Grace Gives Power for Holiness — Zac Poonen

Truth in God’s Word Brings Freedom and Holiness

Speaking on the word grace that we need to understand properly Jesus said when you know the truth the truth will set you free. The devil doesn't want us to be free so the way he prevents us from being free is by not allowing us to know the truth.

We know the truth will become free. So it must be your greatest desire to know the truth of God's Word. I want to show you a verse before I begin. It's John chapter 17 and verse 17. Jesus was praying to his father and he said sanctify them in the truth.

Thy word is truth. So we can become holy only through the truth. And that truth is in God's Word. So if you don't carefully study the Word of God you will not know the truth. And then you will not be free and you will not become holy.

Now the great work that the devil has done particularly in our day is that he has prevented God's people from being careful students of God's Word. We have a younger generation growing up now who know more about television than they know about God's Word and so they will remain in bondage because it's only the truth that will make us free.

The Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Truth

Jesus said concerning the Holy Spirit you know the Pentecostal church. The Pentecostal people were the main group that for the last hundred years has brought the truth to the church of the baptism in the Holy Spirit of the tremendous gift that God gave on the day of Pentecost and the gift of the Holy Spirit.

So when you call your church a Pentecostal church that's a very big name to have because it's referring back to the old day of Pentecost when God poured out His Spirit upon man and people's lives were changed.

So it's a very big name to have. It's a very important name. But what is the Holy Spirit come to do. Let me read to you in John chapter 16 John 16 and verse 13 Jesus said when the Spirit of truth is come you know the Jesus called the Holy Spirit the Spirit of truth.

When the Spirit of truth is come he will guide you into all the truth. Truth is a big area he will guide you into all of it. You know God's Word has got so much truth in it but you cannot understand it without the Holy Spirit explaining its meaning to you.

If you try to understand the Bible with your human understanding you'll get a wrong understanding. But when you go to the scriptures and you ask the Holy Spirit to lead you into all the truth he will lead you into all the truth and he shows you the truth in the scriptures.

He's also going to show you the truth about your own life because the God's Word is like a mirror. Or if you were to use today's language God's Word is like an x-ray or a scan machine that gives us a scan of our inner life.

You know sometimes a person may think he is very healthy and he may feel very healthy. But he goes to a doctor for a routine medical checkup once a year and the doctor takes a scan of his body and he says hey you got cancer.

But he says so doctor I feel quite fit. So you may feel fit. But here's the scan. There's a cancer that is eating away your inside and if you don't remove it by surgery it'll destroy you. Now what should he do.

It's no use getting angry with the scan report. He should love the truth and the scan shows him his condition. He must love the truth and allow the surgery to be done to remove the cancer. Then he can live.

It's something like that when the Holy Spirit speaks to us through God's Word it could be in a meeting like this where God shows us our true condition and that's like a scan and you say well I feel all right.

Maybe you feel all right. But God's Word shows you some sin in your secret life. One of the great ministries that Jesus does is to reveal the secrets of men's hearts. You know when Jesus was taken as a little baby to the temple Simeon took him up and prayed for him.

And this is what Simeon said that this child is. This is in Luke chapter 2 is set for the rise and fall of many in Israel. Luke 2 verse 34. And then he said the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed through him.

See that's what happened when Jesus went into the synagogues. In the synagogues a lot of people were sitting who are listening to the preaching of the Pharisees for so many years and the secret sins in their lives were not revealed.

But the Pharisees were preaching from Isaiah and Proverbs and Esther and Chronicles and all these books. People sat there and they lived in sin in their hypocrisy and all that they never got any light on themselves.

We can say the scanning machine was defective. The Pharisees could not interpret scripture in such a way. They could get a correct scan of people. Then Jesus came into those synagogues and suddenly people began to see like Simeon said the thoughts of their hearts became revealed.

The secret sins and wrong attitudes in their heart were revealed. Now when the Holy Spirit is moving in a meeting the same thing will happen today. See when Jesus preached in the synagogue he wasn't just preaching some theory.

