Stewarding the Harvest 2

We have been to different places and know that it is connected to people that meet in Richmond.

We use it for anything from distributing hot chocolate to clothes to soup to Christmas

bags where it will be like the ice cream man. You will be surprised at what will happen because of it.

I am looking forward to it and trust that the money will come in too. It will cost more than that.

By the time you put in insurance and making hot chocolate and all that stuff, but this is just for

the van. Most of these vans will have 200 plus kilometers on, 200k more and 20-12ish, but this is how much it will cost.

So see what you want to do towards it.

Cool.

So when we stopped two weeks ago, I was talking about Stewarding the Harvest and today we continue with it.

Stewarding the Harvest Part 2. So we looked at Luke 10 verse 1 and 2 last time.

Luke 10:1

Here is what it says,

After this the Lord appointed 72 others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go.

And he said to them, The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.

That is what we talked about two weeks ago. Today we look at Luke 10, 3-20.

We are not covering every verse, but that is where we hang around. Luke 10, verse 3-20. That is what we look at today.

Luke 10:3–20

So as soon as you go to verse 3, this is Jesus speaking and he is not someone who exaggerates, he is not someone who dramatizes anything.

He is not sensational. He is very matter of fact in most of the things he does.

And he says that the work that you guys are taking on in Richmond is hazardous.

We don't think like this. We think it is easy peasy. It is not. Harvest is hazardous work.

That is how the message phrases it as. Harvest is hazardous work.

Pardon?

Brandon will take care of that. Harvest is hazardous work.

He sends us out like lambs in a pack of wolves.

You have got to think like that. The work that we are going to do is hazardous work.

We don't think like that. We think it is just going out and maybe speaking to somebody.

Maybe it works, maybe it doesn't. That is how we think.

But Jesus says it is hazardous work and then he goes on to say I am sending you out like lambs among a pack of wolves.

If you were a lamb among a pack of wolves or if you were caught in a situation where everybody around you is almost waiting to do you harm, you would be far more alert than you and I are.

So we are being sent out like lambs in a wolf pack.

Come to grips with this because this is not how we think. This is not how we think.

Strangely enough, nobody here thinks like this.

That is because most of what we do is with flesh and blood so we don't think like this.

If you were in some other countries you would think like this because then there would be the machinery of the government against you.

Like let's say North Korea or certain parts of India or certain parts of the world then you would find it hazardous work.

But in Canada we don't think like this because there is no actual machinery that threatens you.

Therefore it is important to think like this and we will see why.

And therefore he says because of this don't get distracted.

Don't get distracted.

I don't think like this, at least not in Canada.

Don't get distracted.

And when you want to understand what don't get distracted looks like you have to go to 2 Timothy 4-6 and maybe Luke 9, 57-62.

So if you go to 2 Timothy 4-6, 2 Timothy 2, 4-6, 2 Timothy 2, 4-6.

Here's what he says, no soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.

An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.

It is the hardworking farmer who ought to have the first share of crops.

One of the things that I heard Jeremy, Evan and Nick keep saying to people in Indonesia was that they do have jobs but those jobs are secondary.

That their first job is kingdom.

Time and time again I would be standing there and I would be eavesdropping.

And people would ask them, so are you guys working in the church or what do you do?

And they say no, we have regular jobs but that's the second job.

Our primary job is to do what we are presently doing.

And so this idea of being not distracted, don't get distracted goes back to 2 Timothy 2, 4-6 and Luke 9, 57-62.

Where if it's hazardous work, if you are lambs in a wolf pack, be alert and do not get distracted.

Luke 9, 57-62, read that.

Luke 9, 57-62.

As they were going along the road, someone said to him, I will follow you wherever you go.

Jesus said to him, foxes of holes and birds of the air have nests, but the son of man has nowhere to lay his head.

To another he said, follow me.

But he said, Lord, let me go and bury my father.

And Jesus said to him, leave the dead to bury their own dead, but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.

Yet another said, I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.

Jesus said to him, no one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.

So do not get distracted is a question that we need to ask ourselves.

Is what we are doing your primary pursuit or is your job your primary pursuit?

So we go back to something we talked long ago, which we haven't done for a while, which is

there's

this is how Christians must operate.

There's Christ and the church at the center.

And then there's me and my family.

There's my work.

There's my money.

And there's my family.

And there's my possessions.

And what Jesus is really saying here is, can you rally your family and serve Christ and the church?

Can you work, but can work never be something that prevents you from serving Christ and the church?

Yes, your money, you do give 10%.

Some of you give 15.

Some of you give more.

Can you work with the attitude that all my money belongs to Christ and the church?

And yes, you have possessions and it's good to have possessions, leave an inheritance for your children.

But can your possessions, like Barnabas did, be at the disposal of Christ and the church if Christ asks you to?

That is radical Christian living.

And so what usually happens is we take this out of the equation

and we are willing to give everything to Christ

because the great thing about giving everything to Christ is

he doesn't have a visible hand that will reach into your pocket.

So surrendering to Christ is easy.

Surrendering to Christ and the church is very difficult, eh?

Because now people may actually take you up on what you

surrender.

So this is the kind of no distraction living that he's calling us to

and so that's a question that must be asked of all of us.

And if we are not in a place yet to act like that, we keep pressing on towards it, right?

It's not that we aren't like that today so we won't be better tomorrow.

But this is where we are heading.

Any questions on that before we go on?

