Inconvenience

Today's topic, the title of today's topic is inconvenience.

So if you want to leave, leave now.

It's only going to get worse from here on.

So the topic is inconvenience.

And one of the things that happens to any church

is endurance is how a church gets to where it's at at present, like this one.

But endurance allows us to run well.

But after some time, inconvenience begins to whittle away.

Whittle away. Sorry?

Can't see?

Yeah. Yeah, yeah.

Inconvenience. So we start with endurance.

We run the race well. That's how you run any race well.

Endurance is required to run a race well.

But every church, every organization, at some point,

begins to find certain things inconvenient.

Because we put in so much energy when we first started

that at some point it becomes a little overwhelming and things become inconvenient.

And once inconvenience comes in, or we feel inconvenient about things,

it whittles away at endurance.

And then after a while, complacency moves in like a fog.

This happens to most things that start well.

And once complacency moves in like a fog, things become institutional, traditional,

and everything becomes management, not pioneering.

And so we are getting to that point where we've got to be careful.

So I want to talk about inconvenience.

Because it's very inconvenient being in this church.

It's a highly inconvenient church.

And that's part of the reason why it is where it is.

And endurance allows us to run well.

Just persisting with things, regardless of whether it's two people or five people,

whether it's a restaurant that we're meeting at or a church like this or homes,

endurance is what allows us to run well.

And at this stage in our lives, this is when inconvenience begins to come in.

And inconvenience is something that begins to affect people.

Remember, guys, whenever people begin to experience this idea of inconvenience,

it is a spirit, eh?

So are you saying there's a spirit of inconvenience?

No.

I'm saying that the enemy likes bringing a way of living into a group of people

so that they can all be affected by it and they can be chipped away.

So inconvenience whittles away.

Complacency moves in like a fog.

And that is when things become institutional, traditional,

or it becomes management.

And the problem with complacency is it's rarely viewed as a sin.

Complacency is rarely viewed as a sin.

People call it a sin.

Complacency is rarely viewed as a sin.

People call it, oh, it's my pace or it's the phase of life I'm in or just too busy.

Complacency is rarely seen as a sin.

One of the penalties of the sin of complacency is that you get used to it.

The complacent never know they are complacent.

I've always said it is only in hanging out with the passionate that your complacency will be exposed.

Complacency will not be exposed unless you hang out with the passionate.

I used to drive a Kia.

It was a great car.

Still I started going up to Northwind and I'd see other cars going by and I'd think to myself,

am I really moving or am I not?

Because it had a 1.2-liter engine.

This was the prehistoric Kia.

They're much better cars now.

The point being, till you are racing with someone really fast, you don't know how slow you are.

And so complacency has this ability to make you think that you're doing well and you get used to it.

And one of the things that happens then is the hardening of the heart.

Hardening of the heart to the things of God.

And neutrality.

You become neutral about things.

You become neutral about things.

Neutrality.

Everything is kamsi-kamsa.

You become neutral about things.

Neutral about God, neutral about the body of Christ, neutral about what we've been doing so far.

This is important, eh?

Because it's beginning to slowly creep into Acts 29 where things are now becoming inconvenient.

And we need the, I don't know what to call ones that weren't here 16 years ago,

but we need the ones that keep coming into the church to catch how inconvenient it is to live for Christ immediately off the bat.

Like when a Sede comes in or when a Remy and Hamari come in or when a Sean comes in,

they must immediately find out that this church is highly inconvenient to be a part of.

Everything about this kingdom goes against the grain of human flesh.

And that there is an inconvenience and a cost that I have to pay.

So I'm just picking on Sean and Remy and Hamari and Sede because let's say they came in a couple of, three months ago.

So the point is they must find this highly inconvenient, highly grating.

This church should be like a pebble in their shoe.

And then they have to decide whether they still want to wear these shoes or not.

And we must pass that on and then they must pass it on to the next bunch of guys.

What happens when inconvenience becomes something we don't want is that it whittles away at that edge.

I thought you had an amazing point to make. You were coming out with great passion.

And complacency is always violent, guys.

Even though complacency seems to be average, mediocre, and not at all.

But it's always a matter of being a little bit more positive.

And I think that's the point.

So I'm just going to pass it on to the next bunch of guys.

And complacency is always violent, guys.

Even though complacency seems to be average, mediocrity, it is violent.

Why is it violent?

Because it always brings a spirit of poverty.

Complacency is violent.

It always brings a spirit of poverty.

It always brings a spirit of poverty.

As in it impoverishes you.

It replaces the presence of God with a dullness towards God.

Any questions before I talk about the different inconveniences that this church must think of going forward?

Yep.

So I was just seeing the two of you.

One is kind of like chasing after the next best.

And the other is called complacency.

And then in the middle is contentedness.

So how do you kind of differentiate between complacency and contentedness?

Yeah.

So contentedness can sometimes disguise...

Sorry.

Neutrality can disguise itself as contentedness.

Mediocrity can disguise itself as contentedness.

So that's the hard part.

Because sometimes I can be average and mediocre and think I'm content.

I can be neutral about things and think I'm just content.

And it's this fine line that divides contentedness, a godly contentedness, from mediocrity.

Very fine line.

And we can cross that easily.

I would say one of the ways we have to figure out mediocrity or contentedness is

am I crossing thresholds continuously because God is always moving?

We've got to look at the nature of God to figure out where I must position myself.

I have to look at the nature of God to see where I position myself.

It's the nature of God, one, that continuously is opening doors and moving forward.

We have to look at fathers and sons.

I'm talking about God as father and you and us as sons and daughters.

Aren't fathers always opening doors for their sons to keep stepping up?

