In this sermon, the preacher discusses the spiritual insight of having faith in God without physically seeing Him. He references the Apostle John's experience on the Isle of Patmos, where John heard a voice and turned to see it. The preacher explains that John saw the voice because he is the Word of God. The sermon emphasizes that Jesus, the Son of Man, is the great high priest who walks among the seven golden candlesticks, representing the seven churches. The preacher also mentions the book of Revelation and encourages believers to focus on worshiping and adoring Jesus rather than being consumed by the imagery of beasts and dragons in the book.

When we gather together unto the Lord, I invariably think of the scene we see in the scriptures which John the Beloved saw, and which he was told to write it in the book that the church of every age would be able to read it, and hear it, and by his spirit be able to see it also, according to the measure of illumination that God is pleased to give us. So I see the Son of Man standing on the throne, but still in our midst. Can't see him with these natural eyes. God is so pleased to cause us to bring forth the people in the earth who believe without seeing. And because there's a spiritual insight in having faith, where we do not really see, whom having not seen, yet we love. In whom so now we see him not, yet believing. We rejoice with joy unspeakable, Peter said, and full of glory. And so John was caught away in the spirit, isolated out there in the Isle of Patmos. Heard a voice behind him as of a trumpet. And you see, they turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks. I turned to see the voice. People have a lot of criticism with the way the Bible, especially the authorized version, I guess, relates some things. You don't see a voice. John saw the voice because he is the Word. He is that Word of God. I turned to see the voice. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks. In the midst of the seven candlesticks, one likened to the Son of Man. Clothed with a garment down to the foot, girded about the paps with a golden girdle. His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow. His eyes as a flame of fire. There he stands, the great high priest, sitting on the throne of glory. John saw him in the midst of the candlesticks. We've got to realize that. So he is the Lord on the throne of glory. He walks in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks, which are the seven churches, which is the church of every church age. The church of just the beginning when God ordained and set the church in motion in the earth. He's been walking there in the midst of the candlesticks. The book of Revelation is for the church of every age. It's unfortunate when theologians come up with a bright idea that the church disappears from the earth at the end of chapter three. You know, no scripture for it. Just because he heard a voice, then come up higher. Oh, that's the rapture. Call it rapture if you like, but it's to take place now right here on earth. John was caught up in the spirit. God wants his people to be caught up in the spirit. To hear and see the voice. To have that impact of the spirit in our lives until we are a spiritual people instead of a natural people. God wants us spiritual people. He wants to spiritualize us so we're spiritual. Like he spiritualized the man in the wilderness until it became spiritual food. Oh, you say no to the real food they had. I know. Spiritual things are the real things, don't you know that? Oh, you know, spiritualizing things. I believe in the real thing. So do I. I believe the streets of heaven are paved with gold. The real gold though. Not that stuff we have down here. The real gold. The divine attributes of the Lord God Almighty himself. That's the real gold. There's a phenomenon of gold dust appearing. I don't know anything about that. We know God could do it. I think oftentimes he does these things to test the hearts of his people. You want the gold dust that covers your suit or do you want the gold tried in the fire? That you might be rich says the Lord. So let's pursue the real things. God gives us some of the natural wealth. Fine too, but let's pursue the gold. They're going for the gold when they go to the Olympic Games. They're coming for the gold. A little wedge of some kind that perish. Gold that perishes. Even though it's tried by fire, it perishes. God tells us the trial of your faith is more precious than that. More precious than perishing gold. It perishes. You say it's indestructible. Yeah, almost I guess. But it's losing its value even now in the world. When gold was once the thing that everybody went after. It's losing its value. The time will come it'll be just like dust on the floor when the fires of God began to burn. Destroying, bringing down everything that can be shaken, the apostle said. Everything that can be shaken is going to be shaken. Does it cause you to fear? It ought not. It's our mighty God speaking from heaven. Yet once more saith the Lord I will shake not the earth only but the heavens also. The apostle is quoting from the Old Testament and he says this word yet once more signifies the removing of all things that are shakable that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Don't you have something within you that can't be shaken? Oh then let us rejoice when God begins to shake everything that can be shook. If you've got something unshakable within you. Paul says we have we therefore receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken. Let us have grace whereby may a servant serve him with reverence and godly fear. Godly fear because when things begin to topple around us so I believe there's got to be a strength in God's people to know there's a kingdom abiding within and I'm in the kingdom and the kingdom's in us. It cannot be shaken by any atom bomb or hydrogen bomb or device that man can create. So he stands