Bible Teaching

Calvary Temple Teaching Library

Living in the Miraculous Pt.1

Just continue to be in prayer for the work going on in Africa. There are a lot of logistical things that are taking place with Forbe and Ruth getting ready to go, and we're just looking for the wisdom of God. Tony was taking a little bit of R and R; he's rolling back in. So at this juncture we don't have all of the final information about a dwelling place for Forbe and Ruth, but the Lord had no sure dwelling place so they're in good company, praise God. We're excited about many of the things that are taking place in the ministry there, so be prayerful. We're believing God to show Himself mighty in that work and mighty here in our midst. We, as a people, are so in need of a visitation of God in this country and here in our midst, an awareness of God's presence and the daily walk in the supernatural; living, really, in the realm of the miraculous on a daily basis as we've shared before to where we can pray. When I'm talking about living in the miraculous or dwelling there, I'm not talking about the spectacular, but being able to pray, as we've said so many times, in the midst of all of this abundance, to be able to pray truly in faith, "Father give us this day our daily bread." Are you believing God every day for your necessary food, or do you have so much you don't even think about it? We pray because Christians are supposed to pray and be thankful for their food. Are you thankful that you have something to eat or are you thankful for the promises of God the provider? So many things are trying to rob from you and me that ability to walk in the supernatural, to live in the supernatural. We become so burdened down by the provision of the natural and don't realize that our faith is being robbed from us. God's glory is being robbed out of our midst and we need to be jealous for that first love, praise God.

As we've been trying to identify ourselves in the seven churches of Revelation, we started off in the church of the Ephesians and we talked about the church of the Laodiceans and we went back and ended up talking about the church of Philadelphia, how God truly is in our midst, a people thankful that we've had opportunity to represent Him effectually. In the midst of all that I want to identify, now, as we go to the book of Acts, who we really are. What we are supposed to be, because we twenty-first century Americans should be the continuation of the book of Acts. Amen? Are we living there? When you look at your life does it resemble anything in the book of Acts? If God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and we know that He is. If the promises of God are sure to a thousand generations--and we know that they are--if His Word never returns void to Him--and it does not--then we should be able to hold up the book of Acts and find ourselves there, moving in the same dependence of the presence of God that they had, because there's no provision made in the promises of God for technology robbing His glory.

We live in a day when man is so exalted that you hear statements made--and I understand the hypocrisy of men; but I heard a man the other day make this statement, he said, "You know, we find, as scientists, that there's a moral dilemma, if we have the ability, should it then be pursued, and let the chips fall where they may?" He was making reference to the technology today of intelligence being given to machines. In fact, I don't know if you're aware of it or not but they've already accomplished it and don't know how for sure, but they know that it's working and they don't know where it's going. They found it to be so in the realm of nanotechnology. Now nanotechnology is those microscopic little machines that they're actually creating to put into your bodies and go and repair things. What if it decides not to repair? Interesting thought, isn't it? It would make a great sci-fi film, "The Bug That Eats from Within," or whatever. It's there and they've created these little machines, and they're for many different things and they've miniaturized everything to the microscopic, and then to the miniature to where they can send machines in to look at buildings so that you're not having to deal with human life; and little spy planes that are the size of a playing card that little machines are operating remotely and through intelligence and all this stuff. In nanotechnology, they've actually made machines that can create machines and recreate themselves and have found that in the process they're improving themselves. Cool thought, isn't it? Where is it going? I don't know. The point I'm making is this: if God came down to confound them at Babel because of their arrogance, because nothing was impossible to them, what day are we living in? What day are we living in when man says he has found the aging gene and is just a breath away from eternal life? Let me ask you a question: if you could have eternal life today in the natural what would that do to your pursuit of God? What are you living for? Who are you living for? We're living in this age, and a time when all of the--it's amazing what can be done now through medical science, technology. Isn't it amazing what can be done through arthroscopy now? They go in and they fix you and you're out that day. This is cool stuff! Pretty soon we're all going to be like Lee Majors, The Six Million Dollar Man. Whether we know it or not the new technology, the new drugs, are robbing our faith, we're dying. We're trusting in the natural instead of the supernatural. Our doctrine is the same but where's our belief system? What are we believing God for? What are we teaching our children to believe God for? How quickly do we take them to the doctor or give them a pill or lean to the arm, somehow, of man's ability instead of letting them believe God? How quickly do we make up the difference to their trip to Africa? You know, they're going to believe God and really they know that dad's going to come through and write the check for it when this thing is all over. What's the last thing that you're children ever had to believe God for?

