A New Thing 2 | P.Oluseun Arowolaju & P.Oluwatobi Oke

All right, so we are live. Uh, God bless everyone. Just continue to let your, your friends, family know that we are— we have arrived.

Okay, I can see you now. You're live on Facebook.

We are— man of God, we— here we are again.

Good to see you.

Good to see you.

God bless you.

How have you— how have you been?

Very well. God has been faithful.

It's funny, cuz, um, just as, uh, just as we were discussing today, I was on the phone with, with a minister of God from Nigeria, and, um, you know, one of the things that he was making mention is how Um, there's a new breed of ministry growing in Nigeria, and I know we're gonna pray, I know we're gonna talk about the new things, but I'm, I'm so curious, in your own church, has there been things happening that you haven't seen done before?

Not just in a particular church, it's general. You know, we are in a season, we are actually in a rebellion season that the scripture prophesied about. So we having a good knowledge of the season we are, will help us and will guide us on how to navigate through the season. Not just in the church, in every sector. Though of course we expect more from the church being the body of Christ, we expect more. But there are a lot of perversion, there are a lot of new breeding like you said that are coming up even on the altar. So we have an understanding of this season as it has been prophesied and it has been warned in the scripture will actually help us not to fall victim of this season. So that's my take on that.

That's good. It's been— I think one of the things that has been, uh, interesting to observe in ministry is As much as, you know, there's a saying, I think Pastor Delapolo mentioned this, and he mentioned that God would never give an 80-year plan to an 80-year-old man. And it's interesting when you think about the shift between Moses and Joshua. You know, there are so many things that Joshua needed to pick from the life and ministry of Moses, and there are also so many things that Joshua needed to do afresh. You know, Joshua's main mission was to lead the people to the promised land, through the promised land, by way of war and battle. So, um, before we get into the prayer Um, what battles do you think lie ahead for our generation?

It's not about the battle that is ahead, it's the battle that is on the ground at the moment. There is an end-time battle on ground at the moment, and if the battle is not won, there's no point talking about the battle ahead. See, we are not expecting the end time. We are already in the end time, the perilous time that was spoken about in the scripture. That's what we are experiencing. And it's so, it's so fortunate, in quotes, that our generation, living generation, the next generation, if Jesus tarries, we are, we are into that part already. No, the Bible says, uh, that is Ephesians chapter 6, verse 11 and 12. He said, for we wrestle not in this flesh and blood. That means that it's a present continuous thing. He didn't say that, or we may wrestle, or we are going to wrestle. He made it clear that, or we wrestle. That means that even a newborn baby that he gave birth to an hour ago is already in the battle. So we— it's a continuous battle, not just the battle that is about to come. The question, if I'm to address it, I will say, how do we win the current battle? How do we navigate through it that we will not fall victim of the season that we are in? Because trust me, so many people are falling victim of the season. There are so many ministers, there are so many young people all over the world, there are so many genuine Christians, in quotes, genuine Christians. But as genuine as they are, they are still falling victim of the current battle because they have not been able to realize and have knowledge of the season we are, that we are in a perilous time. So I believe that A very good way we can help, a very good way that can help us to navigate and to be victorious of the current battle that is on ground, that will also preserve us from the battle that is to come, is when we have a good knowledge of the season we are. We know that, okay, now we are in a perilous time. All these things have been captured in the scripture. Men are lovers of themselves. People seem not to be interested in good things, in God things, or in kingdom things. Earlier today, I was in a meeting to represent God about Bible conference fellowship. They convene and they want to bring something to the land that's beyond our church practices. People will be able to live a Bible life. So the word of God, people will be able to live according to the word of God. So I'm sure that is a very good strategy. If we adhere strictly to the word of God, to the principles of the scriptures, I'm sure it's a very good way, it's a very good leverage, it's a very good escape route to navigate and to become victorious in the current battle and also in the battle to come.

I think it's interesting when you think about the, the current battle, um, the battle on ground, right? This end-time battle. And, you know, I think about it in like two things. There's a battle that you will fight as a soldier, and then there's a battle that you will fight as a general. And those are two different fights. The way a general fights and the way a soldier fights, they can't be the same, you know. So I think it's interesting when you think about, you know, as a soldier, one of the battles that is constantly being waged right now is this, this war against this device. This is a war zone. Yeah. I mean, I've seen— I've seen— we used to do this survey for our Bible study where I would ask people to screenshot how much time they put on their phones and send it into the group. You know, in fact, it was like, one, it was a moment of repentance. And two is a moment of transparency so that we would say, this is my number. I, for the average daily, I'm on my phone 8 hours. And it's funny because by the next week when everybody sends in their screenshot, every number reduces. Every time. So, you know, when it comes to this phone when it comes to, I mean, we're on social media now. I'm sure that there are people on their phones watching this right now as we seek, as we speak. How do we manage this war zone when we know that there's an aspect of good that can be done, but also that too many, many detriment this phone, this device can be to the mind of people?

