The Value Of Revelation ---- Pastor Touré Roberts
Transcript
00:00:00And I want to start in Amos chapter 1, Amos chapter 1 and 1 Amos, Amos doesn't
00:00:18get a lot of shine. He wasn't a sexy prophet but he was an accurate prophet.
00:00:26Come on somebody, I don't know about you but I'd rather be accurate than sexy.
00:00:29Hello somebody. Okay, too far already, all right. We're gonna look at Amos
00:00:36chapter 1, 1 then we'll jump down to Amos chapter 8 and verse 11. We'll jump down to
00:00:421st Samuel chapter 3 and 1. Then we'll jump over to Proverbs chapter 29 and 18.
00:00:48Then we're gonna go down to McKinney and then once we leave McKinney we're gonna
00:00:54go to De Soto. Okay, here we go. The words of Amos who was among the sheep breeders
00:01:06of Tekoya, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah and
00:01:14in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel two years before the
00:01:22earthquake. We'll jump down to Amos chapter 8 verse 11. It says, Behold the
00:01:29days are coming says the Lord God that I will send a famine on the land but this
00:01:37will not be a famine of bread nor a famine of thirst for water but this
00:01:48famine will be a famine of hearing the words of the Lord. They shall wander from
00:01:58sea to sea and from north to east. They shall run to and fro seeking the word of
00:02:06the Lord but shall not find it. 1st Samuel chapter 3 and verse 1. Now the boy
00:02:14Samuel ministered to the Lord before Eli and the word of the Lord was rare in
00:02:23those days. There was no widespread revelation. Proverbs 29 18. Where there is
00:02:33no revelation, you've probably seen it in King James, where there is no vision but
00:02:37that word better translated is revelation. Where there is no revelation
00:02:42the people, O King James, perish. Here the writer's attempting, or the translator
00:02:49rather, is attempting to give a bit more context. The people cast off restraint.
00:02:53That's still not the best translation. It says but happy is he who keeps the law.
00:02:58Let me break that down real quick. Where there is no revelation, the people, where
00:03:03it says cast off restraint, that is one word and they tried to add a couple of
00:03:07words to help you to understand it. It's a Hebrew word. It's a Hebrew word parah
00:03:11and it means to loosen, to expose, to uncover, to go back, to set at not, to set
00:03:20at nothing, to perish. So when it says that where there is no revelation, the
00:03:25people, the people are loose. They're not tight. They're not together. They're
00:03:30exposed. They're not covered. They're uncovered and they go back and it is to
00:03:38be the set at not and to perish, right? So that's what happens where there is
00:03:42no revelation. But in contrast to that, because God never leaves us in the pit,
00:03:49in contrast to that, it says but happy is he who keeps the law. I want to break
00:03:55that down. We'll pray and we'll get going. But happy, that word happy literally
00:04:00means blessed and if you break that down to its root, it means blessed, happy. Watch
00:04:06this, to go forward, to lead. So, so, so, so, so, so, where there is no revelation, you go
00:04:13back. You're exposed. You're loose. You're not tight. You're not together and some
00:04:19other things that we'll talk about. You ultimately perish but happy, blessed, this
00:04:27person will go forward. He, this, he or she will lead but happy is he who keeps the
00:04:34law. The, that word law can be translated precept, statue, but if you get down to
00:04:39the root word, the root word of that word that was translated as a root word, yada,
00:04:42and it means to flow as water. Okay, okay, okay, okay. Where there is no revelation, the
00:04:52people are loose. The people are uncovered. They're exposed. They regress.
00:04:56They go back. They perish. Not good but where the people guard, keep, protect, that
00:05:06word that was translated keep literally means to put a hedge around. When the
00:05:10people put a hedge around the flow, they're blessed. They're happy. They're
00:05:17able to go forward and they're able to produce. I want to talk this morning
00:05:22about the value of revelation, the value of revelation. Father, we've already
00:05:31prayed. We've already talked about this and I thank you God for the word that
00:05:37will take root and bear fruit. Your promise is that your word will not
00:05:44return unto you void. Your word, your word will not return unto you void but it
00:05:49shall accomplish. God, I thank you for the spirit of wisdom and revelation and
00:05:55insight and knowledge and prophecy and all of heaven's resources for this
00:06:01moment, this moment that is targeting those you love so much, this moment of
00:06:08edification and this moment that I believe will bring alignment and
00:06:11manifestation. Therefore, let the words in my mouth and the meditation of my heart
00:06:17be acceptable in your sight, oh great God, that you are to the intent that we would
00:06:25never be the same again, that we would flow unlike ever before. Things that were
00:06:32stuck, may they be unlocked and loosed. In Jesus name we pray, amen, amen. Can you
00:06:39give God a hallelujah before you take your seat like you like you receive
00:06:42already? Hallelujah. The Lord whispered something to me yesterday when I was
00:06:54seeking his word, his voice. I don't, I don't, I'm not necessarily interested in
00:07:03sermons. I'm interested in words because in the beginning was the word and the
00:07:12word was with God and the word was God and if you keep reading there it
00:07:15ultimately means that everything that has been made and everything that will
00:07:18be made, will be made by the word. In fact, it actually already has been made by
00:07:25that word and so I seek a word and I build a quote-unquote sermon
00:07:32around the word because the word is more important than the sermon. If I just came
00:07:36here and gave you the word we would be good but in this context God likes to
00:07:42take us on a journey so that we can be edified and the word that God spoke to
00:07:49me was a word about the word and the word that God spoke to me about the word
00:07:56is that we're moving into a time where the word will be rare. Hallelujah. And I
00:08:03might say before any major shifts, hear me clearly, can't you feel a shift coming?
