(God and Man) Being Delivered From the World — Zac Poonen

Deliverance From the World System

There were many reasons why Jesus died on the cross. We have spoken about and known some of them. He died for our sins. He died that our old man might be crucified with Him on the cross. He died that Satan might be defeated.

And we also read here one more reason in Galatians chapter 1.

Galatians chapter 1 verse 4.

It says that Jesus gave Himself for our sins so that He might deliver us from this present evil world according to the will of our God and Father. And when it speaks about the world, it's not talking about the earth.

The earth is different from the world. The earth is a physical thing. And the world is used sometimes in the scriptures to describe the people of the world. You know, we say about there are people all over the world.

God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son for the world. And that is the people of the world. But there is another sense in which the word world is used in scripture. And that is referring to this system that runs this world.

And that system is run by the devil. That's why he's called the ruler of this world. He's not the ruler of the earth. Jesus said all authority in heaven and on earth is given to me. Jesus rules the heaven and the earth.

But the ruler of the world is Satan. You need to distinguish between the ruler of the earth and the ruler of the world. Jesus has got all authority in heaven and earth. Everything that happens on this earth, everything that happens in this whole universe is under the control of our Lord Jesus Christ.

He is sovereign. Nothing can ever happen. Nobody can lift a finger or do anything without His permission. And particularly where it concerns His children, He makes every single thing work together for good because He controls all circumstances and people.

But on this earth there is another thing called the world. It's invisible primarily. It's as invisible as the devil. It's a system by which He controls almost everything on this earth. It controls politics.

It controls the business world. It controls the entertainment world. It controls the various styles and fashions of dresses. It controls television. It controls radio. It controls the whole videotape industry and science and education and marketing, advertising.

There's a spirit behind it all, the flow of money and also many other things which, a lot of things which I spoke about are things which we are all touching every day. And then a lot of other evil things like wars and pornography and many other evils.

It's all part of this world system that's got a ruler. And that ruler is Satan. And Jesus came and gave Himself for our sins that He might deliver us from this world system because we're all born in this system.

How the World System Shapes Children and Christians

And from childhood we absorb the values of this system. In school we are taught to compete with one another, to somehow put the other fellow down and come on top and glory in being first in the class and first in the athletics.

And it gets into the thing of little children. And I'm not saying we shouldn't do our best. I used to tell my own children when they were in school, I will never in my life care for your rank in class.

If you do your best, you work hard, I don't care if you come last in the class. I don't want them to get caught in this system where you have to push down other people and come on top and boast about it.

It's all evil. Don't let your children get caught in that. If they get caught in that, they will live in that no matter how religious they are, no matter how much they come to meetings, they can never become spiritual.

Neither grown-ups. I believe that the reason why many Christians, believers, become religious and not spiritual is because they have not understood this world system. They are influenced in so much of their thinking by this world system and also trying to be spiritual and they end up being religious.

If you could only be free from this world system, you'd become spiritual. Religion is an outward form which gives you a name. You can get a name of being holy or you can get a church, you can have a name of being a wonderful church to go to based on feelings and many things like that.

Spirituality is quite another thing. Spirituality is primarily based on a great devotion to Jesus Christ in one's personal daily life. If one is not personally, daily devoted to Jesus Christ, we're not spiritual.

No matter what we do on Sundays, no matter what religious activities we go through like reading the Bible, attending Bible studies, prayer meeting, fasting and all that, it's all religious activity. A personal devotion to Jesus and a fervent love for brothers and sisters in your local church, that is the mark of true spirituality.

But religion is something different. Religion is... You can have religious people involved in what we had just now, praise and worship. See, praise and worship can be a spiritual thing or a religious thing.

That depends on you. You can have spiritual people and religious people in a praise and thanksgiving meeting like we had just now and for the spiritual person, it's worship of Jesus, it's devotion to Jesus.

For the religious person, it's a good thing a long time. You know, swing and keep the beat, nice feeling, emotions, all very good. Religious words, these are religious people. There's no... I mean, Jesus may not even be there.

It doesn't make a difference. We had a good time. Whether the Lord had a good time or not doesn't matter. The spiritual person is not like that. The spiritual person is not thinking we must have a good time.

