The Will of God for Believers pt 2

Welcome to NECF. We're thrilled you're here.

Make sure to stay with us till the end, where

we'll share some great resources to deepen your

faith. Now, let's dive into this week's sermon.

In Jesus' name we pray. Let's have our seat and

we'll pray some more, but let's have our seat.

Let's turn to John chapter 2, verse 7. We'll

John 2:7

see. Where Jesus Christ, Jesus' action was ascribed

to zeal. So this is the immediate promise that

will not help me today. No timer, no screen scriptures.

John chapter 2. Okay. John chapter 2. My neck

John 2 · chapter mention John 2 · chapter mention

will turn. John chapter 2. Verse 7. Jesus said

John 2 · chapter mention

to them. No, no, no. Not verse 7. Is it John

John 2 · chapter mention

chapter 2? Where he cleans the temple? Hmm? Which

verse is it? Yes, verse... Down from verse 13.

Verse 17, not 7 rather. Then his disciples remembered...

Okay, rather let me read from verse 16. Or from

verse 13. Now the Passover of the Jews was at

hand and Jesus went up to Jerusalem and he found

in a temple those who sold oxen, sheep and doves

and the money changers doing business. They were

doing merchandise in the house of God. In the

house of God. When he had made a whip of coats,

he drove them all out of the temple with a sheep

and oxen. pour out the children's money and overturn

the tables. And he said to those who sold doves,

take these things away. Do not make my father's

house a house of merchandise. Now verse 17 says,

then his disciples remember. I think this is

Psalm 69 verse 9. They remember a prophecy by

Psalms 69:9

the psalmist which says a zeal. For your father's

house, some translations would put, especially

the Old King James, zeal for thine house has

consumed me. Zeal for thy house has consumed

me. Hallelujah. Now, zeal is like fire. Amen?

As we pray for zeal, zeal is like fire that burns.

You can use fire for a destructive purpose or

you can use fire for what? For a constructive

purpose, right? You can use it to cook or you

can use fire to do what? To burn the house, to

destroy the entire house. But the problem is

not with fire, isn't it? The problem is what?

It's with the use, right? How it is channeled.

Okay? How it is channeled. And we see in Colossians,

we read in Colossians chapter chapter 4 verse

12 You see for verse 13 it says For I bear him

witness. That what? That he has great zeal for

you. So what we see happen in verse 13. Where

he prays fervently. His fervency. Alright. Where

we see his fervency. We see his desire for them.

What we see here. That for I bear him witness.

That he has a great zeal for you. And those who

are in Laodicea. And those in Peripolis. He has

zeal for you. Alright. And the zeal that he has.

Was channeled towards what? The work of ministry.

Towards praying for the people. But then. We

see in Romans chapter 10. I'm leading somewhere.

Romans 10 · chapter mention

Romans chapter 10. Where Paul was making comment.

Romans 10 · chapter mention

Concerning the people of Israel. He says. My

brethren. My heart desire and prayer for God's

Israel is that they may be saved. For I bear

them witness that they have what? They have a

zeal for God. But what is wrong with your zeal?

Huh? The zeal is not what? It's not according

to what? According to knowledge. Alright? They

have a passion. They have a desire. But their

desire is not according to knowledge. Let's look

at why he says it's not according to knowledge.

For they have been ignorant of God's righteousness.

What did they do? They seek to establish their

own righteousness. They have not submitted to

the righteousness of God. So, Instead of submitting

to the things of God, submitting to the way of

God, they carve out a way for themselves because

they are ignorant, right? They are ignorant of

God's plan. They are ignorant of God's ways.

They are ignorant of the will of God for man.

So zeal without knowledge is dangerous. Zero

knowledge is dangerous. That is why we will see

in that Colossians, back to that Colossians chapter

Colossians 4 · chapter mention

4, we'll see the prayer of Epaphras. We'll see

the prayer of Epaphras. What was his prayer for

the church? Verse 13. Yes, verse 12. It says,

Who is one of you, a born servant of Christ,

greets you? Always what? What is his labor? I

will go back to chapter 1, verse 9 of that same

Colossians. We see that it was the same prayer

that Paul was praying for the church in Colossae.