I rally my family, I rally my work, I rally my finances and I rally my possessions

and place it secondary to serving Christ and the church

so that none of them prevent me from serving Christ and the church.

It's a mindset.

The immediate gut reaction from our flesh is, can't do that

because then I've got responsibilities, I've got things to take care of,

it's a way of thinking so that should it ever come to it, it won't be a struggle.

Any questions?

This?

Yeah, what if the church is broken?

Then we'll have to draw another diagram and fix the church.

So both diagrams will have to be side by side.

Because this can easily be abused.

What I'm showing here can easily be abused.

But it's only that which is true that will ever be abused.

Nothing false is abused.

Hey, I've got too much whatever on this.

So it's always that which is original and authentic that is going to be abused.

It's never the false that's abused.

And the danger is then in a cancel culture to throw out the things that are being abused.

Especially when it's a thing of God, you can't throw it out just because someone is abusing it.

Because all these can be abused.

But you cannot separate Christ from the church.

Christ is ahead, the church is his body, so they go together.

You cannot separate them.

You cannot serve Christ, you cannot follow Christ without serving Christ and the church

or following Christ in the church or with the church.

As much as we would like it to be different.

So don't get distracted.

You are engaged in hazardous work.

And so can you be single-minded about it?

This is why he talks about how if you set your hand to the plough, Jacob, don't keep looking back.

Because if you do, what you plough will be crooked.

Can you be single-minded about it?

And can you be fluid about it?

If you look at Job 37, for long it's been one of my favorite verses.

Job 37, 11-13.

Can you be fluid?

Can you shift at the drop of a hat?

Job 37, verse 11-13.

Job 37:11–13

Job 37, 11-13.

He loads the thick cloud with moisture.

The clouds scatter his lightning.

They turn around and around by his guidance to accomplish all that he commands them on the face of the habitable world.

Whether for correction or for his land or for love, he causes it to happen.

If you read the message, it gives you more of an idea of how he puts them through their paces.

And yes, it's God who fills clouds with rainwater and hurls lightning from them every which way.

He puts them through their paces first this way, then that.

Commands them to do what he says all over the world.

Whether for discipline or grace or extravagant love, he makes sure to make them mark.

That's the kind of people we want to be.

At the beck and call of the Holy Spirit.

Able to turn.

And that's why he tells his disciples, listen, I don't want you to take two pieces of luggage just because Air Canada says you can.

Travel light.

Wear stuff that you can easily put on and get out of.

Move.

Be willing to change plans if I have to.

Be willing to get up and flee if you have to.

Be flexible.

This is the kind of people he wants, guys.

So all we are doing is trying to craft in ourselves the kind of people he wants.

Because he was like this.

He was like this.

We're just trying to imitate the master.

And then it goes on to say in Luke chapter 10, it says, when you enter a house, this is verse 5.

Luke 10 · chapter mention

When you, let me start from verse 3, go, I'm sending you out like lambs among wolves.

So when, what's her name, Jane read Isaiah 6 and says, who shall I send, who will go for us?

And Jane volunteered all of us.

She just put us into a whole lot of trouble.

So basically what she's saying is, okay, we will go, but now here's what Jesus says.

Go, I'm sending you out like lambs among wolves.

Do not take a purse or bag or sandals and do not greet anyone on the road.

Be single-minded, be fluid.

When you enter a house, first say peace to this house.

If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him.

If not, it will return to you.

We cannot determine who we encounter as we go.

You cannot determine, you cannot determine, you cannot predetermine who you encounter as you go.

Who you encounter as you go.

But you should know, and this is important guys, but you should know how to discern,

you should know how to discern, you should know how to discern those that are ready.

Those that are ready.

Or if you stick to the harvest theme, those that are ripe, those that are ready,

are predisposed to the message and to the messenger, meaning you.

For people who want to follow the Holy Spirit, we need to follow the Holy Spirit even here.

You can't predetermine who you may encounter.

I might go down this route and I may encounter Tuni.

I can't predetermine that, but I must figure out, I must discern, I should know by the Spirit

if the person is ready or ripe or predisposed to the message and the messenger.

It doesn't mean that I don't speak till the person is ready,

but in my conversation I should figure it out.

That's what Jesus is saying here, because he says there will be some that won't be ready.

Do not tarry then, move on.

If someone does not receive the words that you offer,

what's his name?

What's the guy? What's my friend?

Cam. Yeah, I was going to call him Rob.

So, remember what Cam said.

How do you know spaghetti is cooked?

You throw it at the wall and if it sticks, you know that spaghetti is cooked.

In the same way, what are the words that you can throw?

And that's another thing.

One has to ask the Holy Spirit for the words to speak in every encounter.

So what happens usually is we have a set format.

It's either the four spiritual laws or our usual way of approaching people.

What if we follow John 6.63 which says,

the words that I speak are spirit and life.

We do that everywhere else.

When we meet people and we don't want to talk to them about the gospel,

but we want to say something to them about their lives,

we think, we ask the Holy Spirit and we say it.

When it comes to this part of telling people about the kingdom,

we still have to use that.

I have to find from the Holy Spirit the opening conversation

that helps me see whether the person is predisposed

to the message and to the messenger.

And if so, now we go further.

And if not, move on.

Do not impose yourself.

Any questions on that?

Any questions?

What you communicate as someone who is extending the peace of God to a person

will provoke either acceptance or rejection.

Don't impose if you're not received.

If you find that the words you're speaking are sparking something,

now you know that there's an open door.

He says, if they're open to it, go sit with them.