They teach you to walk.

They teach you to crawl.

Then they teach you to walk.

Then they potty train you.

Or it happens before or after.

I'm not too sure.

It was too long ago.

Then after that they give you a bike, a bicycle, and they run after you holding the bicycle.

And then one day they let it go.

And then they still follow you.

And then one day they let you ride on your own.

They let you press the thingy that makes the white man appear on the thing so you can cross the road.

Then one day you do it without pressing the thingy and you just jaywalk.

So it's just...

We should not be doing such things.

So the thing is fathers continuously open doors for their children.

There's this continuous movement.

So the question is if I'm content to the point where there are no thresholds being crossed,

then I must see it not as contentment but as mediocrity, dullness, sluggishness, and neutrality.

The other extreme like Jill is mentioning is where I'm always looking for the next new trendy thing.

Trendy things are created by man.

Trendy things are easy.

Trendy things are fads.

Trendy things can be imitated.

Sorry, mimicked.

Trendy things can be gotten.

But my God, any door that God opens, you need more faith, it's going to cost you more,

it's highly inconvenient, it is painful, you have to pay a cost.

That is how you know whether it's a trend or whether it's a threshold that you're crossing.

Everything that God gives you, there is a price to pay.

The thing is you don't know it, but he already knows you have what it takes to pay that price.

Trendy things are easy to get.

Just have to wear a pair of white shoes and they think you're trendy.

So here are some inconveniences we can talk about.

There's the inconvenience of growth.

At this stage in our life, because many of us, and sometimes when I speak like this,

it might sound like I'm really exalting this church a little too much, and that might be true.

So if I do that, just take it down a notch or two.

So one of the things that happens sometimes in a church like this is growth is no longer important

because we already know a lot and every week we get new things added on.

And we seem to have a decent understanding of how the kingdom works, who Christ is, what this Christianity is about.

So one of the inconveniences is the inconvenience of growth.

As in, are you inconveniencing yourself at this present time to keep growing?

To keep growing.

Ezra chapter 7, verse 10, it says,

Ezra 7:10

Ezra set his mind to study the word, and after he set his mind to study the word,

he decided that he would actually practice it and do it so others can be taught.

Beautiful words. Ezra chapter 7, verse 10.

Ezra 7:10

Is that a passion in your heart?

Second Timothy 2, 15.

Study to be approved so that you can be a workman who's not ashamed of how he divides the word.

Is that something you're still pursuing?

Especially to the leaders in this church, I ask that question.

Is that something you're passionately pursuing?

But Jacob, I don't have the time. That's the inconvenience.

Because at the end of the day, inconvenience of growth is that

growth always is measured in terms of the change in character.

Growth is measured in terms of the change of my character,

and character can only be changed through testing.

Character is changed through testing.

The Bible talks about it.

In James, it talks about how your character becomes mature through testing and through patience.

Hebrews 6, 12 talks about it too.

I won't go into it too much because it's such a lengthy topic,

but if you read 2 Timothy 2, verse 3, 4, 5, 6,

2 Timothy 2:3

you will find that Paul is saying, hey, learn.

If you want to grow, live a disciplined life.

Disciplined life.

Live a disentangled life.

Live a detached life.

Disciplined, disentangled, detached, and discerning life.

He uses the farmer, the soldier, as an example.

We won't talk about that today.

And so, at times like this, the reason I'm teaching this is that

at times like this, the reason I'm teaching this is that

at times like this, if we can pull up our socks,

then again the speed bump is destroyed.

The speed bump is flattened.

So that's the intent.

It's like this massive speed bump that's being put in our path to slow our progress down.

Remember, progress is attempted to be...

The enemy attempts to slow down progress when people are doing well.

When a church is doing well, there's always an attempt to slow down progress.

Always remember this, guys.

I mean, I find this so liberating.

Before discipline, must come delight.

Otherwise, discipline is painful.

Delight must precede discipline.

Anything you delight in, you will have the discipline for.

Anything you delight in, you will have the discipline for.

Have you guys been following me on Instagram?

Yes.

I mean, I have no desire to take on a keto diet.

You must see what I did.

But that's another story.

Anyways, Chad has lost 20 kilos.

That's 40 pounds because he's into keto.

But he delights in what he eats.

I tasted it and it was terrible.

But he delights in what he eats, so he has the discipline to continue it.

Like I tasted it and then I had to add sugar to it.

And then that just destroys everything about keto.

But anyways, the point is, anything you want to discipline yourself in,

if you delight in it first, you will find discipline easy.

So if you don't delight in it, ask God saying,

Father, I really don't like reading the word.

It's one of the most boring things in Christianity.

So could you give me a delight so that I begin to discipline myself to read it?

Any questions before we go on to the next one?

What's happening downstairs?

There's a meeting tomorrow.

Really?

It's not like you're in a meeting.

This is like a competition, man.

Okay, we'll shout louder.

Okay, the next one is the inconvenience of people.

The inconvenience of people.

The inconvenience of people.

Hey guys, your master and therefore by default you,

are in the business of people.

Your inheritance is people.

Your work is people.

What you handle is people.

This is what your master does.

Any church activity that does not take people and place them at the center,

is just church activity.

It's got nothing to do with God.

The inconvenience of people.

People are highly inconvenient.

You are.

Right?

So, yet we cannot escape it.

Matthew 14, verse 13 to 16, Jesus would highlight it.

Matthew 14:13–16

And so the disciples are finding the people that have gathered around highly inconvenient.

And so they're saying to Jesus, it's kind of late in the day.

Tell them to go and fetch their own meals and figure out how to feed themselves.

And Jesus is saying, no, they look very tired and they followed me throughout the day.

