I’m pastor Steven brooks and welcome
today to our midweek bible study called
morning glory
i want to invite you to grab your bibles
and meet me in the book of wisdom
also known as the book of proverbs right
after the book of psalms
and we're going to be in proverbs
chapter 23 and we're going to look today
carefully at verses 1
and 2. let's open up today in prayer
heavenly father as we jump into your
word
we thank you that the entrance of your
word brings
light and we thank you father that that
light is understanding
its illumination knowledge father help
us to take your word today and walk in
that light
in jesus name we pray and we all agree
and say amen
now verse 1. when you sit down to eat
with a ruler consider carefully what
is before you i feel
in my heart that the holy spirit is
endeavoring to prepare
many of you to go into the next level of
blessing
and christian influence that
god has prepared for you and i think
that
you're going to find yourself in some
very fascinating
scenarios and situations and you need to
be prepared for that
one of the greatest things that the holy
spirit does
is that he helps you to walk in the
wisdom of christ
perhaps you did not learn it in college
perhaps you were not taught it in
perhaps you know like certain types of
classes
but he's still able to teach you and
instruct you and get it over to you
through his teaching ministry sometimes
he'll he'll teach it to you on the spot
if you need to know it but one of the
greatest definitions of wisdom
is the ability to discern difference
primarily
the difference between right and wrong
good and evil but there's also
an expansion of that wisdom which is the
ability to discern difference
the difference in people the difference
in a ruler
and somebody who has not lived an
extraordinary life
now there are rulers who are in
positions
often because they have accomplished
exceptional things and they are in these
positions they're in these
places of great influence sometimes
national influence sometimes even
extending beyond that
and i believe you're going to find
yourself in some very
interesting circles in the days weeks
and months to come so get ready get
ready let the holy spirit prepare you
to be sitting down and eating
and conversing with a ruler praise god
when you sit down to eat with a router
with a ruler
consider carefully what is before
you now so think about it think about
what is before you there's a reason why
and put a knife to your throat
if you are a man given to appetite the
knife to the throat is a
old middle eastern expression that
basically means
not necessarily that you're gonna you
know grab a knife and
you know kind of freak everybody out
because you're pulling a knife out at
the dinner table
uh no it means that you are applying
a very strong self-restraint
against the appetites within yourself
and we all have appetites please
do not hold these two verses to a
one-dimensional
meaning we're not just talking about
food on the table
you could make that application but the
biblical application runs a whole lot
deeper
then you know don't eat the twinkies you
know or don't eat the oysters they're
not kosher
i think we have some basic understanding
of that
but we're going deeper with the control
of appetite particularly when you are
seated
with a ruler and put a knife to your
throat
if you are a man given to appetite
praise the lord a ruler
is different in the context of
at their table they can eat
anything they want any time they want
this this is normal for them this is not
something that
you know is like an annual feast or the
once in a blue moon
big banquet let's go all out and uh buy
everything we want let's get some
chicken and some
filet mignon and no this is this is
anytime they want it for them
you know if it costs a thousand dollars
to eat like that a day that's
they don't even feel it so this is
normal for them
and they have their environment
that they're comfortable in and as you
come into
their environment uh because that's the
ruler
as you come into their environment you
have to merge into that
with the wisdom of the holy spirit the
first thing i would
suggest is that when you are brought
into that environment is number one act
like you belong there i'm going to try
to share some things with you today
that will assure that you coming to
dying with the ruler
it's not a one-time experience where
you're in uh and you it was wonderful
you loved it
but it was just a one-time thing because
you did some things that caused you to
lose favor
we want this to be something where you
can contribute
the anointing the blessing that god has
placed
in your life see favor opens the door
but once you go through the door that's
when
the gift and the anointing that god has
placed within you
can function and so you not only want to
go through the door
you want to remain there so that you can
be a blessing
and so that you can also be a witness
for christ in the way
that he has gifted and anointed you
so with humility realize that you do
belong there at the table
enjoy yourself but the underlying
message of these two verses is that
while you're
