Law of Recognition, Protocol and Honour – Ps Sharon Bendixen (WTB)

Scripture reference: Hebrews 13:7, 17 AMPC; Hebrews 13:7, 17 AMPC; Colossians 2:8 (TPT); Malachi 1:6-9, 11-14 (HSBC); Malachi 2:13-14 (HSBC); Luke 16:10-11 (AMPC); Luke 16:10-14 (AMP)

Hallelujah. Glory. Glory to God. Glory to You, God. Glory to You, God. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Oh Hallelujah. We love You, Lord, everything about You, everything about Your Word, everything about Your commandments, Your law, Your testimony, Your statutes, Your judgments Lord. We love everything. There is no shadow of tuning in You, Lord. We thank You for that, that You’re always the same. You never change. Your Word is always the same. It never changes. So, we receive today, we receive today. Father, I thank You, I ask You and I thank You that today I say only what I hear You say. Lord, I do only what I see you do. I’m ministering Your Word which You have given to me. I’m ministering it in Your very presence. You’re listening to everything You’ve given me to say that I may only say that which You’ve given me to say. I keep a watch today on my spirit, Father, that it may be controlled by Your Spirit. That we may be changed, that we may become, that You will build with Your Word today here in our hearts. That we may become the Ecclesia against which the gates of hell can’t prevail, Lord. We’re very aware that You’re building Your Church in this place against which the gates of hell will not be able to prevail even more and more, Lord. Hallelujah. We are Your Church. We are Your Church, Lord, and that’s why we listen today, Father. In Jesus’ name we thank You for that and we all say; Amen. Glory to God. 

Wow. The presence of God is wonderful. Always with us. It’s just always an awe for us. You may be seated. Thank you, music ministry. (Right, so my glasses are in my bag Christi.) So, Pastor John did ask me to, specially asked me, he called me yesterday. (Is it the green one? Is it not there, oh dear. Thank you Christi, thank you. Alright. No, Hazel thank you. Let me just check to see if yours is still okay for me? It’s good thank you.) Good morning, everybody. Pastor John asked me to specially ask you to especially send his love to you and to ask you to please not miss this Sunday. I’m not actually going to try to be any more persuasive than that because we all have the law of recognition, the law of honour, and the law of protocol according to Pastor John’s ministry on the first of May. Hallelujah. I’m expecting that you will come because of the law of recognition, honour and protocol. So, when he left, actually, from the time of his first of May message, the hand of the Lord began to come upon me quite strongly and a full download of messages came to me again. I just said, “Lord, You have to speak to Pastor John again. You have to tell him.” And then yesterday he said to me on the phone, he said, “Sharon, I recognise without you having to say anything to me that the Lord is bringing messages through you again. But I must speak to the people next Sunday about this honour seed, and about the awe that is in my heart about what is taking place, right now, with me and Brother Jerry.” Hallelujah, Glory to God. So, that’s just to prepare you. 

So, I’m just going to read it. After the Lord’s message to us on the first of May, He began to speak to me clearly. “This is My fire that burns in this, My Church, in the midst of My congregation, this is My hand. This is My sword of judgement, My weapon of love. While My fire is burning in this congregation, there is nothing else for you to bring but the fire of My word. The sword is on fire in this congregation, and judgement is in My house.” That’s what happened to me after Pastor John’s message on the first of May. It took me a few days to process what actually happened here today, Lord. What actually happened, what actually went down here today. And He began to speak to me, these words. So, then He said to me, “Now you receive My words, and you eat what I give you,” this is out of Ezekiel. My calling is from Ezekiel. “While My fire is burning in this congregation, there’s nothing else for you to bring but the fire of My word because it started through Pastor John. You receive My words, and you eat what I give you. And then you go, and you speak to them, even if they do not hear.” And so the Lord told me to tell everybody in Heritage of Faith that even if you are not here in this congregation this morning, every time actually, you’re not here to hear the messages, He personally holds you responsible for what you did not hear. You can’t say, “I was not there and I did not hear,” because you’re supposed to be in the assembly of the brethren. You’re supposed to be here. 

Pastor John has besieged the Johannesburg people to be here. And so, because of something that he’s recognizing that God is doing in and for the Johannesburg people that is eternal, that is for now. This is what Pastor John heard from the Lord and it was witnessed in many of you. Whether you are here or not, this word goes out today. And this word will perform what He sends it out to perform. This message comes by God right into the heart of this congregation. He has told me to address specifically money and mammon in marriage, money and mammon in marriage.

And then He just gave me the points of this is how I’m to start this morning. And then He said, “the glory” as per brother Jerry’s message number six and then from Malachi – how married people deal treacherously in the marriage with money. The Babylonish ways of thinking and conversations in the home. And then He said for me to use Lot and his wife and family as an example; Nabal and Abigail; and Ananias and Sapphira. He said to me, “The man – yes. The woman – yes.” And then point two, He said to me. So, first of all, He said, “I want to deal today with money and mammon in marriage. And number two, I want to address the congregation about being faithful in mammon from Luke 16. And then He said, “You start with Pastor John’s story.” And this is the story. 

