LFM 1 June 2019: Is current Church leadership called, anointed & appointed by God? Running with purpose. Race not for the swift.

LFM – Sunday 1 June 2019

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John 16:5-16 – The Holy Spirit

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2 Corinthians 13:14

• – Love of God
• – Grace of Jesus Christ
• – Fellowship / communion / partnership with the Holy Spirit

We need to fellowship with the Holy Spirit

• He is the helper ( Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor, – Counselor, Strengthener ) sent by Christ
• He comes to convict the word about
• – the guilt of sin and the need for a Savior, for the world has trouble believing in Jesus Christ & His message
• – righteousness ( personal integrity & godly character ) , because Jesus will no longer be with us
• – judgement and the certainty of it, because the ruler of this world has been judged & condemned
• He comes as the Spirit of Truth, to guide us into all truth, relaying from the Father the message regarding the Son
• Will declare to us things that are to come

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2 Samuel 18:19-33

Lesson on Calling, Appointing & Leadership

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The King’s army has just killed the king’s son, who was an enemy to the king and the king needed to be informed.

• At times we may be called to do seemingly difficult things for God.
• …Moses sent to Pharaoh
• … Elijah sent to Jezebel
• … Ananias sent to Paul.
• … Hosea told to marry a prostitute

Ahimaz son of Zadok insists on taking bad news to the king

• Though Joab the commander wanted and indeed sent the Cushite ( mtumwa) slave instead

There is anointing and appointing required for certain works of the kingdom

• It is advisable to wait on the right timing for one to be successful on a Kingdom mission
• It is good to keep in mind the end goal or reward when on a mission for the kingdom
• ….don’t wander aimlessly, like Ahimaz, pursuing the perishable things / glory / rewards of this world
• ….with a spirit of unnecessary competition

1 Corinthians 9:23-27 (NLT)

• 23: I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings.
• 24: Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win!
• 25: All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize.
• 26: So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing.
• 27: I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.

• For God will work out everything for good for those who love Him and are pursuing His purposes
• For those who He foreknows, he predestines to be Christ like, He calls them, justifies them and glorifies them

Romans 8:28-30

• 28: And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose.
• 29: For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers.
• 30: And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified.

Calling and appointing scriptures

• Galatians 1:15 – Paul says he was set apart from his mothers womb, called by the grace of God
• Jeremiah 1:5 – Jeremiah was known by God before being formed in his mothers womb, set apart by God and appointed a prophet to the nations.
• Acts 9:15 – Ananaias told of Paul by the Lord…that Paul is God’s chosen instrument to carry His name to the Gentiles, their kings and the people of Israel.
• Ephesians 3:7 – Paul says that he became a servant of the Gospel by the gift of God’s grace given to him through the working of God’s power.
• Romans 1:1 – Paul a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle and set apart for the Gospel of God.
• Galatians 1:10 – A servant of Christ should not still be seeking to please men
• 1 Thessalonians 2:4 –  For we speak as messengers approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts.

The race is not always for the swift…

• Though Ahimaz outran the Cushite…he did not succeed in his mission
• Ecclesiastes 9:11 (NLT)
• I have observed something else under the sun. The fastest runner doesn’t always win the race, and the strongest warrior doesn’t always win the battle. The wise sometimes go hungry, and the skillful are not necessarily wealthy. And those who are educated don’t always lead successful lives. It is all decided by chance, by being in the right place at the right time.
• Zechariah 4:6 – Not by might, nor by power, but by power but by the Spirit of the Lord

Importance of following instructions – Total Obedience

• Joab instructed that messenger go tell the king what he had seen
• It is not about being a good man like Ahimaz, coming with good news…vs 27
• But one needs to be courageous and always approach the King with truth, not beat about the bush like Ahimaz, or they will be deemed unworthy / untrustworthy and will be told to step aside.
• The Cushite ( Messenger ) arrived and answered the king with the truth of his inquiry – Your son is dead

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John 8:32

And you will know the truth and the truth shall set you free.

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1 Samuel 15:22

Obedience is better than sacrifice, submission better than offering the fat of rams

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Leadership requires courage to say things as they are

• Go to the King with truth
• Stand in truth always before the Lord
• …the Truth will set you free??
• Those who fear / compromise the truth will be set aside…like Ahimaz

Am I called and anointed by the Lord and called His servant?

• or have I called myself as a servant without being called and appointed by the Lord?
• Why Lord Favour Ministry has to have God appoint His leadership for His Church for it to be effective in His business.
• Jeremiah 17:9-10
• 9. “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things,and desperately wicked.Who really knows how bad it is 10. But I, the LORD, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.”

Do I sympathize with my enemies that the Lord has dealt with?

• Do I engage the armies / weapons of the Lord without considering the consequences?
• …justice is like a double edged sword that cuts both sides…
• It may hurt even those close to me, all that are against me and the will, purposes and plans of God for my life
• Absalom, King David’s son was killed

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I shouldn’t be praising what I and praying against…or speaking against what I desire

• …praising poverty, singleness, ill health
• …mambo magumu na naomba Mungu pesa
• … Mwanamume hata niambia kitu, huku nataka kuolewa
• … nataka kubarikiwa na huduma kubwa, huku sipendi watu
• Life and death are in the power of the tongue, what I love to speak is what I am going to reap…Proverbs 18:21

• I shouldn’t turn back but look forward in thanksgiving
• David crying for Absalom

• Is my enemy my work, family and wealth?
• That when I pray and the Lord deals with them because they are negatively impacting my life, I turn around and complain
• Do I have another idol other than the Word of God ( Word from God)?

• God will answer me from the idol of my heart…Ezekiel 14:4
• The heart of man is deceitfully wicked…Jeremiah 17:9-10
• Is that why I am not getting answers to my prayers?

• I am serving a God of generations
• There are things that I have to leave from my father’s house
• …Abraham had to leave his fathers house…Genesis 12
• If I fail, it may be given to my descendant or another to fulfill
• …Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit… Matthew 21:43

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# Lord God Almighty,

Be a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path,

As I seek to follow the direction of Your Holy Spirit in all things, 

Not leaning on my own understanding,

Or appointing myself in areas You have not called or anointed me into.

Create in me a clean heart and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Give me strength and courage to always stand on Your Word without compromise,

So that Your will, purposes and plans can be fulfilled in me and through me, 

For Your Kingdom and for Your Glory.

Amen!