God Works To Perfect Us — Zac Poonen

Well, it's good to be back after another time away, but sometimes these 10 days of meetings can become very hectic. Especially when you had to speak three four times a day. So the end result was That I got a bit sick.

And I was down the whole of last week, so I want to be careful today that I'll try and speak Softly. Which is always good. But you know like we always do when we are sick what we teach in this church is We follow Jesus in every area.

Following Jesus in Sickness and Weakness

And there's a verse in Which I want to show you. There are many things we see in the scriptures which many people don't believe. But if it's in the scripture, I believed it for example. Even in the past whenever I have been bit sick I'm asked the Lord Lord Jesus.

Were you ever sick? I Know that sickness is not always the result of sin. Sometimes it is. But you remember once there was a blind man and Jesus the disciples asked Jesus Is it because of his sin or his father's sin.

John chapter 9 and Jesus said no not his sin not his father's sin so. But sometimes it is because when he healed the man who was lame in John 5 He told him afterwards now don't sin again because something worse may happen so that guy's sickness was due to sin.

But in John chapter 9 the blind man sickness is not due to sin so we have to distinguish and then I Saw in scripture. I want to show you this it says in Matthew chapter 8 and verse 16 when evening came they brought to Jesus many who were demon-possessed and He cast out the spirits of the word and healed all who were ill.

This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet he himself took our infirmities and carried away our diseases or sicknesses. Now that verse Matthew 8 17 Is a quotation from Isaiah 53. Verse 4 When we compare scripture with scripture Sometimes we discover some amazing truths.

That's what I discovered here. It says here the Holy Spirit says that Jesus Himself took our infirmities and carried away our diseases and that was fulfilled not on the cross. No, this was three years before the cross when He took away the infirmities and diseases of these people mentioned in verse 16 he healed all who were ill and that Fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah that he took our infirmities and carried away our diseases.

Some people say he took our sicknesses on the cross there's not a single verse that says that he took our sins on the cross and he took our curse on the cross and He defeated Satan on the cross. And our old man was crucified on the cross, but there's no verse that says he took our diseases on the cross.

In fact disease is a part of The body that we have which is made of dust and the curse has gone away from our spirit. But I want you to know the curse has not gone away from our body. That's why we get that's why we perspire.

The Lord told Adam part of the curse is you'll perspire and as long as no matter how holy you are you will perspire when it's hot and The greatest proof that the curse has not gone away from the body is that we die.

Death is a result of the curse on the body, but there's no curse in our spirit. Jesus has redeemed us from the curse. But the curse from the body will go in the resurrection. Now I'm mentioning this because there's a lot of imbalanced teaching in the world.

Where some people say you are never supposed to be sick, but even the people who say that get sick and die. So don't be fooled by that at the other other extreme are people who say when you're sick. You must never pray because Jesus doesn't heal sickness.

That's a lot of rubbish. So our position always has always been in between these two extremes. Even in many other areas like speaking in tongues or many other areas. We find that the truth is not at that extreme or this extreme.

It's in between these two extremes and that's what we always seek to walk that Narrow way between the two extremes that people go to and in this area of sickness. Also, it's like that We will never be free from sickness on this earth, but we must pray Every time we're sick to be healed and Like, you know if a child is sick I've often said if somebody asked me to pray for a child that's sick I said I will keep on praying for that child till it dies.

When it dies, I'll say okay. It was not God's will for To be healed that you know, many children die even believers children die. Many believers have miscarriages we accept that but we must pray against it because Sickness is not part of God's perfect will so anything that's not part of God's perfect will we pray against it.

Jesus’ Humanity and Isaiah’s Prophecy

So this verse Matthew 8 17, which I quoted. If you Remember remember what it says here. He took our infirmities and carried away our diseases as Isaiah the Prophet said. Now go back to Isaiah 53 and I want to show you something very interesting.

I've said it before but for the benefit of many who may not have heard me before Isaiah 53 and Verse 4 notice what it says here in verse 4 surely our Griefs he bore. What did we read in as Matthew 8 our sicknesses he bore?

But here it says our griefs and then I look at the margin of my Bible and in the margin. It says in the original Hebrew. It is sickness. But the translators did not dare to translate it as sickness very interesting.

