Defeating Legalism and Religion, Part 3 | Dr. Mike Woods, Sr.

Well, grace and peace be multiplied, everyone, from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This is Apostle Mike Woods, and welcome tonight. Listen, if you're here live or by replay, I need you to do 3 very important things for me right now. Number 1, I need you to hit that like button. Number 2, I need you to hit the share button and share it with someone. And number 3, I need you down in the comments to just say hello and let us know where you're joining us from. I'm so glad you're here. The Bible says we're blessed to be a blessing. So when you hit that like, you're being a blessing. When you share this feed, you're definitely being a blessing to someone else by giving them the gift of the word. And then thirdly, your engagement is blessing yourself and others because you're just choosing sending us your kindness by saying hello. So I appreciate you for doing that. Listen, it's gonna be a great word tonight. This is part 3 of the series Defeating Legalism and Religion, and God knows we need to defeat it. So go ahead, like, share, comment, and I'm gonna be right back. We're gonna pray and we're gonna get into tonight's word. I promise you, you're gonna be blessed. Peace. Hey! Hey! Well, praise God! I'm so glad again that you're here. Listen, if you're just joining us, do me a favor—again, hit the like, hit the share button, comment below, let us know you're here. We're so glad you're here with us. So if you haven't done that already, please go ahead, like, share, comment. You're being a blessing when you do that. The Bible says we are blessed, and I believe you're blessed. I'm blessed, and we're blessed to be a blessing. So I'm taking the blessing of the gift that God has entrusted me with to teach his word and to be able to articulate from heaven. Do you realize that it's only God that really can speak to us? We just have to yield ourselves as conduits for him to speak through us. So I'm just grateful that I get the opportunity to be that conduit and share that gift with you through my covenant with God. So listen, guys, I need you to like, share, comment in that order. Let us know you're here. Share with somebody else. Let them know you're here so that you can be a blessing to someone else through this word tonight. So let's pray, and then we're going to jump right into the heart of this tonight. I am amped to teach this. This word is phenomenal, man, and I promise you, tonight as we share it and disseminate it, it's gonna be a blessing to you just like it blessed us. So let's pray. Father, in Jesus' mighty name, we thank you again for another opportunity to minister your word to your people. Moreover, God, we are grateful that we get the chance to teach your word And Father, we're clear that only you can speak to us. And so Father, I yield myself as a conduit, as a vessel of honor and not of shame, a vessel of purity. And so I thank you, God, that you've cleansed my mind, my heart, glory to God, through your blood and through your efficacious vicarious work of Calvary. I'm free to teach this word tonight, and I just give you praise for that. And I pray, God, that you would anoint the ear of every hearer to hear hear what the Spirit would say to us tonight. And Father, I just give you glory, honor, and praise for the light, the illumination, and the intelligence of the Holy Spirit. And I praise you now in Jesus' name. Amen. And thanks be to God. Oh my God, I'm super amped, guys. I'm excited, uh, to share with you. I'm excited to teach this again. Like, share, comment. If you're just joining us, that's what we need you to do all night long. Like, share, comment. Glory to God, because I believe this word that we're about to disseminate is gonna bless someone. Glory to the name of God. Just like it has blessed me, and just like really it has blessed you, because the very reason you're here is because this word has been a blessing to your life. Oh my God, I love you guys so much. Let's jump in this, man. Um, we're continuing our series, praise God, on legalism and religion, and we're really leading up to facts on how we actually can defeat these two spirits and how we can open up our life to a level of freedom. Watch this, where the things of God are not second nature. And the manifestation of his promises. Not— I'm not saying you just go to church or you read the Bible or you pray every day, because that can be legalistic and religious in itself, which we, we've already discovered how that can be in some way. And we'll— as we unfold, you'll see how some of the practices that you embrace, uh, in your walk as a kingdom citizen— hear me— can become legalistic if they're not productive. Hear me, if they're not producing the resources of heaven, if they're not producing the power of heaven, if they're not producing the light and the glory of heaven, uh, just maybe some of the practices that you engage in are religious and legalistic. So we're learning about how to be free to receive, how to be free to fellowship with God. This is where we're going with this throughout this. We're going to end up really with what it looks like to fellowship with God in freedom and how that looks