Scripture reference: Genesis 6:1-3, 5-14 (AMPC); Proverbs 3:9-10 (NLT); Proverbs 3:9-10 (AMPC); 2 Corinthians 9:6-9 (TLB); 2 Corinthians 9:7 (AMPC); Galatians 1:4 (KJV); Mark 4:18-19 (TLB); Hebrews 11:24-27 (TPT); Exodus 3:6-10 (NLT); Exodus 6:6-9 (AMPC); Numbers 13:2-3, 25-28, 30-33 (AMPC); Numbers 14:1-9, 19-24, 26-31, 37-39 (AMPC)
Glory to God. Hallelujah. Thank You, Lord. Glory. Glory to God. The greatest, the greatest love song. Just raise your hands to Him in acknowledgement, His the greatest. Thank You, greatest love song. Jesus, star of the show. That’s the reason why we are here, because You are the star of the show. In Jesus’ name, we love You, Father. Glory, what a beautiful song, right? I mean we have that song now for about two years and it is just like these songs just, God just blesses them doesn’t He?
So, I’m going to start this morning picking up, we’re doing the series that’s called, I Will Take The Children. The Lord started to speak to me in June already, actually about these messages, as I was checking it with Pastor John and sharing my revelations with him, the Lord gave it to me, to start in the Johannesburg Church first, a series called, I Will Take The Children.
I actually realised that these are life defining moment messages and after about two or three parts, Pastor John said to me, “You have to start this in Witbank, it’s for the Heritage of Faith people.” Pastor John will come in and do his part in these series of messages and Pastor Christi will do her part because it’s already happened in Johannesburg, but Pastor John did say that it will come out different in Witbank and so it is coming out different, but the same, different, but the same.
Because it is the same message that God wants us to hear. He wants us to come out of Babylon, He wants us not to love the world. He wants us to come out of Egypt. All these words mean the same thing, this world system, the Bible calls it. There was the world system in the day of Babel, the Tower of Babel, there was the world system in the day of Noah, the world system is not setup by God. It is not set up by God. God has His Kingdom, God has His Kingdom and His people of His, in the Old Testament were to live in His Kingdom. In His Kingdom there is a way to live and in fact, let me share just something with you. So this part 2 of I Will Take The Children and it is called His story.
During the week when I was seeking the Lord, what part 2 is of I Will Take The Children in Witbank, He said to me, “I want you to tell them My story, I want you to tell them My story. I want to show you how to speak to them. Personally, how personal this story is to Me, of when I decided I was going to come down and I’m going to deliver My people out of Egypt. I was going to bring them out with a mighty hand, I was going to make sure that the Egypt of the day would let my people go. I came with mighty acts of judgment and I was going to make sure.”
You see there comes a time, in the heart of God, you have to understand something about God, so He is wanting me to stand here to tell you about Him. There comes a time in the heart of God that He Himself experiences things in Himself and it says here in Genesis, I just want to show this to you, it wasn’t part of my notes, but He wants me to talk to you about this, for a moment here, now. It is part of His story, His written, His story, His stories and it is all true, they really happened.
God records things, He is still recording things. I read that to you in Malachi 3, it says those who fear the Lord spoke often to one another and He wrote it in His Book of Remembrance. There are things that He is writing, even as He wrote this, that had been recorded in Heaven. He recorded the names of the twelve spies that went to spy out the Promised Land. All their names are in here. He records things He had inspired, He had men inspired to write and record things down, it is His story this. His truth, it is His truth.
Then there are facts here and so, there came a time with God, in Genesis chapter 6 verse 1, it is the Amplified, 1WHEN MEN began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, 2The sons of God saw that the daughters of men were fair, and they took wives of all they desired and chose. 3Then the Lord said, My Spirit shall not forever dwell and strive with man, for he also is flesh; but his days shall yet be 120 years (Genesis 6:1-3 AMPC). And verse 5, 5The Lord saw, the Lord sees everything and he hears everything because He is God. You can’t see everything and hear everything that happens on the earth but God can. God is God. He hears everything, He sees everything and He knows everyone and He sees everyone. That’s what God is capable of because He is God. He is the Supreme-being, the Supreme Intelligence. Right?
5The Lord saw, verse 5, that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination and intention of all human thinking was only evil continually. (Genesis 6:5 AMPC) He saw it. Who created the earth? God. Who created mankind? God. To Who does it all belong to? God. He didn’t create evil, He created all men. He created all men to be born, to be born-again. He created all men to be born to be born-again. He created all men to be born to be born-again. He created all men to be born to be born-again. Right.
And verse 6 says, 6And the Lord regretted that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved at heart. Right? 7So the Lord said, verse 7, 7I will destroy, blot out, and wipe away mankind. (Genesis 6:6-7 AMPC) You have to see God here. God didn’t change because Jesus came. Jesus came so you could change and I could change. God didn’t change because Jesus came.
Christians think that everything is okay because Jesus came and everything can go and they can do what they want because Jesus came. No, God is the same. He didn’t change because Jesus came. Jesus came so we could have the resurrection life live in us and we can change and we can become sons of God and we can grow and we can be like Jesus. Please settle that now, once and for all, that is the truth that I speak to you now. God did not change because Jesus came. God sent Jesus so we could change, to be like Him.
Does God have mercy? Yes, He has mercy. He had mercy in the Old Covenant and He has mercy in the New Covenant, because He is a merciful God, but the time comes, in God and who can tell God when He must have this in His heart or not? Why didn’t you go a bit longer with all that evil? Why did you decide to do that? Who can tell the awesome, fearsome, living God, when to move and what to do? He’s God. He’s God.
He is your God and He wants you to know Him like this. He told me, “Go and tell them My story this morning, Sharon. Why I will take the children.” I will, 7I will…wipe away mankind, whom I have created from the face of the ground—not only man, [but] the beasts and the creeping things and the birds of the air—for it grieves Me and makes Me regretful that I have made them. (Genesis 6:7 AMPC) There is God. He wants me to tell you His story, today. There is God. It grieved Him. made Him regretful that He made man. He made man, to walk with Him and talk with Him and man said, “No, I will not. I will not, I will do what I will do.”