there in the heavens with that white garment with eyes as a flame of fire. His hairs of his head like wool, his feet as a burnished brass is our great high priest but in the heavens but walking in the midst of the candlesticks because it was the job of the priest to make sure that the candlesticks would keep burning and be furnished with oil. I know we can read all those letters written to the seven churches in Asia and it seems like defeat every almost every letter you read it looks like a defeated church because it depends what kind of vision you have when you read the book of revelation. You'll see either beasts and serpents and dragons and seven-headed monsters and a woman riding on this scarlet beast and you'll see frogs out of the mouth of the dragon and 666 until the Lord illuminates your eyes to see that he is the one who is to be seen and noticed and worshipped and adored in the book of revelation. It's the revelation of Jesus Christ not of antichrist he's there we know beasts are there and dragons and frogs and all that stuff and 666 but God's putting a number on his people and I went to school Sunday school all my life and church all my life and and I never knew until a few years ago oh perhaps a few years depends how you're related that God has a number to put on his people don't take that mark don't take the mark 666 beware of that I had it in the license plate once don't don't take that mark God's got a mark for his people take the mark of Jesus and nobody can put a mark on you that's not of him before the judgments fall on the earth the command goes forth if you don't let the winds of God blow in the earth until I steal the servants of our God in their forehead don't worry about any mark that you think Satan's going to put upon you if you've got the mark of Jesus in your forehead I didn't know about the mark of Jesus all I knew about was the mark of the beast because in those days the book of the revelation wasn't the book the revelation of Jesus Christ it was the revelation of Satan of antichrist of beasts and all they're all there the objects of God's wrath and the Christ stands in the midst of the church to cleanse the church that there might be an overcoming people in that day in all these churches it doesn't there's an overcoming people perhaps they're in the minority but that doesn't matter with God the majority are generally wrong on the scriptures they're generally wrong but democracy is supposed to be a Christian thing and so they bring it into the church and their leaders in the church function under the democratic order they're voted in voted out democracy as if it's a Christian God chooses the minority God doesn't choose the majority the minority or who is ruling and reigning in heavenly places Christ the Lamb has conquered single-handedly and has overcome all the evil in the world he sits on the throne of glory king of all kings lord oh lord how be it we see not yet all things under his feet so what God says reign there till they're all under your feet and he's going to do it he's our king let me know if there's a king you've got a king I know you you folks have a republic down here we have still under the monarchy in a sense but our king or queen is really just a bigger head but we've got a king who rules and reigns and he's our king now not a coming king he's our king now we must emphasize that because somehow it's still in our system the poor Christians were down here struggling with governments and evil things and he's got a king who rules and reigns in the heavenly Zion and he's got everything he needs in himself to deal with every situation in the world and in the church but he starts with his church for his judgments must begin in the house of God and so he writes to Ephesus the one who holds seven stars in his right hand those whom he has set in leadership in the church he holds in his right hand under his control he writes a letter to Ephesus the one who holds the seven stars then he writes a letter to Smyrna and Smyrna has their problems and he's the one who was dead and is alive he writes to Pergamos these things saith he to the church at Pergamos that has the sharp sword with two edges Pergamos where there was a lot of evil going on in the church there he stands with a sharp sword with two edges don't you think he's not going to use those things that he has in his in his own nature and being and character he's got a sharp sword in his mouth he's going to he has everything in himself that's necessary to deal with every evil in the church and he's going to use it he's going to do it and he says if there's no repentance i'll come into you and i'll fight against you with the sword of my mouth god has the people in the earth who are him whom he is disciplined disciplining to hear his voice so well that when he the son of god in the heavens opens his mouth for that sharp sword to go forth there'll be a people in the earth opening their mouth that that sharp sword might go forth saying what he is saying and doing what he is doing people walking in such union with him that they are his people doing his will sons of god disciplined like the only begotten to have no agenda of their own no works of their own to perform no ambition to fulfill but to hear what he is saying and to declare in the earth what he is saying with the same authority with which he declares it for that people who enter into his rest or after talking about this rest that pertains to the people of god this sabbath that's for those who cease from their own works as god did from his enter into his works god rested from his works when he finished it for a short season only because man sinned and god went to work jesus said my father worketh hitherto and i work and when he performed a work where he was questioned for doing it on the sabbath or for some other reason he says my father worketh hitherto and i work the father's rest was broken after a man sinned and god