at the table please hear me today very
carefully
while you're at the table please don't
over extend yourself if you're
at the table and
the ruler is eating a 12
hamburger that he ordered off the menu
don't uh order the 42
specialty filet mignon steak don't do
that
oh well he's a ruler pastor stephen
that's no strain for him
i mean i'm at the i'm at the table of
the ruler
yes but you're not there to compete with
the ruler
or to try to outdo him because trust me
although he could buy the whole
steakhouse if he wanted to
he'll notice that you
were excessive he'll notice that you
extended yourself beyond even what he
was doing
and beyond what everybody else at the
table was doing also
keep that in mind praise the lord
most people that are in
a rulership type position
a great leader somebody who has
accomplished something
extraordinary they
behind the scenes despite the idea uh
ideologies of socialism and uh and all
of this stuff
behind the scenes these men or women
have paid a price to get there they have
been willing to do
what the others have not been willing to
do
and if that meant working 18 hours a day
they were willing to pay pay that price
if it meant
risking everything in a certain business
adventure because
in their heart it felt right yet at the
same time there was no guarantee
but yet they went for it and it turned
out to be a gold mine so to speak
and it was a product that blessed a lot
of people
and through that risky venture which was
also
well calculated through a lot of
research and a lot of good business
planning they became very wealthy
then you have to understand that
they paid their dues
and if you come to the table recognizing
their difference
and that you can value that
and you're not this just there to grab
this is your one moment to grab
then you will be seated
at that table trust me on a regular
basis praise the lord
the ruler wants people at the table
who can think like he or she does
they want people there that can value
uh the understanding that these things
were
earned that these things were not given
and even if they were given in the sense
of an inheritance
that inheritance has been guarded it has
been protected
and it has also been something that's
been stewarded over now any christian
should understand stewardship
because the lord gives us blessings
but even as much as he blesses us with
it still
has all come from his hands and even
when david
was making the lavish offering towards
the future temple that was going to be
built
and he's he's leading in the giving he's
not only giving
uh out of the the national fund he's
giving out of his personal fund
and he's giving very very generously but
he pulled back and said lord
with all of this giving that we're doing
it was very sacrificial and it was
it was affluent he said lord it still
all came from you everything that we're
giving he
even said all of his own personal giving
he said
this is just stuff that you gave me this
is stuff that you gave
us everything came from you in the first
place
well glory to god so
understand the principles of stewardship
understand uh the value
of what god has done in your life and
also
in the lives of others
and be able to show
at the table self-restraint
we all have appetites
we're not here just talking about food
today although
at the table you certainly wouldn't want
to start you know just wiping out the
all the food on the table eat all the
corn on the cob and eat all the mashed
potatoes and you know there's nothing
left over even for the ruler for the
king
but i think we can understand that but
we all have appetites
and you want to keep those in the right
place
praise the lord the appetite for success
the appetite for recognition
the appetite for friendship the appetite
for acceptance
the appetite for you know wanting to
have a hobby
the appetite to enjoy recreational
things be it sports or
whatever it might be we have appetites
but
we want to keep them balanced and you
never want to get into this thing where
i don't i don't know why it happens it's
human something about human nature
where sometimes a competitive thing
begins to come up inside of a person
and the last thing you want to do at the
table
is try to compete with the ruler because
trust me the ruler
it's not going to be impressed uh with
what you think is impressive now maybe
in your realm it is impressive but it
but in his realm he
he he passed that up years ago he's way
beyond that
so you don't you don't want to do that
and you have to
put that knife there not a real knife
but a restraint
where you're showing honor and the last
thing you want to do is show some type
of
competitiveness you know when i was
in my early 20s
it was summertime
and we had a family vacation me and my
brothers we were out of college
and so we went home to see our parents
and we had a little vacation at the
beach
well uh it kind of worked out uh for a
little bit of time there where i had
some
just time to talk to my dad i can't even
remember what my brothers were doing
there around there somewhere
but i was just talking to my dad as he
and i were walking on the beach together