He was anointed with the Holy Spirit and the spirit of truth. Working through Jesus Christ revealed the secrets of people's lives and their sins. And God's will is today that the Holy Spirit moves in a meeting and reveals the secret sins of people.

Why does he do it so that he can heal them from their sin. Why does the doctors take a scan. It is not to make a man feel bad. No the reason a doctor takes a scan is not to embarrass a person but to free him from his sickness.

And so when Jesus said the Holy Spirit of truth will lead you into all the truth all the truth in the Bible and also the all the truth about myself. You see there are so many secret sins in all of us.

Or there could be things in our life which we don't recognize as sin. And the Holy Spirit shows us that sin and tells us that Jesus can save you from that sin. That's like the doctor saying you've got a cancer.

But the good news is surgery. I can heal it completely. Or the same thing can happen when you read the Bible. Not if you read the Bible as a ritual supposing you read the Bible like a ritual saying oh I better read my Bible 15 minutes today otherwise I'll have a road accident or something like that.

So I read it not like that. But if you read it because you have a longing to know what God is speaking to you then the Holy Spirit will lead you into all the truth in Scripture and show you the truth about yourself.

And when you see the truth about yourself it's no use fighting against it. I know times in my own life where the Lord has shown me I maybe I did something or said something and the Lord has spoken to me and said that was selfishness.

You did that selfishly. You didn't think about other people. You only thought about yourself. What do I do fight for that scan report. No I bow down and I say Lord you're right. That was selfishness. I'm sorry please forgive me.

Cleanse me in the blood of Jesus from that selfishness. And when I acknowledge the truth about myself God sees that I love the truth. And when I love the truth he will lead me into more truth. And then like that little by little our whole life can be cleansed from sin.

Dealing Honestly With Known Sin

See our life. We can see only about 10 of our life. 90 of our life is hidden. We call it unconscious sin. There are things in our life which we don't even know are wrong. But there are certain things we know are wrong.

So but if you deal with the things that you know are wrong then God will show you the things that you don't know which are wrong. It's like if you have an ice cube you put an ice cube in a glass of orange juice.

90 of that ice cube is under the surface of the juice. You can't see it. It's underneath. You can see only 10 of that piece of ice above the juice level. That's like what we can see in our life. We can see only 10

90 is hidden. But if you can take a knife and neatly cut off that top 10 of that ice cube throw it away. What will happen. You know what'll happen. Something which is underneath will come up and you'll be able to see some more.

And you take another knife and cut off that part. What will happen. Something more will come up. That is how God shows us more and more of the corruption of the flesh. But if you don't deal with that top 10 you leave it like that.

You know that is a sin in your life. Don't you know there are certain things that are sin in your life already. But you don't take it seriously. You allow it to be there. Then the ice cube will remain the same size forever.

And you may be a believer 50 years and there'll be no development in your life. It's like a child who's in the kindergarten for 50 years. That's a great tragedy. If a child is in the kindergarten for 50 years he's supposed to be in the kindergarten only for one year.

After that he's got to go to the next class. So many Christians are in the kindergarten for many years. One reason they don't love the truth about themselves. They don't deal with the sins that they know.

And so God does not show them the other sins which they don't know. For me it has been a tremendous blessing in my life for God to show me the underneath part of the ice cube in my life which God shows me little by little by little.

And I'm trying to make the ice cube as small as possible before Jesus comes. Do you want to do that. If you want to do it you better be honest with the Holy Spirit that when the Holy Spirit shows you something call it sin.

If you admire a pretty woman and you lust after her don't say oh I was just admiring God's creation which is so beautiful. Call it adultery. Call it adultery. Then you'll be free from it. But you don't call it adultery.

One day you may actually fall into adultery. But if you call it adultery God will free you from it. Lord that was sin. When God shows you in some situation that you love money call it by the sin. It is Lord I love money.

Now some of you may not feel that the love of money is a sin. But 1 Timothy 6 and verse 10 says the love of money is the root of every type of evil. It's not just one type of evil. The love of money is the root of every type of evil.

And if you got that it's like a cancer that'll destroy you. There are very few believers who understand that the love of money is a cancer. They are more afraid of cancer than they're afraid of the love of money.

