Faith Results in Thankfulness — Zac Poonen

The New Covenant as the Essential Engine of Christian Faith

The other day I was saying that there are certain words found in the New Testament which are almost never found in the Old Testament. And I encouraged you to look up a concordance. Any of you who are serious about Bible study, I would encourage you to get a concordance.

It's not only just for Bible study, it can change your life if you understand what exactly the New Testament teaches. Because let me give you my observation after observing Christianity for 45 years. The fundamental problem with people who do not believe in the baptism in the Holy Spirit and with those who believe in the baptism in the Holy Spirit is that they have not understood the New Covenant.

Some have understood praise and worship. David praised and worshipped God better than any of us, better than any meeting I've ever seen in my life. But he was in the Old Covenant. You can praise and worship and be in the Old Covenant.

You can talk about healing and be in the Old Covenant. They had more healings in the Old Testament than more miracles in the Old Testament. In the 40 years in the wilderness, they saw more miracles than the apostles ever saw in their whole life.

But the New Covenant, that was something which nobody in the Old Testament knew. Jesus said that the prophets and the apostles longed to see these things and they couldn't. And he said to his disciples, your eyes are blessed because you see.

Your ears are blessed because they hear. The Bible says in the Old Testament in Isaiah 64, eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither has entered into the mind or the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those who love him.

Now when you hear that verse, what is it that comes to your mind? Must be heaven, wonderful things God has prepared for those who love him. But do you know that verse is not talking about heaven? That verse in Isaiah 64 is quoted in 1 Corinthians chapter 2, exactly like that.

Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither has entered into the heart of man, the wonderful things that God has prepared for those who love him. But God has revealed them to us now by the Holy Spirit. It's not talking about heaven at all.

It's talking about the New Covenant. Do you know the wonderful things that Old Testament, the greatest Old Testament scenes, eyes did not see, ears did not hear, they could not enter into the heart? It was the New Covenant.

And I'll tell you something, if you have not understood the New Covenant, whatever else you may understand, you have missed the main thing. It's like the engine of a car missing. You've got the body, you've got the seats, you've got petrol, you've got everything, the only thing missing is the engine.

What's the use of that? And some people boast over other denominations saying, we've got better seats in our car than you have. Good. But if both don't move, it doesn't make a difference what type of seats you have.

The rusted car, brand new body, both are useless without an engine. And the engine is the New Covenant. There's a lot of talk about faith today, and so I really want to speak about faith and the result of faith this morning.

Unbelief as the Root of Spiritual and Personal Problems

You know, faith is one of those words that's found much more, it's almost never found in the Old Testament. It's found in the New Testament in abundance. Jesus always spoke about it. I was studying the other day and saw this one amazing thing.

You know, as Christians, we can get disturbed by many things. But Jesus was not even disturbed when his disciples were seeking who is going to be the greatest. I mean, it did concern him. But do you know when Jesus rebuked his disciples the strongest?

When are you going to learn? You know, sometimes we say to our children, when are you going to learn? How many times have I told you? What are the things we rebuke our children for? Small things like spilling the milk or, you know, usually some earthly thing.

And you ask yourself, did Jesus ever say that to his disciples? When are you going to learn? He did. But only concerning one matter. You know, when they were competing as to who's going to be the greatest, he never said, when are you going to learn?

That you shouldn't be competing for that. He never said that. He said, well, he corrected them. Of course he corrected them. But he never said it so strongly saying, when are you going to learn? But he did say it when it concerned unbelief.

Only concerning unbelief. He said, how long shall I be with you? He once said. Oh, you people of unbelief. And that teaches me something. That if Jesus was so disturbed by unbelief, I need to be disturbed too.

And you need to be disturbed as well. But you know, many of us are very often not disturbed by unbelief. We're disturbed by many other things. We don't realize that the reason for many of the problems we have in life is our unbelief.

You see, like you go to a doctor with a symptom. Doctor, I've got fever. I've got sores. I've got this. And the doctor won't deal with the symptoms. A bad doctor will deal with the symptoms. The ones who come out of these capitation fee colleges.

