Week 3 ABLE 2

Hey everyone, this is Gilbert and I'm back for week three of Able 2 and I'm here with

Pastor Matt Haddabow.

What a great series and this has been very, it's nourishing me.

It's the word I want to use.

It's building me up on the inside.

I love this.

So who here votes for Able 3, 4, 5, 6?

This isn't something that we've been working through this together for the last two months

and even though we're going to shift gears next month to look at a new truth, not a new

truth but you know.

Just in the same way we've been reaching back to other series we've done, we'll continue

to go back and look at this, that we are able and this week we are talking about Able to

do.

That's right.

Just as you said, even though we move on and we do different series, there's no reason

why we can't come back and draw from this well and pick things up and keep allowing

the word of God to work in us.

So the more we go through series, the more I realize that there are things still going

on in me about other series.

So the things we talked about and route to 2.0 for example, I still say that.

I still say that the word of God is working in me.

The word is working in me mightily right now and that's just the reason for that is because

as we see light, we see light.

The more we see, the more we see.

And what I mean by that is as we grow spiritually, we see more and then we think, oh wait, I've

heard this before.

Oh wait, we studied this verse.

We discussed this verse back in Grow Group three months ago but now I see something else

about it.

So yeah.

So I mean in the last month, we were able to build upon the good company message when we

talked about the fellowship of the Holy Spirit for example.

And there's so many connections like this month, we're building on the series of crazy

faith because we talked about unlocking our imaginations so that we could see how big

God's plan is and how much he wants to do.

And that's what we're talking about, we're able to see, able to say and able to do.

Able to do.

We want everyone in the Go Church family to know that through God's supernatural ability,

we are able to see, to say and do things that the world around us, they cannot.

We're able to break down limits and emerge into the place that God has called us both

individually and as a church.

And you know, the key verse that we've been looking at, 2 Corinthians chapter nine, verse

eight, God is able.

No, he's more than able to make all grace abound toward me so that I always have all

sufficiency in all things and I abound to every good work.

Or one translation says, I have an abundance for every good cause.

That's right.

I really like the CEV where it says, I'll always have more than enough to do all kinds

of good things.

All kinds of good things.

Whether it's seeing the plan of God, saying the plan of God or doing the plan of God.

Man, that's good.

Yeah, I can do all kinds of things with the ability that God gives me.

Seeing is an important component, right?

We're making the whole message practical.

We're not just able, in theory, we're able to do something.

And that's what we're going to talk about today.

That's right.

So the last two weeks we talked about able to see and able to say.

So when we talked about able to see, we talked about being able to really know the plan of

God.

It really ties in with what we spoke about last month when it comes to the fellowship

with the Holy Spirit and the wisdom and operation in order for us to move further and further

and further into the things of God.

So when we take a decision to see eternal things and put our emphasis and give value

to eternal things, God gives us ability to see the way he sees.

And that helps us move further in his things.

When we talk about able to say, we spoke about how important words are.

They were designed to be that way.

And the fact is, the words that we speak impact the world around us.

And so God gives us ability to say these things.

He gives us ability to change the world and to impact the world with the words that we

say.

And this week, so this is the final week of able to, we're going to talk about doing and

the fact that God makes us able to do things.

So I really want to read these verses in James chapter one, verses 22 and 25 in the passion

translation.

It's impossible to talk about doing without reading James chapter one.

But the trick is finding a nice translation as well.

They're all amazing, but I really like this in the passion translation for verse 25.

So let me get into that.

Verse 22 said, don't just listen to the word of truth and not respond to it.

For that is the essence.

Look at that.

Don't just listen to the word of truth and not respond to it.

I heard a minister say this once, the key to having the supernatural manifest in your

life is to respond to the message.

Yeah.

The people that respond to the message are the ones that receive.

Sure.

I'm sorry I interrupted you, but boy, I like that.

No, praise God.

This is what we've been talking about for a while.

If you remember what we were talking about way back in the message of joy and we were

talking about faith.

And we said faith is a spiritual action that leads to a material result.

So faith means that we're taking an action.

We're responding to the word that we heard or we're applying the word that we heard.

That application can be natural and it can be manifested naturally.