Yeah, to manage the war zone, I want us to understand first and foremost that young people are prone to this war. Young people are more vulnerable to the current trends, to the current war, to the current kingdom battle that is on ground. And I believe, in my opinion, the Bible says that My people perish for lack of knowledge. So knowledge is the principle, it is very important, it's very fundamental. Now, for the scripture to say my people perish, he's not talking about outsiders, even unbelievers. He's talking about even people that are of household of faith, yet they perish. They lack knowledge. So a generation can easily fall victim of the battles of the end time, of the battles of the perilous time, as long as there is little or no knowledge about the time. I think there should be more sensitization, more awareness. People should come to the understanding and to the knowledge of the season we are of the danger of the season that comes to the season. Yeah, people need to come to the word and understand. Of course, when we're talking about the knowledge— are you with me? Yes, sir. All right, so when we talk about the knowledge, we're still talking about the word of God. Many years ago, see, all these things have been prophesied in the scripture thousands of years ago. It has been documented. So as long as we familiarize ourselves, we make ourselves to be familiar, more familiar with the scripture, to have the knowledge, more knowledge of the season we are, uh, we'll be able to victoriously navigate through. You know, the Bible teaches the sons of Issachar, they have understanding of the times and seasons, they know what Israel ought to do. So if we have understanding of this, we will know what we ought to do scripturally. We will know what we ought to do to navigate through and to be victorious in a season like this. You know, the good thing is that— the interesting part of it is that no one is exempted. Oh yes, I'm saying that again. No one is exempted. No matter your level, no one is exempt. We are all in this together. Everyone is participating in the current battle. You can't even choose your battle because it has been there. So everyone is participating, everyone is a warrior, so everyone is on the battlefield. So anyone that wants to survive on the battlefield must be ready to fight. So if you are on the battlefield and decide that, oh, I don't want to fight, I just want to be on my own, the person will fall victim. So it is a perilous time. So that's the reason we are— we have knowledge of what to do, like the sons of Issachar of this generation will be able to navigate through victoriously in the perilous time in this generation.

So, um, I'm gonna take a minute here and just invite Anybody that is watching this online, feel free to subscribe, to add things into the comments. That was an introductory aspect of a conversation that we're going to continue to have throughout this conversation. Can we pray? Heavenly Father, Lord, we just want to say thank you. We say thank you for your mercy. We say thank you for your favor. We say thank you for your grace, oh Lord, upon each and every one of us here, everybody that is watching, everybody that is speaking. Oh Lord, we pray that this conversation will be fruitful. It will be predicated on our meditations of the word and of scripture. So Lord, we ask humbly that you speak through us, that you speak into us, that you speak your word upon our lives today in the name of Jesus. Oh Lord, we ask that we have no idea of our own, no thoughts of our own. We have no agenda or gospel of our own apart from the one that you have instilled in each and every one of us by your Holy Spirit. So Lord, we ask one more time that you breathe upon us. And we pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. Amen. In Jesus' name. Um, so I'm gonna be mindful of, uh, just a few things. Um, I want to just be mindful of your time and your attention. And, um, you know, I'm just led to to ask you to just give an opening, an opening thought. You know, we were here a couple months ago and we discussed the new thing, right? We was reading in the book of Isaiah and we elaborated on the 3 ways that you can perceive a new thing being done. So I'm wondering, from that prior conversation, are there some some things that you think that people can do tangibly and practically to not only perceive but take advantage of new things that God is doing in their life?

