New Covenant- the First Body of Christ -Part 6 — Zac Poonen

Provision and Protection Under the New Covenant

Provision, like he provided for Jesus here, for all the expenses he would have in Egypt. But protection also, provision and protection. Isn't that wonderful? I can't understand why anybody would not want to live this life.

These are earthly needs. Does God care for our earthly needs under the new covenant? Sure. Does God protect us from earthly enemies who try to kill us? Sure. How could Jesus die as a baby when he has to die when he's 33 and a half?

How can you die if you've surrendered your body to God before God's time? The whole world, nobody will be able to kill you. No. And if God sees that you're going to come into a situation where you're going to face, you know, famine or starvation or anything, God will send some rich man along with gold and frankincense or myrrh or whatever it is that you need to support yourself.

Living by Faith as the Church

It's a life of faith. That's how the church is supposed to live. That's how the church is supposed to grow, you know. When I think of how the Lord has led us as a church, I mean, do you know when we started way back 32 years ago, I remember days when in our offering box we had two rupees.

That's it. That was a total offering in the offering box that Sunday. That's all we needed. We didn't need more than two rupees that week. So he gave us two rupees. We haven't changed our policies on that through the years.

We never sent reports or asked anybody or told anybody what we're doing or any such thing. But as the needs increased, yeah, we find people come along with the gold and the frankincense and myrrh. He's the same today as he was for that first body of Christ that was born in Bethlehem.

And likewise, through the years, many of you may not know, so many people have tried to kill us. I mean spiritually and attack us and take away this building and all types of things. You think God doesn't know that?

He's made provision for that too. He takes care of everything. What a wonderful life this new covenant life is. What a lot we can learn from the example of Jesus as he was lying there so helpless. I mean, when you're grown up at least you're smart, you can be alert, you can be...

God’s Care for the Helpless

What about a helpless baby like Jesus? How could he do anything? And some of you may say, well, I'm not so smart, I'm not so capable. I don't know anybody influential and I'm pretty helpless. Well, you're like Jesus when he was a baby, right?

Who took care of him to teach us that it doesn't matter if you're helpless. It doesn't matter if you're not smart. It doesn't matter if you don't know influential people. Which influential people did Jesus know?

With whom did Joseph know? He had God. That's the way we're supposed to live. And I want to say another thing. It's not just... It's not that God is... I told you, God's not against the poor. He's not against the rich.

He loves all of them. And neither is he against those who have studied a lot. You know, because there was a great scholar also who found Jesus. And that was Simeon. You know, it says in Luke chapter 2.

Simeon, Anna, and Recognizing Christ by the Spirit

I want you to see that. He was another person who found Jesus. So there are scholars like that who find the body of Christ also, if they are humble. That's the point. In Luke's Gospel chapter 2, we read about Simeon.

Verse 23, Luke 2, 23. There was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. And this man was righteous and devout. Yeah, not every scholar. But those who are righteous and devout, looking for the Messiah, looking for Jesus.

And the Holy Spirit was upon him. And he came to the temple one day. He came in the spirit. Verse 27. What a wonderful way to come to church. It says he came in the spirit. I'll tell you, there's a lot of difference when you come in the spirit to the church and when you don't come in the spirit to the church.

If you had gone that day not in the spirit, you would have seen all those babies here that missed Jesus. Can you remember days when you came in a bad mood to the church and you missed meeting the Lord altogether?

Don't let it ever happen again. He came in the spirit to the temple and he saw so many babies being dedicated. And the Spirit of God said, That one there. See that one, that poor family there? Holding that baby.

That's the Messiah. He looked just like any other baby. The Holy Spirit led him. That's how the Holy Spirit leads people to the body of Christ. In the midst of so many churches. Which is the body of Christ?

In the midst of so many babies that day in the temple. Which one is Jesus? You got to have the Holy Spirit on you. Then you'll know. And there was another woman also there who met Jesus. See, men and women, men and women.

Doesn't make a difference whether you're rich or poor. Doesn't make a difference whether you're Jew or Gentile. And it doesn't make a difference whether you're a man or a woman. Because it says here that there was an old lady, verse 36, called Anna, now daughter of Fanuel.

Her husband died seven years after she was married, verse 36. And then she was a widow to the age of 84. And she was always fasting and praying. I tell you, God meets with those who fast and pray. It's another thing we see.

People fast and pray looking for Jesus and God leads them to the right place. God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. These are the people who found Jesus. Man or woman, doesn't make a difference.

But they're holy, devout, they fast, they pray. They're seeking for God. They're not seeking for things on earth.