This sermon emphasizes the importance of experiencing God's power and nature in our lives, highlighting the need to partake in the Holy Spirit, taste the good word of God, and anticipate the powers of the age to come. It encourages humility, dependence on God's supernatural work, and a transformation that reflects God's presence and victory over sin.

Before I share what is on my heart this morning, I want to point out a verse in Colossians chapter 3, which is a verse that we should always bear in mind, because it keeps our heart in a right attitude to receive the word of God. And it's not something that we always think of. When we come together for a time of praise and thanksgiving, we are mostly thinking of what the Lord, of the Lord himself, and our attention is directed to Jesus. But here it says in Colossians 3 and verse 12, just like the verse we read this morning, As those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion. It's something you have to put on. It doesn't come automatically. It's like you put on your clothes this morning. You put on a heart of compassion. You don't put it on when you are naked. Put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bearing with one another, forgiving each other, and that begins at home with our husbands and wives, and then with others in the body of Christ. I hope you have come with that spirit this morning. Bearing with one another and forgiving each other. Whoever has a complaint against anyone, just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. And beyond all these things, put on love, which is again something to put on, which is the perfect bond of unity. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And this is the part I want to emphasize. Be thankful for one another. The test of whether you have fulfilled verses 12 to 15, which is all in relation to one another. I mean, you don't have to think of the worldwide body of Christ, that's too big. Just think of the brothers and sisters here in this church, whom you know. And if you have fulfilled all these verses in verses 12 to 15, in relation to the brothers and sisters you know in this church this morning, the proof of it will be, you will be thankful for them. And not just critical. Be thankful. Be thankful for your wife this morning. Be thankful for your husband. Be thankful for your children. Be thankful for the elders in this church. Be thankful for the brothers and sisters in this church. And when we have that attitude of heart, if you come like that every time, you will receive a lot more in your heart from the Lord as He speaks to you. And if it's a prophetic word, if it is, it will prepare you for what you are going to face this week or in the days to come. But it all depends on whether your heart is like ground to be plowed up. If you sow the seed on concrete, maybe good seed, but nothing grows. But you sow that same seed on plowed up ground, and a little later, a plant comes up. What's the difference? It's the ground, not the seed. It's the same way we can hear something this morning, and it can produce nothing in our lives, or something we are instructed in our mind, it doesn't change our life. But if we come with this thankful spirit, not just thankful to the Lord, it says you are called in one body, and be thankful for each other. You will see so many faults in everyone. And if you look into your own heart, you will see faults there too. That's why we are to be compassionate and forgive one another, and be patient and be thankful. I mentioned this, I mean I don't know why I have been prompted to mention this, but maybe it is for somebody here who needs to hear that word this morning. Because the Lord loves you, and He wants you to have a good heart. That's why He gives you that word this morning, so that you can receive what the Lord has for you, so that you don't lose, so that your heart is not hard like concrete, so that the seed can go in. And thankfulness for one another is a part of what plows up the ground in our hearts. To hear what the Lord has to say. Okay, now what I have in my heart this morning is in Hebrews chapter 6. Hebrews chapter 6, you know the Hebrews were people whom whoever wrote this letter, and whoever it was addressed to, those believers were babies, they were not growing up. Even though they had heard the word of God for so many years. The writer tells them in Hebrews 5.12, By this time you should have been teachers. And I want to say this very lovingly, my brothers and sisters to all of you, to most of you who have been here for many, many years. The time has come where many of you should have been teachers. I don't mean teachers sitting up here or standing up here and teaching God's word. But knowing enough to be able to teach someone around you, who is younger than you, whatever you know. Like a second standard student can teach, can be a teacher. To the first standard student and the kindergarten students. You don't have to get a PhD to teach the kindergarten. So all of us must be eager to say Lord what you have taught me, I want to share with others. Many of us are very generous to help those who are poor with money, which is a good thing, at least some of us are. But more than that, many of us may not have money to give to others, who are more precious. And that is, God has given you something of his word, and you say Lord give me an opportunity to not sit on somebody's head and be a preacher to them that they get