8But Noah found grace (favor) in the eyes of the Lord. 9This is the history of the generations of Noah. Noah, see he chose different. Noah was a just and righteous man, blameless in his [evil] generation; Noah walked [in habitual fellowship] with God. (Genesis 6:8 AMPC) Just like Enoch. Just like you can. We all go, ‘Ahhh, Enoch and Enoch walked with God.” No, Noah walked with habitual fellowship with God. No, I walk in habitual fellowship with God. You walk in habitual fellowship with God, if you want to. We were created to walk. Adam and Eve were created in the Garden to walk in habitual fellowship with God. Not to listen to the serpent. You can walk in habitual fellowship with God. God did not change because Jesus came. Jesus came so that you could change. You can have the power inside of you to change. Because you have it, as much as I have it, the resurrection life of Christ.
So, he walked in habitual fellowship with God. 10And Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Look at verse 11, 11The earth was depraved, you think God doesn’t know what’s happening in the earth today? The depravities, the earth was depraved and putrid in God’s sight. (Genesis 6:10-11 AMPC) You think the things that are going on today, God doesn’t have anything going on in Him about it? That when you see things and you think, what do you think about God, does He care? How can He let this go on? Well, He wants to tell you His story today, us, His story today.
11And the land was filled with violence (desecration, infringement, outrage, assault, and lust for power). 12And God looked upon the world and saw how degenerate, degenerate, degenerate, degenerate, degenerate, debased, and vicious it was, for all humanity had corrupted their way, you see, they did it. All humanity had corrupted their way upon the earth and lost their true direction. God said to Noah, I intend to make an end of all flesh, for through men the land is filled with violence. Make for yourself an ark (Genesis 6:11-13 AMPC).
Make for yourselves and ark, and God has made for us an ark. I’m in the ark now, I’m in the ark. The moment you got born again, He made the perfect environment to come into. As a born again believer, your perfect environment is the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ which was not man’s idea, but God’s. God made the Church, He made the Church for the New Covenant. The Old Testament was a tabernacle. The New Covenant is the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The perfect environment is found in Ephesians 4 where it says, and God gave gifts to men. God gave gifts to men so that they can be matured and come into full sonship. And then God made a very powerful statement to me a week or two ago. He said to me, “I called men, I called apostles, prophets, teachers, shepherds, evangelists, I called them, so that I could call all my people.”
If there’s any other motive that any fivefold ministry has, it’s not God’s, other than that. He called Moses so that he could call His people out. He called Joshua, so He could call His people out of into Him. I want to tell you this morning, Heritage of Faith, you, Heritage of Faith people, everywhere are not our platform for a famous ministry. You are our people, you are our people, you are not our platform so that we can have people in a Church, so that we can go on TV. That’s shocking, that’s shocking. You are our people and God has called Pastor John and I, so He can call you all. I call my people to come, call my people, I’m calling them to Myself. Right.
That’s what God wanted me to show you now. Something about Himself and His own story, right? (Pastor Sharon holds up her Bible) This is full of stories, this is God’s story, He wrote down things. He’s still writing down things. That was a wonderful introduction, wasn’t it? To God’s story.
I want to share some scriptures with you. I’m going to get into the meat of the story further, about why God has entitled this series, I will take the children. I’m going to make it quite clear. The one thing the Lord told me about this series is, He said, “You will take your time because it’s a life defining moment message. The people that get this are going to become.”
You see, we are a people becoming and we’re going to become, even greater, the corporate greatness, who we are together. It was always God’s plan to have a people. It is still God’s plan to have a people. Not just one person, that’s “Gee, look at them for God”, no, a people – look at the people. “These are My people,” God can say, “These are My people, they’re walking in My ways. They’re becoming, in the earth, that I can say, I’m their God and they are My people and they’ve come out.”
That’s what God says in Corinthians, the book of Corinthians 2, He says, “Come out of her and I will be your God and you will be My people.” He’s not saying, “You are my people and look, you just love the world and it’s okay, and you’re just in Babylon and it’s okay.” No, God is showing us His heart and His character here. You come out, you come out, you come out, you come out to Me.
Here’s a wonderful scripture here. Proverbs 3 verse 9 and 10, from the New Living Translation, I just want to let your eyes see this. 9Honour the Lord with your wealth I’m reminding you about honour in your heart. 9Honour the Lord with your wealth and with the best part of everything you produce. 10Then he will fill your barns with grain, and your vats will overflow with good wine (Proverbs 3:9-10 NLT).
Look at this scripture in the Amplified, Proverbs 3 verse 9 and 10, 9Honour the Lord with your capital. You see, how God speaks openly, it’s part of His story. He’s always spoken openly and candidly and plainly and clearly to His people about money. He doesn’t have skaam for that. Jesus, when He was on earth, He looked to see. He was standing there, like there was an offering going on and He was standing there to watch. He watched the rich man put in and He watched the poor widow put in, and He knew how they were giving. He wasn’t looking at the amount because He knew that the rich people were giving and He knew what they were keeping. It’s not their everything, but she gave her everything.
So, Jesus still speaks to us candidly and openly and plainly and clearly to us about our money today. He speaks to the poor and He speaks to His people that are poor and He says; “You don’t have to be poor anymore, you can come into My Kingdom. You can come and learn about how I bless you, you can come and hook up with My Kingdom Economics.” That’s how you come out.
Then He speaks to His people who are rich. He says, “Oh you say in your heart, I’m going to build bigger barns and I will eat, drink and be merry and be satisfied and I’ll be retired by the time I’m forty and then I’ll just have a good life.” He speaks to His people that say that. He speaks to His people that are poor and says, “You don’t have to be poor anymore.” The Gospel to the poor is not, “Shame you must stay poor.” The Gospel to the poor is, “You don’t have to be poor anymore. I want you to have abundant supply, I want you to be enriched in all things, I’m your loving Heavenly Father, I am your source, I’m your supplier, I want to meet all of your needs according to My riches in Glory by Christ Jesus, that’s Who I Am.
