The Family Book: Knowing Who You Are

Cleaned from the live recording. Lightly edited for reading.

Yield to the potter

You may have your seat. I hope you were watching with us and you stood with us in your homes, or wherever you're watching from, in worship.

This month, as we deal with righteousness, one of the important things, team, is yielding ourselves. Giving our life to the potter (Jeremiah 18:6). Because we can talk all we want about righteousness. We can talk about having the nature of righteousness. We can talk about Jesus becoming sin, Him who knew no sin, that we might be the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21). But what do we do with that? That's important.

The previous Saturday, Minister Alex asked an important question: what's the difference between righteousness and holiness? One, as I mentioned, is a state, your nature. The other is the living out of that, the outworking of that. So it's important that as Christians, even though we're righteous, we yield our life to the potter. Yield it to Him and allow Him to fashion us, to make us into the person He wants us to be. His heart and His passion for us we can see in Romans 8:28 and 29. His passion is that we be fashioned into the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29).

(Minister Aliyah recaps Proverbs 4:18. Elder Esther and Prophetess Sarah comment on "until the full day" and on purpose.)

The glorious day

Let us go to Revelation 21. We're talking about this glorious day as Christians. What are we looking forward to when everything comes to its fulfillment?

(Minister Aliyah reads Revelation 21:1-3.)

"Look, God's home, His dwelling place, is now among His people." God lives within us by His Spirit. But there's coming a day when there'll be a physical manifestation of His presence with us. That's the glorious day we're talking about. This day we're looking forward to, the fulfillment of all things.

(Revelation 21:3-11 and 22:1-4 are read.)

Tell your neighbor we're going through the family book. If you missed yesterday: we do have a family book. So we're going through it and checking to see what our Father wrote, love letters that He wrote for us.

"They will see His face, and His name will be written on their foreheads" (Revelation 22:4). Just hold on. His name will be written. We're looking forward to that glorious day. But there's a day also when another, false king will work to write his name on the forehead of many (Revelation 13:16). You hear many persons talking about the mark of the beast, the mark of the beast. But I'm looking forward to the mark of my Father. I'm looking forward to Him putting His name upon me.

As I said yesterday, some persons are going to be faced with a day of judgment, a day of damnation, what the Bible calls the terrible day of the Lord. But as Christians we are looking forward to this glorious day, where we will meet our Father.

Which day are you preparing for?

I want to say this to those in the church and those watching us online. Which day will you meet? Which day are you looking forward to? And which day are you prepared for?

I mentioned yesterday, especially when we were younger, if there's an important event coming up and you're excited about it, what happens the night before? You wake up every half an hour, every hour, to make sure you don't miss your time. You can't sleep properly because you're anticipating being there to enjoy everything. You're just sleeping lightly.

Right now, what are you anticipating? Are you sleeping?

When we read earlier, it said the overcomers, this is what they can look forward to (Revelation 21:7). But the liars, the sexually immoral, the sorcerers, and a whole list of other evil workers, this is what they can look forward to (Revelation 21:8). Each type of person can look forward to a day. The Bible calls one a dreadful day, but for us as believers and overcomers, it's a glorious day.

If you did not make any preparation for the day of doom and gloom, you don't have to make any preparations. You just have to continue living. But for that glorious day when the Father will come down and dwell with His people, and He'll be our God and we His children, you need to RSVP. You cannot just show up and say, "Hey, I see that glorious city, Lord. I see you there. I want to come in." It doesn't happen like that. You have to make a reservation now.

So look around at your neighbor and ask them, "Did you put in your reservation for the New Jerusalem?" I know some of you want to sound nice, you'll say yes. I hope that's true. You can also say, "I'm not sure." And if you're not sure, you need to work on it now. Because you cannot reach the other side and stand there and say, "I'm ready to make a decision. I want to come and live with you, God."

