Holy Spirit-Led By

Okay, so two or three weeks ago we said if I could learn how to dive into the well of

the Spirit within me, if I could learn how to dive into the well of the Spirit within me,

because the Spirit is within me, I could have the mind of Christ in every situation and I

could rediscover Eden life. What was life like in Eden? What does it look like for us to walk as

unfallen Adams in a fallen world? Not rediscover Eden, but rediscover what it would be like to

God like Adam used to walk in Eden before he fell. And so we said that one of the ways to find that

out is to look at Galatians 5 and you'll see three things there. One in Galatians 5 16,

you see it being said that one of the ways to accomplish this is to walk by the Spirit. In

Galatians 5 18 it says be led by the Spirit and in Galatians 5 25 it says to live by the Spirit.

So last week we talked about walking by the Spirit, so today we talk about being led by

the Spirit, being led by the Spirit. So what usually happens is we think being led by the

Spirit we narrow it down to guidance. We narrow it down to guidance. We narrow being led by the

Spirit to guidance and decision-making. While that may be a part of it, that isn't at all a

comprehensive way to look at it. So being led by the Spirit is not just guidance and decision-making,

the actual sense is that of a Spirit dominated existence. The actual sense is that of a Spirit

dominated existence. That's what the actual sense is. To be led by the Spirit is to have a Spirit

dominated existence. What does that look like? It means that it is the Spirit of God who imagines,

who fuels, who authors your narrative on a daily basis. Your narrative on a daily basis. So this is

so much more than guidance then because for too long at least in charismatic circles the tendency

is to look at being led by the Spirit as being guided there by the Spirit in decisions one has

to make when it's so much more than that. We are talking about a Spirit dominated existence. A

Spirit dominated existence. A Spirit dominated existence and what that means is that the Spirit

of God is the one who imagines. He's almost like a scribe or a programmer. Only this is not some kind

of a programmer who controls the program. He's almost, hey too early, it's only 2.50. Supposed

to happen at 3.50. So the Holy Spirit imagines, he fuels and then he authors the narrative of my

daily life. That is what being led by the Spirit is and that is what I must aspire for. If you

went and listened to last week's teaching you'll see how we can get there. We talked about walking

by the Spirit. How walk has to do with character. By has to mean, by has to do with being animated,

motivated by the Spirit, zest, space, life. How we got to begin to have the Spirit become absolute

part of and we need to become heavily reliant in our areas of strength on the Holy Spirit first.

Go back and listen to it and you'll get an idea what it means to have a Spirit dominated existence

and so I need to get up every day and say, oh God, I want you to bring to me your imagination

of my day because your imagination is not a pipe dream. It is so beautiful and perfect and it was

imagined before I was born. My days were written. This is the crazy thing. Tomorrow when I wake up

and it's the 27th of July, before the earth was founded, God had already imagined the day that I

was supposed to have on July 27th, 2020. Before there was time, he had already imagined it.

A Spirit dominated existence allows you now to delve into the mind of God, to find out,

to discover and to be fueled by and then finally have your life authored by him. That's what it

looks like. Any questions? Any questions guys? Guys, don't settle for anything less. Being

guided alone would be so little. Harry, you can stay if you want to. That's how Sheldon and Jane

got caught. So guys, so any questions? Please, please begin to go down this route. It's such

a beautiful thing for God to imagine your day. Such a beautiful thing for God's imagination to

fuel your day and his imagination. And remember, if you ask or think or imagine, it ain't anywhere

near what he can do. Ephesians 3 talks about that. He does beyond what you can ask or imagine. So,

you are called to imagine with God and then he adds more. Let me just look at that again. Ephesians

3.20. It's worth looking at. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or

imagine according to his power that is at work within us. So, the idea is that I must anyways

imagine with God. But when I am fueled by his imagination, then something is added to my life.

We don't as Christians give much room for imagination because we think it's fanciful. But

what if you imagined with God? What if the Spirit of God began to help you begin to see the dream

that your father has for you? My dad used to take me on the back of his scooter sometimes when he

used to go to his native place and he would ride behind him and he would begin to imagine. And the

reason he would imagine was he wanted to see those things fulfilled in my lifetime and for

me to be a part of it. He would imagine things for my mother that he wouldn't dare tell my mother

because for whatever reason, maybe it was too unreal. But to a little boy riding on the back

of a scooter, it was okay to imagine things for my mother too. If there's anybody who you can freely

imagine with, it is the Holy Spirit because most others will scoff at your dreams. But imagine with

him man. And then he begins to author your day based on the dreams that you are now agreeing

with him on. See, the Old Testament way of doing things is sometimes just costumed in the New

Testament. In the Old Testament, the high priest used to have on his breastplate two stones called

Urim and Tumim. And people don't even know the nature of these stones. Some imagine it to be black

and white. And so the questions that they would ask God would be very simple. Shall we go to war?

