Finishing the Course - 08 Being a Nobody — Zac Poonen

The Secret of the Christian Life

In many areas of life, we know that there are people who become specialists, who, you know, whether it's repairing a scooter or a car or fixing a computer, and when they know so much about their field, sometimes they can solve a problem very easily, which may take us many hours, because we don't know how the thing works.

A person who knows how to fix a car that's not working, or a scooter, you take it to him, and all he may do is, ten seconds, tighten some screw or something, and the whole thing's working, and you didn't know that.

In many things on Earth, it's a question of knowing the secret of what is it that makes this whole thing work. And I've thought of that also in relation to the Christian life, because, to tell you quite honestly, as I've looked around through all these years of being a Christian, in so many different groups, we have more than a thousand denominations in Christianity, and each thinks it's better than the other, and people who go to one group must naturally be thinking that that's the best church in the world, because that's why they go there.

If it was not the best church in the world, they'd go to some other one. And yet, most of the differences are in relation to doctrine. And I've discovered one thing, because I know I separated from different churches on the basis of doctrine too.

And in my younger days, I used to think that if we get our doctrine right, we'll become spiritual. And that's how we started here, 27 years ago, trying to get out of all other churches, not only for doctrine, but for rituals and things which are not in the Word of God.

And so we thought if we get it all right according to God's Word, we'll have a bunch of spiritual people. But I've discovered through 27 years that we don't have a bunch of spiritual people, in spite of getting our doctrines right.

And I've tried to say, Lord, what is the secret? There's something missing somewhere. And then when I look around and I see some really spiritual people in some other church who's got their doctrines all wrong, I say there's something we missed here.

You know, if you're honest, you'll have to acknowledge that, that there are people who really love the Lord and are more effective. In some churches, they don't believe as we do. And the more I have thought about that, I, you know, you have to find the answer in Jesus.

Whenever you get stuck somewhere in the scriptures to understand something or a doctrine or some truth, I say go to the dictionary. The dictionary is Jesus. The Word made flesh. Like in an English dictionary, you have the Word explained in other words.

In the Christian life, you have the Word made flesh in the life of Jesus. I say, what was the, I mean, there were many wonderful things about Jesus, but what was the main thing? What was the reason why he lived the most blessed, the happiest, the most wonderful life any human being ever lived on the earth?

Adam and Christ: The Two Men

In fact, when God sent Jesus to earth, have you noticed in 1 Corinthians in chapter 15, it says here in verse 47, 1 Corinthians 15, 47. The first man is from the earth, earthy. The second man is from heaven.

Who is the second man? If you ask a worldly person, he'll say Cain. I say no. When he talks to the first man, we know that's Adam. Who's the second man? It's Jesus. It's not Cain. As far as God is concerned, why does he say only about two men?

Because on this earth, perfection was seen only in two cases. One was when God created Adam. There was absolutely no sin in him. And after that, there was never any other man. And the moment sin comes in, the fellow is not counted.

You know, it's like a vessel that's got one hole or a thousand holes. You set it all aside. You wait for the next vessel, which has got no hole. And that was Jesus. So the Bible speaks only about two men.

Don't forget that. First man, second man. That's all. And every human being in the world is following one of these two men. No doubt about it. Every human being in the world is following one of these two men.

The one who went astray. The one who was absolutely perfect. The first one did his own will. The second one never did his own will. There's something there, which made him different from the first one.

And if you can see that, I would encourage you to study the difference between Adam and Christ. Because he's the first man, he's the second man. If you don't see that, you will unconsciously follow the first man.

And when you follow the first man, the result is always death. Whatever doctrine you hold, I'm sure Adam had all his doctrines right. There was one man who had all his doctrines right. It was Adam. There were no false teachers those days.

There was no false doctrine. There was nothing. But he went wrong, in spite of all his correct doctrines. He actually met God face to face and he went wrong. You can have visions. You can have experiences.

You can meet God face to face and go wrong. Adam is the proof of that. So, there was something about the second man. That's why I say, through the years, for myself anyway, my Bible study has been the life of Jesus.

The Holy Spirit has come to show us the glory of Christ. Jesus said, when he has come, he will glorify me. He will take of the things of mine and show it to you. And for me, this has been the most wonderful part of my Christian life in more than 40 years.