Have food with them. What's he saying there?

Build relationship.

Hey, this is Jesus' advice.

It's not ministry strategy.

He used to do this.

There were times when he would go to a guy

and there was a scribe who started saying things to Jesus

and Jesus' response was,

you're really close to the Kingdom of God.

And he didn't push him, but he did encourage him.

He said, you're very close to the Kingdom of God.

And then Jesus walked away.

How nuts is that?

If you're close to the Kingdom of God, push him over.

No!

You're very close to the Kingdom of God

and you can't even imagine what those words must have done for that man.

Because now he begins his process of discovery.

I think I told you about this Jewish kid.

He wanted a dog.

He asked his mom, I want a dog.

And the mom said, sure.

He said, when?

She said, when the Messiah comes.

And the boy started reading

to find out when the Messiah comes.

Today he leads a Jewish Christian, a Messianic organization in the U.S.

Why? Because he just wanted a dog.

You have no idea what will lead to the Messiah entering your life.

Wrong thing to say for a mother to a child,

when the Messiah comes.

And then he can buy a dog now.

But the thing is, find out the words that you need to say.

John 6.63 is important.

The words that I speak to you are spirit and life.

And so, the flesh profits nothing.

It also says that.

The flesh profits nothing.

We think that scripture that comes from the flesh will profit.

I would say that the things that don't come back void

are words that are sent by the spirit into people's lives.

Because Jesus spoke a lot.

And yet, people rejected him.

When we say the word shall go back and not come back void,

we think anything we speak will not come back void.

No, find out what the spirit of God wants and speak those words.

It becomes an adventure then,

because you want to find out if the spaghetti sticks.

So you do that by throwing spaghetti.

Spaghetti is words that are spirit,

released from your life.

When you communicate that peace of God to the person,

and by peace I mean the wholeness of God

that he wants to bring into a person's life,

it will provoke acceptance or it will provoke rejection.

Don't impose.

Just move on if it's not received.

But if you are received, if you are received,

if you are received.

And we are talking about

multiple encounters in Richmond

and in different parts of Vancouver.

We have received build relationships.

In the Jewish culture,

and in Middle Eastern culture,

even today it was always over a meal.

Build relationship.

And then, here's the odd thing.

Look at how it goes.

Build relationship.

The second one he says is,

demonstrate the works of God.

It says there,

build relationship,

go sit in their house,

eat with them,

and then heal them.

This is gutsy, man.

There's almost nobody

who does not need some kind of touch

from Jesus Christ in the world.

Nobody.

So you might ask for,

and this is again the keenness

of observation that comes from

listening to the Holy Spirit,

where you know different things

that are happening in people's lives.

And you take the leap,

saying, hey, is there anything

I can pray for if you know nothing?

Or, hey, you look like you're limping.

Can I pray for your knee?

Or, hey, I heard that there was a loss.

Can I pray?

It's always demonstrating

the works of the Holy Spirit.

That's what Jesus says next.

Build relationship.

After that,

heal anyone who is sick.

Or, cleanse the lepers.

Or, cast out demons.

We'll come to that later.

Demonstrate the works of God.

And after that he says,

proclaim the Kingdom.

Now, it's easy for people

to accept the proclamation of the Kingdom

because they just saw the works of the Kingdom.

These are Jesus' words.

Let's just trust that he'll show up

and show off.

Best to follow his blueprint, man.

Just follow this pattern.

Now, what does it mean when we say

proclaim the Kingdom?

What do we mean when we say

proclaim the Kingdom?

Here's what we mean.

And verse 9 is what we're talking about right here.

When you enter a town and are welcomed,

eat what is said before you,

heal the sick who are there,

and tell them the Kingdom of God is near you.

It's from Scripture.

What is proclaiming the Kingdom?

What does proclaiming the Kingdom look like?

One,

that Christ

is

the only

Creator

and

sovereign.

Whatever word fits your context,

Lord, King,

depends on the context that people are in.

That he's the only one.

That he's supreme.

Occasionally, only

God and no other.

That's the first thing about the Kingdom.

Second,

that he

is for

us.

And in that,

you can describe how he's for us.

He died for us.

Came down to the earth.

And so that part you can build.

He died, he is for us.

Third,

this you and I have such a distinct advantage.

This is what the three boys were talking about.

He is with us.

Emmanuel is not a Christmas message.

It's a presence message.

It is what distinguishes us

from all else.

He is with us.

This is part of the Kingdom.

The Kingdom breaking in was Christ coming in.

Christ in our midst.

He is for us.

He is with us.

And when you say he is with us,

don't be surprised if he's with us.

Don't be surprised if some of them take a step back.

Because once we start doing this, guys,

a strange thing will happen.

You will actually carry presence.

Because you become aware of presence.

And you're walking in the awareness of presence.

He is for us.

He is with us.

The with us part is super important.

Because you're carriers.

Carriers.

This part is important.

He is for us.

He is with us.

And then...

Yep.

Sorry.

He died for us.

He died for us.

Came down.

Yeah. Sorry.

Next one.

He will make all things new.

Or if you don't know how to explain that to people,

tell them he'll restore.

Restore everybody understands.

And then...

Tell them what you see right now.

What you feel right now.

Because people feel things when we say

it's a taste of his power.

This constitutes rule.

Write it down, memorize it.

Write it down, pray it.

Write it down, talk it.

Write it down, practice it.

Till announcing the gospel of the kingdom

becomes such a natural thing for us.