All right, um, a new thing. You know, we serve an Almighty God that is not stereotyped. God is sovereign, and in His majesty God can do the same thing in different ways, in the new and new ways, over and over again. So when we're talking of a new thing, for every new thing of God to be made manifested in people's life, there needs to be a synergy, an agreement, a partnership between divinity and humanity. A cooperation. So many times, of course, every time God is interested in doing something new in accordance to his will, but those new things seems not to be coming into manifestations in people's lives. Yeah, because they have not been able to move into the reality of what God is doing. So God wants to do what he has in mind from onset, what he has in mind, the prototype of his will. He wants it to be manifested, to be replicated in our lives, in, in our world, in our whatever we do. But he expects us to be able to have understanding and to key into what he's doing part-time. So, uh, I have a prescription to that from the scripture, and I'll read just a verse of the scripture in the book of Hosea. The book of Hosea chapter 10, verse 12. If you want to see the, in the fullness, the manifestation of every new thing that God is doing or that God is about to do, it is important that we follow what is written in Hosea chapter 10, verse 12. And I'll read from here, King James Version. The King James Version, Hosea chapter 10, verse 12, he said, sow to yourself in righteousness. So that's just a phrase there, sow to yourself in righteousness. So if you are going to see the new thing of God be manifested in our lives, it is expected that a generation will be ready to sow to theirself not in unrighteousness, but in righteousness. Righteousness. So with this, yes, with this, we'll be able to see, we'll be able to have better understanding, we'll be able to key into what God is doing. At times, people, they, they go to church, they pray, and manifestation of the righteous God to be seen in life. That life must be sown in righteousness. Sow to yourself in righteousness, then we reap in mercy. They break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord. You know, earlier on we were talking about the season and all that. Now this is giving us a clue that even as we are We are all in perilous time. We are all in an ongoing battle of the end time. This season, this time, the scripture is saying it is time to seek the Lord. So if we want— if we are not going to be victim of a season, of a generation, of a, of a perilous time, then we must seek the Lord that he will come and reign righteousness upon you. So reigning righteousness upon you is a new thing, is a new dimension of his glory, is a new dimension of His promises, manifestation of His glory and power and promises in our life. So what I recommend is we as a generation, as an individual, as a person, as a young people, we sow to ourselves in righteousness. Thank you.

Sowing to yourself in righteousness. When the Bible says that we have no righteousness of our own right, that our righteousness is like 50 rags unto the Lord. Is sowing righteousness into our lives prayer per se? Is it meditating on the word, right? When you are envisioning somebody that just gave their life to the Lord yesterday, I've had people tell me that they've never done prayer stretch before, right? So what would you tell even a first-time convert to do to take advantage of the scripture that teaches us to sow for ourselves?

Thank you, Pastor. The answer to that question is still in that verse, but we break it down there. Now, sow to ourselves in righteousness. Sow to ourselves in righteousness. That means there is righteousness on ground, and we have the responsibility to sow to ourselves. Now, there's difference between righteousness and religiosity or religious activity. As a matter of fact, there's one between righteousness and spirituality. Activity, because not every spiritual activity is a righteous activity. There are spiritual activities that are actually demonic, because the spiritual world is like an empty space that so many things are in there. So now, so talking of the righteousness of God, now the answer is this: show to yourself in righteousness, reap in mercy. The next thing is he said break up your fallow ground. Fallow ground means a ground that is not tilled, an untilled ground, an uncultivated ground. If there is something in principle of sowing, for you to sow anything, you have to break the ground, you have to till the ground, you have to cultivate the ground. So this scripture is giving us a hint or a concept of how to sow ourselves in righteousness. There are many people that are going to church, but they are yet to break up their fallow ground. There is something about fallow ground. Fallow ground is like an unfertile ground, uncultivated ground. Nothing good can yield good fruits there. Once a ground is fallow, once a ground is uncultivated, unfertile, no matter the energy that is put in place, no matter the level of prayer, No matter the level of meditation or whatever that is put in there, it can't yield good results. It can't bring out good fruits. So the first thing, if we are to sow to ourselves in righteousness according to the scripture here, we must break up our fallow ground. There are some people, so many things are fallow ground in their lives. Maybe you are engaging in prayers and you are in a long malice with someone. That's the fallow ground. So you need to break it off. So there are so many things, there are so many activities, there are so many people that they are, they are full victim of addictions, and that addiction have become a fallow ground into their life, in their life. So if they are going to sow themselves in righteousness, that means the righteousness of God is not by engaging, it's not just by engaging in spiritual activity. For those spiritual activities like prayers and fastings and study of the word to yield good results. There are fallow ground in our life that must be broken. It must be broken. He said, break up your fallow ground, so for it is time to seek the Lord. That means this season we want to sort ourselves in righteousness. We know that we are in a season that there is a compelling requisite that we should seek the Lord. If that is going to happen, our fallow ground must be broken. Every, everyone, every woman has a fallow ground or once had a fallow ground. Maybe that has been broken. If you— there are some people now, it may be anger. There are some people, it may be fornication. So some people, it may be diverse kind of the thing. There's some people, it may even be something as common as procrastination. Yes, it can be in diverse ways, but if you know that there is a fallow ground in your life, there is nothing you can sow onto a fallow ground that can produce, that can produce results, that can produce good fruits. So it is very important for a Christian, maybe for a young believer that just come into the knowledge of Christ and is interested, I want to sow to myself in righteousness, So I can reap in mercy. I want to do this and that. The first thing, if you want to sow, is that you must break up the fallow ground in your life. And the ultimate of it all, the ultimate of every of this, of the fallow ground, is you being reconciled to Jesus. That's the ultimate. That's the ultimate. You being reconciled to Jesus. You confessing him as your Lord and Savior. You accepting him into your life. You submitting your life to him is the most— is that ultimate of all the follow programs. So may God help us in Jesus' name.