The spiritual person is thinking when we worship the Lord, He must have a good time. It's just that simple difference. And if you look at a lot of meetings that you go to, you may discover at the end of it, you only think of you having a good time.

And that's one of the clearest proofs that you're a religious person. And you're a religious person because even though you believe everything about Christ and everything, all of that, you've never seen what this world system is which binds you down.

I believe the reason why many Christians and believers have an up and down experience constantly in their life is because they've never been detached from the world. They've never been delivered from the world system.

For example, moods. Do you know that it's the will of God that you should never have a bad mood? Never. That's God's will because it says Rejoice evermore for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Have you read that verse? 1 Thessalonians 5? Verse 16 to 18 it says Rejoice all the time because this is the will of God for you. That's God's will. So how can I rejoice all the time if I'm in a bad mood?

So I'm absolutely convinced. I was convinced years ago that if I'm in a bad mood for one minute I'm out of the will of God. However religious I may be at other times. And the reason is the world system has got a hold on me.

There are no bad moods in heaven. Bad moods are a part of the world. Worldly people have got bad moods. But you need never have that. You need never be gripped by fear. Fear is something Jesus hated as much as sin.

Just like the Bible says sin not, it says fear not. What's the difference? But a world system can grip you so much that you think sin is wrong but fear is not wrong. You can think sin is wrong but anxiety is not wrong.

That if God says don't kill you take that seriously. But God says don't be anxious you don't take that seriously. How's that? How can God say don't kill and we take that seriously? And the same God says don't be anxious and we don't take that seriously.

It's because the world system gripping us where we come to the Bible and pick the verses we think are important and throw away the things which God said which we feel are not important. It's this world system.

And we don't realize how much we do that. We don't tremble at God's word because with all our religious activity the world system has got a grip on us. It's like an eagle. It's one leg caught in a trap.

That's all. One leg is caught in a trap. There's no difference between that eagle and a whole eagle sitting inside a cage. Both can't fly. One is completely enveloped by the world in a cage. The other is caught in one area can't fly.

Both of them are down on the earth level. But both of them were created to fly. God has called us to be a heavenly people. See that's the one big difference between the Old Testament and the New Testament.

The Earthly Old Covenant and the Heavenly Kingdom

We've seen many differences between the Old Testament and the New Testament and one of those differences is that in the Old Testament the people were an earthly people. They were down on this earth. Everything they got was on this earth.

They never got victory over sin. They got land. They couldn't defeat the demons. They could kill human beings like the Philistines and the Amorites. The Canaanites. They couldn't get anything spiritual.

But they could get everything material. They couldn't know God. But they could make a lot of money. They couldn't save souls. But they could have many children. The whole of Old Covenant life was bound to this earth.

And then John the Baptist came and said now the kingdom of heaven is coming. Do you understand the difference? That was the message. And if you want this kingdom of heaven to come into your life you've got to do one thing.

Repent. Jesus proclaimed that same message. Before he went up he said some of you standing here will see that kingdom coming. And they saw it on the day of Pentecost. It's exactly like we sing in that song.

Heaven came down. The Holy Spirit never was on this earth for 4000 years. But on the day of Pentecost heaven came down. When Jesus came to earth also it was heaven came down. But that was only in one person.

It was heaven in one person for 33 and a half years. That's why he told his disciples it is better for you fellows that I go away. Otherwise heaven will only be in me. It won't be in you. You fellows even in the Last Supper you are arguing who is the greatest.

That's not heaven. That's earth. That's the world system. You know you can listen to the greatest preacher in the world week after week after week and still be thoroughly worldly. And the proof of it is the disciples themselves.

To seek honor and position as to who is going to be the leader, who is going to be the elder, who is going to be the greatest, who is going to be considered the best preacher, the best elder, the best singer, the most handsome person, the most intelligent person who comes first in the class, who comes first in the races.

This is all part of the world system. In heaven it's different. In heaven who is first is last. That means the last person is considered first in heaven. And the servant is considered the greatest authority in heaven.

