Obedience and the Way of the Cross — Zac Poonen

Witnessing for Christ Through a Life of Faithfulness

We must be witnesses for Christ. I have proved the Lord for 57 years as his child. Never been disappointed. I'm not selling anything and I'm not trying to sell Christ by saying that but it's the absolute truth.

I Have never in these 57 years Found a problem for which there is no answer in the Word of God There is an answer for every problem I have faced in 57 years. Exactly 50 years ago in May 1966 God took me out of my job in the Navy and the last 50 years I Have been serving the Lord full-time and I don't Do that for money.

I support myself like all our workers and And 41 years ago. We started a church in our home and there is the reason for that was The pre after I left my job. I went around I didn't know much. I was only 26 years old and I Did what I thought was Christian work preaching on the streets and the buses and trains and whenever I got an opportunity and I'd be invited here and there and And God gave me a gift to speak and I was preaching traveling here and there just as a itinerant visiting preacher and I found that there was no lasting result.

You know, I'd go to some place. I remember one place where I went for 23 days of meetings and it was like a revival. And so many people testified and all that but I went back to the same place one year later.

And they were having court cases against each other and I saw this in so many places and I said Lord This is not what I want to do. I don't want to spend my life Having temporary boosts of revival and then you go back next year.

There's nothing there. So I resigned from every Christian organization. I was in I Did not go for any more Travel preaching internationally or in India or anywhere. I was invited to places. And I started meeting in my home.

We started as two families 41 years ago. I Said I want to build something that lasts forever. You know if I were living in Noah's time, I wouldn't be building my house. I'd be building the ark. Because I know that that's the thing that I live in a rented house and build the ark.

Because I I want to spend my time with that's gonna last forever if I was convinced What God said about the ark and today Jesus has said I will build my church one. John 2 17 says he who does the will of God will remain forever and The things of the world will pass away and say Lord.

Well, I want to do something that's gonna last forever and so I wanted to build a local expression of the body of Christ and There were certain promises like if you seek the kingdom of God first and his righteousness all the other things will be added to you.

We wanted to prove that Initially for two years when I was single. Without ever expressing my needs to anyone without sending reports anywhere. That I would trust God and God would take care of my needs when we got married and when he had a child.

We had to prove God as a family. We were very poor. I Couldn't even afford house rent, but we decided we'd never get into debt. Well, that would be a disgrace to God. I'll tell you why. To walk as Jesus walked means for me.

Anyway, I don't judge any of you who borrow but for me It was I wouldn't get into debt because I can't imagine Jesus going to someone. Hey to someone say hey. Can you lend me some money? My heavenly father let me down.

So please let me borrow something from you. I'll return it. Does that sound right? I can't imagine Jesus ever saying that so I said Lord I'm not gonna go to somebody and say my heavenly father. Let me down.

Is this is Jesus heavenly father my heavenly father, too. You know if the richest man in the world Whoever it is now if his son came to me and said hey brother Zach, can you lend me some money? I said you asking me for money and your dad is the richest man in the world.

Your father must have disinherited you that's why you're begging now, right? Otherwise, why would he ask me for money and here my father is the richest person in the universe. The only reason why I'd go asking for somebody else's money is my heavenly father disinherited me.

He has not disinherited me. I hope he hasn't disinherited you. So these were some principles that my wife and I followed of course. We lived very simply and God taught us to live extremely simply those days.

That is a very good discipline for us and those lessons we learned in those early years. We practice even today that we live simply even now it's a very important thing. The Bible says godliness with contentment is Great gain and in another translation of that is a very beautiful translation of that in one European language which says godliness with frugality is great gain.

Frugality means living very simply. I believe that is the difference between being Righteous in money matters and Faithful in money matters. There is a world of difference. Jesus was not just Righteous in money matters.

He was faithful in money matters. So when we think of having the mind of Christ one major area where we must have the mind of Christ is To be faithful with money. Jesus said in Luke and chapter 16 and verse 11 If you have not been faithful now, no read carefully not right.

It's not talking about being righteous. I think lots of believers are righteous in money matters. Righteous and money matters means I don't steal. I don't tell lies to make money. I don't borrow and not return.