00:08:09Can't you feel transition coming? Before any major shift takes place, the word in
00:08:17the earth, the word of the Lord gets rare. We see it in the text in 1st Samuel
00:08:24chapter 3 where it says that the word of the Lord was rare in those days, it was
00:08:29right before God was getting ready to raise up one of the most powerful
00:08:32prophets in the world, Samuel, who would ultimately institute this series of
00:08:40anointing kings. This was a new, this is a new shift. There weren't any kings before
00:08:45this and then that was Saul and then he ultimately anointed David and we know
00:08:50that the Messiah would come through the lineage of David. This was a major shift
00:08:54and the scripture says and the word of the Lord was rare in those days. There
00:09:01was no widespread revelation. From Malachi to Matthew there is this thing
00:09:07called the 400 years of silence and during the 400 years of silence God
00:09:13raised up no prophets. There was silence. No prophets were raised up because a
00:09:22major shift was getting ready to take place in a town called Bethlehem. Are you
00:09:29hearing me? So the point that I'm making is we can look at biblical history and
00:09:34recognize a trend and that trend is when God is getting ready to do something
00:09:42incredible. His word, the word of the Lord will become rare. Now what does that word
00:09:52rare mean? If you study that word it literally means costly. It means
00:09:57expensive. Oh hallelujah. In other words, you're gonna have to work for revelation.
00:10:04Listen, let me just say, the Lord's speaking to me. He said we're gonna move into a time
00:10:09where they're gonna be a lot of sermons but not a lot of words. Can I talk to you?
00:10:13Can I talk to some real people like I love you, like I'm trying to get you
00:10:15ready for real, for real, for real. There's gonna be a lot of sermons Aunt
00:10:19Jackie but the word of the Lord is going to be rare and this is a very important
00:10:26point because a sermon will move you. A word will position you. Now that by, come
00:10:34on, come on, come on. Don't play with me today. A word will move you. We'll be
00:10:39moved and stimulated and encouraged and that's wonderful. Ain't nothing wrong with
00:10:44any of that but I don't want to simply be moved. I want to be positioned because
00:10:52the Bible says that my steps are ordered by the Lord which means that I am not
00:10:59random. I can't just be out here willy-nilly. I'm supposed to be in a
00:11:05certain place at a certain time with a certain attitude and certain priorities
00:11:10and certain perspective so that I can walk out the very purpose for my
00:11:14existence. So, so, so yes it's nice to be moved but what is more important is to
00:11:22be positioned. Anybody want to be where God needs you to be?
00:11:26Oh Jesus. And that's what the word does. The word moves you into position. Can I
00:11:38take my time and teach? Rare, costly, expensive. It's gonna cost you something.
00:11:49It's not gonna be easy. And so without a word we can become stagnant. There's
00:12:01some people and the reason why you're stagnant, the reason why you're
00:12:07discouraged, the reason why you are, if you're honest you're beginning to
00:12:13regress and even in some cases you're depressed is because the word is rare.
00:12:23You don't, you don't, you don't have a word and if you don't have a word you
00:12:28can't be fruitful. Oh, I feel the Holy Spirit. Yeah, you see, we're wired to be
00:12:36fruitful and to multiply but I can't be fruitful and multiply without the seed
00:12:43of the word. Are you hearing me? But I got news, good, good, good news for some
00:12:51people in here who have been distressed, who have been stagnant, who have been
00:12:55discouraged. God is getting ready to connect you to the flow. He's getting
00:13:00ready to bring a fresh stream of revelation back to your life and I feel
00:13:04like you are gonna start feeling like yourself again. I feel the Holy Spirit of
00:13:08God. Maybe it's you online and you have been stagnant and you haven't been able
00:13:13to move but the flow is getting ready to come back to you and you're gonna get
00:13:19your life back. I want to take my time to teach this thing. The word is getting
00:13:27rare meaning that in this season you're gonna have to load up on it. You know, it's
00:13:38funny when God is getting ready to do something big in my life, I mean real big
00:13:43that will require a shift, a change, a great sacrifice, a great surrender. God
00:13:50will, what my wife and I call, he will front load us with word. Let me explain
00:13:57what that means. When God is calling me to do something that, you know, there's
00:14:01certain things that you got to know it's God in order to do it. God ever called
00:14:06you to do something that was so grand you're like, God if this, if you don't do
00:14:10this with me, and if you haven't been there, keep living and keep walking with
00:14:17God. And so what he will do is God will front load us. What does that mean? That
00:14:23means that he will, there will be a season where he gives so much confirmation. I
00:14:28mean he just confirmation after confirmation of everywhere you turn.
00:14:34There's confirmation about this particular thing. We are well beyond out
00:14:39of the mouth of two or three witnesses let every word be established. There'll
00:14:43be 30 witnesses that confirm what God's going to do. And the foolish person, watch
00:14:54this, gets comfortable in their expectation of God continuing to confirm.