That Christ is supreme.

He is Lord.

He is King.

He is sovereign.

He is the only God.

Whatever word fits your context

when you're talking to somebody.

So, you're talking to somebody.

Second, he is for us.

He's not against us.

He's not an enemy.

He does not need to be appeased.

No sacrifices are necessary.

No song and dance.

He is for us.

How do we know it?

He came down.

And you can explain again,

depending on the context.

Because with Catholics, it'll be different.

With Buddhists, it'll be different.

With Christians who are born in a Christian family,

it'll be different.

Next one.

He is with us.

This man go full throttle.

You've got to trust that you know him.

That you are aware of him inside you.

He is with us.

Right now.

He will make things new.

As in, hey, are things broken in your life?

Let him restore.

Let me pray for that too.

This is after demonstrating his works,

whatever their need be.

And then the last one is,

hey, what you see and feel

as I'm talking to you right now

is a taste of his power.

You have no idea how powerful he is.

Practices in our own lives, eh?

This is what announcing or proclaiming

the kingdom looks like.

Any questions?

It's actually beautiful.

Yep.

No, them.

Them.

Them.

People feel things.

People see things.

Remember, God was there before you met the person.

God has set them up.

They can reject or accept him.

But when they accept him,

they see, feel things.

It's just that they don't let on.

And we don't see.

It's impossible to come into a place like this,

even if you don't know a single song.

Even if you don't have an idea of what's happening.

And not know that,

ah, there's something about this that's presence.

Hey, you go into a temple,

you go into any place of religion,

you can feel it.

How much more?

The only true God.

Humans were made that way, guys.

In the, ah, he is for us, he is with us.

How do you know he is for us?

He is for us.

Then you, these are the broad guidelines

within which you move.

He is for us.

How do you know he is for us?

He became one of us.

He came down to the earth in flesh.

He died.

He rose again.

So fit in what you need to based on the context.

Because we are supposed to announce the gospel of the kingdom.

Not personal salvation.

We are inviting them into the reign of Christ.

There's a difference, guys,

that we have to learn to make part of our vocabulary

because we don't have it yet.

Of course.

Yeah.

Yeah, I would mean, I would say to this friend of yours,

when you see him two days later, ask him again.

Ask him again.

And then if he still says nothing has changed,

ask, say that, can I pray one more time?

Then ask him again and then let it go.

See guys, at the end of the day,

you can't do nothing.

You can't do nothing.

You can't do nothing.

You can't do nothing to get someone to receive Christ.

Nothing.

This is for yourself?

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Okay, so let's assume that Dilna is struggling with something

and I say something and he rejects it.

Now, rejection just means I'm not going to impose myself.

It doesn't mean that the next time I meet Dilna,

I will not continue building relationship.

Because I rejected about 21 times before I received.

But thank God people were insistent.

They kept the relationship going.

It's just that the relationship breaks down.

You know why?

Because we just keep imposing.

Dilna, please receive Christ.

If you don't receive Christ, you will go to hell.

If you receive Christ, you will go to heaven.

Dilna just wants to keep away from me.

My sister used to keep away from me.

And so the intent is do not impose, but keep building relationship,

especially if he's a neighbor,

especially if he's someone you will see on a regular basis,

because one day he's going to open up.

So the spaghetti is just a matter of starting with the right lines every week,

every month, every day.

But it doesn't mean that if someone rejects, that you reject it.

No.

You keep building the relationship, but you do not impose.

Imposing is what kills people.

It's like plucking.

I mean, have you eaten unripe bananas?

They're the worst thing in the world.

They get stuck.

Pardon?

Yes.

You can make chips out of that.

But yeah.

Go ahead, Anna.

Yeah.

In the part where it says he is for us, that's when you tell him about Christ.

See, we want to...

People don't know that God is for them.

Christ came to show them.

I mean, the Bible says this again and again and again.

Listen, I'm not against you.

I didn't wait for your invitation.

I came and died for you.

I'm for you.

I'm for you.

There is no need to appease me.

I'm for you even till the day you die if you reject me.

And then there will be a separation.

But I am for you.

I am for you whether you receive me as Lord and Savior or not.

I am for you and I am good.

And I will take care of you even if you keep rejecting me a hundred times.

And you choose hell.

I am still for you.

This is mind-blowing.

Nobody believes this.

We don't believe it ourselves.

That I am for you even if you reject me.

That is nuts.

Why else would he say words like, forgive them for they know not what they're doing?

He knows they're not going to change.

If anything, after his death, they began to persecute his disciples even more.

But I am for you.

This is an odd heart change that we have to have.

And if we have this heart change, it will be pretty amazing.

And from that for you place, now we are presenting Christ.

And they may still say no, but he's still for them.

We will not be for them, but he's still for them.

It's a wonderful Savior that we have, man.

And he's not our Savior.

He's the Savior of the world.

He's our Lord, but he's their Savior.

Okay, our Savior is our Lord.

Okay, after you say all this, now you take them to the place of repent, as in turn from your hostility towards God.

Hostility or your neutrality, because he is for you.

Repent and then receive him.

This is where you can lead them in a prayer.

But your prayer will completely change if you actually believe all the things we've said before.

It won't be the four this or four that or six that or eight that.

In my case, it might be 32.

But the point being, it'll be different.

That is funny.

It's okay.

I'm talking to myself right now.

Okay, Luke 10, verse 18.

Luke 10:18

Luke 10, 18.

He replied, the 72 returned, verse 17.