It's permitted to borrow. The Bible doesn't say you shall not borrow. The Bible says Don't be in debt to anybody. God recognizes that in certain situations some believers Have to borrow now. In my case God gave me faith not to but I would not put that burden on any of you.

Live according to your faith. You know in Romans 14 says one man has faith for this. Another man has faith for only this you live according to your faith. And I want to tell you the Bible does not say don't borrow.

The Bible says in Romans 13 8 Don't owe anybody anything. That means if you do borrow in an emergency suddenly some sudden hospital bill or some Unexpected emergency and you need to borrow go ahead and borrow, but don't remain in debt pay it off as soon as possible.

Very very important. I remember a man from India a very poor man when he was converted. He said brother Zach What shall I do? I am so poor and I owe 30 ,000 rupees to people. I borrowed in my unconverted days, and I want to pay it all back, and I'm such a poor man.

I how can I pay back 30 ,000 rupees? It's a lot of money for a poor Indian. And I said can you pay back 10 rupees a month? Oh? I said sure. I said you know how long it'll take take you to pay back 30 ,000 rupees only 250 years.

You'll be able to pay it back. You're not gonna live 250 years. But if you keep paying it back paying it back. And you die in 10 years. God will accept it as if you've paid the whole thing because he saw your heart.

Because there's a beautiful verse in 2nd Corinthians 8 verse 12 you must all remember this verse. I have the habit of jumping from one verse to another, but it's very important to know God's Word. 2nd Corinthians 8 verse 12 says.

There is a willing mind then if the readiness is present then God accepts you according to what you have and Not according to what you don't have. So in other words. This is a very liberating verse you know.

Supposing you have a willingness to set something right, but you don't have the ability God will accept you according to that willingness. It's a liberating word because some of you may be in situations where you want to do something, and you can't do it for example.

Maybe you cheated somebody years ago. You don't even know where the guy is today. How in the world can you return it? Do you have a willing mind to do it forget about returning it put that money in the offering box.

That's what I suggest you can't keep it. You know that's why Zacchaeus he He said Lord half my money. I give to the poor and I wondered why in the world he did that I think it's because there were a lot of people he borrowed money from he didn't know where they were now.

But he said I can't keep it. It's not righteously earned money. I don't know where these people are how can I I'd like be glad to return it to them? But I don't even know their address. I don't know where they live.

I Can't keep it, so I'll give it to the poor and today. I would say put it in the offering box. Because all because there's a verse that supports it one Corinthians 10. It says verse 26 I think everything that the earth that is in the Lord on the earth belongs to the Lord.

So if I don't know if you find money on the street. You don't know whose it is put it in the offering box because everything ultimately belongs to the Lord, so I see that is Why I say if there's a willingness to be To do it if you don't have it doesn't matter.

Faithfulness With Money and the True Riches

So coming back to Luke 16 11 if you're not faithful With unrighteous mammon that is money. How will entrust the true riches to you, and I want to explain to you what the true riches are. The true riches are basically as I see it three things one Revelation on the Word of God that means I read scripture, and I don't just understand it.

I get revelation that changes my life. Not bright ideas revelation. Secondly the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Those are the true riches. We cannot really serve God without the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

I'll tell you this however gifted you may be however much of the Bible you you have. If you don't have the fire of the Holy Spirit All you'll have is a painted fire. That impresses people. But it won't set them on fire.

It won't warm them. It won't give them light. A painted fire can look like a fire from a distance. But it doesn't give any light, and it doesn't you know warm people. The third is likeness to Jesus Christ.

So true riches as I see it. I say Lord. I want revelation on your word. I Want my eyes to be open to see things that will change my life. I want the anointing of the Holy Spirit not just in a once-for-all experience.

But a continuous experience of the anointing upon my life. I seek for it every day. When I get up to speak I say Lord give me the gift of prophecy. I believe you'll give it to me because the Bible says covet to prophesy like people covet for earthly things.

And Third the likeness to Jesus Christ because that is the ultimate purpose of God for all of us that we might be conformed to his likeness. Those are the true riches and If you want them Jesus says you have to be faithful with money and material things.

And Jesus was very faithful with material things. The mind of Christ in relation to money was Faithfulness not just righteousness. Of course. Jesus was perfectly righteous with money, which means he Didn't steal it and do anything unrighteous with money.