began to work again has been working ever since jesus came to earth to do a certain work he finished the work in earth and he's gone to heaven to continue the work that the father's doing ministering as a high priest upon the throne in the heavenly sanctuary we get little glimpses of him here in these seven letters and god has that sharp sword for his people who are walking in union with him it'll be the voice of the son of god in the church the word of god is quick alive powerful sharper than any two-edged sword piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit and joints and marrow and it's a discerner of the thoughts and the intents of the heart oh how god would continue to work in the lives of his people to let sword become that sharp sword of the spirit is that the only weapon you and i have the only offensive weapon we have all this precious armor to clothe us to protect us helmet of salvation breathblader of righteousness girdle of truth shield of faith all these wonderful protective weapons that god has given us we only need that one offensive weapon and the sword of the spirit which is the word of god did you bring your sword well i'm sorry this is not the sword your time comes along when they're going to take this what you call your sword what are you going to do then god wants this word to be in your heart and mind that that word will go out of the mouth a sword out from the mouth word of god is alive powerful sharper than any two-edged sword but how we need to let the lord sharpen that sword within us as he keeps us in his hand as he keeps us in the scabbard in the sheath may the lord continue to sharpen that edge until when we speak it will be quick powerful discerning the thoughts and the intents of the heart making manifest what going on goes on in the church that might be exposed and dealt with by the sword of god's spirit so how vain you know how empty how shallow is our knowledge of what goes on and how we need that quickening spirit in our midst god's gonna bring it bring forth that quickening spirit that quickening word that he might deal with the uncleanness in his people may he begin at us may that be our prayer lord begin with us let your word search us out there might be a cleansing and a purifying that that word that he gives us will come forth pure and holy and cutting with a cutting edge two cutting edges sharper than any two cutting edges falses than any two-edged sword discerning the thoughts and the intents of the heart that god might deal with our minds take away every thought every imagining nation that lists itself up against the knowledge of christ because the mind of man is opposed to the mind of the spirit for the mind of the flesh is enmity against god it's not subject to the law of god neither indeed can be so that mind must be replaced by the mind of the spirit replaced all consumed by the mind of the spirit as he takes hold of us may that spirit of god purge out all that uncleanness that our minds might be renewed made new that we might begin to think as god thinks see as god sees somehow god gives us those glasses that permit us to see with seven eyes seven eyes seven eyes of a lab he's seen the seven eyes and seven horns and fullness of power and fullness of illumination and fullness of light pergamos got a sharp sharp sword to use against those who are bringing forth the doctrines of balaam in the church and the doctrine of the nickeledins which we're not going into but he did say repent or i'll come unto thee quickly and fight against them with the sword of my mouth we have this thing in the church that he's coming yeah well when he comes what well he comes and every eye shall see him he comes in clouds we know that's all true but he comes in many ways and he says to the church at pergamos if you don't repent i am coming to you to fight against you with the sword of my mouth oh he says not the second time i don't care what the second or the ten thousands coming he's coming to his church to purge them from the evil that's there how is he coming he's coming with this sword or he's coming with those eyes of fire he's coming to his church first to deal with that iniquity that's there three times in these letters he says i will come to you i'll fight you with you with the sword of my mouth you'll shine upon us with those seven eyes and whatever it is he has it all in himself to deal with everything that's wrong with it church of third tyra these things that the son of god has eyes like into a flame of fire feet like fine brass i'm coming to deal with jezebel oh he goes on sardis these things that he that has the seven spirits of god oh he's got the fullness of the spirit we haven't got the fullness of the spirit yet god wants to put that fullness in his people it's all in him he's coming with those seven spirits of god to deal with the iniquity that's in the church that started philadelphia he thinks that he has the key of david he opened us and no man shot us and shot us and no man opened us he has the key of david philadelphia wonderful church church where god would begin to open doors i'm not trying to differentiate between these different ages today because i believe in in the church history we have all these churches revealed perhaps one after the other historically and perhaps like today i believe all these aspects of the church are right here now and that god has the power in our lord jesus the high priest to deal with all these things he says i got the keys of david i open and no man can close so we rejoice and open doors god opens doors i remember when the doors closed in china i was a young man and communism had just taken over and sort of a oh a sad feeling in the church to think that doors are closing out of china god says i close doors too says i open doors and then i close doors close the doors in china that he might do a pure work in those people by his spirit go on take all your organizational stuff