Shall we not go to war? And if it was yes, go to war, it would be the white stone that would come

out. If it was no, don't go to war, it would be the black stone that came out. But it would be

carried in a pouch on the breastplate of the high priest. Nobody really knows what it was about,

but it was called Urim and Tumim. In Exodus 28-20, you read about it. So there was that,

and then there was Moses. Of Moses, it was said in Exodus 33 verse 11 that he was a friend of God,

Exodus 33:11

that God spoke to him as he spoke to a friend. Which would you rather have? Guidance-based God

or God calls me friend? I mean, there's no comparison because one is a life that is

dominated by the spirit. One is a life guided by the spirit. You see this in the case of Saul.

King Saul did not know whether he should go to battle. And so what does he say? He says,

he asks God. God does not answer. So what does he do? He says, bring me the Urim and Tumim. This is

in 1 Samuel 14. And so they bring him the stones and he can't still figure out whether what God is

saying. So what does he do? He gets upset. The thing with depending on God only for guidance is

you won't even know when he's not your friend. Saul did not know that the spirit of God had left

him. Saul did not know that his relationship was broken, but he definitely wanted answers.

And when that happens, we begin to get more desperate where Christians indulge in a kind

of divination where they go from prophet to prophet to prophet to find out what the will

of God is because they've lost relationship and they're dull to it. So you can be acutely

aware of your struggle to hear, but numbingly dull to the fact that your fellowship is broken.

I hear so many people say that. I can't hear God. God doesn't speak to me. He's not coming

through. I don't know why he doesn't speak to me. He speaks to you. He speaks to others,

but he doesn't speak to me. I'm struggling to hear. I don't think he's interested in

speaking to me. I don't think this hearing thing is real. Why not stop being so acutely aware of

your not hearing and start becoming aware that perhaps you need to fix a relationship because

it is in relationship that you begin to find out what the person is thinking. Otherwise,

we might as well go and approach the witch of Endo, which is what Saul eventually did

because he couldn't hear God. The Urim and Tumim were not working. Fellowship was broken.

So where does he go? To a Spiritist. Any questions? I mean, in most circumstances,

one would say that being led by the Spirit is finding the Spirit's guidance in decision-making.

There's nothing wrong with that, guys. But in our context and in terms of what we are teaching

now, we must understand that that is kindergarten, that we have to begin to graduate and have our

lives dominated by the Spirit. Questions? Comments? It's a process. It'll never end.

When Jocelyn turns 50 and I'm 105, I'll still be learning this. Only I'll be much better than

I am right now. Nick will still be organizing my birthdays with Diana. I'll have lifetime

membership in Denny's by then. That senior's discount will no longer apply. It'll be like

free food. It'll be birthday every day at Denny's at least. This is not holy imagination. This is

just imagination. Okay, the next thing that we need to look at being led by the Spirit is that

to be led by the Spirit is to actively choose to stand on the side of the Spirit. To be led

by the Spirit is to actively stand on the side of the Spirit over and against

the flesh and the world or your old nature and the world. To be led by the Spirit is to actively

stand on the side of the Spirit in all matters over and against the ways of the flesh and the

world or the old nature and the world. To actively choose, to actively stand. So what does actively

choose look like? To actively choose the Holy Spirit is to first respond to Him. So the first

step is to respond. The second step is to depend. The third step is to cooperate. To actively choose

the Holy Spirit, to actively stand with the Holy Spirit, to actively be led by the Holy Spirit is

first to respond and it's impossible to respond to the Holy Spirit without having a knowledge of

the Word. So to try and respond to the Spirit of God without having a knowledge of the Word is very

very difficult. It's like trying to drive in the UK without knowing the rules of the road. Here you

can manage. There they got these things called roundabouts and they got the wrong side of the road.

So to choose to stand with the Holy Spirit or to actively stand on the side of the Holy Spirit over

and against the flesh and the world, these are three things that I have to practice on a regular

basis. I must respond. Every day I get an opportunity in every situation to respond either to the way of

the Spirit or to the way of Jacob's old nature or to the way the world says I must respond. The second

thing is once I begin to respond and I see aha so this is what you want I now need to learn how to

depend on him in that area because his ways are very different from the ways that I would choose.

His ways are very different from the ways the world would choose. Let me give you an example.

Let's say you want to have great influence that you want to have wealth. The world would say work

work work. The world would say take an extra job. The world would say hoard hoard hoard. The world

would say invest invest put away in the bank. But what if the Spirit's way is hey you want to do

well with wealth and become a conduit through which wealth can flow? Give away give away give

away give away. That you don't go work work work. Promotion comes from me. Wealth comes from me.

That you need to be generous and now your choice is do I respond to this or do I not? And then your

second choice is now that I'm responding to it can I depend on him so that he can actually do

this because this goes against the grain of my thinking. I was listening to a preacher on that

God channel or whatever channel on Telus that brings God stuff and he was saying I just want

you to know that God will supply our needs but he doesn't supply our wants and desires. And this

is a man who is an expert on wealth and Christian stewarding. And I'm thinking to myself okay so

you took that scripture which says God will supply all your needs but you forgot that God is the

father. The moment you remove God's fatherhood from any scripture what you have is an incomplete

God who is like the gods of other religions. When was the last time your dad came and said to you

when you were small I want you to know for the next 18 years I'll be supplying your needs but

if you ever come to me with your wants and desires. So the moment you take away God from

a scripture that scripture is incomplete. And there are thousands listening to this guy.