Many times you find in the Bible the translators have used their own wisdom. So in the margin, they say the original says sickness, but we didn't feel it could be sickness. So they translated as griefs and I'll tell you why they translated it as grief.

Because the same word is used in verse 3 Jesus was despised and forsaken of men a man of sorrows acquainted with grief and again in the margin it says Sickness. That's why they didn't want to translate it because those original translators said Jesus couldn't possibly be sick.

So that must be a mistake, but the Holy Spirit says Jesus was acquainted with sickness. When you say you're acquainted with a person you means, you know that person very well. It's not a casual visitor.

Jesus was acquainted with sickness. I Believe it and it's been a tremendous comfort for me so that I don't live in an unrealistic world that my Savior experienced headaches stomach aches sickness because he lived With a body that could die.

It's like asking do you think Jesus perspired when he was working as a carpenter, I don't know what you think. I believe he perspired like anything He because he was a hard worker. So if he was perspired perspiration is part of the curse on the body.

There was no curse on his spirit. But he died death is also part of the curse so When it says here, he was acquainted with sickness. I'm comforted by that and I say Lord. Why were you acquainted with sickness?

And the answer is Because he wanted to understand personally What other people go through when they are sick? Not know it theoretically. You know, God can have compassion on our weakness even without becoming a man.

But he could not have the feeling of our infirmities if he didn't become a man. This is one of the great truths that Jesus came in the flesh one of the things that People have fought against fought against fought against and that's the reason they don't get victory over sin.

But not only that. It's the thing that brings comfort to a true disciple to know that my Savior came in my flesh like mine. And experienced everything that I go through except sin. Everything else he experienced.

When people whipped him do you think he suffered pain? In my resurrection body if somebody whips me I will suffer no pain. But Jesus suffered pain did the blood flow? So he was exactly like us. The only thing missing in his life was sin.

Teaching us one wonderful thing that if we really seek to follow him and believe that he came like us and seek for the power of the Holy Spirit by which he lived we can also overcome sin and This is the thing that helped me more than 40 years ago when God opened my eyes to this truth.

That I need never be discouraged no matter what happens. I need never lose my temper. It may take time to overcome it, but I can come to the place where I never never lose my temper. That's a hope and the devil wants to rob us of that hope.

No, no, no, you will always lose your temper. You will always get discouraged. You'll never get victory. Those filthy thoughts will Slave you and slave you till ever and ever. That's a lie and in the church, we are called to expose the lie of the devil and We expose it by saying that Jesus Christ my Savior came in my flesh and experienced everything I go through and He never sinned.

The only thing I'm I want to avoid in my life is sin. Anything that I believe discouragement and anger are sinned. I believe sexually dirty thoughts are sinned and Jesus never had them. He was tempted.

And he never had them and you and I will be tempted. But the wonderful truth is that we can be overcomers as we look to him looking unto Jesus we run this race and in sickness to to know that he was acquainted with sickness enabled me to Understand why you know very often we pray Lord Jesus heal me and we believe he hears our prayer and many of you have experienced this.

God’s Purpose in Delayed Answers

That the healing doesn't come immediately. Some of us have experienced sickness for a long time and we are not healed. I'll tell you I prayed every single day of this week I'm still not fully recovered.

I Keep coughing and coughing and started with a cold. But I prayed I even laid hands on my head and prayed and I asked others to pray for me. So, what is it does Jesus answer a prayer immediately or not, I'll tell you something.

Jesus seeks our eternal good. Not our temporary good. That's why he allows some of you to lose your jobs. Why should he allow that? Why does he allow us to go through certain difficulties in life which We could he could easily save us from one.

I'll tell you two reasons one it is to make us a little more like him. To detach us a little more from this world and also To enable us to have compassion for others who are suffering. You can never if you never experience sickness in your life.

You'll never be able to Sympathize with someone else who's sick. You can go and pray for that person, but you won't but you need to have a little experience of what he's going through for example when the Lord doesn't answer your prayer immediately you pray and pray and pray and pray for something or Number of days nothing happens.

You can understand what someone else is going through who's probably prayed for something for six months and Something which God could have answered immediately and he doesn't. But who who at the end of it you can still say no.

