Present God _Hidden

Yeah, so when it comes to the presence of God and having an awareness of His presence,

knowing His presence in our midst, presence is always learned first in the unseen.

And this is not normal because we as humans want something tangible, something we can

experience.

What's happening in the church is that the church is beginning to lose its ability to

engage the presence of God as spirit.

As in, John 4.24 says, God is spirit.

John 4.24 says, God is spirit.

And if we as Christians don't learn to engage God who is spirit in the unseen, then what

happen is we will begin to pursue God for tangible rewards.

The church will have to offer people incentives that we can touch and feel before we will

learn how to engage with God.

So you'll have to say, if you follow Jesus, these are the rewards.

If you follow Jesus and you want to pursue Him, these are the tangible things you will

get.

Those are good.

God does do things physically.

But you first have to learn to connect with this God first in the unseen.

And that is something you have to cultivate.

You might be sitting here thinking, but I know how to do this.

I'm saying to you, you and I haven't even plumbed the depths of how far we can go into

God.

So as much as you may have gotten accustomed to hearing Him, make it a strong desire of

yours to engage, negotiate with God's presence first in the unseen.

Because how do we normally look for God's answers?

We try to see if there's a scripture that will pop out.

We try to see if a billboard will say something.

We try to see if a bus has something on the side that will perhaps bring a message.

There's nothing wrong with all this.

God has His own methods.

But first I have to engage Him spirit to spirit.

This should be a desire, spirit to spirit.

One of the things that makes it very difficult for us to learn Him in the unseen is the desire

to have instant answers.

You must learn.

I must learn to ask God for something, know that He has heard it, and then take the pressure

off Him.

And in taking the pressure off Him, I'm actually taking the pressure off me.

Because He can handle all kinds of pressure.

But when I ask Him for something and I know He knows the urgency, and then I walk away

not caring too hoots about the timing of the answer, I am free to hear in ways that only

He can speak.

But this must be engaged in the unseen.

Otherwise what will happen is we won't know Him as God is spirit.

We will know Him as the Old Testament God who has to come up with a rainbow or with

a writing on the wall or fleas or drawing lots.

All those methods ended in Acts chapter 2.

Acts 2 · chapter mention

When the Holy Spirit came, everything like that ended because God said, I want you to

know me spirit to spirit.

Spirit to spirit is an invisible unseen realm where you get to know someone called God.

Desire this, eh?

Because if you want tangibles, then you will have to look for visible signs as an incentive

for pursuing an invisible God.

You will have to look for visible signs as incentive for pursuing a visible God.

Isn't this true?

When you pray and you don't see an answer, what do you say?

What do most people say?

Well, I pray nothing happened.

This nothing happened is what determines so much with God.

Well, what if I knew that because He is my Father and because I prayed according to His

will and because He has heard me that I have the absolute confidence at this present moment

that I have what I asked of Him even though I do not see it.

I'm quoting scripture, Romans chapter 4, 17 to 20.

Romans 4 · chapter mention

You know as soon as Moses who connected Israel to an invisible God disappeared on Mount Sinai,

in Exodus 32.1 it says the Israelites turned to a beautiful but lifeless golden calf.

Exodus 32.1 puts it this way, and Israel went up to Aaron and said, this Moses is taking

too long to come down.

The message version says, Moses is taking forever, so why don't you make us some gods

to lead us?

And so they decided to make a golden calf.

This is Israel who's known Yahweh for ages and they now want something tangible to worship.

Even when it comes to worship in song, man let your heart flow free regardless of whether

the worship leader is up to squat or not.

It's really not the drumming or the, you know a worship leader or a drummer can never make

worship worse.

Worship is something you can do.

They can make it better but they can never make it worse.

They can make it better by creating an ability for you to sing, to dance, to connect with

God with the words they speak.

They cannot make it worse because are you saying that a deaf, dumb and blind person

cannot worship?

A deaf person can worship, a blind person can worship, a person who cannot speak can

worship.

Worship has nothing to do with the actual stuff that is happening here.

Remember this guys, I've said this before I think five months ago.

Once you begin to thirst after tangibles the thing is we do not see with our eyes, we see

with our minds.

We do not see with our eyes, we see with our minds.

