he wants the best for you. So that's the key to remember. One of the key to remember it is you never you know, you never go beyond what you believe in your heart. So so what do we have to do? A scripture that you know so well? We won't turn to it, you know, But. But he says, you shall know the what truth and what sets you free. The truth. Doesn't everybody really want freedom? I mean.

Pastor West:
I mean, just boil it down. How many of you would like to experience freedom in your life, in your body, in your finances, in your in your relationships, in your emotions? You'd just like to be free. But there's only one way to do it. He says. He says you have to know the truth. Well, that means when I come in contact with truth and it's opposite of what I'm thinking and believing and believing all my life that I'm at a crossroads. Well, you know, I can't go that because mom and daddy always believed that. And, you know, Granny, Papa, they just, you know, they went there and they buried there and great granddad buried there and all that. Who cares who's buried where? Did you notice they were buried? Christ was buried too. But he got up. Amen. Granny ain't got up yet. Huh? Now they're born again. They're going to get up. The dead in Christ shall rise first. Don't miss the rapture. Okay. Someone says, Well, some people don't believe in it. Well, they may not have to go. They can stay. I'm going. I want to go out with the first load. Do you think Hollywood's got anything that's going to be like that? They've been showing all these things because they know things is coming. So when we're all gone, they're going to have something that says, you know, well, it was really this and the apocalypse was this and all this right there.

Pastor West:
And this is really just this. I mean, I mean, they got away. They're going to try to explain this way, but a bunch of us is going to be missing. I mean, a lot of folks. I mean, I wouldn't want to be a I wouldn't want to be a non Christian and be on a flight. And the pilot is a Christian and the co-pilot is a Christian. And, you know, if there's any stories, does anyone know how to fly? No. Then it's like Reba. Oh, crap. Could you imagine? I mean, Nathan won't be here, but can you imagine how many cars are going to need fixing? I mean, just on any given day. The rapture. Boom. He's going to say, I ain't working on none of them. I'm gone. Help thyself. Hallelujah. So if Proverbs 23 seven says the man thinks in his heart, so is he. But people are living not in Christ. They're living in Adam and the Fall. And Adam had a DNA. The fallen Adam had a DNA after he fell, which was. Which was self condemnation. He had unworthiness. He had insecurity. He had inadequacy. He had rejection. He had guilt. He had shame. And he had fear. Would you would you would you agree that that's what Adam's DNA was after he fell? Why did he fall? Because he he learned from the father pride how to walk in pride. And other words, God says you're this hour told Adam who he was and what he has, and we'll all belong to him.

Pastor West:
He walked with God every day. God come down the cool of the day and just and they just walk in the garden again. Fellowship till the serpent says, you know, God is holding back from you. It's kind of strange. I mean, there was nothing else to tempt him with, I guess. So he just said, you know, you can't, you know, if you'll just eat this fruit. Then your eyes will be open and you'll be like, God. Then he just told us to see. I mean. I mean. Yeah, I can see it looks good. She said it's good for you. She said, Yeah, it looks good. It's good for eating. Who told her that? Who told her it was good deed? Do you know when God says don't ever eat of this? Who said it was good? God said it wasn't. So to fall, you have to be in pride because you have to say what God is saying about me is not right. So I'm going to go my way and do it. So God is your source in the Christian life. In a Christian life. You are. I mean, in a Christian life, you've got to do it your way because you can't accept God's way because you know your experience. I better take control of this thing. I better do something about this situation right now.

Pastor West:
Well, the Bible says cast all your cares. Yea, I know that. And I have, but. And I know, but. Well, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I know. I know. I know the Bible says that, but yeah, I've been knowing that for years, but. Ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba. So, like, fireworks on July 4th. Just boats everywhere you look. Buts. But. But this and but that. Now what's your So we know the truth is set free So the Christian life is not living. The Christian life is not hard. It's impossible. You can't do it. You can't live the Christian life. The sooner you come to to the realization that you can't do it will be your first day to live it. When you finally come to the end of you, you just got started. I mean, there's Christ and then there's you. The quicker you die, the quicker you live. Amen. The best funeral that you could ever go to is yours. Well, you see yourself in the casket said our boy is dead. Thank God he's dead, you know, because the old man wants to get up and do something. God, I'm going to do something to him. Ain't no one going to talk to me like that. Ain't no one gonna treat me like that. But God. They going to hear from me. You know, ain't nobody going to talk to you very much alive.

Pastor West:
Someone says somebody be of the day and someone's asking about, you know, they say about you. Yeah, I know. They said, Don't that bother you? Said, uh uh. I see one. I see one. I know what they're saying ain't true because they're assuming this is what my intention was when. When my intention at all. But only I know that God knows that. I said, Well, don't that bother you? Don't that bother you when you know people are talking about you? I said, I don't prefer it. I said, But it don't bother me. I said, Really? I said, I remember when it used to ruin my life when I was real young in ministry. I said I said, He said, Well, how do you handle this? My I just pray for my. I said what I feel for them is I feel pity. I remember I used to feel angry. Now I just feel real sad for them. Now, if they're right, I need to examine my life and correct it and fix it. But they're just running around giving their opinion. Your brother Hagan used to say, you know, someone said you need to respond to these. These people who's well known writing books about you. He says, well known. He said, What you mean? Then there's another guy writing a book about an article about Brother Hagan said, He's this, this, this and this. And they said. Don't you need at least defend yourself? He says, Why? He said, I've had experts write books about me, so why would I care about this little spurt when I've had experts write about me so called experts? And this is well.

Pastor West:
When Jim Baker and all them failed. Jimmy Swaggart and all them years ago. The news media just it was everywhere. They came out to Raymond. They just found brother hanging out there, going to his car from a service. And they said, you know, the camera lights, you know, Oh, what's your take on this? And just what do you think about Jim Baker and all this and all this and, you know, PTL and all the misuse of money and funds and affairs and all this kind of stuff? He said no comment. They said, Well, all you got to have some comment. He said, I have no comment. I said, Well, you got to have an opinion. He said, I don't have no opinion. He said, Well, you can't say nothing. He said, I'm not going to say nothing. He said, because put me putting out one man's life won't make mine burn any brighter. What do you say after that? No comment. Even if what they say about you is true and I'm talking about if I talk about you, then me talking about you doesn't make my life burn any brighter. Amen. Amen. Huh? Amen. Because the day will come that you're going to need mercy from someone.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Generally the day comes that we all need mercy. Maybe for our own wrongdoing. And if you haven't been a giver of mercy, you don't ever show mercy. How could you ever expect it? Huh? This church is not the I have arrived group. I mean, I know y'all are good. I get it. I get it. And I think highly of you. But she probably wouldn't want me to follow you around for 3 or 4 weeks every move. Like, I wouldn't want you to follow me around. Not because I'm looking to do wrong or doing wrong, but we would see the humanity of each other, right? So it's easier for us to believe Jesus than it was his disciples. And you think that's wrong. But I'm actually absolutely right. I can prove it to you. So it's harder to it's harder to see someone a certain way when you live with them or you have access to them. That's why in Corinthians they said, we determined never to know Jesus, even Jesus after the flesh anymore, because Jesus had to come as a man, which means he was hungry, he was thirsty, you know, he had on the toga or whatever they were, they were walking ten, 15, 20 miles in the heat.

Pastor West:
I don't know that they had deodorant. I know they sweat, You say, Well, Jesus couldn't sweat. He was son of God. Yeah, Yeah. He sweated. He was a man. Can I go a little bit further? He got hungry. He had to eat. He had to have a bowel movement. Now, how would you like to travel? So when you say, Well, there goes the Son of God, you know, and through the woods. Oh, boy. So it was a little harder for them to accept certain things because they had to see the humanity of Jesus all the time. Paul when they're seeing you. He saw everything by the spirit and got it by revelation. Holy Ghost didn't take him down in the woods with him. I'm hoping. Heaven, they got a new system. He's always right. But it's like, could we upgrade that, eat and just let it disappear? I'm be all for that plan. Everybody said, Amen, brother. Amen. So let me finish here. So this is what Paul said about the Christian life. A Christian life or the Christian life? I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that. But Colossians three four says, Christ, who is your life? Oh, who's your life? Christ, who is your life? See? What's the emphasis? There you are.

Pastor West:
Christ. Colossians. Three, four. Christ, Who is your life? Oh, watch. Here. Philippians 121 says for me to live is Christ, not you. Not your church. Not your denomination. Not anything that was connected to your life. So Paul is saying that Christ is more than the eternal life that he gave you and even a salvation. He's even more than that. He's telling you that Christ is your life today on August the 6th, 2023, at this very moment, Christ is your life. Colossians 127 says Christ in you, the hope of glory, the Christ life, the Christ is your life is a person, right? Yes. Think about that for a moment. So Christ himself is the Christian life. Christ himself is the Christian life. It's not a checklist. It's not a set of rules, not a regulations. It's not trying not to sin. It's not trying to do your best. The Lord does not want your best. Your people are like, I'm going to give the Lord my best. If you get a big F or you're a loser. How's it on screen? I need to go that way. Or what? Don't. Don't ever give him your best. Because your best ain't good enough. But his is.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
So there's no set allure. So. It's one in my notes I put. Are are you listening? I was actually preaching and writing it down, trying not to sin and try your best. Are you listening? Do you want true peace? True freedom? Do you want to find true rest? That's you find that in Jesus. You don't find that in Adam. You find it in Christ. You're not in church and you're not in Adam. You're in Christ. Amen. Amen. Remove the walls. And, you know, if we would just stand outside in the parking lot, you'd say, Oh, no, we don't have a church. Well, we actually, we would if we were all together. The building doesn't make us a church, does it? No, but you're either going to live your life either in Adam or in Christ. You could live in the combination of Adam, the fall, the rejection, everything that was in Adam after the fall. Or you could live in your born again eternal life. Who you are actually are in Christ and you get your identity from him. And the more that you get your identity from him and you begin to see this in your heart and your mind, you'll begin to take on identity and you'll begin to change. Your life will transform to the person that you see who you are. Because actually, according to James, when you look in the word, you're looking in a mirror. And when you look in a mirror, you see a reflection and you see who you are because you see him, you don't see you and then say, Jesus, help me. Become this. Lord, you don't ask him to help you fix your life. You don't ask him to help you become a better source. You never ask him to help you to be this and be that.

Pastor West:
Why? Because he's the source. How many agree He's the source. So why would he help you be a source? Well, I just believe I can do this and all my needs will be met. Oh, so you're the source? Well, no. I mean, the Lord's going to help me do this, so he's going to help you be the source. Well, no, I'm just going to try to do better this year, and he's going to help me to do better. No, you died for me to live as what? Christ. He didn't say for you to live is to live a better you. There's a lot of books out there, you know, even in Christian circles, they're very popular. Says, you know, live your best life right now. Live your best life right now. I know they can interpret that. When I said that, I did it on purpose, a little slang, you know, live your best life now today's Friday, you know da da da da da da. So the emphasis is on you. There's all this positive thinking which is better than negative thinking, but it's still based in you. It puts the source of it. You. Well, that's what you were already doing when you wasn't living it in grace. You're putting yourself right back under the law and you're trying to produce a better you with a new look. You can't take fleshy tools and make and make a spirit out of fleshy tools. So you're supposed to live in the spirit, but you can't do it in the flesh. You can't take tools of the flesh and fix yourself. Fleshy tools just makes more flesh. It just puts on a new look. A new persona.

Pastor West:
I mean.

Pastor West:
One way that the Scripture said that we would know the end times, he said, people will be lovers of themselves. I mean, how time I do on Facebook and everybody got a new update. Let me look at me now. Now, this is Thursday. This is Friday morning. What is that? Lover of yourself. Now, you may disagree, but I'm not saying that every time someone does that, it's a lover of themselves. But I mean, you know, some people post that all the time. I don't know how I don't have Twitter and Instagram. I don't I don't want a Twitter page and instigate. I wouldn't even do Facebook if I didn't have to do this. I have no need for social media. I'm social right now. Maybe it's not even my personality to do it. Well, why would God call me? I'm more just. I could be happy. Just be with me. Sometimes I prefer it. Like lots of times I had to learn to like me first. You know, just. Just give me my Bible and a notepad and some time. Any little ice cream? That's good. I don't need all this other stuff to be fulfilled. Huh? Some people do. They can't live if they. Whatever. I got to have this and I got this. They got to have you. And I mean. I mean, I need your approval for everything. Some people are working for other people's approval.

Pastor West:
Why? Why? They're not your Lord. They didn't go to the cross for you. Well, they didn't like me. I did a post and I didn't get before likes. Who cares? Quit posting. Why do Christians keep on posting all the time? Scriptures? All the time. They're just talking to other Christians. Why don't you go out and talk to a sinner? Well, I just don't know if I can identify with them. Why? You used to be one. You know what I mean? You don't remember when you was dead sucker lost without Jesus? Well, I ain't never done what he's done, but. Yeah, but Dad's dead. Sin. Sin. Hell's hell. Amen. Like Angie Wong said, who wants to be the best sinner in hell? Well, I ain't never do what you did. Yeah, but, baby, you still have with me. Oh, just tell them about Jesus. Not you. Huh? I know it helps to relate to people when you've been through something. I agree with that. But did Jesus have to become what the world was to save them? I mean, I never did no drugs. I mean, I think, you know, how could you be hooked on alcohol? I just think about all the time, it's like, well, I can't stop drinking. I said, Are you that thirsty? I mean, I'm thinking just from a natural mind. I mean, like, you know, I mean, I drink too, when I eat, right? But I ain't that thirsty.

Pastor West:
I don't drink a case of. Of tea a week. A day. We have supper where I'm only 50. 15 glasses of tea. You know I'm right. You are right. Yeah. This is caffeinated. You drank 15 glasses of tea, your supper. You'd be up all night. Go to the bathroom. I dabbled in some things. I ain't going to give no glory to that because it's pitiful that I ever did. But I hated it. Yes. I said, Well, this stuff ain't what you think. He said, Well, you just ain't doing it right. I said, Oh, you got to hold it in longer. There was no more holding for me. I lost control. I saw on the ground, out in the woods. Mix up 3 or 4 pastor buddies, you know, partake of strong drink, you know, 3 or 4 different type of alcoholic beverages and, you know, a bunch of idiots around the campfire and, you know, you know, you got Boston going top and you're checking all this stuff up. You know, you got Bud and Miller and Schlitz and all the coolers, you know? And I was like, I had this idea. I said, Well, if it feels this good, then more must be better. Well, I just thought, well, if it's even better, some more must be better then.

Pastor West:
Then they handed me this little funny little cigarette. And then fell on the ground. And then I couldn't stand up. And someone took my feet and they jerked me away from the fire a little bit. Then they I was conscious the whole time, but I couldn't get up and I got sick. I don't know why I knew, but 19 times. And it was going over my. I don't know, sweat shirt. And it was going over my shoulder and they were laughing at me and they walked by and someone's kicking at me. Someone stepped on my hand. And I thought, these ain't my friends. That's right. Ain't no friend of mine would do this. Laugh at me and stepping all over me. Pouring more drink all over me. Not 19th time it was all gone. And I woke up. I mean, I didn't wake up. I sobered up just that fast, and I was like. I guess I got it out of my system. And I got up while they were all there, and I got my keys and my sleeping bag. And I walked to that car and I cranked it up. I had borrowed borrowed Barbara's car, and she didn't. Oh, boy. I wrecked it. I could just see. Tell Mr. Scott I'm sorry about the Cutlass. It gone. But I was sober, and I cranked that car up and.

Pastor West:
And they said, Oh, he's leaving. He can't be driving. And he's running after me. Like, Yeah, like y'all really cared a whole lot. And I never touch that stuff ever again. I hated not being in control of my body and my mind in some possessions possessing me. But there's people who live that life to where they don't think they can function without it. And their feeling is real. Whether you understand it or not, their feeling is real. It doesn't mean it's true. It just means that they think it's real. And what we need to do is tell them about the real thing and experience the real thing. And when love grips their heart and changes their life, what I had to hold on them, it'll be broken in pieces. Amen. See, when the devil has hold of you, He's controlling your mind and your body and your emotions. And he has total control of you. But the Bible says once you become born again, that person dies. You can't control the dead person. I don't care what he or she was. I don't care if they cursed you out, you know, out of breath. They won't curse you anymore. If they was an alcoholic, they don't want any more drink. If they was a dope act, they don't want to shoot. They don't want to do no hair on Harry on or they don't want to trace it or nothing because what, they're dead.

Pastor West:
And when you become dead to this world, you become alive to God. And when you come alive to God, you become alive to righteousness. But when you put yourself into laws and rules and regulations and the gospel comes, thou shalt not. Do not, do not, do not, do not, do not. But they never told me what I could do. They just kept on telling what I couldn't do. So I was always trying to satisfy God and please for God and work for God. The best thing you can do is quit working for God. Let him work for you. Amen. You know what I'm saying? Amen. Working for God. What can you give God that he don't have? Amen. I mean, can you imagine? It's like, Lord, you know, come to heaven. I've been wanting. I've been holding this. I barely got up with me because I know you can't take nothing. But I held it so tight. But you just watch. But you ain't never seen one like this. It's 14 karat. He got so. Oh, my God. 14 karat gold. Then you look down what you standing on? He said I paid my streets with it. Amen. You got. Oh, he said, Plus, we don't have time here. Oh, you know, the only thing you can give God he don't have.

Pastor West:
Worship. Worship. I went past my time so I could finish these notes. But I can't. Praise the Lord. Hallelujah. Eric, Fight it, Fight it. Fight it. Fight it. Okay. Fight it. There's only one person who can truly live the Christian life. That's Christ. He's the only one who can live it and he lives it through you, not rules. He didn't come to set up a religion. He didn't come to set up rules and regulations. He didn't. He didn't come to set up anything that man can do for him. But Christ in you, the hope of glory. There's a freedom in that. We had time, I would have got to Galatians Chapter three. And Paul just he just wanted to know. He says, Why? Why? He says, How did you start your life when I told you about Christ? He said, Did you keep laws and rules and regulations or did you become born again righteous by what you believed? I said, Well, we became righteous. But when you preach by what we believe, we accepted Jesus that instead of keeping the laws, we accepted Christ as the payment for our sin. No longer keeping the laws. That he went away. Paul did. And the Judaizers came back in and they said, You, you, you can't be right with God. This way you have to keep these laws and you have to circumcise yourself.

Pastor West:
Always cutting yourself. And Paul come back and he says, he said, You foolish, if you look up the word foolish, the King James used foolish and hideous. But the closer the closer term to it in our vernacular is not foolish. It's stupid. So Paul said, you stupid Galatians who has bewitched you? That word Bewitched means who hypnotized you. He said, Didn't you start your life off with you trusting in Christ? And they said, Well, yeah, he said, And now you think you're going to finish it perfected by you living it out in your ability. And they're like, Oh. That might be an old letter, but people still do it today. Don't you think so? Yeah, they start out. I mean, I went to church all my life, you know, and, you know, keyboard, you know, and you had someone altar call and they sang just. Just as I am. Just as I am. It's a beautiful song. But just as I am going to work for you one week. Next week. We got new rules. You can come just as you were. But next week you better be right. And when y'all go to the church like that. Yeah. I mean, fire and hail and brimstone and the preacher preaching, you know, he clenched his fist and you could see the veins in. Oh, and hell got hot. Like, Whoa!

Pastor West:
It's like we were born last week.

Pastor West:
It was just as I am. Yeah, that was last week, boy. And you knew you'd made a mistake. So he told you that you wouldn't saved any more. That you know, that you failed God. And you come back up there next week and rededicate and dedicate and they buy more Kleenex boxes and they, you know, you come Sunday and next thing they squall you out three times a week. You know why? Because you failed. You made mistakes because you're doing everything in you and you're supposed to have died. You think you have to go around the world to preach the gospel? It ain't being preached in America yet. I mean, America is still under the old covenant. I think you've got to go to some foreign land to preach the gospel. You can go out in your backyard and tell someone you don't even know Jesus. You just think you know him. He's a lover. Hallelujah. Glory to God. Hallelujah. Well, praise God. God's good. Y'all won't get saved again. Y'all know what y'all did this week. Don't make me jump into the gifts of the spirit and discern it. Hallelujah. Lord, don't tell me anything to do. In the name of Jesus, I don't want to know anything. Amen. I just know enough about my household, my wife, and what? She moved last night and hit me in the face with her left hand. And then didn't even know she'd done it. And I've been awake for 2.5 hours after that. Hallelujah. But I'll keep that to myself.

Pastor West:
Lord, I wouldn't want that to get out nowhere. Then I finally went back to sleep. And then the little pup said they wanted to get up and he shakes his head and body like that sleeps over for this day. Then you get up and go to the bathroom and on the way there you see the present from the dog. Praise the Lord. It's a good life. It's a good life. It's a good life. There's now. Dog still won't let me touch you after so many years. But it's the weirdest thing in the world. You know where she's sitting? Of all the places that dog can sit, she has her own place on the couch, got her own place. But when I get up to get ready and I finally get in the shower, she knows. She knows we're leaving because she knows the iron, but she hates the ironing board. She hates that ironing board because that means to her. Mama's leaving. Mama's leaving. Mama's leaving. And she'll start shaking. And that foul smell, that dog get off. You know, when they're terrified. But you know where she goes for comfort. She gets in my recliner. I got a shower. We got, you know, put some clothes on and was walking back to the kitchen. And I was like, why do you want my chair? And she's like, Well, put the blanket on me, fool. Of all places. Ma, ma, Ma. I love Toto. What's your name?

Pastor West:
I don't know.

Pastor West:
I asked you this, Marcello. You won't come to church. Get saved. Michelle says she's already saved. I said, Oh, God. I said, What? She needs to get rid of the spirit of fear. She said, Well, she don't have it when she's with me. I said, Well, that's true. She's with you. She's okay when she's not. Personally, I give her two minutes, just one time when she was gone. I had to confess it later on because my mother used to do that with her dog. What was my mom's dog name? You kept her for a while. Because she.

Pastor West:
Pearl.

Pastor West:
Pearl. Miss Pearl. But she had a little skin situation, so that Benadryl helped with the itching, but mostly wake my mother up during the night. And if she woke up, she couldn't go back to sleep. So she said, Well, I need to sleep. I don't want that dog. Did she take a piece of cheese and two Benadryl and said eating that dog was down for the count and he don't need to go back. He don't need a dog, don't need nothing for hours. So I said, Well, I'm going to help Lola and me. It's like giving that thing an energy drink.

Pastor West:
Oh, where's my mama?

Pastor West:
Where's my mama? I said, This is where you fall down. Who read the instructions? Don't do anything when you take this. You could be out for days. And I'm counting on it. At least if she gets home. Well, I got too close to this morning. I got to get back to my pup. She needs me. God is good all the time. Amen. God bless you.

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Possessing The Promise Part 2 | 30Jul2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Possessing The Promise Part 2 | 30Jul2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
A sound from heaven as a rushing mighty wind. And it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared on them cloven tongues like as of fire. And it sat upon each one of them. And they were all filled. They were all filled with the Holy Ghost and began to speak with other tongues as the spirit gave them utterance. It says there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men of every nation under heaven. Now, when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together and they were confounded because that every man heard them speak in their own language and went on to name who was all present in their own language. And it went on to say, and they were all amazed and they were in doubt saying one to another. What meaneth this? Others, mocking said, These men are full of new wine. Actually, they were right with new wine was but Peter standing up with the 11 lifted up his voice and said to them, You men of Judea and those that dwell in Jerusalem, be this known unto you and hearken to my words, for these are not drunken as you suppose seeing is but the third hour of the day. But this is that which is spoken by the Prophet Joel. And it shall come to pass in the last days. Well, that was. They thought that was the last days. How many more? 2000 more years has passed by. We're closer to the last days than they were right in the last days, says God.

Pastor West:
I'll pour out of my spirit upon all flesh. And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy. I thought women couldn't teach you nowhere to preach. Man don't know what they're going to do with their daughters when they start prophesying. Well, look at there. It's in the Bible. And your young men shall see visions and your old men shall dream dreams. That's why I'm still having visions, I suppose. And all my servants and all my handmaids. I'll pour out in those days of my spirit. And they shall prophesy. And it goes on to talk about the signs. And the wonders are taking place. Y'all ready for the days of suddenness? Amen. I mean, you were just going along and this. And then all of a sudden, this began to happen. And that began to happen. And it looked like things weren't going the way they were supposed to go. And you're believing God here and you thought surely by now. But you refuse to quit. How many not quitters do we have in the house? Amen. Well, that was most of you. Well, you know, the jury's still out on some of you. We got a few minutes to talk into the other way. We're going to go live here. Good morning. Welcome. Glad to have you here this morning at Gracelife Church. All of you here, those of you joining us either live or seeing the service at another time.

Pastor West:
I think simultaneously we're on YouTube and Facebook at the same time. Then we broadcast to 40 different nations in an audio format, but we're in a series. But the series has never bothered me because someone gets in a series sometimes and they say, Well, I got to stay in this series. In other words, I got to color inside the lines, but then seemed like the Holy Spirit. If you listen to him, he's like, I don't always stay inside the lines that you you know, In other words, he likes to enlarge the borders. And then you say, well, you can't talk about that because we're not in that. We're in this series. You have to stay inside here. And he says, Oh, I forgot, I forgot. I'm sorry. So the best thing to do is just listen to follow him and I'll leave it up to him to make it all sense to you. So but we started off, you know, to me, they all kind of intersect there. They flow together because we started talking about stop opposing yourself. We talked about 5 or 6 lessons on that, and we took that out of the second Timothy, where Paul was telling Timothy his young minister instructed him how to to minister to the people. And he says, you'll have to tell the people because they're doing this, this and this And when and when he says when they do this, he said they're actually opposing themselves.

Pastor West:
And then they put themselves in a position and he said they cooperate with the devil. And by cooperating with the devil, he ensnares them. He entraps them. So you'll have to tell them for them to stop opposing themselves and working with him against them. Amen. So can we. Is that possible? Well, second Timothy, chapter two, I think verse 24 through 26, he had to tell them to stop opposing themselves. And then we then we did about 4 or 5 lessons on how about being strong in the spirit? You know the strong survive, don't they? The weak get gobbled up. The Bible says the devil is as a roaring lion. Didn't say he was. He said he's as one. And he's looking for whom he may devour. How does he know who he can devour? Well, people give him a way. Know they tip their hand, so to speak. They don't have a good poker face and they don't have a good poker mouth. When people say little things like, I can't take much more, the devil, the little imps go, Hey, did you hear that? If this happens one more time, they think we're that close. I mean, we're about to hit it out of the park. They're just that close. So we. We can't work with him. Look. Life will put enough trouble. We'll put enough water in your boat. You don't have to add water to the boat. Jesus said in this world, you will have test trials and tribulations.

Pastor West:
How many you know so far? That's true. I got more hands that time. He said there would be people you know, people have been taught faith sometimes, you know. I know. You know, we all made mistakes. But you think, well, if you had faith that you wouldn't have problems. It's my consensus. After 30 years of ministry, if you have faith, you're going to have more problems. Just be just be different ones. Be just different ones. Some problems that used to really get you. They don't bother you no more like the devil would come at you five years ago or 20 years ago. And he, you know, he'd go boo and, you know, like, whatever. And now he comes by and does the same old thing. He says, Boo. And you said, boo yourself. He said, Aren't you scared of me? No, I married your sister. No. So I know who you are. You don't bother me at all. Not me. I'm just saying that was just a that was a joke. Someone told, you know? Anyway, I get off there, I'll get in trouble. I have to go home with somebody. I don't want to miss lunch. You know, people approach life in two ways, and sometimes both ways are wrong. In other words, some say, well, some say we we're working to live and others say we live to work. And actually, both of them are wrong. He doesn't want you to live to work, nor does he want you to work to live.

Pastor West:
He wants you to live in the kingdom. And so if you allow me this morning, I would like to address you as kingdom ambassadors. As a royal priesthood. This is not kindergarten. The time is very short. You know, most people are familiar with the verse in Revelation 12, it says, you know, we overcome him by the blood of the lamb, by the words of our testimony. But the very next verse, I think, is the next verse. I think it says, the enemy knows his time is short. And when you're running out of time, sometimes you'll take chances. You know, I won't ask for a show of hands that that went under a mostly yellow light because you felt like you were running short. And how have you ever been as the light when it turns green and no one seems to be moving? It's like, are you looking for a different shade of green? I mean, I mean, are you do you go with green or do you need aqua or teal? I mean, what are you actually looking for? Because I actually have somewhere to be. So they in the kingdom, the kingdom is God's big idea. And when you get into the big idea, all the little things of the world just get swallowed up. See, what Satan wants you to do is he wants you to focus your attention on the little nagging stuff.

Pastor West:
And sometimes they're not all so little. And the only way that you can get away from these things is lock yourself in the closet, away from people. Because some of us have have had problems because the devil was bad. But the devil gets blamed for a lot of things he doesn't do. But he gets a lot of ideas from Christians. Yeah, well, the devil did this and he didn't do it at all. And he's like, Write that down. We're going to start that next week. They have board meetings and they get ideas from Christians. He doesn't do that. Sometimes our problems cause from the people that we are connected with. If you have never raised children, you don't know what I'm talking about. I got extremely we had four. I got extremely tired during their teen years. I figured I couldn't sleep. I couldn't stay awake all night long. So my wife and I took shifts. Now, just kidding. But I'm just saying, some people would do things that I mean, what we've been talking in the last week, we talked about a new series, Possessing the Promise. Talking about Joshua and Caleb talking about why the Israelites never saw the Promised Land, because they just simply refused to believe God thought he had showed them enough for them to believe he would be the perfect judge. He says doubtless they're not coming in here. If I'd never if they'd never saw what they saw in Egypt to bring them out, then in other words, I give them a pass.

Pastor West:
But no generation has saw that many miracles and still refused to believe. He says this generation is not coming in. Did you know that we might be in a generation right now that our generation succeeds? See, we build on generations, don't we? Perpetually. We're supposed to do that. The phrase that we stand on the shoulders of giants. And so we see further and if you think about where we have come from in the last 75 years and we think about some of the people who's affected the world in the last hundred years, and you go back to even before Azusa Street, but you think about how a one eyed black man that God used in Los Angeles who was not allowed to go into the school, the rest of them, but he sat on the outside. It was funny that I don't know if God ever used any of the other people, but he used that man and had some of the most artists. Ways about him. You know, if you've been a student of Zoo Street, you know this. William Seymour would come down. And while they were singing and praising him, he put a bucket over his head. Y'all ever read those stories? He put a bucket over his head and everybody wanted to see under the bucket, you know, what was going on. But they were afraid to get too close to Brother Seymour.

Pastor West:
And he just simply said when they asked him one time says, why the bucket? He says, I'm just trying to get closed in with God, my thoughts and everything. So he put either a bucket or a crate over his head. Well, that'd be a little bit strange. Now, when you know what Church and pastor sitting there with a bucket over his head and he's like, you know, I've been called bucket head before, but I mean, it's not because I wore one, you know, I've been called a lot of things. But anyway, but the deal is they had such signs and wonders and miracles that it revolutionized not just California, but all the entire world. People came from all over the world, and they would have the signs and wonders and phenomenons that that that you couldn't explain. They had fire coming up from the building and they had fire coming down from heaven. And after a while, the fire department finally quit coming because people call and say the building down there on Azusa Street is is on fire and go down there. And they would see, you know, flames going up from the church building, but they would see it come down from heaven and they would meet. But that went on for was it three years or so? 3 or 4 years. And it wasn't just William Seymour. It was all the people in there. And Tom, before he passed, he found him.

Pastor West:
That was his assignment, to find the people who were at Azusa Street. But who he was talking to was the kids who was raised there. It was just a one room building, you know, like the old school. You know, when we moved to Alabama in 1969, eight, we went to a a church that was kind of like that. It just had one it was one room. It was everything. And so they just, you know, like, you know, this age would be over here and this age would be over there. And, you know, just you could kind of hear, but that we use what we had. And some of the old schoolhouses was like that. You know, they had several grades. You know, we're really spoiled now. It's like, you know, my classes, whatever. Yeah, but you know how many like me, when you went to school, there was no air conditioning. You had a box fan? Yeah. Six period. My teacher just wiped me out because she had a voice to just run, and it sounded just like the fan. And I went down for the count and she told me I was not going to pass her class. And I said I tried to pay attention, but I just like one. She was not interesting to me. That reflected in my grades. And she let me sleep one time when I woke up at quarter till five with a janitor. Explain that to your mother. I said the hell school a little bit late today.

Pastor West:
I'm going to need someone to come get me. The buses was gone. It was just the janitor and me. And he woke me up and, you know, and I had slobber all down my shirt, you know, and. And Miss Talbot? Yeah. I hope she made it to heaven. Scared. She probably did. So they had all these phenomenal miracles. I mean, they had hands growing out, documented stories. You know, one one woman came and she came and she had a big rag on her head. And and this girl who was, you know, being interviewed, who was a teenager then, and they would tell each one the miracles that they were involved in and they would tell you what they saw about Brother Seymour. And but this woman said, well, one night everyone was busy and a woman come in and she had a rag on the side of her head. And I could see there was blood on it. And she came and she said, Well, I guess I'll have to help her. But they seen so many miracles, signs and wonders and miracles that they just believed anything could happen suddenly and so and so. So when she was ministering, she said I was probably only 15 at the time. And so this woman said, Could you help me? And what had happened was she found that her husband had been having an affair and the woman come over because she's determined that, you know, you're going to leave her and you're going to marry me, like you said, you're going to marry.

Pastor West:
And so the woman found out her husband was having an affair and the woman jumped on the wife and bit her ear off. Now. Would you want to marry her? Leave your wife and marry her. So the bit, the wife's ear off and she had taken the ear, but she had put it in a cloth. And she was because, you know, the blood was just streaming down. And she she had heard about this place but never had been there. She came down there and and the young girl said, you know, when she took it off, I almost fainted. But she said, but I looked around and there's miracles every night. She said, as a matter of fact, they said that the glory of God was most of the time in the services was so she said thick and density that the small children, you know, the little bitty children, she said they would play hide and go seek in one room. There was no walls, they said, but there was such a glory that they didn't the kids didn't know what it was. And they said, we can just play hide and seek under the pews in the glory. Church needs to step up, don't they? Yeah. Well we have put in this place is we put programs. See when you're not going to have glory and when you're not going to have demonstrations and signs of miracles, you need programs.

Pastor West:
You need smoke machines and you need great musicians. But you can have great musicians and have great music but not have any glory at all. Some people don't even know the glory is not there. What they have is good musicians. And so that's that's a manmade substitute for only what the presence of God and the anointing will produce and is available to us at any given time. These people just set themselves apart in Azusa Street, but they didn't have near the knowledge that you have today. We are the most blessed generation because we have so much knowledge at our at our. I mean, you just press the button 24 hours a day. You can you can hear the gospel 24 hours a day. If you're my age, you can kind of remember at 12:00 at night when TV went off and there was like and you had the signal till the next morning when news come on. I mean, I know that sounds ridiculous. You know, when you're younger, it's like, well, you mean when it was old man and you wasn't scrolling on your cell phone and see what was happening? Cell phone, man, I thought we were, you know, we walked on the moon, you know, when they come out with pagers. But but then you had to get to a, you know, a phone to answer the phone call if you're out in the country.

Pastor West:
That was tough. Well, so so there's been such a progression. But if you if you're not going to have the glory, then you do you have to have man made seed. They were there. But look how many people wasn't there to 120 was in the upper room. But but 500 had saw Jesus and they all heard the same news. And some of them obviously had went there, but they didn't stay there. They said, well, maybe we didn't really see that. Maybe we didn't really hear that I can't do this, man. I got to go to the laundry. Well, I got to go cut my grass. Why am I? I bet you my flowerbeds got weeds all in them. Grandbabies are coming. Next week, I'm going to go home. So 380 left, two left. 120 in the upper room. And suddenly Jesus is wait for the promise of the Father. Well, then you got they were there Cheering Well, now we got a whole church. We got a church that's still tearing. Why are we tearing? That's right. Why are you waiting? You said, Well, they waited. Well, they waited till the Holy Ghost come. As far as I know, he never left. Why would you tear for someone who's already here? Right. Some people brag about, Oh, I've been tearing waiting for the Holy Ghost for 23 years. Oh, brother. I've been on 30 some of my 37th year. I remember going, you know, to church as a kid a whole lot.

Pastor West:
And some of the older people would talk about, Well, I've been in the way of the Lord. Maybe she's lived for 50 years. I said, But Sister Velma, she's been the way of the Lord for 75 years. I it took me a found a way. I mean, no disrespect to them, but sometimes I just found out they were spiritual babies in the way of the Lord. They were in his way. No one dared come to sit in their pew, whether they was there or whether they wasn't. Like you can't sit in Sister Velma's pew has her gum underneath or a snuff cup. I had a man here dipping snuff one time when I was preaching and I was like, No, you ain't. I mean, really, are you really good? And he said, Well, I just couldn't wait any longer. Well, we were in a place now where the Sundays are ready to manifest. Amen. But we had to change our thinking. See, we think that we're waiting for God to do something that hasn't happened yet. And that God has picked a time. And he has this time, then suddenly something is going to be released that is not yet been released. And we call that a revival that's about to happen. And you have you've heard people most of your life say we're just about there. Oh, we're just we're just about to step into it. Some get closer now, so we've got our little toes in it right now.

Pastor West:
You ever heard the little toes? They say come back tonight. We're going to have a double portion tonight. Well, if you're complete in him, how do you get double complete of his fullness? You receive? Well, we're going to get double fullness tonight. We're going to be more complete than ever we've been before. Tonight's going to be double. See, they don't say double Jesus tonight. They say double portion. Then they get up and they stir the stuff up in the motions and they beat the drums, you know, and on the guitar or whatever. Someone gives a, you know, a testimony. And just by how bad their life's been. Then it turns into top that terrible testimony tonight. How have you been battling the devil all week long? But Lord, just pray I'd be found doing his will two more weeks and that they want him to be found much less doing. Found his will. But the Lord's even worked through all that because he just wants to help people. He wasn't endorsing your doctrine or your methods. You don't really think that any church or pastor has perfect doctrine, do you? I mean, I'm one of those that stand alone. I was kidding. No, I mean, just so he's not endorsing your doctrine. Yeah, because we all have wrong doctrine. Because we built doctrine based on what Mama said and Granny said and Dada said. And that's the way I read it.

Pastor West:
And that's where my church believes it. That's why you can't find a denomination in heaven. It's called the Body of Christ. And it's made up of all races of people. God likes the colors that he made. Whether you want to call them your brothers and sisters or not, he likes what he created and who he created. Amen. Amen. So the kingdom is God's big idea. And so we're talking about the we're not doing what the Israelites did. They was given a promised land. So we was saying last week that people think, well, that's the type of heaven. It's not a type of heaven because there's no chance to fight. So you're not going to go to heaven and fight giants. I mean, you hear people feel like know we'll finally get to heaven and then we'll have all we need. And they say, Man, I get to heaven more and more. Show the devil more and more. Show him then. Well, maybe he won't be there. I mean, you'll be all geared up to fight, and there's no fighting the dog. Hmm. Then you have other Christians, you know, they're just they're just they're just about to. But can't just any time they're going to take off, but probably not today because they got this and they got this and they got this and they got that. You know, they got they got life going on. Y'all know what life is. Life is that hurts and this hurts.

Pastor West:
And my job and this economy and, you know, the president and the one who is president or if he's president and did do this and all that and church. The pastor does all this. And if only this and only my job, all these things. So they're just about ready to go do something. But they're not doing anything. They're good. And I don't get mad. They're good, but they're for the kingdom. For kingdom purposes, they're good, but they're good for nothing. Jesus said a wise man will build his house on my teachings. A foolish man will hear and refuse to do it. That's pretty simple. Then he said, Well, let me give you an analogy. Help you with that. He said, If you're going to build a house, you need a proper foundation. Right. He said, Because now if the storm comes, but when it comes. If you have a proper foundation, he said. The storm will hit the house, but it won't be able to shake it because this foundation is the foundation is built on his teaching, he said. But when the storm comes, the man who built his house on the sand, he wanted to he wanted to quit. You know, Charles Cowper used to say, you know, most people don't have enough scripture. You know, they couldn't row two scriptures around. They had to save their whole life. But they want to build. They want to start building a third story on a vacant lot.

Pastor West:
Start with the third story on a vacant lot. But Jesus, the wise man, will take what I said and he'll adhere to it and he'll put it into practice. A wise man will hear and say, Yeah, I know, but you don't realize you know what I'm dealing with. So he'll just go to the sand root. He said. But you know, it's a storm comes to both men and when it hits the one built on the sand, what happens? It's demolished. It's a ruin, is what it is. So you have Christians who's almost just about ready to go do something. And when this when this happens, I'm going to take off. Well. Have you ever hunted with dogs or, you know, someone who hunt with dogs? And when they get on, when they get on the track where they do. I won't do the whole I don't want to do the hound dog, you know. But I did it twice. I went with the man of the church and he said, You ever hunted some dogs? I says, No, sir. He says, Well, tomorrow I'm going to take you and I'm going to sit you right here and we're going to get the dogs out and we're probably going to run a deer right past you and you be ready. And man, it wasn't too long. I could hear those dogs. You know how you can hear sound out in the woods, in the hollers.

Pastor West:
And I could hear them dogs coming closer and closer and closer. And they was man, they. I knew they was on the scent. You get a good hound dog. Here's something you'll never see. You'll never see a hound dog who's in full pursuit. Stop and scratch his fleas because the dog in the hunt doesn't know he has fleas. That's right. Christians are stopping to scratch their fleas because they're not in the hunt, and everything else has their attention. Mm hm. You see, I have problems. Just like you may have a few more of them, or may may have less. I just not decided to put it on the front of the menu. You say, Well, what if you're wrong and you die? Oh, I'm going to heaven. I don't know. I don't know. Like I've always said, you can't scare me with Paradise at any age. Like he died. He's in Paradise. Well, Paul said it's better to be with him. To be with anybody else is to be absent from the body. Is to be what? To be present with the Lord. If you're a Christian, that's a good thing. How are you looking forward to heaven? How many? You don't want heaven to be anything like it is right now? It won't be because you know who's going to reign it God. And when we come to Earth for a thousand years in the millennium, Jesus is going to rule. You say, well, Jesus, be on the Republican or Democrat ticket. Uh huh.

Pastor West:
Yeah, yeah.

Pastor West:
Don't forget to register. No, the vote will already be cast. And you'll have a job to do here. Did you know that? Yeah. We're going to live, but we're going to live in spirit bodies. But you're going to be. You're going to be surrounded with people who's not in spirit bodies because some people will survive the know, the seven year tribulation. So they'll be in a physical body. You'll be you'll be in a spiritual body. You have the same body that Jesus had when he was resurrected, presented his blood before the father came back here. And you'll have the same spirit body that walks through walls. How are you going to try that out a little bit? You can quietly walk up on a friend and neighbor because some of y'all got to aggravating spirit. You know, you do. You just like to aggravate. I do, too. But I always told my kids and my wife, I said, now, if I didn't aggravate just because I don't like you. I said, But don't love me so much. I said, Well, you're just going to walk through the walls and just back of the shoulder, Go, boo! But you'll be surrounded by people with natural bodies. What you're doing right now in life. Your assignment while you're here, what you're called to do. Is what you'll be rewarded for. We'll be in heaven for seven years during the marriage supper of the lamb. How many of y'all like how many sound good to have a seven year nonstop buffet? Man, we're carbs. Can't touch you.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
Well, you don't need any sleep. Yeah. Marriage. Supper of the lamb. And then you go to the Bema seat, which is also the called the reward seat. Bema reward seat. And there's a judgment there, but it's not a judgment for sin because you've already been judged for your sins. Someone should have told my mother that my grandmother mother had me scared. I thought I was going to go to heaven and there was going to be a big old screen. These screens aren't nothing. You know the projectors. I thought there would be a big screen and they would show my whole life and what I did that my mother never knew and my grandmother and I'd be like, Oh, gosh, oh gosh, they matter what age I was. But no, there's there's no sin that he's going to be discussing with the Christian because Jesus already paid for your sin. He didn't die for your sins. He died as your sin. Huge difference. He became sin so that you might become what? The righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. You see, everyone was guilty. Because sometimes you lead someone to prayer. They say, Well, now let's pray this prayer. Forgive us for our sins, but will they make it sins, plural? But that's not what the scripture says. He said, You're only guilty of one sin. And the one sin is what? Rejecting the payment of sin. Who is Jesus Christ? If you reject Jesus, Heaven has nothing else to offer you. Nothing. And so when you don't so when you receive Jesus, you received all of him.

Pastor West:
You received the fullness of him, you were served the completeness of him. You received his life, you received his nature. You received the attributes. You have the essence of the Christ on the inside of your spirit. As Bishop. Zach was up here ministering while ago. He said that you could give without loving, but you really can't love without giving. And the reason why. Really why you can't. Because when you was born again, you receive the life of God. You receive the nature of God and the nature of primarily is love. So you begin to love what God loves and you hate what God hates. See when you you might make mistakes and you might sin sometimes. But people say, well, you know, you got a sin. No, no, no, you don't. Well, we yeah, we we all got a sin sometime. Who told you that? Yourself your experience. Well, he said, if any, if any man, if any man does sin. He didn't say if when a man sin, he said, But if any man does sin, we have an advocate with the father, the Lord Jesus Christ. Right. So we can go to him. He's your advocate. He's your lawyer. He's attorney. He's never lost a case. He takes it before the father. He's kind of fixed, be honest with you. You know, the whole thing's fixed. And so. We're not practitioners of sin. You know, like a doctor or being a being a practitioner. But so if any man sin. But when you made your own righteousness.

Pastor West:
So you're not thinking about missing it. And when you're righteous by by birth, by the new birth, then you're not trying to be righteous in law. Being righteous in law will lead you to death quicker than it's the quickest path. The Scripture says that sin came by the knowledge of the law. In other words, they weren't even acknowledging the bad until the law came. God gave them the law temporarily through Moses so that they could see that they were already guilty. The law perfected nobody. And this is all scripture. The law perfected no man. The Scripture says Jesus came and he ended the law. He ended the commandments, the ten and the 613 ceremonial laws which the church is still trying to keep in their power. They have good days and they have bad days. When you have a bad day, that sets you up for condemnation in your heart. Let me be honest. When we make a mistake and when we make a mistake in the same area, which is only about what 99.5% of people do here is you fail mostly in the same area. I know you've heard me say that before. I say that to help people. Because when I make mistakes, it's generally in the same area. I go to Publix and I got to make a decision on ice cream. And the lights come on as you walk by and you know, it says two for whatever. And I'm like two. And I look at the calories and I'm like And I and I just grabbed a 4 or 5 of them said, Forgive me, Father, for I'm about to do wrong and put them in and I pay for them and I get them home rescued from the heat.

Pastor West:
And then I say, I'm just going to have a little bit, you know, like every other night. And in two days, all four buckets are gone. And then I realized they don't put as much in there as I thought they'd do. But then I realized, you know, I'm also full gospel. So I stay away from scriptures that say, lay aside the weight so people will have a in other words, you have things that entice you. No one says. I mean. But we do. Sin does have a pleasure in it for a season. There's those things that's just pleasurable to the flesh. But that's not even you. When a spirit manifests. He's not. He's manifest in him, not you. You have all the feelings of it. You have all the symptoms of it, you have all the thoughts of it. But it's actually his thoughts. Mm hm. He's manifesting himself. If if it's perversion and the thoughts that come, it's not even your thoughts. It's actually his thoughts. Amen. Amen. Why did Jesus. Jesus didn't have to, but Judas betrayed Jesus. But the scripture says Satan put the thought into his mind. But see, he acted upon it. You don't have to act upon it. Brother Hagan used to always say, you can't keep birds from flying over your head, but you have a say. So whether they're going to have a nest in your hair.

Pastor West:
They don't have to be their home. You don't have to hear everything that your neighbor tells you. I mean, you're not a trashcan that just. Here, put your garbage in here. Right? So to come to the the land of promise. See, they were looking for. They were looking for they were promised a land. Physical land. That's not our promise. What we are possessing is the promise we have been, Peter said. We've been given great and precious promises. And so we are to possess all of them because they're all paid for. Now I'm going to cut through some of the adversity. I only got a few minutes. I'm going to cut through some of the adversity, if you don't mind me. I have a scalpel, a scaffold today. And the Holy Spirit's here to give the anesthetic. Sometimes truth hurts. My mother used to tell me before she was going to discipline me, she said, This is going to hurt me more than it is you. I never believed her. Because I was the one screaming and hollering. And she wasn't. I learned real quickly when I when I had the choice to go cut the switch the first two times I cut the flimsiest thing out there. And when you live, you know, you live in the middle of 40 acres. There's lots of choices. But she didn't stop when she thought I was through. She stopped when she was tired. If that was three switches, 1 or 5 or whatever, it took until she got her point across and she always got her point across.

Pastor West:
So sometimes what we need is truth. I mean, there's times that we come and we have inspired preaching. I like inspired preaching, but sometimes what that does is appeal to your emotions. A lot of preaching to me is not even preaching today. It's a seeker friendly churches. It makes you feel good about where you are and God sees you in your pastor and he says It won't be long any now, any now what he redeemed will start working. Well, he's already redeemed you. Amen. See, Paul said you're in the fight. He didn't say go for the Kleenex. He said, put on your armor. People need truth. Right. I mean, I loved it work the other way. I would love if I could just, you know, go to the GM and say, look, I want to pay for six months. I'm going to drive by here twice a day. I'll pay you double. If I ain't got to come in the door, what do you want? Well, I want all of it. I want. I want. I want. I mean, you know, I want to look like Zach, but I want to eat what I want to eat. I'm like you sometimes, you know, I run six blocks every morning, and I put the block back under the bed and go back to sleep. Who was that? That was telling? That Kristin was telling, I think, the other day. It's about how hard it is. But the worms. What was it? What was saying?

I'll remember that I. And it's so hot outside the bird can't just.

Pastor West:
Yeah.

Pastor West:
So hot outside barn. The birds just can't go to the ground. Get the worms they have to put on. Pot holders. Don't want to run that kind of weather. The easiest way to get rid of. Wait, this is. This is. This is not. Sometimes you can learn things from other people at church. Sometimes you can have a running dream. And if you do that, you can wake up and you burn off calories. So they tell me I haven't checked the scales to see if it worked yet. Let me give you some things that will help you forever. You can apply it anywhere in your life. This is is so simple, yet it's so amazing. And I know that you know this. But no one is not benefiting from it. No one about it is not benefiting from it. Like the gym. I can know that if I go in there and I actively whatever, I could change this, this and this, but I have to make the decision to do that. And I'm reading from the NIV in Matthew 13 and verses ten through 13. It says, The knowledge of the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, Jesus said, has been given to you talking to his disciples, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more watch here. Whoever has will be given more and he will have an abundance. Y'all with me so far? He said This is the knowledge of the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven.

Pastor West:
But the secrets has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more and will have an abundance. Whoever does not have what he has will be taken from him. This is why I speak in parables. Now break it down. As long as the information remains a secret according to that verse, as long as the information remains a secret, no one can prosper from it. No one, no matter how powerful the secret is or how mighty the person is. If the information or the knowledge of the secret remains a secret is not made known, the No. One benefits from it, no matter what their age or their degrees or lack thereof or education is. But he says. But those who has, he says, will have an abundance and they'll have more. They'll increase. But those who does not have the knowledge and activate it even what they have according to Kingdom principles, what they have will be taken away from them and then given to someone else. Well, that's just not coming to church, is it? That's just not sitting in a pew or chair and clapping your hands. 3 or 4 songs. Throwing a dollar bill in the offering and saying, well, we did that. See Jesus talking to people, tell you there is a kingdom and I'm the king.

Pastor West:
Kingdom means King, Kingdom or King domain. The kingdom is the rule of God, the reign of God, the authority of God. You can't have a king. You can't have a kingdom without a king. And he said that we are kings of the king. You say, Well, you know, my name is Joe, and my daddy's name was Joseph. And and I'm Joe the Third. Well, that's all natural, true knowledge, but that's not really who you are. Really? You are the king of kingdoms. Really? You are royal ambassadors. Really? You are here to rule this planet. But the church is to the place where he said, God, just get us out of here. But there's two schools of thought. Well, he's going to rapture us out. Then you've got the another crowd says, No, we're going to go through the tribulation. That's not my subject today. You can make a you can take the scriptures and make it say both ways. So I said, Well, what are we supposed to do? Well, there's some there's some teachers who just truthfully say, I don't know, I can make a case for either one. So they call themselves Pan Rapture. In other words, it'll all pan out in the end. Would it scare you if you went through the tribulation? We'd have to go back to Israel and Egypt. How did it go for Israel while Egypt was having a meltdown? Was it dark to the God of people while there a piece of dark in Goshen? No.

Pastor West:
Did Israel have the lice and the frogs? And did they have any of that? Was their water turned to blood when the death angel come? Did one of them die? No. Can God do again what he's already done one time? Amen. So there's nothing to worry about. A little kid would know what to do with it. Like if you was raising kids and say, well, it just was scaring me to think that we might go through the rapture. Not really, because the parent would know what to do. In other words, if I'm not talking about the rapture, I'm talking about or the lack thereof, you know, if you went through tribulation, I'm talking about if something was going to happen in the family and you had little kids, the kids wouldn't know anything about it. They wouldn't even know the danger. So the parents would either pick up the kids and get them out of town, go somewhere else and keep them safe. Or else they say we don't need to go nowhere, but I'll keep you safe. The father would say, Either way this goes. I'll keep you safe. If I'm. If I'm erring, I'm. I'm erring on the place of rapturing. People say, well, the word rapture is not in the Bible.

Pastor West:
Neither is the word Bible. But it is in Latin. It is an alarm. Any time there was something about to happen that was going to be a huge change, God always took his people out. You don't want to believe so ask no when you get there. If you don't believe that, ask ask Abraham and Lot. Did God take his people out before there was destruction? But see, we're living in a dispensation of grace. That's why you don't see the destruction. Oh, you hear people preach about it, but they're wrong. You say, Well, you shouldn't say they're wrong. Okay, I won't say that no more. But two more times, then I'll be through with it. It's not because I'm riding them wrong. I'm just reading. You're in the dispensation of grace. God's not paying you back. The dispensation grace will come to an end, and then you'll know who's doing what. Hm. The old coven is not the New Covenant. Amen. But the church pretty much lives in both covenants at one time, which is why it doesn't work. Preachers scare people every Sunday with the Old Covenant. And they have a different version of saying be better, live better. Because they don't want to preach grace. Because grace you says you're afraid them to do act crazy and they'll go wild. God believes somehow grace can keep you.

Amen. Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
See, Grace has a better grip on you than you have on it. Amen.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Because we're sin abounds. Grace does much more abound.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
But they ask the question. Well, then, if. If more grace is poured out when I sin, then wouldn't it be better if I just sin? We'd have more grace. Paul said You are a moron. Like. Like. Like. Like Reba, you moron. You. He says, Certainly not. That's what I. I'd write me a Bible, a Reba Bible, you moron. No, certainly not. See, the grace. The grace of God came to deliver you. Amen. To set you free. If you're still living in sin. Just hoping Grace is keeping you. You see? Then you're still not free. Or if you're white knuckle, like, I'm trying, I'm trying. I'm trying not to sin. You're still not free. See, freedom is a person called Jesus. Amen. It's not a technique. It's not a certain church. It's not. People just get together to try to support each other, which is a good thing, because two is better than one. Well, it was down the other ones up When one's cold, the other one's like those of you who married sometimes, you know, it's winter time. You go to bed and. And your husband or wife, they got cold feet. It's like, what are you. Oh, my gosh. Stay put. You some socks on. That way you don't have to get cold with their cold feet or whatever's ripping the sheets down there. So we so we do need one another. But but but grace came great. The grace of God is not a doctrine. It is an individual. Isn't it? According to Scripture in John chapter one. The Gospel of John. He said that the law came by Moses. Actually, the law was given from an angel to Moses to give to the people of Israel.

Pastor West:
But then it goes on to say, but but grace and truth. Now watch here. But grace and truth. Not just grace. The law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. See, Jesus didn't make it easier because in one sense, because he came as an Old Testament prophet and because he was in the time of the old Covenant, he was he was going to be the New Covenant. You would see reflections of the New Covenant, sometimes mostly in the Book of John. You see all of it in the Epistles, right? So if you interpret everything through the even the gospels, you'll interpret things in the light of what he said to people under the old Covenant. But all kinds of subjects, including divorce and everything else. Another subject. So Jesus brought grace and truth. But you can see the old covenant part of him because they would say things to him, you know, about. He says, well, if a man does this and this, he commits adultery and then he has sinned. Jesus said, Well, but I say unto you, if a man even looks upon a woman and thinks that way, he's committed adultery. He stepped he stepped up the game, made it harder. What he was saying was you can't keep the law in your ability. No one's ever done it. So some people think they've actually done it. They haven't done it. I mean, we have some people that's better than others. We've had some people that didn't test the limits all their life. I mean, there's there's people who's never done almost anything. And that's great. I mean, that's a great witness.

Pastor West:
But without Jesus, you're still going to go to hell. Yeah. And as Andrew always says, you know, who wants to be the best center in hell? Well, I didn't smoke and chew and go with girls who do like you, But you're still in hell, Tucker. You're still so without Jesus, it doesn't matter how good you are as a sinner because you're still guilty, Because you was born into this world, because of Adam and Eve. You was born with a sin nature. You were born spiritually dead. You have to be, what, born again? We. We went to Bible school with a guy, and when we had lab class, he was preaching. He gave us testimonies, lab class. You have to preach a couple of times, you know, just to. So you leave knowing that you did that, maybe we can do it again one day. And it turned out I couldn't believe it. He said he was a homosexual and he did everything he could try to everything. He could try to be free from that lifestyle. And so one day he just cried out to God and he says, Lord, he says, he says, I just feel like I was born this way, that I was wrong, he said. And all of a sudden he heard the Holy Spirit say, It's okay. Just get born again. It's not true. So it's not a state of birth. State of mind. The mind is corrupted. The feelings are real. But yeah, I can remember back when I was eight, I had these kind of feelings. That's. You're in the feelings where that's where the devil works. He does his best work in feelings. Do you agree?

Pastor West:
Man.

Pastor West:
I mean, if you didn't have five senses, sometimes it would be a blessing. You ever heard anywhere? Anyone ever physically hurt in their body? Anywhere. What if you didn't have symptoms? You wouldn't know it. Right. You ever feel grief? You wouldn't if you didn't have emotion. How many of you like pizza? How many. Like. How many. Like how many? You like the sense of taste when you're eating pizza or fried chicken? Come on, somebody. Ice cream. Right. But sometimes your senses, when they're worry, fear. If. If those senses could be dialed down or turned off, if you had a switch, you could turn off all five senses. Faith would be working optimally all the time because you have no opposition to it. Think about it. If you could just turn your senses off your five senses, then what would the devil use? He'd have nothing to use. He has to have your senses. What? That's the difference between the carnal man and the spiritual man. He has to employ your five senses against you. To work against you, to keep you in a carnal state of mind. The physical state of mind. But if you could turn your senses off. Yeah, but you don't know my body. It's. Well, it's true. Your body does feel that way. But it doesn't mean because your body is this way, which your mind is suggesting to you is going to happen to you. Where do you get that kind of suggestion? No, I think I said last week, I mean, I remember just, you know, kids getting older and getting cars and I think, you know, be home at 10:00 at night and there's 1115.

Pastor West:
Don't have a cell phone then. My mind is playing all kinds of scenarios where that. You know. 1130 12. I mean, I don't know where they're. I mean, your mind will tell you all kinds of things. Mean, have them have a son in the Marines at war. And then you turn on the TV and it says 13 Marines was killed yesterday in Marjah. Well, I knew because I talked to him day before. We're going to invade Marjah because if I get caught on this phone call, I probably won't be a marine. Daddy pray. He says, tomorrow we're going to invade Marjah. The next morning, it says 13 Marines was killed invading Marjah. It's crazy. I went to go pick up my cell phone to look for my son's name to call him. And I thought, oh, oh. There's nobody to call. You know what happens in your mind. You know how the enemy plays with your mind. You see a black sedan coming up in your driveway. That never happened. But the roleplay was real. The feelings and emotions was real. It was a real war where real people were dying, young men were dying and young women were dying. So if you if your emotions came under control of the Holy Spirit. So it says walk in the spirit, walk in the control of the Holy Spirit. Walk under his direction, and you'll never fulfill the physical. Satan will have.

Pastor West:
No, that's his playground. It's George Meyer's book here. Number one, books. Those books she's got, I think, the Battlefield of the Mind. I'd just like to say a little bit different than she does. She says the battlefield, you know, is in the mind. That's true. I just like to add to it, it's not just it's not where the battle just takes place. He's not just he's not just fighting you in your mind. He's fighting you for your mind. In other words, the enemy really believes in real estate and he wants to capture your mind. And he wants to rewrite the title to it and say this is his mind. So Paul said in Philippians says, Let this mind be in you, which was in Christ Jesus. You say, Well, you can't have that. Let them. Do you believe the Bible? Let the mind of Christ be in you. See, you have to look at the Ministry of Jesus. I'm not going to get to this. I guess you're you have to look at the minister Jesus, and say, this is my life. This is who I am. The only thing that you have to fight in this life that's yet undetermined. This is worth right now. The only thing that you have in life to fight that is yet undetermined. Is only anything that Jesus hasn't conquered yet. Or maybe you don't need it right now. But now we're on the list and seeing what Jesus has not conquered for you already. And now you know what's left to fight.

Pastor West:
Praise God.

Pastor West:
We can have open class. I'd like to know. Some of these things are. It would help me. Y'all help me. What is it that Jesus had conquered yet for us, that's left open to its ongoing phase two? You say, well, there is a fight. Yes, Paul said, Now fight the good fight of faith. You know, why is it good? Because you win. See you don't conquer it in you. You let him conquer it through you. See, it's acts says in him. We live in him. We move in him. We have our being. Paul said in Galatians 220. He said I was symbolically crucified with Christ. I died with him because I was crucified with him, he said. Then they buried him in me. He said, But then when Jesus was raised, I was raised. Now physically with DePaul was the crucified with Christ. Now, Paul was nowhere around. Saul of Tarsus was nowhere around when Jesus was crucified, he said, But this is what happened to all of us, He says, when they when they crucified him, when they crucified you, when they took him to the whipping post, they took you there. What's he actually doing? Jesus is there to do what? One thing to restore mankind back to God.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
He's the only one who could do it because he had to be without sin. But he had to be human, too. Because you can't step in for humans if you're not human. Amen. He had to come as a man. He had to strip himself of all deity of God likeness and laid aside forever to be a human that was decided before he was born, that a god would become a human. How many would like taking his place that you would be God Next day? You'd be frank in Jefferson. Oh, God. What are we going to eat today, Jack or Subway? Well, we had Subway yesterday, Jack. We're going to have tomorrow. Jack's now, Was he? God? Yes. But he was a man. And the only way he could do this is he had to function in the power of the Holy Ghost. Amen. Which is your example. Amen. That's just why you need the Holy Ghost. That's why you'd be full of the holy. Because Jesus. Full of the Holy Ghost. He had to do what He had to do as a man, but anointed of the Holy Ghost.

Pastor West:
Which is your example. So when you do things without the Holy Ghost and when the church has their programs, well, we don't want to do this on Sunday. We might offend people. Most of them need to be offended. The pastor needs to get offended, wait for Sunday and get over himself. Well, I want him to like me. Oh, get your thumb out of your mouth. Quit sucking your thumb. You'll have buck teeth from here to the parking lot. This is our manual. See. You have to make a name for yourself in hell. And if I can say it this way, I must say it to get your attention. Who in the hell are you? Or who in hell are you? You have to make a name in hell for yourself. If not, they're going to pick on you the rest of your life. Yeah, there's going to be a battle doing that. There is a Bible doing that. But the battle's been won in Jesus. You're not fighting for something that's not already been won or decided. But you're. But you're an enforcer.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
The law's already been written for speed limit on 65, but some people never see those speed limits.

Pastor West:
I mean, it's like.

Pastor West:
I mean, I was just honest with you, you know, years ago. I mean, I had a Suburban and I thought I needed to be in a big hurry, and I was driving. I mean, I was on the interstate and it was like 130 in the morning. There were no cars out there. And I was way past needing to be home. And I didn't know there was a state trooper. I hadn't passed a car in a long time. 130, 2:00 in the morning, coming, you know, interstate, you know, Mississippi, and about to get to the Alabama line. And.

Pastor West:
Whoa.

Pastor West:
And he state trooper said he got he says, I just want to ask you a question. I need your license registration. I don't want to ask you a question. He says, what are you doing going 98 miles an hour? And I said, Yes, sir, I'm sorry. I just want to know. I said, Can I be honest with you? He said, Yeah. I said, Well, I tried to go 100, but there's a governor on this thing and it cut off. So I pulled it on down to 98 so I could I could see he turned around. I could see him laughing. He said, I'm going to let you go with a warning since you told me the truth. He says, Slow it down. So I did. I got down on 95. But see, the law had already been set. What was he there to do to enforce it? The law's already been set. See, Satan has power. People said, Well, Jesus took all his power away. No, he didn't. He Satan has power. He doesn't have authority. Jesus stripped him as what? Of authority. In other words, he doesn't have a right to use the power, but he uses the power until he comes in contact with someone like you. Who knows he doesn't have the right to do it. When Jesus sent his disciples out. Remember? He sent 12 then. Then he sent 70. Later on he said, I give you power to tread upon serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy.

Pastor West:
He said, Heal the sick, raise the dead. He didn't say pray for anybody. He said, Heal them. Raise the dead, cast out devils. Remember they did that in his authority. Well, when when Jesus stripped Satan of his authority, he said, Now Jesus said now all Jesus had more authority after he was resurrected than before. He's resurrected. He said, Now all power. Now all authority belongs to me. Then they gave it to the church. So Satan has zero authority. So he's one walking around the earth using power with no legal right to use it. Because Jesus took the legal right that he had away because Adam sold himself and all of us out. So he has no authority to do what he's doing to you. He's just he's using illegal power. So you just stand up in your authority like the state trooper and say. You arrest them? You stop them in his name. Amen. Well, I'm going to call upon the church. Well, you are the church. I mean, if not now when? If not now when? When are you going to act like the person that you already are? When are you going to become you? What day will you rise up and be Jesus with skin on? How much are you going to take? And he'll try you. I'm telling you, he's going to try you. If you don't do anything, you probably won't. Ever. You probably won't. Never had someone tell me it's been years ago. They said, you talk about this all the time and you've run this and that deal.

Pastor West:
They said, I ain't never had no trouble with him. I said, I know. And they said, Well, why is that? And I said, Well, you want the honest truth? They said, Yeah. So could you talk about having to catch this devil out and had to go over here and had like this and, you know, the leg was going to be amputated and you had to go over here and deal with this and cast the devil out of this and all that. I said, Yeah, yeah. I said, I ain't never run into him, nothing like that. I said, I know. I said, I said, I said, Because you're walking in the same direction. Turn around and you'll meet him. And when you're walking side by side, you, you ain't paying no attention. But when you turn around this way. Oh, yeah. And he will oppose you. But he's going to have to use your senses to do it. He. Thank you. Can you all see that? He has to use your senses to combat you or he'll use your body against you. He'll weaponize your body against you. You say. But my kidneys. But you're so. But you're not. You're a spirit. You're not a kidney. Yeah, but my pancreas. You're not a pancreas, but my lungs. You have lungs, but you're not a lung. Well, my spine. Yeah, you have a spine, but you're not a spine. You're a spirit.

Pastor West:
Your spirit is rules. See, your spirit is king. Your soul is a servant and your body is a slave. When you get that out of order, then your soul will rule as king. And your body will become the servant. I mean your soul. You'll make your spirit a servant to your mind and to your body, because it's out of order. But remember our strong the strong spirit of a man. Proverbs 1814 says the strong spirit of a man will sustain that man in a time of bodily pain or trouble, whatever kind of trouble that you have until you know who you are in Christ, you'll never walk in your authority. With that last song we say, I mean, I'm not it's hard to find music. It's almost impossible to find music that scripture sometimes you like the music, you like the beats, you like this, you like that part. But then they'll throw a little bit in there. There was one part in the garden thing, you know, So he, he, he remade us or something like that. He built us up. No, he didn't build you up. He destroyed you. God dropped the atomic bomb on you, blew you up like that. He didn't take you and have you re-upholstered. He might have thought about it. He said, ain't gonna work. He said, Just blow em up. Let's make a new man. Let's make him just like us. Make him in our image, in our likeness, put dominion, put authority in them.

Pastor West:
That the only thing that you don't have dominion over is just people. Somebody. I wish you had them in other people. But somebody tried that like you're going to do it. I tell you, I'm like, Huh? That's why we had a lot of divorces. You don't rule over people, but you rule over evil spirits because of who you are. I mean, I just want you to know. I mean, it's not I'm not trying to talk about the devil because he's not a major part in this true story. Take out revelations. The devil is only mentioned four times in the New Testament. I will say that this was a play, a theatrical play. He didn't get a very big part. And every time it suggests like this, you have authority over him or don't give place to him or submit yourself to God. Resist the devil and he will flee. Every time you see that you have complete and total authority, you don't feel like you do because he's using your senses. I mean, your senses have high sensitivity to them. They feel things. Things get out of whack. You feel it, you know it. You feel it. You can hurt. You can be in pain. You can. You can have mental almost breakdowns. You can have anxiety, you can have stress, You can have all these things. There's natural things to do to help. But it's not just the natural. Employ the supernatural. I'm not saying don't use natural help and natural mean.

Pastor West:
But. But, but. But who said you have to go to a psychologist to live? And see if you live in the world, you don't need them very often. Now, I'm not trying to I didn't know what was going to say all that, but I'm just saying. But I don't need to sit down with someone once a week or twice a week and tell them how I feel because I'm not even going to voice how I feel. I feel crazy sometimes. There are some times I don't even want to come to church. I don't want to preach. Because it is okay to say that. How many ever went to work one day and you didn't feel like it? Okay, now you know what I'm talking about. But how many overrode your feelings? Yeah, because you still like to eat on a regular basis and you might have had a mortgage and some kids or whatever, So you overrode your feelings and you went to work. Well, how come you don't override your feelings at other times? And I just don't know. I just don't feel well. I see. That's not kingdom. That's not king. Now you're taking your spirit and you're saying you're not going to be the king today. We're going to let you be the either the slave or the servant, because I don't feel good. Now, listen, I'm through right here. I. I can't forgive them. You know, with me. Listen, Watch. When you say I can't forgive them or I can't, whose I?

Pastor West:
Who's me? Who's you?

Pastor West:
Are you talking about?

Pastor West:
You the.

Pastor West:
Fleshy person. Are you talking about you? The new man in Christ? All things passed away, all become new. Who's the you who can't forgive? With the love of the nature of God. Shed abroad in your heart by the Holy Ghost. Who's you? That will help you forever. If you'll remember that when the feelings come. Physical, mental, whatever it is. Whose you? Paul said, Put on the new man. Put off the old man. But you know what people try to do? They try to put the new man on top of the old man.

Pastor West:
Yeah, right.

Pastor West:
Huh? It's like when the dentist is going to give you a what do you call a top of the crown? It goes over, right. And so in the church, Christians, we try to build a new life over our old one. Yeah. Well, you don't know when I was a kid. Well, my my my folks did things to. People ask me through the years, Who was your dad? A pastor, I think. No, no, not too much. A pastor? No, no. They get much of that. He spoke in tongues. Known tongues for letter tongues all time. Mad, angry volcano might erupt at any moment. Our plan was how fast can you get out of this house? You know, when you get 70, 80 years old, you chilled out and he got saved. And he's in heaven right now. I can't hardly wait to meet the spiritual man I've never known my whole life. That's going to be a lot of fun for me, you know? Who knows? He might even hug me. That'd be weird. I don't know. Do you ever get hugged? I don't know. Ever getting hugged? You didn't either.

Pastor West:
You couldn't do it, could it? But he was angry. He. He had the touch. So I didn't learn anything spiritually from my dad. I didn't get an ounce of spiritual from from my mother. I did. Her doctor wasn't altogether right. But but she was going to make sure you knew about Jesus. You didn't vote on whether you're going to go to church. I mean, I made the mistake one time saying, do we have to go back tonight? She says, Do what? I said. We already went this morning, Mama. I said, Do we have to go back tonight? I said, I want to watch Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom. She said, You get in and get your clothes on. Things are about to get real wild for you. She was so strong in those things that and I think this is this is sad for the men need to be men. Husband. You're supposed to be the head of your home. You're supposed to. That doesn't mean you're rule over anyone, because the Bible says we submit one to another. The husband submits to the wife also.

Pastor West:
Thank you.

Pastor West:
I can give the scriptures if you need them. In other words, she walks by your side. She doesn't walk in front of you or behind you. She walks by your side. Amen. You should know that because you're missing a rib. That's why I'll go. Jim. I always order ribs. I just know I'm missing one somewhere. And so we submit one to another. And I say I'm to submit to the Lord. Right? As the husband I'm supposed to be, Submit to him. And I'm supposed to treat my wife. The same way that Christ I'm supposed to. Well, Ephesians says love her the way that I love my church. And he said, Well, how do you do that? Well, it says right there. And he says, because then he gave himself for the church. He laid his life down for the church. Now, if you want, he says now to be a leader, you submit to me, you submit to my leadership, you submit to my word, you come. See, you can't have authority unless you're under authority.

Pastor West:
If you if you.

Pastor West:
If you're doing it any way, it's rogue. It's all. It's all natural. It's all flesh. But when you come under authority, I've hardly met. Almost no women have trouble submit to a godly man who was submitted to the Lord because all he's going to have is love. There's only been three or 4 or 5 times I can think of when Michelle and I, we we would disagree on something and we both would talk. And then she would say, but you but you make the decision because you're you're the head of this household. Then I felt more responsibility. I asked her one time. I said when we was about when we already graduated from Bible school and one I couldn't even believe I was even there. So I couldn't assume I was going to come home to Alabama. I had to at least say I'd rather go home, but I'm But I'll go wherever you tell me to. And we were both praying about it. What was our next step? Not just assume that I'm through with Bible school and going back home because what am I going to do when I get home? I mean, why did I come to Bible school? So I asked her one day while we were still in Oklahoma, I said, What would you say if we were supposed to move to another state and not go back home and we were supposed to help someone do something and start a work or something? She says, Well, if the Lord tells you that's what we need to do. And I said, Really? She said, Yeah. I said, I know, sir, you'd rather go home. She said, My preference is to go home.

Pastor West:
She says, But if that's what you know, then we'd better go do it. And I said, One more question. I said, What if? I feel like we're supposed to go do this and we go do it. And I find out and I find out later on. I was wrong. She said, Well, then you'll pray again and the Lord will do. Then we'll go do that. And I've known a few pastors and pastors wives, and I can tell you how blessed I am. That a wife would be willing to say, Even if you're wrong, I'm going to be by your side and and we'll come out of it together. No. You can see my blessing. Amen. So only a handful of times that we differed on it. There was times in ministry that I didn't see her side. She was telling me, You need to be careful over here. And I said, Why? She said, Well, that woman's not she's up to no good. I said, Oh, ain't nothing. She said, I'm telling you, you better, you better stay away. I'm telling you, I forget her name, but I think it's Jezebel. And I thought, well, she just got some rough edges. She's only been here 2 or 3 times. She says, I'm telling you, you stay away from her. She's up to no good. And I just. I kind of just blew it off. Until one night on a Sunday night, I had a stage. It was about 40 foot long. And there was I could walk off the stage if I wanted to and go to my office. And I did that at night. And I walked and there was I could walk off the stage and be in a hallway and my office was out in the hallway.

Pastor West:
And when I walked off the stage, that woman was in the back hallway. And I said, Hey. She said, I'm gonna make this short and sweet. I said, Do what she says. She said, I'm never going to say anything to anyone. She said, I just never been with or slept with a preacher and I would like to. She said, Are you interested? I'm not looking for any commitments or anything. I just want to say I've. And she didn't have a spirit of Ogilvy on her. Okay. I've been approached. Someone who's my age now or older. But I was 30 and there was no temptation at all. But this one she said, said that. And she says, So you interested? She said, You want to sleep together? I said, Well, I'm not sleepy. She should do it. I said, I'm not really that tired. I said, Oh, oh, oh. So there was a devil. So I just thought I'd embarrass him for a while. So I tell you, I tell you what I said. Oh, I know some. I said, Well, I tell you what. Have you met my wife? She says, I know who she is. I said, Well, go ask her. And if you flirt with her, then we'll see. Never saw that woman again. But see, I never picked up on any of that stuff. And she was telling me the whole time that this is wrong. This is wrong, this is wrong. She had more wisdom than I did. That wouldn't be shocking to you women at all.

Pastor West:
You know.

Pastor West:
It's like, yeah, what's your point? See, I needed her and I didn't know I needed her. You know, she'd have strengths in all my weaknesses and I would have, you know, the other because she's just, you know, she's real systematic and she keeps everything organized. She has a calendar. She knows when this is. She knows pretty much when all y'all's birthdays are. She she keeps all that going. She would tell me weeks ahead and I got to go do this. I got to go do this because this is going to be their birthday. Their birthday is important. Their birth, you know, their birthdays are important. Their birthdays important. I got to go do this. I could do that. I'm not doing any of that stuff. I can't do all this stuff. So we need one another. So when the enemy comes, I always have you someone. Maybe it's a spouse. Maybe it's a friend. Maybe it's someone here in church. Some of you are closer to people here in your church than you are. Sometimes you're. You're your natural family. That's okay. But. But. But have a go to person. Don't have a gossipy person. Have someone who if you have one friend in the whole world, you're a rich person. I mean one true friend. And I'll define it this way. And finally close someone who knows just about everything about you. And they still like you. Someone who's not judging you for why you're in that situation. But they're there to say, Let me help you out.

Pastor West:
Sometimes all they can do is hold your hand. Sometimes all they can do is just be there. Sometimes you they just need to vent. Sometimes they just need to cry. You know, I mean, I first got married. I didn't understand all that. I look over there certain times a month and my wife's crying. I said, What's cry about? She said, Nothing. And I thought, well, you're crying about something. You know, men are logically our minds are logical. We fix things. And when you tell me you're crying, you don't know why. How do I fix that? And my mother, she says it's the time of the month. I said, For what? She says, You know. I said, Oh. I said, But why is she crying? She says, Just leave her alone. So I found out for her. She liked to Baby Ruth and Dr. Pepper. She didn't want any time of the month. That was her comfort thing. And then she's not here because I'm going to be in trouble. So my kids asked me. I mean, she's here. My kids asked me, she said they said, you know, about ten years ago, they said his mama going through a change of life. I said, something's changed. Something's changed. I said, leave it alone. Just leave it alone. We we going to ride this wave on out? Because, I mean, she had short answers sometimes. And we rode that way for a couple of three years. And some of the kids, like his mom, were upset with me.

Pastor West:
I said, maybe. I don't know. I don't know what she's going through. I said, we'll just pray for her. Everything's fine. It wasn't nothing terrible. It was just it was just different because we're used to someone that's like, she doesn't want to argue with you. She doesn't want to fight with you. She just wants to get along with you. But if she needs to fight with you, if she gets to the place of fighting with you, you're in trouble. I was kidding her about the rib thing. Lexi was in there last week, remember? And? And I was going to. She was driving, so I was going to say, I think you got what, My rib bone. Get it back. So whatever. And she can't stand tickling. She can't stand it. And she stopped the truck, didn't she? And she took her shoe and she started beating me with her shoe. I mean, and it hurt. She was hit me in the head and everything. She said, I can't. I can't stand it. Don't. Don't you tickle me. I can't stand it. And and I did it one time, and she she got a butcher knife out like this. And I said, Are you serious? Aren't you. She said, I can't stand it. So she just goes along and gets along and wants to be, you know, kind to everyone. And she is. But she has that place in her that she won't whatever. And if you pick on the people and if you pick on, she pick on you and they pick on her kids and their grandkids.

Pastor West:
You know, I had a kid one time made a mistake. I know you never had done that. And someone told me actually, Nathan stood up in the service. He won't remember all this, but. I had to tell the church a certain thing and it was like, If you want to, I'll just resign. I hate it happened, but it happened. And if you want it to, I'll resign. And it boiled church was quiet and I thought, oh gosh, I guess they want me to. And all of a sudden Nathan stood up and he said, Well, so and so happened. He told us about it. And he says, I think what the family needs now more than anything and this child of his, I think they need our love and support now. They need us to come for them. And. And that was a great sense of I mean, it just broke everything in the room, just those simple words that he spoke. It just it just broke everything. And church was over. And I'm sure there were people went home, talked about things. And I went out in the foyer and there was an older gentleman and he didn't he was talking to everybody about the situation, but he didn't know what was out in the foyer. And he said, Well, that's why you don't bring people to church like this and you don't mix colors. Peoples and church. You don't do this and you don't have situations like that and you don't have like this.

Pastor West:
And I was standing behind him and they were seeing him talking, but they were seeing seeing me. And he said, I think we should have I think he probably needs to go. And I tapped him on the shoulder. He's in heaven now. He turned around, looked at me. He kind of jumped. And I said, Did you have something to say to me? Oh, no, no, no, no, no. Everything's good. And I said, I love you, the love of God. I said, But if you're going to make me pick between me, I mean, you and my daughter, you've lost. If you ever make me pick between me and my children, you. You've lost. It only means they're right. You've lost. It wouldn't be just my physical daughter. It would be anyone in there, because the spirit of that was wrong. It didn't matter what happened, how you responded to it was wrong and gave voice to it. So when you want to shut the enemy down from talking harassing you, you don't have to get loud. You don't have to put on your double deputy badge. You don't have to be underdog and get into a phone booth and come out with your cape. You just have to quote Jesus because Satan is terrified of Jesus. Amen. Amen. Amen. He defeated him on every front and said that he stripped him of all authority and then paraded him around in three different atmospheres, you know, like a defeated king in those days when they did and they defeated the nation, they took the king, stripped him down and took him right down to the town.

Pastor West:
That's what Jesus did to Satan. I said, Let me tell you about my Jesus. Amen. Amen. And you're not going to do this to my physical body or my mind because you didn't create my body in my mind, and you're not the master of it. Amen. My body is a temple of the Holy Ghost. Amen. So right now, where you're sitting right now, you don't even need hands laid upon you. I'm going to pronounce health upon you right now. And when I pronounce health upon you, a change is about to take place in your physical body right now. In Jesus name. You say? Well, did you hear that from God? Yes. Amen. But what if I didn't? I still have the authority to do it. But if it helps you, I heard it. He said, don't lay hands on any and won't require it in Jesus name. I speak life into your body right now? In Jesus name. Those of you here, those of you watching, those of you listening, I speak life to your body right now. In Jesus name. I curse every satanic assignment against you right now, in the name of Jesus and the authority that's given to us in the name of Jesus. Every demonic assignment, every sickness, every pain, every disease, everything known and unknown. That's not of God. Jesus name. I say.