My Lord is faithful. I will not like Job said you know. Even if he slays me I will trust in him. What a verse that is let me turn you to book of Job and See something interesting that he said over there Job 13 and verse 15 that's a great verse for a man who had no Bible.

No Holy Spirit No fellowship No meetings for him to say something like this. Even if he slays me Job 13 15 I Will hope in him. I will trust him. I want to ask you my brother Sister, can you say that? Particularly when you're going going through deep pain or suffering of some sort.

You know that which God can relieve in a moment, and he doesn't. And you wonder why? Can you say well? I don't know the answer to that. I'm not God. I don't know the answer. But I know that even if he kills me I Will still die trusting in him.

See that's what the martyrs Have always said see the difference between John the Baptist who was the greatest prophet in the Old Testament and When he was in he held on in faith until he was jailed by Herod.

When he was jailed by Herod, do you know that John the Baptist began to lose his faith? Why did he lose his faith? Because God had protected him from all evil out there in the wilderness and here was an earthly King just locking him up in a jail and And why didn't the Lord release him that's the question in John the Baptist mind.

So he sends some of his disciples to Jesus. You read in Matthew 11. They went to Jesus and said Are you really the Messiah? Or do we have to wait for the Messiah still to come who is asking this question?

The man who saw heard the voice from heaven. Saying this is my beloved son in whom I'm well-pleased imagine if you had heard a voice from heaven over Jesus would you ever doubt that he's a Messiah and Not only heard the voice from heaven he saw the dove coming down and resting upon him and At the end of it he doubts it.

Sometimes we think if I if I see Jesus once in my life physically, I'll never doubt him again my life. Don't be so sure. Our flesh is so deceptive so John the Baptist loses faith, but New Testament Saints Have been in jail for 15 -20 years.

I'm not lost faith. You read of people like Richard Wurmbrand and others they Trusted the Lord till the end and some of them died in jail. How were they better than John the Baptist? I don't think they were greater than John the Baptist in That devotion to cry to the Lord.

But they have the Holy Spirit in them which John the Baptist did not have. To me that is the greatest proof that the greatest prophet in the Old Testament Did not have the Holy Spirit inside him. And so he lost faith just because he was jailed and Jesus did not Release him, but in the new covenant Those are filled with the Holy Spirit.

Even if they are jailed for 50 years. Say Lord, we trust you think of these martyrs who went to the stake being burnt. They would die singing songs or thrown to the lions. They never lost faith and So these things encourage us tremendously.

What about us do you lose faith when? Some little prayer you prayed Didn't get answered in one week or didn't get answered in six months. Take courage from these people who have stood true to the Lord through many years.

Job’s Confidence in God’s Hidden Work

See this other verse in Job and chapter 23 verse 10. Job 23 verse 10. It says he knows the way that I take. The Living Bible paraphrase of that is he knows every detail of What is happening to me? There are two very important verses in the book of Job, which I just showed you.

Though he kills me. I'll trust him and the other is this one in the Living Bible. He knows every detail of what is happening to me. And Job said that when he had lost his children lost his property And was sick with sore boils probably leprosy.

And sitting there outside the gate. It's probably leprosy because he couldn't sit in his house. He had to sit outside the gate Scratching himself. He says He knows every detail of what is happening to me.

Amazing that a man under not even under the old covenant who Will live before Moses Could say that it's a tremendous challenge to me. Lord, would I be able to say that? If I lost all my children and lost all my property and money and on top of that I got leprosy.

And I'm put outside. But people don't want to talk to me and I sit there scratching myself and say My lord knows every detail of what is happening to me. How little it takes for us to question God? To doubt him to complain.

When we have these great examples of men in the bible who went through even in the old covenant who went through much more And said they would trust him. And the wonderful thing is in the new covenant.

It's a step further than job 23 10. Job 23 or 10 only says he knows Every detail of what is happening to me but romans 8 28 says He makes those details work for our good. That job did not know. Job only said god knows everything happening to me.

That itself is a tremendous comfort. To know that my heavenly father knows every detail of what is happening, but imagine the greater comfort it is when you realize That he's making those very things Which appear to be harmful?