It can also be manifested spiritually, taking decisions, taking decisions, acting like it's

true.

Here's the difference.

The difference between listening and not responding is when I listen and I'll say, I'm going to

wait and see if this happens.

And if I see it happen, then I'll believe it.

Yep.

That's not Bible faith at all.

If you hear the word and receive it as truth and start acting like it, that's responding

to the truth.

That's right.

That's waiting to see is not faith at all.

So let me, let me get back into this.

Yes.

I'll be quiet.

No, keep going.

I like, I like you bring this to life.

It's helpful for all of us.

So James chapter one verse 22, don't just listen to the word of truth and not respond

to it for that is the essence of self deception.

So always let his word become like poetry written and fulfilled by your life.

Glory to God.

Verse 25, I just want to move on to that part because it flows in anyway.

Those who said their gaze deeply into the perfecting law of liberty are fascinated by

and respond to the truth they hear and are strengthened by it.

They experienced God's blessing and all that they do.

You know that that phrase, that is the essence of self deception.

What hearing the message of truth and not responding to it.

Yeah.

And you know, the, this is in Corinthians.

The work of Satan is blinding the site.

What do we talk about?

We're able to see.

But he says he's blinded the minds of the world.

Yeah.

How does he do that?

He gets people into a place of unbelief, of doubt.

That's in Genesis chapter three.

Did God really say that's, you know, Satan comes and tempts Eve.

How?

Asking questions about the integrity of God's word.

He's not changed.

Same trick, same lie.

So the, basically what we're saying is that his work is successful, not when you don't

believe the word, but when you don't do the word.

Right.

Yeah.

When you act like it's, when you act in a way, when you don't respond basically, when

you act in a way where you question or doubt the truth and integrity of his word.

Yeah.

I mean, the same book of James says that, you know, you believe in God, so do the demons.

Right.

The difference is that we actually walk and listen to it and live by it and move forward

in his things and move forward in his plans.

You know, it's, it's one thing to, well, okay.

I believe that that could be, or I believe that that's the case, or I believe in some

kind of philosophy.

It's different to, I'm going to see it in my life.

I'm going to live by it.

This is what God wants me to do, and this is where God wants me to go.

And I am able to do those things, whether or not the world says I'm able, he's going

to make me able to do what his word says that he needs me to do.

So that's, that's so powerful.

And in verse 25, you see that the doing portion is directly connected to experiencing blessing

in your life.

Right.

They experience who's they, they, the people that respond to the message of truth by doing.

They experience God's blessing in all they do.

What are we talking about?

Do.

We're able to do.

Yeah.

Glory to God.

So Pastor Matt, you, you put down a, an illustration in, in the book of first Kings chapter 17

1 Kings 17 · chapter mention

versus 10 through the 13.

Yeah.

Last week we talked about Elisha, but this story is about Elijah.

So Elijah came before Elisha.

And in first Kings 17, we have an account of Elijah who was sent by the Lord to Sarah

fund, Sarah fund, just on the other side of a side.

So right here in Lebanon.

And you know, when I was growing up and I would read this story in my Bible or I'd hear

about it in church, it, it never really spoke to me the way it did when I realized that

I've been there.

God sent Elijah to a beach town.

I like that.

And what was happening in first Kings 17 is actually there's a famine through the whole

region.

Like a famine in an agrarian society.

That's a fun word.

In other words, an economy that's based on agriculture.

A famine means an economic depression.

So think of it like a time where the economy is bad.

And so people are suffering everywhere.

And the Bible says that God sent Elijah to this place, Zeropath.

First Kings 17 versus 10 through 13 says, so Elijah went to Zeropath as he arrived at

the gates of the village.

He saw a widow gathering sticks and he asked her, would you please bring me a little water

in a cup?

Now, what's interesting to me is if you read before this, you see.

That the Bible says that God told Elijah to go to Zeropath.

He says, go to Zeropath that belongs to Sidon.

There I have commanded.

What's that?

That's saying, right?

Yeah.

I command it.

That's it.

There I have commanded a widow to care for you.

Okay.

So Elijah comes in obedience to Seraphon.

He sees this widow, but we don't see that she's standing there like waiting.

