Opportunity to Sow Seeds

SECRETS


“Father, thank you for this another layer of religious conspiracy. Give us ears to hear, hearts to obey, and the fear of the Lord to follow your ways. We are thankful for putting these two messages together so we can be equipped to fulfill Your will on Earth!”

Let’s read Philippians 2:2-14: "Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” Verses 2-8

So, we can even say that in this aspect, He was obedient even unto death, the death of the cross. This passage encourages us to have the same mind of obedience that was in Christ and must also be in us. The joy comes from obedience. 

“Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Do all things without murmurings and disputing’s.” Verses 9-14

Salvation is not a prayer; it is a lifestyle; it is a life of picking up your cross because it is all in the Word! Whatever you do in secret is very important. What is important is not what you do in the presence of the Body but in the absence of the Body, what you do in secret! This is all about the Fear of God! Whatever good you do, whatever alms you give, it is better to be done in secret (Matthew 6:3-4), but also religious conspiracy, plots, and hidden agendas are always done in secret. This is part two of a message called Religious Conspiracy

" In the mean time, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he began to say unto his disciples first of all, Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known. Therefore, whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops." Luke 12:1-3 

What is hypocrisy? It means so many things, but what I want to point out is when we do something not in public but in secret. We do something different when we are alone or around different people, those that are not of the Body of Christ, like family and foe. The matter is that we say something in public, but we do something else in secret; the matter is what we say around the righteous, but we say something else, or nothing at all around the unrighteous. We all need God’s grace for this race. 

This passage says that "all will be revealed," whatever we do in secret. Whatever we do in our hearts. Whatever you spoke in darkness, whatever you spoke when nobody was seeing you, is what matters the most. Jesus knew all that they were saying in secret. This is enough to ground us in the fear of the Lord. Pride will cause us to hide things! When we don't let the Word of God work on us, we start doing things without the fear of the Lord. Jesus is all around us, but He also sees us in secret. Jesus knew and knew all! Even before something happens, the Holy Spirit will always warn us! This is a great time to repent, not after the fact but before He warns us! The fear of the Lord leads us to mercy! 2 Kings 4 talks about the miracle of the oil. In chapter 5, we see that the healing turns into a curse. In chapter 6, we see so many other miracles, like the ax head that floated. All of these bring us to faith in Jesus and also to the fear of the Lord! 

 "And it came to pass, when the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy? wherefore consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a quarrel against me. And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel. So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha. And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean. But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper.” 2 Kings 5:7-11 

“Surely, Elisha will do it my way,” Naaman thought. Religious and prideful people think this way: Why is he doing it this way? I could do it better. That is not the way I would have done it. There is a faster way. He has the power, he has authority, why does he not just call on the name of God, and all will be done?” The questions can go on and on. But people don't understand why leadership, God, or spiritual people do things this or that way. And what happens? Indignation! He got mad because he wanted it to be done his way! There was a difference between Naaman and Elisha! Naaman was a man filled with leprosy, and Elisha– a prophet filled with wisdom and discernment! Is it not better to do it this way? To move through my emotions, my needs, and my way. 

There is always somebody telling the Holy Spirit what to do. This is why leviathan is always working around, bringing indignation when we don’t do things the way our flesh wants, our plans, or what our carnality wants. Naaman even told Elisha where he wanted to be washed. He felt too clean to dip into the Jordan’s water: "Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage. And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean? Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean. And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said, Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant. But he said, As the LORD liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it; but he refused.“ 2 Kings 5:12-16 

We do the same thing but in our own minds and hearts. There is a pool right here. Modern-day convenience: easier, faster, smarter, but not God. You know how people tell me how to write and post and how to do it in shorter versions, BUT God is telling me to do it like this! Why not do it this way? The Word of God tells us to receive the prophet and receive the prophet’s reward (Matthew 10:41)! Carnality mixed with true obedience... They want to get results, but they try to figure out how, when, and why!  When the Word of God says, His ways are higher than our ways (Isaiah 55:8-9)! Religious people even start doing meetings or outreaches using different strategies than the Word of God. The same thing, the same scenario that happened to Naaman, happens now, but way worse. Think about when God had Noah build the Ark… I wonder about all the opinions and frustrations, but as Christ builds His church, I pledge to follow Him and His instructions without questioning and modifying them. He is God, and we are man! Why do we want Him to do things our way? We always need the fear of the Lord because if we have the fear of the Lord, we have the fear of the Word! The Lord is the Word, and the Word is the Lord! 