fed up of me. But in a loving way, in the same way as you would help a poor brother financially, in that same spirit of generosity and goodness, to be able to share God's word. So with somebody whom God sends across your path, don't just sit back and say I don't know anything. You know a lot. You have sat here for so many years. The time has come when you should have been teachers. But unfortunately he says you need to hear once again the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food. So we need to grow beyond milk. And the reason why some people are only drinking milk, the mark of those who are drinking only milk is they are not accustomed, they are not happy with the word of righteousness. They get offended if they hear a strong word on righteousness, and uprightness, and being holy, and walking as Jesus walked, and they say oh that's too high a standard, we don't want all that. Then you remain a baby. They don't want the word of righteousness. And then they are babies. Solid food is for the mature. So now we go to chapter 6. So he says let us leave the elementary teaching about Christ. There is an elementary teaching about Christ which is like we could say kindergarten. You know when children go to the first standard of kindergarten, they learn the ABC. They learn to read a few elementary words. They learn a little bit about addition. I think so. I'm not sure exactly what they teach in kindergarten. It was long ago that I was there. But it's like that. The elementary teaching about Christ is, there is that elementary teaching, and then there is the teaching that helps us to press on to maturity. So it says we must be finished with this elementary teaching. The elementary teaching is repentance from dead works. Repentance from dead works means thinking that by our works we can be accepted. Repentance from sin is one thing. Repentance from dead works is another. You know the phrase dead works is never found in the Old Testament. It's a New Testament word. Repentance from sin. Plenty of it in the Old Testament. All the prophets preached it. And that's certainly where we begin. But then there is another repentance, and that is turning away from dead works. Thinking that we can make ourselves acceptable to God by our works. Not recognizing that even our righteous deeds are like filthy rags. Isaiah 64 verse 6. Are like filthy rags. I have done something good, and I say, Lord, here is what I did. Maybe you did some act of kindness to somebody, or you helped someone, or you gave some money to someone. You say, Lord, do you see this? It's like holding up a dirty rag before God. I don't know whether you have seen it like that. Repentance. Lord, I don't want to do all that. I want to repent from thinking that my works is something I can present to you. I repent from dead works. You know, Christianity is the only religion in the world that says God does not accept you on the basis of your works. Every religion in the world says, you got to do some good works for God to accept you. You got to give money to the poor. I am not saying God ignores that. Cornelius was an ignorant heathen, and he gave money to the poor, and the angel came and said, God has seen it. God has seen that you gave money to the poor. I am not saying he doesn't see it. I am not saying he doesn't appreciate it. But the angel could have gone on to say, Cornelius, I just want to say, on the basis of that, you can't be accepted by God. Sorry. He appreciates your giving money to the poor. He appreciates your helping others, but that's not the basis of acceptance. So Christianity is the only religion which says, any amount of good works you may do, you can't be accepted. Every other religion, people are striving to be accepted by God, by crazy things like rolling on the ground, or going on pilgrimage, and putting money in some offering box, or giving money to the poor, or doing all types of things like that, hoping that you'll be accepted. And here Jesus and the apostles come along and say, you can do that all your life, and you won't be accepted. You have to receive forgiveness and your acceptance by God as a free gift. Now there is something humiliating about receiving a gift. I mean, there is a certain dignity that we have, that we don't like people to feel we are down and out, and they come and say, OK, here, you are a gift. And there is something humiliating about it. It makes me feel as if I am sort of a helpless beggar, and this rich man is coming and helping me, and many people shun away from that, and say, I don't want it, I can take care of myself. It is humiliating to receive a gift. And that's why many people don't accept it. They don't accept a free gift from God. They say, I've got to do something to be accepted. And we've got to get rid of that heathen mentality that we have all inherited, false religion. See, a part of what we have inherited from Adam is a false religion. From the tree of knowledge of good and evil, what Adam, God, was, I can do something, avoid the evil and do the good, and God will accept me. That's from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. No, he won't. But that is in our system, and I've got to get rid of it. That is repentance from dead works. Lord, even if I live the best life any human being can live, I can't be accepted. I cannot present that to you. Like we sing in that song, Nothing in my hands I bring, Simply to thy cross I cling. We have to always come like