Tag: Goodness of God

You Can Be Healthy!

Word of Faith Month October 2009 – Tree of Life Church

God Wants You Well!

In this Biblical, passionate and very practical sermon Benjamin will show you how to enjoy and keeping enjoying divine health every day of your life. Taking the lessons learned in the first three sermons in this series and applying them to victory over sickness, this message is indispensable to anyone who wants to enjoy health and minister healing.

Again to those of you who do not know what thread you are in: this is NO DEBATE. Thanks for respecting the rules of the forum!

Romans 2.4

Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

Paul is talking still about religious people: about people who come to God on the basis of what they have done, not on the basis of what He has done. Religion ruins lives.

As we have seen in verses 1-3, religion leads you to judge people for things that you do yourself. It leads you to criticise people for doing things wrong that you do yourself. It leads you to having a double standard for judging people – if person X commits sin Y then you condemn them and judge them. When you commit the same sin, you justify yourself because of your motivation or your other good works. In short, religion makes you judgmental, critical, acerbic and rude. No-one likes a religious person.

Jesus on the other hand is gracious, kind, redemptive, helpful, gentle and easy to live with. If people truly know Jesus they are great people to be around. They are easy to live with, they are kind, patient and gentle.

Religion is awful.

Now, this verse contains some wonderful instruction. It explains why religious people are so condemning, judgmental and hypocritical.

The reason is this: they hate the riches of God’s goodness, forbearance and longsuffering. Never, ever hate God’s goodness, forbearance and longsuffering.

Let’s look at these three elements of God individually:

1. God’s goodness

The Greek word for goodness is chrēstotēs. It can be translated as goodness or benignity or kindness. It means that God is never mean, never malicious, never hurtful. It means that God does not have plans to harm us, does not want revenge on us when we sin, is not holding back anything from us.

It means God is good and good means good. God loves us and God is for us. You can cast all your cares on Him because He cares for you. He adores you. He only wants to do good for you, He only speaks good words about you, He only acts for your good. He truly is awesome!

Religious people do not realize that God is rich in goodness. They think that if you do something wrong, God will immediately withhold His blessing and get revenge. Some religious people will tell you that God is behind all the evil in the world. Others will tell you that you are not healed or not wealthy because of your sin or your lack of goodness or lack of service.

All these ideas have their root in despising the goodness of God and not having a clue of who God really is!

2. God’s forbearance

The Greek word for forbearance is anochē. It means the ability to put up with things. God is rich in forbearance. God is tolerant.

If you have messed up today, God is not looking to get you and beat you up for it. God is rich in the ability to put up with things. Look how much you did wrong before you were born again! God put up with all of that, and still when you repented and believed accepted you fully and made you fully righteous.

Now you are in God’s family: He puts up with anything you do.

Religious people are not tolerant. They will not put up with anything. If you sin you are out the door. Heaven forbid if you do something wrong that people find out about. If you break the religious community rules you will be shunned. That is what religious people are like: they will turn on you as quickly as you can imagine. They are not tolerant because they do not know the tolerance of God. God is gracious! God can put up with things.

The more you realize the goodness and graciousness of God, the easier it is to develop a real genuine relationship with Him.

3. God’s longsuffering

God’s forbearance is God’s ability to put up with anything you do wrong and not shun you or kick you out of the community. It is a form of mercy: God’s mercy is God’s ability not to treat you as your sins deserve.

God’s longsuffering is God’s ability to love you and care about you and passionately desire to be with you no matter what you have done. It is a form of God’s grace. God’s mercy is not giving you what you deserve, God’s grace is giving you what you do not deserve.

God’s longsuffering is God’s ability to love you and bless you even when you do not deserve it. It comes from the Greek word makrothymia, which is translated patience or longsuffering in the KJV. It comes from two words: makro, meaning long; and thymos which means passion or heat.

Listen: even on your worst day, God still feels passion for you. He is the God of macro-passion. He dotes on you, cares for you, loves you passionately.

Religious people cannot deal with this. They cannot sustain their passion for God or for people. They cloak their lack of passion for God and for people with religious cliches. They hate people who turn up and who pray with passion, preach with passion, love with passion, serve with passion. Religious people portray an austere God, not a God hot with passion.

There is even a doctrine many churches in the UK teach called impassibility. This means that God cannot experience pain or pleasure from our actions. It is heresy – the Bible is clear: he CAN be touched with the feelings of our infirmities (Hebrews 4.15). Not only that: it leads to people not being able to understand God, so it stops people having a real relationship with Him.