Colossians 1 verse 9. Being fruitful in every

Colossians 1:9

good work. And increasing in the knowledge of

God. Hallelujah. So knowledge and zeal are very,

very important in doing the will of God. You

can be consumed with zeal and don't have knowledge.

You will do the wrong thing. Hallelujah. And

if you have knowledge without the desire burning

in your heart. To do the work of God, no work

will be executed. So we started talking about

the will of God for the believers on Sunday.

And we see from these things that Paul's prayer

is that what? Is that this church in Colossae

will be filled with that knowledge of God's will.

That there will be engulfed in the knowledge

of God's will. And we say that this knowledge

is not just a haphazard knowledge. Do you know

that Paul, Apostle Paul himself, was very satirical

for God, isn't it? Before he became a believer,

right? He was very passionate about the work

of the kingdom. When we read through Philippians,

the book of Philippians, especially chapter 3,

we see where he was expressing his seriousness,

his passion for God. But he says that his passion

was what? was in ignorance. And what do we see

was a result of his passion without knowledge?

He was what? He was persecuting the church. He

was against the church. So it is essential that

we understand the will of God, the knowledge.

And let me tell us, this knowledge, right, of

the will of God is not gained from special revelations.

You know, we get this zeal, we get this knowledge

from the teaching of God's word, from training

in the word of God. In 1 Peter 2 verse 5, we

1 Peter 2:5

saw on Sunday, 1 Peter 2 verse 4 and 5. Of course,

1 Peter 2:4

we say that the precise knowledge of God's will

is essential for us to fulfill in God's will.

And we saw the believer's identity in 1 Peter

1 Peter 2:4

2, verse 4 and 5 and verse 9. It says, acceptable

to God through Jesus Christ. But you, verse 9,

but you are a choosing generation, a royal priesthood,

a holy nation, His own special people, that you

may do what? That you may proclaim the praises

of Him who called you out of darkness. into his

marvelous light. Therefore, we say that our identity

as living stones, as God's own people, who are

built up into a spiritual house, comes with what?

With a priestly responsibility. A responsibility

of proclaiming the works of God. And for us to

proclaim the works of God, we must know the works

of God. We must know what God has... done in

Christ Jesus. We must be trained in these that

God has done in Christ. So you are a priest unto

God because you have believed in Jesus Christ.

In other words, you are a minister of God unto

good works. You are a minister of God unto good

works. Now let's look at God's plan for the earth.

What was God's plan? Or rather, what is God's

plan for the earth? Now God's plan for the earth

is to fill the earth with the knowledge of his

glory. Hallelujah. God's plan is to do what?

Is to fill the earth with the knowledge of his

glory. Habakkuk chapter 2 verse 14. Habakkuk

Habakkuk 2:14 Habakkuk 2 · chapter mention

chapter 2. Verse 14. It says, For the earth will

be filled with the knowledge of the glory of

the Lord, as waters, does what? Cover the sea.

As waters cover the sea. Contextually, from this

text, from the original text, when we read through

the book of Habakkuk, it's referring to The destruction

of Babylon and the rescue of Israel from the

Babylonian exile. The judgment of the enemies

of God's people and their redemption from bondage.

And this will be marked further, you know, revealing

the divine glory of God in this activity of salvation

of the nation of Israel from Babylon. So the

prophet Habakkuk... was prophesying of the deliverance

of the people of Israel from Babylon. And in

this, the knowledge of the glory of God will

be seen in this act of God's deliverance for

Israel. So the nations will see the Lord as the

all -powerful Savior of his people. Of course,

we'll see a similar prophecy emphasized again.