To see the glory of Jesus in the scriptures. To see what the Holy Spirit wants to show me more and more and more. And I'll tell you this, even after 43 years, I'm still learning. I feel I've seen so little.

Living in Fellowship With Jesus

And I believe that many are not making that the main pursuit of their life. And that's why they have so many problems in their life, in their home. Supposing, for example, you make it just one simple rule in your life.

That I'll never do anything in my life, which I can't do in fellowship with Jesus. Everything in life, I want to do in fellowship with him. When it says, do everything in the name of Jesus, that's what it means.

It says in Ephesians chapter 5, whatever you do, do it in the name of the Lord Jesus. That's repeated in different ways in Colossians 3 and things like that. It means do everything in fellowship with Jesus.

Don't sign a document unless you can have Jesus as a witness. Where the Lord can say, I can witness that. That means you're signing the truth. Don't say something which you can't say if Jesus is not sitting there in your sitting room, listening to what you're saying.

I often think when I preach that Jesus is sitting there, right there. In the chair and listening to every word I'm saying. Must never do anything which I can't do in fellowship with Jesus. As I look at Jesus' life, I find that there was the greatest secret of his life.

Becoming a Nobody

I believe this is the most important secret. We hear hundreds of things in the church and hundreds of things from the scriptures. But if you want to sum it all up in one thing, Jesus lived on earth as a nobody.

He always wanted to be a nobody. And that is the reason why many Christians are not spiritual. They don't want to be a nobody. They don't want to be a nobody in the world. They don't want to be a nobody in the church.

They want to be somebody. And all those who want to be somebody and do various things and say various things and to be somebody, they never become spiritual. Have you learned the secret? The theory you've learned.

Now you can practice it. You have to spend your lifetime practicing it. I'll tell you this. After all my study of the scriptures, study of the life of Jesus, I've come to see that this is the secret of his life.

He never, never, never wanted to be anything or anybody on this earth. And in the measure in which I also long, not just say, okay, I'm willing. To say, okay, I'm willing is not the same as saying I long for that.

And in the measure in which I long with all of my heart to be a nobody in the earth and in the church, in that measure I'm becoming like Jesus. Now what's the reason for this? The reason is so that God might be everything in our life.

It's not just we drive out all the demons and keep the heart empty. No. The whole purpose of becoming a nobody is so that God might be everything. I become a nothing so that God might be everything. And that I want to say is perhaps the best definition of humility.

You won't find that in any dictionary in the world. You go to any dictionary in the world and look for humility, you'll never find the definition of humility as becoming nothing so that God might be everything.

But if you want a definition of humility from the life of Jesus, here it is, never forget it all your life, becoming nothing so that God might be everything. And we can say we have become like Jesus when we have become nothing, that God might be everything.

Loving God With All the Heart

See, let me show you this verse. In Matthew 22, you know, when you see the secret, it's like a master key that unlocks all of scripture. It's the thing that changes our life, our family life, our ministry.

Why is it so many homes, our Christian homes, are such a pathetic testimony to Christianity? Why is it so many husbands and wives are constantly complaining about each other? I'll tell you, neither of them is willing to be a nobody.

That's it. See, when you become a nobody, you don't have any complaint against anyone. No, it's only people or somebody. You know, you walk into a government office and the top managing director yells at you and you come out humbly.

But if the peon yells at you, oh, you get a bit upset. Why is that? Because you're below the managing director, but you're not below the peon. You're somewhere in between. And the managing director yelling at you is OK, but how dare this peon who's a nobody yell at me?

I'm not a nobody. When you become a nobody, it doesn't matter even if the peon yells at you. And you think that doesn't affect your Christian life? It affects every area of your Christian life. No matter how loudly we praise the Lord in the meeting, no matter how much of scripture we know, we'll never become spiritual till we get here.

Matthew 22, it says, you know, people came to Jesus and asked him a question. They said, what, verse 36, is the great commandment in the law? Matthew 22, verse 36. Lord, there's so many commandments and we can ask that question too, because we hear so many things in the church about getting rid of jealousy and getting rid of lust and getting rid of the love of money and 101 things like that or 1001 things.

And we say, Lord, can you just put it all in a nutshell? Give us one word so that we can remember that. We can't remember all these thousand things. Can you tell us one thing Jesus said? Sure, I'll tell you.

