God is not surprised by your weaknesses.You may be, but He’s not.
I believe that one of the things that is
a huge problem for people is they don’t
know how to receive correction without
letting it condemn them and I really
want to Center on that quite a bit
because the only way that we can grow up
let me ask you a question do you have
children how many of you have children
all right have you ever had to correct
them but you just consider that part of
growing up don’t you
well we’re God’s children and when we
come into this walk with God
we’re baby Christians and we have to
grow up and part of the way that God
helps us grow up is through correction
through chastisement and the Bible says
very clearly that God only corrects
those whom he loves
we only correct our children because we
love them many times truth be told we’d
rather not mess with it who wants to
punish their kid and keep him in the
house all week when it’s just going to
make you miserable but you do it because
you love them we don’t love taking
things away from our children that we
know is going to really wound them
emotionally but we do it because we love
them and God corrects us because He
loves us but when God tries to correct
us if I response to that correction is
condemnation then we don’t receive what
God’s trying to do and we just have to
go around that mountain another time a
spiritually mature person can actually
be grateful when God shows them
something that’s wrong in their life or
in their attitude and they will be very
quick to repent and very grateful that
God cared enough about them to open
their eyes there’s no need if you know
who you are in Christ if you understand
righteousness through the blood of
Christ if you understand that you’re a
very loved child of God and that you
have been made right
God through the blood of Jesus he sees
you as justified made just as if you had
never sinned when God corrects you there
is no reason to come under condemnation
you need to be secure and say I know I’m
God’s child and I am NOT going to be
condemned I am none of the devil’s
business if God is correcting me about
this I’m going to receive this
correction I’m going to grow and get
beyond them not gonna have a bad
attitude about it
in the beginning years of my walk with
God I’d go to a meeting much like this
and back then we were have week-long
camp meetings three and four meetings a
day I’d go and sit in all those meetings
and man everything I heard I needed it
anything you preached on I had a problem
with it it doesn’t matter if it was the
mine mine was messed up if it was a
mouth mine was messed up if it was
selfishness that was me if it was
bitterness that was me but every time I
would just go home and be more and more
condemned who said another thing now
I’ve got to change another thing that’s
wrong with me well first of all I didn’t
yet have the understanding that I
couldn’t change anything that all God
wanted me to do was agree with him and
say you’re right god I do have a problem
and I’m sorry and I want you to change
me forgive me God and change me work
with me and don’t ever leave me alone
until I am what you want me to be
but it’s going to take absolutely
forever if you don’t get over being
condemned all the time Philippians 3:12
Paul said that he knew his faults he
knew he had not arrived at the place of
perfection but he kept pressing on I
know that Paul was not condemned you
know why because when you’re condemned
you can’t press on when you’re condemned
all you get is pressed down Paul didn’t
say I’m not perfect
and so I’m pressed down I’m depressed
I’m in a bad mood about this he said I
let go of what lies behind
I know I’ve not arrived but I’m going to
press toward that mark of perfection he
knew who he was
in Christ you don’t have to concentrate
on everything that’s wrong with you when
God shows you something that’s wrong
with you just agree with him I agree God
you’re right I can’t change myself but I
sure want you to the part you can do is
study the word in that area and trust
the Holy Spirit to work that change in
you it may not happen overnight but if
you keep agreeing with God little by
little from glory to glory
you will change sometimes the changes
are so minor that they’re almost
imperceptible but if you look back over
a year or two years or three or four or
five you change I am NOT even remoting
to like the same person that I used to
be I can’t believe how angry I used to
be and how I mean I never had any peace
I was always trying to figure everything
out my mind was a mess I could not keep
my mouth shut
and God has changed me and he brought
you here to change you and I’m not gonna
just pat you on the head and just tell
you every nice thing that you want to
hear I’m not just gonna call you out of
the congregation and give all of you
personal prophecies and tell you that
you’re gonna get everything you want
from God not that there’s anything wrong
with that
but my part in the body of Christ is to
help people grow up so they can have
what Jesus died to give them it’s one
thing to be an error a joint heir with
Christ it’s another thing to inherit and
we’re all joint heirs with Christ but
very few ever really inherit they spend
all their time heading toward the
promised land but never getting there
and a lot of it is because of what I’m
talking about this weekend they won’t
forgive people that hurt they get
offended the word offense comes with a
Greek word scandal on which meant the
part of the animal trap that the bait
hung on that lured the victim into the
traffic that’s what offense is it’s
Satan’s bait he baits people he tries to
get them offended so then they can get
bitter so then they can get resentful so
then they can get a full-blown case of
unforgiveness then love can’t flow and
where there’s no love there’s no power
your faith won’t work without love
Galatians says faith worketh and is
energized to love you’re not going to
get your prayers answered I don’t care
how much faith prayers you pray you’re
not going to get your prayers answered
if you’re mad at your spouse all the
time mad at your boss mad at your
neighbors mad mad man we got to get that
stuff out of our lives so we can have
power because there’s only
where people choose to live in agreement
come on now and I realize that we can’t
always help how we feel about people I
mean there are some people that make it
almost impossible to like them and I
realize that we can’t always do anything