The Lord said that, there was a point, a defining moment, and a point in Pastor John’s life that he was fully, the message title of my message today is Law of recognition, protocol and honour. Continuing from Pastor John’s message. He said, you tell the people that there was a very great day for God in the realm of the Spirit in Pastor John’s life, where he fully had the law of recognition and the law of protocol and the law of honour operating in his life. Of such great importance was that day that none of us would have been here in this place. Jesus would not have been able to have been building Ecclesia here. So great was that day,  it was a day that he wasn’t to realize that it would impact his very destiny, and his very future and the future of his church – that part of Ecclesia that he wanted to build in his church. Pastor John’s story of recognition, protocol and honour at 30 years’ of age. Pastor John’s spiritual recognition, spiritual protocol and spiritual honour that he gave the Lord that day. It was a day of days, in 1990. Pastor John was 30 and I was 35 and Brynn and Garth were eight and six years old.

Tell the story, Sharon. Our Pastor, Pastor Ray, this goes on record today, right? I’m going to just bring this scripture into it, because this is the pattern and this is the principle here. 7 Remember your leaders and superiors in authority, Hebrews 13:7, [for it was they] who brought to you the Word of God. Observe and consider their manner of living … and imitate their faith (Hebrews 13:7 AMPC). I’m telling you this story today so that you can observe the way he lived. He lives and you can imitate it. He’s giving this story to you today, as an example, and an admonition of how you should be living your life in the fear of the Lord. It says here in verse 17, 17 Obey your spiritual leaders. Obey your spiritual leaders and submit to them [continually recognizing their authority over you], for they are constantly keeping watch over your souls and guarding your spiritual welfare, as men who will have to render an account [of their trust]. [Do your part to] let them do this with gladness and not with sighing and groaning, for that would not be profitable to you (Hebrews 13:17 AMPC).

We had a situation in the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, where we had some people, a couple, a married couple come to us, whose marriage was in great trouble to ask us for counsel. Pastor John and I proceeded to go into a time of fasting and prayer and seeking the Lord. We received the most wonderful revelation, we received such insight and execution of how to help them out of what they had gotten themselves into. When we went to see them, it was not what they wanted to hear. They completely rejected everything we said. We just left and we said, “Well, Lord, what can we do?” What can we do? We came to deliver the message to them with such joy, because God had given us how to help them, the way out. 

The next thing we knew, we were called into the office of our Pastor, well Pastor John was but I was to go with him, was called into the office of our spiritual authority. Where God said; “You obey them, that have the rule over you”. As ones that will have to render, they will have to render an account to God of your lives that I have entrusted to him. Right. So, but Pastor John went to see and seek a servant. Do you remember Pastor John’s message from the first of May? If you do not have the law of recognition at work in you, seek a servant because if you have no law of recognition, you’ve got to have someone near you that can talk to you in your life when you don’t have the law of recognition at work. Because you don’t have somebody talking to you. When you don’t have the law of recognition at work, you will head for a disaster and leprosy will consume your life and parts of your world begin to fall away and fall apart. That’s exactly what Naaman did. He did not want to do what Elisha the prophet told him to do, right. So, the law of recognition was not at work, but a servant helped him and he listened to a servant. 

So then, he spoke about the Gehazi who had no law of recognition at work, he had no honour and often Naamen and had got healed he went to Naaman to get something. To get money. To get more money. Right. Then there was the leprosy, Naaman was leprous, Naaman heard a servant, and Naaman got healed. Gehazi was a servant who wanted money and he went to Naaman and that leprosy came on him. He said, he came in and stood before, this is what it says here. But Gehazi said, “I will run after him and get something from him.” He had no law of recognition at work here, no honour here. What’s the thing that’s calling him here? Money. How much more money can I make? 

So, then it says in verse 24, 24 He took them from their hands the garments and everything that he got and put them in the house; and he sent the men away, and they left. 25 He went in and stood before his master. Elisha said, where have you been, Gehazi? He said, Nowhere.  A liar. Right? A Liar. 26 Elisha said to him, Did not my spirit go with you when the man turned from his chariot to meet you? (2 Kings 5:24-26 AMPC) Elisha is saying the law of recognition and honour is so missing in your life that you don’t know God is doing something important here. You have just traded the anointing in exchange for something else. Therefore, the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and to your offspring, your children. 

The spiritual protocol that you broke, that you broke, opened the way for the devil to come and destroy your whole future because you broke spiritual protocol. I’m going to continue with the story about Pastor John because he did not break protocol. He did not break the law of honour and he had the law of recognition fully at work because he had sought a servant. Right. Spiritual, okay, you broke the law of recognition. You broke spiritual protocol; you broke the law of honour that was in someone else. It was in Elisha. Right. I’m here to tell you today that the law of honour is in Pastor John. 

