We were so pleased when a Nazarene Pastor told us, "I've finished your book today and God spoke to my heart through that book." He said, "I have just spent three solid hours in prayer thanking Him and asking God to make his life and ministry come alive." He asked me about the baptism of the Holy Spirit and before he hung up he said, "It's for me, I'm going to have it." Then he said, "one hour ago I chucked tradition." These calls, these letters are just so stimulating because it's not a programmed thing. The Spirit of the Lord is liberating lives and they're calling at all hours.
God has let me know that what He's doing is not because of me alone, I'm just one of the factors. But this congregation has provided an atmosphere; it has provided the right kind of soil for this message to spring up and to grow. Do you realize that God would not only have to prepare a person but He would have to prepare a congregation to provide a base for what He is doing in this way? I don't know of another group of people that are as open to God and are as flexible as this group of people. And for this reason without speaking from an egotistical standpoint, God saw something in you through which he could bless the world.
I feel that the Lord has already introduced my message this morning. I'm going to bring you an application of a tremendous truth. Last week I began a series on God's golden key. That key with which He gives us everything else is Jesus. The first door that was unlocked with this golden key was the doorway to assurance through the blood of Jesus Christ. God gave us that assurance. All is well now and as we cross the river; all is well on the other side because Jesus lives to guard the thing that He's purchased, our salvation.
The next need of every believer and of human life is the need for authority to actually put into practice the things that God has prepared for us. So with Jesus, with His own Son He gives us His authority. There's a key, His golden key that opens this door. And that is the power of the name of Jesus. Jesus' name is our authority.
There was a lady here last Sunday; today she's up in Minnesota spreading the good word of what Jesus did for her. She had arthritis in her hands and the ring that she had on this finger was so embedded because the knuckle was so swollen and twisted that the ring would not come off and the swelling was there so that it more or less was not embedded to a point of danger but it was still quite puffed up around the ring and her knuckles were enlarged because of this and twisted. Last Sunday morning we had our hands raised and we were praising the name of Jesus. She has another faith background but she was here. She put her hands up too while people were praising the Lord just worshipping the Lord. When she put them down she didn't know anything happened. When she put her hands down the ring slipped off her finger and fell on the floor or on the pew. And she looked at her fingers and everything was ok. The flesh is still deeply discolored where that ring was under such pressure. So she headed back to Minnesota and she's going to be telling everybody up there what Jesus did for her. She's going up there and she's going to start building a lot of fires.
We have a lot of reports of victories that have happened because of the power of Jesus' name. He's on the job folks. I'm going to read a portion of Scripture. Colossians 2. God let the Apostle Paul see the power of the name of Jesus. He used that authority that power that is in Jesus' name. "For I would that you knew what great conflict I have for you and as many that have not seen my face in the flesh. That there hearts might be comforted being knit together in love and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God and of the Father and of Christ in who are hid all of the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." This is from the Phillips translation now. "I wish you can understand how deep is my anxiety for you and for those at Laodicia and for all who have never met me how I long that you may be encouraged and find out more and more how strong are the bonds of Christian love. How I long for you to grow more certain in your knowledge and more sure in your grasp of God Himself, more certain and more sure in your grasp. May your spiritual experience become richer as you see more and more fully God's great secret, Christ Himself, God's golden key. God's secret is Jesus. For it is in Him and in Him alone that men will find all of the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Praise God. God's golden key to the treasures of God's storehouse. "And this I say lest any man should beguile you with enticing words for though I am absent in the flesh yet am I with you in the spirit, joyful and beholding your order and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ. "As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith as you have been taught, abounding in thanksgiving. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world and not after Christ. For in Him dwells all of the Godhead bodily." Here's what I want you to underline, this is His promise to you. "You are complete in Him, which is the Head of all principalities and power." The big boss. "You are complete in Him, and whom also you are circumcised with a circumcision without hands." When this term is used in the Word he's making reference to the adherence to the law, the keeping of the Law of Moses. So he's speaking now that you in Christ because Christ kept the law, every bit of it, He fulfilled every letter. So when He hung on the cross He could cry it is finished. He kept the law and so what he's saying is because you're complete in Him, when Jesus kept the law God looks down at you and says you kept the law because we are accepted in Him. "We're buried with Him in baptism and also you are raised with Him through the faith of the operation of God, which raised Him from the dead." The operation of God.
Do you know folks I just want you to think about this for a minute, you could probably chew on it all week. We have programs in every denomination. People have their little schemes and plans. And we have all kinds of operations of man and they have there purpose, they get things done. But there's only one thing that will give you that divine life. And that is your faith in the operation of God. God's big operation. We're talking about that great plan of God that He set in motion. His great big plan before He ever made the earth was that we might be gathered together to Him. His great plan before He made the earth. Faith in the operation of God who have raised Him from the dead. And you being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh which the inability to keep the law. He said we were accepted by the keeping of the law and by a method not made with hands. And you read that in verse 10. But he said now, "You hath He quickened together in Him having forgiven all of your trespasses. Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, he took it out of the way nailing it to his own cross." The enemy points to those things where in we have failed, the things that are literally iniquities and he accuses us and would attempt to hold those things up as charges against us, but Jesus said, "I'm going to take that and I'm going to pay the penalty for all of those things that were against us." All of the possible charges and those things that were over our heads He took and put them over His own head and had them nailed to the cross. Then he went on to say, "And having spoiled principalities and powers he made a show of them openly triumphing over them. Now let no men therefore judge you in meat or in drink or in respect to a holy day which is a shadow of things to come but the body is of Christ."