Pastor West:
Stop. Go.

Pastor West:
Be removed. I cast you out. There it is. And now the laugh of God comes in. Now the life of God flows. Ha ha. There it is. There it is. All you got to say is I received it in the name of Jesus. Peace to the peace. To the mind. Peace to the mind. Well, there's torment. There's now peace. Peace to whose mind is stayed on thee. You are the reflection of him. Hmm. Whoever you are. Holy Spirit says when you talk about this, quit. Quit telling people about my allergies. They're not yours. Could put anything that you deal with in a sense of my my headache, my pain, my this, my, that. Quit taking ownership of something that don't belong to you. It's not yours. Ups brings a bomb to your house. You don't have to sign for it. You can refuse the package. Jesus name. I declare you free. Free from every addiction. He who the son sets free is free.

Pastor West:
He's free. Free in your.

Pastor West:
Heart. Free in your mind. Now, think on those things that are good and pure and lovely and of good report. If there's any faith or virtue, think, think, think, think, think on those things. Then the peace of God that passes all understanding shall keep your heart and your mind in Christ Jesus to the glory of God.

God bless you.

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Possessing The Promise Part 1 | 23Jul2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Possessing The Promise Part 1 | 23Jul2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Good morning and welcome to Gracelife Church. And those of you who joined us this morning, we're talking about going into some good places that God's already been there. He's already prepared the path. It's a good path. I think one of the greatest chapters in the Bible, when I enjoy a whole lot in the book of Psalms or Psalms, 139 said he knew you before you was in your mother's womb. I don't know how that's possible, but all things are possible with God. Amen. He knew you because you was in him and you was with him before he sent you here, I suppose. Amen. If I'm wrong, he'll figure it. He'll tell me in heaven. But he knew you before. Your parents knew you. He knew you before. They knew you was coming and they said, Oh, it wasn't a oh to him. Your parents might have called you an incident or an accident, but you're a real life. Amen. Amen. You're a real life. That child's a real life. A gift sent from God by the Holy Ghost. Wow. And in that in that psalm, it talks about that God has a plan and a path. He knows the beginning and he knows the end. He knows every chapter of your life. If it was the interstate, he knows every mile marker and what it looks like. And there's things that's going to come into your path to deter you from what you're supposed to do.

Pastor West:
I hate to say this, but I know it's true that some people will live their whole life and never enter into the will of God while they're here. I hate to say this, and I hope I'm wrong, but I think it's the mass majority of humanity come and go from this planet and never, ever really enter into the will of God. I didn't say they weren't Christians. I didn't say they weren't believers. I didn't say they weren't good people who do some good things, but never, ever, ever really take the time to find out the will of God for their lives and then follow that, then fulfill it. That's what we'll talk to Jesus about. That's when you will go to the Bema seat, the reward seat. That's when he'll discuss with you individually, with no one else. Just you and him. Maybe that is the tears that the Bible says. He'll have to wipe away the tears. You're not going there for judgment of sin. He's already dealt with your sin. You'll go there to be rewarded. The judgment will be placed upon what you did with why you was here, with what you were called to do. You know, some people just do what they did. And this may not all be together wrong. And some of you might do this and some of you may never do this, but some people just do what their parents do. Some men do what their dad did.

Pastor West:
Maybe that is the thing to do for them, but possibly it's not. Possibly not. I think sometimes some people and I've heard people say this, you speak in seminars. Some people have spent more time picking out a tie than they did choosing their occupation. They just do something because it came available and somehow they just kept on doing it. Well, we want to be on his plan. Amen. Right. Because there's no one like you. This morning, we're going to start a new series we could keep on doing. We asked about building a strong spirit before that. You know, we entitled to stop opposing yourself. And someone says, well, how do you oppose yourself? Well, the scripture that we use is in Second Timothy chapter two, and it talks about that when we we give place. To what the enemy tries to do against you. And we consider it and all the physical things that come with it, All the things of. Of the five senses. And we let that determine what we believe and what we will do or will not do. Then then we assist with help the enemy who opposes you in the will of God against you. So he uses your senses. He uses your mind, your will, your emotions. He uses your thoughts. Sometimes he uses your body as a weapon against you to oppose the very will of God. And he says he traps you and ensnares you.

Pastor West:
Well, that's strong talk. If that's what he does, we should know about it. We should know how he's working and the way that he works. But, you know, that's not how God works. And so we're going to talk about this morning about we're just going to build on that and we're going to tie this this series called Possessing the Promise. And we're just going to lay a foundation this morning for the teaching. We want to go to Joshua chapter one, which I know you're we all know pretty familiar or familiar with it, Joshua, chapter one. And I don't know why, but it's come up three times, so I better obey it, right? I mean, you shouldn't have to come up three times. He said, Go to your last. I keep hearing without context, I'm just going to give you the last thing I thought I would say today. Without any context. You go to Joshua chapter one, but and we're going to read verses one through nine. But in Second Corinthians chapter ten, verse 12, if you're making notes, Paul talked about the church at Corinth, and he they were boasting among themselves. He was, you might say he's the greatest. And he says, and then they put him in the comparison, apparently. But the second Corinthians 1012, Paul said they are measuring themselves by themselves and they are comparing themselves among themselves, which is not wise. The Greek word for wise is Sophos.

Pastor West:
So when he says that they measure themselves by their own selves, then they compare themselves among their own selves. He said This is not wise. He looked at the word wise in the Greek word. Paul said, What is Paul saying? This is not wise. He said, They're not sharp. He said they are not bright. Comparing yourself or measuring yourself. Someone wants to know one another is not being very bright. But I think it has a different, even a broader meaning. This is when you measure yourself. Against the things in your life that you're dealing with. Or you look to someone else and see how how well they're doing by that. It's not. Well, when you say was, what good is it going to do for me to believe this when when this prophet was believing this and died? And who am I? That's a that's that's a road you don't want to go down because you don't know their thoughts. You don't know what they decided in their heart to go do. And so it doesn't matter what someone else did. We can we are never called to compare ourselves. And you know when the judgment when you stand before Jesus, he will not allow you to use anybody else. You can't take your spouse with you, you can't take your parents with you. You can't take your pastor with you. You can't take the prophet with you. It'll just be you and Jesus.

Pastor West:
You can't say, Well, you know, I was going to do this, but and he said, But this is what I kept dealing with you. This was this was what was in your heart. This was the tug. This is he'll show you all the time. Yeah, but Ralph, he didn't do that. Well, Ralph won't be in the equation. So we can't compare ourselves and measure ourselves against anyone. Now, sometimes what the way this is preached is because people have sometimes a low self esteem and so they're measuring self. I mean, what am I going to do? I've heard I've heard ministers, you know, that they're going to speak with a quorum of speakers. And they were intimidated because they were some big names, you know, around. And they said, I mean, who am I to do that? I mean, well, this was the opposite at the church in Corinth. They were all puffed up. They said, We got it going on. I wonder what Paul Paul's going to say. And Paul Paul said, well, first off, I'm not thinking about you. He said, I know. I know who I am. I know the grace of God in me. And he said, I know my boundaries and I'll stay. We say, I'll stay in my own lane. He said, But those of you who are measuring yourself by your own self and comparing yourself among yourself, he said, You're not so bright. Now, was that okay? Maybe we'll come back to it.

Pastor West:
That was how I was going to finish today. So we're through. Amen. We'll see you all next Sunday. And praise the Lord. Well, let's let's read Joshua one before we go, since we we did that. So. Well, the Matt did a really good job this morning. We received an offer and I was really encouraged by what he said. We're talking about possessing the promised land. So Joshua is a is a great teaching. And what we're going to do is we're we're still so that, you know, from where I'm coming from, we're still in the same lesson. We're still talking about not opposing yourself. We're still talking about building a strong spirit. We're going to begin to look at put a foundation for. But we're going to look what strength looks like as we go forward and what strength does not look like what's human strength and what's natural strength and what is spiritual strength. We'll see the rising up and the down falling of people that did great things and people who could have but didn't. People who missed the mark and never fulfilled the promise. You have a great plan for your life. You have a great destiny. Had been paid for. If you're going to fulfill it, it's not going to be easy, but it's going to be possible. What's it going to take? It's going to take everything in you to do it.

Pastor West:
So that's why most people are not going to do it. They're just not. Uh, Joshua, chapter one says Now, after the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord, it came to pass that the Lord spoke unto Joshua, the son of nun, Moses minister, saying, Moses, my servant is dead. Now, therefore, arise, go over this Jordan, thou and all the people until the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon that have I given unto you, as I said, unto Moses, from the wilderness of Lebanon to the great river, a river the Euphrates, into the land of the Hittites, the great sea toward the going down of the sun shall be your coast. He's giving dimensions. Verse five is where we really come in here. So Moses has died. Joshua is going to be his successor. I don't know what that would feel like. In verse five, he tells he tells him, No man shall be able to stand before you, Joshua, all the days of your life. No, man, the way I was with Moses is how I'll be with you. I bet that helped him. Joshua. I will not fail you. Joshua. I will not forsake you. Hey, Joshua. Be strong. Joshua, Be courageous. Very courageous. So he told him to be strong and of good courage. He says, For unto this people, shall I divide inheritance, the land which I swear to their fathers to give them only be thou strong.

Pastor West:
Only be thou strong. These are directives. These are. This is his marching orders. Only Joshua be thou strong and very courageous that you might observe to do according to all the law which Moses, my servant, commanded you. Do not turn from it to the left or from to the right. Or don't. Don't turn from the right hand or to the left. Always I'm left handed. So I start with the thou mayest prosper wherever thou goest. Hey, Joshua. This book of the law. Don't let it depart out of your mouth. Hey, Joshua. Meditate in this book. When God day and night. Why? That you may observe to do according to all that is written therein. Hey, Joshua. Now, listen to this part, Joshua. So if you. If you observe, if you meditate day and night, listen to this, Joshua. Then, Joshua, you yourself will make your way prosperous. And, Joshua, you will have good success. Can you see God's part? But can you see Joshua's part? Joshua has instructions. He can feel encouraged as Pastor Matt was talking about. He can have expectation because God told him, I'll be with you the way I was with Moses. But do you see that Joshua will have to have action on his own part? He'll have to use the faith that God has given him to carry out the plan.

Pastor West:
The mission? I mean, could you imagine being the successor of Moses? I mean, he he was a slave in Egypt. He's been with this group. He's seen all of it. He's seen all the whine and the complaining, but he's seen all the miracles, the signs and the wonders. He knows what Moses has done and what he's had to deal with and put up with with the people. And now it's your turn. He knows that they never they never got to the to the promised land. Now, we're going to talk about that this morning in the foundation, because it's been wrongly taught sometimes when you talk about Canaan land. Um, that some people say kaneland is a type of heaven. And we'll get to that in a moment, which is not Kaneland is not a type of heaven. God gave them. God gave Moses and God gave Joshua a promise for for his people. He wanted them to, to have the a Canaan land. He wanted them to have a land. That was the promise. We don't have a Canaan land in that sense. We have we have our Canaan land. If you want to say this is the promises of God. Theirs was a physical place to go to. And we know that by and large, most of them never reached it. Now, that's important that we know that because. And we won't we won't go there. But in first Corinthians 16, 13 and 14, in the Nlt it says, it says be on guard.

Pastor West:
Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. This is what Paul. Paul was writing the church to the letter or epistle to the church at Corinth. And so when he takes time to write, he doesn't have time to say, you know, how's how's it going? How's the weather? No, that's none of his letters. He doesn't have time for small talk. So he just writes what's important. And he says to the church at Corinth, he tells them he exhorts them. This is his final letter that he'll ever write to the church at Corinth. And he says, What you need to do is be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. I always like to look things up because I like to know what they said meant in the Greek or the Hebrew. The Greek. He told them, Be men and act like men. I'll put it in 2023. If you're a man. Identify yourself and be one. I hope I'm still on. I get knocked off. Okay, good. In other words, if you're a man, then be that. Act like that. Quit making excuses. So you can cash in anywhere you want to in life. It just depends on what your goals are. If you're satisfied at three, then people whose 4 or 5, six, seven is going to aggravate you. If you like reading books about leadership and or maybe by whoever, John Maxwell or whatever, there's we're all in the place of leadership.

Pastor West:
We might be negative one, one, two, three, four and five, but or seven, eight, nine, ten, but but eight is not going to hang out with the four because they won't think the same. If you run your life or your business like that, then then you'll find a market for what you're doing and the people who won't care, but you won't work everywhere. There are some people who will not tolerate the way you do things, but you might find a market just for you. There are some people who don't care for slop. There are people that's just picky. Well, you know, if you're going to buy a Rolls Royce, I'm going to be real picky. It used to be they could turn out a I don't know, I may have this wrong, but I ain't thought about it. I looked at it in years, but it seemed like they they could make a Camry or a crow. I think it looks like on line ever if it's 4 hours or 13 hours. But it wasn't a day. But it took a whole host of people, you know, almost a year to make a Rolls-Royce. But they were paid differently. Different pay scale. They were both put in a car together. They were both assembling an automobile. They both would get, you know, from your house to, you know, to the drugstore or to the to Walmart or to Publix.

Pastor West:
The ride might be a little bit different. You know, the the options in the car might be a little different. Those cars would run. Someone said, well, that's a waste of money. Well, you know, Fred Price had a I think he had a Bentley or Rolls Royce. And they you know, they were like, here's a preacher with a Rolls Royce. And of course, he went through all the grief on that. But he said later on in life, he said, I kept that car 20 something years and it was in fine working order when I gave it to another minister. He said, I took all that. He said I could have bought five every five years. I could have bought this, this, this and this car, and almost been the same difference to what I paid for Rolls Royce back then. And he said, and none of the money ever came from the church. He said, I wrote some books and my my personal book sales paid for it. So what I would say to my critics is, well, he said, shut up. In other words, he's saying it was nunya. Y'all know, none of you is none of your business. Well. We want to we want to implement and understand what what we can learn from people with great minds who, who, who, who live faithful lives, who still had problems and didn't do everything right. But if we can learn from their successes and their mistakes.

Pastor West:
You know, when you're young, sometimes you make all the mistakes on your own and sometimes you have people saying you don't go that way. But we just do. I wish I had listened. You know, sometimes there was no one there telling me that. Or if it does, I don't remember them. But there's other times they told me, but I still wanted to do. When you're when you're young, you want to buy everything. You want it now? Some people get half fulfillment when they get to go buy something different, something new, something they like. Nothing wrong with having some things that you like, but there has to be a time. Hmm. In other words, if you don't have if you don't have an emergency fund, you probably shouldn't go to Maui next week. Because if the dishwasher or the hot water heater or the plumbing turns up, the plumber is going to need all that you spent in Maori, but you're not going to have it anymore. Then you can cry. All the devil is after me. Well, I don't know if it's the devil. I don't think he has time to mess up. Mess up dishwashers. I think he has bigger fish to fry than the dishwasher. The devil is not doing everything that you're telling him. But I think the church gives him a lot of ideas, like he think I'm doing it.

Pastor West:
But that was a good idea. We need to start doing that. You can't blame everything on the devil, huh? No. Sometimes it's just poor planning. Sometimes things just tear up because they're manmade. They're not going to last forever. But. But you have to have you know, you have to develop a wisdom and a plan for life. Amen. And if you didn't do it, you didn't get started. No amens on that whatsoever. But anyway, praise the Lord. Let's see if I can just do this and be happy. I got more amens on that one. Praise the Lord. So Paul is exhorting him that they're going to have to be strong. Now, it almost sounds like a general talking to to an advancing the troops that's about ready to approach the battlefield. When he says be strong, what God told Joshua. Hey, Joshua, be strong. Only be strong, Joshua. Be of good courage. Joshua, meditate this same book that Moses meditated. He said, If you'll do this, Joshua, you yourself will make your way prosperous and you'll have good success. When I get to heaven, there's several people I want to meet. But. But I really want to meet Moses. Then we'll have him over one day. Y'all should come over or I'll come to your house when you have him. But I want to meet Joshua and Caleb. We're going to get this maybe next Sunday or whatever. But Caleb was one of the few people and listen to the weight of this that by three witnesses he is Moses in the Lord that said this about it.

Pastor West:
He said this about himself, not boastfully, but because Moses said about him and it was true. And then the Lord said the same thing. He said, Caleb was a man who wholly followed the Lord. See how many people you can read about in the Word? The Lord said that about Him. You'd be. You'd be hard pressed to find them. Numbers said he had a different spirit. A different kind of a spirit. He wasn't just a survivor. He was a thriver. He had a whole different mental attitude about the things. I mean, they get into hard place and he he just come back to his relationship with God. He just opened up a can of what, honey? And let it go. I give you the church version. Praise the Lord. But, you know, we're you know, you're in a battle. I know you didn't see the devil with the red pitchfork this week, but you're in the battle. He doesn't want you to see him. If he has. If he has his will he, like you, think he don't even exist? Makes his job a whole lot easier. Wouldn't it be? I mean, I always said, you know, if he was going to be a thief and the Bible says he is a thief. But you don't seem that would be a great advantage if he was a thief.

Pastor West:
But no one could see you. You could rob people all you wanted to if they can't see you. I mean, it would be a great advantage. So we have to know he is the thief and we have to know how he operates now. But so we're in this battle. But it's a spiritual battle. It comes out into the physical, but it is a spiritual battle that you're in. We all are. Right. But the Bible says that you're not wrestling in this battle with with physical people. So this is not a physical battle, a flesh and blood, but your battles against principalities, powers of evil and the spirit realm. That's where your battle lies. The weapons of your warfare that God has given you to fight with are not carnal weapons. In other words, he's not giving you guns and bombs. Your chief weapon is the shield of faith, which is the word of God. And you have all pieces of the armor. And. And what is faith? Well, it's not just belief, but belief can be something like this. In other words, you read the word and in your heart you say, God, I believe you. And so so I believe that word. Amen. Brother Matt was talking about expectation. Well, well, hope. Bible. Hope is expectation. Hope is not a word just to throw away. Because I mean, hoping by itself is not a receiver, but without hope.

Pastor West:
There's nothing for faith to have substance in because faith, you know, Hebrews 11 one says now faith is the substance of the thing that you hope for. If you don't have no hope, there's nothing for faith to have substance with, Right? So when you have a godly hope, you'll have a godly expectation for receiving something. Well, how are you going to have a godly expectation if you don't know God or his Word, you won't. You'll just be as they used to say, Well, we are hoping and praying. Well, for two handfuls of that will be worth. Yeah. Pixie dust. So so belief is taking the word of God and say in your heart, say God, I believe you. I believe your word. In my heart, I believe your word. But faith is taken that belief. And then it's being. Steadfast. That's the best word I know how to use. Faith is simply being steadfast in that belief and saying, I don't see it right now. I physically don't feel it in my body. I don't see it in my home. I don't see it in my finances. But the word of God says it. It's the it's the promise of God. I'm going to possess the promise of God. But it got you know, I don't see it. I don't feel it. I mean, I see it in your word. It's preached. It's ministered. It's all here. I prayed. I'm speaking the word, but I don't see it.

Pastor West:
See everything is not going to come to you in your life or you'll have these all the time and they're wonderful. You're you're going to get signs, wonders and miracles. You're going to get miracles Sometimes in your life. You don't want to even know how they happened. There's just going to come so easy. There are some things that it's going to come to you with almost no effort. A lot of that happens to you when you're a baby Christian. When I was a baby Christian, every time I was sick three times, the three times I was sick. Maybe in about a year and a half. And I was just learning things and I just said, well, they believe in healing here. So I just went up there and laid hands on me. And instantly, I mean, instantly I was healed. I used to have sinus issues and, you know, allergy issues. I mean, nose be running eyes, you know, just all bugged out and everything. And he laid hands on me and, you know, and have a cold and a cough and a sniffy nose or not just stuffy, but a runny nose, you know, just constantly allergies. And he laid hands on me and my nose. It just dried up. All the sneezing went away and the stuffiness went away. Everything just went up. Cough went away instantly. I'm like, My gosh, this is good. We're going to come here next week.

Pastor West:
Well, I didn't get sick again for a few months and I'm my same thing. And three times just like that, he laid hands on me. Like I said, I like this. This is awesome. Well, we should tithe. Got quiet again, which we did by faith, because I definitely wasn't there. Naturally one there. But anyway, so after the fourth time I went up there. He laid hands on me and nothing happened. I thought. What that is. The whole time we're being taught by faith and the power of the authority and spoken word and all that kind of stuff. Fifth time I went up there, a period of two years, nothing happened. I was worried. I was worried for him. I thought something had happened to him. The pastor. I thought something happened to his anointing and I thought, well, you know, he didn't ask me if I got better. And I thought, I sure do like pastor. I said, I want to do this. So he'll I'm going to do it because I don't think he knows. I mean, I don't know anything. But let's see what I thought was he lost the anointing. You could see how much I know and I didn't think he knew it. And I felt like because I respected him enough that he needed to know this. You know, I wasn't being critical. I wanted to be a help. But you had the stuff.

Pastor West:
Now you don't have it. So. So I called the church to make an appointment, and. And there was no one there, and. And no one answered. And I tried again. Later on, no one answered, which was a gift from God to me. I went that Sunday. We had the worship and praise and Pastor Bobby got up and and he stood up and just had a he just stopped preaching and he says, you know, when you go to a church and they're teaching your faith and how to live by faith, he says he said there's. Sometimes babies, he says. Spiritual babies come to church and just God gives them everything just through someone else and free. And he said, that'll go on for a while. But see, they're supposed to live by faith. They're supposed to learn how to live by faith themselves. After a while, he says, that'll kind of dry up and they'll have to learn how to get it on their own. He said they'll think the pastor lost the anointing or something. I thought, Oh my God, I'm just like, Oh my God, thank God he never picked up on the phone. I didn't leave anything on the answering service. Like I was actually going to tell the man, I love you, but you've lost your anointing somehow. I mean, I don't think no one's telling you this, but you need to know it gets way too far from you. I bet the Lord was laughing at me.

Pastor West:
He says, Yeah, wait till you're in his shoes. Which I didn't even know I'd be in his shoes. Well, so faith is being steadfast. Now, Joshua is a is a great mental picture for the kind of faith that ever comes from start to finish. It reveals principles how to live a victorious Christian life. It's a story. Joshua is the story of Israel entering into the promised Land? Now, why is that important to us? Well, because it was Israel's exodus from Egypt to the fulfillment of what God had promised them. Why do we want to study it? Don't turn there. But in Romans 15 four and the amplified it's just for whatever is written in earlier times was written for our instruction. This story of the exodus from Egypt to the land of promise. He said the success and the failure. God allowed it, wanted it, and allowed it to be written for your instructions. He wanted us to learn from them. You don't have to do everything wrong and learn. Wise people like correction. Hmm. They do. Wise. People love instruction. Even if it's what they're hearing, is hard to hear. If the motivation of the person is telling you is right, then you ought to. You ought to be you ought to gladly receive that and consider it. Maybe you won't heed to the counsel, but you ought to listen to it. I mean, it's just like I've always wondered why in the world don't other restaurants at least pattern pick up a few ideas from Chick fil A? Just.

Pastor West:
Just pick up a few of them. Yeah. I hate to say this, but. But I would I would vote if we got to vote, I would turn over the government and health care to Chick fil A in a New York second until these people, whoever they are, who's supposedly running the show. Chick fil A, I think would do it. Well, as a matter of fact, I asked one of the managers one time, he said, is there anything else we can do for you? And I says, Would you be would you consider running for Congress or something? Or should I say, would you consider running the health care and stuff like that? He says. You said, you know, we've been asked that many times. I said, Really? He said, Yeah. He said, we would love to. He said, But we got all all we can do with this chicken. I said, I understand. I understand, but but don't you think they've kind of mastered it? Not that they don't make mistakes, but. Why don't companies just implement some of it? They don't have to change their name, but just implement some of it. I mean, it used to be it would cost you over $1 million to buy a if you wanted to franchise for McDonald's. That was 25 years ago.

Pastor West:
I knew that. I don't know what it cost nowadays, maybe more, maybe less. I don't know how it changed. That wasn't the building, the location. That was just to say, I got a McDonald's location and you paid $1 million for the franchise. Then every month you're going to pay like 3 or 4% back to the company. And then and then it then here's something that's going to cost you with building all over probably $3 million in the face of the company is going to be somewhere around the drive through that can barely speak or talks is what. And you cut with, you know, going into your car with coke or something all over the top, you know, going down the side of it. And, you know, you got to beg for a napkin. I'm thinking, I wish she was on your side of the business for just a minute to see what it looks like for us on your side. You ever try to eat something that they put a hamburger that ended up being a salad? It had so much dressing on it, it ended up being a salad. And you look in, there ain't one napkin nowhere. And you and I just hate to do it, but, you know, that day you're only going to have on one sock to wear because it's going to be your napkin. It's like, can I just get one napkin? Can I get one? Just one.

Pastor West:
Just one. Just. Just one. Can I have one? Just one. Just one. I know all people make mistakes. Certainly I've made more than my share, but I'm talking about. But. But you're striving to build something. To do something to. To be. To be a cut above. To to be a Caleb. To have that kind of spirit. You see, if if you become the best at what you're doing, the world will pay you. The world will pay you themselves to know what you know, multi-millionaires, all of this world says. This is the absolute truth that if you study anything on any given subject for 30 minutes a day for five years, you will be an expert in that field. But if you refuse to, you won't be an expert. You'll be a spurt. I don't know if that's really a word, but it kind of fits. You say, Well, why is this important? I hope I don't have to answer that question, but I will. Why is it important? Because it's the character of God. At the same time, the Bible says make room for false. But make a whole lot of room for self improvement. Why? Why wouldn't you? Why wouldn't you be the best that you can be? See, the problem with giving something. Before ministry. I've employed a lot of people being in retail. I have fired a whole lot of people. I don't want that fire. I mean, some of them just like, you know, I worked in managed stores where every six months they give polygraph tests and they couldn't pass them out.

Pastor West:
They was robbing the store blind. But there's a lot of people that that will work. Just they'll do just what they'll do, just enough to keep from being fired. Mr. Clinton knows what I'm talking about. They do just enough to keep their job. God will never prosper. Those people like they could have been prospered. He tried to teach you with the parable of the talents, you know, give one. This one gave one, two gave one five. The one with two and five doubled theirs. And he said, Well done, thou good and faithful servant. He rebuked the one that that did nothing with it. He said, Well, I know you're a hard you know, you're a hard taskmaster and all this kind of stuff and you're kind of hard on things and people. And he said I was afraid I was going to lose anything. So I just buried it, you know, put it in. So when you come back, I just get back to you. He said, you wicked, slothful servant. He took every way he had and gave it to the one who had the ten. God expects us to increase. Increase is the kingdom. So whenever you do less than your best, when no one watching you. So you'll create a habit that will that will do less in every area of your life.

Pastor West:
How how will you ever lead anything if that's important to you, to increase, to lead people? If if the only time that you do your best is when your boss is there. If only you're willing to put out an effort four or 5 or 6 instead of your best because the boss is not there or it doesn't really matter because this customer is so and so, then you're not hurting them as much as you're hurting you because you're creating a habit that you will have less than best expectation for anything. That's the reason why I had to train my myself years ago to be on time for everything. When I left Bible school, I was never going to be a pastor, but I was trained in Bible school. That that when whenever church starts, that's where it starts. Whether there's no one there or the house is full. I go. I've been to churches before. It's like they're 25, 30 minutes. You know, they started at ten, but they won't take off till 1040 because they're waiting on people. Well, we prefer them all to be there, but we're not doing that. Huh? I mean, if you go to the airport and your flight takes off at 944 and you say, well, look, I got up a little bit late this morning, it's going to be like, you know, ten, 15, about ten, 15. Well, it'd be 1015 when you get there.

Pastor West:
But Delta, anyway, the baby doesn't wait on you, huh? You might call this old fashioned or just being me. And Scott was talking about this this week. And he said, Yeah. I mean, he said most people would just categorize you as just a grumpy old man. And I was like, I can't believe you just called me an old man, Scott. No, he was he wasn't saying that, but he might have been. I don't know. But. But it just. I can't help it. I've been in business for so long that it's just easy for me to. I can tell you who's going to succeed in life. They may not even do that forever, but I can tell you their attitude and how they carry themselves tells me that they're going to succeed. And this one right here is going to fall through the cracks every time. And then when you talk to them about whatever, they look at you like, man, you just oh, that's crazy. You over the top. Well, that's okay. It just means I'll. I'll live life better. Hmm. We had a personal example with no names, just like, you know, we our electricity went out. Was it Friday? Yeah, it was out for out of the storm for five hours. And then we just came kind of up out of nowhere and some tree hit some lines and it pulled things and it pulled the the wire from our from our house out.

Pastor West:
And so but it was cooler, you know, because it rained and put the windows up. And and I had a man that was supposed to be there the next morning at 730 to do some work outside in a building. And so it took about to about 130 to get the house cool enough. And then, you know, just kind of ever, ever fall asleep. Well, I just knew I wasn't probably going to be up by seven if I went to bed at 130. So I set my alarm to be up at seven because I have a man said he's going to be here at 730. We're about 1030. I was wondering where he's at. And I didn't want to call no one, and especially the boss. I didn't want to bother him and I didn't have the man's number. So the boss the boss man texted me about 11 and he says, he said, Eric, I wasn't feeling too good. I was going to send. He says, So he won't be there. So he just went back to sleep. I understand. But see, I would have went back to sleep, too. All would have taken was a phone call or text. You see, that's just being so. You want to lead? I mean, what can God trust you with? How much can we trust you with? Everyone's going to make mistakes. We need to give room for their faults. But how much can God trust you with? You say, Well, I'm just believing God to be a, you know, a millionaire time.

Pastor West:
I'm 30. Well, you won't do it with a 100 heir mentality or 1000 er mentality. You'll have to change your thinking. You have to change your thoughts. You have to change how you do certain things. Because there is a mentality that goes with the millionaire that a thousand there will never accomplish that. It won't just happen because you want it to happen. Israel did not possess the land because God wanted them to possess the land. You saw that? You saw the major Ten Miracles signs and wonders that God did and He crossed the Red Sea. But then for them to take the promised Land, he said, You're going to have to fight. I'll be with you. But he said, it won't be to stand back like the Red Sea. You're going to have to engage in warfare. But. But I will be there. Then Joshua had to fight many battles to get to the Land of Promise. And he did. And he won. The miracle that Joshua got in the beginning is when he's right here in this book in the first and second chapter, because God hadn't done any miracles, because he's waiting for a whole generation of people to die off that wouldn't follow him. So there was no miracles that out of the ordinary for them. But when Joshua took over and he said, Now Moses is dead, now it's time to go forward.

Pastor West:
It's always forward thinking. It's time to go forward because Moses is dead. So the first thing he did is he says he says today they'll know that I'm with you like I was with Moses. And when they cross the Jordan, the river's parted like the Red Sea. Then you don't see miracles like that anymore. But he wanted them to know that I haven't changed. I'm with you. I won't fail you. I still have power. You Can you see that? Now go fight. Now go fight. Brother Hagan used to say it like this. He said, God wants you to have cherries, but they won't fall off on you like, you know, just ripe cherries off a tree and you just, you know, like you put your basket and you say cherries. Now you might have to pick them. You said, Well, we know that, but we need to live like we know it. Let me go a little bit faster. So so there's a parallel between Israel and our walk with him. Now, there's a the misunderstanding is that Kaneland is taught like, well, kaneland is a type of heaven, but it's not a type of heaven. It's a type of victorious living that we can learn from the life of Joshua and Caleb and others. The reason why we know it's not a type of heaven is because how could you say this is the type of heaven? Because there's no battles in heaven.

Pastor West:
Right. They had to battle. So there'll be no battles in heaven. There is no giants as there were in Canaan, to oppose you. Where are the Giants? Where's the battles? They're down here. Have you met any of them? They're down here in this world. Your opposition is in this world. Revelation 1413 says, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth. Yes, says the Spirit. They may rest from their labors and their works. Do follow them. So when? So when you go to go to heaven, there'll be no. There'll be no more labors. There'll be no giants. There'll be no more battles. Wow. Anybody want to go there? Candyland is not a type of heaven. It can't be. Possibly. Can't be. Because it's the type of the baptism of Holy Spirit. In Deuteronomy chapter 11, verse 1011 says, For the Lord, which thou goest to possess it in is not as the land of Egypt. In other words, he the land that you're going to is not like the land of Egypt. This is Deuteronomy 11, ten and 11 from whence you came out. Now, this is King James Elizabethan English. He says the land which you go to end to possess is not as the land of Egypt from whence you came out, where thou shouldest thy seed in water. And when they have done this week, have you done any Sowest and Waterston? He said, It's not like that.

Pastor West:
He said, You sow your seed and water it with the foot as the guard of herbs. But the land where you are going in to possess, it's a land of hills and valleys and drinks, water of the rain of heaven. The rain of heaven with the rain of heaven is. You know what That's the type of the rain of heaven is, is is a type of Holy Spirit. Amen. That's what it is. Amen. Which he promised him later. The early rain and the latter rain. Amen. What is the early rain and the latter? Rain? It's the outpouring of Holy Spirit. Amen. I believe at the very end, before we. I believe we leave this planet, there'll be a great outpouring, a great outpouring. God, I believe he'll take every move of God that you had that we know even before Azusa Street. Every sign, every wonder, every miracle, every phenomenon, and all at one time. And there'll be a latter rain that pours out. And I believe there'll be a great gathering of horrors before Jesus comes back. This is what He's promising them. This is also promised in the Book of Acts. And so we we we see here this cannot be a type. Canaan is not a type of heaven. There's no battles there. There's no giants there. But Caleb had the attitude, you know, because they sent out spies.

Pastor West:
12 spies. One from each tribe of Israel. And they went and they were gone for 40 days. And they come back and they reported to to Moses and to Joshua and or to Moses and Joshua. And Caleb was of the 12. We know that ten came back with an evil report. That's what the Bible says. They called their report evil. They didn't say it was evil, that God said what they said about their 40 day expedition when they came back and they gave report. He says their report was evil. Caleb didn't say they're wrong. Joshua didn't say they're wrong. Joshua didn't say they're lying. He didn't say they didn't have. It is true. They had 4 to 5 cities. It's true. They had. They had great walls. It is true that there were people of great stature, giants in the land. Caleb and Joshua was not refuting their report. But and we'll look at it next week. But Caleb said he said he stilled the people before Moses after he heard all this. And he says, Caleb, he says, hey, Drew, but let me tell you this. Caleb said, Let us go up at once and possess it. He didn't even say. I mean, he heard all this evil report. He didn't even give voice to that. He says, okay, hey, let's let's go possess it for we are well able. He said, these folks that they're talking about these giants, he said, they're bred for us. He said they have no defense against us for when we go, God goes, yes.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
Amen. Didn't work out that way, did it? I said it didn't work out that way, did it?

Pastor West:
That means you better be careful.

Pastor West:
Who you sending on a job? Sometimes. Or around your company or to run your business or home or whatever. Look at leadership, learn a leadership lesson from these people. Here's 12 men each picked from the 12 tribes of Israel. Supposed to be the sharpest of the bunch. And they did most. If you can bring back fruit, they brought back a cluster of grapes. The two men had to carry. I mean, my wife bought grapes last week at Publix. It didn't take to me to bring it in the house. You might think it takes two men to pay for it, but it just I mean, it was just a little bitty sucker. I mean, you pick up. Where's it at? It can't be like this.

Pastor West:
So.

Pastor West:
What's the leadership lesson? We know we know that the report of the leaders that I want you to see, the leadership of this 12 men was going to determine the fate of 3 million people. The ten men gave a report that said it's just like God said. It's just like God said, here, here's freedom. We saw it, man. This this land, it does flow with milk and honey. But there's giants there. He said. There are fortified cities. He says, We are just like grasshoppers compared to them. We are insects, we are pests. We're just a little pest. We are bugs. And Joshua and Caleb tried to steal the people it said it wants. It says, Hey, but we're well able. Let's go right now and possess it because God brought us to this moment. Now, Now God's giving us the keys. Let's go now.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Amen. But the ten men that spirit got on. All the people. In ten people, ten leaders influence caused two and one half to 3 million people to die. Don't tell me influence is not powerful. Don't tell me you can't make a become a leader of people positively or negatively. Don't tell me that your thoughts and your ideas and your opinions and your words can't make a big difference because they do make a big difference. Yeah. If I just got up here and talked about all my problems all the time, that wouldn't last very long because I've had my share. I mean, we could go back. I can't even remember it. We used to kid on this thing, though. Hee Haw song. You know, they'd sit down on a Saturday night. How's it going, Matt?

Pastor West:
Despair.

Pastor West:
Gloom. Agony. Despair.

Pastor West:
Oh.

Pastor West:
Y'all remember y'all.

Pastor West:
Gloom.

Pastor West:
Magnus bear. You can't show it, can you? I know he was. I know. I know. I know. His mind thinks, you know, I got the old hound dog down there, you know, laying with him on gloom. Agnew Despair.

Pastor West:
Woe.

Pastor West:
Mm. Joshua and Caleb tried to convince the people not to be afraid. He tried to convince them to move forward. Why? Because he wanted them to possess the promise. In numbers 14 nine. He said only rebelled. Not against the Lord. Neither fear the people for the land. For they are bread for us. Their defense is departed from them. In the Lord is with us, he says. Fear them, not fear them. Giants, not the Lord is with us. And I studied yesterday. I wrote this down. What defeats many Christians is they is they live on the negative side of life. They're always talking about what? What? I don't know what I can't do. What can't be done. Whether they're talking about what they can do, what they do have in Christ, what already belongs to them through Jesus Christ. Amen. The two came back with a good report, but there were ten that had an evil report. The ten said it's impossible. They said, There's giants and we are grasshoppers. The cities are walled and fortified. We have no might against them. They murmured, and they complained. They murmured and complained. The spirit spread throughout the camp. This unbelief and evil report doomed them. All of them died, God said. From 20 years up, you will not. He said. He said, God said, You have murmured and you have complained. And I have shown my hand to you. He said, This generation, from 20 years and up is not going into the promised land. Your children will, but you will not go into the children land or into the promised land will not go into it.

Pastor West:
He said Every person, every person who complained, everyone who's murmured after they've seen the signs, the wonders and the miracles, and still you refuse to believe me, Number said, Forget. I don't know the verse, but in the book of numbers it says, he says doubtless. Without. You're not coming into the promised land. You're not going to just float into the promises of God with doubt and unbelief. God called their report evil Satanic because God said it was a good land. He wasn't dependent on their strength. We'll finish this with this this morning with the verse that I thought I was going to finish with. But I read to you first. In second Corinthians 1012 said they were measuring themselves by themselves and comparing themselves among themselves. They are not bright. They were comparing themselves among themselves and against themselves with the Canaanites. I wrote it this way for the majority that day. Who sided with the ten the they the majority measured the giant strength against their own strength. But Caleb and Joshua measured their giants. The measured the. Those giants against their God. The majority trembled and the two triumphed. The majority had great giants and a little God. And Joshua and Caleb had a great God and a little Giants. They measured. Let's put this in your world. The majority measured the giant's strength against their own. Now, what are you dealing with in life? What are you measuring against? I know you know the answer. But it's easy to forget to get into the physical side of life, the mental side of life.

Pastor West:
And then you begin to even try to do something in your own strength. But what would you do if a doctor gives you something that says we can't fix it? And there's nothing anybody can do. You say, Well, I hope I never get there, but what if you do? What will you do then? What will you do then? You can't measure yourself. Against your own self or against someone else. See, they took inventory of themselves because they were comparing themselves to giants. And they said, compared to them, we are insects, we are grasshoppers. Well, what do you think the Red Sea was? A foot washing service. You think God was giving you a day at the spa? What do you think that was? I mean, when you saw the ten plagues in the Red Sea and and. And you're walking through the desert and you have a cloud of fire by night to keep you warm and a pillar to keep you the sun from baking you. And then water comes out of a rock. You don't think that's a big deal? Go home and try it. You can speak to it. You can slap it with a stick. You can bless it, you can cuss it. You can do everything. If I want to see it. I mean, you see the Red Sea part. And you walk across on dry ground. Then you get over to Canaan and you say, We can't do this because these people are tall.

Pastor West:
Tall.

Pastor West:
Tall. Stopped you. But. What's stopping you? What report is stopping you? Education people. Your past. Your parents. Your friends. What's keeping you from possessing the promise? Your education, your lack of it. The wrong parties in the White House. What do you compare it against? Are you not succeeding? Because of what? What are you comparing yourself against? Paul said These people aren't thinking of themselves. They're thinking way more than they should think of themselves. He said. They're comparing themselves against one another. They're measuring themselves by themselves. That shouldn't be your comparison. Your comparison should be who you are, who Christ made you and what he's called and gifted you to do. It doesn't really matter what someone else is doing. It's what he called you to do. But you see a whole sector of people who's just trying to it's okay to admire and to learn from. You're supposed to and to imitate certain people's faith and behavior. But but you don't need to be them. We I talk about Smith Wigglesworth a lot and John G. Lake. But but I'm not called to be John G. Lake or Smith Wigglesworth. But I can learn from their successes. See, I can follow their faith. There are certain people that you need in your life so that you can follow their faith. You need to follow some people's faith, some people you don't need to follow at all. Because over in the Epistles, it says some people shipwreck their faith.

Pastor West:
You don't want to follow that, do you? You're like, Well, I want to sing just like so-and-so. Well, that wouldn't do me any good. I like to sing like a lot of people, but I need to sing low, sing low notes, not swing low. So I need to sing low. If I do sing, maybe under a chariot. I don't know. Just. I wanted us to see learn leadership from this. I want to I want us to learn what it looked like, what strength looked like. I want to see what weakness looked like. I want to see what caused people to fold, not not to criticize people. Not not to criticize people, but to learn from their successes and learn from their failures. Because you have to go back to Joshua chapter one. This is the plan. I'll be with you like I was with Moses. But now, verse five, here comes your part. Joshua, you're going to have to be strong. You don't have to be strong for a miracle. Everyone that I ever prayed for that got a miracle. It required no faith and no strength on their part whatsoever. Some of them. The whole time I was trying to pray for them, they were telling me like, I don't believe. I don't believe. I believe I'm like, Shut up. I know you don't believe me. I mean, their miracle wasn't based on their faith.

Pastor West:
Right.

Pastor West:
I mean, you wouldn't tell a 16 month old baby or just say a, you know, you know, one that's still on the bottle and they're crying saying, what are you crying to me for? Get them fixed. Something. You wouldn't do that to my grandchild, would you? Okay, I'll come over and lovingly slap the taste out of your mouth. If you're just messing with her, make sure she's awake. No, because they're a baby. But you don't want a failure when she's 47, do you? I mean, that looked kind of nasty, wasn't it? It's like, where's that? Well, he had to go and he had to go feed the baby. Baby, Baby. You know, cutting that bites. Can you see? You know, you'll be older and a bit long horns and you're cutting up your steak and putting putting the fork, putting in your mouth. That's wrong. There was a time there was a time for that. But in our lives, that's not your time. We're called to be here to disciple people, to lead people. So. So we'll rise to a different standard. Now, if you don't want to go there, everything I'm going to say from henceforth is going to aggravate you. But I'm kind of an agitator anyway. I don't even want that. I used to ask the Lord for years, Why do I have to be like this? I don't want to be like this. I want. I want people just to like me. I just want to be nice. I don't want to say that. Why are you always giving these controversial things to talk about? You know what the law says? Nothing.

Pastor West:
Nothing.

Pastor West:
I remember about a year ago, I said, Lord, you haven't really talked to me. You know, like you talk to me. And I mean, I'm. This is the wind. This is the wind. It may help someone here. About two years ago. I should. I must be honest with you. I said, Lord, you haven't really been talking to me like you used to talk to me. I haven't got any, you know, instructions about anything. Well, now I'm hearing from him all the time, but I'm talking about go here, do this, do this, do this. I see. But you haven't really spoken to me about this, this and this. And then he spoke to me.

Pastor West:
You want me to take what he said?

Pastor West:
He said, I'm waiting on you to finish what I told you two years or 2 or 3 years ago.

Pastor West:
He said the.

Pastor West:
Plan is to keep doing what I told you. Then he says, When? When it changes, I'll let you know. He says, Now be faithful and keep on doing. Just keep on doing what I told you to. I said, Well, it sure don't look like it. He says, Well, you should know by now we don't go by how that looks. I said, Yes, sir, I know it, I said, But it just seemed like you've been silent for a long time. Well, when my mother told me to clean my room, she got shot. She didn't change her mind at all. You know what she meant. Clean your room. If she saw a hesitating, she didn't say, Oh, you don't feel like a nobody. Just go back to sleep. See, that's why stuff like that aggravates me. I understand people and all that, and they've had a hard week and all that kind of stuff. But when you tell me you're going to be there at 730 and I don't get to or 7:00 and I don't get to bed till 130, I could use two more hours of sleep too.

But, you know.

Pastor West:
When it gets there, I ain't ever going to tell him. It won't really matter. I just can't unlearn what I've learned that I believe works for people. It's not that they're going to be in trouble. It's not that they need me at all. It's just I can't unsee it. I can't unlearn things that I've had to learn. I've been in seminars that cost me hundreds of dollars and I've spent thousands of dollars, you know, learning from people. I have a books of autobiographies of people that I had someone one time said I bought a book used. Used. For $100 off an autobiography of a guy who's a billionaire in Australia. And somebody asked me one time, they said, Man, do you think do you think that that was worth it? I said, was what worth it? They said, the book. I said, Man, I never thought about that. I said, What do you mean you never thought about it? I said, I didn't buy it. I didn't buy it based on what? I thought it was worth it. I bought it because I thought I was worth it. I was investing in me.

Pastor West:
I mean.

Pastor West:
The chance of me ever getting to sit down with Peter Daniels is pretty slim to none. But if I can spend $100 on a used book and I can read his whole life, you know, in about two days and again and again, I think I'm worth it. I'm investing in.

Pastor West:
Me. And I've invested in me.

Pastor West:
So I can invest in you. Amen. Because you know what? You're worth it. The Lord says you're worth it.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
That's what leaders do. They have to invest in themselves. They'll walk to the tune of a different beat. They'll do things that's not ordinary. They'll do things that others wouldn't do or refuse to do because they have a higher standard.

Pastor West:
Yeah. Okay.

Pastor West:
If I offended you, I can't apologize. Not all the way. But I might have said it a little bit sweeter way. But. But. But I think you understand the gist of what I'm saying. If you had to take Moses place, how many would have liked to have done that?

Pastor West:
I mean, when.

Pastor West:
You thought there would have been, you know, this multiple volumes of syllabus, there were less than a page nine verses. He says Moses is dead. They're like, Well, we knew that. We knew that Moses is dead. There's a lesson that sometimes what you were doing is not what you're supposed to do anymore or how you do it. In other words, that part's over. It's gone. It's dead. He said, Moses is dead. Get up and move forward. It says they were mourning. They were weeping and mourning for, was it 30 days? 30 days? And I thought mourning. They were giving this guy grief all the time. What they crying about? They were always complaining to him and now they're mourning. They might have been morning because, you know, in the water he had to go get water off a rock.

Pastor West:
Food fall at.

Pastor West:
Your feet every morning. No one had to wash dishes. No one had to cook. No one had to clean. 40 years in the.

Pastor West:
Desert.

Pastor West:
Your clothes grew. Children, their shoes, it grew with them. What are you complaining about? No generation of people has ever seen miracles like that since that day. Miracle shoe growth. Well, can you see on the commercial tonight between, you know, what drugs take and don't take and the side effects and the miracle shoes buy these shoes as an infant. They'll grow the rest of your life. I've had several women told me. She said I wouldn't want that kind of miracle. I said, Well, because I love to buy shoes. I said, Yeah, but the man would like it. The man would like it. Baby, I got you one pair of shoes. We got married and you'll have these the rest of your life. Pick the ones you like. They will grow with you. They're good for me because I'm twice the man. Michelle. Mary. I wore a 2831 28 waist, 31. I couldn't get even one leg down there. Now, 2831.

Pastor West:
28.

Pastor West:
31. Michelle was starving herself every day drinking tab. Y'all remember Tab diet drink? Yeah, we were. We were a cool bunch. We were. We were. We were drinking our diet drinks and smoking a cigarette. I said she'd be at break, and I said, Aren't you going to eat something? She said, No, I got. I got my tab. Drink my cigarettes. Okay. She's £105, £105 when we got married. I'm going to stop right there. Praise the Lord. So God is so good. God is so good. You know, it's just the price you pay for being full gospel. I used to be a lean, mean preaching machine, but now I'm full gospel. Praise God. Thank you all for being here, for being. For tolerating and being interested enough to to grow. It can be fun to grow. It can be difficult, but it also can be fun because you'll look back and you'll see yourself and even when you don't see your growth. Others can see it. Others who have eyes to spot it. I probably shouldn't do this. But Steven back here is he was a man that came into my life a few weeks ago. I don't even know he knows how much of a leader he is. What God's going to do for him. I knew at the moment I saw him. The Lord just spoke to him about it. He says I've groomed him. I probably shouldn't say this, but I don't think I've ever had a prophetic word for someone. He wouldn't be puffed up for me telling him this. The Lord said if he'd been, if he would have been on the earth. During the time Jesus walked, he says a man just like him would have been picked to be one of his disciples because of his heart. I don't think I've ever heard the Lord tell me that about anyone in ministry. That might be true of a lot of you in here. But, I mean, that's just what he told me. You know, the heart will carry you to places that the head just can't go. Amen. Well, we got to stop. Praise God. We're meeting. Next time we meet.

Pastor West:
Amen. God bless.

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Building A Strong Spirit Part 4 | Don't Let Feelings Determing Your Future | 16Jul2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Building A Strong Spirit Part 4 | Don't Let Feelings Determing Your Future | 16Jul2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Good morning and welcome to Gracelife Church. And those of us joined us by different means and methods that are different times. The Bible says this is the day that the Lord hath made. I know you broke the law. Didn't make it. No. The Lord has made. Does the Lord do anything wrong? No. He's right. He's always been right and he's right on time. We are in a series and I think this is number four. We entitled it the series developing a strong spirit, developing a strong spirit. But this one is going to be titled within that series. Don't let your feelings determine your future. Don't let your feelings determine your future. Why don't you say it with me? Say don't let your feelings. Don't let your feelings determine your future. Determine your future. Did you never get that too? Did you make sure they had it? Now we've used as a text verse. You don't have to turn there. But Proverbs 1814, it says the strong spirit. Notice it doesn't say a wimpy spirit, but a strong spirit of a man or woman will sustain them in a time of bodily pain. You ever had any pain? I once had pain panels on the windows pane. The strong spirit. So we're getting we're getting instructions here how to be free from pain and trouble. It didn't say pain and trouble won't come. It says how to be free from it. So the strong spirit of a man or a woman will sustain them in time of bodily pain or trouble.

Pastor West:
But if you have a weakened, broken spirit, who can raise up a bear? The message translation is a healthy spirit will conquer adversity. And they're good. But what do you do when the spirit's crushed? So we want to take just a moment to go a little different direction this morning. If you have your Bibles, if you want to go there, go to First Thessalonians chapter five and we're going to read 23 and 24. I think. I think I have the NIV on this one. But first Thessalonians chapter five, verse 23 and 24. Y'all ready? It say It says May God himself the God of peace. Oh, thank God. He's the God of peace. Amen. God, there's not a lot of peace in the world right now. You know that. It's not. Isn't it good that we're not just not talking about peace, but we're talking about the god of peace? Now, notice, he's not the god of turmoil. But the government, he says, may God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Verse 24, and the one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it. Amen. Thank God he says he will do it. Didn't say we do it, but he'll do it. Man. So we want to look at some things concerning the whole part of man's spirit, soul and body.

Pastor West:
You know, we we know that we're of those three components. If you're born again and if you're not born again, you're a spirit. And we all have a soul, don't we? Well, it's easy to define the body. Sometimes people teach on this. They'll say more times than I saw something on TV last night. It was a movie, and it was a place where people would come to get help. And it says to restore your body, soul and spirit. It had exactly backwards. God. Sometimes when people minister, they talk about we're going to talk about the body, soul and the spirit. Well, I'm not trying to be critical about that, but I'm just saying if people think more in the terms of their soul, the reasoning faculties, the mind, their will, their emotions, and certainly they think about their bodies at the expense of their spirit. It's not. It's not God. The divine order would be what? Spirit? Because you are a spirit. You do have a soul. You do have mind, will and emotions. Actually, the soul is made up. You could you could even go further beyond that. It would still be within the components of mind will and emotions. But you could say this the soul is made up of five basic areas. Number one, be the emotion. Number two would be the intellect or the reasoning. Number three would be your memory. Your memory can bless you or it can destroy you.

Pastor West:
They will try to take you back to remember when. Number four will be your imagination. Number five will be your will. So that's the five basic areas of the soul. The motion, intellectual reason, the memory, the imagination and the will. But everything works in the Kingdom of God according to spiritual laws. There's natural laws. The parallel with spiritual laws. We all know what gravity is. Everyone here, I think, believes in gravity. If you don't, you can test it out. You'll find out. It works the same everywhere. I don't care. You say, Well, I'm from the north. I think it'll work there. I mean, if you want to go up to New York and jump off the Empire State Building, I think gravity works there. Same as you jump off the back of a truck tailgate, you're going south. You're going down, Right. That's just a spiritual law. And because that's the law of gravity. But then we have what we call the law of aerodynamics or the law of lift and thrust. It doesn't suspend gravity. It just overrides it when you get to a certain speed with a certain air wingspan. At enough speed, thrust in lift can overcome gravity and can go, you know, ten, 20,000 or more feet in the air. But when it comes down back to the ground, it enters it back into the law of gravity and gives you a safe landing. You both you have two laws that work well.

Pastor West:
Then you have what we call in Romans eight. We won't go there, but you have what you call the law of spirit and death. It's a law. It works. It's working all the time. It's working for the people who don't know, who don't know Jesus as Lord. It's working against people who don't who do know Jesus as Lord, but they don't know who they are. You say, well, that shouldn't be so. Well, we're going to talk about why that is so. But then there's there's a law that supersedes the law of sin and death, and that's called the law of the Spirit of Life, which we talked about about a week or two ago. The law of spirit and life supersedes. Anything. The law of sin and death. Jesus brought the law of life. He said, Satan comes to steal, kill and destroy. But that's not why I came. That's not my purpose. I came to give you life and give you life in abundance. Now you know this. You all are well trained in this area. But the law of life is the law of Zoe. It's the. It's the nature of God. So he didn't the abundant life, even though it was talked about this way. It's not really it's not really technically. So if you study it out, you know, people talk about, well, you know, you'll have abundance. Well, you can have abundance, but that's not what he's talking about.

Pastor West:
John 1010 He's not talking about having an abundant life of blessings and increase that's included in your covenant. But that's not the subject for discussion in John 1010 He said, I've come to give you Zoe my life and I'm going to give you so much. I'm going to give it to you in abundance. You're going to have an abundance of this away until it what overflows? Why does it need to overflow? Because you have a neighbor. Who doesn't know him. And you need to spill out and spill over. And the fuller you get, the more you spill. If you're running on it, you're not going very far, right? Right. Well, so then we have we have we need to understand these things because of Jesus death and resurrection. We have that new man. We're the new creation or the new creation in Christ Jesus. That belongs to you. That is you. That's built in Dominion. That's the Dominion Principle discussed in Genesis. Chapter one that you have. Dominion also means that you have shed and rested forever the law of selfishness. Of hatred. Of envy. Why? Because you have the love. You have the love of God. You don't have phileo love. You have the love of God. You have the agape love of God. That cancels out all sin. All sin just happens because of selfishness. Just think of any sin. Why did they do it? There was something they wanted they desired, or they were upset with someone.

Pastor West:
They did it because of how they felt. They did it because of their feelings. They did it because of their emotions. So we're going to talk about some of these feelings and emotions today that God did give us our five senses, but he gave it to him to bless us, not to curse us. He gave it to assist us, but not to run our life. And so when we bring these components spirit, soul and body into into oneness with him, the Bible says were one with him in spirit. Sometimes we don't talk that much about the body or the mind. We just talk about, well, we're spirit going to be with the Lord. But you have a soul. And if things get out of whack, they get out of divine order. Then you have things that happen to the body and things happen to the body. Then you lose your authority on the earth. You can't stay on earth without a body, can you? So we need to understand that Jesus did something for our spirit, soul and body as if it were one. There's three components, but it has this one. In other words, we won't go there. But John, 1930, Jesus said, it is finished. He didn't say it's one third finished. It's finished. Spirit, soul and body. Amen. Now all we have to do is find out how to think like he thinks. Amen. And thank God he gave us a book.

Pastor West:
Amen. I mean, what if we didn't have a book? But, you know, you need to read the book. Okay, So Satan works diligently. What does he do to blind humanity to keep us in a place to where we're they're not seeing well. Second Corinthians four and verses three and four says that if our gospel be hid, it's hid to them that are lost. In whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds. There's the minds of them which believe not lest the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ, who is the image of God. In other words, Jesus is the image of God should shine unto them. Well, the image of Jesus should shine unto you and me. Amen. Hebrews said he was the express image of God. In other words, if you want to know what God thought, what God said, what God's opinion was on the matter, all you had to do is look at the life of Jesus. So somebody said, well, you know, God's mysterious, we can't know the will of God. Well, you can if you read, if you can read, you can know the will of God. Amen. Jesus is the express image of God. So the question is not can you know, God knows. Well, the question is, can you read? No, no, don't shout me down now because I'm doing such good preaching. Amen. Now, remember, the soul is made up of those five basic areas the motion, the intellect, the intellectual reason, the memory, the imagination, the will.

Pastor West:
Then think about it in the context of second Corinthians ten, verses three through five, because this is the place where the devil tries to plant strongholds. In other words, this is a this is a home for him. This is the house for him. This a stronghold is a fortress. This is where he's going to come in. He's not he doesn't want to come in and visit. He wants to come in and take over. So he he wants to stay there. He he plans to move in to your life. And he wants to build strongholds. A fortress in our thinking. Well, if we don't understand the will of God by reading the will of God, then we won't be able to counteract anything that He's doing. We'll just interpret our life based on what we interpret it, based on how it's run and how it's working. You know how we feel with our emotions. Emotions can bless you and emotions will get you killed. Their emotions that that are not in line with the Word of God will try to interpret your future for you. So second Corinthians ten, verse 3 to 5, says, For though you are walking in the flesh in the physical, you don't warn the physical, you don't warn the flesh. Now let's just break it down some more. Now, what is the flesh? It's the physical.

Pastor West:
What is the physical? What's the carnal part? It's the five senses. So for, though. For though, we walk in the flesh or the physical with our five senses, we don't war. We don't go to war with our five senses. For the weapons of your warfare, not with your five senses. They're not natural weapons. That is not what God wants you to war with. But what he did give you is mighty through God to the pulling down of this fortress. In other words, you're going to destroy something. You're not just going to say no, but you're going to destroy the stronghold, the home, the house of the fortress by by doing what you're going to have to cast down the imaginations, which is part of the soul, and you're going to cast down every high thing that exalts its itself, not exalting God. It's exalting itself. Now slow down a little bit more. Your senses will exalt themselves. Your symptoms can exalt themselves. So now you have to deal. You have to deal with the senses. You have to deal with your feelings. You have to deal with your emotions because your emotions are telling you this is what's going on and this is what it might look like in two weeks or two months or two years. In other words, it's writing a vision for you and saying this is what your life is looking like. This is where it is headed. The senses are telling a story.

Pastor West:
And they have testimonies of people that went before you, maybe even family members. You know, the doctors say, you know, you got that genetics. Well. Who made genetics, man. You see, they're telling you now your mother had this. Well, who made mother? Did God do anything imperfect? No. No. You say. Well, now Daddy had it. And Granddaddy had this. Well, granted, it doesn't know what you know today. So they just said, you know, well, you know, Granddaddy had the highs and mama had the lows. So it's going to be high. It's going to be low. I had a doctor years ago. Tell me about five years ago. He said, Well, now, you know, your mama had this. I said, She did. He says, yes, in the chart. And he says, So we ought to just go ahead and just start you on this kind of medication Now, he says, because, you know, 99% chance you're going to have what she had because I see you're her son. He said, Let's get you started. I said, No, thank you. He said, Be better for you. And I says, You think? Yeah, he said, you know, without certain medications, some people die. So I said, I'm a Christian. You can't threaten me with death. I'm just not afraid. I'm not. I'm not afraid. I'm not afraid of going to Paradise. I said, Sir, I live in Jimerson. Paradise sounds a whole lot better. Plus, I don't think that your pill, if I take it, can determine whether I'm going to stay in Jimerson or go to Paradise.

Pastor West:
He said, Well, I'm just trying to help you. I said, Thank you. I don't need any. That was five years ago. Amen. Amen. Well, see, he learned that in medical school. They don't even know what the problem is. They're just saying, we have your chart and we have your mother's chart and you're okay. But since this is in your, you know, in your DNA, why don't you just take something preventative? So if a child has to come. Well, that's what insurance is, right? I mean, everybody wants to be insured, but no one will have to pay the insurance. We really go to the beach on that money, go out to eat. Right. Who wants to pay insurance for, you know, someone might steal your sofa or whatever, You know, your house gets on fire or, you know, whatever it is. Isn't it something how people can take all their resources and they insure their cars, their homes, the contents of their homes, their vehicles, their life insurance and hospital insurance. And they don't do anything with the Word of God to insure their life any day of the week. Amen. But they'll pay your insurance premiums every month. But there's a better way to ensure your security than giving it to your insurance company. Amen. Jesus already paid the premium. Huh? It has zero deductible and pays 100%. Amen.

Pastor West:
Hallelujah.

Pastor West:
Never goes down. He doesn't even cost more when you get older. You have unlimited visits. You several times a day. You say, Well, I'm getting old. I need some help. Well, you got you got the helper. Holy Ghost. He is all help. Well, I don't feel that strong all the time. Well, he's also the Strengthener. Well, I got people against me. He's the advocate. He's your lawyer. Mean he's got you covered. All states. Not the people of good hands. They had no hands to God made hands. God is the good hands. People all state no hands. Remember, this thing is not just our spirit. It's not just one third finish. It's all the way finished. Well, now, so how do we bring into subjection what's finished? Well, we do that with Romans 12 two. He says, do not be conformed to this world. Do not. That sounds definite to me. Can you read that? That not be definite. Be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed. There's a transformation needs to take place. Amen. Amen. It's not on God's side. Say, Lord, you're getting a little old. How's your memory? You think the is taking memory pills? I mean, how do you think the Lord, you know, got a little catchy and get along after a few gazillion years? Right. And he got his shots for Covid. When you pray, your breath goes up before the Lord. He has put on a mask.

Pastor West:
A lot of breath coming up towards him. Heaven says, don't pray the Lord in Jesus's down for a few weeks there. They're being secluded for two weeks. You're on your own. Angels will do all they can. That's just goofy as the day is long. But be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind. I'm sorry. The renewing of your mind. Some people think remove their mind, but you might prove notice. Notice You can't even prove what the will of God is until you renew your mind. But do you see that we're supposed to prove the will of God? How? That you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God. That's not three wheels. You hear it taught that way. That way. Sometimes people just get in a wheel that's good. And some, you know, God accepts some wheels, but then there's a perfect wheel. Do you think the Lord has three different wheels? That does. There's nothing in that that if you take all scripture inclusive and say, Yeah, God has like, you know, three, you know, a variety, I mean, they'd be, you know, this is good, but it'd be better if you come here and I really want you to come here. Well, now people do that. But he didn't offer you three different dimensions. If you're seated in heavenly places, that's got to be perfect. That was good.

Pastor West:
I just think he's using all these adjectives to say, Hey, this is good. This is this is a man, this is, well, acceptable and this is perfect, man. This is perfect. It's not three different dimensions of wheels. It's just one wheel. God has one wheel for you. That's victory. Amen. Amen. So the area of the soul is vitally important. And we must possess this part of our beings or we will not possess anything else in our life. You want to turn there, But. Matthew 1626 the King James says for what is for what is a man profits for what? It will profit a man. What does he profit? What can a man profit if he gains the whole world and lose his own soul? Amen. Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? See, your soul is the battleground where the war is waged continuously. It's not your spirit. Your spirit is sealed off and belongs to God. Your spirit doesn't need knowledge. Your spirit has all knowledge. Of all things. Your knowledge and God's knowledge is one and the same, right? So that's in your spirit. But then our soul sees is different from that. In other words. Your soul. Is that part of you that God created? When someone leaves their body, their spirit leaves their body. But there's a part of their soul that goes with them. In other words, they're able to think things. You can talk.

Pastor West:
You can think about the the rich man, you know, the beggar came to him and asked for food and drink. Then the rich man says, you know, go away. Don't have nothing to do with you. Well, he dies and goes and he's in hell. And so but he sees this poor man and he tells angels, he says, Send someone like Moses to my brother so he'll accept us so they will never come here. Well, he had memory. He had reason. He had raised in faculties within him. So the soul was part of you? Well, God's not discarding a part of you. Your soul is as much of you as your spirit is you. Right. You're not just a spirit with no thinking capabilities or no reasoning abilities. In other words, he wants to preserve blameless what your spirit, your soul and body once again. He's not one third finished. It's all the way finished. That's that's first Thessalonians 523 that you be preserved blameless. What Spirit. Soul and body. Thus, thus the 3 in 1. It's kind of like the Trinity. God, the Father, God, the Son, God. Holy Spirit. You say, Which one is God? All of them. Most people don't think of Holy Spirit as God. The. The Holy Spirit. He is God. Amen. As much as Jesus the Son is God. Amen. Jesus is the much God is God as God. They were always. So how does that work? I have no idea.

Pastor West:
You can ask when you get to heaven. If you. If you go to sermon, someone's going to tell you, Well, I'm going to tell you, you know, the beginning of God and how he always was. I mean, you can go and just listen, but you're I don't think I don't think we have the scriptures for it. I mean, there are some things we just do not know. I mean, how can you always have been? Armand doesn't think that way. Everything that we know of has a beginning and has an end. Well, not with. Not with God. I mean, it says in the beginning of Genesis one, in the beginning, God created the heaven and earth. And sometimes we think that people think that's when God began, you know, God begun. Then he decreed the world. No, there's there was God before there was a beginning. If there was no God, there would have been no beginning. God did not come out of the beginning or there would be no beginning. God has always been. The sun has always been Holy. Spirit has always been. It said they said, Let us, Trinity, Let us make men. Let's make them like us. Amen. See, that's thinking. That's thoughts. That speech. Right. That's the that's the soulless part of you. And the soulless part of a triune being is that they have a they have a soul, a mind, a will.

Pastor West:
They have reasoning. So and when he said that in first Thessalonians, he says, let them be preserved. Blameless spirit, soul and body. But in the area where we're talking about don't let your don't let your feelings or don't let your emotions determine your future. We have to understand that we that the spirit is the main part of you. That's the part of you that's born again. Your body is not born again. How have you figured that out? I mean, I wouldn't take any advice from my body. I mean, if I took advice from my body, I'd just shoot myself one day. My body says it's a bad day. Just go well. How about your soul? How do we know your soul can have some crazy thoughts? Norvel Hayes used to say flaky thoughts. Well. It is until it's until it's trained. That's why Romans 12 two says, do not be conformed to this world that was don't live like this world. Don't act like this world. Don't make decisions like this world. You see, that's going to be a lonely path. It'll be a great it may be lonely, but it'll be great. Amen. I mean, you're winning on every side, and the world's at war. I don't mean just natural war. It could be that. But I'm talking about. They're just warring with everything. Some things you'll do better. This is just a side note. Some things you'll just do better just to be quiet on.

Pastor West:
Don't even talk about them. Some things will just go away. Not now. Everything won't go away. But a lot of times things will just go away. Amen. I've been asked this thousands of times. Well, hundreds of times throughout life and ministry. People say, well, now. And they'll ask you because you're they know you're a minister. I say, what do you believe about so-and-so? Well, what's your opinion? I said, Well, I don't have one. That's the way you got to have an opinion. I said, No, I don't have no opinion at all. I said, Well, seriously, I mean, what's what's your opinion about homosexuality, for instance? And I said, I don't have an opinion. I said, Well, how could you be a minister and not have an opinion? I said, Because I'm a minister. I said, Well, that's what I'm talking about. How could you be a minister? I said, How could you be a man of God and not have and not have an opinion? I said, Because I'm a man of God. And when and when the mouth opens up like that means they don't know anything. If they tilt their head and open the mouth, that means they're ignorant. Ignorant means not knowing. I'm not calling them stupid, just not knowing. I not know a lot of things about you. So you say, Well, why do you say that? Well, I don't I don't have an opinion.

Pastor West:
I have the word. And some people will go beyond that. And I would tell them, I says, Well, I don't have an opinion. I mean, this is what the word says. I said, Well, yeah, I know all about that, but what's your opinion? You know? Beyond that, I says, Man, you're not listening to me. I don't have an opinion beyond this. So there's 66 books in here. Neither one of them's called Eric. Now, some of y'all have been named after a book in the Bible, and that's wonderful. But I found where the Lord was talking to me all the way through here. But the Holy Ghost did not use me to write one of these 66 books. Just saying. So my opinion is his opinion. You said, Well, do you understand all his opinions? I said, No, I'll be honest with I don't understand. I don't understand a lot of them. Well, then why would you side with him if you don't understand? I said, Because he's right. If you can scoop up dirt and blow into it and make it human, I'm going to listen. I mean, when you can create millions and millions of plant and animal life, I mean, when God made a giraffe, I don't know what he's thinking. That's an odd looking animal. A giraffe in it. Watch him run. I bet it sure does hurt when they get a sore throat. It's a long one, ain't it? It's going to take several laws and justice to swallow these 470 laws.

Pastor West:
I'm just messing. So we're not warned in the flesh. Our weapons aren't natural weapons. People say, man, when I get to heaven, I'm going to show the devil a thing or two. Well, it'll be too late. He won't be there, sucker. Devil ain't going to heaven. He's already been there. He's too stupid to stay there. I mean, how stupid can you be to get kicked out of heaven? So when you get up there, don't start spouting your mouth off. Amen. Satan fell. It said there was a war in heaven. You ever read that scripture in Revelation that there was a war in heaven? They'll say it wasn't hardly any verses. There was it was like was like war is over. And I feel Satan as fall as lightning. In other words. And and all he said was, I've been thinking about it and I think I'm exalt my throne above yours. He said, Oh, okay. And then he just drop kicked him in. The third of the angels went with him. So that's my opinion is his opinion. Now we're talking about developing a strong spirit. A strong spirit. So a strong spirit will sustain you in a time of trouble. Are. You are listening to me. God wants strong men and women to God strong. I'm not talking about just physically strong. I'm talking about strong. Amen. I mean, how can you be strong? Well, you have to eat, right? I'm not talking about just eating right.

Pastor West:
Naturally, I'm not talking about that at all, actually. You know, the Bible says that over there. It says. It says, you know, in other words, natural means of exercise. He says he says profits only little. But he's not saying to not exercise and take care of your body. In other words, you should. You absolutely should because you have a physical body. But he's saying, in contrast to spiritual things, he's not just saying, you know, physical exercise is very little profit. He says, in contrast to the spiritual. He says there is no comparison. Do a study. You'll find you'll never find. There's been one nutritionist that ever lived to be 100 years old yet. Now, they might have lived a better life. I don't know. I mean, you know, some people just break the code. There are genetics involved. I mean, there are some people you think, how did they live that long? There was a woman in New York. Someone broke in her house. A true story. She was 112 years old and someone broke in her apartment and she she got him and put him in a scissors, you know, locked with her legs until her neighbor could next to her, could call the police 112 years old. Boy, that'd be embarrassing, wouldn't it? Here you are, maybe 25, 30 year old man breaking into 112 year olds, and she puts you in a headlock and scissors lock and hold you down there until the police get there.

Pastor West:
Then they get the rest of you. And they asked her. They asked her, they interviewed her, said, well, you know, what's your what would you say? What's your recipe for long life? This is what I'm talking about. You can't just go by. I mean, there's a natural side to. She says, she said, I don't ever worry. And I always use Prince Albert and the Cam. You know, I use the good stuff. So she just held him down. Well, what are you going to do? What are you going to say about that? Well. But he said, I want you to be preserved. Blameless spirit, soul and body. That's the that's the triune. That's the three part of you. So your spirit is is born again, sealed in your spirit. You're just like God in your spirit. You're just as righteous as Jesus is right now. When you go to heaven, you'll never get an upgrade of righteousness. You're just as righteous now as you'll ever be because he imputed to you his righteousness. What are you saying? Righteousness. It means with God. You are right. In your spirit and your spirit is sealed in your spirit. You're blameless in your spirit. You've been born again. Old things passed away. Behold, all things become new. Yeah, but three years ago, I went through this trouble.

Pastor West:
Well, I've been married three times with the Lord. Doesn't remember the first one. You say? Well, did he forgive you? Yeah. Well. Well, then you don't have an ex. You're just married or you're single. Got real quiet again in here. Well, he said. He said, I will remember your sins no more. Even I who blotted out your sins and I transgressions. And I will remember your sins no more. Why do you remember them? I know the church remembers them. I know your brother in law remembers him. I know your mother in law. Sometimes. Remember? My mother in law always told me that was her last actually her last words to me. And I was leaving the hospital. Michelle was there with her and we talked and I got to the door, Shelby and she said, Hey, Eric. I said, Yes, ma'am. She smiled, and she says. Same joke. She says, You know, you're my favorite son in law. I said, I know. And she said, and I started reaching for the door. She said, Hey. I said, Yes, ma'am. She said, And you're my only son in law. I'm the best one, but I'm the only one. Amen. She loved jokes, so we didn't want to be conformed to this world. We want to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. Right. So let me say it this way. So your spirit is supposed to be king. Jesus King.

Pastor West:
You're born of his spirit. Your spirit is supposed to be king. Then your soul was supposed to serve you as a servant. Your feelings, your physical being, your emotions is supposed to serve you as servant. In other words, when they're renewed on the Word of God, they give you proper information to the rest of the to the rest of the to the body. That's what your that's what your soul does. When it's renewed to the Word of God, it becomes your servant. Most people are actually serving their soul. I said, Well, I've had this habit and I know the Lord loves me and I know his grace saved me and I know God gives me grace. You know, they go over to the Romans and say, you know, we're seeing abound, Grace more abound. So Lord just knows, you know, everyone has trouble. So he just he just graces me. And, you know, he knows I still have this habit. Lord, I understand. No, he don't understand that at all. He understands that grace was the power to bring you out. Jesus didn't go to the to the cross and go to go to the grave. Go to hell for you. To keep you in the same place that you've always been. He came to bring you out. And then he gave you his spirit. His spirit? He gave you his righteousness. He justified you. The scripture says there's no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.

Pastor West:
Not even a little bit. Now, some churches will have plenty for you. It's just a different version of a we could do better. Did you do good this week and let's do better next week? This is a different version of it. That's why they can preach in 18 minutes and be through. They ain't nothing else to talk about. I mean, some churches, all you can ever do is get saved in them. Thank God for that. But there's something beyond salvation. God didn't create you to miss Hell. If he created you to have a family, he created you in his image. He created you in his likeness. He created you to function just like him. And if you don't function like him, then that means you malfunction because you've been made in the image and likeness of God. And when you are one with the Lord as First Corinthians 617 said, he thus joined the Lord, they become a single spirit, a single tear spirit. Let's think about that. You are you are one spirit with him. So when the devil comes to attack, he doesn't know if he's jumping on you or Jesus. And then you get that Clint Eastwood attitude. Say, go ahead, sucker. Make my day. Ha ha ha ha. Because how many know greater is he that's in you than he that's in the world. Amen. Brother Hagan used to always talk about Smith.

Pastor West:
Smith Wigglesworth saying he always said, you know, he said Smith said, I'm a thousand times bigger on the inside than I'm on the outside. And Brother Hagan said, I concur, but I think Smith missed it. He said, I think it's at least a million. I'm a million times bigger. Well, I think Brother Hagan must admit I think it's in the trillions. Huh? Amen. Greater. Is he? That's in you. Now, who is he talking about? The greater one. The mighty one. The holy one. The righteous one. The all glorious one. The one who created the heavens and earth split the Red Sea. He lives inside of you. You are his address. Ephesians says you are the habitation of God. You are the place that he hangs out. You are there used to be the holy of holies. Everyone just barely touched it by mistake. They died. You remember the guy who tried to steady the cart, fried him like crispy critters? Now that moved into you. Oh, my God, y'all. Are y'all hearing this? See, you know this. But can you imagine being taken back in time, Back into the past? You know, like, you know, like the old shows back into the future. Go in the past and then tell and then tell Moses and all of them. God lives in me. They're like, do what? I mean, they have very strict things, you know, like, here's the commandments and they go in there and you can only go here.

Pastor West:
Then we go into the temple and only the priest can go in there and you got the outer court, then you got the inner court, then you got the the main deal behind the veil. Well, the veil has been torn. When Jesus died, tore it from the top to the bottom. Amen. Amen. God. You are the holies of holies in your spirit. Dear God. Do you know what? We would have been stoned if you went into the Old Testament for a day and you told them the holies of holies is in you? Same way when Jesus stood up and he says, you know, he said, The spirit of the Lord is upon me. It went on and told him it was all these this day this scripture is fulfilled in your ears. They said, Say you didn't say what I just thought you said. He said, You're saying this day, this scripture talking about the Messiah's coming is fulfilled years. He says, That's it. And the church wanted to throw him off a cliff. The sinners loved him. They love Jesus. They absolutely love Jesus who hated him. Religious people? That's right. Religion took him to the cross and killed him. I mean, that was. That's why it came. So religion is not going to be nice to you. Jesus said, They have to hate me before they hate you. He said, if they're hating you, he said, That's good news.

Pastor West:
You're in good company. Amen. Amen. They should leave me alone to understand you. Most of them. If they understand you completely, you're doing something wrong. I mean, you go through the gospels and Jesus is doing signs, wonders and miracles saying things. And they said it says, Man, we have seen some strange things here today. This is strange. This is wild. Remember when they came? Remember when they killed James? Then they was coming for Peter. And they were over praying and not too far away from the house. A bunch of them was praying. The disciples, the men and the women. They were praying for Peter. And then the angel comes down after they prayed and just released them from the prison, they said, Come on out. I mean, they just reach in and here's the guards. I don't know if you put them to sleep or what he did and he says, just come on out, let's go. You see, where did they get the key? The angel said, I don't need no key. Just come on out. And then Peter goes to where they're praying, knocks on the door. They're afraid for their life. Oh, my. They'll come for us. And they open the door. The woman opens the door and she saw Peter and she goes, Huh? And she slams the door. She goes back to tell the rest of them and says, It's Peter. They said, I don't believe it.

Pastor West:
Why are you doing? Why are you praying? Did you read that in the Bible? They don't they don't even believe it. That's what they're praying for. Dear God, can you imagine that? God answers prayer. Wow. Who would have ever thought it? Then Peter gave me instructions. He go, he said, Go to the temple and preach. He says, and it says, Preach about this life. Preach about this, Zoe. Preach about the life of God. Amen. And they came and said, How did Peter get loose? They said, We don't know. He says he just disappeared. Well, it's hard to keep a man in prison if the angel keeps on releasing. I'm here to make your bond. How much was it? Zero. Did you get the judges okay? Sure did. Sure did. Huh? Yeah. That's going to put Paul to death. Remember, he was in prison, and Paul said it would be better for me to go. He said it's much better to be with the Lord than be here. He said, Be better for you, though, I guess if I stay. He said, I kind of in a strait between two. He says, I don't know which one I should do. Can you see the spirit, soul and body in that statement? I, Paul. I'm going to straight between two. It'd be better for me, the real man, Paul, to be with him. But it'd be more beneficial to you if I stayed in my body here.

Pastor West:
Can you see spirit, soul and body there? And I said, Well, we're going to put you to death. And Paul says, I hadn't decided yet. Now we're putting you to death, he says, Yeah, I know, but I hadn't decided whether you're going to do that yet or not. That's big talk, ain't it? Well, Paul had already seen the miracle working power of God. He'd been on the ship. He said, Don't, don't sail, don't sail, don't sail, don't sail. I could tell you right now, I keep getting my spirit. Don't sail. I said, Just shut up. Get on the ship. Well, sure enough, here come the storm. Paul said, I told you Paul was one of those who I say, I told you so. I told you, don't sail. And it looks like everyone was going to die in an angel just shows up. He says. An angel shows up and they've been in a storm. It's been dark for two weeks. No light. I mean, can you imagine with no Dramamine being on a ship like that? An angel just shows up and says, watch here. Angel shows up and says, Be a good cheer. Yeah, I guess where you live. But. But be of good cheer. So he told Paul. He says. He says now the ship will be lost. He says. But no man's life will be lost because you're on the ship and you won't be lost, obviously, because he says, you have to go stand before the King Agrippa.

Pastor West:
In other words, Paul had an assignment. A storm couldn't kill him. The boat couldn't kill him. No one could kill him because he had an assignment. Who's in charge. So you have a spirit just like God. But if we don't rule our if we don't conform our mind to to the Word of God, then we'll be ruled by your feelings and your emotions. You'll be ruled by the physical. You'll be ruled by the x ray. You'll be ruled by weakness. But a strong spirit. Proverbs 1814. The strong spirit of a man will sustain that man in the time of bodily pain or trouble. But a weak and broken spirit who can raise up a bear. The stronger you are and the spirit, the stronger you are physically. You have a spiritual immune system as well as you have a physical immune system. If you don't feed your spirit and renew your mind, you'll become weak. Yes, your body has to have food, not just something that tastes good because you like something tastes good. Your body has to have food. It has to have liquids. We're three. We're three parts water and one part mud. You can only live so many days without liquids. You can only live so many days without food. Well, your spirit will only stay so strong with you never feeding them. If this is all you're getting, you're kind of a weak Christian.

Pastor West:
If you left your Bible here and it's been here for three weeks and you forget to take it home, that means you're not getting the food. In other words, just look at your spirit as needing food as well as your physical body does. Your spirit has an immune system. It can be stronger or it can be weaker. But when the infirmity come, the trials come, the temptations come. Come to life. And the situations come to your home, to your relationships and to your physical well-being, to your finances. The strength of your spirit will determine the adversity of how long it's going to last or if it's going to take you out. Amen. Amen. Now, would that be an important subject? Well, Amen. Now let's go just a little bit further. Emotions and feelings are caused by either pleasure or pain. Emotions and feelings are designed to move you in a direction. And there was they're looking to change the chart a new course. What is your feelings that you have, the emotions that you have that your your five senses produce in you? It's designed to move you. Well, I wasn't feeling too good today, so I didn't so and so. Okay. Well, or I'm angry or I'm upset. Well, I hate them. Well. Well, then, what do you mean you hate them? I know of a Christian. True story. I know of a Christian.

