Scripture Reference: Ephesians 2:21-22 (KJV); Ephesians 4:11-13 (KJV); Ephesians 4:13 (AMPC); Acts 22:14 (AMPC); 1 Thessalonians 2:4-8 (TLB); 1 Thessalonians 2:11-13 (TLB); 1 Thessalonians 2:13 (AMPC); Acts 2:42-43 (KJV); Acts 2:42 (AMPC); Acts 2:42 (TLB); Psalm 22:22 (AMPC); 2 Chronicles 20:1-6, 8, 21-22 (AMPC)
Thank You, Father for being here, with us today. Your presence is a wonderful thing to us. In this place it’s the most precious thing to us, it’s what we’ve been preparing for so You can me more and more, because we understand Lord, for You to come in Your fullness, there must be a fullness in us, but we want to tell You today that we want You more and more, and we’re preparing our hearts for You to come in Your fullness. Hallelujah. Thank you, worship group, you can be seated, you’ll come up again just now. Hallelujah.
Well, good morning everybody. Thank you, you can just switch it off. Thank you very much. I have a particular flow today, so I’m going to move right along. Much love from Pastor John who’s in Ethiopia with, for Brother Jerry with Brother Joe and Pastor Walter, and he sends his love and he’s back next week.
So the title of my message today is; that sorry about this. Title of my message today is; We Want, We Prepare and He Comes. So, I’m just quickly going to remind you all, Heritage of Faith people, about Pastor John and I, our mandate and our calling from the Lord. You know, Pastor John asks that question; what is the point of being a Christian? Can you answer me Heritage of Faith? Can you answer me again on that? [Congregation answers; being spiritual]. Yes. And what’s the point of being spiritual is his next question? That’s our mandate from God. What’s the, what’s the point, what’s the point of being spiritual? To bring Heaven, what Heaven has for us to earth. Hallelujah.
So, Pastor John brought that scripture from Luke one verse 17 out of the Amplified just recently, this is what Pastor John and I are called to do. Is to make ready for the Lord a people. To make ready for the Lord a people. To make ready for the Lord a people. Luke one seventeen from the Amplified Bible is what Pastor John and I are called to do. To make ready for the Lord a people, a people perfectly prepared in Spirit. Can you see that? To be spiritual. What is it to be spiritual? Well, the New Testament is so full of that. Jesus said; the words that I speak to you, they are Spirit. So the messages Pastor John brings to you every Sunday is Spirit, in fact the words that I’m speaking to you now is Spirit, because I got them from the Lord. That’s why God is giving us a Heavenly language to pray in the Spirit. Galatians, talks about; walk in the Spirit. Ephesians talks about; be filled with the Spirit. So, it’s because God is a Spirit, people. God is a Spirit.
So why does God want Pastor John and I to perfectly prepare you in Spirit? So that you can also be adjusted and disposed and placed in the right moral state. I tell you when you are spiritual and you decide to walk in the Spirit those moral issues will take care of themselves. Really. Really. You don’t have to think about this and that and this and that. When you decide to walk in the Spirit, those moral issues take care of themselves.
Why does God want us to prepare a people? Prepare, perfectly prepared in Spirit so He can come. He wants to come to a people. He doesn’t just want to come to a person. I tell you, He comes to me every day, He lives in me. But He wants also to come to a people. He wants to manifest Himself to us together, because we’re a family, people, we’re a family. We’re family. Now, if you’re not part of this family here, that’s okay. You should be part of a family somewhere. You can just make yourself at home here because we’re all the family of God. This is the particular work that God has been doing through Pastor John and I for people that we are walking together with in life because that’s how Pastor John and I are called. We are called to walk with you for life. We are lifers. Pastor John and I are lifers. We just like our spiritual father and our spiritual parents; we are just like Brother Jerry. We are just like Kenneth Copeland, never left his spiritual father, Oral Roberts. We never left our spiritual father, Kenneth Hagin. Brother Jerry’s never left Kenneth Copeland. We will never leave Brother Jerry; we are lifers. Hallelujah. We believe that God places a people together to walk together for life; comfortable or not. Comfortable or not. And it’s not comfortable in Pastor John’s eleven, twelve part series on Walking Together that he ministered last year and finished this year. The eleven part series Walking Together is not comfortable. But that doesn’t mean that we don’t walk together.
Ephesians two, just to show you that God wants to be here with us completely in His fullness, of course He is here with us. He’s always with us, but there’s a fullness of God that He wants to manifest and demonstrate among us, that’s what we’ve been pressing for. And so it says Ephesians two, 21In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto a holy temple in the Lord, verse 22, 22In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit (Ephesians 2:21-22 KJV). Okay. This is the way of God in His Church. He doesn’t have another way, this is the way of God, the Word, we see His patterns in His Word.
And so, when Jesus ascended, Ephesians 4:11-13 it says, He gave, when Jesus left this earth it says, 11And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: so that the body can grow so, 13Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, that is maturity people, that’s a son of God matured, unto the measure. How mature can we become? The measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Ephesians 4:11-13 KJV).
So you are not going to become that fullness unless we walk together, because here Jesus said, “I’ve given apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers so that you can become mature. Hallelujah. There’s a measure of growth you can experience with God all by yourself, but there’s a measure that where He won’t bypass His Word, precious ones. He won’t bypass His Word. He said; you’re supposed to be with a people where I can mature you together, walking together. It’s His way.
Then the Amplified says, 13 [That it might develop], that we might develop that until we all might attain oneness in the faith and in the comprehension of the [full and accurate] knowledge of the Son of God, that [we all might arrive] at really mature manhood (Ephesians 4:13 AMPC). You see, that’s what God’s after and that’s what Pastor John and I are not here to build anything else other than you into mature manhood. To let our gifts flow freely, to do that and for you to receive this pattern as from the Lord. You see? For the perfecting until we all come in the unity, (the completeness, which is the mature manhood. (The completeness of personality which is nothing less than the standard height of Christ’s own perfection), the measure of the stature of the fullness of the Christ and the completeness found in Him (Ephesians 4:13 AMPC).
