Bible Teaching

Calvary Temple Teaching Library

Pleasing God Pt.2

I want to encourage you to be in prayer with us. A number of you have heard about what is taking place over in Africa right now. We're still just seeking the mind of the Lord. As of this moment, we've canceled our trip. British Airways has canceled all flights in to Kenya, which is what we were flying, so we had no way to get there, anyway. Right now, the State Department has said that all non-essential personnel are to go home from Kenya, and at this time, allowed to go home. All non-essentials are being admonished that it would be safer for them. Be in prayer. We're going to leave to Ron and Tony the discretion, to be up to them. I'm sure that they'll be staying, but it will be their decision. Be prayerful that they'll have the wisdom of the Lord and be prayerful with us at this particular time. We have a meeting scheduled, ourselves, next week and we're still prayerful about whether we should be going or not. We're sure not sending anybody else over there, but we need the mind of the Lord as to whether we should go and fulfill that particular engagement. Be prayerful so that we can hear from the Lord in the next day or so and make a decision accordingly to that.

We're just believing the Lord to give us wisdom on the ministry that is available in August. We firmly believe that, being in the way, the Lord will order our steps. Amen? We know that we've been in the way and the Lord is directing this. For those that were planning on going, we will just receive this, at this time, as a closed door and the wisdom of God, and we'll wait. Next opportunity, we'll go, praise God, and have opportunities to share the gospel. He makes a lot of different ways available. We had an opportunity yesterday. We got out more literature in one day than we ever have in Englishtown, New Jersey. It was an amazing opportunity that we had. You just never know how the Lord's going to get His Word out, praise God! A number of Christians stopped by saying, "Praise God, somebody's out here doing this." It's an exciting time, so you never know the way the Lord orders the steps. We happened to get home, had some stuff we had to fix. We came home rather than sit in the rain. With us not having our house on wheels anymore, sitting around for twenty-five hours in a "dually" makes you consider different things. We came home to fix a few things. Got back late and went through the gate. They said, "You can't come through this gate." We were there and they said, "No trailers through here." I said, "I'm here. It's your fault because of the mistakes you made when I was here Thursday. Now, find a place." They did, praise God! The thing that's interesting, the place they found and parked us was at the very corner of two entrances. In fact, we had people say, "Can you win this car?" It looked like we were on display. There were just tons.... We didn't have enough literature. We totally ran out of everything we had. Being in the way, Amen? We were there and had a great opportunity to get literature out and share the Lord. It was an exciting time. You just never know. What looks, many times, like an obstacle can turn out to be the best thing if you just continue on and look for opportunities to share the Lord.

Let's turn to Hebrews 11. We want to continue along with the study that we started on Wednesday night. I thought Wednesday night was interesting as the Lord really took an opportunity. We weren't sharing doctrinally. We were primarily receiving some exhortation from the Lord. The Lord was just exhorting and stirring us up into that need to live in the supernatural, to be aware of what God has given us in our inheritance as the ambassadors of this great kingdom of light. The exhortation to realize that we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world, that He's given us all power and all authority over all the power of the enemy, that we're to be on the offensive, not the defensive, and that the kingdom of darkness, the powers of hell, that have entrenched themselves in humanity. Jesus said, "I'm going to build a church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it." Amen? The church is out destroying the works of darkness. We're on the offense and the gates of hell will not prevail. The gates of hell cannot stand against the onslaught of those that are taking the kingdom of God by violence. "[For] ...the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence and the violent take it by force" (Matthew 11:12). This life that I'm talking about isn't just going to fall in your lap. "...the violent take it by force." This thing isn't to those who... (and this is the natural tendency, but as I just shared, it's not, "Well, you can't be here." You say, "Okay." No, you say, "I'm here and you're going to deal with me.") This kingdom is not going to come to those who are passive. This kingdom is not going to come to those who take no for an answer. We need to realize that, when you ask, when you seek, when you knock, it's going to be opened, praise God! He's looking for a people who are willing to take up the cross daily, die daily, be crucified, pain, agony, effort, being emptied. He'll show Himself mighty in and through us, praise God. He's looking for that people, a remnant. Are you available?