So let them stay. No, no, no, no. Let them go.

No, we got to feed them. We don't have money to feed them.

And then Jesus does what's even worse.

He turns to Nick and says, Nick, you feed them.

People are highly inconvenient.

But this is something that this church must always keep at center.

We, like our master, are in the business of taking care of people.

And therefore, the inconvenience of people must be embraced, most of all.

I must inconvenience myself in terms of time, treasure, talent and strength for people.

And slowly, we've done it for years and it can slowly begin to...

My God, I've done it for years. I can't handle another visit from Derek.

Because nowadays he turns up without food.

In the past, he used to bring food with him.

I can't handle it anymore.

So there's that inconvenience of people.

Any questions?

I pray, God, that if anything strikes home that you decide that,

no, I'll change in this inconvenience of people.

And some of you do so brilliantly at it.

Some of us suck at it and some of us aren't there yet.

The inconvenience of people.

As I go through this, there's not a single one that I can say I've faced, struggling through some of them.

Is there a way we can switch our hearts from struggling to be with people and to delighting?

Yeah. So the way you move from struggling with people to delighting in it

is to go back to the main reason why you're doing what you're doing.

Why is it that... Just think of this. I landed here on Thursday.

Why is it that I must go to New York tomorrow?

Because there's a group of people in New York that must be taken care of.

I must go there because I gave my word that I will invest in New York.

And when I say invest in New York, the city isn't what you invest in. It's the people you invest in.

So you must go. Even if it's for a day and a half, you must go.

You must spend time there.

You must exhaust yourself and you must come back.

But what is it that motivates? The motivation is not New York.

The motivation is not even the people in New York.

The motivation is there is someone who has called us for this one thing.

And there is nothing like partnering with him in the one thing he's been doing since the beginning of time.

Taking care of people.

Be it in the garden before the fall or after the fall.

Be it when he used to walk around Jerusalem, moved by compassion, moved by sheep without shepherds.

Hey, when I go to different places and I see what we have and I see the hunger that people have

and I see what is not being provided, I want to send all of us out.

Thank God we are not fat cats.

Meaning sitting on our backsides not doing anything.

But I'm saying there's too much hunger and too little food.

People are crying out for more, eh?

Especially young people.

And you don't get them now, they'll end up getting the tickets booked to heaven.

But not knowing God till they get to heaven.

That's the saddest thing.

When a 22 year old knows if he dies when he's 90 he'll go to heaven.

And for the next, 90 minus 22 is?

68. For the next 68 years they'll live a mediocre Christian life.

Ah! It's... Ah!

I did that deliberately, I know the camera's there.

It's horrible to live that kind of a Christian life.

We can't work it out but he's given us enough clues as to where to start.

And the place I start when I don't like you, Karen, is my godfather, you placed her here.

And even though she's highly annoying.

Yeah.

That father...

It's amazing, I've seen this happen many times where I dislike someone.

And I'm even telling the person next to me, man I've got to go meet this person.

And then when you're sitting in front of them something else happens, man.

Where the heart begins to flow with such Jesus-like desire, compassion, passion.

That you think to yourself, this Jesus is real.

Because I know me.

Let that be the motivation, eh?

And you'll never be exhausted, you'll always be ready.

Always be ready.

Just when you think you have no more strength left, up you'll get on your feet and you'll go that extra mile.

Extra mile should never be a sacrifice.

Extra mile should be exhausting but never a sacrifice.

The inconvenience of people.

The next inconvenience is the inconvenience of the demonic.

The inconvenience of the demonic.

What do you mean by that?

I'm glad you asked.

The inconvenience of the demonic.

Emily has a question.

Yeah, go ahead Emily.

Okay, sir.

How do you set out a dog to be really human and then like rest and you can start a new relationship and...

Yeah, yeah.

So physical exhaustion is natural because we only have so much energy.

But I can, instead of standing and speaking, sit down and speak and what comes out of me will have the same quality as it did in hour one as in hour twenty-four.

So when you're physically exhausted, sit or lie down.

Or go to sleep in the boat.

When necessary you will be woken up to calm the seas.

Physical exhaustion is real.

Jesus felt physical exhaustion.

There are times when God even overtakes physical exhaustion by the power of the Spirit of God like he did in Ezekiel.

Like he did with Elijah.

But physical exhaustion is real because the Son of God himself went through it.

But there is this thing called unlimited spiritual substance in us because Christ is unlimited.

That you can keep pouring out.

All you have to do is change your posture.

If walking hurts, sit.

If sitting hurts, lie down.

If lying hurts, sleep.

I'm not being facetious.

I'm being very sincere in this.

When you are put in a place where people need the bread that you have, there's enough bread in you to supply.

And you can sustain yourself.

And let's assume that you're so exhausted that you have to take the next three days off.

Take the next three days off.

I mean have you noticed how the Marines don't complain?

How the Marines don't complain.

They are put through grueling exercises, eh?

But they know that lives depend on them.

And that's the other thing.

If I knew, just think of this guys.

If you knew that my life depended on you walking another 20 steps, you'd think you won't.

Hey, you'll carry me given how light I am.

Yeah, after that keto diet, yeah.

You'll carry me.

You'll carry me.

You'll carry me.

You'll carry me.

Yeah, keto diet, yeah.

You'll carry me.

Yeah, all of us should have a rough idea of what we are mainly called to.

And we should stick in those lanes.

And whenever we have to stray, can stray and come back.

So I will not do Sunday school.

Just watching Phoebe exhausts me.

So I will not do Sunday school.

But if I had to, I'd do it.

But I know my track.

All of us know our tracks or should know our tracks.

Or should know our future tracks too.

