Bill Johnson teaches from Romans 8 and God’s promise to work all things together for your good. God is committed to fulfilling His purpose in you in making you like Christ through the finished work of the Cross. If God is for you, who can be against you? With both the Holy Spirit and Jesus interceding for you before the Father, how can you fail? Increasing your awareness of who God is and His promise to you is important as you surrender to His work in your life. You can be confident that God is fighting on your behalf and working all things together for your good. Subscribe for weekly videos: https://bit.ly/bjmYoutube
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Scripture References: Romans 4-7 Romans 8 1 Corinthians 2-3 John 10: 28 Originally shared at Bethel Church, Redding California, on September 23, 2018. Bill Johnson is a fifth-generation pastor with a rich heritage in the Holy Spirit. He is senior leader of Bethel Church in Redding, California, and is passionate about seeing Revival and God’s Kingdom established and revealed in the lives of individuals, families, communities, and nations. Bill’s teaching on the Kingdom of Heaven, hosting the Presence, and the renewed mind has helped thousands around the world to step into their true identity in Christ, God given purpose, and walk in a supernatural lifestyle displaying both purity and power. #BillJohnson #BethelChurch #HolySpirit
sometimes we pray at a situation
intercession stands in the shoes of and
prays on behalf of as though it was our
own issue you pray for your neighbor
it’s not just praying at them but we
pray as though their struggles are ours
and this is incredible Jesus and the
Holy Spirit both put on our shoes and
pray for us as though our issues were
[Music]
theirs
a man and his wife and his mother-in-law
went on vacation to the Holy
Land while they were there the
Mother-in-law passed
away the Undertaker told them you can
have her shipped home for
$5,000 or you can bury her here in the
holy land for
$150 the man thought about it told him
he’d just have her shipped home The
Undertaker asked why would you spend
$5,000 to ship your mother-in-law home
when it would be wonderful to have her
buried here and spend only
$150 the man
replied A man died here 2,000 years ago
he was buried here 3 days later he rose
from the
dead I just can’t take that
[Applause]
chance
I want us to pray for uh we just prayed
for impossible Financial situations I’d
like for us to pray for another one uh
before we get into the the word um
anyone who’s facing what seems to be an
impossible Medical Health situ situation
I’d like for you to stand if you would
you already did that you did that
too well you can do it again no no you
you you covered it all right I wasn’t
here I was at the other campus we we we
get translated actually it’s a car that
drives us slowly safely all right let me
try one more see if you covered this
one I mean yeah you you’ve already
covered everything I wanted to do did
you cover my message too did we just go
home now or
yeah you open yeah you opened with yeah
that’s awesome all right good
night it again no no no if you if you
covered it that’s it would you say Amen
to it uh but the last thing I wanted to
pray for corporately if it hasn’t
already been taken care of
today those who are facing any kind of
uh family and or
relational impossibility seems
impossible I want you to stand we’re
going to pray for you uh those who are
watching uh by bethl TV we bless you and
ask you to join your faith with us as
well for your own breakthroughs and for
the breakthroughs represented in this
room all right well you guys know what
to do you got people standing around you
that need you to join your faith with
theirs and pray for that relational
Miracle uh for some it’s uh uh family
members who have turned from the Lord
they need to be restored for others
they’ve never come to Faith for others
it’s just uh this confusion this
dividing wall that’s come against people
whatever the case might be just pray for
these folks pray for them out loud right
now pray for that Spirit of breakthrough
to come upon them right
now that God would restore families
family members
relational issues that there would be
healing there
in Jesus
name thank you
Lord yeah we just pray the same for
those who are watching at
home uh over bethl TV we just pray that
the spirit of reconciliation would come
upon your household that there’d be
great healing there’d be great
restoration The God Who restores
everything would restore for every
single household uh represented here we
declare that the God of all peace with
establishing peace over family allons we
pray in Jesus
name Jesus name all right you guys did
good bless them good hug them give them
a high five or
something
beautiful all right he did well he did
well open if you would open your Bibles
to Romans chapter
8
Romans chapter 8 before uh we we uh open
this um I want to give you just a a a
brief word and Report Eric and Candace
are uh in Austin they send their love
Eric text me this morning to make sure I
I gave you his love and um they uh
helped to open uh bethl Austin the