It is to love the Lord your God with all your heart. That means in your heart, when you came to the Lord, you had place in your heart for your parents and their opinions and the tears of your mother was enough to make you disobey God.

Do you know how many millions of Christians disobey God because they see the tears of their mother or the father is upset? So they disobey God. Then you had place for your wife and your children and your husband and your property and your job.

And then one day you come to Christ and you don't come here. But it says love the Lord your God with all your heart. You put God also there in your heart along with all these other people and things and God also has got a place.

And I believe this is how 99 .99999 Christians live. Have you accepted Christ? Yes, he's also got a place in my heart along with a thousand other things and people. And we wonder why such people don't grow spiritually.

What is the first commandment? You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart. There's no place there anymore for father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, job. You say you're not supposed to love your wife?

I say I think I love my wife far better because I love God with all my heart. I think I've done better for my children because I didn't have a place for my children in my heart. You actually do better when you give God every place in your heart.

You'll love your wife better. You'll bring up your children better. When you don't love money, you'll know how to handle money. If you love money and you don't put God fully in your heart, even got a little corner for money, you know what will happen?

You'll get into debt. Very likely. It doesn't matter. What does it matter? God says don't get into debt but who bothers about God? We'll give him a corner in our heart. And you think such people become spiritual?

Not in a million years. Because they don't care for what God says. But do you think if a person loves God with all his heart, he's going to suffer? He's going to suffer lack? No. I've been a Christian for 43 years.

Putting God Before Money, Work, and Comfort

I've never gotten into debt. Even when I got a 150 rupees a month salary, I never was in debt. No, I used to receive gifts in those days after I left my job. I decided I wouldn't get into debt because God was going to fill my heart.

I didn't starve. Okay, I didn't have all the things that other people had. But I didn't starve. I was a happy man. I'm a happy man today. I want to say to you, these are little, little things. I wouldn't do something unrighteous in my job.

Okay, I suffered a little consequences because of that because God was filling my heart, not my job. I would have to say sometimes to my senior officers, I'm sorry, sir, I can't do that. I'm a Christian.

It's against my conscience. And they would write bad reports about me because of that or shunt me off to some other place or transfer me. I say, okay, fine. It's okay. In all those situations, I learned something because I decided a job is not going to have a place in my heart.

Money is not going to have a place in my heart. Nobody's going to have a place in my heart. Only God. I'll tell you this, you will never lose out. In one year, you will become more spiritual than you've been in all your life till now if you follow this simple rule, be a nobody so that God can be everything.

Love God with all your heart. I know you don't understand the theory of it. I'll tell you honestly, after having preached this for so many years, I have to say, I don't know how many of you brothers will follow it.

You'll hear it. You may even get up after I speak and share something. Maybe next Wednesday, you'll get up and share something about loving God with all your heart, but you don't. You know that you don't.

If you did, your life would be different. Your life would have been very different by now. You'd have been a very happy person. You may not have had all the possessions you have today, but you'd be much happier.

I want to say to you, dear brothers and sisters, respect God. Give him the place he deserves. It's not first place. No. I don't give God first place in my life. I give God all the place. The Lord didn't say, love the Lord your God and put him first in your heart.

He said, all your heart. There's no place for anybody else. No place for anything else. God is everything. That was the secret of Jesus' life. God was everything to him. Even a simple thing like, you know, his mother once comes to him and says, they don't have any wine.

Jesus’ Obedience to the Father

Can you do something about it? I've often thought, why did Mary come to Jesus with that problem? He had never done a miracle until then. But she had watched him for 30 years and seen he was one of the most resourceful, he was the most resourceful person she'd ever seen in her life.

She knew that if there was anything to be fixed in the house or anything to be done, Jesus had the resourcefulness to go and do it. I don't think Mary was expecting a miracle because Jesus had never done a miracle for 30 years.

But she knew that this son of mine's got a resourcefulness I've never seen. He can do something about it. And he turned around and said to her, woman, what have I got to do with you? She had never in her life heard a reply like that.

He said, God is everything to me. Even though I have the power to produce wine, I won't do it. My father tells me. And a little later, the father said, yeah, go ahead. Then he did it. You know how he lived.

His life was like that. Even his mother didn't matter. There was a need. No, it didn't matter. As the father said, we think that if there's a need and I go and meet it immediately, we're spiritual. No, you're not.

