This sermon emphasizes the importance of recognizing our identity as overcomers in Christ, highlighting the need to embrace intimacy with the Lord and seek His guidance. It discusses the significance of keeping secrets entrusted by God, the assurance of hearing God's voice in alignment with His Word, and the confirmation through inner peace and witness of the Spirit. The sermon also stresses the obedience, sensitivity to conviction, and the need to maintain a soft heart to hear and follow God's voice.

Good morning, good to be with you. My name is Overcomer. I am more than a conqueror. And if you're born again, that's your name too. Our new nature, as a new creation in Christ Jesus, is to be an overcomer. And don't ever put yourself down and say that you're a conqueror. Romans 8.37, I think it is, says you're more than a conqueror. I want to speak about intimacy with the Lord. At least that's where we're going to start. We'll see how the Lord leads here. When you hear that, intimacy with the Lord, what do you think of? What are some things that come to your mind? Being really close to Him, really into Him. Steve? Letting Him into me see. Letting Him into me see. Oh, okay. Thank you, I got that. Let Him into me see. I learned something. You know, I like teaching like this because I learn too. I've come to you this morning with some answers and some questions. You all have that? I have this imaginary whiteboard. And I've got a line drawn down the center. And over here I've got answers. And over here I've got questions. So it seems like the more I learn, the more I don't know. How many of you like to know secrets? How many of you like to know secrets? But with those secrets, what also comes with those secrets a lot of times? A promise. A promise or how about a responsibility? Now if I was going to say to Emmanuel here, things are moving here. If I was going to say to Emmanuel now, this is just between you and I. Say we're out there in the parking lot. And I want to tell you something, it's just between you and I. This is under the code of silence. Don't tell anybody. Now if I never told anybody that and I find somebody else heard about it, guess what? Let's turn to Psalm chapter 25. You think I would tell Emmanuel any more secrets if that? Certainly he would keep it under his hat. Let's turn to Psalm 25. Do you love God's Word? There's times when I don't feel like reading it. Am I allowed to be honest here this morning? What do you do when there's times when you just don't feel like praying? You just don't feel like reading God's Word? Should we be honest with God or should we try to fake it? And hide it? We can be honest. And you know what I'd do? I'd say, Lord, would you renew that passion within me? Because that's how I started walking with you in the first place because you put it in me. Psalm 25. And let's start in verse 12. What man is he that fears the Lord? Him shall he, meaning God, teach in the way that he shall choose. Is it true? What do you think? Cast your vote. Yay or nay? God's basically teaching us all the same things, but in different ways. He knows how to get it through to you uniquely. He's teaching us all how to walk in obedience, how to love our neighbor as ourself, bring forth the fruit of the Spirit. I mean, you know, the basic things. Hear His voice. We're going to talk about that. But He gets it through to you in a way that you can get it. That way you can understand it. So God teaches us in the way that He chooses. Skip down to verse 14. The secret of the Lord is with those that fear Him. And He, God, will show Him His covenant. He'll show you His covenant. What's it mean to fear God? When I teach, I like interaction. So just call it out. What's it mean to fear God? Reverence, respect, awe. How about turn with me to Genesis 22. You know, David, when you did your little teaching this morning, you went from Genesis to Revelation in two verses. And your verse in Revelation 4.11, Thou art worthy, O Lord. I was going to have us sing that song before I get up to kind of get us up and moving. And there David, he hit the nail on the head. Revelation 4.11, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power. Genesis 22, the occasion is God said in verse 2, Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and offer him up for a burnt offering on a mountain that I will show you. God spoke to Abraham. What did Abraham do? Did he drag his feet? Next morning, he saddled the donkey, got the servants, got the supplies, got his son and took off. Now let me ask you a question. Especially you married folk in here. Do you think Abraham told Sarah what he was going to go do? Cast your vote. The scripture doesn't say, but I sort of doubt it. I think he just got up and went. So he goes on a three day journey. And this is hearing God and walking with Him and hearing His voice. Look there on verse 4, On the third day, Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place so far off. Verse 2, God says, Offer him for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains that I will tell you of. So here goes Abraham. He takes off with the supplies, the servants, his son. First day, nope. Second day, nope. Third day, they're going and he sees the mountain and God tells him. That's the one right there. Anybody know where this