Austin in Texas
Beth and I I just guess it went so well
they had a thousand seats that were
spoken for a long time ago so that’s a
good way for a church to start with a
thousand people so that’s pretty amazing
so um that uh that is up and running and
uh I guess they just did really good I
had great reports Lauren valon is there
to help with the grand opening and she
sent me a text she said Eric and Candace
did so amazing Candice just dropped the
Holy Ghost bomb on the place and stepped
in her element it was just so beautiful
so just let you know that uh the family
the family outside of here is doing well
and very very fun uh to hear the
constant reports um you know we for
those of you who may not know we’ve
never taken it on as a primary goal to
create other Beth around the world are
Joys actually serving the existing
church but occasionally uh it becomes
very obvious that we are to plant one
and so we do that but it’s the exception
not the rule but but uh but we also take
great pleasure in the bethl Atlanta and
Austin Ohio Cleveland wherever else they
are they’re there bless them Jesus amen
all right and then we have another uh
spiritual son I was just up in uh
Portland this
week yeah I head to Indonesia tomorrow
but uh Portland uh this week with with
uh chriso Chris over Street and uh it
was it’s just amazing they got this
Auditorium that seats 9,500 people I
think it is and they had
7,000 uh seats sold and they were
leaving 2500 for people to come in from
the community to receive Christ and u i
I spoke uh Friday morning I got there
Thursday
afternoon uh uh with the TV interviews
and stuff of that nature and then that
night Todd White spoke and Jake Hamilton
LED worship so that’s Nitro and
glycerin it was it was so fun at the end
of the evening Todd gives us alter call
and they literally ran to he wouldn’t
let him walk he told run run they ran
down to the front to to meet Jesus and
oh goodness gracious so so I’m I’m still
buzzing a little bit from that if talked
about it kind of gets reactive it was
very very powerful very fun and uh to be
in a room with with uh our spiritual
Sons and Daughters um most of them half
my age or less uh in this room in a
prayer room before the meeting starts
and to to watch these these guys just
step up to the plate and deliver just so
amazing um the people that Chris o got
for this event my goodness Marilyn
Hickey was there uh Lisa a was there um
Todd White I forget all who was there um
Robbie Dawkins is wife F she were there
and so many wonderful wonderful people
there U speaking and and it was just it
was great it was just great to see Chris
o pulled that off and um he’s he’s had
this heart if you if you’ve been around
Chris over
Street he may have a greater heart for
people to know Jesus than anybody I’ve
ever met I mean it’s convicting to be
with him you feel like you’re not doing
anything if you’ve not LED anyone to
Jesus
today he doesn’t make you feel that way
it’s just he just bubbles up with his
passion for souls and and um he’s talked
to us for years he’s been on our team
here for goodness I don’t know 16 years
or something like that and he’s talked
to us for years about we need to do
Crusades we need to do Stadium events
you know we need I wanted to get a tent
and take it around the country and I
mean he’s constantly talking to us about
it and so we finally just said
go go and he’s and he’s doing it I mean
it’s just oh it’s just mind bogging I
wish I wish there was some way to
capture some of this put it on film just
to let you see because because everybody
in this room is a part of this family in
some way you have an investment into
this that is happening up in Portland I
was I was floored by the hunger in the
room
wow I did not expect
it I did not expect that level of hunger
and passion I was I was it was
overwhelming it’s wonderful so it is
Jesus’s time for the Pacific Northwest
so that was very
very I I love you know the Portland and
on up Seattle that whole area I love
that part of the country and I’ve been
there many times and ministered always
enjoyed it but this
time this was
Holy Ghost steroids were in use it was a
little extra umph so all right Romans 8
are you there yes y all right if you’re
not there get there because you’re going
to want to be
there Romans chapter
8
um Romans 8 could probably be a book A
book of the Bible by
itself maybe you could say that for
every chapter but some chapters are very
dependent on what on what precedes it
what
follows Romans 8 is just
this I don’t know it it’s just a
complete
package Romans 4 is
this Paul
unveils Abraham as the father of faith
and how his faith and his hope set a
standard for every believer that follows
he actually set the stage he set the
high water mark that everybody inherits
in Christ this beautiful chapter 5 is is
this incredible chapter on our
justification that by faith in Christ we
actually appear before God as though we
had never sinned it’s the most
astonishing thing chapter
six is where we we find that we are
actually buried with Christ and the cool
thing if you can picture what baptism
ISM says if you’re buried with Christ