Pastor West:
I know of no one person. But I know of a Christian who was a Christian, but in a fit of anger, killed and murdered someone. That person is no longer alive. And they served a prison sentence. They were a Christian. Who threw a fit of anger. Do something that should never have taken place. Well, when you say I hate so-and-so, really what you're saying, according to the word is you're saying I'm a murderer. You say, Well, I'm not a murderer. I've never murdered anyone. Well, Jesus, I mean, what he was talking about, John there, he says, if you hate someone, that is the seed of murder. The Bible says be angry and sin not. In other words, Jesus had righteous indignation. Jesus went into the temple and took whips and turned the tables over because they were turned the house of prayer into a den of thieves. He was angry with righteous indignation. Now there's a there's there's a fruit. You want to call it anger. It's not a fruit of the spirit. But there was nothing wrong with that anger. It was righteous indignation. Has God ever been angry? Yes. Has God ever been upset? Yes. Has God has the Holy Spirit ever been grieved? Yes. Has. Has the Holy Spirit ever been happy and joyful? Absolutely. Why? Because they they know emotions. Because they created them. Because they have them themselves. Well under check and well under control.

Pastor West:
Amen. Why are we talking about this? Because your spirit is to be king. You made, just like in your spirit, your King Jesus and your spirit made in his image. But your but your emotions are feelings are to be your servant, not you serve them. I was trying to help someone last week call and this is the fourth time they called and I for a while, I don't even know who I'm talking to because the crying is so profusely out of whack. It takes me it takes me five minutes to get them to slow down, to even figure out who in the world I'm talking to. And then it's just, you know, you know, ten minutes. Oh, Pastor West, Pastor West. And I think someone has been killed, murdered or whatever. And they said, I'm depressed. I mean, it took me ten minutes to find out who he even was. That was, you know, my wife heard part of it. Not that I had on speakerphone, but it was so loud, the crying and the carrying on, I thought someone had been killed. So you can see what a person is when they're weak, when they're spirits weak. So I gave this person an assignment about two weeks ago. I said, I need you to find verses along this line on these two subjects. And by next week I want you to give me those verses in writing. Then you and I will agree with it on what you have found written.

Pastor West:
Well, they came about a week later and then they said this, this, this and this is still happening. It's still this. Oh, I need you to do something about this. I need you to do something about that. I need you to pray. I need you to talk to them. It's just like this. I said I need those verses. What verses? The verses you and I talked about for 20 minutes that you post to give me today. Oh, yeah? Well, I found one somewhere. I said you found one Scripture. You found one scripture in seven days. After we talked 30 minutes. After. After you've been fed. Utilities paid. Da da da da da da. You come up with one scripture. Well, I just need you to pray. Well, it's good to pray God can work with our prayers. But God don't just heal marriages through prayer. You might have to find out the principles for a successful marriage. I can't pray that the principles just start working in you when you violate them every day of your life. I just if I just cried and wailed to you and I discard. Oh, Miss Pam. Miss Pam is Pam. It took her ten minutes to find who I was. I want you to pray. I'd be scared here. You say you'd be scared? Oh, yeah. They're carrying too much weight. He's just bothering me. I'm just playing.

Pastor West:
Well, first you'd think I'd lost my mind, right? Because she just prayed me skinny. I said, Oh, I want to go back to a 32 waist. Oh, Miss Pam, I just need you to intercede for the Lord. May I tell you this? One time I went past him, but he's in church somewhere. And this woman, she's like, Oh, patchy, patchy. I want you to just pray. She said, my ankles be Swat. Swat. Swat. I need you to pray, Pastor. I remember that she wanted the pastor to pray. He said, Well, you're going to have to quit eating pork. She said, Oh, she said, this pastor prayed, Lord, no, I can't give up my pork, but just pray. No one has a zero faith in the house for that. Well, I know I ain't gonna stop doing anything now. I just need this thing. Go away. I ain't got time to come, Church. You ought to be on my side for a few weeks. These verses mean a whole lot more to you. It wouldn't be a sermon. It'd be like, Oh my God, I had no idea. Never allow emotions to move you in. Choosing to move you in the direction that opposes God's Word or God's will. Remember, we talked about weeks ago, we started on this, about opposing gods, about how we oppose ourself. Paul told Timothy to teach these people, he said, who are actually opposing themselves, and then they become entangled.

Pastor West:
By the devil. By you cooperating with him. Imagine that we cooperate sometimes with the enemy to oppose ourself. So Paul was telling Timothy that. When you yield to your feelings and physical or mental evidence or the emotion, you become unstable and you are very close to defeat. Because it was God's purpose for us to what live by what faith? Second Corinthians five seven says. For we walk by faith and not by sight. And the word sight in this verse seven Corinthians five seven, in that verse first sight, if you look at it, it says perceived with the senses. So we could go back and read this way. For we Walk by faith or not by sight. We walk by faith and not by our senses. How we feel, what we touch, what we smell. What we feel. What we hear. We don't walk that way. Those are God given gifts. But to be your servant, to serve you every day. But when the enemy turns that against you, he can use your feelings and your emotions and your situation, and he'll take the feeling and emotion of it. Or he'll take something in your body and cause a situation or a problem or a pain. And then he'll use your body as a weapon against you. But see, your body is just neutral. It doesn't have a will. You say? Well, yeah, it does it once Icekrieg Now that's in your emotions.

Pastor West:
Hmm. The body is just neutral. It just goes along for the ride. It's like the train going by the caboose. I mean, you don't even get a vote. The caboose is the tail and he just gets dragged everywhere. Like I say, if he was going to be if he was if you was a dog, if you were a dog, which you're not, never will be. But if you was and he's going to be a sled dog, you know, up in Alaska somewhere, I don't know. Was it eight, ten, 12? I don't know how they got on there. I mean, I'd want to be the head dog, wouldn't you? I would. I don't want to be at the end. If you look at the end, you're going to be looking at rears all day long. If you're going to be out, if you're going to go somewhere, you ought to be out there in front. So Satan will try to use your situation, but he'll use the emotions. See? We all have them. You ever had a situation, but because of and then your mind did this whole series about about what was about to happen. I remember raising teenagers and thinking they've just been home at 10:00 and it's 1030. It's 10:45. It's like, whatever. Then your mind would tell you all kinds of things. They're in a wreck. No one answers the phone. It's this. Their dog does this. I mean.

Pastor West:
I mean, within two hours, your mind will have you standing at the funeral home. That ever happened to anyone or some form of that. Oh, this is going to happen. This is like. My job, my retirement, my dah dah dah, my kids. This I mean, you got this whole situation is played out. Do we really think that's the Holy Spirit? No, it's the unholy Spirit. There's a Holy Spirit and there's a very. There's an unholy spirit. And then you get the feeling or the suggestions. You hear these words that come up in the form of a question. What are you going to do about it? You ever felt that before about any situation? Well, yeah, but what are you going to do about it? Show me your hand if you've ever thought that. Thought. What are you going to do about it? Well, here's what we know for sure. That's never the Holy Spirit asking you. No, he doesn't need any advice. What are you going to do about it? We've been thinking of some things in heaven. We want to run past you, but we don't know if it's going to work. That's the unholy spirit. That's the mind. That's the will, the emotion. That's the physical senses. Second Corinthians says or First Corinthians two says, the natural mind can't receive anything from God. It didn't say it'd be hard. It's just impossible. The natural part of you can't receive anything from God.

Pastor West:
It's impossible. He said. But you did not receive the spirit of the world. But the Spirit which is of God that you might know. He says, Oh, he says, So when you got born again, you didn't receive a spirit that doesn't know you received the spirit. That does know. Amen. Wow. So that we can the Holy Spirit is given to you so that you might know spiritual things and discern them. You can't discern them in that. In the natural. The natural man can't. That's why Romans eight says this is those who walk in the flesh, those who walk in the senses, they can't please God. They can't. It's impossible. Why? Because they're being governed by all their senses. They're being governed by symptoms. This helping anyone? Helping me. I hope it helps you. I promise you, If it helps me, it'll always help you. All right. Let me see if we can. We got to close. So the emotions are the voice of the flesh. Speaking from morning till night. This is just some things I wrote down yesterday. They're your emotions are talkers and stalkers. Your emotions will stalk you. It's not over now, buddy. You remember your. Your buddy Frank tried that, and you got the. Oh, and you remember Granddad? You got that same DNA we have. We have DNA, don't we? We got spiritual DNA. And I always said it means in spirit to the devil. Do not approach.

Pastor West:
Man.

Pastor West:
Do not approach. That's your spiritual DNA. Your feelings are a part of your soul. But we are. But we are to rule the soul. Not be ruled. In other words, your spirit is commander, its chief, its king. Then the soul takes the word of God and begins to be transformed so that you think like your spirit already is. So that when there's a vote that's cast. In a democracy. What happens? Two out of one wins. Your body's just neutral. It's just. It's just along for the ride. You say? Well, I'm. Some of the cliche talking for years. Well, I know I'm healed. I'm just waiting on the manifestation. You know what that means? That means you don't believe you're healed. Well, I know I'm healed. Bible says by his stripes I'm healed. But I still got this pain I got, I still got this situation. So I'm just waiting on the manifestation. But thank God I know I'm healed now. You don't know you're healed yet. Why? Because you're interpreting whether you are or not, by a symptom. Symptoms are not the interpretation is not how you know whether or not you're healed. How do I know that I'm healed? Because I read it. The written word of God is equal to what God says. God in His word cannot be separated. Can you separate God from His word? Can you separate love from God? Can you separate God's will from who God is? Well, when it comes to healing, what is your evidence? What is the proof? How do you know that you have a right to be healed? What is the covenant proof that you know that you're healed? Well, it'd be first.

Pastor West:
Peter 224. It'd be Isaiah chapter 53, it'd be Matthew 817 and several other verses. Isaiah was speaking and prophesying to the one to come who would go to the cross for you? He said, you know, surely he hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. Sorrows. He talked about your sickness and your pain, and he said, by his stripes, you are healed. Well, Jesus hadn't been born yet, but the first Peter 224 is after the cross. He said, Who? His own self. Jesus bore our sins on his body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness. By whose stripes? You you back there were healed when Jesus came. So what is the covenant say? It's by the stripes of Jesus and you putting faith in what the finished work of what Jesus did. Your faith determines the outcome of your life. Amen. Hmm. So if it meant going to the whipping post, he did that. You say, Well, I'm praying for God to heal me. Well, he don't do that no more. You can stop all that. Can. E.w. King, you said something. Years ago, people didn't like he said, Anything that you can find in the Bible is a promise.

Pastor West:
Don't need to be prayed about. Now, I thought, God, most people wouldn't even have a prayer life. Their their their prayer life consists of their needs mostly, and God cares about your needs, he said. But anything that you can find is a promise in the Bible never needs to be prayed about, just simply needs to be obeyed. Would change everything. Amen. You say? Well, I don't feel a bit different in my body. Well, he didn't say by his stripes you were healed if you feel like you were. Four times. My wife told me, you know, she she was pregnant, but I didn't feel pregnant at all. Me and a lot of times talk about how many children you. Oh, we had we had two. We had three. We had four. We both did it. On delivery day. The truth is, I never gave birth to any of them. Of course, I was standing up the whole time. She got to lay down every time we went there. No one ever brought me anything. I want to know, does she need this? Did she need that? I think, hey, I mean, first, how long was she in labor? Ten hours. They didn't bring me nothing. She's laying down the whole time. I felt like I was in labor ten hours. Praise the Lord. No one said, Brother, do you need something to eat? I just. She was just laying out there.

Pastor West:
Whatever she needed. She just called us like that. Just waiting on her hand and foot. We had four. She was there, too, by the way. I said if you're going to have. You know, when a kid has a birthday, they all remember if their mother is still alive. You got to take your mother present. It was the day she birthed you. She was heavily involved. She ought to get something for it. Real quiet in this Presbyterian church or whatever it is. So your feelings are a part of your soul? I mean, think about King David. You had the Psalms to see when David was going through trying times. He wasn't in your covenant. But he had to understand that he knew who God was the best, that he would know him from the outside. He didn't have him on the inside. So when David would have trouble, he would write things like this. When Psalm 103, he says, Bless the Lord. Oh, my soul. Oh, soul. And all that is within me. Bless his holy name. Bless the Lord. Oh, my soul. And forget not all his benefits. What probably happened was he was in a place where it was a hard place and he didn't see any benefits. He had to go back and remind himself of the covenant that he was in and he had to tell his his soul. We are going to bless at this point.

Pastor West:
Huh?

Pastor West:
That's what you do on purpose. By purpose? You say? Well, yeah, but it's all over and we win. And then we will. Oh, anybody can do that. Anybody can shout on the mountaintop. I'm talking when you're down in the valley and the rocks on top of you. It's like the wild coyote. Beep, beep. You know, the anchor falls or the, you know, the big what you call it the. You know, from Acme Anvil. Yeah, he's underneath it in the boulder and he's like. And beep, beep. When you're down there, when it's on top of you. Can you say bless the Lord o my soul and all that's within me? Because words matter. Are you all here?

Pastor West:
Going home? Amen.

Pastor West:
If you allow your emotions to rule the day, the week, the month, then they're going to take you deeper and deeper into trouble. Proverbs 21, The primary ways to successfully govern your emotions is with your words. So if you're going to be king, how do kings how do how do kings rule words? If I say there's going to be a party in the kingdom today at 5:00, there's going to be a party. When the king speaks, his decreed, the word decree is the word legislate, which is governing because you're made in his image and his likeness and you've been rule and reign. Your words when you speak his word through your mouth, you are decreeing you are legislating the will of God. Jesus said, Whatever they bind on earth, we bind in heaven. Whatever they loose on earth, Heaven gets involved in loosing. In other words, the earth is the. The earth is the Lord's. I mean, the world belongs to God. He says. But the earth he gave to me and he gave it to you. It's in your control. I have a brand new Bible here, almost brand new. But if I give it to Brother Dennis right here, if I give it to I said, Here, I want to give you this Bible. Whose Bible is it? It was his. It was mine. But then I gave it to Dennis. If I gave it to Dennis, is any part of it mine? Do I have control over what he does with that Bible after I give it to him? Does God have any control over the earth once he gives it to mankind? Oh.

Pastor West:
Huh. He puts you here to rule and reign and give you his name and his authority to do it. And people are running around talking about the sovereignty of God. Well, you know, God's sovereignty and God's sovereign, God's sovereign, and he is sovereign. But they throw everything, you know, if it happens, it's supposed to happen and it just happens and supposed to happen. No, it probably happened a lot of times because you didn't take your place and rule and reign. The disciples couldn't get that boy delivered who probably had convulsions and going to the fire and they couldn't cast the devil out of it. They came to Jesus. Why couldn't we cast the devil out of him? And Jesus said, Bring him to me. He said, My gosh, he rebuked him. He's his own disciples. Bring him to me. And Jesus got him delivered, which proved it was the will of God for the boy to be delivered. But in the church that I came up in, because the boy didn't get delivered by the disciples, we said, Well, you know, there's some reason, you know, we'll understand when we get to heaven. You ever heard that? You know, And sweet and sweet. By and by. So we would interpret the outcome as being the sovereign will of God. Well, Jesus proved it wasn't the will of God for the boy to have a demonic spirit. So he cast him out and the disciples came back to him puzzled because they've been having success. And they said, Why couldn't we do that? Why couldn't we cast this one out? Jesus, Because of your unbelief.

Pastor West:
This kind only comes out by prayer and fasting. This kind of what? Not devil. Not devil. Man, if you believe that this kind of this kind of devil only comes out if you pray and fast, the devil will just tell you every time you go cash one out. Now I'm the kind you got to go pray and fast. Come back in a month. Well, he won't be there in a month. They'll always tell you I'm that kind. I'm that kind. I'm that kind. I'm that kind. No, That kind of unbelief has to be dealt with. Unbelief in the word of God is evil, satanic. We just think it's you know, we just didn't believe he called it evil. Unbelief is evil. He said that kind of unbelief can only be dealt with by prayer and fasting. Pray with the will of God. So your words successfully put together will do this. Proverbs 21 three says Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps his soul. What your mind, your will and emotions from troubles if you keep your tongue. Speaking the right word. You will keep your soul, your mind, your will and emotions from trouble. Solomon said that Solomon actually knew a thing or two. You ever read his book? Proverbs 1624. He says this. He said, Pleasant words are as a honeycomb, sweet to the soul. Pleasant words are health to your bones. And I know someone who had bone cancer and that was one of the scriptures that they used.

Pastor West:
And after three weeks, the bone cancer disappeared. They just spoke those words and they just believed that the words that they were speaking would be held to their bones and the bones they just wanting to do, you know, they have bone cancer. They just want to take all the marrow out and do it like this. And they said, no, I have I have peace about going this way. Within a few weeks, all the cancer had disappeared. By just using these verses actually. Can you imagine that they actually believe the Bible like it was true? My gosh. If you're an unsettling circumstances this morning, you might have feelings of discouragement. Fear might be all around you and your situation. But if you begin to speak pleasant words. Words of spirit, words of life, words in agreement with God. Then there will come a shift in your soul. A shift will take place in your soul. Instead of feeling trouble in your soul, you'll feel peace. That the peace that passes all understanding. And as you continue speaking those pleasant words to your soul not only have peace, but then the fruit of joy, the fruit of the spirit, joy will begin to bubble up on the inside of you. Everything in the situation might still be the same, but all of a sudden, because you've just been speaking these pleasant words and you're not being led by your feelings and your emotions, your joy will begin to spring up on the inside of you. And you'll get a smile on your face where you had a frown.

Pastor West:
Huh?

Pastor West:
You'll have hope when you felt hopeless before. You might even start singing whether you can sing or not. And who knows? You might even cut a rug. Start dancing, huh? It's called joy. Unspeakable and full of glory. Remember last week we talked about David returning home with his men? And he come to find out. He come to his home. He found out that all the all their homes had been destroyed by the Ammonites. Their families have been captured and taken away. It says when they saw that, they wept until they had no more tears in them. Then David's men, his own men were so angry. They were so afraid that their families had been killed and all their homes had been destroyed. They blamed it on David, and they picked up stones to actually Stone David the King. And. And David was. He started calls the praise team. He probably he's looking for the 800 number 800 number to call the prayer tower. The watch tower. The fire tower. Pastor Buddy, you say? Sometimes you. You don't have anyone to call. I can't answer everybody's call.

Pastor West:
Can you.

Pastor West:
I can't be everybody's answer. I'm not supposed to be. I'm a teacher, but he's the teacher. I know some things. He knows everything. You say? Well, I don't know where he is. Where are you born again? He's on the inside of you. He's using that small still voice. In the very beginning, when I didn't know, when I didn't know much of anything, I used to say it this way. I didn't know. Come on. From Sikkim, he speak to me in ways that was pretty obvious to me. And I look around and say, Did you say that that don't ever happen to me anymore? Or if he does happen now, I know I'm in trouble. You know, when your mother got mad at you, she raised your voice and called you by all your brothers names, mixed your brothers and sisters name all up in there because she was that angry. Then you knew you were in trouble. I mean, she threw one of my sister's name and I knew I was in a lot of trouble because I'm not a sister. This is David at the threat of his own men killing him and their wives and their families destroyed. What did he do? He said he inquired of the Lord. And he said, Lord. Jill Opera Sue. Shall I find them? Shall I overtake them? They begin to praise the Lord. It said they would begin to encourage himself in the Lord.

Pastor West:
What needed? Encouraging his soul? Why? Because of the feelings that they had. Because of the emotions that they were feeling. Now, this is a really bad example, but I'm going to have to use it anyway. If I came to you. Serious? And I came to your home and you had a child say there was a grown child. And if I came to your house and I told you, I have something to tell you and I need you to. Can I come in? And I need you to sit down. And I said, What's the matter? And I said, I'm so sorry to tell you what I'm about to tell you. But I wanted to be. I wanted to be here with you when you found out. That a couple of hours ago that your son was killed in an accident. Coming from me. And no one that I wouldn't joke about something like that, even though if it wasn't true, you'd have all the emotions of loss and grief because of what you heard. That'd be a cruel thing to do, right? But you would probably believe me because I don't pull junk like that. You'd have all the feelings and emotions of what a parent would feel like to lose a child. The truth is, none of it would be true. So when the enemy tells you those lies and he comes to you and he speaks to you in the middle of the night and you can't sleep, and you have all the feelings and emotions and your experience is lined up with your finances and your kids and your body and everything's lined up with how you feel.

Pastor West:
Don't believe any of it. It's a con job. It's not that it's not a fact. It's just not truth. Jesus is truth. The Holy Spirit is the spirit of truth. He's called the spirit of reality. In other words, he can take the truth and make it so reality, make it so real to you that you see and say, Oh. That you get it. In the very beginning, I asked the Lord because I said, I'll ask you just for a couple of things. If I'm going to minister the word because I said, I know, I know the newspaper used to be written on the fourth or fifth grade level across the world because most subscribers, they found out we'd read at that level. I asked the Holy Spirit said, I'm asking for the gift to to teach something that's so simple that even a third grader would get it. One, because that's what I need. And number two, I think it will help more people. I don't like to teach with thees and thous and anons. And, you know, I got friends who have doctorate degrees and all that, and I was like, sometimes, sometimes I wanted to have a trade off, any faith to get it.

Pastor West:
Nothing against all that. I'm just saying you can have a lot of spiritual knowledge. You can have degrees behind your name. They asked me at one time said, you know, do you study the Bible in the Greek? Smith Wigglesworth I should have known better than asking questions like this. They said, Do you study the Bible in the Greek or the Hebrew or both? He said, Neither one. I said, Well, how do you study? He said, I studied in Holy Ghost. I said, What? He said, I studied in Holy Ghost. I don't study after Greek and Hebrew scholars. I study the one who created all of it. Is it amazing how your body is made to where it wants to heal itself? You get a cup for yourself, may take a few weeks or whatever, a few days, but it begins to new layer skin come over there. How does it do that? Just got come over today and help me cut down a fig tree. I want to get out of the way and put up a new fence and that that fig tree has been killed. I don't know how many times. My mother loved it and hated it. My dad liked it because it was cover so he could be outside and no one see him.

Pastor West:
And my mother told me one day, it's right there by accepting, she says. She says, I will get rid of that tree. I said, Well, he's gone. I says, Do what? I said, You better not. Because, I mean, I'm not going to be here when she says, no, I'm not going to do nothing to it. She says. I bought some diesel fuel. I'm going to pour it all over that, all over the roofs, and that thing is going to die. And I said, I'm going home. She poured diesel fuel all over that tree. That thing just shot up like this. I mean, it had the best figures you ever had in your life. 2017 and diesel fuel. I don't know what it is. It just like, Thank you. This is the second or third time that thing's been leveled to the ground. And again last yesterday when I was cutting grass around it, you know, I was cutting I was cutting little bitty fig trees all around it from the seed. Scott cut it all the way to the ground. I mean, you know, I don't have a grinder yet, but I'm just saying he cut it down and it's trying to grow trees after death. That's how much life you have in you. When Adam died, Spirit, When Adam died that day, he sent Adam and Eve. It was over 900 years for the devil to kill him.

Pastor West:
He had that much life in him. He was spiritually dead. But he had so much residue of life in him. The devil couldn't get him off the planet for almost a thousand years. Then you ought to be hard to kill. Not easy. You should be a hard target. I tell you, if you get your spirit strong, the devil say no. No. We've already been to her. No. Who? Pam. Oh, no. God, no. Don't start there. Go somewhere else. Leave her alone. I mean, we're running out of time. We don't. We don't start her house. Stay away from that. That whole community just. Oh, God, no. And just find some weak people. Find some weak Christians, huh? You know, the devil is running out of time, so he needs some easy targets. How does he know who they are? Because they speak out of their souls. I can't take no more of this. If this happens one more time. You just don't. Well, we just got to go one more time. It was one more time. They're ready to fold like a $2 watch. You know, like. Like a suitcase, you know? It come from Dollar Tree. It's got one snap in it. Just. Everything's a dollar. Yeah. That's how long it's going to last. You got a dollar's worth, but you cost more than a dollar. You cost the blood of Jesus. Hallelujah.

Pastor West:
Praise God.

Pastor West:
So when your spirits are in contact. Finished. Right. When your spirits are in contact with God. When you're born again, they're holy. When our soul. That's your spirit. When your spirits have contact with God that came through salvation, you are now holy. When your souls have contact with God, they're happy.

Pastor West:
And when your.

Pastor West:
Bodies have contact with God, they're healthy. Holy, happy, healthy, holy, happy, healthy. Who's here today? People who are holy, happy and healthy. Yeah. Why are you healthy? Why are you happy? Because you're holy. Why? Because you're rooted in him. You live from your spirit. See this? This born again Christianity. It's an inside job. My God. I imagine next week until I get that tree up out of the ground. I mean. I mean, anybody want a sprig for a fig tree? Just come. Come back next week. There'll be more there. That tree. How long does it hold that tree, Barbara? Do you even know? Maybe oldies. Was there when she got the house, 1980 something. And that's something that God may just don't want to quit. I mean, do you just cut the whole tree down? The whole. The whole tree down. It's down. Then you just walk out and you just look around and there's just little trees growing their little fig trees. Like, my gosh, I just don't You figs, you little figs just want to come up, don't you?

Pastor West:
Woo!

Pastor West:
Glory to God.

Pastor West:
Praise God. Huh?

Pastor West:
Are you strong? You're holy. Are you happy? Some of you don't smile too much. Now, the way that you care, that you don't smile depend on the size of the shape of your face. You either get a kids hanger or get an adult hanger. And when you go to bed, put the hanger in your mouth. It'll hurt for a few days. It'll be sore, but you'll have a permanent smile that last for weeks and weeks and weeks If you don't know how to do it, come over to my house and I'll fit you with a hanger. And then you can, if you want to, you can hang around for a while. Oh, God bless you.

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Building A Strong Spirit Part 3 | Be Strong, Finish Strong 9Jul2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Building A Strong Spirit Part 3 | Be Strong, Finish Strong 9Jul2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
You talked about when and where we're going to worship and what it's going to look like and all such as this. But Jesus says something it wasn't about on this mountain or this place or that place, but he said, God is a spirit. In other words, he can't be contained in one location. And they that worship him must worship him in spirit and truth. You can be seated. But there was a I won't mention the name, but there was a well known minister. And that minister was in a room with several hundred people in a service. He was enjoying the praise and worship and he was on the stage before he ministered and he said, Lord, this is a wonderful atmosphere to be here together where everyone is worshiping, praising. And the Lord said, There's everyone's not worshiping, praising me. He said, almost no one is worshiping me. He said, and he was in awe because he was just so caught up in worship himself. He said when he looked up and the lights was out in his worship and praise and and there were hundreds of people in the room. He said he saw these lights on top over like over their head. And he said there was about a dozen people out of hundreds. And the Lord said, those are the people who actually worship me. The rest of them are going through the motions and some of them are reading the words off the screen, but there is no worship from them whatsoever.

Pastor West:
Worship is an attitude. Worship is heartfelt if your heart doesn't engage in it. You haven't worshipped yet. And. Sometimes the word worship has been overused to the place, to where it's not really even used correctly in the applicable sense that you ride by. And it says worship service, you know, is from 11 to 12 after Sunday school. Or they'll call the whole thing come tonight for our worship service. Well, Jesus said in the book of Matthew, he said, he said, You think they're honoring me? He said, they do honor me with their lips. In other words, they're doing lip service. It looks like what you're saying is true. He said, But their heart, their hearts far from me. What does that mean? That means we can go through the motions. That means we can do Sunday. That means we can give but isn't giving a part of our worship is isn't every part of the life of a believer. Worship. It is from our heart. When God sent the prophet. To anoint a king. He sent him to the house of Jesse. And there he had several sons. He says I'm going to anoint me a king, for I have rejected Saul. For he's disobeyed me. And the prophet was waiting and he was looking among his sons. And he looked at his oldest son. And the prophet himself said, This surely is the Lord's anointed.

Pastor West:
And the Lord said, No, he's not the one. He's the Lord. He's of great stature. He looks he looks majestic. He looks like a king should look. And God had to tell the prophet himself. He says, Man looks on the outward appearance, but I look on the heart. You know the story that he went through all the sons and couldn't find the king. And he said, Are these all your sons? And he says, Well, no, there's one down there keeping the sheep. He says, My my youngest son, David, I didn't see nobody bringing him up. I didn't see the need to bring him up. So the prophet called for him and said, Bring him here as soon as he got into the presence of David. The Lord says, That's him. That's the next king of Israel. Sometimes you're in the back room and you're in. You're in the back of the back and and you're not looking for recognition. You're just looking to live your life and obey God the best that you know how. No one's asking and no one's calling on you and no one's You seem unnoticed, but the Lord notices everything. He knows everything because he knows the heart of man. And he saw the heart of David. And David was a worshiper at heart. You know that because you read all the songs, the Psalms, many of them, the mass majority of them. David wrote himself while he was keeping sheep.

Pastor West:
It is something that you can be out into a field by yourself at night, under the stars. As a shepherd with a shepherd's staff working for your father while everyone's asleep. You're out there just doing your job and you're communing with the Lord under the stars and the Lord's there is with you. No one else is around. And the Lord sees in David. He sees in you what someone else can't see. There was a day that David was called upon. There was a day because he had prepared him for such a time. The preparation is ongoing. It never ends. But there is a day to begin. I believe those days that we are in are those days where preparation is taking place. You may not feel prepared. You may not look. You may not look prepared. I had to learn a lesson a long time ago that the Lord spoke to me and he we we we had a certain confession and I didn't know I was going to say this, so I may not get it right because I ain't said it in years. But we used to say it's something like this. We thank God that he has to this church daily, such as should be saved. We receive this building filled to overflowing as we, the body of Christ, as we, the body of Christ, go out into the harvest field. And He says and find those who are ripe for harvest.

Pastor West:
Well, ripe for harvest. Well, no one has a sign over their head says I'm ripe. No one does. If you're if you're in the supermarket and you're looking for a ripe cantaloupe or a watermelon, generally, the way that you do that is you don't shake it, you thump it. Sometimes you find if someone's ripe by thumping their head and sometimes you say they're not ready yet, just let the boy go back to that room. It's like that commercial about what is it, the the cheese crackers, Cheez-It and the cheese that's always talking back. It's got smack. And he says, You're not ready yet because you know cheese that only puts out the Nabisco or whatever it is puts out on the best kind of crackers And we got we got a smarty cheese. Well. Is this your time? Is it time? It's time to move forward. What would stop us. This morning, we want to continue in the series that we're in about being building a strong spirit. To go a little different direction and I won't have you turn anything right now. I want to quote some things out of the parable of the sower, out of Matthew, chapter four. You can you can turn if you want to, but I'm not really going to. Word by word. Verse by verse. But I want to make some comments first about that parable. So in the parable of the sower, we read this sad reality.

Pastor West:
It's very sad when you read the parable The Sower. The reason why we need to understand about the parable of the sower is because Jesus told us, If you don't understand this parable, you will never know how the kingdom of God operates. Elliott was giving us great understanding, really about the kingdom and how it operates through seed time and harvest. About the power of the incorruptible seed. You know, you're born again of an incorruptible seed which can never fade away. Your your salvation, if it's in Jesus, is secure. It doesn't wash away in your next mistake. God doesn't change his mind. So don't change yours. Well, in the parable of the sower, we find out that there was different type of ground, wasn't there? There was different kind of people. But he was liking he was liking a farmer that sowed seed into different type of soil. But what was he really talking about? Was he talking about a farmer? Was he talking about agriculture? Not really. What was he talking about? He was talking about the heart and the condition of mankind. And he said the soul was job is always to sow. And what does he so. Well, the scripture tells us the sower sows the word of God and then he gives us the type of ground that he sows it into. In Mark chapter four, after and after verse three, we said, the sower sows. It says it came to pass as he sowed seed some by the wayside and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up and some he he sowed on stony ground and it had not much earth.

Pastor West:
And immediately it sprang up and because it had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up, it was scorched. And because it had no fruit, it withered away. Verse seven. And some fell among thorns. And the thorns grew up and choked it and it yielded no fruit. Verse eight. But other seed fell on good ground. Okay. The seed fell on good ground. And it did yield fruit. It did spring up and it did increase and it did bring forth much fruit some 30 times as much, some 60 fold and some 100 fold. Verse nine, he said to them, he that hath ears to hear. Let him hear. You might say, Well, everyone has ears. They all have ears, but they don't all hear. In other places. He said, take heed what you hear. Pay attention to what you hear. Pay attention to who has your ear. So the disciples had no clue what he was talking about whatsoever. The people went away and they said, Well, praise the Lord. And the disciples came up and said, Master, that was a really good teaching. What in the world are you talking about? I mean, I thought we were going to do some church stuff today, and here you're talking about how to grow corn and butter, peas and all that kind of stuff.

Pastor West:
And he says, Oh my gosh. So he taught him verse 14. He says, No, the parable means this. The sower sows the word. And these are they which are by the wayside when the word is sown. When they heard Satan comes in two weeks and takes away the word. Oh, just say, Oh, I'm sorry. I'm in verse 15. Satan comes. What? So as soon as the word comes. It has Satan's attention. Why does Satan care so much about He needs to come immediately. It tells you something about the power of a seed, doesn't it? How does he come? Oh, he comes in many forms. You know, all all type of things. People situation, arguments, fighting car tears up, dog does whatever dog vomits on the carpet, all kind of stuff, baby, you know, baby won't stop crying even though he's 45 years old. All sorts of things that go on. Just steal the word. He doesn't come to you and say, I'm Satan. I've come to get the word from you. Give it over. And he pulls out a machete. He doesn't do that. He can't get the word out of your spirit because he has no access to your spirit. Now, listen carefully. This is important. This is one of the things you need to get if you don't get nothing else. If the word stays in your spirit, you're the good ground person and you will receive a 30, 60, 100 fold in your lifetime.

Pastor West:
I've been watching this for over 30 years. The people who come every week hardly ever need counseling. You know where they get it? They get it sitting right here. They get it in the Bible study. They get it in their own prayer life. You see, you don't have to go from crisis to crisis. In Miracles. A wonderful. But we don't. It's not even God's best that you go from miracle to miracle. Why? Because Miracle usually has enough provision for what you need. If you need a miracle, it's generally because you know you're in trouble. You need a financial miracle. You need a physical. You need some type of miracle. You need you need a breakthrough. Thank God for miracles. We'll always have them. We'll always need them until we get to heaven. But that is not God's best. What would be God's best? Well, third, John. Two would be God's best. Beloved, I wish, above all things, that you prosper and be in health as your soul. As your what? Oh, even as your soul prospers. I mean, God wants us to do something. Yes. How many of you went to school and got through? The 12th grade and most of it. Or you're still in school. Did you have some form of math? All 12 years? Yes. Did they cram? Did they? So they don't cram every form of math in 12 years.

Pastor West:
Can you see taking a someone in kindergarten and say, okay, children, get out your book of calculus one, get started today. That wouldn't be the place to start, would it? No more than you would give an eight year old. You might give him a, you know, a rifle or a certain type of, you know, pistol or whatever. That's a collector that's been in your family. It may be the plan of the father to give that to his son, but he probably won't give it to the son at the age of seven, eight, 9 or 10, or even until he's older. He's not old enough to handle the responsibility. He doesn't know the danger of it. Well, God never puts anything in your care. Your responsibility until he knows that you're ready. So we don't start in college. We start in kindergarten, right? Remember in kindergarten, we used to. I don't know about now. You used to have the little mask that fold out and you had to take naps. It'd be good if they let you do that at work now, wouldn't it? So it's nap time. Where's my chocolate milk and my little Debbie? You know, the Middle East has been fighting for years. The United States is trying to go over there and westernize these these these mid Eastern countries for years and it's never worked. You ever wonder why? You ever think before we ever start a war? Does anyone ever read a history book? I think there's a more simpler way to fix some of it or ease the tension.

Pastor West:
I think we ought to send over our some of our our aircraft and we ought to drop off care packages of cold milk and warm cookies and just say relax and have a great day. Maybe put the arm down and go home. If not, you can come back the next day and shoot them anyway. We tried the other first. Notice in verse 16 said These are their likewise which are sown on stony ground. And when they have heard the word immediately, they receive it with gladness. But here it is. They have no root in themselves. This is this is the verse pastors know the best. They have no root in themselves. In other words, they hear the word. And they receive it gladly. They get excited about it, man. They they get excited to hear that God wants you to prosper. They get excited to hear about the miracles, signs and wonders and deliverances. They get excited about breakthrough and it's all true. And so they get excited and say, Man, I'm going to do this forever. Without exception, in three decades, this has happened to me every time. And when someone starts to say, No, no, no, no, stop, stop, stop. They say, Oh, this is my church. You're my pastor. I'm going to be with you forever. And I'm like, They're gone two weeks.

Pastor West:
It's the ones that you share will never come back or hear. It's the ones that you, you know that sometimes you have to talk rough to and say, stop that. You think, Well, I probably won't come back. I had to be corrected. And you don't like correction. And they're like, back the next week. They're like, wow. Two weeks later, they do something else. Knothead. And you got to stop that. People said years ago teaching children's church. Someone said, you know, children's church can be really challenging. And I said, I know it can. We appreciate all that you do. They said, We just like to be able to teach adults. I said, Why? I said, Because it would be a lot different. I'd like to have the opportunity to teach adults. And I said, You think? And that's you see, you can get frustrated because children act like children, but you'd be more frustrated if you taught adults and they acted like children. Hmm. You've heard me say it before. You'll never find a scripture in here. It says my little adult. Now then there anywhere we are his children. But I'm talking about in a sense of maturity, of growing up. There is a process to growing up. There is a process to being strong. Are you listening? Not everyone's going to enter the race. They're going to talk about it. They're going to get excited about it. They're going to go.

Pastor West:
I mean, all the all the young men and women who get a scholarship to play some form of athletes or, you know, athletics, you know, whether it be volleyball or tennis or football or basketball, whatever it is, it may be exciting. They might enjoy it. But they never played on that level before because when you get there, there's going to be people there's going to be people just as good as you and not better. Who wants that job as much as you do or more? They're not going to tell you we're not going to have practice today because it's over 90. You know, they're going to tell you to get out there and they're going to run and get in full pads and we're going to knock each other around, huh? It's going to call for more than what you think that you have. What does it take to be successful in ministry? You want me to tell you the truth in life? Not me in the ministry. But I'm talking about as a believer, who's going to be fruitful? You know what's going to cost you. Can I just be honest with you? If you're going to be successful? It's going to cost you everything. It'll cost you everything. But I want to tell you, it'll be worth the cost. It'll be worth the cost. Amen. You know, the Scriptures talked about that God's not really looking for golden vessels. He's not leaving looking for silver vessels.

Pastor West:
He's looking for yielded vessels. God's not looking for who has the greatest IQ in the room. He doesn't need to go back to the house school for sure. He's not looking for the most qualified. He qualifies you. The university, your schooling, your trade doesn't qualify you. It can help you. It can assist you. Schooling can help you, but schooling does not make you successful. Sometimes they would chastise Smith Wigglesworth because he. He didn't really have an education. He didn't matter of fact, he didn't even know how to read. His wife, Polly. Which was the nickname he gave her. She taught Smith how to read in his 50s. She was the preacher, and he worked with the kids. Until one day he actually met Jesus for himself. Yeah. He heard about the Holy Spirit. The turn of the century. And he. He wanted to go see. Ah, this amazing thing that he heard that he knew was in the Bible, but he knew no one had it. And he went to Los Angeles like so many others did, to William Seymour's meeting in Jesus Street. And he had an experience that changed his life. Well, most of you know who I'm talking about when I say Smith Wigglesworth. Born as an Englishman. He was a plumber. He was a good plumber, but his wife was a devout Christian and minister, and he helped her. And she wasn't too sure about this Holy Ghost thing.

Pastor West:
Probably wasn't speaking in tongues. She didn't see why that was necessary, but Smith had it and she didn't want him to have something. If it was what God had and if it was God, she wanted to have it. But she wasn't too sure that he needed that. So she just told us, she says, I'll tell you what, I'm going to see if you're a changed man next week. You aren't going to teach the kids. You're going to teach the adults. He said, okay. Smith got up there the next week and opened up his Bible and began to read. It wasn't but just a few minutes. Polly said, I don't even know who that man is. That's not my husband. My husband can't nor has he ever done what he's doing right now. And she was convinced and asked the Lord to forgive her and fill her gloriously with the Holy Ghost and power. Will Smith went around the world. He raised 14 people from the dead. He was called the apostle of faith. He could be a little gruff. People didn't want to be around him, but they needed the miracles. He had a style that you probably wouldn't want to adopt in today's world because you would you would you would meet Alex Sharon a quick. They did not understand him. He didn't apologize for it. He never read a book after he learned to read. He said, I never read another book in my life, but the Bible, I don't have time for it.

Pastor West:
No. Anyone like him in the world? I don't mean he was getting started at almost 60. He said, I don't have time for that. Lester Summerall came to his house to visit him in his 20s. To be mentored by him. And he'd come in to Smith's house. He said, I thought I'd be out there all day long. I thought the line would wrap around half the world to get in to see me. But there was no one there. There was never anyone there. But yet you couldn't. You couldn't get in the building. You couldn't get in the churches where he was. Why? Because everywhere he went, there was miracles. He told a man one time. Who had both legs amputated. He ministered to him and says, Tomorrow go down to the shop. And he said, Order you a pair of shoes. And the guy said, But he says, Do what I said, documented. The man went home. Two stubs, two wooden legs. Couldn't hardly fathom this. You know, go to the store and buy shoes. Well, something happened that. That night the Lord spoke to that man. He says, Why don't you obey my servant? How would you like the Lord to call you his servant by other people? The man went down to the next morning and he went in. He has his wooden legs. He sat down and the guy, the storekeeper said, How can I help you? And he says, I'd like to buy myself a pair of shoes.

Pastor West:
He said. He looked down. He said, Sir, I can't. He says, Just, I want to. He said, I want a pair of black shoes. He a size eight. I guess you can choose. Instantaneously. From his wooden legs, two legs begin to grow and appear all the way down to the feet and the toenails. And the man saw him and he ran out of the shop. And Smith had to wait on himself and let the money on the counter. They bought a baby to him who was dying. And there's nothing that could do for the baby. As Smith said. Will you will you let me do what the Lord tells me to do? And they said yes. And he took the baby and kicked it off the stage. And everybody went, of course. And the baby landed, healed. And I said, Why? Why are you? Sometimes he'd hit people with who had cancers or tumors who hit him in the stomach. And they said, Why do you do that? Why are you so mean to people? It has nothing to do. The people. He said, it's the devil. He says the people will be okay. He said they'll they'll get an anesthesia from the Holy Ghost. He says. He says, I'm not playing with the devil. Amen. We'll see. No one wanted to be around him.

Pastor West:
They just wanted the miracles. You kind of wanted his healing line, but just kind of scared you Next. We need some of that today. We don't need to be him. But but we but we need the spirit of it in the church. We need to get rid of the Wimpy Church. We need to get rid of the the. Just the church. That's just. We're afraid that we might offend you. If I don't ever offend you, I'm not even doing my job. You ought to get rid of me quick. Now, if I'm just looking to offend you, maybe get rid of me, too. But I'm talking about if you just read the word every day and you don't come across something that offends you. In other words, it differs with your life. If it's not offensive to you. That. I don't know what you're I don't know if you've ever read your Bible. I mean, every day when I read the word or I'm spending time in the word, it's correcting me all the time. But why? People love correction. Don't they? Successful people love correction. Oh, we should do it with the spirit of meekness and kindness and love. But. But don't you love to be corrected? Boy, got got quiet in this Presbyterian house, didn't it? Huh? Why did your parents discipline you? However, they did it because they hated you or because they loved you. Mother used to say, I don't think she was always right, she says.

Pastor West:
I mean, they always say, this is going to hurt me more than you. And I'm thinking you must be in a lot of pain. But she says, when you when you don't obey God, it's not that God will hurt you, but your decisions are going to hurt you. And I want you to know that when you miss it, it's going to bring some form of pain into your life. So I would associate the pain of the of the switch or the board or whatever it was she used. She didn't ground her well, she did. She grounded me for half a year one time. And. I missed Elvis in Birmingham and I begged her to be off parole just for that weekend. I said, because Elvis may never come back. And he didn't. He died in 1977 and never got seen. I felt like a hound dog, but I couldn't go because I was in Jailhouse Rock. And I said, I told mom, I said, Don't be cruel. Just love me tenderly. I wanted to wear my blue suede shoes. I felt like going. Just getting out and going maybe to Kentucky and just walking around. Anyway, I got to get off that. I just turn to your Bible. I mean. Sorry. So the devil stole from people with a stony heart. I got excited. They were thrilled. They said, We're going to do this. And they go. He says, for a little while they endure for a little while, he says.

Pastor West:
But then when persecution. Affliction and persecution. What's your verse? 17? It arises for the word's sake, not for you, for the word's sake. Why does the persecution arise? It comes for the word's sake. Immediately. They are offended. Mm hm. But these are they. Which are among thorns. Such as? Hear the word and the cares of the world. And the riches, riches and the lust of other things They enter in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. The Word of God become unfruitful. Yes. By your choice. See, there's you can have clutter. I won't tell you what clutter is, but you might already know you have a garage. You might know what clutter is. You got a sock drawer, you got kids in the back floorboard, something like that. But so it's not just physical clutter. Most people walk around in life in mental clutter. There's physical distractions and then there's mental distractions. Now, I think that if we're going to do something, we should be successful. In other words, what I'm saying we should we should master things. We have this phrase, he or she. Maybe he's not a master, but they're a jack of all trades. That's not good enough. I mean, it's helpful, but it's not good enough. If you need a brain surgery. Do you want the jack of all trades doing it? I don't. I want a master craftsman.

Pastor West:
I want. I want. I want lots of reviews. I want to know you've got lots of experience, right? Well, it's important that we master this. So you have to see that 75% of the people, when I'm trying to say, was to have a strong spirit. In other words, we're talking today about being strong and finishing strong. It's easy to start. A lot of people start. Anybody can start. But can you finish? I couldn't put the people in this room if we had four meetings, one after another who said, I'll be here forever, who I see almost every month somewhere? And they say, Hey, Pastor, I look around and there'll be some with them and they'll think, I mean, I'm just it just happens. I'm not making up. I'll just be somewhere and they'll someone be with them. They say, Hey, this is my pastor. And I'm thinking, I ain't seen you in eight years myself. I say, If this was a husband and wife relationship and the husband didn't come home for eight years and then he saw his wife in Walmart and he's with someone else and he says, Hey, babe, this this is my wife. I bet she ain't. Well, what do you think? You know why I'm not upset with any of them. I'm just saying they started. But they didn't finish. And I don't mean it's wrong if there's somewhere else. I mean, a lot of them are nowhere else and they have all the reasons why they can't why it doesn't work for them.

Pastor West:
You can give them the word and they'll say, Yeah, but the whole life is full of buts. Then we have the church today and here we go. If I can offend you, it'll be right here. So why don't you just be nice to everyone? Why do we have to take sides on what's going on in the world? Why can't we just let the bathrooms be the bathrooms? You just go in the right one. Why do we have to get into political realm and whatsoever? Because that's how every nation that's no longer a nation. Lost their nation is because their people were asleep. That while you sleep at night, those who do evil. Continue to do evil and darkness while the people who are supposed to be the light are asleep at the wheel. See Jesus. Jesus said I didn't come to bring people together always. He said I came to separate them. He said I came to bring a sword. Sometimes we forget he has other names like Lord of the Host, Captain of the host, the general of the armies, the Lord of the Armies. See, we just think about him, you know, holding the little sheep and just being sweet and kind. Oh, he's sweet and kind, but he's also the Lord of vengeance. Remember, vengeance is mine, says the Lord. So, in other words, if the light doesn't set the standard, then darkness thinks it has the run of the house.

Pastor West:
Why would he tell us to pray for those in authority if we weren't in control? And didn't need to be in control. So say you conservative. Well, I'm not not conservative. What do you think? I'm neither a conservative nor a liberal. I'm God ism. Amen. Amen. Huh. You ought to be Holy Ghost God ism. Always said if someone could be filled with the devil and be demonic, you ought to be. You ought to be possessed to yourself. Amen. The reason why some people are having so many problems in life. I told Michelle this week, I said I got off the phone with someone who would call me pastor and it went on forever. It went on forever. And it's like, What do you think we could meet? Wait. When could I come see you and talk about all this? I said, Well, we could meet, like, every week. My. At least some of them. Got off hour and 19 minutes. Covered the whole world. But my house. That's my problem. That's my fault because I let it go on. Well, what I mean by that is I let that go on, but. It's not wrong to help people. I'm trying to make a bigger point here. That as long as you're willing. As long as you're willing. You, me, any of us. As long as you're willing to tolerate. What's going on around you and in your life.

Pastor West:
It will dominate your life. Until you say no. So I got off the phone and and Michelle said, I heard you in there talking. I said, Yeah, I guess you did. And she said, Are you okay? I said, I'm fine. I'm fine. I just you know, I said, It's just sad. And I was sitting there and all of a sudden I just spoke to me just as clear as a bell. He wasn't mad at the person. He wasn't whatever. And he said, Do you know what their main problem is? And people like them, just like them that you talk to all the time. I said, Well, he said, they never died yet. I said, Sir. He said, they're they're still very much alive. They haven't died yet. I said, Oh, yes, sir. He said. Are you staying there? Yes, sir. Yes, sir. I'm dead as I can get. Yes, sir. I'm alive to God because I'm dead. Eric West is dead, He said. When? When did we kill him? I said, Well, it's supposed to be at salvation, sir, but I was still wiggling around a little bit and went on for a few years and I got on a lot of support and he had to come back and kill me again. I said, my mother tried to kill me several times and I said, this, this, this spirit of of the world. See, Jesus said, So you won't like this.

Pastor West:
Somebody may not like this. He said, he said, if you're if you're a friend to the world, he said, You're my enemy. Well, let's just get along. If you're a friend of the world, you're my enemy, he said. He said, unless you love your father and mother and children less than me, he said, You cannot even be my disciple. I told you it would cost you everything. Now the King James uses a harsh word. It's not the right word unless you hate your mother. Well, Jesus wasn't teaching. You hate your mother. It's the word. It really means love less. Unless you love the world. Unless you love the people. Unless you love your life less than me. He says, Don't call yourself my disciple. Easy to start. Very few finishers. Very few finishers. If I was in trouble outside of any of you guys. If I was in trouble. Real trouble. I only know two people in the world. Three? Three. I could call them if I was in major trouble. I know a lot of people. I know a lot of people with titles. I know a lot of people that I respect, but there's only 2 or 3 people in the whole world that I would share intimate things with and would trust their confidence and trust them to navigate me through a difficult time. I don't know if that's good or bad. It sounds kind of sad, doesn't it? Because not everyone's going to walk the walk.

Pastor West:
They talk it, but they don't walk it. Are we going to be walkers? What? Are we going to just talk? So Jesus is the Lord of the host. The Scripture says, You and I will give account to him one on one. You can't say, Well, Jesus, can you wait till my pastor gets here? He says, I'm your pastor. Now. Now, we're not talking about seeing if you're a believer because he's already dealt with your sin. He's going to talk about what you did with your whole life here. Of why that you're here. There's a purpose for you to be here. This is a place where excuses won't roll off his back or yours. This is where we will give an account. See how that we're talking about death And life is in the power of the tongue. And there's a positive side of that, but there's a negative side. So it says every vain or inoperative word that you spoke. You see, if you live with if you're born again and you know Jesus and you, you've seen the power of God. You've seen the power of God or you've even prayed for those and you've seen the power of God in their life. You've seen people healed. You've seen people delivered by your testimony. You've seen people that you've ministered to lay hands on the sick. In other words, you know of the power of God, but you still continue to live in a place of sin.

Pastor West:
You are in a very dangerous place. Because on the day of judgment he will know that you you know that you know, you can't say, well, I was weak in that area, He said, But you knew the power of God because you demonstrated it in this area. So you have no right. You say, Well, I don't want to hear about this. I know I didn't either for a long time. I wish versus I could take out of my Bible if I took all of them out. That didn't appeal to me for years. I only have about three pages and two of them would be the book of maps. Most people would live with a very skinny Bible. In other words, he said, if you know to do what's right and you don't do it, he says, let's just call what it is. It's called sin. And God hates sin because look what sin did to the world. Look what it cost Jesus. And then you have his take on sin. Don't mistake what you've heard about the grace of God to say. It's okay. It's covered. He still loves me. I'm forgiven forever. Yes, yes, yes. And wrong. Yes, it's true. It's grace that delivers. It's grace that empowers. The Holy Ghost is a grace that empowers you. It doesn't look over you. God doesn't say Go ahead and sin. I'll turn my back.

Pastor West:
He said, I'm here to deliver you. I'm here to help you. I'm here to lift you out. But it's time to walk out. Amen. It's time to repent. It's time to change our mind and change our ways. And not be going to churches who preach weak messages that appeal to your soul. Seek your friendly churches. You know, we just let's just be friends and we'll break off a little cell group and have a hot dog. Well, that's great. Eat your hot dog will offend you right when you get through. Or do you want to get offended before your hot dog? Because I had to get my friends studying for this. Now, I'm not saying it's all like that. I'm just trying to make a point. Do you get it? There is a Jewish proverb. I don't know who said it. It says truth is heavy. That's why so few men carry it. The Christian life is not how you start that matters the most is how you would finish. It's a stated fact. That in ministry, if someone starts at the age of 21 and they go to age 65, here are the the up to date statistics for people who have begun ministry at 21. It says for those who started at ministry at 21 and are still on track at age 65, there's only one out of ten. Then it gave all the reasons when they did the study of so many thousands of ministers of why the nine didn't finish and only one out of ten, they got shot down.

Pastor West:
Morally, they were they were discouraged, obsessed with money affairs, wrong doctrine, making shipwreck of their faith. One out of ten. You can. You can't say, Well, that wouldn't happen to me. We're not here to criticize them. We're here to help them. But you can't say it won't happen to me because I don't have time to go there. But I got scriptures right here that tells me how to help them when they've done it. When they have fallen. When they have failed. When they're shipwrecked. The scriptures about restoring them. You know, it's a rare man or woman who finishes strong. Are you all hearing. Amen. Amen. It's an exceptional man or woman, actually, who finishes strong. It's a teachable man or woman who finishes strong, but they're very rare. You know, they're very rare because when you read the book, we won't go there, but we read the Book of numbers in chapter 13. This is where everything went wrong. God told Moses to send spies out and to go into the land. He told them what the land was. He told them it was exceedingly great and precious promises. He told them. He told them of its bountifulness. He told them everything about what he had in store for them. And he told them. He told Moses who to choose and the kind of people to choose and to send them out and to spy the land and the way that they would go in.

Pastor West:
And so they did. And so Moses chose one from each tribe of the 12 tribes of Israel. And so God's ready to hand over the keys to the promised Land. That's pretty cool. Under the leadership of Moses, this is not a story about Moses. I'm talking about you. I'm just using Moses as an example. And we need to do that because other places in the Bible, like in Corinthians, he points us back to to the Old Testament, points us back to the Psalms and says, I'm telling you this, so this will be an example to you. Do not do what they did. I mean, there's people that I really like, even in ministry, but I stay away from. In other words, I might be in a room with him. I might be in a function with him, I might be doing all kinds of things. But but I stay away from them because they hurt my faith. They're not prayers, they're players. They have a they have an agenda that doesn't seem to be of the kingdom. When I see them use people or or money or whatever, I stay away from those people. I stay away from complainers. I stay away from people who criticize other people. I stay away from people who criticize other ministries. There's always stay away from complainers. Never be one yourself.

Pastor West:
God calls it evil people, calls it bad habits. God calls it evil. God calls. Unbelief. Evil. Not a bad habit. Unbelief is what kept these people out. The amplifier says that the waste is unbelief. Shut them out. Amen. Let's don't get shut out of the promises, Church. Amen. Amen. But in numbers. So he's ready to hand. I mean, 2 million people are poised to take this whole thing over to the rich and prosperous land. So God gives instruction to Moses to pick out 12 men, one from each tribe, more specifically to pick out 12 leaders. God is looking for leaders. Anybody want to be one? Are you sure? You know, leaders face first. If you're if you're going in the back country and you're cutting away with a machete through a trail. I mean, some missionaries have done that. We we used to have a missionary years ago name was Nick White. And when Nick would come preach the kind of mission trips he went on, you know, they weren't they weren't that glamorous. There was no hotels. Oh, he was believing God with everything he had in him to eat what they were eating. I said, He showed pictures. I said, What was that? He said, We never figured it out, but he had pictures of him in his in his whatever. I mean, to me it looked like a little canoe. And he had his machete and he's walking through the water, you know, making sure there wasn't, you know, snakes and moccasins.

Pastor West:
And he was cutting he was cutting back there. And when he got back there, there was nothing but witchdoctors and they were there to kill him. Well. I said, what? What what came first in your mind? He said, When I saw the witch doctors, he said, What class are we? Did I take on that? And, and he said about the witch doctors. And real quickly he said, he said, oh, that class about Holy Spirit. So you don't need a class on witch doctors. Get this part, you say, Well, I don't know if I could do this or I don't know if I could do that because I've never done that. I'm afraid to start this. I'd be afraid to go on a mission trip. I don't think I could start a business. I don't know that I could cast the devil out of someone. I don't know if I could stand up and give a message or preach the gospel. I've never done that before. Did you forget about the greater one in you? Did you forget who you are? Do you forget who lives in you? Do you think the one who lives in you is never stood before a crowd and spoke? You have to remember the one who lives in you. You are his address. Wow. My God. Did you hear what I said? You are the address of the Holy of holies.

Pastor West:
Amen. In this covenant. Amen. Amen. Amen. There's the one who quietly lives in you, who split the Red Sea. And you don't think you could talk to your Sunday school class? You weenie. Praise the Lord. Amen. Amen. I know I'm not called to minister to everyone. Praise God. You know, I'm probably more like broccoli and carrots and peas. Mm. You more. More like cheesecake and chocolate cake. I liked it too. But if you eat chocolate cake all the time, you're going to be a sick puppy, right? Some of y'all aren't convinced, are you? You said. Let me try it. Well, so he picked out 12 leaders who had proven themselves as leaders. These were Israel's finest and brightest. They weren't rookies. I mean, these 12 are salty, gritty veterans. With a proven record of vision for a future. This is who Moses picked out. I won't say it this way. Moses was not picking wannabes. Has beens or hope to be's to lead this expedition, these 12. For a mission like this, you don't send in the third string. You send in the first string. You know how the story goes. He picked out the best of the best. And what happened out of 12? Two stood strong. You want to be a leader? You want to finish strong. You want to build a strong spirit. We don't want to forget the ten leaders who came back with a negative report. They are the same people who saw the Red Sea depart just like the other two.

Pastor West:
They saw Pharaoh's army drown, didn't they? They saw the miracles. They were firsthand spectators. They freaked out when they got into Conan because they were saw that they're contained. There are some very powerful tribes of people in 4 to 5 cities. And they said we were as grasshoppers in their sight. They said, oh, the land is just like God said, look at it. We brought evidence back. It's just like God said, it's wonderful. And it does it flows with milk and honey. But we we are not able. We are grasshoppers. Well, who did the name calling? They called themselves grasshoppers. I'm thinking, how can you walk through a red sea and be be afraid of somebody tall? Short, people have an advantage. I mean, when a tall guy gets ready to reach down and get you, you've already cut his knees out, you know, because you know about his belt buckle. So you just go ahead and hit him in the gut or cut his knees off. Hello. So only two out of the 12 are the best of the best. In other words, they had a far greater fear of men than they had a fear of God. A holy fear of God. E Stanley Jones said fear is the sand in the machinery of life, and so it's brought to them to a leaching halt. You know how sand does the machinery? Ten leaders who had a great start but just couldn't finish.

Pastor West:
When push come to shove, two out of 12 had what it took. What did they have? The Bible said they had a different spirit. That's what he called Caleb and Joshua. He said these two have a different spirit. Endurance is one of the things that separates the starters from the finishers. We're talking about how to build a strong spirit. Endurance separates the finishers. Endurance will determine whether someone will finish strong. I'm going to go quicker. Endurance is the fruit of a godly character. The Christian life is not a 50 yard dash. It's a marathon. People want to run it like it's a 50 yard dash. Whew, man, I got that. I got. I got that message. Praise God. First message I got was Mark 11 2324 from Pastor down in Nowheresville, Alabama, who just went to heaven a few months ago. Man he preached. Mark 11 2324 because he got it from Brother Hagan. I was sitting there one day and thinking, Man, I've been church all my life. All this stuff can't be true that he's saying. I mean, I think I would have heard it. I mean, because my mother jerked me church three times a week. I ain't never heard any of that stuff. And so he he put the word in. And I was sitting there one day, and I've always wondered why this doesn't happen to other people.

Pastor West:
I don't know why it doesn't happen. I'm still perplexed why this doesn't happen to other people. When I met read Mark 1123 and 24 where Jesus himself had cursed the fig tree the day before. Then they came back. He cursed it because it had no fruit on it. In other words, if you're not going to produce, there's no need you being here. If you're not going to finish, there's no need keeping a start around. Oh, so he cursed the fig tree. He didn't curse it. He cursed it. They came back and then Peter saw it the next day come back and he said, Master, look. The fig tree you cursed withered away. And Jesus said, Really? Let me go and see. No, he didn't say that. He said, Oh, Peter had the faith of God or have the God kind of faith. He says, What does that mean? He says, Well, Peter, verily, I say unto you, whoever says to this mountain, be thou removed and be thou cast into the sea and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe the things which he says shall come to pass. He shall have whatsoever, he says. Next verse. Therefore, it says, therefore you better. You need to see what's there for. Therefore, I say unto you what things soever ye desire when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you shall have them. I asked my pastor, I said, Pastor does, does, does, does the Bible mean what it says right there? He says, What part? I says what things soever ye desire when I pray believe I see them.

Pastor West:
He says anything that's in the word, it's the will of God. I mean. I mean, you don't you don't claim say, Well, I'm believing to have the largest marijuana farm in Alabama. Well, that's you can't go in the Bible and get that. You say we have but God gave herbs. Well, it wasn't marijuana. Well, in other words, it has to be a promise in the word. And he says, if the Bible says it and you believe it and you begin to put it in your heart and you begin to speak it, In other words, therefore I say unto you what things soever ye desire when you pray, believe that you received. When do I believe that I receive them? When I prayed. Do I have it at that moment? Always. Am I touching it? Very rarely do I ever see it at that moment. But when I was praying for it or when I prayed, I believed that I received it. Which means that word received means I believe that I took it. I received. I have it. In other words, when I prayed, I believe it's mine. Amen, he says. And if you believe that, he says, you shall have what you say. So watch what you say. Because you're already having what you've been saying.

Pastor West:
If you don't like what you've been having, you might want to quit saying what you've been saying because you're going to keep on having more what you say because you do have what you say, which is why you're having what you say. So you need to change what you say about what you're saying. I'll have to go back and listen to this, if that's right. And if it's not, I'll fix it. And I said, if that's true. I'm going to go around the world and change the whole world out of two verses. Well, I had a lot of zeal. I was still in my 20s. Have a little bit left now. Man, I'm more excited now than I am then. I just have a little bit more knowledge. I had a lot of zeal but didn't have any knowledge. But I took that zeal and I took that passion and. And I look for sick people everywhere. I look for people who are demon possessed. I couldn't hardly I was like, Could you all get us a demon possessed person? I said, Well, what would you want? I said, I want practice. And I said, I said, Man, I wouldn't want to touch one of those. I said, Well, I don't I don't know if I have to touch him or not. I'm just I'm just going to command him to get up. Jesus name. They said it's not that simple. I said, It's not.

Pastor West:
I said, No, you need to know this and you got to know this. Well, church people gave me all kinds of things I had to know. But when I read Jesus, when he cast them out, he says, Go, come out, get out. So I started practicing in the mirror like someone was demon possessed. And then I say, Go. I get a magazine. Someone really ugly that could be demon possessed. And I put it there and, you know, they was looking at me, but I was looking at them and me in the mirror and I would just practice. I said, I said, You foul spirit, go. Come out. Get out. Then I kept it going. Go. Come out. Get out. Then I made the little jinx. Go. Come out and get out. Go. Come out and get out. So. Yeah, but I believe that word. Well, that word that I believe was able to see multi, multi, multi miracles with just those two verses. Miracles, signs and wonders and people who's going to die, who had died and now are raised. That was exciting to me. You think I was going to give it up? You're not talking to me at all, huh? Well, I don't get I don't understand why people don't get excited about that. I didn't want to start with it. I wanted to keep it from the very beginning because I'm not running the 50 yard dash. In other words, what I'm going to say is you have to put your faith in God.

Pastor West:
Trust in God. And you're going to need if you're going to finish strong, it's going to it's going to it's going to require that you have some intestinal fortitude. Amen. May I just say it in an old fashioned way, man? You're going to need some guts. Hmm. Because if you stay in this long enough, you're going to get. Well, I almost said that, too. You're going to get a gut punch. You're going to get your rear kicked. And you're going to find your head where your feet was just a moment before that. And when you get and you get that and the air is knocked out of you and you're laying on the ground for a while and the enemy's laughing at you. You know, the scripture talks about that in Micah. He says, he said, Now look here, sucker. I mean, that's my translation. He says, Don't you be rejoicing over me. Okay? You knock me down. But I'm but I'm but I'm going to get up. I always said, if you're going to fall, if you're going to fall down, fall on your back. Because if you can fall on your back, if you fall on your back, you can see and if you can see, you can get up, dust yourself up and start all over again. That's where people quit because they fail. So. Oh, well, I don't.

Pastor West:
I just don't. I just don't do that no more. So you don't do what? You know that you used to mark that mark. 1123 So I tried that. I had a headache and, and I spoke to it two times and nothing changed. I said, Oh, man, you talk to it two times. Two times, two times. My gosh, you're not even fit to be You're not even fit, you know, to for anything. Huh? Two times. I mean, I've heard a lot of stuff. Oh, yeah, Pastor, I know that. But we read that the other day and. And I prayed and nothing's changed. So. So I just. I don't do that no more. You're not even fit to be backslid. You're too far back. You'd have to come forward to be backslid. You're so dumb, it hurts. The enemy just loves stupid people. He does. Listen, God never deals in ignorance. Amen. He deals in wisdom, knowledge, understanding, power. He does not give the authority in the name of Jesus to wimps. When you go in the military, the first thing they do is they do not build you up. They tear you down. I did. You want to be a leader? You said yes. When you go in the military, those who been. Am I telling the truth? They don't come and say, Well, man, we've been looking for you. You're going to have a party tonight. You know what time you usually get up in the morning? No, they're there to tear your down and how you think and how you walk and how you talk.

Pastor West:
And then they'll tell you after they get through that how you think. You don't make decisions, you take orders. See people like Savior. They don't like Lord. Lord means. Yes, sir. Thank you, sir. Give me 50 laps. Thank you, Lord, for the laps. Hmm. What is your building? Building your character. Building your strength. Because you're going to go all the way. Because you're going to get to the place where you're going to build a strength, where your weakness was. And then when that comes up again, you built so strong, the enemy comes back that way. He forgot he didn't know that you was actually doing this. And the last time he went blue and you went. This time he's going to go blue. And you can say, Oh, just you sucker. It's like that old joke. I know you've heard it, but it's just like I said, the devil went to church one day and he showed up and then he revealed himself. And people started running everywhere. I mean, the pastor run the pastor, run the choir director. They all ran the youth pastor all around. And they just one old guy sitting at the front. And hundreds of people have left. And the devil come to him. And he says, he says, What are you doing here? Everybody else is gone. He said, Don't you know who I am? He said, Yeah, I know who you are.

Pastor West:
He said, Aren't you afraid of me? He said, I ain't afraid. You said, Why? He said, Because I married your sister. I'm not afraid of you. I've been knowing you a long time, sucker. Yeah. Finishing strong is more than a statement. It's an attitude. Make a decision today for your future self that you will thank yourself for. Starting strong is good, but finishing strong is epic. It's heroic. It's grand. We started this. Study with Proverbs 1814, which says the strong spirit of a man will sustain him in the time of bodily pain and trouble, but a weak spirit who can bear a crushed spirit, who can bear. The Bible says, be strong in the Lord and the power of his might. Have you ever had things happen to you that you felt like you was too weak to handle? You couldn't do it on your own? Well, you were absolutely right. You can't. But the Lord never told you you would be by yourself. He never told you to do anything on your own. He says, Be strong in the Lord. Put on the full armor of God, the weapons of your warfare. They're not. They're not natural weapons. Don't take what the world offers you a strength in the natural way of things. You can't fight any demon or a devil on natural terms. He'll whip you 15 ways from Sunday.

Pastor West:
Even the weakest ones. You can't approach a spiritual, demonic being with natural means. I don't care if you're greedy. I don't care if you are salty. I don't care if you're. I don't care if you're a marine. I don't I don't care if you're a or however you been trained. You're not ready for the demonic world in natural terms, but there's no demon who's ready for you. Because if you're in the spirit and Jesus Christ is your Lord and savior, Amen. If Jesus is your Lord and savior, he's your lord and savior. Then you are the devil's master. You need to know that you are the devil's master. In other words, the roles have been changed. The God of this world. Who was the God who still is the God of this world? He's no longer your God. Your mind is no longer blinded. Now you know the truth. You know the truth that sets you free. You're no longer in bondage, but you're free. And you're free to set other people free. Yeah. Amen. You have the spirit of truth and the spirit of liberality in you. You have the spirit of the Messiah, the Holy one, the Anointed one. To set every captive free. Amen. Amen. It's time to rise up and shine and be who you are in Christ. Amen. If I ask you how you say this. Don't even answer. Because if you ask general courtesy. Well, do you have the Holy Ghost? You'll say Yes, I'll say.

Pastor West:
But a better question is, does he have you? Because I don't see anyone getting saved. I don't hear anyone that got anyone healed. I don't see anyone bringing anyone to church. You can't tell me the Holy Ghost is directing your life and you have no fruit. What are you going to do when you go to heaven? You have no fruit. Not even one person You ever got saved in your lifetime. You're going to present that to the Lord. I've come here with no fruit. Oh, it beats the. You know what? I will go into hell. But you have no fruit. You have no fruit. And the Holy Spirit is there to give you fruit. He is the fruit. Walking in the spirit is just what it said. It's walking in the spirit. It's not walking in you. It's walking in him through him. By him in him. There are many days when you walk and you go closer and closer to where you're going. I don't mean doing what I'm doing what you're doing, because what you're called to do is just important, as I'm called to do. And it's going to call for some days where you think that you can't. I know what I'm talking about. That you feel like you need to call in. And sometimes you need to take the risk, but sometimes you need to know what it means to shove on and push on.

Pastor West:
You know why There's days and. This is just not. You know why there's days that you have missed on Sunday here when you weren't busy. You missed because you didn't feel good. I was here when I didn't feel good. You said you're the pastor. It's still the same principle. Same. The principle. I'm a little tired this week. I'm glad I never got tired. I'm glad I would never hit the emergency room at 3:00 in the morning and I thought I was going to study and just trusted. I'm like, Oh my God, I'm going to be the pulpit in four hours. Another cup of coffee. I don't know what where are we going to talk about? Huh? In other words, you want to take a Winnie the Pooh day and have some honey, there's okay to have some Winnie the Pooh days because you need natural rest, but you can't live a strong life, you know, glued to Netflix. And just playing all the time. They did a study years ago of people that did wanted Oral Roberts University, did another one in Chicago, Illinois. And this is where, you know, scientific people put this and they put all the nodules on the brain and the study of all this. And they had people who prayed, just prayed. They open the Bible and would pray prayers. And they want to see the activity of the brain and what would happen and if the body what would happen.

Pastor West:
And this true studies and when they did this, they found out when the people who would just pray the prayers, they would see the frontal lobes, you know, that engages in conversation when they begin to pray, you know, prayers in the Bible or they read a prayer, they get see the mind information working. But then they did they did a study on several people who was filled with the Holy Ghost, spoke in other tongues. And when they prayed there was no activity in the brain because it wasn't coming from the brain, it was coming from the midsection. Amen. And the brain was at rest. And here's what they studied. These are documented studies. Here's what they found out about these, the people who prayed in the spirit. They couldn't explain it. They said it seemed like everyone who prayed 20 to 30 minutes in the spirit, their immune system got 30 to 60% stronger just by speaking in another tongues. Well, first Corinthians 14 says he that speaks in an unknown tongue, does not speak unto man, but unto God. Howbeit in the spirit he speaking mysteries. He that speaks in an unknown tongue is not talking to a man, but unto God. How howbeit what he speaking is mysteries. Man How'd you like to get into the mysteries of God? Now there's another side of tongues where there's a tongue interpretation for a purpose. I'm talking about in your private prayer language.

Pastor West:
Let me finish with this, this morning. I've already went a little bit over, but it wasn't the first time in my ministry. I want you to get this part before you go, because I think it'll help you a lot. We won't go there. But there was a time when David, who has already been anointed to be the king, but he's not the king yet. He's not on the throne. You know, God sends Jesse to the house. We talked about knowing him to be king. He's the boy as a teenager. It was many years before he took the throne. Saul was still on the throne, and when Saul knew it was David, Saul was his father in law. Saul tried to kill him the whole time. David is hiding in the cave from his father in law, who's whose demons have taken over his mind. He's trying to kill David, his son in law, because he knows that he is going to be the king. David. One day is out and he takes his army out and they're visiting and dealing with some things with the Philistines. And he comes back and you can read it. Most of you aware of it in first Samuel 30. But they came back and they came back to a crisis, an epic crisis that. They were already fatigued. This army was fatigued and they came back to their camp and when they got to their camp.

Pastor West:
What had happened was while they were gone in the Army was gone. The advocates came in and they took all of the women, all the wives, all the sons, all the daughters, all the babies and all the possessions. And then they burned the whole camp down. And David and his men were so tired and they got back there and they saw all that. Their family was gone. Assumingly they were probably dead. The Bible says that they wept so bitterly till they had no more tears left in them. I'm not going to ask you, have you ever been in a place where you have just wept because there was nothing left for you to do, but after you couldn't weep no more? That's where they were at? They were so frantic in their mind of what I mean, they're looking at the smouldering of the city and they just assume all their worldly possessions and the most dear possessions of their family is all dead. There's there's nothing left. And they got angry with David that about maybe we should never have left here. And they began to talk out of their business and out of their anger and out of their frustration. And they said, let's stone him. And David, the leader, was now in the midst of all of his men, his mighty army, who now was going to turn on him and said, because of you, we've lost our life. We've lost our children.

Pastor West:
And they picked up stones to stone him. It's funny how I remember this message. This is my my last class at Raymond 1994. I had one instructor. He says, I don't know what you're going to do when you leave here. He said, But somewhere you're going to have a David moment. He says, I thought, What could I share with the class? No. One, what they're going to do when they have they've not ever done anything like this, when they're going to get out of this bubble that they're in here in Oklahoma. When they're not going to be in a building with thousands of people and millions of dollars in the orchestra pit that comes up with 200 people, you know, with 60 instruments saying, you know, this is the day the Lord hath made. My first building, I didn't have an orchestra pit. It just was a pit. And so he shared that message. And I have found it to be so applicable through the years. So they picked up the Stones to kill David. They said they wept until there was no more tears left in them. And David began to cry unto God. He the Bible says he began to inquire of the Lord. And this is what leaders must do. I don't know if I'm talking to one person here or everybody in the room. I hope everybody, but usually not. Or if you're watching, I hope I'm talking to you because if we need something in the world today, I know every generation said it, but I'm going to say it myself.

Pastor West:
If the world needs anything throughout the world now, not just in ministry, but in the workplace, in the home. Oh, dear God. In the home. We need leaders. We. We need men to be men and women to be women. We need godly men and women. We need fathers who are and mothers who raised up their family. And they will be an example to their children. Not to say don't do don't just do what I did. Yes, they made mistakes. There's no perfect parent, only God himself. But God had trouble himself. I remember one time thinking, Where did I go wrong? You know, when problems happen in my own family raising kids. And the Lord asked me, he didn't talk about them. He didn't say, Well, you went wrong here with this one, and you went here wrong with that one. And this kid or that kid or you did or they did. He didn't say any of that. You know what he told me? He he asked me a question. That's how he usually deals with me. I ask him a question. He asked me three. He said, Where did I go wrong? I said, Sir, we didn't go wrong. He said, Where did I go wrong with Adam and Eve? What he said was, I'm not a good father, was not a good example.

Pastor West:
Didn't I teach him right? Didn't I spend time with him? Why did they go this other way? He said they had kids. He said, I'm the first recorded family with a murderer. Well, where did I go wrong? He said your kids murdered each other. I said, Well, no, not yet. Got my eye on a couple of them. Keep rocks away from them. Big sticks. The Scripture said what David did at the place where he himself and all the army, his 800 men wept bitterly. And they have stones in their hand ready to stone them. And the Bible says that David encouraged himself. In the Lord. He didn't have anyone to encourage him. I got a text from a dear friend this morning that meant more to me than you'll ever know. Send something to me that was personal. And it was when that text came to me today, it was so it was so perfectly timed. And I told her, I says, this was so on time for something that I needed myself, that I needed myself. And so they didn't know the situation. And so I snapshot it and I put it in my pictures and I read it 4 or 5 times to the left of the house. And I read it in my office before I went out there. Before I came out here. I took time. I took time just. Just to soak that up. Because, see, for me, I don't know if you understand this, but just for me.

Pastor West:
My assignment is you. I'm to lay my life down for you. I can't just come in here. Oh, I can go to Lifeway store and get a sermon book and just turn to one and just, you know, I can do it. I'm trained enough to get by. Just give me a few notes. I'll fill in the rest. I couldn't start that way. But I can do it now. And most people wouldn't even never know it. But I'll listen. And I'll wait. And I hear. Because I never forget the words when I read them over in first Peter. I think it's Peter, he said. He said. Remember. Remember when you minister to them. Remember this about my people, he said. They cost me the blood of my son. So remember when you minister to them, Remember what it cost me for them? How can you take that lightly? How can you see Jesus on the cross and just throw out something and say, Well, it's Sunday and whatever, and we'll do this, get this, get the offer and go home if it's too much, I'm sorry. Hmm. Irrefutable. That should never happen. I had to do it. I wept before I got there. Wept with you there and wept when I got home and I was mad as 14 pigeons who can't find a cheese cracker. Saying we won't go that again. Get up, brush yourself off.

Pastor West:
Start all over again. People say, well, you know, Peter, get out there. And he failed. Peter walked. He walked twice. Don't you know the rest of them was in the boat? They didn't even try to get out. I bet they were holding on to Peter's tunic, said, Man. Don't do that. Don't do that. Don't do that. I bet you when he walked, they'd come back and said, Well, you know, if Jesus hadn't come in and said, Let's go the other way, I could do it too. Mm. When we used to own and manage the floor covering store and plant. Before I started ministry, I had a salesman who his name was Wayne. I don't even know if he's alive by now. He was a pretty negative person. Every time he came, sometimes I would just run the other way and sometimes I would buy something I didn't need because I know if I bought it, he would go away. His nickname. We call him Sunshine because he didn't have any. Ever worked for someone like Sunshine? You don't dare ask him how the weekend was, because they'll tell you this was Wayne. So when he found out I was going into ministry and I was going to turn the floor covering store over, he said, he said, they told me you're going to quit. You're going to turn the store over. I said, he said, What are you going to do? I says, going into ministry full time.

Pastor West:
He said, Oh. He said, Well, you know, man, you better you better hang on to this thing. He said, You got a little gold mine here. Hang on here. You just keep on building. You got a little goldmine. And I said, Well, I don't know what to do about that. The Lord told me. He didn't ask me to add and subtract. He said, Go this way. He said, Whereas. I'm just going to tell you, I don't want you to do the wrong thing, he says. He says. He said, don't, don't do that. He says, you'll never make it. He said, I don't know. I mean, this is what I knew what he meant. He says some people call this is what he told me. He says some some people are meant to run companies and other people is meant to pump gas. And he says you might be a gas pumper. And I want to say, you know, the order I just gave you, it's cancelled, but here I am, right? And so they tell me one time I said, Well, you know, I said, Well, what I was thought I was always going to do, Wayne. I thought I was going to work for the power company Alabama Power Company. And someone told me one day, years later, he said, You are working for the power company, huh? And you shall receive power after the Holy Ghost has come upon you.

Pastor West:
Yeah, right. You shall receive power after the Holy Ghost has come upon you. Amen. And then you shall be witnesses unto all men. Well, I found out I've been pumping gas for 30 years. You have people come in who won't even sell serve themselves. They won't even feed themselves. Brother Hagan, you say it this way. He said you. You give your body three meals a day, but you won't even give your spirit one cold snack a week. And I come dragging in. Same old thing. Same old problem. Same every week. Same old problem. He just got a little different face on it. Oh, Pastor, you just don't know. How long is this going to last? Oh, dear God. How long? When's the devil going to leave us alone? And until you find out who you are. Huh? In other words, it's okay to wipe a three year old's mouth, but when that kid is 60 and you're still going over there and you're 85 and wipe his mouth, it looks kind of nasty then. Yeah. See? It's time to grow up. Amen. Amen. My mother taught me how to make my bed. Then she stepped back, and every Saturday she went shopping. Because she worked. She worked two jobs. Five days. Well, four days a week. She wouldn't do it on Wednesday. We was in church, but on the fifth day she had to shop and everybody had a job. Everybody? Barbara's washing clothes, cleaning the house.

Pastor West:
Chris, I was doing outside work. We had to clean room. We was doing garden work. Barbara's cooking all. Barbara cooked my dad's meal every night for supper because my mother was working a second job, so she didn't have time for foolishness. I know. I make her sound like she was hard. It's only because she was. But she wasn't mean. We knew she loved us, but she didn't have time to play. And I have created her. I almost felt like Abraham Lincoln sometimes. He said everything that I own, everything that I am I ever hoped to be. I kind of owe it to my mother. At the time, it didn't feel good because I felt like we as in boot camp my entire life. I said, Mom, why does it got to be so tough? Why do you have to just be so tough? And then she told my brother, I said, Why are you ground me? When when when he was with me, she said, Well, I can't do nothing about him. And she was right. He went off to the Navy, come home, told her about it after he joined. And then she said, But you went off with him. And that's when I had my Elvis Presley tickets. I to go see Elvis, you know. -15, 16 years old. 16. I go see Elvis. But I went off with him and his friends and. You know, I don't know what we did.