for real. But tonight, again, part 3, uh, we— and we last week, we started yesterday, actually, um, Thursday, not yesterday, Thursday, uh, we, we talked about How legalism leads to a life of struggle. And so many people are struggling and don't understand why, because they say, hey, I pay my tithes, uh, or I give my offering, I go to church, I'm a good person, but still I have all of these things I'm struggling with. And so we talked about in our Bible study on Thursday night how legalism is one of the key factors that leads to struggle because it steals your joy. And you really don't have a passion for Jesus or his way of living or his way of doing things, because honestly, everything you're dealing with is always about, you know, trying to get something and trying to get out of something. And that just is— and we'll see a lot of that tonight as we teach— that's really not how God called you to live. And you know, you can brand it any way you want, but struggle is struggle. Glory to God. And I just believe, as citizens of the kingdom, his yoke is easy— Jesus's yoke is easy, and his burden is light. That text speaks loudly to me. Hear me, guys, that it ain't God's will for me to be struggling. So if you're struggling, the question becomes Why are you struggling and you saved? Why are you struggling and you sanctified? Why are you struggling and you filled with the Holy Ghost? Hmm. So we're going to answer that tonight. So, so listen, make sure you go back and watch Thursday's Bible study if you missed it. And some of you that were, uh, engaged in the Bible study, you probably want to go back and watch it again so you can get those principles on how to alleviate that struggle. What we ended up talking about, glory to God, how legalism doubts and struggles, but faith believes and receives. So I want to dive right into— because we went through some things, um, Thursday night on how faith believes and receives, and we talked about how we have to be thirsty to drink of this thing, uh, so that we build our faith and strengthen our faith. But I want to jump right back into what it takes to learn how to receive, and I want to go back to that verse we left off with because I feel like I didn't do it justice. So let's go to Ephesians real quick tonight, uh, 1 And verse number 3. And those of you watching, please type that in the comments. And if you're writing notes, make sure you write these scriptures down so you can have them in your repertoire and go back and read them later. Uh, Ephesians 1:3. I want you to grab this tonight. The scripture says, blessed be God. Let's stop right there. Ha, the scripture, the scripture says, blessed be God. One gel eós, which is, uh, the word blessed, which means adorable. Watch this, or praise. Oh, come let us adore him. I was singing that on my way home today from dinner. Glory to God. But let me, let me tell you something. Blessed be God means that he is adorable, he is to be praised. Glory to God. Watch this, he's to be adored and praised in advance. Here we go. So before you receive anything of him, the text is saying to us we must be clear in our relationship with him, because legalism robs you of this. But we must be clear in our— through relationship, not legalism, not religion, but through relationship— one, that he adores us. Two, that he— because he adores us He's on our side. Oh my God, I need you to type that in the comments. Type, God is on my side. Woo! Shatan de bekosia, rebiki andeloboso. Yes God, he is on your side. Y'all excuse me, I'm telling you, excuse the tongues. Glory to God. If tongues offend you, I'm sorry. Listen, but I can't apologize for the Holy Spirit. He speaks as the Spirit gives utterance. And listen, he's saying something I don't even know to the Father on behalf of you and me during this teaching. So don't be offended, just receive. Oh God, what's about to break through on this live stream tonight? Listen to me, you need to understand that even before you kneel to pray, lift your hands to worship, drive your car to a church, you need to understand that God adores you, number one. And number 2, because he adores you, he's on your side. And number 3, because he's on your side— watch this— he's going to assure that everything you need, hallelujah, is met and satisfied. So the scripture declares, blessed, adorable be God. So what we got to learn to do, because legalism will make you freak out over a bill, freak out over something that happens in your life. Religion and legalism will make you doubt God at the first sign of trouble. Ooh. Or if things ain't going the way you think they ought to, you start feeling this, um, legal right to do things that are ungodly because you feel like God's not taking care of you. But it's because you weren't proactive in blessing God, in adoring God in advance. Listen, you need to learn to get that bill and lay your hands on it and say, blessed be God. Woo! You need to look at your budget for your movie, for your conference, for your business, for your church, and just say, blessed be God, understanding that again, because God is adorable and he adores you, he's on your side and he's going to ensure that what you need is supplied. Oh my God. Matter of