Jesus told the apostles He goes to prepare a place for them, that where He is, they might be also (John 14:2-3). There's a place being prepared, and there's a time coming when He will return to take us there. That glorious day. That bright day. There is nothing right now that can really excite me like preparing for that day. You can travel to Dubai, Singapore, Malaysia, different cities in the US, Beijing, Tokyo. It's beautiful. There are beautiful sites, beautiful people. But none of that can or should excite us like preparing for this day.

No visa on arrival

When you're traveling, one of the things you check is that you have your passport. And even though you have your passport, some places say you still need a visa. So you put in for your visa. Some places have visa on arrival. But there's nothing like that in heaven. There's no visa on arrival when you get there. You need to get your visa before.

And your passport needs to be up to date. Many nations, you cannot apply for a visa if your passport is less than six months to expiry. So as Christians, we need to make sure we're not living on yesterday's holiness. Yesterday's works. "I used to worship God. I used to sing. I used to preach." You ever talk to some people and ask them about their walk with the Lord? "I was an altar boy." Everything is "I was." They're living on an expired passport. They need to get it renewed.

In Revelation chapter 2, which we touched on Thursday, Jesus spoke to the church at Ephesus and told them to come back to their first love (Revelation 2:4-5). Some people have left the Lord. Some are walking with the Lord, but the love is cold. You're just going through the motions. He said, come back to your first love. He was speaking to a church. And He said if they don't, be very careful, He could come and remove the candlestick, remove the little light you have there. So make sure you're prepared.

Some nations you cannot get into if you don't have certain vaccinations. You don't walk with a yellow fever card, you don't get in. There are certain infections that won't get into heaven. Lying can be very infectious.

Skin sells

Sexual immorality sells. Look at television. Sometimes you try to figure out what they're really advertising. Beer, cigarettes, whatever it is, it doesn't have such an appeal if there isn't a sexy woman there. You guys are looking at me. I know you're all innocent people. Tell your neighbor, Pastor said skin sells. Nudity sells.

Let me get your mind going. You're watching an ad and you see nice lovely toes. Then you see a nice foot, and then the camera starts coming up higher. What's going through your mind next? Some of you don't want to talk. Each one of you knows where your mind went. You want to know how far this person is clothed, what they're trying to show you. You're anticipating.

But God says no one who practices these things will make it (Revelation 22:15). So we're going back to that glorious day. Are you ready for it? Are you prepared? Do you have your passport? Your visa? Are you dressed right?

The flight won't reverse

You need to catch the plane. Are you ready for that flight? Some of you are not too sure. But let me tell you, there's coming a day when the Bible says Jesus will descend with a shout, with the voice of the archangel. The dead in Christ will rise first, and those who are alive will be caught up to meet Him (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). There is going to be a rapture.

So the flight can come and you're not ready for it. And this flight moves on. You can't do what Guyanese love to do, run outside and holler, "Wait, wait, wait!" and the bus reverses and picks you up. There'll be no reversing to collect you. If you miss it, you miss it.

(Revelation 22:5-6 is read.)

God sent out invitations

Everybody in this social media era knows about flyers, event planning. You can go on Facebook, plan an event, and send out invitations to your friends. Well, God planned an event. And He sent out invitations. And He sent special envoys to announce this event, inviting everyone to it.

But to get to this place, you need to indicate up front that you want to be there. And then you need to start making preparations.

Say we're having a ball, a gala. You just don't wake up and decide, "There's a gala, let me go down there and be a part of it." What do you do? Take care of your hair. Get your outfit ready. RSVP. Do your nails. Some people before the makeup say, "I'm going to have a facial. I'm going to the spa for a total body work." You prepare yourself.

So as Christians, how do we prepare ourselves for this event? Studying the word. Going through the family book. These are important questions, because the Bible says if you show up a certain way, you will not get in. If you're a liar, you will not get in. If you're a sorcerer. Look at your neighbor and tell them: horoscope reading person. Every day you wonder what the horoscope has for you.