then you’re also raised with Christ and
so here’s this whole legal basis for not
even considering yourself a
sinner he he he actually says it he
actually says it in verse 11 or 13 I
forget which but he he says don’t even
consider you have to consider yourself
dead to sin you have to think of
yourself in this way I am dead to that
it’s not mind over matter it’s the
reality of the Cross it’s the reality of
the crucifixion of Christ in which we
were con included when we put our faith
in Christ we were actually included in
that act and experienced death to an old
nature and nature of sin chapter 7 is a
mysterious chapter that has confused
many people through the years because
there because in chapter 7 Paul says
what I try to do I don’t do and what I
don’t try to do I do wrong and he just
gives this whole scene he’s describing
his life before Christ and many people
have used that chapter
as a definition of the Christian life
and it’s just not consistent with
everything else Paul wrote so we have
chapter six you’re dead in Christ you’re
raised in Christ chapter 7 is before we
knew Jesus even when we tried to do the
right thing it just didn’t always work
out right Etc and then we come to
chapter 8 chapter 8 to me is the crown
jewel of these five chapters it’s the
Crown Jewel because the Highlight the
emphasis in in this chapter is our
relationship with with the Holy Spirit
the holy spirit is the central person
the central theme in this chapter it’s
not Abraham it’s not it’s not the
crucifixion it’s not it’s the Holy
Spirit who has been given to us in in
this in this chapter it’s important for
this
reason everyone in this room that is
born again you are born again because he
spoke you listened and
responded none of us found
God
he found us yeah yeah it’s like it’s
like running from God through this
forest and you trip over a rock and you
look up and he’s looking at you and you
say I’m so glad I found you that’s
basically how all of us got safe we we
we ended up with seeing that there was
only one reasonable option and it was to
give ourselves to him and and so anyway
all of us are alive because we heard him
speak and we responded
the holy spirit is the central person in
our life and every Triumph every Victory
every enablement every bit of grace
everything that we experience in this
life in following Jesus is there and
it’s active because the holy spirit is
in our life the holy spirit is God on
Earth
everything about our life either
succeeds or fails because of a
relationship with
him I’m not referring to an
emotion although emotions are
included I’m not talking talking about
feelings although feelings are included
it is a relationship with a
person this Christian Life is a
relational
journey and it is a relationship with
God on Earth who is the Holy Spirit who
perfectly represents Jesus who
completely and perfectly manifests the
will of the
father so when we start in in this
chapter what we’re going to do today is
we’re just going to read a bunch of
verses and uh and I’ll just stop uh and
just talk about a verse or two in a
concept what I’m looking for is I have
one basic
Target um I I’ve been fighting in the
last this is the third service now
I’ve been fighting for an an an adequate
illustration and I’ve not yet come up
with one U maybe I will by next week
when I won’t need it but uh but right
now have you ever you know just going
through life and somebody says Oh What a
Beautiful song you didn’t even know a
song was playing but as soon as they
mentioned that song you could hear it
right I mean wasn’t it wasn’t made up in
your mind you could actually hear it but
you weren’t aware of it you became your
awareness became heightened to that
sound when somebody mentioned
it maybe you’re just going through life
not thinking of anything and somebody
says why do you smell that and then you
you weren’t smelling it before but as
soon as they mention you go
yeah
meat or or other things but but meat
primarily yeah barbecue thank you Jesus
all
right and you and somebody mentioned all
of a sudden yes yes I do smell that you
become you have a heightened awareness
what I’m looking looking
for is for us to have a heightened
awareness of the presence of
God I’ve had certain things happen to me
through the years where I became
unusually aware of of
him and it’s terrifying and wonder F all
at the same
time and I don’t want to live any other
way heightened awareness it’s not IM
imaginary it’s
not it’s not that it’s
oh it’s it’s like Jacob said in uh when
he had he woke up from that dream he
said God is here and I didn’t even know
it sudden heightened awareness to a
reality that existed before he was
aware the Holy Spirit lives in in you
he’s also called pericle the one called
alongside to help so the whole point is
I I would like today to just help with a
heightened awareness of God on Earth
that I have actually received as a down
payment of an inheritance now I don’t
understand that if there was ever a
mindboggling thought is the fact that
God gave us himself as our inheritance
and the initial payment is the Holy
Spirit himself the down payment he’s