And they never approach God with wants and desires and yet you're supposed to call him father.

Could you pan on Don there for a second as he eats? Okay so actively choose to respond,

actually choose to depend and then finally cooperate. And it's the same with philosophies

of the world. There will be different philosophies in the world that you are asked to live by. You'll

be asked to live by different philosophies as a teacher in the school, as a student in a school,

as a pastor in a church, as a worker in business. You will be asked to adopt a certain philosophy

and every time you're asked that you have to actively stand on the side of the spirit over

and against the flesh in the world. And if you don't then it's a whole different outcome and we'll

talk about that shortly. But we get this opportunity every day. This is what it is to be led by the

spirit. Then guys guidance becomes very simple. It's just part of the parcel. You don't have to

go to God for guidance you just know it. With regard to philosophies it's the case, with regard

to friends it's the case, with regard to trends it's the case, with regard to feelings it's the

case, with regard to future prospects it's the case, with regard to finances I got the Oculus

Quest from you right? That gift on my birthday. I got one situation now where I have to choose

to actively stand on the side of the spirit over against the flesh in the world. And what's my

dilemma? My dilemma is that almost every game in Oculus Quest has role playing in it which I have

told people is a dangerous thing anyways or these games are so deeply fear-based that it creates

problems for people. So now my thing is it's such a simple thing it's just a blooming game. Just

watch it Jacob and stop making an issue out of it. But in everything I must take an active stand on

the side of the spirit and the ways of the spirit. So it doesn't matter whether it's trends, whether

it's friends, whether it's philosophies or whether it's finances, whether it's future prospects,

in all of them I need to take a stance. This is why Christianity is a counter culture and when it

is not it loses its saltiness and if it loses its saltiness what is it worth? And so I have to decide

whether I give in to my ways or whether I follow the ways of the spirit and there are two outcomes

always guys remember that two outcomes always and I want you to hear this so clearly two outcomes

always and it's said so in John 6 33 and it says so in Galatians 6 verse 6 to 8. In John 6 33 it

Galatians 6:6–8

says it this way Jacob the flesh profits nothing the spirit gives life. In Galatians 6 verse 6 and

Galatians 6:6

8 the ante is upped a little and this is what God says Jacob do not be deceived God is not mocked

as in hey Jacob I want you to know that don't fall into the deception that you can get away

with anything you do I will not be mocked what a man sows that he will reap if he sows to the flesh

he will reap destruction. I find that so stunning he doesn't use words like if you reap to the flesh

you will get a few weeds or if you reap to the flesh you won't get a promotion no if you reap

to the flesh you will if you sow to the flesh you will reap destruction but if you sow to the

spirit you will reap life. Galatians 6 6 to 8 so there are two outcomes this is what being led by

the spirit is and it's a marvelous thing because the spirit of God wants to raise up a community

here on earth that is so different from the communities of the earth. Any questions? Do you

find this an unreasonable expectation from God? Is it unreasonable to expect this? He is majesty,

he is king of kings, he is Lord of lords, he is the holy one, he is creator, he thinks the neo-wise

comet that Jeevan helped us spot two nights ago. I gotta tell you the story sorry. So Jeevan says

to us come with me I am Jeevan the Comet Spotter that's his new name like Kony the circle drawer

Jeevan the Comet Spotter and he says come with me and he does it come with me and we like fools

follow him and so he takes us to this really dark place and he lines us up and so all three

of us are lined up and he just glances at the sky like an expert comet spotter and he spots it and

he says look behold and so so Jeevan, Derek and me like three students behold and so we are looking

at it and we do see it we see in the sky slightly off yonder the comet with like a gray tail like a

straight gray tail and we just said Jeevan you are the Comet Spotter Jeevan you are this Comet

Spotter and fortunately I've taken my binoculars around and so each of us looked at it and we were

fascinated that the others were trying so hard to spot it and we spotted it in a second and then