00:15:01No, he's front loading you with it because there's going to come a moment
00:15:08and a season where the word will become rare because he's already told you what
00:15:14you got to do. He's already given you confirmation and God is not a blabber
00:15:19mouth. There has to be at some point an activation. Some of you are looking for a
00:15:28word and I hear God saying, you need to go back to the last word that God gave
00:15:33you activated because when you obey the word you enter into a flow. When you hear
00:15:45and you do not obey, hear me clearly. We're going to talk. It's going to get fun
00:15:50in a minute. But when you hear and you do not obey, what you are realizing is that
00:15:58you're looking at the one thing you didn't do, not realizing that your
00:16:02obedience in that area is connected to a train of miracles, a train of breakthroughs
00:16:09in other areas because it's a flow. It's a flow. And it's a flow with a timing
00:16:21element to it. Are you hearing me? So if you're being front loaded right now,
00:16:29you're being front loaded because you're going to walk into a moment where the
00:16:33word's going to be rare. I feel the Holy Spirit. And we're in one of those times
00:16:42where you're going to have to spend money for the truth. What you mean, PT?
00:16:46Proverbs 23 and 23. It says, buy the truth and do not sell it. That's an investing
00:16:57concept. You buy what is valuable and you never sell it. Some of my Jewish brothers
00:17:05and sisters back in California where I'm from, they have property that they will
00:17:11never sell because they understand how rare land is. Oh, I feel the Holy Spirit.
00:17:19They understand how rare land is. And so in this season, you're going to have to
00:17:26spend. I feel the Lord. I cannot wait to teach this thing. You're gonna have to
00:17:30spend money. And I don't mean money. You're gonna have to spend yourself. It's
00:17:37going to be very expensive to tap into the flow. You used to be able to just show up
00:17:45and the flow will be there. Not now, baby. The word of the Lord is rare. I remember
00:17:56during the pandemic, you remember that one? We were on the road doing our tour and
00:18:02went and our brother's wedding. And we came back and we went into the grocery store
00:18:08trying to get some toilet tissue. And it was gone. Like I would have paid $100 for just
00:18:20a roll. Come on, somebody. Why? Because the resource was rare. I think that we,
00:18:34particularly in a movement like this, I think we're spoiled. Because we're counting
00:18:44on, and I understand I'm a little spoiled too, but we're counting on the fact that
00:18:50we'll be able to come here week in and week out and get the word that we need when
00:19:00the reality of it is, and you need to come week in and week out, but when the reality
00:19:04of it is, there's enough word dropped from this platform that you can eat off on for
00:19:09the next three months. Oh, y'all, y'all not ready. Y'all not ready. Y'all not ready.
00:19:19The word is getting rare. So the reason why in this season, you're going to have to spend
00:19:31whatever you have to spend to get the word is because you may have to go on the strength
00:19:42of that word for a long time. Okay. So the greatest asset that you and I possess, your
00:20:07greatest kingdom superpower, your preeminent distinction as a believer is your ability to
00:20:19hear from God. Oh, I'm going to say that again. I'm going to say it again. Hear me believer.
00:20:26The greatest asset that you have is your ability to hear God's voice. But here is the thing. If
00:20:42you don't use it, you lose it. Can we talk? Can we, can we talk? Let me talk. We all going to be
00:20:50better when I'm finished. If you don't use it, you lose it. Let me show you something in the
00:20:54word real quick. I got a lot of ground to cover. In first Corinthians chapter two, talking about
00:21:07the greatest, greatest, greatest asset that you have is you have access to the mind of God. Did
00:21:14you hear me? You have access to God's mind, but as it is written, this is a powerful passage and
00:21:22we stop at a certain point. It is, but as it is written, I is not seen or ear heard, nor have
00:21:28entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those of us who love him. We
00:21:35love that. And most of us stop right there and shout. And that is shout worthy. I hasn't seen,
00:21:41ear hasn't heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man, the things that God has prepared
00:21:47for those. Hallelujah. What God has for me is massive and I know I love him. So it's for me,
00:21:59ears haven't heard, eyes haven't seen, but the context is not that you can't know it. You just
00:22:11have access to it in a different way. Because right after it says, but God has revealed them
00:22:18to us through his spirit. For the spirit, watch this, the spirit searches all things. Yes, the
00:22:33deep things of God. And then it says, let me break it down for you further. It says, but for what
00:22:40man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so, no one knows
00:22:47the things of God except the spirit of, can I teach this morning? Of God. Now we have received not the
00:22:57spirit of the world, but the spirit who is from God that we might, that we might, that we might
00:23:07wonder, that we might, that we might, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us
00:23:17by God. So, so this, this, this, the notion of, I don't know what to do. Should I stay or should I go?
00:23:27Is this for me or is this not for me? Should I be in, in Texas or Delaware? Should all this
00:23:34nonsense is nonsense. If you get into the presence of God and tap in to the knowledge
00:23:40that's already in you, you won't walk in the dark. Man, I need to stay right there for a minute.
00:23:52God says to my faithful people, the people who value my revelation, the people who value my word,
00:24:01you don't have to be tossed to and fro, moving about like you've got schizophrenia.
00:24:06If you tap into me, I will reveal to you what my will is for your life.
00:24:14That's your greatest asset, and the enemy wants you to play stupid.