The 72 returned with joy and said, Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.

He replied, I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.

I've given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions.

It means something completely different to Jeremy and Nick right now.

I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy.

Nothing will harm you.

However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.

Guys, in Luke 10, 18, Luke uses the word Satan.

It's an Aramaic word.

It's not used very often.

They usually refer to him as devil.

Aramaic word.

It's an Aramaic word and it means supernatural adversary.

That's the sense of the word.

It means chief of diabolic forces.

It means the chief of diabolic forces opposed to God's purpose.

This is the sense of the word Satan.

And it's not often used and very clearly Luke picks on that word.

And so Jesus here, when the 72 return, is explicitly identifying Satan as the real enemy who must be overcome.

That's why he said, listen, this harvest that I'm sending you into, this harvest that Jane spoke about, this harvest that's being taught is hazardous work.

It's hazardous work.

Thank God it's him saying it because we then have an easy job believing.

So it's not Rome.

So Jesus is saying it's not Rome.

It's not some ism or today it would be some other city or some other country or some government.

It's not a leader.

Yes, these are minions, but they're not the real power that we are fighting.

It's not a leader, but it's a resident cosmic evil power called Satan.

Thank God Jesus is saying it.

And with him, according to Ephesians 6-12, there are rulers, there are authorities, there are powers of darkness and the word used for each of these is different.

They're not the same.

And there are spiritual forces of evil and they are in heavenly places.

They're heavenly places.

And this is word for word from Ephesians 6-12.

So this is what you're against in Richmond when you go out for harvest.

And until we come into grips with the fact that this is what we are dealing with when we go out for a harvest, our results will be varied because anybody who does not know his enemy is someone who does not come to cause before going to the battle and therefore does not know whether to make truths, whether to withdraw, whether to fight and lose.

This is why now prayer would be required because this is not an easy speed bump.

It's not a speed bump.

So Jesus says that it's not Rome, it's not an ism, it's not a leader, but it's a resident cosmic, as in universal, evil power called Satan who has with him rulers, authorities, powers of darkness and spiritual forces of evil in heavenly places.

So the pharaohs and the herds and the pilots and the caesars of the world are Satan's minions or Satan's pawns that are used by him to oppose the message and to persecute the messengers.

So pharaohs, herds, pilots and caesars still exist in different forms.

Sometimes they exist as leaders, rulers.

Sometimes they exist as institutions.

Sometimes they exist as traditions.

Sometimes they exist as cultures that fiercely oppose both the message and then persecute the messengers.

That still exists.

You still hear weeping in Rama as children are slaughtered.

You still hear 360 girls and boys taken from the school in Nigeria two days ago, out of which 50 escaped today.

The rest of them are taken and God knows the harm that can be done to them.

And I pray God that instead of putting up a flag on Facebook that we actually begin to pray saying, oh God, just like the 50 escaped, could you help the rest to escape?

Because I'm not labeling anything true or fake, but please understand that the media is not what we go by.

Everything is slanted.

That's why you will always hear what you want and see what you want on Facebook and on Instagram.

Whatever you fancy is that's what will come up first.

You like Charlie Kirk, you'll have enough of like Charlie Kirk.

You don't like Charlie Kirk, you'll have enough of that.

You like Nigeria, enough of Nigeria.

You don't like Nigeria, enough of don't like Nigeria.

It depends upon what you like or what you don't like.

Don't trust that as a source.

But know that when 350 children are taken, if two of them were yours, what in the world would happen to you?

And so that's what we are dealing with.

Even though it's a government or it's something like that, that may be behind it, machinery is used.

But when we target machinery, we get caught up in word fights that result in nothing.

So when we talk about stewarding the harvest, let's look at what it looked like in the Book of Acts,

Stewarding the Harvest.

What did it look like in the Book of Acts?

Let's go to Acts chapter 4, 17 to 20.

Acts 4 · chapter mention

Acts chapter 4, 17 to 20.

Acts 4 · chapter mention

This is what Stewarding the Harvest in Richmond, or just look at Acts first,

Stewarding the Harvest, Acts chapter 4, verse 17 to 20.

Acts 4:17–20

You realize that they had fearless confidence, fearless confidence to preach even when threatened,

even when threatened by rulers, councils, and prevalent norms.

So that's the first one.

And wherever you find you're lacking in that area, just put a tick mark.

Stewarding the Harvest, first one is Acts chapter 4, verse 17 to 20.

Acts 4:17–20

Fearless confidence to preach even when threatened by rulers, councils, and prevalent norms.

Next one, Acts 5, 16.

This is what Stewarding the Harvest looks like, Acts 5, 16.

What does it say?

Just read it and I'll write it.

Healing the sick and those afflicted by demons.

Healing the sick and those afflicted by demons.

I want to almost say it this way.

I don't care, Jacob, that you might have sicknesses in your body that doesn't opt you out

of Stewarding the Harvest by praying for the healing of the sick.

I don't care, Jacob, that you haven't seen results yet.

I am telling you to, so you go and do it.

Your experience or inexperience is not what matters.

I am the Lord of the Harvest.

I'm telling you to go do it, so just do it.

Jesus may actually not preface it saying, I don't care, but I'm just doing it for him.

Yeah.

Acts 5, 16.

Healing the sick and those afflicted by demons.

Next one.

Acts 13, 4-12.

It's a story of going against a sorcerer called Elimath, going against a sorcerer who was called the son of the devil.

It wasn't a likable term.