I decided to look at it with my binoculars the strange thing is every time I look at it with

my naked eye I can see it clearly but when I use my binoculars I can't see it so we tried it a few

times and every time I tried it naked eye I can see it binoculars cannot see it and then we realized

what we were looking at so it was this tree with a straight branch sticking out in the night so

every time you look at it it looks like the tail of a comet going straight up but it's a tree that

has shed leaves and it's this branch sticking out into the sky so every time I use my binoculars I

can see the tree and no comet but every time I look with my naked eye I see the tree but one

not to be disappointed by these things he took us to another spot and from there we started

looking again using the binoculars and dawn spotted it he said oh man it is so bright and blue so

unfortunately dawn was looking at a car in the distance I mean let me not go further I could tell

you more but we have a message to do here do you want the comet spotted you want to take a bow no

okay okay yeah so to be led by the spirit to be led by the spirit here's another thing that is

critical to people who say they are being led by the spirit in their lives you will see that those

that are led by the spirit move from legalism to liberty move from legalism to liberty as in

they move from law keeping to keeping the law without keeping it they move from law keeping to

keeping the law without keeping it as in they are no longer restrained by rules but they live

by the rules because they love the rules and the rule-giver you cannot live by the rules unless

you love the rule-giver it is impossible to keep a rule if you're only focused on the rule so

one of the things that happens if you are led by the spirit to be led by the spirit means that you

will move from legalism to liberty why because you rule move from keeping the rules to loving

the rule-giver you move from keeping the rules to loving the rule-giver David got it David got it

enlarge my heart Oh God that I may run in your laws what a statement enlarge my heart Oh God that

I may run in your laws how cool is that this is why David knew how much latitude you had within

the rules to change things up this man took the Ark of the Covenant out of the tent of meeting and

put it under a tent on Mount Zion nobody dared do that this man decided that worship has to be

changed it cannot go on as it did in the mosaic era and so he put 2,000 singers or more to sing

to the Lord continuously he knew how to not break the rules and yet extend God's magnificence one

of the things you have to ask yourself is and please don't think you are not legalistic you

all are and I am too there are many areas where we keep rules without loving the rule-giver and

every time you keep a rule without loving the rule-giver you will walk into legalism

to be led by the Spirit is to move from legalism to liberty to move from the dread of God to the

dread of grieving him because you like him too much you'll move from the dread of God which

was the Old Testament way and sometimes even the New Testament way of functioning God will do this

God will do that you move from the dread of God to the dread of grieving him because you can't

bear the thought of hurting him because you're in a relationship now it bothers you when you do

stuff that grieves him and you move from appeasement to sonship appeasement to sonship

where you're no longer interested in doing a song and dance to make him happy but you are a son so

you operate from that place you don't operate to appease him you operate from I have already

pleased him and that has nothing to do with me but he has chosen to be pleased in me so I will

continue to work from there appeasement and guys all this that we do with God is also reflected

in our human relationships in marriages you will find this in father-son relationships you will

find this in boss-employee relationships you will find this this is what Satan introduced right off

in the garden did God actually say do not eat and so what does Eve do she turns it up a notch

and says he said do not touch he never said that and the last one from religious caution from

religious caution to holy abandon from religious caution to holy abandon I love David for this man

if there was a guy who should have abided by the Old Testament laws he should have been the one but

what does he do he goes to the temple and he says hey can I have the bread the bread that you put

before God can I have it my soldiers are hungry can they have it he knew he knew what Jesus said

later that the Sabbath was made for man not man for the Sabbath he knew he had this ability

to move from religious caution to holy abandon but see you cannot move there if we are stuck in this

place where we do not love the rule-giver being led by the Spirit frees us if you're if you're a

former Pentecostal you got tons of this if you're a charismatic you got new ones

if you're from India you definitely have them

anything you do for God that lacks love and joy question it anything you do for God that lacks

love enjoy question it anything you do for God that lacks love and joy question it and once you

question it, begin to work on it, saying, Father, I'm doing this because you're God,

but I'd like to do it with love and joy and right now I have neither of them or I've got

one of them. Can you help me get to a place, Holy Spirit, where I do things because I love

it and because I find it extremely joyful to do it.

Guys, if we begin to live like this, the Bible says that those that are led by the Spirit

of God are the sons of God or in other words what Romans 8 verse 14 is trying to say is,

Romans 8:14

these are the distinguishing marks of a son of God. These are the distinguishing marks of a son

of God. This is how they behave. That's what it says in Romans 8 14 and then in Romans 8 19,

it says not only are these the distinguishing marks of the son of God, but creation is waiting

for the revealing of the sons of God, as in the rest of humanity, both the trees and the fields

and believers and unbelievers are waiting for someone to show them what the son of God really

looks like, an unveiling of the King and the kingdom. If we are not led by the Spirit, we

cannot unveil the King and the kingdom. When you are led by the Spirit, you unveil, you disclose

the King and the kingdom and creation longs for it. Yes, there will be a day when it's all

consummated, but even today creation longs for it. I remember going for a funeral years ago to a

church close to Tunis place and it was a funeral and I prayed and it is a very traditional church

and as I prayed people's eyes began to open and they started looking at me because they did not

expect me to have a conversation with God. They expected me to pray, but I was having a conversation

with my father and as the conversation continued during a funeral, people began to open their eyes.

After that people came to me and said, how do you have a relationship with God? What was I doing

there? I was being led by the Spirit to reveal to a people who are believers perhaps that there is

a way that you can be with the Father. I had the youth pastor there come and say, how does this work?

Long ago when I first became a believer, I used to go to a church where there used to be

this pastor who I've said this before to many of you. He would come and stand in the front and if

you arrived in the church early, you would think he was having a conversation with somebody.

