Doing The Works Of Jesus || Victory Church [Book of John #35]

If not, you're gonna get there really quick 'cause today's a really good day. I'm super excited about today. Today is one of those days that if you get it, it will change your life, all right? And I can confidently say that because when I got this, it changed my life, all right? So in our year-long journey through the book of John, we are now officially at this last supper table in kind of what I would just call the farewell address. And here's what's happening. Is Jesus sitting with his friends, with his disciples, with us, essentially preparing us for life on the other side of Jesus, not physically being on earth. He's kind of giving his like, "Hey, here's what you need to do "when I'm gone," sort of a message. And in John 14, Jesus gives one of his, what I would just call one of his greatest might drop moments. Come on, like Jesus did the Obama, might drop mean before he did. Like, that guy like Jesus did that one here in John 14, where we started last week, we're gonna pick it back up. And in essence, Jesus is telling us what he wants us to do when he's gone, but not only that, he's telling us how we're gonna be able to do it, all right? So when I first got born again at 14, and I started trying to read the Bible,

and there were a few places that just shocked me, all right? Because I would run into a verse like we're talking about today. And one, I didn't know that was in the Bible. And two, it started actually explaining this like simmering hunger inside my heart for this life that I always wanted, but didn't think it was possible. All right, and so Jesus at this Last Supper table begins preparing us for this. Here it is, here's the mic drop moment, John 14, verse 12. Jesus says, "I tell you the truth, anyone," or by say, "Anyone, anyone who believes in me "will do the same works I have done." Whew, just pause on that. Say law on that for a second. And I remember as a teenager, I'm reading this, and I'm like, wait a second, like the same works Jesus did? This isn't like Bob and HR, you know what I'm saying? Like this is Jesus, like casting out demons and healing the sick and delivering the good news of the gospel that people would repent of their sins and hell be plundered and heaven be filled. Like, I'm reading, like what, the same? And then he goes on, I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works because I'm going to be with the Father. Don't get hung up on that thigh, here's the idea. It's not that we're gonna do bigger miracles,

it's that we're gonna do more miracles in more places. Because Jesus was only in one place at one time, I hate to break it to you, Jesus in the flesh never visited Atlanta. (congregation laughing) Okay, but you're here, that's the idea, okay? And you can ask, amazing, for anything in my name, and I will do it so that the Son can bring glory to the Father, yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. He says, if you love me, obey my commandments, and this is where we pause, this is where we pause, and we have to ask this question. How in the world are we supposed to do what Jesus did and live the way that Jesus lived? He tells us, and I will ask the Father, and He will give you another advocate who will never leave you. He is, let's say it together, the Holy Spirit who leads you into all truth. The world cannot receive him because it isn't looking for him and doesn't recognize him, but you know him because he lives with you now, and later will be in you. Oh man, get ready, get ready, get ready, okay. (congregation laughs) Jesus looks at his disciples in the essence he looks at us today, and he says, anyone who believes in me

will do the same works that I have been doing. Let me ask you a really difficult question. Do we have any, any ones today? Any, any ones, another translation says whoever, we got any, whoever's, are you a whoever? All right, are you a whoever believes in Jesus? Do we have any, any ones who believe in Jesus today? You guys, okay, there's no asterisk. There's no, he does not say all the pastors who believe in Jesus. Come on, all the people have a puzzle on their business card, come on, somebody. Everybody who has a two AM Christian televangelist show. No, anyone who believes in Jesus is gonna do the same works that he's been doing. He's saying this is available to anyone who believes. Jesus in essence is saying, I'm going to the father and the works that I have been doing, now it's your turn. Now it's your, come on, somebody just needs to say, now it's my turn. Come on, you say, it's my turn. Come on, look at the person next to you and say, yeah, he means you too, it's your turn too. (audience laughing) There is so much mess today. We don't even need to parse it out, but I mean, there's governmental issues. There's wars, rumors of wars, famines. There's economic crisis, racial injustice. Come on, guys, the advancement of darkness.

It is officially October. Come on, we're halfway through October. You always know it's October, 'cause that's when the horror trailers start showing. On TV, and you're like covering your kids eyes. Like, what the heck? I was watching, you know, train swimmers or something like that, you know? And the darkness is advancing. Come on, Wicca and witchcraft is on the rise. The Islam is advancing. I mean, there's so many things going on in our nation. And I heard a friend say this this week, he said this. He said, listen, we're not losing America because of a strong Islam. We're losing America because of a weak Christianity. We're not losing our kids because of a strong devil. We're losing our kids because of a weak church. Now I hate to break it to you. Where are the church? It's not the building, guys, it's us. And here's what he's saying is we're not operating in what God has already provided for us in the name of Jesus. And here's the thought, guys, God did not save you and me so he would sit back and point fingers and complain about the darkness. God saved you so you would rise up and go do something about the darkness. And what this world needs is for the people of God

to operate in the power of God to do the works of God. But we can't do it on our own. I don't know if you found this out. There's no healing in your hand. I can be like, be healed in the name of Johnson. You know what I'm saying? Don't ever try that, by the way. That does nothing, right? I cannot cast out a demon in my name. My words have no power in and of themselves. I can't save a human soul. But Jesus says, don't worry. You don't have to do it alone. I'm gonna send you one to help you. The Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit. And after the crucifixion, after the resurrection, just before Jesus ascends into heaven, he gets the group back together again and then leaves them with these parting words. This is what this church has founded on. Acts one four, he says, hey, don't leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you. I love this, the gift, the gift. God has a gift, did you know that? God has a gift for you. These guys already had faith in Jesus, but there's a gift now that God wants to give them. The one that promised, where did he promise it in John 14? As I told you before, John baptized with water, but in just a few days, you will be baptized