The book of Acts; who are we? Let's turn to the book of Acts for just a second and see if we can find ourselves in here. You're hiding in here somewhere, because we are the same church. It's very interesting that when Jesus was ascending back to heaven, we know the story in the book of Acts. It starts off and the angels spoke to the disciples that were there and gave us this promise in Acts, Chapter 1, verse 8, that "[we would] receive power, after the Holy [Spirit had] come upon [us]: and [that we would] be witnesses unto [Him]..." This time that we're going to take we're going to talk about being restored back to living in the supernatural--remember what it's for--it's to be witnesses to Him, it's to show the kingdom of God is among us, it's in our midst here. We are a different people, we are a holy nation, a royal priesthood; we are that peculiar people that are to show forth the praises of Him that's called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. We're a different breed. We're a people that have been called, that peculiar people set aside for the glory of God to be witnesses to Him, and He says, "To effectively do this you're going to have to have power, supernatural power."

Now, we're a people that profess to believe in the baptism of the Holy Spirit, that we are full of the Holy Ghost with power and part of the evidence of that indwelling is the physical evidence of speaking in other tongues. That's a biblical doctrine and most of us here do. The other revelation of the fact that we are the continuation of the church of the book of Acts is that we are powerful witnesses to Him where we're bold to speak those things that we've seen and heard and we're doing that. A people that have been empowered to live holy lives, sanctified, and we're doing that to the best of our ability. Then one of the other indicators is a life in the supernatural, signs and wonders, the power of God being very clearly evidenced in our lives. So He says you'll receive power to be witnesses, power to live holy lives, power to proclaim the gospel, power to rest in the promise that He's coming back to receive us to Himself. Power to express His ever-present resurrected ability. Signs and wonders, "And He went and confirmed the Word in His earthly ministry with signs following." Things haven't changed. If Jesus is here there ought to be signs and wonders. There ought to be a life in the supernatural. There ought to be a dependence on His Lordship.

Then He makes the comment ... "why stand ye here...this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner..." There's to be a comforting of one another with this promise. Then He said, "Go and tarry, they went and they prayed and continued, verse 14, with one accord in prayer and supplication, seeking the promise of the Father to be empowered from on high." Let's not just skim over this because we know it so well, verse 14, "These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication..." We're praying twice a week up here. Are we praying in one accord? Are we truly praying with supplication? Our prayer list keeps getting bigger not shorter. Where is the power of God? Where is the answer to our prayer? We're coming to gather, but are we in one accord? Are we truly, as a people, believing for the visitation of God to see Him come into our midst and confirm the Word with signs following? As they came together in one accord, truly believing for that promise of the Father, that place was shaken where they were gathered, the Scripture says. They were all filled with the Holy Ghost. How about next Tuesday, instead of just coming and putting in our time, how about seeing the place shaken? Why don't we come and believe for a visitation of God rather than an obligation of time? Instead of [just] praying, why don't we believe? "Because these signs shall follow them that believe in My name." Amen? Where are they? Well, one of two things is going on, either God's Word is not true or somebody is not believing. I wonder what it could be. How many of you choose us missing it and not God? Amen? Let God be true and every man a liar. Oh, we believe, "Help my unbelief." Amen? "Lord, I believe. Lord, I believe. But if you don't answer that's okay; I have a credit card, I have a doctor's appointment. We have the body; they'll come and clean up my house for me. They'll take care of me; somebody else will do it. Lord, I believe..." Where's the jealousy for the glory of God, His presence in our midst? It's not whether the task is fulfilled; it's not whether the need is met. It's whether God is glorified that men would know that He's here in our presence, a church alive, and a church with the dynamics of the promises of God being expressed.