Hebrews 11 gives us a whole list of the heroes of faith who were available. We've studied this so many times over the years. I don't know about you, but I never get tired of examining the lives of these great men and women. Just being able to be touched by the fact that the Scriptures go on and tell us that these are men subject to like passions, just like you and I, flesh and blood. The Lord knows our frame; that we're just dust and how frail we are, yet He can show Himself mighty in us, the Scripture says. They were men of like passions. God, in His mercy, has shown us both sides of these men. He's shown us their great victories. He's shown us their frailty, their humanity, their weakness, so that we realize that they are people just like us. Don't you want to be used of God in a way that will bring glory and honor to Him, and see that these are people that we can identify with? The Scripture tells us, in this eleventh chapter of Hebrews, the only way that it's going to be done. The passage that all of us are so familiar with in verse 6: "But without faith it is impossible to please [God]." You won't please Him by works. God isn't looking for how much you do. He's looking by the method, whether it's done in His name, according to His will, and by His ability. He contrasts--we're going to look over at Romans 4 today--He contrasts it with the natural works of men, human effort, self-righteousness. He says that nothing that originates in you is acceptable. Jesus said it this way. He said that there is nothing that we can do that is pleasing to God. "...for without me ye can do [say it] nothing." We know what man can accomplish in his own strength. Jesus is saying, "If it doesn't originate in Me, it's not acceptable to Me. Without Me you can do nothing that's accepted of Me."

We've studied the Scriptures and said, "Okay, how can we find the mind of God?" How is it that we know what God is doing at this particular moment? We find, of course, general revelation, and we walk in that until He speaks specifically to us. That's one of the things, beloved, that you need to understand as we study this subject on faith. You walk by general revelation until God has specifically spoken to you a rhema. You walk by logos, the Word of God, until He has spoken specifically rhema to you to redirect, to reemphasize, and to bring further illumination. Until then what do you do? You walk in the general revelation. What is the general revelation? Go into all the world and preach the gospel. Amen? Every opportunity we have, what do we do? We find a way to share the gospel. I've shared this with you concerning the ministry that we've had with the outreach with some of the cars. People say, "Has God told you to do that?" I said, "No, I can't say that I was in prayer and God said, "I want you to do this," but being in the way, the Lord directed our path." What happened was this. We were out doing something that we enjoyed, and all these people started showing up. I thought, "How in the world can we come across the lives of all these people and not share the gospel with them?" You don't consume it on yourself. It's not about playtime. It starts out as playtime. We were playing and all these people showed up. It's like when Jesus went apart to pray and all these people showed up. Now He has to minister. People showed up.

What do you do? You go about the general revelation. Go into all the world and preach the gospel. Every opportunity you have, you find a way to get the gospel out in whatever you're doing. That's the general revelation. It's amazing the lives you reach. (Marsha Foster was telling me just the other day. They were on vacation somewhere; I can't remember where it was, whether it was Myrtle Beach or Virginia Beach or somewhere. They just happened to be out driving around. They went to this place that emphasized cars, some kind of a thing. She said that she got sharing with them about the "Finish the Race" ministry. The guy said, "Oh, yeah. I know those cars.") Hundreds of thousands of people! You go into all the world and you preach the gospel. We were on a highway we weren't supposed to be on going through New York State. Actually, it said "No Commercial Vehicles on this Road." We're not commercial, so we were there following the letter of the law. This cop said, "You can't be on here." I said, "Why?" He said, "It's (not) a commercial highway." I said, "We're not a commercial vehicle." He said, "Look, you're not supposed to be on here." I said, "We're not commercial." He said, "You take the next exit." I said, "Okay." We did and we ended up in Coney Island and we're driving around with our trailer through Coney Island. We were going to ask people how to get out because it was like one of those things, we were either going to get stuck or ride the roller coaster. We were getting ready to ask for directions and this guy drove up. He says, "Hey man! I love your cars!" He said, "I've seen them in the magazine." You don't know, I mean, everywhere, hundreds of thousands of people, just because you were in the way. You were following general revelation. Wherever you are, what do you do? You preach the gospel. Amen? Every opportunity--whatever you're putting your hand to--is about the kingdom of God. It's not about you. It's not just you. Everything we have, we've received of the Lord. It's to be used for the Lord. We tried three or four times, different people giving us directions. We ended up in the same place. It was like we were in a maze. I went back up on that highway and drove by that same cop. We got to the Verrezano Bridge before he did. He didn't follow us, so it was good.