We’ve been teaching you out of Romans how that Christ is in you and you identify with His death and you identify in your life with His resurrection. You’re a new creature, old things have passed away and you’ve got to grow in the knowledge of that. It’s something that you need to have faith in that Christ lives in me, Christ in me, Christ in me. You need to have faith in all of the scriptures, like in Romans chapter 8 that says that God has predestined us to be moulded and created into the image of Christ Jesus. The Amplified says; to share inwardly His likeness. You and I can share inwardly His likeness, and like I have said to you so many times before; the highest calling is not the calling of an apostle, or a prophet, or an evangelist, or a pastor, teacher. The highest calling is the mature son of God that’s why God gave gifts. He gave gifts to gifts, because you are a gift from God. He gave gifts to gifts, if you read earlier on in that chapter you’ll see, He gave all men gifts and then He called these gifts to the gifts, to help bring out all the gifts. Come on, come to maturity, let Christ be manifest in you, let Christ grow in you. Be intimate, abide in the Vine, live with Him, breathe with Him, be with Him, want Him, want Him, want Him, want to be like Him, because you can be, because you can be like Him. Hallelujah, hallelujah. Glory
So, how does this come about that you get mature? I want to remind you about the messenger’s part. You know that revelation of Pastor John’s; He hears, He sees, and then He sends a messenger with the message and then He releases the power for our deliverance. The messenger’s part, Acts 22:14-15, so this is the messenger’s part. 14And he said, this man is speaking to Apostle Paul, because he’s just been arrested by God, because he was working against the Church and he’s gone blind and God sends a messenger to Apostle Paul that says to him, 14The God of our forefathers has destined and appointed you to come progressively to know His will, that is part of a messenger is for us to know His will. The messenger, Pastor John must know the will of God to bring to us. I must know the will of God. Pastor Christi must know the will of God, Pastor Garth, they all come. It all comes from the revelation that first comes from Pastor John. Hallelujah. Pastor Melusi. Glory to God. So God has called you, Paul, teacher, prophet, apostle, to come progressively to know His will, [to perceive and recognize more strongly and clearly, and to become better and more intimately acquainted with His will], and to see the Righteous One (Jesus Christ, the Messiah) and, to hear a voice from His [own] mouth and a message from His own [lips] (Acts 22:14 AMPC).
That’s the messenger’s part, is to hear a message from the own lips of Jesus. To see Jesus, to know the will of Jesus and that’s what Pastor John and I have done for years. We seek Him for His will and to see Him and to hear a message from His own mouth and a voice from His own lips, and then what to do and then to do this to be a witness unto all men of everything you’ve seen and heard. We’ve got to bring it. You see? Listen, listen, listen people, just because there are some flaky people out there; they call themselves and those are the ones that the book of Jeremiah, the whole Old Testament talks about, they went and I never send them. They went and I never sent. Just because there are those, they just went, they just started, they just set themselves up as a leader; doesn’t mean to say there’s not the real thing. And if your heart is true and real to God, you’ll find the real thing. You’ll find the real thing.
God is honour bound and He wants to be honour bound to lead you to the true shepherds that He set up after His own heart, because they are there, they’re here in the earth right now and He knows who they are. If your heart is true, true blue, He will send you, He will get you. He’s honour bound to take you to the place. When we get to the place, Deuteronomy 12, then you seek the place that the Lord your God shall choose for you to go and there you shall come, and there you shall rejoice, and there you shall bring, and there you and your children. Glory to God. Hallelujah.
So 1 Thessalonians, this is the messenger’s part, 1 Thessalonians 2:4-8 from The Living Bible, 4For we speak as messengers from God, trusted by him to tell the truth; we change his message not one bit to suit the taste of those who hear it; for we serve God alone (1 Thessalonians 2:4 TLB).
Does that remind you maybe of a scripture where it says; in the last days people will heap unto themselves teachers for their own liking that will satisfy their itching ears? Don’t tell me these things, I want a message that I like to hear. No, no, you don’t want that. You want to become like Jesus. You don’t want a watered down anything. Your true spirit, son of God, cries out for the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help me God. Hallelujah.
If you are truly born again that cry is in you. It doesn’t matter how carnal you may be living. If you are truly born again, your spirit cries out for that. Your spirit cries out for Him, to be mature in Him, to grow up and to share inwardly His likeness. Hallelujah.
4We change his message not one bit to suit the taste of those who hear it; for we serve God alone, who examines our hearts’ deepest thoughts. 5Never once did we try to win you with flattery, as you very well know, and God knows we were not just pretending to be your friends so that you would give us money! Pastor John just got through bringing the money changing scripture. 6As for praise, we have never asked for it from you or anyone else, although as apostles of Christ we certainly had a right to some honor from you. You have learned about irrational honour in this place. 7But we were as gentle among you as a mother feeding and caring for her own children. 8We loved you dearly—so dearly that we gave you not only God’s message, but our own lives too (1 Thessalonians 2:4-8 TLB).
Do you know that Pastor John, you may not, you may not be aware of it because you, I don’t know why you wouldn’t be aware of it, because it’s what we do all the time. We give you the message and we give you our own lives, all the time. We open up our whole life to you. You think that when we bring you examples of how we live our life that we want you to be impressed or do you think it is because we are setting example for you. You too can do this. You can follow us as we follow Christ. Hallelujah. Yes. We love you and I want to tell you today, everyone of you, Heritage of Faith people, Pastor John and I love you dearly, so dearly that we give you not only God’s messages, but we give you our lives.