As we read on, we know the day of Pentecost, and they're filled with the power of God, and they begin to speak in other tongues, and they go out and boldly witness the gospel and resurrection of Jesus. Peter preaches his sermon, "You men of Israel, this same Jesus whom your sins have destroyed has God raised from the dead. It's by the power of that resurrection that you've seen this and that you've heard and we stand here and proclaim" (Acts 1:23-24). Fear struck the hearts of these people and the men were forbidden to preach any longer in this name and they responded and said, "You answer: Should we obey God or men?" A boldness! You know the hour is coming, we've talked about it, and so far it's only been little slaps on the wrists on your jobs about sharing the gospel. It's not far away, you're going to lose your job if you talk about Jesus. Are you ready for that? Oh, you can go flaunt homosexuality; you can come in with curtains over your eyes and chant and do all of that stuff. That would be okay. You could set up a mosque and blow your little horns in the morning, but you can't talk about Jesus. Now, this is a society that we're living in. Are we ready? Who are we? Where is our witness? The question is: are we to obey God or man? Now, most of us, and I've shared before the dangers of the Samson syndrome, "Well, when things really get tough I'll shake myself and the Spirit will come upon me," and you don't even know you've given yourself a haircut. If we're going to move against that spirit in the day that it comes, where's the evidence by the dependence today in the small things? If we're not being faithful in the small things how are we going to rule in the great ones? "If the footmen have wearied us how are we going to contend with the horses and the chariots," the prophet said.

What do you really believe about yourself and what proof is there of what you believe? Where's the fruit of what you've planted? Where's the refreshing of the wells that we've dug? Have you dug your own wells? Where's the refreshing? Have you dug deep into the rock? Where's the solidity, where is the foundation of your belief system, the signs? When is the last time you prayed and heaven was moved? When is the last time you spoke and demons trembled? You see, this is the church that'll be alive in the last days, this same church. As we're looking to identify ourselves and ask who are we, really, what church are we, these are the questions that have to be addressed. When we begin to read in the book of Acts and Peter is boldly proclaiming in the fourth chapter, "There's no other name under heaven whereby men can be saved," we're a people that are out proclaiming the name of Jesus. Now, in the midst of a generation where all of the latest business techniques are used to try to seduce people into the churches, we have to look and say, "Hey, we're not interested in man's methods." The new techniques that the church is using, and it's everything from business techniques to trying to build beautiful edifices and make everything as comfortable as possible, and the apostle Paul said, "That's not the gospel. I'm not ashamed of the gospel; it's the power of God unto salvation. There's no other name under heaven whereby men can be saved, but at the name of Jesus."

When we talk about Jesus we must talk about His resurrection, the power of His resurrection. When we talk about Jesus we must talk about His imminent return. People aren't talking about that today because we've become so comfortable in this world. We don't need to pray, "Give us this day our daily bread," our cupboards are full. We don't need to pray, "Even so come quickly Lord Jesus," I've got some investments that I'm waiting to mature. Don't come too quickly, Lord, I'm getting ready to go out on this retirement right now. I just bought this new retirement home. "Don't come too quickly, Lord, life is pretty good now, actually." Earth dwellers. You see, these Christians in the book of Acts didn't know anything about that. They believed in the imminent return because they believed that there was something better. Now, I don't care how good we have it here there's something better coming. Amen? "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." (1 Corinthians 2:9) "I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there ye may be also." I'm looking forward to the Lord's coming. "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you." (John 14:1-3) Come quickly, Lord! Until He does, what's our obligation? "Occupy until He comes," the apostle said. This occupying is not to just be waiting, it's to be representing Him. Those that have seen Him have seen the Father. Jesus went so far as to say, "Those that have seen you have seen Me." Have they? Where's our dependence in the Lord? Where are the signs and wonders, the power of God that's to be following those who believe? You see, our brothers and sisters in the book of Acts lived that way.