Amen. Um, I'm gonna read from Jeremiah chapter 3, verse 3. Jeremiah 3:3, King James. It says, for thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, break up your fallow ground, and do not sow among thorns.

Um, thank you.

I'm reminded of the New Testament, right? You know, as I study, as I teach, I'm always— every time I'm in the Old Testament, I'm looking ahead at the cross. When I'm in the New Testament, I'm looking behind at cross. And the parable of the sower, as we're all familiar, in Matthew 13. And Jesus is teaching about this parable. He said the seed comes, some fell by the wayside, some fell on a stony place, and then some fell amongst thorns. And particularly as the thorns grew and the seed grew, it was choked by the thorns. So when, you know, we're thinking about all that you have just taught us about making sure that, um, we're breaking up the fallow ground, at times is also removing the thorns, right? It particularly says here, do not sow amongst thorns, right? Because at that point, the seed has no ability to do anything productive if it has not been placed in the right environment. So, you know, I'm just thinking, if we are telling people that you want something new, you want something different, you have to break up the fallow ground, the first thing that I'm thinking is like, man, we need to get this person inside of a church. At least if I'm going to sow a seed, there are so many places that I can put it. I can plant in my backyard, I can plant in my front yard, I can go out, I can plant this seed anywhere. But the wisest thing to do, go to a farm. There's a farmer there. He's tilled the ground, he's removed the thorns, he's made sure that there's fertilizer. So it's like, I think many people, if they simply found a good church, so many of the groundbreaking would have been done for them. What do you think about that?

Yeah, you're right. You know, one interesting thing about this is that everyone sow. But not everyone sows in righteousness, consciously or unconsciously. There are people that are actually sowing to themselves in unrighteousness, and they may not know it, but everyone actually sows. And look at what, um, the Bible says in Proverbs 11, verse 18. Proverbs 11, verse 18. He said the wicked worketh a deceitful work, but to him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward. To him that soweth righteousness— that means there are people that sow unrighteousness. And now, going to church, going to a righteous church, or worshiping in a congregation that has its foundation on righteousness will only help us to discover and to break our hologram. Will only help us because there are some congregations that can actually blind people's eyes from discovering and seeing that there is a hologram there. They will just say, oh, 'Oh, just we can wave it, we are in the era of grace,' and, 'Oh, don't worry, God's grace covers it.' I don't even talk about that. There are some churches, there are some congregations that they believe that homosexuality is not a sin.

Yeah.

And people that practice, they're actually in bondage, but the congregation will just make them feel that, 'Oh, don't worry, God is not angry with you, you can do whatever you like, you have your liberty.' For such scenario, you know, they have not been able to see. But if they change congregation and found themselves in a congregation that have its foundation on righteousness, they will be able to see that, ah, this is a fallow ground, it has to be broken. You have to set— you have to break this out of your life, and you have to be free from this addiction or from this attitude or from this lifestyle. So that is how it works. Uh, that is why we must find ourselves like the scripture you read in that book of Jeremiah, say we should not sow among thorns. So everything, anything that has been sown among the thorns will be strangled to death. It will not see the light of the day. And that's what, sadly, that's what a lot of people are falling victim of in this generation. May God help us.