But a good doctor who is capable, he deals with the root of the disease. And says, you know, this thing is due to this thing at the bottom. If I hit that, this will be solved automatically. And I believe that many, many, many problems are due to unbelief.

Even jealousy, which I spoke about the other day, comes out of unbelief. You know that? Jealousy is the root of many other problems. But jealousy itself has a root in unbelief. Because when I'm jealous of somebody, I don't believe that God is in control of everything.

That God decides what I should have and what another person should have. If you're jealous of somebody else's wealth or position or good looks or spirituality or Bible knowledge. You're actually, it's an expression of your unbelief in God.

That you don't believe that God is the one who decides what you should have. And what another person should have. And that leads to jealousy. That leads to competition. When people are trying to show, I'm better than you or my children are better than you.

It's all due to unbelief. All problems that you have in your life, I can show you how it arises from unbelief. And if you deal with that problem, many, many of your other problems are solved. If you're serious.

And that's why in the New Covenant, faith is such an important thing. And faith, you know, because words have got meanings, because we have heard it in the world. Most Christians, their understanding of faith does not come from the Bible.

It comes from the dictionary. We read about faith, I mean people speak about faith in everyday language. But what they mean by faith is not what the Bible means by faith. And it's so important to know what the Bible means by faith.

Because our eternal destiny is dependent on it. So I want to show you a verse. First of all, in John's Gospel, chapter 6. John's Gospel, chapter 6. We are familiar with this. Because we've heard it before.

In verse 28. You know, verse 26. Jesus said, you fellows are seeking me because you ate the loaves and you were filled. They saw this fantastic miracle in the previous part of the chapter. Of 5 ,000 men and many women and children, maybe 10 ,000 people.

Getting bread and fish from five loaves and two fish. And they said, this is fantastic. What a mighty miracle. In fact, they said, this is the prophet of God. We must crown him as king. And Jesus ran away because he didn't want to be a king.

And then they came to him. And said, in verse 28. What should we do? That we can also do these works of God. Teach us how to multiply the loaves. Wouldn't you all like to know how to multiply the loaves and fish?

They were just like us. Lord, can you teach us how to do these mighty works of God? And do you know what Jesus said? This is the work of God. Not multiplying loaves and fish. That you believe. What an answer.

They want to do the works of God. And Jesus says, this is the work of God. God wants to do a work in your heart. That's the work of God. To make you believe. In him whom he has sent. In Jesus. Now we say, I believe in Jesus.

I want to read how it is in a paraphrase called the message bible. This is that paraphrase of that verse. Throw your lot in. With the one whom God has sent. Do you understand that? Throw your lot in. Are you willing to throw your lot in?

When a woman gets married, she is throwing her lot in with a man. For life. She can't predict how it's going to be. But she throws her lot in. You know I think of these people who buy stocks, shares. In new companies.

About more than 20 years ago, 20 -25 years ago. There was a unknown man in the United States called Bill Gates. Who decided to start a little company called Microsoft. Few people who loved him threw their lot in with him.

It wasn't a very famous company. It was a small unknown, unheard of. Today, those people are billionaires. Not millionaires, billionaires. Because they threw their lot in with that person. At a time when nobody knew him, nobody trusted him.

The same with some other companies like Yahoo and Reliance in India and all. You know, when Jesus started a work. There were 11 people who threw their lot in with him. Lord, everything we have, we are going to invest in this.

They became apostles. Better than billionaires. They did a work that's going to last for all eternity. That's the meaning of faith. Some people had faith in Bill Gates when nobody trusted him. Some people had faith in the man who started Yahoo or Reliance.

And these disciples had faith in Jesus. It wasn't, yes we believe in you but we keep all our money to ourselves. No. Those people who trusted these companies, they threw everything in. And they got fantastic returns.

That is what it means to have faith. Throw your lot in. I want to ask you. Have you given yourself to Jesus like that? I tell you, if you do that, your returns in eternity are going to be far greater than the people who threw their lot in with Microsoft when it started or any other company when it started.

But the people were cautious. You know, we don't know how this company will fare. I'll put 10 in so we get some profit. What did they get after many years? Okay, a little gain on that 10%. What about the other people who put everything in?