with the Holy Spirit. There it is. So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking them, Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom, right? Are you gonna come back and just, is this the end? And Jesus says, hey, the Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. Again, the disciples are basically saying, like Jesus, is this the end? Are you gonna judge everybody, establish the kingdom, like in-game, like right now? And Jesus looks at him and says, hey, bro, like, don't be so concerned about when I'm coming back. I'm coming back soon, always live ready, okay? Don't be so concerned about when I'm coming back. Be more concerned with what you're going to be doing until I come back, because the problem is, you're gonna wanna try and escape from the world and huddle up as nice little Christians and little circles when I'm actually calling you to go into the world instead of trying to escape from it. Come on, all my rapture small groups. Come on, we just wanna sit in a little circle and talk about the next prophecy about when Jesus is coming back and we forsake the world around us. God did not save you to sit you, God saved you to send you. How in the world is that gonna happen?

He goes on, he says, but you will receive power, dunamis, dynamite, when the Holy Spirit not comes in you or with you, but upon you and you will be my witnesses, Marturez. That's where we get the word martyrs from. You're gonna be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere. What does a witness do? They tell of what they've seen and what they've heard. And Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria in the ends of the earth. Here's the beautiful thing about this guys. Is Jesus told these guys is that they're gonna be doing the same things that Jesus did. They're gonna be making disciples and seeing people get saved and casting out demons and healing people, operating in the supernatural. But here's the implication. But you're not gonna do any of it until you get the baptism of the Holy Spirit. He said, don't even leave Jerusalem until you get the gift. And here's the thought for today, okay? God the Father right now amazingly is in heaven, sitting on the throne. Right next to him, praise God. Jesus Christ is at the right hand of the Father, sitting in glory on his throne until he comes back. But right now, God the Holy Spirit is with us. Right here, right now.

The ministry of Jesus did not end when he ascended into heaven. He gave us everything we need to continue his ministry. But Jesus knows we are completely incapable of doing what Jesus did if we don't have what Jesus had, the baptism of the Holy Spirit. And if you want to operate in the power of God, what you really want is the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Now I've already said that about five times and some of you are really intimidated right now. You're like, where are the snakes? I know you're about to bring out the snakes. That's funny. That's for after service. All right. Some of you are like, I don't know this church. Don't make that joke. Here's the problem. A lot of people are intimidated with this idea of being baptized in the Holy Spirit. Here's what you need to recognize from right there. That's not our words. Those are Jesus' words. Those are red letters. Baptists of the Holy Spirit are red letters. This is Jesus' language. And I hate to say it like this, but it's true. The devil has done a fantastic job in this area inside the capital C church. What do I mean by that? How is the devil kind of talked us out of the spirit baptism? Well, here's the first thing. He's convinced us we don't need it. You know, he says something like this. Maybe you hear this whisper. You have everything you need for salvation so you don't need the Holy Spirit stuff. Okay. The first part of that statement is true. You have everything that being baptized in the Holy Spirit does not save you 100%. It is the blood of Jesus Christ and by faith in his finished work, that is what saved you. You don't have to be baptized in the Holy Spirit to go to heaven. No, listen, you get to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. Okay. This is the pathway to the most fulfilling Christian life you'll ever have. And the devil knows, listen, if he can't keep you out of heaven, he's just going to make sure you don't take anybody else with you. So he's going to say, you don't need that Holy Spirit stuff. Okay. Here's the second thing, the way that he's talked us out of it. He's got us so self-focused. All right. We live in America. Most of us, unless you're streaming, okay, around the world. But listen, this is the land of self-actualization and doing the grind. And I got my side gig. And I'm all about my margin and living my best life now in my emotional health. And we forgot that God saved us to send us. The whole message of this world is inward, but the message of the kingdom is outward, right? It's to not just for us to come and sit, but for us to go and actually continue the ministry of Jesus. This is not a self-focused gospel that you're a part of. This is a Christ-focused others, a focused gospel that God has called you to. Here's the third thing. He's tricked us into becoming mockers. All right. Now here's the deal. If you've been around