To work for our good. Romans 8 28. We know. And there's a very important statement. It's not don't start with. God causes all things to work together for good. That is what many people say. It's right.

But you should be able to say I know. That's how it begins. I know. It's a confession of faith. I know that god causes everything to work for good to those who love him. And who are called according to his purpose.

And that purpose is mentioned in verse 29 That we might be conformed To the image of god's son that is the good. The good is not that I Get a better job or marry a better girl or boy or get more money.

No, the good is The greatest good that god can ever do. And that is you see this is the verse that teaches me john romans 8 28 and 29. That when god talks about good Doing good to me. He's not talking about increasing my salary.

He's not even talking about healing me. He's not talking about giving me a better house. Or many of you a better marriage partner. No. He is talking about making us like jesus christ because god says that is the greatest good That I can do to any human being.

And when you come to know the lord you will agree with god. I agree with god completely today. I say heavenly father the greatest good you can ever do to me Is make me like jesus christ. Not give me a ministry.

Ministry and all is secondary. You're not going to have any ministry in heaven. You don't get taken up with trying to be a preacher or an elder or ministry. These are all worldly pursuits. If you're really a serious new covenant christian Your one passion will be make me like jesus.

Wealth, Ministry, and Becoming Like Christ

That is the greatest good that god almighty can do to you. And I say to you there are many things in the world. They'll distract you from it. One of the biggest things is the pursuit of money. Cfc was full of 10 or 12 people.

Or maybe 20 30 people in the early days very poor. Most of them who came walking by bus to the meeting. One or two by bicycle. That's how we started but look at our State today. How many cars there are in the parking lot?

You think that has made us more spiritual? I'm not against it. There's nothing wrong in a higher salary. Cost of living goes up to earn more. I'm, not saying you'll become spiritual if you ride a bicycle or ride a scooter.

But I say that wealth has a strange power. To draw us away from god. That's what I say. And if you're not careful It will draw you away. As long as we live in the world, there'll be snakes. But we must be careful.

Wealth will come. We must be careful. A snake cannot make you unspiritual. May bite you. Maximum kill you. Physically, but wealth Can destroy you. The pursuit of it. Or sitting back and relaxing because I have so much.

Whereas in the olden days You need to pray. Say god. I need you. I'm just saying be careful. Because that has a tremendous power. Jesus himself said You cannot love god and money. And the great danger when we have more and more is To love money more And to pursue it.

So we have to be careful. The greatest good that god can do to you Is not give you a better job Or make you wealthy or more comfortable. God may do all of that. But it's to make you like jesus christ.

And I want to urge you my dear brothers and sisters Never never lose sight of that. When people treat you badly. Or you didn't get what you wanted Or you lost something precious. Or you're suffering in a way that you can't understand and suffering is going on and on and on and on.

Physical or emotional or mental or financial whatever struggle. Remember this verse. The greatest good that god can do to you Is to make you like jesus christ. And if you love him See the promise in romans 8 28 is not for everybody.

It says those who love god And are called according to his purpose. Just two things Lord jesus. I love you more than anyone and anything on this earth. I love you more than my health. I love you more than my house my wife my husband Children.

I love you more than anyone and I want to fulfill your purpose in life those who love god and who are called according to his purpose. In other words those who say The only thing I want to do on this earth is to fulfill god's will in my life.

I don't want to come to the end of my life and discover That something god planned for me. I did not complete Because I went running after something else. Oh god save me from that. Because that will give me regret for all eternity.

I'll never be able to come back and do that which god wanted me to do. I'm, very conscious of that. I want to encourage you my brothers. Please turn to psalm 139. Psalm 139 Speaks about before we were born.

Verse 13 you formed my inward parts. You wove me in my mother's womb and When you were 16 You saw in my mother's womb you saw me not yet fully formed. But while I was in that unfully formed state unformed state.

In your book that is in god's mind whenever it speaks about god's book is god's mind. There was something written down in god's mind with my name all the days That were planned for me. When there was not even one of them means I was not even born.

Before my first earthly day. My entire life not just generally. Not just At 19 and a half. He must get converted. No, no, no, no, no the exact date every day. Every day what each way should be. My in my case anyway.