He never earned any money unrighteously. He never sold a table as a carpenter. That was not perfectly done. He didn't cover up bad jobs. If a table was slightly defective you tell the customer. This is a little defective.

There's a crack in the wood here, and you if you like you can pay a little less. Because this is not it's not perfect. If you don't want it I'll make another one for you. If you are happy with a slightly defective table pay less.

It was absolutely righteous and money matters and Faithfulness is more than that. Faithfulness means that even if I have plenty I Don't think that's all mine. Ah I've got so much now. I can do what I like with it.

No you can't it's God's. Why do you have to? Raise your living standard every time you get more money. I Didn't do it my wife, and I didn't do it. We acquired what was necessary for living but Then there was so many things that we didn't need we could live very simply.

Then we'd have a lot more money to be used for other things. To bless people with. To support ourselves so that we are not a burden on Society so that we are not a burden on our church. So that we could serve our church in Bangalore for 40 years without taking one cent from them.

We say we if we are faithful now if we were Extravagant in our expenditure it wouldn't have been possible. It always looking we'd always be looking for handouts or waiting for people to give us gifts or things like that.

So being faithful means more than being righteous. Please remember just because you have a lot of money doesn't mean you can spend it all on yourself. If you do you're not sinning. You're not sinning if you raise your standard of living, but I'll tell you.

You may not get revelation on God's Word as you should. You will get second-hand revelation. That means other people who have revelation will tell you things and you understand it. But it won't be your own and it may not change your life.

Secondly you may not have the anointing of the Holy Spirit the real anointing. Which can make your ministry whatever it is blessed. For example, I Had a great burden that I said Lord. I should never in my life preach a boring sermon not even once I'm not happy with sort of 90 Sermons that are anointed.

No, why should it be 90 was Jesus sermons only 90 anointed. Every one of them. He never opened his mouth without an anointing. I said Lord, can't I walk like you? What's he what's the use you're telling me in 1 John 2 6?

He who abides in him must walk as he walked if that is impossible. It is possible the same anointing That is upon him can be upon us. But it says in Hebrews 1 9 he loved righteousness and hated iniquity.

Therefore God is God has anointed him with the oil of gladness. So if we seek to love righteousness and hate iniquity, why will God not anoint you and me. We must have boldness. Paul once said to the Romans an amazing word.

He said I know that when I come to you Romans 15 Verse 29 I know. It's an absolute certainty. It's a great verse. I've used it myself many times, particularly when I'm feeling a bit down. I Don't allow myself to feel discouraged.

But pressures can become so much that can press you down and I say I refuse to get discouraged here. I Praise the Lord because he's on the throne. I never allowed the devil to discourage me. Temptations come try to put me down.

I say God is on the throne. Christ died for my sins. My sins are all forgiven. The devil's been defeated 2 ,000 years ago. Christ is coming back. The main things are okay. Some of these secondary things are not okay.

It doesn't matter. I Will only praise the Lord and I and sometimes in some situations I have to go and speak and you know, sometimes you're very tired and exhausted and I claim this verse if Paul can say I know That when I come to you, I will come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ if Paul can say that.

Why can't you say that those of you? You know, even if you're visiting a home To bless somebody or you're taking a small little house group meeting or invited to speak somewhere. Why can't you say that if your conscience is clear?

And you've confessed every known sin and your heart is right with God and with men your conscience is clear. You can say I know I will come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ, but you've got to be faithful with money.

Then you'll get the true riches not otherwise. And you've got to be faithful with your mouth. I Remember when seeking God for the anointing to minister the word God said be faithful with money and be faithful with your mouth.

Just two things. So I'd advise that and will give you the same advice God gave me anybody here you even you sisters. You're not called to preach or teach. But do you know the Bible says the sisters can prophesy.

Women can prophesy with their head covered as we just heard but prophecy is not just in a church service. No, you can prophesy over the telephone. Have you ever prophesied over the cell phone talking to somebody and Giving a word that will encourage and edify and build the other person took the whole thing took about one minute.

But it was prophecy because it encouraged the person at the other end of the phone and Then and lifted him up and lifted her up or blessed her in some way. Did you know that you prophesied at that time?