Jesus didn't live like that. He didn't live on the basis of need. That's why he doesn't answer our prayers immediately. Have you ever wondered why you pray for something that's great need? God doesn't answer immediately.

You pray to Jesus. And Jesus says, my time is not yet come. How many times on earth he said that? My hour is not yet come. He's the same yesterday, today and forever. You pray to him and he says, my hour is not yet come.

Can you understand that? He's bringing us to the place where that thing you're praying for is not the most important thing in life. God is most important. And he's trying to get that thing, which is occupied a place in your heart, which you're praying.

Oh God, give it to me. Give it to me. Give it to me. God waits. He's waiting till that thing gets out of your heart. And you come one day and say, God, I don't even care whether I have it or not. I want you.

And then you get it. I found that in so many situations. You got to come to the place where you say, God, I don't care whether I get that thing I prayed for or not. Because you are everything for me. I love you with all my heart.

Loving God With Soul and Mind

And it says here, with all your soul. That means your whole personality. Your soul is your personality, your emotions, your will, your mind. And it says with all your mind. Think of a mind which is totally taken up with God.

It doesn't mean that we don't do our earthly jobs properly. I think we'll do it much better. I think a man whose mind is filled with God will do any job better. He'll be a better sweeper. He'll be a better teacher.

He'll be a better nurse. He'll be a better computer engineer. He'll be a better preacher. He'll be better in everything. His mind is filled with God. I know I proved it in my life in the years when I was in the Navy.

I used to spend all my time studying the scriptures and also studying my earthly profession. And not a single senior officer of mine could ever complain in all those years about any wrong thing I did on those ships.

Never. The only thing they could complain was I didn't come for the dances and the drinks and the card playing. That's about all. One of them even told me that. He says, I can't find anything wrong with you, young man, but you're a very unsociable man.

You don't mix with others. Okay, what to do? I'm not interested in all your gambling and drinking and all that. But I want to say to you, my brothers and sisters, those are the years I studied the scriptures.

I find among so many young people today a tremendous lack of the knowledge of the scriptures. Why is it? They don't love God with all their mind. That's it. That's the only reason. Their mind is occupied with the newspapers and television.

I'm not against all that. You please see the news and television and read the newspapers and you must know what's going on in the world. But don't let your mind get filled with that. Let it come and let it go.

Okay, you know it. But what should our mind be filled with? With all my mind, I must love God. Think of the businessman with all his mind. He's thinking how to make money and he makes it. Think of what can happen in my life with all my mind.

I love God. I believe the other things will be added to me. Sure. You don't have to go looking for the other things. If you love God with all your heart, the other things will be just added to you. Remember this, brothers and sisters, they'll be just added.

Psalm 73 and Desiring God Alone

Well, those who are serious about wanting to find the secret of the Christian life, there it is. Let me show you Psalm 73. I believe this is the statement of a man who is a true disciple of Jesus Christ.

No one can ever say he's a disciple of Jesus Christ if he can't say these words in Psalm 73 verse 25. And honestly say it to God. What is that? Lord, whom have I in heaven but Thee? And besides Thee, I desire nothing on earth.

Can you honestly say that to God? I don't desire pleasure. I don't desire comfort. I don't desire money. I don't desire any person. You're the only one I want. You're the only one I cannot live without.

If I have you, I have everything. I can live without everybody else. See, the world has taken that and corrupted it with all these love songs. Boys and girls sing to one another, I can't live without you and all that type of rubbish.

The only one you can't live without is God. If you have God, you can live without everybody else. But you don't have Him. Even these people who croon love songs to one another, I can't live without you.

Three months later, they're fighting with each other. But with God, if you really put Him in the first place, you'll love your wife better than any husband ever loved his wife. You'll love your husband and submit to him better than any wife ever did in the whole world.

You'll bring up your children better than any other father or parent in the whole world. If you love God with all your heart. Don't put your wife first. Don't put your husband first. Don't put your children first.

And you'll do your job better than anybody else when you don't put your job first. When your aim in life is not to make more money or to get a promotion. And the thing is, you'll have all these things which are necessary.

You won't be the richest person in the world, thank God for that. But you'll have everything necessary for your earthly life. And at the end of it, you'll be a very happy man too. Maybe the other covetous man will get his house ten years before you did.