about how we feel about people but we
can do something about how we behave and
how we act I don’t have to feel like
doing what’s right to do what’s right
amen I do not have to feel like doing
what’s right to do what’s right and
neither do you
and if we keep waiting to feel like it
we’re never going to get around to it we
have to want to do these things with all
of our hearts the thing I want to do I
don’t do the thing I don’t want to do I
do and Paul goes on lamenting his
situation in Romans seven well if I
don’t really want to do it but I do it
is it really me doing it you know you
know I’m like you can really get your
brain scrambled if you read that I had
to look at that a good number of years
before I finally got it and then he goes
toward the end of chapter seven he says
o wretched man that I am and I can feel
his pain can you feel his pain Oh
wretched man that I am who will deliver
me from this body of death and then he
answers it in the last verse in Romans
seven he says Oh exclamation mark thank
God he will through Jesus Christ
next verse there is therefore now no
condemnation to those who are in Christ
Jesus who walk not after the flesh but
after the spirit
come on you’ve got a big prey
aphasia 2-6 teaches those principles of
spiritual warfare fission six 11 through
18 put on the full armor of God it says
goes into individual pieces of the armor
if you want to defeat the enemy if you
want to block all of his fiery darts put
on the belt of truth that means when you
get in trouble that’s when you hang on
to the word actually it says tighten the
belt of truth
that means when you’re having trouble
you hang on to the word tighter than you
ever have before and then it says I’m
put on the breastplate of righteousness
but here’s what the Living Bible says it
says wear the breastplate of God’s
approval I love that you don’t go around
being condemned think about everything
that’s wrong with you all the time
that’s one issue God’s dealing with you
about that but he approves of you he
doesn’t approve of everything you do but
he approves of you you have to separate
your who from your do no matter what you
do you’re still children of God he still
loves you and you know the whole thing
your kids are your kids you can rail on
them but nobody else better come along
and say anything bad about them and the
truth is is you’re none of the devil’s
business and when he comes around and
tries to condemn you about your behavior
you need to just say devil God knew all
about me before I ever showed up on
planet Earth he loves me he has accepted
me when I was still yet in sin he sent
His only Son to die for me
now you get out of my face because I’m
none of your business I belong to God
we gotta talk back to the devil don’t
just sit around no good no good yes no
good that’s right I’m a man yes this is
the way we go to church this is the way
we go to church every Sunday morning
this is the way we go back home this is
the way we go back no we’re not gonna
live like that anymore
we are the righteousness of God in Jesus
Christ set apart and made holy by the
blood of the Lamb God is not surprised
by your weaknesses you may be but he’s
not I know sometimes we wonder how in
the world could God use me peace with
God peace with yourself and I’m gonna
say again if you can’t get along with
you you’re not going to get along with
anybody else I didn’t have anybody to
tell me what I’m telling you I had to
find it out the hard way I struggled for
years and years and years and years
trying to love people and get along with
people
I mean miserable I loved God and I
wanted to be kind I wanted to walk in
the fruit of the Spirit I wanted to be a
loving person and I just was not and
there’s a lot of Christians that aren’t
very nice and I used to be one of them
but I found out what the root of my
problem was I couldn’t love anybody else
because I didn’t really love me we all
have things about ourselves that we
don’t love but we can love ourselves the
us that God has created us to be now the
only way that we’re going to get along
with people now I want you to listen to
me
the only way we’re ever going to get
along with people is to give each
individual a right to be who they are
which is different than you
I’m telling you this is so important I
love what the Apostle Paul said I have
learned how to be all things to all
people whatever it takes to win them and
I think instead of learning how to be
all things to all people we’re trying to
change all people to make them like us
God’s the Potter we’re not and you
probably have somebody in your immediate
family that you need to go home and let
off the potter’s wheel because you’ve
been trying to remould them and
refashion them into what you’d like them
to be long enough and they are tired of
it and just to get real blunt if you
keep it up they’re gonna end up not
liking you at all people are created by
God for freedom and liberty and the
expression of that Liberty and this
whole pride thing comes into play here
because for some reason we all think
that we’re the ones that are right and
everybody who doesn’t think like to us
do it like us like what we like what
what we want has got something wrong
with them we need all of us for things
to go around properly all of us and
until we learn to have respect for all
people there’s going to be no unity and
it begins in our heart begins in our
private thought life and how we think
about people don’t think that you can
ever treat people right if you’re going
to think about them wrong
it’s not just about us trying to control
our behavior we have to start by
controlling our thoughts how do we think
about people now the minute I catch
myself with somebody who’s not doing it
the way I’m doing it and they’re kind of
irritating me and I start to think I
mean I’ll leave the salad stop it Joyce
just stop it
lose the attitude you got to talk to
yourself you know I’m a meat and
potatoes person just tell me absolutely
what I have to know and no more I don’t
want all the details that’s why I got
you just go take care of her but there
are some people who they cannot spend it
not to tell you every detail just can’t
stand it and I finally learned they just
don’t know how to talk without telling
all that and so it’s a great way to
learn patience
[Applause]
man
we all have a right to have our own
opinion without pressure from somebody
else to have it be their opinion now one
of the problems that I believe we have