The Bible tells us to prepare ourselves not with the outward adorning, the braiding of the hair (1 Peter 3:3-4). It's okay to braid the hair. It's okay. Because we show up to church with it. But just as you have a physical body and you make preparations for it, you also have a soul. You're a spirit, and you also have a soul.

The soul that sins

When God spoke about sin, what did He say? "The soul that sins shall surely die" (Ezekiel 18:4). When Adam sinned, it wasn't his body that was corrupted. It was his soul.

What does your soul consist of? Your mind, your will, your emotions. With the body you interact with physical stuff. But with your soul I can interact with you, and there is a reaction. Many of you interacted with your soul this morning when you came into the church. When you saw the person, what happened? There was joy within, and that joy in your soul was reflected outwardly.

Some of you, when you saw someone, I hope not in here, you became sad, and you tried to smile, but it was a fake smile. You're trying to get your face or your body to do something different from what your soul is saying.

Worship with your soul

When we worship the Lord, how do we worship? In spirit and in truth (John 4:24). With all my heart. So your soul should also be involved in worship.

How is your soul involved in worship? If your soul consists of your mind, will and emotions, first your mind needs to be centered on God. You need to will yourself to focus on God. I know service is a little different this morning than usual. And your emotions need to be involved in worship also. So if you come to church and you have a problem with your emotions being involved in worship, it means you're not worshiping the Lord with all your heart (Mark 12:30).

When the Bible speaks of the heart, it doesn't mean this organ here. Tell your neighbor, it's not this. The heart speaks of the innermost being. There's a part of you, from the time something starts to happen, you say, "I feel it in my belly, in my gut." If you become fearful, for some of you that part triggers diarrhea. When the Lord speaks of all your heart, it speaks of your innermost being. All your soul.

I hope you're catching where we're going. When we're preparing for this glorious day, you need to be ready. You need to prepare yourself.

Guyanese by birth

Righteousness can speak of your nationality. We mentioned that before. Are you Guyanese? Some of you aren't too sure. I need to ask some of you to check your passport or birth certificate.

What makes you Guyanese? Birth. Most may be by birth, but some may be by naturalization. Are you born of God? If you're born of God, you're righteous. You're a citizen of light.

But because you're Guyanese, are you invited to every function they have in Guyana? No. Are you invited to the President's board? Why not?

However, if you fly out of Guyana and you misbehave, you don't have to buy a plane ticket to get back. They send you back free of cost. They bear the cost and deport you back to your nation. Why? Because you are Guyanese.

Those who make it to heaven will make it because they are sons of God. Citizens of light. But even though you might be Guyanese, you might not enjoy the freedom everybody else enjoys, because you decide you're going to break the law and live a certain type of life. So they already have a place prepared for you. There's one name for it: prison.

Just like with God. There's a place prepared for those who misbehave, and there's a place prepared for those who abide by the rules of His kingdom. You can come to church, you can sing, you can do all you want to do. But the Bible makes it clear, God looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7). There's a place prepared for the pretenders and the rebellious, and there's a place prepared for the overcomers. We need to make decisions, we need to plan, to determine where we're going to live.

Let me just pause there. You see how you guys get me going and talking. For the next five minutes I'm going to be quiet.

"If a believer commits sexual immorality, is that person still righteous?"

(A Facebook viewer asks this. Elder Esther and Prophetess Sarah begin to answer. Prophetess Sarah says the believer is still of that lineage but becomes a violator of his true nature.)

Let me set the basis with citizenship. If you break the law, are you still Guyanese? Yes. I know there will be consequences. But you're still Guyanese.

Or like I put it yesterday. You have a mother and daughter here. Is she your child? Your DNA runs in her. Sometimes she really gets you mad, but sometimes you go in the corner and say, "Girl is just like me." When you look, you see your younger self. You see your nature, your DNA, habits, traits, a certain shape. You know this is your child.