In 2 Corinthians chapter 4 verse 3 Paul puts it this way, the God of this world as in Satan

2 Corinthians 4:3

has blinded the minds of people.

Satan knows, the devil knows that humans have a tendency to see with their minds not with

their eyes and therefore the world will always try to govern your minds with ideas and images

so that your pathways can be determined.

It's false to sing that we see with our eyes.

If you saw with your eyes you'd be in a much better place but it's our minds that begin

to spin situations.

This could happen, that could happen, if I did this, this would be what results.

This happened to that person, this did not happen to that person.

What if this happens?

It's not what you're seeing, it's what you're imagining.

We see with our minds, not with our eyes.

This is why in Proverbs 4.28 it says guard the pathways of your mind, guard the pathways

of your heart.

If you want to have either purity or the potency of your life to stay intact, guard the pathways

of your mind and your heart.

The more habituated I am to the sensory and the visible, the more difficult it will be

to connect to an invisible God and his systems.

The more habituated I am to the sensory and the visible, the more difficult it becomes

to connect to an invisible God and his systems.

Let me say that again.

The more habituated I am to that which is sensory and that which is visible, the harder

it becomes for me to connect to an invisible God and his systems.

Any questions?

The more habituated I am to that which is sensory and that which is visible, the harder

it is for me to connect to an invisible God and his systems.

Systems as in the way he thus thinks.

What a beautiful thing it is when all of us can begin to sense, one, that God is present.

You're not trying to imagine him.

You're not trying to create a white beard and flowing robes for him.

You just know he's present.

Just think what a weird and wonderful thing it is that a people who are born again have

the ability to know that God is present and then have the ability to know what he wants

to do.

What if a people like this began to live like this not occasionally but 24-7?

What if in your relationship with your wife, relationship with your children, relationships

at work, relationships at worship, relationships through difficult situations, you're constantly

aware of a God who is invisible, inaudible, but you know he is present and you know what

his presence wants to do.

Do you know how it incapacitates the enemy?

Do you know how it increases your capacity?

It's just ridiculous.

Men and women in the Old Testament knew how to do that even though they didn't have the

advantage that you and I have, which is that the Holy Spirit is completely in us.

Much more so than men in the New Testament who were absolutely aware of this.

What a way to live.

And here's the good news.

It is possible for every man, woman, child under this roof right now.

It is possible.

It is possible for everyone equally.

It is not being held back at all.

Any questions?

Any thoughts you want to add?

Hey, wherever you're going will require a keen awareness of this kind of living.

Sometimes even though your body is tired, my God, your spirit is awake.

And through your physical ears, even though you may not hear much, your spirit just leaps

towards you think that's not possible.

Look at what happened to Elizabeth when Mary walked in.

Here was a woman who was six months pregnant.

She sees her cousin walking in and what happens?

The baby in her womb leaps.

At what?

Not at some fancy holy word, but all she said was greetings.

All we need guys is to become aware of this and want to become aware of this to consciously

practice what we've become aware of.

And it'll increase, it'll increase, it'll increase.

Any questions?

Any disagreements?

Disagreements?

Go ahead, Nick.

Is it a question or a disagreement?

Okay.

Is it possible for like, robotic people to kind of hinder this hearing, this view of

the head?

Yes, yes.

But why even bother about that when we've got a bigger father?

When you go and ask him for an egg, will he give you a stone?

When you go ask him for fish, will he give you a snake?

When you go ask him for...

I got it wrong.

Bread, will he give you a scorpion?

The point is he won't give you any of those things.

Sure, there's an active enemy who is called the deceiver.

Well, man, I would rather focus on the father and then later on focus on the deceiver.

This is amazing thing that happens between a man and a woman when they are close to each

other.

Nobody else can get in between.

It's the same amazing thing that happens with father and child.

When a father and child are close, no third party can come and say, I want to be your

father.

Was Nick deeply affected by that answer?

He walked out immediately.

Okay.

Any other questions?

Any other questions?

Okay.

Guys, so learn to engage his presence in the unseen.

Just think of this.

God's invisible rule by his invisible spirit in your invisible inner man.

God's invisible rule by his invisible spirit in your invisible inner man.

Yeah.

So the things of the spirit, they're saying the spirit of the mind.

Yeah, man.

It's not the invisible spirit.

It's not the invisible spirit.

It's not the invisible spirit.