If you discover that you got love of money in your heart how many of you will cry out to God and say Lord free me from it. But if you discover one day when the doctor tells you you got cancer you'll be getting all lot of people to have a prayer meeting for you to fast and pray that you'll be healed of your cancer.

Have you ever fasted and prayed that you should be free from the love of money. No because the devil says oh that's not serious. Right. From the time of Adam and Eve the devil has always been telling people sin is not serious and foolish.

Adam and Eve believed it and all the children of Adam and Eve also believe it that sin is not serious. But Adam and Eve discovered that sin was very serious. They got thrown out of the garden. And one day many of God's people so-called God's people will find themselves thrown out because they discover that they'll discover that sin is serious.

Let me ask you a question for how many sins. For how many sins was Adam and Eve thrown out of the garden of Eden. 500 100 25 1. Don't forget that you want to know how serious sin is there it is. God is so holy.

The Bible says God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. And you cannot say that you have fellowship with God. If you tolerate some darkness in your life you cannot tell lies and say you have fellowship with God.

Jesus said your yes must be yes. Your no must be no. You cannot cheat on paying your taxes and see I have fellowship with God. I speak in tongues doesn't mean a thing. You assigned a false statement about how much money you earn.

That's a lie. And the Bible says in Revelation 21 all liars will go to the lake of fire if you don't believe it. I want to tell you today. Maybe nobody told you till today but you heard it today. In the day of judgment when Christ comes again you will discover that what I said today is true.

All liars will go into the lake of fire. All those who signed false statements which is a lie will go to the lake of fire. And you cannot say in that day that I didn't tell you the truth. A lot of preachers won't tell you the truth because they want your money.

A lot of pastors won't tell you the truth because they want honor. But a person who loves you will tell you the truth as he wants to save you from sin which destroys you. What about gossiping and backbiting and speaking evil of others.

Is that a sin. Accusing others sometimes without even knowing all the facts. Yet that is one of the biggest sins among God's people. Do you know that Satan is called in Revelation 12 the accuser of the brothers.

Revelation 12 10 the accuser of the brethren. That is a title. Satan has got many titles. He's called the dragon the serpent. Satan devil the deceiver of the whole world. There are many titles given right there in verse 9 all those which I just mentioned.

And there's one more title in verse 10 the accuser not of the worldly people he deceives the world verse 9. But when he comes to the church he deceives. That's true. But he also accuses his special interest is not in accusing worldly people.

He's interested in deceiving the whole world. Believers and unbelievers. Everybody if you're in the world the devil will try to deceive you whether you're a believer or an unbeliever. He's called a deceiver of the whole world in verse 9.

But when it comes to accusing he specially likes to accuse believers not worldly people says in verse 10 he's the accuser of the brothers. So when you have the habit of speaking evil about other believers maybe you don't like them.

Maybe you say something to make them small despise them to show that you are bigger. Do you know who you're fellowshipping with. You're fellowshipping with Satan. You didn't know that. But you know it today when you open your mouth to accuse God's people or speak evil of God's people in your house to your husband or your wife or to your children or to other believers who come to visit you.

And you accuse God's people. At that moment Satan is saying come hold my hand let's do that. I do it all the time. I'm glad you're joined my team. I'm so happy you're with me. I'm looking for people who will help me in this work of accusing the brothers and sisters.

And I'm glad you also have decided to join with me. But who are you. Who do you think you. But you call yourself a child of God a child of God holding hands with Satan. You know whenever the devil is always going around the world it says he does.

He's not in hell. He dwells in the heavenlies in the second heaven. That's what the Bible says in Ephesians 6. But he comes down from there to the earth to roam around. As we read in the book of Job that God asked the Satan where are you coming from.

He says I've been roaming around the world. And what do you think Jesus. Satan is roaming around the world with all his hundreds and thousands of demons looking around for he's always looking for something to accuse.

Can I find something in this believer to find fault. He even accused Job. Job was the man to whom even Almighty God gave a certificate saying he's a perfect and an upright man. And Satan says no he is serving you because you're blessed him.