Look what he goes on to say in the fourth chapter of Acts, verses 19-20. They just spoke to those that had persecuted them and said, "Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." What was it that they were being persecuted for? The things that they had seen and heard. The reason that there's no persecution in the church today is that nobody is seeing or hearing anything! There's nothing that's running contrary to society. Everything is being done by the strength of man. People aren't impressed by business techniques of building churches! They build businesses all of the time that way. What they can't handle is when you say, "It's done in the name of Jesus." "That same Jesus that your sins crucified whom God has raised from the dead, by faith in His name this man stands here whole today." Not doctor So-and-So. Not the latest herbal whatever. We have people today--Christian radio; man what are they getting on? Dear God, if they spent as much time preaching the gospel as they did running herbs! Now, I'm not talking about being presumptuous. I'm not talking about eating forty pounds of Twinkies and believing God. We're not talking about presumption, we're talking about faith and we're talking about contrasting that with depending on the arm of the flesh. Where's the church of the book of Acts today? Well, we have to be it! The Lord is the same yesterday, today and forever. We're it! Where's the evidence? These signs shall follow them that believe in My name. You're going to speak with new tongues, you're going to heal the sick, and you're going to cast out devils. Turn on the Christian radio, turn on Christian television, what do you have? We have so many psychologists today they wouldn't know what to do with the devil if it showed up! Now, I've been preaching for a long time, and I've been through all of the extremes, and I know the Derek Prince thing and the devil chasers and all of the--I've seen it all. It's tragic: we've lost the genuine because of so many counterfeits, because of all of the fake faith healers and all the demon hunters, and all the "blab it and grab it" folks. We're losing the genuine trust in the provision of God, He who is the same yesterday, today and forever, He whose promises are sure to a thousand generations. Beloved, we need to embrace again that sure promise that all things are possible to he that believeth. What are we teaching the next generation? What do our kids know about miracles? They've heard our stories. I can take days and tell you stories of what I've experienced personally.

I had a strange thing happen on the way to church, I stopped at another church this morning. I came around the corner and saw a sign that there's an Assembly of God church meeting up here at the elementary school. I felt lead and pulled in and went in to see what they were up to. I didn't know if it was a brand new work or what was going on, and I just wanted to encourage the pastor. I stopped and found out they had been around for a while. I guess the real reason I stopped was what came out in the conversation right toward the end. I said, "Well, I have to get going, but the one thing I just want to encourage you in is let's not forget what's written on The Pentecostal Evangel: 'It's not by might nor by power but by my spirit sayeth the Lord.' If you're going to come in here and build a church, let's build it in the spirit, praise God!" I would to God that they would reach every person for five miles in the spirit with an uncompromised gospel. Where is the church in the midst of all of the business techniques and all the glitz and the glamour? "You judge, but we cannot speak anything but what we've seen and heard."

Now, watch what he goes on to say. They're persecuted, they gather together again, now they'd gathered on the day of Pentecost and had received the baptism of the Holy Spirit; because of that their boldness got them in trouble. They're out there preaching, they're getting in trouble, they're being persecuted, so what do they do? They come back together and they begin to pray again, "Lord, (check this out) behold their threatenings," (verse 29) and protect us build a big wall around us, save us Lord, don't let us get hurt! That's not what they prayed. "And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word, By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus. And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness; And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul..."

Then look at this; we've just taken the time to study out the seven churches out of the book of Revelation, trying to find out who we are as a people, the church of Ephesus, sound doctrine that lost their first love. There are a lot of churches today that you can go to and find some good doctrine. Where is the burning desire for the Lordship of Jesus in our lives every day? Living for Him, living for His glory and not our own, trusting in His presence and not our doctrine, boasting in our purity of biblical exegesis, but a daily dependence on His Lordship. Listen to what the Scripture says, they prayed and the place was shaken, and here's the fruit of it: "And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all." We begin to see the true signs of the believer. "These signs shall follow them that believe; in my name..." (Mark 16:17). The boldness, the separation to the kingdom of God contrasting with the world. As we've shared the day is upon us. Preachers are being locked up today from their pulpits in private gatherings, on property that they own and say what the Word of God says about homosexuality, and they're being arrested and put in jail. What's the hour that we're living in? What kind of power are we going to need to be victorious in this generation? Do you have what it takes right now when the powers that be, the government, is coming in and arresting us for our faith? What kind of resources do you have? "Our weapons are not carnal," the Scripture says, "they're mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds." Are we daily putting on the Ephesians armor of God and carrying the shield of faith that's able to quench every fiery dart of the enemy? How proficient are we this day with the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God? Are you ready to have your kids arrested, literally arrested, put in jail, literally put in jail because they're out in the streets proclaiming the gospel? Some of our kids already ran into trouble with the officials when they were down at the public high school sharing the gospel. "You can't do that here!" Do we obey God or men? The Bible says, Go into all the world (except the public schools) and preach the gospel. Is that the way your Bible reads? Go into all the world except the workplace and preach the gospel. Go into all the world except the private malls and preach the gospel. Oh, they can come into your private property and arrest you for teaching against homosexuality but you can't go on their property and preach the gospel. There's nothing fair about it, folks; we're at war: the kingdom of darkness against the kingdom of light, the church of Jesus Christ! We have sufficient power. All things that pertain to life and godliness are already in you.