The people’s part, here is the people’s part, it is God’s pattern. 1 Thessalonians 2:11-13, Living Bible, 11We talked to you as a father to his own children—don’t you remember?—pleading with you, encouraging you and even demanding 12that your daily lives should not embarrass God but bring joy to him who invited you into his Kingdom to share his glory (1 Thessalonians 2:11-12 TLB). It is a strict House this. Can you see why? Can you see why? Can you see why we don’t change our message? Because we know you can. We know you can change, because we know you are born again. We know you have the capability of becoming like Christ. We know you can. So, if you know and you don’t, it is not because you can’t, it is because you won’t.
So, that is what we have to do, and you have to let us do it. This is your part to let us do it, and some of you don’t want to let us do it. You stay away from Pastor John and I. We want to give you our lives and you just want to stand aloof from us. No, come into God’s pattern. Come into God’s pattern. Glory to God. 12That your daily lives should not embarrass God but bring joy to him who invited you. Verse 13, 13And we will never stop thanking God for this: that when we preached to you, you didn’t even think of the words we spoke as being just our own (1 Thessalonians 2:12-13 TLB). Many of you have been like that with Pastor John and I, for 20 years now, some for ten, because we celebrate next year 20 years in Witbank. Glory to God. Hallelujah. And so, that is okay. Many of you have been with us that long. Some of you have been with us not so long. Some of you just recently come in with us, but you are all here and we are all walking together in this pattern. So, when we preached to you, you didn’t think of the words we spoke as being just our own, but you accepted what we said as the very Word of God – which, of course, it was – and it changed your lives when you believed it.
You know, something that Charles Finney says in his book on revival and he was a great revivalist. He said; do you think that your pastor is not preaching to you? Who else must he preach to? Do you think this message is not for you? If you don’t think it is for you, then who is it for, if it is not for you? The great revivalist in Ireland. So, when your pastor preaches to you, God gives him messages for you, not for anybody else and other flocks and other shepherds, people. It is for you, only for you, because God has called Pastor John and I to prepare for Him a people, perfectly adjusted in spirit. Perfectly prepared in spirit, people, and we are going somewhere in the spirit, today. Right? I am not letting you out of here today until I am done. Can you lock the doors in the back, please? Just kidding. Okay.
Then the Amplified Bible says in 1 Thessalonians 2:13, we, this same scripture in the Amplified is magnificent, and Paul, the Apostle says to the church in Thessalonica, 13And we also [especially] thank God continually for this, that when you received the message of God [which you heard] from us, you welcomed it not as the word of [mere] men, but as it truly is, the Word of God, which is effectually at work in you who believe (1 Thessalonians 2:13 AMPC). So, when you, you are supposed to believe what we say, then it will work in you, you see. So, it is effectually at work in you who believe that is why the two, to me this year, the two most significant messages came from Pastor Christi and Pastor Garth. I tell you, it puts us on true North. Put your foot in the messages. I mean, Pastor Christi had to bring it to the Johannesburg Church with tears. You know why? Because she knew that there would be some people there that would say, You want to tell me that again? That I must be in the messages, Pastor John’s messages? I must actually go to the scriptures during the week. I must actually believe what he said? And then Pastor Garth brought that magnificent message about; burry yourself in the messages, bury yourself in the messages. Everything that you need is in the messages.
I’ll tell you those two messages set me on true North. Hallelujah. Because it’s a pattern, the early Church did it, Acts 2:42-43, 42And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And then fear comes. 43And fear came upon every soul: and then wonders and signs are done, and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles (Acts 2:42-43 KJV). Can you see the pattern, people? Really, it’s your part, it’s your part, we do our part, you do your part and God can come. God can come because that’s Who we’re preparing ourselves for, so He can come more and more. Yes, He lives in you, yes, He comes here, but we want Him much more, we want Him much more than He’s manifesting Himself.
And we’re preparing ourselves spiritually for that. The Amplified says, 42And they steadfastly persevered, devoting themselves constantly to the instruction and fellowship of the apostles (Acts 2:42 AMPC). The instruction and fellowship of the apostles, you see, those apostles were giving them their lives. Okay. I like the Living Bible, it says, 42They joined with the other believers in regular attendance at the apostles’ teaching sessions, and at the Communion services and at the prayer meetings (Acts 2:42 TLB). That’s what we have, that’s what we have. We have sessions, teaching sessions like this morning and we have communion services and we have prayer meetings every Tuesday night. That’s what they did, that’s what they did.
So, I’m coming to a next point now; Pastor John’s particular giftings and anointings. Okay, here’s Pastor John, here’s my particular giftings and anointings, both so different and the difference gives the Lord what He needs to do through Pastor John and I in His kingdom and in His Church what He needs to do in it while we’re alive on this earth. So He had us both born, He brought Pastor John by a way, he was a Pastor’s kid, got born again at the age of five, got baptised in the Holy Spirit at the age of seven in the Assemblies of God. He brought me by a way; my father and my mother were in the Apostolic Faith Mission. Apparently, I cut my teeth on the church organs and, and He had me brought by a way, okay.
So He had Pastor John He was preparing, He had me that He was preparing, we crossed our paths at the right time and He’s called us; this is just our story, right? Okay. So He prepared us in order to prepare Him a people. He prepared us. He called Pastor John and I from the womb. He knew He was going to use us to prepare a people that was spiritually ready for Him, that wanted Him, like Pastor John ministered last week. Oh my, so now for twenty years in the ministry because you know Pastor John’s story. He was, he was in business, he was in the corporate world and we always knew God was going to call us and the time would come and He called us and He called us to Witbank, divinely connected us with Brother Jerry, okay. We, so for twenty years in the ministry Pastor John and I have gone about listening and obeying the Lord. Bringing all the messages He has given us to bring. Laying strong foundations, building, and we brought what we had learned from our spiritual fathers to a people. Do you remember Pastor John’s quote from two weeks ago? He said; here’s a quotation from somebody I don’t know, and the quotation says this; true civilisation hangs suspended from generation to generation by the gossamer strand of memory. If only one cohort of fathers and mothers fails to convey to its children what it has learned from its parents, then the great chain of learning and wisdom snaps.