By the prophet Isaiah. In Isaiah chapter 11 verse

Isaiah 11:9

9. The same prophecy. As Isaiah 11 verse 9. So

Isaiah 11:9

we see that this prophecy. Of the knowledge of

God. Filling the earth. Is a result of what God

has done. Especially when it comes to redemption.

In Habakkuk we see his relation toward. The redemption

of Israel from Babylon. As a result of what God

will do, the nations around will see the all

-powerfulness of God, the works of God, the salvation

of God. And in Isaiah, it says, Isaiah 11 verse

Isaiah 11:9

9, it says, They shall not hurt nor destroy in

all my holy mountain. From the Old King James,

I'm ready. The earth shall be full of the knowledge

of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Isaiah

11 .9 points to a future time. This prophecy

is referring to a future time under the rule

of the Messiah. A descendant of David. In this

world, in this restored world, all the people

will know and honor God. And his truth will fill

the earth just like the waters cover the sea.

The knowledge of the glory of God is from what

God has done. Hallelujah. It's from what? It's

from the activity, what God has done that men

will see the glory of God. Of course, we know

that this is from his prophecy. This is the origin

from the writings of Moses. Numbers chapter 14,

Numbers 14:20

verse 20. Numbers chapter 14, verse 20 to 21.

Numbers 14:20–21

Then the Lord said, I have pardoned according

to your word. I have what? I have pardoned according

to your word. What God has done. I have pardoned

according to your word. But truly, as I live,

all the earth will be filled with the glory of

the Lord. Hallelujah. Now the question is, how

is or how does God accomplish the task of making

the earth full? Of the knowledge of his glory.

How will God bring about the accomplishment of

his glory? The knowledge of his glory on the

face of the earth. As waters covers the sea.

Of course, we know that it's through men, right?

The modality by which God will accomplish this

is through men. It's through the activities of

men. It's through the action of men. First, we

see God becoming a man and in Jesus Christ. That

is the first step. We see God himself coming

in the form of a man, bringing us what the understanding

or the knowledge of God. We see the glory of

God in Christ Jesus. We know. who God is in Christ

Jesus. We know the will of God in Christ Jesus.

We know the activities or the intention of God

for the earth in Jesus Christ. Then Jesus dwells

in us. When he died, he rose again. He ascended

into our hearts. We who believe becomes the carrier

of this assignment. Jesus dwells in us today

and we carry the ministry of Jesus on the earth.

So as priests, we proclaim the good work, the

work of God that he has accomplished in Jesus

Christ. 1 Peter 2, verse 9, we read earlier on.

1 Peter 2:9

We proclaim what God has done in Christ. Now,

It is important for us to note that it is men

and not angels. Amen? It is men and not angels

that are called to the work of ministry. It is

men and not angels that are called to the work

of ministry. God has released his spirit in men

to be witnesses to men. In God's dealing with

the world, With men, he had to become man, come

in the form of man, in the likeness of men, in

order to communicate to us his plan and also

to execute his plan. And for us, for this message,

this knowledge of God's will, for this knowledge

of what God has done to be spread across the

earth, it takes men. To do what? To do the work

of spreading this message, this work that God

has done in Christ Jesus. Which means that God

is counting on man to do what? To make the knowledge

of his glory cover the face of the earth as waters

cover the sea. God has released his spirit unto

us. Let's look at Acts chapter 1 verse 4 and

Acts 1:4

see what he did when he gave the spirit. Acts

Acts 1:4

1, verse 4. Therefore, when they had come together,

they asked him, saying, Lord, will you at this

time restore the kingdom to Israel? And he said

to them, it is not for you to know the times

or the seasons which the Father has put in his

own authority. Verse 8 says, but you shall what?

You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit

has come upon you. And you shall be witnesses.

Say, I am a witness. I am a witness to what God

has done. Hallelujah. You are a witness to what?

To what God has done. To be witnesses to me in

Jerusalem and in all Judea, Samaria, and to the

ends of the earth. To the ends of the earth.