He won't serve you if you don't bless him. And God had to prove that Job was still serving. But he's accusing accusing. And wherever he sees a fault in somebody the devil has got very sharp eyes. And he looks at young people older people and he's watching them all the time in their private life how they handle their money and how they talk and how they behave at home.

And when he sees one wrong thing he goes to God and says look at that that person he's supposed to be from that Pentecostal Church. They talk about being filled with the Holy Spirit and all look at how they look at how they're behaving.

Look at how they're talking at home. Look at how they behave in the college or school or in their place of work. What is. What do you think God does. Can God tell Satan. No. You're a liar. No. If what Satan said is true God has to say you're right.

They're like that. But in the midst of all these sinful believers here and there God will find one man one woman one young man one young woman who wants to keep themselves pure. You know what Paul told Timothy in 1 Timothy 5.

Keep yourself pure. What a word. Keep yourself pure. That's the word I would say to all young people. All of you young people the word that Paul told Timothy in 1 Timothy 5 in verse 22 keep yourself pure keep yourself free from sin.

And some people listen to that 1 Timothy 5 22 and they keep themselves free from sin and pure. And then God can point out yes Satan. That person is like that. And that person is like that. And that sister is like that.

And that young brother is like that. And that young sister is like that. But have you seen this brother. What can you find fault with him. He's kept his thoughts pure. He's kept his world mouth pure. What a joy it is to God.

What a tremendous joy it is to God when he can find one person like that. Even one person in a church will you be that one person. I'll tell you there are not many. There are not many people. Most people.

The devil can accuse accuse accuse. I remember when I was a young man and I read in the book of Job how God could boast about Job to Satan and said Satan was wandering around the earth and accusing people.

God could say but have you seen Job. I said Lord I want to be like Job. But you can point to one man in India and say but see him. He's not like the others. I want to be like him. I had that desire when I was a very young man.

I want to ask you do you have a desire like that that God can point to you. There is a man who never gets angry. The devil says look at that person. He gets angry with his wife. Shouts at people. Look at that wife.

She gets angry with her husband. Look at these people. They speak in other tongues in the church and shout at each other in their mother tongue at home. This is not Christianity and that God has to say yeah that's right.

But have you seen that person how he's got self-control. He's filled with the Holy Spirit. The fruit of the Spirit is self-control. If you cannot control your tongue you are not filled with the Holy Spirit.

Pentecostal Identity and Spirit-Controlled Speech

I'll tell you that I used to get angry like anything even at home but God filled me with the Holy Spirit. And then he not only gave me another tongue to praise him but he controlled my mother tongue also.

That's how I knew it was the Holy Spirit. If you can only speak in other tongues but you cannot control your mother tongue. I don't know if that is the Holy Spirit it may be some other spirit. I've seen demon-possessed people speak in tongues but they cannot control their mother tongue and the Holy Spirit fills you.

He'll control your mother tongue. You remember on the day of Pentecost there was a tongue of fire on top of the heads of all those hundred and twenty people. It was God was saying this tongue of yours which nobody could control now by the Holy Spirit.

I'm gonna set it on fire with the Holy Spirit. I'll be able to control it. I want to ask you whether the Holy Spirit's been able to control your tongue or not otherwise. What is the you saying. I'm a Pentecostal.

It's just a name. I can be a first-class hypocrite saying Pentecostal but look at the way I speak to my wife at home. Look at the way I speak about other people at home. Gossip backbite. It's a disgrace to the name of Jesus Christ.

You know James was a very practical man and he said I want to read a verse in James 1 and verse 26. James 1 26 if anyone thinks he's a very spiritual man that means he thinks he's filled with the Holy Spirit.

And I think many of us think we are filled with the Holy Spirit. And it says here if any one of you thinks you're very spiritual but you cannot control your tongue when you speak your Christianity is worth zero.

Your whole Christianity is worth zero. Have you read that verse in James 1 26. Your whole Christianity is useless. Dear brothers and sisters when the Holy Spirit leads you into all the truth about yourself and tells you your Christianity is worth zero.