I'd like to discuss for a moment the power that there really is in the name of Jesus. It is literally a key to God's heart. You read it in John 14:14 he said, "If you shall ask anything in my name," there is power in prayer, in Jesus name, unlocks heaven. There is power to reach into God's storehouse through the name of Jesus. It's a beautiful key and pulls out salvation. It shall come to pass that they that call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. His name, Jesus. Many of you have found real life by simply calling Jesus. And He listened to your call and through your call He turned it into a pipeline, the name Jesus into a pipeline and He poured the love of God down through it to your heart. It's a great key in liberating people from bondage and fear.
Whoever you loose will be loosed and whoever you bind will be bound. I think of the power of the name of Jesus in heaven. Hebrews 1:6 says that all of the angels of God must fall and worship Him. David had a glimpse of heaven and the power of Jesus' name. And he cried out, "oh come let us exalt His name together, come magnify the Lord, let us exalt that wonderful name." It is a name that is above every other name, a name that causes demons to tremble. It's a name that is so special regardless of what language you use that name in. I like the sound of the name Jesus but while I was praying with some men over in Germany they had just as much effect with God. I remember one man in particular; I still hear the words ringing in my ears, Jesunamen, Jesunamen. I think he was saying in Jesus name. Colossians 3:17 he said, "whatever we do, do all in the name of Jesus."
We spoke of healings in that name, we spoke of salvation in that name, there is victory, and there is power in that name. This chapter was so highlighted it literally vibrated within me. God let me see it and the power of the name of Jesus and what He actually did in His great plan through that operation of God. And verse 15 is the verse I want to draw your attention with and you can do a little underlining there. "And having spoiled principalities and powers he made a show over them triumphing over them in it." The Lord spoke to my heart and let me know what that word spoiled means. He said it means stripping him of all of his authority, all of his power. And then he made this statement to me. He said that this word was not used again in the entire Word; it was not used even before it in the New Testament. It's the only place it's used. He said the reason for this, and believers need to know it, they don't need to somehow each day try and snatch away from the devil his power because after Jesus stripped him of it he never got it back. He said he didn't allow that word to be used anymore. You don't need to spoil him anymore he's already spoiled.
There was a young lady that flew in from Indiana that was so totally depressed. Fear filled her mind and she couldn't seem to get the victory over this thing so I let her know that the enemy could not hurt her. He could only use the fear and the fear with that handle we could hurt ourselves with it. So I told so many people that the enemy comes to you like great big rubber balloons in grotesque shapes with horns sticking out and weird looking eyes and those big balloons frighten you and you draw back in fear because of that ugly face looking at you and then he comes with another suggestion, more fear, more fear. So I talked with this lady and said now we're going to use Jesus' name and as you use that name I want you to see it with a point on the end of it. And I want you to wade into that and everything the devil brings to you and watch how empty and how powerless those big balloons are. You're going to prove that they're nothing but a bunch of hot air. So we prayed and I had her get up even though she was nervous and self-conscious and she didn't want to do it, I said you've come to far now to go away without getting a little something more. So she waded into those old balloons of the enemy. Now she likes to do it. She said just let him come around now. And you find out how little substance there really is.
I like the way this verse is worded here in the Phillips translation. "God has now made us to share in the very life of Christ. He has forgiven you all of your sins. Christ has utterly wiped out the damning evidence of broken laws and commandments which always hung over our heads and has completely annulled it by nailing it over his own head on the cross and then having drawn the sting out of all of the powers ranged against us, He exposed them, shattered, emptied and defeated in his final glorious triumphant act." Does Jesus say anything about that? Luke 10. The disciples said, "Lord even evil spirits obey us when we use your name." "Yes," said Jesus, "I was watching and saw satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning. It is true that I have given you the power to tread on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all of the enemy's power. There is nothing at all that can do you any harm." Quit giving him handles to try and scare you with. I had a man in my office this week and his mind was cluttered about thoughts about demons. Every church he's worked with majored on demons. He said I discovered after I got into these places that there's demon activity in everyone of these churches just so strong. In fact he said that we found out that my wife had 9 demons and one of the men pulled out all of those 9 demons out. Then another person said he didn't get them all and he said this other man pulled out 101 more demons. But this fellow said hey there's still about 4 more in there and there too stubborn for me to get out; we have to take her some place where somebody's a little bit stronger than I am. I told this guy you poor man. Satan's making a little smoke puff and you're running around all over the country. People working for hours trying to get a few demons out. Trying to get a lady to cough and each time she coughs another demon comes out. Finally she was so tired she couldn't cough anymore, that's why they had to send her down for those last 4. I talked to him on Thursday and on Friday after coming out of my class I saw him come out with his wife. There was quite a nervousness and a problem that all these different type of things that gotten into her but these folk are rejoicing in God so happy because I let them see that satan has no power over them. And the thing that was troubling them was a little bit of shyness because of all of the things that have happened. But when I showed them the victory that they had and when I said now get out there and tread on the snakes and the scorpions yourself, kick them out of the way. And I let her know, God's given me enough discernment, you don't have a demon of any kind in you. And this made her explode in the Lord because of all of these things.
Beware when you're around people that are talking so much about demons. If the enemy does have any chance to work at all, that's where he has a chance to work because people are letting him work on their fears. But thank God we can talk about Jesus and when you talk about Jesus it gives Him a chance to work. You remember those disciples on the way to Emmaus. They were talking about Jesus and He listened and he said, "Hey there's somebody talking about Me," and so He went with them. And then he tells us, "Whenever two or three are gathered in My name, there you have that name again, that authority, he says there's where I want to be. So we're gathered in His name, we're magnifying His name, we're exalting His name, and Jesus has to come. Wouldn't you rather Him than a lot of those old demons. He is God's golden Key. Let's stand to our feet and lift our hands towards heaven and worship the Lord and love Him. Give that shout of victory that God has placed within your heart.
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