Boundaries are established by what?

We'll talk about that.

The inconvenience of, we'll talk about that.

Inconvenience of the demonic.

The inconvenience of the demonic.

The inconvenience of the demonic is when, like in Numbers 33, 55,

God is telling Israel, hey, if you don't chase out, drive out,

these inhabitants from the lands that I'm giving you,

they will turn into thorns and they will turn into pebbles in your shoes

for the rest of your life.

Drive them out.

There are things in our lives that we begin to tolerate because it's okay.

It only happens occasionally.

You know these are sinful habits.

You know these have sometimes spirits behind them

because you seem to be attacked when you're doing well.

When you're doing well, these powers return and they unseat you.

Just when you're beginning to fly high, you take a nosedive.

Then you're going to start all over again.

We tolerate these demonic entities in our life.

This church has to be careful not to tolerate it.

In Revelation chapter 2, Jesus says to the church,

Revelation 2 · chapter mention

I don't remember the church, maybe Thyatira,

why is it that you tolerate Jezebel?

This church has to be particularly careful of Jezebel.

Jezebel is a spirit that slowly begins to come in

and take away the keys that the church has.

It's a rebellious spirit.

It's a spirit that soars discord among brothers and sisters.

Now you might be thinking, oh, is he talking about me?

I'm talking about a spirit.

I've got to be careful of the spirit because I can do the same.

I can be an Isaac and pit Jacob against Esau

by showing favoritism in one place and treating someone else badly.

That's all it takes to sometimes destroy a home, eh?

What I'm saying is very real.

We've got to be careful of two things in this church.

One, discord.

Two, the spirit of Jezebel.

And it's looking for victims.

We talked about Jezebel some days ago, some weeks ago.

It's a power.

It comes against any church that is prophetic and beginning to move.

It will try.

It's a historic pattern.

But praise God that for every historic pattern,

there is a biblical solution.

It completely annihilates Jezebel,

tramples upon the spirit's head and destroys it.

But inconvenience of the demonic is when I may hurt Mike

by confronting the power that is operating through him.

So I'll leave Mike alone because I don't want to hurt Mike.

And in the process, I destroy an entire church.

Why? Because I just don't want to hurt Mike.

Any questions?

Please ask, guys, because these are real things that are happening.

Discord.

That's another thing.

In this church, discord won't happen because of strife.

Discord will happen sometimes because of rivalry

or sometimes because of jealousy.

At the end of the day, it's a very strong thing.

Jealousy.

At this particular stage, guard your heart against it.

On the worship team, guard your heart like crazy about it.

Because one of those places where jealousy and strife comes in first,

like it came in the backyard of heaven, is on the worship team.

And then amongst the leaders, guard your heart.

You do not need to be included in everything.

You don't have to be on the inside.

You don't have to be within the news loop.

You can be left out of stuff.

Learn how to be happily left out of stuff.

You don't need to know everything.

Any questions?

Any comments?

Saul has slain his thousands.

David has slain his ten thousands.

As soon as that happened, Saul got jealous.

Soon as Saul got jealous, there was a spirit that appeared.

And it caused him to take a javelin or a spear

and hurl it against the one he loved.

Not once, twice.

And then the third time he did it, David decided,

this is...

I'm developing a ducking ministry. I better leave.

That's when he leaves.

Fourth, the inconvenience of purity.

The inconvenience of purity.

The inconvenience of purity.

The inconvenience of purity.

It's inconvenient to be pure.

We have a degree of purity.

We talked about how we are not condemned,

how God sees us as perfect as Christ.

But then there is this desire to live purely.

A blazing purity.

I keep talking about this idea of blazing purity.

It's inconvenient.

But my God, it can be delightful.

When you choose not to swim with the Christian tide,

you break against the Christian tide.

I'm not even talking about the tide of the world.

In Christianity, there's a degree of purity expected.

And you are upping the game saying,

nah, I'm going to be so pure even in my motives.

Deception and manipulation will not be named in Jacob's life,

even though the Jacob of the Bible was well known for it.

And this Jacob also is pretty good at it.

But he's going to decide that there will be no manipulation.

There will be no deception in my life

because there must be a purity of motives.

Leave alone sexual purity.

The inconvenience of purity.

Proverbs 22, verse 11, verse 10 talks about it.

Proverbs 22:11

Any questions on that one?

Proverbs 22, verse 11 and verse 10.

Proverbs 22:11

You know, God should smile at you because of what Christ has done for you.

God should laugh because of what you are doing for him.

I should hear the smile of God because of what Christ has done for me.

I should hear and see the smile of God.

I should hear and see the smile of God.

I should hear and see the smile of God because of what Christ has done for me.

As in, his countenance is upon me.

His countenance is towards me.

His smiling.

But I should hear the laughter of God because he thinks,

man, not only is he walking in what Christ has done for him,

but boy, the way he walks, he makes me laugh.

Now it's not that Phoebe is my child so I'll laugh, I'll smile at her.

But she is so delightful in what she's doing for me that I'll begin to laugh at her.

Okay, next one.

The inconvenience of correction.

The inconvenience of correction.

The inconvenience of correction.

Someone asked me this once.

Do you love correction?

Do you love correction?

And my answer, because I was passionate about growing, was yes, I do.

And my answer, because I was passionate about growing, was yes, I do.

You can only love correction if you want to get better, really better.

It's such a deep desire that you want to be corrected.

What a cool thing, eh?

When this person asked me, do you really love correction?

I was so desperate to grow spiritually that I said I love correction.

Correction will not be metered out to you the way you think you need to be corrected.

It will be given to you the way the person who you're connected with feels is right.