"But he went in, and stood before his master. And Elisha said unto him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi? And he said, Thy servant went no whither. And he said unto him, Went not mine heart with thee, when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and maidservants? The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever. And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow." 2 Kings 5:25-27 

We always question God. Why do I have to go the narrow way? It is too long and too narrow! But after Naaman was cleaned, he was like born again. His flesh was completely clean! Naaman wanted to bless Elisha, but he did not receive the blessing! For some reason, God told him not to receive something! Even with Abraham, he denied the blessing because he knew the source was not clean, "You will tell everyone you are the one that made me rich" (Genesis 14:21-23). Probably, Naaman had a secret agenda, a hidden agenda in blessing the prophet (2 King 5:15)! But Elisha refused to receive it. But he said, As the Lord liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it; but he refused.” Verse 16

Now we see the same thing happening again, but worse because it happened to Elisha’s collaborator, his minister of help, his assistant, his co-laborer, his servant, or like the religious system would call him, “Elisha’s armor bearer.” Regardless, they were on the same team, and Gehazi knew Elisha. Gehazi went ahead and wanted to get a blessing in the name of Elisha (verse 20)! Wonder what had crossed his mind: “Wow, are you crazy? You can't deny that blessing…” This saying is the fruit of a mind filled with covetousness! Gehazi was bringing in more religious conspiracy! We want the fear of the Lord! Elisha cursed Gehazi and his family because of his act! This is for us to see how what we do in secret can be so dangerous! This is a very serious thing! It is crazy because we do not even realize that when we move in sin, covetousness, lust, and rebellion, it affects our entire family. Because you get all messed up, from your finances to your relationships, and you end up losing your peace. If you are in the Body of Christ, you affect everyone. This is why Jesus said to cut out whatever makes you sin (Matthew 5:29-30). We need not to take the grace of God in vain (2 Corinthians 6:1). 

A servant of the prophet Elisha, Gehazi enjoyed a position of power but was ultimately corrupt, misusing his authority to lie and cheat Naaman the Syrian to get money out of Naaman and claiming that it was at Elisha’s request. This is a religious conspiracy! Elisha afflicts him and his descendants with the same disease that had afflicted Naaman. As punishment, Elisha cursed Gehazi, transferring Naaman's leprosy to him and his descendants forever. We need to fear the Lord in everything we think, do, or say! We have all these warnings in God’s Word! What will our legacy be? What will we say if we are outside the Word of God? As we know, it is not how we start out that really matters but how we end! 

The love of God without the fear of the Lord will bring lawlessness into our lives. But the fear of the Lord without the love of God will turn us into legalistic people without mercy and kindness."Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear of the LORD. " Psalm 34:11, "In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge." Proverbs 14:26 

“By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.” Proverbs 16:6 

The fear of the Lord is a habitation for His people. Do you see how easy it is to give heed to those seeds in our mind? Judas started having familiarity! Jesus was preaching all the time! Judas did not pay attention or fear what He was saying. By the fear of the Lord, we can depart from evil! Jesus was not some watered-down false grace preacher. He was the living Word. He talked differently. He showed us the way. Now, we have the Holy Spirit. We have the written Word. We can follow the Lamb today! Love is a choice; today, we have a choice! 

“The fear of the LORD tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil.” Proverbs 19:23 There is one thing we forget: we can't get away from the consequences of sin! This is insanity! When the Truth sets us free, we need to continue in the Truth that sets us free! The fear of the Lord is something we need to seek and have until we no longer have breath! 

We can do great things for God; this is our legacy, but when somebody falls, all they remember is that one thing that we did not do! The good thing about the New Testament is that the fear of the Lord gives us a chance to get back up. Every single one of us, if we have a chance to be God, we will take that chance in a second! That is the spirit of the age. That spirit means to be able to do what we want all the time! 

"Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body. Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge." Hebrews 13:2-4 

To all the conspirators, here is another warning: "Let your conversation be without covetousness, and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.“ Hebrews 13:5 We have the power to live this holy way because we have the Holy Spirit! He would never ask us to do something without giving us the power to do it. Why? "So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” Hebrews 13:6

When you are right with God, you don’t care what others do and speak. Leviathan starts working when we start stepping into sin, complaining, and having indignation! We keep getting out and in, but the fear of the Lord will keep us in all the time! 

"Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation." Hebrews 13:7

“Father, thank you for this another layer of religious conspiracy. Give us ears to hear, hearts to obey, and the fear of the Lord to follow your ways. We are thankful for putting these two messages together so we can be equipped to fulfill Your will on Earth!”