What I'm trying to do this morning, beloved, is just to get us to stir it up, praise God! It's in there, but what are we doing? Have we become dulled, have we become lethargic because of our abundance, because of our ease of life, because of the vexation of the world. We've been inundated by all of the technology and the ability of man to where we don't have to trust God anymore, and then when the real war comes what do we have? Where are our resources? How's your spiritual cardiovascular? You can have the doctrine of working out all you want. You can know all you want about working out. Guess what? If you don't daily prepare yourself, when it comes time to rise and go forth you're going to be on oxygen.

Here we are being admonished. Now watch, this is some neat stuff as we begin to see what should be normative living for you and me. This should be normal. This isn't--people look at us even as we are today, we have to become much better than what we are as a people here. Yet if you compare us to most of the professed Christians around us we're doing pretty well, actually, as far as people that are committed, zealous, community loving one another, bold to talk about Jesus, giving of our talents and our gifts. We're doing as well as anybody is. You as a people, from what I've perceived, are second to none. But you know, comparing ourselves with Fat Albert. Let's look at the book of Acts and see what the church is supposed to be. There's no end to the book of Acts. It doesn't say, "The End." The church is still going on, 21 centuries later. Jesus, the same yesterday, today and forever. What are you going to do when you go up to the temple and the man's asking for alms and you stop and you say, "Silver and gold have I none, but a good doctrinal reference I have." Go see the specialist he'll fix you right up. I know a guy making new knees. Have you ever heard of Lee Majors? "Silver and gold have I none but such as I have [what do you have?] give I thee. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!" Ah, beloved, that's who we are. That's who we are. When is the last time you experienced it? "With great boldness and great power the apostles gave witness of the resurrection."

Chapter 5--this is some of where we are as a people. Now, we're not under persecution to where we've put everything together and we have all things in common, but you know that spirit is here. The love that we have in our midst, the willingness to help one another out--the family--is amazing, it's a miracle. Can you say praise God for it? We're blessed! We are a blessed people to have the fellowship, the love, the commitment to the kingdom of God and to one another that we have. This is where the church was going into the fifth chapter and then hard times came and people were moved by the Spirit to sell what they had to put into the common pot so that we could all be taken care of. Now, we're not there yet, but I want you to catch the spirit of this. In the midst of all this, Ananias and Sapphira say, "Well, we can't let other people look more spiritual than us, so let's just say that we sold everything and gave it, okay?" "Yeah, because we want everyone to think we're committed and we're spiritual." So they did that and they came in and presented it, and Peter said, "Are you sure?" "Yeah, this is it." And he said, "Why has Satan put it into your heart to lie to Holy Ghost? This was yours as long as you possessed it. Nobody told you that you had to give that. Why didn't you just keep it? Nobody was putting pressure on you. Why were you trying to put yourself off as something you're not? Nobody was calling you second-rate. What is this pride in you that's driving you to have to appear to be more than you are as a believer? Why not own up with where you really are? But now, because you've lied to the Holy Ghost and brought a reproach, you've brought judgment upon yourself." We know the story, he drops over dead, and after they carried him out Sapphira comes in and he says, "Is this what happened?" She said, "Yes." Verse 9, chapter5, he said, "How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door..." She drops over dead. I wonder what would happen if this took place in every church today in America. Wouldn't it be cool? The reason I say that is because look what it says in verse 11, "And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things." The Scripture goes on to say that as this testimony came out, that type of people didn't come into their midst anymore. Now, if we're living in the last days, if we're a people that are being purified and prepared as a chaste virgin for the coming of the Lord, the church that's going to be presented to Him, I wonder if this stuff is going to begin to happen again.