That's how it's going to be. All of us are not going to be the same in eternity. Because each of us are now deciding how much to invest in Jesus. Is this really a worthwhile undertaking? Most believers are very cautious.

Just like people would be cautious with a new company. Well, don't be surprised in eternity. When you are cautious, you are actually saying, Yeah, I'm not so sure whether this company will take off. I mean, if a person says that, I mean, if somebody is starting a new company and comes to you and says, Would you like to invest your life savings with my company?

I'm just starting it. Or let's take a bank. Many of you may not be familiar with shares. Let's take a bank that just started. And it says, I'm starting my new bank here. Would you guys trust me and put all your life savings in it?

How many of you would put life savings in it? But just think if that bank took off like anything and gave you a 100 return on your investment every year for the next 25 years. Do you know what you'd be?

And 25 years later, when you see the bank taking off, you say, Boy, I wish I had invested everything with that bank when it started. But I was cautious. I didn't trust. Now, with human beings, I fully agree.

You have to be cautious. You don't know whether a company will take off. You don't know whether a bank will take off. But I want to ask you. Many of you say, we believe Jesus is Lord. We believe He is the Son of God.

We believe He is the one who's got all authority in heaven and earth. We believe He is the one who's going to come and judge the earth. Then, are we going to throw in your lot completely with this person?

Or, yeah, I'd like to be a little cautious. That's exactly what makes the difference between one believer and another believer. And that's the thing that will make the difference between each believer and another believer for all eternity.

You understood what faith is? Faith is to throw your lot in. I'm committed to this. Not 10%, 20%. Even I'd say 90 is not faith. Faith is 100%. What would you think of a girl who gets married 90 to a man?

10 of the year she goes and spends, 36 days a year she goes and spends with somebody else. What type of commitment is that? What type of commitment is if she goes and spends one day in 365 with somebody else?

Faith is a total commitment to Christ. And Jesus is more trustworthy than Bill Gates or any company in the world. Do you really believe that? Do you really believe that the only thing worth living for is the kingdom of God and His righteousness?

I mean, I've always looked at that like that. I do a business to pay the expenses, that's all. But the thing we committed for is God's kingdom and His righteousness. Can you imagine how the Lord will reward such people?

I remember reading of a dream that William Booth had. We published it years ago in our monthly paper. Where he said, he was born again in his dream. And he died. In his dream he died and he went to heaven.

And the first thing he saw is forgiven. Sins all forgiven. He was so excited. My sins are all forgiven. And then he met Jesus and he got a review of his life on earth. How he was so cautious in committing himself.

He was careful. He's got other things to do on earth besides living for God. And then the Lord showed him all the martyrs. There were their martyrs with people with such a tremendous glow in their faces, in their lives.

And the Lord gave them all such a loving look of recognition. Because they trusted Him with everything, even their life. And then Jesus said to William Booth in this dream, You will never feel one in spirit for all eternity with these people who gave everything.

You who were so cautious, so careful. Regret began to fill his heart. And he said, oh is this selfishness of my way of life going to haunt me for all eternity? Is this what eternity is going to be like even if I go to heaven?

That the selfish way I lived on earth is going to haunt me and haunt me and haunt me. That I did not throw myself wholly in, throw my lot in wholly with the one who gave everything for me. And he says, oh God, will you please?

You know in his dream, how dreams are so real, you think they really happen. He really thought he died, finished. Lord, will you please give me another chance? No, no other chance, finished. And he woke up.

He said, thank God, it was only a dream. And his life was never the same. You have a dream like that, you'll never be the same. I read a thing like that. And somebody else dreamt. And I won't be the same.

Because I say, Lord, I've decided. I know which company is going to get the maximum, give the maximum returns in eternity. I'll tell you that right now. Stockbrokers don't know that. Or they don't believe you.

But it's true. It's not only in eternity. Jesus said, even here on earth. Not returns in terms of money. That's paper. But something far more glorious than that. He'll give us all that we need. But faith means that.

A commitment. This is the work of God. That you throw your lot in. With the one whom God sent. So Lord, I'm throwing my lot in fully. With you. And because I believe what Jesus said, that he's got all authority in heaven and earth.