Let’s read Philippians 2:2-14: "Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” Verses 2-8

So, we can even say that in this aspect, He was obedient even unto death, the death of the cross. This passage encourages us to have the same mind of obedience that was in Christ and must also be in us. The joy comes from obedience. 

 

“Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Do all things without murmurings and disputing’s.” Verses 9-14

Salvation is not a prayer; it is a lifestyle; it is a life of picking up your cross because it is all in the Word! Whatever you do in secret is very important. What is important is not what you do in the presence of the Body but in the absence of the Body, what you do in secret! This is all about the Fear of God! Whatever good you do, whatever alms you give, it is better to be done in secret (Matthew 6:3-4), but also religious conspiracy, plots, and hidden agendas are always done in secret. This is part two of a message called Religious Conspiracy

" In the mean time, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he began to say unto his disciples first of all, Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known. Therefore, whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops." Luke 12:1-3 

What is hypocrisy? It means so many things, but what I want to point out is when we do something not in public but in secret. We do something different when we are alone or around different people, those that are not of the Body of Christ, like family and foe. The matter is that we say something in public, but we do something else in secret; the matter is what we say around the righteous, but we say something else, or nothing at all around the unrighteous. We all need God’s grace for this race. 

This passage says that "all will be revealed," whatever we do in secret. Whatever we do in our hearts. Whatever you spoke in darkness, whatever you spoke when nobody was seeing you, is what matters the most. Jesus knew all that they were saying in secret. This is enough to ground us in the fear of the Lord. Pride will cause us to hide things! When we don't let the Word of God work on us, we start doing things without the fear of the Lord. Jesus is all around us, but He also sees us in secret. Jesus knew and knew all! Even before something happens, the Holy Spirit will always warn us! This is a great time to repent, not after the fact but before He warns us! The fear of the Lord leads us to mercy! 2 Kings 4 talks about the miracle of the oil. In chapter 5, we see that the healing turns into a curse. In chapter 6, we see so many other miracles, like the ax head that floated. All of these bring us to faith in Jesus and also to the fear of the Lord! 

"And it came to pass, when the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy? wherefore consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a quarrel against me. And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel. So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha. And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean. But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper.” 2 Kings 5:7-11 

“Surely, Elisha will do it my way,” Naaman thought. Religious and prideful people think this way: Why is he doing it this way? I could do it better. That is not the way I would have done it. There is a faster way. He has the power, he has authority, why does he not just call on the name of God, and all will be done?” The questions can go on and on. But people don't understand why leadership, God, or spiritual people do things this or that way. And what happens? Indignation! He got mad because he wanted it to be done his way! There was a difference between Naaman and Elisha! Naaman was a man filled with leprosy, and Elisha– a prophet filled with wisdom and discernment! Is it not better to do it this way? To move through my emotions, my needs, and my way. 

There is always somebody telling the Holy Spirit what to do. This is why leviathan is always working around, bringing indignation when we don’t do things the way our flesh wants, our plans, or what our carnality wants. Naaman even told Elisha where he wanted to be washed. He felt too clean to dip into the Jordan’s water: "Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage. And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean? Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean. And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said, Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant. But he said, As the LORD liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it; but he refused.“ 2 Kings 5:12-16 

We do the same thing but in our own minds and hearts. There is a pool right here. Modern-day convenience: easier, faster, smarter, but not God. You know how people tell me how to write and post and how to do it in shorter versions, BUT God is telling me to do it like this! Why not do it this way? The Word of God tells us to receive the prophet and receive the prophet’s reward (Matthew 10:41)! Carnality mixed with true obedience... They want to get results, but they try to figure out how, when, and why!  When the Word of God says, His ways are higher than our ways (Isaiah 55:8-9)! Religious people even start doing meetings or outreaches using different strategies than the Word of God. The same thing, the same scenario that happened to Naaman, happens now, but way worse. Think about when God had Noah build the Ark… I wonder about all the opinions and frustrations, but as Christ builds His church, I pledge to follow Him and His instructions without questioning and modifying them. He is God, and we are man! Why do we want Him to do things our way? We always need the fear of the Lord because if we have the fear of the Lord, we have the fear of the Word! The Lord is the Word, and the Word is the Lord! 