As the waters cover the sea. To the ends of the

earth. The earth will be full with the knowledge

of the will of God. The knowledge of the glory

of God. So we see through scriptures that it

is actually men that does this, not angels. Amen?

So when we are praying for the will of God to

be accomplished, know that you are a candidate

by which the will of God will be accomplished

on the earth. When we are praying, Lord, let

your will be accomplished in your church. We

are equally praying that, Lord, use us to do

your work. Because the will of God cannot be

accomplished by spirits or by men. God has decided

in eternity to collaborate with men in order

to minister to men. Hallelujah. We see examples

of of this in in the life of peter peter and

and john uh acts 3 let's go to acts 3 and see

an example acts chapter 3 from verse 1 let me

Acts 3 · chapter mention

just read through it says now peter and john

went up together to the temple at the hour of

prayer the ninth hour and a certain man lame

from his mother's womb was carried from whom

they laid daily at the gate of the temple which

is called Beautiful, to ask alms from those who

enter the temple. Who seeing Peter and John about

to go into the temple, asked for alms. And fixing

his eyes on him, with John, Peter said, So he

gave them his attention, expecting to receive

something from them. Then Peter said, silver

and gold I do not have. Hallelujah. But what

I do have, I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ

of Nazareth, rise up and work. And he took him

by the right hand and lifted him up. And immediately

his feet and ankles and bones received strength.

So he leaping up. stood up and walked and entered

the temple with them, walking, leaping and praising

God. And all the people saw them walking and

praising God. Then they knew that it was he who

sat begging alms at the beautiful gate of the

temple. And they were filled with wonder and

amazement at what had happened to him. Now as

the lame man who was healed held on to Peter

and John, all the people ran together to them

in the porch, which is called Solomon's, greatly

amazed. When Peter saw, he responded to the people,

Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this? Why

look so intently at us? As though by our own

powers or godliness we have made this man work.

The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God

of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus Christ,

whom you delivered up and denied in the presence

of Pilate when he was determined to let him go.

But you denied the Holy One and the dust, and

asked for a murderer to be granted to you, and

killed the Prince of Life, whom God raised from

the dead, of which we award... Which we are what?

Now, this witness here is different from my own

witness. Hallelujah. Do you know why I say so?

They were eyewitnesses. You are not an eyewitness.

Are we together? Your own witnessing, right,

is a product of revelation. of what the Spirit

has revealed to you. But in this context, their

own witnessing is what? Is that they saw, they

were eyewitnesses, they saw what happened. I

read together. And they were testifying. So take

note. And his name through faith, and his name

through faith in his name has made this man what?

Strong. Whom you see and know. Yes, the faith

which comes through him has given him his perfect

soundness in the presence of you all. Yet now,

brethren, I know that you did it in ignorance

as did also your rulers. But those things which

God foretold by the mouth of all his prophets

that the Christ would suffer, he has thus fulfilled,

he has thus accomplished. Repent therefore. Be

converted that your sins may be blotted out so

that times of refreshing may come from the presence

of the Lord. And that he may send Jesus Christ

who was preached to you before, whom heaven must

receive until the times of restoration and all

things which God has spoken by the mouth of all

his holy prophets since the world began. For

Moses truly said to the fathers, the Lord your

God, then raise up for a prophet like me. For

you, a prophet like me, from your brethren, him

you shall hear in all things, whatever he says

to you. And it shall be that every soul who will

not hear that prophet shall be utterly destroyed

from among you, from among the people. Yes. And

all the prophets from Samuel and who follows

as many as have spoken have also foretold these

days. You are the sons of the prophets and of

the covenant of which God made with our fathers,

saying to Abraham, and in your seat all the families

of the earth shall be blessed. To you first.

Of course, we know what it means to you first

because they are the oracles to which we receive

the truth. God, having raised up his servant

Jesus, sending him to bless you in turning away

every one of you from what? From iniquities.