fact, say that with me. Say, God will ensure that what I need is supplied. I need you to grab that. So the next time you're faced with something that you may not have the money in your bank account to handle, or you may not have the mental capacity you feel to face it on your own, or emotionally you may be broken toward a thing. You just need to say blessed be God and, and take up faith to believe that God's got you. All right, let's keep reading this. He says, blessed be God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has— watch this, here it is— blessed us. Again, that's the same word. Who has adored us, who has revealed His creation and himself in us. He's revered that thing, so he blessed— he adores you. Oh, can I get that in your spirit tonight? God adores you. We be singing to him, oh, come let us adore him, and he's looking down at you singing over you, oh, how I Adore you! Oh how I adore you my son today! I'm telling right now God adores you! Rabban satakan dededididi ansa— just lift those hands again and say he adores me! That's what it means to be blessed! You're blessed because He adores you! He's blessed us— watch this— with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. So when God says he's blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm, so that means heavenly places, epouraneos in Greek. Uh, oh my God, yeah, here we go. It means you must daily visit heavenly realms, and you must not allow legalism— hear me, oh my God— to restrict you. I'm not talking about visiting when you go to church, because quite honestly, some of you don't think you're legalistic, but you are, because the only time you really encounter— have a heaven-type encounter is when you go to a church that creates an atmosphere for these type of encounters. But watch this: if you create heavenly places through your lifestyle, through your private worship, through your study— oh my God— through your behavior, and if you rest and live As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. So being led by the Spirit means that I'm, I'm existing in a heavenly realm. Yeah, so if I live like this, I don't have to wait till I get to church to experience heaven. Heaven is constantly superimposed in my life, in my situation, in my way of living. Heaven is with me everywhere I go and in everything that I do. Oh my God, are y'all here? Are y'all here tonight? Glory to God. My God today, my God today, my God, my God, my God. Hallelujah. I'm getting this stand to sit my iPad on so I don't have to hold it. Listen, let me tell y'all something. God is interested, very, very interested in making sure that you operate from heaven to earth versus earth to heaven. But he's not going to do that if you don't deliberately pursue him and pursue heavenly places. Understand that he adores you enough to welcome you there if you go. So it takes, again, behavior, which means how you live and how you live, how you think. It takes worship. It takes study of scripture. Watch this. It takes hearing the word because it takes faith to enter into heavenly realms. You cannot enter into the realm of heaven without faith. See, and watch this, most of you think that the only heaven you'll experience is when you die, but that's not so. Legalism will have you believe that, that that's a rule. The only way I get to heaven is I die. Oh my God, that's not true. The Bible says right here, we've been blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places. Which means I gotta invoke those places into my lifestyle through my lifestyle of holiness, through— which is not legalistic, but I do it. Here we go. I don't live holy, uh, in a legalistic way because I fear hell. I live holy because I love God. I live holy because heaven is pure, and heaven has to penetrate my world And it's not going to penetrate a dirty world. Okay, okay, let's keep moving. So I ended up on Thursday sharing that all we need now, everything you need— watch this— is in heavenly places. It's already been bought, it's already been paid for, and it's in storage. It was bought and paid for with the efficacious, vicarious, substitutionary work of the cross is stored in heavenly places. Oof. So you got to take the blessing that he's given you and move into those heavenly places. Revelation 3:20 says this, let's read. Jesus said, behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears— okay, let's start right there. He says, I'm at the door, I'm knocking. Hear me. So Jesus is knocking on the door of your life. We've taken this scripture and just made it about getting saved, but it's not just about getting saved. Matter of fact, salvation is about God bringing you to him. Y'all don't believe the scripture says no man coming unto the Father except he draw them. The word draw is suguro in Greek. It means to drag them. So you come to God because you're elected, selected, and protected before you ever born to be saved. Saved. He's already chosen you before the foundation of the world to be saved. So, this scripture is not about him knocking for you to get saved. He's knocking, ooh, for fellowship. He's knocking because he want— there's something he wants to share with you. So, he say, "I'm standing at the door of your