When the rest of the. Even the so-called Christian world gossips over those cell phones and gossips in their emails. Why don't you do something else? Why don't you prophesy in your emails? I don't mean to give a full sermon.

You're not a preacher but after you conveyed your message add one two or three sentence paragraph at the end. Here's something that blessed my heart and share that share with them. Don't don't preach.

They won't want to get your emails after that if you keep preaching to them in every email. Two or three sentence, they'll be so happy. They'll look forward to an email from you every time. You can prophesy with two three sentences in an email over the cell phone sisters.

You can do it. Be different from all those other sisters who gossip and backbite and tell stories about others. Why not start that practice from now? Jeremiah 15 19. That's why the Lord spoke to me. We saw Luke 16 11.

Guarding Speech and Becoming God’s Mouthpiece

Be faithful with money. The mind of Christ he was very careful with what he spoke. You know some people have asked me Can you why don't you name? The false preachers of today you know the People who are deceiving others deceiving false prophets.

People who are television evangelists who are deceiving others. Why don't you name them? I Said I'm following Jesus who never named anybody in any sermon. He never said Caiaphas. I warn you about Caiaphas or I warn you about Some Anna's he never said that not even once he would always use a general term.

Pharisees scribes Hypocrites but never named anybody. I said I follow Jesus. I've studied the Bible exactly and In his sermons, he never mentioned anybody's name and you you can listen to 1 ,000 sermons of mine on YouTube.

You'll never manage find anybody's name mentioned because I want to follow Jesus in my the way I preach but general references To deceiving evangelists and warnings about how to detect them. That's Jesus said Be careful about wolves and all that.

He warned people like that. So we got to be careful in Jeremiah 15 and verse 19. The Lord said to Jeremiah If you return to me, I will restore you and you will stand before me it's very important to stand before the Lord if you want to hear from him and If you extract listen to this Let me paraphrase it extract means if you take out only the precious and Throw away the worthless From all your conversation.

I Will make you my mouth. The margin here says I will make you my mouth. I said Wow You can make me your mouth Lord. Your spokesman that means when you speak and you can have that verses in your Bible also, right?

If you take out the precious and Speak that and throw away all the worthless. If you will be like my mouth it's like when people dig for gold they go 10 ,000 feet into the ground and what they bring up is a lot of muck and this wash it all off all the dirt and then you get an Alloy, it's still not gold and then they put it in the fire and burn out all the other stuff.

And then they get a little bit of gold of all that tons of muck. They get a little bit of gold and this is worth it. That's what I mean by throwing away all the Rubbish the worthless and keeping the precious.

That's what those people do who dig for gold and If you refine your conversation Like it says in Colossians 4 6 let your speech always be with grace. That's a great verse. Let your speech always be with grace seasoned as it were with salt.

When you eat food in a few seconds, you know Whether there's salt in that food or not immediately and over a period of time People will begin to see there's grace in your speech. Isn't that a wonderful testimony to have.

Why do you so many sisters have a great lust to preach. See oh I wish I were a man I could preach in The pulpit you don't have to be. God decided what you should be and made you a woman. But you can be a blessing to others.

Think of this woman in Proverbs 31. It says about her in Proverbs 31. Verse 26 The law of kindness is on her tongue. The law of kindness Is on her tongue. She works very hard with her hands. It says earlier on, you know.

All those verses are about she's working with her hands. Working in the field and working with a spindle and cooking and all types of things. The Virtuous woman mentioned in Proverbs 31 has got rough hands and a soft tongue.

Many of today's girls have got a Rough tongue and soft hands. Means they don't do much work. The tongue is rough. Don't be like that. Be one about whom it can be said people have known you for a few years the law of kindness Is on her tongue.

Throw away the worthless and keep the precious and the Lord says I will make you my mouth. I had such a fantastic desire. I'll tell you honestly to be God's mouthpiece. Because I went to so many churches in my life and most of the time I sat in those churches Thoroughly bored with what I heard.

Every preacher almost there were a few exceptions, but most of the preachers I heard were so boring. When I was young Christian and I went to the church. What else could I do. I had to go somewhere if I go to some other church.