Today I’m bringing you a gossamer strand. What’s gossamer? It’s delicate, it’s so fine it can just easily just, blow away. It can just easily, it’s here but it can just as easily be gone. Today, I’m going to be bringing you, please just stay with me, people. I’m bringing you, because we’ve been bringing you things that were gossamer strands of learnings that we’ve learned from our fathers and it was a prayer, it was a gossamer strand. Let me tell you; it was so delicate because we grew up in the church where I, I, I mean, I think we had two prayer meetings. We had awesome Word, awesome Word, but we did not have prayer. And Pastor John brought that scripture where Jesus comes into the temple and He says, “You have made it all about commerce and you get out of here because I said my Father’s House shall be called a House of speaking to God. My House shall be a House of speaking to God, where my people speak to Me.” Hallelujah, glory. “And you’ve made it a den of thieves; you’re just in it for some other agendas. You just come to church for some other reasons, not for Me, not for Me.”
Do you know that David, the King David said, “The House is not for man but for God.” Why? So He can come to a people prepared. Here we go, here we go. True civilisation hangs suspended from generation to generation by the gossamer strand of memory. If only one cohort or group of people with the same characteristics of fathers and mothers fails to convey to its children what it has learned from its parents, then the great chain of learning and wisdom snaps. If the guardians of human knowledge stumble only one time, in their fall, collapses the whole edifice of knowledge and understanding.
Then Pastor John said this; it’s quite significant actually that this doesn’t talk about Google, and it doesn’t talk about what you can learn on the internet. This talks about a learning that is given from generation to generation. It’s not just a transmission of information. Information you can get anywhere and in particular you can get information from all kinds of sources. Knowledge and understanding is a completely different experience. So knowledge and understanding is a different way that you receive information. Information is given and then it is explained, and then it is helped to be understood. And that is what I’m going to do with my main point today. I’m going to help you to understand, like we have helped you with the gossamer thread of prayer. We’ve taught and taught and taught and taught, and now it’s not a gossamer strand, it’s a thick strong rope. Hallelujah. And then we had faith with such a gossamer strand; the just shall live by faith. How do we live by faith? How do, what is it, what is it to live by faith? We taught and taught and taught and taught, and now it’s a thick cord in many of your lives because you’ve heard what we’ve said and you believe it, and now it’s exercising a superhuman power in you who believe. Glory. So, and if you haven’t got it yet, stick around here, you’re going to get it all.
It says here; real learning is not well. I’ll just find out what information says about it. Learning is something that comes with a whole experience. Here’s Pastor John on August the 25th. There are things that are passed from generation to generation; this is knowledge and understanding that is available in churches where they are constructive, purposely developed relationships so that you get to learn how you can pray, how you can live by faith and how you can live by, for God successfully. That’s why we open our lives to you. We don’t just bring you messages; we open our lives to you. Hallelujah. And so this kind of revelation Pastor John says of how you can live in the order of God is not something you learn from a set of teaching; this is a level of discipleship that is learned through human interaction, that’s why we walk together. It’s through relationships, it’s through people living together by the Word, it’s through people living together by the Word. Ah people, and then this is how God gave me the quote then spiritually, He revealed it to me; true Christianity hangs suspended from generation to generation by the gossamer strand of memory. I would share with Brynn many times, Brynn, you know when we first went and we were first planted there, oh the presence of God and the power of God and Bryn would go, “Oh mom, we never knew, we, I didn’t experience it.” I said, “Brynn, Dad and I are busy preparing a people and it is coming. He’s coming.” He’s coming, He’s coming, He’s coming, He’s coming. He’s preparing a people who want Him. So a gossamer; true Christianity hangs suspended from generation to generation by the gossamer strand of memory. If only one cohort of spiritual fathers and mothers fails to convey to their children what they learned from their spiritual parents then the great chain of learning and wisdom snaps. If the guardians of spiritual knowledge stumble only one time in their fall collapses a whole edifice of knowledge and understanding.
Can you imagine if we did not bring prayer to you? Can you imagine where many of you that have believed and are in a place of prayer, of faith and believing, can you imagine where we would be if we just said; it’s too thin, it’s too delicate, it’s too much work. Can you imagine? But we’ve made it a thick cord and it’s increasing and intensifying because God promised us; if you’ll organize it and you’ll establish it in your Church it will increase and intensify. Hallelujah. Glory.
So the quote is, Pastor John says on the 11th of August; I’ve been telling you a long time, Church, what God’s busy with us here is not just for us, it’s for the generations to come. By the time Pastor John and I go home to be with the Lord we will have such thick ropes, thick ropes. I tell you what I know; I know that it will go from generation to generation to a generation. I know that, glory to God. And then he says; it’s for the generations to come. God needs a people that will stand for our message and the way we’ve created relationships based on the Word of God. We are not a Church that is a program driven Church. We’re not a Church that’s about hype. We’re a Church based on the Word of God. We’re a Church based on the relationship we have with God and the relationship with each other in God, it’s a generational Church. So what God said when Brother Jerry came here, remember when he came here the first time for three days and he said there are certain elements that must be in place for God to come and he was so, he had experienced such power of God here that he had to go and sit on a chair in the back and I had to actually just write that down because he was speaking because I knew that he knew that there were some elements being put in place here for God to manifest Himself, and so all the spiritual elements that attract him and bring him on the scene.
So 20 years ago here in Witbank God said to me, “If you build me a place according to My specifications, I will come.” If you build me a place according to My specifications, I will come. The House is for the Lord so He can be pleased and purposed to come and dwell. The gold is here. I remember when we first came to Witbank and I looked at the people that were there, I said to the Lord, “Oh, You’re bringing other people? Oh, You’re bringing other people?” Really. “Oh,You’re bringing other people.” He said, “No, the gold is here. You’re going to mine it with My Word. You’re going to dig it, you’re going to mine here and you’re going to bring out the gold because the gold is here. It’s in the people. It’s in the people of Witbank.” And that’s you here. You’ve allowed the Word of God to go deep into you and do a work in you because we don’t want brass. We’re not substituting brass here for gold. We’re going for gold, we’re going for gold, we’re going for gold.