Amen. I'm gonna read from Psalms 1. It says, blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth its fruit in its season. Oh, in the name of Jesus, for somebody here, this is your season to bear bear fruit in the name of Jesus. It says that whose leaf also shall not wither, and whatever he does shall prosper. I, I've dealt with addiction before, and you know, I think— I don't think the church is being real enough at times. I think we are always standing on pulpits promoting this aspect of perfection that we're trying to embody as servants of Christ without ever showcasing the humanity that we're still struggling with. So many a times people think that the measure of a man of God is how he looks on the pulpit. The measure of a true man of God is how he looks in the platform, but we never consider how he behaves in his living room, right? So when I think of the things that I had to deal in my life to, to, to, to be like this tree planted by the riverside is I had to leave the bush. So many a times when I wanted a new life, when I wanted something different, when I wanted transformation, I literally had to leave the people that I knew behind. I had to delete numbers. I changed my phone number. I deleted my social media. I knew that God was doing something different, so I had to let go of the old things, right? And I want to just encourage people, it will feel hard, it will feel tricky, It will feel like your old world is being torn down because it is. All things have passed away. Behold, everything has become new, you know. So, you know, I don't want us to continue to tell people a new, a new, a new, a new without telling them how to leave the old, the old, the old, the old. And I think that's that, that's the breaking the fallow ground. Sometimes the fallow ground is breaking up with that boyfriend or girlfriend that you've been with for 3 years. Oh yeah, that's fallow ground. It would never produce anything. Break that thing.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, Pastor, thank you. You know, Another interesting thing is, uh, no one is born as a saint. We, at a point in our life, we grew up to, uh, encounter Jesus, and then gradually we grow in the faith and we find ourselves here, and we are still growing, of course. Now I want to mention about two things here. You know, the Bible says something that there is a way that seems right to man, but the end are ways of destruction. Now from Psalm 1 that we read, he said, blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stand in the way, the way of sinners. That means There is a way of sinners. Even in this generation, there is a way of sinners. Yeah, you see, the Bible says that there is a way that seemeth right to man, but the end are the ways of destruction. Obviously, that's the way of sinners. It seemeth right to man, receiving accolades of men, oh, people, is socially acceptable, but according to the standard of the scripture, is a way of sinners. And the way of sinners leads nowhere than destruction. That's the end. So now it is very important that if we're able to realize which way are we, and it will help us a lot if we're able to come to the knowledge of the way we are. If it is the way of the truth, it should be known. If it's the way of sinners, we should know because At the end of it, the truth remains the truth. Just that we live in a generation that seems to fight the truth, in a generation that seems not to like or appreciate the truth, but the truth still remains the truth. Yeah. So, and the truth is the word of God. Anything that, that is, uh, against the word of God is not the truth. So there are so many things that is liberator in a generation that is actually not the truth. As a matter of fact, I think there is a point we need to get to, a point where we come open to God. For example, for someone that wants to break free from addiction, you see, there is one interesting thing about addiction, or there's one sad thing about addiction. Addiction is a respecter of no personality. Someone can be a victim of addiction. Yeah. Oh yes, there are ministers that someone can be gifted and still be a victim of addiction. There are different kind of addiction. So to break loose of addiction, they need to be a total submission, a total submission to The Bible said by strength shall no man prevail. You don't face addiction by your own strength or by your own self-discipline. There needs to be a kind of humbling heart to God. Lord, help me, I can't struggle with this myself. There are people that made vows. I've had people that said that, oh, they have been victim of addiction, of masturbation for a long time, and there are points that they even made a vow that, oh, whenever they do this again, God take their life. But thank God, God did not answer the prayer, because some of them would have been dead a long time ago. You know, they were trying to use their self-discipline, their, their self-righteousness or self-ability to see how they can use it to combat with the addiction. But they found out that they keep falling into it over and over again. So they need— until they come to a point where they say, Lord, I can't help myself, you need to help me at this point, I have no power of my own to face this, Jesus help me, I come under the blood of Jesus. By the time we come to that level of meekness, then we receive help, we receive help. So the Lord is helping us, the Lord is helping. Another interesting thing from the book of Psalm 1 that you read. I love it so much. That verse 3, he said, he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that bring forth his fruits in his season. My brother, everyone have a season. Everyone have their season that has been programmed by God. But it's not everyone It's not everyone that is bringing up their fruit, that's bringing out their fruits in their season. Some people, they keep repeating season over and over again without bringing out good fruits. So, and he said his leaves shall not wither, whatsoever he does shall prosper. That's when he's bringing out fruit in the season. Whatever he does will prosper. But it all starts from the work, where you work, and the counsel, and the— and the— and where you stand, maybe in the way of sinners or in the way of the truth. I really pray that the grace to bring forth our fruit in our season, God will give unto us in Jesus' name. And that is one thing that the devil fights. Devil does not want anyone to bring their fruits in their season.