Yeah.

Yeah.

The sensory and the physical may follow, but first Corinthians 2, 10 puts it this way.

It is the spirit filled that can discern things spiritually.

Spiritual things can only be discerned spiritually.

Because we've gotten so used to having God speak to us physically through some sign or

the other, God in his mercy continues.

And if he had a choice, he would stick to Proverbs 27, 20 or 20, 27, which says, the

spirit of the Lord, the spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord.

The spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord.

I would prefer Jacob, if you began to sense and discern things from your spirit so that

I can use your spirit as a lamp to light your path.

But Jacob, because you're so immature and you love these little signs and bus billboards,

I am stuck.

I just have to continue doing that.

But I cannot explain rocket science to you through a bus billboard.

And some things are rocket science.

So we've got to learn this, guys.

Any questions, any thoughts that you want to add to this?

It'll be solid fun, man.

Just think of it.

An invisible God operating in this world through his invisible spirit, where preferably in

your invisible inner man.

Now, do you understand why Paul in Ephesians and in Colossians, what does he pray for?

For the strengthening of your muscles, Jacob?

No, you've got plenty of them.

For the strengthening of your soul and your feelings?

No, they keep flux.

What do I pray the strengthening of?

I pray the strengthening of the inner man that by the spirit of God, your inner man might

be strengthened.

If you learn to engage his presence in the unseen, this is what you're doing.

God's invisible rule by the invisible spirit in the invisible inner man.

Hey, think of these things.

Think of where this is birthed.

Righteousness.

Where is it birthed?

Every other religion in the world will birth righteousness externally.

Here is a set of rules.

Go dip in this river.

Go to this particular mosque.

Go to this particular temple.

Follow these particular rituals and now you're righteous.

Everything in every other religion is external, including Judaism.

And then where does righteousness start for Christians?

In the inner man.

Peace.

Where does it start?

How is it that you observe some guys who are going through really bad situations, but a

tremendous peace?

Joy.

Where does it start?

How do people sing in prison?

How does Graham Stain's wife forgive her, forgive the ones who burnt her husband and

children alive and then joyfully continue with God and with the people who burnt?

I remember this guy called P.G.

Varghese.

Some of us have met him.

P.G. Varghese, I was listening to a simple sermon by him just day before yesterday and

he said a few months ago, he went to where Graham Stain's was slain and he stood there

and he decided to preach there and set up a church there that had been washed away by

the rain and he goes there and he preaches and he said there were people, priests who

were speaking and listening and when he had finished preaching, one of the priests came

down and he said, we dishonored the man that was sent here and I was there when that man

was burnt to death and we dishonored him.

Would you now ask your God to pray and ask him to forgive me and help me start all over

again?

How does this thing happen?

How does righteousness, peace and joy and power happen?

Where does it happen?

It happens in the inner man.

This is the rule of God.

The rule of God is not some kind of I shall now rule the world.

The rule of God is righteousness, peace, joy and power in the Holy Ghost.

Romans 14 13 or 13 14 and 1 Corinthians 4 20.

Righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.

Righteousness, peace, power and joy.

Where does it happen in the inner man?

My God man, begin to live like this.

Ask God the Ephesians 1 18 and Colossians 2 prayer.

Oh God, strengthen my inner man because that's where you want to work.

That's how you want me to know you.

That's where you want me to discern you.

That's where things first begin.

These things are birthed in the unseen.

Then they begin to increasingly blaze in your life.

When that happens guys, when that happens then, be it one life at a time or one nation

at a time, you begin to affect things.

Deadly scared of people who have begun to discern things spiritually.

Any questions?

Yep.

How do we further develop the spiritual senses?

How do we develop it?

I'll get there in about 9 minutes and 23 seconds.

Yeah.

How do we develop it?

One of the ways guys is always begin to use faith as an accelerant.

Like when you want to cause a fire to really start burning, you pour something in it that

begins to make it really flame up.

Use faith as an accelerant.

Faith is the only thing that can deal with the invisible.

Just remember that guys.

My God, some of the things we are saying right now are precious.

Faith is the only thing that we can exert from this visible world that works, touches

and gives evidence of the invisible.

Faith is the only thing that we can use in this visible world to enter, to shape things

in the invisible and make them happen.

There's no other instrument on earth that can do that.