Pastor West:
Probably partake of strong drink. Got sick. Come home evidence. She knew what we did. So she fed us some greasy food to make it come up. And it came up well, she couldn't handle the older son. He's fixed to go off anyway. She said You're grounded. She said you're grounded for half a year. That's after she brought the backside into submission. I said, How long? She said, a half a year. She said, You'll go to work and you'll go to school. You can't use the telephone. I mean, there wasn't no cell phones when the boy texted No one. We actually did something outside. Kids weren't fat. We had bikes. I didn't even have a basketball hoop for a long time. We took we took a bucket, a 55 gallon drum, took the rim up and nailed it to a tree and took shoelaces. I didn't even know the difference. I didn't even know they had Nike shoes. Mine came from Fred's after you got them out of layaway. I hated layaway. I hated layaway. Bargaintown layaway. Like, I was like, Man, I hate this. Cutting firewood with saws. Bo saw me on one end, Chris on the other, and I looked up at the wall. He wasn't even gone. I thought. I thought this was getting tougher. He washed dishes one night and I drive the next night. I washed them. He dried them. I asked him, I said, See, Mike, you had to go to the bathroom every night.

Pastor West:
But right in the middle, Lenny, he's like, I was like, How long does it take you to go to the bathroom? He's waiting to get here. All the dishes up. Every other night when he had to wash, he had a tummy ache. I guess so, because when we say a prayer and we had chicken there, we open the eyes and most of it was gone during the prayer. Honest to God truth, I said, Well, how come he doesn't get how come he does not get the same punishment I got? Well, we were caught before we left, but we were sneaking out the car. We was pushing it into neutral, you know, 1:00 in the morning and it started going down the hill. And she come out there and said she called both of our names, but we got in the car. We didn't hear. So we just you know, we come back the next morning. So I. So I knew when I love Lucy. Come on. I knew when. Andy. Come on. I knew about Gomer and Goober. I knew all of them. I knew everything they were going to say before they said it. I knew every show when it came on. Huh? I had to learn to read. So when Elvis came up, I said, Mother, I said, Can I know? I said, I only got about two months left. I said, But can can I have this weekend off? I mean, it's Elvis Presley. He may not ever come back. She says, Ain't my problem. I said, Mother, please, you can grab me for three more months if you just let me go this weekend. Mom, it's Elvis Presley. She said, Don't do the crime if you can't pay the time.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
I said, But why are you doing this? She says, Son, look at me. She said, One day you're going to be a pastor in the ministry and you won't have to learn what's right. If you're ever going to be anything for the for God and his kingdom and for people, you've got to be strong. Amen. And she says right now, I'm your drill sergeant. Bless God she was. I said, I'm not. Why do you keep saying I said, I'm never going to be the minister. Why do you say that? She said, Because the Lord told me you're going to be the mother. I said, Mama, I mean, I don't I'm sorry that you want to sign the ministry. I ain't going to do that. And I know my brother ain't going to do. I know for a fact he ain't going to do it. But don't throw that on me. I'm not ever going to do that. I have no desire to do that. Oh, I'm going to be a Christian and go to church and all, but I ain't going to be no pastor or no minister, she says. She says, We'll see. I said, Mother, I'm not going to do it. She said, Why don't you just give up today? I said, What do you mean give up? She says, You lost everything. She said, Because here's what you need to know and I'll finish here. She said, you you will never, ever outrun my prayers. Amen. And that woman knew how to pray. Amen. She knew how to pray. So when David was about to be stoned. In his life was going to be over killed by the bitterness of his own men. He said, Lord, should I pursue? But he had to encourage himself in the Lord. Have you ever had to encourage yourself?

Pastor West:
Huh?

Pastor West:
I mean, there's just times that you can't call church. So now, Pastor, I'm going through a hard trial. Could you send a praise team over? No, I can't say them all over. Could you say in about 14 people over here to intercede for me? No, it's Monday. Everybody's at work. There's times that you're going to have to encourage yourself in the Lord.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
There's times some of you businessmen, you ain't been doing much business. They think. You think you're rich because you got a checkbook. I hate the color red. They come to check books. When I run, we run that story. It'd be in the red and I'd put that checkbook down sometimes and close the doors and I'd walk around that thing like Jericho. I went around at 700 times, not seven. I shouted. I screamed if I had a ram's horn, I pulled the horn off the ram. I'd done everything. I prophesied the floor covering. I said, Someone likes you, someone loves you. Someone's going to come in here and they're going to da da da da da da da da da da da da. Man, I've done everything that I had to encourage myself in the Lord.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
Strong people see, a strong spirit will sustain a man in time of body pain and trouble. But a weak man who can bear him, Who who can deal with someone who's weak. A weak person will never deliver. Someone who's weak.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
A person who's possessed with anything or given to sin and never error will never help to deliver someone in that area.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
You can't give what you don't have and you can't walk someone through what you've never been through. I used to think years ago when because there was we were doing a lot of healings, you know, a whole lot. And then someone came to the ministry one time and they said, I have a healing ministry, too. I said, okay, good. She said, Mine's mine's for emotional healing. Now, this is why I was out spiritually. I said, It's a what now? So he said, Emotional healing. I said, emotional healing. Dear God, what you need? Healing for emotions for you. I'm thinking, why don't you just believe the Bible? Until I went a little further in life. One day my emotions got kind of messed up. Then they got real messed up. And then I was dealing with some physical things, and it was overbearing. It was overwhelming. It was to the place it was. I couldn't keep my mind. It was overwhelming. And then I would weep and I didn't even know why. I was weeping. I was crying. I didn't even know why I was crying and I couldn't stop it. And I thought, what am I doing? Why am I doing this? Stop it. Why am I weeping and crying like this? It's because the physical had got so, so out of whack that the emotional realm couldn't. It was overtaxed. Then I understood more about Isaiah, which said he was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of your peace was upon him. But by his stripes, you were healed.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
They said he was put to grief. That's emotions. But did you know even the Holy Spirit could be put to grief? He's not as flighty as most people think he is. Is like you say this. He's gone. No. Where is he going to go?

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
711. He's still around. Tom Thumb. You know. Did you know some of the times that the Holy Spirit could be put to grief is when you talk about a brother or sister. Because Jesus died for that person. Would you begin to put your words against someone? It puts the Holy Spirit to grief. He grieves when you speak despairingly about someone. Someone you know, someone you're married to. Someone in the church. Anyone? This is my final closing. I was in a ministers meeting years ago and it was after the meeting and we was all in the back room. Never forget this. And I don't say this to say, look what I did. And someone was speaking about Pastor Hagan. Not that Brother Hagan. Brother Hagan, The pastor went to heaven. And I said, Well, I just can't listen. Pastor Hagan just I just don't. Man, He ain't nothing like his daddy. Well, I could tell you a few things about Pastor Hagan. Brother Hagan wrote no curriculum for Rhema. Brother Hagan didn't hire no instructors. Brother Hagan didn't get the school going. Brother Hagan didn't run the school. Brother Hagan did like I did, showed up and started preaching. You know. Do you know any idea what takes place for me just to come here and administer the who has come here before me? Do you know the hours it takes to do what they're doing back there and then get that ready to go out into 40 different countries? I just kind of show up.

Pastor West:
But without them, I can't do anything without the people in the nursery. Who's praying right now? Stop, please, Lord, stop him. I know. I'm so sorry. I mean, I can't wait to see your mansion. Heaven. I'm probably going to be a little lean to. And y'all going to be like, Yeah, we kept. We kept his nursery. That's what they'll be looking like this forever. I mean, how many floors does it have? Okay, Lord, I know. Stop. But I was in that meeting and they was talking about Brother Hagan, about how he wasn't like his dad and how they couldn't receive from him and how he was loud and brash and all this kind of stuff and just like, oh, I just can't. I mean, he ain't nothing like Brother Hagan was. And I just felt the grief. I mean, I had never felt it before, but but grief came all over me. I thought, what am I grieving about? Because, you know, I kind of I kind of agree. Kind of agree. I mean, he wasn't my favorite. I mean, he was one of my instructors. I mean, you didn't dare cross him. Brother Hagan was just sweet and kind. Pastor Hagan would he had to fix things. You know, Brother Hagan could just flow. But brother Pastor Hagan had to go. He had to run the whole show. There's a rainbow church that starts every four hours somewhere in the Earth. Someone has to be accountable to that.

Pastor West:
Someone has to run, that this man is now the age of his father. Amen. So the grief came over me and I felt the grief of the the Holy Spirit about these ministers who were speaking despairingly of another minister. And he said, you're going to let that go on? Well, I'm the junior of the group. I'm not going to raise my voice to someone, you know, who they've been in ministry, you know, ten, 20, 30, 40 more years to me. He said, you're not here to correct them. Then he showed me what to do. And still I said, Oh, he says this and he does this. And the way he does that. And then I just raised my hand I knew would do. And I said, Let's get your hand right for I just want to ask something. Say something. What? I said, I know what you're saying. I understand what you're saying. I said, But he's not his father and he's not supposed to be his father. And perhaps he could make some changes. And then I was standing up and then in the back room, I got down like this. I said, could could we pray for him? Amen. You know what happened? The whole room got real quiet. There came a whoosh all over the room. You could talk all day long about him and her and what she does do and don't do. But could you just be quiet a moment? Say, Father, would you help my husband? God, would you help my wife? Dear God, help my pastor.

Pastor West:
Quit preaching the law. Lord, do I actually need this much help? Yes, yes, yes. As the Lord. They would encourage himself. Sometimes you have to be your only and best cheerleader. I have to know from a personal fact that Brother Hagan in his he lived to be 86, passed away, I think, in August 2003. We were privileged to be at Bible school when he was still alive. And. It is early 70s. He just wanted to go home. He felt like he'd been around the world 15 times. He just, you know, he's like Paul said, it's better to be with the Lord. It's far better. It's far better. So not him telling us, but the ministers and I knew Pastor Webb. He was in the room with him when it happened and he said, Brother Hagan, please don't go now. We we still need you so much. I mean, the body needs you. The church needs you. Please don't go right now. You know, Paul was in that same dilemma. He said he said, you know, I'm in a Twix between two, probably wants to go this way and I want to go that way. He says it's far better for me if I could go be with him. He said, Depart from here is far better. Don't feel sad when someone leaves here. You're not feeling sorry for them, feeling sorry for yourself. That's okay for a while, but you can't get into the spirit of grief because you still have him.

Pastor West:
He says it was far better, he said, But it's better for you, I suppose, if I stay here. It's more advantageous for you if I stay for a while. So Brother Hagen had all these ministers around and he says, he said, I'll. I'll stay 15 more years then. After his funeral about a month later, I was talking to Pastor Webb. I was in his office. We was talking about it. And he said because that was he was his pastor and he was showing me the like he had the dates down. He was showing me where he was in that meeting with the several ministers, some of whom you would very well know in the body of Christ now national ministers. And they asked him to stay. He said, I'll stay 15 years. Brother Hagan died 15 years to the week that he said, I'll stay 15 years. Catherine Coleman died. In the hospital. It's a change of nurses. But the nurse before us, Catherine Kuhlman, said, All I want you to know is I'm going to leave here on August. I forget the date. And she said, I'm going to leave here at 1:13 a.m.. She says, All I want you to do is tell them all I want in my funeral is roses. I love the smell of roses. Nurse left there. All her organs are shutting down. And all of a sudden the hospital was in two parts and several floors.

Pastor West:
Then it had a corridor that went to another hospital. She was actually in Tulsa. She was in Oklahoma doing a meeting and they had to get her to the hospital. And she says, the Lord said, I can come home. No one wanted to come home. I wanted Katherine to stay. She said, But I'm going to go. I'm going to leave at 1:13 a.m. I'm going to die and be with Jesus. 113 Tell them all I want is roses. Boy, the head nurse come up there. She was. She didn't know anything about the statement with the nurse. This is all documented. You can actually watch it on YouTube. Nurse comes up Benny and actually had the nurse years ago come to give the testimony at his meeting because Kathryn Kuhlman was his mentor. You could see the ministry almost runs almost the same. And so they she came in because you're not allowed to have floor flowers on on the critical care unit. And the smell of roses was on all the floors. Turned out the smell of roses went throughout the whole hospital, went through the corridor and went into the other part of the hospital. It was flooded with nothing but the smell of aroma with roses. And when the head nurse got there to chastise someone, there wasn't a rose in the room anywhere. The Lord let the beautiful smell of aroma, which she loved to flood the entire hospital. I don't know why he would do that.

Pastor West:
Why would God flood an entire hospital? With the aroma of roses. If he doesn't love someone that much. Amen. I didn't really preach a sermon to you today. I talked to you from my heart. This is not a message. It didn't have three or 4 or 5 points to it. But I talked to you about being a leader and leadership and walking to a different walk. Which means you have to lay some things down, which means you have to walk away from some things, which means you may have to walk away from some people. You're not better than them, but you can't walk. Maybe that relationship took you this far, but it can't go further because your walk goes somewhere that they're not willing to go or not called to go to. Every relationship doesn't always go like this together. Sometimes they intersect and then they go back this way. That's okay. You have very few people in life that will be like this with you all the way. It's a very rare thing for someone to have a friend all their lifetime. It's always been said, if you have one good friend in this world, one, you are a rich individual, you are a rich man or woman. If you have one good friend, could you imagine that someone who knows everything about you and still likes you? And if you're going to like someone, you ought at least like yourself. You know why you need to like yourself? You need to love yourself.

Pastor West:
You know why? Because you're told to. The other reason is you're probably going to spend a lot of time with you. That's right. How can we learn? I've learned a lot yourself. Hey, man. And some of you need to quit letting yourself a little bit more because all you think about is yourself. Hmm. So when people are always aware of their needs and what they don't have. It's because they haven't died yet. When you die to him. You take up his cross and you walk with him. You don't come concerned about what you don't have at that moment. Are you grateful for all the blessings? But it no longer. It no longer controls your life. He no longer controls your life. People say sometimes. But when the money don't come, I'm thinking, What do you mean? When the money don't come in? Hey, there was a lot of times the money didn't come in this place. That's right. You could pass the buck around 15 times. My board could set my salary, anything they wanted to. But if they don't come in, they don't come in. Right. We got that last night. I know you did. Had to. Emily and Parker sent that picture, man. I wanted to show it, but I wanted to be by myself. I wanted to do it next Sunday. Of that, I don't know what she was. She a midget? I suppose it look like an older person or as a child, I couldn't tell, but had never had walked in.

Pastor West:
And she they prayed for her. Prayed for her. She began to walk without pain for the first time. Was that in Peru? I suppose it was. And had criss crossing from Peru over to where we say the country, Brazil. And when you read the text from, it was Parker who sent it to me. I love Parker. He he calls me Uncle. Pastor. Uncle Eric. Pastor. Pastor. Uncle Eric. You could tell, you know, because he's. He's just now Emily's a little ahead of him, but he's taking all the. He says you all sent us. He said, But we've been crisscrossing back to two nations, He said, and I've got to see 40,000 people saved in 600 documented healings, instantaneous miracles, because someone in Chilton County says, Yes, I'll send you. He said, it's hard to take in. He said, I've seen 40,000 people saved. Do you know what the population Chunk County is? About 40,000. That means every house, every child, every young person. It'd be like if everyone in Chilton County was lost and got saved in a week or two. Amen. Hallelujah. I'm going to support that. Praise the Lord. Well, I preached two sermons, so we won't meet next Sunday. Now. You know that's a lie. Hallelujah. I would never work at one of the churches where you got to be through in 30 minutes, I think. I just. I just go back to selling floor covers.

Pastor West:
Huh?

Pastor West:
Yeah. It's got to get them in. Get them out. It takes a while to build something into people. You've got people that you need to sit down and think sometime with a letter, not not a text, a letter if they're still alive and thank them for what they put in you and deposited in you, whether you're a kid or they're still doing it right now. It may be a teacher, a friend somewhere, a coworker. You need to reach back sometimes and just send a letter just to say thank you. Some of you are your positions that you have at work. Someone trains you for that. Some all you businessmen. You had someone who trained you to do what you're doing. I remember when Nathan, I met him, he was working at Stokes, at Paint and Body. But the time I met him, he. I mean, he was working diligently over there, but he had a dream of having his own paint body business. He talked about it all the time. All the time. He wasn't going church with his time. He was going to another church and he'd come by our church and just leave notes all the time. Like, you know, we have a rival and y'all just come. He was excited. He was like he was like Paul Revere, a young Paul Revere. Jesus is coming. He told me every time for Sunday. He said, I used to pass your church for a few years. The Lord told me, That's supposed to be where you're supposed to be going to church. Well, the time came that he did.

Pastor West:
He came on a Sunday night or Sunday morning and came back that night, I think. And then all of a sudden, I had a vision. I had a vision. I don't have many of these visions. And I could remember his name, but didn't know him anything about him. And I saw I saw the church and I saw myself at the pulpit Say, Sir, Mr. Sir, Mr. Burns, would you come and come and stand right there? Don't come all the way up here, but stand right there. I was on the platform there and I said, Come out in that middle aisle and come and stop right there. I saw myself do this. Then I would come off the the pulpit area, the stage, and I would come and I would wrap my arms around him like this real tight. Now, he didn't show me what was going to fall. And he gave way and I just felt dead on top of him. It looked kind of crazy. But the Lord says, I won't even know that this is his place. And he'll know it by you wrapping his arms around him. That I've called him here. But the kids didn't understand it. Some of my nephews went home and asked. They said they said, Mom, daddy, how are we ever going to have a church and build people if Uncle Eric's going to tackle people on the ground? It'd be a good question because you wouldn't do it in the natural, would you? Let's give the Lord a shout before we go.

Pastor West:
Hallelujah.

Pastor West:
Glory to God.

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Building A Strong Spirit Part 2 The Law of The Spirit of Life 2Jul2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Building A Strong Spirit Part 2 The Law of The Spirit of Life 2Jul2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Good morning and welcome to Gracelife Church. And we want to welcome those who joined us in our live broadcast or at a future time that you're listening or watching. We've been in a series well, this is our second time to teach on building a strong spirit. Before that, we were in a series, I think, of five teachings, which was entitled Stop Opposing Yourself. They go hand in hand. You could have just left it going on and stop posing yourself now to the end of the world. But we thought we ought to just change it because they do. They really do work hand in hand. I want to go back this morning to the scripture that we used when we were ministering on Stop opposing Yourself. It was our text. It's in second Timothy chapter two, just to we want to take both pattern of thoughts and bring them in this morning. How many you believe the word? How many? If we read the scripture in the word says it, that settles it for you. Amen. If it doesn't sell it for you, then it doesn't really matter what someone ministers from the word because you're still elevate your situation over what God said. And it's not to say that your situation doesn't seem real, feel real. It is. It's factual. It's just not truthful. Jesus said, You shall know the facts. I'm sorry. Jesus said, You shall know the X-rays. No, no, no. Jesus said, You shall know the bank statement.

Pastor West:
No. Jesus said you should know what they found. The Council? No. What did he say? Oh, you shall know the truth. And how do we know he is truth? And he says before he left, he said it's better for you that I go. They didn't understand how it'd be better. Someone who met every need, saw every miracle sign wonder. They were. He was there to talk with. And he said, It's better for you. Actually, some translations say it's more advantageous for you if I leave than if I stay. Because if I go, I'll send another one just like me. Sometimes we wonder what it been like to be here with Jesus. You say, Well, it would have been a great advantage to having him here. I'm sure that would be awesome. You only have eternity to be with him. This is the shortest gig you'll ever do. It's down here on Earth. I mean, it'd be short. You say? Yeah, but I'm believed to be 120. That doesn't impress God. I mean, he's been here forever. I mean, after you've been in heaven 10 billion years, I mean, how are you going to brag on 120 when you're in heaven? You won't even wash your clothes every 120 years because that would just be like a third of a mullet. How many believe we're not going to have to wash clothes? Yes. God. How do you believe that If you do need to bathe, there are some people that'll be forced to anyway.

Pastor West:
Let me get off that. I'm meddling now. But second Timothy chapter two, verses 25 and 6 or 20 4 to 26, it says, Then the servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all men apt to teach patient in meekness, instructing those who oppose himself. If God prevents your will, give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth. Here it is, verse 26, and that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil who are taken captive at his will. Well, how do you oppose yourself? Well, we. We oppose ourselves by accepting a lie. Perhaps I can say it this way. We oppose ourselves by accepting a symptom. A report. The Scripture says. Whose report will you believe? It is factual. You can see it, you experience it, you feel it. It's not that it's not real. It's there. Well, we made a distinction when we were teaching that out of the book of Romans, where it says to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is what? Life and peace. To be carnally minded is simply that you're paying a lot of attention to your five senses and sometimes they can get your attention. Things can happen that really grab your attention. You know, in the sight or the feeling realm or the, you know, any of the of the anything that comes through the five senses. So it's there to bless you.

Pastor West:
It was given to bless you, not to harm you. But since it is since it comes through the mind and the body and the feeling and the and the organs of the body, things can happen in your life that will divert your attention and say this is where you you, you know, in other words, the symptoms will try to define you, but your symptoms is not who you are. Amen. You're a spirit. You say, Well, I'm having trouble with my kidneys. You're not a kidney. The Bible says the righteous run into him, not into it. And they are safe. See, a lot of people are running into it. Instead of running to the strong tower, they run into the problem. They hit the problem head on. Well, you don't have to hit it head on. Even even in a covert. That's not as good as yours, Isaiah said. We won't go there. But Isaiah 5919 says, When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the spirit shall lift up a standard against him. Some translations put the comma in different places. It doesn't really matter whether they put the comma. I like the way the King James puts the comma the way I read it. When the enemy should come in like a flood, comma, that means it kind of gave to me. It's like they wanted to let you know when the enemy comes in with full force, comma. So he's giving it everything he's got.

Pastor West:
Then the spirit of the Lord will raise up a standard against him. He'll stop him, but remove the comma when the enemy shall come in comma, like a flood, the spirit of the Lord shall raise up a standard against him. I like the combo where it's where it's at when the enemy comes in like a flood of full force. God, that's all I got. Within the spirit of the Lord, raise up a standard against him. We have that happen in this nation right now. We were we are we are going to celebrate the independence of this nation this Tuesday. And the Bible says blessed is the nation whose God is their Lord. Amen. As much issues, much problems, as much everything that's going on in this world and in this country, the way that you can greatly appreciate it is leave it and go see it the way other nations live. See what the the government is in their nations and their our government has many issues and it has many issues. Don't let your attention go to all those things that are evil. See, the problem is most people spend their time knowing what's going wrong, what's going on behind the scenes. That's not wrong. If you're paying more attention to what's wrong, to what's right. When you begin to read the word, the Lord says, Do you think the strength of a nation is its armor, its artillery, its forces? He said then he went to a place like he says, even the strength of a horse.

Pastor West:
Well, the strength of a horse in a human isn't a kind of strange that a human who can understand the horse and how it operates can put a bridle on it and have full control. How can an £80 person who understands a horse and a bridle have control over something that's that's a weighs half a ton or more? I mean, if the horse just knew, right, it would bridle you. If the horse just said no. But the horse has pressure points. It has physical senses which causes symptoms and it gives into the symptoms because it's not a spirit like you. So when you put when you put pressure on it on its mouth, its tongue, and you say, I want to go left and the horse wants to go right, the horse changes this mind quick. How quick do you change your mind? Hmm. See you have all Jesus paid for it all. Pastor Matt was talking about, you know, the the prodigal son who received his inheritance. But the Bible said he wasted it before he came back to the to the father and not feeling worthy. He said, if I could just go back and just be a servant, the Lord did not create you to make you a servant. Amen. He gave you the inheritance. This is what I heard while you were speaking. He says, Ask them.

Pastor West:
Have they wasted their inheritance? In a measure. I think all of us do because we have forgot. We forgot what actually is the truth sometimes. This teaching doesn't need to be fast. It needs to be slow because this is where life hits the road. Where Paul would have to tell Timothy. You're going to have to help the people here. You're going to have to teach them. Now, here to scream, holler and whoop. We're here to get answers. He says. There they are. They are working against themselves. They are helping the enemy by by opposing themselves. Well, when we walk in the flesh, when we walk in the carnal mind, we walk in all the physical senses. So we can't we can't let a saint, whatever comes to the senses, thought pattern or feelings, we can't elevate it above the truth. We have to know what the truth is. When you do that, it's the same thing. You're putting yourself in the wilderness just like Jesus did for 40 days. And he was hungry. He was. He was in a physical body and the enemy came to him at his weakest point. Not he. He didn't come to him when he felt strong. He came to him when he felt weak. He he told him what was wrong. He said, I know. I know you're hungry. I know you are. And if you're the son of God, I could say the same to you. If you're a son or a daughter or God wouldn't change a thing, right? It'd be just as applicable to use it.

Pastor West:
Would it be to him if thou be the Son of God command these stones to be made bread? Well, Jesus never acted on the devil's words. If you had, you still wouldn't be redeemed. Then he took him over and he said, I'll show you all the world what's now belongs to me, because Adam lost it to me. He said, But I'll give it to you if you bow down and worship me. Jesus said, in the West, Translation, You're ignorant. You're a fool. You're stupid. That's my last name is West. I call it the West Translation. And no, he said, Only God will worship. Only God will I serve. Well, the Bible says after three times all Jesus did the devil quoted the word to Jesus. You know, the Satan can quote the word. I think he knows more word than most Christians do. He really does. But he just distorts it. He just changes it just a little bit. He said. I mean, look at this tree. You can tell it's good to eat. And she says, it sure does look like it's good. See, he just distorted it. God said it was death. Lucifer says it'll give you life. He said, if you eat of this tree, he said, you'll be just like him. You know, you and I are just like him right now, aren't we? Amen.

Pastor West:
As he is, so are you. First Corinthians says. He says that we are one with him in spirit. We are one spirit with him. In other words, God took the two and now the two he made, He just made one. We're one with him. So then over in Philippians, he says, So now that you're one, now let this mind of Christ, Let that mind be in you. Mm. Can you see where there's warfare? Can you see why there's a fight? Can you see where the flesh is? You're killing me. And the spirit says, Shut up. I'm fixing. You. See, what we do is we work on our body. We work on our flesh. Huh? We try to take Jesus's words to fix our flesh. Well in him, you're already perfected. You never receive anything that you need from the flesh. You receive it from the spirit. It goes into your flesh. It's not a it's not a prayer to be prayed out of heaven. The prayers are already answered. It's in Christ. You just have to know who you are in Christ. My God has supplied all my needs. Yeah, but I got this physical. Well, I got this financial. I got this family. It's been supplied. It's not something to be answered. It's already answered. So you have to go to the spirit. You have to come out of the if you walk in the flesh, if you walk in the carnal mind, it'll bring death to you.

Pastor West:
But if you walk, if you walk in the spirit, walk by the spirit, it'll bring life and peace. Well, when you understand what he did, you say, Well, I know he did it, but he did it for you, right? He did it as your substitute. He did it as your stand in. If Jesus had been playing football, he'd have put on your jersey, got the touchdown and put the six points on him right there. I did it for him. Jesus wore your jersey, right? He scored for you. Amen. He already went. He went. He went to fight your battle. He fought it. He went ahead of you. Before you're dealing with what you're dealing with now. Jesus already visited this place. Amen. Mhm. Psalm 77, in some translations, says before Israel crossed the Red Sea, God went ahead of him and marked the place where they would go go across. And they said no man can see his traces. If I was a carpenter, I'd preach it this way. Jesus went ahead of me and popped a chalk line. That the water can't wash out When they got there, he says, you're going to cross right here. It's going to be dry ground. Did you hear what I said? Psalm 77 said he went ahead of you and he picked the place where they would be delivered. Jesus went ahead of you and picked the place. He's the. He's the chief Shepherd. Amen. He's the bishop of your soul.

Pastor West:
He's the solid anchor of your life. Everything must give way and sway to the name of Jesus. The enemy trembles and fears because Christ is in you, the hope of glory. The enemy has no answers. The enemy has been weakened. He has been weakened just since we met. He hated the songs we sang. He hated the word that was spoken in truth when the offering was received. He hated that. He hates this moment right here. He hates it. Every time you say amen, every time you say amen, that word Amen means simply what? So be it that you know when you say amen, you're saying I agree with that. What you're doing is you're saying at the same time I receive it, I agree with it, and the enemy loses ground every time you say amen when you sit there and do nothing, He thinks you're still up for grabs. He thinks you haven't cast your vote. You know, this is a this is a it's not a democracy. It's a theocracy. But if it was a democracy, you could cast your vote. It'd just be three. God, God agrees with his word. The enemy doesn't agree with God in his word. And you get to cast the deciding vote. Hello. Amen. Amen. Amen. So the Our nation will celebrate its independence. We have a greater independence in Christ Jesus because of the blood of Jesus. Amen. Amen. Amen. Who? Who hath redeemed you? Who hath blessed you? See, you have to understand the covenant that you're in.

Pastor West:
You still quit living in two covenants at one time. That's why Paul prayed the prayer we call the prayer of Ephesians. Ephesians one and Ephesians three. Paul didn't pray that that you would be blessed. Paul prayed that the eyes of your understanding would be enlightened. That you would know what God has already done. Not that He would do it. All things like Andrew Wommack says. He says that most Christians believe that God can do anything, but they don't believe he's done very much yet. So he prayed that your eyes would be open to what he has already done, that you've verse 14, that you've already obtained an inheritance, that you are already chosen in him, that he's already blessed you, that he's already healed you, that he's already made you strong, that he's already made a way. Amen. Huh? And you just take yourself out of it, right? I may have these wrong, but just like Pastor Buzzy used to preach about Muhammad Ali fighting. What was it? Sonny Liston? Who? Sonny Liston. Yeah. And Muhammad Ali won. Was that right? And he went up there and you know what was his motto? And. Ought to sting like a bee, float like a butterfly and sting like a bee. He went up there and. And he said, I'm the champion. And he was. Then they had this big check up there, and his wife walked up there and took the check.

Pastor West:
And she said, But I'm more than a champion. And there was he fought the fight, but I get the prize. Amen. Jesus fought the fight, but you get the prize. You're more. You're more than a conqueror. Amen. He conquered, but now you're more than that. Whoa. Glory to God. I'll have a revival up in here. Hallelujah. I don't know what you're worried about. If you just cast your care, we cast it last week. When you cast your care, you need a post for yourself. A no fishing sign right here that you don't go out there and snag the whole thing and bring it on back to you. So I've been missing you, old friend. All my words and all my pain. Come on back home. Heaven? No. Praise God. Well, let's get to our lesson. Praise the Lord. You know, Galatians 516 says, Walk in the spirit. You won't fulfill the lust of the flesh. That means walk in line, walk in step, walk in cadence with him. He's energizing you to do that when you do that. He's watching you walk away from the boat like Peter did, knowing there's no way to do this. But you're walking in the spirit. He's the one who's empowering you to do it. It's by his strength. It's not by your might. It's not by your knowledge. It's by not by your wisdom. Corinthians said that God, you know Paul Yonggi Cho who's in heaven now? I suppose not.

Pastor West:
Suppose he did. He God used him to build the largest church that's ever been on the planet. He had upwards of a million people. So he couldn't he couldn't put a million people anywhere. So he broke his church off and he said small cell groups of 25 to 50,000. I went to 25 to 50,000. And so he Paul Yonggi Cho said it's been very difficult for God to use intelligent people. He can, he said. But usually their intelligence, their IQ, gets in the way because God chose the foolish things to confound them that are wise. I suppose that's why I'm here. Amen. It doesn't make any sense at all. I wouldn't chose me, you know, not just because we all look at ourselves that way, but I mean, I can think of a lot of people who are way more qualified to do what I'm doing, way more qualified. But here but like you said, here is I'm right here. And so. But but but it's him through us. Christ in you, the hope of glory. So it's not us. We have to take our eyes off of us. You know, Galatians 220 said It's no longer I. You have to get your eye knocked out. Watchman Nee said. That's the problem. He said, Your problem is I or me. Most people have a disease called me itis and whether they can sing or not, they do the mee mee mee mee mee mee mee mee.

Pastor West:
Mee.

Pastor West:
Mee has issues. Yes. Me, me, me. Do look at me i, i. I would help if I could sing. I'm sorry. But anyway, they have me itis and they watch me vision instead of television to watch me vision. What are they going to think about me? Paul told you that you would know the end of the times. He said, you know, you look at the weather and you see he said, you can interpret when summer is here. We know summer. I mean, you know, this is not winter. You don't have to be a chief meteorologist. You know, this is not winter, Right? If it's not if it's not summer, this is we're close. Then he gave us several things. How you would know the end of the times. He said people would be ungrateful, children would be ungrateful to their parents also. Brother against sister. Brother against brother. He says, people paying all the attention to themselves. You can see it all over Facebook. Everyone's taking a picture of themselves. This is my new profile. And then that last about three days, then they get another profile. The 2 or 3 days that changed again. He got another profile. Why do we need to see so much of you? Because you heard me say, I believe Facebook is scriptural. Everybody should have and keep a Facebook account. I just think this should be the face and this should be the book.

Pastor West:
Maybe this scriptural. Maybe you can you can tie all them together. You can have instant Twitter face or something like that. I don't know, social face, Twitter, Insta or whatever. Amen. But we're just going to use all of them just to preach the gospel. Amen. Amen. How about that? Amen. You know, someone could get saved at home this morning. If you're watching, you ain't saved this morning. Stop it. Do you think hell will be fun for you? You see, I want to go with all my friends. Well, you don't have to go with your friends. They're not really your friends, huh? Now you need to come to Jesus. You got to be born again. Amen. Someone said, Well, I'm a pretty good person. That'll. That'll put you in the front seat of hell. There is no good person. Roman says there's none. Everyone is short of the glory of God. That's why. That's why he had to give the law and the old commandment. He didn't want to give the law, but they wanted law. They said we. No, we want your rules. We're well. We're well able to keep them. He says you are. They said, Oh, yeah, just give us a set of rules. We can keep these real well. And so he said, okay, here's your ten Commandments, I'll give you ten, then I'll give you a 613 more other ceremonial type commandments.

Pastor West:
And when they came down, they said, Oh my God. He said, Who? The law. God never wanted a law. The law was just to show them the they can't even keep God's standard of righteousness. The church is still trying to keep it. And the scripture says when Christ came, that ended it. He said, the law is obsolete. If you want something better than that, the law never belonged to you. If you want Jewish, you say, Well, I got free the law. Well, you weren't supposed to have it anyway. Are you Jewish? I see. But yet. Yet. Christ only gave you one commandment. Which is to what? Love fulfils every commandment. If you're living in the love of God, do you need something to tell you not to steal or covet or die? Or love is the is the big shortcut to ten. Amen. And when you got born again, the love of God was shed abroad in your heart by the Holy Ghost. But you say, Well, I just can't forgive him, really. Well, then get saved. But not only can you forgive, you're supposed to forgive. You say, Well, I'm going to forgive him, but I ain't going to forget it. You ain't forgave nothing, huh? He said, Pay no attention to the suffered wrong.

Pastor West:
I know that don't sound too easy, does it? Because some people say you don't know what I've suffered, though. Yeah, but did you go to the cross? Did you go to the whipping post? If you're a man, did they pull out your beard or if you're a woman, did they pull out your hair? Did they put a spear in your side? Did they mock you? Did they spit on you? Did they take the cat of nine tails? Did they put the glass in the metal? Did they tear your flesh off and get into your tendons and muscles and open your nerves? And he says you can't forgive. Because he said, Before I died, I said, Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they're doing to me. If they knew, they wouldn't do it. Mm. Praise God. Amen. I think I'm going to take my notes one day. Maybe there's a book in them. They don't seem to work for church. I don't know why. It just seems like it's so when I'm doing this, praise the Lord. So we're talking about a strong spirit. And when we use Proverbs 1814 as our text and it says the strong spirit of a man or woman sustains them in a time of bodily pain or trouble, but a weak and broken spirit who can raise up a bear.

Pastor West:
The message. Bible says a healthy spirit conquers adversity. But what can you do when the spirit's crushed? No, she didn't say. Well, I'm reading you some things from last week. First Corinthians 16, 13 and 14 says, Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Men or women will say of courage, do everything in love. What he didn't say was try not to be weak. No, he should be strong. Amen. He didn't say be strong in most things. He didn't say be strong most of the time or every third day. No, he said be strong. Strong means having the ability to bear and endure. Firm and solid. Able to sustain the attacks and not easily subdued, defeated or taken. In other words, we said last week, you don't have to have a pee wee Herman anointing. No Pee-Wee Herman's. If you're weak, that means you're soft. That means you give way. That means you're not able to bear great weight and you're not able to resist a violent attack. A strong spirit is confident. Are you confident? How about the rest of you? Amen. So be it. Amen. Are you unmovable? Amen. Have you. Have you made up your mind? Are you fully persuaded that what God said he's able to perform? Yes. Are you established in it? Are you set? How many ever put your hand or your wrote your name in wet concrete before it dried? Then after you're gone months and years later, we have evidence that she was there.

Pastor West:
The stars do it in Hollywood. Whatever that means. You can do it anywhere. You can do it in Play-Doh. You can do it whatever you you put an imprint and when it dries, it still says, I was there. In the men's restroom here years ago when we built new new bathrooms here. In the men's restroom. We had to cut through the concrete, you know, to do the plumbing. We had to hire someone who brought down a saw. It cost about $1,000 for a special kind of saw that would cut through four inches of concrete. God burned his saw off that night. He says, Well, everything I charged you, I guess I will have to use to buy a new saw. And we were doing all that and putting everything in and whatever. And Bill's son Corey, was here and there were some concrete parts you might have to put my name here. I said, No. I said, But it's going to be covered up with tile. I said, Well, one day someone's going to knock your tile up. It's going to say, Corey was here. Corey could actually prove that the tile was popped up, that he was actually there running. That saw we had we had sledge hammers and I was in there beating it.

Pastor West:
And Corey nudged me, He says, he says, Pastor, he said, it looks like you need a rest. I said, You're very observant and you're correct. And and he went there and finished it out like Paul Bunyan. He just he beat the daylights out of it. But are you established like your name is written in the Lamb's Book of Life? Amen. Amen. Are you steady under trouble? Are you full of joy? Are you full of peace? Peace to the storm in your life. I speak peace to your body right now. In Jesus name. I speak peace to every one of the symptoms in your body right now. I command your body to line up with the word of the living. God, for the word is spirit and life in truth and every defiant spirit who speaking into your life and speaking into your body and speaking into your home. I command it to go in Jesus name. Amen. Now obey the Word of the Lord. A strong spirit will empower you through a physical attack. A strong spirit will sustain you through financial problems. I can sit up here and talk for days about how God, God had to deliver us from all this kind of stuff as individuals and as a church. It didn't seem like it was any way possible. I mean, this just we started at my home and went to the business.

Pastor West:
We were working there just doing a Bible study. We didn't have anything. You have a podium. We didn't have one chair. We didn't have any sound equipment. We had nothing. We had absolutely nothing. We had people who said yes to God. That's what we have. We had good people who love God said yes to God. No one was asking us to start anything. I wasn't asking to start. I was saying no. Hartsock You say it. I've had so many people ask me. Let's see. How do you start a church? I said, I have no idea. I said I tried to stop it every week. I was going to prove to the Lord, you know, I didn't need to be the one doing this. It didn't seem to move him at all. I didn't tell no one. But. But they're going to hear this for the first time when we was in Clanton minister, now the carpet store, I was going to go one more week. I said, Lord, there's no need me. Just get with my family. I can get with them during the week. I said, If there's no visitors this Sunday, I'm through. And that Sunday in a carpet store walked in. Clinton Phyllis Henson. He says, Keep moving. I have to quit. If they hadn't showed up.

Pastor West:
And.

Pastor West:
They showed up in a carpet store, I mean, who goes to a carpet store to church? Well, we were on a roll. Now you'll get that sometime, you know. Praise the Lord. I was so terrified all the way through Bible school. I just thought it was going to be a Christian business man. And I am. But, I mean, I never, never looked at doing this. The first time that I spoke, I was so nervous. I was so scared and people were coming. And I try to get ready because I thought they might call on me and they did. I gave a little talk. I told them everything I knew about 14 minutes. And then I said, Well, we're through. I walked out of the showroom with the floor covering store, and I walked in the back with a carpet pad. It wasn't laid down and I passed out. I can't even give you my title in 14 minutes now. She's easy to start, but can you sustain? It's easy to say we're going to go this way, but when you go all the way through. It's easy when you have money, feel good, and you will travel. But when you don't have money and you don't feel good and the road ahead looks like a locomotive coming at you and you can't get out of the tunnel, What will you do then? I've always wanted to build this church. I likened it to a train. I wasn't here to build Cabooses. I was here to build by the Spirit of God locomotives that would be full of mercy and compassion and love for their fellow man. Red, yellow, black and white, because they're all precious in his sight. Amen.

Pastor West:
That they would never see color. That's where the enemy tries to work all the time. But no matter what your race is, you're my sister. You're my brother. That I'm to love you as I love my own wife, my own children. Now, there's a little difference between the way I love you and my life. I love you. But I'm in love with her. Huh? Amen. And so we're walking this walk together hand in hand. And we're walking by the Spirit in the spirit. We're walking with him. They'll be want to isolate you to make you feel like you're all by yourself. You've never been by yourself. Jesus said, I'll never leave you, nor fail you nor forsake you. You need to listen really good this morning because I'm supposed to be here, but for some reason I'm not here. It's coming out of here. I don't. I don't even know what I'm going to say next. Praise God. But it's for you. It's not. It's not just for me. It's for you. I'm just reminded, and a lot of you, this is not something that you don't know. It's just something that sometimes you forget because you paid attention to the storm. And rightly so. It was a huge storm. But you had one before this, didn't you? And look at you. You're still here. How did you survive that? Did Jesus forsake you? Paul said the work that he began in you, he'll bring it to a conclusion. He will bring to a conclusion. You say, Well, I felt like I was on the mountaintop. And now I'm on the valley. You're in the valley by God's design. God likes valleys. That's where he killed Goliath.

Pastor West:
Huh?

Pastor West:
God didn't kill. God didn't kill all the people. He didn't destroy all the people. When the Israelites, before they left Egypt, he took them to the Red Sea to give him a proper burial. You said the enemy is following me. I know. We're headed to the Red Sea. It's by design. That's why the enemy is on your trail. And God says don't turn around yet. You're not yet where I want them to be. I have prepared a place for you to cross and a place to bury them.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
Hello. Hello.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
So be strong in the Lord and be strong in the power of his might. A strong spirit will help you during emotional issues or relational issues. A strong spirit will stop and silence. Stress, worry, fear, depression. A strong spirit will fill you full of joy. So full of joy. Full of joy. That's not the way I asked you to say it. Full of joy. A strong spirit will put a smile on your face. A spring in your step will lead you into victory. Will silence your adversary.

Pastor West:
Yes, Lord.

Pastor West:
James four six says. But he gives more grace. See no verse in the Bible. No verse in the Bible is to ask God to get the devil off of you. You ever thought about that? But people live like, Oh God help me, The devil is all over. There's no verse in the Bible in the New Testament that says that you can pray a verse and ask God to get the devil off of you. He gave you his name. What a strong tower. The righteous run into him and they are safe. See? He wants you to know him. The children of Israel knew. The children of Israel knew God's acts. But it said Moses knew his ways. Amen. Moses wanted to know the one who acted. Israel just wanted to see the acts. Are you here just for the miracles? Or do you want to know the Miracle Worker? Do you want to know about God or do you want to know God? Do you want to know about people who have a relationship with him? Or do you want the relationship yourself?

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Do you want to know about the people who was healed, set free or delivered? Or do you want to be delivered to heal? Set free yourself. Amen. Today is the day of salvation. Pastor Matt said it means sozo, which means I've been healed. I've been delivered. I've been saved. I've been set free.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
People are waiting. They're holding in their. Their victory cry. They're waiting for things to line up and look good and all come together. And then they're going to rejoice. But Paul said, Rejoice in the Lord again. Always. And then he had to say. And again I say, Rejoice. Why did he have to do it again? Because the people didn't say Rejoice. Amen. Rejoice in the Lord. Always and again I say Rejoice. May I remind you, when Paul wrote that letter, that epistle to the church at Philippi, he was under house arrest for two years in prison. And the man's writing a whole letter about joy. What are you going through today? Amen. Amen. Do you feel like you're under house arrest? Someone said, no, I'm losing mine. Well, praise the Lord. You got to. You're moving and you're rolling with God. He's not leading you backwards. He's leading you forward. Why do you keep looking into your shoulder? Why do you keep looking in your rear view mirror? Why do you keep asking to interpret the will of God by what you feel in your body? You don't you don't interpret spiritual things, but with physical things. With physical matter. And then what? Body made a planet. What kidney? What heart made a universe? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. One day we'll shed this body. It'll grow old. Paul says it begins to decay. But the spirit is renewed day by day. Well, if you renewed day by day, Ephesians three says be strengthened in your inner man.

Pastor West:
Be strong where it counts. Be strong where it counts. Don't just come up with strong sayings if you're weak. So you got to feed your body every day or it will become depleted. You can't your food can only live so many days or weeks without food and you'll perish. Your food has to have water. It has to have liquid. It has to have something. Because you're two thirds water, you're one quarter a bucket of mud and three parts of water. Your body physically has to have some more water and it has to have some sustenance. Your spirit has to be fed. Amen. Brother Hagan used to say it this way Most people have three good meals, hot meals a day and one cold snack a week for their spirit. What kind of food are you feeding your spirit? Do you ever get out your Bible and do you read it? Do you ever meditate? Do you ever think about it? Do you ever chew on a verse? Do you ever chew on a chapter? I mean, chew, mutter, think about it, make it yours. Talk about it, think about it, say it, chew it over and over again. You don't have to read the whole Bible in a year. I don't like any of those plans. That's just me personally. I don't need them to plan me a way to read the Bible in a year, huh? You might need to read four verses the whole year if you don't.

Pastor West:
If you don't believe one of them, why? Why are you going to read all of them? Don't. Don't talk about what you don't know. What you can't do. Talk about what you do know. Talk about what you can do. I'm not preaching about revelations this morning. I'm not here to talk about the horse and rider and the beast and all the eyes around him and all that. I'm here to talk about your life. Amen. Praise God. This is about your life. Amen. This is about you being here. While you're here. You have a body. You have authority. When you. When you leave here, when your body perishes, your spirit leaves. But why are you here? You're here to kick butt. Amen. Take that off. Well, just leave it on there. Hallelujah. We're not here to be dragged from pillar to post. We're here to have authority. We're here to represent Jesus. We're here as an ambassador of Christ. We're not here to sigh and to cry and to lay down, to be defeated. No, You put defeat on him. He's under your feet, isn't he? That's where he's supposed to be. You ought to act like it and think like it. But you can't think like it because you don't stay in the word you say. Well, I don't have the time to read the word. You can chew on a verse. The reason I can prove. I can prove that anybody can. Has anyone. Will anyone be will everyone be will everyone be truthful for a moment? Have you ever worried? Have you ever worried about something that looks like all of us? You've meditated.

Pastor West:
Hmm. Is it worry meditation? Do you have to write something down to say I am now worrying? I mean, who's ever worried in the shower? How many's ever worried at night, you know, trying to go to sleep. How are you worried, dear? Why you use that word? I mean, never. I mean, because you didn't have no work. I may have worried because of your relationship, your children, your future, your. Your past, the way you grew up, the way that you are growing up. Where are you on this? Where are you? On the left. Where are you? On the right? Where are you Ahead and worry. No. Worry, worry, worry. You don't need any scriptures to worry. You just consult your five senses. Those who live in their five senses can't please God because that's not what He provided for you. He said, Why don't you leave your senses and walk in the spirit? Why don't you take a walk? Why don't you leave your senses and go for a walk and walk with the spirit and by the spirit? Amen. That's what Enoch did. He just walk with God? And they said they got to walk. And so far they got closer to God's house. And he says. He said, You want to come on me? He said, Why not? Let's go.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
I've walked out in the spirit sometimes one time in particular in Florida on the Marriott floor. I can't really explain it. I felt the power of God so strong. I was on the floor. The Billie Burke meeting. I was on the floor so strong. I've never really told anyone what happened to me there. I've told some about it. Never told everyone. It's really hard to explain. I knew I was in this world, but I was very aware of the other one. I knew I was on the floor at the Marriott and I knew I needed help, but at that point I could care less. And the power of God came so strong. It was so marvelous. But it was so strong. My physical frame, my physical body couldn't contain it. So while I was on the floor, I guess looking like a, you know, a fish taken out of the water on the beach, I guess it surprised some folks I could hear from physically what I must have been doing on the floor. And I remember saying to myself, thinking to myself, I said, God, if you don't turn your power down, you're going to kill me. And then I said to him, I said, But I don't care. No, that's strange. I mean. I mean, you wouldn't you wouldn't put a paperclip in any of these sockets, would you, And just say, Man, this is awesome.

Pastor West:
If you did it by mistake, you let loose, right? Ever got shocked by electricity, you jerk back. But I didn't really care. And the Spirit of the Lord said to me, I'm here. I was. I'm always here. I was here before, and I'm here now and I'll be in the future. He said the enemy has no he said he has no ability to take your life because he didn't give it to you. Well, I'm talking about living in the spirit, you see. Asked about living the spirit life because the life of God is not just a thing. It's a law. And Satan cannot break the law because he didn't make the law. The spirit of life trumps anything that the spirit of the carnality and the flesh that tries to rule over your life. It comes to you. But it can't. It can't overcome you. See, I think it's wrong with 614 says sin has no dominion over you. Well, let's also talk about that in a broader sense. Sin has no dominion over you. But what came by sin? Well came by the fall of man. Sickness, disease, pain, suffering. Whatever. So if sin can have dominion over you, neither can the effects have dominion over you.

Pastor West:
In other words. In other words, what you're dealing with right now can't lord it over you. It can't be Lord over you because I'm been born again. Amen. Because you already have a Lord. Amen. And we're not trading our Lord in for the God of this world who has blinded the minds of those who see not. They don't see the glorious light of the gospel because it's foolishness to them. You can't. The natural man, he says, can not receive the things of God because they're foolish to him. But you're not supposed to be natural. You're not supposed to be carnal. You're not supposed to live in your senses. You're not supposed to make choices and decisions and all these things about what I better do and I better start doing. I need to do all these things because your mind is just simply on the flesh, because you've seen some things go wrong. You thought, I'd better get ahead of this at this age or in this juncture in my life, I better start changing this. Some of those things are okay. They're applications. You call them common sense things. Nothing wrong with it, but do not let it be the interpretation of your life.

Pastor West:
Hmm. Amen.

Pastor West:
Moses lifted 120. As far as we know, that's all that God has set for a standard man to live. If he wants to live that far, he. He was not sick. It was time for him to go home. He didn't go in the promised land because he disobeyed God. But Joshua went on. Moses went up the mountain and God said, Come up here. He said, what we're going to do? He said, You're going to die. He said, How do you do that? He said, I'll have to show you. You don't have to show people nowadays. Most of the church. That me wants to be raptured yesterday because they're sick of the world. Understandably so. I think you could take people off the street with a 10th grade education up to send them up to Washington. We'd get a lot better result. But you know why? If you could see in the spirit realm, you see you'd see an enormous amount of spiritual spirits, demonic spirits all around politicians, even those who went up there. And they were going to make Mr. Smith goes to Washington and they came back someone else. Because of the ruling spirits there, but they don't rule you. He said he seated you in heavenly places. Remember? In other words, he said, when the Spirit of God raised up Christ from the dead, he seated him in a heavenly place. The same scripture says in Ephesians, he says. But when he reached and got him up, he said, he reached and got you up. Amen. And he said he seated you together with him. Now, where are you? In what heavenly places? E.w.

Pastor West:
Kenyon said the word seated with him in the throne means you're in the throne. That means you're in the throne room. It means that you're you're positionally, spiritually speaking, you are enthroned in heaven with him. Now, where does he rule from his seat of authority? Where do you rule from your seat of authority? If you send someone to the state representative for to sit in the seat of whatever, they'll assign a number to it. The state representative of Alabama for the Senate, for the Congress, they have a place where they speak supposedly for the people. Right? We have by vote by democracy, supposedly, they have our vote and they're supposed to represent the people. Jesus represents the will of God on the earth. Jesus is the will of God on the earth. Jesus was the perfect image. He was the one who translated, said He was the very imprint of God. If you were to take that onionskin typing paper, we did this as kids at school and put a coin under it in a pencil. And you did that. You would, you would. You would get the face of that nickel, that quarter, that half dollar I ever did that as a kid growing up. Well, Jesus was the very imprint of God. He was the exact likeness. He was the very duplicate of God. Whatever Jesus did, it was the father's will. When Jesus was doing the father was doing it. When you heal the sick, Jesus, heal the sick, God's heal the sick because you're his representatives. Because you're in Him, because you're in Christ. You are the devil's master.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
Did you hear what I said? Because you're in Christ. You are the devil's master. He takes orders from you because you're in him. We are not here under his will. We are here under the will of God. We are citizens of the Kingdom of God. Amen. This is a kingdom and this is citizenship. And you belong as a citizen in this kingdom. And we rule and we reign with him because we are enthroned with him. And if we're in the enthroned with him, then we're far above all principality. We're looking down on principality. We're not, say God, could you help us because Principality know you're with him looking down and say all this stuff is under our feet because we're with him in the throne room and it's under his feet. Amen. Amen. Amen. You do that because you're living in the spirit and not in the flesh. You pay attention to the flesh. You won't feel like you're far above anything. You feel like you're lower than an ant. Sometimes you feel so low you think you could crawl under a pregnant aunt's belly. That means you're paying attention to the flesh. All right. I hope these notes are good as the preaching. Amen. If your mind is being governed by your mind, your body emotions, then you're living in the flesh.

Pastor West:
Therefore, you are weak spiritually. Proverbs 2410 says If you fall to pieces in a crisis, there wasn't much to you in the first place. A person with a strong spirit will will by walking controlled. They're being controlled by Holy Spirit. By your will. In other words, he's not going to control you. But if you yield yourself to him. That Smith Wigglesworth. He didn't want to answer. This is how come The Miracles. How? How have you had such success in ministry? He said I had to die. And sometimes I had to die many times. He said I had to learn how to yield. And then I had to learn how to yield again. And then he said I had to learn how to yield again. They said he was on the train one day he was reading some scriptures and he was writing some things down and there were some people in the train with him and that and that opened room. And Smith was just sitting in the corner. He said, coming out of South Wales. And he said the car was going to take a stop and he was going to get off and get a drink of water and come back. And this this man over here, he was very disturbed.

Pastor West:
He said this man was saying there's something different about this man. He didn't know who Smith was. He says, But something about this is really agitating something on the inside of me. And he looks kind. He looks whatever. But but what is it about him that's agitating me? Smith didn't ever say a word. He got off, got the water, got back on, and he walked past the man. And the man says, My God, man. He says, Who are you? He says something about you. He said, He just convicts me of my sin. And Smith turned around and he says, You need to know my Jesus. How can you walk with such a presence of God that you say nothing in your presence? Because with him he makes the whole room is such a place that it convicts the room of people that you're in. My God, why do we satisfy for such a low level of Christianity, which is not even Christianity? Because it's not Christ likeness. Amen. It's not like Christ. If I play all the time and I do the word all the time, I don't keep this on me. I can get doing physical things all the time, and then I go to a much lower level.

Pastor West:
Hmm.

Pastor West:
You can see pretty much what happens is you are where you are. There's times, though, emotionally you can you can get up. I mean, you can pick your attitude up. You can pick your mood up. You can do all kinds of things, whether you need music or whatever, or you just make yourself go up there. But but the problem is it's ebbs and flows. You have highs and lows. And that's the worst way to be is when you hit a high. It's like it's like sugar. But then you'll come down. I mean, you eat a, you know, a bar, a candy bar, and your sugar goes up. But then what happens? Then it crashes. So you have a high and you have a low. What you should have done is just kept eating candy bars. No, just kidding. No, no, that's probably not right. That's that's not a spiritual thing. But but but you're supposed to stay at a place of high. Amen. The enemy saw Jesus in the desert. What he thought would be a low place. He was physically. He was very hungry. He was very tired. He was very warm. Jesus had to come in and natural body just like you. He Jesus had to have sleep. The Messiah who actually created the Earth, had to have sleep. He had to have food. He said he understands every temptation you've ever been through in more. He said he sympathizes with you. He understands you. He understands the frailty of being a human on this planet. He knows the spiritual realm that's here, demonic, that works against you. Although you do not see him. He knows they're here in their numerology and what they're here. But we know that there's more than us that be with them.

Pastor West:
Amen. The only defense that you have against him is not physical weapons, is it? But it's to take up the word of the spirit and the Word of the Holy Ghost. And it's to put your mind in subjection to the Word of God that you speak life everywhere that you go, because the spirit of life is the law. Amen. We understand the law of gravity, but we understand anytime anyone gets an airplane, we understand there's another law. It doesn't make gravity go away, but it just supersedes that law. The aerodynamics of the airplane and the law of lifts supersedes gravity. But gravity doesn't go away. But when it comes back down, it enters back into gravity and it's able to safely land. Well, you their spiritual death on this planet, there's carnality on this planet. But you decide to live life. Well, Romans eight one says there's no condemnation to those who's in Christ. Didn't say there's a little bit left, but there's no condemnation to those who are in Christ, who walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit, who walk, not after the physical senses and all this telling, but walk in the spirit and the truth. Amen. But there's no condemnation to you. You say, Well, yeah, but last week there's no condemnation to those who's in Christ. Amen. If the Lord was going to give you a nickname, he called you faultless. And I'm quoting Jude 24. When I do that, he said, the day will come when you'll go to heaven, that the father is going to take you by the hand and he's going to present you to the father and Jude 24. He says, Here's faultless, here's blameless, your child.

Pastor West:
I.

Pastor West:
Hmm. You say? Well, but I'm not. You are in the spirit. You are as a new creation. You're faultless. Amen. Paul had to get over his dilemma quick, because Paul was Saul. Basil had to die. But Paul had to have had to know who he was when he got that revelation of in Christ. And Paul had to let go of Saul, the old man. And I think he did it very well. Because the Romans I mean, this is wild. In Romans, Paul said, I've wronged no one. And I'm thinking, okay, So I was reading I was reading about your story before Damascus. It's a use putting people in prison. You just have them beat. You had Stephen stoned. Some people was murdered. Killed in prison. And you say you're wrong. No one. He said, Oh, yeah, Saul. Saul did that. But Saul died. I, Paul, have wronged no man. Since since you've been born again, since your spirit's 100% righteous with God, you've never missed it in your spirit. Amen.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
How do you like that? Amen. In Christ, you got the no fault clause.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Hey, that's why you're worthy. In Jesus, you're worthy. You weren't worthy before Jesus. But now you are worthy.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
How does it feel to be worthy? Oh, I. I don't know if we can say that. I don't. I wouldn't. I wouldn't go. I wouldn't go as far to say that. Well, how far would you go to say what you believe? So you're not you're not belittling the work of Jesus, are you? How many believe that you're redeemed?

Pastor West:
Amen. Fully. Amen.

Pastor West:
Fully redeemed by the blood of Jesus.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Washed away all your sins. Incorruptible. Indestructible. True. All these are scriptures, right? So how are you? The unmerited, unworthy, righteous, redeemed, son of God? I mean, that looks like Jesus had a wreck. As Rocky had a gender problem himself. He was working on this, but he had to make a mixture of worthy, unworthy, merited, unmerited, redeemed. Not well, not totally redeemed. Well. Well, there you go. Don't live like that. Pick your head up.

Pastor West:
Man. Hallelujah. Amen.

Pastor West:
You said I ain't got a dime in my pocket. Well, get with me. I got a dime. I'll give you after church. That's the best. At one time, he said down in his pocket, looking for money. Years ago, life didn't look too good. Everything was going sideways, backwards. He reached his pocket, see if he had any money. He said all he could pull out was lint. He looked at Lent and he said, You know, the only problem is Lent can't be spent. I was in this church a couple of years ago. And I didn't have any cash. I didn't even have my wallet. I don't I usually don't wear a wallet. With me. I don't generally have my wallet on me and. Someone was teaching children's church. I won't say who. And when church is over, he says. Oh, go give them the money in your pocket. And I said, I don't have any money in my pocket. He said, Yeah, you have $60. And I thought, I don't have the money. I don't have my wallet on me. He says, Look in your right pocket. And I put my hand there and I looked and there were three 20s and I said, I don't have any.

Pastor West:
I mean, where would that come from? And I'd had my hands in my pockets, you know, before church. That's pretty good, wasn't it? You don't hear one a little bit better. I gave him the $60. Hmm. And on the way home from church, he says, I don't want your wife to have to cook today. He says, Go buy lunch. And I said, I don't have no cash on me. He said, Yeah, you got $60. I said, No, you, I guess you super nasty. Put $60 on how you did that and put it in a box and gave it to him. He said, Look in your pocket. I reached in my pocket and there's three more 20s. I'm off to do that again. Lord, any time you want to do it. Just any time can't be spent. Got see, your supply comes supernatural. You're going to you're going to do some natural things in life because there was the natural before there was a spiritual sea, there was the atom before there was Jesus called the second atom or he's called the last atom. No one needed to come after him. He's the last. He did it right. He finished.

Pastor West:
It.

Pastor West:
The first atom got us into a world of mess. He represented all mankind. That's why you say, Well, I didn't see an atom, did I know, But he's the federal head of humanity. He's the he's the natural preaching. All this out of First Corinthians 15. He said. But then God sent the last atom. The second son. So Adam got us into a world of hurt. In the last Adam got us out.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
He said, We all die spiritually in Adam, but we all came alive in Christ.

Pastor West:
Yeah.

Pastor West:
And he says, he said, if you want to rule and reign your life, you only need two things. I'm going to close out here. I guess there's only going, going through all this, maybe the millennium. I could talk about it. He said, You only need two things to rule and reign in this life. Romans said, you need the gift of righteousness. How many are you right with God?

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Because Jesus, if you receive Jesus as Lord, you're the righteousness of God. And he said, you need the abundance. You need the gift of the abundance of grace, the gift of righteousness, the gift of righteousness and the abundance of grace and the abundance of grace. Now, if you're struggling, I think most of you know that you're right with God because of what Jesus did. You didn't earn it. I think we settled that a long time ago in this church. Just remind you of now and then. But did you receive the abundance of grace? You put those two together, the enemy will just say, Let's go find an easier target. These two people understand the righteousness and they understand not just grace, but abundance. You have no way in. Amen. He has no way in. The Bible says, Give the devil no place. How did he find the place? What did we leave open for him to walk through? If you saw a snake approaching your child or your house, you'd do something to kill it, wouldn't you? You might be afraid of snakes yourself, but if it was endangering your your property or your child, you'd throw something at it. I don't know what good snake from a bad snake. People say, Well, don't. That's a good one. I said, I ain't never met a good one. I read over here in Genesis saying like none of them, they said, Well, they'll eat all the rats.

Pastor West:
I said, I'll take care of the rats myself, but I'm going to say, Well, well, that's a good one. I said, In a moment it's going to be good and dead. You know, I'm not going to say, Could you show me your teeth? I don't know. If you're good at that. You get to heaven. My mom would whip me forever. She said. I didn't raise no fool, but I guess I did. You supposed to be down there preaching for 30 more years now. Are you looking to see if it's a good snake or a bad snake? Then when granny got a hold of me, I don't know. I can whip you up there, boy. She'd give you. You know, I learned around the Rosie Bush for her. She had them hickory switches. They kind of just flex them up, wrap around your legs. I always said, you know, if there would have been a what do you call it? If there was DRT, then I don't know if they'd still be serving time if they was alive. They didn't put up with no mess. You would know who you are. You would know what your gender, gender was. You know everything. Granny. Granny Fiction in New York. Second, how many y'all had a granny like that or a parent like that? Thank God for them. Amen. Well, God loves you. And you can't change his mind.

Pastor West:
Did you hear what I said?

Pastor West:
What'd you say? You do that and there's nothing you can do about it. Michelle said, God loves you, so you just might as well go ahead and accept it. Your picture is on the wall of his throne room. He looks at his son and his daughter all the time. He said, Look, look, look at my boy up there. Look at my girl out there. Wow. Awesome. Amen. I want you to leave here today. Changed. Amen. I hope the word of God, not me. I hope the word of God spoken to you. It was written. It was the Word of God was spoken first, so it could be written. And now it's written. So it can be spoken.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
I said the word of God was spoken. And written by 40 authors. God spoke it so it could be written. Now it's written. So it can be spoken.

Pastor West:
Amen. Amen. Amen. Glory. Amen.

Pastor West:
Okay. That's right. He sent his word. And it the word the actual Greek king James says he sent his word and the word healed them. That's not what the the original Greek Hebrew says this. He sent the word and it the word healed them. Why? Because the word is life. Amen. The spirit of life, which is Romans eight two. Which I thought was going to start. And I didn't really introduce it. Romans eight two talks about sin and death and the spirit of life. That's what John G. Lake knew about. When he was in South Africa and people were dying all over the place, the bubonic plague. But he knew about it in Christ and he understood that. And he had a scientific mind. He had a medical background to some degree. And he was he was actually experimenting with this. And so Lake took a few people came to South Africa and they said, Aren't you afraid that you and your team are going to catch all this plague? And they were dying so many. They just had big, very deep holes and put multiple bodies in them. Like she When we got there, they were dead by the hundreds. He says. Then we begin to minister to them and they said, Aren't you afraid because you're not protected, you're not wearing anything. You can do nothing to protect yourself. He said, We're protected.

Pastor West:
He said, Is that man right there? Did he just die? He said, Yeah, he just died about a minute ago. He said, draw some of the he said, take a syringe and draw some of the fluid off his body and bring it to me and I'll show you what it works. They have like brought his telescope or his microscope microscope because he wanted to see this. He said, go go to that person or go to any person who just died. Draw the fluid off their hand because for a while themselves are still moving around, you know, even though the body is dead and they wouldn't draw it off. And they said he said, what do you want us to do? He said, I want you to put it in my hand. He said, In your hand, Are you crazy? He said, Put it in my hand and look through the microscope. He says, Watch what the spirit of life does with death. So they took the syringe and they put the froth of the fluid from the man who just died, put it in his hand. He said, Now look it in the microscope. And it was moving around. And then Lake said nothing. Within seconds, every cell died. He said The spirit of life as a dominator. It's a ruler. It rules. It reigns over death.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Whatever's come. Not just to harm you has come to defeat you. If a cold, a fever blister could have its way and put you in the grave. We don't think much about it. You can put a little cream on it. Get away with it. If it came. But it only came because of what happened in the garden. Because that happened. It'll always be on this planet until Jesus comes and gets us. But Jesus says I will not leave them helpless. I will not leave them as an orphan. They will not live with an orphan spirit because I am ABBA. Daddy. I'm ABBA, Father. And the Holy Spirit who will come. It will be better for them. He'll be in every person. It'll be me. It'll be me if I was there personally, Jesus. And they had to share me with nobody. Wow. See, most of us would believe as Jesus would show them, come to our house today, we'd have a better week. How many of you would at least have a few questions? How many want something fixed? Right? Um. Can I tell you the truth? He's. He's here.

Pastor West:
Amen.

Pastor West:
He's here. Now, the reason that works for me and may not work for you is because I chose to believe it.

Pastor West:
Yes.

Pastor West:
You. So what if you died believing that you was only your age now? Well, I'd be in heaven and you'd be on this planet fighting and stuff. What's your question? I mean, they call the place Paradise. You say bear, but Jamison affixed to more stuff to come. Jamison. Well, I've been hearing that for a long time. But I don't care what Jamison gets. Paradise. Praise God.

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Building A Strong Spirit | 25Jun2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Building A Strong Spirit | 25Jun2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Good morning and welcome to Gracelife Church. All of you that's here and all of you who's joined us by the by whatever means you are. Youtube, Facebook. Glad to have you. Those of you who listen later on the audio format, we're going to go we're going to dive right into the word of God. We've been in a series, but we're starting a new one. But the kind of really go together, the one that we were in, I think there was five teachings on it and we entitled to stop opposing yourself. Did you know that you could actually oppose yourself, work against yourself? Oh, yeah. So, Paul, That's what Paul told Timothy. So our text in that was second Timothy. We won't go there today, but chapter two. And Paul was telling Timothy to instruct the people. He says, because the devil has them. He took them at his will. He says, But he couldn't do that unless they assisted him. Now, I'm not going to assist the devil to oppose me, but that was actually happening in the Scriptures. So we talked about it several times. This is just, you know, part B, But today we're going to talk about building a strong spirit. Can I get a better amen? Y'all say it with me. Building a strong spirit. Building spirit. Yeah. We're not. We're not after Wimpy. You know, you don't have to turn. I got several verses.

Pastor West:
I'm going to give you some time. You get there, I'll be gone. But. But if you're writing them down. Jeremiah 12 five. He says if you have raced with men on foot and those men have worn you out, he says, how are you ever going to compete with horses? In other words, if you in a foot race. And you're. You're worn out. How will you ever, when the pace picks up, keep up with the horses. The Part B of that verse in the translation said, If you trip and fall in a safe place, what will you do? In a strange place. Now, look here. Everybody in here has a testimony. I grew up in church. We had one every Sunday night. I wished I could have skipped it, but my mom wanted. You didn't ask my mother, you know, Are we going church? I knew the answer. You get in trouble if you did ask her. But every Sunday night we'd have three songs. Then everybody pop up and the testimony. And looking back, it was kind of like, top the terrible testimony. Oh, brother and sister, the Lord been after me this week. He been after me, been after my children, been after my family, got my finance, got my hair, got me. You know, it all just ended up with y'all just pray I'll be found doing the Lord's will pray I'll find doing the Lord's will.

Pastor West:
I'm just a kid. I didn't know that the Lord's will was right there in the hand. And we're all praying. We find it. And the Lord's like saying, Can you read? Can you read? Well, I went through years that now if you didn't stand up, they'd call and said, Bro, you got to stand up and say something. And my mother said, I didn't know what to do. I said, I said, Praise the Lord Saints. It been a rough week at school. I asked two little girls, Do you like me? Check one, yes or no? And they both said no. That was really hard on my soul. I didn't make the basketball team because I can't dribble and chew gum same time. It been a hard week for a 12 year old, but y'all pray hold out to the end. Don't have a light build, don't have nothing. I just follow in suit. So Jeremiah says, What are you going to do when it really gets tough, huh? And some of y'all might be in some places in your life where it's been really tough. Can I just be really strange? Not strange? Can I just be really clear? They'd be in hell. Yeah, if it feels like hell. Well, maybe not. You know it ain't heaven, huh? Well, you know. You know what James said about that? James said, when you fall into divers temptation test and trials, call the hotline.

Pastor West:
No, no, no. He didn't call the prayer line. No, he didn't say that. What did he say? He said, when you fall into divers temptation test and trials, he said, count it all, Joy. But see, you don't want to count it, Joy, when when, when everything's working and everything's happy and you got a raise and a bonus and you feel good and have money, feel good, will travel. Amen. Right. But when all that ain't working, they ain't nobody count. Nothing, Joy. Amen. But that's when you do it. Because, see, you're a believer. Amen. Amen. In the Gospels, Jesus and the other ones would tell people to have faith in the Epistles. You don't find one time you're ever told to have faith. You know why? Because now you're a believer. Because Christ lives in you and you have faith. No one in the old Covenant could have had faith because they had natural faith. But Jesus, Jesus hadn't died yet. Well, faith is one of the fruit of the spirit. What is faith? Well, it's believing, but. But then it's holding on to the promise. Amen. In other words, you don't let go. Amen. In other words, you don't give up. Look here. Life's easy to start. All you got to do is your parents have to get together one day, and then there you are. But. But just to finish something, to finish a business.

Pastor West:
It's easy to start a business. I've been in business more than one. It's easy to start one. You can print up, put an ad in the paper, open the front door and have the mayor cut the ribbon. But. But most businesses fail in the first 2 or 3 years. Amen. Most marriages in the United States. Every other marriage ends in divorce. You know why? Foundation. It's a foundation ain't right. You can't set walls on it. Amen. Because in life, there's going to be pressure. I don't think I need to convince you all that see me after the service if you need further instruction about what pressure is. So Paul called the pressures of life. Watch here. He called it light affliction in second Corinthians four. He said this light affliction. He said, it's just here for a moment. He said. But when you consider the eternal weight of glory had known you, he said, This is man, This is a small little potatoes. Amen. He said, Don't let it get in your thought life. Come on. Well, now, when you've been whipped and beaten and stoned, you know, and bit by snakes and all that, you know, someone defending you say Now, sister, she said, I heard this lady one time said, this lady saw this lady and saw her for 15 years. She said downtown shopping, old downtown shopping. She saw this lady been at least 15 years.

Pastor West:
And she said, baby, she said, I wouldn't even recognize you if it wasn't for the dress she was wearing. And it's like, that ain't a compliment. How many of us can tell that ain't no compliment. Yeah. Yeah. That dress that stood out. I remember that dress. So it's easy to start something, but it's not quite as easy to finish it. Amen. Huh? Jesus told the disciples, Get in the ship. We're going to go to the other side. Now, either Jesus didn't know the will of God or he was a misinformed meteorologist. I want to be because I believe Jesus lived in the will of God. Amen. Amen. Well, he told the disciples after a whole day of ministry, Get in the ship. We're going to go to the other side. Anybody here ready to go to the other side? Amen. Anybody? I mean, it was good while you been here, but you ready to sail? Okay, But on the way there, you understand there's storms from here to there. Just because the prophecy comes, like to my friend right there. That happened in February. Well, in June, four months later, it happened. So he he sold the business and bought a business the same day and he increased. But it ain't always. For months I've had prophecies and now just coming true. And it was giving me 20, 20 years ago. Amen. But there's days I felt like, God, are you.

Pastor West:
Did you leave the earth? Have you ever felt like that and you don't want to raise your hand, but I'm going to raise both of them. It felt like that. Like you're praying. It's like, is anybody else up there? Can anybody answer the telephone? Anybody? That's what the feelings are like. So So we're going to build a strong spirit. And so Jeremiah said that he said, if you raised with men on foot and you're worn out, how are you going to compete with horses? If you trip and fall in a safe place, what are you going to do when you get to a strange place? But how many know in Proverbs you ain't got to go to Proverbs 21? It says the wicked flee when no one pursues but the righteous. Somebody say with me, the righteous. A righteous man. They're bold as a lion. Amen. Amen. Y'all got a roar in you somewhere? Amen. Come on. Proverbs 1829 says for by you I can run against a troop. But, my God, do I leap? I can leap over a wall. Some of y'all came in here. I don't think I can leap today. Well, you know. The Israelites made some mistakes, didn't they? It's not like they didn't see the power of God. God said, if you hadn't saw this, then I wouldn't hold it against you. But. But you saw these ten plagues come against Egypt.

Pastor West:
You walk through. You walk through on dry ground. He says, I was expecting you to believe something. I mean, just think about it. Locusts and fire and water turned to blood and all. All these things. The ten plagues walked through a red sea. Then they get all the way to the promised land. Since the people over there sent 12 spies. Right? Ten come back and had a report. Scripture says evil. Evil is not just bad. God calls the evil demonic. He said they had an evil report. Now they walked through a red sea. But they got over said we can't do them. People are tall. I mean. I mean, they're tall like you do. We walk through the Red Sea. You know, there was fish in the water, right? I don't know if it was like jello or fruit. They were, like, congealed. They walked by us like something, you know, had mounted a shark or something like that. But the guy said, look, here's the fruit. It's just like God said. But, but, but we not be able because these people over here have great stature. In other words, they're tall. Well, what's tall in your life? What giant? What? Goliath is talking to you all the time. You got one talking to you all the time. Amen. You don't think the devil takes off, do you? The revelations. He knows his time is short.

Pastor West:
He don't have time for a day off. And why would you listen to him? Why would you listen to him? I mean, how stupid can you be to get kicked out of heaven? In other words, he was the worship leader, right? So he was the first one in heaven, recorded as the first fired employee. And, well, you got Christians listening to him, man, I could never do that. Look here. I told you, we're going to go work today. The Lord don't want you to believe The Lord does not want you to believe for your needs. I know you got quiet. Why don't you use your faith for something greater? I mean, Matthew, six, said, That's how the kingdom operates. He said, Don't be like Gentiles and how we're going to eat. How are we going to pay the light bill? How are we going to pay the rent? You say, Yeah, that's if you say if you rent it, pay it. I've been on your side plenty of times. If you there now. I've been up there plenty of times. Back when you had answering. Answering machines. I'd come home from work. That thing would be lit up like a Christmas tree. Because I know you love your mobile home, but you better start showing some love or else we're going to hook to it. I just told my dad, I said, hook, baby, hook.

Pastor West:
I don't. I mean. I always kid because, you know, one time we sitting there had all these bills and had the money and I wasn't real good at math, but I found out this wasn't going to do that. And this guy, he kept on threatening me. If you don't do this, if you don't do that, if you don't do by this time. If you don't do by this time. I said, I've had enough of you, so I'll tell you what I'm going to do. I'm going to I'm going to sort through all these bills that I have and then I'm going to take them and I'm going to I'm going to throw them up to the ceiling. And the ones that stick up there, I'm going to pay them. He got real quiet and I said, If you ever threaten me again, you're not going to even get in the shuffle. He said, Now, Mr. Webb, we probably can work out a deal. I said, Oh, okay. Now we can work out a deal. He wanted to get in the shuffle. Amen. I've been there plenty of times. But what happens when you fall into diverse temptation? Count it all up. And. And sometimes you got to pick your joy up. Yeah. Joy one. Joy two. Joy three. I mean, there's plenty of times through the years when we first got married, you know. We get in all kinds of arguments.

Pastor West:
Remember, can you remember back then? You know, last Thursday. No kidding. I told her one time. I told her one time I said we had three kids at the time and got four. But at the time we had three kids and I was working six days a week and the floor covering business. And she had three kids at home with no car and nowhere near civilization. Out past Maplesville into a little place called Stanton, where all it is is one caution light. And she had no car left with her all day long. Three kids. You say you mean not to buy a car? So I was going six days a week and before I brought my check home, it was already spent. Y'all may not know what that means, but I can explain that out of service to you. In other words, I had run out of money. I mean, I had run out of money, but they were still month. And so we got into an argument and I told her, I said, I said, You don't know anything about managing money, you know, with three, three kids from here, from here, down two of them in diapers at one time and I'm gone ten, 11 hours a day running the business. And I said, you don't know nothing about managing money. That's why we're in this mess. She said, You ain't never made enough of me to have practice.

And I said I said.

Pastor West:
Mhm. Mhm. I went outside and smoked me a cigarette and I thought Lord that woman you gave me uh, you know Lord. I said this years ago. I said, I said I brought home over $200. She said, that's what I'm talking about. Well, that hurt my pride. And I got upset and I got mad. And then at the end of the day, he said, you know, she's actually right. I said, You too. You too. Well, in Matthew six, he says, Don't sweat over how we're going to eat. How are we going to drink what we're going to wear? He says, he says seek first the kingdom and his righteousness. Those things just get added. He wants you to use your faith for the exceedingly abundantly above. You don't you don't need you don't need faith for needs. Use faith on exceedingly, abundantly above. But if your thinking gets wrong, see, you may not even know it. You'll get to a place to where you're thinking is wrong. And then he'll have you focusing on this. And you'll be off your plan and off your destiny. Because you've got a plan and you got a destiny. And the enemy. All he wants to do is he. He wants to turn the apple cart over and he wants you to go over and he'll set these little fires over here. And so you'll leave over here what you're called to do. Gifted to do, promise to do, and you'll be over here working and some some other orchard.

Pastor West:
You'll be putting a fire out over here when you're supposed to be over there. Now, that is what he's good at. It's called deception and it's called lies. Now watch here. We're talking about building a strong spirit. Proverbs 1814 said, The strong spirit of a man I will put in woman or woman sustains them in bodily pain or trouble. But a weak and broken spirit who can raise up a bare. The strong spirit. Oh. You know, getting stronger, even physically don't happen by accident, does it? You know, Jefferson, I know we got a gym down here that you can join going every day right across from this Pizza Hut. You'd be on the bikes like, Man, I get go here. I'm going to go get me a pizza. I mean, you can go to Subway, do a little bit better, but but if you work working at a gym, you know, you can sit there and be hungry. I've dropped by that gym every day. It ain't helped me none. I've looked in the window, all the machinery. And then I said to myself, I said, Be strong. I won't abs now. I found a way to get instant abs. I went to the city park and put my pull my shirt up. I know that's an ugly sounding and pressed my stomach against the fence.

Pastor West:
And I looked down and I had abs. The only thing is, I'd have to walk around with a fence on me. I tried to help you in natural things, too, if I can, but. But you have to get stronger intentionally. See, I can't pray you strong. I can't preach you strong. I can talk to you about it. Huh? I mean, like I say, you can't make a horse drink water, but you can salt his oats where he wants something to drink. So I'm Brother Salty this morning. I hope your brother and sister are thirsty. Amen. The message Bible says a healthy spirit will conquer your adversity. Y'all do believe the Bible. Listen to that. This is what this is what the Bible says. A healthy spirit will conquer your adversity. But what are you going to do when your spirit's crushed? Man, Wouldn't it be amazing if the Bible was true? All right. Ooh. Ephesians 610 said in conclusion Be strong in the Lord. Draw your strength from him and be empowered through your union with him. Amen. I'm going to say that again and be empowered through your union with him in the power of his boundless might. Amen. Amen. Yeah. Being strong is a commandment, not a suggestion. Amen. I'm giving you these references. I'm not. I don't have time to turn them, but I'm going to read them to you. First Corinthians six, 13 and 14 in the NIV says, Be on guard.

Pastor West:
Stand firm in the faith. Men and women of courage do everything in love. So he said it was a command. Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be men and women of courage. Do everything in love. Here's what he didn't say. He didn't say. Try not to be weak. No, he said, be strong. He didn't say be strong in most things. Amen. He didn't say be strong most of the time or every other day. He said, be strong. So I'm building for strength. Because I believe that your leaders. This was a train. I believe every one of you is a locomotive. I ain't preaching to no caboose because they going to get dragged everywhere. Everybody in front of the side. Amen. Huh? I mean, if we're going to be a pack of dogs, be the head dog, if you're going to pull if you going to pull a sleigh, be on the front dog. If you going to be in the back of the pack, you know, your views are always going to be the same. You're going to be looking at butts all day long. If you're going to if you if you're going to be be on the front end. Now, being a leader ain't always that fun. I mean, because you're out there with a machete cutting the trail, which means you find an every briar and every bush and every hole and all the piles and you find it first.