Oh, you son of a devil?

No, it wasn't like that.

Paul was pretty upset.

Going against a sorcerer who was the son of the devil, full of deceit and full of wickedness.

And he was opposing the message and preventing the messengers from getting to places, in this case, a well-known leader who could have changed the county.

And so Acts 13, 4-12 talks about going against sorcerers.

You know, you might think, okay, this is the book of Acts.

We'll talk about it some more.

But actually, Evan wanted to talk about some of the things we prayed against in Indonesia.

And I told him, don't do it this time.

We'll talk about it in the future.

Next one.

Acts 16, 16.

Acts 16, 16.

16 to say 20 or so.

Acts 16, 16 to 20.

Countering a spirit called the python spirit.

Countering the python spirit that had sway over Tyatira, the city of Tyatira, through a woman who was delivered.

Acts 19, 8-20.

It's a power encounter, just like Elijah's on Mount Carmel.

A power encounter between Paul and a city called Ephesus, which was the city known for occult and magic like no other city in the world at that time.

Millions of dollars worth of charms, amulets, secret papyri, magic charms that are enclosed in the London museums and other museums even now.

Encounter between Paul and a city called Ephesus where the culture itself was occultic.

This is where he also encounters the seven sons of Sceva that were going around doing exorcisms.

So this was Acts 19, 8-20.

And finally Acts 19, 35.

Where you enter into battle with a regional power that was called Diana of Artemis,

who ruled over all of Turkey, all of present-day Turkey, which at that time was at the crossroads of most of the important civilizations in the world.

This is what stewarding the harvest looks like.

And this is now how we get exposed as unable or not ready to deal with these things.

There's not a city that Acts 29 has gone into and has either planted a church or plans to plant a church that could have been done without encountering all these things.

Not a city. Not Vancouver, not New York, not any place in India, not any place in New Zealand.

You take a western city or a non-western city, it doesn't matter.

These things, there's not a place in the world where this is not the way to steward a harvest.

Everywhere you go there's the boldness to preach, there's the demonstration of the works of God.

And then there's going against sorcerers in the land, there's going against spirits that sometimes have great power over the area,

there's going against sometimes cultures that are occultic or traditional or evil,

and then there's going against sometimes regional powers that have to be unseated before the house can be plundered.

And here's the strange thing, guys.

Richmond is the same.

There's nothing different about Richmond.

Richmond could be taken and put into the Book of Acts and it would fit.

Not because Richmond is particularly evil, but because this is how cities are taken.

So next week we're going to shift from stewarding the harvest to train my hands for war and my fingers for battle, Psalm 144 verse 1.

Psalms 144:1

But a harvest cannot be stewarded unless these are dealt with.

Any questions?

So if you think Richmond is any different, then we are just ignorant.

And so this is why now it becomes important to listen to Luke chapter 10 verse 3, he says,

Luke 10:3

I'm sending you as a lamb amongst a pack of wolves.

Be single minded and be fluid.

But what a privilege to raise not two or three, but raise an entire church that can begin to think a certain way and function a certain way.

So that if another COVID hits, this church multiplies because now everyone's equipped to go wherever you're sent to do whatever is required.

I may not another COVID not it. I hated those masks.

Any questions?

They're all there. It's almost like different levels.

You'll find them all in Richmond. You'll find them all in every major city in the world now.

Because there are hardly any walls that prevent the flow of I mean,

Os Guinness, a very famous writer, put it this way, to westernize your kids, you have to give them an Eastern experience.

That's what's happened.

And so this is prevalent all over the world. So Richmond is not unique.

But since we are really being asked to harvest in Richmond, this is what is required.

Any part of the world, you go to the Middle East, you go to the Far East, you go to the West, you go to Sri Lanka, you go to India.

This is what happens.

Dethronement is required or dispossession is required before possession.

And I'm so grateful that Jesus is saying this.

Because pastors can say stuff like this and people will think they're just,

there is no if we are ignorant, if you think Richmond does not require the same divine intervention,

there is not a nation where acts 29 has planted or will plant a church that this process was not initiated and completed.

And so finally, stewarding the harvest can be summed up in one beautiful verse, which is acts 26, 17, 18.

I pray God that you memorize it.

Acts 26, 17 and 18.

Some things should be memorized so that your baby can wake you up in the middle of the night and out it comes and the baby goes back to sleep.

You should try it. It works, Tom.

Acts 26, verse 17 and 18.

Acts 26:17

Now get up, stand on your feet.

Don't I didn't mean it like literally.

Now get up, stand on your feet.

I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen of me and what I will show you.

I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles.

I'm sending, this is the part.

I'm sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light from the power of Satan to God.

And then it says, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.

Look at it again.

I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles.

That's talking to Paul.

And now look at what he's saying.

I am sending you to them to do what?

To open their eyes.

Why? How do you open people's eyes with the word?

Open their eyes to do what?

To turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God.

Why? So that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith.

These are very deliberate sentences.

They are from the word.

You can sit down now, Sue. Thanks.

And so in the 72 come back, Jesus is pretty overjoyed.

Because in Isaiah 14 13, it said of Satan that Satan wanted to sit where Jesus' throne was on Mount Zion.

In Isaiah 14, verse 13, it says he wanted to sit on the throne and receive the worship of men.

Isaiah 14:13

And in Luke 10 15, sorry, in Luke 4 15, during the temptation, you should see what Satan says to Jesus.

Listen, Jesus, all the glory I have, all the allegiance I have gathered to myself, I'm willing to give to you.