So one morning you wake up and you tell her something and she's angry with you, and bang bang, a whole big misunderstanding and war in the house. And you say, "I don't want you to live here anymore." And she says, "I don't want to live here anymore. I'm going by my grandmother." And you say, "Go along, you're not my daughter anymore." Is she still your daughter? Yes. Why? Because of the DNA. She's still your daughter, but the fellowship was broken. Severed. You're not on good terms.

And you have a lot of Christians who, because of how they're living, their fellowship with the Father is broken. They're not on good terms.

Taking on another father's nature

But there comes a time, if you continue to live like that and you decide you're going to reject the Father's family name, and you take on the characteristics of another father, now your entire lifestyle reflects that of another father. Your nature changes from light to darkness. Because now you consistently walked in darkness. You consistently walked in sin. Instead of listening to one father, you start to listen to another, and you start to operate like him, do everything he's doing, and take on his nature (John 8:44).

If you don't understand this, you'll think once you're saved, you're always saved. Jesus told the churches if they don't repent, He'll take away their lampstand (Revelation 2:5). Which means they had light in them, dwelling in light, people of the light. And He removed it, and they turned into people of the night, people of darkness.

This happens based on who we yield ourselves to. Romans 6 says if you yield yourself to sin, you become a servant of sin (Romans 6:16). If you yield yourself to Satan, you revert back to that nature. What you're actually doing is giving up your citizenship.

By adoption, not because you were good

This citizenship, you didn't get it because you were good. You got it because God loves us and sent His Son to die for us. Paul talks about us being grafted in as branches (Romans 11:17), and the Bible says we've been adopted into His family (Ephesians 1:5). This whole righteousness is by adoption. But before we were adopted, we had a father.

Ephesians chapter 2, verse 1. "Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins." Hold on. It didn't just say sins. It says your many sins. Because if it just said sins, we'd remove ourselves from the equation. But God made sure to say your many sins.

Verse 2. "You used to live in sin." All this is past tense. If these verses are not past tense for you, you need to make it right today. "You used to live in sin just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil, the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God" (Ephesians 2:2).

So you can either obey God and His Spirit is at work in you, or you obey the devil and have his spirit at work in you. Look at your neighbor and ask them, "Who are you obeying?"

Verse 3. "All of us used to live that way." Look at them and say, don't play. Some of you look like you were born a Christian. We all used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God's anger, just like everyone else.

Verse 4. "But God is so rich in mercy, and He loved us so much" (Ephesians 2:4). If you notice, we're taking this whole topic of righteousness in a certain direction. We want this to be the anchor of righteousness. Not your works, but God, who is so rich in mercy. Because if it's works, none of us will make it to heaven. I'm sure many of you, before you came here this morning, had to repent. And some of you didn't even repent. But God, who is so rich in mercy. He loves you so much more than you love yourself.

Verse 5. "Even though we were dead because of our sins, He gave us life when He raised Christ from the dead" (Ephesians 2:5).

Don't play goody goody

Tell your neighbor, don't play goody goody.

You ever have a conversation with somebody on the street corner, and they let out one or two little, a little indecent language, vulgarity? You see how some of you screw up your face like you never heard it before. You can't go to the street corner and have a conversation with the ungodly, because from the time they start talking you screw up your face and you're going home. You tell them, "Don't talk like that in front of me. I am a Christian." But then you go home and watch movies with the same indecent language, and enjoy it. You make the unbeliever on the road feel dirty, but then you sit down and enjoy it at home. Some of you even have a surround sound system.

I'm not saying live in it. I'm saying remember that we were once sinners. When we're talking to people, remember that God is rich in mercy and loves us so much, and we must be able to extend that mercy and love to others. Because He extended it to us. Not because you're so nice.

Don't let an innocent face fool you

Look at your neighbor and don't say anything. You ever see some of those people who look so innocent? They're deadly. Don't let an innocent face fool you.

I know what it is. I used to misbehave in class when the teacher wasn't there. When the sir came back to the class, he called everybody up to beat them. But he said, "Lambert, no, you stand to the side here." And I watched all of them get licks. Because I knew when to do my mischief. The innocent face saved me. But with God it won't save you.