Now, look what he goes on to say, "And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people...And of the rest durst no man join himself...believers [verse 14, I like this. They exchanged liars for believers] were the more added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women. Insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that at the least the shadow of Peter passing by might [touch them and heal them]... bringing sick folks [from all of the regions, verse 16], and them which were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed every one." Pretty cool! Let's see--We're not seeing that. "I'm a Christian, and I know I'm sure no second-rate Christian, but we're not seeing that, and I sure don't want to believe in that Ananias and Sapphira stuff. You know what, this stuff passed away. This was just to get the church started and it passed away with the first century." That's the doctrine that's been created in the minds of most men. In the history of the church in America that's what has been believed, predominantly, by most people. "These things aren't for us today." "That's not what the Bible says." "These signs shall follow them that believe in My name." It didn't say there was a ceasing to this. Joel's prophesy that was seen in the fulfillment of the book of Acts, it said, "This promise is unto you, to your children, to all that are afar off even as many as the Lord our God shall call." No end to this thing, the immutability, the same yesterday and today and forever, the Lordship of Jesus, the kingdom of God. All things are possible to he that believeth. Where are we? Where is this today in our midst? Well, "[They grabbed him, put him into the common prison.] But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said, Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life" (Verse 19). We see two jailbreaks here in a few chapters. What's the first thing we want to do? We want to run, "Well, I know a congressman, I know some cop, I know...let's go outside and protest, we need to get on whatever the Christian radio, we need to get a rally together, we need to go to Washington and protest." How about believing God? How about an angel showing up and letting us out? What do you think? "All things are possible to he that believeth." Doctor Dobson gets on his program, talks to his mailing list, everybody calls their congressman, they put pressure on this guy, "If you don't do it we won't re-elect you, you'll get fired, you can't have a Mercedes anymore," and then finally they say, "Okay," and they let the guy out and go, "God delivered. Oh, thank You Jesus." The world looks and goes, "Pfft, same methods we use."

Who are we, the church of Jesus Christ? What has changed? I'll tell you what has changed: we live in a democracy; we have rights, our voice counts. I know what the Scripture says about governments, and don't mistake what I'm saying; I'm thankful for where we live in America, but it's a two-edged story.

I heard some Christians talking the just the other day. How many of you, right across from the new property we dedicated yesterday up in Baltimore, how many of you saw what's going in right across the street? Did any of you see that sign? A Muslim training center. I heard a Christian the other day say, "This needs to stop, we need to protest, there should not be allowed any of this mosque building in the United States until they let us go proclaim the gospel in their countries. This isn't fair." It's America! That's what America is about. You want to build a mosque? You want to build a temple and put a Moroni on the top? (Moroni is the gold angel on top of the Mormon Church.) You want to go to West Virginia and handle snakes? It's America! I thank God for America. I'm not opposed to mosques being built. As far as I'm concerned, if those dudes can come in here they can build a mosque on every corner. It's America. "Well, bless God, then I'm protesting." Why don't you pray? Instead of protesting, why don't you pray? Is God in charge? Maybe God wants a mosque on every corner. Did you ever think about that? Maybe the church needs a little pressure. Maybe the church needs a little persecution. Maybe the church needs to begin to believe again in angels that open the prison doors. Maybe we need to get away from the Crusades and stop trying to get a sword and go out and whack a Muslim. How about proclaiming the power of the gospel of the resurrection of Jesus Christ? Let them use the carnal weapons; ours are mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. Who are we, the church? What weapons have you become proficient in? Where does your mind go when things aren't going right? Does your mind go to the government? Does your mind go to natural methods? Does your mind go to technology? Does your mind go to medical science? Does your mind go to politics? Does your mind go to economics, or do you instantly look to hills from whence comes our help? "Lord, we don't know what to do, Jehoshaphat said, but our eyes are upon you." "Yeah, but they didn't have any recourse." That's the point I'm trying to make. So things change because we do? It's what I've been sharing all--it's harder today. It's pretty easy to make a decision when you don't have any decisions. Amen? "Let me see, I have one choice, believe God or die. Let me think." We've been vexed. We've been seduced. We hold to a doctrine and don't have any power. Like Samson, we've risen and we've shaken ourselves and we're not aware that the Spirit has departed from us.