You refused to see it at work. And so because you didn’t have it, you broke the protocol and so then it came to destroy you, and your family and your offspring. Protocol, the law of recognition, I’m only reading from his message, the law of honour, they go together. If you break one of those, you’re in great danger. There are times when these things are more important than others. And that day in Pastor Rays’ office when he was called, was a great law of recognition and honour and protocol working. And I’ll get to finish that story.

So, I need to clarify this. There are many things that will happen. When I’m preaching from this pulpit, you will get much counsel and advice about how to live your lives. The Holy Spirit makes everything that I say personal to you, and you receive it personally and you live it out personally or not. Right? But He will always make His word here in this pulpit coming to you very personal to you. You cannot ever sit there and say, “His ministry, He is preaching to someone else.” No, this message comes directly to you today. Every message every Sunday, God comes to speak to you about what He’s saying. And so then, but there are some decisions in your life, that are very big decisions, where sometimes you need to lean on the authority of a spiritual leader, and the wisdom of God that comes with our mantle to help you through a significant moment. But you have to have the law of recognition at work. You have to have the law of honour at work that God does talk through this person.

Then he spoke about Elisha. The prophet tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bed-chamber, I will tell you now that there are times where the Lord tells Pastor John the things that you are speaking about in your homes. Conversations you’re having as married couples, conversations you’re having in your heart concerning all the things. He knows, but there are times when He will show Pastor John. Do you think that God will reveal things, Pastor John’s message that you speak in your most private places? Do you think God hears? Do you think He can tell it to a man of God if he’s on assignment? He can and He will as He chooses. Elisha, I will put here to Pastor John, had the law of recognition because he could see into the spiritual realm. What use would it be if we have a spiritual leader that cannot see into the spiritual realm? Please know that this is not the first thing he’d seen in the spiritual realm. There had already been evidence, he’s used to seeing things in the spirit realm.

His servant sees nothing. He just sees horses, that was the time when the enemy was coming – his servant also just saw nothing, he just saw money that he could get from Naaman. Then he said this… IIt is time for me to say two important things. And he spoke about two businessmen in our congregation – Heritage of Faith. You say, Pastor Sharon, these things should be private – I am such a private person. Well, let me remind you about Achan – what Achan did to want money and hide it and keep it for himself. God brought that personal sin out into the open. Because why? It was deliberately going against God’s commandment that He made very clear to all of them. Like the commandment of love, of tithing, He makes very clear in His Word to all of us and we are going to go there today. He’s used to seeing things. So, it is time for me to say a few important things. Two businessmen – you think God keeps things private about your life? Why didn’t He keep David’s sin private with Beersheba? Why does He write about it in the Bible? Why does He write about Ananias and Sapphira in the Bible? You think we are not going to see Ananias and Sapphira in heaven? 

You think the things that we do, that we want to hide because we say we’re private. I am so glad that private is not a fruit of the Spirit. I am so glad that God is not private. I am created in God’s image, I am not private. I am out in the open. My life is out in the open, I am accountable to God, I am accountable to His Word, I am accountable to my husband and I am accountable to the body of Christ. God wrote all about Moses. He struck the rock; he couldn’t go into the promised land. The Bible is full of God bringing out into the public and out into the open the private sins of people. He brings it out as Pastor John said in his message as He wills. As He wills. This is not up to the spiritual leader. The spiritual leader walks among his people, loving everybody, believing the best for everybody, praying for everybody. And then just suddenly the Lord will show. The Lord will show because He is about to do something about it because of His great love. He’s about to pass sentence so that there can be repentance. You think He is not going to do that in this congregation with a spiritual leader who is pressing and whose whole cry of his whole heart is you build here Jesus. You build this Ecclesia, this legislative assembly where the church should be lawful, not lawless. Lawful in which one of the most important things to God is the spirit of mammon operating in His people in His church? The spirit of money. Ananias and Saphira was about money, Achan was about money, Abigail and Nabal was about money – what to do with wealth and possessions. God says, “The love of money is the root of all evil. The love of money is the root of all evil.”

Two important things – the one businessman had the law of honour and recognition and protocol fully operating. I am going to get back to Pastor John’s story. He had the law of honour, recognition and protocol fully at work. He knew who this Pastor John is, he acknowledged it. He did everything that Pastor John told him. And Pastor John had seen these things months in advance, but he had not been released by God to go to this person with what he already knew. But the time came that the person with recognition and protocol and honour came to him. And then he was released to speak, and the realm of the miraculous was opened up to this businessman and will continue to be opened up as he continues in his law of recognition, his law of honour and his law of spiritual protocol. 

But then he spoke about another businessman – I want to read this to you. Everything he touches, he said about the first businessman is blessed because he had the law of recognition and honour at work. And then he spoke about another businessman, that had just recently, that had said no, I don’t need anybody, I don’t need you or anybody else to prosper me. I can do this without, without you Pastor John, or without anybody that you think should be with me. Completely, this is what the Lord said to Pastor John, “The law of recognition is not at work within this man, he does not recognise that you have saved his life over and over and over.” And we are going to see that with Nabal. David comes to Nabal at a time because he has need, and he says, “Nabal will you give me because I hear it is the time of your shearing of your sheep. Will you give me, will you give my people – it was before he was king. Will you give us some of your supply please, will you give us some of your possessions, some of the fruit of your labour and the fruit of your ground?” And Nabal said, “Who’re you?” No law of recognition at work.