Faith is the only thing.

A.W. Tozer put it this way.

He said, where faith is present, we touch and handle things unseen.

Where faith is present, we touch and handle things unseen.

Where faith is present, we touch and handle things unseen.

What a contradiction, eh?

Where faith is present, we touch and handle things unseen.

You know when this church started, my God, we spent so much time on faith, you would

think to yourself, is this all they know?

Thank God, eh?

Because it's the only thing that works in the unseen.

So if you want to be, if you want to engage his presence effectively,

to answer what's his name's question.

Oh, by the way, I forgot the other announcement.

Charlene and, what's your name?

Josh.

Charlene and Josh are starting their, what's it called?

House Church.

Charlene and Josh are starting their house church in Burnaby, I got that city right,

on the 18th.

So if you remember, pray for them.

How do you engage his presence effectively?

Given all that we know, we already know how to go about it, we are aware of it, we always

talk about it, so how do we engage his presence effectively?

This is where the whole idea of hidden comes in.

To engage his presence effectively, you must be hidden.

The most important word here is you.

You must be hidden.

And so what does hidden look like?

First, self-determination must end.

Self-determination must end.

You want to engage his presence effectively, self-determination must end.

John 21, 18, when you were young, someone would take you by the hand and walk with you

as you went.

But now that you've grown older, I'm going to tie your hands and take you where you don't

want to go.

What does it mean when we say self-determination must end?

I must want what my will does not want.

I must want what my will does not want, simply because I love the one who's taking me more

than my will itself.

I must want what my will does not want, simply because I love the one who's leading me more

than my will itself.

I'll say it again.

I must want what my will does not want, simply because I love the one who is leading me.

That's the end of self-determination.

You want to engage his presence at a level that you've never engaged in?

If we get time, I want to sing that song New Wine, where you're saying, oh God, no longer

do I want what I want.

I want what I don't want.

And I want what I don't want, because I like you more than my will itself.

Therefore I'm putting self-determination to an end.

I do not determine my paths.

I do not determine my success.

I do not determine the roads I will travel.

I cease to determine these things.

And as you begin to do it, you will find presence increasing.

And you're engaging presence at a level you've never engaged in.

I guarantee this.

I guarantee this.

We started with the hardest thing first.

It gets a little easier after this.

Second, if you want presence to increase, be OK with being misunderstood.

If you want presence to increase, be all right with being misunderstood or accused without

cause.

If there are accusations, they must be without cause.

Be OK with being misunderstood.

We place such high value on being understood that it gets in the way of doing what God

wants to do.

It gets in the way of the presence of God.

What do we mean when we say we want to be understood?

I want you to know.

Let him misunderstand me.

If I'm willing to have a misunderstanding to do what God wants me to do, then you will

know the presence of God.

It's always been that way.

I don't know of a person in the Bible who did well, whose family and friends did not

misunderstand him.

Not one.

Not one.

Those things are so sacrosanct in this culture of ours.

My God, we will not let it go.

And not one person.

You take those heroes in the Bible.

Show me one person whose family or friends did not misunderstand him, starting from Jesus.

Go all the way to Abraham.

If you're trying to come up with a person, there might be one.

No, OK.

If you're trying to hurt them, you need to go to the Father.

If your misunderstanding hurts them, then you try not to be God and try not to be comforter.

God can comfort them.

I don't understand the question.

The question is...

She has a question to your question.

So he's saying, if my taking a stance causes misunderstanding that causes you hurt, am

I supposed to do anything with it?

There might be exceptions, but sometimes when my stance causes you hurt and it is the

correct stance, then I need to let God be God in your life than trying to fix it.

You know why I try to fix it?

Half the time I'm trying to fix it because I want you to understand why I am being misunderstood.

You might think, Jacob, this is going to increase presence.

Guaranteed.

Each of these men or women who were misunderstood by family and friends were men and women who

immediately after that had the presence of God come upon them in such power because they

had chosen their priority and their allegiance.

Presence is expensive.

Presence is costly.

Presence is costly.

Presence is costly.

Presence, the presence of God dwells in you.

That is taken care of.

That, the cost was paid by someone else.

Now if you want to be aware and walk in that presence, the cost has to be paid by you.

The cost of dwelling has been paid by Christ.