00:24:24But some things only God knows. That's not what the Bible says. Now we know that's true,
00:24:29but that's not an excuse for you not to pursue revelation.
00:24:37Revelation moves God. How do I know? When Jesus had the conversation with Peter, and he says,
00:24:44who do men say that I am? You've got to remember, he wasn't going around bragging about who he was.
00:24:49He didn't do that. And they couldn't answer, but one man could answer, and his name is Peter. He
00:24:55said, oh, you are the Christ, the son of the living God. Jesus said, hallelujah. Flesh and
00:25:02blood did not reveal that to you, but my Father who was in heaven, now guess what? I can build
00:25:10something on you. You know how to tap in. I feel the Holy Ghost. Where are my sons and daughters
00:25:17that say, I'm going to tap in? Because if you don't tap in, you cannot be used. He can't build
00:25:25nothing on you if you won't posture yourself for revelation. He tells Peter, flesh and blood
00:25:37didn't reveal that to you. Church, what's up? We be too fleshy.
00:25:44Flesh and blood. I don't want to hear no flesh carnal talk. Tell me what the Spirit
00:25:50of the living God is saying. Because if you can't access the Holy Ghost, I cannot hear your counsel.
00:25:59Blessed is the man that walks not in the counsel of those who are tapped into God.
00:26:09You listening to the wrong people. Can't you access heaven? No? Well, then sit over there
00:26:15in the corner. I'm after revelation. If that's your word and you're with me, holler at me real quick.
00:26:26I'm after revelation, baby. Life is too precious.
00:26:30Time is too precious. I don't want to go off my feelings. God, speak a word.
00:26:42Speak a word.
00:26:45Speak a word.
00:26:53Speak a word. Speak a word. I don't live by bread alone,
00:27:02but by the words that proceed out of your mouth. Speak a word.
00:27:08Thinking about the centurion came to Jesus, and this child was sick, or his servant was sick.
00:27:16One or the other. Read your whole Bible. You'll get, you'll figure it out.
00:27:21The centurion was a man of authority. He understood the power of a word.
00:27:27Jesus said, I like your faith. I'm gonna go ahead and come to your house.
00:27:32Jesus said, I like your faith. I'm gonna go ahead and come to your house and get it done. He said,
00:27:38oh no, you ain't gotta do that. You ain't gotta do that. Just speak a word. I'm not even after
00:27:45your presence. I'm after the word. You're one word away. You're one word away.
00:27:56It's gonna shift when revelation hits you.
00:28:04I feel it right there. Just go ahead and start worshiping right where you are,
00:28:07because that is the doorway to revelation. Come on. Just go ahead and start worshiping
00:28:10right where you are. He's gonna send a word, and it's gonna heal you. He's gonna send a word,
00:28:16and it's gonna deliver you. He's gonna send a word, and it's gonna break the yoke.
00:28:26How is it gonna happen? By his word. Not because you were so smart.
00:28:33Not because you made all the right moves, because sometimes
00:28:38the wisest in this realm is foolishness in that realm. That's why I need a word,
00:28:46because I can't trust myself. Watch this. I'm too smart. That's the doggone problem.
00:28:51I need to become a fool. I gotta sacrifice my intelligence sometimes.
00:29:00I gotta become a fool in order to become wise.
00:29:09You're too smart. You're too smart for your own good. You're too smart. I get it. I celebrate
00:29:18intelligence. I read all kinds of books. I learn as much as I can. I went through a season
00:29:24recently. I read 15, 20 books a year. I love learning. I love learning. I love reading,
00:29:34and it's made me better. But recently, the past 45 days, I felt no grace to read my stuff,
00:29:44and that's all I do. That's part of my routine, is to read and to build. I'm a businessman. I'm a
00:29:49thinker. I'm an investor, and God said, don't read none of that. Just my word.
00:29:59Y'all don't understand. That's not how I do what I do. He said, I want you to listen to a podcast.
00:30:07I just want you to... And you know why? Now I understand why that's not how I do it.
00:30:14The reason I'm not a Lincoln is because his word was going to become rare.
00:30:25That's your greatest asset, but if you don't use it,
00:30:31you lose it, because it has to be exercised.
00:30:36Let me show you something real quick. Let's keep going. We're almost done.
00:30:40Hebrews chapter 5, verse 12 through 14. This is a powerful Ramadan Shabbat.
00:30:50He says, for though by this time you ought to be teachers,
00:31:02for though by this time you ought to be teachers. That's a lot of preaching right there.
00:31:11In other words, remember how I talked about your steps are ordered, and you need to be at a certain place at a certain time
00:31:18with a certain mentality. That means that there is a time. There is timing connected to your life.
00:31:29There's timing connected to your life. So the writer of the Hebrews
00:31:35saying that to this particular group he's talking to,
00:31:41for though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone, watch this,
00:31:49to teach you again. It's not a problem that you need to be taught. All of us need to be taught.
00:31:58The problem is for some reason
00:32:01it's not catching. And sometimes the reason why it's not catching is because you don't value it enough to hold it.
00:32:13See, if I am in a class, I'm taking notes. I had a guy tell me once when I was first starting my ministry,
00:32:24Pastor Sergio de la Mora. He said,
00:32:29why didn't you record your service? I wouldn't record myself. I didn't know. I was just preaching.