Hey, is this Elijah?

Are you Elijah?

The Lord told me no.

She's just there getting some sticks.

And he asked her, would you please bring me a little cup of water as she was going off

to get it?

Or bring me a bite of bread to verse 12.

But she said, I swear by the Lord, your God, that I don't have a single piece of bread in

the house.

Did you see that?

The Lord, your God.

Why?

Cause she's Phoenician.

She doesn't belong to the house of Israel.

She's not part of the people of God.

She says, I swear by the Lord, your God, that I don't have a single piece of bread in the

house.

And I only have a handful of flour left in the jar and a little cooking oil in the bottom

of the jug.

I was just gathering a few sticks this last meal.

And then my son and I will die.

That's verse 12.

Verse 17, first Kings.

Gilbert, notice that.

Why was she gathering sticks?

She's not out there looking for Elijah, but the Lord told Elijah, I've commanded a little

woman to take care of you.

That stood out to me so much when I read it just now.

The way God sees it is she has more than enough and she's going to get enough.

She has enough to provide for you.

And obviously if she can provide for you, she can provide for herself.

Exactly.

The question about that.

The Lord didn't see lack.

And the command to care for Elijah came through Elijah from the Lord.

But what was inside that saying was the ability to do it.

Yes.

That's right.

Now, I believe that that's what the Lord actually did there.

He released power.

He released power.

He had the ability for her to provide for him.

So basically, effectively, she wasn't getting bread ready for Elijah.

She was responding to God's requirement.

That's exactly every good work part of second Corinthians nine, eight.

That's it.

This is it.

She was, she's in James chapter one, verse 22.

She listened to the word of truth and then she responded to it.

So it's not, it's not a, it's not a limiting point.

It's an invitation to receive ability.

Yes.

Yeah.

And, and this is what happens.

She says, Hey, this is the situation that I'm in.

She's like very honest.

This is the situation I'm in.

And verse 13, Elijah said to her, don't be afraid.

Go ahead and do.

What are we talking about doing?

Yeah.

Go ahead and do just what you have said, but make a little bread for me first.

There's a principle here.

Yep.

Putting God's things first.

That's right.

Then use what's left to prepare a meal for yourself and your son.

Verse 14, for this is what the Lord God of Israel says, there will always be flour and

olive oil left in your containers, which is miraculous, right?

And that's exactly what happened.

You can keep reading the flower and the oil did not run out.

That's a miracle.

Yeah.

Well, how did that miracle happen?

She responded to the word of God by doing and in responding to that, you just said it.

She released power.

What kind of power?

Miraculous power.

That's right.

Multiplication power.

Yeah.

So what you just said now, the principle, that's something that God's word already was released.

And this is released in Proverbs 3, verse 9 and 10.

Proverbs 3:9

So it says, honor the Lord with your possessions and with the first fruits of all your increase,

so your barns will be filled with plenty and your vats will overflow with new wine.

This is a promise.

This is the ability for doing.

This is the ability to release power into your life.

So God is able to make you able.

And this is the difference between worldly thinking and kingdom thinking.

Worldly thinking is, well, if I give something, I now go into subtraction.

Or if I do something, I have now spent resource or energy.

God thinking or kingdom thinking is when you bring me something, I will multiply it back

to you.

Yeah.

That is kingdom thinking.

And God designed it that way.

So in Genesis 8, verse 22, what does he say?

Genesis 8:22

He says the, let me pull this up and read it.

While the earth remains, seed time and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer and day and

night shall not cease.

So there is a principle of seed time and harvest.

And he has said that in motion.

So when you bring seed and you do something with the seed, there is multiplication.

But you have to do something with it.

The seed is never going to grow by itself.

You have to plant it.

You have to care for it.

We talked about this in Ruth at 2.0.

So let's see, we're going back to the same subject.

But there is a point where God designed multiplication.

He designed exponential growth.

This is the way that he operates.

But we need to do something.

We need to bring something.

So the doing is not then natural.

If you want a supernatural result, you can't do just worldly wisdom.

We were just in James and James talks about there is a wisdom from beneath.

There's a wisdom from above.