life. I'm knocking on the door." Here's an important key. If any man hears. So many of you have not really fellowshiped with Jesus because you haven't really heard the knock. Oh my God, you've heard the voice of religion, you've heard the voice of can't, what you can't do. You have these limitations and barriers they have been set over your relationship with God. And God says, if any man hear and listen and heeds to my voice— so he says, I'm knocking not with my hands, my voice is thundering again. Ooh-wee! It's thundering against the door. Oh God, he said, and if you can navigate through legalistic thoughts that have been planted in you, not just from the church but through being shaped in iniquity in the world, and tap your ear into a knock that's eternal, that's beyond this world, and, oh my God, and let him in. Oh my God. He says, I'm gonna come in and I'm gonna eat with him and he will eat with me. God says, I want to fellowship with you. I want you to eat of what I have stored up for you. The heavenly blessings, the heavenly gifts, the heavenly provision, The heavenly authority I have, I want to break bread with you, but you got to hear the knock. And you got to get the legalistic voices out of your ear, the gossipers, the people that are stuck. You know, my prayer is daily, God, I only want people around me that want to be free, that want to know you for real. I want, I want to minister to those that are hungry for you. Because I know everybody's not going to receive me. And I'm telling you, everybody's not going to receive you, but you got to silence the legalistic voices because the legalistic voices will tell you all you need is church as usual. All you need is to be a busybody. Oh my God. And gossip and cause drama. Oh Jesus. And never really change and be committed to nothing. Oh my God, you, you can't commit to something real because you hadn't really heard the knock. It's hard because the dominant voices are voices that constantly complain, that constantly find fault. That's legalistic, man. The dominant voices are voices that constantly keep you dissatisfied. But what Jesus is saying to us in Revelation 3:20— write that in the comments, guys— Revelation 3:20, this is what he's saying. Write it, write this in the comments, please. He's saying the doorknob is on your side. Oh my God. So whenever you need something, the doorknob is on your side. Oh my God, I told one of my sons, I said, listen, I'm here for you. And even if I'm not engaging you every day, calling you every day, I need you to remember I'm here for you. And the doorknob is on your side. So if you need something, pick up the phone, turn the doorknob. Glory to God. Hallelujah, hallelujah. God is saying to you tonight, the doorknob is on your side. What he means is, if you need anything, just ask. If you need anything, open the door. I'm gonna come in and I'm gonna break bread with you and give you what you need. So that, you know what it says to me? A lot of times we're living in lack and beneath our privilege and living in a land of not enough. Hear me, because we don't even realize the doorknob to heaven is on our side, and it's not dying. It's faith to, to believe and receive. It's learning how to receive. This is part of learning how to receive. You got to know that the doorknob is there, just open it up. God says, I'm gonna come in and give you what you need. You may say, Apostle, how do I open up? I'm glad you asked. You open up in your faith. You gotta first hear it. You open it up with your mouth by asking. Let's go to James 4:2. James 4:2 says, you have not because you ask not. So this is why I confess daily that I am a billionaire. I ask God for billion-dollar ideas and innovations. I ask God for billion-dollar investments, contracts. I ask him to Prosper me in a way that I can, oh my God, advance the kingdom sweatlessly so I can plant churches, buy buildings, have free conferences that people don't have to register and pay for. Listen, I'm telling you right now, glory to God, it— that he wants to help you, but the doorknob is on your side. You have not because you ask not. When last time you asked God for the finances you need? When last time you asked God to heal your body? Or did you just— what legalism will do is say, okay, you sick, go to the doctor. And I'm not telling nobody not to go to the doctor. What I am telling you is that your first priority ought to be to talk to God and to put faith in him to heal you. And if you feel something leading you to the physician after that, then by all means maybe you need to go. But what I'm saying to you, your first order of business should be trusting God to give you a miracle in your body, because the doorknob is on your side. Oh my God, it's amazing how we'll trust the former makia. We, we talked about that, uh, medical sorcery and witchcraft and control on Thursday night. We'll trust the pharmacy before we trust the supernatural power of the living God. And God says, no, I need you to trust me because I got you. The door knob is on your side, but you have not— hear me— because you ask not. I'm getting somewhere, man. Go to Mark 11:24. So watch this, he tells us how to ask. He said, whatever you ask for in prayer— I'm