That's exact opposite of this world. But when we don't think like that, when we think that if somebody thinks highly of us, we feel really great, that shows you're part of the world system. That's the clearest proof that you're still part of the world system.

Jesus has not delivered you from that world system. Jesus has not delivered you from that system where position and honor and coming first and those of you for example who glory that your child came first in a class or came first in something.

The world system grips you and you're communicating it to your children all the time. Then you're wondering why your children are not spiritual. They'll never be spiritual. Because you're giving them large doses of this world system every day.

It's like poison. Then wondering why they're not healthy. They'll never be healthy. See heaven is different from the earth. You've got to see that. This world and heaven are two different systems altogether.

And John the Baptist said kingdom of heaven is now coming. I don't know how many of you fellows are interested in it. He told the Jews. But he said if you want to be a part of it you've got to repent.

You've got to repent of being part of this wretched world system. A few people repented. And they became part of that heavenly system. Now everybody wanted healing. Healing is an earthly thing. And it was promised in the Old Testament and Jesus also did it.

Worldly Interests Versus Spiritual Deliverance

A lot of people today were interested in it too. You don't have to be a believer to be interested in healing. Any unbeliever would be interested in healing. Atheists are interested in healing. See if we ask ourselves this question.

If anything that I'm interested in a worldly unconverted person is also interested in that can't be a spiritual thing. Let's make a simple rule. Anything that an atheist is interested in and if I'm also interested in it that cannot be a spiritual thing.

An atheist is interested in making a lot of money. And if a man gets up and says Jesus will help you to make a lot of money that can't be a spiritual thing. I mean that itself sends a red light into my mind saying that is wrong.

That cannot be the kingdom of heaven. If an atheist is interested in physical health and the main message of the gospel is Jesus will give me physical health a red light goes off in my mind. Jesus came to give me something which that atheist is not interested in.

He came to deliver me from the love of money. He's not interested in that. He came to deliver me from seeking the honor of men. He's not interested in that. Jesus came to deliver me from secret sins which other people can't see.

He's not interested in that. To be delivered from anger that may not be a proof of spirituality because anger makes us lose our testimony publicly. And I may be concerned about my testimony so I don't want to get angry because then I lose my testimony and that atheist also may not want to lose his testimony.

That could be a worldly thing. But to be delivered from anger inside that's a spiritual thing. Ask yourself what are the things you're interested in in your life which an atheist is not at all interested in.

You say well I go to the meetings. Well he goes to his club. And your meetings may be no different from a club. What does he go to his club for? He goes to his club to have a good time to meet with other friends whom he meets regularly once a week.

And you may be going to your club to meet people once a week. Essentially not much difference. There may be people giving lectures in his club and people giving lectures in your club. He listens to those lectures and does nothing about it.

And you'd listen to your lectures and do nothing about it. Not much difference really. You call your club a church he calls it something else. He may be more honest. He really may be more honest because he says it's a club.

I just go there to meet people listen to lectures and I live my own life. You also go to your club what you call a church to meet people to listen to lectures but you live your own life. He's more honest.

That's a club. You call it a church. It's because this world system is fooling us all the time and if the devil can fool you all your life that you're a spiritual person and you wake up in eternity and you discover you are not spiritual at all the devil will say ha ha you thought you fooled me I fooled you all your life.

Religious Formalism, Legalism, and Seeking Self

My brothers and sisters the greatest danger that believers in the world today are facing is being religious and not spiritual. If you think that I've got a little bit of sense please take my words seriously and the only thing that will deliver you from religiosity is getting rid of the spirit of this world.

Now we can think that if I get rid of legalism all rules and regulations and I become more liberal I become spiritual and some of us have tried that has it made you spiritual? You got rid of legalism you got rid of all your rules and regulations and you don't have any more rules that I won't have any television now I'll have television in my house in order to be spiritual.

Did it make you spiritual? You ask yourself. Did it make your children more spiritual? In the old days we had rules that we will not see any movies now we're going to be all free from all these rules and regulations we start seeing movies.