was? It says it in here. What mountain range? Starts with an M. Mount? Moriah. And do we know anything else about that mountain range? It's in Jerusalem. And from what I've studied, what I understand, it's the same mountain range where Jesus was crucified. Isn't that something? I was going to say ain't, but I got to get out of the habit of saying ain't. Isn't that something? Because this is a type of the Father offering up His Son. And so they go up there. Look at this here in verse 5. Abraham said to his young men, abide ye here with the ass, the donkey, and I and the lad will go yonder, King James says, and worship and come again to you. The New American Standard, which is a very good translation, says, and I and the lad will go yonder and we will worship and come again unto you. Abraham was fully expecting to go up there, bind his son, which he did, put him on the wood, light the fire, have him burned to ashes, and God raise him up from the dead, and they together come back down the mountain. Now you might say, well, Abraham has quite the faith. Romans 4.12 says that we are walking in the steps of that faith of our Father, Abraham. It was the faith that God gave to him. It's the same faith you have as a born again child of God. You have God's faith. Because when you got born again, was it your own faith? I didn't have any. God gave me His. And God gave me His righteousness and His holiness when I got born again. But watch this here. We're getting down to what does it mean to fear God? Reverence, awe, respect. But watch this here. We know the story. There's Isaac. Abraham takes the knife, and they go down there to 10. Abraham stretched forth his hand and took the knife to slay his son. And the angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven and said, Abraham, Abraham. And he said, here I am. He said, lay not your hand upon the lad. Verse 12. Here's a good definition for the fear of the Lord. Neither do thou anything unto him. For now I know that you fear God, seeing you've not withheld your son, your only son from me. So according to that verse, he says, now I know that you fear God. What could we say a good definition is for the fear of God here? Obedience. Now some of you have seen this. If you have seen this, this is a well-traveled piece of paper. If you know the answer, don't just keep quiet. Here's the word obedience. Obedience. But what's the little word within the word obedience that's the key to our obedience? Die. If we're going to be a disciple of Jesus, how often do we have to die? Daily? Really? Why do you say that? Where are you talking from? From the Scripture. Paul said, I die daily. How often do we need to take up our cross? Once in a while when we feel like it? Daily. He says, if any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily. In Luke, Luke's version of that. And follow me. Whosoever will save his life shall lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake or what? Find it, keep it, save it, preserve it. So die. Also the word bed is in there. The Lord calls you to get up in the morning about a half an hour, hour before you feel like getting up, you've got to get out of your bed. Get your prayer closet. Do we all jump out of bed at a time like that? Or just sort of, kind of, little by little? I need to work on that. When you obey Him and get out of bed and get your prayer closet, aren't you happy? After? Okay, so the fear of God. Secrets. Let's turn to Proverbs chapter 3. So to fear God, you know, I opened my Bible this morning, and I'm reading through some scriptures. Look what I found in my Bible. Sometimes people do that, so, I don't know if there's anybody in here, but whoever it was, Lord bless you. I used to work at Lancaster General Hospital as a physical therapist. I was in the health care system. But some years ago, the Lord called me out of that into the ministry full time. This is my 16th year doing this. I'm a Bible teacher, a traveling minister. I go in churches, retirement homes, and all over the place, different places. Proverbs chapter 3. Steve, would you read loud and clear? Let me bring the mic over to you. Verse 32. Verse 32. Is anybody in here righteous? Who are you prideful people? How could you say that? On what basis do you claim to be righteous? 2 Corinthians 5, verse 21. For God, He, God made Jesus to be sin for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. In Him, in Christ. So, you people who raised your hand, would anybody be bold enough in here to raise their hand and say that they are as righteous as God is? You're absolutely right. Your mind is renewed with God's Word. But you know, there's no puffing out your chest and No, it's... Romans 5.17 says, For if by one man's offense death reigned by one, as Adam, much more, they which receive abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness, gift of righteousness, shall reign in life by one Jesus Christ. The moment you got born again, you received God's righteousness as a free gift. And you are as righteous as God Almighty in Christ. And it's a gift. It's a gift. If you're not, the only other option is, is well, when I got born again, I was about 50% righteous. And if I walk straight enough, long enough, I might attain to 75% and one day I might make it up to 100. Then when I get up to 