So, the first thing we did was House of Prayer, House of Prayer, House of Prayer. Glory to God. Exactly as we’ve taught you from Scripture; spiritual prayer that He hears and answers. Then we also along with that Household of Faith, so House of Prayer, Household of Faith. Galatians 16, Household, His Word first place in this House. Isaiah 65 and 66, it says a people who tremble at My Word, a people who tremble at My Word. They’re like, “Oh Lord, this Word, wow. I take it, I take it, I believe it, I believe it, I take it, I speak it, my eyes are on it, wow.” Okay, so that has increased and intensified here. Our prayers have increased and intensified here. God is watching, He’s the same Jesus that walked in the churches in Revelation. He’s walking right here all the time; checking, checking, checking. He’s honour bound because Pastor John and I are pressing for the gold. So now we’ve walked together. So in all of this has been Identity change, unity, irrational honour, fear of the Lord; fear Me here first, not loving money but loving God, all right and revelational surges in all these 20 years. Now these are now our characteristics. It’s who we are now, you see. It’s who we are that’s what a tribe is; they think the same, they talk the same, they act the same. All right, that’s what a tribe is. We are the favourites. We are the favourites because we do this because we’re a House of Prayer and we’re a Household of Faith.
These are now our characteristic, it’s who we’ve become and it’s what we always will be. So from 2010 to 2019 when Pastor John brought that word; it’s a shift, it’s a shift, Church and I’m not going in to it, to 2019. We have walked together, many of us and it’s the time of God, Church, it’s the time of God. And now we’re here, 2019.Too much to fill in here, we are here now.
So Pastor John has received the call to go on television. He has received it from the Lord. He has heard from God and Sunday 18th of August he said, “I want to make this declaration to you today.” You see I’m also speaking this to you but I’m speaking this before God today, people, because God’s got to hear. We’ve made a vow; this is a vow that you make to God. So I’m making it in the presence of you all again. God, this is what we declare; this is what I declared with Pastor John. I want to make this declaration to you today just because I need to make it for us that our Church will never be a place of commerce. Our place is a House of prayer. Our Church is a place where we come to worship and praise God and our walk with God is the first and foremost thing that we do. So even though we’re going on TV, even though we’re doing things and we’re increasing our ability, listen to this, to do music at a higher level, to do television at a higher level, to do many things at a high level, excellence is what we’re after. Why? Excellence for God, we don’t want it for ourselves. We don’t want people to say, “Ghee, don’t they have a great worship group, ghee don’t they look good on TV.” Couldn’t care less, passed that test long time ago and God knows that.
He said this, I want to tell you something; we will never become a program driven Church. We will never become a Church that is set out to use the best methods we can to attract most people. We want to raise up Jesus as the authentic God Who’s ready to love and help and save His people. This House will be called a House of Prayer and also a House of Faith, but we are a House of Prayer.
Then on the 29th of May on Wednesday, Pastor John was speaking to me and I journaled it like this, TBN surge. Remember he told you about surges and we must go with the surges. Worship, the message, Pastor John says; we have Church exactly as the Holy Spirit desires, He has first place. We are not changing our services to fit TBN. This is a declaration Pastor John and I stand for this, before God we stand for this and before you today. We have Church exactly as the Holy Spirit desires. He has first place; His message and His move. And we put on TBN what we want to. The worship is stuck. We must go to a new level. Garth is stuck. That’s what He said to me and he was and we were. But Pastor John has called for help, for God; our excellence is for God. Hallelujah.
Lucky, he’s the guy that is in the head of TBN, “The music, the message, the method,” he said to Pastor John. And then Pastor John said; we need the music, the song and the sound and the worship to draw people to the message. I am so bold to jump now. This is going on TBN; this going on TBN will draw people to legacy faith, spirituality, prayer, the Holy Spirit, to Digital Touch Bible School. When I first heard we’re going on TV I thought, probably my first time I go on, they’ll kick me off, because I will look and I’ll tell the body of Christ; TBN is not your church, you’re supposed to be planted, you’re supposed to be planted in a place that the Lord your God chooses for you. You’re supposed to have Ephesians 4 happening in your life and TBN is not your church. I said, “They’ll kick me off the first time, Baby.” He said, “Never mind, I know, Lucky.” Right, you know me by now, those of you who know me. I don’t mince those words because that’s what I believe because that’s what’s in the Word. Glory to God. Hallelujah. In the book of Hebrews it says; you’re not supposed to forsake or neglect the assemblies of yourselves together as is the habit of some. Even more as you see the day approaching. What day? His coming, His coming.
So, now I come to the point for today. Remember Pastor John woke up on that Wednesday morning the 25th. Was it 2017, Christi, or 2018? 2018 ja, he woke up that morning, triumphant and he said; we’ve had to push to get up to this point but our deliverance has come. That’s us Heritage of Faith. Whatever that means and he said; we continue to pray for the evidence of it but it’s come, we have had to push but it is here. The promises God has spoken to us, the things that He said to us, it’s here now. And then he said; we are in a season of continuous praise and rejoicing. Praise and rejoicing precedes the evidence, and we praise in faith and that’s what we’re going to do now, we’re going to praise in faith. We don’t praise for nothing. We praise because this is a time for us to praise and rejoice.