called down payment Ephesians the down
payment of our
inheritance Lara Randolph made a comment
years ago he said if God is as big as he
says he is he shouldn’t be that hard to
find with someone that large in my life
should not be that hard to
discern and if he is I must have my
heart and mind anchored in things that
are very inferior that have deadened
what he has created in me as a capacity
to recognize
him all
right amen Bill good point all
right uh he uh Hebrews Hebrews Ephesians
let’s just go through the books of the
Bible Romans Romans chapter 8 I was I
meant it the first time Romans 8 uh
we’re just I’m going to kind of Bounce
Around the chapter so we’re not going to
read the whole thing I actually this
morning as I was reading over this I
thought oh my goodness we easily could
do three or four weeks in this chapter
because it is so pregnant but we’ll just
uh skim over maybe U 78 n verses
something that nature all right verse
one of chapter 8 there is therefore now
no condemnation to those who are in
Christ Jesus who do not walk according
to the flesh but according to the
spirit verse 14 as many as are led by
the spirit of God these are the sons of
God now go back to verse one there’s
therefore now no condemnation to those
who are in Christ who do not walk
according to the flesh but according to
the
spirit those who are in Christ walk
according to the
spirit that is the testimony of
scripture those who are in Christ the
evidence of my
conversion is that I don’t live
according to carnal
values uh fleshly uh carnal ex
expressions and values but instead by
the Holy Spirit himself my life with
Christ is Illustrated because of a
partnership with God on Earth the holy
spirit it’s Illustrated it is
measurable and he goes on to say that
those who uh are led by the spirit these
are the sons of god um I the reason I
want to hit on this for just a moment we
actually going to spend more time later
in the chapter but the reason I wanted
to hit on this for just a moment is some
there are certain subjects in in in the
gospel that sometimes it feels to me
like they have been elevated so
high that they are they are
unreachable and being led by the spirit
is one of those and it is not it’s your
nature come on SO to be led by the
spirit have you ever have you ever just
thought of somebody you wanted to call
or maybe swing by and visit it wasn’t no
thundering voice from God it’s just you
know you just oh I should call them and
you call them and you find out it was a
it was a it was a miracle moment that
God actually directed you see Jesus made
a statement he said my sheep know my
voice what what does he mean by
that there’s a familiarity to the voice
of God to the life of a Believer so much
so that there are times
where I would have thought it was simply
my desire and I find out afterwards it
was actually the voice of God there’s
such similarity living immersed in
Christ puts us in a place where we
constantly are hearing that familiar
voice I I don’t mean overly familiar in
a in a wrong sense but that familiar
voice it’s not the Thundering voice from
the outside it’s that cry from the
inside and the Beautiful part about this
is the more we learn to yield ourselves
to this work of the Holy Spirit the more
walking in the spirit so to speak is
normal and natural it’s it’s the normal
reaction to a given
situation one of the conversations I’ve
had with people of late has been to re
how do you know how do you know what to
do in a given situation because
sometimes there’s a Biblical principle
that you let’s just say uh a need
sometimes there’s a Biblical principle
of generosity and sometimes the biblical
principle of of helping them uh to earn
what what they have there’s there’s
biblical basis for both how do you know
what to do you you the only way you can
know is is recognize the mood of the
holy
spirit it’s his voice it’s his mood it’s
his H how is compassion leading you how
how is he directing you to express life
and it’s this it’s this relational
Journey where it is our nature to
illustrate faith it is our nature to
illustrate this life with Christ faith
is another one of those exalted subjects
where people just don’t think they can
live by faith when it’s actually your
nature to do so it’s our nature in
Christ so we move on to verse um 20
let’s see
26 it says likewise the spirit also
helps us in our weakness we don’t know
how manyan know you got weakness anybody
aware of those yeah but we probably
wouldn’t have listed the one he listed
for we do not know what we should pray
for as we ought but the spirit himself
makes intercession for us with groanings
that cannot be uttered so he considers
it a weakness for us not to know what to
pray
for verse 27 he who searches the hearts
knows what the mind of the spirit is
because he makes intercession for the
Saints according to the will of God now
I don’t know how you look at this this
is how I look at it God I want a million
dollars and then I pray in tongues and
the Holy Spirit says man don’t give him
a million
dollars to to not listen to that last
request because we’re trying to make him
like Jesus and that’ll only mess things