that. That's the way we get God's best. And I tell you, it's very humiliating. It's very humiliating to all your life, come before God and say, Lord, I'm just a nobody. And even if I walked with you for 50 years, I'm a nobody, really. And I really have nothing to offer you. I've come here to receive from you freely. And even what I give you is, what you've given me is like children, little 6 year old comes to daddy and says, Daddy, can you give me some money? And daddy says, why do you want it? He says, I want to buy you a birthday gift. To buy a birthday gift for your daddy, you have to ask your daddy for money, right? That's how a little child is. But when we are grown up and smart and earning ourselves, we don't have to ask daddy for anything. I get something myself. We've got to be like little children. There's something about that. Only Christianity says that God will accept you as you come as little children. So I want to encourage all of you, my brothers and sisters, to be like God. And you'll have tremendous acceptance before God. All the time. I want to be like that all my life. I don't care how old I am. I know the kingdom of heaven is like little children. And the only one who accepts it like a little child is the greatest in God's kingdom. And if we are really growing, that's the way we should be growing. So that's the repentance from dead works. That's why, you know, I was speaking at the New Year meeting that we've got to forget the things that are behind and live each day as if I've done nothing for the Lord till now. Imagine that. Living today as if I've done nothing for the Lord. I look back over my life and I say, boy, I've done nothing for Jesus for all that he did for me. I've got to do something. I come with empty hands because I've repented from all dead works. I've got nothing to preserve. I've got nothing to present to God except that Jesus died for me. And that is how every godly man feels. I remember John Wesley, one of the godliest men that Christianity has ever seen who lived 200 years ago and started the Methodist Church. He preached holiness. He preached purity and lived a very godly life. And he said, when I come to the end of my life and I stand before the Lord, what shall I say? I shall say to the Lord in the final day, I am damned, but Jesus died for me. Do you recognize that? That's the way I want to always live. I am damned, but Jesus died for me. See, when you come like that, it will be very difficult for you to look down on other believers. It will be very difficult for you to consider yourself superior and the others as inferior. Because they are damned just like you are damned. And Jesus died for that person, he is accepted. And Jesus died for me and I am accepted. So, it is very important, this repentance from dead works. We think we have repented, but maybe we have repented only from sin, but not from dead works. Please keep this in mind always, brothers. And faith toward God, that's the other. These are all kindergarten lessons, really. Faith toward God, the other thing you have, which is not faith in ourselves or faith in other people. It is something that has to develop. It is like a little seed that grows into a plant and must become a tree, where more and more, I am not depending on myself or on other people to help me. My first thing is, I turn to the Lord and say, Lord, I trust you. And if I am in a difficult situation and some other people help me, I don't depend on them. Because when you get into some difficulty, and if you are always looking for some human being to help you, you will never grow. God allows those difficult situations so that we learn to trust him more. I will come to that in a moment. Of instruction about baptisms, that word there is baptisms. It is translated as washings. Baptisms means baptism in water and baptism or immersion in water and immersion in the Holy Spirit. And laying on of hands. Laying on of hands refers primarily to spiritual gifts. That's how Paul tells Timothy you receive the gift through the laying on of hands. We don't know much about it in the New Testament. But the little that is mentioned seems to refer to spiritual gifts which teaches us one thing that don't despise spiritual gifts. That's all. Don't make too much of it like some people do. And don't despise it. We don't need it. We do need it if we want to serve God. Because we can't serve God without his equipping us. And the clearest example of it, I am talking about service now, the clearest example of it is Jesus himself. That even though he lived a holy life for 30 years, he did not dare, he did not dare without praying to be anointed with the Holy Spirit. It says in Luke chapter 3 that as he went into the waters of baptism, he was praying. I know what he was praying for. Because every prayer of Jesus was answered immediately. So I know what he was praying for because when he came up out of the water, the Holy Spirit came upon him. So what was he praying for? He was praying to be anointed with the Holy Spirit. He was saying, Father, I have lived for you all these years, but now I am going to serve you in full time ministry. What do I need? I am not thinking where my monthly support will come from. I have been a carpenter all these years. I am not thinking who will support me. That you will take care of. I am thinking I need the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Father, give me the gifts that I need to serve you. And boy, did he receive an anointing. From that moment, he could go out and preach mightily and cast out demons and heal the sick and all types of things in his ministry. Don't despise the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Whichever way God gives it to you, it is not necessarily always with a laying on of hands. I went to the Lord and said, Lord, I want you to lay your hands on me. I can't find anybody around me who I can trust with. Who has to lay their hands on me. Can you lay your nail-pierced hands on me and anoint me and give me some gifts to serve you? I have done that many times. I wouldn't dare to serve the Lord without Jesus giving me the gifts of the Holy Spirit. And then talking about the future, to believe that one day everybody will be raised up in eternal judgment, that we will all give an answer to God for our life, there. And he says, we lay that down as a foundation and now we move on. And I want you to now look at the five things mentioned in verse 4 and 5, which to me are what the writer to the Hebrews and the Holy Spirit through him is saying that every believer should experience, to some extent, every born-again person should experience, to some extent, these five things mentioned here. One, being enlightened. There are Ephesians 1 says about our heart being enlightened. Do you know that we have eyes in our heart that are blind until Jesus opens our blind eyes? To be enlightened is to be able to see something that we could never see before. Not just understand something, but it's like saying, hey, I see it now. Like, in English there is an expression called an aha moment. An aha moment means, oh wow, I see it now. I sort of understood it in my head until now, but aha, I see it. Wow, that's, I never saw it like that. That's when the eyes of our heart being enlightened, it's like an illustration. It's like a blind man who had a Bible in his house for many years. He couldn't read anything in it. Then one day Jesus opens his eyes and he begins to read and say, wow, I had this book all these years and now I can see what's written here. It's something like that that happens when God opens the eyes of our heart and we read the Bible and we say, wow, I never saw that. I've never seen that before. That's really comfort. You know, like I was sharing the other day that when we're going through a particular problem and there seem to be some issues there, we don't know how this problem is going to end up. It could be a sickness, it could be a financial problem, it could be a job problem, it could be all types of things which we're facing and many of us go through things like that many times. I go through them too. And one of the words that comforted me recently was Jesus saying, I am the Alpha and the Omega. I am the A and the Z. I am the beginning and the end. So I thought of it like this that Jesus is there in the beginning and Jesus is there in the end and this particular problem I'm facing is in between the Alpha and the Omega. Everything is in between here. I don't know where this is going to end. Since Jesus is the Omega, the final word, and he's the end, he knows where it's going to end and he's beyond the end. So I can be at rest. It could be a physical problem, it could be a financial problem. You don't know where it's going to end. It looks like it's pretty serious. You know, people can go through serious problems, sickness, you don't know where it's going to end. I can say, Lord, you're the Alpha and Omega so I will not be anxious. I will not allow these thoughts of anxiety to come and disturb my mind because you are the Omega. You're the one at the end of time and I'm going to rest in you. That's just an example of how our hearts can get enlightened all of a sudden from a scripture that you probably read. I mean, I read that verse for 50 years and it never came home to me like that. There is a well from which you can keep on drawing water and if you're not able to draw fresh water from that well, if it's stale water that you're getting something wrong, pray. It's your birthright. These five things here are your birthright. It's not some extra thing that you have to pay something for. It's free. It all came with your salvation package. You've got to open up your new birth package and see these five things are all there. Maybe you didn't look carefully inside that package what you gave God as a free gift. Here's the first one. Enlightenment. You have a birthright to be enlightened when you read God's word and you see something which you haven't seen before when you read it. You have to see something of Jesus, a fresh view of Jesus. Like I said, when you see Jesus as Alpha and Omega, you're actually seeing him. Your eyes, your heart are enlightened to see Christ as the one who rules over all, etc. And it goes on to say the second thing here is you've tasted of the heavenly gift. And that's the second thing in that package of when you got when you were born again. I'm just trying to open up that package you got, all of us got when we were born again. And some of those packages we haven't opened. Here's one of them. To get a taste of heaven. You know in the Old Testament nobody could get a taste of heaven. They could taste a very comfortable life on earth. They could get healing. They could get wealth and prosperity and a birthright. You know what's your birthright? Living here on earth to have a little taste of heaven. Of what heaven is like. You know, for example, you read in the book of Revelation how they all fall down before God and the Lamb, Jesus and say, Thou art worthy. I've often thought about that. And I say, Lord, I want a taste of that here. I know one day I'll do it. One day I'll be there with the millions and millions of people and saying, Thou art worthy. But I want a taste of it here. One drop. If that's an ocean, can I get a drop of that ocean now? Of seeing how wonderful it is to be taken up with Jesus alone as being worthy. Not Paul, not Peter. Nobody. Only Jesus. He alone is worthy. To see yourself in the midst of millions in heaven as a nobody singing that Jesus is worthy. The devil can sometimes puff us up with feelings of self-importance that we're a little more important than somebody else. It's a lot of rubbish. Don't you listen to the devil. We're very precious in God's eyes. But in our own eyes we must always be nobodies. A taste of heaven is like that. I want a taste of that. A life. I've thought of heaven as a place where nobody murmurs or grumbles about anything. Right now, for example, there are people in heaven. Some of the saints have gone already up there who lived on earth. We know they are conscious because Jesus spoke about Abraham speaking to the rich man in hell. That means people who go to paradise and hell are conscious. But think of those people who are conscious up there in heaven. They don't have bodies but their spirits are in some way conscious. But they're not disturbed about all the things happening on earth right now. They're not grumbling and complaining about anything that's happening here. They're not scared. What's going to happen next? I say, Lord, that's heaven. I want a taste of that. I can't have it in perfection until I get there. I want to taste this heavenly gift. This having heaven in my heart. I want a taste of it. I can't have it fully. Like a little drop, a little bite, a little taste. That's your birthright. It's a package. It came with your new birth package. Enjoy it. A life completely free from grumbling and complaining about anybody. What a life that can be. Can you imagine what will happen in your home if husband and wife are like that? Your home will have a little bit of the atmosphere of heaven there. Think of your children growing up in that atmosphere. What is going to affect them? You can teach the Bible any amount to your children, but if they don't taste the atmosphere of heaven in your home, they are not going to turn to the Lord. I'll tell you that. If they don't see heaven in the atmosphere and conversation in your home, if they hear grumbling and murmuring which is the characteristic of hell, I can imagine that people in hell are murmuring and grumbling. Think of that rich man. Oh, I want some water here. I mean a rich man on earth. Can't you give me some water at least? My tongue is burning. They're grumbling and murmuring. Grumbling all the time about something or the other. I don't want that atmosphere in my home. Dear brothers and sisters, it is your birthright to have a taste of heaven. The third thing it says here is, and this is how it all happens, made partakers of the Holy Spirit. There's a lot of confusion concerning this. There are many people who are told you've got to first accept Christ and then accept the Holy Spirit. In scripture it is, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and receive the Holy Spirit. You won't find a single place, not a single place in the Bible where you tell a person receive Jesus Christ and then later on receive the Holy Spirit. Can you show me one place like that? It's being taught like that today in some Pentecostal churches and people who don't know the Word of God. Be filled with the Spirit. That I agree. Be baptized in the Holy Spirit Turn to Romans 8 verse 9. See a lot of confusion concerning the Holy Spirit comes because I'll tell you, because you listen to the testimonies of men more than read the Word of God. A guaranteed prescription for confusion. You want to be confused in your mind? Listen to the testimonies of men more than you read the Word of God. Guaranteed you'll be confused. I have striven all my life, I listen to the testimonies of many people I've been greatly challenged by the testimonies of others but I say God's Word is above all that. And that's what's protected me from godly men who are more godly than me. Who have taught things which are not in Scripture. I have disagreed with them and I'm saying sorry brother you're much older than me you're much more godly than me but God's Word is above you so I'm sorry I can't agree with you. Are you more godly than me? Yes, agreed. Have you known the Lord longer than me? Yes, agreed. But if God's Word says something else I'm sorry I'm going to accept God's Word. I've said that to more than one godly person older than me and that's what's kept me saved me from following some man or cult or any such thing. God's Word. Romans 8 and verse 9 the last part If anyone listen anyone here does not have the Holy Spirit the Spirit of Christ you don't even belong to him. You're not even born again. You don't belong to Christ. You don't belong to God. What does that teach? It teaches that when you're born again when you receive Christ you're receiving the Holy Spirit. You may not be filled with the Holy Spirit but you receive him. Because Jesus Christ is in heaven. He has not come back to the earth. He did not come back to the earth when he came into your heart. Who is on earth today? The third person of the Trinity. If you were in Israel nearly 2,000 years ago you could have received Jesus into your home because the second person of the Trinity was on earth. You could have asked him to come to your home. But today you can't. One day you can when he comes back again. But in this period it's the third person of the Trinity who's here on this earth. And when you want God to come into your life it's the third person of the Trinity that comes in. The third person of the Trinity was not there in Israel 2,000 years ago. So let's not get it confused. It's all very simple. So when I received Jesus into my heart you know I say people ask this question where do you get this business of accepting Jesus into your heart? I'll tell you. In the first century they told those Jews who were converted believe in the Lord Jesus Christ which was a strange thing for them because the Jews considered Jesus to be a false teacher whom they considered a false prophet. And when some people's eyes were opened they believed that Jesus did die for their sins. Believe and receive the Holy Spirit. We combine that today and say receive Christ into your heart. I'll tell you why because if you go out into non-Christian land and say receive the Spirit there are hundreds of spirits they've already received. You tell them receive the Spirit receive the Spirit of God and a lot of people think they are receiving the Spirit of God when they've got a demon. We have to identify it as Jesus Christ. So that's why we say when we ask Jesus when you ask the Lord Jesus to come into your heart it's the Holy Spirit who comes in. And if at that moment your conversion is radical and you've turned completely some people turn to Christ only to go to heaven or because they want to get healed of some sickness or some benefit and God accepts them. I mean the prodigal son didn't come back because he loved the father. He came back because he was hungry but the father still received him. So God will receive you even if you come for healing or some other lowdown reason like that. He'll accept you but you shouldn't stay there. The prodigal son didn't stay because he was trying to appreciate the father. So if we've come to Christ and we didn't give ourselves completely when you open every area of your life to God it's like pulling down the curtains here and opening all the doors and windows the sunlight comes streaming in in the same way the Holy Spirit will come in. There'll be no delay. If the sunshine is outside and I open the doors and windows there's not even a second's delay when the sunlight comes in. We're flooding our heart exactly like that. We'll be baptized in the Holy Spirit filled with the Holy Spirit. The only delay is we've closed some doors. So the gift of the Holy Spirit is something we receive as soon as we are born again but we have to be open to be filled with the Holy Spirit. This is a tremendous thing to actually partake of God's own nature. I wonder if we realize the wonder of it all more than everything else is to partake of God's nature. It's like supposing you have a dog, a pet dog who loves you very much and whom you love very much and if that dog could have a little understanding and you could tell that dog I'm going to make you my son. I'm going to give you a human nature that you'll no longer be a dog. You'll be my son. And by some miracle that dog becomes a human being. Wow! Wouldn't there be a difference between your loving that dog and your loving this dog that's become a son? I see it like that. When I was born again and partook of the Holy Spirit if it was a real conversion unfortunately a lot of people who say they are born again they just go through the motion oh Lord Jesus come into my heart nothing has happened. Then of course it's not true. But if a real born again experience took place and I know the time it really took place I mean for six years I kept on saying Lord Jesus come into my heart come into my heart, come into my heart nothing happened but I know a day when it really took place my ambitions changed my ambitions were all in the world up till that time. Like a dog is only interested in bones and running around eating all the muck and suddenly it's become a human being it's not interested in biting bones now. Something like that happened to me when I got converted. A new birth is something like that. It's not I didn't suddenly become mature but something changed that dog becoming a human being so it's something like that a real new birth is where God's nature suddenly comes in and I find new values something has changed I've heard of people who say my desire for smoking and drinking disappeared like that in a moment it's amazing it just vanished it's amazing when God's nature comes in made partakers of the Holy Spirit we haven't appreciated that enough I feel that this whole born again business has been devalued so much that many people I'm sorry to say this but many people who say they are born again I seriously question whether they are born again it's like a dog saying I'm a human being but it's still behaving like a dog and acting like a dog and looking like a dog it's just deluding itself just putting on a shirt and a pant on that dog doesn't make it a human being it's like that I feel to be born again is really something wonderful to be made partakers of God's own nature do you see that the difference between man's nature and God's nature is actually more than the difference between a dog and a human being if you thought that my illustration of a dog becoming a human being is too extreme it's not too extreme it's actually much less than a human being the greatest promise in the Bible is that we can partake of God's nature did you know that? it says in 2nd Peter in chapter 1 that these verse 4 by these precious and magnificent promises he has granted to us why? in order that through these precious and magnificent promises we might become partakers of God's own nature and when we partake of God's own nature we will just escape the corruption in the world that is through lust it's not always by struggling against the corruption in the world that is through lust no, if a dog becomes a human being you don't have to keep on instructing it stop biting bones you don't find a baby biting bones you don't find a human being the change of nature something happens think of it again meditate on it if a dog became a human being what all would change? so when we partake of God's nature we escape the corruption that is in the world through lust and God has granted us these precious and magnificent promises that we might partake of his nature that's partaking of the Holy Spirit coming back to Hebrews 6 the fourth thing mentioned there is tasting the good word of God so we get enlightenment as we read God's word and then we begin to taste it now that's difficult to explain but when some of these things written in scripture it says the word became flesh it's written about Jesus the word became flesh and there's a sense in which if you understand it properly that the word that I read in scripture must become flesh in me I have tasted that good word of God when I read a word that says be anxious for nothing I taste it and it becomes flesh in me that people who see me see that I'm not anxious for anything it's written in me be anxious for nothing that word has become flesh so it is God's will that the words we read in scripture the promises don't be satisfied with anything less than this it's good to memorize scripture thank God for that but for example we read just now you are called in one body and be thankful people must see in you that this thankfulness for the body of Christ is there not just a verse Colossians 3.15 but you have tasted it you have experienced it in your life that you are actually thankful for the body of Christ you can ask yourself whether it's true as you look around at the body of Christ and many of them are says in Colossians 3 some are like barbarians can you be thankful for a barbarian who has the culture and civilization that you have who is crude you know I find it's a test for me do I only fellowship with people who are like me who are at my intellectual level my culture, my mother tongue my language, my community then I haven't seen the body of Christ I thank God that my eyes are open to see the body of Christ it's like those shepherds who went to Bethlehem when Jesus was born there were so many babies born Jesus was not the only baby born that day and how to find this one baby but when they saw one day they saw the body of Christ it was not like all the other babies so it's something like that I mean my eyes also have seen the body of Christ like Simeon when he was in the temple so many babies being brought for dedication the Holy Spirit says see that one, that's Jesus and you say wow Lord now I'm ready to go have you seen the body of Jesus Christ like that among your fellow believers if you haven't pray then God will open your eyes to taste the good word of God that tells us this is the body of Christ be thankful ok one last thing the fifth thing is the powers of the age to come that also we can experience that we got these five things and the fifth is the powers of the future we can't experience all the supernatural power that we will have in heaven right now but we can get a taste of it how much God gives is up to him for example I'll give you one or two examples one is one day we are going to have a resurrection body in which there will be no sickness we won't even perspire we won't be sick we won't die but right now we have a body that can perspire get sick and die some people say that we'll never get sick that's like telling people you'll never sweat crazy or you'll never die that's not true it's to live in a world of delusion there are some people who teach that type of stuff but those are the people who first get sick and die no the curse on this earth there is no curse on me I've been redeemed from the curse but I have a part of me called my body which is still made of the dust of this earth which is cursed your body better recognize it is made of the dust of this earth which is cursed and therefore you sweat no matter how spiritual you are you'll sweat and no matter how spiritual you are you can get sick and no matter how spiritual you are a woman who is pregnant gives birth with pain she's not going to escape that there was no birth with pain before sin came it was one of the curses it was a result of sin that the Lord told Eve you're going to give birth to children with a lot of pain it was not God's original plan there was no pain pain was non-existent in a world without sin but pain pregnancy pain birth with pain sweat, thorns, thistles, mosquitoes cockroaches, snakes poisonous snakes and sickness and death are all there in this world and we'll experience it but in the midst of this we can get a taste