Pastor West:
When you get to the end, they they may be tired, but you look like you've been through battle. Oh, fierce leader that you are. Hallelujah. You know it's true. Amen. Amen. I'm having fun today. All right. Strong versus weak. Strong means having the ability to bear and endure. Firm and solid. You're able to sustain attacks. You're not easily subdued. You're not defeated or taken. You don't have to. You don't have a pee wee Herman spirit or personality. I wrote that down yesterday. I mean, I was like, I mean, I heard that I was like, Is that really the Holy Ghost just gave me that? I mean, you think I've been thinking about Pee-Wee Herman? I'm sitting here just sitting at a desk writing notes. And he said, he said, Don't have a Pee-Wee Herman spirit. Amen. And I said, okay. I wasn't planning on it. He says, Well, tell them, too. I said, Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. He said, If they're weak, that means you're soft. That means you give away. That means you give in. That means you're not able to bear a great weight. You're not able to resist the attack. We're building for strength, right? Isaiah seven four says, Take heed and be quiet. Or listen and shut up. Do not. Do not fear or be fainthearted. The Lord don't want you to faint.

Pastor West:
Huh? Hebrews said, Don't be weary in well doing. I know that's not always easy, but he said, You can do it. You know why? Because he supplies the strength. Amen. See, it's not you. It's Christ in you. Amen. And Jesus ain't tired. The Holy Ghost don't need any rest. He don't take any kind of pills to keep anything up or down. His sugar is okay. His blood pressure running fine if he has it. Praise Lord. I don't think he has it. Amen. Hey. And you going to get that body, too, one day? How many y'all mind trading this body for a spirit? Body that walks through walls. Amen. How many y'all just want that body forever? Not me, man. I'm going to trade mine in. I'm going to get that spirit model just like Jesus. We probably, you know, most theologians that believe that we'll be for eternity the age Jesus was when he was resurrected. How many y'all don't mind being 33. Amen. Amen. Man, if I could know what I know now and be young. I don't know why the Lord didn't do that. I'm not going to ask him because, I mean, you know, I don't want to sound like I'm arguing. There might be a trap door and I might fall down somewhere. But just think, if you had the wisdom of life that you have now, when you had the youth to do it with.

Pastor West:
Amen. Well, okay. You get to do that. It's called the Millennium. You're going to come back down here a thousand years. Amen. And not everybody's going to be spirit people because some people aren't going to go when we go. They're going to be here during the seven year tribulation. And they're going to be in a natural body, but you're going to be in a spirit body. Amen. And you're going to have a job to do while you're here for a thousand years. Amen. What is your job? I don't know. But I know it has something to do with your destiny. So, Jesus, come back real quick. So you better look busy. I say he's coming back pretty soon. She'll look busy. So whatever you're doing now and how well you're doing and how obedient you are, you are actually writing your resume for what you're going to do during the millennium. Amen. I don't want to run a weed eater for a thousand years. I hate weed eating. I don't want to. I don't want to be going out with no weed whacker for a thousand. Hey, brother Sam. Hey, brother. I don't want that to be my job, so I'm going to be obedient right now. If you like the whacker, you might be the man. Amen. All this is in the Bible. It actually is a strong spirit. Let's talk about a strong spirit. Can we do that? A strong spirit is confident.

Pastor West:
Y'all say Confident. Confident. Unmovable. Unmovable. Established. Ready for anything? Ready for a strong spirit is steady. Under trouble. Steady, y'all. Steady. Under trouble. Amen. Well, say you already. If you ain't. You are. You are probably. Are you paying too much to that trouble? Can I give you some practical advice? But it's actually spiritual. Just believe God. Let it go. Be willing to just let it go and see what happens. I did that. We did that in Bible school 20 something almost 30 years ago. I was like, Ain't no way I can pay for no Bible school. I got three kids. And then she comes and tells me she's pregnant. I said, How in the world did you do that? I mean, I'm out here in 1992, 1994. I'm making $6 or something an hour. And she comes up to tell me she's pregnant. What kind of woman does that? You think I got insurance for No. $7 an hour? Well, she told me. I mean, our oldest one at that time was 7 or 8. Eight, six. 4 or 3 pregnant. We weren't looking for that. We thought we were through. Completely through. Matter of fact, there's two weeks before that we were watching him, you know, trying to put peanut butter and jelly. I mean, they were making a mess all over the counter. I'm just glad they knew where it was and could reach it.

Pastor West:
Go and get a little break. Don't get a little bit easier. 2 or 3 weeks later, she's pregnant. I didn't even respond. She didn't either. We didn't say anything to each other for 2 or 3 weeks, did we? You know why? Because if you tortious, we would have just cried or screamed. So we just sent Bible school. I don't know if I heard anything. God's good. Yeah, well, okay. Praise the Lord. I ain't got no insurance. I ain't got no money. I'm in Bible school. Can you? I can't even. Oh, praise the Lord. So I came to the conclusion I was trying to work out all kind of deals myself, trying to get this. Trying to this, pay this, trying to figure out how to do it. And one day I said, Lord, if you can't keep me here in Tulsa, Oklahoma. If you can't keep us here. I'm not blaming you. But if my faith ain't this place, then I'm going home. I'm through playing this game. If you can't do it, then I'm going to find out quick. I'm just going to call my parents or someone at home and say, Would you give us enough money to get home and live with y'all? Ain't too many. Ain't too many folks you can call Do that. Pay me to get to your house to live with you. But. But, but. But I couldn't do it.

Pastor West:
And when I said I'm finally through. I mean, I'm going to school doing what I'm called to do. I'm working a job. But go work another job after that job. My wife's keeping babies after Bible school at home. She had three, but I guess she loved kids. She wanted 3 or 4 more. Amen. She said, We don't have to have paper towels. She said, we just use. We use washcloths. I think I went to we went to McDonald's twice while we was there. For the kids. Get the Happy Meal. I'm glad they was young. They have to be happy. I had a friend from Louisiana made him out there. A friend of ours. And they came to to Rama out there. And so the Bible school. And so he'd so he'd had someone pay his truck off at home or had they sent money to pay his truck off and then they sent him some money. On top of that he had like $1,500. Ain't nobody in Bible school had no $1,500. He said, Well, he said, What day are you off? Next week? I said, Tuesday. He said, I want to take you and Michelle to to to to Ryan's. What is that steakhouse? You know, we got a buffet and food all day long, and I ain't been in the restaurant almost in two years since I left home. $7 an hour for kids. How many you think? You think I sit down and steak and ale? I mean, you'd have to go eat and go to the bathroom, go outside door.

Pastor West:
But anyway, never did that. But so we went next Tuesday and I went to the bar and I got some stuff and we just eating and I didn't realize what I was doing, he says. He said, Eric, what are you doing? I said, Well, he said, You're looking all over the place. What are you looking for? He says, Oh, Scott, I'm sorry. I didn't know. I said, I just ain't seen the inside of a restaurant a long time. I just like it. We just eat real slow, eat real slow, then go get another plate, because I didn't know if I'd ever get back in there again. I mean, you're so busy going to Bible school and working kids and family. I pass myself on the interstate three times. People ask me one time, How do y'all like Tulsa? I mean, it's a lot of fun things to do. I think I'm thinking, how would I know? How would I know? Best time of my life, though. That's actually where I met God. I found out when I come to the end of myself. He was always there. I thought I was doing something. I found I wasn't doing nothing. He was. I mean, I was 30. I mean, I'm 30. I was 30 years younger. So, I mean, I could go do it, but I ran to the end real quick.

Pastor West:
And when I said I couldn't do it, it's like I heard him say. He said finally I could. I felt the words. Finally he says, Finally, boy. Finally he says, Sit down. So here's my good advice. Y'all want it? It's practical, but it's spiritual. Stop it. Stop that. Stop all of it. Amen. You're doing what you know to do, right? Amen. Well, then leave it alone. Yeah. Go get some ice cream. So if I feel stress on me, I'm looking for Mexican food. Steak, something like that. Now, I'm not talking about being stupid. I ain't talking about writing bad checks. I'm talking about. When I feel the stress coming on me. I just pushed back and I do what Hebrew four says, he says. He says faith is never faith unless it rest. See, if you're not in a place of rest, you're you're not in faith. You're paying too much attention to the struggle. And you're. And you're missing. You're missing the big end of what's supposed to be happening now. Here it is right here. You don't have to turn there but in Jeremiah. So you have to understand your time and your season. Amen. Jeremiah said this. He said in Jeremiah eight seven, he says, he said, even the stork in the sky knows her appointed seasons and the dove and the swift and the thrush observe the time of their migration.

Pastor West:
The gossip, but my people don't even know. He said. The requirements of the Lord. That word requirements means legislator. There's things that have been legally legislated from heaven for your life, for you to enter into. And what he's saying is he says even the birds, the stork, the thrush, all these birds have a have a DNA in them. I mean, like when it's winter time, you know how you see geese flying? Well, they ain't headed north, are they? Which way are they headed? They headed south because they think it's going to get cold. Get out of here. They know when to move. He said, how is it a you dumber than a goose? I mean, how do these birds know when it's time to move? So I looked up on my on my smartphone. I looked to see if there was some kind of I was going to see if there was a bird after I was falling. No, they don't have a bird app. They're coded. They have a DNA on the inside of them to knows the season of the time within. Do you know what season you're in? Amen. Are you defined it by your struggle? Huh? See, that takes back opposing yourself. Five services there. He said those who walk in the flesh. Huh? He talked about being a carnival man or a spiritual person. Carnival just means flesh and all that.

Pastor West:
And all that means is your physical senses. We all have them. Five senses. So everything that you know, you experience, it has to come through the filter of the five senses. But he said, But if you're living by those five senses and you're walking by those five senses and you're making all your decisions by your by the five senses, he said, you are not spiritual, you are carnal. And he says there's no way to please me in this because what I'm giving you is from Spirit. God is a spirit and you're a spirit. Now you need your five senses, but your five senses are not supposed to lead you. They're supposed to serve you. Amen. But the problem is, we're serving them. We're serving our senses, which means we're serving the carnal part of our life instead of the spiritual. So that's what Paul was telling Timothy. He said these people are opposing themselves and the devil is taking them at his will and they're helping him. We need to stop that. So I can't help you. If you if this doesn't settle the issue, then I don't have nothing to do. Now, when you don't know what's in here, I want to help you know what's in here. But it takes a while to come to a place to warranty. You trust God, and the buck stops right here, huh? I mean, if this ain't going to do it, I'm not going to go to Webster's Dictionary or go to some Reader's Digest and find some article that might help you.

Pastor West:
I back my life on this man? The Holy Ghost through me prevented funerals to this. That would have happened within a day or two. The Holy Ghost through me prevented people hands and fingers and and legs being amputated. The Holy Ghost in me prevented someone who was dead to be raised back to the life. The Holy Ghost in me. But by this word and by this authority, by this dominion, gave people back their eyesight, opened up deaf ears, created eardrums that wasn't there. Amen. You don't think I learned that down here? Cause do I go to school? 12 years. I don't care if you took advanced history in English, you don't make eardrums out of that. The Holy Ghost in you. Why? It's Christ in you. The hope of glory. Amen. Amen. Then he says. He says. And then. Then I'm going to provide you the faith to do it. Amen. Amen. And you say, But you don't know what I got going on. And I got this situation. Yeah, I do. I've been there. Yours may look a little different, but I've already been there. So if you want to give testimonies, I'll meet you afterwards. We'll just top the terrible testimony. And I guarantee you, when I see my whole story, I have to hand you handkerchiefs while you cry about them.

Pastor West:
People told me through the years, Man, it must be tough being a pastor. I said, Why? He said, You got to deal with everybody's problems. I said, No, I don't. I said, I did that the first three years. Three years? I went crazy. Because I couldn't fix all the problems. And the Lord said, What do you do in trying to fix their problems? I said, Well, you told me to pastor a church and they got problems and I'm supposed to be I'm supposed to help. He said, No, you're supposed to point them to me. Yeah. He said, you're trying to do it. He said, you're trying to do what Paul did on Corinthians, where he took the care of the churches. See, Paul will go preach the message of grace. In other words, just living by faith that you're righteous, not by keeping a bunch of laws. Right? Then they would say, okay, Then they received Jesus that way. Then he'd go off somewhere else and come back two months later and the judaizers come and say, You can't be righteous because you believe in this man being the Messiah and you're forgiven of everything. You've got to keep the laws day by day. They said, Oh yeah, I guess so. Call come back. And here they are, circumcising themselves again over and over, trying to keep all the laws.

Pastor West:
And that's what got Paul. Paul said, It's not the beatings, it's not the whip, It's not being stoned, it's not being snake bit. I think it would be for me. He said It's the care of the churches daily. Amen. And in the Bible. In the Bible, it says, God says, What are you doing? Taking the care of the churches. Well, I thought it was my job. No, your job was to give them the message. He says, My Grace is sufficient to take care of you and them. Amen. Amen. And then when Paul's life was going to be lost on that ship, you know, in Acts 27, he said, don't sail. But they sailed anyway. But the angel appeared to him and said, Paul, you have an appointment to stand before the king. He says, and this ship's going to be lost. He said, But no man's life will be lost. No man's life will be lost. He had a word from God, didn't he? Yes, but. But he wasn't instantly delivered from the ship. He went through what they went through. But no man lost his life because Paul was on the ship. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. You own the ship. Amen. Are you on the ship? Amen. Are you paying attention to the storm? See. You can forgive anyone of what they've done. Why can't you forgive them? Well, you don't know what was said and done. I don't have to know.

Crowd:
Amen.

Pastor West:
Would you would. Jesus came to the earth. Why did he have to give his life? Hit everyone. Was everyone in sin? Yes. On the planet who would ever be born. That means you wasn't right. That means Jesus forgave people who was wrong, who do things wrong and make mistakes. Amen. So if he forgave you when you were so wrong, how can you not forgive the person now who feels like you've been hurt by them? He gave you example when he was on the cross. He exed out your sins and he said, This is what it looks like to give yourself for someone who's dead wrong. And you're mad and you're offended. That's what the enemy is doing. So he's coming into your life and into your family and to your workplace and he's like Yea yea yea yea yea yea yea yea yea yea yea yea yea yea yea yea yea yea yea. Yea. Yea yea. And he'll point to the circumstances and they're true. They're a fact. They're not a lie. You're dealing with them. They're right there in front of you. But, but God. But God. But God who's rich in mercy with his intense love in which He loved you. See, God had a need. He intensely loved you and wanted his family. He said, I can't even be satisfied unless I have this family. I got to have these people to be whole myself. Amen. And the angels, like they're thinking about their pre-adamic race.

Pastor West:
They said, Really? What is it about, man, that you're so mindful of him that you created him a little lower? The King James messed it up and said, Angels, it's not the word angels. Look it up in the Hebrew, it's the word Elohim. They were asking, who? What is it about mankind that you've made them a little lower than God like yourself? Did you know you've been made just a little lower than God. You that you were made in the God class. Amen. Hmm. That's what you're going to create universes. But you've been put in the God class, as she said this morning. Let us make man in our image and in our likeness. And then he says, Oh, and put dominion in them. Amen. Put the dominion in them. Dominion ain't looking how to pay a light bill. Amen. I want you to jump over that. I want you to see yourself in a different place. You have to see it on the inside before you experience it on the outside. If you can if you can get in your imagination and you can see what you can't see with your physical eyes, yet you begin to see how do you get it. You take the word and you speak it and you look at it and you and you read the word and you put it on the inside of you until it becomes in your imagination and you can see it on the inside.

Pastor West:
You put the word in and you begin to paint it your heart, your spirit, your heart becomes like a canvas that the painter can paint these words and put an image on the inside. You can do it because you are already doing it. I could ask you right now to close your eyes. Close your eyes for just a moment and tell me how many windows are in your house. Someone call our number when they get it. Who? Levin. 12. Nine. 13. 13. 14. She's going back to the bathroom. Just. Just count the windows. We ain't got time for you to come back. How many, Jerry? 14. Okay, watch here. How did you do that? Huh? You know, your house is pretty good, don't you? So inside you, in your mind, In your imagination, you wouldn't visited your house, didn't you? And you counted the windows. That's what a godly imagination will do for you. Now, if you can sit here, here at nine and 900 County Road 42 Jefferson and tell me how many windows in your house where you live and you ain't there. How am I? Just knew the answer before you pictured it. Anybody? Nobody. Man. Look what you got in you. That's why God had to stop the Tower of Babel. He said these things that they managed to do. He said they're going to do it. He said, But this ain't I got to stop this.

Pastor West:
What is it that you can do that you ain't entered to? Because he's got you dealing with this little issues. First thing we had to do is go to Bible schools. We had to have a vehicle. Needed a minivan because she had a bunch of kids. We had five come back with six of us. I sold the one I had because I had payments on it. I had a nice red white conversion van. One on one all my life. Had it for a year and a half. So I did that. But I didn't want to. I didn't want a payment, you know, working part time, going to Bible school, sold it. But I had to have a vehicle. I had the money to buy a vehicle. I didn't have a dollar to buy a vehicle. People said, Well, how much could you afford? Do you think My van paid it back then was $500 years ago. It was a beautiful red and white thing, had blinds in it. It's like I go around 12 mile an hour, man. I always wanted one of these things, you know, went to practical make a $7 an hour. So we sold it. And what I could afford was nothing. Didn't do the math. Dot school, lab, school, tuition, tuition, daycare, house, rent, whatever. $7 an hour. Oh, nothing works. And one day during praise and worship. Before we went to Bible school. There's praise and worship.

Pastor West:
All of a sudden, just all of a sudden during praise and worship, I'm just beginning to know anything about the Holy Spirit or God. All of a sudden this came down during praise worship and I heard these words. He said, Thank me for the vehicle I'm going to give you. And I looked around and I said, I asked my wife. I said, Did you say something? She said, no, get your hands up. I said, okay. Like three, four minutes later. I mean, it sounded me like a male voice. And he said, Thank me for the vehicle I'm going to give you. And and I talked. I said, Did you say something? She said, I ain't said nothing. Why do you keep asking me that. I said, so the third time he said it I was a little bit smarter. I said, Lord, are you talking to me? He said, It's like he said, Finally he said, Thank me for the vehicle I'm going to give you. And then I said, I don't know why I said it. This is what I said. I said, You're going to give us a vehicle to go to Bible school? He says. I said, Can I ask you what kind? And I could see a picture like over my head, like in a caption. And I knew that was a Toyota Sienna minivan. And I knew my pastor had it for sale. And I said, How much? How will I buy it? He said, I told you I'm going to give you that van.

Pastor West:
Don't you say nothing to him. Don't you say nothing to anybody. Tell your wife what I told you. And you all thank me for. Three weeks later. Becomes where I'm working, he says. Can we can we go eat a biscuit or something? This morning? I said, Sure. And we talked and he spent. He said, Well, the reason I asked you to come, he says, yesterday, you know, we had a guest speaker so I wouldn't have to get prepared. And he says, I sit down after the Sunday morning service and he said, I just sit at my chair. And he said, The Lord told me that van you got for sale is not for sale. He said, I want you to give that to Michelle and Eric. They need it to go to Bible school. He said, okay. He said, But you have to tell my wife. I want her to agree with me. I want her to be in agreement with me. About ten minutes later, she said, she said, Bobby, you ever feel like we ain't supposed to sell that van out there? He says, he says, Why do you say so? He says, I don't know. I just got this weirdest thing on me. Like we ain't supposed to be selling that van. We supposed to be giving it to someone. And he says, Well, he says, Me too.

Pastor West:
She said, Do you know who? He said, Yeah. He said, I'll write down who and you write down and they both get paper. And I said, Eric and Michelle. So he said, here's the keys to it. He says, I didn't have no way to bring it and get back. And I don't know if you could take me back. He said, But here's the keys and you can pick it up any time you want to. It's yours. And here's the title. Amen. But three weeks later, she told me he's going to give me. I asked him what it was and it was that one. Now, I didn't go tell my pastor, like, why did it take three weeks? I said, Oklahoma, you know, give this thing a trial run and see if I wanted to come. I was in the praise and worship in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, at Raymond Bible College, you know, during the praise and worship that night. And I'm thinking, ain't no way I can afford to come this place. And when the Lord talked to me in three weeks later, he gives me the van. Well, a week, a week before we leave, you say, well, how are you going to pay tuition? I ain't got no money, no tuition. All I know is he's going to go to Bible school. But a week before it went to another person, the business person who we knew but we weren't like daily friends or weekly friends or so that's kind of like, see y'all for y'all bring your family to my restaurant and we okay, but this is not something we would just be talking to on a daily basis more than acquaintances, but not family.

Pastor West:
Family. So we went anyway, you know, fed all the kids and they had lunch. And she's sitting there with us and she said, Can I ask you a question? It's kind of personal. I said, Sure. She says, How much does it cost to go to the Bible school where you're going? I said I said, well, it's about $3,000 for tuition, but, you know, we're both going to go. Oh, sheesh. Well, can I ask you another personal question? I said, Yeah. She said, Do you already have the money? I said, No, ma'am, I don't have a dollar of it. She said, Well, how are you going to do it? I said, Well, we're going to go three months early and I'm going to work for this guy who has a large floor covering business, which is what I do. But I ain't got to run this time. I ain't got to be the boss. So I guess the Lord is going to bless me. I'm going to sell a bunch of floor covering two months before school starts, I guess. She said, Well, I don't know about that, she says. Uh, reason I'm asking is, could I just pay for your Bible school, you and your wife's? And I said, Well, you know, two years, that'd be several thousand dollars.

Pastor West:
She said, Yeah, I've already done the math. Could I pay for it? Like we were meant to pay for theirs. Same time. And I said, You're gonna pay for the whole Bible school. She says, Uh huh. And I left thinking. Well, the plan was to go to Bible school, but I ain't had no vehicle. I didn't had no money. And. I just said yes, and then I forgot about it. Because I can't produce all that. So it seems to me like I don't this is kind of serious, but I'm going to go out. I'm way out on them now. I'm way out there. So y'all judge this. It seems like the Lord knows everything. Huh? Does he know everything? Okay, we got a finish. Because I told you I'll let y'all out of here before 6:00. Nice kid. Now, listen here. Proverbs 2410 says If you fall to pieces in a crisis, there wasn't much to you in the first place. But a person with a strong spirit. Who's controlled by the Holy Spirit. Takes control of their mind by directing your mind to the word. Oh, we'll finish. Uh, Romans 1513. You ever heard of people who give themselves a self examination? Of different kinds of physical tests. Sometimes some things you can do at home. I'm we're going to take a self examination this morning.

Pastor West:
Romans 1513. I mean, how do you know if you're in faith? Now the God of all hope. Fill you with all joy and peace and believing. That you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Ghost. I want you to see that if you've got a Bible, I want you to look at it. Unless they're going to put it. There it is. There it is. There it is. Watch you. They all read that with me. Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing that you may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost. I'll leave it up here. Now watch here. Now, the God of Hope. Same word. Hope means expectation. See. You got to begin to expect something. Hope here means a godly expectation. He will fill you with all joy and peace in believing that you may abound in this hope and expectation. But where's it going to come through? Your power, your might, your strength, your knowledge, your wits, your wisdom, your know how, know that's what's going to get you in trouble. Through the power of the Holy Ghost. Now that's it. So I always thought it was kind of unusual that, you know, this verse and you may not know much about Nehemiah. You ought to read this book. It ain't that long because you're going to be one day he's going to say, Did y'all read my book? And you're going to say, I'm sorry.

Pastor West:
I just never really came up that. But we know. We know one verse in Nehemiah, don't we? The joy of the Lord is. Nehemiah going to get that quote to him all the time? He said, Y'all ain't read nothing else in there, did you? But the joy of the Lord is what? That's that's if you think about it, that's kind of unusual. The Lord could have picked anything. As a measuring or device to produce joy in you or strengthen you or produce strengthen you. But for some reason, he chose Joy to be the conduit to bring strength into you. So when you see people who walk around like this all the time, you know, they got the head down kicking the can. I don't know, man. I just like, man, their life is like devil all over me, man. Praise the Lord. If it ain't a curse it show it, show kinda one. I don't know what all this about. I just want to go right here. And it's like, Man, the boss man over here, he, like, go do this. And then the kids over there, they won't never shut up. And man, inflation. You don't have a head of cabbage. Yes. My gosh. We ain't got three sacks of groceries. You'd have thought I bought the whole first aisle. All I got three inch light. Bill done went up, car tore up, got a flat on the tire.

Pastor West:
Wife didn't make the food. But I like I like. I can't tell her that you know praise man Life's hard on me. What we need to do is drop you off. Where? You just went to a mission trip. Or next month in Peru, it'll be 30 below zero and the children will die because they'll freeze to death. And they would trade places. You in a moment. You're blessed. Amen. But the joy of the Lord is your strength. Now, how many of y'all already prayed about your situation? Amen. Tell how he has already prayed about your situation that you need change. That's about all of us, right? So so let me ask you. So if you could have changed it, would you have already done it? If you could have changed it, you would have already done it. Okay, so you've already prayed about it. Now, are you in faith about it? Don't know if you are or not. So if you in faith, you're resting, you're leaving alone. But if you keep on revisiting this thing the whole time, that's what the flesh does. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. Why? Because their carnal mind in the physical senses are telling them it ain't working. It ain't working. It ain't working. Working by this. My, this. I got a symptom. I got a symptom. I got a symptom. I got.

Pastor West:
Oh, I got a symptom. X ray. Got a symptom. I got a symptom. I got a symptom. I got a symptom. Oh, I got a bunch of symptoms. I got la la la la la la la la la la. Doc, if I don't do this, they're going to come off and go. He's going to ride off. He's going to die. Your daddy, your granddaddy like this. I had a friend of mine who had a stroke. He was adopted and they kept on saying, We need to know about your parents, We need about this. We need to know about all that, He says. He says you going to have to actually earn your own money. I don't even know him myself. I tried to find him. They can't be found. I don't know if they dead. They're alive, he says. I'm 67 years old. I don't imagine they're alive, he said. But I couldn't find them. He says, You have to figure this one out on your own. Do your own job. So all that comes in. So but see, faith settles it. Are you healed? Because by his stripes, you are healed. Yeah, but I don't feel healed. That ain't the scripture. He didn't say. When you feel healed, then you shall know. When all the money come in. You shall know that I tell the truth. That'd be wonderful. But if it is, why would you need faith? Faith is the substance of things and not.

Pastor West:
And when you can see them, you don't need faith anymore. That's deep, ain't it? That was deep. Faith is the substance of things hoped for or expected, the things not seen. So those who is in the flesh cannot please God, those who are being ruled by their emotions and their feelings. And he said, And she's hitting the kids, heading the money, saying the jobs here like it. But sometimes you just want to say, shut up, stop it. You know, I'm a person just like you. I got a life. I got a family. I got a boss. I mean, angels don't come to my house and carry the trash can out to the road on that day. I'm a man of God. So the angels come say yes, Man of God. Will you look down there? And it's like, Why did you throw all that food in there? Four days later, man, that beggar lice all over his place. I got there. She said, Be okay. I said, Now I'm going to spray air freshener or something. I mean, let's be kind to these people somehow. I do life just like you do. I could get more personal than that, but I'd better stop. But I just decided just to believe God. Now, let's. This is the third door of the sermon, so I'll close the door here. I don't even know why I make notes. I don't ever get to them.

Pastor West:
Y'all ever heard of CS Lewis? He gives us a verse in Romans 1417. He says, The kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. So. So. So. So what is the Kingdom of God? It's not meat and drink. It's not. How you going to pay your bills? It's not what you're going to do about this. That's supplied because you're, you're you're in the kingdom. You're in the family. You're the child of God. Yes. I ain't never had no kid of mine was believing God that I'd feed them. They didn't have to come. Say, please, can I have some cereal? A three year old, they just walk in the pantry and they open up like. Like they bought everything. I was taking Lexi home a couple of weeks ago in her car. She has a car, but she just can't drive or she's practicing it. So I took her back to Alabaster and I said, No way, We need to get some gas. And I said, Have you pumped gas yet? She said, Yeah, Nina. She said, one time I said, Well, here, here's the debit card. Put it in. Just going to ask you this. And then I sat in the car. I said, You're going to leave there to open your door. Take the cap off. Put it on the hook. She put the card in. She said, it says this. I said, That's right.

Pastor West:
All right. Put this in. I said, Now she says, it says, remove it. I said, Well then remove it. That's it. I said, give me my card back. And she pumped the gas and she was proud of herself. She sat down. I said I said, Now, okay, you're driving. You know how to drive pretty good. And I said, You pump gas. I said, There's just one thing that you don't know. You know how to drive the car and put the gas in. But one thing you don't know is you ain't made the money to buy the gas. But that will be coming up. You won't keep on going like this. So he said, don't use your faith for that kind of stuff. He said, Because the kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. Now, here's the quote from CEO Lewis I want you to hear. She C.L. Lewis. I'm reading this article, a respected author who had great things to say about joy. He said, Joy is the serious business of heaven. In other words, having conducted this most serious business in the atmosphere of joy. Amen. Y'all y'all hearing me? Having conducted this most serious business in the atmosphere of joy in the Kingdom of God. There are some business to be taken care of. He said, while you rejoice, transactions are being made and prayers are being answered. People may warn you better take this situation seriously.

Pastor West:
But when you apply the blood of Jesus and then rejoice, you tell them, I am taking this extremely serious. Amen. He said, My mother used to take the care of business by shouting and running around the church. My dad was this guy who wrote the article. His dad was a pastor and he said My dad would comment as she ran because people would be looking at, you know, the pastor's wife running around the church and shouting. And he used to write, This is the serious business of heaven. And so he said, my mother used to run around the church shouting and my dad, you know, cause people would look at him and Brother Hankins and Sister Hankins is going around. Woo woo. Because he said they wanted their money to buy food. And the babies were sick. She's the pastor's wife and she's running around trying woo woo woo. And he says, So she read this thing about CS Lewis. She said, Well, if Heaven conducts its most serious business in the atmosphere of joy. So they looked at him like, What's your wife doing? And he just said, he said. Is not necessary unless it's necessary. He says. And it's and in our life right now, he said it's necessary. And that was their thinking. Does your wife really have to do that? He said, Well, it ain't necessary unless it's necessary. And he says, And I ain't going to get into all of it, but it's necessary.

Pastor West:
Let my wife run. Heaven conducts its most serious business in an atmosphere of joy. Joy? Huh? Not. Not. Not sadness. I mean, people have been sad so long, they've had a droopy face. Their face is getting longer. You keep on doing that, you're going to have a head long as a Shetland pony. You're going to need to go to chiropractor all the time because you're like, Dang, man, I don't know what we're gonna do, man. But when you know the truth, that sets you free. So you'll stand up straight. You get a spark in your eye. Yeah, man. Like Brother Matt says, the money may not come. You may, You may. You may reach in your pocket. He said you may reach down there and can't find nothing. You pull it out and you find some. And he said, But it can't be spent. You can't spend Lent. Or at least I don't know where you can spend it at. Right. But you walk around like you own the world. I got to. Butterscotch is right here. Like butterscotch. You like butterscotch? Praise the Lord. Prayers answered right there. Just like that. A little bit better than the Lent. But you walk around like you own the earth. You know why? Because you do. The earth is the Lord's and the fullness of it. He gave it to men to put it under your dominion.

Pastor West:
Amen. So whatever you have need of today. In the name of Jesus. I'm not going to pray for all of that because heaven can do it from right here in the name of we're conducting serious business right here. Hallelujah. Ha ha ha ha. Glory to God. But watch your brother, Bill. We on YouTube. They might think we. They might think we Radical Jesus believers. Huh? Glory. I'm glad the rest of y'all ain't got nothing serious. I'm glad y'all ain't got no problems. Yeah. So. Cs Lewis said, In all these years of ministering as a theologian, he said, I have come to concur that it is absolutely true that heaven is legislating and conducting its most serious business with you when you are in an atmosphere of rest and peace and joy. Yeah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. So put the oars in the boat because you're going against the current trying to get back there and you're getting some of y'all tired. Y'all just you all out. Just put the. Just put the oars in the boat and say, Lord, it's yours now. Amen. And pick up your Winnie Pooh, honey, and just lay down the boat and eat the honey. All right. Amen. And watch him turn it around. Amen. Thank you. Thank you, Father. Somebody is about to get some. Somebody is about to get a phone call. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Somebody's going to more than somebody. More than one person is going to get a phone call about a seriously good place of employment.

Pastor West:
My Lord, right now, it's not going to be what you thought it was. Amen. And you might first think and I'm just saying this by the Holy Ghost, you really wasn't planning on doing that. But I'm telling you ahead of time, the Lord's plan is better than your plan. And even though you may not feel comfortable, walk in. Come on. See? God told Abraham to leave his house and go to a city. I'll show you. He said. Okay. Where is it? He said, Just go. I was like, Well, I can go that way. He said, We'll go. So it's a lot easier moving, you know, to drive something that's already moving. I used to have a 1973 Ford 154 full bed liner pickup with three on the column. Power steering was right here. Try to parallel park that sucker. But it was a lot easier when that vehicle was moving, you know, with no power steering to to to maneuver it. The reason why some of y'all ain't get we need to be is you in park and you got the mercy brake on saying, God help me. He's like, well, could you get it? Could you at least get your foot off the brake? Could you quit talking about it? It ain't working. The Lord can't do nothing. It ain't working. And everybody in the house is mad at everybody. They mad, as you know, right? Come on.

Pastor West:
Let's just be normal on that side. But that's not what we're going to stay. So. So come on over here into the spirit realm. Get out of the enmity. Get out of the. Get out of the place of opposing God. He said, Lord said, if you're if you're determining your life by your five senses, the carnal mind is enmity in opposition. It doesn't mean you're God's enemy. It means you. You are causing it. The word opposition actually means this. Enmity means this. You are in a steady, steady, ongoing place of working against God. It doesn't mean you hate God or he hates you, but you're steadily working against him because you're working everything through your five senses and you have to stop that. And you have to come to a place of faith and a place of rest and saying, okay, God, I'm giving this thing to you. I'll go do what I know to do. I'll make the phone call. I'll walk this way, I'll go here. It don't make any sense to me. And the phone. So some more than one person is going to have. He's going to be a phone call or it's going to be someone you're going to come in contact with something or someone and it's going to be a greater employment that you thought. Amen. Amen. Much greater than your stress is going to go way down. Huh? Can we have a song before we leave? Can we have a song?

Brother Bill Seay:
Hallelujah.

Pastor West:
I want Pharrell Williams happy. Right in church. I want it real loud, too. I don't bust my speakers like $16,000 a piece, and they're older than I am. So there are at least 25 years old. Huh? Come on, take the lid off. The Bible says casting all your care. You all ready? You know how we do this around here? Brother Bill, can I use you as an example? Now, if I want to know something about mechanics, a good mechanic. Come up here, sir. A good mechanic or a fisherman? I'd ask him. Amen. So you know how we do this? We're going to cast all of our cares. Okay. What? We're going to do it fishing. So how are we going to do it? Was going to take the hook, right? What were we going to put on the hook? How many of them, man? That would be a big hook. Some folks. Bill We got some big hooks. We got some big. We got some. What? Do you know what you're talking about? Yeah. Kathy. I ate them. I don't know about ketchup. Yeah. Hook them with the trouble. Are we going to put all of our carry right there? And then how are we going to do it? We mash a little button. Mash your button. You got all your cares on it. Reach back. Reach back. Now, when you get back right there, let the button go right here. I never knew that. That's why I lost my bait. If you don't let.

Brother Bill Seay:
If you don't, it's going to land right there. So you get right there.

Pastor West:
Y'all put your other hand up because you got to have this now. All right. Someone ain't ready. They ain't got the other hand up. There we go. Ready?

Brother Bill Seay:
The other hand is holding the end. The other end of the rod.

Pastor West:
Oh, I see. Oh, I didn't know that.

Brother Bill Seay:
This hand right here is on the rail. Yeah. Mashing the button with your thumb. Put your thumb. And when you get back right here. Okay. You let that thumb go.

Pastor West:
How far can we go out?

Brother Bill Seay:
How hard are you swinging? The farther it'll go.

Pastor West:
All right. How many y'all don't want to see your shovels? No more, No more. Okay. Sling them way out there. Right. All righty.

Brother Bill Seay:
There we go.

Pastor West:
It's still.

Brother Bill Seay:
Going. Foo, foo, foo. Hit the water. Just catch it real on it.

Pastor West:
Throw the reel in there with it. You don't want to see any of them suckers come again right now. How many y'all just cast all your cares on the Lord? Amen. Did you really? Oh, so that means y'all won't be talking about them no more. Amen. Y'all.

Brother Bill Seay:
Amen. Praise God.

Pastor West:
You see? Now, now, now. He getting up in that business? Yeah. Now you cast him, right? So now you resting. Amen. If you working on him, he's sitting down when you pick it back up. They're all going to sit down and say, well, I'm just going to sit down. They up again. They talking and it ain't working. The money ain't coming in. Da di da da da da da da da da da da da da da. Fill in the blank. But you cast all your cares. Now you can count it all. What? Joy?

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Stop Opposing Yourself Part 5 Developing A Strong Spirit | 18Jun2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Stop Opposing Yourself Part 5 Developing A Strong Spirit | 18Jun2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Well, good morning and welcome to Gracelife Church. Glad that each one is here. Want to say happy Father's Day to everyone here this morning. Thank God for spiritual men. Amen. And I don't know how we was all raised different ways and fathers and we all love and care for our fathers. Some of them may have different experiences, better, maybe some not as good as others, I don't know. But ultimately, what we're really doing is we want to think of ABBA Father. Our our father. Father, You know, your father was a was a young man and he was a boy and he was a child. And someone said, It's a boy. And so they aren't perfect by any stretch of the imagination. But God didn't call us to be fathers or mothers because we're perfect. But he gave us a book right here and he gave us his Holy Spirit. And and with that information, we can be exactly who we are called to be. We can be the leaders. We're called to be men and women. And so I just want to thank God and thank you for the the men that are here this morning and in this church that have made this ministry strong, really, really strong. Before we came on the air, late was receiving the offer. And he talked about things that we've done to we've been able to do to hear abroad in the community and and missions for the last three years.

Pastor West:
Actually four years. We just increased every year in what we're doing in the community. But we're doing it into the world. We are broadcasting. We started this a number of years ago, but kind of got more serious about it in the last few years. I kind of be honest. We had to be pushed into it just a little bit. But I had a good a good and kind pusher. And so we're we're we're ministering several different ways. You may be watching by Facebook or you can certainly view on YouTube. We're live there both times simultaneously. And then we go into an audio broadcast and then that the audio of this morning will go and it will be dispersed by different ways and means and it'll go into over 40 countries. We have an active listening audience every every time the mic is turned on around the world, we have an active listening audience of over 1100 people. And so we thank God for the ability to, in the privilege that we have to to preach the gospel, the policy, the great ineffectual door has been opened unto me. I thank him for that verse doesn't end there. The last part of that verse is and when the door is open, you'll find that there's many adversaries. So we don't always want to quote the whole verse, but there's an opportunity. But, but when there's an opportunity, there's always an enemy. But that's okay, because that's what we're doing.

Pastor West:
We are equipping ourselves with the Word of God. We have the tools in front of us and we have with within us to effectively do the work that we're called to do and be fruitful in it. This is a good, according to my opinion, whatever that means. This is a good place for us to really dig in. I'm trying to I'm trying to say this is a great time to listen. If you've been listening, Amen here and going forward, I don't generally come with notebooks like this. I came Friday with a notebook like this, and I came up here just to to to actually pray. And I don't I don't ever pray. I don't go anywhere and pray without something to write with and without this. So if you don't have something to write with and you're not expecting God to say nothing to you. Of course you can write in your phone and all that kind of stuff if you know how to do that and like to do it that way, you can certainly do that. But but here's the deal. So I was up here and I wrote, I don't know, I had no intentions of writing anything unless you said anything. And and it came into ten pages. For those of you who wasn't here last week, we're in the series. Stop opposing yourself, Kid named a lot of things, you know, stop opposing your your miracle. Stop opposing your your financial blessings.

Pastor West:
Stop opposing yourself and healing or whatever, whatever the situation might be. Just make it work for whatever is working on in your life. But if you hadn't watched it go back to the broadcast also and I mentioned this, but I just want to remind you, if you go if you go to the website, you'll be a place there where you can see there's a transcript of, you know, in written form of everything said. Now, it's not exactly 100% accurate. Probably if I would speak better English more plainly, you could pick up the words better. So sometimes it's like, huh, But it misses so few words, so you can actually go read it. Or if you wanted to, you can print it off and and if you want to keep it in your files, if you have a file. So with all that to work with, I don't know how to help you anymore. Tell them. Show them they can listen, They can watch. They can pull it off. They can get they can transcribe it. Because sometimes I remember going to Bible school. I wasn't that great a note taker when Michelle and I was at Rhema. Michelle was is a great note taker. So I. I listened really well. You know, when you move, when you move seven, 800 miles to do something you thought you would never do and you're there. I didn't always pay attention to school. I wasn't that great a student because I wasn't that interested.

Pastor West:
I wished I had been and I should have been, but I wasn't. But at this stage of my life, I was 30 years old. And it Raymond, I was paying lots of attention. And so Michelle would take notes and and sometimes they'd help you say, like, you might want to write that down because you might see it again on a test. That means it will be on the test. So they would even help you with that. But I would write things down and my mind was focused on what I was writing, so I can't really hear what he's saying past it. Somehow Michelle was doing like dictation. I don't know how she does it. So if I had to, I'd just go back and get her notes, see what I missed. But. But I listened really well. I listened well enough to come out Raymond with a 3.9.7 GPA from listening. But that doesn't mean you remember it. So it's good to have things written down. I suppose God knew that. Anyway, he Aren't you glad he gave us a written copy? 40 authors. And if you want to know what these people and other people have went through to get us this Bible, just read if you can stomach it, the Foxe's Book of Martyrs and you'll see the people who gave their life and the way they were tortured and the way they died. It's not a it's not a fun read, but you'll have an appreciation for this word when you find out what they, you know, when they were actually skinned alive.

Pastor West:
Their flesh removed from their body and then poured salt all in them. Don't make another copy of this or it'll happen to you. But that didn't stop them. So I hope we have that appreciation for it. So. So I'm going to go rather quick today or not. And we're going to we're going to go back to our our main text and second Timothy chapter two. And I'm going to pick up in verse 24, and it says this Paul is writing to Timothy a letter. And Timothy is what, Paul's son in the spirit, his spiritual son, Timothy Young. Timothy apparently is getting some yannina from the from the church, from the congregation. Does that happen in church? Oh, yeah, it happens. It doesn't happen here. I can remember when it did happen. I had some good advice when I started the church. Someone with a church, over a thousand people. I said, What do I need to do to be an effective pastor? He said, You'll have to be tougher than hell. For one thing, those words became very, very true. It seemed like I heard John Osteen say this same thing when he built Joel's dad, John, when he built the church Lakewood. He said the first two years, it seemed like Satan sent everybody that he could across the planet to try to kill us before we could get going.

Pastor West:
And then I think those same people came to Alabama. But we were talking about some of these stories the other day, and I was like and I was going back 30 years ago and thinking, you know, what happened? I was like, wow, didn't that did all happened in the first 2 or 3 years? I mean, we met more nuts, more just crazy people that you could not help. I mean, there's a preacher service sermon years ago. There's 12 kinds of people that you can't help today. Don't mean they can never be helped, but in their frame of mind, you, you can't help them. Today Jesus met people that he couldn't help and walked away from them. You're not going to help everybody and you're not called to help everybody. Amen. Amen. And when you figure that out quicker, sooner than later, your life will go a whole lot easier and you won't be frustrated. But anyway, so Paul said, and the servant Lord must not strive, but be gentle to all men apt to teach and be patient. Serving the Lord must not do what? Strive, but be gentle to all men apt to teach and be patient. Well, I read that. I thought, well, it calls me out of ever being the ministry. Well, turns out everything that you need from the fruit of the spirit. Patience is one of those fruit.

Pastor West:
So you have it. But you have to employ it. Then he says, in meekness, instructing those that what? Are being opposed. No, they weren't, y'all. Can y'all talk? Where are you at? Verse 25. Second. Timothy 225. In meekness, doing what? Instructing those that what oppose themselves. They oppose themselves. If God prevents you will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth. Verse 26. That they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil who are taken captive by him at his will. So notice this is this is basically a one man show. Uh, you have no one to blame for this. And that's one of the classifications of people that you can't help. Is that someone where everything is somebody else's fault? Yeah, They don't take responsibility for themselves. In other words, where they are in life is somebody else's fault or it's your fault if someone blames you for where they are in life. It's hard. It's hard for you to help that person. Uh, everybody in here. We all have a story and some. And it's a winding road. And there's some things that just. Some of them curves were dangerous. Some of those you supposed to slow down if you went around it. Some of you didn't actually make the curve to to to to to to to. There were some bumps in the road. There were some people that the enemy sent your way and your path not just to block you, but to stop you and actually to destroy you if you can.

Pastor West:
But you're not put here for destruction. You're sitting here to destroy. That's right. Amen. Can I talk to you that plain? The scripture said that for the Jesus came for this purpose. To destroy. Destroy the works of the devil. Destroy them. Well, we're called to do what Jesus calls so, so, so, So we're here to blow up, huh? We're not here to hinder. We're here to. To blow up. Yeah. So when we hear doctrine, that's not true. And the only way that you can know what is true is know the truth. Amen. There is a feel good doctrine. There are many feel good churches. They're real popular to keep a lot of congregation. They have to have a lot of programs and they have to have a lot of feel good stuff. Makes me feel good. There's a lot of feel good songs. You would think there's a whole lot of songs that you can sing today that scriptural. There's very few of them. I mean, there's songs that we still sing today and we'll, you know, Chris and I talk about it. She says, Well, it says this. I said, I know. I said, I said I was going to write songs too now. And some of them are just beautiful, you know, And so but they're just not scriptural. But they do. They do. They're applicable to people because they they make them feel good in their emotions.

Pastor West:
So what we're going to do, he said, You're opposing yourself. In other words, God has a plan and the enemy's God's for you and the enemy's against you. It's just that simple. John. Ten. Ten. Right. John ten. Ten is the dividing line of the Bible, the. And New Covenant. He just said, Satan come to kill, steal and destroy. But I didn't come to do that. I came to give life and give it to you more abundantly. Amen. And so we divide it by that. So how do we oppose ourselves? Well, as we get further, we're going to talk about there's actually three men that we we have to know something about. When I say men, I'm talking about men and women. I'm talking about believers. So but there's three in the word. There's there's three men or three mindsets that we have to understand and know what they are. One is we haven't covered this, but we'll get into it. One is the natural man, one is the carnal man, and the other one is the spiritual man. The natural man is the man who's he's not born again. He's unsaved. He can't he can't understand nothing about the things of God. The Bible says. He says he can't discern anything. To him, everything looks crazy. It looks foolish. You can talk spiritual matters to someone spiritually dead. And they're like, What? Because they're spiritually dead? Well, we were spiritually dead when we.

Pastor West:
When we. When we were born again. Right? I mean, when we came into the earth. God, just have a seat anywhere you like. There's coffee and water out there if you want some. Somebody ate all the donuts. I wouldn't. I wasn't kind. But anyway, so we're in. We're in a series called Stop Opposing Yourself. Stop opposing yourself. And that's how it came to me. Stop opposing yourself. Well, so we there's a contrast that we're talking about. The natural man the Bible calls the natural man. He's just someone who's not saved. He's never been born again. He's been born one time by a natural birth, but he's not born again. Remember what Jesus told Nicodemus? Nicodemus couldn't understand it. Here he is, you know. You know, he's. He's big in the religious world. You know, the rabbi, the teacher and Jesus kind of, you know, he lovingly said, You don't know much, do you? So he said, Nicodemus said, How will a man like me, me, be born again? I mean, my parents are not even here. How am I going to re-enter my mother's womb? So Jesus, like, oh boy, three and a half years. So no, he said, you know, you have to be born of the water and of the spirit. So the natural man is just someone who's not born again. He's unsaved, the carnal man. Now you understand, the carnal man quite often is someone who's born again.

Pastor West:
They're saved, but they're saved. They're born again. So in their spirit, in your spirit, the moment you get saved, the millisecond you get saved. Christ came into you, into your spirit in Ephesians said after you got saved, he sealed your spirit. Amen. Now, those of us who are old enough remember when Granny can things put them in jars? And then, you know, later that year she'd go make cold and she'd go make a pan of cornbread. Come on, somebody. And then and get out the vegetable soup. And she went and got one of them old jars. How many how many of y'all know what I'm talking about? No one. No. Young. You know what I'm talking about. But when you got the jar, a mason jar and you open the lid, what did it have on top? It had a little. Had a little round disk. A little seal. Right. And how do you know if it did its job? It goes. What? It goes. If it doesn't. If it doesn't do that, give it to your brother in law or somebody else. Say, here, take this home now. Could you take that off the tape? Okay. That wasn't love, was it? But that's what that's why we know it was sealed. It was preserved. The Book of Jude, which is only one page, he says, at the end. This thing, when you get to heaven, the father is going to Jesus. The son is going to take you to the Father.

Pastor West:
I don't know what that's going to look like, but he's going to take you personally to the father and he's going to present you to the father, blameless and faultless. Amen. So when you are born again, all the life of God comes into you. Life. Strong's number two. Two, two, two. I see. You remember. Two, two, two, two. Because I don't want to make up stuff. So the life of God came into you, which is the nature of God. In other words, you have his nature in you. You have his likeness in you, you have his dominion in you, you have his authority in you. And it's all in your spirit. And then to make sure that the contamination of this world, demons or the devil couldn't get to it. Ephesians says he sealed you. And the has been trying to go, but it can't. He can't even get the lid off the jar. Amen. But when you got saved, how many how many knows that your body didn't get saved? He said, Well, when you get saved, you just change. You completely change. No, you don't completely change. I mean, I liked ice cream before I got saved. Amen. I liked it the day after, too. You know, if you was 5 or 6, you probably five, six the next day. That's right. View as if whatever you was naturally, you still are the next day. So.

Pastor West:
So what changed instantly was that you became a new creation in Christ. What? Second Corinthians 517 Once translation said a new species of being that has never existed. In other words, God came to live on the inside. You are now the Temple of God. Your spirit is God's address. You get that? You are a mobile throne, not not a mobile home. You're a mobile throne wherever you go. You have the throne of God on the inside of you. Ephesians says you've been seated with God in heavenly places. If you're a student of those things where you look up the word seated, it means enthroned. You are in the throne with Christ. You are now doing what Christ did while He was on the earth. Christ actually occupied two different worlds at one time. He told you, John, 17. You're not even of this world. Amen. Jesus said he wasn't of this world. And John, 17 the night before he was crucified. He prayed this. He said, Father, keep them. He said, They're not of this world, just like I'm not of this world. So you're in heaven positionally seated with Christ ruling and reigning far above all principality and power and might and dominion at the same time you're dealing with with with the things in this natural world. I found for me, for me, the best day, the best way to deal with the news for me is don't hear it. I wasn't confused who I was before I heard it.

Pastor West:
I'm not confused after. There's so much confused about identity now. Well, there doesn't have to be confusion. See. Could we just say God's right? But see, people's feelings are real to them. You know, the enemy can work in the area of feelings. The thing is why we don't look at it that way is because the devil don't come to you like that. Underwood. Ham. He doesn't have a red suit and a pitchfork and a long tail. So I'm the devil coming out of you, boy. So you don't see him that way? So you don't get out your, you know, your 36 and blow his head off. But you have weapons. Second Corinthians says that are not carnal, but they're mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. Jesus showed us how a man, a man Jesus had to come as a man. He was God and he was man. But he was. He's man. The Bible says he will always know, be known in heaven as the son of man. Can you imagine agreeing to be going from God? To being born a human on this earth, being full deity to be so He's your example of how we are here. Flesh in flesh. And he came as a man filled with the Holy Ghost and walked in total authority, love, dominion and everything as a man. Feel the Holy Ghost. So if you're born again and you're filled with the Holy Ghost, you have everything Jesus had.

Pastor West:
Amen. You have to. I mean, it'd be wrong. It'd be unkind, unkind for Jesus to tell us. Before he left. He said, The works that I do will you do? And greater works than these. Because I go to my father. If you didn't give us the same stuff to work with. I mean, if you go tell me to build a house and take away all the tools, I'm not going to build much even if I know how to do it. Now, that's an example. Ain't no one gonna ask me to build anything. But anyway, so we want to look at this as we go forward. We want to look at this natural man. We want to look at the man who's governed by the flesh. And we want to look at man who's governed by the spirit. What we're turning what we want to do is we want to do what Ephesians four said, which is that we come to the fullness of who we are in Christ. Paul didn't say, Come to come to me. He didn't. Paul never pointed to himself. He did say, Follow me as I follow Christ. But there's a couple of times I can find what Paul got off. I ain't following him that day. I'm not criticizing you at all, but we can follow Christ. He's our example and everything. So, like, I had no idea when I came up here Thursday or Friday, I had no idea I was going to write this right here.

Pastor West:
I was just kind of praying about the service from last week and why we're doing that. This won't mean as much to you as it to me as it will mean to me, because this is this is number five in the series. And so it would mean more to me someone who prayed it out and studied it out, wrote it out and preached it. So Monday, for those of you who were here last week and heard the service so Monday, Kristin, wave him. That's Kristin. She's my youngest daughter. And Amy raised her her her older sister. Yeah, Older sisters always tell you what to do. You don't have to be right. But they can still tell you. I know something about that. Don't raise your hand now. Yeah. Yeah. I have forgiven her, though. If you think I have large cheekbones cheeks because she pulled them out for years. And one day my brother and I figured out we could take her together, and that ended that forever. Did you turn out? You see how good I turned out? Yeah. Amen. So after the now. Now, last Sunday, Christian was teaching Children's church. So she wasn't in here, so she didn't see her hearing the service. So Monday, she's washing dishes at home, and she prophetically gets these things and stops washing dishes. And apparently the Lord knows where Jemison is and knows where their house is and just tired of washing dishes and doing nothing spiritual except when your spirit everything spiritual.

Pastor West:
She gets this wall called a down low, spiritual down low. But she has many times the Holy Spirit used her this way. And so she gets it and she sends it to Elliot. And he said, Did you send this to your dad? She said, No. He says, you need to send this to your to your dad. He said, So I read it and I said, Wow. I said, So you've already watched the service from yesterday? She said, No, I hadn't watched the service. And I said, Well, go watch the service, not because I'm interested, but just like you weren't even in the service and the Lord talked to you about this washing dishes. Well, if I was going to write, you know, like a bullet points for last Sunday, it would have been this. It says this because it's finished. Because it's finished. That's the reason why. But you may say, Lord, help me for my senses lie. They do lie. That's why I said, don't be ruled by what you see, for what you see is seldom reality. Walking by the senses makes things complicated. Walking by the senses will only leave you exasperated if you walk in by what you see. You're not walking in what is done. If you're walking in, what is done, you're. If you're not walking in what is done, you're not walking as a son.

Pastor West:
If you're the performer instead of the believer, you're not in rest and you won't be a receiver by grace through faith. That's always going to be the instruction. The more you add to that, you'll walk in self destruction. My yoke is easy and my burden is light. Don't gauge your deliverance by the intensity of the fight. The washing dishes. That's called walking in the flesh. You'll lose every time. But if you come up in the spirit, you'll see you can cease from your climb. I don't say climb the mountain. I said move it and your senses will say, This mountain ain't moved. Prove it. So you'll keep trying to move the mountain with the sweat of your brow. You read 50 books on man's interpretation of how you work and you work. It'll be to no avail, because the mountain you're trying to move has already fell. And at that very instant, it ceased from living. So I tell you now it's finished. It is done. Rest, rest, rest. In my son. Even if there is still green on the leaf, don't be fooled into unbelief. Walk in the spirit and you'll see the fig tree is surely there. Because I love you. And I never go back on what I said. I mean, she could just come give that. I could have stayed home. Okay. So let me let me get back to my notes. So here it is, the life of the new man in Christ.

Pastor West:
How many are in Christ? The life of the new man in Christ was never meant to be governed by your senses. Which is your mind and your body. When the Bible says Romans eight six, it talks about. It talks about the carnal man is enmity against God. The word image doesn't mean the enemy. It means opposition. So when you're in your carnal mind, that means you're gauging everything through your senses. And we have five senses. And thank God that we have them. Because, I mean, this will sound like we're against the senses, but how many of y'all like a good steak? Amen. Anybody like seafood? Anybody like pizza? How many glad that you have senses when you eat pizza. How many y'all like sweets? How many? Glad you got good taste buds when you're eating sweets. Come on, somebody. So. But you know, if you didn't have senses and you got hold of some milk and it wasn't good, and you and you couldn't smell it and you couldn't taste it, your nose may not work. Your taste buds. Not my work. But when you put that spoiled milk down, your. Your stomach will work and up she'll come. But what Paul is saying is he says you're born again in the spirit. Everything in you is sealed and just right. It's just like God. But now you're going to have to renew your mind, your soul to what is already true in your spirit.

Pastor West:
See in your spirit, since you've been born again, your spirit has never touched sin. I didn't say you haven't never seen. I'm saying the real you hasn't. Because sin can't touch it. So you got to hear this the way I'm trying to say it and don't make it something. I'm not making a doctrine or something crazy. Since you've been born again, the real you that sealed the real you, that one day will leave here and leave the whole body and everything behind. The real you has never missed it. Because God missed it. Well, then you ain't missed it in your spirit. I didn't say in your soul. In your body. The body is just neutral. Right. It'll just do. I mean, it's just like if I had a puppet here and I, you know, and I just laid it down, it'd just be there. Just be material. But if I slip my hand in it, then it would have motion and it would have to do. I mean, just like when you put your clothes on, you took them off the rack. You were just sitting there on a hanger where it was sitting. It wasn't doing nothing, but it didn't take shape until you put your arm in it, until you put your legs in the pants or dress or whatever you did. And then it began to take shape. So your soul's that way that it's just it's been programmed by the world when you when you got born again.

Pastor West:
Now it has to be reprogrammed because you have a pattern, a way of doing things where you've always done them. So Romans 1212 says, don't be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. So you have to you have to renew. You have to renovate your mind. Yeah, but mama always did it and granny did it. Well, I hate to say this, but Mom and Granny and them wasn't always right. And. Well, that's all right. We can't throw no stones. We ain't always been right. So the word repent really just means change your mind. Just change your mind. Well, if you've been doing something for 20 years and not getting results just because everybody did, you. We need to find out what God said. It may go against everything you've ever known, believed, believed to be true, but, you know, the scripture says God is not a man, that he should lie. And he's never, never has reason to repent. He don't have to change his mind because he's right. Now, I want to get real plain, if I can, because I want this to help us. So the life of the new man was never meant to be governed by his senses. You the real man. We have a spirit. We are a spirit. Right. First Thessalonians says we. We are a spirit, not we have one.

Pastor West:
We are a spirit. We have a soul. And we live in a body. Okay, now, so the life of the new man in Christ was never meant to be governed by their mind or their body. Your spirit man is the executive administrator, conductor and manager of your soul and body. See. Man is the three part being spirit, soul and body. Your spirit's just is made just like God. Remember? I mean, Genesis one, you have the Trinity here. And they said, Let us, us being more than one, the 3 in 1. Let us make man in our image and in our likeness. And they said, okay. And let's also put into him dominion. I didn't make that up. I mean, it's in Genesis one. Let us make man in our image and in our likeness. And Genesis two, he makes the body. But the body is lifeless. He makes. He makes Adam, and Adam's has no life in him. But then he breathed into his nostrils, God's God's breathed into to his nostrils. And he said he became a living spirit. The actual Hebrew says he became a speaking spirit. You know, it puts you above everything in the planet just like God, because you can speak. Now animals can speak. They have a language, but they can't speak. I don't care how human you think they are. I mean, I get up some days, I'll come home from church and Michelle has a dog.

Pastor West:
I don't know if I have one. And she's she's a rescue dog. And she said, well, take about six months to get over all this. And well, we four years into it and she takes that dog with her low sometimes or even Walmart and people think she needs a rescue dog. Actually she's there to rescue the dog because if you leave that dog with me, it's miserable for everybody. I mean, I don't know what someone did to that thing, but she they must have really got to her because her whole world wrapped around Michelle and she likes Christian Elliott. And I'm not necessarily a dog person. I mean, I had tons of dogs, but, you know, they had hair. And my folks said, that means the hair is for him to hang on outside. So so I'll get home from church sometimes or I'll wake up and go in the living room and that dog sitting in my chair and she's taking my blanket with her teeth and pulled it over her. Or I mean, she's so Michelle sits in a recliner this way and the couch is, you know, right there or the couch is right here. Michelle sitting right there on the and and she has a blanket to sit on and she wants to be covered up. So she'll jump up on the couch and she'll look at her and like it's like, get I want my blanket. Well, she's speaking. She has body language, but she can't say, would you cover me up with a blanket? That's that's the difference.

Pastor West:
That's one of the major difference. Because you're a spirit. You're speaking spirit. How did how did God create the planet speaking? And, you know, Genesis one said and God said and God said and God said and God said and God said. Let there be. Let there be. Let there be let there be let there be light. You know the heavens, the firmament. Da da da da. The land, the trees. God said. And then it said. And it was. So what was so what God said. He said, look, he said they have to have that in them because we're going to give them dominion. So they have to be a speaking spirit. So what they say will be so. That means you're having what you've been saying, good or bad. You've been having what you've been saying. So if you don't change what you're believing, then you'll not change what you're speaking. Which means you're going to keep on having what you're saying because you are speaking spirit and he put dominion in you. So you're going to you're going to get to have what you keep on saying. Yeah. Now confessing the word I know is, is something that's been taught that some people are like, yeah, and you can drive anything into a ditch. But confessing, confessing the word or speaking the word is simply you.

Pastor West:
The word confess just means to say the same thing, to agree and say the same thing. So if I need healing in my body is sick and needs healing, I got to go find out what God said about it and what he did about it. And then I begin to speak what he said. My speaking don't make it so. Because it's already so my speaking puts me in agreement with the Covenant and now it makes it so for me. Amen. So you're not creating healing because there's already a healer. You're just agreeing with what he said, which makes it so that's all that you're doing. Okay. Moving on a little bit faster. So and in second Corinthians ten, five says, We can demolish what we, the spirit man, can demolish every deceptive fantasy that opposes and break through every arrogant attitude that is raised up in defiance of the true knowledge of God. We capture. This is the passion translation. We capture like prisoners of war. Every thought or scheme. And insist that it bow in obedience to the anointed one. So we see that we we the spirit man we can we demolish every. Deceptive thought that. There's that word oppose again that our text in second Corinthians two where it said Paul told Timothy the ministry of the word to them teach them because he says what they're doing. And he said, these people are opposing themselves. He says teach them the truth that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who the devil has taken them captive by his own will.

Pastor West:
In other words, they become easy prey for him. So when you're when you when you understand who you are in the spirit, then you'll have you'll have an opportunity to walk by the spirit or walk by the truth or to walk in the corner realm or carnal just means like like you order a chili Concordia, like you're saying, it just means meat. The mind. The meat. Meathead. We jokingly call someone meat here. We'll not call you meat here. But I'm just saying. But. But you're walking according to your physical senses. And so all the everything that, you know, to this point of life, you've learned through all your five senses. Naturally. Yeah. I mean, I have a son that when he's three years old, every time I would grill out, he would he was fascinated somehow by the grill and he saw this vapor coming up. I said, Don't touch this. This is a burn you badly. Okay? And I tell him four or 5 or 6 times he come, I said, Don't touch the grill. I said, That'll burn. Well, I walked off and he come up and said, I don't know. You know what it did. Yeah. Bernie. And he slept by our bed for three nights and. And I put him on actually it was his bed. We, we had three kids at the time in a 14 by 17 trailer with two bedrooms.

Pastor West:
And there was four of us in one room and one and one had a bedroom to himself because he couldn't sleep. Nobody else. And the way you could do that is we had a I had a folding beach chair. What was the three year old? No. And I put blankets and everything. And and the only problem was and then we had a baby bed. Amy was at the end of the bed, and I had to crawl off the bed to get up the middle. And I. If you had to go to the bathroom, try not to wake the baby. I couldn't go this side because my son's down there and I just put a pan of water down there and every few minutes he cried. I put his hand down that water and that. So. But I never had to tell him again. Chad, don't touch a heated grill when I cook hamburgers or something like that. And he'd see the grill go up. He'd run the other way up the side of the yard. He's terrified. Well, that was the information to him that stayed with him forever. As you walked in life, I told him saying, don't do this, don't do this, don't do this, don't do this. And he he learned not to do it sometimes the hard way, like some of us. And, you know, if you pay enough fines, then you'll actually learn it.

Pastor West:
Just like if you do this, it's going to cost you. Well, we've learned everything through our five senses. But you're not supposed to be living this life according to your senses. You need them, you use them, they assist you, they help you. You might hear something and make sure that you don't pull out in front of someone. Because you see. You see. And you hear something. So we have need of our senses, but they're not supposed to govern your life. Emotions aren't supposed to govern your life. And you know this to be true. We've all had some days that we just felt really great about something, right? We felt good. I don't know what it was. Something happened. Something good happened. You got some good news? Check. Come in. I don't know. Whatever it was, you just felt good. But did that feeling stay with you forever? And we just felt really bad, like, you know, in the world, just like, man, I just couldn't get any worse. You ever had that feeling everything was going wrong? Didn't feel good, did it? Did that did that stay there forever? So if the good feelings don't stay forever and the bad feelings don't stay forever, then then they shouldn't have that much stock in your life. So to walk in the spirit, you have to find out what the word said. And that's called Walking in the Spirit. That's called walking.

Pastor West:
Galatians said walking in the spirit with him. Different translations say walking in line with him. One translation says walking in cadence like in the military with him. He said, if you walk in the spirit, then you won't fulfill the lust. Lust means strong desire. You won't fulfill the desires of the flesh because you're walking with him. You're walking in line in step with him. So you're training the spirit man and refusing the physical man to have his way. When all the senses are telling you this is not good, I don't feel good like this. The doctor said this. The job's fixing to go sideways. All those things is telling you. Well, let's say it this way. Have you ever not that you heard it audibly, but how many are on the inside of you? I think everybody here. But I'll ask how many here has ever had the thought, What am I going to do now? Amen. Let me tell you who didn't say that to you. The Holy Spirit has never said, what are we going to do now? I mean, if he doesn't know I'm going home, I'm packing it up. Just like there's no need being here. I'll give you your money back and we'll just go home and forget about the whole thing. Just like, I mean, we meet and have a good time. But if the Holy Ghost is trying to figure this out as you go along, if God's trying to like trying to steer this thing some way, like a.

Pastor West:
So when we walked according to our senses, it gets us in those kind of troubles. So I'm not doing a good job staying with my notes, which I never do. But first Corinthians 926 and 27in the ESV translation, verse 26 says, Paul says, So I run like someone who has a goal. I fight like a boxer who's hitting something not just in the air. Verse 27, he said, It is my own body. I fight. I Paul. Fight my own body. See, I'm trying to show you spirit, soul and body. Paul said I run like someone who has a goal. I fight like a boxer who's hitting something. But he says I don't fight. Just hitting the air. The next verse says it. Paul said, It is my own body. I the real man. Paul fight to make it the body. Do what I want. The spirit man. I Paul, do this that I won't miss getting the prize myself after telling others about it. So, Paul said in the King James version 27, he says, I'm bringing my body into subjection by ruling over the mind. Paul said, The only way I can do this. He said, I the real man, the spirit man, the Christ man, the new creature. Right. The spiritual man. I have to bring this body which is not me, into subjection by ruling over my mind. Can you see opposition? See, that's what we're talking about.

Pastor West:
We gave it a title called Stop Opposing Yourself. So here Paul's got some things going on in his life, in his body. And so Paul said, this is just like someone running. And I have a goal to win this race and I have to I have to deal with my body who doesn't want to do certain things that needs to be done and all the way I can do that. He says, I don't fight the body. I have to fight the mind. So. So there's this conflict within you. You don't have two natures. I don't. You know, I've heard so many people. Well, you have a you have a sin nature and steel and you have God's nature. No, you don't. God, do you have a sin? Nature. And when you receive Jesus Christ, he didn't lock the sin nature away. He blew it up. God threw the atomic bomb on it. Boom. People say, well, you know, some days the old man just trying to rise up. He can't rise up. He blown up. He's blown to smithereens. Well, yeah, but why am I having this trouble? Well, you the mind that you still had before you saved. It's still around. It remembers things. You know, people walk in love. Well, they walk in love as far as people treat them right. In other words, they say, well, you do me right, I'll do you right. You're kind to me.

Pastor West:
I'll be kind to you. You love me. I love you. You bless me, I bless you. Curse me, I'll curse you back. Hit me. I'll hit you back. Slap me. I'll slap you back. That's not walking in love, is it? That's walking according to your feelings. And sadly, I think that's you know, I grew up in a time there was a song I believe it was titled, but was it James Taylor or Somebody's Feelings? I remember that song. Feelings. Feelings? Nothing more than feelings. I say this sometimes. That's the that's the theme song of most churches. Feelings. Nothing more than my feelings. What are we doing? It's my feelings. It's my. My situation. It's. They don't understand me. Good. If you were walking in who you are in Christ, you ought to be misunderstood all the time. You're the weirdest thing on the planet. Actually, you're in your right mind. The only way that I was able to begin to walk the new life is I had to lose my. My ever living mind. Because my mind still wanted to think this and think that. When you stand in front of a person and cast the devil out and while they're hissing at you and growled at you and they ain't but £90. But it looks like they must be a bunch y'all in there. Like you can't get that many in £90. I'll never forget that girl's house turned red. And she said.

Pastor West:
I hate you.

Pastor West:
And, like, Whoa! About £90. Well, I knew it was the devil. I mean, you know, you're in trouble. He says, not with flesh and blood. So he's. He's taking up residence here. So he I told her he tells me he says, I hate you. Well, I wasn't talking to the girl. I was talking to the demon in her. And all I said was the feeling's mutual. And I said, You got to go know.

Pastor West:
She wants me.

Pastor West:
In here. So I said, You shut up. And I'll just say, Sally, do you want him? I won't help. I said, She wants help. See that you're a liar. And they're just craziest thing in the world. They start walking around the sanctuary on Tuesday. You know, someone brought the church, said, Can you help us? I didn't know what I was going. I didn't I didn't know what I was getting into. Walking around the sanctuary, singing Christmas songs. Merry Christmas to me. He didn't like him. I didn't care of this Bible school. Not too much like. Oh, boy. Then she just walked up straight. And then my eyes were just turned red. And the most hideous voice.

Pastor West:
I hate you.

Pastor West:
And I worked.

Pastor West:
I wish I had some more help here today. And actually, there were two guys. I said, Y'all grab her and take her outside the church. I said. I said, Oh, come on, don't be a wimp. I said, Grab him, Take her.

Pastor West:
Don't touch me.

Pastor West:
What are you going to do then? Well, if you go to the feel good church where everything you know, feelings, you don't want to meet that girl. There are people in the Bible try that, you know. And they said, we adjure you by the same what's that name that Paul preaches? They. They saw Paul and they saw Jesus casting out devils. And so they said, We adjure you by the same name that Paul preached about. Come out. And the demon spoke to him. Remember the seventh Sons of Shiva? Shiva? I think the demon in that those people spoke to Paul and said, We know Paul, we know Jesus. Who are you? Baba. Baba, But who, who, who are you? Hell knows Paul and hell knows Jesus, who are you? And it says, those demons. The demons through the people jumped on that man and beat him silly and said he ran down the road screaming, hollering. And it says, naked. It's bad, you know, Go cast out the devil. And then they cast you out and you run down the road naked. So you need more than feelings. You need you need some information now.

Pastor West:
Uh.

Pastor West:
One of the devices and schemes of Satan is to keep your spirit under the rule of your flesh. Onto your emotions, onto your physical senses. The condition of our spirit is critical to the degree that we walk and live in the victory of Jesus bought and paid for. You must have a strong spirit. Now I'm going to skip ahead so we get this. Now. This would be the scripture for today that we would talk about a strong spirit. Proverbs 1814 says The strong spirit of a man will sustain him in bodily pain or trouble, but a weak and broken spirit who can raise up a bear. The strong spirit of a man sustains that man when they're in pain or they're in trouble. But a weak and broken spirit who can raise up a bear. The message translation says, A healthy spirit conquers adversity. What does a healthy spirit will conquer? Adversity. But what can you do when the spirit is crushed? I looked up that word sustained in the Hebrew because it was in Proverbs, it says. And then I looked up in the commentary. And I would try to pronounce the Hebrew word, but it's about that long. And so so the word, the Hebrew word for sustained is and it means this. It means to keep alive. The words sustain the strong spirit of a man will sustain him. Sustain means keep alive. But more than that, it's giving physical and emotional support. Sustaining something so will not just live or survive, but it will thrive.

Pastor West:
Amen. So if your spirit is strong, you won't just be sustained. You won't just make it through barely. But you will. You will thrive because your spirit is strong. Now, quickly. A strong spirit is what sustains us in any kind of trouble. A strong spirit is confident. It's unmovable. A strong spirit is a spirit that's been established. And it's ready for anything. Paul said, I can do all things. A strong spirit is steady, under trouble, and a strong spirit is full of joy and is full of peace. No matter what situation is, if you have a strong spirit, then you'll never you'll never quit. You'll never give up and you'll never give in. Whether you have a fan club or not. I remember through the years I had a fan club. And it wasn't always that great when we started doing Facebook years ago. And I'm preaching on grace and the love of God and, you know, God loves people, so God's in a good mood. Well, I had different people attacking the message of grace. And so it's not like that. If you do this, God hates you. And if you don't change, if you go to church, you'll end up going to hell without ministries. They did not like me to say that God was in a good mood because they wanted to picture a God. Who was this and you weren't that, and he was out to get you to crush you. In other words, like, if God can find you, he's going to get you.

Pastor West:
Well, he could find you. I'm pretty sure God could find you if he wanted you. He knew where Jonah was, picked him up, gave him a ride. He said, Why don't you just hang out here for three days? Now? Three days. And Jonah said, You know, I'm beginning to think that was a good idea about going to Nineveh. Some people said, well, that never really happened. That was a metaphor. Well, ask Jonah if he thought it was a metaphor. It was a metaphor for a reason. So stay steady under trouble. So you'll never quit. Now watch. You're a strong spirit. Will get you through anything. It'll get you through a physical attack. It'll get you through a financial problems. It'll get you through relational difficulties. It'll get you through emotional issues, which is the carnal mind. And you have all you have all the emotions. You have x rays. Let's say it's this way. You have a divorce that you've been through. It says this or someone had an abortion or someone had a miscarriage. All these things that are in this life, in this life, and people are looking for love and they're looking for acceptance. They're looking for someone to love them perfectly. And the only person who actually loves you perfectly is the one who created you, ABBA Father. And he is for you and he's not against you. His message is of love, not hate. He's not a divider. The Pharisees hated Jesus because he ate with sinners. Jesus didn't go away.

Pastor West:
Jesus didn't eat with the sinners because he agreed with them. He said, Those who need a hospital, he said, I'm the hospital. He said I didn't come. For those who didn't need help, I come for those who need help. So he was there to show them their way. Not not to, not for them to. He wasn't there to agree with them in their life how they were living. He was there to show them a better way. But he did it as a person of love. The woman who was caught in the act of adultery. Remember she was caught in the act. And they went and found her. I mean, it doesn't say, I just want I wonder how you know where to go find her. How do you know where she's at? So they went and got her and they didn't care about her. They were trying to trap Jesus. They took the law and said, this is what's supposed to happen. If the woman is caught in the act of adultery, she's supposed to be stoned. They said, But what do you say could care less about her? They're trying to trap him. And as you know, Jesus just stooped down writing something in the dirt. I think he was ordering what he wanted at Cracker Barrel. I think I don't really know what he's writing or longhorns, you know? And he's writing that down. I get out of here from these idiots. I'm on. So he said, Well, well, yeah, the law says that.

Pastor West:
But those of you without sin cast the first stone. They all had a rock in their hand. When a big old biscuit rocks. You know a biscuit rock is. Yeah. Biscuit. Rock. I don't mean one of those. You go across the pond and you're like, This is like, dead, dirty, dead right here. So the scripture says that they drop their stones from the oldest to the youngest. I don't know what that means. Well, I guess you've been doing more things. If you're older, you're thinking, like, without seeing. Well, so they all left. All those men left. Which I think they knew that woman's address. But I mean, I can't help but think this thing because I mean, I just think about that story. I'm thinking like, well, how come Where was the guy that was with her? They brought her. If she was caught in the act, why didn't they? Why didn't they drag him out there? I mean, you can't be a prostitute without being a prostitute or without a prostitute tour. I don't even know if that's a word. I'm sorry. A program may not be able to write. I speak another language. It's called redneck Registered Redneck. Now, so he said to the woman, he says, Where is your accusers? And she looked around. They're all walking away and a bunch of rocks. She said, there's none. Lord, he said, Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more. Now watch here. Not on my notes. How was she able to go and sin no more? He gave her a gift.

Pastor West:
What was the gift that he gave her to go and sin no more. Watch your. Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more. He gave. He gave her a gift called No Condemnation in Me, which later, after his death and resurrection, he tells you the law of the spirit of life is in me. Has now overcome everything of the law of sin and death. See, there are spiritual laws that will come. So the spiritual law obliterated. It's just like gravity. I mean, what goes up is coming down. That ain't shocking to no one right now. If that doesn't happen in Italy and it happens here, that's a phenomenon. But it happens around the world because it's the law of gravity. But can you but can you override gravity? Yeah. Go to any airport and watch a plane take off. What does it take for an aircraft to overcome gravity, which pulls down? It's called the law of thrust or lift. And it supersedes the law of gravity by the law of lift. But when it begins to descend, it comes down and it comes back into the law of gravity, which helps brings it back to the ground. How do you overcome sin and death and destruction and everything going wrong in your life? You apply the law of life which overcomes the law of sin and death. I flash man ain't going to do that because he can't. He's looking at all his problems. See, you're born again.

Pastor West:
And here's you the spirit man. This is my right. Maybe all's left. Yeah. Not. Maybe it is. This is the spirit, man. Right. And this is the flesh. Man and flesh man does a lot of this. 12 one. I got to stop. Was that a sign, Lord? I turn it off so I don't have to listen. So, William, with this. So. So here's the. Here's the spirit. Spirit, man. Walking in the spirit with Christ. This is who you are actually in Christ, right? Same in your spirit. You got born again. You're sealed. You're preserved. Pop on this side. Oh, here's your flesh. It's dealing with bad news. Don't feel good. Doctors said broke. Busted. Disgusted. It's like a lot of country music. Lost my home, lost my wife, lost my dog, lost my kid. And like the guy said, you got to play the song backwards to get it back. So how do I walk in the spirit with Christ? If I'm double minded and I keep going, Oh yeah, I felt that bad stuff. But I know I'm healed. But that don't look, I don't feel I'm blessed. Ephesians one three been blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus and and I my all my needs are met. Oh, if I don't have that money by Thursday. So the born again believer can can walk in the spirit and walk in the flesh simultaneously because he hasn't decided who he is yet. He because he feels all this. This is actual facts.

Pastor West:
This is truth. Amen. Truth trumps.

Pastor West:
Facts. Amen. Facts can't trump truth unless this has your attention. If this has your attention, it doesn't matter what he made you over here. You chosen to look to your senses to determine your life and where it is and where it's headed. Because you see this, you feel this, you know this. It's tangible. You can breathe it. And over here, this is in the spirit by the Spirit. This has a way to get to you, the real you, this. But it has to come through the channel, the conduit of the spirit. This works through all your physical senses and your mind and your body. And sadly, most Christians take this as more real because they are the five senses than what they can't see. So. So then if I turn from this and I go over here and he reminds me, he says, Son, now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen, Grace supplied Jesus, who is the person of grace. The Spirit and the Holy Spirit of grace has supplied everything that you ever need in life. It's right here. You can't see it with your physical eyes like you can see over here.

Pastor West:
But it's real because this world made the one that you're seeing. Amen. Huh? You don't think there was an earth than it made? Earth made God in the beginning. Earth made God. Day one Earth decided. No. God created the earth. So you see that? You see the two. You see the conflict. You're in total conflict all day. I want to applaud you for making it to whatever age you are and actually still being here because you are actually spiritual war. Every day of your life, there's demons who just love to kill you if they could. The problem is they. They can't. They just want you to think they can. So but when you keep looking like this, they're telling you this is not good. You go to your your counselor or your psychiatrist and they say, well, what's happened? Well, how did that make you feel? Well, then I have to start saying, well, it's been really bad. And I like this. And I got depression. And my husband, my wife and our finances and my kids and my dog driving me crazy.

Pastor West:
Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

Pastor West:
So to answer his or her question, the counselor, I have to come out of the spirit and get into the flesh, into my mind to know how I feel and what I think. And I have to turn away from the truth of who I already am, which in him of his fullness you have received. Colossians two. You are complete in him. See, my identification is right here. We have something in this country called stolen identity to the billions of dollars every year where people steal your credit card information, your identity thieves. But there's something beyond just someone who does that naturally. The enemy comes to steal your identity, who God made you, who you really are in him. That you're more than a conqueror. That's your love. By God accepted by God, valued by God that you're a joint heir with Jesus Christ more than a conqueror. That as he is. So are you in this life. First Corinthians 617 says he that's been joined to the Lord has become a single spirit. Wow. The word joined is the word laminated. A laminated floor, which is pieces of wood pressed together so tightly. If you look at it even like a baby grand piano, the wood they make it out of. It's laminated, but it's pressed together so tightly and glued so tightly together, you don't know where one piece of wood started and the other one began.

Pastor West:
He thus joined to the Lord. First Corinthians 617 has become little pressed and laminated with the Lord. So when the devil comes to attack you, he doesn't know where you. And in Christ begins. Because now you become one because of your union with him. John, 15, says he's the vine. You're the branch together. You're a tree. So the enemy can't determine where you are in Christ. So he attacks you to see if you'll give voice to it so he can determine where the person is in Christ is. So when we begin to holler out, I can't take no more. He says, Oh, that ain't Christ. He says, Oh, found him, Found him. When you begin to give voice to all your feelings and your emotions and all that's going on around the world and everything. You know, I have found more Christians wanting to leave this planet because they're just so sick of all of it. You know. They don't know. Go here, go there. Don't go there. Don't know what I am, who I am, whatever. I mean, I went in. I went in the bank the other day. I told you and I told the teller. I said first she said, Can I help you? Someone said I need to make a deposit. She said, okay. I said, first off, I want to tell you, I identify myself as a multi-millionaire and I want to make a healthy withdrawal.

Pastor West:
She says, Let me check your account. She said, Do you want all the $50? So it didn't help me to identify with truth down here because they go by facts. They looked in the count and says, You're not even. I mean, this wasn't true figures, but you may not even be 100 or 1000 there. But I know who I am in Christ. You're more than a conqueror. God is for you. He's not against you. So we have to look away from the coroner realm and all the senses, and we walk in the spirit. You can't do this and think that you're going to win. I didn't say that'd be easy, because this over here is real. I mean, it's talking to you. It may be talking to your mind, your emotions, your body and everything going on. It's factual. But this over here is truth. This is my final closing. Every sermon has three doors to get out of it. This is the third door, wasn't it, Elijah? Yeah. Elijah had been getting as a prophet. He was hearing, you know, the warfare of the king that was against Israel and the king was making warfare, it said in his bedchambers. And he would tell his his generals, he says, we're going to go attack this.