up he always prays exactly according to
the heart and to the will of God he
knows exactly the tools the elements the
issues that will take us to where we are
all headed we are all we’ve all been
predestined according to scripture
predestined to be conformed into the
image of Jesus so everything that he
does in us he works in us to that end
that the end result was we would
adequately
uh adequately represent Jesus well now
look at verse 28 this is a verse that is
quoted uh very often out of this chapter
we know that all things work together
for good to those who love God to those
who are called according to his purpose
look at it again we know that all things
work together for good to those who love
God to those who are called according to
his
purpose I’m not a cook my job is to buy
cookbooks because I married a cook
that’s my job to inspire
her
and thankfully she’s easily
inspired I did a fast some years ago
maybe heard me confess my
sins I did a a long fast and during that
fast I bought 29 cookbooks over I even
bought a deep fryer and we don’t eat
fried foods but I was dreaming of sweet
potato fries F that’s the will of God
for my life so I bought a deep fryer and
I love amazon.com the oneclick thing you
know you buy a book on there and with
just one click boom it’s mine it’s in
the mail and then it says those who
bought that cookbook also bought
these and I look at him and I think and
I see why click that one’s mine too and
C that one’s mine so I’m I’m not a I
suppose I could my wife is encouraging
me to learn with her so we could cook
together so who knows it could
happen but let’s just say we were going
to make some cookies today you need some
sort of
flour you need butter or just a cracker
if there’s no butter it’s I something
else that’s not a
[Laughter]
cookie butter you need some sort of
sugar I like coconut
sugar it’s healthier and I I like the
flavor so we got butter we got flour we
got sugar I don’t know you may want
oatmeal I like oatmeal chocolate
chips yeah no no raisins no raisins
can’t make it as a grape we don’t want
you in our cookie yes so I’m sorry if
you like raisins but I just would rather
avoid them it’s
uh I like them in their pre-spoiled form
form a raisin a grape a grape anyway and
then maybe you add some vanilla extract
you ever taste vanilla
extract
nasty nasty nasty but somehow that nasty
thing
enhances this entire
recipe and most everyone in this room
has some nasty ingredient in your
life that when it gets worked into the
entire recipe that testifies of God’s
grace
suddenly that which you didn’t like
takes on meaning it illustrates the
Redemptive work of Christ it models
illustrates
Grace and a lot of the things that we
would
remove while he didn’t cause he has
decided I’m going to demonstrate all
things work together for good I’m going
to use every part of recipe and the end
result will be you’ll be like Jesus
that’s his ambition that’s his vision
for
us verse 31 if God is for us who can be
against us I I love that verse so much I
don’t know why I I guess it’s how many
you know people can be against you
demons can be against you the devil can
be against you he’s not saying nobody
can be against you because God is for
you he’s just saying if God is for you
no one else gets to vote
no one else gets a say in the
outcome they can have their opinion but
the council is comprised of
God if God is for you nobody can be
against you that
counts here’s the verse that would
probably do us well to prayerfully
meditate on for about 20 years verse 32
he who did not spare his own son but
delivered him up for us all how shall he
not with him also freely give us all
things look look at it again he who did
not spare his own son but delivered him
up for us all how she shall he not with
him also freely give us all things
stunning verse stunning
verse uh biblical meditation seems to be
almost a lost art at least in many
circles um Eastern meditation is you the
Mind biblical meditation is you fill the
mind it’s completely different uh
Eastern meditation actually opens you up
to a spirit world realm where you you
can easily come under the influence of
an evil spirit biblical meditation is
joining your mind with the mind of
Christ and considering actually probably
the best illustration of meditation
biblical meditation is a cow chewing its
cud it brings it up to chew over and
over and over again that’s what
meditation is is you take a thought a
verse and you review it you pray over it
you think about it you maybe quote it
you write it on paper put it on the
dashboard of your car it’s just
something you review over and over again
because you can tell there is something
here for me and I don’t want to glance
over it quickly I want to make sure that
the full impact of this verse hits me
this is one of
them how can this father who freely gave
us his son to suffer in ways that are
unimaginable how would he do something
so
extreme and not also include everything
else that is short of that extreme if he
did this do you think your car payment
doesn’t matter to
him do you think it’s possible for a
father that is that
good to go to this