We'll end with this for this morning. Tonight I want to contrast a little bit about the presumptuousness that we need to guard ourselves against. When I'm talking about living in the supernatural, and I'm talking about an expectancy of miracles, I'm not talking about being foolish or presumptuous. I'm not talking about taking the bait of Satan when he came to tempt the Lord and said, "If you're the Son of God throw Yourself off this temple; it's written that God will give His angels charge over you," and the Lord turned and said, "Thou shall not tempt the Lord thy God." We're not talking about tempting--we're talking about through the normal course of life, being wise. You know, for years every morning you eat forty pounds of bacon, and you have pig fat milkshakes, and all this stuff, and then you're going to believe God to keep your arteries open. What we are saying is, if I'm going through the normal course of life what am I trusting in, really, where is my heart established? Trying to be wise as serpents, harmless as doves in the midst of this crooked and perverse generation but not fearing men, not bowing our knee, not changing our course. Like Daniel when the proclamation was made that they could not pray to any other gods but just to the image. "Daniel, as was his custom, the Scripture says, threw the windows open and prayed." We don't change our custom because of the fear of men, of circumstances, and we don't change our methods when they oppose us, but when we're incarcerated we believe God. Now, as citizens of a nation, if we have certain rights and methods of recourse then we would take those--that's God's provision--but all the while trusting. See, they didn't have that here and God delivered them. When you follow that and the end of that is reached, there's still God. We've lost that in our daily living and that's what we want to see restored to us again.

Let me see if I can find this place to unhook right now. Verse 32 of this chapter, they were released, they went and preached, they were approached again and he says, "And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him." The Holy Ghost is given to those that obey Him. Gamaliel says, "Hey, don't worry about it guys if this thing is of men it'll pass, if it's of God we don't want to be found fighting against it." The Jews said, "Yeah you're right," so they beat them, commanded them that they no longer, (we're in verse 40), speak in the name of Jesus and then they let them go. What did they do? Instantly they departed, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name's sake and went right back where they were "...daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ."

What do you have in you this morning? Who are we as His witnesses? I believe that it's time for some of us to take that mantle and to roll it up and smite the river and say, "Where is the God of Elijah?" Let's not forget the rock from which we've been hewn, who we are as His witnesses, the power of His resurrection, what we live in.

Father, we thank You for Your Word this morning, and we just ask that You would search our hearts and cause us to be a people that are living daily trusting in You, aware of the seduction of our souls, aware of the loss of our dependence in the supernatural. Cause us to come to that place. Lord, we don't know what to do, but our eyes are upon You. I refuse to approach this in the natural, my eyes are upon You. What will bring You the glory, what will be done purely by Your power that nobody can boast except in the Lord. That's our hearts' desire, Father. Be glorified in Jesus' name, amen.

Let's stand before the Lord this morning. As Gary plays for us let's take just a moment and assimilate what the Holy Spirit said to you this morning. Where are you in this, this morning? Where do you identify yourself? These signs shall follow them that believe in My name. He confirmed the Word with signs following. He watches over His Word to perform it. All things are possible to he that believeth. The effectual fervent prayers of righteous men avail much. What things soever you desire when you pray, believe that you receive them and you shall have them. Be glorified, Father, in our midst. Fill us with Your Spirit that we might be witnesses to You. It's our hearts' desire, Father.

Let's sing this together. "Holy Lord, Most Holy Lord..." Hallelujah! These signs shall follow them that believe in My name. Make it real, Father, we ask in Jesus' name, amen. Hallelujah!

Before you go, turn to somebody next to you and say, "We're living in the supernatural." Amen. Go in peace, God's love go with you.

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