back to america i'm gonna do this thing god closes doors oh you say there's an open door i must oh wait a minute god might close it just because there's an open door doesn't mean you're supposed to go in because he says i close doors now he's not going to close the door that's already closed there's an open door and god says i close doors so before you say oh there's an open door i've got to walk into let's wait a minute and see if god wants to leave it open or close it he does both open doors that no man can close i close doors that no man can open got the key of david certainly we must pray for our brethren and going through those horrible times of persecution but you know some of those are praying that god would oh i'm not going to put words in their mouth but this chinese pastor who who spoke on one of these national and international television broadcasts and the host said to him now do you have a message for the church in america and he said yes he says what is that he says the church in america is pretty well dead but god is going to raise up a powerful church in america and they're praying that god will do what it takes that they might in america uh include canada not that we're a part of your country but we're the same people same kind of people partaken partaken of the same kind of prosperity and riches and of the same kind of lukewarmness and shallowness that is prevalent in any society which is affluent and our problems and our trials are probably more severe in countries where they're not more difficult to stay close to god in an affluent society perhaps than it is in one that's under persecution i've heard it said that some of them are praying that god would send that persecution to this country because they know that they took that to revive the church in some of those lands took that for god to close the doors to all that is evil that he might open the door to truth and righteousness laodicea of course the last church church which we feel has no hope you know and it's in a sad state i know but god has overcomers in every church age he's got overcomers he's got tremendous things for the church of laodicea if they'll listen to his counsel god help us to take counsel from he who is alone able to give the counsel that we need to the church of laodicea he says i counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire that thou mayest be rich so he has it there for the laodicean church he's got that gold tried in the fire that thou mayest be rich give us that gold but be careful when we pray i shouldn't say be careful but be sober the fire that will refine the gold that we buy from him is the fire that he kindles within us sometimes through trial and test and troubles of many kinds for the lord word of the lord is a pure word as silver tried in the fire purified seven times the psalmist said and i read that the word of the lord is a pure word tried in the fire and purified seven times isn't the word of the lord pure to begin with yes but this is the furnace of affliction in our hearts that god puts that word and that's when it becomes polluted as it's mixed up with all our ideas and thoughts and imaginations pure word yeah but it has to be refined and the furnace is in here and so joseph was sent into a furnace of affliction a good man a real good young man but then why would he go through the furnace of affliction because god saw the gold there and it had to be refined god sees the goldenness people because you have faith you've got if you have god's faith you've got gold it's intermingled with all your own ideas and so that's the trial of our faith that removes all that the trial of your faith being much more precious than of gold that perishes so god sees the gold that's why he sends the trial you want the gold i'm going for the gold you're running for the gold racing for the gold wow god says then i've got gold for here yes but um run the race well and you'll get the gold and then trouble comes and it's a trial of your faith that work is patience and this race you must run with patience i know it sounds a little stupid you get there out in the field to run a race i mean you're you're just waiting for the signal you're going to put everything you have into it but god says this race let us run with patience patience doesn't mean taking it easy being slothful sort of the meaning that is put on that word so many times patience is god trying us by fire to purge out the dross and having purged out the draw that's the that method that method that god used is the what's called patience so the trial of your faith work is in you patience which is faith being purged of the drops and faith coming forward as gold let's remember that patience is sort of ah forget that patient stuff let's get active here for god listen we're not going to be active for god until god works patience within us by his spirit until we learn that to lay aside all our own ideas and our own thoughts and imaginations and go god's way and that takes the purging of our faith from all human presumption to bring us to that now i didn't intend to spend much time on that part but i did want to deal a little more particularly with revelation 2 chapter 17 the letter to pergamos he that hath an ear and all these letters though the lord rebukes and rebukes again and again for the sins the failures the shortcomings of his people and every one of them he's seeking to get a hearing here if we have an ear to hear he says i want you to listen to this i want you to hear this he's got a hearing here i know there's all that stuff there god's going to deal with but he's got a people coming forth out of it all triumphant people victorious people and overcoming people whether it be many or few that's not for us to say in the midst of it all he's going to have an overcoming people and so we thank the lord that um in the midst of oh we look at the church and we see such coldness lukewarmness such lethargy such