Christianity enough, you have enough ammo in your clip that some of you don't want the baptism of the Holy Spirit because you've been around weird people who did weird things and blamed the Holy Spirit. Come on, somebody. The 3 a.m. Miracle spring water for 1999. Bro, that was tap water five minutes ago. You know what I'm saying? Just packaged at the Jordan River. You know, whatever, like is the most bogus things. And what happens is people will try and manufacture a move of God to profit off of it or to get people to come to their thing. And now here's the question. Does God sometimes do things that are strange to our human mind? Absolutely. You know what was really strange? Was when Jesus was dead for three days and then rose again. You won't know what was really strange is when you were dead and your sins and your trespasses. But Christ rose you from the grave and gave you his righteousness. You won't know what was really strange is when God said let there be light and there was light. When the Red Sea split, when fire came down on the mountain, when tongues of fire came down in Acts 2. Yeah, God will sometimes do things that are strange to your own human thinking. That's because you're natural and he's supernatural. Listen, I don't know about you. I've gone down under the power of God and I did not give a courtesy fall. I was not checking if there were any ushers behind me or if somebody had a little safety towel so I didn't show my belly. You know what I'm saying? Like, none of that, bro. Like, boom. I've laughed in the presence of God, all that. But listen, I understand why people are skeptical because people fake this stuff and they put gold glitter in the HVAC units and things like that. Here's what you have to know. When weird people do weird things and blame the Holy Spirit, this is where we just have to know. Listen, guys, they were already weird before they got the Holy Spirit. I promise you, if you knew that person before that, now they just have something to blame it on. But here's what I would caution you against. I caution you sincerely in the name of Jesus, do not be a mocker who shuts down a legitimate move of God in our generation or denies the gift that He wants to give you. Don't shut your heart off. Right, here's the fourth thing. It's He's actually helped us to become religious. All right, and I say that in a negative term. There are entire denominations that are built off of what's called cessationism. Okay, cessationism, basically if you boil it all the way down,

it says that we believe that the Holy Spirit does not operate through the family of God any longer, through the people of God, you just don't do that anymore. Now, here's the problem that's not in the Bible. There's no chapter and verse you can point to. And so what happens is you have to come up with a theology that explains your lifestyle. And then you do about 40 backflips and shoehorned in and try and make a scripture. It's not about that into something else. And so here's the problem. Our thing is this, we just are like, well, God must just not do that anymore. It can't be our fault that we're not operating in the power of God. It can't be our lack of faith. It can't be our lack of boldness and courage. It's got to be God's fault that He doesn't do that. And here's what I would say, guys. The devil loves to domesticate Christians. You were meant to be like a wild stallion in the kingdom. And the devil wants to make you a little hamster on a wheel. All right, you were made for more than what we're operating in right now. The devil loves to make nice Christians. All right, and America is full of nice Christians. All right, they're the nicest people you ever meet. Why? Because their whole life is about Galatians 5, the fruit of the spirit. But they don't even know there is a first Corinthians 14 gifts of the spirit.

We're all about the fruit of the spirit. Not the gifts of the fruit of the spirit. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, illness, faithfulness, self-control. Awesome, do it, do it, be about that life. Okay, but also there is a book called first Corinthians 14. I don't know if you knew that first Corinthians, there's a chapter 14. And it talks about the gifts of the Holy Spirit, the words of wisdom, words of knowledge, prophecy, tongues, interpreting tongues, healing, discernment, faith, miracles. All right, that is available to the people of God. Now here's the challenge. Do you know this? I don't know if most churches don't know this. You can do both. You know you can have the gifts of the spirit and the fruit of the spirit. You don't just have to be a nice Christian. You can also be a Christian who has power. And you can't just be a Christian who has power, but you're a complete jerk, all right? Because before first Corinthians 14, there's first Corinthians 13, which talks about being somebody of love, all right? So the whole kingdom is the gift that God wants to give you. And here's the challenge. Don't allow the devil to steal the gift that God wants to give you.

Because my Bible says anyone who believes in Jesus will do the same works that he's been doing. And can I say it like this? Jesus is describing today normal Christianity, not extreme Christianity, all right? That you are meant to continue the ministry of Jesus. Toeser, A.W. Toeser says this, I love Toeser. He says the spirit filled life is not a special deluxe edition of Christianity. It is part and parcel of the total plan of God for his people, all right? If you are newer to victory, maybe you haven't heard this before. Let me tell you my story real quick. So I grew up Presbyterian Church. My dad was a pastor. Our household loved Jesus. The church was faithful, high theology. I came to faith at 14. I went to UGA in 1997. And within the first month, I'm going a hundred miles an hour in the wrong direction. Like going to frat parties, like it's not good guys. And Halloween weekend, 1997, my next door neighbor in the dorm invited me to go with his church to this late retreat to North Georgia. And I didn't want to go, but I was like, I don't have anything else going on. Fine, I'll go. And listen, there's only a few times in life

where you look back on that decision and it literally changed everything. And I'm so glad that I said yes to my roommate inviting me to go with his church on Halloween weekend, 1997. The first night we're up there and we're doing what like a college thing does. We're like playing Ultimate Frisbee and eating pizza, you know? And then it's time for the night session. And you got to understand this. And a Presbyterian boy's mind, a night session, all right, is at this time in 1997, is a stool, a guy sitting on it, acoustic guitar, singing Michael W. Smith. (audience laughing) ♪ Friends and friends forever ♪ ♪ If the Lord's the Lord is in ♪ Like that's what we do. And 15 minutes from it up. And then monopoly afterwards or some freeze tag if you want to get really spicy with it, you know what I'm saying? And you're done in like 45 minutes. And I walk into this room and there's people yelling in tongues. Now here's the day. I've never heard a sermon for or against. I've never heard tongues. But I'm pretty sure that's tongues. Unless there's somebody from another country here right now. Like, I don't know, what is that?