When he should leave the navy what he should do next and what he should do next. Where he should get frustrated. Where people should reject him and all types of things. It's all written down. I want to be in that place.

I don't want to be in some other place. If the lord says I'm supposed to be in a place one particular place where they'll call me a devil one day. I don't want to be in some other place where they call me a prophet.

I want to be in that place where they call me a devil. Do you want to do you want that? Do you want to be in the place where god wants you to be? Every single day no matter whether it is suffering or pain or ridicule or sickness or Rejection or people calling you bad names or misunderstanding you lord.

If that is the place you have planned in your book for me, that's where I want to be. I don't want to be in a more comfortable place. That's the wholehearted person. Who wants god's purpose for his life to be fulfilled.

God’s Plan and Calling for Every Day

I hope you will this is what we have preached. This is not something new. We preached for more for more than 40 years. But it needs to be repeated it needs to be repeated because I see. That many are drifting many who were once gripped.

Are drifting and i'm concerned that they are drifting. It's like a doctor who sees. The patient is sinking. We got to do something to restore him to health before he dies. Isn't that what a good doctor will do?

So what if it is the same medicine that we have given we've got to keep on giving the same medicine because he's got to recover. And so I have no hesitation in giving the same medicine preaching the same message again and again if it will make the patient recover.

And take life seriously. Dear brothers and sisters. Please believe there is a plan god has for your life. Not just a general plan. But every single day. Where you should be? Where you should not be. And make this your prayer lord every single day of my life I want to be where you want me to be.

And if you're passionate about it, i'll tell you something. All hell. And all the evil powers in the world will never be able to stop you from. Fulfilling god's will for your life every single day and when you come to the end of your life.

You'll be able to say with the apostle paul I have finished my course. Do you want to say that at the end of your life? I want to say that I want to give you the example of joseph. Even in the old covenant God had a plan for joseph's life and he gave him a little glimpse of it.

Sometimes we don't get a glimpse of it but I'll tell you why god gave joseph a glimpse of it because he didn't have a bible. He didn't have the holy spirit. So when people didn't have the bible and didn't have the holy spirit god spoke to them in visions and dreams.

But don't think that visions and dreams are superior to the scriptures. There are many christian groups. Where people get up and say I had a vision I had a dream. And that becomes like a competition. Somebody else says I also had I had two visions.

Somebody has somebody says he saw one angel. Nobody says I saw two angels. We are not in that competition. We believe that god's word where god speaks to us through the holy spirit. Is superior to any vision or dream?

Maybe I should show you that first. Please turn with me to numbers in chapter 12. Numbers chapter 12 you know, there was a time when Miriam and Aaron Criticized moses. Numbers 12. Well, they didn't call him an evil man or anything.

They only criticized him saying in verse one, why did you marry a non-jewish woman? It doesn't look like a criticism but it is. Why did you marry a kushite? A non-jewish woman one who's not a daughter of abraham isaac and jacob.

Moses didn't reply it says in verse three. He was more humble than anybody on the face of the earth. The only other person about whom that's written is jesus christ. The old testament moses was the most humble man on the face of the earth.

And suddenly. You know the lord heard it. Do you know that the lord hears what you speak against his servants? And the lord said to moses and aaron went you come here. I want to speak to you. Moses didn't defend himself.

The lord defended him. The lord came down and said. Now listen to me. He said to them to miriam and aaron you guys who are criticizing moses. I want you to hear something. He told them If there is a prophet among you prophet, that's a great thing to be a prophet in israel.

I will reveal myself to him in a vision. Or in a dream. But moses is not like that. He's not a prophet. He's more than a prophet. So I don't speak to him in visions and dreams. I speak to him face to face.

Mouth to mouth. Not in dark sayings like visions and dreams when he's asleep. He sees me. Middle of verse eight. He actually sees me. I speak to him face to face. That is like a new covenant experience that moses had.

Scripture, Dreams, and Hearing God’s Voice

May god speaks to us not through visions and dreams. But in our heart more clear than a vision and a dream. I'll tell you when the lord called me to leave my earthly job. Where I was doing very well and earning a huge salary on the 6th of may 1964.