I am a God of abundance and I have that for My children. Come let me teach you how you do it in the Kingdom, so that you have plenty, the plenty doesn’t have you. Let Me show you that if you do it My way, it won’t have you, you won’t love it. Because it’s not money, that is the root of all evil, it’s the love of it, if you love it. It means you’ll do anything to get it because poor people love it, middle income and rich people love it. Okay, you don’t have to have a lot of money to love it.”
He says here, 9Honour the Lord with your capital, see how open He is to us and sufficiency from righteous labours], I know you work. Your righteous labours and with the firstfruits of all your income; Does God speak to us about your income? Yes. Honour Me, honour Me. Why? 10So shall your storage places be filled with plenty, and your vats shall be overflowing with new wine. But Lord, the rich people in the world, they don’t do that, they don’t honour You. “I’m teaching you Kingdom economics my child, I’m asking you to come out of the world and learn from Me. I’m not asking you to look to see how they do it so you can do it, how they do it.
I’m asking you to come out! I’m asking you to be Mine, completely. Why do you love the way that they do it when I have this way of doing it, you and I. Honour, Father-son, Father-daughter.” Glory to God. 10So shall your storage places be filled with plenty, and your vats shall be overflowing with new wine (Proverbs 3:9-10 AMPC).
Second Corinthians 9 verse 6 to 9, from The Living Bible, 6But remember this—if you give little, you will get little. A farmer who plants just a few seeds will get only a small crop (2 Corinthians 9:6-9 TLB). Listen, if your little is a lot to you, then it’s a lot to God, you understand that? It’s not that rich man put in ten thousand and I only put in ten rand. God knew what the rich men were getting and what they were withholding because of fear and because of unbelief, you see. So this little does not mean that He sees your little, which is a lot to you as a little, uh uh uh. No, He sees your little that is a lot to you, as a lot.
So, 6But remember this—if you give little, you will get little. A farmer who plants just a few seeds will get only a small crop, but if he plants much, he will reap much. 7Everyone must make up his own mind as to how much he should give. Don’t force anyone to give more than he really wants to, for cheerful givers are the ones God prizes (2 Corinthians 9:6-9 TLB). Cheerful givers are the one’s God prizes, isn’t that beautiful? Glory to God. God had to…you see this word teaches you to be a cheerful giver. When I give, I’m not sad, like in Malachi 3, why should I give my tithes and walk around sad? No, you need to keep it. You need to keep it. Cheerful, a cheerful giver, because I’m cheerful because I’m understanding Your Word, I’m believing Your Word here. God is able to make it up to you by giving you everything you need and more so that there will not only be enough for your own needs but plenty left over to give joyfully to others (2 Corinthians 9:6-9 TLB).
Can we do Second Corinthians chapter 9 verse 7 and 8 out of the Amplified? I want you to see this out of the Amplified. Verse 7, 7Let each one [give] as he has made up his own mind and purposed in his own heart, you see, not reluctantly or sorrowfully or under compulsion. That’s not how God wants you to give, for God loves (He takes pleasure in, He prizes above other things, He is unwilling to abandon or to do without) a cheerful (joyous, “prompt to do it”) giver [whose heart is in his giving]. He is unwilling to abandon or to do without) a cheerful (joyous, “prompt to do it”) giver [whose heart is in his giving] (2 Corinthians 9:7-8 AMPC). Isn’t that beautiful? What a beautiful picture of us giving to God. Glory to God.
That is just what I wanted to remind you about, and now I am going to continue with the story of God, that’s also God’s story, about His people. I think I spoke to you about it last time I was here. God had to speak to His people, it’s His story. Why are you withholding your tithes and offerings? If I be Your Father, where be My honour? Honour Me and so shall your barns be filled. You know, it’s God’s story. It was there in Malachi 3. And uh, so, I’m going to share with you His story now about why it’s called, I Will Take the Children.
Matthew 18 has been one of our key verses and we’re not going to look at it again because you know, I don’t want you to become familiar with it by me saying to you, “You know it by now,” but you should be getting it by now. Unless you become like a little child. Teachable. Believing. Believing what God says in His Word. Teachable, receiving what God says in His Word. Unless you become like a little child. Unless you repent and change to become like a little child, you can’t even see the Kingdom of God. You won’t be able to enter in. You’re not going to be able to because you are going to be full of unbelief, you’re going to be full of doubt, you are going to be full of questions and reason and relevance and realities, you know, because you are so grown up. God says, “No you must become like a little child and then you are going to be able to enter into the Kingdom.” Teachable, listening, believing, receiving all of the words of God, letting Him tell you His story, in your heart and write His story on your hearts and let, let, you know, learn from His story.
Unless you humble yourselves to obey God’s Word, right. You won’t even enter the Kingdom. The Kingdom in our place of deliverance from Egypt, Babylon and the world system. God says keep telling them these scriptures because I am going to rub them in. I’m going to rub it in so that they get it. I’m going to… I so want them out of Egypt. I so want them to not love the world. I so want them for Myself. I so want them to come out of Babylon that I want you to just rub it in. Rub it in.
The word anointing is a greek word, chrisma, which means ointment to rub in. Rub it in. His Word is anointed, everytime it comes here on a Sunday. It’s the anointing, it frees you. It keeps freeing you. It keeps getting you free. I was free but now I am freer. I was free, but now I’m freer, you see, it keeps delivering. It keeps delivering us, right?
I mean, if I didn’t believe this, what would I be doing here after twenty years? What am I doing this for? What’s Pastor John and I doing this? We keep bringing you the Word Sunday after Sunday after Sunday. We are absolutely compelled by God’s motives. Pastor John and I, I can’t speak for other ministers, but Pastor John and I, our motivation is to present you mature to Christ. Ons kan nie rus vir ons siel kry nie. Till we have presented, we can’t find rest for our soul, until we’ve done everything to present you the full Gospel so that we can present you mature sons to God.