100, then I can brag and boast that I'm righteous because I've been good enough long enough. No. It's a free gift that you receive as soon as you're born again. Here's another confirming Scripture that you have God's righteousness. The armor of God. What's the breastplate? The breastplate of righteousness. Whose armor is it? God says, here, my righteousness is yours. That's powerful because if we know that we're righteous and we know it's a gift and I know I didn't earn it, then we'll come into God's presence boldly. But if we don't know we're righteous, we're always going to be kind of like, Lord, I'm here again today. We're going to be cringing down, you know. He wants us to come in boldly. It's like this. There was a prime minister of this nation. I think it was in Africa. It was somewhere. England, somewhere. And this man had to make an appointment to be with the prime minister. He had to wait like three months. He made his appointment. He had to wait. It was three months off. So the day comes when he's sitting in there and he gets 15 minutes with the prime minister. He had to wait three months. He's finally in there and there's things he wants to tell him. And just as he's in there starting to talk to him, the door bursts open and in comes his little son, the prime minister's son. Prime minister goes to the man and the little boy, his toy was broke. And the prime minister gave all his attention to fix that toy, to give it to his son. His son was happy and ran out. And he said, okay, now. That little boy didn't need no appointment. Didn't have to wait three months. That's how it is. We know we're righteous. We know we're God's son. Our mind is renewed to the fact that we're righteous. We come in there boldly, not cringing down, shrinking back in fear that God's going to hit me because I haven't been perfect lately. Has anybody in here been perfect the last 24 hours? No bad thoughts. No wrong words. No wrong deeds. That's not to make light of sin. But it's not based on our performance. He wants us to walk holy and righteous and straight. Look here in 32. The secret of the Lord is with the righteous. That word secret, if you just look it up in your Strong's Concordance, it means secret counsel, confidential communion like Emmanuel. It's like, Emmanuel, I'm going to tell you something now. This is just between you and I. You can't tell anybody. Confident. I'm telling you something in confidence. It says God, His secret is with the righteous. Secret counsel, confidential communion, and it also means He is intimate with the righteous. Where's your relationship at with the Lord as far as intimacy? You're married. You have a good idea what that is. You have intimacy with your spouse. Where did that come from? God invented it all. He wants it with us more than we want it with Him. And the only reason I want that with Him is because He keeps working that in me. I have a tendency to sort of... and He brings me back in there. I don't know. Are we alike? Are you like that sometimes? His secret counsel, His confidential communion, and He's intimate with the righteous. Now let's go to Amos 3.7. That's in the part of your Bible where the pages might be stuck together if you don't get over there too often. The prophets are good. We need vitamin P in our diet. Scott was talking about that. We need vitamin P for prophets in our diet. We tend to read the Psalms we like and the Proverbs we like and other places. We need to read from Genesis to Revelation. Jonas, would you please read for us Amos 3.7. Everybody find Amos 3.7. Surely the Lord God will do nothing but He revealeth His secret unto His servants the prophets. You know, and that's the old covenant. Now under the new covenant, those secrets are not just for the prophets, the big guys. It's for all of us little guys too. I count myself a little guy. The older I get, I'm sitting on the ground. Take the low seat. I'm in a humble position because I realize it's just Christ in me. Surely the Lord God will do nothing unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets. Go back to Genesis. What are some things that God did on the earth but first He revealed it to somebody before He did it? The flood, Genesis 6. Abraham and Lot. You know, and Abraham stood before Jesus, did he not, when those three men appeared to him? Who were those three men? He's sitting under the tree and here comes three men that day in Genesis 18. Who were those three men? Nope. That's the two men who appeared to Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration. Who were those three men? Two of them were angels and one was Jesus Himself. Because after He's talking to them, the angels go down towards Sodom and it says Abraham stands before the Lord. That's when he intercedes for Lot. So yes, God gave him inside information. I'm going down there to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. With a secret came a responsibility. Abraham stood before the Lord, interceded for Lot, because Lot was down there with his wife, his daughters, and they were married. They had husbands, it says. And Abraham wanted them out of there. He didn't want them to get scorched. So we have Noah's flood. We have Abraham there. Any other examples where God told somebody what He was going to do ahead of time? Joseph? Yeah, let's do Joseph first. Joseph with the Plinian and the famine. You know, 400 years. God told Abraham, your people shall be in a land that is not their own and be oppressed 400 years. Let's go over to the New Testament. Let's go to Matthew 17. Let's go to Matthew 16. Let's go to Genesis 1. The whole Bible. Matthew 16. You see, beginning in verse 13, Jesus says, Whom do men say that I the Son of Man am? And they say some John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, one of the prophets. Whom do you say that I am? Well, what did Peter say? Let's say it together. Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And then Jesus has a few more things to say to them. And then look in verse 20. Then He, Jesus, charged His disciples that they should tell no man that He was Jesus the Christ. Doesn't that seem kind of strange to us? I mean, Lord, don't you want everybody to know who you are? Was that a lifelong commandment or was that just for a period of time? See, they knew a secret. They knew that He was Jesus the Christ. What does Christ mean? A Messiah or anointed one. It's not His last name. It's who He is. He's the Messiah, the anointed one. He charged them to tell no man. Don't tell anybody I'm the Christ. Now with a secret comes a responsibility. You know, do you think these guys kept their mouths shut? I think they probably did. But then on the day of Pentecost, Acts 2, when they received the Holy Spirit and they all were filled with the Spirit, what did they do? They all spoke with tongues. Just a pause here a moment on this point. Since you're born again, have you all received the precious Holy Spirit? Are you filled with the Holy Spirit? Baptized in the Holy Spirit? Do you speak with other tongues? If you haven't, this gift is for every single believer. Every single one. You know, I don't know where you're from, but there's a lot of teaching against that. Well, it's just for some and not for others or it's not for us today. It's for everybody. And then, so Peter was preaching on the day of Pentecost and he finishes his sermon this way. God has made that same Jesus whom you have crucified, both Lord and Christ. So here at this point, Jesus said, don't tell anybody who I am. That secret was for a while. Then afterward, tell. Look here in chapter 17. Chapter 17, Aaron, this is where you were thinking about Moses and Elijah. Jesus goes up to the Mount of Transfiguration. Somebody tell me what happens up there. Chapter 17. Matthew. I'm sorry. We're still in Matthew 17. Glorious being of who he actually was. What was he doing when he got transfigured? What was Jesus actually doing up there? It says, as he prayed, he was transfigured. And who appeared to him? Elijah and Moses. And in Luke's account, it says that they spoke to him of his decease that he would accomplish at Jerusalem. So think about that. Here's Jesus and Moses and Elijah. And they're talking to him about his decease that he would accomplish at Jerusalem. Now, where's that whiteboard at? I got a question up here. Here's my line. Over here is the answers. Some knowledge I've gained. Here, I got a question for y'all. No, I'm not going to write that. I'm just... Use your sanctified imagination. Here's Moses and Elijah talking to Jesus about his decease that he's going to accomplish at Jerusalem. Jesus knows all the prophecies. He knows Isaiah 53. He's talking about him. He knows Psalm 22. They pierced my hands and my feet. So why in the garden did Jesus still pray, Father, take away this cup from me? Nevertheless, not my will be done but Yours. He's saying, take this cup away. I don't want to drink it. I don't want to go. I don't want to do it. But if indeed it's Your will, I'll do it. So knowing all that, why did He pray that way in the garden? And we can talk about that later, but that's one of my questions over here. These questions are not salvation issues, but it's, Lord, I want to understand Your ways. He made known His ways unto Moses, His acts to the children of Israel. So Jesus, on the Mount of Transfiguration, now watch this here. They're coming down from the mountain, verse 9. As they came down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no man until the Son of Man is risen again from the dead. Who was up there with Him? Not Moses and Elijah. Who was of His disciples? Who were up there with Him? Very good. Peter, James, and John. We must have some Bible study in the lap household over here. That's good. Peter, James, and John. So they come down to the other nine, and then the other disciples. You think Peter, James, and John kept it under their hat? Kept it secret? You think they obeyed Him? We don't know. Huh? Yeah, eventually, but for now. He said, Tell no man of the vision until the Son of Man is risen again from the dead. So from now to the cross, and when I'm raised, don't even tell Andrew and Philip and Bartholomew and these other guys. Can the Lord trust you with His secrets? Let's bring it down to us now. We looked at some scriptural examples. Can the Lord trust you? Has the Lord told you secrets that you were to keep and you kept them? Has He told you things you were to keep and you told Him? If He can find you faithful and trustworthy, He'll tell you more. There are secrets He'll tell you, like in your prayer time. You might be praying for