and you know by this time i had already
had ran
you know track all through high school
had uh
been running now in college for a couple
of years
and had gotten pretty good uh not world
class you know it's not like i was gonna
make the olympic team
but anybody you know you train for you
know uh
six or eight years like that
consistently you're gonna you're gonna
get pretty good in
whatever your niche sport is well
as my dad and i were walking along the
beach
he said to me he said stephen he said
let's race
now he's getting close to 50. he said
let's race and he pointed to like an
imaginary finish line about
60 or 70 yards out and he said let's
race to that that spot i said okay dad
you know
caught me off guard and so we take off
and he takes off and he's running
just as fast and as hard and he he's
straining
he's running as fast as he can and i'm
just kind of running along with him
and i'm letting him lead by just a few
inches you know
he's like four four or six inches in
front of me
and we've crossed the finish line
and we stopped and he's huffing and
puffing and stuff like that
and uh he he looked at me and he said he
said stephen um
he said now be honest you said you
weren't even trying were you i said no
dad not really
he said you weren't even running top
speed by any means i said no
i said no not really but see i'm not
going to beat my dad i'm not going to
just like
well i'll show you what i can do and you
know just run as hard as i can and leave
him you know
back in the dust so to speak i'm not
going to do that love doesn't do
something like that love
prefers the other love in your heart
says no you just you know i look look
i've had my moment i've had plenty of
times on the racetrack when i was a
a senior in high school i was winning
almost every track meet that i showed up
to so look i've already had my
my phone in the sun and so i'm just here
to have fun with you today and you go
ahead and take this one and i'm not even
gonna
erase you in a sense to like show you
what i can really do i
have no desire to do that praise the
lord hallelujah so be willing
to deny yourself certain things while
you're at the table with the ruler
praise the lord
even if those things are permissible
if if the ruler says let's go play
tennis
and you're the former collegiate champ
well that's not the time while you're
out there playing tennis with him
to just you know ace every serve and you
know hit it back to him and knock the
racket out of his hands and
uh no you don't you don't do that to
that person
why wisdom is the ability to recognize
difference
because the ruler has the ability the
bless
the ruler is thinking different uh
the ruler thinks on a different uh
frequency in the sense and they're not
they're not there to compete with you
they're there
really in their heart to release
blessing
into your life and so i know with youth
uh with youth there's a lot of energy
there's a lot of competitiveness
even if it's climb up the tree let's see
who can climb up the tree the fastest
well let's let's get over there and see
and when you get older it's like well
i'm not gonna race i'll just i'll just
get in the car and drive you know
i don't need to run anymore and it's
it's a different way of thinking
so the lord is preparing you to go into
a place
where when you come in you come in
with no competitive nature you come in
simply to be a blessing
you come in to lift them up you come in
to bring
light hallelujah you come in to bring
joy and trust me
they're going to want you at the table
they'll move somebody else out of the
way
and i think i think while you know who
you
are in the lord and you're very
confident with that and it doesn't mean
that you ever become a doormat
or you let somebody uh abuse that
through you know trying to get you to be
out of character
it does mean that you do you do
understand humility
uh there is a balance with humility and
strength
and sometimes the best way to understand
that balance i would say
is to see it demonstrate it
and then and then you can see it more
clearly see it demonstrate it and also
allow the holy spirit to instruct you
there's a place where that seat is yours
there's another time where jesus said
take the lower seat when you're going to
these special meetings and then you'll
get promoted
upward there's another time where
the apostle peter said look we cannot
be serving food to the uh the hellenists
the greek speaking jews
uh we're supposed to be over here in
prayer and the study of the word so that
we can minister the word we're it's not
fitting for us apostles to be over here
serving food the people so there's
there's a balance
and the holy spirit will help you with
that i remember seeing a great balance
of humility and strength one time
when my wife and i were serving as
ushers
in the church we had just been married
and you know there was the pensacola
revival
that was taking place in 1996 and
well that that didn't really spread out
of florida although they tried one time
to give it a jump start
to see if the fire would catch in
california so
uh my pastor hosted
uh most of the brownsville