reading out of Amplified— believe, trust, and be confident that it is granted to you, and you will get it. I'm trying to teach you how to receive. So when you ask for it, because legalism won't teach you how to receive— legalistic and religious people are still looking for God. They ain't found— they haven't discovered him. They're still looking for God. They're still trying to discover their purpose. They have not realized that God is really real, and they're still seeking him. So they keep going through these patterns trying to get divine results from their belief system, and it's not working. But the Bible said when you pray You need to be confident that you receive what you— not just throwing something up there, but when you get out of prayer, listen, when I get through confessing I'm a billionaire, I walk away from prayer believing I'm a billionaire. I walk away from prayer expecting innovative ideas, and when I tell you they come to me, they do, that will cause me to walk in a billion-dollar evaluation of my life personally, not to talk about what my businesses will be valued at. See, God can raise your valuation in faith through prayer if you leave prayer with confidence. When I pray for something that's going on with me, I leave prayer expecting to be healed with confidence that God has his power. You know why? Because I have trust and faith in him that he can because he's done it before. So you, you need to believe, trust, and be confident that what you pray for, what you ask for in prayer, is granted to you. I says, and you will get it. It's just as simple. Believe, trust, be confident that it's yours. The Bible said in 1 John 5, if we ask anything according to his will, he does it. So you, in other words, you gotta leave prayer knowing he heard you. So you receive it in your spirit. So I mean, you got to really receive what you ask. If I've received a billion dollars in my spirit, a billion, multi-billion even, valuation of my personal, uh, wealth and value and my businesses, glory to God, in my spirit And as I have received it in my spirit, I know that in the days to come it will manifest in the natural. Listen, I received— and as I go back on my life and look at how God has blessed me— a multi-million dollar valuation in my life years ago, and I've seen it manifest in my life. Let me tell y'all something, man. You got to know that God is true to his word when he says, I adore you, I want to bless you, I want to supply for you, I want to see you win. God wants to see you win. Oh my God, man. A lot of times we don't see a manifestation, and I had this problem in my life at one point. It was only until I got rid of this get attitude, this get it mentality. Touch yourself and say, I gotta get rid of the get it mentality. I dare you to type it in the comments, no more 'get it' in quotes mentality. No more 'get it' mentality, because everybody wants to get something. But if you define what it means to get, it means to obtain— watch this— by struggle and effort. God never intended for you to obtain the blessing that he has for you by struggle and carnal effort. Oh, his desire is for you to receive. Are y'all hearing me? So first, watch this again. We receive in our spirit, we manifest it in the natural. So I'm telling you now, if, if you're not seeing things manifesting in the natural for you. It's because you really— I don't care how much you say it, you really haven't received it in your spirit. Oh boy. I have received in my spirit debt-free living, no car notes, no house note, and I see it manifesting in the natural. Listen, I'm telling you, I receive healing for others in my spirit, so when I go to pray, they get healed. I see it manifest manifested in the natural. If you're not seeing it manifest in the natural, you're not receiving what God says in heavenly places in your spirit. So really, if I define receive for you tonight— because the scripture said in Mark 11:24, believe you have received, it is granted to you— so receive, the word means, watch this, to act as a receptacle. To act as a receptacle and take what is being offered. Oh my God. So in other words, if I'm just a receptacle, all I'm doing is just receiving what God is offering to me when I let him in. Remember, the doorknob is on your side. So when I hear his voice, he's speaking through me tonight. You better hear his voice. Open that door and ask him. And he says if you ask it according to his will, his word, he'll share it with you. He'll— you'll eat. Oh my God. Oh, I hear that in the spirit. It's time to eat, people. It's time to eat. It's time to eat. You've been starving too long. You've been trying to get it too long. Just open the door. And sit down at the table and eat. My God, whoo! My God, today my time almost gone, y'all. Some of you, the wrong counter-receptacle. You receive the wrong stuff. You sit and receive garbage in your spirit, negativity about people in your spirit. You will let the devil put bad things in your spirit about people that God has revealed to you to be a part of your life, and, and, and you take what the devil offers you, you become a trash can that you allow the enemy to dump his garbage in. But what you got to learn how to do the next