We don't go to the surgeon who's about to do an operation and tell him,

I'd like you to go for my spleen first and then bypass the liver and go for my pancreas.

We don't tell him that.

I think those three things are somewhere near to each other, like they're neighbors.

But we don't say that.

Do you love correction?

The inconvenience of correction, Psalm 32, verses 8 and 9.

Psalms 32:8

God says it this way, hey listen, I'd like to instruct you.

Correction is instruction. Correction is instruction.

I'd like to instruct you. I have my eye upon you.

I'd like to instruct you and show you the way you must go.

Do not, then he adds this bit about being inconvenienced by it.

He says, do not be like the horse or the mule that need bit and bridle to have them go the way they want to.

I pray, God, that you go and ask God to give you delight in correction.

Proverbs 19, 27.

Hey, it's Hannah's birthday today, my niece's birthday.

Hey Hannah, happy birthday.

I feel like I'm a famous CNN TV star or something.

What's it?

Proverbs 19, 27.

Proverbs 19, 27.

Stop listening to instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge.

Stop listening to instructions, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge.

One of the reasons I used to be afraid of correction was because I did not want to disappoint the ones who were mentoring me.

Second reason I was afraid of correction was because I did not want anything in my life that was wrong to be spotted and picked on.

The third reason I didn't like correction was I didn't like the way that I would be corrected.

Sometimes it would be harsh. It would hurt.

And the fourth reason I didn't like correction is I would prefer God tell me what's wrong with me and not people.

The fifth reason I didn't like correction was I would keep making the same mistakes again and again.

I would suggest to you that because we are both human, these are some of your reasons too.

I would suggest to you that because we are both human, these are some of your reasons too.

If you ask me to repeat those reasons, I don't remember them. You'll have to listen to them.

I'll read them to you.

Next one.

The inconvenience of being wronged.

The inconvenience of being wronged.

The inconvenience of being wronged.

Hey, you must become someone who does not take offense, or if you take offense, get over the offense quickly.

The inconvenience of being wronged.

Maybe you never get to a point in this church where when you're wronged, you need time, too much time to correct it.

Now, the inconvenience of being wronged.

Please, church, this is a characteristic of Jesus.

First Peter 2, verse 20 and 21.

1 Peter 2:20

What good is it if you only do good to those that do good to you?

It is when you suffer wrong and then do good that you are worthy of being called a disciple of Christ.

Look at him who was an example for you.

Who, even though he was treated, mistreated, reviled, insulted, did not speak a word, but went along like a sheep that is being led to the slaughter.

First Peter 2, verse 21 and 22.

1 Peter 2:21

Be like him.

Guys, remember this always.

Lesser the offense taken, greater your influence.

In this kingdom, this is how it works.

Lesser the offense, greater the influence.

Lesser the offense, greater the influence.

As in, not lesser the offense you do to somebody.

Lesser the offense you take, greater the influence.

Lesser the offense you take, greater it will be your influence.

It is an upside down kingdom.

David would not take offense.

I mean, here is a guy who's tried to kill him three times.

Would not take offense.

Lesser the offense, greater the influence.

In this kingdom, ones who do not take offense are the ones that will have greater influence.

Why?

Because this kingdom is built around one person.

And that one person is Christ.

And he is the unoffended one.

Any questions?

Okay.

Next one.

The inconvenience of destroying any religiosity in your life.

The inconvenience of destroying any religiosity or tradition in your life.

I have them.

You have them.

I want to be free from them.

Where the Spirit or the Lord is, there is freedom.

That scripture from 2 Corinthians chapter 3 actually is talking about freedom from the law and the traditions of men.

2 Corinthians 3 · chapter mention

That's the kind of freedom we are talking about.

Most of our religiosity and tradition is about freedom.

That's the kind of freedom we are talking about.

Most of our religiosity and tradition comes from our culture, our national background, our family, our previous denomination.

And many of them are manmade.

And they must be destroyed.

If you are from an East Indian culture or a Chinese culture or a German culture, you come with this.

I'm just picking three.

I can pick more.

You can break down the East Indian culture into subcultures.

And each one is different.

Religiosity must be destroyed.

Why?

Because it is thumbing its nose in God's face.

Chilong has a religious culture.

Kerala has a religious culture.

Germany has a religious culture.

One must take a sledgehammer and not tolerate it at all because it was religion that sent Jesus to the cross.

The traditions of men and the religion of man were the two things that sent Jesus to the cross.

And it will do it again and again in your life unless it's completely destroyed.

You guys are getting married?

Some of you are.

Make sure that when you start your married life that you destroy it.

You just got away.

I mean, otherwise this would have applied to you also.

Make sure that you destroy religiosity.

Religiosity can express itself in many different ways.

There was a time in my life where I used to lead worship in a church in Bahrain.

And worship would only be powerful if I cried.

If I didn't cry, it means the Holy Spirit wasn't there.

What's your version of religiosity when you lead worship here?

Does your face suddenly get very holy?

Does your voice go two steps lower?

Do you say stuff that you heard Hillsong say?

Do you say meaningless stuff that you read in a book the day before yesterday?

Does theology suddenly come popping out of you because you studied at Regent?

You might think I'm talking about Tuni. I'm not.

Guys, have a hatred for religion and the traditions of men because they are present.

My own Pentecostal background comes with its traditions and man-made religiosity.

I must continuously destroy it.

I remember once I was praying to somebody and my habit was before I pray for anyone's healing, I'll speak in tongues.

And then I one day hear the distinct voice of Holy Spirit saying,

Hey, I can do this even if you don't pray in tongues.

It was like, eat a bakhara, show a body, carry a bear and only then the healing would work.