extreme to do not care about what you
care
about we make him this religious feature
that cares about spiritual things and
nothing else and it’s just not
consistent with the testimony of
scripture it’s not consistent with the
lifestyle the model that Jesus himself
gave for us and so here’s this statement
a statement that could stand by itself
for eternity
how shall he who gave us his son to not
only die a most gruesome death but to
carry upon his flesh the weight of every
sin of every human being in all of time
the most gruesome death ever experienced
because of
that how could there be anything that
would come up in our life that wouldn’t
matter to
him this chapter chapter is to endear us
to the spirit of
God who models and illustrates this kind
of father who models and illustrates
this kind of compassion this kind of
deep deep deep
concern jump down to
verse excuse me verse
34 who is he who condemns it is Christ
who died and furthermore is risen
who is even at the right hand of God who
also makes intercession for us here’s
the interesting thing verse 26 and 7
says the holy spirit makes intercession
for us 28 says all things work together
for good 34 says Jesus makes
intercession for us I wonder why
everything works
out what does intercession mean it means
to stand in the shoes of another it it’s
sometimes we pray for people forgive me
but i’ I’ve seen this for years people
will pray for a fact at the back door
once lady that was visiting met me at
the back door and said I want you to
agree with me and to curse the city of
San
Francisco I said no I said I’m not going
to be doing that so she tried to cast a
demon out of me that was interesting she
said come out of him you foul Spirit
yeah
yeah just
go sometimes we pray at a
situation intercession stands in the
shoes of and prays on behalf of as
though it was our own issue you pray for
your neighbor it’s not just praying at
them but we pray as though their
struggles are
ours and this is incredible Jesus
and the Holy Spirit both take put on our
shoes and pray for us as though our
issues were
theirs and they’re approaching the
father not because he has chosen evil
and they’re trying to talk him out of it
there’s been that concept for years that
couldn’t be anymore wrong it’s the Holy
Spirit and Jesus that are coming before
the father because prayer is his
assignment it is his will this is how
the econ of Heaven functions there is a
partnership and there are requests and
in this request the partnership of God
and man or the father Son and the Holy
Spirit is Illustrated through perfect
Unity perfect
camaraderie and here they pray for you
and for me and sandwiched in between the
testimony of God praying for
us is the Covenant promise it’ll all
work and it’ll all work for good
verse 37 yet in all these things we are
more than conquerors say this with me
I’m more than a
conqueror I don’t just
win I really really
win more than what is more than a
conquer I don’t know it’s like Victory
on steroids it’s it’s like out there I
am more than a conqueror through him who
Who Loved Us verse 38 I am persuaded
that neither death nor life nor angels
nor principalities nor powers nor things
present nor things to come nor height
nor depth nor any created thing shall be
able to separate us from the love of God
which is in Christ Jesus our lord I
remember early in my walk with the Lord
I remember finding this verse in the
Gospel of John that I just I put to
memory for my
sake that where Jesus said and know one
can remove you from my father’s hand
there’s this picture of the
father it’s in my hand no one can remove
you from my hands and so here it
describes all of Creation The Good the
Bad the yly says there’s not one part of
it that has the ability to create a
wedge and to separate you from the love
of God that means that you and I live in
continuous connection to the expression
of of God’s love
it is good news there’s a strange
connection those of you who like to
study which I would hope would be
everybody there’s this unusual
connection between Romans 8 and 1
Corinthians
2 read them they compliment each other
beautifully
nothing can separate you from the love
of
God there is this seamless
connection between you and the Heart of
God and nothing can separate that my
problem is I can live aware of inferior
things and lose the god-given
sensitivities to his for me it doesn’t
mean his love has changed it just means
I don’t live conscious of it you
remember at the beginning I talked about
heightened awareness this this is
it in 1 Corinthians 2 he talks
about
that that you can’t
hear the promises the richness of God’s
word you can’t hear through carnal means
you can only hear hear through the
spirit so right now in this room there
are FM signals am signals TV signals
shortwave there’s all these different
things that are actually right in the
room if you have a receiver you can pick
them
up and it’s the spirit of a man that
becomes aware of God and his voice
suddenly I start hearing things that I
didn’t hear before only because I had my
dial turned
to receiving from what God is saying and
doing but it doesn’t mean it wasn’t
there