Muslims also teach that God has no emotions, no passion, no heat. It is simply not true: God can be made happy by your actions. God can be grieved by your actions.

Listen: God adores you. He is passionate about you. When you fail and you feel pain, He feels it more. His love for you is boundless, it is passionate, it is red-hot. He adores you.

Conclusion

When you realize that God is good, longsuffering and tolerant you start to enjoy His company. It is when you accept the lie that God is some short-fused difficult to please monster that you run far far away from Him.

People often get worried and concerned when you teach that God is good, that God forgives, that God does not hold sin against you. They start to panic: if you do that they say, people will do whatever they want. They will live in sin and rebel.

That is absolutely not true. It is the truth that sets people free. When the truth that God is good and kind is preached, it leads people to repentance. The Greek word for repentance means to change your thinking.

It is ONLY when you realize that God is good, can you actually change your life and live a pure, holy, loving, kind life. Religious people do not live a pure life, they are critical hypocrites. They are cruel, mean and condemning. If you sin they will judge you and fail to love you. They are not godly. They have a form of godliness, but no power. People who think that God is out to get them may look holy, they ARE NOT.

When you realize that God is good and that He adores you, that does not make you want to go and do what you want. It makes you want to tell God how much you love Him, to go and show that love and goodness to some stranger, to go and serve your family, to honour His life and goodness and to go and preach the gospel to the world.

I adjure you: NEVER NEVER NEVER despise the riches of God’s goodness, God’s forbearance and God’s longsuffering. Rather enjoy those riches and share them with the world!

Glory and freedom,
Benjamin

Romans 1.28

And even as they did not like to retain God in [their] knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

This is the third and final letting go of God. The first time is when He lets go of us to glorify a false god, the second time is when He lets go of us to error and falsehood and the third and final time is when He lets go of us to a reprobate mind.

Again, Paul takes the care to ensure that we know God only lets go of us because we have chosen not to retain God in our knowledge. The word retain simply means to “have”, one of the most common words in the Greek and the word for knowledge means to know on a personal level.

You see because people make a clear decision to have nothing to do with God and refuse to acknowledge Him as Creator, they turned to false gods and sexual immorality.

Because people make a clear decision to have nothing to do with God and refuse to acknowledge Him as Truthful and Honest, they turned to falsehood and vile passions.

But here – because people make a clear decision to have nothing to do with God at all on any level, they turned to a reprobate mind.

This is life in many Western countries now: God is not even acknowledged in literature, in law, in rituals and in calendars. The nod-to-God (religious values but no dynamic walk with God) squad is dying out and being replaced by people who have a reprobrate mind. The Greek word for reprobate is adokimos.

In his commentary on Romans 14.18, Donald Barnhouse says this about the Greek word dokimos:

“In the ancient world there was no banking system as we know it today, and no paper money. All money was made from metal, heated until liquid, poured into moulds and allowed to cool. When the coins were cooled, it was necessary to smooth off the uneven edges. The coins were comparatively soft, and of course many people shaved them closely. In one century, more than eighty laws were passed in Athens to stop the practice of whittling down the coins then in circulation. But some money-changers were men of integrity, who would accept no counterfeit money; they were men of honour who put only genuine, full-weight money into circulation. Such men were called dokimos, and this word is used here for the Christian as he is to be seen by the world.” (Donald Grey Barnhouse, Romans: God’s Glory, p. 18.)

Dokimos means someone who is completely honest, the same on the inside as he is on the outside. Someone whose character you can rely on, someone whose value you can accept.

Adokimos means the exact opposite. The Greeks use “a-” at the beginning of words in the same way that we use “un-” (for example: atheist or agnostic) to mean the exact opposite.

If you – or a community or nation – rejects God completely by rejecting His values, His personality and His life then your mind becomes adokimos. That is a fact. You cannot rely on your mind, your mind will play tricks on you, your mind will not work properly, your life will never be a success ever because your own worst enemy is your own mind.

That is true of many people today. You will see them experience pain, loss, anguish and regret over things that at the time they genuinely thought were a great idea: have sex with that person, tell that person what you think of them, get revenge on that person, hurt that person. Why so many errors of judgment? Because their own mind cannot be relied on at all. Their own mind cannot be trusted to give them logical, rational and godly advice.

And what is the end of people who cannot trust their mind: [They] do those things which are not convenient.