The Father of lights

We need to wrap up. Let us go to James 1:17. If you notice in Revelation, it says heaven will need no light. There's no need for the moon and sun in heaven. God Himself will be the light upon them (Revelation 22:5).

"Every good and every perfect gift is from above. It comes down from the Father of all that gives light, in the shining of whom there can be no variation. It was of His own free will that He gave us birth as sons by His word of truth" (James 1:17-18, Amplified). So this Father of light, this God who is light, gave birth to sons. Who are the sons? We are. Are you certain?

"For you are all sons of light and sons of the day. We do not belong either to the night or to darkness" (1 Thessalonians 5:5). Tell your neighbor, you are a child of light. I see some of you won't open your mouth. Life and death are in the power of your tongue (Proverbs 18:21). Shape your future. Say to your neighbor, you are a child of light. A child of the day, and not of darkness.

Face to face

1 Corinthians 13:12. "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know, just as I also am fully known." We're looking at this day of perfection. There's coming a day when we will see Him face to face.

2 Corinthians 3:17. We're talking about this Father of lights who begot sons. And when the Bible talks about sons, it speaks about daughters also. You are spirit, and in the spirit there's no male or female (Galatians 3:28). For your purpose on earth you've been put in the body of a male or a female to fulfill whatever He sent you here to accomplish. But in the spirit, we're like Him. You'll hear me say very often: I am light. My Father is light, and I am light.

"Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another" (2 Corinthians 3:17-18). Read back Proverbs 4:18. "The way of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, which shines ever brighter until the full day." We're shining ever brighter, from one degree of glory to the next.

But how is this happening? It happens when we behold the face of Jesus. How do you behold the face of Jesus? You look. But how do we look?

You ever read a novel, and when they start describing a person, you make out a picture in your mind? You could draw this picture. Well, when you read the family book, the Bible, there are so many details about Him that you can draw a picture.

Why do I still do wrong?

This also raises a question. If I'm righteous and I'm a child of light, why do I do wrong things? All the believers in here, give me a big wave. Do you do wrong things? Yes. Why?

If you are a child, you have the nature of the father inside of you. The children carry the father's DNA. So God will check your DNA. Don't think, "Well, I'm a Christian." He'll check. He'll see if you're a blow child.

Grandparents checking the baby

As I said yesterday, we have grandparents in here. I remember when we brought home our first son, my father picked him up and looked at him. Why do you pick up your grandchildren and examine them? You're checking for family traits. You check to see if the eyes look like the family eyes. The hair. Some of you, the mother and father have one kind of hair, and the child's hair is, and you start telling them about some great great great grandparent. You tell them all DNA came from Eve, from Africa.

But many times, even though you look at that child, you don't fully see the characteristics of the father or the family. The child may start to grow and you may wonder, is this child mine, because they're acting a certain way, behaving a certain way. But as the child matures and starts to take form, you start to notice the resemblance. You notice the son walking just like him.

I started to notice something my mother used to beat me on my hands for. I used to sit and twist my hair. Yes, I had hair. And then I watched my big son. He used to sit down and twist his hair. My mother used to fret over that. But I didn't notice it when he was young.

Christians, even though you have the nature of God, many times you do not operate like family. You take on the characteristics of what you see outside. You send your child to school, the child starts using indecent language, and the teachers call you in for a parent-teacher conference and say, "The child had to pick this up in the house." And I'm smiling, because the child did not learn this in the house. They learned it outside. These are not the values in the house.

This is the same thing that happens to Christians. We have the nature of Christ inside of us, but we live in a body. We're exposed to the temptations of the world. We see things, we take up things, we do things that are not in keeping with the nature of God.

Sin is a choice

But as we mature. That's why John writes to the little children and says, "If anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father" (1 John 2:1). When he reaches the mature ones, those who are in God, he says you have the nature, and whoever is born of God does not sin (1 John 3:9).

