Obtaining the Blessings of Christ — David Wilkerson

Thank you, choir, orchestra, thank you very much. On the way to church this morning, when I noticed all the cars lined up to get into the parking lots, and it just dawned the difficulty involved with many of you just getting here to Times Square Church.

If you come from New Jersey, you pay six dollars just to get through the tunnels. And now if you come from Long Island or Queens, Brooklyn, they're charging on the Brooklyn Bridge, Williamsburg, all of the bridges and tunnels.

That's going to cost five or six dollars. And then this church, you know, just to park a car, we have arrangements with parking lots all over here, and you're charged only a portion. In fact, I think it's free.

The church pays. We get about half price is what they charge. But you know, when you add up all the expenses, even those that are riding subways now and buses, that's going up to two dollars. That's two dollars in and two dollars home.

And it's getting very expensive to come to church. It dawned on me something. I said, I'm so glad that every pastor of this church has made up his mind, the nature of these men who walk with us, that they would never come to this pulpit empty and never come and give you fast food.

But when you came, you'd be fed. Now, you may like what you hear, but you're going to be changed. And so we make an effort that we'd have no throwaway services. A throwaway service is just, well, there's not been time to prepare.

So let's show a movie or let's just everybody get a testimony. There's always a word from this pulpit. I said, you may not like all that you hear to prepare you for what you're about to hear. I don't like everything I hear from God.

Convicts me, puts me on a conviction. And I thank God. I think that's an act of love. I think that's the love of God, the great love of God. It's really not that bad. There's a lot of grace here this morning.

The Fullness of Christ’s Blessing

Obtaining the fullness of the blessing of Christ, obtaining the fullness of the blessing of Christ. I want you to go to Romans, the 15th chapter, please. I want to read 15th chapter of Romans. Welcome to all our visitors.

Delighted to have you with us. We ask that the Lord feed you, convict you and change you, that you'll know that you've had an encounter with Christ as you attend here this morning. Next service is a three and then six.

We have no repeat services. These are all fresh word from the Lord in every service. 15th chapter of Romans, verse 29, Paul speaking. I hear the wrestling of leaves and in the annex, do you have it? No overflow rooms.

All right. Romans 15th chapter, verse 16, Paul speaking. I'm sure that when I come unto you, I shall come in the fullness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ. I read it again. And I'm sure that when I come unto you, I shall come in the fullness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ.

Heavenly Father, I thank you for the power of your word. We corrects us, how it encourages us and how it teaches us. And oh God, I ask you to do what you choose to do by your Holy Spirit for this morning.

I know Lord that you have touched my heart and convicted me by what I'm preaching this morning. This is birthed out of my walk with you and out of my talking with you. And this is what you laid on my heart.

I have no way of knowing who was brought here Holy Spirit this morning. I don't know where they sit. I don't know what the need is, but oh God, you chose to take this day and this message for this particular congregation.

Lord, I pray that you put your words in my mouth. Lord, keep me from speaking anything that is unlike you or unworthy of you. Lord, let it be anointed and I cross mark and bring change and healing quick in my body as I speak it in Jesus name.

Amen. Now, Paul writing to those believers in Spain, he said, I anticipate coming to you after I go to Jerusalem to deliver a gift that is given for the saints in Jerusalem. But he said, but when I come, I know, he said, I am sure there's no doubt in my mind that I'm going to come to you and I shall come in the fullness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ.

Now, immediately that implies that there are degrees, there are measures of the blessing of Jesus Christ. There are measurements. Some have, in fact, that's the goal Paul said is for us to come into a full measure of the Christ.

Others have a mediocre, some are just entering into a small measure of the gift of Christ. Paul said, but unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. In other words, all of us have been given a measure.

That's how you were saved. You were given a measure of the gift of Christ through faith. He said, we all come into unity of faith, the knowledge of the son of God to a perfect or mature man unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ and under the measure what he means of the magnitude of the blessing of Christ.

He said, there's a magnitude to it. There's such a fullness in Christ. It's available, but you have to pursue it. And to know the love of Christ, which passes knowledge that you might be filled with all the fullness of God.

Now that's the goal. Paul said that you and I, all of us may be filled. God's no respect to persons. He said, I want you to have the fullness of Jesus Christ. Paul writes that word fullness there means to complete the task of filling up to the full.