Every opportunity, because "...faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Beloved, if we're going to walk successfully in the spirit, in the supernatural, it's going to come through the Word of God. It's not just going to be things you hear within yourself. Every voice you hear intuitively, within yourself, has to be confirmed by the Word of God, general or specific revelation, or we will get into presumption. We will get deceived and begin to move in the occult instead of the divine. The contrast is the revelation of God, and as we start talking about the supernatural, I want that to be one of the clearest things that you hear in this study. Everything that you feel led to do will be initiated by the Word of God. "...for without me ye can do [say it] nothing." "But without faith it is impossible to please [God]." Do not, do not get caught up in the works mentality. Don't--listen--do not try to do more for God. Try to do more by God. This is what we're looking for as we're walking in the Spirit, as we're beginning to move into the supernatural. Because "...without faith it is impossible to please Him." "Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God." "Without faith it is impossible to please Him." "Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God." Without the Word it is impossible to please Him. Amen? Can we say that, do you think, with those two Scriptures? If, without faith it is impossible to please Him, and faith comes by the (what?) (the Word), then without the Word, it's impossible to please Him. You're going to see that in the life of Abraham here in this eleventh chapter. Look at the eighth verse. "By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, [say the next word with me] obeyed." What did he obey? The Word. The Word of the Lord. By faith, Abraham was called and he obeyed. What God is looking for in your life and my life is obedience to the Word of God. What has He called you to do? He's called you to be witnesses. He's called you to be ambassadors. He's called you to be light. He's called you to be salt. He's called you to love one another. He's called you to take up a cross and follow Him. Without obedience it is impossible to please God.

You can't be doing supernatural things over here and getting x number of merit points, and living for yourself over there and think you're walking in the Spirit. It's not spectacular events. It's a life of obedience. That's the thing that we see in every one of these people's lives who were walking in the Spirit, living in the supernatural. As you're living what appears to be a mundane life in obedience, you'll begin to experience these spectacular events. You don't go out looking for them. They look for you. It's like the blessings of the Lord. They do what? They overtake us. We don't seek blessings. They seek us. If you're seeking first the kingdom of God, blessings are seeking you. If you're seeking blessings, you're only going to find heartache. You're only going to experience lust and the fulfillment of it. Lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, pride of life, it will take wings and fly away.

If you live in that realm that we've talked about, that contrasts everything that's natural, everything the world says to do, if you'll empty yourself and seek the kingdom, the blessings will seek you. They'll overtake you. You all have experienced that to certain degrees. I know I have in my life. The blessings of God have overtaken us as we've just sought Him. We've shared with you in the past, we never sought, we were never, never, motivated by material things in any meeting we've ever held. We never based one decision, on whether we would go, on finances. Just seeking to obey. What does God want me to do? What is it that the Lord is speaking at this moment? We feel, "Man, I'm just wrestling with whether this is God or not." Then we begin to contrast it with the Scriptures. What is it that you're having trouble with? "Well, it seems so radical." How is it that it seems radical? "Well, I mean, you know, the Scripture says if you don't work, you shouldn't eat. It seems like if this is God, then I'm going to have to leave my vocation, my job or whatever." Do you mean like Matthew and Peter? (Now, those of you who are unhappy in your jobs and you hear a voice, that's probably you, because none of these men were unhappy where they were. They were very content. It cost every one of them. You need to be very careful.) The point I'm making is this. We go to the Scriptures and we say, "Yeah, this seems radical, but here's evidence."

We talked about the need for each one of us to be ready to step out of the boat. That seems radical doesn't it? "Lord, if it be thou, bid me to come unto thee on the water." The Lord said (what?). Now you've got to get out of the boat. A lot of us have sought the Lord. "Lord, if it's You, then open this." Then you say, "Gulp! It opened!" You've got to get out of the boat. There are so many things that God affords us the opportunity to do, if like Abraham we'll obey, if like Peter, we'll get out of the boat. Now the thing that's interesting about stepping out of the boat is this. We all know you can't walk on water. Amen? Some of you can't even swim, much less walk! This life that we're talking about is a life that believes that all things are possible to him that believes. I don't go out looking for these things. I'm not a person who seeks to be presumptuous or to look for something that's spectacular. I believe with all of my heart that God is capable of doing anything. I know what He's promised. I know His ways through all of the years of study. I'm available to do whatever the Spirit of God speaks to me.