sin and iniquity worldliness oh you could go on and on god our lord jesus stands there everything he needs to purchase from all that the only requirement being of you and i that we hear his voice let his voice be that word let his eyes look upon us that we might see those eyes those seven eyes of fire that will burn out oh purify our vision so from then on we see only him oh i'm not there i'm far from it far from it but i know there's a place when we somehow god enables us to look him face to face it'll deal with our vision that our whole body will be full of light having no part dark jesus added in one of the gospels your body full of light but yeah more or less full having your body full of light having no part dark we can't look in the eyes of jesus and have any dark areas there that light will drive out all the darkness and he wants us to seek his face like our brother used to say not we're on his hand god move your hand god you know god uses his hand to give us things he said to david seeking my face and when he said that to david he responded thy face oh lord will i seek and he did and as he sought god's face he found himself in troubled waters he found the depths overwhelming him but because he'd seen a glimpse of him he kept looking at his faith depths overwhelmed him but then in the midst of the depths that were overwhelming he said deep calleth unto deep at the sound of thy cataract troubles overwhelming him there was a deep there that god was calling he that hath an ear let him hear a statement which i think is repeated over and over again in all of these churches these letters he that hath an ear let him hear what the spirit saith unto the churches to him that overcometh will i give to eat of the hidden manna i'll give him a white stone and in the stone a new name written which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it god has hidden manna for his people out there in the wilderness they had manna that fell when they came to the point which they thought after three days they're the point of starvation nothing to eat the little supplies they had brought from egypt would soon be consumed in that large multitude now suddenly they realized we're without bread we're without water they panicked it's strange how that we can look at miracle after miracle after miracle and rejoice in them and never learn from them you see what you learn from a miracle when jesus multiplied the loaves and the fishes and fed the multitude oh what a miracle five thousand men plus women and children twenty thousand people maybe with a boy's lunch oh what a miracle and when they heard about it they said this man is going to be our king and when jesus perceived they were going to come and force him to be king he went up to the mountain alone told the disciples to get in the ship and go to the other side on the way over they panicked because god sent the storm god sent the storm they panicked in the storm they just seen a miracle and they just heard him say go to the other side and they started in the storm and they were panicking then they saw one like this form of a spirit walking in the water and they were afraid they'd seen a ghost if you're not a desire and when jesus got into the boat he says why are you so fearful was it say there they considered not the miracle of the loaves for their hearts were hardened another version says they didn't understand the miracle of the loaves for their hearts were hardened and so have you seen miracles i'm sure that you all of you have seen miracles and people will tell the biggest stadiums you've got in this country to come and see miracles but do they understand the miracles oh i saw it i know but you understand it i mean with this kind of understanding that jesus spoke about is the miracle doing something in your heart to cause you to know that when calamity strikes there's one who is in charge of the situation you panic because they didn't understand the miracle of the loaves they thank the lord for every miracle he performs for his people for god is a god of miracles but it's sad in the lord's heart that no matter how many miracles he would perform they still couldn't hear what he was saying many many times eight of the loaves wonderful miracle worker didn't change their hearts and so god sent them manna in the desert they didn't know what it was and they weren't supposed to know and so as they saw that stuff in the ground moses said this is the bread that the lord has given you from heaven gather it just gather what you need don't try and store it up there'll be some more there tomorrow don't start up gather what you need they went out and they saw this flaky thing there in the ground quite small and they gathered it and took it home and ate it and what is it everybody was saying what is it and so they called it that manna meaning what is it i think dr strong points out it not only implies what but where why and all these different questions could be the meaning of that word manna it's a question why what what for and god leaves us with the precious manna but he doesn't necessarily answer all our questions god gives us the breath bread of life and the water of life and we rejoice in the gifts he bestows upon us but it doesn't take away the question no i know it was announced here that there'd be a time when you would ask questions and i don't mind questions being asked and sometimes it actually stirs up a new thought that i hadn't had before so you know but not those kind of questions why lord are you doing this to me lord why would you do this i thought that you know i thought that you blessed me you gave me a gift you call me into ministry or whatever i don't know and now why this but it's part of the manna it's the working of the manna within us we really love his word and feast upon it we derive strength from that living word strength for the journey but very little knowledge of where we're going and that's what bothers