In other words, fill it up. There has to be a task that God has given us this task that we pursue the fullness of Jesus Christ. Paul writes, there's one Lord, one faith, one baptism, God and father of all who is above all.

And in you all God, the father, son, and Holy ghost alike abides in all his people. If you are saved, God, father, son, and Holy ghost abides in you. He said, we will come and make our abode in you. All God's children have been given grace according to their faith.

And this Paul, the apostle saying there should be a continual increase in the knowledge and the blessing of Jesus Christ in our lives. He said, the apostle says in Ephesians 319 to be filled with all the fullness of God.

Paul said he had a conscience void of offense toward God and man. He says, when I come to you, you're not going to hear a message from a man. You're not going to hear a sermon. He said, my conscience is clear.

There's no controversy between me and God. My life is an open book and I have been shut in with him. And when I come to you, you're going to know that you're hearing from God's throne. You're going to know that you're hearing from a vessel that has understood and known and experienced the fullness of God.

He said, I've not arrived yet. I've not attained, but there's a fullness in me and I come to you and I am sure I am positive. There's no doubt about it. When I come to you, I'm coming in the fullness of the gospel and blessing of the Lord Jesus Christ.

He said, there's no hidden sin in my life. There's no dark part so that I know that there is a flow of the blessing of God. Oh, I love to be around people who are living that kind of life. And you can tell there's an aroma of Christ.

They speak only of Christ. They're full of Jesus. And it's an amazing thing to be around them because there's evidence that the blessing of God is resting upon them, the blessing of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And it's ever increasing. The fullness of blessing has little to do with materialism. We're not talking about houses and cars and lands. We're talking now about God's commendation, God's well done. In other words, God looks on this child that is pursuing the fullness of Christ, wanting more and more of him, never satisfied, never.

There's a divine dissatisfaction because always reaching out for more of Christ, more intimacy, more revelation of his love and his power and of his severity also, because there's also severity about Christ.

Those who disobey purposely, never heeding the call to repentance. Now the God of peace, they're brought again from the dead, our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will.

Working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ to be glory forever and ever. That's the blessing, the well-pleasing unto Christ, that Jesus can look on your life and you know in your heart that he is saying, well done.

There is a sense that God gives you the Holy Spirit. I am well pleased with you, my son. I'm well pleased with you, my daughter, because there's nothing between us. There's nothing hindering those whose lives are well-pleasing unto God, have certain characteristics that they share with the Apostle Paul.

The Apostle Paul had this aroma of Christ through his intimacy with the Lord. These people that I'm speaking about that have the blessing of Jesus Christ in their lives, they enjoy life, there's joy in their hearts, but there's no foolishness.

They don't talk the conversation of the world. They have set their mind, they will never give up the work that God has called them to do. There's no sense of giving up, there's no sense of despair. Now, Paul said there's a despairing, but there's never a quitting, there's never giving up.

There's always the resources there because of the time spent with Christ and the desire and hunger for him. There's always resources that are flowing, there's a constant flow. It's the blessing flow. Now, the blessing flow of the prosperity preachers today is not the blessing of Jesus Christ.

God loves to bless his people materially. Yes, God did like, God's not jealous of the kind of car you have or the house that you live in and all the blessings. But I've known very poor preachers, I've known poor people who have great blessings of Christ, marvelous blessings and revelations of Jesus Christ having nothing to do with materialism.

Hindrances to Spiritual Fullness

The purpose of this message this morning is to expose that which hinders a believer from coming into the fullness of the blessing of Christ. What hinders? Paul said to the Galatians, you did well. Who did hinder you that you should not obey the truth?

This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you, because a little leaven is the whole lump. He's talking about some kind of doctrinal belief. He's talking about some kind of theology. He's talking about some kind of mindset that has come into the church that he's addressing.

And he said, what's happened to there's something now that's hindering you. You were doing well. He's talking to a praying people, a believing people, those who are doing good works. These are not unbelievers.

These are not wicked people. These are praying people. These are those who have known a measure of the blessing of Christ. Paul comes to them, said something is wrong. You're not growing. He said, you're leaning now on the flesh.

You're going back to things of the flesh. And I don't sense the aroma that I once sensed. There's something going on in your life. Paul said, you were doing well. Who hindered you that you should not obey the truth?