No law of recognition at work. “I don’t need you. I’ve got…” Okay, so “I could do this without you without anybody else’s help that you say is God’s will for my life.” Right. He says here, “I’m making this public statement. Because if that man does not get the law of recognition, the law of honour, and does not begin to walk in the things that God has for him. It’s not going to go well. But I’m trusting that he will hear this message or is hearing this message and that I trust.” Here is what he said, “He will make it his priority to come and speak to a servant.” Pastor Christi. I have a few things to say to this congregation about that. About the servant, Pastor Christi.

I’m just checking with the Lord. There have been people in this congregation that do not think it is necessary anymore at one time they did. But they do not think it necessary because they can do things themselves to come and seek a servant upon whom is the anointing of a shepherd that the Lord said to me, “Is of the highest order.” And they say, “But how can I go? How can I go to Pastor Christi for anything about marriage?” She has paid the highest price in her marriage. She has been the Abigail in her marriage, and it saved her husband. She was the Abigail and we’re going to go there. She was Abigail, and it saved her husband’s life. And then there are people that say, “Well Pastor Christi does not have children. How can I go to Pastor Christi to have any counsel for me about children?” I’m here to declare publicly to you today, that Pastor Christi in her discipleship and her shepherd anointing, is probably of the best parenting that you can ever, ever imagine. Currently, she is busy parenting, parents children who were not parented properly. That’s all I will say there. She continues to parent children of children of parents that didn’t parent their children properly for which all of us as parents should be most grateful, most grateful. Glory. This stands in this congregation today. Right.

“I trust that He will make it his priority to come and speak to Pastor Christi.” So, then he continued to speak about Demos has deserted me for the love of this present world. He took his gifts and his callings that were operating once with Paul, but he deserted Paul, for love of the world. He said, “I love the ways of the world, the ways of Babylon, more than I love you, Paul, I choose now to leave you.” And then Pastor John said this, “Someone in his inner circle has done him great harm.” He spoke about Alexander the Coppersmith did me great wrongs, the Lord will pay him back for his actions, Demas has deserted me for love of this present world. And so someone in your inner circle in his inner circle has done him great harm. I will, here to declare to you today, there are people that have been in Pastor John’s inner circle that have done him great harm, great wrongs.

How do people do you great wrongs? They stop recognising who you are, they stop honouring you for who you represent, they take whatever happens through you as, “You’re just another man. I can argue with you. I can debate with you, and if I’ve got more facts on my side, I’ll show you you’re just a man.” Right. “Thirty pieces of silver is more important to you than you are, Pastor John.” “Business contacts I’ve had for 10, 15, 20, 30 years that I’ve had, the honour of them is much more important than the honour of you.” And then the scripture says 15 Beware of him yourself, for he opposed and resisted our message very strongly and exceedingly. (2 Timothy 4:15 AMPC) “People have come to me and they’ve wanted to sow a significant seed into the ministry or into my life. And I say, your seed will begin to create a harvest for you that will bring you to a crossroad because your seed will multiply and the multiplication will cause you to look at where it came from. And you can move your eyes from the person who gave it to you to the thing that it has become to you.” So, everybody that sows the seed is going to walk through that cross road. Then he speaks about this. So, now I’m going to continue because it’ll make more sense with Pastor John’s story.

So, they brought the matter, this couple brought the matter as a ‘saak’, a legal case, because the judgement of the Lord is in the house of God. It’s not in the courts of law. It can go to the courts of law when there’s an infidel, but the judgement is in the house of the Lord. It begins in the household of God. God’s justice and judgement begins in His own house. He’s the Most High Judge. He’s the Judge of all the earth. And He gave the power to Elisha to judge on a matter, He gave the power to Apostle Paul to judge on matters in the church. He gave the authority to Joshua to judge on that matter of Achan. Can you imagine what happened? In that, with Achan in the whole of the Israelites how they must have been talking to each other. I wonder who it was that hid this thing. I wonder who it was. Joshua is going to go through his family by family until he finds, and that was God’s way of making it very public. He could have told Joshua immediately, it’s Achan. God was making a point, family by family, I’ll go through, family by family. 

So, we got called, but Pastor John went to see a servant. Our pastor, the one that had the rule over us, the one who would have to give an account to God who had entrusted our very lives to him, he went to seek a servant. And the servant said to him, “John,” because Pastor John was an elder in the church. He said to Pastor John, the servant said to Pastor John, “John, you are right in what you heard from the Lord about this couple, you are right. John, you are right, you and Sharon, what you perceived, what you fasted and prayed for, you are right, I recognize that in the Spirit, I witness to it. However, your being right does not mean one stitch to God. This is not a matter of who’s wrong and who’s right, that you have to be heard, that you have to put your side and your case… you have to bring your case and you have to justify yourself and debate and argue with your pastor. John, whatever sentence he passes, whatever he tells you to do, whatever ruling he brings, you accept it all. God will vindicate you, don’t bring your own vindicator.”