Ever.

Yeah, he doesn't want that. The Lord is helping us.

Amen. So we were planning to meet again, you know, in October, by God's grace. Um, one of the things that's just been a burden that I've been carrying is evangelism. And I, I, I, Evangelist Isaac, I've been talking about him a lot. He's been a very a very inspiring person in the realms of evangelism. And I asked him, why isn't there more evangelists? I asked him, and he said, because there's no money in evangelism. And that just broke my heart. I, I was so sincere. I'm like, you know, shouldn't I've only— I probably only met 3 evangelists, at least that have, uh, uptook the office of an evangelist in my life. 3. And by his wisdom, he revealed that it's because there's no money in evangelism. So how do we reconcile the need and the desperate need for evangelism more in this time, in this end-time ministry, the more laborers in the field, while also trying to balance the idea that there are people that need shepherded? Does that question make sense?

Yeah, it does. You know, now, who are evangelists? People need to understand that the work of every believer— every believer is a laborer in the kingdom. I, I— there was a time I released a short and clip and I mentioned something there that in this kingdom, it is kingdom laborers that are generous before God. We don't— though on earth today we seem to celebrate generals among body of Christ, and then— but the way God look at generals, they are kingdom laborers. And who are kingdom laborers? The greatest commission that God Jesus gave us It was Jesus, our Lord Jesus himself, that gave us Matthew 28:18 and 19, or verse 19 and 20 rather. Let me read from here. He said, go ye therefore. He's talking to every believer, you and I, pastor, altar, uh, maybe you are a choir, maybe you are whatever department you are, you find yourself, as long as you are a believer, you have been regenerated. Jesus is telling us, go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Verse 20, a repetition, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. Now it is very important, the work of an evangelist is the work of every believer. To— when we are talking of evangelism now, we are talking of winning souls to the kingdom, right? It's as simple as that. Winning souls to the kingdom. That 3-hour bus, that 3-hour bus that you are taking, you are traveling, maybe you are in a bus for 3 hours, is an avenue to speak with someone about Jesus. Hey, Jesus loves you. See, all these things, if we have the knowledge of what God himself, the kind of value that God has placed on soul winning, we will not be compelling people to engage in it. It's obvious we don't really have knowledge of the kind of value that God himself put on soul winning. Something that it took God— it cost God his only begotten Son to implement. It can show us the kind of value that God placed on it. So now I want to show— I want to mention something from this scripture. You will realize that that Matthew chapter 28, verse 19 and 20, they kept talking about teaching all, not even preaching, but teaching, not even preaching, but teaching. So for, for there to be a, uh, a level of maturity Then that's where the teaching comes in, because everyone must engage in evangelism to bring people to Christ. Then it is the teaching that will now make them grow to become mature Christians. So the work of evangelism, I don't know, uh, it's everyone's work. But you see, we live in a generation that people prefer— they focus more on the city, but there are so many areas, there are so places that, that, uh, there are more work to be done. But maybe because of the pleasure and because of the advantages or whatever, the people may prioritize in the city or some other locations. They are not putting more attention into some particular places. But what I want to say conclusively is this: every believer has the mandate to evangelize. Every believer— are you a believer? Yes, you are. If you are a believer, then you have the mandate to evangelize. There are people that are actually called into the evangelic land when you talk of the fivefold ministry, but on a general note, every believer should engage effectively in evangelism, in kingdom building. Kingdom advancement.

So when you combine the commission with the office, it leads me to believe that there will be a bigger output than there currently is.

Yeah.

So either the office is lacking, the commission is not being kept, or either as a part of the commissions, disciples are not being made or made disciples are not being taught, but somewhere there's a breakdown, you know. Somewhere we should be able— I was talking to, um, it was actually earlier today, I was talking to a person who recently just converted to Christianity, and these are my favorite people to talk to, my favorite people to talk to. Because I'll ask some questions like, why did you become a Christian? You know, I've asked this question before. Why do people convert to Christianity? And you'll be shocked at how many people don't even know why people come in. It'll be like, I don't even want to give answers because I don't want to make people feel feel like their own answers is not a good answer. There are many reasons why people come to the faith, right? You know, they like the food, they like the worship, they like the, you know, they like the way the pastor dressed, you know, like, but by and large, when you talk to atheists, or for example, I've spoken to a Muslim that converted to Christianity, and he told me why. And I've been building up— I've been building up a repository of these reasons. The two biggest reasons why people convert to Christianity is love and community. The two biggest reasons. In fact, if I can Narrow it down to just one, it would be community.