He's saying, what is this that has crept into your life? This persuasion, because that's this persuasion means a convincing argument. He said, you've been convinced by an argument that's not of God. There's something of a gospel alteration.

There's something of falseness that has crept into your spirit. And now you can't grow. You cannot increase in the knowledge and the blessing of Jesus Christ. He said, you labor. In other words, you labor diligently, but the fullness isn't there.

The certainty is not there anymore. That clarity, that clearness, that fullness is not there. Beloved, there are so many godly praying saints that have been so mightily used of God in the past that something happens, a hindrance comes, and the Holy Ghost is saying this to you.

Who has hindered you? What is this? Who and what is it that has come to hinder you from going on into fullness, into the flow of sin, where you live without guilt and without condemnation, without fear?

You can look any Christian in the eye. You can look a prophet in the eye. You can look Christ in the eye. And you know, you know that you know that I come to you in the fullness of the blessing of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I come in fullness. It's often just one besetting sin. There's been victory in every area of life. There's been victory over one thing after another. You have seen, you've witnessed God's hand. You've seen his forgiving grace.

But something is crept in, and it's there, and you've made peace with it. It's there. And usually, oh, folks, I've seen it in the ministry. I've seen it among pastors who have been mightily used of God.

But something creeps in, and it leavens the whole lump, and it stops the spiritual growth. It's fear and condemnation and guilt. Usually, it's if there was victory in this one area, if this one thing, and usually it's that unwillingness to go all the way and deal with this one issue, this one matter, this one bit of leaven remaining that keeps multitudes and pastors from entering into the fullness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ.

Elijah’s Failure Before Jezebel

Elijah was a godly praying prophet, a mighty voice in the land. He shared the grief of God's heart. I, he's one of the prophets that I so enjoy reading about his life. But I believe Elijah was hindered from coming in to the fullness of the blessing of God.

Now, I'm not saying this man had sinned, but he failed in his mission. There is no possible way to justify the actions of Jeremiah. I mean, Elijah, I'm speaking of Elijah, the prophet, Elijah. I, I'm not going to rehearse the whole story.

You know it on Mount Carmel, how he called fire down out of heaven, assumed to sacrifice, and they slew all of the prophets of Baal. And he prays, and the rains begin to, to come. And you remember he tells Ahab to eat, rise up, eat, and get to Jezreel because there's the sound of abundance of rain.

And the spirit of God comes on Elijah, and he outruns the church of Jezreel. And I want to pick up the story. I want you to go with me, if you will, to first Kings, 19th chapter, first Kings. We're talking about that which hinders coming into the fullness of the blessing.

19th chapter, first Kings. Folks, the Israel has repented. They've turned to the Lord. And I want you to know that they, they had not yet probably arrived back in Jezreel. That's the capital, and that's the home of Jezebel.

In verse 19, chapter 19, beginning to read in verse 1, and Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done with all how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah saying, so let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time.

When he saw that, he rose in his life and came to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there. And he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness and came and sat down under juniper tree, requesting for himself that he might die, and said, it is enough.

Now, O Lord, take away my life, for I'm not better than my father's. Now, I want you to know the Bible says the hand of the Lord was on Elijah. The hand of the Lord means eating of the Lord. So we know that the Spirit of God was hurrying this man to the city, the capital city, where Jezebel was reigning over all idolatry, the idolatry of Baal.

All of her priests had been slain. So we know that he's on a devotion. He stood on Mount Carmel. Remember, he said, Lord, let them know that everything I do is at your word, at your word. You have what I do.

You told me when I was in prayer. We know there's no question that God sent him to Jezreel. Jezebel threatens to kill him, and he arose and fled for his life. Now, I disagree with almost all the commentaries I've read on this.

Some of them say that God really never intended him to face Jezebel. He'd already accomplished his purpose on Mount Carmel. Others say, well, he ran not because he was afraid, but he ran because God was going to take him into the wilderness and teach him lessons.

That misses the point entirely. I'm telling you now, God sent him to kill Jezebel. He was to kill Jezebel. Why kill all of her children, her priests, and not kill the mother of the sin? Why not get to the heart, get to the issue?

Why take off the branches and not get to the root? God was not about to let Jezebel raise up another body of children of Jezebel. Now, Jezebel—now, listen closely, please. Jezebel is a symbolic name. In Hebrew, it means chaste, with a question mark.