Do you know what? Many times it's frightening to obey, to go not knowing where you're going, to step out on the water and begin to do what you know is impossible to do. I've shared with you testimonies at times of some of the supernatural supply that the Lord has given us. I won't go back to the specifics. One of them that I remember, that I've shared on a number of occasions, was a very costly decision. That was the time that we were in that private plane, to continue flying when we were out of fuel. I was convinced in my heart that the Spirit of God had spoken, that the mission we were on was ordained of God, just like He could multiply the oil, He multiplied the fuel. Praise God! I know what the natural mind says. "Well, you just miscalculated." Well maybe so. Maybe that computer was wrong the four times that it analyzed it. We all know computers make mistakes. Maybe the computer was wrong. We only ran it four times. It said we were supposed to crash in the Sierra Nevadas. We made it all the way to San Jose and had fuel left over. I believe God can multiply fuel, oil, meal, loaves, fishes. Do you believe that this morning? Not for convenience, but when we're about His business. If we're going to walk in the Spirit, beloved, and begin to experience the supernatural, we're going to have to come out of our comfort zone. We're going to have to come out of our little kingdom and begin to get into His, to where we now become candidates for the visitation of God. Because God will not use His power to build your kingdom. Kingdom power is exclusively for kingdom glory, for kingdom use.

When you begin to read this eleventh chapter of the great men and women of faith, it becomes very evident. "By faith Abraham, when he was called... obeyed; and he went out, [and here's the thing that's so important about faith] not knowing whither he went." You're going to have to get used to "not knowing" if you're going to live in the supernatural. "What are you doing?" "I don't know." "Where are you going?" "I don't know." "What do you know?" "I don't know." I found that the more I walk in the Spirit, the more I'm walking in obedience, the less I know. Now, do you know what? That can become disconcerting to people who are following you, like your wife. She says, "What are we doing?" "I don't know." "Where's it going to come from?" "I don't know." "Who are you?" "I don't know." Ladies, unless you become a woman of faith, you're going to be nervous. It should be the people around you that are nervous. "I heard your husband talking the other day. I asked him where he was going. He said he didn't know. I asked him how that was going to be supplied. He said he didn't know." "What are you going to do?" "I don't know. All I know is that I'm going to believe God. I'm going to submit to my husband and I'm going to walk in obedience." "What do you think he should do?" "I don't know. Do you mean outside of believing God?" We don't know from the natural perspective. This doesn't mean that Abraham was unaware of what was taking place in his life. He didn't understand from the natural perspective, but what he did know--read on and you'll see--what he did know was this. He went out not knowing where he went. He did go, verse 10, looking for a city which had spiritual foundations, substrata. "Faith is [the substrata, the foundation] of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." That word "substance," "...faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen" that we read about in that first verse. It's the substrata. It's the foundation. "For he looked for a city which hath foundations, [look] whose builder and maker is God." He was comfortable in the realm of "not knowing." He was comfortable in the realm of the supernatural. He was comfortable in the realm of the invisible. That's what the Scripture talks about with Moses, over in the twenty-seventh verse. "By faith he forsook Egypt not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is [say it] invisible."

Faith is the substance of things (say it) not seen, the invisible, the incomprehensible. "I don't know if I'm that comfortable over there." You're flesh won't be. When you fall in love with this book, when these promises become sure to you, yea and amen, when this Word becomes the most sure foundation that you've ever rested upon, when you believe that every promise of God in Christ Jesus is yea and amen, that every covenant promise is sure to a thousand generations, that heaven and earth will pass away but His Word will not pass away, that faith comes by hearing and hearing by this Word, then, beloved, you'll be sure of the course you are on. What do you see? "Nothing, but I have a promise that I will see." "Where are you going?" "I don't know, but I have a promise that my steps are ordered of Him and that I'm going to enter a land in which I sojourn. I look, finally, for that city whose builder and maker is God." "You're comfortable with that?" "Yeah." "Why?" "Because I've died to myself. I don't have to know anymore. I don't have to be in charge anymore. I just have to obey."