ministry team and they came out the
southern california
and the place was you know the church
was packed out thousands and thousands
of people there
and uh that same anointing that was in
brownsville did not
take off in california uh but they gave
it a good try
nevertheless this is what happened on
one of those nights there were thousands
of people there
my wife and i uh were in
school of ministry but at the same time
they would use the the young school of
ministry students
to help out with ushering and things
like that so we were ushering
and we were standing at the back of the
church the church was
getting uh about halfway filled up it
was still early before the main service
that evening
and we noticed a minister he came in
uh world famous he came in he wasn't
on the schedule to speak nobody knew
that he was coming
he came in and he sat in the very back
of a large
church and he sat at the end of the row
and uh he seemed almost to be invisible
to everybody
but me and kelly thought is that uh
brother so-and-so the
the the man of god and uh we went over
and said hi to him just to make sure it
wasn't a
secret twin or or you know somebody that
maybe looked a lot like him but nope
it was him and we said oh we're so glad
you're here and we said would you please
stay here just for a few minutes
and um he said sure and we went
to the front of the church and it took
us a little while to get up there
because it was a it was a big place
thousands of people and
he's sitting in the very back
unannounced and we went all the way to
the front and we told
one of the elders one of the associate
pastors we said hey
brother so-and-so the man of god he's
sitting back there in the back he just
came
in and this one pastor that we told that
to
said ah that's fine let him sit back
there
and me and kelly just knew that's not
right you don't have
somebody of that stature in the body of
christ
sit on the back row uh when that's not
where they belong and so we went and
told
another elder who was sharp and it was
anointed it could move in the spirit
and really also more of the right-hand
man of
the senior pastor we wouldn't told him
that
the great man of god is sitting in the
back he said and that elder said
he is he's here in the meeting we said
yeah he's sitting right back there in
the back we just went over and talked to
him and
asked him to stay there because let's
try to get him up to the front and that
elder said
absolutely we've got to get him on the
front we've got to get him on the front
row
and so he went back there with us and we
said oh by all means
come with us and we took him all the way
to the front
and uh created a spot for him and during
that meeting tonight
guess who the holy spirit fell upon with
a beautiful prophecy
that blessed everybody in the medium the
holy spirit fell on that
minister that we pulled all the way up
to the front
so that's a great example of strength he
was a great man of god
but humility he went in and sat
unannounced on the very back
row and the next thing you know he's on
the front and the next thing you know
after that
when the service got rolling and the
spirit began to move the spirit fell on
that man
to bring a word to bring a great
prophecy to
the body of christ praise the lord so
i believe that when you get that balance
just right you know who you are
you have humility but you also know that
you're anointed to be there
that you can really be a blessing
to some very select people and then
through those select people
it will reverberate out uh to a lot of
other people at the same time
praise god thank you lord jesus uh
here's our just a short example in the
life of
joseph we're going to be in genesis
chapter 41
verse 12. now there was a young hebrew
man
with us there a servant of the captain
of the guard
and we told him and he interpreted our
dreams for us
to each man he interpreted according to
his own dream and it came to pass
just as he interpreted for us so it
happened he restored me to my
office and he hanged him this is talking
about the butler
and the baker then pharaoh sent and
called joseph
and they brought him quickly out of the
dungeon and he shaved
changed his clothing and came the
pharaoh
anytime you're coming before a ruler
and he if you're coming before pharaoh
you're you're coming before
the preeminent ruler on the face of the
earth you're coming
before the pharaoh that's ruling over
the nation
with the greatest military power with
you know the might and the prestige
that's where you're going
so when you're coming into a new
atmosphere that maybe you haven't been
into before
understand they have their own protocol
and it's time to merge into that what
did it mean
well it meant the first thing that
you're going to do is shave
because although many of the uh hebrew
men
preferred a beard and you know when
you're in prison
you could wear your beard but in this
case to come before
pharaoh beards were just uh it was a no
goal
well now pastor stephen i'm a i'm a
beard guy and you know what i'm not
going to give that up
well i think you would probably give it
up if it meant
the release of your destiny if it meant