Faith Means Believing God's Word Before Circumstances Change

Let me turn to another verse. In Psalm 106. Psalm 106. You've often heard me say that this is one of the clear marks of faith. One of the clearest marks of faith in our life is this. Psalm 106. And verse 12.

You must read the second part of this verse as resulting from the first part of the verse. Because the first part happened. Therefore the second part. Then. They believed his words. And therefore. They sang his praise.

So what is the result of faith? Praise. They broke out into songs of praise. I mean. Nobody had to tell them. Come on, come on. Let's praise the Lord now. Come on, come on. Come on. Open your mouth. Praise the Lord.

No. They broke out into songs of praise. I mean it's something like. You went to office one morning. And you saw a note signed by the chairman of your company saying. Your salary has been trebled. Not doubled.

Trebled. What do you do? I mean if you are a normal human being. Like me. I just say. Great. That's great man. I never believed that. I was expecting 10 or something. And here I get 3 times. That's what I mean by breaking out into songs of praise.

You'll be calling your wife. And hey. You know what happened? They believed his words. They broke out into songs of praise. And I want you to see. When it happened. Verse 8. Verse 9. He rebuked the Red Sea.

And it dried up. This is the time when they were crossing. The Red Sea and the enemy. The Pharaoh and his army were following them. And the Lord rebuked the Red Sea. And it dried up. And they went through the deeps.

And he saved them. Verse 10. From the hand of one who hated them. For us it's the devil. He saved me from the hand of one who hated me. There are men who hate me too. And he saves me from their hand as well.

It's not just from the devil. And he redeemed them. He purchased them. From the hand of the enemy. And the waters covered their enemies. Not one of them was left. Then. Then. They believed his words. They wouldn't believe it before.

That's Old Covenant. You know how it is in the New Covenant? This is Old Covenant faith. What's the difference between Old Covenant faith and New Covenant faith? Old Covenant faith is Lord, when I see you destroy all my enemies in front of me.

I'll sing your praise. I'll believe. New Covenant faith is You set a table before me in the presence of my enemies. They haven't been drowned. They are there. But. In the presence of my enemies who are not defeated yet.

You set a table before me and I'm not bothered about my enemies because you deal with them. And in the presence of my enemies you anoint my head with oil. This is Psalm 23. And my cup runs over. And you say, hey your cup is running over even though the enemies are alive.

That's right. Because the Lord is my shepherd. And I lack nothing. New Covenant faith is We walk by faith and not by sight. We can praise the Lord before those enemies of yours are defeated. The father of faith is not Moses but Abraham.

Abraham believed that he would have a son when he had no son. It was not after he got a son that he changed his name to father of a multitude. No. He said it. He changed his name when he had no son through Sarah.

That's faith. That's New Covenant faith. That's why Abraham is called the father of faith and not Moses. That is an old covenant faith which comes after you see God doing something. Well, everybody in the world can do that.

Oh praise God he did it. Great. Then they believed his word. That means what God had said long before when they were still in Egypt. Long before Pharaoh started chasing them. God had said listen I'll take you out of Egypt man.

I'll take you into the land of Canaan. They wouldn't believe it. They didn't believe it when they saw Pharaoh chasing them. It's exactly like us. You know we hear these wonderful promises on Sunday morning.

And it challenges us and all that. And then Monday morning some Pharaoh is chasing us somewhere or the other. And we don't know what's going to happen. And there's no solution in sight. And then by Friday the problem is solved.

Then they believed his words. Praise the Lord. We are ready for Sunday morning to praise the Lord again. That's Old Testament faith. Don't think that's good. I'm not saying it's bad. I'm just saying it's old covenant.

It's better than no covenant. It's better than those people who never give thanks to God at all. Even after the enemy has drowned. That's worse. Thank God you at least give thanks after the enemy has drowned.

But I say New Covenant faith is even better. That we don't believe anything that comes into our mind. That's a stupid type. That's neither Old Covenant nor New Covenant. That's some strange thing. That's sort of 20th century type of new thing that Satan has fooled people with.