And the 2nd Corinthians 9, 8, which is our theme scripture for all this.

And I told you a couple of weeks ago, it's good to read the whole of chapter 8 and 9

to see that.

But the principle that Paul is talking about to the church is the one here in Proverbs,

Proverbs 11 · chapter mention

chapter 11.

Proverbs 11, 24 through 26, there is one who scatters.

Scatters meaning gives.

You could picture someone with seeds, throwing seeds.

Right?

I mean, he's doing.

He's doing something.

He's scattering.

What is that?

There's an outflow.

And sorry to cut you, Astraman, but like before that, the Bible says, and even in 2 Corinthians

in that passage, it says, God gives seed to the sower.

So God gave us the ability to do that.

Yes.

The ability begins with him.

And then we have the opportunity to do what James says, respond to the truth.

So we scatter and yet increases.

This is Proverbs chapter 11, verse 24.

Proverbs 11:24

And then so so Proverbs says there's one that is very generous and is increasing.

And then there's another one that withholds, withholds, and it tends to poverty.

So what you just said, the world teaches us to do what?

To withhold so we can increase.

That's not that's the world thinks addition or subtraction.

Right.

And that doesn't work.

Even in the world, it doesn't work.

Yeah.

The Bible says here, verse 25, the liberal or generous person shall be made fat.

Not not the bad kind of belly fat, the good kind of fat, which is extra, extra.

And he that waters shall be watered also himself.

Verse 28, he that withholds corn, the people will curse him, but blessing shall be upon

him that sells it.

That gives it out.

That makes it available.

So there is a, there's a the wisdom principle here, the godly wisdom principle here is that

in in responding to the message of truth that's doing, we are able to unlock a power of multiplication.

Yes.

There is that as a truth and we can see it all throughout scripture.

Actually, this is, this is the truth in scripture.

Like Jesus says that if you don't understand the parable of the soul or how will you understand

any parable?

That's exactly what I'm talking about.

So he's talking about doing something with the seed.

Yeah.

He's talking about someone doing something and that seed multiplies in the, the, the outcome

and the result is the 30, 60 hundred fold.

That's why we do it.

So it's so, it's so important.

I mean, you're talking about Proverbs 11, 24, 25, he who scatters, you know, that is

and then, and then the person who is generous, what is the word?

Get fat.

It gets fat.

It gets fat.

That sounds like, and God is able to make all grace abound.

Remember the word abound is overflow.

Yes.

Over bound.

Over.

More than what your cup can hold.

That sounds like getting fat, you know, for, for, for lack of better, better use of the

word.

So, so, and I want to make this point, see the, what the world calls waste.

The kingdom wisdom says is overflow and that is, it's on purpose and the purpose of that

overflow is to bless and abound to others.

Yes.

The overflow is on purpose.

Yes.

And here, remember, we did this, we looked at this in seeing in Mark 14.

People that were looking at it wrong, looking at the gift of Mary wrong, they saw it as

waste, yes, but it wasn't waste.

It was overflow.

Yes.

So, another example of that is in John six, where there is the story of Jesus feeding

the multitudes, you know, like the 5000.

And how does that start?

How does that story start?

It starts when they say, okay, what are we going to do?

How are we going to feed?

That's so much money.

Subtraction.

Subtraction.

So, how can we have enough to feed all of these people?

Subtraction.

Subtraction.

This is the mentality.

That's the worldly thinking.

Yeah.

And then what happens is there's a little boy who volunteers to say, well, I'm willing

to share.

I'm willing to give.

Lord, I want to do something.

He brings his loaves and his fish to Jesus.

He's a little boy.

It's probably a packed lunch.

It's not, you know, let me say the fish.

It's probably sardines or something.

Right.

I don't think he's eating like a huge, like it's not like Roy and I going for lunch, you

know what I mean?

It's not like we're going to eat like half a half a net we're sitting together.

Not lost.

Yeah.

This is, this is like a little boy's lunch and he brings it.

And what, what are the disciples saying?

They're looking down at it.

Oh, what is this among so many?

Subtraction.

Subtraction.

And what does Jesus say?

Bring it here.

Yeah.

Bring it here.

And what does he do with it?