We begin to see, then, that without faith it's impossible to please Him. Beloved, you'll never be able to come to this kind of a walk until you get to know your Father. "For [those] that cometh to God [the sixth verse goes on to say] must believe that he is, and that he is a [what?] rewarder of them that diligently seek him." Do you know what it all comes down to, beloved? "But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that [say it with me] he is...." Those that come to Him must believe what? The whole issue is that you must believe that He is. We don't want to wrestle with that question. "Oh, I believe in the Lord." Then, where is the corresponding action to that? Where is the evidence? Where is the trust? "If it be You, bid me to come." If you believe that He is, and He says to come, then you can walk on water. You can call fire out of heaven. You can multiply loaves and fishes. You can raise the dead. You can lay hands on the sick and they'll recover. Nothing will be impossible to you, the Scripture says. This is the promise that we're trying to pursue in this study. This is the direction that we want to go in apprehending that for which we have been apprehended, as Philippians says.

Now, let's look for just a moment. It's been a while since we've gone over this. Some of our young people, we want to encourage them. There are young people that haven't even been in these services since we taught on this subject last. Look at the first verse of this eleventh chapter. We need to look at a couple of words very extensively and then we'll go on to Romans 4. "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for...." Faith. What is faith? The word "faith," itself, literally means assurance, confidence, reliance, to rely upon. That's what faith is. Faith is the assurance that God is, that what He said is, and will be. We're able to rest in that. Faith is a rest. Faith is a relationship. Faith is not a force unto itself. Many times faith has been seen by people as a force that emanates from God. It's really not. Faith is a confidence in God. The power that emanates from God is His sovereignty, His will, His determinate counsel, His eternal purpose, His Word, God's Word, and the authority, then, that corresponds. Faith, then, rather than being a force, is a choice. Faith is a decision to subordinate our will to God's will, our understanding to God's revelation. It's vital that we come to that and not the misapplication of faith that we've heard taught over the years from many of the faith camp: that somehow I can study and I can get full of faith. "I now have within me this force stored up and I can make things happen according to my will." It doesn't work that way. For faith to be effective in our lives, it constantly has to be the working of God through us as vessels that are totally subordinate, totally yielded, without personal agendas, to where God can effect His own glory through the earthen vessels that have yielded to Him.

That's what we begin to see in the lives of these champions of faith. Faith, assurance, trust, reliance is what gives the foundation to our choices. It's what we're establishing our lives on. It's what we're hanging our lives on. This word, "substance," as we shared earlier, is an interesting word. It talks about substrata or foundation. From the legal perspective, it refers to a title deed. Now, you know that when you have the title to your car, that's the proof that that car is yours. Have you noticed when you go into the DMV, and wait for 12 hours, that they don't ask you to carry your car in? Some of us, lately, have felt like driving our cars in, but the title deed will suffice. You don't have to drive the car up to the counter for them to check the VIN number out. That (title) proves that there is a car that exists, and that you are the owner. Faith proves that you are a child of God, that you've been given promises, that you've been given authority. The demons know, the angels know. The problem is that, so many times, we don't know. It's important for us to understand that faith.... When God speaks to us, when we read and these promises become a reality, it stirs your spirit and you know that God has spoken to you and He is dealing with you. You know that you've been falling short of what His expectations are, and He now encourages you, and says, "If you'll obey, I'll confirm My Word with signs following." You have a decision to make now. Faith is a decision to obey.

Satan is going to come and lie and say, "Has God said?" The whole contrast of faith is this, "Hath God said?" That's the original sin. "Has God said?" "Yes, He said, bless God! It is written!" Amen? I'll tell you what, if you answer, "It is written" enough times, the devil will stop asking you, "Has God said?" He doesn't like your answers when you quote the Word of God. He's going to go look for somebody else. What does the Bible say? He goes around "...seeking whom he may [what?] devour." If he can't devour you, he'll leave you alone. He'll leave you for a season. If you beat him up with the Word enough, if you live in obedience enough, he'll stop testing you when you pass all the tests. He doesn't want you shining. He doesn't want God getting all the glory. "Man, every time that person comes up against a test, they come out refined like gold!" He's going to stop doing that. That's a good way to get out of trials. Obey! We look at the Scriptures here and we see that faith is the title deed. Faith is the foundation, the substrata, of things hoped for.