The cost of walking in the dwelling has to be paid by you.

Presence is costly.

Third, the less I strive to be dominant, the more, the less I strive to be dominant, the

more.

The less I strive to be dominant, the more his life emerges, the more his presence emerges,

the more his presence emerges.

The less I strive to be dominant, Jacob, what do you mean by less I strive to be dominant?

The less I want my life to matter in a situation that I have worked in, the less I want my life

to matter in a relationship where I have been a benefactor, the less I want to be dominant

in any situation where I am owed gratitude, the less I want to be dominant in a situation for which

I have sweat, blood and tears, the less I want to be dominant in a situation where I have been given

the right to be dominant, the less I want to be dominant in situations, the more his life emerges.

The less I am dominant at Acts 29, the more the presence of God will emerge through my life.

The less controlling I am here in this church, the more the presence of God will control.

Dominance always happens in terms of relationships. You can't be dominant in a vacuum.

Dominance always happens in relationship. The less dominant I am in a relationship where I might have

the right to be dominant, the less dominant I am, the more the presence of God begins to flow.

The more I am dominant in a relationship where I might have the right to be dominant, the less

dominant I am, the more the presence of God begins to flow.

Jonathan Shilpa should have warned you this will go on for a while. If she didn't, it's her fault.

Any questions on that? I won't be able to finish,

but I'll finish three more and then we'll stop. Any questions on that?

Hey, I'm telling you this really works. So in a relationship as a husband, if you learn how

not to be dominant, you will find the presence of God working through your life affecting your

child and your wife or your children and your wife. In your business, when you realize that you have

the right to be dominant and you're choosing not to be dominant, you will find the presence of God

hit your business or your life or your workplace like you never know before.

Christ had every right yet he chose not to be dominant. He chose not just to be dominant,

he chose the other route of being dominated and yet presence was powerful.

It's an upside down kingdom. It's never top down.

The next one is beautiful. The less I am my own, the more I am the bread of his presence.

Beautiful.

Beautiful.

The less I am my own, the more I am the bread of his presence.

The less I am my own, the more I am the bread of his presence.

Broken before and for many.

It's a beautiful line. The less I am my own, the more I am the bread of his presence. You know,

there used to be this thing called bread of presence. It used to be 12 loaves of bread

arranged in a row of three, four each rows of three. It was placed in the holy of holies.

It was called the bread of his presence. It would be renewed every week. It would be broken and the

priest could eat it. The less I am my own, as in the more you are willing to cancel your independent

private life and put yourself out into the world as Christ your master did. The less I am my own,

the more I become the bread of his presence. Broken before people and for people. It is not

sufficient that I break pieces of bread at home and then go distribute. No, no, no. It should be

broken before people and for people because that is what my master Christ did and that is what is

expected of me. Some of you do that so well and I'm not counting myself among those. Some of you do

that so well and the presence of God will just fill every piece of you that is broken becomes

life to another. There are all these principles that are drawn from the life of Christ guys.

The more I am my own,

the more I will know my presence.

The more I am my own, the more I will know my presence.

I'll do one more.

Any questions guys?

Broken before others, broken for others so that they may eat and be strengthened.

I look at a guy like Jeevan. I always think of Jeevan when I think of this line.

I think of others too but let me just take one guy. I think Jeevan does this.

His day has 29 hours. Mine only has 22.

Well done Jeevan.

I can think of a few others but then you might get left out so let's just stop with one safe.

Any questions? Okay one more.

It's one of my favorite things to do.

If you want to increase in presence, ah that's an ugly word.

I said this once before.

Humility is unafraid. You know why? Humility is unafraid. You know why? Because it does not

seek to protect dignity, reputation, rights, standing, worth.

Humility is unafraid because it refuses or does not seek to protect reputation.

It does not seek to protect pride, dignity, words, rights, deservedness. It doesn't seek

to protect it. It is unafraid. You cannot do something to a person who begins to walk like this.

You can't rob him. You can't exploit him. You cannot offend him.

Someone was telling me it was Michael W. Smith's 40th anniversary coming up next week or something

and there's this huge concert being done for him. I remember one interview that stayed with me

where Michael W. Smith said was asked what do you want to become in the near future and he said I

want to become a man who is not offended. I heard that and I thought to myself gosh man what a thing

to desire. I want to become a man who's not offended. How do you not be offended?