somebody, and you sense this, I've got a word for Steve. But the Lord will say, Just wait. It's not for now. Let's say I see Steve every week in a prayer meeting. He might have me sit on that word for a month or two or three or four. And then finally I get a release to tell him. These things come with maturity as you walk with God, as you learn to know Him and His ways and hear His voice. And I'll speak from experience, make mistakes, and say, Oh Lord, forgive me. I realize I shouldn't have said that at that time. But then also you get it right too. You learn by what you did right. And hopefully we learn from our mistakes, right? I'm going to pause here. Any questions or comments thus far? When the Lord reveals something to you in secret, do you ask Him? When should you be released or not? That sounds like wisdom to me. I'd say yes. Say, Lord, show me what to do with this. There's things that God has given me, secrets, that I will take to my grave. I know to take them to my grave. Unless He shows me. I mean, some things I'm thinking of, He gave me years and years ago. And I can't even give you a hint. I'll just keep it at that. But then there's things that I've done in secret in the realm of Matthew 6. What are the three things in Matthew 6 that we're to do in secret? And your Father who sees in secret shall see in secret reward you openly. What are the three things? Alms, prayer, and fasting. So as you do these things in secret, and your Father who sees in secret shall reward you openly. Alms is acts of righteousness. It means in the Greek, it also means gifts to the poor. And some of these things you cannot help but doing, but people are going to see it. But your motive is not to sound your trumpet and everybody see what a great Christian I am because I just, you know, did this thing. Because on the other hand, Jesus said, let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works. And glorify your Father who's in heaven. So it's a hard attitude. So secrets. So these men were to keep this secret of the vision they saw, Moses and Elijah, until Jesus was raised from the dead. Did you all have that intimate time with the Lord? That private time with the Lord on a regular basis? I know when you're married, you have children, six. I've been part of this church, this assembly for about two years and six kids, eight, ten. I guess the more children, it's probably a challenge to have that set aside time. But if we determine with God, with His help, we can do it. But cultivate that private, intimate time. Could I say this too? If you're married, have your own time with the Lord. You with God and you with God. And also have your time together. You two with God. I don't know how you all work that out. I'm a single man. It's easier for me to say that. But you need your own time with God. You need your own time with God to learn to hear His voice. Let's move into hearing His voice. How many in here, you don't have to raise your hand, you say, yeah, I know His voice. How many in here you would say, I don't think I recognize His voice. If you're born again, you were made to hear His voice. It's just as natural as breathing. You were made to hear His voice. And for those who already, you know God's voice, it'd be like this. Remember the old radios when you had to tune them in? Let's fine tune our hearing. You know, it might be a little static still. How many in here, you get it right 100% of the time? I don't, but in looking back, I realize, oh yeah, that was God talking to me. But I'm getting it right more and more. The more you walk with God, the more you exercise this, you can improve your accuracy. But those who do not say, I don't think I recognize God's voice. Let's turn to John 10. And I've come to this many times to boost up my courage and my confidence when I thought it was God. How many in here can relate to this experience? You think you're hearing God's voice. You believe God's telling you to do this thing. And you start walking it out. And you realize, oh, no, that wasn't God. That was just me. Anybody can relate to that or am I the only one in here? So at a time like that, I've come to John 10. Look in verse 14. I am the good shepherd and know my sheep and am known of mine or by my sheep. I'm the good shepherd. I know my sheep. My sheep know me. And then look down there in verse 27. My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me. So we His sheep. We know Him. We hear His voice. We know His voice. I've come to that verse many times when my confidence was shaken about do I really hear God? I know I do, but I just messed that thing up. I thought it was God and it wasn't Him. I've come back to 27 and I'll say, no, Lord, I am Your sheep. I hear Your voice. You know me and I follow You. You've got to boost up your confidence again. Get back in God's Word. So it's you who say, well, I don't know if I know God's voice. You're made to hear God's voice. You're born again spiritually. You're made to hear His voice. Any thoughts right now? Anybody want to share right on this topic? I think most of the time we think about hearing God's voice that we are thinking about hearing it internally inside of us, but I believe it also means that we hear it like when you're speaking, I hear God's voice coming forth. I can hear when it's God's voice