So we see through what they did, brought about

the preaching of the gospel. And we'll see the

encounter of Philip, you know, also the encounter

of Philip in Acts 8, verse 26, where, you know,

Acts 8:26

the Ethiopian Enoch was reading the book of Isaiah,

right? And then he had... Of course, the Holy

Spirit led Philip to join him in the chariot.

Let's just look at Acts 8. Let me read from verse

26. Now, an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip,

saying, Arise and go towards south. along the

road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.

This is desert. Why didn't the angel go and preach

to the Ethiopian eunuch? Why didn't the angel

go? Why would the Ethiopian eunuch ask Philip

to go and meet? You know, some of us, we want

angelic visitation. Right? want so much of supernatural

experiences and you rather would prefer an angel

to speak to you than your brother in Christ speak

to you. Amen? You prefer, you know, this supernatural

and then there's an opening of the heavens and

then an angel appear to you and speak. You prefer,

you know, you rather that an angel appear to

you than to trust a testimony. of God in the

mouth of a brother or a sister in Christ. We

see here that God's way, right, of saving men

is through men. The angel appeared to him and

said, see, go. And we will see further on what,

you know, he will go on to do. Also in Acts chapter

Acts 10 · chapter mention

10, we'll see another instance where Acts chapter

Acts 10 · chapter mention

10 from verse 1. There was a certain man in Caesarea

called Cornelius, a centurion of what was called

the Italian regiment, a devout man who feared

God with all his household, who gave alms generously

to the people and prayed to God always. About

the ninth hour of the day, he saw clearly in

a vision, what? An angel of God coming in and

saying to him, Cornelius. And what was the message

of the angel? And when he observed him, he was

afraid and said, What is it, Lord? So he said

to him, Your prayers and your alms have come

up for a memorial before God. Now send men to

Joppa and send for Simon, whose surname is Peter.

He is lodging with Simon Eterna, whose house

is by the sea. He will tell you what you must

do. And when the angel who spoke to him had departed,

Cornelius called two of his servants and a divorced

soldier from among those who waited on him continually.

So when he had explained all these things to

them, he sent them. And let's jump to verse 24.

And the following day. They entered Caesarea.

Now Cornelius was waiting for them and had called

together his relatives and close friends. And

as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him and

fell down at his feet and worshipped him. But

Peter lifted up and said, Stand up. I myself

am also a man. So, you know, the man, he fell

down on his knees. And who did he worship? He

worshipped Peter. And we see the action of Peter,

right? You know how unlawful it is for a Jewish

man to keep company with or go to one of another's

nations. But God has shown me that I should not

call any man common or unclean. Therefore, I

came without objection as soon as I was sent

for. I asked them, for what reason have you sent

for me? And then we'll read down to verse 34

and we'll see what happened in the house of Cornelius.

But I want to draw your attention to that. The

angel spoke to the man, Cornelius. Why didn't

the angel declare to him the works of God? Why

didn't the angel preach Christ to him? Why didn't

the angel minister? Why did the angel have to

go around and look for a man to do the work of

ministering Christ? It is because God has made

in his plan that men will do what will minister

to men. Pointing to the necessity of men in bringing

about the fulfillment of the will of God on earth.

And I want you to understand that you are necessary

or you are important in the plan of God on earth.

You are important, you know, in the plan of God

on earth. So witnessing and proclaiming the wonderful

works of God in Christ to men is for men. Hallelujah.

To witness Christ to men is a responsibility

of who? It's a responsibility of men. It's not

the responsibility of your offering. Even though

your offering is good. Some people think that

I can just give some thousands of dollars. And

then that's all I'm preaching. No, no, no, no.

It's good to support the work of God financially.