He multiplies it.

Yeah.

And with that, that doing of the little boy, there's multiplication and not only back to

the little boy because the little boy ate a lot more than he brought, but it was for

so many others to benefit from.

So in first King 17 and in John chapter six, there are people that see lack, but God sees

ability.

In fact, God speaks ability.

Yeah.

And the, and the, the way the ability got made manifest was through some doing.

That's right.

So the, the application for me and you is if we look, we look and we say, Hey, there's

some lack here in any area, finance, marriage, relationship, boldness to step into something

that the Lord's calling wherever that lack is.

No.

If I look, if I see it through God's eyes, through the wisdom of the scriptures, through

the message of truth, I'm going to see ability, then I need to say ability.

Yeah.

And in saying that ability, it's going to give me something to do, to act like the message

is true, to respond to the message of truth and be blessed or experience God's blessing

in my doing.

So Pastor Matt, let's go back to that first Kings illustration, that, that story.

Are you telling me that there was no one richer in the whole town that God could have commanded

to take care of Elijah?

So I honestly, like, I believe with all my heart that God did this through her because

he wanted to bless her.

He wanted to bless her and he loves showing off his ability, right?

Glory to her.

Being abundantly above all we could ask or think or imagine, but also in that widow,

we see someone willing to do.

And there were other people in Seraphon that maybe had more than just a little bit, but

they did not scatter, but they were not willing to give.

They were not willing to do.

They were not willing to do.

And because of that, what they got into a place where they were running out and she

could not run out.

Yeah.

Because the famine affected everybody.

Yeah.

Praise God.

You know, we just have a few minutes left, but I do want to circle this back to this

story.

So we're talking about 2 Corinthians 9, 8.

Like you mentioned, there's context to this.

And basically Paul is talking to the Corinthian church about giving, about doing the ability

to do financially and what it means.

And he gives the Macedonian church as an example.

Yeah.

So this was another famine.

The Corinthian church letter is referring to.

Because there is a terrible drought and crop failure.

And so Paul has decided to raise support to bring back to an area that's been affected.

You know, we've done that.

We've done that here with the blast.

We did that in Turkey with the earthquake.

And I say we.

I mean, we've done that in Turkey with the blast and we've done that in Germany.

We've done that in the country.

We've done that in the country.

We've done that in the country.

We've done that in the country.

And so Paul is saying, hey, church in Corinth, you said that you wanted to participate in

this.

So here's the opportunity to do it.

And then he talks about the Macedonian Church and he uses the Macedonian Church or the church

at Philippi or the one that he wrote the Philippian epistle to.

He uses them as an example and he says that church gave it.

He says it this way.

He says they gave more than they could afford.

Yeah.

Beyond their means.

Beyond their means.

And which is, you know, he's making a big deal out of their gift.

And that's something that I think that I just want to like pause and say.

Don't fall into the trap of minimizing your gift.

Like you on a big Sunday, you walk past the offering receptacle and stick something in

and you think, oh, it's little.

It's not very much.

That's first, that's a silly thing to say.

Second, it's not true or it shouldn't be.

And it doesn't line up with scripture.

So Jesus says the mustard seed contains a huge big tree and the power to reproduce it

over and over and over.

So that seed is not small.

Yeah.

So I never, I never want to, I don't want us to fall into a trap where we minimize the

giving, you know, and especially your giving, you, what you're bringing, you think, well,

I'd like to do something more.

I'd like, I wish it was more.

Yeah.

Great.

But celebrate what you're doing.

Yes.

And worship with it.

But anyway, so that's what Paul did with the Macedonian church.

These guys in Philippi, they did this huge thing to help the church or the, you know,

the people that have been affected by this drought.

And that's the context of it.

And he also says that at other times, so when he, when he, when he writes the letter to

the Philippians, he says that they minister to his needs while he was out there planting

churches that changed regions.

Yeah.

You know, in fact, he said to the church in Philippi, he said, just so you know, you are

the only church that has ministered to me once and again.

And then he goes on to say in verse 17, not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit

that abounds to your account.

You said abound, you mean adds to your account, right?

Abounds.

Overflow.

That's multiplication.

Yeah.