Like what, and instantly I'm angry in my roommate. 'Cause he brought me up here and I rode in the church van. (audience laughing) And this is before cell phones. And I'm in North Georgia having no clue where I am. And I'm a hundred percent sure they're about to bring out some rattlesnakes. I'm a hundred percent sure. So I promise you guys, let's just say there's a hundred people there. 99 people are on the front rows. Johnson. Exit door. Seat right by arms crossed, judging everybody. All right. Picture speaks a thousand words. And the college pastor got up and he was like, hey guys, I was gonna preach, but I'm not gonna preach anymore. We're just gonna go after Jesus. And I was like, what does that mean? Why are we gonna go after Jesus? And then he grabs a chair and pulls it out. He puts it right there. He says, this is the hot seat. If you wanna get prayed for, come up and sit in the hot seat. I'm like, who would ever sit in the hot seat? This is the dumbest thing I've ever heard in my life. The hot seat?

I mean, that's the opposite of what I wanna do. The whole room gets up. And in my 18-year-old Presbyterian mind, they all walk up to the front and lay on the ground and travail. They're like, ah! And I'm like, what is happening? I'm just sitting in the back, staring at her by like that crazy. And one of the leaders came and sat next to me and he's like, hey man, what you thinking? And I was like, you know, you don't wanna know. (audience laughs) You know, I know what I'm thinking about all this right now. But in hindsight, man, in hindsight, thank God, for people who will sit by someone while they figure it out and create some safety in that place. And that's what this guy did for me. And I don't know how long, I'll say 10 minutes later, I can't explain it to this day still. You know, I find myself standing up to walk up there with everybody. And I remember talking to myself, I'm like, what are you, what feet? What are you doing right now? Like, why are you betraying me like this, you know? And I walk up there and again, everybody's like on the floor and I don't know what to do. It's like, they're right there and I'm like,

(audience laughs) and I'm just standing in their midst, you know? And a few minutes later, oh man, I still can't explain it. I blink and I'm on my knees praying. And it's the first time, I know, you know, know me now. It is the first time I've ever prayed on my knees before in my life. And I blink again and now I'm on my hands and my knees pray. And what was happening, I didn't have the language for it then, I do now, is the conviction of the Holy Spirit was coming upon me for two things. One, for being afraid to live for Jesus at UGA, I was compromising, I didn't have any friends. I was just trying to fit in with everybody else. And in essence, God was saying, why are you trying to fit in? You're called to stand out, you know? You don't belong to that kingdom. That's not true to who you are. And then right beside it, there was this conviction of being afraid to share my faith, actually open up my mouth and share. And so what I found myself, my hands and knees, and I'm just praying, God, no more fear. No more fear. I don't wanna be afraid anymore. No more fear, no more fear, no more fear, no more fear. And next door neighbor comes over the guy who invited me that I was mad with, like five minutes before, he comes over and puts his hand on my shoulder.

He's like, that's good dude, just pray it out, just pray it out, just pray it out. And I'm like, no more fear, no more fear. No more fear, no more fear. (speaking in foreign language) And I'm like, what the heck is going on right now? I had no clue what was happening. And what happened, I started praying in tongues. And for the next hour, I just did it. And I could have stopped, but I didn't want to, because there was so much joy. It was like this blanket of peace was upon me, and it was like this damn broke in my soul, where it was like my spirit was like, finally, finally, finally, you've tapped into something greater. I, I, after, again, I'm just gonna say an hour, after about an hour, I like get up, and I just start walking around the room praying for people. I don't know what I'm doing. There was no handbook. The next morning, I was like, can I still do this? Like, I didn't know any of this stuff. There's no teaching, I didn't grow up with this. I didn't even ask for this. I'm just walking around the room, starting to pray for people, and on the (speaking in foreign language) I don't know, I literally don't have any clue what I'm doing. And I walk up, there's this girl who has hearing aids in her ears and I just walk up and put my hands on her ears

and I'm praying for her to be healed in the name of Jesus. Here's, I know you're, some of you are like, yeah, I know you're a pastor. I was 18, I was Presbyterian 30 seconds ago. And here's what I say, nobody ever taught me to pray for the sick? Nobody ever showed me how to pray for the sick? I had never seen anybody pray for the sick, but pretty much the first thing that I did, when I got baptized in the Holy Spirit, was I started praying for the sick? And when I got back, I didn't know any better. I told all my friends back home that I, what had happened, and they all thought I had joined a cult, so welcome to the cult Jesus. 'Cause they had never read the Bible either, they didn't know this stuff was in the Bible. But the thought was this. Now I was baptized in the Holy Spirit, Jesus was king, and I was gonna tell people about it. Why? Because not only was the Spirit of God with me and in me, now the Spirit of God was upon me, I was beginning to discover this, to do the ministry of Jesus. And it was like my faith, if you've been there before, it was like my faith went from black and white to color. Like it actually vivid, it came alive. I became a different person, pretty much overnight. And again, I did not have all of my theology figured out. I didn't know, I didn't know this stuff

was even in the Bible. 'Cause these aren't the sections that most churches even talk about, right? Like I didn't know, this is not the purpose of this sermon, but I didn't know that there was a difference between the first Corinthians 12 gifts of tongues, which is speaking in another language, which is for a few, and the first Corinthians 14 praying in the Spirit, which is your born-again spirit praying, which is available for all. And the devil's even done a good job there, saying, hey, this isn't for everybody, it's just for a few people. Listen, if you have a born-again spirit, first Corinthians 14, in fact, I'll give you one scripture, first Corinthians 14, 14. Paul says, if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays. But my mind is unfruitful. In other words, praying in tongues is your born-again spirit talking to God, okay? This, some of you, that begins to explain it. This is why people get all hung up on this, and they're like, well, I'm not sure about this, and that stuff ended. And Paul, Paul, author of two thirds of the New Testament said, I thank God I pray in tongues more than all you jokers, all right? And somehow the devil's talked us out of the gift, the gift that is available, and it's not just about praying in tongues,