When you mature in the Lord, you realize sin is a choice. You don't have to sin. When I was a young Christian, sin seemed to be the norm. As I said to you, I used to count: "Okay, today I didn't sin. I wonder if I can make it a week without sinning." Then two days after, I'd shoot, then I lasted three days. When you mature in the Lord, it's the reverse. You get more like your Father.

The revealing of the sons of God

We've got to wrap up. We may have to pick up those two questions another time. I want to jump to Romans 8:18. "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" (Romans 8:18, NKJV).

It's important, when you read different translations of the Bible, that you make sure there's consistency in the teaching from Genesis to Revelation. Because the scripture talks about the glory that will be revealed in us. "For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God" (Romans 8:19). There's a glorious day all believers should be looking forward to.

What will the sons of God look like? Hebrews 1. "God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son" (Hebrews 1:1-2). So there is a firstborn Son. God speaks to us through Him, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom He made the worlds.

Verse 3. "Who being the brightness of His glory." Remember in Revelation, the New Jerusalem will need no light, for the glory of God will brighten the city and the Lamb is its light (Revelation 21:23). Jesus is this Son, "the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person" (Hebrews 1:3). So if you want to know what God looks like, read your family book. There's a description of what God looks like. Jesus is the express image of His person.

Complete in Him

Colossians 2:9. "For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily." Verse 10, a lot of Christians don't read verse 10. I'm not the one saying this. "And you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power" (Colossians 2:9-10).

So stop being afraid of Satan. The Bible never says be afraid of him. The Bible says understand his schemes (2 Corinthians 2:11).

So if you're complete in Christ, and Hebrews 1:3 says He's the express image of the Father, tell me what it means when you read Romans 8:29. "For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son." If the Son is the express image of the Father, and you are being made into the image of the Son, who will you look like? The Father.

When you show up in heaven, He won't accept a blow child. Just as our grandparents pick us up and look at us, when God looks at you, you either look like Him or you don't.

A new creation

When we share these things, people get confused, because you look at yourself and wonder, does God look like this? 2 Corinthians 5:17. "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away; all things have become new." You're part of a new creation. You're a creature of light. Just let that sink in.

So we need to stop behaving like goats. Let me put it in our own Guyanese: we need to stop behaving like yard fowl. We need to stop behaving like creatures of darkness. Your house is clean, spick and span. Soon as you switch off the light and switch it back on, there are things squatting in your house. Roaches. Rats. Look at your neighbor and tell them, you are a creature of light.

What they see when they look at you

Let us stand. Tell your neighbor something you learned this morning.

Ezekiel chapter 1. We're going to read it together, because I want you to know what God looks like, what Jesus looks like, and you'll understand what workers of darkness, demons and unclean spirits see dwelling in this body when they look at you.

(Ezekiel 1:1-28 is read, focusing on verses 26 and 27 in the NKJV and Amplified.)

"Above the firmament over their heads was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like a sapphire stone. On the likeness of the throne was a likeness with the appearance of a man high above it" (Ezekiel 1:26). You see something, you're not too sure what it is, but you know it has the appearance and shape of a man. And in verse 27 he fills in details. From the waist upward, glowing metal with the appearance of fire enclosed round about. From the waist downward, the appearance of fire, and brightness like a halo round about Him (Ezekiel 1:27).

In Revelation it gives one description of Christ. His face was like the sun shining in its strength (Revelation 1:16). We're talking about a Father of light, and you are creatures of light.

There will come a time when this body, the Bible calls it a tent, will be removed (2 Corinthians 5:1). The Bible says we will see Him as He is, for we shall be like Him (1 John 3:2).

I'm sharing this so when we talk about a glorious day and about righteousness, your nature, and what we're looking forward to, you determine to endure anything in life so that you become in totality what God the Father has made you and called you to be. If you're willing to set aside lust, lies, fornication, adultery, everything trying to change your nature from light to darkness.