Lord, what Your Word says we are supposed to be to Your people for Your sons to become Lord, Your people to become, here they are, here they are, Lord. It’s our driving motivation twenty for seven. When we’re preparing for these messages you have to understand what goes on in us, because it goes on in God. It’s like… Are they going to hear? Are they going to get it? Are they going to change? Are they going to receive it? Are they going to believe it? Are they going to love You enough to just take it? Are they going to put their foot in the message Lord? Lord? Lord? Every Sunday it happens like that for God and for Pastor John and I. I’m telling you a bit of our story too now. Right?
Galatians chapter 1 verse 4 and 5 we’re going to look at it again. Talking about Jesus, who, 4gave Himself for our sins that He might deliver us from this present evil world. (Galatians 1:4 KJV). That He might deliver us. Can you see why Jesus came? Why God sent Jesus? To deliver us from this present evil world. It will stand for eternity. I did not want to be delivered from this present evil world, but that doesn’t change the fact that God sent Jesus to deliver you from this present evil world. But I don’t think that the world is so evil. It doesn’t change the fact that God sent Jesus to die to deliver you from this present evil world. God calls this present world, evil, and He sent Jesus to deliver us from it. It doesn’t matter whether you love it and you don’t want to be delivered from it. It was still God’s heart, it was His intention to send Jesus so you could be delivered from the evil world. Dis nou maar net so, it just is like that. God is a deliverer. He sees and knows that the present evil world is wicked. He knows that it is twisted and that if your ways are in the ways of the world, it’s twisted it’s not going to bring you the life of the Kingdom of God that He has for you.
You are not going to experience it, He knows what you can experience in the Kingdom, if you will just come out and come into the Kingdom of Light, be. He’s already translated you out of the Kingdom of Darkness into the Kingdom of Light, but you’ve got to be fully translated out of, into.
See Lot, did not want to. When he left Abraham the Bible says he pitched his tent towards Sodom. He pitched his tent. He pitched his tent towards Sodom, and the next verse says, but Sodom was extremely wicked. Just like in the days of Noah, that’s what Sodom went ppphhh, got judged, they brought it on themselves. Lot, God said, because Abraham prayed for Lot, God sent angels there to get him out. It says, and Lot lingered, Lot lingered. Eventually the angels grabbed him by the hand and said, “Come, bring your daughters and your wife, you’ve got to go now and don’t look back.” Don’t look back to love it too long for it to linger and to look and see,… but it’s… I was in it and I loved it and it was… And she looked back, because Lot pitched his tent, his wife and his daughters were in there. He took them there.
I wasn’t going to go there; it’s part of God’s story. It’s part of God’s story. Abraham pitched somewhere else, but Lot pitched towards Sodom. Lot knew that Sodom was wicked. Abraham knew that Sodom was exceedingly wicked actually, you can go and read that story, that God puts there for us.
The word deliver is to; rescue, to rush, to draw for oneself, so that’s how God is. To preserve you from, to get you away from, to get you out of. That’s what this greek word rhuomai means; to deliver. He has come to deliver, that word, that He might deliver you and I from this present evil world.
Here He is, in Acts, He is a Deliverer. He has delivered us. He has already delivered us through Jesus, the entire Bible is one of deliverance from, out of and into. Out of bondage, out of captivity, out of all the things of the enemy, from destruction, from death, from famine, from the ungodly, from… and into. He also calls Moses a deliverer. He called Joshua and Gideon deliverers. God will send a messenger with a message and then release His power for deliverance. Rescue you out of, right? He delivers us because of His great mercy. He delivered His people, He came to deliver His people out of the hand of the wicked world system of that time.
If we sit here today and we don’t believe that we have to be delivered. We have no recognition of the need to be delivered. I am in a place where I am fine, you know. Then already this present evil world has influenced me, impacted me, and made its imprint on me. Can you see that?
God’s got to bring this series of messages to show you, in no uncertain terms, that you are not okay to love it and be in it. You’re actually not okay even though you think you are okay. He has come to tell you, you’re not okay. Right. He came to tell Lot, He came to tell Lot’s wife and two daughters, you’re not ok here. You’re not okay, here.
This present evil world has influenced you, imprinted you, impacted you. Mark 4 verse 18 and 19 from The Living Bible, look at this, Mark 4 verse 18 to 19 The Living Bible, 18The thorny ground, this talks about when a messenger brings a message to you, words, God’s Word speak to you. 18The thorny ground represents the hearts of people who listen to the Good News and receive it, 19but all too quickly the attractions of this world and the delights of wealth, and the search for success and lure of nice things come in and crowd out God’s message from their hearts, so that no crop is produced (Mark 4:18-19 TLB).
Today God’s wanting a crop from this message. He’s wanting to take a crop from, I Will Take The Children, unless you become like a little child. He is wanting a crop because He can get a crop because He knows if your heart receives it and believes it He can get a crop. You can become one, that’s come out and does not love the world. You can become one who comes out of Babylon, that’s the crop.
You can become one, who’s desiring to be totally translated from the Kingdom of Darkness and come into the Kingdom of Light – that’s the crop. But the desire, can you see here, for other things, look at what can choke it, make it. I’m going to read it again, 19but all too quickly the attractions of this world and the delights of wealth, and the search for success and lure of nice things come in and crowd out God’s message from their hearts. (Mark 4:19 TLB).
You should be going out here now, this is the sower sows the word and saying: “I love not the world, I am coming out of Babylon.” You should need to start sowing that into your hearts already, because your heart can receive that, because you will believe what you hear yourself saying: “I love not the world, Lord”. You bring that scripture, I sow that scripture. I’m coming, You say to me: “Come out of Babylon” Father, I am saying to you, “I’m coming out of Babylon. I love not the world, and I love not the things in it, Lord. A response is required.” So, if you sit here today and you have no response, it is still a no to God. You understand? Because He brings this message to us all. So, no response, is a no to God, right?