it began unlocking this whole new dimension to my life. And here's what it actually took me on this journey of, which has become one of my life modos, is this. If it's God's, I want it. If it's God's, I want it. If it's man-made, if it's manufactured, if we're trying to create a move of God out of nothing, just to get attendance or money, I want that mess. But if it's God's, I want it. I want it. And here's one of my favorite phrases. Listen, the best news for the world is salvation through Jesus Christ. The best news for the church is the baptism of the Holy Spirit. The best news for the world is John 3 16. We are now saved through Jesus Christ. We're not condemned, we're now saved. The best news for the church is John 14 and Acts 1, which is you're gonna receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you to do the works of Jesus. And in case you're curious, you're a part of a church that I can confidently say this, I want every single one of you to be baptized in the Holy Spirit so you can do the works of Jesus. That's what I want. And if it's God's, I want it for you. And if the cry of your heart today should just be this, if it's God's, I want it.

All right, so how do we get there? Let me run through it real quick. Okay, so three steps to activate the works of Jesus. First is I must believe God wants to use me supernaturally. All right, so after Jesus rises from the dead, he finds the disciples hiding because they're afraid that the same guys who killed Jesus are about to kill them. Fast forward to the day of Pentecost, Acts 2, Holy Spirit falls. They run out of the room, start preaching the gospel. 3,000 people get born again. The guy at the tip of the spirit is Peter, who like a few weeks ago, denied Jesus three times to a Girl Scout. And what had happened was now they had the Holy Spirit upon them, not just in them or with them, but now upon them and they were realizing that God wanted to use them supernaturally, okay? The difference, I love this a lot, the difference between scared hiding disciples and bold of angelistic disciples is the baptism of the Holy Spirit. My prayer, like I just told you, my prayer was God, no more fear, no more fear, no more fear. And when I got baptized in the Holy Spirit, nobody told me what I was supposed to do next, but I instantly started telling people about Jesus and praying for the sick. I'm telling you, nobody taught me to do those things.

I had never done those things before. I just began to understand God wanted to use me supernaturally. And here's the best way I can articulate this is that before the baptism of the Holy Spirit, I was afraid to talk about Jesus. And some of you are like, "Of course you are, "'cause you know this version of me. "If you had met the 18-year-old version of me, "you would be shocked. "Shocked." Man, that's the power of the Holy Spirit. In fact, we were talking about this this week, and I told some of the campus pastors. I said, "You know, sometimes I struggle in this "because I didn't ask to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. "And as I started thinking about it, "I was like, actually, I think I did. "I didn't know to, I didn't have the language for it. "I just said, "God, I don't want to be afraid "to talk about Jesus. "And God was like, you don't even know "what you're asking for, but you're about to get it. "Because, Acts 1-8, you'll receive power "when the Holy Spirit comes upon you to be a witness, "to be a witness. "And if you really want to be a witness, "you don't need to grit your teeth and just try harder. "Now, God, I want the boldness that comes from the Holy Spirit "empower me, anoint me, to go be a messenger

"of the good news and everything that comes with it "that you would call me to. "I am here today to tell you guys, there's more for you. "There's more, somebody just needs to say more. "There's more for you, Mark 16, Mark 16. "Jesus says, this is another version of right "before he ascends into heaven. "Go into all the world and preach the good news to everybody, "anyone who believes in his baptized will be saved, "but anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned. "These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe, "whoever believes anyone who believes. "They will cast out demons in my name. "They will speak in new languages, that's tongues in the Greek. "They will be able to handle snakes with safety." Now here everybody gets caught up on this, all right? This is not, okay, this is not telling you to go pick up snakes. What it's saying is for those that I'm sending into the mission field, listen, nothing from the enemy will harm you, and even if you go out into the middle of nowhere and drink something crazy, somebody hands you a chicken foot with something on it, come on somebody, you've been on a mission trip before, you know what I'm talking about, it won't hurt them, and they'll be able to place their hands on the sick and they'll be healed. In other words, you're gonna have everything you need to do what I'm calling you to do, all right? These signs are gonna follow those who believe God wants

to use you supernaturally. Listen, you may not believe it yet, but to cast up demons to preach the good news, to heal the sick, to make disciples, to do whatever needs to be done, to be a witness of Jesus Christ as you rob hell and populate heaven. And we have a world that is completely unafraid to talk about their darkness, but for some reason, the church is afraid to talk about the light. And again, the solution is not go through a class, that's great, and then grit your teeth, and oh, I'm gonna do it, no. Father, anoint me with the Holy Spirit. Bob ties me with the Holy Spirit, so that I would walk out of here like the apostles did on the day of Pentecost and Acts 2 and go be a witness in Jesus' name. Here's the question, do you believe that God wants to use you supernaturally? Okay, some of you are absolutely, some of you are like, give me another few minutes. Some of you are like, I'll be back next week, just keep working on me, okay, that's awesome. Let's just get in progress, get in process. Three steps to activate the works of Jesus. Here's the second one, I must understand that the power and authority is actually in the name of Jesus. Okay, his name allows you to exercise his authority to advance his kingdom, right?