So, there was everything in us, when Pastor Ray said to us, “In this matter of what this couple has told me, you are wrong, John. You are wrong, John.” When we knew we were right. But a servant had said, “It matters nothing to God, whether you’re wrong or whether you’re right.” I was sitting next to Pastor John. I’d never ever been in our pastor’s office. Never. It’s the first time I’d ever even been in that close proximity to him. I was shivering in my boots and when he said that to Pastor John, I saw him yield, I saw Pastor John yield to that honour and that law of recognition and that protocol, “I don’t justify myself here. I don’t demand to be heard. I yield to the meekness of the Spirit of God,” and I saw the tears began to roll down his cheeks. And he said, “Pastor Ray, right now, my mind and my heart is not fully embracing what you are saying but you are my pastor.” Those were the words he used. “You are my pastor. I will do whatever you say.” And then he said, “You repent before these people,” because they were sitting in the office. “You repent before these people.”

Pastor John completely did that, he completely… “But you were right. You were right. You were right.” It didn’t even matter to God a stitch. “You were right. We are right. You didn’t hear me, you didn’t hear my side of the story, I’m an elder in this church, you could have at least given me the courtesy…” That spirit of repentance came upon John for all of that flesh that wanted to manifest itself in that office that day.

Our divine connection, our relationship in that church. He had a recognition of that – Pastor John, he had protocol for that. Pastor John had honour for that. We had facts, boy, we could have nailed him. We had all the facts. It mattered not a stitch to God. He passed sentence. He said, “You repent.” He passed sentence so that there could be repentance. Just like this matter of this businessman, God has passed sentence so that there can be repentance. It was a very simple sentence our pastor passed that day in the office, “You repent, John, you repent before these people.” And he turned and he said, “Forgive me,” he was weeping, the spirit of repentance upon him by the Holy Spirit. And then the one married, the one person, one person in the marriage relationship rose up and said, “You are as a roaring lion seeking who you may devour.” But the servant was also in that meeting in his office and the servant said, “You keep quiet. This man has fulfilled his legal obligation. He has repented, he has done what his authority has said to do, now you keep quiet.” And so, they were restless, they could not settle in this thing. 

So, Pastor Ray phoned Pastor John again. “John, please, won’t you go to their house? Won’t you just make right with them, please?” And I remember those were still the days when we were trusting the Lord for finances and for me to even to give Pastor John that eet-sum-mor packet, to take with him to their house. Very, very, very wealthy people. I just said, “Take these, it’s all we’ve got eet-sum–mor box.” And he went in all humility to their house and they rose up against him. “You are only doing this because Pastor Ray told you to do it. You have no backbone.” The spirit of meekness and humility on you. He didn’t… I don’t know what he said but he was there. “Yes, of course. Of course, I’m doing what Pastor Ray asked me to do because the servant told me what to do; so that I don’t mess up my whole destiny and my whole future.”

Then, he said, “Well, please forgive me.” He continued to say, “Please forgive me.” Then they chased him out of the house. He said, “Get out of our house, we don’t want to…” “Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay.” So, shhhhh, Jesus. Then what happened after that, is that this matter was brought quite public from the pulpit in a church of thousands of people because they had judged that Pastor John and I were wrong. We walked around that church… I supposed that we would leave, we would have to leave the church. Immediately after the meeting, I said, “Are we going to leave now?” Because I didn’t see where else we could go. And Pastor John said, “No, we’re not leaving. This is where God has planted us. I’m not bringing division to this church.” I said, “Ah, John, five thousand people in this church, you think they’re going to miss us?” “God sees me bringing division to this church, and He has planted me here.” 

These things I’m speaking to you today, because these are things that are expected of people in the Ecclesia not just people who come to church, people that are in Ecclesia; these are the things that God has need of in our hearts so that we can become His Ecclesia. This is the kind of heart decision the Lord is requiring today. He is building a legislative assembly here right? He passes sentence so that there could be repentance. 

So, I’ve got a scripture one Corinthians 10, 7, that says 7 Now these things are an example and warnings and admonitions for us. Right, so, have you found yourself in Pastor John’s office? Do you find yourself an available servant? If there is no recognition in you and he has told you to go and dip seven times in the Jordan or he has told you to go and seek a servant and he may not even come out to you anymore as Elisha did not come to Naman and that puts you in a rage? He has told you what his ruling is on this matter, go and see a servant. So, I’ve got a book here that He wants me to read something. I may not get through all of this today but I’m being led by the Holy Spirit here right. 

It says here, a man with revelations about the authority of God and obeying God’s delegated authority. Let me just see, there is so much here. The manifestations let me just see here. Here we go. It says here that, God will use, I’m just trying to find it here, now. God will use human failure and weakness in a spiritual leader to test you to test your obedience to Him. I’ll find it. Here it is; Failure of delegated authority will test your obedience. 