is well we have a route of rejection in
our own life we can’t stand it when
other people disagree with us because we
feel rejected when they do and I used to
have a real problem with this didn’t
realize what was wrong with me and I
would always say today we can’t talk
about anything
sound familiar ladies you ever started
having a nice little conversation about
something simple like I don’t know
getting the groceries and all of a
sudden you’re way down the road
somewhere fighting about 20 other things
that have nothing to do with and you’re
like how did I get from there to here
and you’re just confused you don’t even
know what happened
you were just trying to talk about
something simple and they’ve used to
tell me we don’t talk you talk and you
want me to listen
now come on ladies some of you might
learn a lesson there why don’t you talk
to me because you the only one that
talks now well moving on past that
see I’m trying to get you to understand
that maintaining peace and unity and
respect in your homes he’s going to
affect your prosperity it’s going to
affect your promotion in life it’s going
to affect your blessings it’s going to
affect the anointing on your life living
the kind of life that God wants us to
live does not come to us just because we
do a bunch of outward religious things
it comes because we put them into action
in our daily lives at home behind closed
doors in the marketplace in the grocery
store at our place of business at our
schools at the only place we’re going to
behave is in church
so Dave and I we just have these
arguments and I’d get so confused and I
just didn’t understand and Dave would
say you don’t really want my opinion you
just want me to agree with you and if he
didn’t agree with me then I would keep
talking and talking and talking and
talking and talking and talking trying
to change his mind and he would say I
have a right to my opinion and I thought
well of course you did and then he’s
like well then why do you keep trying to
change it
long story short God finally really just
gave me a revelation and he said when
Dave doesn’t agree with you you feel
rejected and you have to understand that
just because he doesn’t agree with your
opinion that doesn’t mean he’s rejecting
you see that’s another place where we
get our who and our do mixed-up people
and have to agree with everything I
think to love me they don’t have to want
everything I want to love me they don’t
have to like everything I want to love
me Dave loved me but people have to have
the freedom to be who they are and just
because they don’t agree with you
doesn’t mean they don’t love you it just
simply means they don’t agree with your
opinion but you are much more than your
opinion your opinion is just what you
think and who knows if that’s right
am I getting through to anybody what do
you think would happen in your home the
next time that say your husband or your
wife doesn’t agree with you about
something and instead of starting a
fight you just say well I respect that
you have a right to your opinion after
they faint and finally wake up let me
give you a list of eight things that I
think will help you in relationships
first of all be courteous and respectful
toward others even if you don’t agree
with them when somebody has a different
opinion in yours don’t say what how
could you possibly like that you say
well you know I respect your right to
have your opinion and I don’t
particularly feel that way but I respect
your rights to feel the way you want to
feel I believe when we keep peace in
these situations and God can get in
there and work we need to let God be go
number two listen with an open mind if
somebody has a different opinion you
don’t just shut them out and stubbornly
refuse to be open minded even consider
that they might be right and you might
be wrong painful I know but helpful be
willing to pray about what they said the
Bible says that wisdom is willing to
yield to reason be willing to pray about
what they said number four don’t be
touchy and easily offended don’t be the
kind of person that’s so insecure that
if you don’t get 50 compliments of a
you’re falling apart
number five keep looking for a place
where you can agree rather than arguing
about what you don’t agree on you can
save a marriage that’s in trouble if you
will find one or two things to start
complimenting that person about instead
of 12 things to murmur and grumble about
a bless God nobody’s complimenting me
well then you start look for things that
are good about people look for the flesh
isn’t going to notice them
you got to do it on purpose spiritually
don’t find everything you can wrong with
your job be thankful you got one if you
really don’t like it that much then just
zip your lip don’t get another one but
don’t start a bunch of trouble while
you’re there
number six be very careful about voice
tones and body language as well as
ill-chosen words now I’ve had an issue
with the voice tones thing my father was
a very harsh hard man he just was mean
and everything he said sounded mean
everything he said sounded rough and
crude and harsh and sadly because I was
around that so many years in my
formative years I came out very much the
same way and I have begged and pleaded
for gentleness and kindness and
tenderness and it’s just something that
I have to stay after in my life because
I’m just very hard and I don’t have a
problem telling you that we’ve all got
things that we have to keep working with
God on voice tones body language
don’t you just hate it when you try to
correct a teenager in this
look they’re just like they’re just
gonna faint it in their brain
another thing we need to do is when we
need to have a confrontation with
somebody to keep it from being strife
phille we need to pick the right time
don’t go try to confront a problem with
somebody when they’re really tired about
half sick and I’ve already had a rotten
day at the office
pray and ask God to show you the right
timing and don’t just dive into
situations without praying first if you
already know it’s going to be a little
bit tedious it’s one of the ways you can
keep strife out of your life pray and
pick your timing ask God to anoint it to
open the door and then lastly if you
want to get along with people we got to
get over being selfish because it’s not
all about me it’s not all about you it’s
about all of us corporately together God
loves us all equally
the power of agreement is a wonderful
thing