00:32:33I was at men's gathering. And he's like, why aren't you recording your preaching? I was like, oh no.
00:32:42And he was like, you're wasting word. You're wasting word. You have to value the word enough
00:32:51the word enough to record it. You have to value revelation enough to record it.
00:33:00Because if you don't record it, you will lose it. That's Bible all day. The enemy comes immediately
00:33:10to take up that word. So we're talking about timing.
00:33:14For though by this time you ought to be teachers, which means that you are so full of revelation
00:33:21that you can't help but to teach people like, like, when did you start preaching? I said, look,
00:33:27I just got saved. My background is business and technology. I didn't know nothing about the church.
00:33:32You know, I knew where the church was Easter. And thank God when I was nine, I had enough sense to
00:33:41at least say to confess with my mouth, the Lord Jesus, and believe in my heart that God raised
00:33:45him from the dead. But that was it. I was way deep down in the world. It's true.
00:33:54But I got touched by the Lord for real. And I was absorbing the word and watch this.
00:34:04And I was so absorbed in the word and absorbed by the word that every time I opened my mouth,
00:34:11I would teach. That's how it happened. I'm gonna be honest with you. I didn't graduate from no
00:34:19seminary. I've been to school and I, listen, I'm, you know, I serve here. So I'm big on education,
00:34:26but that ain't how it happened for me. I took a course here. I took a course there as I needed it
00:34:31and I used education to trust my anointing. You understand what I'm saying? In other words,
00:34:39I use that to prop me up, but that did not give me the anointing. What gave me the anointing
00:34:46and the ability to minister is that I valued the word and I ate the word. I ate the scroll.
00:34:55I drank the word. And so ministry was the organic overflow. So becoming a teacher
00:35:04is actually the natural course. Can I talk to you like this?
00:35:11So if all I am doing is eating, I'm out of order.
00:35:19Okay, we're going to keep going because I got, we almost, almost done. So by the time that you
00:35:24ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again, the first principles of the oracles
00:35:28of God, the oracles, notices, words, revelation, and you have come to need
00:35:33milk and not solid food. The crazy thing about it is he's not talking to children.
00:35:40He talking to church folk, church folk, obviously who had experience
00:35:49with the things of God. And yet they were still milking. It ain't nothing like someone
00:35:57who's on the milk, but don't know they own the milk. It's a wonderful thing. If you're on the
00:36:05milk and you know you're on the milk, and that's wonderful because you know that there's a
00:36:07maturation process and you can get to me. The worst thing is a milky Christian
00:36:20and milky Christians and nobody in here, a milky Christian,
00:36:23but a milky Christian is exposed to the word, week in and week out. Knows the word
00:36:33from Genesis to revelation, but has no power. And you can tell
00:36:43every time they open their mouth, you smell baby milk on their breath
00:36:47because they're very carnal. They're talking about people. They're talking about what's wrong
00:36:56with the church, what's wrong with the kingdom. And they have big old platforms and their whole
00:37:01platforms are about what's wrong with everybody else. And every time they open their mouth,
00:37:07I smell baby milk.
00:37:20Can't take my time and walk and talk this thing out. Next time somebody comes at you gossiping,
00:37:25next time somebody comes at you talking about somebody, say, I smell baby milk. I smell formula
00:37:31on your breath.
00:37:37And then hand a mistake and say, how will that be when you can digest this?
00:37:43Hand a mistake.
00:37:50That ain't what I wanted to talk about.
00:37:52It goes on to say for everyone who partakes only of milk, only of milk,
00:38:00only of milk, look at this, is unskilled in the word of righteousness for he is a babe, unskilled.
00:38:11Whoa, rabbi. Okay. Okay. Unskilled means that alternatively,
00:38:17unskilled means that alternatively, there is a way for you to be skilled
00:38:26in the word of righteousness or the word of revelation.
00:38:30Hello, somebody. Right. There's a supposition there. If I'm being convicted about being unskilled
00:38:42in the word of righteousness, that means that there is a way to be skilled. Are you tracking?
00:38:51So, so, so, so let me finish that and then I'll tell you what I want to tell you.
00:38:55And then, and then, and then I'm almost done. Now I'm actually almost done.
00:39:02If you only partake in milk, you're unskilled in the word of righteousness, but that's okay.
00:39:06It's okay to be unskilled because you can always get skilled. No one starts skilled.
00:39:14No one starts skilled. That's why we're here to, to gain skills and to sharpen those skills.
00:39:24That is discipleship. That's what Jesus did. He, watch this. All of his disciples were unlearned
00:39:31men. They were unskilled. So, this is not about who's right or who's wrong, who's better,
00:39:37who's not. This is about a hunger for skills because we will need to be skillful in our walk.
00:39:47All right, let me keep reading. Okay, okay, okay. We're almost there.
00:39:53If you're unskilled in the word, this person who's on milk is unskilled in the word of
00:39:57righteousness for he's obeyed. But solid food, watch this, belongs to those who are of full age.
00:40:03I thank God for, for full age believers. But solid food belongs to those who are
00:40:10full age. That is, this is important, those who by reason of use, remember I said use it to lose it?