All you have to do is bow.

And this is the very being created being supernatural chief of diabolic forces opposed to the gospel.

This being is suddenly being cast down, judged, cast down all his glory, all his allegiance, all his desire to sit on the throne and receive worship.

Everything cast down.

And what is Jesus seeing? Jesus in a prophetic vision is seeing Satan falling.

And he's saying it. He's saying it to his 72 who are ordinary, nobody's like you and I with less training than you and I.

He's saying it to them saying, you guys went out on a mission.

I saw this prophetically. I haven't even died. I haven't even risen. I haven't even ascended.

But even though it's reserved for the future, in your going out, I've already seen it.

And you come back rejoicing. Good.

He's not saying don't rejoice at it. He's saying rejoice at this but rejoice at something that is even greater that your name is written in the book of life.

Then he says, did you notice how safe you were? When you went down this path, did you notice how you trampled over serpents and scorpions, all these demons that you cast out?

Did any harm come to you? That's how we need to read that.

I gave you power over everything that you met on the way.

Once you're safe, did you trample over them? Awesome.

But now that you're rejoicing over that, let me also tell you that is another thing that's far greater in rejoicing, which is your names are written in the book of life,

which is why later on Jesus says, I do not know you because their names were not written in the book of life, even though they cast out demons and prophesied.

Like the seven sons of Sceva. Those guys were successful. It was just that in Ephesus, it didn't work because it was a power encounter.

This is how we steward the harvest. Any questions?

Any questions?

I love what they say. They say even as in this is impossible, oh God, human, humanly it's impossible, but even then what do they say?

The demons as in these supernatural, invisible beings that ravage and do great harm and are only sent to steal, kill and destroy.

Even the demons. What next? Are subject, as in are subdued.

Goes back to Genesis 1, 26 to 28. Subdue. Go forth. They went forth. They multiplied. They subdued. They replenished.

Even the demons are subject. And then the next thing is beautiful. To who? To us.

And then they add in your name. Such a simple formula.

So we got to train to steward the harvest. We got to train to steward the harvest.

Let's end with this. First Samuel 37. First Samuel 37.

First, sorry. First Samuel 17. 34 to 37. First Samuel 17. 34 to 37.

David talking to Saul. How do we train to steward the harvest? David talking to Saul. First Samuel 17. 34 to 37.

First thing he says is, your servant used to keep sheep.

For his father.

First step of training guys. Not your deliverance ministry guy. Not your pastor. Not your tongue speaking, Satan bashing, Pentecostal.

No. Your servant. So that's the first part. Used to keep. As in the ability to guard. The ability to nourish. The ability to feed.

This is such an essential part of dealing with these powers.

They're not after, nor do they pay heed to anyone who does not steward what is already placed in their hands.

David is telling Saul, your servant used to keep sheep for his father.

This goes back to what we were talking about, stewarding. Have you been accountable and responsible for that which has been placed in your hand?

And if you aren't, then don't expect two things. Don't expect to be sent, nor should you expect to have any success.

We can go as the seven sons of Skiwa, or we can go as the sons of God.

The seven sons of Skiwa were itinerant ministers who had no accountability, no responsibility, had nothing to say that was their own. They just went out.

So the first part is your servant used to keep sheep and the sheep belonged to the father.

You always start with something that belongs to somebody else in this process.

And if you can't handle that, you can't handle squat.

That's not scripture, but it's true.

Everything that God does begins with you handling something that does not belong to you.

That's the first test, guys.

If you cannot steward what someone gave to you to take care of, you will not be given more.

It's a biblical principle. It'll stand till the end of time.

Stewarding what belongs to another.

Next thing he says is, when a lion or a bear, when a lion or a bear,

so when you start keeping what belongs to someone else and keep it with your life,

then you will begin to fair off different enemies, lion and bear.

These are different types of animals.

These are different types of enemies.

These are different types of enemies.

And so when you meet guys in this church or in any other place that come and go,

that don't handle responsibility well, that do things selectively,

that do things that are convenient, that cannot be trusted,

that cannot be trusted, man, unreliable people like that, embrace them, but do not give them your business.

Yeah? Let them eat of the spoils of your business, but do not let them spoil your business.

Man, I'm full of amazing puns today.

Yeah, so just remember that.

Self-congratulations is the only thing that works in this church sometimes,

so that's why I occasionally indulge in it.

Moving on before people look at me and frown.

So lion and bear, different enemy types, if they ever came to steal, kill and destroy,

until you steward something, you will not experience this,

and you will never get to steward anything that is your own until you steward what belongs to someone else.

Write it down in your heart. This is how it works. There's no way around it.

God will not allow you to circumvent this process.

Then you get to fight, and you're not even fighting for your own, you're fighting for somebody else's.

And when God finds you faithful in this, that's when things begin to happen where you get your own things to fight for.

I went after it.

Next. I went after it. As in?

It's active keeping, eh? It's active guarding, it's active keeping, it's active stewarding, it's active fighting.

I went after it and struck it, learning how to attack and defeat spiritual forces and enemies.

This is what our, yeah, attack and defeat.

I seized it by its hair.

It's aggressive and killed it.

Then it says, your servant has killed both lion and bear. That level is done.

This uncircumcised philistine will be like one of them. As in?

Now David knows he's ready to go, to go to the next level.

The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this philistine.

That's when you know someone has confidence for the next level.

What happens to the devil during this process? Here's what happens to him.