But the Holy Spirit saying, why? Why do you need to speak in tongues?

You thought that's what's going to heal this guy?

The other one is, it doesn't happen here, but it happens in India a lot.

The moment you pick up the phone, praise the Lord, brother, and I don't know what to say after that.

I usually respond with a yo, but then they may say it two or three times.

When they say it two or three times, then it's almost like it gets squeezed out of me. Praise God.

It's like I'm overwhelmed.

Guys, the only reason I'm harping on this is because it is evil.

Your religious ways are evil.

Your man-made traditions stand in the path of what God can do.

It comes from your culture, your nation, your family, your denomination.

Destroy it.

Hebrews 12.27 talks about it.

I love the way it says it in the message.

So now, there's going to be one last shaking,

and all the historical and religious junk in your life, God is going to get rid of.

James 1.26 talks about it. Read it from the message.

Matthew 5.34 talks about it.

Hebrews 12.27, James 1.26, Matthew 5.34.

When I stand here, be it teaching or be it worship,

there must be nothing insincere that comes through my life to you.

That is how you maintain freedom from all religiosity or tradition.

There must be nothing insincere, nothing that is put on you that you are observing.

One of the things I love doing in this church is destroying every churchy way of doing things,

because we are in our Father's house.

We should know when to suddenly pivot from being Father and Son to awe and majesty.

We should know it. We should know it by the Spirit.

So that there is no movement in this church where you're doing things because this is the way we do it.

No! You don't know what it was when Jesus is confronted with the fact that,

hey, your disciples have taken grain and they're rubbing it in their hands.

It was haram. Haram.

I don't want you to think I mispronounced haram. Haram means like,

blasphemous. Yeah. Yeah.

So you take grain and you... and they're saying, why are your disciples doing this?

On the Sabbath, Jesus would go touch dead bodies and then touch people.

Jesus would touch lepers and then touch people.

The only traditions he maintained were the traditions that were handed down by God to him

through which he wanted to show a new system that was coming.

Okay. Next one.

Ah, we got three minutes.

The inconvenience of spending and giving money away.

The inconvenience of spending money and the inconvenience of giving money away.

Both are different.

Giving money away is to others.

Others spending money is for your own sake and for the sake of the kingdom

where you need to spend money.

As a church enters this stage, we have given so much away

that we can get to a place where our giving becomes plateaued.

Hear me again. It's not that this church doesn't give.

I have never seen a generous church like this.

I'm a beneficiary of your generosity.

But a time comes when a church, because it has given splendidly,

can begin to plateau because we are giving at a high rate.

But our giving must never plateau.

Our spending should not plateau.

Our spending for the sake of the gospel should not plateau.

So Jacob, but what will I live on if I keep living like this?

Yeah, that's a conversation we can have.

But it should happen with the intent of, I do not intend to plateau.

Now show me how to do this.

Betty and Heidi were supposed to go to Bangladesh.

Heidi has just retired and she bought a ticket to Bangladesh during spring break,

which is super expensive. Both of them did.

I paid $3,500 or $3,600 and I'm thinking to myself, what's wrong with you?

But they were willing.

Then I found them a better ticket because I was feeling guilty.

And it didn't work out in the end, but the point is

there should be a desire to keep spending for the kingdom.

And what do you mean spending for the kingdom?

Spending for the causes of the king through a body or through your own personal life.

Any questions on that one?

And giving. Please give splendidly and let it keep increasing too.

Let it not decrease.

And then the other thing is guys, if you say you're going to give, then please give.

Do not delay giving.

One of the things I find so frustrating is when people say they will give

and then they wait for the rain or they wait for summer

and you think to yourself, but you said you're going to give if you committed to it.

Paul talks about this. I'm only bringing up stuff that is already written.

Paul says, hey, your intent was good and God receives you at face value for what you've said.

According to your willingness, God receives you.

And then he goes on to say, but now let me tell you this.

Complete what you said you would do.

If you said you will do it, now finish the work.

Don't say that I will do it and then not do it.

This church does not believe in tithing, but this church does believe in giving

and giving hilariously, joyfully, smiling, laughing.

And please don't limit it to 10%

because 10% is like taking a pizza and dividing it among 20 people.

I'd rather that you not buy pizza than...

You see how inconvenient this is.

The next question is, but I'm retired. So? Your God isn't.

I'm sorry, this sounds like...

This sounds like unpractical, unrealistic, really bad financial advice, but it is from the Bible.

Any questions?

You can see why the customs guys were having a problem with the oven.

Any questions?

If you think it's impractical, you must come and meet me

because I'll show you how practical it is and I'll show you a way to do this.

I dare you.

Inconvenience of time.

Inconvenience of time.

If you want to form Christ in anybody, it will take time.

You must have time.

Inconvenience of time.

Galatians 4.19, Paul says,

I'm going back to that place where I'm once again suffering the birth pangs that a mother has as she gives birth

because I want Christ to be formed in you.

And so there is the inconvenience of time.

If you are someone who's a leader in this church or a potential leader or someone who wants to actively involve yourself

in the things of either this church or the king and the kingdom,

you will have a demand on your time and you will have less for yourself.

It is a fact.

You'll have less time for yourself.

We are at that stage in the life of this church where this can all begin to flatten out, eh?

And I'm just making us look this way.

That's all.

Some of us, there's no more time left.

You need 28-hour days.

You are exempt.

But there are many of us that haven't given that kind of time.

Therefore, others need to have 28-hour days.

So if you're feeling convicted, great.

But Jacob, you never ask us,

hey, come and ask me.

And you will regret it.

Because the moment you ask,

I'm not looking for your time.

I'm looking for what you can do well that will require time.