Did that make you spiritual? All this liberalization you ask yourself did it make you and your family more spiritual? More devoted to Jesus? More eager to study God's word to understand God? You think you can be free from religiosity just because you get rid of legalism and legalistic rules and regulations?

Well you tried it. It's worldliness that still holds us. The world system that controls our way of thinking and the basic rule of this world system is seek your own. That's what the world system says.

Seek your own first. Not the things of God but your own. All people seek their own. And as long as you're seeking your own you ask yourself what's the difference between you and an atheist? An atheist also seeks his own.

And Jesus came to deliver us from that where we seek God His righteousness, His kingdom first. Have you ever read the first four words in your Bible? Do you know what the first four words in your Bible are?

In the beginning God. That's how your Bible begins. Every Bible begins with these words In the beginning God. It's one thing to have that written in the front of our Bibles it's quite another thing to have our life live like that.

That is spirituality where in every decision how will this affect God, His kingdom, His righteousness His uppermost. Do you think all believers make decisions on that basis? I think perhaps 1 of born again believers make their decision on that basis.

That in everything they think how will this affect if I take this if I go here if I do this if I marry this person if I go there if I do this other thing how will that affect God and His kingdom? If I spend my time like this how will that affect God and His kingdom?

If I spend my money like this how will that affect God and His kingdom? Do you think believers all live like that? 1 Those are the 1 that are really spiritual because they've been delivered from this world system that teaches them to seek their own.

Jesus came to deliver us from this. See, it says in 1 John in chapter 2 about two types of loves and they are contrasted with each other. You know, like we say you can't love two women and marry both of them.

You've got to make your choice. Which one you want to get married to? Do you love this one or that one? And lot of people have problems with that even after they get married. Even after they get married they can't stick to one love.

It's part of this world system. It's not only where divorce is common like in western countries where they get rid of one woman and marry another. If you're a married man and your eyes wander to admire other women you're gripped by the world system too.

When you can talk more freely with a woman other than your wife more freely than with your own wife maybe somebody at work I don't care how religious you are you are part of this world. You probably never hear that told you straight to your face like you hear it here but if you keep coming here you'll hear a lot of things told you straight which scan your heart and reveal its true condition.

Now what you do with the scanned report is your business but at least you'll get an honest report. It's a world system that says you can love two things at the same time. Okay, here in 1 John 2 it says about two types of love in verse 15 loving the world and loving the Father.

And it says you can't do both at the same time. You've got to make your choice. But in a world in which people think yes, I love my wife and I can also love that other woman such people can think yes, I can love the Father and I can love the world.

That's why the Bible says to believers you adulteresses have you ever in your life heard a preacher get up in a pulpit and say you bunch of believers you are adulteresses. Now if you ever heard a preacher like that tell me about it, I'd like to hear him.

Because it's quite likely that such a man may be a prophet like James. I want to show you what James said. James says first of all we need to understand to whom is James writing. He's writing chapter 2 verse 1 my brethren.

Chapter 2 verse 5 my beloved brethren. Chapter 2 verse 1 those who have faith in the glorious Lord Jesus Christ. He's writing to beloved brethren. Chapter 3 verse 1 my brethren. He's talking to believers.

And what does he tell these believers? Chapter 4 verse 5 you adulteresses. Look at that. My beloved brethren. You adulteresses. He was a prophet for sure. He was not the type of chap who was interested in increasing the congregation in his church and making sure all the rich people come there and put their offerings in.

James couldn't care less for all those people. In fact if you read the book of James you discover that he was against a lot of rich people who tried to get influential positions in the church because of their wealth.

And why does he call these people adulteresses? It says here in verse 4 don't you know that friendship with the world this goes one step further than what John says is actually enmity towards God. And if you become a friend of this world you make yourself an enemy of God.

What a word. Question. Children are you listening? How to be an enemy of God? Answer. It's there in that verse if you read it. What's it? Be a friend of this world. Very simple. How to be an enemy of God?

Be a friend of this world. That's what this verse says. Friend of what? It's not the people of the world. It can't be the people of the world because God loved the people of the world enough to give his son.

Jesus loved murderers, thieves, gamblers all types of evil sinners of every description. He loved them. He came to die for them. It can't be the people of this world. Then what is this world spoken of here?