This is one way you choose you. You become someone who's not offended. Humility is unafraid.

Humility is unafraid because it seeks not to protect. Seeks not to protect what? Doesn't

seek to protect dignity, words, deservedness, rights, pride. Doesn't protect any of these.

Now what can you take from me? How can you offend me? How can you exploit me?

And when this happens Philippians 2 9 kicks in and so he though he was equal with God chose not

to hold on to his advantages as God or to his position but instead laid them down and took on

the form of a servant and that too a bond servant and because he has therefore God has now exalted

him to the highest place and given him the name that is above every name that at his name every

knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Christ alone is Lord. Put your name in there and

try it out. You will find both the known world the seen world and the unseen world beginning to be

afraid of the presence of God in you because the one thing your God always has been. He has been a

servant, he has been meek, he has been lowly from the beginning. It is one characteristic that is

hardest for humans to share and it is one characteristic that humans if they get will get God.

These sorry Philippians 2 9.

I'll stop here guys but the thing is these are such simple methods to increase presence.

I wish it were more complicated, I wish it were more profound but I guarantee you go over this.

You will find it working, you will find it working like Lydie was saying guys it is not enough to

hear a teaching, it is important to practice a teaching, it is not enough to preach a teaching,

it must be practiced before it can be preached even.

You must be on this road before you can

begin to talk about it. Show people man because at the end of the day the invisible rule of God

through an invisible Holy Spirit in your invisible inner man must be made visible. Righteousness,

peace, joy and power if they remain invisible do you know good and does the world know good it must

be made visible. Make visible your righteousness, make visible your peace and joy,

make visible the power of God that dwells in you in his fullness.

We'll talk about the rest next week. Hey I want to show you a picture. Ryan I love this picture.

Not this one, this one.

Not this one. I love this picture because every time I look at this I think of exactly what we've

spoken about. Not because I have a fascination with vegetables, not do I know the lady but it's just

this idea of hiddenness where you just disappear into the background.

See you in the background.

See the guy? He does this so often. He just he has this ability to his name is Lou Bolin

B-O-L-I-N and he he does this for a living. He just he just he just disappears into the background.

This lady got a shock when he suddenly said hello because she couldn't see him.

I carry a few pictures like this to talk about this idea of being hidden where on one hand

his presence becomes so powerful that even though you might be the most brilliant guy in the room

your light still doesn't compare to what is happening.

L-I-U-B-O-L-I-N. Do L-I-U say a last name Bolin B-O-L-I-N. Don't google him right now let me finish.

Yeah so guys never be never don't play down your brilliance.

You are brilliant because God either gave you some unique talents and abilities or gifted you

with certain amazing spiritual gifts or natural gifts. Do not play down your brilliance. It's a

shame when you play down your brilliance. But when we begin to follow these principles that

I've just laid down and his presence begins to increase even your brilliance is like a candle

against a blazing fire. It will be noticed but it is not important. I love it when I have done an

extremely good job and I know it myself and yet somehow I'm not receiving the attention that I

would normally receive. Why? Because something else transpired there where people are just surprised

by God. Get there. This this humility stuff where you say oh praise the Lord.

That is ugly huh. God likes it when you do well. Is your business prospering? Well done.

Are you being rewarded at work? Well done. When you sang did you become America's idol?

Even though it's called American Idol and you're the idol well done.

And you're the idol well done.

Was this preaching really good? Well done Jacob. Was the worship led well? Well done.

And then after all that is over you have this ability

where people forget you and just remember what transpired.

That is hiddenness.

Learn presence first in the unseen. God is hidden. He loves speaking spirit to spirit, deep to deep.

Try to meet him there in his favorite environment.

In his favorite environment. You know there's a word called anthropomorphism.

It's a word that is used a lot in the world. It's a word that is used a lot in the world.

In his favorite environment. In his favorite environment. You know there's a word called anthropomorphic.

All it means is God who is spirit had to say I will show you my face. I will lift you up with

my right hand. I will show you my back. I will put my finger upon you. I will write with my finger.

It's not like God suddenly developed fingers and a face and a back.

It's this idea of God trying to convey to us humans.

Let me put this off before I say the next thing.

Now they'll wonder what the next thing is. I would suggest to you.