In the Garden of Eden, Adam fell in the vineyard. Noah also was defeated but because of his righteousness, God saved the family of Noah. In God’s plan, Noah was the head of the family. God put the whole family under Noah’s authority. He also said, “Noah is the head of the world of their time”, and you can go and read about that in Hebrews. But one day Noah became drunk in his vineyard. And he uncovered himself in his tent. So one day our Pastor made a huge failure. He did not consult his elder about, “What was actually happening here, John? You have… I’ve delegated eldership to you. Let me hear your side. Our father’s nakedness was exposed because we knew he was wrong.

His youngest son Ham, saw his father’s nakedness and told his two brothers outside. It would be like Pastor John and I are going to somebody and saying but he’s wrong. He just, he didn’t do this and he didn’t do that and he doesn’t know a thing. And it says here, so far as Noah’s conduct was concerned he certainly was wrong. He should not have been drunk. He should have done a lot of other things for Pastor John and I. Yet Ham failed to see the dignity of authority. A father is God’s instituted authority in the home. But the flesh delights in seeing a defect in authority so as to throw off all restraint. When Ham saw his father’s improper conduct, he did not have the slightest sense of shame or sorrow. Nor did he try to cover his father’s fault. This reveals that he had a rebellious spirit. He went out instead and told. He hears all your conversations in your homes that you have about Pastor John. You’re not perfect. You don’t always hear from God. You’re not, you’re not, you’re not.

No, no slightest sense of shame, or sorrow, or trying to cover the father’s fault. This reveals, he went out instead and told his brethren pointing out to them his father’s wrongs. Observe though, how Shem and Japheth managed the situation that entered the tent backwards, thus avoiding seeing the father’s nakedness and covered their Father with the upper garment which they had laid on their shoulders. They took it on their shoulders. It is seen then that the failure of Noah became a test to Shem, Ham, Japheth. And it revealed who was obedient and who was rebellious.

Yeah, there is just so much. Glory to God. Hallelujah. So, I want to tell you about Pastor John and how the rebellion of Korah, Byrum and Nathan, when all those spiritual well, they were leaders under Moses’ leadership. They said, “You take too much upon yourself. We’re not listening to you anymore.” And we’ve had our corporate rebellion against Pastor John and I. We have fought those beasts. Come to us with accusations, come to us making appointments to see Brother Jerry about us.

We’ll tell somebody about Pastor John’s nakedness, we’ll tell somebody because they’d been meeting in homes discussing Pastor John and he didn’t have a clue but God heard. Moses didn’t have a clue. What a Byrum, Nathan. But God brought it to Moses’ attention. He said, I’m dealing with it publicly. They think they can speak in private. I’m dealing with it publicly. They think I’m not hearing. I’m hearing everything. And so we’ve had our Gehazis, opportunistic people wanting to take things around us. We’ve had our Achans, we’ve had our Alexander the Coppersmiths, we’ve had our Demas experience people who leave us because they love the world. We’ve had our Miriam and Aaron experience. Let me tell you, close family. We’ve had them all. We will no doubt continue to have them because if people do not hear His Messengers messages from His messages what can Pastor John and I do? Except to rule for God in every matter as He leads us.  

Yeah, so the instruction that God gave us. Because people are full of facts, and I’ll bring all the facts to you Pastor John and I’ll debate with you and I’ll show you’re just a man. Here we go. This is what the Lord said to me about that. He comforted me with this scripture.

He said this, 8 Be aware John and Sharon that no one distracts you or intimidates you  in their attempt to lead you away from Christ’s fullness by pretending to be full of wisdom when they’re filled with endless arguments of human logic. For they operate with humanistic and clouded judgments based on the mindset of this world system, and not the anointed truths of the Anointed One. Don’t let them pretend it sincerity. This is the passion translation Colossians two, eight. Don’t let them pretend it sincerity. (Colossians 2:8 TPT)

But you know and we’re so sincere when we come to you with all our arguments and our facts. And we really, you know, we really love you but, don’t let their pretended sincerity fool you as they deliberately lead you into the initiation of angel worship. That’s fallen angels. For they take pleasure in pretending to be experts of something they know nothing about. Their reasoning is meaningless and comes only from their own opinions. They refuse to take hold of the true source. But you, John and Sharon, receive directly from Me. So, this will become more clear to you over the time to come and I think my time is done here Pastor Christi? 

Okay, so Brother Jerry’s message, ‘The Glory.’ Brother Jerry’s message of ‘The Glory.’ Now we’re going to go into the tithing matter. Okay, here is his message here. The glory, the wealth and the prosperity message six on Friday 2018. Define the glory. The very first time the word ‘glory’ is found in the Bible it’s not talking about clouds. It’s talking about wealth, prosperity, Hallelujah. So, the dumbest thing you could ever say in your life is, “I’m a self made man. You wouldn’t even have a brain if it wasn’t for God.” You wouldn’t. Listen. How do you say it? You may not say it with your words, but your actions show it. I say, “I’m a self made man. I don’t need to tithe. I can remain a tithing, delinquent and a spiritual delinquent as long as I want to. Up until now it’s worked for me.”