This is what we just read, read it again in verse 13, John 14, you can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the son can bring glory to the Father, yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it, in my name also implies his character, his will. So if you haven't found this out yet, Jesus is not saying that you can pray for a Bugatti in a private island. Doesn't work like that, James 4 adds some balance to this, James 4 says you pray and you do not receive because you pray with selfish motives that you would spend what you receive on your own selfish pleasures. So this is not about us, this is saying like, I wanna see your kingdom come, and I promise you, when you hold Jesus' name like a sword to see his kingdom come, I promise you he'll answer. Why, Philippians 2, 9, such good news, therefore God exalted him, Jesus to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow in heaven on earth, under the earth, and every tongue acknowledged that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father, it just said it right there, the name of Jesus has authority in three spaces, the first one is heaven, all right, angels bow at the name of Jesus, holy, holy, holy, the resources of heaven are available to the children of God, this is where we pray,

God would you show up and be Jehovah Jireh, I need you to provide for all of my needs, according to your glorious riches, in Christ Jesus, right? This is where we're calling on Jesus' name for grace This is in your life, this is in your experiences. This is the tactile space. This is why we pray for the sick. This is what? Acts three, Peter and John at the gate called beautiful. They see a crippled man. And he walks up, I love this. Expecting something, there's something about expectation and he comes up expecting something from them. And Peter looks at him, most people turn a blind eye to those in hell who need help, come on somebody. But Peter looks at the man who needs help and very famously says, silver and gold I do not have, but what I have I give you in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise and walk. And then he says, it is faith in the name of Jesus that this man is healed and made whole in your presence. In the name of Jesus, Acts four, one of my favorite moments, Acts four, right before the disciples are about to go out and do ministry. They say this, Father, would you stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your son, Jesus? What they're saying is this, here's what I know. When I lay my hand on a sick person, my hand does nothing.

But when I lay my hand on sick, here's what's literally happening in my mind, God, would you stretch out your hand to heal them before it signs up. So when I lay my hand on somebody, I know it's Jesus through me laying his hand on somebody. I'm an extension of the kingdom in the name of Jesus. That's where he says, heal and perform sign to wonders. In the name of your servant, Jesus, because there's power in the name of Jesus. And listen, have you been around victory for a while? You know we believe this. We've seen countless cancers be healed. We've seen eyes be healed, backs be healed. People come in with broken bones and leave healed, incurable diseases, healed. Come on, eyes be healed. I have these in my office. It's one of my favorite little mementos years ago at Hamilton Mill when we were pastors up there, prayed for a little girl because her legs were different links and she had shoe inserts because of that. And the next week her mom came and gave me her shoe inserts and says these started getting uncomfortable midweek because now her legs are the same size and she doesn't need these any longer. So I keep these on my bookshelf right behind me to remind me that there's power in the name of Jesus. In heaven, on earth and yes, under the earth. Satan and all demonic power bow at the name of Jesus.

They have to, they have to, they have to flee. Again, we've said this before, when you flip on a light switch in a room, it's not like I'm not wondering who's gonna win today. No, the darkness vanishes because the light is what actually has the power. And the first time I ever encountered a demon is when some are not where the young adult pastors years ago and at that time we had a group of girls coming who were dancers, not ballet. (audience laughs) All right, and just a lot of struggles. And one of the girls asked to meet because she had had all these issues. And so I sat down with her and a few other people and we were trying, we were doing some ministry to her and hundreds of sexual experiences just absolute traumatic, just destructive childhood. And as she's talking to us, she starts growling and then ripping her hair out. Which by the way, they don't prepare you for that in seminary. (audience laughs) There's no like page 348, like it does not exist. Good news. By the time we were finished, she walked out free. Why? Because Jesus came to set the cap to free. (audience applauds) And there's power in the name of Jesus. There's power in the name of Jesus.

Okay, can I say it like this? There's not power in the name of a generic God. We say the name God most times so we don't offend people. All right? Here, I challenge you to actually say the name that there's power in Yahweh. There's power in his name. There's power in the name of Christ Jesus. There's power, it's Jesus' name that changes things. And when you sign Jesus' name, it's like you're putting his signature on that situation. My name is just like a hope and a wish. Jesus' name is an order. And listen, sickness, disease, governmental issues, come on, the things in heaven and on earth and under the earth, they have to change when you say the name of Jesus. So here's the question. Do you believe you have authority in the name of Jesus? - Yes. - Yeah, good news. All right, well then here's the next step. Here's the last step you gotta do, is that I then have to put myself in a position to be used. All right, God wants to use you supernaturally. He's given you what you need by the power of the Holy Spirit, okay? Now I actually have to put... All right, now here, let me just say this, in a nice church land today, okay? A lot of us love to take our notes in church. Question, when was the last time you prayed for somebody to be healed?