God has said nothing but you still believe it. I'm going to get this new house and I'm going to get this new car. I'm not talking about that type of rubbish. I'm talking about they believed his words.

Not believed whatever came into their mind. They believed his words. But the difference in the Old Covenant is they believed it after the thing happened. In the New Covenant we believe before it happens.

I believe Jesus is going to come again. I haven't seen it. I believe I'm going to be like him when he comes. I believe I've got all authority in heaven and earth. Belongs to Jesus Christ. Today. Not going to belong to him before he left the earth.

He said all authority in heaven and earth has been given to me. Therefore go into the world. But I would not dream of going into the world without believing that. They believed his words when? After he manifests his power?

Or before? That determines whether you're an Old Covenant type of believer or a New Covenant type of believer. You believe God will do it. When he hasn't yet done it. The presence of your enemies. He believes.

It'll happen. It'll happen. I believe that it's going to be exactly like God has told me. I'll show you a verse which says exactly that in Acts chapter 27. Paul used that expression which he applies in this particular situation.

But Acts chapter 27 we read. He says this is about a time when Paul was going to be, the ship was going to be shipwrecked. And when it was shipwrecked. An angel of God came and appeared to Paul and said listen.

All of you are going to be saved. He says in verse 23. This very night an angel of the Lord came to whom I belong and whom I serve. See this is the reason. To whom I belong and whom I serve. That's the type of man who can speak like this.

Can you say I belong only to God. And I serve only Him. The angel of God to whom I belong and whom I serve. Stood before me. Saying don't be afraid Paul. You must stand before Caesar. And God has granted you all those who are sailing with you.

Paul believed those words even before they landed on the island. When they were floating in the sea with the ship wrecked. Paul believed this. And what is he saying? Therefore. Verse 25. Keep your courage.

I believe God that it will turn out exactly as I have been told. God will do exactly what He told me. Had it already happened? No. They were still in the sea. They hadn't landed safely on the land. Old Testament faith would be.

After they all come safely to the land. Praise the Lord. Hallelujah. But New Testament faith is here. Before it all happens. I believe it will be exactly like God has told me. So that's why it's important to know what God has told us.

Christ's Authority and the Christian's Primary Calling

So let's turn to Matthew chapter 28. And see what Jesus says there about His own authority. In verse 18. These are almost the last words of Jesus before He left the earth. After His resurrection He said.

All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Therefore go into all the nations. I want to look at that as something that I keep in mind when I go out to work everyday. Or I ride my scooter and go out to town.

Or you go to your office. Isn't it wonderful to hear Jesus say. All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me. Okay. Go to your office today. Boy. You go to office in a completely different way.

When you go on the basis. That's what Jesus said. All authority in heaven and earth is given to me. Go. Into all nations. Make disciples. I mean your main job in life is to make disciples. I hope you know that.

You do an earthly job to earn your living. We all need to do that so that we don't become parasites on society. So that we don't become beggars. That's why Paul made tents. And that's what we do. But.

That's not our main job. Making tents. Paul didn't say I'm a tent maker. He said I'm an apostle. I make tents to earn my living. You have a function in the body of Christ. And that function is your primary calling.

You may do some job to earn your living. That's secondary. But your function in the body of Christ is fundamental. And you need to know that. And if you don't know it. You must ask God to show you. What it is.

It may take time. It took me about 16, 17 years. To discover what it was. But I pursued it. It may take you time. But you should know it finally. Lord this is what I'm supposed to do. And I'm going to do it.

And then I do a job to earn my living. But all authority in heaven and earth has been given to me. And I'm going to go on the basis of that authority everyday. When you're going into a difficult situation.

Which you don't know how it's going to turn out. When you're going to hospital. Or you're taking to court. Or some awkward situation. Some difficult person you have to encounter. Your landlord is threatening to throw you out of the house.

Or your boss is threatening to sack you. You know the way to go and meet these people? On the basis of Matthew 28 verse 19. Provided your goal in life is not to make money. Provided your goal in life is to make disciples.

Remember this is not for every Tom, Dick and Harry. No. There are lots of Tom's and Dick's and Harry's who claim things in the Bible that never work for them. This is for those who realize. Whatever job I may do.