So if Dilna comes and says to me,

hey Jacob, I really want to do more and I just want to give you my time as an accountant,

my response will be, we don't need you as an accountant.

We don't need your advice as an accountant.

But I can take your time and I can put you to work in areas that you're not familiar with

and it'll really test you.

And now Dilna is scratching his head saying,

I wanted to meet him on Wednesday.

Maybe I'll postpone it for a month.

Pardon?

Inconvenience of perspective.

Inconvenience of perspective.

We're only four minutes over.

Hey, I heard that when Derek preaches, it goes on forever.

And that he calls you up to give responses.

And then the responses go on forever.

And from what I see and hear,

some of the responses had nothing to do with what he was asking.

So if he can go long, I can go long.

Okay.

Inconvenience of perspective.

Guys, when a church grows big,

you have to make sure you don't miss the forest for the tree.

As a church grows big,

you have to make sure that you don't miss the forest for the tree.

As in, there might be a situation that is grabbing your attention

and that you are focusing on.

But there is this thing called the inconvenience of discerning

or zooming out and seeing things from God's perspective

so that you know all the parts that fit.

Paul describes it this way in 1 Corinthians 12.

He says, I've got to see things in terms of the entirety of the body.

If I only look at my part,

then I will miss out on what God is actually doing.

12.

1 Corinthians 12, verse 25 and 26.

1 Corinthians 12:25

From the message or from any version,

it talks about this idea of zooming out and seeing the whole,

not just a part.

I could never understand this when I was younger.

It was like, this is what God is saying to me,

so this is what we should do.

And wiser people would say, that's great that God is saying this to you,

but there are so many other parts in this that have to go to work.

You've got to zoom out.

Wally may be going great guns for Pawan and Derek and what's his name?

Mark.

And that's great,

but Wally is not the only thing that's happening on the earth.

New York is not the only thing that's happening on the earth.

Got to zoom out.

Got to zoom out.

It's called the inconvenience of discerning with a God perspective.

The inconvenience of discerning with a God perspective.

Father, how do you see these parts working?

You should ask Rachel about this.

She's got three kids, right?

She can't focus on one,

because if she focuses on one, two will be left at home alone.

There'll be a new movie.

So you got to zoom out to get the right perspective.

This is important.

These are things that we need at this present time,

and they are inconvenient.

Three more and we are done.

The inconvenience of letting go or losing control.

The inconvenience of letting go or losing control.

Most things in this church that you were in charge of can be let go,

because there are new people under you that can begin to function in it.

Most things that you're doing,

you must raise someone up and let it go.

They will not do it like you do it.

They are not as good as you.

They are not as good as you.

They are not as good as you.

They are not as good as you.

They are not as good as you.

They will not do it like you do it.

They are not as good as you.

But they will end up doing a better job than you.

I used to try and make Eric do things a certain way in Vernon.

Every time he'd do something, I'd go and tell him,

but do it this way, and I'd keep correcting him.

He was such a humble guy that he would keep correcting it, keep correcting it.

One day I called up Eddie, and I said to Eddie,

Eddie, it's frustrating.

I keep telling Eric to do it this way, and he doesn't get it right.

And Eddie listened to my long lament for about six minutes,

and then he said just one thing.

Yeah, it must be difficult trying to create another Jacob.

It was like, pa-dak!

But he said it so gently.

That's the thing with Eddie, he can take out your spleen before you know it.

So he said, yeah, it must be really difficult creating another Jacob.

And then he put the phone down, and I'm thinking to myself, my God, that was harsh.

And the next day I flew to Vernon,

and I spent that evening with Eric, and I apologized to him for trying to make him me.

Control desires to create things in your own image.

Losing control is when things are shaped in the image of your Creator.

I'm glad to be away.

I'm glad to be in the image of my Creator.

I'm glad to be away.

Sometimes I see the things that are done here when I'm away, and I shudder.

Like when someone took their shoes and put it on top of this pulpit.

Or when someone came up a couple of weeks ago and said, stop the rain!

But it is what it is.

The rain did stop for two days. When I came back, there was no rain.

I know.

So things may not work out like you think.

Derek may not be as brilliant as I am in some areas,

but there'll be other areas that he'll do so much better.

So, lose control.

Yield control.

Otherwise you shape people in your image, and that shouldn't happen.

Your kids should look like you early in life, but not later in life, because you get uglier.

It's yielding control that allows sons to stand in the place of their fathers.

It's yielding control that allows sons to stand in the place of their fathers.

Like God the Father, one must step back and become invisible, so that the son becomes the visible image.

Two more.

The inconvenience of being misunderstood.

The inconvenience of being misunderstood.

It's important, eh? It's okay to be misunderstood in this church.

Not misinterpreted.

One mustn't misinterpret my words, but to misunderstand is okay.

The narrow...

I'll write this down.

We get so hung up about being misunderstood.

The narrower the discrepancy between who God says I am

who I think I am

and how I live in the world

the less I am bothered about being misunderstood.

The narrower the discrepancy between who God says I am

and who I really am becoming

and how I live in the world

the narrower the gap

the less I am worried about you misunderstanding me.

Jesus was like to say

he didn't care about being misunderstood.

Because he knew what the Father said about him.

He knew who he was.

And there was a certain way he began to live in the world.

And then you don't have to jump off the steeple to prove your love to anybody

because you really care for them.

Some of these words that I'm speaking I used with some of you this week.

So I'm really not thinking of you as I'm talking about this.

Though you might be thinking I am. I'm not.

I give you my word.

John 13, 1-3

Knowing where he came from and knowing where he was going

he took a bucket of water, wrapped a towel around him

and began to wash the feet of his disciples.