But essentially, believers have a responsibility

of doing what? Of proclaiming, of preaching,

of taking responsibility, of making ourselves

available for God to use. Because each and every

one of us that have believed are equipped. By

the Spirit of God, are empowered by the Spirit

of God to proclaim God to this world. And we

will see from the Scripture that this has been

the plan of God right from the beginning. This

has been the plan of God. God has revealed His

plan right from His dealings with the nation

of Israel. This has been His plan. Let's see

the example of Israel. Exodus chapter 19, verse

Exodus 19:1

1. Exodus chapter 19, verse 1 to 6. And when

Exodus 19:1–6

you're reading Exodus chapter 19, Verse 1 to

Exodus 19:1–6

6. It seems to you as though you are reading

1 Peter. Because actually Peter, in his epistle,

was writing in the context of this text. In the

third month, after the children of Israel had

gone out of the land of Egypt, on the same day

they came to the wilderness of Sinai. For they

had departed from Rephidim, and had come to the

wilderness of Sinai, and had come to the wilderness,

so Israel came there before the mountain. And

Moses went up to God, and the Lord called him

from the mountain, saying, First you shall say

to the house of Jacob, and tell the children

of Israel. And look at what he says to them in

verse 4. You have seen what I did to the Egyptians,

all right? And how I bore you on eagles' wings

and brought you to myself. This is the work of

God, entirely the work of God, the act of God,

attended the God doing it by himself. Now, therefore,

if you will indeed obey my voice, And keep my

covenant. Then you shall be what? A special treasure.

Is it familiar to 1 Peter 2 verse 9? A special

1 Peter 2:9

treasure to me. Above all people. For all the

earth is mine. Verse 6. And you shall be to me

a kingdom of priests. This sounds like royal

priesthood. A kingdom of priests. and a holy

nation. These are the words which you shall speak

to the children of Israel. And 1 Peter 2, verse

1 Peter 2:9

9 and 10 says, But you, a chosen generation,

a royal priesthood, a holy nation, his own special

people, that you may proclaim the praises of

him who hath called you out of darkness, Who

have called you out of Egypt. Who have called

you out of Egypt. Pass you through the sea. And

the wilderness. Into his marvelous light. To

proclaim the praise of him. Who called you out

of darkness. Into his marvelous light. Who was

with another people. Once you were not safe.

Once you were not qualified. But now. The people

of God. who had not obtained mercy, who had not,

that is in the past, obtained mercy, but now

obtained mercy. So in Exodus 19, we see the word

voice in verse 5. If you will obey my voice.

That word voice there refers to a message, not

just a sound. If you will hearken to my message.

If you listen to my message, the word obey there

is translated from the word shama, which implies

to hold on to the passage or hearken to it. If

you hearken to my message, the voice there is

not just a sound, but it's a message that was

delivered. The word covenant refers to the promise

that God has made. And where did God make that

promise? God made that promise to Abraham. Even

before Moses. Before Moses came, they had a promise

which God said to Abraham. It was called, they

call it the oracles of God. And we see God reiterating

the promise, a kingdom of peace. The term peculiar

treasure refers to God's own property, God's

own... He owns them. They were at this point

yet to be God's property because there was a

condition. What was the condition? The condition

is that they will what? They will hearken. That

they will obey. That they will believe. That

they will listen and believe what God has given

to them as a promise. It will only occur when

they believe it is faith that will give God access

to man's life. It is by faith that God has access

to our lives that we can become vessels that

he will dwell in and do his work on earth. So,

if ye obey my voice, in verse 5, God's promise

here was to make them a peculiar treasure and

a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Of course,

we've always been explaining the word holy here.

Holy here will imply sacred. People will set

apart. People that are differentiated and being

set apart is for his peculiar purposes, for purpose.

And the word nation implies a people, a definite

people. So there were men coming out of Egypt

that had been involved in all kinds of idolatry.

But God, by virtue of their believing in his

message and his promise, will set them apart

for himself. If they will heed to the promise

and they will believe the promise. And God's

dealing now for the nation of Israel is a foreshadowing

of what God will do for all humanity. It's a

picture of what God will do for all humanity.

And what has God done for the people of Israel?