Now, the word "hope." We know this word is an interesting word. It means favorable expectation. What would cause us to favorably expect something? The Word of God. The promises of God. I don't know about you, but when I'm sick, I expect to get healed every time. Anybody here hope for that? Hope is what? Favorable expectations. Why would I expect to get healed? Now, wait a minute. Do we or do we not live in a sin-wracked world? Does the rain fall upon the just and the unjust? Is every one of us subject to hay fever? Is every one of us subject to the latest SARS? Is every one of us subject to the common cold, to the effects of natural labor, to getting older and things just wearing out? Yes. Then why should I expect to be any different than all the other billions of people on the earth? Why should I hope for healing, to be made whole, every time something goes wrong in my body? Because by His stripes I am healed. Amen? That's the revelation of God. That's what I hope upon. That's my title deed. That is the promise, the proof; that's what I expect, and nothing less. I hope for that. Do you always get healed? Does it always manifest immediately? No. What do you do? You drive a rental car for a while. You drive up and you say, "Bless God." "Where's your car?" "It's in the shop, not working." "I don't believe you have a car. You trying to tell me you have a Mercedes and you're in that Yugo?" "Yeah, I have a Mercedes." "I don't believe that." "Here's my title deed." "Why are you in the Yugo?" "The Mercedes is in the shop." Sometimes our faith is in the shop. Sometimes it hasn't manifested yet. It doesn't mean you're not healed, praise God! Amen? "I've got a title deed. I can prove to you I'm a healed person." "You don't look healed." "I don't care. I'm not moved by things I look at. Faith is the substance of things not seen. I'm healed, praise God! I believe I'm healed by the stripes of Jesus." "You look like a mess!" "Yeah, but I'm not moved by what I see. In fact, my eyes are swollen closed. I can't see anything, but I believe I'm healed, praise God!" "You're a nut! That's what you are." "No, I'm a man sojourning, looking for a city. Amen? I'm sojourning in this land. I'm a pilgrim and a stranger here. This isn't where I live, in the natural."

Until we can make those kinds of professions without apology, in faith, in true expectation, then we'll never see the miraculous. Some people have made the mistake and think that we have to deny the reality and almost become like Christian Scientists to deny that this thing exists. That's not what we are. We're not the same as Christian Scientists. We are not denying that my eyes are running. What we're saying is, my eyes are running, and I am healed. People say, "I don't understand." Say, "Well, you want something else? Try the Trinity, if you want something else not to understand!" Amen? We're not moved by the seen. We go "not knowing" because God has promised it. "Yeah, but I want to be able to understand it, or I want to experience it. I want to feel better or, at least, understand why I'm not." Then, you're not in faith. You don't have to understand and you don't have to see if you have faith, because faith is sufficient. Faith is the title deed. Faith is the assurance. Faith is the hope, praise God! That is the only thing that'll manifest "it," the Mercedes.

It's very important for us to understand what faith is and how it works. "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for..." Favorably expected. What God has promised.... The Word then becomes a reality. It is the evidence. Have you ever been to court? There's some movie out--I've never seen it--that deals with a lot of this stuff. CSI, is that what it's called? Is that one of the things that deals with evidence or forensics and all that kind of stuff? I really enjoy forensics. We've come so far in the technology. It's so neat that years and years after murders, they can go in and find a blood splatter that's been dried up for twenty years and get you. I think that's cool! That's like God. People think that they're going to get away with it from God. He's going to bring up forensic evidence against you and you're going to Hell! Evidence. In the court of law, this forensic evidence is accepted as fact, as if somebody was an eyewitness. It's just as real as seeing. In fact, many times it's more real. I remember a movie, years ago, My Cousin Vinnie. (A funny movie, I liked the courtroom scenes. I loved the judge. He was Herman Muster.) In this particular movie, this forensic evidence was one of the real things. It showed how forensic evidence is more real than the eyewitnesses. One of the eyewitnesses was this lady and he got her on the stand. He said, "Now ma'am, how many fingers do I have up?" She said, "Ah...." She made a guess. He said, "No, ma'am. I'm over here." She was as blind as a bat and she was the eyewitness! To beat the case, they proved that maybe she needed to have her glasses checked. We all know that in times of stress.... (Do you know why magic works? How many of you know why magic works? Because the way we physiologically work, the things that we see, we don't see, and our mind cannot process everything that our eyes are taking in. Did you all know that? Your mind can't work fast enough to process it all. It has learned to fill in the gaps. It assumes that if it saw that, this is what happened. Even though you saw it, you didn't see it. You don't really see everything you see. You don't. (Your mind) fills in those gaps as all these impulses are taking place. Everything's working. That's why you can be fooled. You can see it. I saw it. The only reason you saw it is because you have been programmed to believe that "that" equals "this." When somebody makes it look like that, they can fool you.)