This is the same Jesus who knew that it was a highly sexual act

when a woman who was a prostitute came into the house of a very noble man

and began to wipe his feet with her hair.

There was nothing kosher about it.

Oh my God, did he have a weight and a dignity about himself that he allowed that?

You can't imagine it if you actually put yourself in that place

of a very sophisticated setting where a woman from the streets comes and does that.

Hey, it'll ruin your reputation.

What a God we have, man.

The inconvenience of being misunderstood.

If you are too concerned about being misunderstood

you will always have to please people.

These are things this church must develop at this present stage

so that we are not like this we are like this.

It's like a take-off ramp.

Last point.

The inconvenience of enduring routine.

The inconvenience of enduring routine.

Enduring routine.

I actually said enduring Saskatchewan then I changed it to routine.

It's like the best way I can describe it is driving in Saskatchewan.

Evan was telling me that his house in Saskatchewan he could see 10 miles away.

He could see the house 10 miles away because it was that flat.

So enduring Saskatchewan.

That has a nice ring to it.

That could be the title of this message.

Guys, endurance doesn't mean enduring through something for a grand finale.

Endurance means persevering or staying the course through very boring long times.

It's a very hard thing to do.

Enduring is staying the course.

Long obedience in the same direction. Eugene Peterson.

Long obedience in the same direction.

That's what the inconvenience of enduring the routine is.

I'm telling you something.

You get the hang of this.

Any seed you plant is planted deep and it cannot be pulled out.

You get the hang of the inconvenience of enduring.

Of doing the same thing with very little external result.

Very little external result.

People will laugh at you.

They will think, man, this guy is wasting time and money.

But you plant that seed so deep that the devil can't get there.

You plant a seed that deep you think it won't produce.

Wall-E. Do you know how long ago we talked about Wall-E?

2020. It's been two years, man.

But you should hear the stories that come out of Wall-E now.

Three or four people began it.

So look forward to May 29th when we go there.

What else is going to happen there?

It takes time. It is boring. It is routine.

It is repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat.

My God, truth is always established only through repetition.

How once it is established, nobody can pull it out.

Let me define routine for you and we'll end with that.

Routine is unseen choices we make to follow Jesus that really matter.

Routine is unseen choices.

That we make to follow Jesus that really matter.

Nobody knows it. Nobody sees it.

That really matter because they all add up to something called faithfulness.

Because they all, I'll repeat it again.

Routine is unseen choices we make to follow Jesus or to in following Jesus.

Unseen choices we make in following Jesus.

And they really matter. Why?

Because they all add up to something called faithfulness.

And faithfulness opens doors everywhere.

They all add up to something called faithfulness.

There are things you will find in the life of any person that you think is doing well.

You'll find two things.

And may this be something that you can project through your life.

Two things you'll find in the life of every successful Christian.

Or any Christian that you think is doing well.

Two things. One, consistency.

Two, they are much loved children.

It is the key to brilliant Christian living.

Just two things.

They live as much loved children.

They always live as much loved children.

They never veer off from that definition of who they are.

They're not apostle, prophet, teacher, evangelist, nothing.

They're not gifted, they're nothing.

But the one thing that they constantly keep right at the center.

I'm a much loved child of God.

And they keep that. That is the definition.

That's the name. That's the approach to God.

Continuously. It doesn't matter how bad or good things get.

Much loved children. That's the first thing.

And the second thing is consistency.

They have learned what it is to be consistent.

Not brilliant, not meteoric, not down in the dumps.

Not down in the dumps one day. Now, consistent.

They're like a blooming clock.

Get these two things right.

The world is your playground.

Get these two things right and the world becomes your playground.

Because the earth and everything thereof belongs to God.

These are the two hardest things to get right by the way.

Well, we shall talk about that next week.

Jesus, this church is at a stage where if you don't address these things, we will plateau.

You don't plateau.

If you don't do these things, this church will begin to stagnate at a very good place.

And a very good place is always the enemy of that which is best.

We want to say today that some of these things are active in our lives.

Spirit of God, I've said what I think you wanted us to say.

Now, could you help me be inconvenienced?

Could you help me be inconvenienced?

Could you help me be inconvenienced?

There are areas in my life where I need to be inconvenienced.

I look at some lives in this church and I marvel at how willingly they give their time.

How willingly they give their strength.

I don't do it like they do it, Father.

Inconvenience me in terms of my time and my strength.

I don't think there's any song written about inconveniencing, so we won't have to end with a song.

So we'll just conclude for now, Father, by just repeating these words together.

I'll just say them and then the church can either choose to or not choose to repeat it.

First line, guys, if you want to say it, please remember God unfortunately takes you at face value.

Whatever you say, He actually thinks you're saying.

You really want it, so be careful.

So first statement, I'd like to make as Father, please inconvenience my life.

So just whisper it so if you're not saying it, people won't know you're not saying it.

So let's say together, Father, please inconvenience my life for your sake, for your purpose.

Please inconvenience my life.

You inconvenienced your life, Jesus.

It was highly inconvenient for you.

My God, what you did.

Please inconvenience my life, Jesus.

Second bit is a little more difficult.

Father, if I am going to stay tied to the shore, please send a wave that will inconvenience me.

Be careful with that one.

Father, if I choose to stay tied to the shore, then please send waves to inconvenience me.

And the third one, Father, please convict me of some of these inconveniences so I can ask for help.

Father, please convince me of some of these inconveniences so I can ask for help.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

Thank you for letting me preach these things to you.

Most churches you would not be able to.

And you let me because of your ability to be receptive to what God is doing.

So thank you.

I don't take that as a granted thing.

A very special church. Thank you.