It was the same old thing a lot of emotion and excitement. But there was not the fire and the anointing of the Holy Spirit that drew me challenged me to get Closer to God and to overcome sin and I said Lord.

I don't want to be like that. I want to be your mouth. It takes me years and it did take me years. It took me years, but I said Lord. I want to work on my speech. I want to work on my attitude to money if that's all that's required be faithful with money and be faithful with your mouth.

And I'll make you my mouth who can't do it. There's no partiality with God. I want to encourage all of you be faithful with money be faithful with your mouth and Be one of those anointed spokesmen for God you may never in your life sit and stand in a pulpit.

But you can be a blessing. It's a wonderful thing. You know I think the story of the talents the man with ten talents is the man with fantastic gifts. Who's always getting up in the in the pulpit and preaching?

He's got so many gifts like the Apostle Paul here. He was an apostle prophet shepherd teacher evangelist everything but Most of us are not like that. We are like people with one talent. But the sad thing in the churches is people bury that talent.

Do you know that eleven people with one talent can do more with one person with ten talent? Those eleven people are buried their talents. So you don't have to preach in a pulpit to be God's mouthpiece.

You can be God's mouthpiece to Encourage discourage sisters. Every one of us can be that Faithfulness and little things. I think of Jesus example one of the passages where I see the mind of Christ Is here in Matthew's gospel chapter 3.

Christ’s Obedience in Baptism

In Matthew's gospel chapter 3 I see that Jesus came to be baptized. It's all is the first public appearance of Christ. The very first puppy the last time he heard of him was when he was 12 years old and going to the temple and discussing.

With the scribes over there the next thing we read is after 18 years of silence when he was faithful working as a carpenter. Taking care of his younger brothers and sisters. He appears to be baptized.

There were a lot of people can you picture this in your mind that the River Jordan a whole line of people standing to be baptized and John had said I Proclaim a baptism of repentance. It's a baptism of repentance.

That means if you have repented of your sin come here. In fact some people who came to him the Pharisees John said to them and verse 7 use. Scribe you brood of vipers. What do you want to come here? Let me see some repentance in your life or say it and.

So all those people standing there were people who are publicly acknowledging I have sinned and I've repented John. I want you to baptize me and Jesus was going to go and stand in that line and. Can you imagine what the devil told him or thoughts that would have been put into his mind?

People will misunderstand you. If you stand in the line where people are confessing their sin. Even though people haven't seen you sin publicly in your home. They will think there must be some secret sin in your life.

That's why you're standing in that line because you're repenting. He rejected all those arguments. He wouldn't listen to it. The father had told him go and stand in line. Identify yourself with sinners, even though you're not a sinner, even though you've never sinned in your life.

Go and stand there. Identify yourself with them. He started his ministry. Identifying himself with repentant sinners in a line where everybody was a repentant sinner. He stood there. He was the only one who was not a sinner.

He stood there. He ended his life. Considered as a criminal, crucified between two criminals. He identified with sinners in the beginning and with criminals at the end of his life. He was not ashamed.

He was no criminal. It doesn't matter what people thought of him. He was crucified. Now, God could have arranged in such a way that on that day Jesus would be crucified alone. It was not necessary that there should be three people crucified.

There's only one criminal to be crucified. It's like hanging. You don't have to hang three people. There's only one person to be hanged or executed. It's one person. But God didn't do it like that. God, it says he was numbered with the criminals, Isaiah 53 he had to come to the lowest level and so he stands in line and He comes to be baptized and John recognizes him and says Lord, I'm not gonna baptize you.

I need you to baptize me Matthew 3 14 and Jesus said Permitted. Verse 15 at this time. For in this way It is fitting for us. Read this verse, Matthew 3 15. The first spoken words of Jesus ministry. The first spoken words of Jesus ministry.

Permit us at this time for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness. You say Lord, baptism is only a symbol. It's not a great thing. I mean even today we know people ask do you need to get baptized to go to heaven?

I say no. Do you need to speak in tongues to go to heaven? No. Do you need to be filled with the Holy Spirit to go to heaven? No. Do you need to break bread to go to heaven? No. Salvation is by repentance from your sin and faith in Jesus Christ that he died for you and rose again from the dead.