Look at that phrase in the NIV: to do what ought not to be done.

In the NLT it says: do things that should never be done.

The Greek word is possibly best translated “inappropriate”. This is what happens when you reject God as a person: you act inappropriately. When a nation or a generation rejects God everyone in that nation acts inappropriately. They do things that should never be done.

This is what happens when you reject God. You do things that should never be done because your own mind does not function properly.

Your mind is part of your soul. It is according to Strong’s, “the power of considering and judging soberly, calmly and impartially”.

Today there are many young people (and older people) who cannot rely on their power of considering and judging soberly, calmly and impartially. In the news (on the front page) today was a story of a young rapper who interrupted the music awards in the middle of someone receiving an award to tell her that she did not deserve it. He is now on national and international TV apologising.

Why did he get up and do such a thing that has ruined his reputation and endangered his career? His mind was reprobrate – he does not even acknowledge God as a person.

On a far more horrific note, in the news this week a mother has been arrested for murdering her two daughters so that her ex-husband could not win custody for them. Why would someone murder a human, their own babies, just to spite someone else? A reprobate mind.

Any time you read a story that is horrific and you cannot understand why someone did not judge soberly you know that person has a reprobrate mind. This is a serious stage to be in and signifies that you are out of control. You need set free, you need restored, you need a dose of truth.

My friend, never let yourself get to the stage where your mind is reprobate. If there is an area of your life in which you are continually making stupid decisions and the consequences are genuinely surprising you then in that area your mind could be reprobate. If so, you need to go back and read Romans 1.21 and see how you started down that path and start to glorify and praise God, and thank Him for His goodness. You need to acknowledge Him as a person who you can relate to and walk with and talk with and glorify and enjoy!

Selah!

Benjamin

Love The Secret to Your Success (by Gloria Copeland)

Love. You hear heaps about it. But, the reality is, few People actually know what it is. For most, it’s an Emotional ghost that appears then vanishes Without any warning. Illusive. Undefinable. Forever
Sought, but infrequently found.

Even believers seem to be confused about it at Times. But they don’t need to be. The Word of God Discovers obviously what love truly is. Look at two John six : And what this love consists in is this : that we live and walk as agreed by and steered by His commandments ( His orders, ordinances, Precepts, teaching. ) This is the commandment, as You’ve heard from the beginning, that you Continue to walk in love [guided by it and following It] ( The Amplified Bible ).

Quite simply, God claims love is keeping His
Commandments. That brings love out of the indefinite into something explicit. But God has done Even more than outline love for you. He’s’s given you instructions so you can know how To like as he likes. By giving you His Word, God Has given you His love manual in black and white!

All you’ve got to do is follow it, and you’ll be walking In love. If you’ve made Jesus Christ the Lord of your life, You’ve already taken step one of obedience. The love of God has been born inside you. But, Unless you’re taking action, that love will remain hidden Within you. Love works in pretty much the same way as the force of faith. Faith is born into you when you’re begotten Of God, but till you start to act on God’s Word, That powerful force lies dormant. The same is true
Concerning the love of God. You can have the love of God abiding within you and still be unable to allow it to work through you to reach other folks.

Like religion, love becomes active thru data
Of the Word. That’s why the Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Philippi exclaiming, And this I pray, that your love may
Abound yet more and more in data and in all
Judgment ( Philippians nineteen ).

The love of God is released in your life by acting on the knowledge of God’s Word. Without revelation knowledge followed by action, love lies undeveloped And selfishness continues to reign supreme in you even though you’re a new creature.

But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the Love of God perfected : hereby know we that we Are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought Himself also so to walk, even as he walked ( 1 John 2:5-6 ). As you act on God’s Word, the love of God will be Perfected in you. That’s’s when love will begin to Flow from you to others.

About Gloria Copeland

With a passion for Scripture and a determination to see the Church experience freedom and truth, Gloria Copeland has been teaching about the life-changing power of God’s Word for more than 40 years. She’s the founder of Kenneth Copeland Ministriesdeclaring Jesus Is Lord!and writer of several best-selling books, including concealed Treasures and Hearing From Heaven.

Wonderful News Healing Crusade NIGHT THREE

We had 10 in attendance, not including Amanda and myself. (Also not including the 2 ladies running our creche – which was basically our children)

I preached a message on Jesus is our Jubilee, which can be accessed here.

We had a wonderful guy come along who was from the Bahai religion – he interrupted me when I said that Hinduism was a false religion that didn’t lead to God, and we had an interesting debate!