We as Christians don't just play church. We don't just talk nice things and wait until we die and everything will be okay. There is something God has given you. He's made you. Those dwelling in darkness, workers of darkness, can see it. When they look at you, they can see light. Don't allow anything to dim that light. Fight with everything inside of you to make sure you're shining bright.

"I am your fellow servant"

Paul said we will judge angels (1 Corinthians 6:3). The Bible talks about an angel with one foot on the land and one foot on the sea and his face like the sun (Revelation 10:1-2). In Revelation, John was about to bow down and worship the one speaking to him. That creature had to be awesome. Glorious. And he said, "Do not do that. I am your fellow servant. Worship God" (Revelation 19:10; 22:8-9).

John only worshiped God, but he saw a godlike creature talking with him, and how this creature looked brought a little confusion. So he was going to worship, and the creature said, "No, I'm just one of your fellow servants," one redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. This is how valuable you are.

And this is why the fight is on. Satan is trying his best to snuff out that light and change you from a creature of light back to a creature of darkness, to spend eternity with him.

Lift your hands as the worshippers come.

Why these songs matter

(During worship after the message.)

Why are these songs important? In heaven there are thrones. There are mighty creatures, ancient creatures. But in the midst of them there's the Ancient of Days (Daniel 7:9). That's why one of His names is the Most High, because there are high creatures. Creatures with various jurisdictions and domains, various levels of authority. In Daniel it calls Michael one of the chief princes (Daniel 10:13). The Bible lets us know there are many more like him.

So when you look around at your fellow believers and see what they've been made like, you understand the atmosphere in heaven. Why they take their crowns and throw them at His feet (Revelation 4:10). "You've made us kings and priests" (Revelation 5:10). Image bearers. Like Jesus, we are His image bearers. But all of that is based on His mercy and His love. You did nothing to deserve it.

Kings wear crowns. People who have jurisdiction over domains. They kneel before Him. Some of us don't want to dirty our clothes. But when you understand the material you'll be made of. When you read Ezekiel 28 and Isaiah 14, the Bible says Lucifer was corrupted by his beauty, precious stones worked and woven into him (Ezekiel 28:13-17; Isaiah 14:12). But God did not make you a servant. He elevated you above that and made you a son. There's no rivalry between us and the Father.

The Sun of Righteousness

Lucifer in the Bible means morning star. But there is One who created all of them, from whom they got their light. Jesus. The Bible calls Him the Sun of Righteousness (Malachi 4:2). The eternal One. The Bright Morning Star (Revelation 22:16).

As we continue through this topic, I want you to look at Him. Read your Bible. Read Revelation 4. Read Revelation 5. See the beauty of the One seated on the throne of God. So many glorious creatures in heaven, but not one was found worthy to open the scroll of God and read it. Heaven cried (Revelation 5:4). That's one exception. It said there'll be no crying. But those weren't tears of sorrow. And then the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the One who holds the seven stars and the seven spirits of God in His hand, stepped forth (Revelation 5:5-7). Only One was found worthy.

Only One, of so many glorious creatures in heaven, including you.

If you hold your salvation, if you put aside every temptation, everything that will cause you to stumble, declare this with me: I will be numbered in that multitude, standing in heaven, declaring how great He is, singing the song of the Lamb, looking like my Father. Like light. We're going to make the sun look like trinkets.

Jesus, we love you. You've made us kings and priests in your kingdom. I can see myself in that crowd declaring all glory and might and dominion and power belongs to our God forever and ever.

Worth more than laying on of hands

These types of messages are worth more than many laying on of hands. Laying on of hands can impart gifts. But embracing His nature, embracing His Spirit that He placed within you, and allowing yourself to be changed and transformed by His word daily, His word is worth more than all nine gifts of the Spirit. I love the gifts of the Spirit. I'm not playing them down. But all of that is working to bring us to this glorious day.

Thank you very much, team. Thank you very much, worship.