What are you going to say. Are you going to fight against the scan and say no. No I'm all right. Are you going to get angry with the doctor. Why did you take that scan about me. Don't get angry with the doctor or the preacher or tear up the scan that won't heal.

You go to Jesus and say Lord it's true. I've been a Christian for so many years but my Christianity is worth zero. Please lead me into that real Christianity that where I can control my tongue. I want to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

Grace Gives Power for Holy Living

Dear brothers and sisters this is where we need grace. Let me show you Colossians and chapter 4. Colossians chapter 4 it says verse 6. Colossians 4 6 let your speech now it's talking about the way we talk.

It's talking to believers. Let your speech always be with grace. You know how we need grace even in our speech. Let your speech always be with grace. And he says to use an example. It's like food that is seasoned with salt so that you know how to talk to everybody.

Colossians 4 6 let your speech always be with grace so that you know how to talk to everybody. Do you know how to talk to everybody. Colossians 4 6 says that grace in our speech is like salt in our food.

Salt is a very good thing. When you taste a meal you can immediately say oh there's no salt in it. Him as soon as it touches your tongue you can know is there salt or not. It doesn't even take two seconds.

And it is like that when you listen to a man speak in less than two seconds you can make out. Has this man got grace or not. What is your wife. Think all of you who are married ask your wife this question when you go home darling do you think my speech has got grace in it.

And sisters please ask your husband when you go home honey do you think my speech has got grace in it. Ask them to tell you the truth. Love the truth. If there is cancer there it's better to discover it now and get the surgery and get it out of my life.

There was no grace in my speech at home. But I repented. I used to weep at night on my pillow and shed tears on my pillow and said Lord Jesus deliver me from sin. I was not committing adultery or murder.

I was sitting with my tongue. I said Lord I this tongue like James says you can tame lions and you can tame elephants. And you can tame crocodiles and alligators in the zoo. But you can't tame the tongue.

Only the Holy Spirit can do that. And I need grace. And when I have grace from God they couldn't do that in the Old Testament. The Old Testament they were under law. Or you can't do it. Then you can't change a person with ten commandments.

Commandments were like rules. Jesus came to change our nature not to give us rules. Moses gave us rules. Jesus finished with those rules and gave us grace which is to change our nature. Grace is help in time of need.

Grace comes to give us a new nature within. To use an example you know how a pig always likes to be dirty. A pig has got no interest in being clean. If it fool I mean plays around in the muck and the dirt.

It's quite happy. That is a picture of the race of Adam. He can play around with sin and it's not disturbed. It can lose its temper and get angry. It's okay. We are human. That's how a pig is. It can be dirty and it's not disturbed.

When you can get angry and you're not disturbed. You're like a pig when you can lust with your eyes and watch internet pornography and you're not disturbed. It's like a pig just loves to be dirty. It's not disturbed.

But a cat is not like that. If a cat falls into dirty water it immediately jumps out and it licks itself and licks itself and licks itself. I sometimes see cats hey I don't see there's any dirt in it.

What's it doing. No it still wants to lick itself. It's such a terrific passion to be clean. There must not be any speck of dust. And then that cat that mother cat has got a little kitten and the kitten starts licking itself.

Who taught that little kitten to lick itself. Does the mother give instructions. Now you're a cat so you must lick yourself every day. No it's nature. It's nature a desire to be clean. That is what happens when we are filled with the Holy Spirit.

We get a terrific desire to control our tongue to control our eyes to control our passions and to be clean. We may fall into sin. A cat can also fall into dirty water. I'm not saying a believer may not fall.

But what does a cat do when it falls into dirty water. Does it just enjoy itself. Jumps out immediately. And that's the mark of a believer. He may fall. But if he falls you jump out immediately and say oh god I'm sorry.

Please help me cleanse me. If he loses his temper with one word he'll immediately repent. And after a few years he'll get victory because God sees he wants to be pure. But what was the law. The law was like tying the pig with ten chains.