When was the last time you shared good news with somebody living in darkness? Can I say it? When was the last time you cast a demon out of somebody? Okay, here's the challenge. How about the next time someone starts sharing with you about what's happening in their life, we don't do the nice domesticated Christian thing of like, I'll pray for you, friend. You know you ain't gonna pray for that joker? As soon as you walk away, you're gonna forget everything they just told you, okay? What would happen if you just stopped right there and prayed for them right then? What would happen if you actually, instead of walking away from the situation, 'cause you gotta get to your next Netflix show, what if you actually drew near to that situation in the middle of Publix? Come on, at your workplace, in your cul-de-sac, at the barbecue, at the family thing, in the church lobby. Come on guys, if we can't do it here, how are we ever gonna do it out there? And when you pray, please don't pray a weenie prayer. Go on and fit your will, would you please just come through in some way. I don't know how you're gonna do it, but just, you're sovereign, so you're. You know God wants to use you supernaturally,

there's power and authority in the name of Jesus. Step into that situation, in the name of Jesus Christ, be healed. In the name of Jesus, we tell the pain to go. In the name of Jesus, I tell depression to go darkness to leave. In the name of Jesus, let me tell you my story. One of my favorite phrases right now, is when I hear people talking about their life, I just say, man, I just wish you had the hope that I have. I just wish you had the hope that I have. Well, what hope do you have? I'm so glad you asked. Listen, why would God give you and I the power of heaven for us just to attend church? No, when God opens up the door, walk through it. Walk through it, walk through it. Our son, I've been telling you a little bit about him, Jeremiah. He's training now for full-time missions, and just on Friday, he led four people to faith in Jesus on the side of the street, like on the side of the street. Why, because the kingdom's still good news, the gospel's still good news. And I love this. I asked him to give me the details of this story. This summer, he was in Italy, we met him over there, and he was in Naples, and they were doing some street ministry.

We're just people around the street, they're just going up and having conversations, and he doesn't speak the language at all. He had a translator with him, and he saw this guy across the street, and he was walking with a cane, and Jeremiah was like, aha! And like, takes off, runs across the street, translator like dodging cars, as they get over there. And Jeremiah asked the guy, he says, hey, do you believe in Jesus? And the guy's like, well, not really, how do you know he's real? And I love my son, he said, well, we're gonna pray for your leg to be healed in Jesus' name. That's the way that you're gonna know that Jesus is real. All right, and the guy's like, okay. I mean, to his credit, the guy's like, yeah, sure, do whatever, you know. This is what we always say. And you ask to pray for somebody, you will get an answer. Yes or no? They're gonna tell you, yes or no. And so he starts praying for the guy. And he says, well, my pain's out of 10, right? And he's like, it's excruciating. He just had surgery, and all this stuff was happening internally. And Jeremiah prays for him, and when they're done, he's like, how do you feel?

He's like, mm, it's like an eight. And Jeremiah's like, huh, I guess we should just pray again. And the guy's like, oh, you know. And they pray again when they're done. It's a seven. And Jeremiah says, we're praying until he gets healed. And so they pray again. It's a five. And you guys are like, it's better than when we started. And Jeremiah, he actually says this. In Jesus' name, he will not be bound to this cane anymore. He will walk fully. Then it's a four. And then Jeremiah says, we're gonna keep going. And then it's a three. Then it's a one. And I love my son. He said, I distinctly remember we skipped two. Like this is what he does, didn't do pray for the joker. And then the last time, here's what he said. He said, God thank you that you answer the calls of your people. We plead the blood of Jesus over his whole body that he is healed in the name of Jesus. You've already taken him from a 10 to a one, finish it. And the guy opens up his eyes, eyes wide. And Jeremiah described it. He said, the guy who came like this, left like this. He came walking with a cane, left carrying a cane over his shoulder.

Because a 21 year old was audacious enough to believe that anyone, Guys, Jesus wants to anoint you with the same power that he had. And listen, there's this garbage out there that says that Christianity is boring. That means you're doing it the wrong way. Christianity is very boring if you live in a seven-day cycle of just going to church. It gets boring after about two or three years, okay? Listen, but the Spirit-filled life is the path to the most exciting, yeah, there's still going to be dips and all that, listen, but listen, what I'm saying, the Spirit-filled life is the pathway to the most exciting, most fulfilling life. Jesus Christ came that you would have life in life more abundantly. When the Lord tells you to pray for a stranger, when the Lord gives you a word for a family member, when the Lord tells you to give something away and it changes somebody's life, when you lay hands on somebody who previously had a condition and now they don't, listen. Yeah, that changes their life. You better believe it changes your life too. And can you imagine, here's the challenge, can you imagine what it would be like if the entire church was anointed by God to do the works of Jesus, believing that God wants to use us supernaturally, walking in the authority of the name of Jesus and seizing every opportunity

that he brings in our way. Here's what I'll say, what would that look like? Here's what it would say. It would look like the book of Acts in Atlanta. That's what it would look like. And that's what God wants for you and I. That's what God wants for this house. That's what God wants for your kids. That's what God wants for this church. Come on, to see the kingdom come to Atlanta and to the very uttermost parts of the earth in Jesus name. Let's do it. Let's do it. Let's bring the kingdom. (congregation applauding) Let's take it to another step. Let's fire our heads. Let's pray. Father, I thank you that you did not just save us. You also sent us. And here's what we say right now in this moment. If it's God's, we want it. If it's God's, we want it. Nothing man made, nothing manufactured. If it's God's, we want it. And we just said this a second ago. The best news for the world is salvation through Jesus Christ. And the best news for the church is the baptism of the Holy Spirit. So there's gonna be two groups of people right now. And here should be your heart cry.