Pastor West:
We're going to go attack this. We're going to go take this. We're going to go attack that. And then Joshua would hear him in the spirit, Old Testament, Old Testament prophets. He don't even have what you have in your spirit. The prophet would hear it and he would tell the king of Israel, so-and-so is going to attack you Tuesday morning, and this is where they're going to be. Oh, that's helpful, isn't it? I mean, he was the spy. And so he would tell the king of Israel. So every time they go over there, he says, I want to know. He said, We have a traitor in our camp. Every time I go attack Israel, he says, he says they're already there before I get there. He said, Which one of you is a traitor? Which one of you is against me? And one of them ran. He said, It's not any of us, O King. He said, there is a prophet in Israel. He said he hears the words that you say in your bedchamber. He said, What's his name? He said, It's Elijah the Prophet. And he says he said, send all my troops to capture him and seize him. So the Bible said they went to Dothan. I don't know if it's Dothan, Alabama. It just says Dothan.

Pastor West:
Dothan. I've been in Alabama. I don't know. And and it said, I just think it's hilarious. So it's just Elijah and guys are there doing ministry and they're just in a tent camped out. And so guys I guess out of the tent and he wakes up and he's going to Starbucks to get him and, you know, and get the paper, you know, to see what's going on on that Sunday. And he brings the coffee back and he looks around the city and he's like, here is here's that king who's come to capture him. And there's thousands of them to come get to people. And so he is terrified. So he wakes up Elijah, and he says he says, Master Master, he says, we're surrounded. Satan, kings, what, 4 or 5? He says, What are we going to do? What are we going to do? We're surrounded. And Elijah said, Huh? He says, He says, We're surrounded. The king has sent all these and his chariots and all this. He's the whole city is surrounded. He said. He said, Give him a coffee. This is me interjecting. Take a couple drinks. He says, Ha! He says, there's more of us than be with him. Hey, guys. He's in the natural. He's like, Do what He said. There's more of us to be with him. He said.

Pastor West:
Oh, boy.

Pastor West:
He is getting kind of old boss. And the largest. Oh, Lord, help this boy. He should open his eyes. To see in the spirit realm. Then he'll see that there's more with you. For us than with them against us. And the Lord said, okay. So he opened his. Spiritual eyes and he saw the angelic force around, surrounded around those whom the king has sent to capture them. So there was no war. The angels didn't fight. You read the story? Do you remember how. Do you remember what happened to him? Got. So they come down to capture him and he said, Lord, just blind them all right now. And every man. Was totally blind and couldn't see his way to Elijah. Then he told the we would say the governor of that area. He said, here they are. They going to come and get us and do battle here in your city, he says. He says, just let's gather them all up. He says, take them by the hand. They can't see anything and just take them. And he said, We'll just take them back to Syria. And he says, he said, no, I don't kill them. He said, just send them back and say, you know, be nice. And they're like, let's kill them.

Pastor West:
He says, No, no, let's don't kill them. He said, Let's just send them back home. He said, I think they'll learn a lesson. So they told the king said, We went there. There's two of them. We saw them. And all of a sudden no man got out of the tent and he said something about being blind. I couldn't I couldn't see the end of my nose. And I said, we're going to leave that man alone. Well, here's the story. You couldn't see them. And naturally. But in the spirit, all the help was there. Guys, I was like, Oh, we're surrounded. And he said, Are. What was I doing? He was looking in the spirit. What are you going to do? You're going to walk in the spirit or are you going to walk by the flesh and all your physical senses talking to you? It takes something to keep your gaze over here because the enemy is really good at this. He's had thousands of years of practice. He's worked with a whole bunch of humans. He knows some about working with humans. You know where chain. If a chain breaks, where does it break it? At the weakest link. He goes to the weak. The weakest. The.

Pastor West:
The bah bah bah bah bah bah bah bah bah bah bah bah bah bah.

Pastor West:
It goes to the the weakest link of your chain, wherever that is. And that's where he attacks. He finds out where the marriage is weak. If it's weak. Right. You know, I'm going to do Father's Day. I'm going to buy my wife a nice meal. Because I learned that works. Good. Well, she said, it's your time to cook. That means I'll go buy something because she knows I ain't cooking nothing. Well, she won't toast. I mean, I can make a toast to peanut butter jelly. A grilled cheese. Not too bad if I open up some major soup and grilled cheese. I'm easy to please a man, usually. So I. I want to say this and leave him because this is the strongest word, even though they won't sound that strong because they're common words that's used that people don't understand the spiritual meaning. The strongest words that I can say to pronounce over to you is in Jesus name. I bless you.

Pastor West:
See, we.

Pastor West:
We do this all the time. Someone sneezes. And we'll say, bless you because a sneeze. That's not the that's not the meaning of blessing. It means to empower you. It means to strengthen you. It means to uphold you. It means God is with you. It means God's watching you. God's strengthening you for the journey. So I bless you in the name of Jesus. Each and every one of you and your families. We have people going to their Father's Day in different places, but we bless you. Those who's watching and those who's listening in the name of Jesus. I just see that a turnaround is happening for so many people right now. It may not look like anything's happening at all. You may not feel anything seeing anything at all in your life. It may be going to the contrary. Most times when someone has spoken a prophetic word to me and it was a good word, my life didn't match that at all. Matter of fact, after they said it, it got worse. Huh? Amen. They wouldn't agree with that. And whenever whenever I preach something to you or gave you a word and then said, you know, the Lord showed me this like this and then like this and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And it was a it was a blessed word. And then what happened right after that was your situation got even worse. You know what that was for? That was for the devil to come steal the seed out of you. Mark forces when the word comes forth, Satan comes immediately, not two weeks later. That means the devil comes to church, which I don't care if you come to church. Don't make me no difference. I expect him to come. I want him to come. I said, do what? Well, if he comes to the word, I want him to come where the word is going. If the devil never come to your church, what are you doing there? I had a woman in the very beginning of ministry, she says. I'm here to take over part of this ministry. I said, You are.

Pastor West:
The.

Pastor West:
First two years. She said, I've come to teach the Old Testament here. Lord told me this church needs to be strengthened in the Old Testament. She said, I feel like I'm supposed to be teaching on Wednesdays for several weeks or so. In Your name's what? You know what time she taught? Yeah. Zero. Then we eaten dinner one night at the church, and when we was in Clanton and a guy come up and he'd come one time, and when I got through preaching, he was already walked to the car. He come one night and he was in a bright, bright blue suit. I mean, bright blue. I mean, that's not even blue. And he had a he had on a white like tuck shirt almost, and he had like a bow tie, I think, and he had on blue and white shoes and he had on blue stockings. And it said profits so and so. And everyone can help. Look, I mean, it just blew. I was like, Wow, Blue's my one of my favorite colors. I went, Wow. Well, he left for our churches over. I wanted to meet and see who, you know, brother Brother Blue was. Well, three weeks later, on a Sunday night, he came back and he had on a red suit. Santa Claus don't even know what red is. It's same way. It's red shirt, red pants, red and white shoes and had on a red bow tie, white, you know, shirt and had on red stockings. You kind of see his ankles. And and I thought, well that's brother, that's brother red now. So he got gone before I could get from the pulpit, but he left. He left a little card in the chair. And it said apostle.

Pastor West:
Blah, blah, blah, blah.

Pastor West:
And I thought I had to open my office. And I said, Well, three weeks ago he was a prophet. Now he's a apostle. Man, I must be way behind. So I put him on my desk about another month or two later. We had a Sunday night fellowship and we went downstairs to eat. And he came out Sunday night wearing the blue or the red. And I thought, well, I'm going to get to meet him tonight. And so he comes, sat down beside me and he said, My name is so-and-so. And I said, Oh, I said, I noticed you come a couple of times. And he says, Well, I'll just get straight to the point. He said, You know, the Lord has appointed me apostle of this church. And I thought, Yes, you know, Pastor means a sent one. I started the church in my living room. Then we were, you know, owned and operating the floor covering store. Then I took it to the store before I got my first bill and then my second bill. I started with we didn't have a chair. We didn't have a microphone. We had nothing. We had absolutely nothing. Barbara sang with a boom box. She could sing and it boomed and we boxed. That's what we have. So this guy is going to come in here and tell me that he's the apostle over this church.

Pastor West:
I said, You are. What's your name? He said, Yeah. He said, you know, you need to have a pastor should be over every church. And he says, The Lord told me, I'm the pastor of this church. I said, You are? I said, okay. And I said, I wouldn't do this today. But I was 30 years old. 30. I was 33. I wouldn't do this today. But my personality leans this way. But I just thought, you know, Pastor so-and-so told me, I said, what have I got to do to make this church? He says, You'll have to be tougher than hell. I thought those words came up. I said, okay. I said, blah, blah, blah, blah. I said, Here's how we going to know if you're the pastor of this church. He says, Do what I said, what we need. If you're the pastor, we need to know. He said, okay. I said, You and I are going to go outside here in the basement. I'm going to go outside the back of the church. And I said, We're going to fight. He said, We're going, What? I said, We're going to fight. I said, You know, a pastor will lay down his life for the sheep. And I said, So if you come to take the sheep, I said, I'm going to kill you.

Pastor West:
And if they're yours, I guess you'll kill me. And then whoever's left will be the whatever's over. He said, Man, I didn't come do that. I said, Well, then get out. I said, You don't love these people. I said, You're just down here. Want to eat our chocolate cake and eat our chicken? And is that what you here doing? And that Santa Claus suit. He came in for several years, became a church member. He finally worked his way up to being an usher. But see, he has just listened to the lies and whatever. And I was I was would find a more tactful way of doing it now. But back then I just thought if it's a problem she didn't had but it ended the problem but I just shoot it in the head. I was like, boom, now let's figure out the problem. But it ended the problem. And so when the enemy comes to you and he's telling you lies and he's saying, this is what your life's going to be like, say, Well, you couldn't tell me that because you you didn't die for me. Because you're getting all the feelings of what your life's going to be like from here to there.

Pastor West:
Some days it don't feel good. Right. I mean, sometimes you're I mean, what am I going to do and how am I going to this and how am I going to retire and how am I going like this and how am I going to do this? And all those are lies from the enemy talking through your senses. And you have noticed the enemy. So all you have to do is just switch the conversation and say, well, you know, that's really none of your business. I mean, but let's talk about your future. And then you just grab your Bible and you go back to the revelation. You know, you go to Revelation and you turn there and you say, Wow, I would turn this upside down. I'll go to Revelation, which is right there by the before the book of maps. And I said, Look over here. It talks about God's going to send an angel. Oh, gosh, just one. Oh, God, he's coming for oh, you. And he's going to lock you into a bottomless pit for a thousand years. That's a heck of a long time, Bubba. And just one angel. Just one angel can get the job Going to lock you in there for a thousand years, and we're going to be rid of you.

Pastor West:
What?

Pastor West:
Because. Because the thought process is what am I going to do all the time? What am I going to do? So I say, after you locked it for a thousand years, what are you going to do?

Pastor West:
What are you going to do?

Pastor West:
What are you going to do? A thousand years? That's like 110 times. Have you ever thought about that?

Pastor West:
What are you going to do?

Pastor West:
He's going to lock up you and your mama if you have one. What are you going to do? And the more you do that, all of a sudden all these things that he's feeding you, they'll just seem to go away. Yeah. You're like, This ain't gonna work on him or her because you're going to turn around and tell him the truth. What are you going to do? We might retitle this one, you know, but so we don't want to. Let's don't impose ourself walk in the spirit and you won't fulfill the lust, the strong desires of the flesh. Amen. Amen. Amen. God bless you. Wednesday night, 7:00. We're going to be here. We just put the tables out today for a different reason, and they'll be here Wednesday. So we can we have a study guide on Wednesday if you want to. If you don't have one, come, we'll have one for you. Or we're we're in a series on something may last another 3 or 4 weeks. So you all have a great day.

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Stop Opposing Yourself Part 4 | 11Jun2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Stop Opposing Yourself Part 4 | 11Jun2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Good morning and welcome on this beautiful Sunday morning, June 11th, 2023. We'll never have another one tomorrow will never be here tomorrow will never be today and never be the next day. Today is the as far as we know at this moment, it's the only moment that we have. So let's make the most of it. We're in a series called A Lot of Things. I just I was looking at some seminars of word and this is number four. Stop opposing yourself. You think, Well, that's a silly title. Well, it is. And if we wouldn't oppose yourself, we wouldn't have to talk about it. But. But since it seems like all of us might do that, that's why we're studying it. Second Timothy Chapter two. We're going to do a little go back in and just say a few things that we had said, and we're building on each on each service or building on each message to reveal. I think what he wants us to to see here some of these things that we're talking about, they're we think they're obvious and really they are. But somehow we we miss the translation sometimes just do in life. But second Timothy chapter two, verses 25 and 26, and I'll start there, verse 20. Actually, I got verse 24 also. I'm not sure what I'm reading. King James can't really remember, but you have what you have and they'll put on the board, probably the King James. But it says verse 24, The servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all men apt to teach and be patient.

Pastor West:
I thought when I read that the first time 30 years ago, I said, Well, that's one more reason why we're there. I'm not going to minister. I need I need to strive, be gentle to all men and apt to teach and be patient. I said, Well, that calls me out. But I me know God knows more than you do on the two of you. Okay. So. Well, he does, whether we know it or not. So this is Paul writing a letter to Timothy, a young minister of the gospel, giving him instruction how to stand in his calling. He goes on to say in verse 25, in meekness, instructing those who oppose themselves. If God per venture will give them to repentance, to the acknowledging of the truth. Verse 26, that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil who are taken captive at his will. If you look up some of the words oppose synonyms, you get these words. There's over 30 of them. But I just wrote down a handful of them, says Hostility, antagonism, friction, animosity, tension, bitterness, conflict, disgust and malice. We're actually contrasting and have been we're actually contrasting the work of the spirit versus the work of the flesh. The flesh being the carnal man, The flesh being the man who walks in his physical senses versus the work of the spirit. We think, well, you know, is it that big a deal? Well, the difference between the work of the spirit and the work of the flesh in God's mind is opposing.

Pastor West:
He also considers his hostility malice conflict. He thinks it's disgusting, antagonistic, animosity, tension, bitterness. So. I think he takes a kind of a dim view of it versus the work that we that's been done in Jesus in the Spirit. Now, let's say a few things go over a few things. So what does it mean to oppose yourself? Well, oppose yourself just simply means you're working against yourself. They may want to do that on purpose. How can you do that? Well, you can take any situation in life, any conflict or any anything that's going on in life. You could use it in the area of healing. In other words, where you're elevating in your mind and in your thoughts, you're elevating a symptom that you might be having in your body. That's what opposing yourself is means you're you're working against yourself and you're elevating a situation or a conflict or a symptom that you're having in your body. And then we accept it or we agree with it because we see it. We can touch it, we can feel it, we can taste it. We elevate it in position because of the symptom. And the Lord says, that's what that's what walking in the flesh means. You say, But that's real. It is real. But God didn't come to conform to the real.

Pastor West:
Okay. So when you see people say, well, of his faith, you just deny it or you can deny it all you want to. But but faith is not denial, is it? You can say, well, I just don't believe it's 11:00 in the morning. Well, it's not somewhere you say, Well, I don't believe it's daylight. Well, it's not somewhere, but right here it is. Well, I just don't believe it. You don't have to believe it. It doesn't matter to me. But my eyes tell me that it is. But it is dark somewhere else. So when God tells you something that's so that's not obvious to you. Because in the physical realm that we live in, he gave us this world and he gave us the senses. Obviously he wants to use them, but he says they'll work against you. They'll work against you as a as a as an enemy. In other words, they'll tell you this is the way life is, this is the way it's going to go for you. This is what this is why it goes on going that way, and this is why it's going to stay that way or get worse. Then he'll present you the case. Then he'll give you the physical evidence to support his argument. And his argument is pretty good. If you can touch it, taste it, feel it, smell it, hear it. Right. It is. So that's the way he's always worked. I'm not saying anything different. I'm just it has another title to it and helps us to see a different way.

Pastor West:
Just think about how you work from the beginning. The first we worked in the beginning was what in the garden? So what? So what was the conversation about? He said, Look, touch, taste, feel, see. And she said, Oh, it does look good for you. And he said, It is. But God said no. Did he really say that? Did. I mean, did you really say that? You see, really what's happening here is God's really holding some some things back from you. But I'm the one who really cares. No lie. Falola says, don't know line. I really care for you and I'm going to tell you the truth. He won't tell you the truth. Oh, he's nice. He likes you. He cares for you. But. But he's holding you back. If you eat this, the one thing he told you you couldn't eat, he knew if you ate this, you'd be just like him. He knew if you ate all the other, it would be good. And you know, you can walk with him like you've been walking with him. But he's keeping you back here, and you could be elevated. Look. See? Look how good it is. She says boy does look good. He says Taste. She says okay. What did he do? He brought her to he. He took all of her senses and draw it. He used it as bait. What does he use? He uses the carnal mind, which is enmity, not enemy, but enmity, conflict, hostility, animosity, opposition to what God says and does.

Pastor West:
He says if you walk in, if you walk in your senses, you cannot please me. He said, you will you will be in hostility against me because I have done what I've done for you in the spirit. And what you need from me is in the Spirit. But you cannot draw from the Spirit into the physical realm because the physical cannot accept the spiritual in the physical is not going to be an instructor to the spirit. Does that help anybody? So if you are so your physical senses see, they they only know physical reality. Your physical senses will not accept spiritual truth because they can't they have no receptors to receive it from. So when you are. But if you are swayed by your senses or you aren't swayed by the situation or you are swayed by your body, then you will receive from the spirit what you need from the Spirit. Which is true. Okay. Because your body, your mind, your situation will have to line up with the truth. Amen. Amen. Amen. Spiritual truth will decimate physical reality every time. Every evil thing has the same source. That's worth listening to. Every evil thing has the same source lies. And it has the same father, Satan. A demon is a spirit that carries a lie. Every cause of sickness is demonic because it is a lie. Because by his stripes, you are healed.

Speaker2:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor West:
What it all boils down to Is this the lie that you weren't healed and the sickness still has power? You say, Well, I'm not here still. I'm still sick. The doctor said, I still have this situation. Well, he just drew my blood last week and it showed this, this and this. I mean, that's not a lie. No, not physically it's not. So you can perceive that because you can see it, touch it, taste, feel, smell it, whatever. It can be seen on an x ray. Your financial situation, your home situation. I mean, put this in any area you want to. I'm just talking to some people. I think it will help all of us. But this this is the way it is walking in the spirit is walking in every area of your life or walking in the flesh is walking over your life. So if you're waiting for a symptom or circumstance to change, what that means is you have not yet come into the place called faith. You're not believing what the word says about you yet. So therefore, we have nothing for the Spirit of God to give us because we have not yet cooperated with the Spirit. I'm going slower at this moment on purpose. What I'm saying is that our belief, it's our belief that allows the Holy Spirit to work freely. Our belief does. Amen. It's your belief that releases everything that we have that has already past tense in him.

Pastor West:
Paid for. Because you are co-heirs with Christ. Amen. This is not something we will receive when we reach some plateau of doing things like even multiple years of confessing the word, because we can almost we intellectually believe that by his stripes were healed. We do believe that. I believe everyone in this room believes that. Everyone believes that by his stripes we are healed, don't we? We can give you the Scriptures and sometimes several different translations. We know what Isaiah 53 says. We know what Matthew, eight, says. We know what Malachi says and that your healing springs forth speedily. We understand it's because of what Jesus went to the cross and to the whipping post. We know that. We understand because of that. That is that is the sole reason we can believe God that we are healed. It had to be in his redemptive work. If it's not in if it's not in the atonement, if it's not in the redemptive work, you have nothing to base your your your faith on. It can't be based on a wish or a desire. It has to be based on what Jesus actually paid for. The song we were just singing. This is what he paid for. Amen. We we were on the road running some errands the other day and going somewhere, and we stopped at a place. I mean, accidents happen, but she got her something to eat and a drink.

Pastor West:
And we gone down the road a few miles, several miles and looked around and I said, Where's your drink? She said, it's it's not there. We forgot to get it and they forgot to give it to us. It was paid for, but we didn't receive it. It's hers. So being the kind gentle soul after after patient kind, I didn't want to eat where she was eating. And so I went into a place and I had plenty of water, which is what I drank most time anyway. But I ordered the drink that she was going to get. She wouldn't even know how to get. I didn't get one out of that. I gave away the Dr. Pepper. I just know love. And I don't feel no love in this house for no love. I'm moving my letter. I feel no love here at all. Somehow we feel like sometimes if because of the situation, if we just compile enough knowledge, compile enough speaking the word that somehow it tips the scale. Because we believe it intellectually, but we feel what we feel and we know we haven't physically received the manifestation because we still feel it. But God said, But don't you understand? That's not how faith works at all. Does it work by what you see or feel? And we know that. But we forget it because our feelings are real. If it's if it's. If it's hurting you emotionally, if it's hurting you physically, that's a real deal.

Pastor West:
You're dealing with. And since we know the truth, you say, well, are you saying it's wrong now to speak the word? No, I'm saying it's absolutely right. I'm talking about your motivation. Why are you doing it? Because sometimes you can have situations in your life, family, whatever body, whatever, that are so overwhelming that you feel like if you don't do something, in other words, or we feel like we know maybe we let the enemy in. And then he has a right to attack us. He has no right to attack you at all. He has no right. You said, What if I let him in? We'll let him out. He has no right to attack. You might say, Well, I left the door of my house unlocked and the thief came in and stole my stuff. So he has a right to steal it because I left my door unlocked. See how stupid that is? No. If you catch him, he's stealing. He still can be arrested and sent to jail, right? Because he has no right to steal from you. I don't care how he got in. I don't care if he took the door off the frame. And you can hear all the music across the street, right, Barbara? Till after 10:00 at night. Anyway, that's. That's not for today. That's just impersonal life. So we feel like, you know, I need to I need to do something because I let him in.

Pastor West:
So if I let him in, then I need to fix this. See, that's all me. Where is it? Where is it? In Christ. About that. In anything. He took the penalty and he took the shame for what I did. Not. Not what he did. This is the paid for work. So the work of the Spirit cannot be released into the physical. It doesn't come that way. Your spirit. He's a spirit. He releases everything that you need in you, in your spirit. But he doesn't go through the channel, the channel, the conduit, the physical to get to you. You say, Well, what's stopping it? It's called an abortion. We're aborting our own answers. We're aborting our own breakthrough. We're aborting it with our mind. The carnal mind is enmity in conflict. Hostility to what God wants to do for you in the spirit and in you. And when you walk that way, think that way. Don't let that man think he shall receive anything from God. Not that God doesn't want to give it. It's because it doesn't come that way. I don't know how to get this any clearer. Well, I might. I'm believing God for it. So the the carnal mind is ruled by the flesh. Instead of walking in step or one transition said in cadence with the spirit or your emotions. Or walking. The carnal mind is ruled. When we walk in our life and our symptoms, when we walk in our situations, we're refusing to accept by faith what God has already done for us in Christ.

Pastor West:
First Corinthians two says this won't go there, but it says the natural mind cannot receive the things of God. Didn't say it would be difficult. Said can't. Didn't say, Well, it's really, really hard. No, it's impossible. That's a big clue. The the the natural mind cannot receive the things of God. It's impossible. Impossible. Now, this is for the carnal mind is death. It didn't say. It's like death. It said it is death. But to be spiritually minded is life and peace. The carnal mind is enmity or in opposition against God. We're talking about stop opposing yourself or stop opposing your healing. How am I opposed to my healing? You're giving all the attention to the to the symptoms. Since then in any area of life. The carnal mind is in opposition hostility. All the things that I read before, I guess they hid it from myself somewhere. But the carnal mind is is in opposition to that. They that are in they that walk in the physical realm. They that walk in the flesh cannot please God. But Hebrews 11 six says without faith. You cannot please God. What is faith? Faith is believing. But it's not. It's not just believing. When you believe God, you say, Well, yes, Lord, I say that I accept what you're saying.

Pastor West:
I believe what you're saying is true. And faith has grabbed a hold of that belief and it's steadfast. This is. Let's go for a walk. That's pretty good. I said I believe. I believe what God said. Now let's go for a walk. For we walk by faith. Oh. If you're walking by your symptoms, then you'll make all your decisions based on what you think you can and can't do. I can't afford this. Therefore, I won't. I feel this physically, so therefore I can no longer thus walking by. What? Hmm. I know that sounds hard because you have a physical and emotional realm and you have a physical body, and based on that, you can make decisions, but don't walk by it. It's not that we're not acknowledging it. We understand it's there. It is right there. I can see it. I can feel it. This is what's happening. This is what happening in the family. This is what's happening in my marriage. This is what's happening in my body physically. Natural knowledge. So what do you do? You go get the cure and you apply that just like you would medicine. You apply the spiritual cure to the physical ailment. Huh? When you take a Tylenol or something, or if you take something for a headache, do you get in doubt if they have? Are you in doubt? I mean, I'll be honest. I've taken something for a headache. Have you? It worked.

Pastor West:
Not always, but most time it worked. It worked for you. Let me ask you this. The moment that you swallowed the pills did had it go away. Just like. Ooh, that's better. You didn't get in doubt then, but you still had the symptoms, but you knew it was just going to take a minute or a few minutes, right? Why don't you give the word Time to work? Amen. Amen. Why don't you. Why don't we put the word in our mouth and in our heart? What all God is saying is he says, when you when you speak words of against me, confess me to say the same thing when you speak contrary to me. He said, You stop the flow of the spirit. You're acknowledging all your physical problems and ailments. And he says, My spirit doesn't come through the physical channel. It comes spirit to spirit. Romans 814 The spirit of life. The resurrection of life that's already in your spirit. When you got born again, you got a measure of that one day you're going to get the whole measure that's going to be glorious. There's no one that will dislike the full measure of the spirit. One day you'll get you're going to get a whole body. God's going to turn your body into a spirit, body. It'll have no flaws. It won't. It won't know anything about problems. It won't need rest. I don't think it needs food. But you can eat.

Pastor West:
You can eat for pleasure. I guess if you want to sleep, it sleeps fun to you and heaven. I think you can do it. You won't need it. But if you think it's a hobby, then go rip you off a couple thousand years. It doesn't matter. Just. Just. Just go do what you want to go do. Amen. You're going to. You're going to love the spirit body, fraternity. You're going to say, Did you feel that? No, no, I can't remember. Do you remember when? No, I can't remember. I just. I don't remember all that. Praise the Lord. You're going to have that working during the millennium, too. While you're down here on Earth, you're going to see people suffering. Because you're going to have we're going to have people on the earth that wasn't born again. So they didn't go. They was born during the time of they're going to be in a natural body and you're going to be in a spirit body. What you're doing right now is, you might say, practice for that, putting you in a place to where you'll come to the aid of people who are physically in danger or hurt, and you'll minister life to them and they'll be healed automatically. They might fall off a roof or a ladder and you'll be there to catch them. Or if they hit the ground, you'll be there within. You know, translation will be the norm, the norm for the day.

Pastor West:
It happened in the Bible. It will happen again. There's still accounts of it happening now. If you talk to some missionaries where it's happened exactly that way, so it's not out of our reach. Because it's in the word. But you'll have this body for a thousand years. A spirit body. When Jesus ministers, you'll be right there in the spirit. You'll just take off. Wow. And then they can sell gas, whatever they want to. Or cars. Amen. So so believing God is saying Yes, Father, I see what you're saying. And I. And I receive that. The faces. Okay, Now let's be steadfast in it. Because there's going to be a little walk and we're going to see a few things along the way. It'll look like it's not working, but I got you. Amen. I'm your guide. I'm your counselor. I'm your teacher. Now we're going to go for a walk. A thousand may fall at your side and 10,000 by your right hand. In other words, you're going to see it. But it didn't come near you. But you're going to see it. But it ain't coming to you. It's coming after you. But it ain't going to get to you because I'm with you. You're ready to walk. You believe me? Yeah. Okay, Now, let's. Now put your trust and let's be steadfast and watch. Here. I'll walk you out of this. Walking with the spirit.

Pastor West:
Walking in the spirit. Yeah. If you say I can't do this. Then I go back into the physical because I'm taking the information of the physical instead. I personally can't handle this anymore. It's not going to work. It's not working. The spirit has nothing to feed you because it doesn't come through that conduit. I don't know if I ever taught it that way, but I think it helps. I think it helps out. But this has got to be spiritual. I mean, it's got to be scriptural. Now, we only have a few minutes. I know how to preach under an hour. I'll prove to you today every work in the flesh has five senses. Every work of the flesh has five senses. That's all Satan has to use, right? We can start and maybe even go all the way down. Anybody who worked with. Where did you get the idea to betray Jesus? Member said It said. It says Satan put the thought of betrayal. Judas mind. And then what did he do? He acted on a thought. God gives thoughts. Why don't we act on His? I'm let me go to the end. And this is what I wrote down this morning. He said, instead of using the human instead of using this, saying, well, I'm just human, you know? You ever heard that? Well, I'm human. Instead of using, I'm human as an excuse to walk in the flesh, try using I'm saved as a reason to walk in the spirit.

Pastor West:
Well, I'm human, so therefore I can't. Whatever. No, but you're saved. So now you can walk in the spirit. You are a spirit. Okay. So the nature of the flesh is always death until that person is born again. They live a life separated or alienated from God. His eternal life. Which means they work out problems on their own. They use their mind. They use human reasoning. They use factual things because they're walking in the flesh versus walking in the spirit. Galatians 516 says this. I say walk in the spirit. And you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. Now, side note, people who enjoy the grace message, but if they're if they're using that message to stay where they are unchanged. And live knowing what they're doing is wrong. Would you invite Jesus into that lifestyle that you decided is okay because you have his grace and mercy and forgiveness? Whatever it is that the flesh desires or where we've decided to compromise in our personal life, our relationships according to the word. Because we have grace. Now who gave us that message of grace with the Holy Spirit did, but who did he use as a channel? Apostle Paul. Now, here's the same man tells you. He contrasts the work of the flesh to the spirit. So the same man who understands grace is telling you how to walk out of it, how to walk out of sin, how to walk out of sickness, how to walk out of bondage.

Pastor West:
How to walk out of fear. See, because even though I'm believing sometimes and I really do believe I can have situations that come up that that that cause fear or torment, like if this doesn't change, I mean, this is where I mean, it could head here. Grandmother had this and great grandmother had this mother had this or, you know, and now it looks like this is working in my life and there's just that little bit of fear torment. So because of not understanding what Satan's trying to do, I begin to I begin to get my confessions out and I begin to confess the word over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again. Please don't misunderstand. I'm not saying don't speak the word. I'm saying do confess the word I'm saying. But if fear drove you to confess, now we know the motivation of why we're confessing. And it's all physical. It's a work of the flesh. It's enmity against God. It's hostility against God. Do we speak the word? Absolutely. Do we speak it because there's some unknown number of plateau of whatever we're supposed to do to compile it enough that one day God will just it'll tip in our it'll tip in our way.

Pastor West:
You see, the truth is, I don't ever have to preach again. If I need to be healed, I don't ever have to show up here again and preach. I will. I don't have to confess. Not one more scripture. I don't even have to read the Bible ever again. I don't have to give a dime. Jesus paid this for me. Am I going to do any of those things? I just said, I don't have to know, but I'm not doing any of those things to make it so it was so before I did anything. Amen. I know that and Satan knows that. But he needs to know. But he will violate it every time. When you don't know it, he will. I mean, I would if I was him. Would you take advantage of everything that you had advantage of? Yeah. The Bible says it says beware, lest he take advantage of you and he likes he will take advantage of you. I don't care how good you are, how you might be cute as a button, but he hates you. You might be uglier than you know a core would. I don't know a snail, but God still loves the snails. No one hears ugly. Amen. Did we already get the offering before I said all that? Okay. Amen. No, cancel checks tomorrow. Okay. All right, let's finish here. Galatians 517 says for the for the flesh, the lust against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh or the physical, they are contrary.

Pastor West:
They're contrary one to another so that they cannot do the things that you would. Verse 17, I'm going to be an amplified verse 17. All right, listen here. For the desires of the flesh are opposed to the Holy Spirit. Oh, God. Did you hear that Scripture that just gave you proof to everything I just said? For the desires of the flesh. Are opposed to Holy Spirit. Do you know that there's an unholy desire to be healed? Or to be whatever. Lost means strong desire. Passionate. Strong desire. We can lust after everything we think. It's always somewhat sexual, but includes that. But no, it can be anything. You could desire something for yourself that's good and right, like healing, but have such a strong desire for it that there's a war in your body between two members. I'm actually quoting James. James. Four verses one through four. But we don't look at it that way, he said. But there's a war. You can't have war unless there's two opposing forces. He said. A war against that and your flesh against that and your mind. Was saying, it's yours. The other one says, Can't be. Look at this. Then I have to walk one way or another. I mean, it's your war and something has to be done. What are you going to do? What's your next move from here? What will be your next move? Well, he says, walk in the spirit and then you won't fulfill the physical flesh.

Pastor West:
In other words, the will of the flesh and desires of the flesh, The plan of the enemy will no longer be effective against you if you just walk away from it and walk with him. Walk in. Step, it says A lot of translations walk in line. Translation says one translation said walk in cadence like military. And if you if you ever went to a saw a bunch of a soldiers you know walking in cadence with another I mean they're all walking in steps they're supposed to be right I mean you can't have them walking every which way. That looks like a mess. Someone's in trouble if that happens. A lot of trouble, I suppose. So he says walk in the spirit. And he says, you can't you can't fulfill the lust of the flesh because you're not living and making choices and decisions out of the physical realm, although that you have them. You're in two worlds at one time on the earth, you have a body and you're aware of all the physical things around you. But you know the truth that sets you free. And so the Lord says, Do you see this? Do you will you receive from me that this is the truth? Yes, Lord. Okay. It might require you to be steadfast for a little while.

Pastor West:
You want to go for a walk? Let's go, Lord. And he takes you by the hand and he says, Watch here. Now we're going to walk together. You're not going to do it by yourself? I'm not saying that you off. You're not a little tormo wind you up and you're going to go until you can't anymore. I'm going to be your energy. I'm going to be your desire. I'm going to be your walk. I'm going to be your talk. I'm going to be everything in you. I'm just going to I'm just going to use your body to do. What I want to do in your life, Paul said, is no longer I who live but Christ that lives in me. Well, if it's no longer you, then I know you ain't supposed to be walking in the flesh. If it's him, I know he's not walking in the flesh. You think Jesus is making is making decisions based on his physical realm. If he had it at the cross, he could have stopped it. What if Jesus had been walking by the flesh or by the physical senses on the cross? The whipping post? You know, it could be walking in the flesh. I'm thinking that's painful. Most people would have stopped it. If most people could have called one angel, they would call much less legions. Here's a spiritual statement Jesus made when they put him on the cross, and then that guy come up at the end and put that spear in his side and jabbed in the blood.

Pastor West:
He said, Oh. Father. Forgive them. They don't know what they're doing to me. That looks like a flash statement to me. That sounds like someone who knows who they are and what they're here for. He says, forgive him because I'm doing it for these. And Bill will be here one day and I got to finish this work. Thank you for the the power of the Holy Spirit. They got the analysis, It's finished. While we want to work on things that's finished. She's like, you know, if I go take my car to either one of these gentlemen who either work on the inside or the outside of the motor outside, and he says, Now we got it going good. But, you know, about every two days you want to do this, keep the paint on us. Like, do keep it on. You want to spray some this every day? You know, it's $20 a can to keep the paint on and, oh, I sell the paint. I mean, I sell the spray. That'd be a whole new market, wouldn't it? I mean, I had that old car like that, that old regal we had, you know, which, you know, I didn't know nothing mechanically. I just know I couldn't get it cranked unless I turned the stripper cap this way. I was like, cranked. I got somewhere where I needed to go and cut them off, but then it wouldn't stop.

Pastor West:
You're like, Whoa, whoa, whoa. I took the cab home. Boom, boom, boom. Popped the hood and went like this and went. I don't know how to fix that, but I knew how to turn the distributor one way or another. Crank Stop, crank, stop, crank, stop, crank, stop. I'd be a mess, wouldn't it? Lord says. He says, I got you started. He says it's the stopping part that's the problem. Wow. Wow, wow. We have five minutes. Let's get to the Good stuff. Romans eight. I'm in verse five, 5 or 6 minutes. Romans eight five. The King James says, for those who live and I'm going to live their life each day according to the flesh or the physical senses have their minds set on what the flesh desires, what the physical flesh desires. But those who live in accordance with the spirit, they have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. Listen to that same verse in Amplified. Now the mind of the flesh, which is here it is now the mind of the physical. Now the mind. Now the mind set on symptoms, which is impasses, which is sense and reason without Holy Spirit. Wow. They that are walking according making decisions according to their symptoms, their mind and the things of the physical senses. But they that are after the spirit, the things of the spirit amplified.

Pastor West:
I guess what I was looking for that same verse I want you to see. And P.S., I guess. We got a new system. It's a it's a state of the art. It's just takes a minute. Gracious. It ain't nothing to do with grace has to do with the APC. Now, you named her that way. No one could ever be mad at her. Who wants to be mad at Grace? You're just foolish to be mad at Grace. My folks should have named me love. Watch here. For those who are walking according to their physical senses are going to be controlled by its unholy. Oo oo oo oo oo oo oo. Unholy desires. Because they've set their minds and they perceive those things according to their physical senses. But. Oh, but those who are courting. I guess. Next verse. To the spirit are controlled by the desires of the Spirit because they have set their minds and seek on those things which gratify Holy Spirit and doesn't gratify the physical senses. Now, can you all go to the passion there? We're going to read six through ten passion and be through Romans eight, six through ten and The Passion we'll finish today. Yeah. Let me know when you see it. Romans eight six. Passion. Don't charge my time. I guess this. You got 30s again? Romans eight six. Got it. Thank you for the mindset of the flesh is death, but the mindset controlled by the Spirit finds life and peace.

Pastor West:
Next verse. In fact, the mindset focused on the flesh fights God's plan. Can you see? Can you see why I use the word opposed? In fact, the mindset focused on the flesh fights God's plan, and it refuses to submit to his direction because it cannot see. It doesn't have the ability to your spirit. He's the spirit. Jesus is the word. I'm speaking their spirit. They're not physical. He says it has to come through a spirit from a spirit being. Two Spirit being. You're trying to make me go through the flesh and you're making decisions based on the flesh, and you can't receive what you need from me because I don't I don't do it through the physical. I do it in the spirit. Amen. All right. Verse eight. For no matter how hard they try. God finds no pleasure with those who are controlled by the flesh or the physical senses or their physical symptoms. Verse nine and ten and 11 will be through. But when the Spirit of Christ empowers your life, you are not dominated by the flesh, but by the Spirit. And if you are joined to the spirit of the Anointed One, you're not of him. Verse ten. Now Christ lives his life in you. And even though your body may be dead or will die one day because of the effects of sin, his life giving spirit and parts life to you because you are fully accepted by God.

Pastor West:
Isn't that good? Last verse 11. Yes, God raised Jesus to life. And since God's spirit of resurrection lives in you, he will also raise your dying body to live by the same spirit that breathes life into you. The Holy Spirit is breathing life into you this morning if you allow him to do. We don't want to oppose. We don't want to be hostile, antagonistic. We don't want friction, animosity. We don't want bitterness. We don't want conflict. We don't want disgust. We don't want malice. We want to walk in harmony with the spirit. For those who walk in the spirit, walk in step, walk in line, walk in cadence. They walk together with him and they never fulfill the lust, the strong passions of the of the flesh. Who says you've got to do this because of this? See this? Don't you know, make a decision based on this? Because this is the way it is. No, it's not the way it is. It's not the way it is. The way it is is by his stripes. I am healed. That's the way that it is. Then the spirit says, okay, the conduit. I hear the conduits being laid. We can flow right through there. Choo, choo, choo choo. Choo choo choo choo choo choo choo choo choo choo. Because there's a release, you see, It's in your spirit. And through not just mechanical words or words that you intellectually agree with.

Pastor West:
See, that's. And that's the part where people have been deceived for so long is because intellectually, you really you really believe this and it's true. And that's good. You believe, for instance, by stripes, you're healed. So he contrasted it by walking in the spirit of by the Spirit. He used the word by because by means there's two things happening here. They're they're believing this. They're born again. So they are spirit. But then. But now they're not there in the spirit. But they're not walking with me in the spirit. You're born again. So you're in the spirit. But then you. But then he says, But now. Now that you're born in the spirit. Now, now walk that way. Walk that way. The same way that you got saved. You can't prove that now. Now, do the same thing that you did by getting saved and believe this also and walk this way. See he's contrasting two things. He says use by or he says he contrasted walking in the flesh or walking by the spirit walking. So that's that's two things going on here. It's a conflict. So he says walk this way, walk with the spirit. And he says, And then the unholy desires of the enemy cannot produce its fruit in you and whatever has happened to you. He said, he'll fix it. Whatever needs to be restored, he'll fix it or he'll remake it. Because it's the work of the spirit.

Pastor West:
Amen. And even though your body gets older and it does, and one day it will leave here, he said, You won't leave here decrepit, because you'll leave here by the spirit in the spirit, and he'll make all things well. If he can make a new creation, certainly he can recreate an artery or vein or a lung or whatever he has to make. If you can take dirt and make humans, you can fix anything in them. Let me believe if you can take dirt, make it human. You probably know how to fix a. A boo boo. Amen. Well, praise the Lord. Did y'all get anything today? Yes. Me too. Hey, me too. I enjoyed it. We're going to walk a little further in this. So we. So we don't we have no opposers in the house so we can go teach others. Stop that. Stop what? Stop attacking yourself. Amen. Well, I bless you in Jesus name. I bless those of you who are watching. We thank you for joining in today. In the name of Jesus I call you healed and I call you. Well, Psalms 107 20. He said he sent his word and it the word healed them and delivered them from all their destructions. The righteous cry. And the Lord hears them. The righteous cry. That's you, right? Amen. The righteous cry. And the Lord hears him. Delivers you out of all your fears. Amen. God bless you.

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stop opposing yourself part 3 | 4Jun2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

stop opposing yourself part 3 | 4Jun2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
Okay. Well, good morning and welcome. Those of you joining us by Facebook or other means or audio at another time, We bless you. We're in a we're in a series in this summertime and school's out and people are traveling solo. I'm thinking about a series is that it's like a recipe. And if it has 12 ingredients and you weren't here for the first three and you come in at four when and if you go from 4 to 12, if there's 12 steps, your meatloaf probably won't taste the same as this one. If you're like, Oh, you're supposed to grease the pan. He's like, Oh, you need meat. Yeah, you need a meat. Yeah. You know, so there's things there. So it's kind of I mean, no one there thinks about it. Y'all don't think about it. But I do. Kind of frustrating when you really want to get something across the people that you know will change their life. Bless their life. But you just can't cover it all in one time. It's like going to Bible school and, you know, going to Bible school for two years. That's three and a half to four hours every day for five for five days, for two years. That's that's that's if you think about it from 830 til to noon every day for two years. And you would sit in and you would have different topics. You would go to this class for an hour and you'd walk down the hall and a bell rang and you'd go another topic and you would open up that and you have another instructor.

Pastor West:
And then you do that and you go do another one. And then you run, go home, eat your sandwich. If you had time, go work a regular job, then come home and do all your homework and just do that for two years. So you would compress a lot of information, you know, into two years. You didn't have time to study it out or walk it out or live it out, but you just you left with a lot of information. And that's what happens, I think, sometimes with Christians and churches that people they leave with information, but they never take the information and it never actually becomes a working knowledge to them that we just know things. And so the only way to the only way to know something is to master it. I mean, you know the old saying that, what is that jack of all trades and what master of none? In other words, you know how to do a little bit of a lot of things, but you don't. But you're not really skilled. They're not going to give you a certificate and say you're a master, you know, of this profession just because I mean, I always laugh at me every time the car tears up. I'll do it just on purpose. You know, something goes wrong. I'll pop the hood and I look at it and I'll just walk around like, uh huh, uh huh.

Pastor West:
I'm a guy one time. What's the matter? We think, what's wrong with us as well? He said, What do you see? I said, That's a motor. Okay, But see, I know who to call. Well, I don't know. You know, I don't. I wouldn't know how to fix a car inside or outside. I don't even know what Bondo looks like. Well, being in the floor business. I know. I know how you, you know, fix the low place in the floor. So I figured that's some form of bondo. But I know Bondo don't stay there forever. I know the parts didn't, so I don't know. Bondo was going to stay there for 30 more years. It may not, but we don't want to. Bondo this morning. We want to go to our our scripture. We've been reading from second Timothy chapter two and we'll go to verse. We'll just stay in the King James. If you don't have that, do the best you can. Or if they put it up, you can read from up here and we'll go over just a few things. But I want to hit on a whole different vein today. Are y'all ready? Y'all ready to to to increase in progress. How many you be willing to change if what you thought you were doing was right and then you found out it needs to change or be tweaked.

Pastor West:
Amen. I'm going to destroy some of my own teaching today. I'm going to tweak it just so that we're sometimes it's not altogether wrong, but we didn't see the other side of the mountain and people assumed you said this or meant this because you didn't say all of it. They left thinking it was just like this. And it's not that it's wrong always, but it's just like it's not it's not complete. And the Bible says we're complete in Christ in Ephesians chapter four, don't go there. It says, The purpose of the five fold ministry, you know, the pastor and the apostle and teacher and so on and so on, is to equip the church, equip the saints to do the work of the ministry. I'm called anointed to help equip you and others for us to do the work of the ministry. Then it went on to say that we that we as the body, we come to the fullness of through the equipping, we come to the fullness of the stature of the measure, not of the Apostle Paul, not of Peter and John. But we come to the fullness of Christ that we become a whole man because we are a new man. Now, that's a That sounds like a tall order, don't it? Jesus said first John four said Jesus. John said, as Jesus is, so are you in this life. First time I read that, I said that couldn't be right.

Pastor West:
I mean, that'll be in heaven. And you can read any translation you want to and it'll tell you as Jesus is. So are you now in this life. If you know who you are in this life, it won't be just because you got saved. That's where you start. But that's not. That's not the fullness. Everything that you need came in the moment you got saved. But that doesn't mean that you're experiencing all of it. I know I'm not experiencing all that God has. I mean, what's your. This is. Yes, this is no, this is like I don't know yet how many experienced all of it yet. No, no. Okay. Okay. I just make sure I was in the right place. All right. So second Timothy, chapter two. If you didn't find it now, just forget it. You won't find it. But it says in the servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all men apt to teach and be patient in meekness, instructing those who oppose himself. If God prevents your will, give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth that they may recover them themselves out of the snare of the devil who are taken captive at his will. So we we entire this stop opposing yourself. So Paul, is the is the is writing this epistle to his son in the faith, Timothy. And he's a young minister and apparently Timothy is getting some flack from people who his age or older, like who do you think you are? What do you know young as you are.

Pastor West:
And Paul, Paul in essence was saying, be kind to him, but pay him no attention. It has nothing to do with your age. Hmm. James, five, said, If you're sick, call for the elders of the church and let them pray the prayer of faith over you and the Lord. And the Lord. You know, no one with oil and the Lord will heal the sick. And if you've committed any sins, you're forgiven you. And people thought, well, the elders of the church must be people. That's the oldest in the church has nothing to do with being age. You could be 14 years old and be an elder if you know who you are. I mean, there's young, foolish people and there's old, foolish people. There's some people who get saved and they never grow at all. They're Christians. They're going they're going to heaven. But they might go to class for 20,000 years. The first 20,000 years they're there just to, you know, just when they get in the front door and it'll be awesome. It'll be a great class. And I'm sure we're all going to go to one. I'm looking forward to it, really am. I mean, Jesus is going to teach us. I mean, what's that? I mean, he's called the word, right? Jesus is the word. What's that going to be like when he stands up and the word opens the word? He says, I'm going to read from the book of me, and that'll be awesome, won't it? So we talked about it says, he said, instruct them.

Pastor West:
The people who are opposing themselves. Wow. Can you actually do that? Well, he said they need instructions because they're opposing themselves. If God prevents, you will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth. They need to acknowledge the truth. This is why they're opposing themselves, that they may recover themselves. Out of the snare of the devil. Who the devil has taken them captive at his own will. I don't like anything about that. Being taken captive by the devil at his will. Because I'm opposed to me like Eric. Stop it. I mean, I'm opposing me, and he's having a hay day with me over here at his will. Uh uh, we played that long enough. Am I in the right place now? Can I just talk plain? Let me tell you what I did today, because this thing is so broad. I think I could teach it for six months, and I don't know if I'd even scratch it. So if I don't put boundaries, I know me. If I don't put boundaries on me, it could go everywhere. I know me. So I had to sit down and write something. And I had a big talk with myself where I got here and I said, You will stay with these notes today.

Pastor West:
It will help them, I said. And I started to walk away and I heard me say, Get back in the mirror. He wasn't paying attention. And I look back and I said, You listen here. You will read these notes and and it will help them to help you. Now go do what you're told. I said, Yes, sir. I said, By the way, you look pretty good there. Now, I didn't say that part, but anyway, so we didn't want to pose ourselves. So what does it mean to pose yourself? Well, pose means you're working against yourself, right? And so you can put this in anything you want to. I've been kind of teaching it in the area because I know a lot of people need a lot of help in the area of healing. But but you can pose yourself in any area, your mind, your emotions, your relationships, your money, your business, your calling. I mean, put it anywhere you need to. So if I say healing, I mean just say like, well, thank God I'm getting help. But at the same time, it's like, I'll put this anywhere I want to. It's like if I give you money, you could save it. You could go out to eat on it, you could buy clothes with it, you could put it in missions, you could put it anywhere you want to because money will spend. How do you figure that out? Oh, yeah, it will.

Pastor West:
I mean, you know, when I called Delta and I said, look, I'm willing to bring some missionaries. We're going to bring we want to bring a prophet from Wales. I said, Well, great. We're coming and going every day. And I said, Well, just send him on because he's a man of God. And they said, Well, we sure will. Is how much it cost. I said, Well, no, no, no, no, no. He's in the ministry. He's a prophet. And this is well, this is how much it costs to get a prophet to America. Oh, but, you know, money talks and money answers. Then when I give them that information, they says, no problem, sir. Stamp, the thing gets done. Man, I love that. Praise the Lord. So here we go. So let's just say. Let's just say because we're going to tweak this thing. Say we're accepting. A lie. That we don't know is a lie. You know, if you if you if you believe a lie, the truth, then what will you do with the truth? Because you've already rejected it, because you accepted the lie, because you was deceived to think something that was not true. Jesus said, You shall know the truth and the truth will set you free. He didn't say religion would do it. He didn't say going to church would do it. He didn't say doing religious, quote activities would do it.

Pastor West:
He said, truth will set you free. Truth is not always easy. It really isn't. You know, some people say, well, you know, a pastor should be loving and caring and kind. I think that's all great characteristics. But they also should tell you the truth. Some people don't want to know the truth. I mean, I want to I want to be friendly and be a friend to you, but I'm not here to make a friend. And if I. If I don't tell you the truth so that we don't have any, you know, conflict, which I don't we don't really that I know of. But if I stand before him and say, well, I didn't really want to say it like that because, you know, if I said like that, someone probably would have said this. And Jesus, you have to understand, it was 2000 years and our culture has changed. And if I just say it that straightforward, I mean, people might have left. And I said, You understand, don't you? If the judgment. He said, Oh, yeah, yeah, that's okay. You think that's how to go? No. Jesus told the truth and it got him killed. And he was the only one. Right? Right. But that's what he came for. So the truth is not always. Truth is the most beneficial thing that you can have, but it's not always received by everyone. But Solomon said a wise person loves truth. A wise person loves correction.

Pastor West:
Amen. The the wise love to hang out with the wise. And they said the truth always increases me. So correct me every which way that you can. I mean, think about this question. I'm going to say something. Who could actually speak to you and change your mind about something that you are doing or might be doing or thinking about doing and you would actually not do it? I've almost met almost no one who does that. Of council people. So when they ask for council and but very few people in just my experience ever changed when they were so set on doing something. And then if it went the whole other way, they said, okay, well we're going to pray about that. And then they come back and said, We don't really understand, but we're just based on what you're saying here, we're going to we're going to heed the counsel for now. We'll take a certain amount of maturity to do that, put a lot of responsibility on me, but I take the responsibility off me and put it on him real fast because I am not the Lord. Y'all figured that out? Yeah. I'm not him. There's not. I don't know about you, but there is no book of Eric in there anywhere. But he talks about me in there all the time. Now go to Romans chapter six real quick. We have we have to see this with our eyes because we're just covering some ground, but then we're going to take off.

Pastor West:
Like a 747 off the runway. Oh, I'm sorry. Romans eight. Sorry, Grace. I didn't mean to. She's helping us. Okay, here we go. Romans eight, verse five. For they that are after flesh do mind the things of the flesh and they that are at the spirit, the things of the spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because and thank God he tells us why. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God. Because the carnal mind will is not subject to the law of God. And it can't be. That was a mouthful. So if you walk after the flesh, you do mind the flesh, you give attention to the flesh. Now the flesh. Let's define it. And let's let's put it in simple terms. The flesh is simply your physical senses. All five of them. That's you can say it 100 different ways, but the carnal mind and the carnal behavior is acting in believing and walking in the information that you have taken in all your life from your physical senses. If you make decisions based upon those, you're going to run into failure. If you make decisions based upon symptoms in your body, you can die from it too early. If you make decisions based on symptoms in your body before you get the truth, it won't be God prolonging your sickness to teach you something.

Pastor West:
God doesn't teach people with sickness. Would you teach your kid with sickness? And so we're better than God. These things that you hear all your life. Well, God's just teaching them something with that. Oh, God. Took them to because he needed an angel. We've all heard that. But there's no scripture for that. Did did you know that you're created in a much higher class than an angel? So if God takes a human off this earth, a born again believer makes you an angel. You just got demoted. I know. That's hard to say. We used to be a shaman. A shaman tissue years ago. You got to be over 25 or 30 years old. Remember this? But a shaman tissue used to have, like, little baby angels. You know, it was real soft. And then I would think about that when I'd hear people going to church and I was a kid, like, well, he took so and so just, you know, we prayed and it wasn't God's will. So God needed another angel. In my all my ignorance. I told a few people that years ago. I said, Well, why did God take my child? I said, I don't know. I mean, we I know we prayed and apparently it wasn't his will. So I guess God needed another angel. I remember someone telling that to some kids who both parents was gone. Both parents. And they were neither one of them.

Pastor West:
Even nine years old. One was four, one was eight and didn't have either parent. That was the was told the kid. But the kids end up hating God after a while. God needed your parents. So both of them are gone. And then you then you leave that with a with a with an eight year old. And you think they're going to love God the next day when they can't find mom or daddy forever? These things are, you know, they're hard to talk about. You know, to to express to people. You certainly don't do it at the funeral. But there's reasons they said, well, it happened for a reason. You know, some things happen because people do wrong things. If you walk if you walk out on the interstate just to see what will happen if something happened eventually, I mean, if you walk out there long enough, someone ain't gonna be able to stop. You know, if you run enough red lights, you know, probably Nathan will get some business. If it don't, total it out. If you know, because there are spiritual laws and if you if you violate spiritual laws long enough, then something's going to happen. I mean, God just put natural laws, in fact, in a spiritual sense, but just for an earth to exist, he had to put gravity here. I always said of gravity is is is just here within the United States, but it's not in Africa.

Pastor West:
Or if it's not in Canada, then that's not that's not a spiritual law of the earth. That's a phenomenon to one country. But gravity works everywhere. You say, well, what if but you have a one Baptist. It works. Well, but it may not work for me because I'm Catholic. Well, it works. It doesn't matter who you are. It's irrespective of your age or your beliefs or your IQ. Right. Gravity is what gravity is and does. So whether you believe it or not, and you go to a ten storey building and say, Well, I don't believe in gravity and jump off, well then you're going to believe somewhere before you pass out, hopefully, and hit the ground and die. You will be a believer somewhere because you won't float up because gravity works everywhere. See, faith works for everybody because Romans Chapter three says faith is a law. Oh, how about that? Faith is a law. The law of faith. Some say, well, people have someone has more faith and we need to pray for more faith. Jesus never taught you to pray for more faith. Never. When you get into pistols, Paul never tells anyone to have faith. Jesus did because he hadn't died yet. He was talking. He came as an Old Testament prophet. Jesus did. And he and he told people have faith. But in the New Testament, he don't tell you to have faith. Why? Because when you got born again, all the fruit of the spirit came into you.

Pastor West:
And faith is one of the fruit. He don't tell you to have what you have. I'd be like me saying, Hey, tray, in the morning, you ought to think about growing a beard. Now, he might. Could tell me that. Like, what's that? You know, But I wouldn't tell him in the morning. But he got to be a male and grow beard. That'd be stupid, wouldn't it? Right. You know why? Why? He already is. So you're already a believer. So why would I tell a believer to believe when he's a believer? I'd be like, Tell him. I said, you know, you ought to think about, you know, paying cars. Fixing cars. Well, that'd be foolish for the obvious reasons he already does. I been telling Mr. B you ought to take up mechanical, learn something about it. You know, done already did. I'll explain that for you. Those of you in Australia in another time or it's Alabama, it's just redneck stuff. So I'll do another idea. Well, I have already accomplished that. God has already done that. So. So you have all this. So it doesn't mean that your faith works as proficient as someone else. But Romans 12 three says God has given to you the measure of faith. Watch here. It didn't say a measure. It says the measure. He didn't measure out more than Billy Graham. And then give you, you know, 1/100 of Billy Graham.

Pastor West:
It's like when a baby is born, it has every organ that a full grown person does in a smaller body. Right. And the baby has just as many muscles as you do. They're just not developed. Some people have used their faith and they're developing their muscles like we were talking about Parker Namely, they're exercising their huge faith muscle that that I'm forming. No matter how this thing works, I'm formed to think, you know, why don't we just believe God? I mean, who knows? You know, we could go help people all around the world, but we have to, you know, we have to have somewhere to come back and live. And someone has to, you know, keep the water bill paid for us while we're gone. What's he going to cost, $100,000? Well, they ain't never made $100,000. They only been married, what, a year or 15 months or a year and a half? I don't think they've ever made $100,000. I don't mean to tell anyone's business, but I don't. I don't. Would you? Making 100,000. You got born again when you got born again or unborn again. And your first year when you're 19, 20, 23 years old. I wasn't. And so but so what do they do? They're taking their faith and they're exercising that muscle. So you have the measure of faith. Who's faith? His faith. So he didn't give you some kind of faith? Everything that Christ gave you was his.

Pastor West:
So he gave you his nature. His nature? He gave you his faith. Well, what will the faith of Christ do? Well, we'll just go back and read Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, and you'll see what it will do. That's why he said the works that I do. Shall you do? You can't tell someone to go do the works that I do and don't give them the tools to work with. Does that make sense? I hope I say things that make sense sometimes. I don't want to be, you know, theological and methodical and just like, oh, thou knowest. Nous, nous, nous. And hitherto. And what's all that? I mean, you can't spend that at Winn Dixie. Just. Just, just. Just put it where people live. Mm hmm. Just. Just, you know where the rubber meets the road. Put this scripture in 2023in life where it is, and you'll find out this is the most current book, the oldest book on the planet. It's still the best selling. This is the best selling book in the world and has always been. And it's just as current now as it was when it came out. In those tomorrow. Knew you before you was. Before your mom and daddy got together. God knew you. You say, How does that work? I don't know. But you can ask him when you get there. Y'all are planning on going, right? Okay. Eric, get back in the mirror. Get back to your notes.

Pastor West:
Okay, I'm going to do that right now, so y'all have to listen a little bit faster. Here we go. Doo doo doo doo. I'm getting there. Praise the Lord. Here's the here's how I wrote this down yesterday. Why is my healing taking so long? I know no one's ever thought that. If you ever meet someone on the planet who thinks this, maybe you can help them with this. Why is my healing taking so long? Or why I said if it's not healing, put it in anything that you're praying about, believe in God for. But in this case, why is my healing taking so long? Have you ever thought that? Have you ever known someone who ever thought that? Well, in in actuality, the answer is in the question. Now here comes the truth. It's not always easy because a person who's still looking for their healing to take place and to have it has never believed God for healing yet. Oh, they've never actually received it yet. When I say received it, I don't mean they have all the everything feeling just like they want to. See. Healing is spiritual before it's physical. You can't. You don't receive a spiritual healing. You rent it from the physical to the spiritual. The flesh. The flesh. The five senses. Cannot we just read it? It can't. Please, God. It can't receive the flesh. Can't receive from the spirit because it's governed by the senses.

Pastor West:
The flesh can't receive something by faith because this information is just natural. Does that make sense? You, your body, your. The senses of your body can't receive something spiritual because it has no there's no inlet to it. It has no access to the spirit. Your body has no access to the spirit. It's all natural. So so when you're trying to interpret this book with your body, boy, it's going to be a mess. That's like putting a first grader in calculus and thinking, you know, we want you to ace the class. Probably not going to happen. They're not ready for that. So you. But God made you a spirit and he's a spirit. So you receive from him spiritually. Take that word and renew your mind so that you think like he thinks. Then your body. Then your body begins to take orders because it comes under. It comes under the. You're a spirit. He's a spirit. You have a soul. You have a mind. You have emotions. You have a physical body. But someone has to be in control. If you don't know who you are and you don't know what Jesus did and you have a physical body, when things go wrong, your body will feel like it's in control or your emotions will feel like they're in control or both, or your finances will grow crazy or your marriage will be all or whatever because you're processing people through natural thinking and means.

Pastor West:
So when God says you can't walk in the flesh and this is not pleasing to me because I didn't create you as a flesh person, the flesh person. One day when you leave this planet, you're going to leave the flesh here, aren't you? I mean, I asked you before. I mean, anyone mind getting a new body for eternity and leaving this one? I mean, God will come back and get this body, and he's going to. He's going to fix it up really good. You're going to like it. You're going to have it for eternity. I ain't never going to age at all. You won't have a body. You ain't never going to need no sleep. Just like Jesus. You never grow old, never be sick. You won't. No one will know what medication is. No one will go for any kind of treatment. No one will need no help getting along. No one will ever require sleep for eternity. You have the same spirit body as Jesus did. You'll be able to walk through walls, which will be fun. We'll be messing with people all through eternity, like walk through the wall, say, Boo, What time are we going to eat? That's pretty cool, right? So that's, that's that's in your future. Now watch here. So you you can wait a long time for to be healed. And you could wait too long. If you wait too long. Not understand the truth. You could leave the planet.

Pastor West:
Because people are still looking to the physical for the proof to be the evidence that they're looking at their bodies for proof that they're healed. Y'all hear what I'm saying? They're waiting on the manifestation. This is a good word of faith talk. I can say what I want to. I'm picking on me. They're waiting on the manifestation. That they may know in their mind that by his stripes they're healed. How many know that verse? That's not for to you. That by your stripes you're healed. So. But see, you can know that intellectually. And you know it. And actually, if I asked you, do you believe it? You'll say, Yeah, I believe it. You could you could know that and believe it and never get healed. I can't say it ain't playing that. I don't know how to say it any plainer. You could know it and believe it and still never receive healing. Can I go a little further? Okay. Claiming it. Possessing it. Confession. Possession. Speak to the mountain. Decree. Declare it. Name it and claim it. All of that when properly understood. Is correct when properly understood. With the improper understanding you're taking a you're taking a truth, but you're what we're still doing is we're still taking the truth, but we're still living it through through the physical senses and the physical mind and not living it in the New Covenant. So you subtract the grace of God. I'm really trusting the Holy Ghost to give me this so clear and plain that I want all of us to be able to leave here and say that that helped.

Pastor West:
So you can understand some things about the New Covenant and grace now than you could have years ago. True, because we've covered some ground for the last since 2011. But that doesn't mean that that's worked everywhere in your life. That just means you saw some things over here that changed your life. But it doesn't mean that the grace of God has multiplied, you know? Paul talked about the multifaceted place of of the grace of God will work in every area of life. But you have to treat you get healed by grace. You got Did you not get saved by grace? Well, God have a different method for healing you. He said, Now we're not going to use grace anymore and faith for that. We we got a different way. How many How many, How many? You get up every day and confess that you're saved. How many are confessing that there'll be enough oxygen for you to breathe today? How many? Who is married? Get up and confess you're married so that you'll stay married. Don't raise your hand. How many you married in your confession? You're not. Not kidding. This game. I mean, to my little faith, medium sized faith, Big faith. That's not really in the scripture. People just talk about that. Reinhart Buck, you used to say he said, America's own place to teach us that little faith, big faith.

Pastor West:
Faith is faith. That just means some people exercised it, as we said, more than others. In other words, Michelle and I have been married 40 years. 40 years. How about the Hansons? 60 years. Anybody top that today? Manager. How long have you been married? 31. Well, 31, 40 and 60 and then be. How long you been married? 28. So some of us have been married longer than others. Okay. The Hansons win, the Nobel Prize being 60 years right now. Who's been married less than three years. Less than two. Okay. So we got some less than two or less than one. Okay. Are they more married than your. But. Well, did you not understand the question? But they've been married 60 years. That may make them more married. Oh. Is everyone here saved? Am I more saved than you? Because I'm a pastor? Yeah, but I'm a five fold ministry. Oh, yeah? Yeah, it's a different brand. Yeah, but I received. Jesus Christ. The son of the living God. So am I more saved? No. So. So you're not getting up every day and confessing that you're saved and married and you got oxygen? Huh? How many get up every day and believe that the sun shines and it gets dark at night. And when I've used faith for that. So it looks like about the only thing that we confess over and over to get most time is healing or when we need something.

Pastor West:
When we don't even confess salvation of being married. Your identity. You don't even. Well, I don't care. I can't even use that anymore. Scratch that. Find something. There's less and less. You can use the example. Okay, I got to get off because, I mean, I want I want this to be aired, but, you know, boy girl that's in store in my world that's there for anything further than that, just email me and I may write you back and may not. So but here's the deal. So we're not even confessing these other things because they're so. But word confession. People who'd been taught the power of the spoken word. I think unknowingly are confessing things because they feel like they know by his stripes they are healed. They know that. They believe that they can give you other scriptures, too. They go, we go to Isaiah 53. The only reason why that you can know that you're saved and healed is Isaiah 53. Huh? He was wounded for our transgressions and he was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace. Our peace was upon him. And by his stripes, we are healed. Isaiah prophesied that before Christ was even born into the earth. Matthew, 817 says this about that, and he's really quoting Isaiah. He said, who his own self fulfilled. And he quoted what he quoted what Isaiah said about the Jesus to come.

Pastor West:
First, Peter, 224 said, Who is own self bore our sins on he bore our sins. First Peter 224 said who? His own self. His own self. Who? Who is he? Who is he? Who? Jesus who? His own self bore our sins on his body on the tree that we now being dead to sin should live unto righteousness. By whose stripes ye were healed. Now see, Peter is talking about after the the birth, the life and the death and the cross and the whipping post. So Peter is pointing back to the cross. Isaiah is pointing to the one to come. Matthew is saying, We hear. So in the only way that you know that you're saved is because he was wounded for your transgressions and bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement he came to, he came to die not just for your sins, but he came to die as your sin. Right? So. That's that's the evidence That's the proof that that now that when you receive Jesus, that you are born again and you become a new creation, But it's the same evidence that you're also healed. But we don't question the salvation because, I mean, what are you going to do with it? You don't you don't have a salvation card to float out of heaven, but you believe it, right? But, you know, it's when we leave here, we go there. When he comes, we go there either way.

Pastor West:
But we go there so we can just put that off there. But the same evidence is for your healing. But you have things in your body contrary to that that tells you that is not so. So you won't use your confession for anything that's already nailed down, so to speak. But we use it all day long. Wear it out for. For things that we don't experience or can't see or can't can't seem to get working in our body. But you can't say that if your faith person because if you say that, Oh my God, he said he didn't feel good for those days, maybe I don't feel good, you know, whatever. When I was 20, I didn't even know I had a body. When I was 30, I didn't kind of I know I had a body. Some were about mid 40s. I was like, What's that? And when I got in my 50s, I didn't say, What's that? It told me now that I went to the next decade, it talks all the time and I say, Shut up, tick a lot. Am I in the wrong room? Amen. I know you don't know what I'm talking about, but I'm just saying. But live on. Live on, baby. Keep these notes, Pop. Papa's gone. Keep these notes. Hallelujah. Now watch here, boy. I'm about to run out of time. So we're waiting on a manifestation, claiming it, quoting it hundreds of thousands of times over and over, but still not experiencing the benefit, quoting the scriptures.

Pastor West:
Now, when I quoted the scriptures, they encouraged me, even though sometimes I wasn't even experiencing the healing but the scriptures. I would quote them sometime hundreds of times, thousands of times without the experience. But they would encourage me. And here's why I believe it encouraged me, because the spirit it wasn't the interpretation that I was putting on it. The spirit was encouraged me because of the truth of what the Scripture was. Amen. Now, how I now how I interpreted it or lived it out. So I would get encouraged to say these things. But it was like endurance. It was like, how long can we do this and for how long? You're waiting for someone anointed to come by who's got a healing ministry or whatever. You're a special time. And then other people who aren't taught as well in the scripture are thinking, Well, God has this time now, not there is no time to be healed for something he died for. Some things do work that way, but everything that he did in his redemptive work, it belongs to you right now. Amen. Amen. I know people all over the world who's been healed of things that they should have died from and were dying from. And then when they found out why they were healed, they thought, well, I've been sick for four years for no reason until I found this out.

Pastor West:
And when I found that out, this thing left in my body in a few minutes or a few days. It wasn't God's time. They just didn't understand the truth. Can I say that? Amen. Amen. Amen. It's just like someone sometimes they approach me because they think I'm this and that and I minister like, like someone would come around and no cost and say, I'm sorry. It's like, well, you think I'm going to melt or something because you cussed. I mean, it's like, you know, I'm just I was born in Detroit, Michigan. They said it was a boy. You know, it was January 9th. Parents said the car barely cranked. It could have been born. That had been terrible. You know, at home in a car that wouldn't crank and Detroit and, you know, had sisters and brothers. And we fought and fought and had fun and whatever. And Barbara's though. So she you know, she just controlled us for so many years. She pinched our cheeks off. I mean, she's like this me and Chris, you know, Chris left home because of it. Not kidding. Just kidding. And we were you know, and I hate to say it, but, you know, during the summer, I got bored. And so I picked on George. She was three years younger than me and she was sucked her thumb too long. So I figured I waited until no one was there. I made sure my parents at work and I decided I'd kill her one day of sucking her thumb.

Pastor West:
This is like it's too long. I said It's going to be bucked out and it's just looking pathetic at your age. So I threatened her if she told mother or dad, You know what I did? Because I knew. I knew what my mother would do to me. She just I wouldn't existed probably. But I sprayed stuff on her finger. I dipped it in stuff, and I sprayed bug spray, red perfume, everything soap, and then stuck it in her mouth. And that closed her mouth up and made her stand out and she's crying, whatever. And I said, Now, do you like sucking your thumbs? She said, No. I said, So don't ever do it again or I'm going to do this tomorrow. If you tell mom I'll beat you, I'll beat you. Daylights out of you. She thought I guess she thought it out and told Mommy anyway. And I got the daylights beat out of me. So I remember we had a tie, you know, the tie powder box. And I put her hand down there and had all the, you know, the powder. And then I sprayed raid on it and Windex and everything I could find and. And I said, Now suck that. Now stop sucking your thumb. Grow up. Well, I've been I've been really called to try to help people for a long time. It's just the Lord wouldn't sit, you know, he couldn't turn me loose because my methods were kind of questionable.

Pastor West:
I suppose. I suppose. But I mean. Right. I mean. Right. I really do. So. So. So the scriptures encourage me, but it's not necessarily the understanding, the interpretation that the Holy Spirit was was saying. That's right. The intellectual carnal mind. Now, listen. The intellectual. You know, the the. What does it say? We're talking about Stop opposing yourself. The carnal mind can't please God. It can't receive. The carnal mind can't receive nothing spiritual. It's carnal. Carnal just means like if you go to a Mexican restaurant and you order What? Chili con carne. What is chili Con carne? It's what Chili with meat. The carnal mind is meat. Flesh. We can only say, Well, you're a cardinal, so you're a meathead. It's just it's just you're making all your you're making all your decisions based on your knowledge. And that together is not always bad because you live in a natural world. And sometimes you, you know, two plus two is four spiritually or physically is still four. Right. So we use that. But spiritually, he says, the carnal mind, the natural information is enmity. It doesn't mean you're God's enemy, it just means it's in opposition to God. Because God is not dealing with you by math or 24 hours a day. God does not change his word because your kidneys doesn't do something. I said, Well, you know, I have to take some scriptures out there because their kidneys won't work.

Pastor West:
Well, first off, you're not a kidney. Mhm. Okay, Stick to the lesson. Here we go. So listen this. So we can mistakenly define healing. By the absence of symptoms. We can mistakenly define healing by the absence of symptoms. Oh, my. Are you there? Maybe someone's still struggling with that. If you were to ask people who are taught in faith, do you believe you're healed on this condition, they will say yes, of course. And quote first, Peter 224 or Hebrews 11 one and but yet still do not have the experience of the healing. Now, I have about ten minutes and I want to cover this, all these things on the website. Now right can be will be in a PDF within a day or two or whatever. So you can go back to, you can listen to the audio, you can go back and watch Facebook. But if you go to the website, you can you'll see a place that is there that you can tap on it. And everything said today will be in will be in a. Format that you can read. I don't know if you can print it off or not, but you can't. You can print it off. So we've got a program now to where you can just go on there and print the whole sermon off. Would that help? If you can't write everything down.

Pastor West:
Okay, So let's talk about the words and why we're using them. Because I don't want you to leave here thinking, Well, he's saying the words aren't. No, no, no. I'm not saying that at all. I'm talking about the method of why we use them, how we use them. So sometimes we activate words because we're trying to produce results. And are you hearing what I'm saying? Sometimes we're using the words that we understand about faith and the authority of the words, but we're trying to produce a result. And it's important to note that the words can work for us and against us. True. But it's not just the speaking of the word itself. Many of us have thought have thought that if we if we're sick and I repeated healing scriptures enough such as first Peter 224 which is so important and to many of you all with with the understanding of that. But there has been a disconnect because results were not happening. The understanding I had was my speaking those words repeatedly would take me to a destination or a desired result. You know, because I know the same verses you all know. You all know the same verses. I know how many you believe that Proverbs 1821 that says death and life is in the power of your tongue. Amen. That's true. How about Proverbs 1218 says the tongue of the wise promotes healing or health. Wow. How many know Mark? 1124 says speak to the mountain and it shall be removed.

Pastor West:
Is that true? Yes. But people have done all this and not had results. Is God wrong? Is God holding back? Is God not keeping his word? Mhm. Much of this is taught puts much of this that's taught puts the burden of your healing and deliverance on you. And what you say. But it puts confession and the burden of the result on you. Was was the burden of salvation on you? No. Oh, so this is so we're going to put healing in a whole different category. Now we're going to put it on us because you got saved by grace through faith. But. But healing. We're going to do it another way. You understand that? I'm not talking about not speaking the word, but I'm talking about the method and the motive of why we're doing it. So what I want to share with you today is that, yes, words are very important. I do mean very important. But what I want to stress even more, this is just my notes. Write them down yesterday. Is what makes these words effective. What actually activates those words we are speaking to produce the fruit or the result that we think that we're saying them to get. We should never use our experience or someone else's experience to make doctrine or explain the word. You have to use the Word of God and the integrity of that word, and that has to be our understanding.

Pastor West:
You can't use your experience unless your experience lines up with the Word of God. Now without going there. This is. You're all aware of the scripture, I'm sure. But if not, this is a scripture that you ought to keep around you all the time. And it's just one. It's just one page. There's not chapters. There's just one page, Philemon or Philemon or I call it filet mignon, verse six. And where he says. He's not just saying, he said here to acknowledge the good things in you, in Christ. In other words, what he says. Philemon said this in verse six. He said that the communication of your faith. Your faith will become effectual. When you begin to acknowledge the good things which are in you. In Christ Jesus. Now think about that. The communication of your faith will become effectual. You want your faith to be effective. It's effective when you acknowledge the good thing which is in you, in Christ Jesus. Now, where do you see anything in there about you doing anything other than acknowledging something? Do you Do you see you. It works good when you confess something 7500 times. No, he said, acknowledge the good thing. Which is where in you? Because we cannot realize we're doing it. But we can confess something because we are your five senses. We we don't have this. We don't feel good. So we're we know things. So we start speaking these things.

Pastor West:
But what we don't realize is we've mistakenly put them out there. So we think that if we can hear, we think that if we speak them long enough because we believe them and that word is true, that somehow some unknown amount, no one knows the amount of that. If we speak them long enough, it'll eventually tip the scale and slide by slide down into your life. I don't a lot of ways to say it, but that's just saying, did you get saved that way? Asking the Lord over and over and over and over and over to save you. I did. To stay saved as a kid and teenager. I've saved unsaved and I saved unsaved saved. I mean, I. You know, make mistakes. Thought I was not saved. Like, you know, y'all didn't do this, but I made deals with God all the time. Oh, God. If you just get me out of this. Oh, I'll never do this again. Oh, God, please. Oh, God. I mean, hail. Hail stayed hot on me all the time. Every little thing. I thought that he was mad or I lost my salvation. Or they would tell you that you need to come to rededicate your life because you. You walked away from God and now he's turned his back on you. Everyone I've ever heard that story. It's all lies from hell. You have a bit of. They didn't know it, but you know.

Pastor West:
And just like there's things we didn't know and we tell people. But that's wrong. God's not confused. He didn't put his nature in here and then go inside of your spirit, rip it out and put it back in and rip your spirit out and put it back in and rip your spirit out and come back in and rip your spirit out. Put his righteousness in. Rip it out. You know, you made a mistake. Rip it. He sent angels down there. He says, we're going to be ripping and tearing all day, boss. So, I mean, you ought to read the prodigal son and find out that God ain't near as moved by this as you are. That's right. I mean, you think God's you think God's really surprised when you make mistakes and sin? It's like, I can't hardly believe it myself. And I'm God. I know it upsets the preacher a whole lot. I remember when it used to upset me a whole lot. He says, Well, you just preach grace too much. You're going to give him a license to sin. And you know how we always say that? I said They were saying, Without no license, I ain't giving no license. They didn't ever come to me. Sir, can I get a permit to sin or a license? When you preach the grace message, it's so good. And that's why that's why pastors don't want to preach it, because they say if you tell people that God's not going to pay them back or God, God ain't paying you back.

Pastor West:
But but if you so you do reap because like gravity works, if you so you do reap. I think God paying you back. You're just sowing. But if you think God's holding it against you and keeping record, you're wrong. You don't have scripture for it. You think you have scripture for it. Like I used to think I had scripture for it. I was wrong. I was in the wrong covenant. But get in the right covenant. You'll find out that you think over here he's mad in a bad mood. Then you find out he's in a good mood all the time. And not surprised. But when if you if you remove the law which has been removed, you say, well, if you just tell people that, he says they'll they'll just do all kinds of things. Well, all that means what you just said, All you really means is when you remove the penalty, you'll find out what's in their heart. If they would get the speed limit of 65, you would know what I really think. Just sometimes it don't work. There are some people went ahead and did it anyway. Sometimes they get caught, sometimes they don't. I got caught one time going 98 miles an hour. And I thought, what am I going to say? And so I just told him the truth. And he said, I just come back from Mississippi, went to a meeting.

Pastor West:
I was ready to get home. I was in a Suburban had. But, you know, I found out it had a governor on it. The hunters, if you go hunt it, it stopped. So I stayed at 98 and he pulled me over and he says, I want just like to know why in the world for what reason? At 130 in the morning, why in the world would you be going 98 miles an hour? He said, Well, just just tell me the truth. I said, Well, I will. I'll just say true. I said I wanted to go 100, but if I do, this car will cut off so I can just come here, right, right below it. And he said. He was so impressed with me telling the truth that he just wrote me a warning. He said, Would you slow it down? I said, I will. And that's the truth. And I went down to 95 because I was still in a hurry. I mean, after I left a while. Don't do this lecture. I'll take that car away. You can't have a car tied in your name at 16. So he said to acknowledge the good things right in you acknowledge means a full understanding. So when you acknowledge the good things in you means you come to a full understanding. It's not just an intellectual understanding or a mental assent or a nod to it.

Pastor West:
Like, okay, okay, okay. It's where your heart knows and embraces the truth when you're faced with all contradictory facts and feelings. Now, notice that Scripture said the communication of your faith. You remember that part? If you do some study on that, you'll find out it's it's also the word communion. Do you understand what communion is? The communion. Or you could say, what are you in communion with? You know, when we talk about confessing the word, which is all through the scripture, confess, just this is all it means. It means to say the same thing. So when you're confessing the word, you're just agreeing with God and saying the same thing about you that he says about you. When he says you're the righteousness of God and you confess that you're just saying, I agree with you, I'm forgiven and I'm the righteousness of God. When it's just by his stripes, you're healed. You're confessing that because you're just agreeing with the word. You're agreeing with the spirit of God. What he said, that's why you're confessing it. But you should be confessing it because you are not trying to make it so. The only reason why you do that is because you have a body and you feel things. So your body says you're not healed, you're sick, you're in pain. The x rays and the doctor says this you're in trouble. And because you don't feel better, we turn confession into a work into a instead of a grace.

Pastor West:
And we somehow repeatedly say things over and over and over, actually really believe in it and sometimes have seen it healing so many times in our own body or have laid hands on people and seen them heal. But then we're not receiving healing. But the problem is, is because you've taken it and you've put it into a work and it's not a work, it's a grace. It's a settled issue. Amen. Because the only way you could be healed was by his stripes. You were healed, and he's not going to come back and be beaten again. Amen. How could you be forgiven? He had to go to the cross. You think you can talk him in to come down and do nothing again? No. So he's doing nothing about healing and nothing about saving. He's just waiting for you To receive what? He's dead already. Past tense. Done. So when your body says this is this and this is so. And sometimes you can have fear of these things, and I'm running out of time. So if I go too far, you'll quit listening. And I know that. So I'll stop here. It'll take me 20 minutes to finish. But I can't do that. I'll do it Wednesday night, so. Don't raise your hand, but sometimes you can have some things alarming going on in your life. Like I said, you don't have to put this on and put it anywhere.