Do you know you can love God and love the people of the world? In fact, the more you love God the more you love the people in the world. The more you love God the more you love the sinful people in the world.

But the world itself spoken of here is not people. It's a system. When you become a true disciple of Jesus you don't have to give up your worldly friends and worldly relatives and become like a hermit.

That's not true Christianity. In fact, that gives a bad name to Christianity. When people have nothing more to do with their relatives and friends and all and become like ascetics and live all by themselves and say, I'm a Christian.

No. Do you think Jesus was like that? No. But if you allow those worldly friends and relatives to influence you oh, that's a different thing. You know, it's like a tug-of-war. Once upon a time you were on the side of the world pulling against God and God's people.

But now you change sides in this tug-of-war. And you got onto the other side and you're pulling the rope the other way. Can you keep your worldly friends and relatives? Sure. But watch that rope. That handkerchief tied in the middle of the rope.

Watch which side it's moving. When you are with your friends and relatives just make sure that you're pulling them into God's kingdom and not that they are pulling you into the world. And if they are pulling you into the world, just drop that rope.

Leave them. Because you're not strong enough to be with them. If you find when you're in the midst of relatives that they gossip, backbite, speak evil which is the common practice of most worldly people and you sit there and you find you're being polluted I would say give up contact with such relatives.

But if you can sit there and be a positive witness for goodness and uprightness and truthfulness and not speaking evil of others and not gossiping and speaking about, even if you don't speak about worldly thing about spiritual thing, about good thing then you can be there.

But otherwise, steer clear. And then it is right for you to steer clear of such worldly friends and relatives who are polluting you every time you go there. I mean, if you go to somebody's house and every time you go there he throws garbage on you how long will you go there?

You stink when you come out. You're going to have a bath. And that's what happens when we go with a lot of unconverted relatives as soon as they start the conversation is garbage, garbage, garbage this fellow is garbage, the other fellow is garbage all flung on you and you come out stinking.

You want to go back there? I don't want to go back there. I want to go to a place where at least they don't throw garbage even if they don't throw perfume at least they don't throw garbage. That's why I steer clear of a lot of worldly people because they've got nothing but garbage in their hands and on their tongues.

I'm not interested in that. Find somebody else to throw your garbage on. I'm not interested. I'm not saying that you've got to listen to my holy talk about the Bible but let's talk some clean stuff. Otherwise you can say, oh, you're holy people.

I'm not a holy person. I don't want your garbage. That's all. Can't you keep the garbage away from me? Why should I come there? You've got enough people there to throw your garbage on. Why do you want me also there?

I don't want it. But that's because we don't love purity as much as we love those unconverted people. That's the trouble. We don't love Jesus enough. It says, friendship with the world is enmity with God.

Gossip, Boasting, and Religious Status

The world is a system which seeks its own. And have you noticed when people sit together they never talk evil about the people sitting there. Always the evil talk is about somebody who is not there. That's what I mean by evil.

If you don't believe that, just go and see when people sit together and talk. They never talk about people sitting there until one of them leaves. Then they'll start talking about that person also. It's always about people who are not there.

It's a system which seeks one's own. It manifests itself in numerous ways and gossip and backbiting is just one of them. Where you sit and speak evil of others, you sit and pollute each other with more and more talk about and people sit there and boast about themselves and boast about their children and boast about their husbands and their houses and their jobs and all types of things.

All trying to show that I am one better than you and then the other fellow has to do something to show that he is also equally good. This is all the world's system. Boasting about our connections and even among religious people.

You know, I meet some people who are always boasting about some bishop they are related to and I get sick and tired of it. Religious people. I mean, where did that bishop come from? He came from Adam.

Thrown out of Eden like the rest of us. Just because he wears a purple robe and a cross around his neck doesn't qualify him for heaven any more than it qualifies you and me. What does it matter? You can be related to Judas Iscariot as much as a bishop.

It makes no difference. You are a sinner. So is that bishop. So is Judas Iscariot. So is you. So are me. We got to be saved by the blood of Jesus Christ whoever we are and you can't escape, you can't go to heaven by hanging a cross around your neck or changing your clothes and putting purple robes on.