He has delivered them from Egypt. He has passed

them through the sea and the wilderness. And

gave them a purpose. And that purpose is to be

a kingdom of peace. And also God has delivered

us from the kingdom of darkness. As many of us

that have believed. He has delivered us from

sin. He has delivered us from the dominion and

oppression of Satan. Into the kingdom of his

son. And he has given us a purpose. Equally the

purpose is what? is that we will be priests unto

him. Colossians 1 verse 9 For this reason we

Colossians 1:9

also since the day we heard it do not cease to

pray for you and to ask that you may be filled

with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom

and spiritual understanding that you may walk

worthy of the Lord fully pleasing him being fruitful

in every good work and increasing the knowledge

of God strengthened with all might according

to his glorious power for all patience and longsuffering

with joy. Giving thanks to the Father who has

qualified us to be partakers of all the inheritance

of the saints in light. We are no longer in darkness,

but we are in light. And we have an inheritance.

And this inheritance is a responsibility. He

has delivered us from the power of darkness and

conveyed us into a kingdom. of the son of his

love, in whom we have redemption through his

blood, even the forgiveness of our sins. And

then 1 Peter 2 verse 4 emphasizes, it says, To

1 Peter 2:4

offer up spiritual sacrifice except to go through

Jesus Christ. Therefore, it is also contained

in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Zion a chief

cornerstone, elect, precious, and he who believes

on him by no means shall be put to shame. Therefore,

to you who believe, to us who have belief, to

each and every one of us who have believed, he

is precious. But to those who are disobedient,

the stone which the builders rejected has become

the chief cornerstone and a stone of stumbling

and a rock of offense. That is to them. They

stumbled, being disobedient to the word which

they also were appointed. But you are a chosen

generation. What are we? We are a royal priesthood.

We are a holy nation. his own peculiar people,

his own special people, that we may proclaim

the goodness, the praises of him who has called

us out of this darkness into his marvelous light.

We were once not a people, but we are now the

people of God. We belong to God. Who had obtained

mercy? Who had not obtained mercy before? But

now, obtain mercy. Hallelujah. We are not God's

chosen people. But he has now chosen us. And

in him choosing us, we belong to him. We are

part of the family. And we have a heritage. We

have an inheritance. Alright? We have a heritage

in Christ. What belongs to Christ belongs to

us. Amen? The responsibility of Christ belongs

to us. Hallelujah. The responsibility of God

in Christ belongs to us. He is working in us,

through us, to execute His plan on the face of

the earth. The purpose is priesthood. You and

I were priests to proclaim, to preach the gospel

to people. So the salvation you receive is not

to make you a superstar. It's not to turn you

into a celebrity. It's not to turn you into a

billionaire. is not to turn you into a professional

in the field of whatever you're studying. The

essence of what God has done in you is not to

turn you into a political emancipator. The essence

of what God has done in you is not to create

in you a human rights activist. The essence of

what God has done in you Is to create in you.

A man and a woman. That through you. He will

save lives. That he will deliver. His eternal

purpose. Of saving men. Of restoring men. Of

delivering men. Just as Moses was an instrument.

The picture of Jesus. A deliverer. Who delivers

people. With the message of God. You are also

a man and a woman. That have. equally an assignment

of priesthood. That in your dealings and the

activities in your relationship with men in the

world, that you reveal to them the knowledge

of God. That you bring them into the knowledge

of God. That you teach them about what God has

done. That you explain unto them what God has

done in Christ. Yesterday in our class, I asked

a question. I said, can a man who is not born

again, accurately preach Christ. It's impossible.