I’ve discovered that if you make sure that you give God all the honour, and the glory for your prosperity, God will take you to different levels of prosperity. If you honour Him with your substance, right. So, here’s the Scripture, Genesis, chapter three, verse one, 1 And he heard the words of Laban sons saying, Jacob has taken away all that was our fathers. And of that, which was our fathers has he gotten all this glory? (Genesis 3:1) That’s the first time the word ‘glory’ is used in the Bible. It’s talking about wealth. Laban’s sons are saying, “Jacob’s prospering here, Jacob is prospering here and he’s taking our glory. He’s taken our glory.” Jacob learned that Laban sons were talking behind his back. “Jacob has used our father’s wealth, to make himself rich at our father’s expense. He has required us wealth and honour from what belonged to us, he has gained all this wealth”. So, glory can be translated, in many cases, with wealth. So, this is what the Lord said to me, “In light of the fact of this definition, that Brother Jerry both brought about the glory, being wealth.” He said, “If you do not give me the glory. If you do not give me the glory, if you do not give me your wealth, if you do not give me, if I have no access to it.” Don’t say, “I give God the glory for blessing my business. When you don’t give Him the glory.”

I will never be able to say again in my life, “I give You glory” without going directly to money. Don’t say, “I give God glory. I got blessed in my business. I give God the glory. Look at this inheritance that’s come to me. I give God the glory. Look at this bonus that’s come to me. I give God the glory. Look at this sudden… I give God the glory.” You do not give God the glory if you don’t give it to Him. He doesn’t even hear you say, “I give God the glory”. He doesn’t even hear you say, “I give God the glory”, because He sees you don’t give it to Him. All the glory be to You. All my glory be to You, Lord. And that’s where I’m going to come now where the Lord showed me about tithing. 

Tithing. And I’ll pick up with this – the tithing matters. Right? Here is the prophetic Scripture that comes into this family today. The Lord says, and I’m reading from the Holman Christian Bible. Malachi. Malachi 1, verse 6, 6 “A servant honours his father, and a servant his master. But if I am a father, where is My honour? And if I am a master, where is your fear of Me? Says Yahweh of Hosts to you priests (and you know we’re all priests according to the new covenant), who despise My name.” Yet you ask: “How have we despised Your name?” 7 “By presenting defiled food on My altar.” You ask: “How have we defiled You?” When you say: “The Lord’s table is contemptible.” 8 “When you present a blind animal for sacrifice, is it not wrong? (Malachi 1:6-7 HCSB). God’s not going to let us go of What’s your more for?

I’ll tell you what, Pastor John and I, from when we had little… That’s why the Word of God says it’s so hard for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God things, because if they got it themselves through their education, they got it for themselves through hard work, it’s very hard for them to enter into the kingdom. Pastor John and I, in our marriage, from the first time – we did not say… Pastor John did not say, “This is my money. So, I’ll do with my money what I want to, because I work and I earn the living and that’s your money, and because even if I had been working, that’s your money, and you do with it what you want to do.” Where do we get that way of thinking? From Babylon. We get it from Babylon. “Mine is mine and yours is yours.” Never did Pastor John ever say that because I was at home, working at home, that his money was his. And nor did we ever say, “This money is ours”. We said, “This money, all this money is the Lord’s. All of it is the Lord’s.”

8 …And when you present a lame or sick animal, is it not wrong? Bring it to your governor! Would he be pleased with you or show you favour?” asks the Lord of Hosts. 9 “And now ask for God’s favour. Will He be gracious to us? Since this has come from your hands, will He show any of you favour?” 11 “For My name will be great among the nations. All right, then He says this in verse 13, 13 You also say: “Look, what a nuisance!” “And you scorn it,” says the Lord of Hosts. “You bring stolen, lame, or sick animals. You bring this as an offering! Am I to accept that from your hands?” asks the Lord. 14 “The deceiver is cursed who has an acceptable male in his flock and makes a vow but sacrifices a defective animal to the Lord. For I am a great King,” says Yahweh of Hosts, “and My name will be feared among the nations. (Malachi 1:8-9, 11-14, HCSB).

13 And this is another thing you do: you cover the Lord’s altar with tears, with weeping and groaning, because He no longer respects your offerings or receives them gladly from your hands. 14 Yet you ask, “For what reason?” Here’s the prophetic word going forth here. 14 …Because the Lord has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth. You have acted treacherously. You have acted treacherously. That Scripture is right there in the midst of the tithing book… you and your wife have acted treacherously. (Malachi 2:13-14, HCSB). And so a man pulls the wool over his wife’s eyes. “No, no, no, no, I’m tithing. I’m tithing. Don’t worry. Don’t worry. I’m seeing to it, I’m seeing to that, I’m seeing to it.”