Look at Moses. Hebrews 11 verse 24 to 27. Now I am not going to read that one, I’m not going to read that one now. I am going to read that scripture, I am going to, but I want to do Hebrews 11 verse 24 to 27 out of The Passion Translation, look at what Moses chose here. 24Faith enabled Moses to choose God’s will, for although he was raised as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, he refused to make that his identity, he refused, can you see that? He was raised in the world system of the day, but he refused to make it his identity. There were some teenagers that made that same choice – Daniel, Shadrag, Meshach and Abednego, they were teenagers when they made the choice, to not bow, rather to burn. I will not worship the things in the world system. God says, “I will take the children, I will take the children, I will take the teenagers, I will take the adults that have become like little children, I will take the children into their Promised Land.”
It says here, 24…he refused to make that his identity, 25choosing instead, he chose it, choosing instead to suffer mistreatment with the people of God. Are you okay to suffer mistreatment with Pastor John and I, persecution? Yes, we do, yes, he is our pastor, yes, we are Word of Faith, all those ones that you want to persecute me about brother Jerry, Kenneth Copeland, Kenneth Hagin, all of that, I choose to suffer the persecution that Pastor John and Sharon – mistreatment – I choose that, I choose to suffer the mistreatment with which they treated Kenneth Hagin, with which they treated Kenneth Copeland, which they are still treating, which they are still treat Brother Jerry, I choose that mistreatment with God’s people.
Moses chose it, Shadrag, Meshag, Abednego, Daniel chose it, look at this: 25choosing instead to suffer mistreatment with the people of God. Moses preferred faith’s certainty above the momentary enjoyment of sin’s pleasures. I can enjoy all this stuff in Egypt. No, he didn’t want it. He hadn’t had the burning bush experience yet. This was not because he was called, that he chose this. He was called so that God could call all His people out.
26He found his true wealth, in suffering abuse for being anointed, you are anointed. Anointing it says, in 1 John, abides permanently within you – that’s the Holy Spirit. 26He found his true wealth in suffering abuse for having the Holy Spirit living in him, being anointed, more than in anything the world could offer him, for his eyes looked with wonder not on the immediate, but on the ultimate – faith’s great reward! 27Holding faith’s promise Moses abandoned Egypt and had no fear of Pharaoh’s rage because he persisted in faith as if he had seen God who is unseen.
I tell you when you make a decision to come out of Egypt and not be part of it, and not to love it and not do it the way they do it, and not speak and go to the places they go, and not.
We used to sing a song in our church – the things I used to do, I do them no more. Like the places I used to go, I don’t go there anymore, I don’t do, no, no no no no no, because I honour Him, glory to God. It says here, he had no fear, he abandoned Egypt, in other words he came out of Babylon and out of the wicked world system that looked so glamorous, and looked so full of stuff that the eyes wanted, the heart wanted, 27he had no fear of Pharaoh’s rage because he persisted in faith as if he had seen God who is unseen (Hebrews 11:24-27 TPT).
Satan will rage and roar for you, if you are going to decide to come out of Egypt completely, he will not be silent. He will bombard your mind with stuff: “How can you, how can you, how can you? This world system is so strong, they’re so big, they’re so powerful, they are so, they make it, they make it, and look at what they can build, and look at what, and look, and look.” What, what God, God what, where, for you here, what. He will not be silent. He will rage for you, so I want to show you, God here now.
Continue with His story, Exodus 3:6-10, New Living Translation. Here is God speaking for Himself, and He says, 6I am the God of your Father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” When Moses heard this, he covered his face because he was afraid to look at God. Moses had already chosen. He is turning his back on Egypt. He had already left. The Moses that you have seen in the movies, is not the Moses of the Bible. Really, really, there is a measure of accuracy but this is really accurate.
He chose, the Bible tells you that he chose, he turned his back on Egypt. He refused to identify with it. The movies make it look like he was trying, a little bit to help God’s people, but here he is in Egypt and he is a prince in Egypt. Wow, how could he leave all that? It says he was afraid to look at God.
7Then the Lord told him, “I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. You see here is God, I have seen the oppression of My people in the world system. I have heard their cries of distress because of their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering. 8So I have come down to rescue them, the other translation says to deliver them, from the power of the Egyptians and lead them out of Egypt into their own, into their own, fertile and spacious land. It is a land flowing with milk and honey.
Verse 9 9Look! The cry of the people of Israel has reached me, and I have seen how harshly the Egyptians abuse them. 10Now go, for I am sending you to Pharaoh. You must lead my people Israel out of Egypt.” (Exodus 3:6-10 NLT) Galatians chapter 6 says, the church is the true Israel of God. The church is the true Israel of God. You must lead my people. That’s why pastor John and I, have been called by God because God calls you to come out, to come into your own, come into your own fertile, come into what God has for you in the Kingdom. Come in through the promises of God, come into the Kingdom, through His Word and through His promises and with your faith, come in. Keep coming in, keep coming in, Hallelujah.
Exodus 6 verse 6 to 9 Amplified, here is God telling, bearing His heart, wearing His heart on His sleeve, you know that English expression? You can wear your heart on your sleeve. He is saying, listen, I hear, I see, I love, I look, I come to deliver, to deliver. Come, come, you are coming out.
6Accordingly, verse 6, 6Accordingly, say to the Israelites, I am the Lord, so in other word, Moses will you tell the people from Me. It’s like God has got me here today: “Sharon, will you tell the people from me, today, I will take the children, I’ll take them in. If they want to come out, I will take them in. Okay, and He says here 6and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will free you from their bondage, and I will rescue you with an outstretched arm [with special and vigorous action] and by mighty acts of judgment. 7And I will take you to Me for a people, and I will be to you a God; and you shall know that it is I, the Lord your God, Who brings you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. 8And I will bring you into the land concerning which I lifted up My hand and swore that I would give it to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and I will give it to you for a heritage. I am the Lord [you have the pledge of My changeless omnipotence.