In other words, chaste means not clean, evil. And God was not about to have a revival up in the mountain and just drop it. He had a man that was on fire, he had a mountain that was on fire, and no question about it, had he marched into that city after a night of prayer, he would have had thousands of those around him.

Jezebel could have never gotten to him. And a man who opened the rivers with his mantle, a man who called fire from heaven, a man who was fed miracles, lived in miracles, would have seen another miracle.

But God was trying to get at the mother of the sin. He was getting to get to master bosom sin. Otherwise, she would have raised up another core of priests, and the revival is in vain. God sent Elijah to cast down the priests.

Now, who were these priests? These were not imported immigrants. No, no, no, no. There's no proof of that anywhere in the scripture. The Bible said they were seduced. I'm going to prove to you they were seduced, were people of Israel who were seduced by her gospel of promiscuity.

Some writers, a number of writers don't believe that Ahab's wife was really named Jezebel, but that was an epitaph, a degrading epitaph, because of her hated actions. The Bible's full of these epitaphs, like Sodom represents, even today, sodomy.

You get all of these words that are evil represented by this epitaph. Also, Antichrist, there's not an individual alone, but a spirit. Jezebel is a spirit. It is still, she is still, Jezebel is still, this spirit is still at work in the church of Jesus Christ.

The spirit is still there. Elijah had a history with the Lord. He'd been trained to hear God's voice, the amazing authority this man had, and he appears on the scene and tells the servant of Ahab, go tell your king Elijah's here.

Or when I read that, what authority, what power this man had, and now he's running for his life in fear. He's running in fear. Now, folks, Elijah wasn't God. He wasn't divine. He was human, and the Bible never tries to whitewash the failures of even his chosen servants like David and Moses and all of those chosen men because they were human, and these are lessons we're to learn from.

He sure hasn't hidden mine until I die. Mine are opened before the eye of the Holy Ghost, and all those things in our lives unlike him have been opened, and God is opening something to us here now. I want to prove to you that there's an issue here.

There's an issue. God says if you're going to come into the fullness, you've got to kill Jezebel. You have got to get part of the issue of anything that is of idolatry, anything that is of sin, Jezebel's wickedness, uncleanness, and it speaks primarily of fornication and adultery, both spiritual and physical.

Jezebel in the Church at Thyatira

I want you to go to Revelation 2, Revelation 2nd chapter, the beginning of verse 18, and unto the angel of the church at Thyatira write, these things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like brass.

Now, folks, listen, when we talk about these churches of Asia that God is addressing, Christ is addressing, we're not talking just about dispensations. We're talking about churches. We're talking about individuals.

The body of Christ is made up of members or individuals, and so you have to narrow it down to the individuals who are members of every church, and it speaks to me. It speaks to you. It speaks to all of us.

To the angel of Thyatira, and he comes now with his eyes on fire, and his feet like fine brass have just come out of the fire. I know thy works in charity and service and faith, patience, works, the last to be more than the first.

In other words, what you're doing now is far greater than that which you started. You're increasing in works. Notwithstanding, I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants, to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.

And I gave her space to repent of her fornication, and she repented not. Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her, the great tribulation, except the repent of their deeds.

I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am he which searches the reins and hearts, and I will give unto every one of you according to your works. I will give unto every one of you according to your works.

Jezebel was not just some female prophetess standing up in church and teaching the ways and means of fornication and 10 ways to hide your adultery. That's not what the Bible is saying. There's a spirit.

There's a spirit right out of hell, a Jezebel spirit, and the spirit is teaching people to eat the filth served to idols. Now, folks, this is speaking of indoctrination, something that has been put into the mind, and it's nothing from God.

It's in the church, but it's not of God. And I want you to listen closely to me now, please. There's no greater source of indoctrination than television and internet on the face of the earth worldwide.

You say, well, here Pastor Dave goes again on television. God's saying something here. He said, every church is going to know. Every individual in my church is going to know where I stand. He said, I'm going to make it clear.

I'm coming to you with eyes of fire and I've loved you and I'm a man of God of grace and mercy. This is Christ. This is not an old Testament prophet speaking. This is the red letter. This is Jesus Christ, the son of God, speaking to his church, speaking to you and speaking to me.

And I say the church of Jesus Christ today from the ministry on down is being corrupted. I am being corrupted to the point where God's people can come to his house and sing and shout and talk in tongues and go home without any shame and what sex in the city and the Sopranos.