You can attempt to preach Christ, but not with

knowledge, not according to knowledge. Until

Christ is revealed to you, you cannot accurately

preach him. Hallelujah. And for us that we've

come to Christ and we believe in him, we continuously

depend on him. We continuously follow his leading

in order to do his will on the earth. God's will

for his kingdom of priests on earth is to preach

the gospel of the kingdom. The primary will of

God. For us, it's to ensure that the earth is

filled with the knowledge of His will. Now, have

you surrendered to the will of God? Have you

surrendered to the will of God? Or you are passionate

about other things? We are passionate about our

careers. We are passionate about how we can build

our families. We are passionate about how we

can explore the world. I want you to think about

this. And I want you to make up your mind. By

the Spirit of God, I want you to make up your

mind. That to live this earth, you have one goal.

And your goal is to ensure that Christ is known.

Hallelujah. Your most important responsibility

on earth is not to chase after living on earth.

Your sense of purpose is not making money. The

reason why you are alive is not to gather degrees

and certificates and all your qualifications.

But your essence in life is something that is

eternal. And I equally want us to always have

eternity in mind as we go about our normal activities,

our daily activities, our endeavors. What shapes

our decisions? What shapes our... what shapes

our living on the earth is actually the will

and the purpose of the road on the earth. Because

God's eternal plan for you who is a believer,

it's not only that you are a child of God, of

course, it's only that you are part of God's

family, of course, this is all that we are. This

is our identity. This is what God has done for

us in Christ Jesus. But God equally has given

us a duty. Hallelujah. And God is depending on

you. He's depending on me. And what we do here

in church always is to remind you of this. What

we do here always in church is to prepare you

in this knowledge. It's to keep resounding to

you, number one, who you are. What God has done.

What he's doing. And what he wants to do with

your life. Is to train you. But on Sunday we'll

see. That knowing the will of God. To know the

will of God. You have to be trained. You have

to be equipped. You have to be. To be fully equipped.

So that you can do this work. So as you are with

us in church. You must know that. Whenever you

come to church. Just know that you are here.

To be exercised. So that you will be sharpened.

So that you will be prepared. So that you will

be empowered. To do your father's business. Hallelujah.

And it comes with correction. It comes with rebuke.

It comes with encouragement. It comes with edification.

It comes in different shapes. And the goal is

that you will be perfected. in all the will of

God, that you'll be equipped, you'll be enriched

with the precise knowledge, with the precise

knowledge of what God demands. Not only what

He demands of you, but with the message that

you go out to preach. Hallelujah. So I want you

to pray, and the prayer you're going to pray

is a prayer of commitment. Amen? Firstly, God

has committed to you. God is committed to you.

He has committed himself to us. God has committed

himself to us. He gave us his life. He gave us

his spirit. We've been brought into union with

him. But I want you to pray for yourself and

commit yourself to God's work. You remember what

we prayed earlier on? That a zeal for the Father's

house will do all that can consume you. That

you will be embraced, engulfed in the desire,

that the desire of God will be your desire. That

what moves God, the passion of God will be your

passion. Please, pray for yourself. Don't be

looking at me. Pray. Pray for yourself. Pray.

Your life is dedicated to one cause. My life

is dedicated to one cause. That my focus is one

thing. Pray for yourself. Pray for yourself.

Of course, we know we will be involved in careers.

We know we'll be involved in family life. We

know we'll be involved in many things. But in

the midst of all this, that I will not be distracted.

That I will not be distracted. There will be

no distraction. Our distractions are not necessarily

things that are evil. The devil is to distract

us with things that are evil. He will bring things

that are good. But I will discern that this is

a distraction. He will bring very wonderful job

offers. Very wonderful opportunities. He will

bring opportunities for recognition. Opportunities

will make us famous. Opportunities will make

us powerful. Opportunities will make us rich.

But that you will know the will of God at every

point in time. That you are a man and a woman

that is loyal and committed to the work of God.

That you are a man and a woman that is committed

to the will of God on the earth. Our decisions

will be influenced by the will of God. Our actions

will be defined by the will of God. Our choices

will be defined by the will of God. Our relationships

will be defined by the will of God. How we utilize

our resources will be defined by executing the

will of God. We look forward to having you with

us next time. God bless.