00:40:17Those who by reason of use have their senses, because being skilled in a revelation has to
00:40:26do with your sensitivity to the voice of God. That, that word that was translated senses is
00:40:32only in the Bible one time, and it literally means the organ of perception. So, the same God that gave
00:40:39you eyes to see, ears to hear, a nose to smell, put something in you that we call senses, but it
00:40:47literally is a spiritual organ that allows you to perceive. But when that organ is underdeveloped,
00:40:56because it is not used, it is not exercised,
00:41:03you're tracking with me, just like any other organ, just like any other muscle, if you don't
00:41:09use it, you lose it. Are you tracking with me? So, how do we get skilled
00:41:18in receiving revelation? Let me just give you a few things. Number one, first of all, you gotta value it.
00:41:24You gotta value revelation. The, watch this, the only reason I have peace is because I know how to
00:41:30hear from God. I can't even imagine some of that stuff Amos was writing about, that there was going
00:41:38to be a famine of the word. I'd rather you take drink away from me. I'd rather you take food away
00:41:46from me, take finances away from me, but don't you take your word.
00:41:53That is a scary, take my house, take my car, take my doggy. Oh, you ain't hearing me.
00:42:01We're my people and it's your testimony that the one thing that you desire, that that you will
00:42:08seek after. Oh no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I need some real Christians. I need some real
00:42:14believers. I need some real people. You, you can take this. I don't want you to take it, but if you
00:42:20got to take something, you can take that house. I don't want you to take that car. I like it. I drove
00:42:25it today, but if you got to take something, take it. But one thing you cannot take from me
00:42:32is your word, is your voice in my life. I wish I had about a thousand people online who will say,
00:42:41I need your word more than my necessary food.
00:42:49April, that's the only reason why I have peace. That's the only reason why I can stand tall.
00:42:55It ain't the money. It ain't the position. It ain't the fame. It ain't that you call my name.
00:43:01I know what I hear from God. That's my safe.
00:43:11Some trust in horses. Some trust in chariots.
00:43:18He is my strong tower. He is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear?
00:43:27That's my weapon. That's my weapon and I guard it.
00:43:34I guard it. Let me tell you something. There's some stuff that I can do and he'll forgive me
00:43:44because he's merciful and he's kind. I still get in heaven, but you know why I don't do it?
00:43:53It's because I don't play around with my anointing. I don't play around with access
00:44:00to the holiest of holies. Ah, you don't look that good.
00:44:05You look good, but you don't look that good. You ain't worth my anointing. You're not worth my
00:44:09access. You're going to get it today. That's what it's about. It ain't even about hell for me.
00:44:21It ain't about hell. It's about access because I need to be sensitive, especially now because the
00:44:30word is getting rare. I can't find it as easily as I used to be able to find it. It's expensive.
00:44:36I got to fast a little bit more than I fast. I got to pray a little bit more than I prayed.
00:44:42I got to search a little harder than I used to. No, it ain't even, it ain't about hell.
00:44:56It's about that skill because it's my everything.
00:45:00Because it's my everything.
00:45:04Revelation is my safe place. God will talk to me and he'll speak to me and he'll show me what's
00:45:13going on and he'll say, this is the way. Walk in it. Watch out for that person. They're talking
00:45:20right, but something is wrong. Watch out for that deal. It looks good on paper, but don't move it.
00:45:31So the first thing you got to do
00:45:34is you got to value it. Number two, you got to believe that you can access it.
00:45:42A lot of believers, I can't stand a believer that just keeps saying, I don't know.
00:45:48I just don't know. You can say that for about five minutes.
00:45:51You can say for about five minutes, I just don't know. That is contrary to what God says you have.
00:46:03You can say, I don't know yet, but I'm going to find out because I'm going to lay out before the
00:46:09Lord. I'm going to fast and I'm going to pray. I'm going to give up whatever I need to give up.
00:46:13I'm going to get off social media. I'm going to get off my phone. I'm going to shut some people out
00:46:18because I need a word.
00:46:24Revelation is my safe place.
00:46:30You got to value it. You got to believe you can access it. Number three, you got to be still.
00:46:40See in that passage,
00:46:421st Corinthians, or excuse me, 1st Samuel chapter three,
00:46:46that story, Eli, when the word was getting rare and God starts talking to him,
00:46:52and Eli picked up on the fact that God was calling Samuel, study when you get a chance.
00:46:59Eli, who used to hear,
00:47:04he used to hear, but his eyes grew dim,
00:47:08but he knew how to teach.
00:47:11He said, Samuel, I'll tell you what you do. He said,
00:47:18he said, next time you hear that voice,
00:47:23I see, and I love you. Somebody hug. Give her a hug. Give her a hug or I'll do it.
00:47:31Somebody give it, it's church. Give her a hug or I'll do it. Thank you. Thank you. Amen.
00:47:35Amen. People get all weird. Hug people. Sometimes you can hug a principality off of a person.
00:47:44I love that. It's church.
00:47:51So, so Eli says, oh, let me tell you what to do. He said, go back and lay down.
00:47:59Go get still. And when you hear him say, speak Lord, you serve his hearing. So notice the Bible
00:48:07says, be still and know that I'm God. Be still and know. So the knowing is in the stillness.