You know if I were to take my pig through a dirty road full of muck and I control the pig with ten chains ten commandments. Pig wants to go this way I pull it this way. Pig wants to go this way. I pull it that way with great struggle.

I take the pig through that dirty marketplace with these ten chains the ten commandments and it comes out clean. It's controlled by laws and rules. It's not clean because as soon as you take out the chains and back again to the muck but a cat you don't have to hold a cat with laws and chains.

You know that Jesus came to set us free from the law because he can. He gave us the Holy Spirit within. Let me read to you. The Holy Spirit is called the spirit of grace. I read that last time on Sunday Zechariah 12 10 I'll pour out the spirit of grace on the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

And it says in Galatians and chapter 5. Listen to this wonderful verse. Galatians 5 and verse 18 says if you are led by the Holy Spirit you are not under the law. You're not under the Ten Commandments when you're led by the Holy Spirit.

But if you are not led by the Holy Spirit all brother sister you better go back under the law. That means if God has not succeeded in changing your pigs nature to a cat's nature then you better go back to the ten chains because that's the only way you'll be clean.

But the best way is not with chains like Moses law. But the best way is a change of nature. If by some miracle you could put a cat's nature inside that pig then you won't need any chains because the pig will start licking itself and keeping itself clean.

It'll be quite a miracle. If you could see a pig licking itself and keeping itself clean it doesn't need any chains now because God put another nature inside. That is what is called being born again and being filled with the Holy Spirit.

And if any man be in Christ he's a new creation. Old things are passed away all things are become new. It's like that pig has suddenly become a cat. Have you experienced that. That is the real spirit-filled life.

I did not know it for many years but I had a longing for it. I wept and I prayed and I fasted and I saw God and I read the word and God opened my eyes and filled me with the Holy Spirit and showed me this wonderful new covenant blessing that God wanted me to have his nature.

Then I was free from the law. If you're led by the Holy Spirit you are not under the law. It's like telling the pig dear pig if you get a cat's nature you don't need the 10 chains. Isn't that right. Right.

But if you don't get that cat's nature brother you better need those 10 chains. Sure see God has given me the responsibility for about 50 churches that we have planted in India over the last 35 years.

And I see I preach the same message I'm preaching here. I preach in all those 50 churches and I have seen that there are two ways in which I can build those churches. One is by making lot of rules. You must not do this.

You must not do that. You must do this. You must do this was not only 10 chains but about 50 chains because they're all pigs. If I take away the chains they'll get dirty. If I allow though if I don't make any rules for those young sisters those young sisters will all become worldly.

So I have to make so many rules for them. And if I don't make rules for all the young brothers they'll all become worldly. So what shall I do. Tie them with chains. One chain two chains three chains ten chains twenty chains.

Then I keep them all clean. Brothers come and see what a pure church we've got. I'm holding the chains tight. You see them how well-dressed they are. How they behave. Really can you get rid of those chains.

Let me see how they behave then. No. No no we have to keep the chains. There is a better way lead them to a genuine fullness of the Holy Spirit. Genuine not a counterfeit not an emotional excitement. But the Holy Spirit.

You know I ask people this if a person is filled with an unclean spirit what does he become unclean. If a person is filled with an evil spirit what does he become evil. And if a person is filled with the Holy Spirit what should he become holy.

Why isn't he holy. Then I remember once one brother came to our church in Bangalore and you know we we clap our hands we raise our hands and shout we praise the Lord. But he came from a church where they make a lot of noise and we don't make so much noise.

So he came to our church and said hey you people don't have the Holy Spirit. I said how do you know that. Have you seen how I live with my wife at home. Have you seen how I brought up my children. Have you seen how I handle money.

How do you know I don't have the Holy Spirit. Oh you don't have enough noise in this church. Ah see your Trinity is father son and noisy spirit. Our Trinity is father son and Holy Spirit. I said that's the big difference.

We have a different Trinity sir from you. We I agree we are not filled with the noisy spirit. But we are filled with the Holy Spirit has changed our lives. It's made us holy in the way we handle money in the way we speak to our neighbors in the way we deal with people at home in the way we just live our daily life in the way we speak.