Omnipotence is power. You have the pledge of My unchangeable power. Did He not demonstrate His power to the Israelites at that time, in the way that He brought them out? is He not a God, who will bring us out like that, with the same power? He has not changed. He has the same heart beating in Him, “I want my people out, I want to deliver them, I want to rescue them.”
8I am the Lord [you have the pledge of My changeless omnipotence and faithfulness 9 Moses told this to the Israelites, but they refused to listen to Moses because of their impatience and anguish of spirit and because of their cruel bondage. (Exodus 6:6-9 AMPC) So, much had they already been imprinted, influenced and impacted by Egypt. This thing is too big, there is no ways, that we can come out of it. We are in it, and we, because of their impatience? Okay. Because they have just been, they have just heard the Good News from Moses, and they have believed it the first time round, but then Pharaoh came and he made their burden so hard, “Now you are going to make bricks without straw.”
Immediately they got into unbelief and fear and I don’t believe anymore, quickly I don’t believe. I was glad and I believed, but now I don’t believe now, cause look, look at my circumstances. Okay, there’s a lesson, it’s God’s story here.
The plagues came, thick and fast and while the plagues were coming, what were the people of God experiencing, where were they? They were in the land of Goshen. The plagues were coming on the world and what did God say in Babylon? Come out of Babylon so that you don’t participate in her plagues. The plagues were coming thick and fast upon the Babylon of the day, and where were the children of God? In Goshen. It says their cattle, when the stuff took out the cattle of the Egyptians, their cattle did not increase, their livelihood, their place of provision, their place of supply was taken care of. God took care of them.
When they were experiencing darkness, the plague of darkness came, they were experiencing light, they had light in their dwellings. Hallelujah, they had none of the plagues, they had none of the diseases that were upon the Egyptians, came upon them. Not a one, they had extreme provision and extreme protection. God was already showing Himself powerful to them.
I’m telling you, God has already shown Himself so powerful to some of you, the way He’s taken care of you. Some of us that haven’t even had so much great faith. and how has He taken care of us? How has He proven Himself to us, when plagues have come on to the world? How He was taken care of us, and how we had food to eat and we’ve had a roof over our head and we’ve had things. How grateful are we and how glorious is His name. How awesome He is and how He has protected us.
A thousand has fallen beside us and ten thousand by our right hand and it hasn’t come near us. No plagues have come near our dwelling place. How grateful should we be and just because we hit a hiccup and we hit a bump and that and that and that and we have that threat and that threat. How should we not stay faithful to our God and our hearts rejoice in our God and our hearts continue to believe God. Just because something’s made it a little bit harder and now we have to make bricks without straw and now we don’t believe God anymore. Yes, we did believe you then, but now we don’t. No, we’re steadfast in faith, steadfast in faith. We believe His goodness.
The plagues came thick and fast and these people are experiencing extreme protection, extreme provision and the day comes and they leave, they leave. Miraculously they leave, they leave with all the silver and gold. They don’t leave empty handed and they get past the Red Sea, and they rejoice and they are singing and Moses’s sister is doing the tambourine and they’re singing and the horse and rider, thrown into the sea. The Lord, our God, our strength, our song, has now become our victory. They’re all praising and they’re all so happy, because they believe God again. Alright? Then they begin to pass into a state of unbelief, hardness of heart and they reject their deliverance completely and they don’t want it, okay.
I’m going to show you, these same people, look how quickly they changed their religions, they switched. Numbers 13, I’m going to read that to you. I think we can put that up. Numbers 13, from the Amplified Bible. I want you to see it, right, how they go. This is God’s story. God’s experiencing this with His people. This is why it’s God’s story, God Himself is experiencing this with His people. God’s involved in every step of the way of the deliverance. Being very personal, being very close. Up close and personal with His people, right?
In verse 13 1And the Lord said to Moses, 2Send men to explore and scout out [for yourselves] the land of Canaan, which I give to the Israelites. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, everyone a leader or head among them (Numbers 13:2-3 AMPC). You can go and read that chapter for yourself. He names every single person that went in, all twelve, right. And verse 25 says: 25And they returned from scouting out the land after forty days. 26They came to Moses and Aaron and to all the Israelite congregation in the Wilderness of Paran at Kadesh, and brought them word, and showed them the land’s fruit. 27They told Moses, We came to the land to which you sent us; surely it flows with milk and honey. This is its fruit.28 But the people who dwell there are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large; moreover, there we saw the sons of Anak [of great stature and courage] (Numbers 13:25-27 AMPC).
You don’t understand, the people of the world are very strong and the business men and the famous people and all the idols. They are very big and very famous and very rich and they are very strong and so big in the world. You don’t understand, we can’t leave it. We certainly can go in, to possess it. You’re going to have to leave it to possess it. You’re going to have to leave it, to possess it, cause God wants you to possess it. God wants you to possess it, but you’ll have to leave it and not love it so that you can have it. That’s why God is saying, “Come out, so you can have it.” This is not some kind of weird sect thing that I am preaching to you. We’re going to go, we’re going to go somewhere. No, God is bringing you out so that He can bring you in, so that you can possess and you can conquer it. It won’t have you, but you will have it.
He says here, great stature and courage, you know. They are bringing this bad report, and in verse 30 it says, 30Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once and possess it; we are well able to conquer it. We can occupy, we can conquer it and have it. We can take it. God said it’s ours and He’s going to show us how to get it. We’re going to be led by Him, He’s going to show us. We don’t have to plan it, He’ll give us the plan. Military strategy for possession and occupation, hallelujah.
But we’re well able, come on, he says, 30… let us go up at once and possess it; we are well able, we are well able to conquer it. 31But his fellow scouts said, we are not able to go up at once and possess it. against the people [of Canaan], for they are stronger than we are. Babylon is strong, the world system is strong, Pastor Sharon. Tell the Lord that. This was His story then. 32So they brought the Israelites an evil report of the land which they had scouted out, saying, the land through which we went to spy it out is a land that devours its inhabitants. And all the people that we saw in it are men of great stature.