It was in a little chapel called Juffet Chapel. It was a US Navy chapel. If you got there early,

you would find him talking to someone and you would marvel thinking, who's he talking to?

Because it sounded too real, too real. There is in the heart of every man a need for this, a thirst for this.

We must do this man, otherwise he's not unveiled, he's not disclosed, he's not revealed.

Questions?

Okay, the next bit is interesting. To be led by the Spirit is to allow him to raise and establish,

raise and establish you in the pattern of God in Genesis 1. Raise and establish you in the pattern of God in Genesis 1.

Guys, if you try listening to my preaching with your eyes closed, you may fall off to sleep.

If that hat fits you, wear it. Because the preaching is brilliant, but it's hot and the fan is on you.

So it's natural to fall off to sleep. So look at me, pretty captivating preacher.

Look at this shirt man, nobody's commented on this shirt yet. Yeah, I know.

I really upped my game in the last two weeks. Thank you, thank you.

I've got two more shirts that I want to wear, so I'm thinking of doing a midweek service, because I'm not sure how long summer will last.

I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Okay.

To be led by the Spirit is to raise and establish you in the pattern of God in Genesis 1.

And this is a pattern, guys. Think of it like this.

If I ran a company and you knew the ethos, the vision that I have for the company,

I would find it much easier to work with you than if you came to the company as an employee and just did what I told you.

To be led by the Spirit is not just do what he told you, but to get into the mind of God saying,

this is how you think. And the moment God sees that our shucks, you've gotten it, he takes you on different adventures.

And so here's the way God works. This is a pattern. There are certain patterns that God just chooses to employ.

And the pattern is, the first thing is subdue darkness and chaos.

In most situations, this is how he acts in both the Old Testament and the New Testament.

Second, rule or steward with a creative word.

This is still what the Holy Spirit does because all this in Genesis 1 was accomplished by the Holy Spirit.

Third, replicate and multiply after his nature and kind.

Fourth, rest and let his principles go to work and perpetuate.

This is something the Spirit of God longs to do with the church, longs to do with me, long to do with Jesus and was able to do with Jesus.

This is what the Holy Spirit did in Genesis 1, did through David, did through Noah, did through Abraham.

Always remember the Genesis mandate or the first two chapters of Genesis gives you a good idea of how God wants to do things here on earth.

And if God is making a wheel, it's best to not reinvent it.

This is how he went about doing things in Genesis 1. The first thing he did was not start creating.

The first thing he did was, I have to subdue and undo the darkness and the chaos. Genesis chapter 1, verse 2.

Genesis 1:2

He finishes doing that and then in Genesis 1, 3, he says, all right, now let's start creating.

Let me begin to rule and steward creation and let me do it with a creative word that's spoken from my mouth.

Then in Genesis 1, 26, he says, all right, I've finished doing a lot. Now let me replicate and multiply my kind.

And so in Genesis 1, 26, he says, all right, multiply, replenish the earth with my kind.

I made them in my image. Now let them multiply after my kind.

And then in Genesis chapter 2, verse 2, I was wondering why you guys were standing.

Genesis 2:2

And then in Genesis chapter 2, verse 2, I'm wondering why you guys are looking that way.

Genesis 2:2

This is being a servant pastor. And then in Genesis chapter 2, verse 2, rest.

Genesis 2:2

On the seventh day, chapter 2, verse 2, he says, I go into rest and I've finished what I need to.

It says God finished all his works and now he went into rest. Why?

Because he knew that the principles that he had established would cause whatever he had done to perpetuate.

And this is a theme that the Holy Spirit follows.

Let's take a story from Jesus's life or two stories from Jesus's life.

Where is it? Luke chapter 7? Yeah, Luke chapter 7.

Luke 7 · chapter mention Luke 7 · chapter mention

The widow of Nine, a village called Nine, Jesus is walking towards the village and out comes a woman with a son who is dead.

What does Jesus do first? In chapter 7, verse 12, he undoes what is dark and chaotic.

He goes and revives the son. How does he revive the son?

He revives the son by speaking a creative word, arise. What does he do next?

Now that he's given life, he lets the son go back to his mother.

What happens after that? The principle of giving life and bringing the dead back to life now causes the entire village to turn to Christ.

Let's go to Mark chapter 5, where he has just landed on the shores of Gadarin.

Mark 5 · chapter mention

As he lands on the shores of Gadarin, a man comes out who is possessed by a legion of demons.

What does Jesus do first? He undoes the chaos. What does he do after that?

He speaks the word, casting the spirits out, and the man returns to his original condition,

fully whole, absolutely free of possession. What does he do next?

He says, do not come with me right now in the boat. I want you to go and I want you to tell people, multiply, tell people what I've done for you.

The man goes. Chapter 7, verse 3, it says, chapter 7, verse 31, it says the man went throughout the region of Decapolis,

the very place from which Jesus had been chased out because the pigs went into the water.