But he won't be as happy as you are. Because you did it God's way. He did it the world's way. A lot of Christians. You say, I'm not doing anything wrong. Yeah, I agree. But they're doing a lot of things in their life where God is not everything.

And they say there's nothing wrong. That's because their understanding of wrong is so low. Their understanding of wrong is, I don't cheat anybody. You know, anything you do where God is not everything in your life is wrong.

Why is it wrong? Because Jesus said you must love God with all your heart. And if you don't do it, isn't it wrong? Supposing you go against what Jesus said, wouldn't you say that's wrong? In other words, if you have something in your life where God is not everything in your heart, you are wrong.

But if your understanding of wrong is so low, You know, in the Christian school, pass marks is 100%. I don't know whether you know that. But some people have made 40 pass marks and they say, I passed.

You passed according to your own pass marks. Jesus says pass marks is 100%. How many of you have passed? That means you love God with all your heart. It's not 40%, it's not 60%, it's not 90%, it's 100%.

The First Commandment in Deuteronomy

This is Old Testament. Jesus was quoting from Deuteronomy when he said you must love God with all your heart. This is not New Covenant teaching. You know, we've just learned so much about New Covenant and better than the Old Covenant.

We are New Covenant Christians, we are New Covenant Church and all. Let's go back to the Old Covenant. Let's start in kindergarten. What did the Old Testament say? Jesus quoted, love God with all your heart.

That's from Deuteronomy. That was what the Lord was trying to teach his people. Everything will go well in your life, in your family life, in your business, everything. If you love me with all your heart.

You won't become the richest person. Your business won't prosper like other people's, but you won't starve. You won't be in debt. You won't have to do anything unrighteous. You won't have to be always giving bribes like everybody in the world does.

But you'll be a very happy man. Do you want that? You say, no Lord, I don't want all that. Just let me have a comfortable life and as soon as possible let me become rich. Go ahead brother. Live your way, but don't ever think you're a New Testament Christian.

Far from it. You've got to love God with all your heart. And where you congratulate yourself because you've got something on the earth which somebody else doesn't have. You know, I've thought of that.

Jesus’ Contentment and Provision

We know that the wealthiest person in the universe is God. You all agree there? You have to agree with me. The wealthiest person in the world is God. God doesn't have a bank account. He doesn't have a wallet.

He's the wealthiest person in the world. He doesn't have any land in his name. He doesn't have a house that he's built. He's the wealthiest person in the world. How in the world can somebody be the wealthiest person and have no bank account, no wallet, no house?

And Jesus came on earth and he lived like that. And I believe, you know what's the question of what do you mean by the wealthiest person? I believe my definition of the wealthiest person is the man who has no needs.

And Jesus was the wealthiest man that walked on the earth because he had no need. He never starved. You know, because he was so wholehearted. And he didn't have money once to pay the tax. God gave him money from a fish's mouth.

Have you ever heard of anybody getting money by catching a fish and taking a gold coin from his mouth? I mean there are millions of fish in the sea. How do you go and pick the one who's got a gold coin?

Somebody dropped a gold coin some years earlier or some weeks earlier and this fish swallowed it. And you go and catch that right one because you've got to pay your taxes. This is what God will do for one who is wholehearted.

Amazing. I say I want to be like that. I want to be like that that if I have a need, God can do amazing things to meet that need. That's how Jesus lived. He had no need. He didn't have to carry gold coins in his pocket.

God would provide for it from somewhere. From the middle of the sea, from the most unlikely place. And the wonderful thing there is, I don't know whether you noticed it, the Lord told Peter, you take that money and pay my tax and yours also.

Have you noticed that? See, that's how a godly man is. He said, listen, I'll take care of your need as well. And that's a wonderful thing that a man who loves God with all his heart will find that he has enough not only for himself, but to pay somebody else's taxes.

Have you ever heard of a man who's paid somebody else's taxes? Tell me if you find somebody who's paid. I mean, giving gifts to another person is one thing, but to pay somebody's taxes. Jesus did it. Don't you think he's a rich man?

And he never had a wallet. And here he was. You know, a lot of people were giving money to Jesus because he healed so many sick people. And the wonderful thing I see about Jesus was he wouldn't touch that money.