Yeah.

There's not this addition and subtraction in the kingdom of God.

It's a different, it's a different way of thinking.

To good investment.

That's exactly right.

I don't even want to joke that way actually, because it's, it's that real.

I mean, the, the, the principles that he's put in his word and in his, you know, he provides

seed to the sower, which basically means he gives you the ability to do.

Yes.

And when you do, you bless yourself while you're blessing others.

It's that big.

Yes.

So, you know, back to the illustration we used in week one of last month, we talked

about a pipe and how, you know, this is what it looks like to, to abound.

This is the illustration is that water goes in one side and is designed to flow out somewhere

else.

That's what a pipe is designed to do.

And that's how we should think of ability.

Yeah.

Is that we receive ability to pour out ability somewhere else.

In the meantime, we're full of it.

We're full of it.

We overflow with it.

That is, that is the basis of how a pipe works.

It overflows somewhere else.

It is Proverbs 11 25.

Yes.

The one that waters is watered themselves.

That's right.

That's right.

And you know, Philippians 4 19 is, is an off quoted scripture.

And it is my God, my Paul saying this to the church in Philippi, my God shall supply all

your needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

That sounds a lot like he is able.

Yeah.

My God is able to do what?

Supply fully furnish.

This is the same language.

In Corinthians 8 9 fully furnish, make you abound to every good work.

Yes.

My God is able to supply all your needs.

How according to what?

How's he going to do it?

The, the situation that I'm in is completely impossible, impassable.

What, what could possibly happen?

Look at these, look at these Bible illustrations we've been looking at.

When we see lack and impossibility, he sees able.

Yes.

Because able is inside of his word, his word.

And when we receive his word and respond to it, we unleash able.

Yes.

And able is not just financial able.

No.

Obviously finances give us ability to do certain things, but Jesus says in Luke 16

Luke 16:10

verses 10 11, he who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much.

And he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much.

Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous man, he's talking about money

here, who will commit to your trust, the true riches.

So to Jesus, money is the least of things.

That's right.

That's not, it's not a factor.

I mean, it was the least of things when he commanded the window to provide for Elijah.

It was the least of things when the little boy brought this much and then it got multiplied.

It's the least of things when the Macedonian church gives beyond their means, but then

there is fruit or there's goodness, there's ability that abounds to their account.

These are the least of things, but the bottom line is we are able to do with what God gives

us and that results in multiplication for others and in that process for ourselves as

well.

And you know, you're listening to this.

I want to encourage you don't fall into the trap of self deception.

This is James 1.22.

Respond to the message of truth.

What do I mean?

I mean that there's, there's something that just keeps coming back to you.

Like I should do this.

I should get involved in this.

I should give this.

For some of you, it's a rena.

For some of you, it's I need to, I think I need to go and to, you know, sign up and

be a rena student, but I don't know how I'm going to do that.

I don't know how I'm going to get the money for registration.

I don't know how I'm going to make the time available.

This is, this is what I would say to you.

Respond to the message of truth.

Respond to that urging that prompting and in responding in doing, you're going to unlock

some ability from heaven, just like the widow who said, okay, instead of acting like I don't

have enough, I'm going to act like I have more than enough and I'm going to give some

to this strange guy that just showed up.

Act like God's word is true because it is because it is.

And there's power contained in that word.

Yes.

To make you able.

Yeah.

We could keep going and going on this subject and I know that we're going to keep revisiting

it, but I think that we've come to the end of our time today.

And I, I want to say this, this is something that you shouldn't consider a topic of study.

This is a truth that we need to inhabit and live in that we are able.

Get the idea, the method of thinking and those phrases out of your vocabulary.

I can't.

I'm not able.

It's not for me.

No, you are well able to do everything God has planned for you because he lives in you.

Amen.

Well, if no one told you yet today, we want to tell you that we love you and we are expecting

God's very best for you.

We look forward to seeing you at our next gathering.

And of course we, we invite you to share this podcast with others.

Even if they don't speak English, I would ask that you would just make, you know, you

don't have to translate the whole thing, but share the truths of this with others and,

and then obviously bring people to grow groups.

So God bless you and we will see you next time.