My main calling in life is to make disciples of Jesus Christ. You may have a job that earns you 100 ,000 rupees a month. So what? It's a means of earning a living. But your main job in life is to make disciples.

Or you may earn 1000 rupees a month. Doesn't make a difference. Your main job in life is to make disciples. And if that is your main job. Here are two wonderful promises. All authority in heaven and earth is given to me.

Go. Go to your office. Go and meet that boss. Go and meet that landlord. Go into that hospital for treatment. Go to court or go to jail. Like Paul went to jail. He went to jail believing that all authority in heaven and earth was given to Jesus.

And there he sat in the dungeon. Those jails were terrible those days with rats and cockroaches and all types of things crawling around. And you know what he did there? He wrote Philippians. With all these rats crawling over him.

Rejoice in the Lord always he says. Again I say rejoice. And there is a rat crawling over his leg there. Doesn't make a difference to him. Because all authority in heaven and earth was given to him. What does it matter to Paul today in heaven that a few rats crawled over him when he was in that dungeon.

Look what he accomplished on earth. Wherever he went. He lived a worthwhile life. Because he believed that all authority in heaven and earth was given to Jesus. He is going to spend his life making disciples.

And he would earn his own living by making tents. And another thing the Lord said. When you make disciples and all my authority backs you. The last part of that verse. Verse 20. I am going to be with you always.

I am with you always. Wherever you go I will be with you. You go to a dungeon I will be with you there. You go to a hospital I will be with you there. You go and meet your landlord I will be with you there.

You go and meet your boss I will be with you. Isn't that wonderful? To have Jesus. You go and sit and write an examination. I will be with you. It's great. To go and write an entrance test. It says I will be with you there.

All authority in heaven and earth was given to me. I tell you it's the best way to live. Believe his words. Lord I believe. I believe. Even though it doesn't look as if everything is working out yet. I believe one thing.

That you are in control of everything. It says in 1 Timothy in chapter 6. 1 Timothy chapter 6 and verse 15. 1 Timothy 6 .15 it says. The last part of that verse. Referring to God. He is the blessed and only sovereign.

The undisputed ruler of this universe. Or like another paraphrase by J .B. Phillips. Says the blessed controller of all things. I love that title of God. There are many titles of God you know. He is our shepherd.

He is the light of the world etc. But this is great. The blessed controller of all things. To have faith is to believe. That my heavenly father is the blessed controller of all things. Please remember that.

Faith in the New Covenant Promise of Holiness

All these people who tell you to have faith. To get a better car or get a new house. And then don't teach you to have faith to finish with grumbling. And complaining. What's the use getting a new house and grumbling and complaining there.

I'd rather live in a hut. And never grumble and complain all my life. What's the use getting a new car and fighting with each other inside that car as you are driving down the road. I'd rather drive a scooter.

And not fight with my wife sitting at the back. Isn't that sensible? What type of faith is this? Which gives you all these material things. But doesn't give you faith that what God has promised he will do.

What has God promised? I will write my laws upon your heart and your mind. You know that's the new covenant in Hebrews 8. 10 to 12. I will write my laws upon your heart and mind. If you don't have faith for that.

My brother, sister let me tell you plainly. You can get a palace. Your faith is old testament faith. You can pray for a helicopter. Not just a car. I mean I haven't heard anybody urging people to have faith for helicopters.

Usually a better car. They haven't yet come to the level of helicopters. Why? Can't God give helicopters? If God can give you a green large car or a black large Mercedes Benz. Can't he give you a helicopter?

But why is it these guys who talk about car. I tell you in this traffic jam and all helicopters much better. These big cars still get stuck in the traffic jam. Sure. I mean if I was belonging to that crowd.

I would never tell fellows to get a Mercedes Benz. Because a Mercedes Benz. Even a scooter goes faster than a Mercedes Benz in this traffic jam. I'll tell you that. You can weave in and out of the traffic with a scooter.

You can't do that with a Mercedes Benz. You can't find a parking lot for a Mercedes Benz. But you have a helicopter. Boy. It beats everything. And if I belong to that crowd. I would be encouraging people to have faith for helicopters.