"But he went in, and stood before his master. And Elisha said unto him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi? And he said, Thy servant went no whither. And he said unto him, Went not mine heart with thee, when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and maidservants? The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever. And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow." 2 Kings 5:25-27 

We always question God. Why do I have to go the narrow way? It is too long and too narrow! But after Naaman was cleaned, he was like born again. His flesh was completely clean! Naaman wanted to bless Elisha, but he did not receive the blessing! For some reason, God told him not to receive something! Even with Abraham, he denied the blessing because he knew the source was not clean, "You will tell everyone you are the one that made me rich" (Genesis 14:21-23). Probably, Naaman had a secret agenda, a hidden agenda in blessing the prophet (2 King 5:15)! But Elisha refused to receive it. But he said, As the Lord liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it; but he refused.” Verse 16

Now we see the same thing happening again, but worse because it happened to Elisha’s collaborator, his minister of help, his assistant, his co-laborer, his servant, or like the religious system would call him, “Elisha’s armor bearer.” Regardless, they were on the same team, and Gehazi knew Elisha. Gehazi went ahead and wanted to get a blessing in the name of Elisha (verse 20)! Wonder what had crossed his mind: “Wow, are you crazy? You can't deny that blessing…” This saying is the fruit of a mind filled with covetousness! Gehazi was bringing in more religious conspiracy! We want the fear of the Lord! Elisha cursed Gehazi and his family because of his act! This is for us to see how what we do in secret can be so dangerous! This is a very serious thing! It is crazy because we do not even realize that when we move in sin, covetousness, lust, and rebellion, it affects our entire family. Because you get all messed up, from your finances to your relationships, and you end up losing your peace. If you are in the Body of Christ, you affect everyone. This is why Jesus said to cut out whatever makes you sin (Matthew 5:29-30). We need not to take the grace of God in vain (2 Corinthians 6:1). 

A servant of the prophet Elisha, Gehazi enjoyed a position of power but was ultimately corrupt, misusing his authority to lie and cheat Naaman the Syrian to get money out of Naaman and claiming that it was at Elisha’s request. This is a religious conspiracy! Elisha afflicts him and his descendants with the same disease that had afflicted Naaman. As punishment, Elisha cursed Gehazi, transferring Naaman's leprosy to him and his descendants forever. We need to fear the Lord in everything we think, do, or say! We have all these warnings in God’s Word! What will our legacy be? What will we say if we are outside the Word of God? As we know, it is not how we start out that really matters but how we end! 

The love of God without the fear of the Lord will bring lawlessness into our lives. But the fear of the Lord without the love of God will turn us into legalistic people without mercy and kindness."Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear of the LORD. " Psalm 34:11, "In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge." Proverbs 14:26 

“By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.” Proverbs 16:6 

The fear of the Lord is a habitation for His people. Do you see how easy it is to give heed to those seeds in our mind? Judas started having familiarity! Jesus was preaching all the time! Judas did not pay attention or fear what He was saying. By the fear of the Lord, we can depart from evil! Jesus was not some watered-down false grace preacher. He was the living Word. He talked differently. He showed us the way. Now, we have the Holy Spirit. We have the written Word. We can follow the Lamb today! Love is a choice; today, we have a choice! 

“The fear of the LORD tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil.” Proverbs 19:23 There is one thing we forget: we can't get away from the consequences of sin! This is insanity! When the Truth sets us free, we need to continue in the Truth that sets us free! The fear of the Lord is something we need to seek and have until we no longer have breath! 

We can do great things for God; this is our legacy, but when somebody falls, all they remember is that one thing that we did not do! The good thing about the New Testament is that the fear of the Lord gives us a chance to get back up. Every single one of us, if we have a chance to be God, we will take that chance in a second! That is the spirit of the age. That spirit means to be able to do what we want all the time! 

"Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body. Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge." Hebrews 13:2-4 

To all the conspirators, here is another warning: "Let your conversation be without covetousness, and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.“ Hebrews 13:5 We have the power to live this holy way because we have the Holy Spirit! He would never ask us to do something without giving us the power to do it. Why? "So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” Hebrews 13:6

When you are right with God, you don’t care what others do and speak. Leviathan starts working when we start stepping into sin, complaining, and having indignation! We keep getting out and in, but the fear of the Lord will keep us in all the time! 

"Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation." Hebrews 13:7

Shane W Roessiger

FREE HOT BUFFET:https://www.youtube.com/user/behouseoftruth/videos 

FREE BOOKS: https://www.hothouseoftruth.com/free-book-download/


Comments (0)


Add a Comment





Allowed tags: <b><i><br>Add a new comment: