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Those to Whom God Gives Revelation
Zac Poonen

Zac Poonen (1939 - ). Christian preacher, Bible teacher, and author based in Bangalore, India. A former Indian Naval officer, he resigned in 1966 after converting to Christianity, later founding the Christian Fellowship Centre (CFC) in 1975, which grew into a network of churches. He has written over 30 books, including "The Pursuit of Godliness," and shares thousands of free sermons, emphasizing holiness and New Testament teachings. Married to Annie since 1968, they have four sons in ministry. Poonen supports himself through "tent-making," accepting no salary or royalties. After stepping down as CFC elder in 1999, he focused on global preaching and mentoring. His teachings prioritize spiritual maturity, humility, and living free from materialism. He remains active, with his work widely accessible online in multiple languages. Poonen’s ministry avoids institutional structures, advocating for simple, Spirit-led fellowships. His influence spans decades, inspiring Christians to pursue a deeper relationship with God.
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This sermon emphasizes the importance of seeking revelation from God, drawing parallels between Moses' deep understanding of God's ways and the need for humility to receive divine insight. It highlights how revelation transforms one's perspective on honor, sin, and wealth, leading to a radical shift in priorities and a deeper relationship with God. The message underscores the significance of humility in receiving spiritual enlightenment and urges believers to continually seek deeper revelation from God.
Sermon Transcription
We read about Moses in Psalm 103. I often think Moses was like a new covenant person living in old covenant times, just like there are a lot of old covenant people living today in new covenant times. And here is one proof of it. Psalm 103 verse 7. God made known his ways to Moses, but only his actions to the sons of Israel. See, Moses was in an altogether different plane compared to the sons of Israel. He wasn't just occupied with God's actions, splitting the Red Sea and Manab falling down. These are all exciting things for the sons of Israel, you know, being healed from snake bites. Moses was not taken up with all that. He was living in another plane altogether. He wanted to know God. So God saw that in his heart. And God showed him things which he could not show any of the other children of Israel. He got revelation. What we heard today is very, very important. I believe it's the thing that can make the difference in your life between knowledge of the Lord, which is intellectual, and a knowledge of the Lord, which is spiritual, where the eyes of your heart are enlightened, is the difference between Moses and the children of Israel. Tremendous difference. And I believe the reason was this. You see in numbers and chapter, why does God give to some people, even today, why does God give some people revelation and a lot of other people just sit along and hear it, they know it, doesn't seem to make much change in their life. It says in Numbers chapter 12 and verse 3, the man Moses was very humble, more than any man on the face of the earth. That was the reason why he got revelation more than any man on the face of the earth. Throughout the ages, God has always looked for humble people. Those who do not think highly of themselves, those who don't think they are better than others, those who are always willing to take the low place, who are not interested in exalting themselves. Moses was the humblest in all the earth. Now you know why it's written in brackets. I don't know whether you know the reason. Because Moses wrote the book of Numbers and he didn't write that about himself. That is added later on by Joshua perhaps. That's why it's written in brackets. Just by the way, Joshua says, this man Moses, the humblest man on the face of the earth. And so God showed him things which nobody else could understand. It's the same today. We can hear messages and understand a lot of things. But you know what the effect was on Moses' life when he got revelation? And that's the way we can test whether we got revelation as well. In Hebrews in chapter 11, we read like this. Moses had been in Pharaoh's palace for 40 years. And when he grew up, when he came to the age of 40, there were three decisions that he took. One in relation to the honor of this world. Verse 24, Hebrews 11 24. I don't want to be known as the next Pharaoh. I am the son of Pharaoh's daughter. I don't want to be known with any earthly position of honor. I don't want anyone to know how qualified I am and what a big family I come from, you know, Pharaoh's family. And a lot of Christians like that even today who want people to know they are high caste. They're not the low caste people. They are Pharaoh's daughter, son, or the equivalent today. They are educated, not like other people. You know why he didn't care for that? Because he got revelation on God's ways. When people don't have revelation on God's ways and just sit at church and listen to messages, they still secretly think highly of their education and their family and their caste and their position. Even though they may outwardly act humble, inwardly they think of these things. And if you're one of those who's thinking of these things, I want to tell you in Jesus' name, my dear brother, sister, you don't have revelation. Whatever else you may say you think you have. The second thing is, in verse 25, he rejected the pleasures of sin. That's the other thing that happens to a man who knows the ways of God. Moses knew the ways of God. He got revelation. And his whole attitude to sin changed completely. Did Moses know there was pleasure in sin? Sure. It says this is the pleasures of sin. It's one of the verses in the Bible that says there is pleasure in sin, but he rejected it because he'd seen God. Now if you sit listen to messages here Sunday after Sunday after Sunday after Sunday and you can go and watch pornography, you think you've got revelation? Not in a million years. And the pleasures of sin, the pleasure of fighting with your wife and getting angry and getting something off your chest, you like it, whatever you may have, you don't have revelation. That's for sure. You don't know God. You know the Bible. You know CFC's doctrines, but you do not know God. And it says instead of the