He goes back in chapter 7, verse 31, to Decapolis and he finds that there are people that are willing to welcome him and have him heal those that are sick.

This is a constant pattern in God. This is what we fail to do in Wally.

This is why I said let's not go pray in Wally first because the first thing you want to do in any situation

before you begin to rule Stuart is to first subdue darkness.

Christians have a tendency to go and begin to rule Stuart with a creative word without subduing the darkness.

Every time you face a situation here on earth, it is first required to subdue the darkness before you can rule and Stuart with a creative word.

Learn this, Tooney. You've got to get this. You don't get this. You do not get to where you want to go.

These are principles that have to be established in our lives. If you are leading, if you plan to do things in terms of nation cities,

if you are given a charge where you have to fulfill things, then one of the things we have to learn is step one before step two.

Any questions?

For reasons that could partly be my fault or could partly not be my fault, we are not very good at this as a church.

We may be good at this as individuals, but we haven't learned this well and this is something we need to learn.

We've learned how to steward things. We've learned how to rule with a creative word.

We've learned how to replicate and stick to a certain way of functioning.

We've learned to rest really well where once we establish things, we hear God and we don't do an iota more and God is able to perpetuate

sheerly through his principles, but the one area where this church is lacking is we do not know how to subdue darkness and chaos on a corporate level.

We don't know that.

Any questions?

Guys, Paul said this, Jesus said this, David knew it, Moses knew it, that Paul said it this way,

the world is under the sway of the evil one.

Moses said it in Deuteronomy 32, Jesus said that the prince of darkness is here, that he does control things.

Ephesians 6 talks about warfare is not against and so life and land will be contested.

Life and land will be contested and if you do not know how to contest it and I do not know how to contest it,

then there is no taking of life and land.

Life and land will be contested. Your children will be contested.

And so to not be able to subdue darkness and chaos just means that the enemy has less to struggle for.

Just because it's contested does not mean that therefore he has reign. It just means that he will contest it.

It's like putting that handkerchief in the circle and you both go run around it and you're circling around it.

That's what it's like. It will be contested. All you have to do is flip the person away through skill and through strength and through experience and through practice.

And the more you contest things, the more the enemy knows, leave this handkerchief alone, it's not worth it.

Let's go and fight for some other handkerchief.

And we have not learned this partly because we have not had opportunity to actually experience it on a level where everybody has an encounter where we learn this.

We only can learn this through practice.

Any questions?

It irks me when people say, oh, we shouldn't pay attention to the devil.

That is such a cop out.

Pay enough attention to the enemy and pay absolute attention to your God.

Okay. Just one more and we are done.

You want more stories, Tooni? I'll tell you more one on one because I've got tons of stories where I've gone with Jeevan, I've gone with Derek,

I've gone with Heidi and Sue, I've gone with Dano and Blessy, I've gone with what's your name?

The guy on the outside, the guy playing the drums, Evan.

I've gone with Dawn, I've gone with a few others to places where you could not do anything till you subdued chaos and darkness.

Until you do that, you cannot progress.

It's just you don't gain sufficient ground.

Last principle, to be led by the spirit is to relinquish control.

Guys, just before we go there, never learn at your own pace.

It's a really bad idea.

It would be like your kid saying, can I just do this whole school thing at my own pace?

I mean, do I have to get through grade seven in one year?

Let me just do it at my own pace.

We don't do that in any other area except when it comes to Christianity.

We'll do this at our own pace.

It's a really bad idea.

You'll get old.

It's a sensitive word nowadays.

So, the pace that God goes at is always, his strides are always a little more than you.

I mean, my dad was short, but unfortunately when I was a kid I was shorter.

And so, he would just walk fast and when he would start walking fast, I'd have to do this.

Why? Because even his short strides were pretty big.

God is like that. His strides are big.

So, you can never come to a point where you're saying, well, me and God, we just are like that.

No, his strides are always big. You may have to do some running always.

But please don't take things at your own pace.

It's a really bad idea because then you have to play catch up.

In the last five months, you'll have to really catch up.

It's a lot of fun, but you could have done it much better.

Okay, last one.

To be led by the Spirit is to relinquish control.

God is always inviting you, inviting you to lose control.

What an odd God.

God is always inviting you to lose control.

He's always saying, hey, Jacob, I want you to lose control.

I don't want you to be in control. Relinquish control.

He's inviting me every morning.

He invites me saying, can I have this day as I want it?

He won't force you, but he's always inviting you to lose control.

Why? Because if I relinquish control, it allows God to help himself to more of me.

If I relinquish control, it allows God to help himself to more of me.

So I may have a plan.

I may even have an appointment set a certain way.

There's 10 minutes more. Don't bring her in right now.

No, no, you can. Come, Jane.

I may have a set agenda. I may have a set series of meetings.

I may have two hours for this and two hours for that.

And every morning I have to come actively to him and say, yes, I do have these and these are good,

but I need to yield control to you so that should you want to change anything,

you can help yourself to more of my life because I am relinquishing control.