And so I’m going to just briefly talk to you on the high praises of God. Chris, what’s the time here? Very good? Okay I’m going to be very quick now. The high praises of God; on Monday the15th of July the Lord reminded me of my job description. I’m holding you, Sharon, responsible for the spirituality of the ministry of music, the spirituality, not the technicality, not go there, don’t go there. Okay. I’m holding you Sharon, responsible for the spirituality of music and song. Now I have had learning’s and generations that I have learned in my legacy from my spiritual father who taught me about don’t sing songs of unbelief. Don’t sing something to Him you wouldn’t say to Him. Don’t beg Him for things in the song that He’s already given you in His Word. Standing somewhere in the shadows you’ll find Jesus, no, He lives right inside of me. Hallelujah. I hold you responsible for all the words that are sung, that are put in the people’s mouths because they’re powerful speaking spirits and whether they speak it or sing it, it will still impact them because life and death is in the power of the tongue whether it’s spoken or whether it’s sung. And so that’s just a small example of how God holds me responsible for the spirituality of the ministry of music and song. “You are responsible,” and then He said this to me; “You are responsible for the joy. You are responsible for the high praise.” And I knew exactly what He was talking about. All my years of knowledge and wisdom and learning, experiences and years, no thin, He said to me, “No thin gossamer strand here, Sharon. No thin gossamer strand here, Sharon.” So, He showed me the three very thick strands we will have; House of Prayer, House of Faith, House of Praise and Rejoicing, House of Joy, House of Joy. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Yes, Lord. Hallelujah.
And joy is a fruit of your recreated spirit. It’s not some emotion of happiness, of things are going well. Joy is a force of your recreated spirit. Galatians says, the fruit of your recreated spirit is love, joy, peace, consistency, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness. Oh. It’s a fruit of your spirit. You already have it in you. You may never have experienced it for yourself, but it’s in you. Jesus said; My joy I give to you and no man can take it from you. No man can take it from you. You can lose it. I mean, you’ll never lose it. It’ll just lie latent, but you can, you know, if you don’t use it, if you don’t use it, if you don’t let it out, it can stay, “Oh, you mean I had joy all those years, Lord?” Ja. Ja.
So, it’s high praise and it’s high. This is, so this is, He spoke to me recently; “It’s available. Occupy this spiritual space. The high praise cannot disappear of dissipate. It’s essential for victory. There are degrees and levels of ascent into it and every opportunity is to be given for ascent into it. Every opportunity is to be given for My people to experience it with Me and in Me.” So, today He wants to give you an opportunity, and me. So, we experience rejoicing together. I know. I rejoice every morning when I wake up, I’m in His presence, I’m like, shhh. Okay? But I want to do this with you. I want to praise with you in the congregation like Jesus said in Psalm 22; 22In the midst of the congregation will I praise You (Psalm 22:22 AMPC). In the midst of the congregation of the people will I praise You.
Please don’t fight me here today with your intellect. Please don’t. Please don’t stonewall God today. If you don’t believe this and you don’t get it, just put that down in your soul right now. If you can’t reach for it with your heart, don’t stonewall what God wants to do here today. Glory. At least give the people opportunity that wants to reach for it, an opportunity, because your soul things can come in here. Just give somebody else a turn then if you don’t want this today, okay? But I believe you do. I believe you do. I believe every single one of you do. Glory to God.
Okay, so, He said to me “Every opportunity,” and then He said to me 2 Chronicles 20. And He knows what that meant to me because that’s the time of Jehoshaphat when the enemy was coming against him. Oh my, can we just go and have a look at that? 2 Chronicles 20, 2 Chronicles 20. Can we just have a look at that? I’m not going to be able to get through all of this. Okay, 2 Chronicles 20. I want you to see it up there. Have you got it in the Amplified, Mirands? Huh? Okay. Alright, 1After this, the Moabites, the Ammonites, and with them the Meunites came against Jehoshaphat to battle. 2It was told Jehoshaphat, A great multitude has come against you from beyond the [Dead] Sea, from Edom; I tell you, there’s a multitude that comes against us all day. Okay, next one. 3Then Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself [determinedly, as his vital need] to seek the Lord; he proclaimed a fast. Okay. 4And Judah gathered together to ask help from the Lord; even out of all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord [yearning for Him with all their desire]. Oh, that is us, hey. That’s many of us. And if you’re not like that yet, dis aansteeklik. It’s contagious. Glory to God. Because there’s some of us in this church that are so alive with God, we’re so full of the Word; we’re so filled with the Spirit because we’re abiding Christians. Just hang around enough of us enough and you will just get it. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. 4[yearning for Him with all their desire]. 5And Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem in the house of the Lord before the new court 6And said, O Lord, God of our fathers, are You not God in heaven? And do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations? In Your hand are power and might, alright, next one. Next one. Okay. 8They dwelt in it and have built You a sanctuary in it for Your Name, that’s what we’re doing. Yes, next one. 9If evil comes upon us, you know, I want the praise part of that. Uhm, sorry, I don’t have it here in my notes. I just know it’s 2 Chronicles 20. Okay, go to the next scripture. Okay, go, go, go, go. Okay, go, go. See, there’s stuff they had to inherit. Next one. And they began, okay, no, the one before. Twenty-one. Ah. 21When he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers to sing to the Lord and praise Him in their holy [priestly] garments as they went out before the army, saying, Give thanks to the Lord, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever! And then, 22And when they began to sing and to praise, this is a pattern, guys. This is a pattern. They’d already heard the Word of the Lord that they’re delivered. I’ve already heard that I’m delivered. Okay, 22And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushments against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir who had come against Judah, and they were [self-] slaughtered (2 Chronicles 20:1-6, 8, 21-22 AMPC) Next one. Okay, no. That’s enough. That’s enough.
And then I wanted to give you another example of Paul and Silas in the midnight hour; they prayed and sang praises to God. And the prison gates were, and everybody’s shekels were loosed. I’m telling you, if you are a person today who will change and turn and become a praising, rejoicing person because this is not just for a singer. I tell you, you are all singers. I grew up in a time when we didn’t have Idols and we didn’t have TV Idols show, you know, who’s got a good voice and who’s got a bad voice. You know what I mean? And everybody became so self-conscious. No. We sang in choirs. I met with my cousins and everybody on a Friday night at my ouma and oupa’s house and she would play the piano and he would play the clarinet and we would sing apostolie liedjies, I’m telling you what, and we would belt it out, all of us kids to the adults. So, that’s my heritage. That’s what I bring to you. You’re supposed to sing unto the Lord. Hallelujah. You’re supposed to sing. Glory to God. We’re supposed to sing together. I shot that holy cow. I shot it dead in this place. I’m telling you, I shot that holy cow. Glory to God. Hey? Hey? Oh my, my, my, my.