If it's real, if it's true, if it's life giving, if it's eternal, if it's God's, I want it. So what does that mean? Right now some of us need to put our faith in Jesus for the very first time. That's what that means. Maybe you came in here doing your own thing. Maybe you came in here and you've drifted away, whatever that is. And today's the day you're coming home through faith in Jesus. I want to lead you in a prayer. And right now I want to invite the family of God to pray with you. You know, Jeremiah was talking to somebody the other day, my son. And just Friday night he sent me a voice memo at 4.45 a.m. He had just finished on the street. And he said, I just met this young guy who got his girlfriend pregnant. Just did so many terrible things. Ended up in prison all this. And he asked me, can anybody do too much that God wouldn't forgive them anymore? And I'm going to tell you the same thing he told them. Now, the blood of Jesus is strong enough and powerful enough to wash you as wide as snow to forgive you and make you righteous in the sight of God. And if you want that today, I want to lead you in a prayer. And it sounds like this, repeat after me and say, Jesus, right now I put my faith in you.

You are my King, my Lord, my Savior. I turn from my way. I repent and I come home to Jesus. Your cross forgives my sins. Your empty tomb makes me alive. And right now I am forgiven and alive forever. And I'm a child of God. God is my Father. And I'm going to live for you for the rest of my life. I'm forgiven and free in Jesus' name. Yeah, receive that. Receive eternal life. Receive a place in the family right now in Jesus' name. If it's God's, I want it. The best news for the world is salvation through Jesus. The best news for the church is the baptism of the Holy Spirit. And if over the last few minutes, as you've been hearing me talk, you say, I want that. If it's God's, I want it. I want everything that God wants for me so that I can live the life He's called me to live to be a witness of Jesus Christ and everything that would come with that. What you're really asking for is the baptism of the Holy Spirit. And so if that's you, here's what I'm going to ask. I'm gonna ask you to stand up to your feet." It should be a lot of us, come on, come on, it should be a lot of us, yeah. And as you stand up to your feet, some of you are asking this question,

"Well, like years ago, this thing happened in my life or whatever it was." What we would say is, some of us need a fresh baptism of the Holy Spirit. Come on, you need to have that fire reignited inside your heart. If that's you and you say, "I need a fresh baptism of the Holy Spirit, I'm gonna invite you to stand up to your feet as well," right? And I believe that there are strategic moments where there is power in what the Bible would call the laying on of hands. And so there's a lot of us in here today. And so if you're kind of within arm's reach is somebody, just kind of put a hand on a shoulder, right? Doesn't have to be awkward, just kind of put a hand on a shoulder. And I'm gonna pray right now for you receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit. And so Father, I thank you that when we were born again, the Holy Spirit set up shop on the inside of us. You are with us and in us at salvation. God, the Holy Spirit is a deposit of things to come. It's our assurance that we are born again. But right now I ask for the Holy Spirit to fall upon your people. God, not so we can have nice services, not so that we can post some cool things on social media, but so that we can continue the ministry of Jesus. Right now I pray for the baptism of the Holy Spirit to fall upon your people. May the robe of the authority and the anointing of heaven

rest upon your shoulders. May there be power in your hands as you stretch out your hands to perform signs and wonders in the name of Jesus Christ. May the sick be healed. May demons retreat. May darkness fall back. May there be a new authority in your prayers. May God begin to unlock your prayer language, even right now in Jesus' name, to give you a fresh boldness to be a witness for Jesus, to be a messenger of the good news. No longer living in seven day cycles of just going to church. This is no longer the ultimate expression of your faith. This is now what we do here so important. This is the launch pad for the rest of your week to go and continue the ministry of Jesus. Father, I pray for fresh fire, fresh passion for Jesus, fresh anointing from heaven, that wherever we step foot, the kingdom of heaven has come. I pray on the other side of today, we're gonna hear stories of people being healed in Jesus' name. We're gonna hear stories of people being delivered in the oppressed set free. We're gonna hear stories of depression going and neighborhoods changing. We're gonna hear stories of salvation springing up from the ground. We heard this yesterday morning, a Saturday morning prayer, this word awaken.

And so right now, God, I pray that through the actions of the capital see church, God, that you would awaken the city of Atlanta. God may revival come to the church and spill out into the streets. God, use your church, use your people to see the kingdom come and the will of God being done here on earth as it is in heaven. But you know we're sadly lacking in our own flesh and that's why you sent the Holy Spirit. And you said, it's better that Christ goes so the Spirit of God can come. And so right now, we welcome you Holy Spirit. If you have not already prayed it, just say God, Bob ties me in the Holy Spirit, anoints me to continue the ministry of Jesus. Right now I receive the Holy Spirit in a fresh way. In Jesus' name, just 10 more seconds right here. Father, right now, baptize your family with the Holy Spirit. Receive the Holy Spirit. Receive the Spirit of God. Receive the fire of God. Receive the power of God, not for your own name, but for the fame of Christ in our city. God, let your kingdom come and let your will be done here on earth as it is in heaven through your family. In Jesus' name, amen, amen, amen, amen. Thanks for being a part of Victory Church on the Pando app. We hope this content was a blessing to you,

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