This is then when we can sing the song we sang,

Take Me Deeper Than My Feet Could Ever Wander.

That song will come alive only when you relinquish control.

And we'll sing it at the end one more time.

That song will only come alive when you relinquish control.

Take Me Deeper Than My Feet Could Ever Wander will not happen if we do not yield control.

Now here's the other thing about relinquishing control.

Many of us in this church have relinquished control,

but the thing with relinquishing control is this way.

So you relinquish this much control and so your life is shot up.

But now because you relinquished this much, you can stay here for the next four years.

Relinquishing control must be continuous and as you do, you begin to scale up.

What happens with many of us Christians is there are these moments when we relinquish control,

but it is not a daily dying or denying of self.

So it's in spurts. It will be during a conference, during an amazing teaching,

which would be every Sunday sometimes.

So then what happens is in between you do not.

So don't. It is not enough that you relinquish control six months ago.

You've got to go at it again.

Because otherwise what happens is you stay there for the next many weeks.

God is inviting you every day.

Yep.

It is very hard to repeat the whole question, but should we contend with darkness?

Why is it that we aren't contending with it?

Is it because there is less darkness or is it because we are less aware?

I would say it's because we are less aware and when...

No.

I would say this church hasn't pushed...

It's better to say this church than the pastor.

I would say this church hasn't in that area created opportunities for people

to exert their muscle when it comes to dealing with things of chaos and darkness.

A few individuals do and that is good, but we haven't really been given opportunity

in this church to practice it on a regular basis and that must change.

Otherwise we'll have a few people who do it and others who don't.

And sometimes the only way to learn how to bike is to fall off the bike and get a few cuts.

No other way around it.

And in your desire to protect your child from having a cut, he'll have to walk all his life.

So that is something that this church must do if it needs to go where it's going.

Yeah.

To be led by the Spirit is relinquished control.

God is always inviting you to lose control.

It allows God to help himself to more of you.

Second, yielding control is the evidence of a growing relationship of intimacy and trust.

Yielding control is evidence of a growing relationship of trust.

Yielding control is evidence of a growing relationship of intimacy and trust with God.

Yielding control is evidence of a growing relationship of intimacy and trust with God.

Or for that matter with your spouse.

Or with a friend.

It's easier to yield control as I get more intimate with somebody and I trust somebody more.

I'm willing to.

The line in the song says, when oceans rise, my soul will rest in your embrace.

Yielding control is actually a surrender of your self-will.

Surrender of your self-will.

And if there is any idol that competes with Christ in the church, it is self-will.

Yielding control is a surrender of self-will.

So it's not easy to do.

It is saying that this is what I will, but this is what I'm going to do because you're inviting me to yield control.

To be led by the Spirit, there's an absolute necessity to relinquish control.

And I'm going to do that.

I'm going to do that.

I'm going to do that.

It's easy to relinquish control.

I love the way I've written the next sentence.

Yielding control will pair you, yielding control pairs you, like you pair your phone, pairs you with Christ Unlimited.

Yielding control pairs you with Christ Unlimited.

As in suddenly it's like the Bluetooth thing syncs and you are paired with Christ Unlimited.

Yielding control pairs you with Christ Unlimited.

It's tremendous as you begin to yield control.

It pairs you with Christ Unlimited.

Unlimited.

Unlimited.

And its rewards are generational.

Its rewards are generational.

Your children's children will enjoy your yielding of control.

This is the whole idea of the song, Spirit lead me.

Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders.

Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders.

The more you yield control, the more God will show you the areas that are hidden in your life that he now wants to change.

The more you yield control, the more transparent you become.

Remember that guys.

The more you yield control, the more transparent you become.

Because as you yield control, God will say, okay, now let me deal with this.

And that goes away.

And in that area you don't need to hide anything anymore.

I'm not just talking about defective areas.

I'm talking about areas of hurt.

Where you were hurt so badly that you control that area so dominantly because you don't want to be hurt again.

And as you begin to yield control, God begins to just take away the hurt in that area where no stimuli can provoke it anymore.

And that's the beauty with yielding control.

Life becomes more transparent.

And you begin to pair or partner with Christ Unlimited.

Christ Unlimited.

Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders.

You know, it's okay saying it to you guys.

Sometimes I think I'm boastful, but I'm not.

Guys, I don't want to write a book, but I want you to tell people of the stories that happened in my life before I die.

I want you young adults to say, we knew a guy, but I'll be 105, so who knows whether you'll go first or I'll go first.

But the point is you need to tell people that we knew a guy.

And so I must get to a place where my trust is without borders.

And then it'll be your turn to do the same.

And then it'll be your turn to do the same.

In every area, in every area.

I assure you, man, as you yield control, God will put his finger on certain areas in your life and say, okay, Jacob, you've yielded control.

You want me to do things, but we've got to get rid of this.

Otherwise, this will come up again.

So let's say it's in the area of finances.

Great, Jacob, you're yielding control in the area of finances.

But from now on, all the finances that come to you, are you willing not to keep back a cent of it and give all of it away?