I remember that date so clearly. And I remember where it was also. It was somewhere near bangalore. I never knew then that I would be living here. It was such a clear word to my heart. But i'll tell you honestly If I if the lord had spoken to me in a vision or a dream I would have had a doubt.

If in a vision the lord said to me leave your job. Or in a dream he said to me leave your job. I said well i'm not so sure. Is that the lord or is it the devil coming as an angel of light? Because the devil can also come like an angel of light.

How do I know who's telling me to leave my job? Is the devil telling me to leave my job and be stranded out there? Mess up my life. When i'm 24 years old. But it was not a vision it was not a dream. It was in my heart.

As if I had spoken to the lord face to face. I was so sure That I could go to the naval base and hand in my resignation immediately. I didn't have to think about. I didn't have to think about it. That's amazing how you can that when you really know the lord speaking to you in your heart through the holy spirit.

It is more clear Than a vision or a dream. So i'm not excited when people say they had visions or dreams because that is second level. It's what it says here. The second level people god says I speak in visions and dreams.

Yes, he does but with moses I speak in a new covenant way. He sees my face. And I speak to him mouth to mouth. That's what we need brothers and sisters. So in genesis 37 We read of a young man called joseph.

He hadn't come to moses level yet, but god spoke to him it says in Genesis 37 verse 5 god spoke to him in a dream and told him how Two dreams he had which showed that his brothers and all would bow down to him one day.

And He mentioned that to his parents. I don't know whether it was wise to mention it to his parents and his brothers. He probably should have kept it to himself. Because that provoked jealousy. Among his brothers, you know.

Sometimes when god says something to you. You're not supposed to tell others about it. I remember about. I think it was about one month before we were thrown out of the baptist church and That we were thrown out of the baptist church.

He and I in august 75 one month before that in july 75. When I was away on a trip. The lord spoke to me something so clearly. It wasn't a vision. It wasn't a dream. But it was words and about one page.

I wrote it down. And at the end of it the lord said don't tell anybody about anybody about this except your wife. So i've never told anybody till today. And it was a clear preparation For what was going to happen.

I didn't know exactly what would happen or when. But it was a preparation for What is going to happen that i'd be out and that I didn't know then it was going to be the birth of cfc. But it was such an encouragement that god spoke to me one month before that.

And I remember even before these Religious folk took us to court on some silly reasons months before that. The lord spoke to me. I think when I was in particharia somewhere. I remember that because I wrote it down.

Warning me that something was going to happen. And It sort of prepared me. It's a wonderful thing my brothers and sisters to learn. To listen to the voice of god. Don't look for visions and dreams. And i'll tell you the best way to learn to listen is get familiar with the bible see.

Don't ask god to speak to you in your heart. If you don't read what's written down in the bible I spent years soaking myself in the scriptures. And that's why I could hear god speaking in my heart and if you don't soak yourself in the scripture.

Don't expect god to speak to your heart. Then look for second rate level like dreams and Maybe a message on sunday morning or something like that. That's not the best. It's good. But it's nothing to equal god speaking to your heart develop that habit.

So because joseph heard this from god He was sure god is going to do something. And I believe that's what strengthened him, you know the story where he was Rejected sold into egypt. And he conducted himself.

Well when he was sold in the jail, he conducted himself. Well and Ultimately, even though it took 13 years He saw these dreams at the age of 17. 13 years later He became the second ruler in egypt. But in all those years the thing that didn't i'm sure what encouraged him.

Which enabled him to work in such a way that everywhere he went. When he was a slave potiphar said the lord is with him. When he was in jail, the chief jailer said the lord is with him. How did he have that?

Because he had in his mind god has shown me something. It's a wonderful thing when you've seen what god has planned for you. Get familiar with the scriptures. Then all these external things won't disturb you.

Joseph, Forgiveness, and God’s Providence

And that's why finally When his brothers came to him. They were starving. And they had to go to joseph for food. And joseph gave them plenty of food. And called his father and gave them the best part of egypt to live in.

How did he do all that good to these people who had done so much evil to him? Can you think of somebody Who has done evil to you? I mean imagine if a close relative of yours. A close friend of yours betrayed you and sold you as a slave.