You can't fool God. You can fool people that you are holy but you need to be born again to enter God's kingdom. And if you don't realize that before you leave this earth you'll certainly realize it when you stand before the Lord.

Like Jesus told Bishop Nicodemus you must be born again. You may be 75 years old, Nicodemus. You may look very holy but you need to be born again otherwise you'll never enter God's kingdom. And Nicodemus was humble enough to accept it unlike the other parishes.

You see, that's the thing. The world system that glories in all types of religious things which have no value in heaven and that world system affects our thinking in so many ways and I believe that you must ask God to give you light on where that world system has polluted your way of thinking.

Rebellion Against Authority in the Home and Church

That world system is what teaches you to rebel. You know, one of the marks of people who are in this world system is they have no respect for authority. They have no respect for people who are older. Why do we keep on teaching in this church teach your children to respect you as parents?

First of all, they must respect you as parents and then they must respect other older people they meet anywhere. Now, you don't have to be a Christian to know that. You go down into the villages of India villages that have not yet been polluted by television and western influences and you will see in those villages young people respect older people.

They are not Christians. It's God has taught them. They have got a conscience. Young people respect older people. They stand up when an older person comes into the room. Do you see that with our children?

I'm sorry to say, with most of them, no. And the parents get offended when they are corrected. That shows what a tremendous grip the world has got even on the parents. The parents are only interested in honor.

Not in godliness. Oh, I lost my honor. My children lost honor. Do you think such parents are interested in godliness? I don't even know whether they are converted. If they were converted, they would be interested in godliness.

Not honor. You ask yourself, my brothers and sisters, have you taught your children to respect? Do you allow your child to speak disrespectfully to the mother and the father listens to that and does nothing about it?

I tell you, if you are a father like that and your son or daughter, no matter what age they are, speaks disrespectfully to his mother and you listen to it, I say to you, you should never have gotten married and produced a child.

You should have remained single all your life. You are unfit to be a father and you are certainly unfit to be a Christian father and certainly unfit to be a father living in, coming to CFC. Totally unfit.

Imagine, your child violates a law of God right in front of your eyes, dishonors his mother and you just smile. Say, don't speak like that, darling. You deserve to join the atheist club, not sit here.

The atheist club, that's where you belong. No respect for God and His word which says, teach your children right from day one to honor their father and mother and when they don't honor their father and mother, now how do I know that they are talking like that at home?

I don't come to your home. I'm not looking in through the windows. I don't look in through anybody's windows, by the way. How do I know? Because I see them behave like that over here. That's how I know.

When they behave like that over here, they must be behaving exactly like that at home. The children who respect their parents at home will respect older people here. The children who don't respect their parents at home don't respect older people here.

That's all. Because you can't change your nature. I mean, you are older and you can act in a different way in CFC than you do at home because you are smart and you can cover all your sins that way. But children are not so smart.

They behave exactly like they behave at home right here because they've got no guile. And so, we discover exactly what they are like. And like I've told all the CFC people, just watch the children and you'll know what the parents are like.

Watch the ones who are unruly, who have no respect for anyone. They are part of the world system because the parents are part of the world system. They are religious. They come to every meeting. They send their children faithfully to Sunday school.

But there is a tremendous difference. No respect for authority. In the world, there is no respect for authority. Look at all the, that spirit of rebellion that started with Lucifer way back. That spirit of rebellion against authority, against God.

And we see that in schools where people make fun of their teachers and colleges and factories where they rebel against the authority. They break windows and damage equipment. It's all part of that spirit of rebellion.

And in the home, children rebel against parents. In the church where people have no respect for elders. You know, it's in small things that we see. And the fault with the children often starts with the parents.

I don't believe we should blame children. For example, you go to the slums. You can't blame the children for not knowing ABC. Why can't they know ABC when your children know ABC? Don't blame those children.

Your children are not better than their children. You, as a parent, were more sensible than those parents. They never sent their children to school. So where's the fault? In the parents. You know, when the Lord spoke to Israel, He always spoke to the leaders first.