One, he knows that the power of the spirit is proven in your life.

Two, he knows the loss you inflicted last time.

And three, he knows the dread that awaits the next Goliath.

So what does Satan do when people become like this?

He usually attacks their identity and thereby their confidence.

When people begin to walk like this, you prove the power of the spirit in your life.

Two, the enemy is aware of the loss you inflicted last time.

Every time David or Joshua would go out to battle, the real spiritual powers behind this knew that they had experienced Jericho.

That's why the next city would be shut up.

Three, the dread that awaited the next Goliath. Because one Goliath was taken care of, he had four other brothers.

That's when the enemy changes tactics and says, okay, Derek's become good at this, so let's not touch him in terms of opposing what he does in different cities.

Let's attack his identity.

Let's get people to accuse him. Let's get people to say he's a liar, that he's immoral, that he's this or that. Why?

Hollow out his identity so that he loses confidence.

That's what happens.

And you've got to be aware of it because before you know it, it can completely infect your brain.

Stand up against it, because it'll come in waves.

You know, Heidi can testify to this.

When Act 29 first started and we were only three or four people, God sent us people that needed help.

And some of the ones that were sent to us were so demonized, so demonized that we were completely out of our league.

Didn't even know what to do.

But one of the reasons God would send really demonized people that I've never met since.

You would think that he would take you step by step by step, but he sent really difficult situations right off the bat in 2006.

And three or four of us, and we had to deal with these demonized situations, but here was what God was doing in the process.

He was giving us really difficult situations so that he could train us to deal with it.

So that early in the life of this church, it was not uncommon to cast out demons.

The first year of this church, why am I saying this to us?

I'm saying this to us so that we understand that God has put us in Richmond so that he may do exactly the same thing again.

This is Judges chapter three, verse two, where he leaves tribes in the nation.

In the promised land, God deliberately leaves tribes. Why?

So that those that had not experienced war may experience war.

Who needs a God like that, right?

Everybody's praying for a cushy life and he's leaving people in the land so that you get to experience war because you haven't experienced war.

That's part of the reason he sent us to Richmond, because after Richmond there are more cities.

Some of us will be dead and gone. You guys will still be going from city to city to city.

This thing is unstoppable.

Judges three, two, God left nations behind to train the descendants of Israel in the art of war.

Art of war. He wanted them to learn how to fight.

God will use our move into Richmond to train us to deal with the enemy.

He'll train us so we can withstand. He'll train us so we learn how to wear the armor.

He'll train us so we know how to wield the word.

He'll train us so that we understand how Efficient 6, 10, 12 can be undone.

And he'll train us so we know how to walk under authority.

So my question to you as we end is will you train your hands for war and your fingers for battle?

You cannot be selective. You cannot prefer community.

You cannot be selective. You cannot prefer convenience.

You can't want recognition or rewards.

Childishness dislikes training. Childishness dislikes training.

Will you train your hands for war and your fingers for battle?

Can you turn to Psalm 144? Psalm 144.

Any questions before we turn there? Psalm 144, any questions?

Okay. Psalm 144. Get the passion translation. Get the passion translation.

I checked with other translations. It reads well.

Meaning the passion translation is accurate in this psalm.

Sometimes you have to compare it with every... Yeah.

Get the passion translation. Psalm 144.

Many guys say that this psalm was written by David just before he went against Goliath.

That's when he writes this psalm. Just before he goes up against Goliath.

So let's read it together. Psalm 144, verse 1.

Psalms 144:1

Sorry, Psalm 144 from the passion translation.

Okay. On three.

This is King David's poetic song as he stood before Goliath. Okay?

So let's read one, two, three.

There is only one strong, safe and secure place for me.

It's in God alone and I love him.

He's the one who gives me strength and skill for battle.

He's my shelter of love and my fortress of faith who wraps himself around me as a secure shield.

I hide myself in this one who subdues enemies before me.

Lord, what is it about us that you would even notice us?

Why do you even bother with us?

For a man is nothing but a faint whisper, a mere breath.

We spend our days like nothing more than a passing shadow.

Step down from heaven, Lord, and come down.

Make the mountains melt at your touch.

Lose your fiery lightning flashes and scatter your enemies.

Overthrow them with your terrifying judgments.

Reach down from your heavens and rescue me from this hell and deliver me from these dark powers.

They speak nothing but lies.

Their words are pure deceit.

Nothing they say can ever be trusted.

My God, I will sing you a brand new song.

The harp inside my heart will make music to you.

I will sing of you, the one who gives victory to kings.

The one who rescues David, your loving servant, from the fatal sword.

Deliver me and save me from these dark powers who speak nothing but lies.

Their words are pure deceit and you can't trust anything they say.

Deliver us, then our homes will be happy.

Our sons will grow up as strong, sturdy men and our daughters with graceful beauty, royally fashioned as for a palace.

Our barns will be filled to the brim, overflowing with the fruits of our harvest.

Our fields will be full of sheep and cattle, too many to count, and our livestock will not miscarry their young.

Our enemies will not invade our land and there will be no breach in our walls.

What bliss we experience when the blessings fall.

The people who love and serve our God will be happy indeed.

May this be Richmond's story, eh?

And then Surrey, and then White Rock, and then Langley, and then Burnaby.

This thing will spread. It's like a forest fire.

Yeah? Forest fires? Yeah.

I don't know too much about fires. Yeah.

Let's ask our returning international speaker to choose a song that would fit with one of your favorite songs.