It has been a very variable attendance, and been a lot of fun. I am expecting that God has kept the best wine to last and expect to be writing a long testimony about tomorrow’s meeting.

God bless you all, each and every one!

Glory and Freedom,

Benjamin

How to Heal the Sick (Benjamin Conway)

Teach the Truth

And he came down with them, and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people out of all Judaea and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, which came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases;   (Luke 6.17)

People need to hear to be healed.  The most important thing you can do to help someone receive their healing is to let them hear the truth.

There are three truths that every person who wants to receive their healing immediately needs to know:

  1. 1. Jesus Christ died on the cross taking their sicknesses and diseases
    1. Isaiah 53.4-6
    2. Matthew 8.16-17
    3. 1 Peter 2.24
    4. Galatians 3.13 and Deut. 28.61
  1. That according to the Word of God they are already healed
    1. 1 Peter 2.24
    2. Luke 13.12
    3. Mark 11.24
  1. That speaking faith-filled Words changes the physical realm
    1. Mark 11.23
    2. Acts 14.7-10
    3. Matthew 8.1-3

Now, if you are at a healing crusade, a good Bible teacher or preacher will have preached these three points and emphasised at least one of them.  If you are part of the ministry team, then your job will not necessarily be to teach these again or re-preach the sermon.  You may want to confirm the person has understood these points and heard them from the preaching and believes them.

If you are in the supermarket or in your house, the person may or may not be willing to listen to you.  You need to learn how to best present these truths as quickly as possible, using personal illustrations to yourself so that people can understand the point you are making.

Minister Life

Find out what is wrong with someone by asking them.  You can ask a couple of questions to confirm what is wrong, but don’t spend too long listening to symptoms and ailments.  Just know what you need to speak against and what organs you need to minister life to.

  1. Lay your hands on the person (Mark 16.17).  Touch is very powerful when it comes to healing as the life of God in you is transferred through physical touch (Matt. 8.1, 15)
  2. Command all sickness and pain and any other symptoms to leave the person immediately (Mark 11.23, Romans 5.17)
  3. Command every organ to function properly (James 3.2, John 5.8-9) in the name of Jesus (John 14.14)

Confirm Manifestation

Manifestation is just the word used for a healing or miracle moving from the spiritual realm to the physical realm.  After you have prayed with the person, ask them if there has been any change.  Remember though we are not asking to see if they are healed, they are healed (1 Pet. 2.24), we are asked to see if the healing has manifest (Mark 8.23-25).  Often I ask someone on a scale of 1 to 10, how much of the pain has gone.

If someone at this stage is completely healed, then rejoice with those that rejoice.  Be happy with the person and ensure they receive information on how to stay healed (either give them a teaching book such as God Wants You Well by Andrew Wommack or God’s Medicine Bottle by Derek Prince; arrange to meet them again at a set time – about a week; or take them to a good Bible believing church that knows how to teach faith).  Ensure YOU get THEIR contact details – a phone number or something – because you cannot rely on them to call you.

If the person is mostly healed, I would encourage them to thank the Lord for their healing and for them to continue to command the pain to be gone and their organs to function properly.  Again, ensure they receive information on how to stay healed.

If the person is about half healed, I would repeat step B myself, just like Jesus prayed again for the man in Mark 8.23-25.  Ask again how healed the person is – they should be mostly healed now.  If so, follow the guidelines above.

If the person is only a tiny bit healed, or feels no better at all, praying again at this stage may just discourage you and them.  At this stage, give them a good book on healing (as referenced above, or the mini-book Hear and Be Healed by Kenneth Hagin) or a list of Scriptures to meditate on for healing.  Ensure they get to hear more faith-filled messages on healing or study the Word more, then pray for them again at a later date.  In a crusade, if it is not the last night ensure they come back for another service and spend particular time paying attention to the healing message.  Again, get their details so you can see if they have spent time in the Word and meet them again to pray for them again.

Robb Thompson: Your Passport to Promotion Session 1

Beautiful sermon on how to succeed.

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Kenneth E Hagin – Healing School (Sun of Righteousness)

This is a rare opportunity to watch Kenneth Hagin preach on healing, from 1980. Enjoy!

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T L Osborn Documentary on Java

This is a beautiful introduction to the nation of Java and to the miraculous power of the Holy Spirit. Enjoy!

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more about “T L Osborn Documentary on Java“, posted with vodpod