He'd give it to somebody to keep. I believe that's how a servant of the Lord must be. I feel sorry for all the preachers who collect the money from the offerings themselves. It's one thing I've avoided all these 27 years, all my life.

I say, that's not for me. My calling is to preach God's word. That's how Jesus was. He was a very happy man. He didn't need those offerings. And Judas Iscariot was probably swiping 75 of it. And Jesus knew it, and he was not disturbed.

Have you met a Christian who's not disturbed if somebody swiped 75 Of his money. Many of you are... I'm sure you consider yourself quite spiritual, right? Because you're sitting in CFC. How many of you would be perfectly at rest if somebody swiped 75 of your money?

Then you know whether you love God with all your heart. In the little business that I do, I've had different times when I've lost large sums of money. And I ask the Lord why. The Lord says, you're just testing me.

Just testing me. To see whether I love Him with all my heart or not. And I said, Lord, you can test me a hundred times. I'll always pass the test. Money will have no place in my heart. You give me, take it away, it's just the same.

I've been a very happy man. I've not starved. I want to say to you, my brothers and sisters, happiness does not come through driving a car. I still drive a scooter. Even yesterday. Happiness doesn't come only through driving cars.

Don't think that. Happiness doesn't come through comforts. If you have it, use it. I'm not saying you shouldn't. But if you think that that makes you somebody, you got something wrong. You know, it's like these young people, first time they get a motorbike.

You know, speed they go. They don't go slow like me. Okay. Mine's habit, learned in my younger, unconverted days. Difficult to give up anyway. But there's to show off, to see. You know, one of the things the Lord's convicted me about, on driving in the roads, the lust to overtake other people.

Have you ever discovered that lust in your flesh? And especially if that fellow overtakes you. You got it. Same, your vehicle is faster than his. And the Lord said, put it to death. Let everybody overtake you.

Yeah, I want to say this, brothers and sisters. A lot of things we got to get light on. God must be everything in our life. When nothing else is important. Then only we can handle everything on earth properly.

Jesus’ Normality and Freedom From Human Honor

That's how Jesus was. You know that Jesus had an inner dress. Which was so expensive. That when the soldiers were tearing up all his other clothes. I don't know why they tore up his clothes. You know, it says on the cross, they tore up his clothes.

Why did they tear up clothes? I mean, we tear up clothes when we want to use it to wipe the floor or something. They didn't even distribute it. They tore it up. What can you do with a torn piece of cloth?

But when they saw his inner garment, they said, boy. This is really expensive stuff. We're not going to use this to wipe the floor. And they cost lots as to which of you will get it. You know, what that teaches me is that Jesus was not an ascetic.

You say, no, no, no, I won't wear that. I'm going to wear something which costs 10 of that. No. I don't think he wasted any money on that. Probably his mother gave it to him. I always feel that. His mother must have given something really good for this son of hers who became a poor preacher.

Let me give him a good dress. And he didn't throw it away. He didn't say, oh, I'm so spiritual, I won't wear that. See, that to me is true spirituality. True spirituality is not this ascetic. You know, because we're not followers of John the Baptist who wear camel skin and all that type of stuff.

Jesus was so normal. He could enjoy a good meal so much that people called him a gluttonous man. And he could fast for 40 days. No problem enjoying a good meal if you can also know how to fast. The problem is when people enjoy a good meal who don't know how to fast.

So, Jesus, food was not an important thing. Not at all. He got it, he enjoyed it. I'm sure Jesus would lick his lips after eating an ice cream. And he wouldn't leave a little bit behind in the plate to act spiritually.

You know, some people say, oh, if I take everything, I enjoy it. But I can't take everything because it won't look spiritual. He wasn't like that. If he enjoyed it, he ate it. If he enjoyed it, he asked for a second helping.

He didn't care for the honor of men. He was normal. He lived before God, not before people. You know, the number of things we do to act spiritual. Even at the dining table. All the garbage of human honor.

Jesus wasn't like that. But the same man could spend 40 days in the wilderness fasting, seeking God. That's the man who can eat at the dining table properly. For whom God is everything. Food is nothing.

If he gets good food, he enjoys it. If he gets a good dress, he wears it. If he doesn't get a good dress, he's happy. You know, if he has money, he's happy. If he doesn't have it, he's happy. He's not coveting, coveting, coveting.