time somebody comes to you with some foolishness, with some mess, with some garbage, with some crazy stuff, you need to say, no dumping here. I'm not your garbage pail. I don't want to hear it. If you can't talk to me about something good, take that mess somewhere else. Oh God, have mercy. I dare you type in the, in the comments, no dumping here. Take that mess somewhere else. It will hinder you. Listen, you're either a trash can. Oh my God. Or treasure can. Oh boy. You're either a trash can or a treasure can. You make the choice what you want to be, a trash can or a treasure can. Because everywhere I look, man, people are trying to all over the internet put garbage in your ear. Legalism. Gossip is a form of witchcraft and legalism. Negativity, witchcraft, and legalism to control you with the tea, with trash. You better lend your ear to what God says. Oh my God. And become a treasure receptacle, because they are treasures of heaven. They're forces of the Gentiles. I'm in the book, man. Uh, glory to God that God wants to share with you that it's time to eat, that he wants to feed you you at the table, but the doorknob is on your side. I'm almost done. It seems like everywhere I look— I'm closing with this— everywhere I look, y'all, people are trying to get something. Yeah, trying to get a breakthrough, get a blessing, get prosperity, get healed. Get saved, get filled with the Holy Ghost, get direction, get a word of prophecy. You're trying to get, get, get when God never told you to get it. He told you to receive it. Receive, hallelujah, your breakthrough. Ah, because when you receive it, it means it's complete when it get to you. You ain't got to do it through struggle. Are y'all hearing me? Or effort. You just become a receptacle to your financial breakthrough. You become a receptacle to your healing, a receptacle to your prosperity, a receptacle for salvation if you ain't saved, a receptacle to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit if you have not received him, a receptacle of supernatural direction, a receptacle of a word from God. Glory to God. Let me tell you something, man. The ways of God, nor God, is for sale. It's not something you could get. It's not something you could buy. Most of the things we buy, it's called getting it. I'm going to get these shoes. Yeah, because we worked for the money through effort or struggle. And we go get them, or we go get that car. God says, I'm going to put you in a realm where you just receive the blessing. You receive what you need. Glory to God. You receive what I'm trying to accomplish in and through you. My God, today God's not for sale. Go to Romans 4:4. Let's go there real quick. Romans 4:4. I'm almost done. Stay with me tonight. Glory to God. Hallelujah. On this Saturday night, praise God. Romans 4:4, the Bible says this: Now to him that worketh is the reward, not reckoned out of grace, but of debt. So a man's works or his wages are not counted as a favor or a gift according to this text. Listen, but are considered— here there's something old. That's what the text is saying. So when you, when you get something— I'm going to get this overtime, or I'm going to get these hours in at work— it's not really favor or a blessing. You're really, according to scripture, getting what is— oh my God— indebted to you, what is owed to you. The employer owes you a check because you went to work. When you're getting something through effort, or you're bartering or trading something for something, you're only receiving what is owed. God's not for sale, and what he comes to give, he's already paid the price for. I told you, it's in storage. So let me just give you a few scriptures. Hallelujah. Concerning receiving, John 1 and 2. I'm moving, I'm getting out of here, man. I could stay on that all night. John 1 and 12, I'm sorry. The Bible said, to as many as what received him, became a receptacle, not out of effort, just opened up their life, opened up the door and received him. The Bible said he gave them power to become the sons of God. Basically what God is saying, people, is when we are ready to receive— hear this— God is willing to give. And I'm just going to tell you, according to scriptures, man, if, if, if you don't— you're not experiencing a flow of things manifesting in the natural because you received it in the spirit. Again, it just means you really have not received it yet. You got to get that faith built up, and you got to stop doubting God. You got to stop speaking negative, and you got to trust what God says. I gotta move, man. John 1:16. Let's drop down to the 16th verse. Uh, Amplified Bible. He says, for out of his fullness, his abundance— watch this— we have all received. My God, all had a share. Good God Almighty, all had a share. And we were all supplied with— watch this— one grace after another, and spiritual blessings upon spiritual blessings. And even favor upon favor and gift upon gift. So we've heaped is what he said. He said, when I start blessing you, it's going to come in heaps, it's going to come in abundance, in fullness. But we just got to receive it. Y'all don't like this kind of teaching, I know, I know. You, you want to be spooky, okay? You want to float You want to