No, Lord.

Well, let's work on that now so that your trust in the area of finances is without borders.

I'll take care of you anyways.

I'm walking on water or whatever.

As you yield control, you will sense the delight of the spirit.

As you yield control, you will sense the delight of the spirit.

You will sense the delight of the spirit.

As he leads you into situations beyond you, as he leads you into situations beyond you.

As you yield control, you will sense the delight of the spirit.

I don't know how you interpret the sense of delight of the spirit,

but it'll almost be like him guffawing with delight and dancing on your head.

You'll sense the delight of the spirit as he leads you into situations beyond you.

You will fall into the habit of getting out of the boat and joining him.

You will fall into the habit of getting out of the boat and joining him.

I so look forward to life, guys.

You'll get into the habit of getting out of the boat and joining him

when he comes to you with the impossible.

When he comes to you with the impossible.

You see him and you're no longer talking to him.

It's not possible.

It's not possible.

You're no longer talking to him.

You're no longer talking to him.

You see him and you don't talk to him.

You see him again in a way that's all you have to do to get away from him.

You see him and you no longer think he's a ghost because you know he's the Holy Ghost.

You got familiar with him.

You see him walking on the water and the rest of the boat is afraid but you get excited.

Your heart begins to suddenly start thumping and you lift your foot over the side of the

boat and you begin to walk towards him.

And you're not walking towards him for the experience of walking on water.

You're walking towards him because you know in your heart that he is coming to me with

something else now that is impossible.

And he and I now get to walk and trust without borders.

That you get to pair with Christ unlimited.

That you begin to see heaven on earth.

That you begin to give people a taste of this is who God is.

That you begin to have Christ leap out of the Bible into real flesh and blood.

That the word becomes flesh finally not in Christ only but in you.

This is what it is to be led by the Spirit guys.

Blessed are you that you are as young as you are.

Blessed are you that you are as old as you are.

Blessed are we that we get to try this out.

Yeah?

Let me sing that song as you do.

Do what you desire the song to do for you.

Either in terms of yielding or control or...

You rally your family.

You rally your work.

You rally your money.

You rally your possessions and your wealth.

And laid all down at the feet of Christ and the body.

And he takes precedence in every situation.

So once that happens and you have sought him and his ways first.

Everything else that you have laid down is now pressed down shaken together and given

right back to you many times over.

And the things that choke out this kind of a life is the concerns that we have with these

four things I mentioned.

Family, work, possessions and money.

Come up.

Please.

It's gonna be nice to you since you're going.

Okay.

Can you put the words up for the one we're gonna sing, Ocean?

Oh, you're gonna sing?

No, I'm not.

No.

Okay.

Ew.

Okay, so last year it was probably about this time.

I remember it was a sunny day in the downtown east side.

I was walking from...

Sorry.

So I was working, going to a visit and there was a...

I was just walking close to Powell where it's on the one way and there was...

I heard that song and I was like, that's weird because it's the downtown east side.

You don't hear worship songs ever.

And it was the verse, take me deeper than my feet would ever wander.

I know it usually but...

Yeah, anyways, it was that part of the song.

And I heard this racket coming behind me and I looked and there is this woman riding.

She did not look like she was in her right mind but she was like crazily riding up the

street on this bike and she flew across the intersection at Powell.

There was no walking light on, like to the point where I wanted to jump, like to stop

her.

And then she was on the wrong side of the road but this song was playing that exact

verse.

And I was like, that totally tells me exactly how you want us to...

Yeah, go back just a second.

Like how God wants us to live within his Holy Spirit.

And as Jacob was talking, I was just like...

She had this huge grin on her face.

Of course, of course.

I just wanted to read those words.

She had a huge smile on her face.

She was not scared whatsoever though other people, including myself, were like...

I was like, she's gonna get hit by car.

She totally went on the wrong side of the road when she crossed Powell.

And then she just kind of disappeared around the corner with this song playing in the background.

And since that time, I have thought of that picture every time I hear this song because

I think that is how God wants us to live.

Other people will be afraid for us because we're living really what appears to be crazy.

I know there are people in our lives that think we're completely nuts.

Like I gave...

Sorry.

I gave a notice for my job.

We gave notice for a house to move.

We have no job.

We have no place to go.

We're gonna book a moving truck.

Our families think we're nuts.

People at work think we're crazy.

But we know that we know that God is leading us.

So we have to ride with joy and peace knowing that God is ahead of us.

I know.

I don't look very joyful.

But as Jacob was talking, I realized I have to look above the water, not at the water,

and definitely know what's below because that's where everyone else is looking.

We have to do this differently.

And we need to ride like that woman.

She didn't care what was coming at her.

We're not coming at her.

I was worried for what might come at her, and nothing did.

She safely sailed around that corner with this song playing in the background.

And I just totally felt on that day that God gave me that picture of what this needs to

look like.

Very cool, man.

Thank you.

It just didn't feel like I was supposed to share it whole today.

Yeah, but it was perfect.