Where’s the microphone? Take the microphone, Brynn. Come. There are times when Brynn and I will just sing together. We’ll just sing together.
Brynn:
Hello? Is it on? There you go.
Pastor Sharon:
You see, now by world standards, Garth’s got a voice. You know what I mean? Who cares? You know that Jesus sang hymns with His disciples? That’s what I love. I love this family stuff; this. I don’t like this like; “We sing so nice,” you know. And so, what did we sing that one day about how God, how good is God, how great is God? We went and He opened the Red Sea.
Brynn:
Sho, you’re going back a while.
Pastor Sharon:
A while, ja. We need to do this. Alright, well, let’s just, [Ps Sharon singing], sing about how great God is. How great is He, Brynn?
[Brynn and Ps Sharon singing]:
The Great I Am. I sing. The Great I Am I sing to You, oh, Lord. How faithful You are. How good You are. You are so good. Faithful and true. You are my God. You are my Father and I give You honour and glory. Hallelujah. You are my God. You are. You are my Saviour, my Redeemer, my Resurrection Life. Oh yes, Lord, we honour You. We praise You. We bring You the fruit of our lips, Lord, and we praise You. Hallelujah. [Brynn and Pastor Sharon singing in the Spirit].
Hallelujah. Glory to God. Hallelujah. Yes, Lord. Praise You, Lord. Glory, hallelujah.
Pastor Sharon:
And that’s what it says in Ephesians; be not drunk with wine wherein is excess but be ever filled. [Laughter] Filled with the Holy Spirit, speaking to yourselves in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. Spiritual, spiritual songs we just sang. Spiritual that’s how we get filled with the Spirit. That’s what dad Hagin taught me. Hallelujah. Oh, hallelujah. [Ps Sharon singing in the Spirit] Hey, isn’t this wonderful? Isn’t this wonderful? [Ps Sharon and Brynn laughs] Just partake. You are I know you are.
Brynn:
Just tap it. Just tap it.
Pastor Sharon:
It’s Him. It’s Him. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Oh. Oh. Thank you, my son. Is there anything else? Oh. Sheesh. Whoa. Ah. [Laughter]
Brynn:
Who’s next?
[Congregation laughs]
Pastor Sharon [singing]:
Who wants to sing with me? Come, Christi. She also doesn’t want to sing on the stage.
Pastor Christi [singing]:
But today I will.
Pastor Sharon [singing]:
Today you will sing with me.
Pastor Christi [singing]:
Yes, I will.
Pastor Sharon [singing]:
Sing to Him.
Pastor Sharon and Pastor Christi [singing]:
Praise You, Lord. Hallelujah. You are my great, great God. I sing to You today. I praise You today. Today. Today. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. My heart, my heart. I love You, Lord. Oh. Faithful Lord. The Great I Am. I praise You, Lord. Right now, today. Today. Today everything will change. I praise You, Lord. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Oh yes.
Pastor Sharon:
Oh yes, Chris. Sho. Ja. You know, this, this can go on all day. It really can. And I’m looking forward to the time when we can just do this all day, just all day long. No time restraints, just together in the presence of the Lord, together in the presence of the Lord. Hallelujah, hallelujah. Oh, Pastor Raygan would you want to sing with me? You want to sing with me? Come Pastor Raygan, come sing with me. Sing to Him with me, great is His Name.
Pastor Raygan: [singing]
Oh, I sing praises to You, Lord. Praises to You. [singing in Heavenly language] I sing because You are faithful, so faithful to me, so faithful to the world. So faithful for Your glory. Your Glory covers this earth; Your glory is filled with goodness. Your glory is filled with splendour. Your glory is full of majesty, majesty, majesty. Oh, You are so majestic My God. You are full of marvels, Lord. You are full of wonders, Lord. You are so full of Your goodness, Lord. You are my magician, Lord. You change everything for me, Lord. You will open my Red Sea, Lord Jesus. The Sea is open for me, Lord. My love is in You, Lord. My love is in You, Lord. Your presence is all over me now, Lord. Your presence is all over me now, Lord. There is nothing like this presence, Lord. The Shekinah glory, Lord, the Shekinah glory, Lord, is so majestic, Father. You are so wonderful, You are my counsellor. You are my mighty God, Lord. You are my Prince of Peace. You are my everlasting Father; you are my Father God, thank You, Jesus. Hallelujah Lord.
Pastor Sharon:
Glory. Wow. His presence, you see, your voice attracts Him when you sing from your spirit, your voice attracts Him. He comes on the scene. He doesn’t say you are out of tune; you didn’t quite hit that note. It’s your voice. It’s your voice. Hallelujah. Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful, so now, it is like a blanket on us hey, His wonderful presence, His wonderful presence. Now we’re just going to have a time with instruments and we are going to have same high praise. I didn’t get to teach, but that is okay. I’ll teach it another time, next time, God willing but the high praises of God. Hallelujah, it comes from our heart. We are going to all participate and partake now. Will the worship group come up?