I've never seen them. I don't have television, but I read about it. The filth, the incredible filth, that which is absolutely incubated in hell. And when I read the letters of those who write and confess of this from the filth they're watching on the internet, the leaven, an interview in New York Times with the one of the most famous young actors in America today did a movie called Titanic.

And I've not seen that. And they asked him, are you into pornography? And his answer summed up like this. He said, no. And I'll tell you why. Because those who are involved in pornography, they can't think anymore because it takes over your mind.

And he said, anyone who has an actor, any professional person, they get up, they've got 200 films raging and pictures and scenes in their mind and they can't think. He says, I'm not into that. Can you say that?

What kind of movies do you bring home and put into your little box? And you see, it begins to wear down the mind. It's the spirit of Jezebel of seduction. He said, seducing my children into fornication.

And you can't get away from in the original Greek, it means fornication includes adultery. Adultery, fornication. And Jesus said, if you think in your mind and you look with lust, you are guilty. He said, you do good works.

You're full of charity and service. You have faith. But I have something against you because you allow that woman Jezebel, which calls herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, to eat things, sacrifice to idols.

I gave her space to repent of her fornication. She repented not. Folks understand this, get it. God's speaking so clearly to my own heart. And he's saying, look, this issue that you're not dealing with, if there's an issue there, he said, I've been patient with you.

I have sent prophets. I have sent messages. How patient I've been with you. Remember 10 times he was so patient with Israel, 10 times they provoked him. How God spoke and how God even sent signs of judgment and experiences of judgment, dealing with them kindly and loving.

Oh, we have a loving, patient heavenly father. We have a Christ who endures and endures. But he said, I gave you space. I gave you time to deal with this. And the reason I want you to deal with it, I want you to come into my fullness.

I don't want you to live like paupers. I want you to have my resources. And I don't want you to be overcome by the powers of hell and darkness in this last day. I want to use you. I want to make you effective in the kingdom of God, but I can't do it.

I have something against you. There's a controversy between you and me, and I can't do it until you deal with it. How many times have God told you to deal with what you watch and what you hear and what you do?

How many times has the Holy Ghost in love put his finger on something? He's just put his finger and he said, this is the one thing, just this one thing. And if you stop, you can't even think of anything else that it could be.

But the Holy Ghost, because he loves you, will put his finger on it. He will show you, he will expose it. I've been in the presence of the Holy Ghost at times when I couldn't think of anything, and I sit there and said, Lord, I sense that there's something hindering.

I don't have that flow of revelation. I don't have that aroma in me. I don't have it. There's something, Lord, show me, and then the Holy Ghost will lead me in his scripture and show me. Just like my son Gary in this pulpit last Tuesday, he said there's something missing in my message.

All afternoon, he said, Lord, there's something messy. There's something wrong. This is just a sermon. I want it to be a message. And the Lord said, yes, Gary, there is a controversy. You're 30 pounds overweight and I've told you to deal with it for your health's sake, for your testimony's sake, and I've told you I want you to do this.

And God had been dealing with him for eight months. In fact, he stood in front of his whole staff months before and confessed that God had told him. And then he'd come in eating these sugar pops and popcorn ice bars and he said, well, God's given me a license to do this, you know.

That may sound like to you, and I'm not speaking against anyone who is overweight, God forbid, but this is an example that God will show you. The Holy Ghost will show you that one thing that keeps you from entering into the fullness of the blessing of Jesus Christ.

You see, he was called to be an instrument. Elijah was called to be an instrument to bring down the very heart of this matter that held back the full blessing on Israel. You allow that Jezebel woman to teach and seduce my servants to commit fornication, eating things sacrificed to idols.

Fear, Sin, and the Call to Repentance

Now consider the awful consequences of allowing Jezebel to live. Jezebel is that one issue, the one bosom sin. He said, I'll cast her into a bed. That root means when you're the root Hebrew word is I'll put you to flight and you'll wear it down.

You'll always be running in fear. You will wear it down. I'm going to cast you into a bed of weariness. There'll be fear of exposure. I'm going to cast into a bed, Jezebel's bed of fear. And folks, that's the consequences of not allowing the Holy Spirit to take you all the way in to a total victory through the covenant of Jesus Christ.