33There we saw the Nephilim [or giants], the sons of Anak, who come from the giants; they are giants , they are giant moguls, they are giant moguls in the earth, they’re big, famous, they’re rich, they’re dynasties, they’re big. You don’t understand, God, and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight (Number 13:30-33 AMPC).
Chapter 14, 1AND ALL the congregation cried out with a loud voice, and [they] wept that night. Now, God is experiencing this with His people. God is with them and they are weeping and crying and they’re believing an evil report. It is just like we do when the report comes to us. What do we do? Auww, auww, auww. That’s exactly what the Israelites did. God wants us to stop it, become strong and wants us to go up and possess it. Get the strategy from God instantly. Like David. He pitched his tent towards the House of the Lord. Did not pitch his tent towards Sodom. He said, “What time I am afraid, I will praise the Lord. What time I am afraid, I will praise the Lord.”
1AND ALL the congregation cried out with a loud voice, and [they] wept that night. They didn’t sleep and that’s what we do, when we get a bad report, we do not sleep, all night. We do not sleep all night and then we wake up with that in the morning in our heads and we worry and this is what happening here. It is God’s story and it is His story with us, we do that. 2All the Israelites grumbled and deplored their situation, accusing Moses and Aaron, to whom the whole congregation said, the whole congregation said this, Would that we had died in Egypt! Or that we had died in this wilderness! 3Why does the Lord bring us to this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and little ones will be a prey. (Numbers 14:1-3 AMPC)
You know what a prey is? It is like an eagle goes to have a prey. This is not p-r-a-y. Is it p-r-e-y. In other words, God You like, you know what You brought us out and You prey on us. We’re Your prey. Our children are going to be Your prey. Even though they were accusing Moses and Aaron of it they might as well be accusing God, Moses and Aaron were just God’s messengers. Nol, Pastor John and Sharon you don’t understand, I hear the Word, but this is too big for me, this.
3Why does the Lord bring us to this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and little ones will be a prey. Is it not better for us to return to Egypt? 4And they said one to another, Let us choose a captain and return to Egypt. It’s God’s story people. 4Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of Israelites. 5And Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among the scouts who had searched the land, rent their clothes. They were so ready to go in. God is not just going to let Joshua and Caleb go in alone, He wants a people. He is not going to let Joshua and Caleb go in, He wants a people, He wants, come out of her, My people. I can be your God and you can be My people.
6And they said to all the company of Israelites, The land through which we passed as scouts is an exceedingly good land. 7If the Lord delights in us, which of course He did. He delighted so much and then He delivered them with a Mighty Hand out of Egypt. 7If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land, He will bring us in and give it to us, a land flowing with milk and honey. 8Only do not rebel against the Lord, don’t rebel, neither fear, neither fear, neither fear, neither fear the people of the land, neither fear the world system and what it can do to you, neither fear. (Numbers 14:3-8 AMPC)
I’ll tell you, I remember the one day, I was young married and I was praying, because that’s what a born again believer does, talk to their Father. The Lord said to me, “John is going to lose his job, they’re going to fire him and don’t be afraid, I have something else for him.” The Holy Spirit will show you of things to come. Even if He didn’t show you of things to come, and it happened unexpectedly, I’m not going to go, haa-aww what are we going to do, what are we going to do? No. No, I’m born again. I have the Word of God in me. I believe God. He’ll take us in. He is taking us in. His promises are true. I’m not falling off the cart ,just because the boss fired him.
He came home from work that day. I said, “Ah.” He said, “Jah.” I said, “Okay. He’s got something good for us.” That’s how we live in the Kingdom. The world system falls apart and falls to pieces, it’s not in the Kingdom. Hahaha. In the Kingdom we have a King Jesus. In John 16 that said, “I’ve concerned the world for you. I’ve deprived it from its power to harm you. I’ve overcome it. I have deprived it of its power to harm you. Be of good cheer. Be of good cheer, little flock. You see, this is for little children. This message is for little children. It’s not for big grown up adults that want to have a tantrum because they are now adult enough, to not believe God anymore.
This is wonderful. It’s setting you free. You’re going to change and become a person that used to go, (Pastor Sharon makes crying of fear sounds), every time there’s a bad report to; Ah, really? What we are doing here, Lord? What are You saying? What You got to say to me, Lord? It’s a spirit of fear here that wants to come on me, Lord. I recognise it, but You haven’t given it to me, Lord. The Word says, what time I am afraid, I will praise the Lord. I feel like that fear wants to come grip my heart, I Pray to you, Jesus.
I’ll tell you what. I didn’t have to do it any different to you. You think, I’ve got some other magical way? You think the same devil doesn’t threaten me that threatens you. Especially when I’m growing and I’m on the threshold of some breakthroughs spiritually to mature. He comes. He is not silent. He is never silent. He is never, the Apostle Paul said, your adversary the devil, goes about as a roaring lion, to see if he can devour you. To see if he can devour you, through this world system. When actually you’ve been delivered.
What happens is, is that God says, I want nothing more to do with the people. I’m going to start over with you Moses, and then I’m going to make you a great people. And Moses says, “You can’t do that Lord. What will all the other people say? All the other nations will say You were not able to bring them in.” That’s exactly what Moses says to God. “You can’t wipe them out. You can’t abandon them now, because all the other nations will say, look at God. He said He was going to and now He hasn’t. He couldn’t.” He says, “Don’t do that Lord. Don’t do that to Your people.”