Wow.

When you read about the Acts of Apostles, right, Acts 2:42, you even start at 38, and the mass conversions that occur, do you realize that when tongues was given as a gift, it was for evangelism? Yeah, they were declaring the works of God in an unknown language. And in fact, it was over 15 different ethnicities present when they were all hearing their languages. So the gospel had the power to bring 15 different ethnicities to one table to eat together, to fellowship together. That's powerful. That's just like the— in today, you will pick from Russia, you will pick from China, you will pick from Ghana, you will pick from Australia. You put all of these people, tongues come, and all of these people all of a sudden become best friends. All of a sudden, these people go into one room and they fellowship and they eat. All of these people sell all of their belongings because they had everything in common. You can't even get people in the same country to come together now. So I'm— this work of evangelism is so much more robust and powerful than we make it seem, and it's clearly lacking because at least in the West, it's almost as if that Christianity is in a decline. So we're doing reverse evangelism.

Jesus help. Let me add this to it because this, what we are talking about now is very important, is very fundamental. In fact, and I will share something with you, just 3 verses from the book of Romans chapter 1. Romans chapter 1 is the words of Apostle Paul, and it's not just Apostle Paul now, but this word is, uh, it concerns every believer. The 3 I AM of the believer. If you are a believer, if you are regenerated, then you have these 3 things I'm about to share. Number 1, Romans chapter 1, verse 14 to 16. Romans chapter 1, verse 14 to 16. The 3 I AM of a believer. Number 1: every believer is a debtor. Verse 14 says, I am a debtor both to the Greeks and to the barbarians, both to the wise and to the unwise. If you are a believer, you are a debtor. You are a debtor. Debtor in the sense that it's not financial debt. You are the debtor to preach the gospel to to evangelize. You are a debtor. You have the debt to preach the gospel both to the wise and to the unwise, the literate and illiterate, both to the young and to the old, both to the Greeks and to the barbarians. So it should be known that every believer is a debtor. We have that debt to pay because there are some people that paid the price for this gospel enjoying today. I've read history about our patrons of faith that paid price even with their own life to ensure that the words of God, the gospel, get to us. So we have that role to play. Number one, that's number one, that we are a debtor. I am a debtor, you are a debtor. To the Greeks and to the barbarians, to everyone, to preach the gospel. Number 2, verse 15, he said, so as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also. So every believer must also be ready. As far as you are a debtor, you must be ready to preach. But we live in a generation that believers, even ministers, are not even ready to evangelize. That's why we are having a lot of decline, especially in the Western world. We are having a lot of decline in Christianity, that people will be converting from Christians to other religions. This is not about preaching Christianity, it's about preaching kingdom. It's not just about saying, oh, I'm a Christian. No. It's about saying I'm a kingdom candidate because my name is written in the Book of Life. So every believer, number 2, must be ready. I am ready, as it is written in Romans chapter 1, verse 15, that I am ready. Now the question is, are you ready? Are you really ready to preach the gospel? There are so many people that are not ready. It shows with the way we behave, with the way we shy away from the gospel, with the way we can't even tell someone about Jesus, with the way we can't even be bold to showcase that, oh, we belong to Jesus in a certain— in any settings we find ourselves, it shows that we are not ready. And may God help us to be ready in Jesus' name. That's number 2. Number 3, which is very, very important, verse 16, Romans chapter 1, verse 16, said, for I am not I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. Very important. I am not ashamed. Ah, Oluseun Arowolaju is not ashamed.

I'm not ashamed.