you stepping into the fullness of what
god has for you
you'd be amazed how fast you'd fall in
love with the razor
praise the lord where's that shaving
cream
you'd be shaving real quick and you know
what change a change of clothing
so you go with their protocol and as
long as it's not requiring you to
compromise your principles or you know
christian principles or anything like
that
you're fine these are just uh customary
things
and so you learn that and you merge in
with that
and it's different with different types
of uh
settings everybody has their own um
ecology you know it's like a ecological
system
and you go into it it's different in
different places so you just
merge with the way it is and you walk in
that wisdom
of the holy spirit who uh you know that
is flowing from the wisdom of christ and
it goes into your mind
and it helps you to act right helps you
to talk right
thank you jesus and pharaoh said to
joseph
i have had a dream and there is no one
who can interpret it
but i have heard it said of you that you
can understand the dream
to interpret it so joseph answered
pharaoh saying
it is not in me god will give pharaoh an
answer of peace what a wise statement it
shows humility
and also it's showing at the same time i
can help you
the lord has anointed me to help you and
something peaceful is coming
your way there's a lot of wisdom in that
and the way that you conduct yourself
the way that you speak to those that
would be in positions of rulership
showing honor to whom honor is due
i believe that you're going to have
these
meals with the ruler and i believe that
um there's something about that person
that god assigns you to
um it almost seems like there's a light
over them now in the natural is there
are there
light bulbs shining down on them no but
um it's the holy spirit anointing and
that person
stands out like they're illuminated
almost like they have a halo
what does that mean when you see that it
means
that the lord wants you to be a blessing
to that person
it's a divine assignment praise god
and so joseph and the giftings that god
has placed within him
is being assigned to pharaoh praise the
lord
and in verse 42 then pharaoh took his
signet ring off his hand
and put it on joseph's hand i mean
pharaoh had never seen any type of
anointing
ever before like he saw on joseph the
wisdom
the brilliance the supernatural gifting
he was stunned and so now he is going to
release
blessing then pharaoh took his signet
ring off his hand and put it on joseph's
hand
and he clothed him in garments of fine
linen and put a gold chain
around his neck and he had him ride in
the second chariot
which he had and they cried out before
him bow the knee
so he set him over all the land of egypt
pharaoh also said to joseph
i am pharaoh and without your consent no
man
may lift his hand or foot in all the
land of egypt
and pharaoh called joseph's name zapneth
and he gave him his wife as a wife
asanath the daughter of pot of pharaoh
priest of ahn so joseph went out over
all the land of egypt
so he's now in he used to be on the
outside
and he's now in and one of the things
that'll keep you in
is don't extend there at the table
beyond what is your proper
allotment in other words when you're
dining
with the ruler don't overdo it
use self-control you don't take a real
knife but you're taking a symbolic life
a symbolic knife of restraint and you're
realizing
there's plenty here i don't need to
gorge and grab like this is a one-time
meal
in other words joseph is not saying you
know what pharaoh that's
i'm really glad you're blessing me but
uh the the lady that you picked for me
uh i don't know if that's the one for me
what about this lady over here she's
single is she available
no you don't do that you just you you
receive
what the blessing is now pharaoh i thank
you for giving me a new name but
you know can we change it up a little
bit something maybe a little more snazzy
i don't know if no
no if that's the name he's giving you
that is your allotment and you take that
you don't over extend if you do you'll
lose favor
and you're not going to be at the table
very long it's understanding
how to behave at the table when dining
up
with a ruler praise the lord there's
always
going to be something that's newer
that maybe you want to reach for that's
shinier
that's bigger that's the next latest
greatest thing look this stuff is always
going to be out there
but there is a place in christ where you
learn
that this is god's blessing for this
season in my life
and i don't need to overextend or try to
be fake and act like i'm something
that i'm not yet you will get there but
just
walk in humility
thank you jesus hallelujah
this is important about not
overextending
it's very important for ministers let me
talk to you
ministers just for a moment
the american culture is a culture
where greed
is tolerated the american culture
in some areas of finance and economic
uh you know workings uh greed is not
only tolerated
greed is actually celebrated now the
the people that do it wouldn't actually
say that because they know hey that
that's not
not something that we should confess but