Forensic evidence can't be tampered with in that way. It's more real than what you see. Faith is the substance of things of things hoped for, the evidence, the proof through forensics, of things not seen. Not seen, not perceived by the natural senses. It gives proof. It is the evidence. It is the assurance. It is the reality of what your natural senses can't acquire. It all comes from knowing our Father, resting in His promise, letting His Word be true and every man a liar. Let's spend some time hearing the voice of God. Let's spend some time hearing, "This is the way, walk ye in it." "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel." "...all things are possible to him that believeth." Let it become reality and let us, like Abraham, even though we don't understand it all, go. Not knowing what the conclusion of it is going to be. I know that if I obey, I have the assurance my steps are ordered. I know that if I am where God wants me to be, He'll give His angels charge over me. "No weapon that is formed against [me] shall prosper."

I had a parent come and ask me the other night, as I was here in prayer. They came over and said, "I don't want to disturb you, but something's just been going over in my heart and I want to pray for my children properly. I don't know exactly how to pray. Should I pray for them to go in this direction or that direction? Should I pray for them to acquire this type education or this kind of a job or this kind of a spouse or whatever?" I just shared with that parent. I said, "The best way to pray is this. Pray for your children and say, 'Lord, I'm asking you to make my child a seeker of the kingdom first. Father, I'm asking You to help them take up the cross daily and follow You.'" The fact of the matter is, if we can get how He wants us, He can get us where He wants us. Amen?

With faith, the Father of faith, Abraham, the Scripture says, when called, obeyed. That's how we're going to start this journey, this study we're in. We're going to go to Romans 4 and talk about his full persuasion tonight. What it means is that Abraham was strong in faith, giving glory to God. Don't you want to be strong in your faith? Don't you want to be a man, a woman, who is able to finish this course that we're on? To be strong in faith doesn't mean you don't ever fail. It means you don't ever quit. We want to talk about that tonight.

Father, we thank You for Your Word. We just ask that You would continue to order our steps and to reestablish a confidence in who You are, and what these promises are upon which we rest. We're excited about what's ahead: blind eyes being opened, the lame walking, fire coming out of Heaven, walking on water, the dead being raised, the light of the gospel going forth into a dark world, lives preserved through salt, just because a people choose to obey--or we can cower back and our lights can go under bushels. We can be counted good for nothing but to be trod under foot, or we can stay in the land from which we are being called out, and die like Lot's wife. Faith is a decision to obey. Give us hearts of obedience, we ask, Father, in Jesus' name. Amen.

Let's stand before the Lord. As Gary plays for us, let's just rest for a moment in His presence and allow what the Holy Spirit has spoken to you this morning to become reality. He's speaking to each of us differently this morning, along the same lines of His admonition, but there are different areas in every one of our lives that we have to deal with. Strongholds that have to be pulled down. Fears that have to be overcome. Fear will not leave you because you have further information to assimilate. Fear will not leave through proper instruction. Fear is not logical. Fear is anti-faith, anti-trust. Fear will only leave you when faith emerges and God's promises become more valuable than self, self-comfort, self-ease, self-preservation, when faith becomes reality and understanding (becomes) the enemy of God's righteousness.

Let's sing this together and just worship Him this morning. Let Me be a Sacrifice. Oh, Lord, we rejoice in You. Just bless Him as we sing it again. Stir our hearts, Lord, to obey. Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Just take a moment and just rejoice in His presence this morning. Thank Him for His Word as it becomes a reality. It's not an emotion, it's a decision. It's not a feeling, it's a choice. It's not based on understanding; it's based on promise, on revelation. "Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God." Lord, send us to Your Word and feed us with revelation that will cause obedience beyond understanding. We'll give You the praise, Father, in Jesus' name. Amen.

Before you go, turn to somebody next to you and say, "We've been called. Obey." Go in peace. God's love go with you.

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