I don't know of you, but it is important. If you are a child of God, if you are a believer, you must be saying I am not ashamed. It must be shown that you are not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. I'm not ashamed. But is it not that we have so many ministers that seems to be ashamed to uphold the gospel? It seems to be ashamed. Some people, they just want to be in between the line. They don't want to be there, they don't want to be here. They just want to be in between. They just want to be neutral because they are— some people, they are ashamed that their colleagues would make jest of them, they will make mockery of them. They will say, oh, pastor, oh, hey, you are doing like a pastor, you are doing like a bishop. It's not about the title here. Why I am not ashamed, regardless what they say, if it is the gospel, I am not ashamed. There are seasons in my life that, uh, myself, some of my colleagues, then we go on evangelism. Many times we go on the personal evangelism, the cycle ministry. We go on personal evangelism, door-to-door, one-on-one evangelism with people. There are times I engage in, what's it called, the morning cry. Go out early in the morning, we evangelize. There are many ways to do that. I remember back then when I was in England, when I was schooling in the UK, there are people that go to the city centers, they talk to— they talk about Jesus, they preach the gospel. I am not ashamed, but there are so many Christians that are ashamed. There are so many pastors that can't even preach the gospel outside their church. Yeah, they just feel, they just feel they will lose their peace and their composure because they are ashamed. But the Bible says I am not ashamed. So 3, I am of a believer, I am a debtor, we should know that. Secondly, I am ready. Thirdly, I am not ashamed. I mean, God help us in Jesus' name. So if we put all these 3 things in place, evangelism will be much more easier. Yeah, thank you.

I, I think that's where we should begin to pray as we conclude, because the harvest is plenty.

It's—

yes, I mean, the fact that there are people out there that They don't, they don't know Jesus, and they're living next to us. Yeah, they're in the same office, taking the same bus, flying in the same plane. Something in our life should be able to push them towards the gospel. Something about our conduct. Something about our manner. It should be something that's reflecting upon the lives of each and every one of us that will compel somebody to ask, what makes you different? And then we point to God and tell him, to all be the glory. So can we just begin to pray for as many people that would receive this prayer? Something in your life will make a difference. Ah, something in your life, the finger of God will impact you in a way that you influence your surroundings. Your workplace cannot be the same because God has an ambassador there. Your family cannot be the same because God has an ambassador there. Your city, your country cannot be the same because God has an ambassador there, O Lord. We pray, we pray that we will reflect your goodness upon every aspect of our life. We will not be ashamed, we will not be ashamed, for the gospel is the power of God for men unto salvation. Lord, give us boldness.

Help us to be ready. Help us not in the name of Jesus.

Help us to be bold, to be courageous. Lord, know that you are sending us out as sheep amongst wolves, but Father Lord, we have a good shepherd. We will not be afraid. We will not be ashamed. Lord, help us to understand the position that we have as debtors to you. We are ready to preach the gospel. Make ready, O Lord, the souls of men that are ready to be at the forefront of this effort.

In the name of Jesus. In the name—

thank you, Heavenly Father. For in Jesus' name, Lord, we pray. Pastor Toby, can you, can you pray for us as we conclude?

Oh Lord Almighty Father, we thank you. Thank you. We thank you for your love, for your mercy. We thank you for your grace. We thank you for this time, for this season. We thank you for the word we have shared. We thank you for the insight. We thank you for the life of everyone that connected. We thank you for the life of everyone that will still connect and listen to this after now. Lord, be thou exalted in the name of Jesus. Oh Lord, we pray, give us grace, oh God, to be ever ready, to be ever ready to preach all in the name of Jesus, to preach the gospel, to be ever ready. Lord, give us the grace not to ever be ashamed. We receive the courage, the boldness required in the name of Jesus Christ. Lord, to break every fallow ground in our lives, and as many that are connecting now that has a fallow ground or addiction or something they are moving with. We stand on the finished work of Christ and we decree that addiction is broken in the name of Jesus. Every fallow ground is broken in the name of Jesus. I pray that we are victorious totally on every side in the name of Jesus Christ. Thank you, Almighty Father. We ask for more grace, oh God, more grace, more anointing. Renew our strength, fresh anointing in name of Jesus. Thank you, mighty Father. In Jesus Christ's name we pray.

Amen.

Amen. Amen.

In Jesus' name. Uh, God bless each and every one of you. Um, we pray that you were blessed by this. Um, there's so much to do. We said it last time, there's a bridge being built. You know, it reminds me of Jacob's ladder, angels ascending and descending. There's a bridge being built where God is creating spiritual channels between what I believe America and Nigeria. And I pray that we will continue to be stewards of this very move. Truth in the name of Jesus. So my brother, thank you for being a friend. Thank you for being a co-laborer. Thank you for being considerate in this work. I, I bless God for you, sir.

Thank you very much, sir. I celebrate you. I love you and your family. Thank you very much for all you do for God's kingdom. Thank you so much. God bless you, my brother.

It's a pleasure. Well, everybody, that's Edition 2 of A New Thing. We will see you for Edition 3. God bless.

God's grace. Thank you. God bless you.