He said in great tribulation and the Greek, the Greek rather pressure, trouble, depression. And I will kill her children with death, except they repent. You see, when you make a covenant with your sin, you won't deal with it and you've made peace with it.

And you see, if you allow yourself to indulge in something and you, you don't get convicted now, you're not convicted by it. Comfortable. And the Jezebel spirit comes to you and says, well, you've got to have some recreation.

You've worked hard. You deserve, you deserve a little recreation. And this is a day of grace and God is not that hard. He's not as hard as David Wilkerson. It's a day of grace. And if you do sin, you can run to the cross and run to the blood and quickly, you know, Jesus, forgive me and go to bed.

No, you see, there's a seduction taking place by Jezebel spirit, Jezebel spirit. God said, you're being hindered from coming into the fullness of the blessing of God. And God tells us why he's speaking so severely that all the churches shall know that I am he which searches the reins in the hearts.

And I will give unto every one of you according to your works. Let's go back to Jezreel and Elijah. The Bible says in the New Testament, you've suffered Jezebel to live. And this is exactly what Elijah did.

He suffered or allowed Jezebel to live. I told you, I consider Elijah one of the greatest prophets in the Bible. And God loved this man. But I'm wondering if you're getting the point of my message this morning, that God, listen close to the God who saved you by his power through faith, the God who gave you power over many, many sins of the flesh, the God who's done so many miracles for you in the past.

It's the same God who has the power right now to deliver you from all the power of the enemy. You say, well, what was the failure of Elijah? Where did Elijah fail? Elijah failed in attributing to Jezebel more power than to God.

And he runs in fear. And there are Christians sitting here right now, and you don't have victory because you hear, you say what I hear so often. This is too big for me. I've got to have it in my life.

I have a sin in my life. I just, I pray, I fast, I do everything. I don't have the power. It's overwhelming. I give up. I can't make it. Giving more power to that spirit of Jezebel that holds you or threatens you and says, you're going down.

You're not going to make it. You're going to fail in spite of all of your faith. In spite of all your prayers, you're going to fail. You're going to fall. And the word of God to you is no. My word says sin shall not have power or dominion over you.

Jezebel has no power. Her power is just in your mind. Elijah runs away. Have you ever thought of running away? Oh, there should be an amen from everyone in this building. You see, most people run away, don't go anywhere.

Because running away is a frame of mind. It's what the David say, oh, that I had wings like a dove and I'd fly to some wilderness and hide. Jeremiah said the same thing, but he said, oh, that I had a cottage in the wilderness that I could escape this people.

He was tired of people. He'd given up on the church. God help us never to give up on the church. Or his people. And here's Elijah running in fear. And folks, the scripture is clear. David said, I will fear no evil.

And the only way your habit holds you or sin holds you or this one issue, this hindering thing in your life is because of fear, because you will not trust what the Holy Ghost has said. The Holy Ghost says, and this is the new covenant for everything I demand of you, this walk of purity, this walk of love, where you are free to grow.

You're free to come into the fullness of Christ. The Holy Ghost has promised you all the enabling power that you need. And the only thing that you lack is faith, faith to believe that what God said is true, that if you will take it and say, God, this is bigger than me.

I'm not going to I'm not going to sit around and cry about it anymore. I'm not going to weep over it. I've had enough tears. It didn't my tears didn't wash away anything. You have no inner strength and power yourself, but God will not do it without you saying, I want to be free.

I want nothing standing between me and the Lord, nothing between me and the fullness of the blessing of Jesus Christ in my life. And that's when the Holy Spirit comes with amazing strength and power, amazing resources.

God said, I've never asked you to do anything unless I have promised to fulfill all the strength, the authority and power you need to overcome. You have it if you'll just trust him and believe God for it this morning.

Hallelujah. I find this story before I close. I find in this story some of the greatest compassion, the love of God anywhere in the Bible. He's running and he finally ends up in the wilderness under juniper tree, falls asleep.

He's depressed, asleep of heaviness. The angel of the Lord, God sends an angel and wakes him up and he says, Elijah, get up and eat. And there on hot coals, fire, there's a baked cake and there's a cruise of water.

He eats and drinks, goes right back to sleep. I would think of an angel if I woke up and there's an angel talking to me, hard to go back to sleep. But this man is so down, so depressed, he goes right back to sleep.