Pastor West:
But if you have something alarming going on in your body, don't raise your hand. But have you ever just kind of felt a little anxiety about that and a little fear about that, even though that you believe healing? I'm trying to say this so many ways. You have to see it. You have to. If I could just say it, if I could just, you know, put another garnish on the plate, It's it's still you know, it's still, you know, chicken and broccoli and whatever. And I'm just turning it around and just rearranging things. That's all I'm doing. But if you begin to confess the word because you're afraid or in fear. Then you still. See you. What's your motive? What is the motivation of your confessing it now? Your confession. Because you're afraid. Because the symptoms are alarming. The x ray was alarming. The doctor's report was alarming. And now you're beefing it up, so to speak, because this is not a good thing. And two of your relatives died this way. So now you begin to confess the word which you wouldn't do for salvation, which you wouldn't do if you're married, which you wouldn't do for oxygen, which you wouldn't do for food for the day. I mean, how many of you got up this morning and confessed to God that you would have food to eat today? None of us did. We don't even think about it because we will. So why do we put healing in a whole different category by itself? It's because your body is doing the talking and you're letting symptoms make the decisions for your life because you feel that you can't do a salvation because you said, Well, I'm leaving, I'm going there.

Pastor West:
And that's sad. There's nothing to deal with about that. But in the physical senses and the body and the flesh, the flesh has a voice and it talks. So Abraham was 100 years old and Sarah was 90. And they've been they've been carrying this promise around for 24 years. And Hebrews four said Abraham just decided to believe the promise. Let's go there. I'll finish there real quick. Can I take three minutes? Three minutes. Go to Romans chapter four real quick and go to verse 13. This will. This will bless us going out. Okay, here we go. Romans 413. This Bible was barely together anymore. But let's say if your Bibles is not a wreck, your life probably is. And if it if it is a wreck, you know? So I'm going to keep this wrecked up Bible because my life's in better shape. All right. Now, watch here. I'm trying to kill two things. What I'm trying to kill is quit trying to work for what's already yours. Amen. Amen. You can't earn it. You can't. I mean, say, I don't have to teach you any longer about. You can't earn salvation. You know that, right? You can't earn healing either.

Pastor West:
Boy, I'm going to get this as plain as I can right now. If I quit pastoring, don't ever confess the word. Don't ever read the Bible again. Don't ever give a penny. Don't ever even come to church. Rest of my life healing belongs to me. It ain't nothing nobody can do about it. I'm just as saved as the Pope. I don't even know if he's saved, actually. But anyway, so I don't want to compare myself to the Pope. God bless you. But, I mean, that was a terrible comparison for me. I don't know where you are. So the promise that he should be the heir of the world to about Abraham. Oh, me. I'm troubled. Was not to. What? Are you all seeing it? You all read it for the promise that he should be the heir of the world. Y'all ready with me? Was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. The promise that God gave Abraham to be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law or through works, or through doing deeds or through keeping rules and regulations. I mean, here's a man who could be the heir of the world by not keeping rules. Now, here's the real deal, because we get excited about Grace and say thank God we never we know under the law more. Well, look, you actually never were your energy.

Pastor West:
The law was the Mosaic law was to the Jews. I mean, you Jewish. Some of you might be. And if you are, that's that's really great news. But you were never under the law. Abraham was never under the law. The law came way after Abraham. And God says, I'm going to bring this because he said, this is a shadow of what is to come. And when Christ comes, he will fill the law, jot and tittle. Christ fulfilled all the law for you and put it down to your credit like you did it and you didn't do it. The Lord worked for 40 or 80 hours a week and you got paid and you didn't even show up. How do you not like him? Well, I don't know if I'm ready to give my life to God. Are you an idiot? I mean, look what he does. So can we see it one more time for the promise that that Abraham would be the heir of the world was not given to him or to his seed, us, his natural seed and spiritual seed through keeping the law. But through the righteousness of faith. So God preached the gospel to Abraham before there was for the gospel could become. And Abraham believed it. And God said, okay, here's how it works in the New Covenant. Here's the gospel. What I say is right. If you believe that, that makes you right with me, so we'll call you righteous.

Pastor West:
If you believe God, he'll say, That's right. Now let's just call you right now your righteous, which just means you are right. That's why you see terms like Justified. You're justified. Which means you have been acquitted of sin. You've been acquitted of all wrongdoing. There's no record on you any longer. Not only are you, you know, you're not even on probation now. Your mother in law and your brother in law, they may hold you at arm's length the rest of your life, but the Lord don't even have papers on you no more. There's no probation officer to work with. Now, there's one who thinks he is. He's called the accuser of the Brethren. That Satan. He thinks he's your probation officer. Boy, I saw what you did Thursday. You broke probation. I ain't on probation, fool. Yes, sir. You ought to go back and find out where he says. My. My foot treads upon your head. Does that feel right? Because I'm right. Yeah. And I'm wearing boots to tread upon serpents and scorpions. And over all the power of the enemy. Even when I made a mistake. Amen. Amen. What are you going to do with that? You said about preachers don't want to preach this. You take the limits off and people be driving like. No, they might for a while. But when they find out about the goodness of God, the goodness of God don't make you want to go smoke marijuana and take dope.

Pastor West:
I mean, you might do it for a while. That's what I mean. It wouldn't bother me at all if they come in and they want to come in high for a while, as long as they ain't making noise. I mean, they go to sleep. I'll just lay them down, let them lay across the seat, and I'll still be speaking their spirit. If they don't want to, they don't. They miss often time one of us go back there and they'll decide for them to take something out. And it's like, Man, you're good. Go home. I'm not like most preachers. I understand. I'm just forget the preaching part. Now watch you verse 17 as it is written. Same chapter. Romans 417. As it is written. God said, I have made you a father of many nations. Now, how many kids does Abraham and Sarah have when he hasn't said this? I have none. That's. I have four. And they're not all here. But, I mean, if you could find them, I have four. I can prove it. The Lord is telling Abraham, I made you a father of many nations. He don't even have a kid. God talks crazy talk. There is no kid. These people are old. Sarah was bearing all her life, could even have children. And you talking to 190 years old. Going to get together and conceive and have birth. But see, God doesn't say you'll have a child.

Pastor West:
He says, I've already made you the father of many nations. And. And he conceived yet. What is this? It's called the Promise. Before whom he believed he is doing the believing now. Abraham. Even God who quickens, which means made alive what was dead in his body. And then God called the things that be not as though. As though they were. So faith will call something that you can't see, that you say, Where is your money for the light bill? It looked like it'd be not, but I've called so it actually be. Well, where's it at? You mean you're saying you got things you can't show us? Uh huh. Well, you ain't got them. Yes, I do. Well, they be where they don't be where you can see them. They be where I can believe them. Amen. When you get a summons to court, that's what he called things that be not the called in the Strong's concordance that uses the word summons. If you get summons the court they're expecting for you to show up. If you don't show up, they're going. They're going. They're going to look for you. When God calls summons, something to come into being. If it don't show up, it'd be in trouble. So when you speak God's word and you call and you summons it to come forth, you're not asking. You're not asking. You're telling. You're confessing because you're agreeing with God.

Pastor West:
But I'm not confessing to make it work because it already is. No matter what my body is telling me. Huh? Y'all see this? Okay. We're almost to keep on going. Who? Against Hope. Yeah. 190 years old. No kid who against hope. Natural hope. They believed in hope that he might become the father of many nations. According to what? So he didn't have a kid and he has no hope of having a kid, naturally. But he's going to believe in hope anyway. This is your spiritual father. Your spiritual father believed this. According he believed it. According to what? Because physically he was still pretty good shape. Sara was still pretty. What was the basis of his faith upon himself? His physical condition because they have a kid for 20 something years, but they finally changed their mind to believe what was spoken, which was so shall thy seed be, keep on going. And being not weak in faith. Here we go. Oh, here it is. Abraham would not consider his body. Are you considering yours? Oh, Abraham would not consider even his body that was now dead. When he was 100 years old. Neither Yet the death of Sarah's womb kept going. Please. He would not even stagger at the promise of God through unbelief. But he was strong in faith, giving glory to God. A little bit more. I think he was fully persuaded that what God promised God was watch here. I know you know this, but watch it. Abraham was fully persuaded that what he had promised. He promised.

Speaker2:
He. Who's he? Oh.

Pastor West:
Was able to perform. Who's doing the performing? Who gave the promise? But someone's got to believe it. So you got saved. That's how you get healed. That's how you live. That's how you live in divine health. Yeah, but the my body. Yeah. Is in opposition. Stop opposing yourself. That he who the devil at his own will takes you as his own will. I hate that. The devil at his own will will take you and mess with you at his own will. Paul said you have to teach them. Give them the knowledge that they need to find out who they are because the devil they are posing themselves. They're trying to bring something from the spirit through their physical senses. And it can't happen. And you're thinking that you're just waiting on God to do something. And if you just keep on waiting and believing God and the right person prays for you and they put oil all over you and you get elder so-and-so and deacon so-and-so and so-and-so and hotshot comes in from whatever, whatever. You never get the spirit to flow through a physical pipe. You can't get water in the ground to come to your house in a controlled manner if it's not controlled in a pipe or some type of conduit or a hose or something. It's just everywhere called water the spirit. But when you hook in to the water, whether it's through a PVC pipe or whatever it is, you're now hooked into the you're hooked into the the substance itself.

Pastor West:
And you brought it into being through the spirit. No longer confess the word out of fear. No longer confess the word to get to a place to where you're trying to get to a place that when you say it enough and you just get your believing enough, and if you just, you know, get your hopes up enough and you get your expectation up enough, somehow you'll tip the scales and it'll happen. And don't tell me we ain't never done that before. Me being the president. But how about just come to the place where the blessed God, This is what it is? Then now the spirit can flow into the physical being and to the mind, to the emotions and to the life and restore that which is missing, that which is broken, that which needs healing, that which needs to be restored in you, whether it takes two minutes, 20 minutes or 20 more days. Choose not to consider your own thoughts or your own body. Do not let your body give the voice. Do not let it cast the vote and decide how this thing works. I am trying to say this so many different ways that you have to get one of them. Amen. Abraham couldn't do anything about having a child. He's 100 years old. Well, you ought to go to the nursing home sometime and say, be a husband and wife from there.

Pastor West:
And if you had a husband, wife and one's a hunter. And I said, Y'all ever thought about having any more children? Huh? Y'all ever thought about having any more children? He hears and he says, Hey, baby, I think they ought have been putting him in here. Instead of us thinking like that. That's what actually happened. And he's the father of your faith. See they got to where physically there was no way they could do it. So they had to depend on God because they can't do it. And Abraham says, Why don't we just. Why don't we just believe God? Amen. I mean, what do we stand to lose? We already got the problem. So they just decided to quit considering their body and their age. And I just believed God that God would perform in them what he said about them. That that the communication of your faith, who you're in communion with, who you're in fellowship with, what you're in communion with, what your communication, what you are in harmony with. You begin to acknowledge that the truth. And let the truth itself sets you free. Do not use God's word and turn it into a work. Trying to make what God said work. You didn't start that way in salvation. It won't work any other way. And you're opposing. We're opposing ourselves and we're opposing the work of the holy. Of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Amen.

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Stop Opposing Yourself Part 2 | 28May2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Stop Opposing Yourself Part 2 | 28May2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor West:
About this weekend. So we want to remember that this morning that as we remember those always not of those who are serving today, but those who have served our country faithfully for the years. We won't know all of them, but we owe we owe a debt to every one of them. Amen. And for those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. For their country. It's more than a barbecue. It's more than a three day vacation. It's much more than that. We're talking about the ultimate sacrifice of the blood of our savior. Amen. But thank God, as many problems in this country has. And it does, and it's changed a whole lot. And there's things happening that we we don't like. But if you go visit some other countries, if you go visit a few other nations, you can still come back and say, thank God I'm an American. Amen. So if you have served or you have family that served, we we thank you for your service. And you may have family members who gave their life and we want you to remember them. And so, Father, we just bless you this morning. We thank you, Lord, that your hands are and your good hand is upon these United States of America. We thank you, Father God, for the privilege that we have to be citizens of this nation. You said blessed is the nation whose God is their Lord. So, Father, we pray for every individual, every family, everyone who has lost a loved one, Father God, who has given their life as a sacrifice for the freedom of this country. We thank you, Lord, that we're still in a place where freedom reigns. We thank you, Father God, that we only reign because we reign with you. We only reign because Jesus gave his life and gave his blood. But we remember these families. We lift them up. We pray peace and comfort upon their hearts today. And we thank you for all your goodness in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. We're up and going on Facebook and YouTube, and that's the way we do around here. So I welcome you all and welcome those who are watching.

Pastor West:
We we do that live simultaneously on Facebook and YouTube. And then we after about a day or however long it takes to put it up, we we do an audio format into 40 different countries. We have an active listening audience. Every time that we say hello, we have an active listening audience around the world of 1100 people at this time. So, so those of you in the balcony and the overflow room and those of you who are not at the beach, ha ha, it's going to be a good day. Last week we talked about I'm always looking for title names, but I don't know, that's not my specialty. But last week we titled it Stop Opposing Yourself, Stop Opposing Yourself. And I would like to build on that. I don't know if it'll go one, two, three, 4 or 5 or will be three today. We certainly can't say it all, won't try to say it all, but I want you to go to second Timothy chapter two. And we'll reiterate just a few things from last week. We didn't we didn't get to all of it. I'm famous for making good notes when I'm studying and somehow when I get here, they don't always it doesn't work that way with me always. What kind of get on another journey? I don't know. But we're going to try to keep it within the confines because I believe this is a very important study right here. These things I wished I had known as a young believer. Someone asked me a few years ago, they said, you know, having been in the ministry almost 30 years now, what would you say in your experience, looking back, was one of the most important things that either you knew or did not know or that you didn't see the, you know, the the bigness of it or you wish you saw a greater view of it, had a greater revelation of it. I said, I mean, there's probably a lot of things I said, well, there's you know, there's a lot of things you know, we the Bible says we know we go from this point to that point. We go from faith to faith and from glory to glory.

Pastor West:
How many know more than you did ten years ago? Yes. And how many know you won't be here a thousand years from now? You all did the math. Yeah, and so? So. But we go from faith to faith. We go from glory to glory. Precept upon precept. Here, a little there, a little, the Bible says. But the one thing that stands out to me over 30 years that I wished I had known more about from the very beginning was simply this the goodness of God. Mean, I was. See, you might have thought I was going to bring out some mystery about who we know, a second cousin or whatever. And you know what happened after this. And, you know, how do they procreate History, which is important. You have eternity to ask questions. Not me. Him. I mean, I haven't got past. When when did God begin, you say? Well, he always was. Don't you know that? Yeah, I know that. But I don't. I don't know how you do that. I mean, but I'm talking about before then. He said, Well, he was before then. Yeah, but I know. But before then. Before them. Before them was what was them. And see, the thing is, you're an eternal being, right. I mean what are you going to be doing 10 million years from right now? Wow. The shortest thing you're ever going to do is the day you were conceived, the day that you leave here. This is the shortest thing you're ever going to do. We're going to go there for seven years when he comes gets us, or we if we leave by the grave and we go that way, either way, we're going to be there for seven years. And the scripture says in Revelation, and we'll go there for the marriage supper. The Lamb How are we looking forward to that? Having a supper for seven years with no carbs? Well, you'll have carbs. You just won't bother you. That's one reason to go to heaven. You can't think of any other. Right? But then we go from there.

Pastor West:
But then we go to the reward seat. It's called the Bema seat. Bema seats reward. And it's a judgment seat. It's not for it's not for a Christian to be judged because you've already been judged. Jesus took your judgment. I never knew that as a kid growing up because our pastor always told us, God, when we got to heaven, he's going to sit us down. And I just thought, they never told us this, but I just thought there'd be a big movie screen and everybody would be watching it. And my and my mother would still be there. And she she still think I wouldn't be too big to whip. But that's not it. The judgment seat of Christ for a Christian is not your being judged for your sins and your mistakes. Jesus already was judged for that. He already paid it. So if you want to go pay for what you did wrong, you're overpaying. Look, when you pay the car off, quit sending the notes. It's paid for so well, it just doesn't seem right. It's the 23rd of the month and I'm just used to doing so. I'm just going to send another payment, send it here, and then I'll tell you when I'll send it in or not. Send the difference if it bothers you that bad. Amen. So I went to the beach, you know, we went to the beach for a few minutes and we come back with, you know, finances to send Emily and Parker and places, and they don't even know it. I'm going to pay at least a month's worth of utilities and apartment rents and all kinds of stuff while they're going down to the mission trip. Amen. I think I'm supposed to go to Panama City and then didn't. Didn't do no fish. Street seafood. But this morning I found out Pastor Matt taught us how you catch a fish with a fish. That's two. That's two for one, right. He caught you. Caught you caught a bass with a with a brim. Now, I can't tell you the story, but that works almost in everything. I've learned how to catch a devil with a devil.

Pastor West:
I put a devil on the devil britches. And he don't even know what he's about. Now I'll learn that because I got him tired of biting the back of my britches. And I learned I could set him up because he was that stupid and I let him buy him. So we want to stop imposing ourself. Y'all okay to have fun? Just a little bit? How many? You don't want to spend eternity in theological school for ten gazillion years? I mean, just be honest, y'all. Y'all not that spiritual. Oh, come on, Adjust your halos. Or tilted just a little bit. No one wants to hear, you know. I mean, do you really want to hear the book of Leviticus for 10 million years? And who begat and begat? There's a lot of begetting and and that's that's really important. If they didn't beget, you wouldn't be here. Amen. Second, Timothy, I'd better start for I get a lot of trouble. Second Timothy chapter two verses. And I'm going to put this in context. Verses 24 through 26, Paul is writing an epistle which is simply a letter to Timothy, which is his spiritual son in the faith, and he's giving him instructions of his calling of a pastor. Timothy has some issues within himself because of his youth, and he felt like, I'm sure because some people was probably saying to him, What do you think? You know, you're just you know, you're still wet behind the ears. What would you know? So Paul was admonish him. He says you teach them the word of God. Doesn't matter what your age is. And so he was instructing him. And so we'll just pick up there in verse 24, it says, The servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all men. He must be apt to teach patient in meekness, instructing those who are what. There it is. Oppose themselves. Is that it's not in every translation. But this is the king James, if you have it. How many of your Bible says oppose right there? You ought to underline that. Do you have a Bible, the kind of Bible you can write in if you don't go the thrift store?

Pastor West:
They got some you can write in. So I was sitting I told years ago I was sitting where Michelle and I graduated Bible school. We were at Rhema Bible College in Oklahoma and it was homecoming week and we were sanctuary. They can put 6000 people in there and then church is huge. So they have a they have overflow rooms and they have the rainbow has a church within the church so that you so if you want to have a wedding or if there was a funeral, you could have it there. And it it sits 500. So they have a church within the church. And so there's we were sitting in the choir loft. They said, Well, if you're an alumni, you can come sit here. There was nowhere else to sit. So we sat and then church began, you know, and we were sitting there in the choir loft, you know, we're looking, you know, the speaker going to we're going to be behind Brother Hagan and and all these people are there. But there was just two seats in front of us. And after about the second song, a door opened off the choir loft. Now Rhema stage is is as long as this building is just their stage. Their stage is 100 by. Well this is. Yeah, it's 100 by 60 just the stage. So we was in the sanctuary and all of a sudden Kenneth and Gloria Copeland come in and they sit right down in front of us. And I thought. I thought he was taller than what he is. Tv. Tv does him a lot of help and a little bitty fella, and he's taller than her. And and I couldn't help it. We were sitting in the row above him. I could just see in their Bible. And I think he had I think he had a brand new Bible. But Gloria, she'd had that one a minute and I could see over her shoulder. And I mean, there was more written in her Bible. I mean, she wrote more there than God did. And now I don't know if this is notes for Ken to go do this, you know, whatever it is.

Pastor West:
But it's okay to write in your Bible. In other words, it is your it is your book to success. This is the most successful book that's ever been written. Yeah. It's not New Age. It's old age, but been tested for the new. It never needs updating. It covers any situation that you have in your life. Everything. It'll tell you how to have a home. It'll tell you how to be a husband to you, how to be a wife to you, how to be a mother to you, how to be a businessman, To tell you how to be a good employee, tell you how to be a minister of the gospel Minister. Reconciliation. There's nothing that you don't that you'll ever need to know that this Bible doesn't give you advice. It tells you how to get away from a woman who just yakking in your ears all the time. In Proverbs, he says, better to sit on a roof and have a woman yakking. I said, Amen. I know that not for my wife, but I mean, I've heard things. I've heard things. I've heard things I've counseled a few people through the years. I know a thing because I've seen a thing or two like the insurance people said. So I asked you last week, well, let's go here to the scripture. He said, The sword of the Lord must not strive. Be able unto all men apt to teach patient in meekness, instructing those who oppose themselves. If God prevents, you will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth. Verse 26. That they may recover themselves. Oh. Out of the snare of the devil who are taken captive by him at will. So, see, these are people who are opposed. They are opposed in themselves. Do you think they're trying to oppose himself? I don't. Do you do you do you willingly want to oppose yourself? So Paul is telling this is what happens with Christians. They oppose themselves. He says he says they're going to need to acknowledge the truth. Repentance means change. All repentance means a change of mind. Right. It doesn't mean fill up a Kleenex box if you need to do that, but repentance means change your mind to the acknowledging of the truth that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil who is taken captive of him by his will.

Pastor West:
Verse 25 generally instruct those who pose. This is the new living translation. You don't have to go there but on the screen. But the New living says generally instruct those who oppose the truth. Perhaps God will change the people's hearts and they will learn the truth. Then they come to their senses and escape from the devil's trap, for they have been held captive by him to do whatever he wants them to do. I don't like that. Do you? So when it says the snare and I know a lot of you know this because you studied these things out, but that word snare the snare of the devil. If you look up the Greek word, what it really means in today's world, it's like the it's like the part of a trap, you know, whether it's a mouse trap or whether you're trying to bait for an animal. It's like Pastor Matt was doing. He he he had a brim, but he didn't want a brim. He wanted a bass. And he wanted he wanted to get the attention of the base. So what did he use? He used a broom. And he got his attention. So the enemy will do things in our lives to get your attention, to draw you away from the truth. So that you see that shiny thing. I mean, if you're fishing with a lure, that's what it is. It just lures them. It's deception. The enemy is a master deceiver. Now, we're not going to sit here and give him props because he doesn't have any. But he's a master at deception. He's had a lot of practice. He's worked with a lot of humans. Just in today's world. I mean, just think how today's world is, what it's like, the deception of people who don't even know who they are. Amen. I mean, I'm still when I'm out and doing things and we was going I mean, there's places I walk into and there's like four bathrooms. I'm like, oh my gosh. It just to be real simple, there was like a dress and there was a man with trousers. I could just figure that out.

Pastor West:
And now there's all kind of figurines. I was like, Oh, boy, I got to go. I told you last week I went into the bank down here with my deposit, and I said, I said, first off, I want to let you know that I'm thankful for y'all been banking here all these years. You're all so good. But I want you to know today I identify myself as a millionaire, and I'm here to make a heavy withdrawal. You understand? You know, you can identify yourself this way or that gender or this gender. And she said, Well, let me look up your account. She said, It won't work in your behalf. I said, But I identify myself. She said, Take it up with somebody else. So it didn't work for me. I don't know if it worked for you. So I asked you last week. I said, Are you saved? And you said that you was. And I asked you, do you have any physical evidence of that? And no one ever no one gave me any physical evidence. I mean, I can open my wallet right now and and I can I got a shell account on gas and and I got a Citibank card and I got a Sam's Club. I'm part of that. Don't go there very often because we're go to spend 100. We come out on $700. I got all kinds of things. I got a I belong to things and some of them are taking my picture. It broke their camera, but all that kind of stuff. But I can give you physical evidence with, you know, these have account numbers, as you know, just like you would have. But you're telling me the most important thing in your life would be your salvation and you can't prove it at all. How many you believe that you're saved? Can I convince you otherwise? You just know when you're nowhere. Now, you do have evidence. The evidence that you really have. It's not physical evidence, but the evidence that you have one scripture would be Romans ten. Nine says. He said, We believe in and confess that if with our mouth, the Lord Jesus Christ, if you believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you shall be saved.

Pastor West:
If you not just saying those words, but believing those words and saying those words. Believe it in your heart and say it with your mouth unto salvation and you are saved. You become a new creature in Christ Jesus, but you don't have any physical evidence. So you take all that. So you never think about it, do you? How many of you woke up this morning and just, you know, you was concerned there would not be enough oxygen in the world for you to breathe today? I mean, you didn't give that a thought. I get that out of your head to think about that. If you tell people to not think about what they do. Like if I tell you I said I do not. I mean, I forbid any of you in the name of Jesus. Now that like, that was that was just me yelling. It wasn't spiritual, but in the name of Jesus, I command you not to think about a pink giraffe. What do y'all think about a pink giraffe? But I told you not to. Well, that's where the Bible says that. That's where seeing gets its strength from the law. Seeing? Seeing got its strength from the do not. How many went to the church for years to do not. So religion changes people that tries to change people at the heart of of commands and laws and the law of God is good. Roman said. But no man ever kept it. No man could keep it. And God knew they couldn't keep it. Never was. Never was. God's purpose to give man a law to live by a law. God wanted a relationship. He didn't want you to love him because of a law. That's not love. I mean, if you was forced to love your spouse. No, please don't raise your hands. I mean, I see eyes moving around, but if he was forced, you know, if I had to get up and read the script. Good morning, honey. Did you sleep well? I heard something roaring in the corner. Oh, it was me. Gee, that's a nice outfit. Does that sound like a great relationship?

Pastor West:
I have to read it every day. It doesn't at all. You think God wants that? No. He just wanted a family to love. You know, God's not near as bad as people make him out to be. Actually, there's more preachers than God, is there? There's some mad. There's some mad, angry preacher. Can I. Can I just tell you the truth? I mean, I should, shouldn't I? It goes with my occupation. I should. Pastors hate three day holidays. If you're in America, it's like, get three days. We gone. Amen. I'm old enough now. I don't care. Have fun. Praise the Lord. But. But here's the deal. It's not rules and regulations. It's just relationship. God just wants to have a relationship. God loves you so much, it's beyond your comprehension. Ephesians three said that he wanted you to be rooted and grounded in love. Mm. Rooted and grounded in love. He wanted you to know. She said he gave it a different dimensions. The breadth, the length, the height and the depth of his love. He said, Which far surpass your knowledge? Well, we can have knowledge. We can read scriptures about God's love. But he said, I want you not to just know that by the word. I want you to experience my love. I want ever experience his love. Amen. I've just watched God do miraculous things through the through the years. And I just watched how it would change people's lives. I remember being in the service years ago. This one I was in ministering for, I was in Tuscaloosa. I was on 65th Street off 69. And church is not there anymore. That's where it was at the time. And Pastor wasn't there. And a girl came who's now married to the guy that she's married to, but she'd never been in a church where they raise your hands. And they were they got very loud, you know, praising the Lord. So she was kind of scared. She went with her boyfriend. Her fiance. They've been married now for years, have have a family and still in that church.

Pastor West:
But I was the guest minister. And so for my friend who went to Texas that weekend, so I was just getting ready to minister and I just heard on the inside of me a word of knowledge, you know, the gifts of the spirit. And I just heard a word of knowledge. He said, there's somebody here who has jaw pain, TMJ. Is that what you call it? And I didn't say TMJ. I just said they have severe jaw pain. And if you'll come now, you'll be healed. And I said, I also hear this and I hear this and I hear this now about 3 or 4 things. If you'll come now, you'll be healed. Well, she was real apprehensive because she'd never been in church with one. And she said she said, you know, they were talking out loud, they were praising out loud. And she said, I've never been in that kind of atmosphere. And she said, then they had their hands raised up and I was looking to see if they was pointing at something. And she said I was in a different kind of church. So, you know, to come forward in front of all that, that was a lot for her soul to be into. You know, to just her surroundings was more than she was used to. Well, I don't know. Anything's going on. I'm just up here. The Lord says, Do this. I say, Yes, sir. Right. And so she said she was telling this testimony. She only waited 20 years after it happened to tell me about it. So I was back there ministering years later in another location. And she she was telling this she was telling this testimony. And she said and I was just scared out of my mind. And she said, then I started to get out of my seat. And she said, my husband, Barry said, he said, come on, I'll go with you because I know, I know that's real painful for you. She said, I got on my seat. She said I walked about 5 or 6 steps. She said the pain just went away and to this day has never come back.

Pastor West:
And she said, she said, I probably should have told you 20 years ago. I said, Well, it would have been nice, you know, to to, you know, just know something about the Lord. And she said and I said, Well, did you come on up? She said, No, the Lord. I didn't have to get any closer. And she was still scared to come up. You know, I guess I'm scared. But anyway, I mean, it was just different for her, you know, just a different type of church. And the Lord just healed. Well in that same building was the girl that got new knees, you know, a few years later that that I didn't get a word knowledge. I just said there's someone came to be healed that night. And it was on a Wednesday night. Same pastor and his family was in Texas, took his service and last five minutes of the service, Matt was with me. He was there. Service was over, wasn't it? I mean, I was past time. And so this girl just came up and she, you know, she walked like this. She was only 19, but she'd had three, three knee surgeries and and everything went wrong. There was nothing they could do to help her. And I didn't know at the time she was a pastor's daughter of a different denomination. I didn't know she was I thought I didn't know. I didn't know. I didn't hardly know anyone there. And so she just came to that church that night because she she found out from their worship minister that she knew it went to school with her, that that church believed in healing. And I said, you're right. They do. She said, But she told me, she said, But I don't. I said, You don't? She said, No. She said, I mean, I believe God could. I just don't believe he will. And I've been prayed for by many people and nothing's ever happened. She said, I know it could, but I don't believe you will. And I said, Well, I got a question for you. Why did you come? She said, I hope I'm wrong.

Pastor West:
I said, Well, here's the good news. You are. Because I was already hearing on the inside what God was was wanting to do. And and I knew that. I knew that. I knew I couldn't prove it. But I knew on the inside, it's wonderful to be speaking the same time and the same time. This is what you call filled with the Holy Spirit. Whichever one of you is, you have the new birth in you. And I'm having a conversation with the Holy Spirit. Why? I was talking and he said, he said, I want you to lay hands on her. He says, and I'm going to put new knees in her tonight. And I said, Wow. So I just now that I know I can play around a little bit. And she said, Well, I don't. I just think before you pray for me, you should know. I don't believe I said, I think you should know that, that I don't care. I did it on purpose just to take the pressure off her. I said, Baby, I don't need your faith tonight. I said, Jesus has a cover for both of us. I said, Let me give you an analogy. See if it'll help you. You see, Jesus never told the seek to have faith. He told the believers, Lay hands on the sick and get them recovered. He didn't say they had to meet a basic requirement. No one in your family should ever have to earn your love. You didn't earn the Lords. I didn't. I didn't earn it. Jesus went to the cross for the whole world, and the whole world was guilty. We didn't earn anything but his death. She said, Well, I just she'd had some experiences of a negativity. She was almost tired of being prayed for. And and I said, I understand. And so I started. I said, I'm going to lay hands on you if you let me. I said, I don't even have to do that. But if you like me, I just lay hands on you. And I said, The Lord's going to heal you tonight.

Pastor West:
Well, I say heal. There was nothing there to heal. He had to recreate. And that's what he did that night. He recreated two brand new knees in her body. She went to the floor, looked like she'd been you know, it looked like she had a hold of A22 20. And I don't know if it was 4 or 5, six, seven, eight minutes. And she just shook on the floor. And it was Wednesday night. Most people were ready to go home and they worked all day. No one was ready to go home. They were all running up there. And and I never saw a miracle like that. That particular one. I seen a lot of miracles, but not like that. And you could see her pants, legs move. You could hear bones popping and cracking. I mean, you could literally hear truth. And so that's why everybody was running. And and I was just acting like, oh, yeah, we just do this every week. And it's like, praise him. I'm like, God, I can't believe myself. I mean, every miracle can be it's the same. God is the same power. But it's just it's wonderful to see how it manifests in her. And she just shook and and then she went, oh, well, she been this way for three years and she was going to Samford in Birmingham, but she, she couldn't make the upstairs so they had a satellite classes for her and then they had she had things she would hold to at home just to get her out of bed, bathroom, everything that would lower her down and then pick her back up. And that was her life. She got church at night with two friends. They put her in the back seat of the car and they they split her because her her legs are straight. She can't bend them at all. Because I asked her, I said, well, you can do this, can't you? She said, I did that three years ago. I can't do that. So she just walked like this. She said, I broke up with my boyfriend last week because I'm not going to let him marry me.

Pastor West:
He won't never have a life. And. And I said, Well, we can get back with him. We'll just see if he's worthy of your love when we get through. She said, Well, I hope. I hope so, but I don't have no faith. I said, Yeah, we covered that. And I said, But everything's going to be fine. So I laid hands on her. She she went down. Now here's what's funny. You can impose yourself. In her mind because it's been so long. She's had that condition so long, she still has it. That may help you when you're ministering to someone. When I just said because it may look like nothing's happened, whether they feel something or not. But when you lay hands on the sick, all you're doing when you're laying hands on the sick is you're imparting life. When I say life, I'm using a Greek word in the Strong's two, two, two, two. That should be. Remember two, two, two, two. And it's the word Zoe. Zoe. Which means the life in the nature of God. It really. It literally just means the life that God has, being God. He put a measure of that on the inside of you. And you born again. You have his life inside of you. So when you release, when you lay hands on the sick, what you're doing is you're just releasing his life. What makes God God in a measure is in you. So all this becomes as jumper cables and boy, if someone will receive it, it can jump. So that night she she she went down and when she when she got back up, when she kind of quit shaking, we picked her up. The ushers picked her up and she looked at me and she was like, what was that? I said, Well, I said, you have new knees. She says, She said, what? She was like an intoxicated. You know, that's kind of what it is. I'm sorry, I have to use that word, but if you ever been in that kind of atmosphere, when when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, it can feel kind of intoxicating.

Pastor West:
But here's here's it's legal. You may not be able to drive for a while, but but but it can be kind of intoxicating. Now you say, well, you shouldn't make light of that. I'm not making light. I'm telling you true stories. Acts Chapter two. Right. Actually, if you look on your calendar, today's Pentecost Sunday, that's when it happened. And Peter had to get up and explain to all the people why these people are drunk, as you suppose. Why would you suppose someone's drunk, right? Something that happened to them outwardly and their expression or the mannerisms that Peter had to get up and explain it. Like, you know, Lucy and Ricky, she had to explain. She had explain. And so she her mind was still where she was three years ago, although she had this experience on the floor for, you know, 5 or 10 minutes. And so in Acts three, I learned years ago that when Peter and John came to the gate temple, I don't know why I make notes. I just it's absolutely just maybe one one day it might be a book. I don't know. It may no one ever read it. But. But they went to the gate. Beautiful. Remember Acts chapter three. And there was a man who had been he had been lame all his life, and he had a license to sit there as they go into the temple to pray and to beg and ask for money. And so they were asking and Peter and John went there, went that day, and in Acts Chapter three and he was asking for alms albums. And but he was lame all his life, 40, 40 years. He was born lame. And so Peter said, he said, look on us. He said Silver and gold I do not have today, but such as I have given you in the name of Jesus, rise up and walk. Now, what did he say? He said, I'm not here to give you money. I don't have the money that you're asking for. But I do have something to give you. And what I have is good and such as I have, I can give it away.

Pastor West:
Oh, that's big talk, isn't it? Look on me. You know what the media would do with you or ministers to say, look on me, I got answers. Well, they're supposed to your Christ in the earth today. Jesus said he was the light of the world. Now he says you are. Time to get your flashlight out and make sure your batteries are already charged. If they're not, I can show you how to charge them so that you are the light of the world. So he said, look on us. He's such as I have give I the name Jesus, rise up, walk. And then Peter did this. Peter reached up and took his hand. He took his hand and pulled him up because 40 years had never walked. So his mind doesn't work that way. So Peter had to show him that he can walk. I had to take that same girl. She said, What happened? What can I do? I said, You're not going to walk, She said. And she said, I can't walk. And I said, Of course you can. You're healed. She says, I am. I said, Oh, yeah, you am. I mean, I'm just not great English. But I said, You are. So I said, took her by the hand. And she was real apprehensive because of her condition for three years. In her mind, she was opposed in her own healing. Many people oppose their own healing. They don't even know that they're already healed because everything the devil does is a is is deception. And every symptom is a deception. Any symptom that you have in your body right now, if you're a believer, is a deception from the enemy that tells you you're not healed. So you need to go do all these things or keep doing them too. If you keep accumulating enough knowledge, if you keep confessing the word so much over and over and over again, if you get enough people praying, if you get enough oil put on you, if you get enough believers laying hands on the sick, if you get enough people petitioning God, somehow you'll come to this accumulated vast amount of whatever you need that no one knows the sum total that perhaps one day you can sway God to do something for you.

Pastor West:
That's called works. That's called legalism. And Jesus hated it. Amen. So with every symptom in your body right now, I have to tell you the truth. By his stripes, you were healed. That's right. Amen. So one day you'll have to settle that issue. If you're not healed, when will you be? If you're not saved, when will you be? So you don't think about salvation. You'll think you know. Because that's done. It's over with. But you can't prove it. So what are you taking as your evidence? You're taking this word, but you go to healing and we go a whole different way. Well, you know, I know God can do anything. God, you know God can do anything. What does that mean? That ain't $0.15 worth of nothing. The devil, the Bible. The devil knows better than we do and trembles. See well. Well, I know we can do That. Doesn't mean anything. See, they believe most people believe God can do anything but don't believe he's done a whole lot. He thinks this thing's finished and wrapped up. Amen. Amen. Amen. So your body will go along for the ride if you'll take it there. Because it doesn't have a voice. It has a voice when it talks to you. But see, that voice is not supposed to be running the show. Amen. Amen. I do know what I'm talking about. If I didn't know what I was talking about, we wouldn't be talking about this. Amen. I have seen. I have seen blinds. See? I I've seen. I've been in the miracle. I've been in service to all have happened. But I've been privileged to see it myself. Well, I was the one praying. Well, you don't. You are blind. And then you see, well, you are deaf and don't even have ear drums. And you get ear drums, see? Well, you are dead. And now you are alive. That's a fun one. That's a fun one. That's real fun. Where limbs will be amputated in the morning to stop the staff in their bodies because they're going to die because they'll go throughout their body and their bloodstream and then lay hands on them and curse that infection and it just disappears and it all goes away.

Pastor West:
And the Lord sends them home with both of their feet and both of their arms and both of their legs and all their fingers and gives them back to the family. Whole w h o l e. That's who we are. In the New Testament, you're called the Sons of God, and it says the earth is groaning and travailing. The Earth is under pressure of all that's going on in the sin and the corruption in the world. And it says the earth is growing and it's waiting for the sons of God you to come into the being of who you really are and take charge. The earth groans waiting for you to rise up and be who you really are. Hmm. I know what it's like to watch. I know what it's like to watch cancer die. Because you were just lucky. Well, then I get lucky a lot. It has nothing to do with me. It has nothing to do with my faith. I don't even have any faith. You don't have faith if you're born again. You have faith. But it wasn't yours. Galatians five gives you the fruit of the spirit, and what it is gives you the whole list of it. First being love, right? You got gentleness, meekness, kindness, faith, temperance, loving, you know, on and on and on. But faith. Galatians Chapter two said, Paul is giving you an analogy of a substitution. What happened to you? Paul said, I was. He said I was crucified with Christ. Well, was Paul there actually crucified with Christ? No, he said then after I was crucified with him, I died with him. So we know that Paul wasn't crucified. At the same time, we know he didn't die at the same time. He said then I was buried with Christ. No, he wasn't. He said, Then I died with Christ. No, you didn't. He said Then I was raised with Christ. We should. That's for Alabama blocks just right there. But what is he saying? He's saying by substitution. When he died, when he was crucified, it was for me and I died with him.

Pastor West:
Amen. He says when they took him off the cross, they took me off the cross. When they put him in the tomb, he said they put me in a tomb. When he went into the pits of hell for three days and suffered all all the agony, the sin, the sickness, the disease, everything because of the curse of man. Jesus went Jesus himself went into the lower regions of hell for three days until the all all justice was satisfied in the heart and the mind of God. And God said, That's enough. And then the Bible says that God raised him from the dead. So it was God's greatest feat, wasn't creation. It wasn't any opposition to creation. He just spoke. But every demonic spirit, I mean, Jesus, they're having a party. We killed him. We killed the Son of God. We got him right there. But he woke up and he got up and he was raised up. Now, the Bible says when he raised him up, if I was making this up, it'd be a great story. But I didn't even have to make it up. It's actually written right there in that book. It says when he raised him up at the same time. See, by substitution, he raised you up. Ephesians said and he raised him up. And now he is seated you with him in heavenly places. See? And the heart and mind of God. And you have to you have to grasp this from the word is that your God only has one time. He created our time. He understands 24 hours. He understands all that because he created. We need that for the service. But God doesn't live on that time. He lives in a place called now. I mean, yesterday was now tomorrow's. Now It's always going to be now. So the Bible says when he raised up Christ, he raised you up together with him and hath he has seated with you. You are seated with him presently in Christ Jesus, your your in the throne room with him. Now, spiritually speaking, you're in two places at one time. It's a it's a wonderful study.

Pastor West:
We don't have time to get into it now, but there are several scriptures where Jesus alludes to being in heaven and at earth at the same time, his physical body being on earth. But he was with he was with the father, several scriptures. He's in two places at one time. And the same scriptures show that you're in two places at one time. How about that, Gomer? You say, Well, I don't work for me because you just don't believe this shit. That's a short answer. There's things that I haven't come to believe yet. I'm still like, wow, okay, I'm pretzel. Like a pretzel all twisted. I'm like, wow, we are. Wow. So I was doing this study years ago. I said, We're seated with him and I did all the Greek and and all this and reading the commentators and the scholars and all that. And sometimes, you know, some people who called scholars, they're not that scholar. Sometimes they can't find their vehicle in the parking lot. I think, you know, they're smart, but they don't have any common sense, the IQ's running off the chart. But, you know, they don't even know how to lick a popsicle because, well, you know, you know that tree, you know, man, got to hold this thing, man, man, man. Got to hold this thing. You don't even know what it means. All that. I mean, you can't really read all that you can. Like, shut up. Because the Bible said, we have the teacher. I've had the Holy Spirit said, Don't, don't read that. Go get your other. What's translation? He just read that. He says, that one's true. You say? What? Can you prove that? No, but I don't have to. Hmm. When you can have faith like a child, you'll see all kinds of things happen because the child believes anything. Children have the most wonderful imagination. I mean, they can think of anything. Sure. If you don't mind me doing this. So when we use that day, we get things out of Amy's shop or whatever they said. She said, I want to ride with him back.

Pastor West:
She said, Can I ride you back? And I said, You'll have to ask. It's not up to me. And I'm used to having a little you know, I have a lot of grandchildren, so and their imagination soars. So in, what was it, five miles from there to your house? Six miles. There was quite some stores. There was lots of stores. And we was going we was going down 31, you know, head back to Alabaster. And and we was going about 50 miles an hour. And she said, Don't let this trailer turn over. And I said, I'm not. She says, she said, because it'll flip. She said if it flips, don't flip me on my side, flip it on yours. I said, okay, okay. Well. I was like, I was like, you know, we would go from a little girl to this brilliant mind. It was just like, wow, you know? And then she would give me these analogies like, how old are you? I mean, there's like and then was going down the road and she did her window all the way down and, you know, and I can feel my hair out of place. It's one of my things. She makes fun of it, but she twists her hair all the time on this. We bought the car and I followed her home and I was taking a video behind her. And that's her habit. She twisted the left side. I was like, If you go bald, I don't know if you're going to be together. I understand. Because if you create your baldness now, we're going to have a problem. And so so anyway, I got the window back up now. So, you know, we're just riding and I'm just asking her a little stuff. And now she turned the radio wide open. I mean, wide open. And it was just like, whatever. And I said, turn. She says, I like it that way. And then about three more went about two more miles. And she says, I want you to stop here. And she says, I want a combo. A combo? How old is she?

Pastor West:
Seven. Yeah. A combo. She. Yeah. And she says, and I want, I want the large size of the combo. I said, anything else you can think of because we still got a mile. And here's the funny thing. We got ready back. I'm trying to back this trailer up, you know, She says, You want me to do it? I don't know. Maybe she could have. We all had imagination, something like that as kids. Where did it go to? How did we lose it? How did we lose it? We just lose it in life. We go to school, we lose them up there. We get older, you know, and we figure we're going to tame the whole world and we figure out, you know, I don't know what age you figured it out, but then when you get to. 50th, they tell me. Y'all do know I'm over £120 now. Yeah. And so you get to 50 at Cole. You say Ed's in heaven now. He say when you get over 50, he said the charm kind of wears off. He said, in other words, you know, it's no excuse not to walk in love. He said, I'm just saying that it will take you less words to say what you need to say when you get past 50. And I found that that was true. Then when you get 60, it takes less words than it took in 50. And at 70, you just. I guess. Well, God wants you to keep that imagination. He wants you to have the imagination that he has. Think about it. You're talking to someone who created billions of galaxies. You're concerned about the Alabama power bill. He's like, I mean, how do you have a conversation with someone who loves you, who created billions of galaxies? Who knows everything about everything. About everything. Could you not trust that person? Would their answer be correct? Yeah, the answer would be correct. So what he would want to fix with us this morning if we needed anything fixed, was he. He'd want to put some questions to bed, so to speak.

Pastor West:
So I want you to go to Romans chapter eight. We only have a little bit of time left. Very little time left. But Romans Chapter eight. Acts. Romans. I'm sorry. I should have told you. Page 2046. Verse five. Let's just break in here. It says, for they that are after the flesh. Do mind the things of the flesh. But they that are after the spirit, the things of the spirit. Don't let the word flesh throw you off. It's not necessarily talking about, you know, it includes it flesh. It will use different words. They who pay attention or do mind the things of the of the the census. Your five senses they who do mind the things of your physical being. They who pay attention to symptoms. They who pay attention to circumstances. So your physical senses is is information. I mean I mean an interstate of just it's lasting from here to yonder of all kinds of information stored in your mind and your subconscious mind. You have everything that you've ever learned, that you've heard, that you are learning. The physical part of you can the scripture says can receive nothing spiritual. Nor can it interpret anything spiritual. Your your fleshly body and your senses cannot. Bosses cannot, cannot receive, will not accept and will oppose anything spiritual. It's not it doesn't have an open communication to it. God doesn't not has never one time ever talked to your body. Your body doesn't have an access by the spirit to take any information but your soul in your mind does. But see, but your soul interlinks connects with your body. So when you get your mind renewed to how God thinks and you're willing to lay down what you think or your experience or what Granny said may be tough for some of you all. We love Granny, but she might have been wrong about a couple of things. Granny told me all the time God was going to get me because I was always doing something that I needed getting for. She never told us God. I mean, Jesus is going to get us. I told you God is going to get you.

Pastor West:
You know. So I grew up with a picture that God just stayed about half mad all the time. And if you crossed him, the club's coming out. And Granny would enforce that. Now, she would get me along with God. You know, there no da back then. I don't think it is. They still be serving time. There wasn't no back talk. You know, I still I mean, it tells my age, but when I'm sitting there and checking that line and I'm watching some parent count to their kid. Now you stop that. One, two, three, four. Like the kid is learned. My my mama and daddy know how to. They. They know how to count to ten. You did it. My mother. You got passed one. It's over. You know. So that's a whole nother generation. They didn't believe in sparing the rod. And my mother told me one time, she says, not that God's man is going to get you. She says, But I want you to be trained to learn to obey God quick, because now God's going to get you. Because if you don't do God's way, then the enemy is going to take advantage of you. So if you're sitting there counting when God tells you to do something, you're going to lose out, son. Will that help me? But she brought in the physical way of doing it that, you know, God put nerves throughout your body, put some in the rear end, and these these nerves in the rear end, they go directly to your brain. And my mother knew that. So she knew she had a switch or a stick and she got these nerves. Quickly. Send a message to the brain. Stop it. She's right. And it worked every time. Now watch here. So there they have the flesh. They they're at the physical demand, the things of the physical. But they either have the spirit, they mind the things of the spirit. So to be carnally minded or to be physically minded or to be symptom minded. Well, does that help anybody? To be carnally, physically, fleshly, circumstantially minded is death.

Pastor West:
I didn't say it. The Bible says it. But to be spiritually minded is to be life and peace, because the carnal mind is enmity. Now, that word enmity doesn't mean enemy. It means opposed. We read in time with you. We started the that Satan takes a snare. He baits a trap to draw you in, to have control of your life by putting something of the physical nature in front of you or uses your body sometimes with sickness or disease or whatever it uses to bait the trap for you to grab hold of this thing, to take you away from the truth of his words. Because if you accepted the truth, you would be free from him. See that girl couldn't get healed on her own. But I had a word of knowledge. Well, I never saw her again. I was over at that church. I went back there three years later, not to minister. I just went to a meeting they were having and she came up to me and I didn't remember her. She remembered me, I guess. So she said, Hey, hey, hey, Do you remember me? I said, Oh, I'm sorry, help me. She's. I'm the girl that you prayed for with the knees. I said, Oh. So I had a gazillion questions, one about her parents because her dad was a pastor. And she said, So, you know, Dad's still he's he's still in the Southern Baptist. She said he preaches healing everywhere. She he has all kinds of miracles. Well, I never met her dad. I didn't have to convince him or anything, you know? You know what convinced him? The miracle. We didn't have to run 40 scriptures in front of him. The miracle spoke for itself. And I said, Well, what about the knee? She said, Well, let me just show you. And I said, Well, did you go back to the doctor? She said, Oh, yeah, we're back to doctor. She's the one that did all three surgeries and that's the way to do. She said. He X-rayed both knees. I said, What happened? She said she he just like was shaking his head.

Pastor West:
He said, I just never saw him like a mile off. I never saw anything like this in my life. I said, Well, what happened? She said, I have two brand new knees. And she said, All the parts, the metal, the screws and everything was disappeared. I said, Do you get a refund? She said, I never thought to ask him that. I said, I went there first. Now this is Chilton County. I went to school here, graduated here. I never got a class on how to. Put these in people and take parts out. Did you? I didn't see him leave. Now. That'd been cool. Like, whoa. I don't know if Angels was doing it. I mean, she was, like, shaking pretty violently. She would go, Oh, I guess there's a lot of nerves and things doing things. I mean, it was kind of loud. I mean, it was loud enough. You could hear bones popping. Everybody around the front. Everybody were on the front. I know y'all have heard the story, but if you could just saw what happened when she got up. So when I told him, she got up and she said, what am I going to do? I said, we're going to walk. She said, I can't walk. I said, Yes, you can. So I said, We're going to walk. And she said, But I say, still opposing herself. And she has new knees, but she still locked into yesterday. I said, So I had to do this. I said, Baby, I'm going to take you by the hand. I'm going to walk with you. And I said, And then we're going to try it. Then we're going to run. She said, I can't. I said, We're going to go or I'm going to drag you all over this place. And she didn't know if I would or not. I mean, I wouldn't have it, but she don't know that. So I'm a pretty good bluffer. I have been called on twice in school, beat up both times. But anyway. But she is always over a girl though.

Pastor West:
And she she said, I said let's go grab you by the hand and has about 5 or 6 steps. It broke whatever was in her mind. And then I went into a little trot and then she did too. And then she broke away from my arms. And then she ran around and around and around the sanctuary. And she was screaming and laughing and crying. And she couldn't even believe it's her body. She couldn't even believe it. And then everybody was coming up to me wanting. It's like, would you pray on this? Would you? We got someone in the hospital, Would you take this handkerchief? And I said, Well, yeah, but I mean, see, everybody was ready to go home. It was a Wednesday night then nobody wants to leave. That's what that's what ministry without confirmation is just information. And the ministry itself has gone too long with no confirmation that what we're doing is we're just taking people's information. That was a generation before us. And then we memorize that, and then now we're giving second hand information. Brother Hagan said, either you said it this way, he said, either you're going to be a voice or you're going to be an echo. And you ought to be a voice. You know what, Echo? Just like, Hello, hello, hello, hello. But you can get the word and be a voice for God himself. So if you mind the things of the Spirit, then you'll have life and peace. But if you mind. If you. I'll close here, if you mind the flesh. This is, if you don't mind, I'll just. This is what it came to me yesterday. I wrote down this way. The word of God says by his stripes you were healed. So we're not waiting on an event to happen. Do we have to wait till we get to heaven to be sure that I'm forgiven? The answer would have to be no. Because if your sins are forgiven at the moment that you receive Christ, then you will make heaven to find out the answer. Okay. These are present tense truths. You are forgiven.

Pastor West:
Saved. You are healed by his stripes. There is no condemnation to you. Those who are in Christ Jesus. No. Zero combination. Every evil thing that has the same source is called lies. Demon is a spirit that carries a lie. Well, it all boils down to is the lie that you aren't healed and that sickness. And if it does, that sickness still has power in your life. It tells you you need to do something. Or maybe the pastor tells you that, or you need to do more of what you're doing to gain a response from God that you don't really already have. So if you're waiting for a symptom or a circumstance to change, then you really aren't. You see in faith. We're not believing what the word says, so therefore we have nothing for the Spirit of God to cooperate with us in. What I'm saying is it's our belief that allows the Holy Spirit to work freely in us, to release everything that we have already have past tense. See, I'm out of time. So if you just read Galatians, you would see it's the same thing. Paul asked the Galatians the same question because he can preach this message of grace where they were trying to keep the law, the Mosaic law, and they accepted Christ. But he would leave in the judaizers come back and said, you can't just you can't you can't be righteous based on believing in this man, Jesus Christ. Now you have to go do all this stuff and keep all these laws. And Paul came back and they were right back to doing what they were doing when he left. He said. How did you receive your salvation? Was it through belief in Christ or was it through your works? They said, Was it belief in Christ? He said, It's the same way miracles works. He said the miracles that you saw was of your doing or of his doing. I said, Well, it was his doing by faith in him. He said, So if you're going to start your life off by believing him, he said, Why don't you finish it that way? Amen. And they're like, Shazam!

Pastor West:
But, you know, that's the same thing. That's what they've heard all their life. It takes a minute for it to soak in. Would you tell a person who's lame or hurting or in pain that by his stripes you were healed the same moment you were saved? They'll say, I know I'm saved. But their body says, Preacher, you don't even know what you're talking about. I heard so many places you can't even name all of them. I said, Yeah, I know You heal. See that that girl was healed and didn't know it. Now, she had all kinds of physical evidence going on. And after everybody runs up there and she was healed. The Wilsons rent is paid if it ain't already paid for next month or next year, and they don't even know it. It's just a matter of me getting on the computer. And there it is. I said, Lord, if you'll send it, I'll send it. He sent it. I sent it. What am I can do it. I ain't the big deal. Hey, man. I mean, it's kinda important. We thank God for the electricity and the heating and the cooling and the lights for illumination. But if you go into the Sealand house and you look up as you know, there's going to be you won't see the wire, but there'll be conduit which the wire goes through. That's supposed to be the code. Don't look everywhere in Chump County. It ain't all code and chunk County. So but if you go through here, the conduit just carries the power through, you know, to the lighting, to the. To the plugs. What are we do it? Are we the big deal? No. Are you the power? No. All you are is conduit. So my. My question to you is, who are you hooked into? Are you hooked into the belief, into faith? What is faith? Faith is really just let's keep it simple. Faith is just believing and trusting that what God said he means and will do it. You believe and you trust that what God said He will do it.

Pastor West:
And you're and you're just you're you're on swayed from that truth no matter what it says. And after a while your body will just have to whatever until you get to the place, to where you're saved by his stripes, I'm healed. And you end it. Then you keep this conversation going forever and the enemy will accommodate you with all kind of symptoms for the rest of your life because you're waiting for enough faith, the right minister, the right anointing. Go the double portion service double what you do. You have Christ in you in the New Covenant. How are you going to double Christ tonight? Just double Jesus night. So come on, that's old covenant. Come into the New Covenant. You're the Bible says of his fullness. You have received the Bible says you are complete in him. The Bible says you have nothing missing, nothing lacking. Isaiah said peace to whose mind is stayed on him. Jesus said, If you abide in me and I abide in you. He said, you can ask what you will and it shall be done. I can ask what I will. He said, Yeah, if you abide in me and my words. So if you're abiding his word, you want to ask for something wrong? Amen. When you lay hands on the sick, you expect him to get healed. You shocked if they're not? Man. I'll tell you a story from This is really my closing. My closing is have three doors. This is the last door. Brother Curry was talking about. He was in a meeting one time. And he said it was in the beginning of his ministry and he said he prayed for 20 people and nothing happened. He said in the 21st, person got healed. Whatever it was. I mean, it was something that everybody could see and everybody just, wow, the first 20 people, something, something did engage the 21st person did, he said, Now, if the Lord would have told me, now, Kerry, I want you to go tonight. I want you to pray the first 20 is not going to get healed, but the 21st person in the line will get healed from there on out, he said.

Pastor West:
Back then, what I would have thought was, Well, let me just get the 20 and get to the 21st one. Makes sense to you. I mean, it wouldn't be kind, but you're just thinking, well, if we're going to get results, don't go through the 20. If I'm not going to get results, let's just go with number 21. He said, Would you be wrong? But on the 21st and he got results. He said, Now what I do, if I were to hear a word like that, he said, he said, I just go down the line and I get number 21 or 22, 23, 24, 25, 26. Then he said, I get the first 20 and because I have 21, I put the first 20 to get healed because now the one didn't get healed. Number one is now 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27. You just go back through the line because all you're doing is just releasing life. It's his life. It's not. It's not you. It's him. Same life that you were saved from. Picture was hard to get healed. Was it hard to get saved? Is it hard to get saved? Do you have to intercede? Has anyone ever called you and asked you to have me? I'm sure. Does anyone ever call and ask you to agree with them about something? Raise your hand if someone's ever said. Would you agree with me about something? I think all of us are. Has anyone ever called you to say, John, would you agree with me because. My brother, he send a big one. I mean. Oh, gosh. I mean, I hate to tell you how big the sin was, but would you agree with me that God will forgive him because John wants to be forgiven? But it's so. The sin is huge. And I just need a bunch of people to agree with me that when he prays tonight that God will forgive him. Have you ever done that? Why don't you do that? You think the blood of Jesus took care of it, right? You think Jesus death and resurrection took care of the sin?

Pastor West:
Why don't we believe he did it when we heal? Same offer. Same body. Same Jesus. Same time. It's because the physical senses, the flesh, the carnal mind is ruling and the emotions are ruling. You can put heaven off over there because it's done. Without. He says the man who walks in the flesh cannot please God. What does that mean? Please, God. Is he hard to please? No. Hebrews 11 six says Without faith, it's impossible to please God. Because you're opposing the life that's in you. The life's already in you. But if you're thinking I need to do all this stuff to get an accumulated effect, to get to the place, then the life can't come into you to flow into your physical being because you're opposing it coming in, because your mind says this has to be done and I've got to cross every T and dot every I and I've got to be here just the right. And then when I make the time, make sure it's the gross. And if it's 0.66, take it up to the seven. Because if I don't, you know, I'll be rebuked or whatever. No, you've been redeemed from all the curse of the law. Christ was made a curse for you. You're not under a curse, folks. Isn't that good news? Yes. Amen. See, the old Covenant said the curse does not come without a cost. You can't find or talk like that in the New Testament. You can't find anywhere in the New Testament where Paul or any teacher in the New Testament told a believer to have faith. Now Jesus did. But he came. He came as a minister of the Old Testament. Amen. He's a prophet of the Old Testament. So he would say, have faith. And they would say, Have faith in God. You can't find Paul. Anyone telling you to have faith in God. You know why? Because you're born again. You have the faith of God in you. Paul would say, Wake up and act like who you really are. So the greatest mystery. This is the this is it.

Pastor West:
I'm going to give you 30 more seconds. Well, that's four minutes right there. Paul said the greatest mystery that's ever been preached. He said if there was if you were to say, this is a great this is great. Paul said the greatest revelation that has ever been preached that God kept for a specific time. That was not released to other generations, is now being released. And Paul says, I am now being given the authority to give you the highest revelation that's ever been preached in this book called the Bible. And you will find it in the book of Colossians, the first chapter. And all it means is this God is no longer in a box. He's no longer behind the veil. He's no longer in a, you know, a man made temple. He said he has moved out and he's moved in. The greatest mystery ever to be told is now Christ in you, the hope of glory. He said that has never belonged to a group of people until this day. Amen. Amen. We don't go. We don't go to the priest. We don't go knocking on the door. We don't need 14 people to get to us to talk to one person. I'm not saying any more than that. You now have Christ in you, the hope of glory. And Second Corinthians says now what He was. You are as he is. So are you. First, John 417 as Christ is, so are you in this earth. If he said heaven, we said, Man, that'd be great. No, he said, as Christ is, so are you right now in this earth. You are the Christ in the earth. Christ simply means the anointed one and His anointed. You are the anointed one. You could say your last name is Christ. Now. Don't run off and get stupid with that. Don't you know I'm going to go home? Create a galaxy or two. Let us know how it works out. The anointed one lives in you. You are his representative on the earth. Isn't it awesome? What's awesome? I've never represented the mayor of Jefferson before.

Pastor West:
Know him. Talk to him. I've never met the the the governor. Or is it governor or how you say that of Alabama. But you represent the God of all gods. There's only one God. Where is he at? He's in you. You see, I feel like I pray I don't. My prayers don't even get past the ceiling. I don't have to. He's right there. Put your head down. Hello. Christ is where in you The hope of glory. What does that mean? That means you're a carrier of this. You're a carrier of glory. You're a carrier of glory. You're worried about Covid. You're a carrier of glory. You're whatever he is, you're a carrier of it. You can bring restoration. You can bring hope. You can bring health. You can bring strength. You can bring joy. You can stop travesty, tragedy in people's lives. When you come upon a car wreck and they're they're dying and, you know, they're dying for Amazon, you're there. Know what that's like and lay hands on them and then see them healed. It's amazing. It's absolutely amazing when you're watching blood flow out and then it just stops. I mean, it's just gushing out and then it just stops. I mean, you know, the scriptures, but you never use them for. Then it just stopped and you're like. Wow. It affects you. It affects you. Amen. Okay, If we don't stop, y'all going to get me preaching. Y'all so easy to minister to. There's hungry, then there's hungry. Amen. How many y'all ever get hungry? Amen. Praise God. Well. Not meeting this Wednesday meeting June the 7th. Right. So we'll be back here next Sunday if we don't see you before we bless you in Jesus name, Amen.

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2023.05.21 stop opposing yourself FRMP3.mp3: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

2023.05.21 stop opposing yourself FRMP3.mp3: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Pastor Erik West:
Can somebody say Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. Glory to God. You may be seated. You may be seated. This is a wonderful day to get together. I said, this is a wonderful day to get together. How many would rather be here in the best hospital in Alabama? Oh, amen. Say this way. Say the Lord is my shepherd. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures. In green pastures. He leads me beside the still waters. Beside the still waters. He restores my soul. Restores my soul. He leads me in the paths of righteousness. For his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil Hear no evil For thou art with me Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me Table in the presence of mine enemies You anoint my head with oil. My cup runs over. My cup runs over. My cup runs over. My cup runneth over. One more time, my cup runs over. Surely. Goodness and mercy. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. The House of the Lord. You agree? Amen. It is so. Amen. Praise God. Well, glad that you're here this morning. We're going to have a good time this morning. Amen. Always good when you can be together.

Pastor Erik West:
People like precious faith who love God, who love his word. I just hear this is my spirit. Nathan I hear I'll say it just the way I hear it. He says, Never be concerned and fear not for your for the years ahead of you in times of age and whatever. And how will this come to pass? It seems like it has to do with your business life, which is the monetary thing that everyone is interested in. You know, money's not everything, is it? But having us up there with oxygen. In other words, try to live without it. And so the Lord said he's already prepared that way and he's already made the way. You may have plans. It might be the plan. But he said, I have the plan. And he says, And and as you have been generous to give and to too generous to him and generous to the house, he has prepared all the days of your life. You were never lack anything. You will never no need for anything. All the days of your life. Amen. That's a pretty good word. I think I'd take that for myself. Amen. Amen. Amen. Praise the Lord. So that that could be said out of Psalms 23. If you don't mind me saying this, I just. Just. Whatever. Miss Heather. Good to see you here this morning. I. I don't even know what this is. It's real simple. Something that you've been believing God for, something that's not has.

Pastor Erik West:
It's. It's a stubborn resistance. I don't know if it's a person. I don't know. I don't have any particular at this time. But before the summer's end, the thing that hasn't budged, the thing that hasn't happened, the thing that looks like there's no way it's going to come to pass, it will fall just like the walls of Jericho. And you and I hear the Spirit of God saying today on this side of the mountain while the mountain is still erected, he said, You have much cause for rejoicing. Amen. Praise God. Well, hallelujah. Second Timothy, chapter two. We want to welcome our audience this morning, who's watching, if you will. When you come in, share the service. It's real simple. You have to hit share. Share. Just s h a r just hit share. And if you're watching, tell us where you're watching from. Now, if you live two miles from here and you're not sick, I'm going to send someone after you. So you probably wouldn't want to do that because I don't really get that, you know, for Satan not to send yourselves together. But there's reasons why some people can't. I love that we have the ways to do this, especially when you're if you're working or if you're out of town, you're on vacation, you can still be part of the service. We have some we have some people that can't physically be here, but they they through today's means of doing things, they're a part of every service.

Pastor Erik West:
And I'm so glad that we can do that. So just share what you will when you come in and tell us where you're from and if you want to talk. I don't know if someone can talk to you the whole service. That's not really what I would do here. But Elliott likes to say, Hey, back to you. So anyway, just let us know what you're doing and where you're from. So second Timothy, chapter two. If you want a title for today and we're going to title this, stop opposing yourself. That would be grammatically correct. But I just want to say stop opposing you. Thus. So what he wants to do is that's kind of a it's kind of a wild title, like, hey, stop opposing yourself. And you said, well, I don't know that I was. Well, let's see what Paul said to Timothy in second Timothy chapter two, and we're going to read verses in the King James. We're going to read verses 24 through 26. If you don't have the King James, do the best you can. Verse 24 says in the servant. Well, let me give you a little. This is Paul writing a letter to Timothy, which is a young pastor, and he's in this whole chapter which we're not going to read. He's giving him instructions how to go about being that he's a he's a very young pastor.

Pastor Erik West:
And Timothy, he's had some issues, you know, because people say, I can see how this went. All this not in there. He's had people tell him, Who do you think you are? You're only this young. What do you think you're telling us about whatever You don't know anything. You haven't lived enough enough life to know. Come on. From Sikkim. That's the West translation, not the West. There's the West. That's the West. Translation But so Paul is instructing him how to do what he's called to do. And then he verse, I'll even back up to verse 23 just so that you'll get a little context, he says, But foolish and unlearned questions avoid. In other words, Timothy is already wrote Paul and telling some of the problems. So he's telling him avoid their foolish and unlearned questions knowing that they do gender strifes. Verse 24. And the servant of the Lord must not, must not strive, but be gentle to all men apt to teach and patient in meekness, instructing those that oppose themselves their It is in meekness and struck people who are who are opposing themselves. If God prevents your will, give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth that they may recover themselves from the snare of the devil who are taken captive by his will. That's that's a that's a mouthful right there. Now watch here, he said in meekness as he instruct these people who they they are opposing themselves.

Pastor Erik West:
If God prevents you will give them to repentance, to the knowledge of the truth. Now watch here that they who they themselves may recover themselves. Out of the snare of the devil who has taken the ones who are posing themselves. Knowing or unknowingly there have been. They have been taken captive by him. The devil as well. You don't have to do this, guys, on the screen. But I'm going to read the last two verses in the NLT. He says gently, Instruct those who oppose the truth. Perhaps God will change the people's hearts and they will learn the truth. 26 of the NLT says. Then they will come to their senses and escape from the devil's trap. For they have been held captive by him to do whatever he wants to do, whatever the devil wants. Well, how many want to cooperate with the devil? We will. We're not going to give him any glory because we're a new creation in Christ. But there was there was a time in my life before Christ where I was helping him with his cause and shared it with others. I was I was a disciple. Well, we all were right. The Bible said before you came to Christ, you were by nature children of wrath. I mean, what do you think that means? And so. But thank God we're not that anymore. So what we want to do this morning is we're on a we're on a whether you understand this or not, we have you know, anytime you get people together, people at different places, and that's kind of the difference between the signs of preaching and the art of preaching.

Pastor Erik West:
The signs of preaching might be the word itself. The doctrine, the art of preaching is trying to say something in a way that it affects everybody in the room. That I'm not talking about having great oratory skills, because if that was it, I need to go find me a new profession. I'm talking about speaking in such a way, ministering in such a way that it can touch the youngest to the oldest. Amen. Amen. Because everybody's at a different walk. I mean, I used to say a prayer. You probably said one, too. If you said your prayers at night, we said something like this. What? Now I lay me down to sleep. I pray the Lord. My brother has washed his feet. We shared a room together. Now, praise Lord. And you know how it goes on. How many of you still use that prayer as an adult? No one use that. Well, you're aware of it, but you don't use it. Why? Because you have matured. You have grown. Nothing was wrong with it. But, you know, we're not we're not singing ABCs anymore. And it's like when you have kids, you're going to become and you have small kids, you're going to get to watch a lot of cartoons and shows.

Pastor Erik West:
I mean, I don't know if you're 25 or 30 years old that you really like SpongeBob that much or whatever a show is that your kid likes. But how many of you have seen those same shows over and over and over again? Now, as a grandparent, I have done this, you know, and watching kids and then it's on. And and here's what and I hate to admit this, but sometimes they have left the room and I'm still watching it. And they don't even realize for the 47th time, like I'm waiting to see what's about to happen. The. She asked me some time. She says, you know, she won't see nothing on. She says, You won't watch Andy Griffith. I said, No. She said, What's wrong with Andy? I said, Nothing. I just know everything they're going to say before they say it. I mean, I know everything they're going to say before they say it. I could even do the Barney moves, you know, and just ask him. He's about to go, like, you know. And so there's things everyone's at a different place. So I'm going to endeavor to because I think I think one of the things the church has done that's a mistake, me included, for years as we have tried to change people, help people, change people. You want to say at the level of we, you need to live a better life.

Pastor Erik West:
However, however, they say that sometimes you just go church and all you hear is you need to do better the next week. It's just another it's just another way of serving it up. In other words, you know, I know you love Jesus, but you know, you need you need to come on and you need to upgrade. You need to do better this week. You need to do better the next week. You need to do better the next week. And people never grow because they stay babes. And Ephesians Paul said that we're all supposed to grow to the fullness of the stature of Christ, not him Christ, Right? Hebrews five He told the people there, he says, By now, every one of you ought to be teachers, he says, But you're not, because you've never grown. The way that you grow is that you hear the word and then you go do it. Hearing is one thing. Hearing is good. It's better than not hearing. But there's no growth out of not doing. Jesus taught that a couple of different places in Luke you can find it and we usually go to Luke where, you know, he likened a house in a storm and a man built a house on the sand. Another one built it on a proper foundation and it says the storm came. He didn't say if a storm comes, it says when the storm came, the house was built on the sand.

Pastor Erik West:
Of course, it was demolished. The house that was built on the rock, it withstood the you know, it withstood the storm. But it was the same storm for both people. So if you build your he says so those who so what he was saying in in that allegory that teaching he's saying for those who hear what I say and do not practice it. He said they are foolish. If you read, I think it's like Luke 646 to 40 8 or 9, somewhere at the end of the chapter, he says. So a foolish man would build his house on the sand. A foolish man would would come to church. A foolish man would just hear the word but never put it into practice. They have 45 reasons why it won't work. How many? You know, some people that no matter what the answer is, they got some reason why for the solution that you got for them. Well, that won't work. I don't work. One of their favorite words is. Yeah, but. Yeah, but yeah, but yeah. But you know what's always in their way there. But their butts in their way. Yeah but yeah but yeah but yabba yabba yabba. And then you got some people who's always telling you what you should do, you should do this and you should do that. How many people are telling you should do this and they're always shooting on you. You should.

Pastor Erik West:
You should do this. I understand what I said. You should do this. You should do that. But see, they're not you. Okay, now I'm through. Let's get back to the word. All right. So it makes me feel better. Get that off my chest. I've been carrying that all week. Let me ask you this. Are you saved? Amen. Your. Oh, that's great. How do you know you are? First few minutes we can talk here if y'all will sit down and actually wrote this Friday out just like I was having a conversation. I mean, I was in the room with you at my house and I said, Are y'all saved? And y'all said you said, yes. I heard you say yes at my home two days ago. And then I said to you, okay, great. And then I said, Do you how do you know you are? Then I said, Will you show me the physical evidence that you're saved? And then it was quiet, just like it is right now. I mean, this is like a script. I actually wrote it out. And then but someone says, Well, I think it should be Romans ten. Nine. Where Paul said, you know, he believed and confessed that if you believe and you confess with your mouth, the Lord Jesus and shall believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you shall be saved. Would that be the scriptural evidence of it? Right.

Pastor Erik West:
I'd been there a long time, but I am a member of Sams and never been a member of Sams. Did you get a card or Costco? They got your card. Can you show me your saved card? Does anybody have one? How many You're convinced you're saved. Can you give me any physical proof? Can anyone give me physical proof? You're saved. But every one of you believe that. And you all are wild. I may have a credit card or a gas card. It is assigned a number and you can purchase whatever you want to purchase from anywhere. If you want to purchase it because it's got your name, it's got a it's got a card number and then got the little number on the back. Know that they ask for all part of security to acknowledge who it is, who are you? And you can do whatever you want to with that. And it's tied to your identity. It's who you are. So we believe all these things. But the major thing, you know, whether we live to be five or 50 or 150, is that when we leave here that we go to be with Christ that we have in heaven the goal. When you leave here now, I mean, go on to heaven is not just the goal. That's not the reason why he brought us here. He wanted the family and he has he has a wonderful purpose for your life. And after that, the goal will be to heaven.

Pastor Erik West:
I mean, you don't want to go to hell. You know that. That's what y'all told me two days ago in my house when I was writing this. I thought I saw one hand going up, but I realized they were young and they were like. And I was like, okay, well, take off. I mean, you shouldn't, but I can't. I can't stop you. So you have no physical evidence. So so I asked this. I said, I asked this. I said, So what is your unit of measure for salvation? And the answer would be your answer was the word of God. So don't think it could be right. And now you have hope right now that you say that you have hope. Now the hope gets hope gets thrown around and hopes made into a bad deal. You know, even in, you know, Christians say, you know, hope's not any good. You know, I mean, you got to have faith. Hope won't do anything for you. Well, that's not what the Bible says. You have to have hope to have faith, you know, without going there. Hebrews 11 one says now faith is the substance of things. What hope for the evidence of things not seen. Now, faith is Hebrews 11 one, which we won't go there. But now faith is the substance of things hoped for. Other translation says Faith is the evidence. It's the title deed.

Pastor Erik West:
You know what that is? Other things hope for. See, hope really is just is a expectation, a good expectation, A confident expectation that what you hope for. Faith. Will be the substance that will bring it into manifestation. So if you have no hope, you have nothing for faith to have substance to. So now that you you have a hope that you're going to go to heaven, you have a knowing. You have a confident expectation, What you just told me, you have a confident expectation with no physical evidence whatsoever that for eternity you're going to be in heaven, but you have no evidence. And you wonder if you have faith sometimes. That's pretty amazing. Everyone here believes the same thing and no one has any evidence to it. If I asked you, do you have a belly button, you would say, Yes, I'm not going to ask you to show it for proof. But we have aunties and we have Outies and we have some way outies and praise the Lord. And so but you have that. You could you could prove that there's a number of things that I said. Do you have it, man? Do you have a wallet? You say, Yes. I don't. I actually left mine. I got halfway here and I thought, well, I don't get pulled over, say, Well, where's your license? I said, at the house. So if you leave me alone please, I'll have it next time.

Pastor Erik West:
Well, you could prove that. Ladies, do you have do you have identification? You could prove that you could show your license. You could that you are who you say you are. Now, you have to think about it. That Jesus died 2000 years ago. And you. And you believe this. But you weren't around, were you? None of us was around. There were people on the earth with him. We know this here in the scripture. But were you one of them? Have you actually met Jesus yet? No one hears about him yet. Right. You weren't there to hear his teachings personally. You did not witness the crucifixion. You didn't witness the death, and you certainly didn't witness the resurrection. Now, here's some questions for you. This is questions, y'all. Class. When does salvation start? You don't have to whisper. Immediately after. What? After you confess, Jesus is Lord. So that's when salvation starts. How many all agree that salvation starts the moment that you confess Jesus as Lord. Amen. Or is it or would it be? Or does salvation start immediately after your physical death? Then salvation starts and you go to heaven. Is that when it starts? No. Okay. You can't always get this many people to agree on this many things. This is. This is good. This is really good. So we're saying, according to the scripture, that we believe we're saved, born again, made a new creature in Christ. As soon as you believe.

Pastor Erik West:
Is that what you're saying? Amen. So when I heard the gospel believe, asked Jesus into my heart question, was my past sin or sins or the multitude of sins and transgressions, was it able to stop my salvation? But one, if he is a drug addict, could it stop it? No. So before you come to receive Christ, was there any any sin that could stop? If you truly wanted Jesus to come to live in your heart? Was there any sin that could stop? At the moment. You received Jesus as Lord. Could any kind of sin stop it? Well, let's just know. I hate to say this, but what if you murdered someone? What if you as a serial killer? And I won't go into whatever. What if you had hurt children? Would Jesus still receive you as Lord? Really? What if you had burned someone alive? I'm thinking of a minister right now that Norvel Hayes had a daughter. You remember Norvel Hayes. He's in heaven now. And the devil would just mock him. He said, Norwood. He said. But it feels kind of foolish to travel all over the world helping everybody else and their kids. And you can't even help your own. He said. He said Zola was so crazy. She you know, he said she'd go to the bars all night and she's so high on drugs. He said there was two of her friends that went to the beach. They were so high that they poured gas on themselves and lit themselves on fire and burned to death.

Pastor Erik West:
But what if he was the person who did that? Someone? Would Jesus still receive you? I don't know that it did. I don't I don't have any evidence that it did or did not. If Hitler, before death, had asked Jesus to forgive him, would Hitler be in heaven? Really? But you know what Hitler did, right? So. So there's no you telling me there's no conditions of sins or transgression that can stop the salvation. Well, that's kind of funny, isn't it? Because sometimes we feel like we can't go forward and we can't get past this. And the devil is opposing you so strongly, and he's just got this thing bound up and. And the greatest miracle you could have would be salvation, right? It really would be right. And with one scripture. Romans ten with John 316. You beat the devil with one scripture. Amen. Good of all that he's built up to be other than other than the Book of Revelation. And I know the people been here a while know this, so just endure with me for those who are watching or haven't heard it, other than the Book of Revelations, the devil's only mentioned four times in New Testament. So I always said if this was a play, a theatrical play, a drama, he didn't get that big a role. He's only mentioned four times and all four times puts him in the all four times.

Pastor Erik West:
If you look at the reference of how he's mentioned, it's that he's been defeated and stripped of all power and authority. That's his that's his role in the New Testament. Now, the old bugger, he'll raise up in Revelation and he'll he'll put a hurt on a few people and he's to the place, to where he still thinks he can win this thing. He's going after it. Now the reason why the Antichrist hasn't come. Now, this is for people who believe in the rapture. There's a great deal of people who do not believe in the rapture. Whether you do or whether you don't, it doesn't matter to me. I mean, some people can't get along together because if you don't believe this, I ain't talking anymore. I said, Well, how are you going to do in heaven? Well, I didn't believe all that. Don't be around me. I have friends and I have people that that I that I listen to that minister to me in other things that they don't believe that we're physically going to go up in the rapture. I'm of the persuasion that we are. How many? I want to ask you, but how many you be okay to leave when he comes? But you know, if we stay here, it's going to be okay. I mean, just. Just go back to the Israelites in Egypt. They got locusts.

Pastor Erik West:
You don't. You know they got frogs. You don't. They're in darkness. You're in light. There plagued you aren't death Angel comes in, their first born dies. You're not. So if God can do that with Egypt, he could do it if we're here. But I don't. I've listened to both sides and I can kind of see some things that they're saying. I don't see enough evidence that says we stay here. But we'll be okay either way. So but, you know, every time that there was things that took place where there was going to be destruction throughout the scripture, you see that God always removed his people. You see, with Noah and the Ark. You see it with Sodom and Gomorrah. What did he do before Sodom? Gomorrah was. Was destroyed. He brought the righteous out, Right. The reason why the Antichrist can't come right now is because you're here. Darkness cannot overtake the light. So Satan has always had to have someone ready to be the antichrist. Always. I mean, I just always used that baseball term. He's always had someone in the bullpen had to be ready because they have to be ready when Jesus comes or when it comes and we're gone. He can't come. Antichrist can't come because you're here. You're the light. So he would like to run the show. But since he doesn't know when that moment comes, Satan's always had to have someone ready. I'm thinking when he. When he had Hitler on the earth, he thought he had someone.

Pastor Erik West:
Boy, this would be a great time to come because I got someone here that that's going to, you know, give us all that we need. But Hitler died, so he knew he had to have somebody else. So he cannot come because you're the light and you're here when we leave. He will come. The scripture says he will come, but he will become as a peacemaker. He will come. He will come as someone. He won't come with horns. He won't come with a whip. He won't come with fire. He'll come as someone who is a great orator, who's concerned for the peace of the world, and since the world is going to be in such chaos, they're going to listen to him. You know, the tribulation don't even know why I'm talking about this right now. We know it's seven years. It's broken up into two. You know, it's the it's the it's the tribulation. The first three and a half years, the second three and a half years is is called the Great Tribulation. Tribulation. Great tribulation. The only difference is the intensity is so bad in the last 42 months that the Scripture says that if Jesus didn't come back when He did, no man would survive it. No man. But the greatest revival that will probably ever take place. When you read the Book of Revelations, you find out will happen when the church is gone to the marriage supper of the lamb.

Pastor Erik West:
All kind of misconceptions say, Well, the Holy Ghost won't be here. Well, of course he'll be here. You can't get saved without the Holy Ghost. He will be here. You have the 12 tribes of Israel. You have all. You have the 144,000. You have people that will be ministering in Israel and all over the world. And at that time, they'll know that they was actually wrong, that Jesus was not just a great teacher. He was not just a prophet, but he was the Messiah himself. God will give them every opportunity to repent during those seven years. But when he comes back, we come back together with him. We come back on a white horse. When he comes back, it is not the dispensation of grace. He comes back with wrath and he comes back with fury. And we come back together with him on a horse. So if you don't like horses, you need to start liking them and a little bit and and practice now and do the giddy up because we're going to look here. I mean, how many y'all believe the Bible? We're going to fly through the atmosphere on a horse? I mean, have you ever rode a horse? You like horses? Have you ever flown on one? This is going to be so cool. I mean, Star Wars don't they don't have anything. I mean, just think about the rapture.