coming forth. I believe we also recognize God's voice and the enemy's voice in each other. Let's turn over to John. Turn to chapter 16. Let me ask you a question. Does God still speak to us today or is that just the Old Testament guys, Isaiah and Jeremiah and those guys? Are you sure? All right. Let's turn to John chapter 16. Look at verse 12. Jesus is speaking to us. I have yet many things to say unto you, but you cannot bear them none. He was talking to them in the context, but this is just as much for you and I now. Look at verse 13. How be it when He, the Spirit of truth, is come? Who's that? If you're born again, He's come. He lives in you and He's upon you. The Spirit of truth, He will guide you into all truth, for He shall not speak of Himself or in His own authority. Watch this here. Look at me. Whatever He shall hear, that shall He speak. The Lord's, you know, if you think, well, you know, you're saying, I don't know if I recognize His voice. He's been talking to you all along. I don't think God talks to me. I just don't know His voice. I don't hear it. I don't think He talks to me. If you're born again, He's been talking to you. It's just a matter of tuning in and recognizing His voice. Because I've come to verse 13. That's why I can quote this. I'm not going to say forward and backward. I can quote it forward. But how be it when He, the Spirit of truth, is come? He'll guide you into all truth. He shall not speak of Himself, His own authority, but whatever He hears, that shall He speak. And how many of you have had this? He'll show you things to come. You just knew ahead of time what was going to happen before it happens. I've noticed with me that's been increasing. And I've asked for that. I said, Lord, I want to know what's going to happen before it happens. So Holy Spirit, so if you're in a place where, I don't know if I hear God's voice, come to these verses. John 10.27 My sheep hear my voice. I know them, they follow me. Come to 16.13 Lord, your word says you speak to me. How do we recognize? Okay, let's transition here. How do we recognize His voice? How do you know it's Him talking to you? You know, when you think it's God, you go through this, you should go through this. Is this me? Is this God or is this the devil? Because, you know, it can come from your own flesh, your own mind. It can be God or it can be the enemy. How do we recognize? Go ahead and call it out that, yeah, that's God. It's always, always, always, always, and let me put about a thousand more alwayses on there, in line with His word. He's the Spirit of truth. What did Jesus say in John 17.17? Sanctify them through thy word. Thy word is truth. Okay, so it's always in line with God's word. What else? What have you found by experience? It builds up the body. It witnesses with my spirit. Turn over to Romans chapter 8. It witnesses with my spirit. You know, and we probably can't really explain that, but when you experience it, you know what it is. Steve, would you please read? We're in Romans chapter 8, 14 through 16. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear, but ye have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. You know, King James, I hate that. It says the spirit itself. In the Greek, it's the spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. How many in here are born again? If somebody asks you, well, Emmanuel, you know, say I was a scoffer. Well, what do you mean? How do you know you're saved? How do you know you're born again? Say, I'm an unbeliever. I'm a scoffer. It's the truth of the word. Yeah, that's true. That's true. What I'm getting at is, the Holy Spirit in you bears witness with your spirit that you're a child of God. When I got born again, I knew very, very little of the Bible. I was very ignorant of the scriptures. Anybody can relate to that? I see a couple. I got born again while I was living in Philly. I was going to school down there, Temple University. And I was very ignorant, but I just started reading the word. But I started telling people right off, I'm born again. I'm saved. Now how did I know that? I had a little bit of knowledge because five or six years before that, through Youth for Christ, I had learned the plan of salvation, prayed to receive Christ, was happy for a while, then went astray through high school and early college. But the Lord got me back. But I had very little knowledge, but I was telling people, I'm born again. How did I know that? But the Spirit Himself, verse 16, the Spirit Himself bore witness with my spirit that I am a child of God. And also that's how it starts, but as you're being led by the Spirit and hearing His voice and doing what He's telling you, it will bear witness with your spirit. Yeah, this is God. Yeah, this agrees with God's Word. It's in line with God's Word. Anything else? How else do we know that this is God talking to me? This is God talking to you? He convicts of sin. Yeah, that's His goodness. How does that feel when He convicts of sin? It hurts, but it feels good, huh? How else do we know that He's talking to us? Sin, righteousness, judgment? How else does He know? How about Colossians 3, verse 15-16? Let's go there. 