From the first moment that Pastor John and I were together, “It’s God’s money”. And we sought the Lord together. And we tithed the tithe together. We blessed the Lord with our tithe. Hallelujah. We blessed the Lord together, because it wasn’t our money, not Pastor John’s money. It was His, all of it is His. And so we got into the power of agreement of two, the power of agreement of two, and I think I am done now. So, watch yourselves carefully and do not act treacherously against the wife of your youth. Well, Lord, You asked me to go there, but I will continue the next time.

So, I am going to read Luke 16, in closing. In closing. See, this is part of what Pastor John said. Relationships – He’s going to bring great change, great order in relationships. This is part of that. That you’re going to have to seek the Lord for yourself about how you as a married couple are going to approach the Lord. If it’s your money, or if it all belongs to Him, and you’re going to inquire of Him. This is the last Scripture, Luke 16, verse 10 to 16, Amplified Bible. This is Jesus speaking. 10 He who is faithful in a very little [thing] is faithful also in much… faithful in tithes. I’ll tell you, when we first tithed our money, our tithe was such a little thing. When we first started tithing, it was such a little thing, and he who is dishonest and unjust in a very little [thing] is dishonest and unjust also in much (Luke 16:10, AMPC).

11 Therefore if you have not been faithful in the [case of] mammon (money, riches, possessions). If you have not been faithful, who will entrust to you the true riches? (Luke 16:10-11, AMP). We will not receive the true riches as an Ecclesia, of which you are part of, if you are not faithful, in what belongs to God belongs to God. What belongs to Caesar belongs to Caesar. If you do not pay your taxes to Caesar, Jesus said, “You give Caesar what is due to Caesar and you give to God what’s due to God.” Jesus said that. 

So, you handle your tithe in the same way you handle your taxes. You try to give as little as possible to the taxman, even if you have to crook. There are ways and means of being wise, I understand that. But you treat your tithe the same way, “I can get away with it in my taxes like this, and this, and that. I can get away with it in my tithes like this, and this, and this, and that.” Babylon. 

11 Therefore if you have not been faithful, in the case of mammon, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12 If you have not proved faithful in what belongs to another (Luke 16:11-12, AMP). The tithes belong to God. If you have not been faithful in what belongs to another. God says, in His Word, “The tithe belongs to Me, it is holy unto Me. If I be Your Father where be My honour?” 

12 And if you have not proved faithful in that which belongs to another [whether God or man], who will give you that which is your own [the true riches]? 13 No one is able to serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will stand by and be devoted the one and despise the other (Luke 16:13, AMP). I stand by my tithe and the way that I tithe and how much time. I’m devoted to God. I stand by that, I despise the other way that people work in the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Like Pastor John said, now since COVID, even less than 15% of the Body of Christ tithes honourably. Now it’s 8%. If God is our Father, where be His honour. 

So, now the Pharisees, 13 You cannot serve God and mammon (riches or anything in which you trust and which you rely). You look at your bank account all the time. And you say to yourself, “Soul you have much laid up.” You look at your bank account, and you keep checking your bank account, “Soul, you have much.” You check your bank account and something’s not there, it’s like, “Grrrrrr.” Fear, fear, fear. Well, 14 now the Pharisees, who were covetous and lovers of money, heard all these things [taken together] and they scoffed at him (Luke 16:13-14, AMP). Let us not be found this morning to be scoffing at the Word of the Lord. There will be more, quite a lot more to be followed here. How Ananias and Sapphira got into the power of agreement of two. Hallelujah. God is looking for the 10 righteous. If He cannot find 10 righteous here, a husband and a wife, which will include their family because everything that’s in a husband and a wife, and the way that they tithe will come into their children.

So, it’s important this right? God is saying this is important. This is a personal matter between you and your wife, you and your husband and the Lord. It’s personal. About how you go about how the Holy Spirit speaks to you about your money, about your possessions. And some of you have experienced being in Pastor John’s office. And now you hide from him with big important decisions, you will not consult him because you don’t like the way… Yeah. Glory to God. 

Well, Father, we thank You for Your Word to us today. We praise You. May the fear of God be upon us, may it rest in our hearts, Lord. Hallelujah. May the fear of God be upon us. May it rest in our hearts, Lord, in this congregation, in this congregation. 

Father, I pray for your people today. I pray for your people today. All the people in Heritage of Faith, that the law of recognition, and the law of honour, and the law of protocol in the way that Pastor John has walked it, as an example to us, it will never leave us again Father. We will remember,  we will remember what you spoke this day. What you say to us today is written in Your Book of Remembrance, Lord. Father, we pray that You forgive us. We asked You to forgive us from our Babylonian ways. 

We want to be, not just call ourselves the righteousness of God, but we want to seek first your kingdom and your righteousness. We seek Your righteousness Father, to be right in Your eyes, especially in this matter of money that is such a big deal to You. 

And so, Father, as we go now, I thank You that Your blessing is upon Your people. They are blessed going out, they are blessed coming in Lord. They are the head and not the tail. They are above and not beneath. To You be the glory Lord. We give You the glory. We give You the glory. We love You first. We give You the glory, in Jesus’ Name, and we all say, “Amen.” God bless you all.