Then the Lord says this. Let’s go to Numbers, Chapter 14 verse 19, Amplified Bible. This is Moses talking to God. 19Pardon, I pray You, the iniquity of This people according to the greatness of Your mercy and loving-kindness, just as You have forgiven [them] from Egypt until now. He’s been forgiving and forgiving and forgiving and forgiving them. You’ll see just now. It was ten times that they tested Him like that. 20And the Lord said, verse 20, I have pardoned according to your word. 21 But truly as I live and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord, 22Because all those men who have seen My glory and My [miraculous] signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have tested and proved Me these ten times and have not heeded My voice, 23Surely they shall not see the land which I swore to give to their fathers; …..
You see God drew a line. He just went [Pastor Sharon draws an imaginary line on the floor with her foot] it’s enough. It’s been ten times. All you can do is murmur and grumble and get into the hardness of heart and unbelief. Every time something happens. You do that. Not going in. Not going in. Off course He still took care of them with manna and water. He took care of them until their carcasses fell, but they didn’t go and experience His gold. His best. He says here, verse 23, 23Surely they shall not see the land which I swore to give to their fathers; nor shall any who provoked (spurned, spurned. It’s like, I know You said that God, but, no, I’m not believing that. I’m not going there with You. All who (spurned, despised) Me, they will not see it 24But My servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and His descendants shall possess it. (Numbers 14:19-26 AMPC)
Verse 26, 26And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 27How long will This evil congregation murmur against Me? God doesn’t want the evil congregation here. He doesn’t want one of you here, murmuring against Him. When Pastor John and I, bring the gospel to you, to tell you how awesome God is. How magnificent His promises are, how His Kingdom of Light is real. How you must come out of it, the darkness and come out of the world and don’t love it. Come out of Babylon and leave the wicked world system and come into the kingdom. Walk in His ways, and walk in His Kingdom ways and love the King. Love the king. Love the King of the Kingdom. Love Jesus. Choose Jesus.
Verse 27, 27How long will this evil congregation murmur against Me? I have heard the complaints the Israelites murmur against Me. This is God’s story. I’ve heard. 28Tell them, As I live, says the Lord, what you have said in My hearing I will do to you: 29Your dead bodies shall fall in This wilderness—of all who were numbered of you, from twenty years old and upward, who have murmured against Me, He is very specific here. From twenty years old and upward, I’ve heard all of your murmurs.
30Surely none shall come into the land in which I swore to make you dwell, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun. 31 But your little ones whom you said would be a prey… (Numbers 14:26-31 AMPC) This is a big deal to God. God heard that, He heard all the parents say, and our little ones. (Pastor Sharon makes whimpering sounds). We will take our little ones back to Egypt, thank you very much. We will take the men back into the world system and we will teach them their ways. Hum mm. Our little ones that You are praying to God.
31But your little ones whom you said would be a prey, them will I bring in. That i’s where the title of the series comes from. God says I will take the little children. I will take the little children, Caleb and Joshua. I will take the little children. I will take the teenagers who will believe. I will take the younger generation, who have not hardened their hearts and I will take the Joshuas and Calebs who will become like little children to believe me. Hallelujah. I will take the little children. I will take the Josephs, I will take the Daniels, I will take the teenagers, I will take the Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego’s. I will take them. I will take them.
That is exactly what God did. All those, that generation of murmuring, grumbling unbelieving, hard hardened people, their carcases fell in the wilderness and they came and the time came and Joshua was ready and Caleb was ready, and the ones that were twenty and under by that time were now sixty because they were wondering in the wilderness with their parents for forty years. Caleb was 84, and he said, as my strength was at 26, so is my strength at 85. Give me this mountain for war. I’ve been going long enough with all these unbelieving people. I want my full inheritance. I’m going to go for it now. Now is my time, I’ll have it, I’ll take it now. Hallelujah, hallelujah, glory to God. 31…and they shall know the land which you have despised and rejected. Hallelujah. Isn’t this a wonderful story?
Verse 37 says: 37Even those men who brought the evil report of the land died by a plague before the Lord. 38But Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among the men who went to search the land, lived still. 39Moses told [the Lord’s] words to all the Israelites, and [they] mourned greatly. (Numbers 14:37-39 AMPC) And then they changed their minds. You got to go and read that God’s story for yourself. Then they decided, no we are going to occupy, we are going to possess. Then Moses said it’s over. God has spoken. Ten times we’ve been here. God says there won’t be an eleventh time. You are staying, you won’t see it.
The God story. His heart to deliver. His heart to deliver. He is so beautiful. To rescue us. I’ll get there next time where they said, we remember the garlic and the onions and the leeks of Egypt, we want to go back there, we remember how it was. It was like Lot’s wife, I remember how it is, I don’t want to go, and Lot lingered and I liked it in the world, I liked it, it was nice, I remember. This thing here, of following God, like this and don’t know how to turn out. I don’t like it. If God is not telling me exactly how it is going to be like, I don’t like it. I will get there. I will get there. God is going to tell His story to these people. Isn’t it wonderful? Praise the Lord.
Now, we are going to have this beautiful song, and Garth is going to sing it and by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. I told you the last time I was with you, that he is going to sing the song. You must allow it to penetrate, allow it to pierce, allow it to bring your hardened heart to a place of Jesus. Remember the prophecy that Pastor John brought? With the sounds and the words and the music was going to do. It’s going to even bring the hardest heart, it can, if you allow it, even bring the hardest heart to the knees, to Jesus. Hearts that’ve been hardened towards God. It’s going to bring us to Jesus.
Before he plays the song, I’m going to pray for you. Because what I would like you to do, that when he is finished playing and you finished connecting with God, well you are not going to finish, because you will take this song with you again. You are going to take the sound with you again. I would like, Pastor Christi, if you can do what you did in the first service; just lead the people out at the end of the song, as it plays, so that they can carry it, so there is no break. Right? Go to your car, spend the day, spend the week, to choose Jesus. Choose to love Him. Hallelujah.
I pray for Your people, Lord. I commit them to Your grace and I commend them to Your Word, as it is able to build them up and give them their inheritance among the saints. In the name of Jesus, and we all say, Amen.
© 2024 – Heritage of Faith Ministries International
TOUCH | TEACH | TRAIN | TRANSFER