us very little knowledge of why god has brought us where we are instead of leading us on to a greater measure of fruitfulness brings us into a barren land perhaps i don't know it's different with everyone who partakes of the man it's always different so it's not up to me to say what god will do but the manna will leave you with questions but it's precious it supplies your needs it gives you everything you need and that's what jesus said the way we're supposed to pray give us this day our daily bread other words give me lord what i need for today that's really what it means give me bread that's sufficient for today really what it means but then what about tomorrow well god says it'd be there there'll be some more manna tomorrow but they couldn't believe moses so they'd better make sure we'll we'll take a little extra here so they take extra and they fill up and still have the extra there and then the next few hours is full of worms so they soon learned that you can't do that god forbid that we should i always pray god give us something fresh for your people not something that you haven't heard before necessarily but something fresh i hate to feel your wormy feed your wormy breath god give us fresh man every day from your stores of plenty knowing that tomorrow if tomorrow comes it'll still be today because today is the only day god's given you and therefore the word of you and i who would enter into rest is this today if you hear his voice i'm not sure that's the word that god gave concerning this matter of entering into us here is what he doesn't hear let him hear what the spirit says to the churches it gives you the hidden manna well this manna was hidden from the other nations but it was open there to all the israelites but inside the holiest of all under the mercy seat in the ark of the covenant there was a golden pot full of manna that was hidden from the eyes of everybody including the high priest so he went into the holiest of all once a year was to sprinkle the blood on the mercy seat far as i know he wasn't allowed to lift that mercy seat and look inside it because in that box in that golden box there was a golden pot full of manna there was the tables of the law those stone tables upon which were written the law of god and aaron's rod that buttered which was put there after the rebellion against moses and aaron and remember how moses said after the confrontation with those who were jealous and and trying to override the leadership of moses in there how god dealt with it he said let every tribe bring a rod write your name on it just a stick just a rod representing your tribe with your name on it aaron you bring yours and they put the 12 rods there at the mercy seat or in in it i'm not sure and left it just overnight they went in and brought the 12 rods out well here take yours benjamin down let's tell it here's your just dry stick the same as the others aaron here there was buds on almonds grew overnight on that dead stick and draw the butted and so the proof of reality and the proof that god manifests concerning what is truth and what is error is nothing less than the resurrection life nothing less than resurrection life which he manifested in the earth while he dwelt in a mortal body when he himself did not have an immortal body he had a mortal body yet he said i am the resurrection and the life and he said that just prior to raising lazarus from the dead to assure her that she wasn't the case of her waiting till the end of time for the resurrection of the last day because he is the resurrection and the life and in fact his name here in in the book of revelation for the church of laodicea the special name that he has for them is this these things say the all men the faithful and true witness the beginning of the creation of god he's the old man he's the well that's the end of a prayer isn't it so let it be he's the one who he himself is the all men if we're praying in his name he says i am the beginning and the end he's the end people will say you know place where there's end time truth i like to remind them end time truth is the lord jesus he's the lord jesus well isn't he the one who is the beginning of truth oh yes he's the beginning and the end and so isn't he the same one oh yes the same one but in end time there's a special ministry he has in the end time because he's the end and he's winding things up he brings the conclusion and so we see him with those seven eyes and seven horns clothes of these priestly garments he's the end time lord he's the ancient of days he's grown old you might say through the centuries john stalin their hair is of wool speaking of the hoary head being a sign of wisdom he's the one who is the fullness of all wisdom and knowledge she survived the ages the lord of the ages he's the end he's the beginning and he's the end he's both but in the end time it becomes still more glorious because he's glorified in the people and god becomes still more glorious than he was before redemption because he's glorified in the people whom he's redeemed he's made more glorious he seemed to be he's manifested is still more glorious than he was when he created adam because in the midst of the fall and in spite of the fall god was able to come in the scene in the fullness of time born in our flesh born of our nature not only to eradicate the sin of the old creation but to bring forth a new creation not just to restore us to the likeness of adam before he sinned but to bring forth an adam of a higher order than adam before he sinned for here was a man who had never sinned never was he said to be perfect everything god made was very good but this man knew neither good nor evil jesus came into a world where humanity knows both god is not going to so deal with us that will no longer have the capacity to know evil that's something that's in the human race and god takes it out of the hands of the enemy and out of the hands of death and brings forth