pleasure of sin, he chose suffering with God's people. That's amazing. When you get revelation, you're willing to suffer with God's people to be misunderstood, to be rejected, despised. Paul was called a false teacher in his day, but people like Timothy and Titus and all were very happy to be associated with Paul, false teacher. The true servants of God are always called false teachers in their lifetime. Jesus, Paul, Martin Luther, John Wesley, in their lifetime, they're always called false teachers. After they die, people recognize, oh, he was a prophet, not a false teacher. I don't know whether you know, there is, you know, we heard about people studying for PhDs and all what unlearned fishermen wrote. You know, there's a Bible's college on the outskirts of Bangalore where a man did a master's degree. Guess what the subject was? His thesis was the false teaching of Zach Poonen, who teaches that Jesus was tempted as we are and did not sin. Well, he got his master's degree. This is human theology. I'm amused to hear that. He, Moses said, I want to suffer with God's people. I don't want any of this honor. And then you see another thing here. Another thing he rejected was 26, the riches of Egypt. Egypt was the richest country in the whole world. The treasures of Egypt, I can't imagine what it was. He could have had it. He was Pharaoh's daughter's son, apparently. He said, I want it. When our whole attitude to money changes, and you say, I'm not interested in making money, you got revelation. But if you've only understood truth, and these, the honor of men, the pleasures of sin, and the riches of this world, they still draw you inside. I want to urge you, don't miss out on God's best. You have only one life, my brother, sister. Don't rejoice that you belong to CFC. Seek for revelation. It really will change your life. I know it changed my life. I was a young man with great ambitions in this world. And when Christ gave me a revelation, it completely, it wasn't a gradual change. I suddenly lost interest in honor, sin, and money. It was not a gradual thing over 20 years. When you get revelation, it goes like that. That's what happened to Paul as well, you know. Paul says he was pursuing all the great things in the world, but you read in Philippians 3 that one day, he discovered, Philippians 3.8, that everything was rubbish compared to Christ. Everything outside of Christ is rubbish. Philippians 3.8, I've suffered the loss of all things and count them but rubbish that I may gain Christ. All that the world considers important, I've dumped it all in the garbage. It's something like that in the Message Bible. I've dumped it all in the garbage. All that this world considers important, all garbage to me. Like we sing in that chorus, turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in his wonderful face and the things of earth will grow strangely dim. Honor, sin, money, in the light of his glory and grace. It's really true. That is the test. That's what the Holy Spirit does. I'll give you one last example of revelation. Matthew chapter 27. I don't know whether you know that when Jesus was hanging on the cross, two thieves were on either side and both of them said, if he is the son of God, let him deliver himself. Let's see if God can. He trusts God, let's see if God can deliver him. Both of them. Matthew 27 verse 43 and 44. He said in verse 42, he saved others, he cannot save himself. Let's see if he can come down from the cross. Verse 43, he trusts in God, let him deliver him now. And verse 44, the robbers also who had been crucified with him, both of them were casting the same insult at him. What were they saying? Both of them. He saved others. Verse 42, he cannot save himself. Let him see if he can come down from the cross. Despising him. And all of a sudden, all of a sudden, revelation hit one of them. He wasn't listening to a sermon. I don't know what it was. I think in his heart, God saw some humility, despite his being a crook and a robber. And he suddenly got revelation and said, boy, this is the Messiah, whom I've been speaking like this to. And there must have been tears in his eyes when he said, Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom. How did it suddenly change? This is revelation. It made all the difference for that thief between hell and paradise. Why didn't the other thief get it? Is there any partiality with God? With all of us, there's no partiality with God. Some people get it. Some people who sit in CFC for years don't get it. It all depends on humility. Let's pray. Don't let those words fall to the ground. Don't push it away for someone else to take heed to. However much you are advanced in the Christian life, my brother, sister, seek for more revelation. There's more that God has to give us. You're satisfied with what you've received, you will not get any more. Heavenly Father, we humbly bow before you. We want to remain with the face in the dust all our days. We've seen around us the sad example of many who started with revelation and ended with seeking the things of the world. Help us to see Jesus more and more clearly. The light will get brighter and brighter in our life, we pray, with more and more revelation what you have prepared for those who love you. Help us to be in that number like Moses and Paul. We humbly ask in Jesus' name. Amen.
Those to Whom God Gives Revelation
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Zac Poonen (1939 - ). Christian preacher, Bible teacher, and author based in Bangalore, India. A former Indian Naval officer, he resigned in 1966 after converting to Christianity, later founding the Christian Fellowship Centre (CFC) in 1975, which grew into a network of churches. He has written over 30 books, including "The Pursuit of Godliness," and shares thousands of free sermons, emphasizing holiness and New Testament teachings. Married to Annie since 1968, they have four sons in ministry. Poonen supports himself through "tent-making," accepting no salary or royalties. After stepping down as CFC elder in 1999, he focused on global preaching and mentoring. His teachings prioritize spiritual maturity, humility, and living free from materialism. He remains active, with his work widely accessible online in multiple languages. Poonen’s ministry avoids institutional structures, advocating for simple, Spirit-led fellowships. His influence spans decades, inspiring Christians to pursue a deeper relationship with God.