Pastor Erik West:
He says you'll be changed in the twinkling of an eye. Well, you can't get ready for church that quick, can you? Wouldn't that be cool? Oh, let me do something. I to be there. You're there. You're going to be changed in the twinkling of an eye. I mean, NASA doesn't have anything that can go to space that quick. I mean, you're going to be with him and already changed before you can blink an eye. I mean, can you imagine what it's going to be like? You know, just like you're going a billion miles an hour, like, boom, There you are. Hello? A lot of fun, exciting things. People say church is boring. It doesn't boring about it. I mean, just think about I mean, think about the rapture. I mean. I mean, what Rocket could stay up with you? Faster than a speeding bullet. You know, we might even get a Christian cape to go in. I don't know. This is nowhere in my notes where I talk to all. I was doing this conversation. I was talking with y'all two days ago, so someone pulled me off over there. So if you don't like that, it's someone in the room. Pull me off over there. I just lost the Holy Ghost. If I go that way. Amen. Either that it was the oatmeal I ate. I don't know which one it is. So you said that no sin can stop our salvation now.

Pastor Erik West:
Okay, I know this is simple, but is your salvation? Is your salvation that you're now saved? Was your was your salvation reliant on God's timing? Did God keep salvation away from you on purpose? Until there was a perfect time. If someone wanted to be saved, would he say no right now? Does anyone believe that? Thank you. No one believes that. And it's funny how we introduce sovereignty into so many things except for salvation. We believe that if you really in your heart, you were sitting on a bar stool somewhere, half lit, whatever, and everybody in the room, but you had enough consciousness about you and you were truly as Jesus to come that you could be around. Dope addicts and drunk, as you know what? But if you truly mean it in your heart, how many you believe that God would save you right there in that bar room? Does anyone believe that other than me? Can anybody say amen? Amen. So it's not relying upon a specific time. I mean, there is something called what we call the age of accountability. For me, it was the fourth grade. I just woke up one day thinking, he's coming today. I knew he was coming that day. It was the most worst, horrible day of my. It was the best. It was the worst. I mean, my mother should have realized what was going on because I went to school. I just woke up and I just that's what it was.

Pastor Erik West:
I didn't know I was I was fourth grade. I was in Miss Byrd's class in Clanton. I don't know nothing. Miss Byrd said she was singing all day long, and I was terrified because in my mind, I mean, you go to church and, you know, they would give an altar call. And just as I am, I wish I could sing, but just as I am. And people would come up right, if they was going to come up. So I thought the only way you can get saved is you have to be in a church. A pastor has to preach. He has to give an altar call and you have to answer the altar call. I mean, that's the way you have to get saved. I didn't know I could ask him. So all day I was terrified. And Miss Bird said, she said, Eric, are you okay? I said, Yes, ma'am, I'm fine. She said, Do you need to talk to somebody? I said, No, ma'am. All I was doing was crying. I was begging God. I was so thankful. It was Wednesday and I knew we was going to go to church. Because you didn't ask my mother, Are we going to go to church Unless you wanted a lot of trouble. So I knew we were going to church, but I knew on Wednesday it was you. The the real church was there on Wednesday.

Pastor Erik West:
Right. So I knew then he would not give an altar call because he ain't gonna have no visitors on Wednesday. But I told my mother, I said, So I got home and and I was thinking, oh, dear God, I'm still not talking to my mother because I know this is how it has to work. And I'm sitting there looking at 5:00, two more hours and he's got to preach. So I hope he don't preach long. So I said, When we get there, tell tell, tell pastor to give an altar call. I want to get saved. And she says, Oh, good, that's great. And but I didn't ask her because I know you have to be in church. You have to be in church and they have to ask and you have to say, okay. So I just knew he was coming. I knew he was coming. I knew he was coming. So he preached about 25 minutes on Wednesday night. We had a few songs and a few terrible testimonies. And then so he'd already been told, Mom said he's real anxious about getting saved. I said, Well, that's good. He says, I'll make sure I give an altar call. He said, If there's anyone here tonight who would like to accept Jesus, I'd like to Roadrunner. I was like, I don't even know this person. I don't know nothing. The man preached. But when he said, Is there anyone here? I was like, I said, beep, beep.

Pastor Erik West:
Hurry, hurry, because I got to get every word out because I mean, it don't count, you know, legally.

Pastor Erik West:
And he said, would you? Yes. And so, you know what are you, ten years old? So it was traumatic for me because I mean.

Pastor Erik West:
I barely got in under the wire. And for me, because I got in.

Pastor Erik West:
It was so traumatic.

Pastor Erik West:
To me, to be honest to God with.

Pastor Erik West:
You. It was like.

Pastor Erik West:
I heard the.

Pastor Erik West:
Hallelujah choir in my head and I made it like.

Pastor Erik West:
Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah. Oh, God. But then I thought, oh my gosh. And I knew my dad wouldn't say.

Pastor Erik West:
And I went home and and to knock on his door. You don't do that. And I went to his room and I just I got home. I said, Dad, I said, I got to tell you something.

Pastor Erik West:
I got to tell something real quick.

Pastor Erik West:
He said, What is it? This is not a conversation you would have. My dad. And I said, I don't have time, but this is so important. He says, What is it? I said, Jesus is coming today. I said, I'm shocked he hasn't already come. And I said, But he is coming today, Dad. And I know you're lost.

Pastor Erik West:
Because you're mean a lot and you cuss a lot. And and it didn't matter because Jesus was going to come and he didn't have time to ground me or beat me. So I just said, You're mean a lot. And you cuss a lot and you're angry.

Pastor Erik West:
A lot and you don't have much time. I cannot even believe we're still here. I said you need to receive Jesus right now. I said, Are you ready? He says.

Pastor Erik West:
I'm fine.

Pastor Erik West:
You go to your room. I said, I'm not playing with you.

Pastor Erik West:
I remember I'm not playing with you because you know. So when you believe you're out of time, you'll get pretty bold. You got to be bold like that now. So then I called a couple of my friends just getting kind of late.

Pastor Erik West:
And I called the parents and I said, May I speak to I won't tell the names. I'll just say Johnny. And I said, Johnny, this is Eric. Hey, look, man, I got to tell you something real quick. He said, What is it? Because my parents don't want me. This is too late to call. And I said, Well, I told him it was it was serious. So that's why the parents let me do it, you know, call because they were already in bed. And one of them got up. He said, Well, what is it? I said, Man, it's serious. He said, What's happening? I said, Jesus is coming tonight.

Pastor Erik West:
And I said, You know, you, me, best friends and I know you're mean.

Pastor Erik West:
As you know what.

Pastor Erik West:
I know you're I know.

Pastor Erik West:
You're going to go to hell.

Pastor Erik West:
And I said I was too, until tonight. But I'm saved now. We don't have much time. And I remembered what this is, what the preacher said. And then he told me afterwards, I could have done this all day long.

Pastor Erik West:
And I was thinking, Really?

Pastor Erik West:
That's what I been through? I have, haven't.

Pastor Erik West:
Eight nothing I've had. I've had.

Pastor Erik West:
You know, diarrhea. Sorry, but I just like I sick I mean, this is honest to God truth. Can I go to the bathroom? If she said no, I'm still going because, you know, like, oh, I was sick to my stomach. So I said, John, you're going to hell because you were just like me. And he says, he said, He's come now. I said, Yeah. I said, Say this. He said, okay. And I called another one, got him, said.

Pastor Erik West:
Here I am.

Pastor Erik West:
Today.

Pastor Erik West:
939 and and Jesus still coming soon.

Pastor Erik West:
You better, you better get with it. So. So nothing you said.

Pastor Erik West:
Nothing can stop your salvation now what can stop your salvation? Let me tell you, according to the scripture says.

Pastor Erik West:
What can stop your salvation is not believing on the Lord Jesus.

Pastor Erik West:
Agreed. Amen. Not confessing him as Savior. In short, what stops you.

Pastor Erik West:
From being saved and what stops you from.

Pastor Erik West:
Anything? Is unbelief. So if you actually.

Pastor Erik West:
Read the scripture, even though we pray this way.

Pastor Erik West:
We ask we ask people to pray with us through Christ, and we ask you, Lord, forgive us for all our sins. That's that's not actually in the Scripture that you were ever asked to ask him to forgive you of all your sins. You only had one sin. You said, Well, no, I had a bunch of sins. The only one that was going to send you to hell was not all these other stuff. You only had one sin. You. And the sin was you had rejected Jesus. Who was the payment for your sin. So? So someone has to pay for sin. Jesus did. But if you don't receive him, then you have to go pay for it after he already did.

Pastor Erik West:
Amen. So if you reject him, you are rejecting the payment. So on belief in him equates to you being.

Pastor Erik West:
Lost eternally.

Pastor Erik West:
Because you was.

Pastor Erik West:
A sinner. You say, Well, and I will say it this way what do painters do? What a welders do, right? What did cooks do? What does Sanders do?

Pastor Erik West:
Hello. So? So it wasn't no shock to Jesus that she was sinning. You were a sinner. You were by nature a sinner. So you. You would only leave here and go to hell because you hadn't received Jesus Christ who was the fulfillment of everything and died for all your sin.

Pastor Erik West:
So.

Pastor Erik West:
For those who hadn't.

Pastor Erik West:
Heard it, listen to.

Pastor Erik West:
This. Really good. You may think this is just a play on words, but it's not. Jesus did not die for your sins. Ready.

Pastor Erik West:
He died as yersin.

Pastor Erik West:
Do you. Do you understand what.

Pastor Erik West:
I'm trying to say?

Pastor Erik West:
He didn't die. He didn't come down here and.

Pastor Erik West:
Say, Well, the boy did this, this, this.

Pastor Erik West:
He didn't die. He didn't die for your sins.

Pastor Erik West:
We were by the nature. By nature. The scripture says.

Pastor Erik West:
Because of Adam's transgression, by nature, we were the children of wrath. He died as your sin.

Pastor Erik West:
He died as your guilt.

Pastor Erik West:
And the scripture said in Colossians, when he was raised from the dead.

Pastor Erik West:
He took.

Pastor Erik West:
Everything that was contrary to you.

Pastor Erik West:
Contrary, was you was guilty of all sin.

Pastor Erik West:
James said, if you you could.

Pastor Erik West:
You could.

Pastor Erik West:
Give 99%. Good. But if you miss it.

Pastor Erik West:
One point you're guilty of everything.

Pastor Erik West:
So the Bible says Jesus came and fulfilled all the law.

Pastor Erik West:
See, sometimes when we're talking about the law, Twin Grace, we think, well, the law is a bad thing. I mean, it's just like this law was pitiful.

Pastor Erik West:
No, it was God's law.

Pastor Erik West:
It was God's standard of holiness. But the law never perfected anybody.

Pastor Erik West:
It couldn't because no man could keep it. The law was when you saw the law, when the law came in, when you when.

Pastor Erik West:
You you had Ten Commandments, then you had.

Pastor Erik West:
613 others. Ceremonial type.

Pastor Erik West:
Commandments.

Pastor Erik West:
I mean, some like like on some days you can only take so many steps. You can't cook on this. You can't visit the bathroom on some days. True. Six in the 614, which.

Pastor Erik West:
I always said, you know.

Pastor Erik West:
On that Sabbath day.

Pastor Erik West:
When you can't.

Pastor Erik West:
Even go to the restroom, you better really watch your diet.

Pastor Erik West:
Today before that.

Pastor Erik West:
Right? Don't stay away from the prune juice.

Pastor Erik West:
And the prunes. I mean.

Pastor Erik West:
Because the next day you're in major trouble.

Pastor Erik West:
I know that's a pitiful joke, but it's absolutely true. When the law came down for the first time, do you know what the first person died of? Do you know what they did for the first person who died after the law was instituted? It was one man who on the Sabbath day was doing what he always did. And now he went to go pick up sticks to gather a fire to cook for his family. And that was forbidden in the law. And he was stoned to death.

Pastor Erik West:
Before there was a law.

Pastor Erik West:
There was no transgression. God had. He has.

Pastor Erik West:
All children. But if he had. But if you think you've had problems sometimes your family.

Pastor Erik West:
This helped me years ago.

Pastor Erik West:
When I had a few.

Pastor Erik West:
Issues at home and I said, Lord, where did I go wrong? He said, you know, because I just I mean, where did I go wrong? He said, What do you mean?

Pastor Erik West:
I said, Well, I told him, you know, what was going wrong in my family.

Pastor Erik West:
He said, Well, where did I go wrong? I said, What do you mean Where did you go wrong? You've never been wrong, he says. He says, Have you ever read about Cain and Abel? I said, Yeah. He says, Those are my kids. You would call them grandkids. He said, Where did I go wrong with Adam and Eve? I'm not a good enough father. I didn't teach him right. I didn't spend time with him. I thought, Well, no, you're perfect. He says, Oh, so people do make choices on their own. I said, Well, yeah, that helped me so much. Not just to take it off me, but just to see that that, you know, you know, all these.

Pastor Erik West:
Problems is going on in your life, in the world.

Pastor Erik West:
There are all his problems. He's got a lot of problems.

Pastor Erik West:
He doesn't seem to be moved that much by him. The Lord, the Lord's not being.

Pastor Erik West:
Medicated daily.

Pastor Erik West:
Because of all our.

Pastor Erik West:
Problems. He's like, I'm not. I'm tell the Lord doesn't have anxiety attacks.

Pastor Erik West:
Just like he has all your problems. And then the problems of seven.

Pastor Erik West:
Almost 8 billion more people. Amen.

Pastor Erik West:
And sometimes you think you need counseling. If I could give you all the problems.

Pastor Erik West:
That I have with this church.

Pastor Erik West:
And say, this is now.

Pastor Erik West:
Your situation and I'm going Hawaii. You think, Well, what is there? You'll know in about a week. You'll know when your phone goes off.

Pastor Erik West:
At 2:00 in the morning.

Pastor Erik West:
And and all they want to know is, Pastor.

Pastor Erik West:
Where is this in the Bible?

Pastor Erik West:
We're like, we don't do that. I did that 30 years ago. Call me. Know where Scripture is. Well. The Lord is not concerned. He's not worried. I'm kind of getting away from here, but I really follow the Holy Ghost. Now watch here. Some of you have some problems. Look here you can't fix. Just be honest.

Pastor Erik West:
Sometimes it. This helps me so much. Sometimes to just be honest with the Lord.

Pastor Erik West:
You think you ought to be? Yeah, but I'm saying I want you to hear that literally.

Pastor Erik West:
Go to the Lord. Now he knows.

Pastor Erik West:
He already knows. But if you're like me, it kind of helps to lay things out. You ever done that? I've laid out bills before. I remember laid out bills before and I'm like, okay, I got this much money and I got that many bills. And I wasn't great at math, but I was enough to know that wasn't working. And then we'd have these people You ever heard? You may not have heard them, but see me. I've served as a call bill collectors.

Pastor Erik West:
And some of them get mean.

Pastor Erik West:
I mean, they're just mean. And I got so tired of it. One day I came home from work one day, and that's when we had answering machines. I remember answering machines and mine was lit up.

Pastor Erik West:
Green, boom, boom.

Pastor Erik West:
And it was like 14 messages. I'm just telling on me today. But have you all ever have you all ever known where your checks going to go before you get it? Yeah, me too. I knew where several checks was going to go for I got and it wasn't enough. I went to a dentist one time because I had to finally go and he says, Boy, you. He said, I know what your problem is. I says, What's wrong? He says, I know. I know why your mouth is in the shape that it is. I said, Why? He says, Because of four kids. He said, Chad Taylor, Amy and Kristin. You spend all your money on them. He says, your mouth is a mess. Well, I had all these cares and I and I found.

Pastor Erik West:
Myself trying to fix things that I couldn't fix. I know you've never done that.

Pastor Erik West:
But I'm just admitting to you today that I sometimes have tried.

Pastor Erik West:
To physically.

Pastor Erik West:
In my in my strength and my care and.

Pastor Erik West:
My compassion.

Pastor Erik West:
Have tried to fix things that.

Pastor Erik West:
Really I wasn't fixing, I couldn't fix.

Pastor Erik West:
But I felt like somebody has to do something.

Pastor Erik West:
I was like, I prayed the Lord and he just sitting around.

Pastor Erik West:
I was like And I was like, I mean, I couldn't say, but I want.

Pastor Erik West:
Like, do something.

Pastor Erik West:
Like, you know.

Pastor Erik West:
I know you got a throne. You ever thought about getting up?

Pastor Erik West:
I mean, I mean, that's just my thinking. Not today. I mean, a long time ago. And so. So since he wasn't working on it, I did.

Pastor Erik West:
And I was.

Pastor Erik West:
Getting all kind of results. One of the worst days I ever had. And I can't go into details. Was. Number of years ago. Me and some people who's here today in this church tried to help a young man who who had every disadvantage to life and home and family and parents. Um, he just lived in a pitiful situation.

Pastor Erik West:
And.

Pastor Erik West:
Probably wasn't the wisdom of God to do what was done, but. A couple in this church cared so much to take him into their home, away from his home. Which gave him some presence of sanity. What we didn't know was over a period of time when we was at church and he would go home with different kids. He'd go home to different families who had kids. And then we went to a like a summer kids camp where a bunch of kids are this kid who was 18 or 19in.

Pastor Erik West:
Age, but probably 12.

Pastor Erik West:
To 14in his mind. We found out actually my my wife, we were we were just playing cards one night. It wasn't poker. Don't, don't don't write me a letter. We was playing cards, so I'll cut my grass, you cut yours. And we were just playing cards one night, and he was with us that weekend and he was with my kids. And we were at a pool. There was a pool and just a little four foot high pool. And they were not small kids, but they were they were still young, 12 and under, 13 and under. And he was up there. And then all of a sudden, my wife said, Where's so-and-so? I said, They're in the pool. She says, something's wrong. Something's wrong right now. And I'm thinking God, shoulder or something. I'm thinking water pool. And I ran out of that house and I ran as hard as I could to that pool. And they were all okay, except the oldest one had his britches down and he wanted to show him his rear parts. That night the Holy Spirit said to me, He didn't say this to me. I was. I was. I fell asleep. And in a dream I saw him in all these different people's homes that was in our church and at this camp. And I saw what he did to those kids. And I thought, Is that real? I never had a dream like that. So I knew where he was. The next day. And I knew the presence of his mind was younger than his age.

Pastor Erik West:
And. And I'll just say his name was, you know, Joe. And I said, Joe, I know what you did when you were at so-and-so's house and use it so-and-so's house. And he said, Who told you? And I got so sick on the inside and he, not knowing, admitted to everything that I saw in my dream. It was terrible what happened to those kids. It was all of them. Wasn't as bad, but some of them it was they were abused in every way that you could be. And you just wanted to cry. A bucket of tears. But yet no one when he came out of was was horrific. And I had to go see the law enforcement. And I said, what would happen if someone had a situation like this and they came out of this kind of home? But this happened. But the kid, he's just he's just Pastor West. He says, you're giving me the what ifs. He said, But you've got a real situation. And he says it has to be taken care of now. And if you don't do it. And you even send him away. He's going to do this again. And when he does, he says, does. Then the day that he's arrested, then we're going to come back and arrest you for all these things that you knew I hate. That was his situation. But he has to be taken off the street. So I had to tell him what I knew. And they.

Pastor Erik West:
Went and picked him up.

Pastor Erik West:
And he had to admit to it. And he did. And he was 19 years old. And he he is serving because I initiated the whole thing. He's serving two life sentences. Oh, that was not a fun day of pastor. For everybody involved. Some of those families. One of those families never stayed together. Their whole family split over. The kids were messed up. Their grades went sideways. Some of them ended up in all kinds of trouble. And I carried the weight of that for so long. Like I should have heard from God. I should've never done this. I just carried it. It was just eating me alive. And I was sitting with a friend of mine who's he's in heaven now. He just died a few months ago and he was a pastor years beyond my experience. Before that, he was a sheriff. So he had a lot of experience. And I told him. And he says, I hear what you're saying. He says, But you've got to change your thinking. And I says, Well, he says, I'm going to say something and you're going to repeat after me. This guy has strong personality. I said he was a sheriff and he had a he had a motto about devils. He said, I'm just giving you a look into his personality because he's he's he's about to help me in his own way. And so but his motto was, With devils, there's two ways to get a devil out. Cast it out or beat it out. So he said, Now say this with me. We'll just call this boy Joe. He said, Joe is going to prison.

Pastor Erik West:
For two lifetimes census, which is that would be 15 years and then another 15 years. So it was going in at about 20 and he will come out at 60. Can you imagine from a messed up home from a mind that's not really there, from people from family in his home that did the same thing and he just repeated it. But now he's going to be my age. And he went in at 19 because I had to turn him in. I'm not want you to feel sorry for me. I'm just trying to give you an idea of what I'm saying here. So. So, Pastor, my friend said he said he said, say this to me. He said, Joe is going to prison for 30 years. I said, Joe is going to prison for 30 years. He said, okay, ready? I said, Yeah. He said, And I don't care. And I said, What? He said, Say this because. And I don't care. I said, I'm not saying that. I mean, how could you even say that? He said, Derek, he says, Are we going to do this one more time? And now that was now the guy. That was two ways to get a devil out. And I was at his home way out in the country where if you got lost, no one would ever find you out there. He said, Joe is going to prison. I said, okay, Joe. He said, No, I don't care. And I said, He said, I said, Say it. And I said, and I don't care. He said, Now.

Pastor Erik West:
Do you know why you don't care?

Pastor Erik West:
And I said, You'll have to tell me that one. He said, Because God cares.

Pastor Erik West:
He said, The problem with you, you become.

Pastor Erik West:
Incapacitated to do anything for yourself.

Pastor Erik West:
Or help anyone because you're.

Pastor Erik West:
Taking the care of this. He said, You care and you have a concern, but.

Pastor Erik West:
You don't take the care. Amen.

Pastor Erik West:
And that's real simple. But for where I was at in the situation, I couldn't see all the other like this. I couldn't think clearly, he says. And I said, Joe, Joe is going to prison for 30 years. God loves him, but he's going for 30 years and I don't care because God cares. And I felt the burden. God just lift off of me. And I've been able to pray for that kid, which is now a grown man. All those. All those years. And that's what happens when we try to do things in our own strength and our own ability and our own might. Is we we take something that doesn't belong to us. It's not yours to take.

Pastor Erik West:
How many of you agree that if.

Pastor Erik West:
You're born again.

Pastor Erik West:
That even you don't belong to you? Amen.

Pastor Erik West:
If he's Lord now, there's a lot of folks who got him a savior, but they're not Lord. He's. See, your.

Pastor Erik West:
Spirit belongs to.

Pastor Erik West:
Him, right? If he's your Lord, so does your soul and your mind. And then your body belongs to him. You can't.

Pastor Erik West:
Do anything you want to with your.

Pastor Erik West:
Body because.

Pastor Erik West:
He owns your body. Amen. The way that you have to deal with that is.

Pastor Erik West:
You have to say.

Pastor Erik West:
If Jesus come down.

Pastor Erik West:
Today.

Pastor Erik West:
Would I invite him to go do.

Pastor Erik West:
This with me? And you pretty much have your answer. See, there's things that that boy, I'm so far away from them notes. I mean, I don't even know how to get back over there. I'm running out of time. I mean, it's like a bridge to get over there now. But there's. There's things. There's, there's things. There's paths that you set out on. And sometimes you get stuck because you got to a place to where.

Pastor Erik West:
You're you're not able to move forward and you're just kind.

Pastor Erik West:
Of stuck there. I know what I'm talking about. I don't know who I'm talking to. I think I'm talking to some of you. I mean, I don't.

Pastor Erik West:
Care if you're in the fifth grade.

Pastor Erik West:
Or if you're 70 years old. We've all get to a place, to where we've come to. A place that I can't go on anymore the way this is or the walls are up and I feel surrounded. I feel isolated. And. And. And it all looks real.

Pastor Erik West:
And factually it is real. But the Lord is not moved.

Pastor Erik West:
By it at all.

Pastor Erik West:
He greatly cares. But see, you really haven't.

Pastor Erik West:
Given him the care.

Pastor Erik West:
Because you're whatever dominates your thinking is.

Pastor Erik West:
Dominating your life. Whatever moves your emotions is what has control of you. Who or whatever emotionally has control that that is who's in control of your life. I'll say that to help you. So but you have to be honest with yourself. If if you're afraid and you're in fear.

Pastor Erik West:
All of it, really. I'll be honest with you.

Pastor Erik West:
You know, the Bible says in the the carnal mind is enmity against God.

Pastor Erik West:
That doesn't mean.

Pastor Erik West:
The enemy of God. That means.

Pastor Erik West:
It.

Pastor Erik West:
Means this the carnal mind is enmity or the carnal mind is in opposition. See, Paul told Timothy, he says, you're going to.

Pastor Erik West:
Have to teach these people because they're opposing.

Pastor Erik West:
Themselves.

Pastor Erik West:
And they can set themselves free, but.

Pastor Erik West:
They're not free.

Pastor Erik West:
So therefore, he has them captive and they're doing his will. He's running the show.

Pastor Erik West:
And they're not.

Pastor Erik West:
But he didn't say God would have set you free. He said, you can set yourself free. If you quit.

Pastor Erik West:
But you're going to have to quit opposing yourself. You say, well, well, well.

Pastor Erik West:
Tell me how. Back up. I said, okay.

Pastor Erik West:
I'll back up. Let me back up. How am I opposing myself? Okay, here's how you're opposing yourself. This is at least one way. How many know the scripture? We won't go there, but seven Corinthians 517 if anyone be in Christ. He's a what? A new creation. Brand new. Never existed before. New species of being.

Pastor Erik West:
Now why are you why are you a new creation?

Pastor Erik West:
Is it because that you got a new hairdo? Hairdo?

Pastor Erik West:
Who do?

Pastor Erik West:
You change your clothing, change your profile page on. You know, it's just like.

Pastor Erik West:
You got all these signs of.

Pastor Erik West:
The end time and they're all over you. I mean, some of you may not like this, but I'm used to that. I'm real used to that. So that doesn't affect me a whole lot. I'm not trying to make you mad, but I'm just saying. But. But some of the end times, it says, you know, they will be lovers of themselves. You see people all the time, like on Facebook, you know, taking pictures every three days. It's a different picture.

Pastor Erik West:
Let me let me.

Pastor Erik West:
Let me let me let me look at me. You see me in the mirror. You know, like, look at me. Look at me. Look at me. Look at me. Look at me. They got the stick on. Let me look at me. Look at me. Look at me. Did our numbers just drop off dramatically on Facebook or YouTube? I hate that guy.

Pastor Erik West:
It's like he said one way that you'll know you're at the end, he says. He said, There'll be lovers of themselves. It's all about me. What's your favorite TV channel? My vision. Lyrics to that song used to sing his song.

Pastor Erik West:
Whatever it's all about. You made the song? Yeah. No, I want to change this all about me. It is not about you because you died. But the Lord would take better care of you than.

Pastor Erik West:
And He wants to. Than you would take care of yourself.

Pastor Erik West:
Amen. But you have to stop opposing yourself. So. So here's how you oppose yourself.

Pastor Erik West:
So you're a new creature in Christ Jesus. How many know when he came into.

Pastor Erik West:
You, he brought. How much of him did he bring into your spirit?

Pastor Erik West:
I'm hearing all faintly.

Pastor Erik West:
Are you being kind or are you just wanting not wanting to get on the tape or.

Pastor Erik West:
They're going to think you don't agree with anything I'm saying.

Pastor Erik West:
If they can't hear you now, according to. I mean, I got gobs of scripture. We just don't have time. So when.

Pastor Erik West:
Jesus came.

Pastor Erik West:
Into your heart, how much of him did he bring in?

Pastor Erik West:
Oh, did the Bible not say of his.

Pastor Erik West:
Fullness you have received?

Pastor Erik West:
Did the Bible say that you're.

Pastor Erik West:
A complete in him?

Pastor Erik West:
Did the Bible say that you're lacking nothing? Now, okay, now he's a spirit and you're a spirit.

Pastor Erik West:
Are we still on the same path?

Pastor Erik West:
Are you a spirit being? You have a soul and you have a body.

Pastor Erik West:
But you're a spirit. One day you're going to vacate this body.

Pastor Erik West:
And you're going to get.

Pastor Erik West:
A new one. Are y'all okay with getting the new one? How many? You want the upgrade? Forever. Yeah, me too. But he's actually going to take this body when he comes back and he's going to pull it up from the grave. And he's going to make it a spirit body, too. You're going to like. You're going to like that new suit that you're going to wear the rest of your life. I mean, the rest of eternity. It's going to be really cool. Amen.

Pastor Erik West:
You think you're a good looking now?

Pastor Erik West:
Just wait till you get to heaven. You might be taking like.

Pastor Erik West:
Look at me.

Pastor Erik West:
Look at me in my heavenly suit. And they'll say, Put it down. We all look that way. You're going to look like Jesus.

Pastor Erik West:
I always thought.

Pastor Erik West:
It'd be funny.

Pastor Erik West:
For white folks.

Pastor Erik West:
We get to heaven If we get to heaven. It'd be so cool. And they found out Jesus was black.

Pastor Erik West:
And they're like, Oh my God. Or he's Asian or he's. Or he's an Indian. He says, How are you doing? How are you doing?

Pastor Erik West:
We know why there's at least four colors on the earth. We're made out of dirt. There's four colors of dirt.

Pastor Erik West:
Mm. That's why he deceives people. Love has no distinction. No one wants to. But if you take us to the hospital and put us in a surgery, and if they cut off a 16th of the pigment of your skin and someone saw.

Pastor Erik West:
You know, they never saw you.

Pastor Erik West:
Before, they wouldn't know what color you was. That you can need a kidney. You know, you're Asian.

Pastor Erik West:
And a white man or black man living in.

Pastor Erik West:
Sacramento.

Pastor Erik West:
May have the match and be.

Pastor Erik West:
Willing to give it to you. And your body can live and function.

Pastor Erik West:
And you're going to die. You don't really care what color they are, do you?

Pastor Erik West:
Huh? This is all the tactics of the enemy is what it is.

Pastor Erik West:
This church knows I've been.

Pastor Erik West:
Believing for a lot of.

Pastor Erik West:
Black folks in this church for a long time.

Pastor Erik West:
Somebody who can sing. I mean, we got people who can sing, but I'm talking about.

Pastor Erik West:
I want some soul in here sometime.

Pastor Erik West:
I like Pastor Keith Green, you know.

Pastor Erik West:
And is he still in Birmingham? Pretty good size church and.

Pastor Erik West:
It's a good.

Pastor Erik West:
Mixture of white and black. And he says he says.

Pastor Erik West:
It's just amazing what we can do. He said, we only have two problems.

Pastor Erik West:
He's preaching this year and going there. And I listened to it and I said, What's he going to say? He's going to say somebody to black folks and the white folks.

Pastor Erik West:
He said, it's the black folks could just come on time. And if the white folks could just clap on time. You know, my.

Pastor Erik West:
Wife.

Pastor Erik West:
Used to, like.

Pastor Erik West:
Get rid of the gum. We'll have a better chance. I mean, I'll remember Miss Reed. I used to have my church come out of church before she passed. Man, what a voice. Dear God, what a voice. She said, What do you want me to do, Pastor? I says, I just sing. And I said, Just. She said, Any request. I said, Yes.

Pastor Erik West:
Please just don't bust my speakers.

Pastor Erik West:
That woman had a stadium voice that was just.

Pastor Erik West:
And I was sitting here before.

Pastor Erik West:
She passed at her house and her husband said.

Pastor Erik West:
Could you stay.

Pastor Erik West:
Here a few minutes? I need to run the store. And I said, Oh.

Pastor Erik West:
She was at the end.

Pastor Erik West:
I said, How long are you gonna be gone? He said, You know, medically I was not comfortable. This is 20 more years ago. All right. So Reed Reed is on the couch. And I said, okay, so Jimmy takes off. Do you remember Jimmy? He went, his name Jimmy. Her name is Rita. He takes off. And and I said.

Pastor Erik West:
Well, praise the Lord. I mean, you see me like, praise the Lord, and.

Pastor Erik West:
She ain't moving. And I said, Oh. And so I start doing what you do. If you're Pentecostal, Jesus name.

Pastor Erik West:
Be healed.

Pastor Erik West:
Be strong. And I'm looking I don't see a blouse moving. I don't see.

Pastor Erik West:
I don't see no heartbeat. And I get real close and I said, Oh my God. Oh, I think he just died. Oh, my gosh, Jimmy's gone. Reed's to die. So I said, So I started. I said, I rebuke the spirit of death. Death go life like this.

Pastor Erik West:
And nothing. Ten minutes and.

Pastor Erik West:
I can't even see her breathe or move. And I sit down thinking, think. Oh, God. He just went to the store and his wife died with me here. And I'm supposed to be your helper, you know? So now I'm really going into my bag of tricks. Singing ain't one of them.

Pastor Erik West:
So I'm sitting on the other side of the house from me, and I start singing and I start singing.

Pastor Erik West:
Jesus, you know?

Pastor Erik West:
And then.

Pastor Erik West:
And I'm trying to sing.

Pastor Erik West:
I'm worshiping in the spirit, you know, trying to bring her back. I think she's dead.

Pastor Erik West:
And all of a sudden, about two minutes later, she says, Oh, she's passed away. She said, Please, please. She said, I'm already dying. She says, she says, Just stay with your gift. That was her last words to me. She said, Oh, I'm already fighting death. So I went to a funeral.

Pastor Erik West:
In Birmingham and and I told Pastor, your brother, I said, he said, well, I ain't going. I said, oh no. Are you going. No, no, no. Are you.

Pastor Erik West:
Going.

Pastor Erik West:
I said, I never been to a black funeral and.

Pastor Erik West:
I'm going to be the only white person. Now you are going.

Pastor Erik West:
You are.

Pastor Erik West:
Going, you send it to my church, you are going. He said, Well, I wouldn't. I said, No, you're going.

Pastor Erik West:
You're going whether I drag you or. But you're.

Pastor Erik West:
Going.

Pastor Erik West:
Turned out I had the best time of my life because white folks don't know how to do no funeral.

Pastor Erik West:
They say they celebrating. It's like, when are y'all going to start.

Pastor Erik West:
Like and man, we worship.

Pastor Erik West:
And praise in the Lord. And there was like several pastors who knew her. So I just kind of followed the lead, you know, And I got and they, you know, they get up there and praise the Lord Saints.

Pastor Erik West:
Praise for.

Pastor Erik West:
Praise the Lord. And and I got up there, that anointing got on me and I got, you know, I'm the only white guy in the house, which I didn't care, but it was just like, I ain't never done a funeral like this.

Pastor Erik West:
And I said I said.

Pastor Erik West:
Well, praise the Lord Saints. And and they all laughed. And I said, Praise the Lord. I said, Uh huh. They said, Uh huh. I said, Jesus is wonderful. They said.

Speaker3:
Amen. I said.

Pastor Erik West:
I'm looking for a new pastor.

Pastor Erik West:
Oh, but just the soul. Just just the soul.

Pastor Erik West:
That, you know, that you feel on the inside of you. It's not just words.

Pastor Erik West:
You know, You.

Pastor Erik West:
Feel it. And that's what you get from the Bible. When I read it, I don't read no story, man. I'm in the story like the woman with the issue of blood. If you put yourself there, who are you? Are you Jesus going to be ministering? Are you in the crowd? Are you the woman trying to get there? Which one are you? What would be in your thinking? If you're the woman, what would you be thinking? If you was Jesus, what would you do? If you people in the crowd put yourself there, Change your.

Pastor Erik West:
Mindset.

Pastor Erik West:
So as long as you stay in your flesh.

Pastor Erik West:
How am I going to take this?

Pastor Erik West:
This is a miracle to do this. If you could receive healing for your body the same way that you receive salvation.

Pastor Erik West:
You would stop imposing yourself.

Pastor Erik West:
Because all of Christ came into you.

Pastor Erik West:
And you say, you told me. You said you got the complete package. Huh?

Pastor Erik West:
That's what you told me.

Pastor Erik West:
You said all the fullness.

Pastor Erik West:
Of him came into you. Romans 811 says the same spirit.

Pastor Erik West:
You all know this. Listen.

Pastor Erik West:
The same spirit that raised Christ from the dead.

Pastor Erik West:
Who would that be? Thank you. Say louder.

Pastor Erik West:
The same Holy Spirit who raised Christ from the dead now dwells in your spirit and quickens, which means makes alive your mortal body.

Pastor Erik West:
Now, it is true that there's a measure.

Pastor Erik West:
Of it, not the fullness of it. We get the full measure when we.

Pastor Erik West:
Get the new body in the rapture and we get the full measure. But how many you believe there's enough of that measure of the same.

Pastor Erik West:
The same identical spirit, the same generic brand? This ain't like, you know, well, this is whatever brand. And then we got the we got the.

Pastor Erik West:
Walmart's brand called Great Value. Like, no.

Pastor Erik West:
You ain't getting the same spirit. You can have.

Pastor Erik West:
A greater a lesser value.

Pastor Erik West:
Brand. The same spirit, the same. The same.

Pastor Erik West:
Spirit that raised.

Pastor Erik West:
Christ dwells and does what makes alive.

Pastor Erik West:
Your mortal body. Amen. Now, how do you oppose that? I'm going to have to minister on this several times just to correct myself.

Pastor Erik West:
Because word people can get too wordy. They can turn their confessions into works. Works of confession. You can say by his stripes, I'm healed. And you believe that? I believe that. I know you believe it. You actually believe that, don't you?

Pastor Erik West:
By his stripes, you are healed. How many believe the word? Amen. You have to go to Isaiah, who prophesies.

Pastor Erik West:
Of Jesus. Who tells you that he that surely he bore your grief and he bore your sorrow.

Pastor Erik West:
He bore.

Pastor Erik West:
Your sickness. He bore your pain. He bore your transgressions. He prophesizing before he comes. Matthew eight, seven, eight, 17 Bears witness to to what Isaiah said because he's seen it every day. He said what?

Pastor Erik West:
What Isaiah said.

Pastor Erik West:
He's. He's bearing their.

Pastor Erik West:
Infirmities right now.

Pastor Erik West:
Peter looks back after it's all happened.

Pastor Erik West:
Death bearing, resurrection. Jesus is gone and he looks back to.

Pastor Erik West:
The cross and he said, Who is own self bore our.

Pastor Erik West:
Sins on his body on the tree that we being.

Pastor Erik West:
Dead to sin should live unto righteousness.

Pastor Erik West:
By whose stripes? Back there you were healed. Amen.

Pastor Erik West:
Can you remember back there when you were saved?

Pastor Erik West:
Well, then why don't you go.

Pastor Erik West:
Back there when you was healed? Amen. Amen. Amen.

Pastor Erik West:
Amen. Now, you have to really listen to this.

Pastor Erik West:
To get this.

Pastor Erik West:
It's not complicated.

Pastor Erik West:
But sometimes people who know too much have.

Pastor Erik West:
A hard time hearing. Sometimes when people don't know.

Pastor Erik West:
Much of anything, it's just really easy because you have things that compete with it.

Pastor Erik West:
Kirsten Elliott has this program that they were telling me about. You know, that you can put something in there and it'll spit out all kinds of things. You can do a comprehensive study on anything.

Pastor Erik West:
You can argue with it.

Pastor Erik West:
I said, show me where I'm wrong and it'll tell you where you're wrong. And then.

Pastor Erik West:
So.

Pastor Erik West:
She told me to do that. So I said.

Pastor Erik West:
I said, I.

Pastor Erik West:
Don't agree with what you just said.

Pastor Erik West:
I said, because this, this and this.

Pastor Erik West:
And then I said, answer. And it says, Well, yes, what you said is true because this, this, this and this. And I said, Well, it can't be both ways.

Pastor Erik West:
And then a machine artificial intelligence says it.

Pastor Erik West:
Appears you're right.

Pastor Erik West:
I think I knew that when we started talking because because they don't know the difference between two countries and mixing them. It'll just say what God said, you know, when he was this before for the covenant of grace. So go back to when you was saved. So if I can say it this way, if you if you're using.

Pastor Erik West:
If we do.

Pastor Erik West:
This but we don't realize we're doing it.

Pastor Erik West:
The carnal mind.

Pastor Erik West:
Can't please God.

Pastor Erik West:
What's Romans eight six say?

Speaker4:
The spiritual.

Pastor Erik West:
The carnal mind is what is death and the spirit is what so carnal? All it means is what? Flesh. Which means what? Your five senses. So if your carnal, that just means.

Pastor Erik West:
That you're making.

Pastor Erik West:
Decisions out of your your five senses. You take, you assimilate this.

Pastor Erik West:
Information, and, you know, like this, you take your.

Pastor Erik West:
Experience, you take some doctrine and you heard over here your belief about this. You put it all together like artificial intelligence. Then you come up and say, this is the answer. The problem is you're a spirit. You have a flesh, but you are a spirit and God doesn't deal.

Pastor Erik West:
With your flesh. He deals with you.

Pastor Erik West:
Spirit to spirit. Okay, now watch here. I'll put it in healing. For the carnal mind.

Pastor Erik West:
The physical.

Pastor Erik West:
Man.

Pastor Erik West:
When he considers his symptoms. He considers his pain. Brings him to death.

Pastor Erik West:
You know why?

Pastor Erik West:
Because he's opposing what Jesus already did. See what you have to really know, and you know it because you're. You're intelligent. You've been your.

Pastor Erik West:
Word minded.

Pastor Erik West:
People.

Pastor Erik West:
And sometimes that's our problem. Here's here's what I'm trying to say. By his stripes, you were healed. You know that? You can quote it. You can quote.

Pastor Erik West:
Our scriptures like like this. Like this. And you know them. But you don't know the truth.

Pastor Erik West:
You say, well, that is the truth.

Pastor Erik West:
Does it mean you know it? Because when you keep on confessing the word.

Pastor Erik West:
Over and over and over again and over again and over.

Pastor Erik West:
Again for 4 or 5, six, seven years and nothing happens.

Pastor Erik West:
You've been taught that the word is medicine, and that's true. You've been taught death and life is in the power of the tongue. That's true. You taught that. You were taught by me that Jesus spoke to the fig tree. He did. So we emulate all that, where we miss it.

Pastor Erik West:
Because where we miss it. When you have symptoms.

Pastor Erik West:
And you have pain.

Pastor Erik West:
Or you're suffering.

Pastor Erik West:
In some area, is you.

Pastor Erik West:
Have forgotten that Jesus already dealt with.

Pastor Erik West:
This.

Pastor Erik West:
And he's not moved by your symptoms because he knows he's already healed you and he knows that you can't take your physical senses and.

Pastor Erik West:
Fix a spiritual problem. Amen. And you don't even realize it.

Pastor Erik West:
But you're trying.

Pastor Erik West:
To.

Pastor Erik West:
Do enough say enough speak enough. Live a certain way. Enough for a different result.

Pastor Erik West:
I've done it. Have you? Because you believe it. It's not like you don't.

Pastor Erik West:
You do believe it. But what? You don't even realize What you're doing we're doing is we're trying to take the word and we're trying to work it.

Pastor Erik West:
You're going to.

Pastor Erik West:
The mall with your faith.

Pastor Erik West:
Card to get something. There are all this works. Instead of taking your faith.

Pastor Erik West:
Card and go to the throne of grace and just cash in. Then don't use your faith to try to receive things that's already.

Pastor Erik West:
Been paid for.

Pastor Erik West:
Use your faith to go and access the grace that already supplied it. Amen.

Speaker3:
Amen. Amen.

Pastor Erik West:
You see, when you go out this driveway, you just look down at the ground, the left, you'll see a water meter like you got one at your house.

Pastor Erik West:
I didn't put it there.

Pastor Erik West:
Jamison put it there. But Jamison said, if you.

Pastor Erik West:
Want water that building, y'all gonna have to lay some pipe yourself to the building.

Pastor Erik West:
So Grace Jamison Waterworks supplied me with a meter and brought water to it. Wherever the water comes from in Jefferson.

Pastor Erik West:
To this building, it comes right there at the water meter. Just like at your house. Right?

Pastor Erik West:
But. But the city doesn't.

Pastor Erik West:
Lay pipe to your house. You have to do it, or a plumber has to do it.

Pastor Erik West:
So Grace supplied it. Faith didn't do it. Grace did. Grace is not a thing or a doctrine. Grace is a person. His name is Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ brought water.

Pastor Erik West:
To the house and I said, I see that. I believe that. I do believe it.

Pastor Erik West:
Now, how did Abraham become righteous? He just believed. Amen. Amen. Abraham was born, lived, and died about 1800 years before Jesus was ever born. If I hadn't gone 47 different.

Pastor Erik West:
Ways today, we'd read about it.

Pastor Erik West:
In Galatians two, where God wanted to use this man as the father of our faith to bring Jesus through him. So in Galatians two and three, you'll see where God preached the gospel to Abraham about this Jesus, his Son, who would come.

Pastor Erik West:
And what the purpose for him coming in Abraham, 1800.

Pastor Erik West:
Years between.

Pastor Erik West:
Him and Jesus said, That's what you're going to do. He says, Yeah.

Pastor Erik West:
And my son is going to come through your lineage and you're going to be the father.

Pastor Erik West:
Of faith for everyone who believe.

Pastor Erik West:
He says.

Pastor Erik West:
What say you, Abraham? He says. I believe it. God said, Mark that down as righteousness on Abraham sake. He's a righteous man. And those who believe, just like he.

Pastor Erik West:
Believe gets the same inheritance. Amen. See, it wasn't doing. He just believed in his heart.

Pastor Erik West:
Amen.

Pastor Erik West:
So if you're not really healed right now.

Pastor Erik West:
And you be how many you believe by his stripes, you were healed. Amen. But if you have manifestations or symptoms in your body and I'm not going to ask you to raise your hand and I'm going to keep my hands in my pockets. You know, when you're 20, you don't even know you have a body.

Pastor Erik West:
When you get a.

Pastor Erik West:
Little bit older, it'll tell you, you know, different areas. So if you're if you're not really healed of that situation or your symptoms, when will you be? Win. If you're not healed today, when will you be healed?

Pastor Erik West:
I started off asking you what you saved and you said, Yeah. And I said, I said, Well, you get saved when we leave this and go to heaven. And you said, No, we're saved. The moment we.

Pastor Erik West:
Believe when Isaiah said both both both of them happened at the same time. You were saved and healed at the cross and at.

Pastor Erik West:
The whipping post.

Pastor Erik West:
Actually.

Pastor Erik West:
It wasn't the blood just at the whipping post.

Pastor Erik West:
Jesus bled way before then. He bled in the garden, praying to her blood.

Pastor Erik West:
Came out of his eyes.

Pastor Erik West:
Because the capillaries were so pressurized. The blood came out of his eyes and the blood was flowing in the garden because he knew what was about to happen. He wasn't trying to get out of the crucifixion.

Pastor Erik West:
People who preach.

Pastor Erik West:
That I love them, but they're wrong. I think they said, Jesus said, if there's any other way to do that.

Pastor Erik West:
He knew his whole reason for being here was to.

Pastor Erik West:
Go to that cross. What he didn't know was, I know what it's like to.

Pastor Erik West:
Be separated.

Pastor Erik West:
From my father. I don't I've never experienced what it's like to be separated from the father.

Speaker3:
To where you bleed.

Pastor Erik West:
And the blood that came out of his eyes was in the garden. And that's the same blood that belongs to.

Pastor Erik West:
You for every need that you have.

Pastor Erik West:
In your life right now. When they nailed him to the cross, he could have called.

Pastor Erik West:
Legions of angels, but he wouldn't.

Pastor Erik West:
Do it.

Pastor Erik West:
And that blood still speaking today.

Pastor Erik West:
Amen.

Pastor Erik West:
So if you're not healed now, when will you be? So what we're doing is we're listening to the symptoms. When we're saying by his stripes, we are healed and three years later, we still feel the same.

Pastor Erik West:
It's because really, can I be honest with you? Include me. Include me.

Pastor Erik West:
It's really just unbelief.

Pastor Erik West:
We don't really believe we're healed. We're being moved by the.

Pastor Erik West:
Symptom because the symptom is saying this, this and this, and you need to address.

Pastor Erik West:
That. Mm hmm.

Pastor Erik West:
I'm not preaching you something I don't know about. I ain't preaching something. I ain't never been walking in or.

Pastor Erik West:
Not walking in today. I talked to a doctor.

Pastor Erik West:
This week who told me there's nothing we can do for you anymore.

Pastor Erik West:
We can give you all these pills.

Pastor Erik West:
I said thank you.

Pastor Erik West:
I went home, looked up to Peter, and I said, My God, man, if I took that, I don't know what I can identify myself as a drug addict for sure. For long. To keep you out of pain. I said, Yeah, if you stay awake and it don't eat up your liver and your kidneys and everything else. And the answer is really simple.

Pastor Erik West:
So when he says the carnal, the flesh, it's just physical. So your pain is physical. Your sickness is physical.

Pastor Erik West:
Your anxiety is physical. Your emotional stress is stress is physical. So when you're not moved by the physical.

Pastor Erik West:
That's because you come into the spiritual.

Pastor Erik West:
And what's been stopping.

Pastor Erik West:
Your healing is because.

Pastor Erik West:
You've been.

Pastor Erik West:
Opposing what God has already done in you. That same spirit.

Pastor Erik West:
Because your spirit, his spirit, and now you're opposing it because you're.

Pastor Erik West:
You're dealing with the symptoms.

Pastor Erik West:
You let the spirit to come over to.

Pastor Erik West:
The natural.

Pastor Erik West:
And now you've taken the word which you believe in, but you've made it a work trying to accomplish something.

Pastor Erik West:
That he's already finished with. He's already finished with it. Amen. Amen.

Speaker3:
Hallelujah.

Pastor Erik West:
I'm sorry for the time, but can y'all give me two minutes? How can you give me two minutes? Well, there's 12 minutes right there. Just d4. No, just two minutes. The way that we know that we're healed is what? By the.

Pastor Erik West:
He was whipped.

Pastor Erik West:
He was beaten by his stripes. Were hit by his stripe. That word stripe is actually the word wound or healed. It became so large across him, it looked like one huge stripe. Isaiah, 52, said When I was prophesying about him coming into the world and it prophesied about him being to the cross and dying there, Isaiah prophesied. When you look upon his his figure, he's talking about the cross.

Pastor Erik West:
He said.

Pastor Erik West:
Is that a human?

Pastor Erik West:
Is that a human? It wasn't. They gave him 40 little stripes. Isaiah said, Is that a human? And to say, well, God could heal. I mean, can you imagine being tortured like that and then saying, like, God could heal? Can you imagine what an offense that.

Pastor Erik West:
Could be to him.

Pastor Erik West:
That you beat beyond the.

Pastor Erik West:
Place that they don't know you're human.

Pastor Erik West:
So when was you saved The moment? You accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and everything from heaven came into your spirit. Amen. When was you healed? The moment that you were saved. Amen. So when I get someone saved, I always do.

Pastor Erik West:
Especially if they're older. And I got situations and I know they don't know anything, which is the best time to get anything done, I just go ahead and get them healed and feel the Holy Ghost at the same time.

Speaker3:
Yeah.

Pastor Erik West:
So lastly, just to reinstate this, because, you know, we've been taught different ways, even by me.

Stop there. Huh?

Pastor Erik West:
Just to state this. How am I opposing it? But I believe. I believe Eric. I believe Pastor Wes. I believe you. I believe that. Bastrop Starshield. I know you do. I've been trained well. I know that. The last part of my tongue. Yeah.

Pastor Erik West:
Please. I'm not saying don't.

Pastor Erik West:
Speak the word.

Pastor Erik West:
Please don't leave here and think.

Pastor Erik West:
Well, he's saying we don't need to speak the word. Believe God and confess the word. No, no, no, no. I'll get to all that.

Pastor Erik West:
Second Corinthians 413, Paul talks about the spirit of faith, and this is what he said. He says, we we believe.

Pastor Erik West:
Therefore, we spoke. When I got into word of faith in the 90s, I was taught the opposite way. You just need.

Pastor Erik West:
To speak and speak and speak. And speaking. Speaking. Speaking. Speaking. Speaking. Speaking. Speaking. Speaking. Speaking. Speaking. Speaking. Speaking. Speaking, speaking, speaking, speaking. And one day that will change your heart and your belief. We didn't know if it would be 100 times 100 million. Some people can die before.

Pastor Erik West:
They get to that number. Right.

Pastor Erik West:
So you. So we don't even know. We take the.

Pastor Erik West:
Proper use.

Pastor Erik West:
Of speaking and faith and authority and words, and then we turn it into a work. We leave. We leave Grace in.

Pastor Erik West:
Turn the word.

Pastor Erik West:
Into a work. Because we're following a symptom like Peter on the water.

Pastor Erik West:
What made Peter able to walk on water? Did he have flat feet? Is that what helped him? How could Peter walk on the water suddenly real quickly? Even before that.

Pastor Erik West:
So there was a directive. There was a question.

Pastor Erik West:
And then there was an.

Pastor Erik West:
Answer, which was a directive.

Pastor Erik West:
Peter said, If that's.

Pastor Erik West:
You, bid me, come on the.

Pastor Erik West:
Water.

Pastor Erik West:
When Jesus said, come. That was that was the directive that now you can do what I just said. Amen. Can a man walk on water? No. But when he tells you to do something, you can do it. The Lord told me a few weeks ago about. About giving something that I didn't think I had the money to give. But then I know this story and this happened to me many times before. He says, But I told you you could do this.

Pastor Erik West:
I said, Yes, sir. Then it's done. Just as.

Pastor Erik West:
Soon as I can get.

Pastor Erik West:
It done. It'll be done, sir.

Pastor Erik West:
And before I mean. I mean within minutes after I gave and did what I was supposed to do, which was none of my business. I don't I don't I don't own a.

Pastor Erik West:
Penny here at this church.

Pastor Erik West:
I'm not in charge. I don't like them. Old signs used to say, God, God, I'm the pilot. God is my co-pilot. I'm thinking, maybe you better.

Pastor Erik West:
Swap seats in a hurry like God is. Go sit over here.

Speaker3:
Like, All right, Now, if I need you, I'll call him.

Pastor Erik West:
Now I'm back here. You know, in.

Pastor Erik West:
First class, they ordered me a ginger ale and some peanuts. I let him drive.

Pastor Erik West:
So as soon as I did what he told me to do, within minutes, within minutes. The same day, within. Within less than three minutes, everything that I had just given came back to me and more. Amen. I mean, just that quick. And then before I got home, he said he said, Lord says, See, I really know what I'm doing.

Pastor Erik West:
I said, Yes.

Pastor Erik West:
Sir, you do. I mean, I said, You want me to do it again?

Speaker3:
Can I do it again?

Pastor Erik West:
And he didn't answer anything about that. He said so.

Pastor Erik West:
So Peter walked on the water because Jesus said so.

Pastor Erik West:
So why did Peter fail?

Pastor Erik West:
He looked at his symptom. He was in the flesh. He was in the five senses. It says, man.

Pastor Erik West:
Can't walk on water and look at the waves. But Jesus said you was already healed. You say.

Pastor Erik West:
Yeah, but you ain't.

Pastor Erik West:
Looking at the symptom.

Speaker3:
Did y'all get that?

Pastor Erik West:
You said, But.

Pastor Erik West:
What am I doing out here? You can't walk on the water. The doctor can't help me no more.

Pastor Erik West:
You're looking at the.

Pastor Erik West:
Symptom and.

Pastor Erik West:
You're opposing the life that's already in your spirit that.

Pastor Erik West:
Now can't come through.

God bless you.

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Mother's Day | Kristen West Lawrence | 14May2023: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Mother's Day | Kristen West Lawrence | 14May2023: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Kristen West Lawrence:
And I'm thankful for each and every one of you in this room. All the moms here and even the ones that aren't here today that may have had other plans or I know Mel and Julia may be with her mom today. Yeah, she's with her mom. And and just all the all the ones that, you know, I've had the privilege to know my entire life to grow up watching, you know, just that, you know, the Bible talks about. You know, especially when Paul is talking to Timothy and he's encouraging Timothy and he draws Timothy back to the faith of his grandmother and his mother and the things that they instilled in him and, you know, that has eternal value and eternal weight. And, you know, it's just amazing how it just keeps through the years. And I've had the privilege and the opportunity to grow up under powerful women of God. And this morning, we want to take just a second to honor a very special one. I have the privilege of not only having her as my pastor, but also as my mother. And, you know, I've I guess all my life. Yeah, all my life. That's that's well, she's been my mother all my life. No, but my entire life, you know, I have. You have been y'all have pastored. And so I've got to see behind the scenes and things that most people don't see and don't know and will never know. And, you know, every time I, I have normally I don't present her the card because I do not want to get emotional because when I start thinking about how thankful I am for her, the tears will flow. But they're not going to flow This morning. In Jesus name, I got a job to do, so I'm not going to cry. But you know, when I read the love scriptures about especially about how love is so selfless, God's love is so selfless, and I cannot think of any person other than Jesus, you know, that I know personally has been on this earth that I know of. I know we are, you know, all of you moms, but I'm talking about in a personal way, just just knowing all that you've done over the last 20 of my life, but 28 years of ministry, too, and the spiritual mother, you've been to other people and and just the things nobody will ever know and you didn't want them to know.

Kristen West Lawrence:
You know, you are the type of woman that is the behind the scenes worker and lover and encourager and supporter, so that everything that we do see runs efficiently and smoothly like it does. And, you know, it doesn't get seen a lot, but you are so appreciated. And I want to thank you so much. We love you immeasurably. I'm not going to cry. Happy Mother's Day. Yeah, Thank you. You're welcome. No, don't. Don't you don't start crying because then I'll definitely cry. Amen. Well, yes. So this morning, a pastor asked me to do the service, and I'm honored to do that. And as I was getting ready, you know, I had just been praying over this past week, especially about, you know, the direction to go in. And it's Mother's Day. And, you know, because I wanted to know what Holy Spirit wanted to do and the word that he wanted to give this morning. And so what we're going to talk about today and Minister on is not just for moms, although it may come out more like that because I am a mom, so I may relate it more like that. But this is for all of us, men and women alike. Amen. Because we're all called of God. And you know, the scripture says that in Jesus there's not Jew and gentile. And the difference is no male or female, but we're all one in Christ. Amen. Amen. And so for just a minute, we're we're going to touch on Proverbs 31 for just a minute. But we're not staying here. We're going to look at different aspects of things. And I believe the Holy Ghost will tie it all together because he knows what he's doing. Amen. But in Proverbs 31, we're talking about the Proverbs 31 woman for just a minute. And most of us know the story behind this proverbs. You know, when you read this kind of woman and the things it lists and talks about things that she does, things that it's praised her for. Well, we know who it's who it's referring to. And Bathsheba. And she was not a perfect woman by any means.

Kristen West Lawrence:
Right. But things changed in her life and actually went and read the story. I hadn't read it in years about when her and David repented before the Lord and and the work that God did in her life, like, wow, you know, And so I just want to cut in, though, when I was reading this story, the the part that the Holy Spirit really just blew up for me in verse 25, it says, strength and dignity are her clothing and her position is strong and secure. She rejoices over the future knowing that she and her family are ready for it. And the NLT says she laughs without fear of the future. And I don't know, just something. When I read that verse, I thought I just it came, you know, I knew. I knew what my mission was at that point. She laughs without fear of the future. So I got to thinking, Well, why is she laughing? You know, I mean, this is a woman that you read. You read the Proverbs 31 woman. She has a lot to do. She's a busy woman. You know, she's responsible for a lot of things. She's not only ministering to her children, but she ministers to her husband doing all these things. So most of the time when we equate someone who has a lot of responsibility and is busy. And things like that. We are not thinking about them in the sense of laughing, right? We think they're busy. They're serious. They've got to get things done there. You know? So I'm thinking, well, when I read that verse, it was like Holy Spirit said, Well, why are you laughing? So but why? Why what? Really? How can she laugh with without fear of the future? So I thought, Well, is it because she's out of touch with reality? Is it because she doesn't have a Facebook account and she doesn't know the latest happenings? Right. Well, of course not, because it says that she is wise, she is observant, she is watchful over her house. I mean, if anybody had eyes in the back of her head, it is this woman it is describing.

Kristen West Lawrence:
She knows what's going on. Right. So why is she so unafraid of the future? Well, part of this is because she knows who she is, rather whose she is. She's a righteous woman of God. She knows God intimately. And it's so interesting to go in and read the commentators notes on Proverbs 31 because it's a picture of the New Covenant in the right standing that we have with God. The woman described here as both a picture of a virtuous wife and a mother and an incredible allegory of the end time victorious church full of virtue and grace. So, yes, it's a sense of a woman who is full of the grace of God, the power of God. But it's for all of us, really. We can all laugh without fear of the future for men and women alike. Amen. So when it talks about her in this sense and like I said, we'll allude back to that a little bit, but she knows who she is and she trusts God, right? God is her source like Pastor was just talking about. He is her source for everything, which means she knows who she is. And so for a minute, I want to talk about identity. Her identity and our identity is in Christ. If we're born again and you're a believer and I know everyone here is and those watching. Good morning and happy Mother's Day to all the moms watching. If you're watching and you're not here, we sure do miss you. Pray you have a blessed day. But Romans 814 says for many, as are led by the spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For you have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you have received the spirit of adoption whereby we cry Abba Father, and the spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. And if children, then that means that we're heirs. We're heirs of God and we're joint heirs with Christ. If so, be that we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified together with him. And so we cut down here to verse 19. It says, For the earnest expectation of the creature awaited for the manifestation of the sons of God.

Kristen West Lawrence:
So in other words, the whole creation is longing. Everything is longing for God's design. And God's design is for sons and daughters to take their place in him, to rule and reign. And so I got to thinking about that, you know, in reading in the Proverbs 31 woman and watching the ebbs and flows in her life. And, you know, a lot of times I know, as I can say from my own experience as a mom and I think most everyone in here that's, you know, could agree, whether it's in mothering or fathering, sometimes you feel like you can lose your identity in parenting. It just becomes, you know, with moms because you do the same thing every day, you know, especially whether you're working or you're at home with the kids. Because every day you have to feed the child again. They want to eat again. You have to brush the hair again. The diaper gets full again. It's amazing, but it happens all the time. And if we're not careful whether it's raising children or the job that we work or situations or whatever, we can lose our identity in that and we can take on the identity of, yes, we are a mom, but before we're mom, I'm a daughter of God. Before. I'm a father. I'm a son of God right before it is. Whatever you do. Your identity is who you are in Christ. You're a son and your daughter. And there's a difference when you function and you live life because you know life isn't. We don't have separate lives. We don't have a church life and then a Monday life and a Tuesday life. And then when we go over to this person's house, we're a little bit different over there. And then we come over here. No, we are a son and a daughter of God no matter where we go. Amen. Amen. And so, you know, when when I was reading that this is this is what Holy Ghost gave me, and I pray that it helps somebody. I know it helped me. Amen. But just that when we function from who we are, it changes. It not only changes us, but it changes the people around us.

Kristen West Lawrence:
You know, when you think about it, as moms, we are daughters of God. That's our first and foremost calling is a daughter of God. And then we're raising sons and daughters of God. We're showing them what living life day to day looks like. And not only that, but grandparents, grandmothers, grandfathers. You know, you're we're instilling in them that rich heritage that has eternal weight. I mean, this is a huge, huge responsibility. But we're never called to do it in our own strength. Amen. Amen. And so our identity is not in what we do are doing is supposed to come from our identity. Amen. We are not our own source. You know, it's really easy, especially, I can say, in mothering and parenting in general. You know, when a child is so little, you are their source. Because if Ella comes to me and says, Well, or Carter, if they come to me and say, I'm hungry and I'm not going to say, Well, go buy some food, they're going to say, I don't have any money. Well, I don't know how faith in God. I don't know what to tell you. Right. They're not at the point where I can point them, you know what I'm saying? But they're watching us. And so when you have people that are looking to you as as their source, it's you can take the care of something and think, I am the source. I have to be the source, I have to be all these things for all these people. We can think of that in parenting, but we can think of that no matter what our influence or our sphere is at whether it's at work, whether you're over people, whether you're a business owner, of course, you know you've got the responsibility and you know I'm responsible for these people. Well, in a sense, but if you're not careful, that will become your identity. That I am the one that has to do this. I am the one. But that's not right because we are sons and daughters of God. He is our source. And so, you know, especially with kids, they're watching you. And you know, something that I've learned and I'm grateful for is I have watched I've had the privilege and the honor to see growing up what that looks like of parents who know that God is their source.

Kristen West Lawrence:
And because I can see that God is their source, you know, you get that glimpse of who God is and God's love and God's character and God's nature. We're supposed to get that from our parents. I understand their situations. And, you know, we live in a fallen world. So sometimes you don't have that in parents, but you still have it in God. But if you can have that example and say, you know, I know I can trust God no matter what comes because I saw him provide for my mom, I saw him provide for my dad, I saw him provide for my grandmother and my grandfather and my aunt and my uncle. And I have stories of generations and generations of where God has always come through, you know, like Granny dad's mom, you know, she said he's told this story before where she talked about praying over needs and things like that. And she said, There's never a time that I can tell you where God did not come through, where he didn't answer the prayer, where the need was not met. And even I think of that to this day sometimes, you know, that heritage that she had. And I think, where would we be? Where would I be if not for granny? And then and then I'm learning more about her parents, her mom, her great grandmother, you know, in the ways that they trusted God and knew God, I mean, really knew God. They didn't just go to church and shout on Sunday and then live like the rest of the world on other six days of the week. They knew God. They had a relationship with him. And so, you know, when when our kids can see that and our grandkids and people around us can see that there's a there's a trust developed there in their hearts just from a little age that says, I can trust God. He is love no matter what's coming or going, he's going to take care of me. You know, when they're little bitty is is, you know, I see that they're my parents source. They're my grandparents source. He's my source. And they children learn the most by watching. You know, I know me as a kid, I didn't really learn anything by just reading.

Kristen West Lawrence:
I mean, I could learn a little bit, but if you could give me an example or you could show me or I could watch you do it, then I could learn it. And I think that's I mean, you read any kind of statistics on that? If you have if you're teaching kids especially, but even adults and you have a hands on example, the percentage of retaining that knowledge and actually understanding is way beyond. And so, you know, we're supposed to be a living example of this. Amen. So we're a living example of a son and daughter. So I wrote some examples down. But like I said, we can use these in any area of our life, no matter what we're called to do, no matter what we're doing. I wrote down this. I'm just as much a daughter of God in union with him speaking to you right now as I am when I step off the stage and I go home and I go do dishes and I wash clothes and I sit in the floor and I play with Ella and I cook dinner and I do homework and I feed the dogs and I'm breaking up arguments. She's looking at me. He's looking at me. You know, everybody look out their own window, you know? But even in that moment, I'm just as much a daughter of God anointed with the Holy Ghost as I am. If I'm up here speaking or I'm praying for somebody or we're out, you know, with Kingdom builders ministering to other people, I'm just as much doing God's work right. I'm just as much doing Kingdom business at home as a mom doing what I'm supposed to do. There's there's not a this is a greater thing and that's a greater thing. No, the ministry may look a little bit different because of what you're what you're called to in that moment and how you're functioning in that moment. But no matter what's going on, first, I'm a God's daughter. I'm God's son. And then when I know that I can take the pressure off of me because I am not my own source, he is my source. Right. And he's going to take care of me.

Kristen West Lawrence:
I'm his child. You know, like Pastor has said before, there's not a scripture that says my little adults. It's my little children, my child. Now we are called to grow up into him. And yes, of course. But we're always going to be his child. And so our identity is in him and our trust is in him. And so in Colossians two. Verses nine. I'm going to cut in right here where Paul is talking. He says, for in him dwelleth dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. Well, who's he talking about? Jesus. For in Jesus dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. Okay. Um, Colossians two, nine and ten in verse ten says. Yes, she may get it on the screen in a minute. It says, and you are in him. You are made full and you have and you are having come to fullness of life in Christ. And the amplified version says you too are filled with the Godhead. Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and you reach full spiritual stature. And he is the head of all rule and authority of every angelic principality and power. So Jesus in Jesus dwells all the fullness of the Godhead. But it says, But you're in him, you're complete in him and he's in you. And you dwell with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. That's what the Bible says. I mean, isn't that amazing? I mean, you really think about that no matter where you go, you're taking the godhead with you, no matter what you're doing, whether you're at home, whether you're working a job, whether you're, you know, wherever you go, that's who you are. That's what you have. Like Pastor says, you're a mobile throne. You're taking them everywhere you go, right? So our identity, our identity is in him alone. When I'm doing all these daily things, the Godhead dwells in me too. The Godhead dwells in me while I'm changing a diaper, while I'm up with the baby all night. When I got dishes piled up in the sink. Right when we've got 17 loads of laundry to do before in the morning, we're no less functioning as a daughter or a son than we were we would be if we were doing something the world would call more important.

Kristen West Lawrence:
God doesn't say it's more important. God doesn't say it's more important than, you know, the man who has a, you know, a very successful business. That calling is more important than the woman who's at home with the kids or the man who picks up trash or whatever. That's how the world labels things and views things. That is not there's not a scripture for that. That is not what God calls each and every one of us because we're a body. A body has all these different parts, you know? I mean, I don't want to lose any parts of my body. I'm like, No, I need my hands just as much as I need my feet, right? I need I need my ears just as much as I need my eyes. So we all have a part to play and we're all called to different things, but we're called to function as a son and a daughter first because that is our ministry to him first. So when I know that and I can function in that, I know that I'm not my own source. He is my source for every single thing that we do, Right? And if we go one more chapter over to Colossians three. Verse 17, unless you get there. Verse 17 says, Whatever you do, no matter what it is, I'm in the amplified grace. Whatever you do, no matter what it is in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus and in dependence upon his person. Giving praise to God, the Father through him. I love that verse. Whatever it is, whatever you do, no matter what it is, whether you're speaking, doing whatever's going on, it says, do everything in the name of Jesus. You're doing it unto him. But you're not just doing it in your own strength. It says in dependence upon him. His person giving praise to God, the Father through him. And it goes on down here to say, I'm going to cut. This is a different translation. We don't have it says, Let your whole style of life, words and deeds portray your relationship to Christ and you be a living expression of gratitude to God in that amazing that everything that God doesn't view this as big and this is little and this is whatever.

Kristen West Lawrence:
No, we're sons and daughters and our functionings and our callings may be different, but they're all important nonetheless. And then if you go on down to verse 23, he says, Whatever may be your task, work at it heartily as something done for the Lord and not for men, knowing with all certainty that it is from the Lord and not from men, that you will receive the inheritance which is your real reward. The one whom you are actually serving is the Lord Christ the Messiah. So whatever we're doing and whatever capacity our life looks like right now when we're serving kids and we're doing this, yeah, we're taking care of kids and we're serving kids, but we're really serving Jesus. We're doing it unto him, you know, motherhood and and fatherhood, too. I'm just saying motherhood because, you know, it's Mother's Day, but we can apply this to all areas. A lot of people, you know, we can think this is a thankless job, right? Mothers are always on call. We're always doing this. We're always doing that. You know, nobody appreciates me. Nobody. We've all had that moment right where we have felt like no one appreciated us, that we do all these small things and no one sees it. But the word says right here that God sees it and you're doing it unto him and you're doing it for him. And He gives us the strength and the ability to do it. And not only that, that he is our rewarder and he doesn't miss anything. He sees everything and he sees the heart with which we do it from. You know, when you when times are there's a lot going on and there's so much to be done and you feel, you know, sometimes, you know, we feel like we're overwhelmed and and such such as things like that. But, you know, if we stop and take a minute and say, No, I'm doing this unto the Lord, you know, I don't care if they never know it or they don't see it or I feel like I'm not appreciated or I feel like this, I'm doing this unto him, I'm doing this unto God. And he sees me and he knows how he I'm so important to him and I'm so and loved by him.

Kristen West Lawrence:
Right? And so when we can see that, it changes our whole attitude. We're happy to do something right. We have the energy to do something. We want to do it because we're serving him. There's there's a greater purpose than just, you know, unloading that dishwasher and loading it back up and cooking that spaghetti for the billionth time. And, you know, all the things that we do know, there's a purpose there that that's the ministry you are you are doing it unto him. And so our kids are watching us, how we live and how we respond to those little things. How we handle the little things and all the things that pile up and how we, you know, are we getting overwhelmed And we all do it. We are. We're all guilty of it. But to take a moment and say, you know what, I'm not going to be overwhelmed. Thank you, Lord, you are my helper today. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. You should say it out loud where your children can hear it. Though I have made I have made it a practice to do that. You know, Carter said something the other day. He's like he said, Mom, I'm sorry to add to your list of things to do, but if you don't mind doing I forgot what it was. And I realized at that moment the reason he said that is because I probably seemed overwhelmed. That's why he would have said that. And so I had made the conscious decision to say, Oh, so I had a decision to make right there instead of, Yeah, okay, I'll add it to the list of things I have to do. I stopped and I said, Oh no, I'd be glad to do that for you. And yes, I do have a lot of things going on today, and I appreciate you recognizing that. But you know what? We're going to get everything we need, you know, to do. We're going to get it done today. Holy Spirit's our helper. He's going to help us. And so I made the decision right then to say it out loud, to change the whole attitude and the atmosphere in the house and said, No, this is how it's going to be, because I'm not doing it in my own strength.

Kristen West Lawrence:
I don't have to. And he told me, Don't do that. He's like, Don't try to do everything. He said, You can depend upon him. You can rest your entire being on him, everything that you have to do because he is our strength. Amen. Amen. And so when we see that, that is a moment of teaching that sticks with them, whether it's our kids or even our grandkids or great grandkids or our nieces or nephews. Right. This is this is how a son and a daughter of God functions in day to day life. When things get hectic and things get stressful. And then because remember, we're raising sons and daughters of God because we are sons and daughters of God. Amen. And Jesus. He's our example. He is our example and it says that he was anointed by the Spirit of God, functioning as a son of God. Right. Acts 1038 tells us that how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth, who went about doing good. Right. And he and he is destroying all the works of the devil. And that's what we're called to do. We have the same Holy Spirit. He didn't give us a different version. Like, you know, we don't have to keep getting upgrades like our, you know, like our phone does, you know, like, oh, something feels off with me. I have a Holy Ghost upgrade. I got to do an update. I got to do. No, we have the same Holy Spirit. He doesn't have a different anointing. We are anointed sons and daughters to do every bit of what he's called us to do. Right. Because Jesus is our example and we are to grow up in him, to grow up into Him, to look like him. You know, everywhere Jesus went, the kingdom went right. Everywhere you go, the kingdom goes. Jesus was telling his disciples in Luke ten. He was sending them out and giving them instructions and telling them these things and what to do. And he says to them, And when you go, you heal the sick and you tell them the kingdom has come unto you. Well, wherever we go, whatever we're doing, we are taking the kingdom with us.

Kristen West Lawrence:
Whether we choose to let that manifest or not, that's up to us. But but we carry. We are carriers of the glory, right? It's Christ in us. The hope of glory. Not, you know, like what someone said on shared on Facebook. One of my friends is a quote by Elizabeth Elliot. It says, Christ in you, the hope of glory, not you. And another set of circumstance. No, it's Christ in you, not you in a different set, you know. Well, if my life looked different than this or if I wasn't dealing with these things. No. It says Christ in you, the hope of glory. Amen. So we got the kingdom package. Well, what is the Kingdom of God? Is righteousness, peace and joy. Right? Righteousness. The state of being right and acceptable to God. The peace of God. Heart. Peace. Assuredness. Soundness. Man. We all need that, right? Especially these days. And Joy in the Holy Ghost. That's that's comforting. That it's joy in him, not not joy, because life is going exactly like we want it to go. He said, Joy in the Holy Ghost. Well, if Jesus being our example, Jesus was anointed with the oil of joy more than anyone else on this earth. Hebrews one nine says. And I got to thinking about that. You know, sometimes when you see a portrait of Jesus or the older shows of Jesus, you know, he's walking around real stoic and emotionless, and he's that's not how the word describes him. He wasn't like that. He was a blast to be around. He was fun to be around. He spoke with authority and power. He brought destruction to the kingdom of darkness. He knew his purpose. He knew what kind of death and torture he would suffer for us. And yet he was overflowing with joy more than any of his companions. I mean, sometimes our day gets derailed. If our biscuit didn't, you know, come out to us, Right? You know, you know, much less. We're going to go through all these things. And at the end of this, you know, we're we're going to be crucified and tortured.

Kristen West Lawrence:
Well, it's not the end. It's the beginning, but you know what I mean. He was overflowing with joy more than any of his companions. And I can't think of anybody on this earth. There's not one more person on this earth that had more responsibility, more demonic things coming against him, more, if you want to call it stress. Jesus was faced with a lot of stress, but he showed us how we walk as a son and a daughter of God in our everyday life amid all these things. So if we can see him in how he dealt, you know, we think of yes, you know, he spoke to this and he and he, you know, used his words and he, you know, dealt with this situation and that situation. Yes. And with that, he was full of joy. Amen. Amen. C.s Lewis said joy is the serious business of heaven. Well, Jesus was here doing serious business. And he was full of joy. He was doing kingdom business. His father's business. Right. Well, that's what we're doing. Whether, you know, whether our calling is maybe you're a missionary and you're going all over the world, you're doing Kingdom business. But whether you have a whatever you're doing, it's kingdom business. If you're doing it unto him, and this is what he's called you to do. But Mom's at home and Dad's at home raising kids in the day to day life. And, you know, it can get monotonous every day doing the same thing. But you're doing kingdom business, you know, motherhood and fatherhood and the union of a man and woman having kids was ordained by God. He called us to do that. And we're doing his business. And the wonderful thing is, is he never told us we had to do it in our own strength. Amen. Thank God. So we see Jesus being full of joy, doing his father's business. And we'll wrap it up here in John 15 five. Let's go there real quick. Well, we're actually going to go to John 15 and we're going to start in verse 11. So Jesus is talking to his disciples. And he is talking about abiding in him.

Kristen West Lawrence:
And we're going to go back and see that in a minute. But in verse 11 right here, he says, I have told you these things. That my joy and delight may be in you and that your joy and gladness may be of full measure and complete and overflowing. That's what he says we are to have that his joy. He was more joyous, had more joy than anybody and his delight. It may be in us and our joy and our gladness may be a full measure. What does that look like? What is full measure of joy look like in our day to day life? I think everybody we all have room to grow in that where it's complete and it's overflowing. Well, before he talks about that, having that joy that his joy in us. Hey, when you start chapter 15, right before that, he is talking about abide in me and I in you as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself except it abide in the vine. No more can you except you're in me. I'm the vine and you're the branch he that abides in me and I in him. The same bringeth forth much fruit. He says, For without me you can do nothing. Well, we know we're never without him. But that's what he's saying is if he's the vine and we're the branch. He is our source for everything. We are one with him. We're connected to him. We're his sons and his daughters. Right. So he goes on to talk about and he he says it to him a few different ways about the life union that we have with Jesus. And how we are one spirit with him. And he says whatever is flowing through me, he said, It's flowing through you if you're connected to me. He said, I've told you these things. So it means he's speaking to them so that you would have you may have my joy. So we have his word that produces that joy. And as we're connected to him and we're taking time to spend time with him to, you know, to. Meditate and look at. Who we are in him and what we have in him.

Kristen West Lawrence:
And and it's us focusing on the truth, because there's a lot of you know, as we said in the beginning, the virtuous woman, she laughs without fear of the future. And I jokingly said, Is it because she doesn't have a Facebook account and she don't know what's going on? You know, because if you know, it's interesting, if you watch the news and you watch different things and all that, you know, there's a new shooting, there's a new, you know, you know, wreck that killed five people. There's, you know, and it's a kid and all that. Well, when I know as a mom, when you see something like that happening to a child, what's the first thing you think of? It pulls on your heartstrings because you have children. It's the love that's in you that you automatically you think your children, your grandchildren. But you know what? The news doesn't talk about? It doesn't talk about the millions of people that made it home perfectly safe and the millions of kids that went to school that day. And they're perfectly safe. No shootings? No. None of this. Well, we know that. But because our attention, we're hearing things right. We're taking it in. All these seeds of fear can get planted if we're not careful because of, you know, it's the world that we live in. But it says that she laughs without fear of the future because she knows who she is and she knows who God is and she knows she's in covenant with him. So when we when we spend time connected to the vine, whatever's flowing through him, it flows through us. The joy that's in him is the joy that's in us. Yeah. And. And he, like he said, he goes on to say, I told you these things that my joy and my delight will be in you. And we know and I'm closing here in Nehemiah 810. It says that the joy of the Lord is our strength. He could have said all kind of different things, but he chose joy. He could have said. Praying will be your strength. But he didn't say that. Should we pray?

Kristen West Lawrence:
Of course. I'm not saying we shouldn't. But he said the joy of the Lord is our strength. If we're low on strength, we're low on joy. We're told to count it all, Joy, when we go through any sort of trial. You know, trials are not the time to give up our joy because it's our strength. We need his strength in that hard situation. Right? We need his. We need his strength. No matter what we do or we need his strength just to go to Walmart. Right. We need his joy. And we have his joy. Now, it didn't say. It didn't say. Our better feelings are our strength. No, joy is not a feeling. We have his joy. If you're saved and you're born again. He's in you. The kingdom is in you. Righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. We already have that. But if we're looking to ourselves as our source instead of him as our source, we are not going to draw upon that joy. We're not going to draw upon that strength. Amen. So we're not going to do that. We're trusting. We're not going to trust in our own ability, in our own strengths. We're trusting in him. We're a son and a daughter of God, and he's given us everything we need pertaining to this life. He's giving us everything we need, no matter what our job is, what our purpose is, whether it's in raising kids or running businesses or doing all of it. No matter what we're called to do, we have his grace, which is his ability, Right? To do everything that we need to do to function just like Jesus did. You know, if you think about it in this term, if if Jesus was in this house right now, just talking about at home or wherever you're at, it's easy to think of Jesus being here, right? Because we associate that with church and whatever. But if we're at home and say there's this and this going on and you're, you know, mom, you feel, oh, you know, I just I just need a minute. I just need whatever.

Kristen West Lawrence:
But just think of think a second. If Jesus was in the room right now, how would Jesus handle this situation? Well, you have everything in you to handle that situation, just like Jesus would handle that situation. Amen. You have that same Holy Spirit, that same helper and comforter and strengthener, that same guide and standby. You know, Jesus gave us the helper because he knew there would be times that we have to have help, right? He gave us the comforter because there's going to be some times that we need that comfort. And so joy is a choice. We can choose joy no matter what's going on in the middle of everything, no matter what. And when we choose joy, we choose strength. Strength to be able to do and to function just like him. And what he's called us to do. Amen. Amen. Well, it is. It got the time. Got here fast. I will. I'll stop there. So I appreciate you giving me the opportunity to minister. Happy Mother's Day to all of you moms. And we have the gift for you out on the book table. And we have service this Wednesday. Yes, it's the third Wednesday. Amen.

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