before interestingly In this passage he
says at the end of verse 38 he says
neither things present nor things to
come in 1 Corinthians 3 is a description
of our inheritance and he mentions
things present and things to come What’s
missing
things present things to come what’s
missing the
past why because he bought
it he bought it it’s not
yours your past is not
yours the moment is yours the future is
yours the past is not it’s not
yours and the issue the issue of life is
if we if we revisit the events of our
past apart separate from our awareness
of the blood of Jesus then we actually
visit something that no longer exists we
visit a lie when you when you Empower a
lie you empower the
liar so twice Paul says things present
things to come things present things to
come the past has been purchased
I have no legal access to it apart
from the Redemptive Touch of Jesus if
there’s an issue I haven’t dealt with he
brings it up always with Redemptive
purpose never to lead me into shame
because the past under the blood of
Jesus is no reason for shame it is a
reason for Triumph and victory it is a
reason for
celebration if I could pray for
something out of this uh conversation
today it would be the heightened
awareness of the presence of the spirit
of God and the Redemptive work of Jesus
that continues to set us
free those two things stir up such a
courage and such a vision for the
impossible that there’s there’s no more
mediocrity there is no more embracing
the inferior suddenly people become
enraged in the right sense for the
things that God has purpose to do in the
earth there’s this there’s this thing
that takes place in the heart of a
believer that says wait a minute I was
born for more than
this as I’ve said so many times through
the years Jesus didn’t go through what
he went through so we could do
church we I love I I don’t think the
corporate Gathering is emphasized enough
I think he has greater intent than what
we realize so I believe in it a
lot but it’s to set us up to bring
transformation to bring the Life of
Christ the presence of God into this
environment around
us and this chapter right here starts
off with just the pronouncement there’s
no condemnation and it ends
with the past is not yours you ow in the
moment you ow in the future let’s go for
it this partnership with the spirit of
God this that the Holy Spirit and Jesus
are praying for I may pray inaccurately
but he adjusts my prayers so that it’s
perfect I may have a wrong idea of what
happened but he corrects it and in the
relational journey I get my values my
thoughts my memory of my own history
becomes re-calibrated to what he says is
true there’s always a chance when we
have a crowd this size that there are
people here who have never made that
confession of faith in Jesus
Christ I just don’t want to gather
anymore without giving opportunity for
people to come to know Jesus it’s the
most important part of the
day and if there’s anyone in the room
that would just say Bill I don’t want to
leave the building till I know I’ve been
forgiven till I know what it is to be
what the Bible calls born again that’s
where the spirit of God changes you from
the inside because there’s been a
surrender to him we’re not trying Jesus
he doesn’t come in trial
sizes
he only comes as
God but he’s a perfect and wonderful
father if there’s anybody in the room
that would just say Bill that’s me I
don’t want to leave till I know I’m at
peace with God till I’ve been forgiven I
want you to put a hand up just where you
are now I want to take just just a
moment for this make sure I oh right
here yes wonderful bless
you
beautiful anyone
real quick I I see this one here is
there anyone else wave your hand at me
if I missed
you all right beautiful let’s go ahead
and
stand and this is what I’m going to ask
to this gentleman anybody else who who
uh uh I didn’t see or or have had a
change of heart what I want to ask you
to do is right over here to my left we
have some trusted friends please don’t
move around just yet please hold on just
a moment trusted friends that that uh I
want to talk with you and pray for you
so I’m going to ask this I’d like for
the ministry team to come to the front
and this gentleman here if you would
come right up here and come to my left
we’ve got a group of people that are
ready to talk with you Ministry team
come on
down yeah God bless you God bless you go
right over here thank you beautiful come
on somebody to get happy give thanks to
the Lord
beautiful all right let’s let’s have the
ministry team please we need you up here
quickly I want to pray over you because
I want to pray for this oh goodness I’ve
never heard of an impartation of
heightened awareness but I’m going to go
for it
anyway how many of you have ever had
like a skin condition where just the
slightest touch you could it just
radiated pain and it was just that’s
what I want but in a good sense no pain
just gain all right let’s pray father I
do ask for the in The Wonderful Name of
Jesus that you would give a gift a Grace
of heightened awareness of your heart
especially your
presence given to us as a gift I pray
for this in Jesus name amen amen