the people who have known evil and gives them the discernment and the knowledge to know the difference between good and evil and he feeds them with a special kind of food to enable them to know the difference between good and evil because it's still there he wants the people who discern both good and evil and in this day when the judges of the earth don't know the difference god's going to have a people going to stand up and say this is wrong and this is right with anointing and with power they will declare what's right and what's wrong in the church as well as in the world eventually god deals with his church first those who partake of christ the fullness of the food that he gives us the hidden manna the manna in the ark of the covenant that does not go corrupt the next day paul says keep that golden manna throughout your generation that golden pot of manna throughout your generations here in the ark of the covenant christ the incorruptible one christ the bread of life whose bread does not become corrupt nor did the body in which he lived on his universe go into corruption for some reason god said no i will not let his body go even into corruption for he was there in the grave only three days four days would have meant corruption to fulfill the scripture that neither shall my holy one see corruption hidden manna oh yeah we got that desert manna too but there's a in the holy place there's a loaves of bread that the priests alone ate and they would eat it on the sabbath day the bread that had lain there for the six days on the seventh day they would take it off and eat it not stale bread just because it's a six days old more fresh more full of the life of god because it was called the show bread or literally the bread of his presence and after six days there in the presence of god they ate it just priestly food god has priestly food for us besides the manna there's a priestly food that god is feeding his people because he's preparing a priesthood in the earth and he wants us to partake of priestly food david had a little foretaste of the priesthood you know so he was not a priest and it was unlawful for any king in israel to intrude into the priesthood one man usa usia intruded into the priesthood in arrogance he was king and those priests think they have that to themselves i'm going to go in there and he goes in there with his censer and god smote him with leprosy right there in the spot no king to do that even though the king was the highest office in the land you leave the priesthood alone david goes to the sanctuary when he was in trouble and he asked the priest for bread and the priest was a little concerned about it but all our god's holy bread that's all right give it to me he gave him holy bread because he was beginning to partake of this priestly ministry he got away with it and he said i need a sword well he says there's no sword here but the one you slew Goliath with give me that he said where is it it's wrapped up in a napkin in the sanctuary so that sword somehow he lost it and found its way into the tabernacle and wrapped up in a priestly garment in the sanctuary david got it back when he needed it and then when the tent of that he erected on mount sion he sent the people to bring back the ark to put in the tent first time i suppose he would have put it in the old tabernacle i don't know but he didn't go about it the right way you know the story they sent a cart to bring the uh a cart with oxen to bring the ark back logical thing to do it worked nowadays and say well maybe it's not scriptural but it seems to work the other way doesn't work god's way doesn't work well maybe god's way will not work if we're not walking in god's will and doing things in god's way and in god's timing maybe it doesn't work but when we go god's way hear his voice do what he says it'll work so david sought god and god showed him the right way you don't put the ark of god's presence on a wagon for the oxen to pull the priests carried in their shoulders but they continue to do that if there's excitement about god's presence you've got any number of carts that come up from time to time all kinds of carts i could name some i'm not going to do it no because this is on tape i mean there can't be a move of god till there's men or women get together we've got to get a cart we're gonna have a little organization here oh oh just something to be known as a little bit different from the rest i used to say you know why can't women glow without belonging you know why can't why can't businessmen get together and have fellowship without belonging you know like but uh oh no we gotta a cart god's way and god's only way is for god's ministers to carry the anointing of god with them and on their shoulders which becomes a burden but if you know god put it there you'll be able to say with jesus my yoke is easy and my burden is light that's god's provision for ministering is carrying the ark of god's presence on your shoulders not delegating it to some oxen servants and greasing the wheels of a cart so it'll run smoothly it always fails but we don't learn from our failures so often god's raising up a priesthood men and women from all walks of life who will be known because they carry the presence of god with them and that's one's only credential for ministry it's not that you're known as a prophet or a teacher or an apostle or anything else though god does have those different functions in the body of christ but they're only valid the only life giving the only life imparting they're only a blessing to man and to the heart of god when they go not as a prophet not as an apostle not as a teacher but when they go as a servant of god carrying his presence with them so isn't it significant that our lord jesus the messiah the king the apostle the prophet the evangelist the pastor the true shepherd the teacher he's all of those things he's called all of those things when he would minister the word and he