roll in the floor. And, and again, I have seen more people slain in the spirit than most of you. The reality is you need to— and stop trying to tell me not to worry about what happens when you get up. You're crazy. I am going to worry about what happens to you when you get up. I need you to show up in the world. I need you to be a manifested presence in the world that shows that not only does God bless me spiritually, but in the natural realm, the things he's promised me actually shows up in my life. Look, some people just don't have enough faith— here we go— to receive abundant blessings. Yeah, I hear that, God. Many times, guys, They're just afraid to be blessed. There are some people that legalism have fooled to make them feel— they're deceived— that they're more spiritual if they're doing without. Oh my God. And then they start making excuses for they struggling. No, you're legalistic and you need deliverance. You need to build up your faith and just accept the reality. Okay, there's more than I think, because it's not just what you encounter inside of a building. This thing needs to be carried into your life so others can see it and come to him. Listen. It's always good, and I hear you, I hear y'all, I hear you. Yeah, I hear you. YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, I hear you. It's good to use wisdom. Yeah, yeah, it is, and caution. But hear this, we don't ever— because this scripture is powerful, man— want to get ahead of God, right? We don't ever want to try to do things too fast. We want to receive what he's given us, right? But let me tell you something: poverty doesn't make you holy. I'm gonna say this again: being poor, being pious, and having piety doesn't make you holy. No. What makes you holy is the blood of Jesus. And what manifests is holiness. It's the express ability in your life to receive and manifest what he's given so others can partake of his holiness. See, the holiness that he's given you should culminate with an exchange in the world where someone else experiences it Whoo! And they come to him. I question if it's all you say it is if people are not coming to him. My day-to-day life is dedicated to being a light to the people that are around me and leading them to Jesus. And I'm thankful to God for that grace. You have it too. You just got to use it. Acts 8:17, the Bible says, one by one they all received the Holy Spirit, plus many others. So God is saying here, first of all, one by one, which means there's enough for everybody. And he can bless me and you at the same time in his own way, in what he has for you, one by one. The Holy Spirit is available for everybody, not just us in charismatic circles. It's available for the Baptist, is available for the Methodist, Presbyterian, the— oh my God, it's available for the Catholic. The Holy Spirit is available for anyone that will receive him. Hallelujah. Listen, you got to even learn how to receive forgiveness of your sins. If you happen to fall short, the moment you repent— metanoia in Greek repent, to return to the pent, which is the top. We'll get words like penthouse. The moment you return to the top and receive the cleansing of Jesus' blood through your repentance, guess what? You're forgiven. So why in the world are you walking around here guilty? Luke 5:20-24. I don't have time to go there, but write it down. Luke 5:20-24. Your sins are forgiven. You walking around guilty, mad, hurt. Watch this, called people making you feel guilty about your sin if somebody knows about it. But the moment you repent, maturity says, I receive it and I keep moving. What's so repentance is a change of mind, change of heart, change of action, to return those entities— my mind, my heart, and my actions— to the top, to reset with a— watch this— a diligence to not do that again. So when I truly repent, let me make sure we're clear on that, my sins are forgiven immediately. Oh my God. 1 John 1:9, let me just read it. If we freely admit that we have sinned and confess our— oh my God— sins, he is faithful and just, true to his own nature and promises, and will forgive our sins and continuously cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We're the only people that keep bringing up past sin. God cleanses us immediately when we freely admit, when we freely confess to him. Zephaniah 3:17, write it down. Don't have time to go there, but it just basically says to us that God makes no mention of past sin. Oh my God. Hebrews 10:16-18, don't have time to go there, but it just says he forgives, he forgets, and he cancels the penalty of— oh my God— of the sin. Cuz he says there's no longer any offering to be made for sin. So what you offering? You done messed up. You offering guilt, tears, all you just walking around guilty. Come on, man, repent. Glory to God. You can't make no more offer. Jesus already made the offering for your sin. There's nothing else you can do. You're not Jesus. All you could do is repent. Change your mind, your heart, and your actions. Listen, he says in those same words, your joy, your peace— you have the blood-bought right, my God, to go boldly before the throne of grace to find grace to help in the time of need. This— you have a right to enjoy your life, not