3.15 Let the peace of God rule in your hearts to which also you are called in one body and be ye thankful. The Amplified says something like let the peace of God act as umpire in your heart. Anybody play softball and you've got an umpire? He says either you're safe or you're out. And if you argue with that umpire too much, you're going to be out. He'll kick you out of the game. That umpire has the final word. You're safe, you're out, ball strike. Let the peace of God rule or act as umpire in your heart. So, have you experienced? I think God's telling me to do this. This is kind of how I do it. Sometimes I know right away. But sometimes, say this is a meter from 0 to 100. Call this the assurance meter. You know, 0, here's 50, here's 100. I'm about down here at 35%. Eh, I think maybe this might be the Lord. Then, look over in Colossians 1. This is a prayer you need to pray for yourself at a time like this. The Lord, you know, is this you? I think you might be... Is this really you? Do you want me to go do this thing? Or you're seeking the Lord in the area of your life. Maybe a move or something. Colossians 1, verse 9. One of the prayers of Paul, which we need to pray it for ourselves and for others. Look at verse 9. Pick it up about halfway through. Lord, I'm praying that you would fill me with the knowledge of your will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding. That I would walk worthy of you unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of you. So, I'm down here at 35%. Eh, I think maybe God might want me to do this thing. So, I pray, Lord, fill me with the knowledge of your will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding. And then inside, it's sort of like filling up a glass of water with assurance. It's like, I get up, yeah, I think, yeah, I'm pretty sure. Lord, I want to be up here 100% sure. And I get up here, you know, just the knowledge, yeah, the confidence, the peace, the witness. Yeah, I believe this is the Lord. I'm going to do this. And even then, when you step out of the boat and start walking on the water, sometimes it's total confidence. Sometimes the first steps are kind of a little bit, testing the water a little bit. But as you go, you'll have the witness that this is God. And one more thing. Let's turn to Hebrews chapter 3. We'll close with this. You know, it's funny, when I was sitting over there about, about 10 o'clock, you know, I was scheduled to go in at 11. About, no, it was 10. About an hour before I was scheduled to speak, to follow Scott, it came into my heart, I think I only need 45 minutes. Now I was scheduled to, here's God talking to me when I'm sitting over there. I was scheduled to speak from 10 to 11. But about earlier in the morning when I'm sitting there thinking, I probably only need 45 minutes. Guess what time I started? 10, 15. I had 45 minutes. So I was happy with that. Even though he went into my time, but it was good. You know, you just, you esteem the other person better yourself. And so God was putting that in, I knew it ahead of time. God was putting that in me. So I was still a little ritchie, I wanted to get up here. But, you all know that word, ritchie, yeah? Look at Hebrews chapter 3. Do you think if God says something to us three times in the matter of 20 scriptures, it's pretty important? Even if he says it just once in the whole Bible. But three times in the matter of 20 verses, he says to us, look at verse 7. Hebrews 3 verse 7. It means the rebellion, the day of temptation in the wilderness. When was that, that rebellion? When Moses brought Israel out of Egypt. Time and again they rebelled. You read chapter 3 and 4. That generation of Israelites are put forth as an example of being stubborn, rebellious, disobedient, stiff-necked. And he says, don't be like that. So there's once, look at verse 14, chapter 3. We are made partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end. Well, it is said today, if you will hear his voice, do not harden your heart, as in the provocation, means the rebellion. Then look in chapter 4, verse 7. Again, he fixes a certain day, saying in David, Today, after so long a time as it is said, Today, what's the day today? Saturday the, can you believe September's almost over? Today, Saturday, September the 26th. You and I, right here, Lancaster County. We'll have to work with Scott, he said Lancaster. We'll have to work with him on that one, huh? That's all right. I've lived in East Lampeter Township for 40 years. And up until a few years ago, I was called East Lampeter Township. And one of my neighbors said, what'd you say? Lampeter. Well, I got that. Took me about 30 some years to get that one. Verse 7, he says, Today, if you will hear his voice, harden not your heart. So if we're not to harden our heart, what are we to do? Keep it soft and that the O word on my sheet. Obedience. Obedience. Smith Wigglesworth was a man greatly used by God back in the late 1800s, early 1900s. He died healthy and full of strength and full of God at the age of 87 in 1947. He came to a funeral of a friend of his. And as he was in one room where the ministers were meeting, he just keeled over and went home. But he lived by this rule. He said, I'm not going to ever consciously resist and grieve the Holy Spirit. And I'm not there yet. Lord, by your grace, get me there. I want to live by that. It's a high standard, is it not? Okay, I'm done. I'm going to hand it back to Jonas.