00:48:23Be still and know. Number four, you got to invite revelation. Invite revelation. And then five,
00:48:32be committed to obeying it. There's an interesting word. Interesting word. When Eli
00:48:44tells Samuel, as he's teaching him how to access revelation, how to access a flow,
00:48:57when he's teaching him, he says, now this is what you do. He says, lay down and say, speak
00:49:03your servant hears. That is a very interesting Hebrew word that was translated. Hears
00:49:10is the Hebrew word sama. And it literally means to hear intelligently,
00:49:18to hear intelligently. In other words, it is to hear. And the implication of that word
00:49:24is to hear what the implication of attention and obedience. Okay. That's crazy because I thought
00:49:32that hearing and obeying were two separate things, not in this context. I know James says,
00:49:38don't just be a hearer of the word, be a doer. That's in Greek word, in the New Testament.
00:49:43Here in the Hebrew word, where we see someone being taught how to access revelation,
00:49:48he says, speak for your servant hears. This is not just for your servant hears, is listening,
00:49:54is no, no, no, no, no, no. It is how you hear. See, a lot of times we can't get revelation
00:50:01because we are hearing and obedience is optional, which means that you're not hearing properly.
00:50:09You're not hearing properly. And that's why you can't hear because you want to see if you are
00:50:14in agreement with what you hear before you act. So now you are the judge of the word.
00:50:21So now you are the judge of the word and God knows your heart.
00:50:26And that's why you can't feel the Holy spirit. And that's why you aren't receiving revelation
00:50:32because you're not hearing intelligently. You're hearing foolishly. Why is it foolish?
00:50:37It's foolish because you are believing that you know what is better for you
00:50:44than the God who formed you in your mother's womb.
00:50:51So, so it's, it's to hear with the attentiveness
00:51:00that puts you in a place where you want to understand all of the details
00:51:06so that you can obey well, which means that before you even stepped into the prayer closet,
00:51:12you were committed to obeying. Can I talk to you like this? We're just sharpening each other here.
00:51:23Okay. Now there are a couple more passages I want us to look at, and then we're going to close.
00:51:30Amos, Amos, Amos. We don't, we don't hear, we don't hear about Amos too much.
00:51:37Amos, we don't know a whole lot about him. Amos three and seven.
00:51:43Amos, the one from Tekoa. Amos says in three seven, surely the Lord God does nothing
00:51:56does nothing unless he reveals his secret to his servants, the prophets. Wow.
00:52:07That means that everything that God is doing or allowing, everything that is coming
00:52:16is in his flow of revelation that he makes available to his servants.
00:52:26Speak Lord for your servant hears. That particular passage of scripture
00:52:38helps us to understand that God is fair. He's not going to let nothing happen. We read Amos,
00:52:45Amos one, it talks about Amos, and he was a sheep breeder in the land of Tekoa,
00:52:50and, and he was getting revelation downloads that says two years before the earthquake.
00:52:56And if you study, there was a huge earthquake, archeological fact. It was a huge earthquake
00:53:03in the land. God was giving him words to prepare them two years prior.
00:53:10God will never allow anything to happen without first well in advance
00:53:20putting it. Just go with me in the prophetic stream in the flow, in the flow.
00:53:30That's because God is fair. However, this also mandates our hunger and our search for revelation.
00:53:45Meaning that just because I don't know, it does not mean it isn't available to me.
00:53:58Are you, are you tracking with me? It's encouraging and that it says God is fair.
00:54:05He ain't gonna let nothing happen to you without revealing not to everybody.
00:54:10Not to everybody. See, the Bible says in Psalm 25 and 14, that the secret of the Lord
00:54:19is with those who fear him, who revere him, and he will show them his covenant.
00:54:25If you study in Genesis chapter 18, and, and they were getting ready to do some things to Sodom,
00:54:32the angels came down and they were getting ready to do something. And then the angel of the Lord
00:54:36says, shall we keep this thing from Abraham? No. Why? Because he's my servant. He will obey me and
00:54:45he will lead his family. Can I teach today? So, so this puts the onus on me. And the reason why
00:55:01I'm telling you is that the word is getting around. Oh gosh, I'm almost done. I'm almost done.
00:55:10Almost done. I'm getting to the good part. Almost done. So let me show you the other passage I was
00:55:17telling you about. 2 Chronicles 20. So they rose early in the morning and went out into the
00:55:25wilderness of Tekoa. Word coming up again. So wait, wait, wait, wait. Amos was a sheep breeder
00:55:37in Tekoa and he was an extremely accurate prophet, full of wisdom and revelation, accurate.
00:55:49Now we're over here in 2 Chronicles 20, and Tekoa comes up again. So they rose early in the morning
00:55:56and went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. And as they went out, as they went out, Jehoshaphat
00:56:03stood and said, hear me, oh Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, pay attention here,
00:56:11believe in the Lord your God and you shall be established. Believe his prophets and you
00:56:22shall prosper. Wait, I always was a little perplexed by that verse because it almost seems like
00:56:37prophets or believing a prophet somehow is more superior in some way than believing in the Lord.
00:56:49So I, you know, I didn't really like it, but then I paid a closer attention to what he said.
00:56:55He said, in 2 Chronicles 20, he says, believe in the Lord your God and you shall be established.