I want to just, Habakkuk, the scripture Habakkuk, Habakkuk, the one about the wild, enthusiastic, triumphant music. Thank you, Chris, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. Shu. You know, really, really, really you can sing to the Lord every day, just you and Him. At the moment I’m busy on a song just with me and God and every time I sing it in His presence; [singing]; God the Father, God the Son, God the Spirit, Three in one; God the Father, God the Son, God the Spirit, most Holy One. Wow, there we go, just like that simple, simple and you can get so full, so full with His Spirit. Just be activated today, so here it is, here it is, Habakkuk, have you got it or not? Is it up? A prayer of Habakkuk, this is Habakkuk 3 verse 1, oraait? It’s just a verse that God has spoken to me about over the years because in the book of Habakkuk it talks about the just shall live by faith, and then at the end of the book of Habakkuk it says, though the fig tree does not blossom, though the olive tree has not yet yielded, yet will I rejoice in God. Why? Because my rejoicing in faith and my high praise makes all of my abundant harvest come to me. I have proven it time and time again that when things look as if they are like that, and not that, but God’s promises is there, you don’t win with praise; you win with the Word using praise. You win with the promise God has given you and then you use praise to go with it. That is how Abraham did it, even though Isaac didn’t come, and Isaac didn’t come, but he did not grow weak in faith but he grew strong in faith as he gave praise to God. Glory to God. And this is a pattern and this will no longer be a thin gossamer strand in this Church. We are going to go to a new level of praise in this Church, in Jesus Name.
So, Jesus rejoices in Spirit. There is so much, take this away before I will keep you all here. Thank you, Pastor Christi. Take it away. Take it away because I really can lock the doors, then what can you do? Okay, let’s stand, let’s all stand. Come on, get your spirit, your spirit involved here. He is worthy. This is not for each other, it’s with each other. It’s for Him, with each other for Him. Glory. I’ve got joy like a river.
[Congregation praise together]
Hallelujah. You remember Brother Jerry said church should be a noisy place because Heaven is a noisy place. Well, I tell you that noise and that shout because the Bible says shout unto God with a voice of triumph, you know. And that shout comes from your spirit, you know. And you should just let it out. Haven’t you travelled in the car sometimes and you are listening to a song, a wonderful song with Bible words and you just shout in the car and that is a voice of triumph. You have a shout in you. Hallelujah. Glory. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Glory, glory, glory. Pastor Melusi come up. Come up, Pastor Melusi. Just encourage the people with your praise.
Pastor Melusi:
Hallelujah. We praise You, Lord. We praise You for our victory, Lord. We praise You, Lord with a purpose, on purpose, Lord. We are not praising You for nothing, Lord. We are praising You for something, Lord. Thank You, Lord, that even right now, Lord, whatever things are coming against us, Lord, because of the words that are in our hearts and the praises that are coming to You, Lord, they are self-destructing right now, Lord. Praise You, Lord. Thank You, Lord. Hallelujah, Jesus. Praise You, Lord. Hallelujah, Jesus. Glory, Lord. Praise You, Lord. Praise You, Lord. Praise You, Lord. We’ve got joy. We’ve got joy. We rejoice, Lord. We rejoice, Lord. We give You glory, Lord. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. [Pastor Melusi singing]
Pastor Sharon: [singing]
I want to sing a song of praise today. I want to sing a song of praise today to the mighty, living God. To the mighty, living God.
Lebo: [singing]
I want to sing praise, Lord. I want to sing some praise, Lord. I want to sing some praise, Lord. You are the mighty, living God. I want to sing some praise, Lord. You are the mighty, living God. I want to sing some praise. I want to sing, I want to dance. I want to sing some praise. I want to jump, I want to dance. Praise You, Lord.
Pastor Sharon:
This is what Heaven looks like. It is even worse. It is even worse because the 24 elders throw down their crowns and fall on the floor, you know. So we’re just getting ready for Heaven, want to be so ready when I get there. Heaven on earth, hallelujah. You want to praise, Kate? You want to sing a song of praise?
Kate: [singing]
We praise You, Lord. Yes, we praise You. We lift up a shout, we lift up a shout for You are good, Father. You are good, You are good. You are faithful, You are faithful, Lord. We shout, Lord, we shout. Your joy is in our bones, Lord. Your joy is in our bones, Father. Your joy is in our bones, Lord.
Pastor Sharon:
Father, what we have given You here today, won’t you just agree with me with your whole heart? Pastor Garth, worship group, Pastor Melusi, Lebo, Pastor Christi, Pastor Reagan and Patricia, won’t you just, everybody agree with this prayer that this will increase and intensify. Father, in us, and among us. Is Marcus here? Where is Marcus? Come, Marcus. Oh yes, I want you to pray this prayer with me, Marcus. Pray this prayer with me to the Father. I am asking the Father.
Marcus: [singing]
I am asking You, Father. I am praising You, Father. I am thanking You, Father. Yes, Lord. Your will, oh, God. Father, in me oh, God. In us oh, Lord. In everyone, Father. Everyone, Father. Yes, Lord. Increase, intensify, more of You. More of You, God. Yes, Father. A deeper encounter with You, Lord. A deeper encounter with You, Lord. More and more and more and more and more of You, God. More of You, Lord. We cry out; Abba Father. Hallowed be Thy name, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, Lord, on earth, God, in us God. Yes, Father. Oh, mighty God, great I Am, Prince of Peace. Yes, Lord. It is Your love, Lord, Your love, Father. Thank You, Jesus.
Pastor Sharon:
You see, I want to be here all day. Thank you, Marcus, for asking God for me, with me. Thank you, Marcus. So Father, we thank You that the Word and the Blood of Jesus surrounds every person today and this week. Protecting everything, bringing abundant harvest. Hallelujah. Thank You, Father for Your covenant of peace that You have for us, Father. Thank you that Your peace is upon Your people, every one of us, Lord. Hallelujah. And that a river of praise will flow through everyone. Father, thank You, You are worthy to be praised every day. Yes, Lord, You are going to encourage every precious one here today, by Your Holy Spirit to praise, regardless of the circumstance, to praise. Thank you for coming today. You are precious to Him, every single one. Glory. Thank you, thank you for coming today. Be blessed, you are the head and not the tail, above and not beneath. Every one of you, the healing power of Jesus, the abundant harvest coming off all your seed, stay strong in faith with praise. Stay strong in faith with praise, in Jesus Name. God bless you all. Goodbye, goodbye.
© 2023 – Heritage of Faith Ministries International
TOUCH | TEACH | TRAIN | TRANSFER