of the powers of the age to come supernatural protection from being accidentally bitten by a snake or even from sickness you know I many times when I'm sick I say Lord can you give me a drop one drop of that future resurrection body not the whole ocean I don't want the whole ocean I can't get it just a drop, a taste what it says, a taste of the powers of the age to come we have a right to that in many many situations let's expect that God will help us there are many things God asks us to do on earth if you think you can do it you're mistaken there are people who come to our conferences and said oh we want to build the body of Christ where we are we've seen what God has done here in Bangalore, in our place we're going to go back sing the same songs follow the same pattern preach the same messages put some videos of Brother Zach and we'll build a church sorry, you can't do it it's a supernatural thing to build the body of Christ it's a supernatural thing to live the Christian life you have to have some taste of the powers of the age to come that's why we need to have the spirit to live the Christian life to build the body of Christ you can't do it I'm telling you that after 41 years of seeing God planting different churches in different places you cannot do it it has to be the supernatural work of God so I wanted you to turn to Luke chapter 1 to understand this a little better and you know when the angel came to Mary and said you're going to bear a son Luke 1 31 you're going to conceive in your womb and bear a son the immediate reaction of Mary you know what it was he didn't say oh that's fine no she said 34 how can this be that is the right reaction you're going to have victory over sin how can this be I'm going to use you to build the body of Christ how can this be you're going to be an overcomer how can this be you're going to have a glorious family life how can this be when right now it's a mess if that is not the question that comes from your heart when you see a promise of God I'll tell you you have not understood God's way to do something you'll do it you'll never do it to partake of God's nature to build the body of Christ to overcome sin if your reaction is oh I understood the message now I'll do it you'll never do it it's like Mary saying I'll do some exercises and I'll have a baby in my womb stupid crazy how can this happen in a person like me I'm so utterly weak stupid foolish ignorant incapable you mean me Lord did you make a mistake me yes you how can this be the answer the Holy Spirit verse 35 will come on you the power of the Most High which will be an absolute miracle I want to tell you that when I look at my own life what God has done in my life of freeing me from anger and lust and complaining and bitterness so many things when I think of the ministry that the Lord has done I have to say it's 100% not 99% 100% of God it can be like that for you in your own life the life of God that can overcome everything you're enslaved to what are you enslaved to today what is it the thing the sin that so easily besets you is it complaining grumbling, anger is it smoking, drinking is it pornography you've tried and tried and tried will you say to Jesus today how can this be Lord the Lord will say my power will come into you and set you free just like it was impossible for Mary to have a baby in her womb as a virgin it's probably just as impossible for you to be delivered from some sins but if you can come in helplessness and say Lord how can this be that is the person who receives a taste of the powers of the age to come I want to say to you my brothers and sisters this is your birthright we have to experience the powers of the age to come we have to come to the end of our life and if people could examine your life particularly the latter part of your life they should be able to say there's no explanation for this guy's life except that God was with him that should be your testimony and mine this is not accomplished by his cleverness or his ability God Almighty God came upon him and was with him and brought him into this life and brought him into this ministry you can have that it is your birthright don't become shy and withdrawn and say no no no I'm nobody well that's fine if you really believe you're a nobody then you're qualified to receive this power it's because you think you're a somebody that you haven't experienced it till now you recognize you're a nobody God's calling nobodies let's not miss out on our birthright let's pray heavenly father as we bow before you we pray that we shall not miss out on all that you purchased for us on Calvary's cross and in the resurrection and in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit oh father we want to enter into the fullness of that Lord Jesus we want to experience you dwelling in us and your life being manifest in us and through us and a real body being built here not theoretically but really we pray it will be true we pray our lives and our home lives will be transformed our church will be transformed in this year lift us up to a new plane of higher ground our heart has no desire to stay where doubts arise and fears dismay for faith has caught the joyful sound the song of saints on higher ground Lord lift us up and let us stand by faith on heaven's stable land a higher plane than I have found Lord lift us up to higher ground we pray every one of us and we pray it will be like that till Jesus comes we pray in Jesus name Amen