00:57:04And you shall be established. That's saved. That's saved. You're established in Christ simply
00:57:14by your faith and your belief in the Lord Jesus. We're not saved by works. We're not
00:57:21saved by anything we do. We're saved by grace through faith. And that is wonderful. However,
00:57:30that is not all that God has for you. You're safe. Watch this. As it relates to getting into heaven,
00:57:38you may not be safe as it relates to life and the fullness of what your life is. Look at it. Watch
00:57:46it. He says, believe in the Lord your God and you shall be established. Yes, to be saved is to be
00:57:52established. However, he says, believe in the prophet. This was before the outpouring of the
00:58:02spirit now, so I can better translate that in today's context. Believe in the prophetic, believe
00:58:07in the flow of revelation. You already are established, but if you believe in the prophetic
00:58:16flow of revelation, you'll prosper. You'll get ahead. You'll move forward. So you can be saved and stuck.
00:58:31You can be saved and stuck. Going to heaven. Hallelujah. One glad morning when this life is over
00:58:39I fly away. That song will always be relevant and it will always be wonderful,
00:58:48but we ain't there yet. And if God has us alive, then that means that there is more
00:58:57that he wants us to build and do. He says, be fruitful and multiply.
00:59:10Tekoa. Tekoa. So then I started thinking, man, it seems like powerful things happen in Tekoa.
00:59:25Amos was raised up and lived and dwelled in the wilderness with sheep in Tekoa.
00:59:36Jehoshaphat received strategy against his enemy in Tekoa. That's when God told him,
00:59:45put your, you know the story, you study when you get a chance, put your praises up front.
00:59:50Revelation about how to win a battle. Watch this. And this didn't make any sense. Shouldn't you put
00:59:55your mighty men up front? Remember that thing about the foolish things confounding the wise?
01:00:01Confounding the wise? In Tekoa, in the wilderness of Tekoa, he receives revelation. I said, well,
01:00:07what else happened in Tekoa? And so I looked up Tekoa and there is an unnamed woman,
01:00:14an unnamed woman of Tekoa who appears in the second book of Samuel chapter 14 verse 1 through 20
01:00:23and her personal name isn't in there. The only thing we know about her was that she was a woman
01:00:29from Tekoa, watch this, who wisely and strategically brokered reconciliation between David
01:00:36and his estranged son Absalom. And it was the first time you see in the Old Testament mercy,
01:00:47forgiveness, reconciliation. And so when I think about Tekoa,
01:00:54I, I, I, I see it as a place where wise and prophetic people and pivotal moments are associated
01:01:05with Tekoa. What else do we know about Tekoa? We know that Tekoa is also known for its wilderness,
01:01:16for its wilderness. Stay with me. So I said, okay, there's something about this Tekoa thing
01:01:22and revelation, and I'm trying to understand it and I'm trying to get it. And then
01:01:29the wilderness part of Tekoa popped out. And then I thought about Jesus.
01:01:35And I thought about Jesus. We all know that Jesus was led into the wilderness
01:01:39to be tempted of the devil. And I always thought that the wilderness was part of the test.
01:01:48Like he had to go and, and, you know, be out there with the wild animals and all that kind of stuff,
01:01:51that that was a part of the test. But then I realized that wasn't a part of the test.
01:01:56That was actually the advantage.
01:02:05Because in the wilderness is the place where you hear the best.
01:02:19You don't hear the best in the city. You don't hear the best on social media. You hear the best
01:02:27when you're out in the wilderness by yourself with no distraction. He may not have won that
01:02:34battle in the city. Because in the fight of his life, he needed to be in the most strategic place
01:02:46in order to hear the word of the Lord. And that's why when the enemy came at him,
01:02:51he was firing out revelation. Man shall not live off of bread alone. But he was accessing all of that.
01:03:06The wilderness is the place where your hearing is fine-tuned.
01:03:16It's fine-tuned. I'm almost done. The wilderness is the place where your hearing is at its finest.
01:03:31Thinking about Elijah. He needed a word. Watch this. He was discouraged,
01:03:38stagnant, burnt out, woe out, afraid. And he started running. And he went into a cave.
01:03:50And we judge him sometimes for going in that cave. But he got breakthrough in that cave.
01:03:59Because it didn't happen. You know the story. It didn't happen in the noise.
01:04:02Joseph, it didn't happen in the noise. It didn't happen in the loud.
01:04:08It didn't happen in the fire. It didn't happen in the banging of the cymbals.
01:04:13It didn't happen there. His breakthrough came when he was alone.
01:04:18Because he needed to hear the still, small voice. And that still, small voice brought him out.
01:04:33The concept of isolation
01:04:39is always perceived as a bad thing. Now, don't let the devil get you.
01:04:48The devil will get you by yourself. And sometimes, isolation is problematic.
01:04:57But to just blanketly say that isolation is bad,
01:05:03is to reject one of the fundamental spiritual disciplines of Jesus.
01:05:08He regularly,
01:05:16it's by himself, he modeled it. Are you tracking with me? I want to start landing.
01:05:26Sometimes, isolation is insulation.
01:05:32Sometimes, isolation is insulation. What do you mean insulation? You ever
01:05:39lived in an apartment complex, and your neighbor up above you, you watch everything they watch.
01:05:50You are in every conversation they're in. And the problem is there's an insulation problem.
01:05:56They didn't put enough insulation in between the walls.
01:05:59Are you tracking with me? Sometimes, isolation for a season is insulation
01:06:09allowing you to shut out the noise, so that you can hear the still, small voice of revelation.
01:06:25you