to let legalism keep beating you up about a mistake you made. I don't know why I'm right here. We're so sin conscious, and we hear the voices of mean-spirited people in our head when God says, I've already made penitence for your wrong. You just need to repent, clean it up, and walk this thing out in holiness. Receive it. Receive mercy for your failures, man. Hebrews 4:15-16. I don't have time to go, but it's just telling you, receive mercy, receive grace, and come boldly before the throne of God and ask. You take the A off ask, you gotta ask. You take the S off ask, you got seek. You— oh my God, here we go— you take the K off ask, you got knock. Ask, seek, knock. Asking, it shall be given. Seeking, you'll find. Knock, and the door will be open. Simply, it's just simple, man. We got to receive it, because if you don't receive it— hear me, hear me good, listen, let me pull in close— you're doomed to live without grace, without forgiveness. You're doomed to walk around controlled by legalism and doubting God's ability to— oh my God— make you whole. I gotta go, y'all. I gotta go. Listen, you got to receive God's love. You receive— God loves you. Song of Solomon 5:1. I don't have time to go, but it says, drink, yes, drink abundantly of love. You got to drink love every day. God loves you. Hallelujah! When, when you— when you should never feel unloved, no matter what people are doing towards you. You need to be drinking of God's love every day. It's unconditional. He loves you for love alone. You got to receive it. Listen, the cup of God's love never runs dry. He loves us for love alone. He has no reason to love Listen, the Bible says in Ephesians 1:4-5, he loved us in Christ before the foundation of the world. I'm just trying to show you how to receive, man. Receive his blessings, receive his love, receive his mercy, receive his forgiveness. He loves us as his own children. My God. When my daughter Peyton got pregnant with my granddaughter Kindley, the day I found out she was pregnant with a child— hear me— I immediately fell in love with my grandbaby. I had not even met her yet. I had no reason— hear me— to love Kenley yet because I had not met. I didn't need a reason. Hear me. The very fact that I love my wife, my wife has a daughter that now I share through marriage in our blended family, Peyton. I love my daughter. And the fact that she's carrying in her a baby that I will have an opportunity to love and express love to. And I'm telling you, me and that little girl like two peas in a pod, man. But I loved her before she ever came here without reason. I love her for love alone. There's nothing she could do to make me stop loving her. Can I help you? Ain't nothing you could do to make God stop loving you. You got to receive his love. This for somebody tonight. Listen, I think every day about things I want to do for my granddaughter and her future. And you know, I work hard as I do really because I want to make sure that I'm able to contribute in a huge way to her college, to her future, to her dreams. You know, I want I want to be a grandfather to her that shows love. Not saying nobody else does, but I'm saying I know I— how I want to love her. But love alone, I do it because I want to. God loves us because he wants to. 1 John 4:13— 4:16, I'm sorry. He tells us to be conscious— I'm closing, y'all— and aware of his love, receiving generously the love of God that gives us confidence. Listen, all I was trying to tell you tonight is legalism struggles, man. Faith receives. And I was trying to just give you some learning on receiving. If you look at the word learn, inside the word learn is earn. If you learn this and apply it, you'll earn the benefits and principles that I disseminated in this text tonight. Let's pray. Father, in Jesus' name, I thank you for this, your people, and I give you glory for what's to come in their I thank you that no weapon formed against them can prosper. I thank you that their worst days are over, and these, God, are the best days of their life. I give you praise and glory for it now, in Jesus' name. Amen. And thanks be to God. Listen, guys, thank you so much for joining us and listening today at this word. Listen, whether you're watching live or by replay, thank you from bottom of my heart. Whether you're listening to our podcast, thank you from the bottom of my heart. I pray that these words will be revolutionary and life-changing in your life. Listen, if you are in the Atlanta area, I want to challenge you to join us for worship on Sundays at 3 PM. That's every Sunday at 3 PM. Glory to God! Our church is located at 3418 Dogwood Drive in Hapeville, Georgia. I promise you, you'll be blessed by gathering and joining with us. And listen, we have a campus in Jackson, Mississippi. I'm so excited about it, man. Listen, join us every Saturday at 12 noon in Jackson, Mississippi at our church there at 2660— glory to God— Ridgewood Road, Suite 200. Glory to God, in the great city of Jackson, Mississippi. Wherever you choose to worship with us, we'll be glad to welcome you. I love you, man. Y'all be blessed, and remember, share the word with a friend, and your decisions will determine dominion in your life. God bless you. Peace.