That's it. Baptism is a symbol. Breaking your bread is a symbol. You don't have to do it to go to heaven and Those arguments could have come into Jesus mind. Why are you making such a big issue of a symbol?

And you know what Jesus called it fulfilling righteousness. Do you believe that Taking part in a symbol is fulfilling righteousness. I've had a lot of people argue with me about baptism. Oh What does it matter?

It's not so important whether we are baptized as a child or as an adult. It's only a symbol. What does it matter whether you break bread in this way the way the Bible says or have wafers and and the priest swipes the wine.

Well, it's a symbol. What does it matter? I Say it's a matter of fulfilling all righteousness. It's exactly what Some sisters say what does it matter whether we veil our head or not? It's only a symbol.

Okay, but Jesus didn't think like you thought. He thought of a symbol as fulfilling righteousness and that's the very first word he spoke when he started his ministry. We are pretty arrogant to think that we know better than him.

You see. Oh, it's only a symbol boy. What arrogance to take God's Word and say it's only a symbol we slighted. No wonder there's no spiritual growth in your life. Because you don't understand what it is to fulfill all righteousness take the little things seriously.

I'm not saying that baptism or breaking of bread or veiling the head is important to go to heaven. Not at all. But I do believe it's important to fulfill all righteousness. There was a something that God had planned for Jesus, which would not have been completed if he left out one thing.

There were little little things planned in Jesus life and he wanted to fulfill it all. And I believe that in all of our lives God has planned little little things and sometimes he tests us through them.

Sometimes through a little little thing like, you know, we just heard about Veiling the head. If you go to our CFC India website There are two articles there on head covering. I Invite you to read them and see for yourself have an open mind when it comes to scriptures.

We follow the same principle in our church. We teach Baptism by immersion after you're born again. It's like Jesus. We teach breaking of bread because Jesus instituted it and said do this in remembrance of me.

He never told us how often we should do it. Some people have made a law thou shall do it every week. That is adding to scripture. Jesus never said it. He said as often as you do it, but people have changed that and do it every week.

Some people say do it every day. Well in the Acts of the Apostles in Acts chapter 2 they did it every day. Acts chapter 20 They did it once a week. That's not a law. Acts of the Apostles is a book of history.

The commandments are in the teaching of Jesus and in the epistles. It never tells us how often we should do it. That's up to you. But we have to do it sometimes do this in remembrance of me in the same way.

We teach head covering not as compulsory people come to our breaking of bread meeting. We don't force them to partake if you don't want to partake welcome. Don't partake if you don't want to be baptized.

We don't force anybody to be baptized. We don't force anyone to veil the head. We say you can come. For the next 50 years till the Lord comes you can come to our church service and sit every Sunday without veiling your head.

We will never treat you like a second-class citizen. We will never ask you to veil your head. No, but If you want to get up and pray In our church, or if you want to get up and share a word in our church.

We will insist sister that you veil your head because we have certain laws and I tell people In many Indian homes and many other homes. When you walk into a home, the rule in that home is take off your shoes.

Don't dirty the Carpet take off your shoes. Now, I don't have that rule in my house because we don't have carpets in our home. You're welcome to walk in with your shoes, but I don't say when I go to somebody else's home.

Hey, listen, I don't I wear shoes in my home. So why can't I wear it in your home? I Follow the rule of that house. And that's not a great self-denial. And I asked sisters who go to churches where they veil their head.

Why are you so stubborn about not veiling your head in a church where? Everybody does that. Would you walk into your home into a home where they remove their shoes and you say no in my home I don't remove my shoes.

So I'm standing for my rights. I'll walk into your shoes into this house with your shoes. You got to be crazy. You are considerate about something in a person's house. But you're not considerate when you go to the house of the Lord.

Seek to follow what everybody else in that Church does that shows something of your character and your stubbornness and your arrogance and your pride and I want to say to you in Jesus name there is some measure of God's grace that you will lose and When you lose it, your children will also lose it.

I'm not threatening you. I'm just trying to tell you God's Word. It's my duty as a shepherd to warn the sheep. I can't force them. I remember when my other son Sandeep He started a church in California started in his home and I was there in the beginning as well and there were a number of sisters who You know from the locality.