was contested as to what authority had he always says it's the authority of the father he told me to do this i do always those things that please him the father hath not left me alone because i do always those things that please him he had come to know the father so well that he knew his voice and he knew that he must not do anything other than as the father would direct the very words i speak into you he said are not mine but his that sent me the son of god the messiah the teacher the prophet the apostle the evangelist the shepherd he he always wanted people to hear his voice simply because he walked in union with the heavenly father that made him to be the good shepherd that made him to be the true prophet that made him to be the apostle it could be trusted to lay foundations in the lives of people that it was that obedience to the voice of the father that enabled him to preach good tidings to evangelize those who were in need of the savior who are you i'm the one that i said into you from the beginning the works that i do are not mine but his that sent me i got into this by saying that david though he was a king he had a priestly heart and when he brought back the ark the second time the right way being born upon the shoulders of the priests he directed them to bring that ark and to put it into a tent that he directed on zion which was the place of his kingdom and home what arrogance if god hadn't told him to do that if god smote a man dead for touching the ark here's david a king partaking of priestly privileges putting a tent up there on mount zion and putting the ark there that he might go in and sit before the lord anytime he wanted to the high priest in israel couldn't do that but he would write words like this one thing have i desired of the lord that one thing will i seek after them i dwell in the house of the lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the lord and to inquire in his temple god loved him because he had a priestly heart and he was had a heart after the heart of god he wasn't trying to somehow emulate the priests and jealous of their ministry because god would show us that even in the old testament though god had restrictions many restrictions as to what the priests could do and others couldn't do his intention was fully declared when the children of israel gathered there gathered there at the foot of sinai and god said to that nation he shall be unto me a holy nation a peculiar people a kingdom of priests a kingdom of priests but because of failure they couldn't enter into god set it aside for that time raised that one tribe to be a priestly tribe and one family out of that one tribe to be the the those who would inherit the role of the high priest and pass it on to someone else when they died restricting the priesthood to a certain tribe looking forward to the time when his promise would be fulfilled so that peter was able to write to the people and say you are a chosen generation a peculiar people a royal priesthood that all his people might become priests in the house of god yet even though that be so how few there are who really desire to have that kind of a communion and relationship with god and so we delegate it to others god's dream will yet be fulfilled he will have a whole nation of priests the whole nation will be holy the people be a peculiar people unto him not in the sense that we often use the word a man's peculiar he's a little odd little not quite all there peculiar in the sense that they're god's special mark upon them something about them that's different than the world because god has chosen them for his own glory people who love the lord and fear him so much true love is filled with great fear for the god they love a great godly fear so that they that feared the lord speak often one to another and the lord hearkens the lord listens in and writes a book causes a book to be written for those who fear the lord and think upon his name and they should be mine saith the lord the day when i make up my jewels that's the peculiar people that god is talking about those peculiar gems those peculiar kinds of precious stones different than others precious in his sight and they shall be mine saith the lord in the day when i make up my jewels i believe i'll stop right there lord willing you see maybe tonight we'll say some more about these things he that has an ear let him hear what the spirit says to the church man god tune our ears in unto you we pray we know lord many times we're hard of hearing many times we're hard of hearing you we pray lord that you would cause us to know how to tune our ears in unto you that all other sounds will fade away we hear your voice clearly we confess at this point it's not quite that way but as we seek to hear your voice we hear so many other voices we can't seem to tune in help us to tune in by your spirit by your anointing oh by taking your yoke upon us and learning from you and knowing how to come apart from the throngs and find our rest in you and learn from you help us lord we pray you in this morning bless your people lord cause their ears to be quickened tuned in oh god all of us it will not be difficult to tune into the voice of god and know this is what the lord is saying i hear what the spirit is saying to the churches thine ear my ears hast thou opened it says in the book of songs well my ear thou has pierced pierce our ears lord like that servant who loved his master so much he came to the doorpost his ear pierced signifying that from then on he would obey none other than the master to whom he was bound by a covenant relationship help us lord that we too might have that covenant sealed by in our ears even by the piercing of our ears that we will hear no other voice but the voice of our master whom we love who died for us who redeemed us and has given us the capacity to hear what the spirit would say to the churches your blessing be upon this people we pray in jesus name amen