it's it's absolutely
something that they do and they're going
to get it and no matter what it takes
they're going they're going to pursue so
that
culture that is a part of the american
identity
a sadly enough of greed you have to make
sure
that that spirit because it is a spirit
greed is a spirit
you have to make sure that it does not
work its way into your
your heart because it can have uh
terrible consequences upon your ministry
praise the lord um a certain
uh pastor a lady pastor she was talking
about how
one of her assistants now the assistant
is not a minister
more uh just kind of like you know the
bookkeeper uh
helping out marius like that but one of
the assists her assistants
uh had gone to a meeting with her
and the pastor said that the assistant
uh had to fly back on her own because
the pastor had some other things to do
was going to fly back a different route
well the assistant had quite a story to
tell
when the pastor got home about the
assistance trip on the airplane the
flight home
because she was flying home by herself
she had gotten on the airplane and uh
was all happy
she'd gone to a fun christian conference
or something like that and
she was all happy and she got on the
plane to fly home
and uh there was a seat empty next to
her she was wondering
i wonder who's going to sit there well a
lady came
and sat down there and the lady was
wearing a kind of a large
black hat and as the plane
you know took off and they got up the
cruising altitude
uh the lady with the black cat uh
started to quietly under her tongue you
know not out loud but just quietly she
began to pray she kind of closed her
eyes and began to pray
well the unassuming
uh bookkeeper christian bookkeeper said
uh
oh excuse me are you praying are you a
christian
and she you know she was real excited
she thought she was sitting next to
another christian
uh but the lady with the black hat said
oh no
i'm not a christian why would i be a
christian that that i would never do
that
she said i'm a witch and we just
concluded a conference
uh because this was in massachusetts and
she said we just finished a conference
there in salem
where all of us witches got together and
we
fasted and prayed now of course they're
praying to
their dark master but they fasted and
prayed for 40 days
and um when this lady told that to the
you know pastor's assistant the pastor's
assistant just was like got
uh terrified she said well like what do
you pray what were you praying and
fasting for
and the witch said we were praying and
fasting for 40 days with no food
to seduce the american
ministers to get into greed
and lust because if they get into greed
and lust
their ministries will be dishonored and
they will lose
their impact
how about that you have to be careful
with overextending over extending i want
this
i want that and maybe it's lawful maybe
it's permissible
but just grabbing grab it i want this i
want that i need more
i've already got five of those i want
another one the new ones come out
and you're grabbing grabbing grabbing
see i
teach biblical prosperity
because it's in the bible the lord wants
you blessed
the lord does not want you to be in
poverty poverty has always
been identified by god and
expressed through his word as being
a product of the curse so god doesn't
want you to be
in poverty any more than he wants you to
be cursed he wants you to be blessed
but you have to remember with that
blessing
there is a balance because if you just
keep pursuing
prosperity prosperity that and and you
know you're then you're influenced by
the culture of the world that also just
grabs and reaches and extends
over extends wanting more more more
never satisfied
and you get in the greed you're going to
get into trouble
and then particularly for ministers your
ministry will run
out of oil you'll get distracted you'll
begin to run spiritually dry
and i know some ministers pastors good
pastors that this
has happened to they were pastoring good
churches
but maybe something happened where they
started to make some money on the side
i know some of them were good investors
and they started making money on the
side
and the next thing you know their their
sermons are just
uh they are technically correct
but there's no anointing just as just as
dead
and dry as can be and these are supposed
to be pentecostal spirit-filled
fire-breathing ministers but the
messages just have
absolutely no why no life why they're
overextending
they're not content with where they're
at they want more more more
and so now they're caught up with their
their new investment and they're
making a lot of money on the side and
there's nothing wrong with
doing maybe something on the side but
you have to be real careful with that
as a minister i talked with a world
famous
televangelist a friend of mine and uh we
were talking about
investments and he just said steven i
can't do any
investments i i came out of a background
of wall street and all of that and
you know now he's a famous televangelist
but he said i can't i can't do that
stuff anymore at all
i said why he said it totally distracts
me he said i'm good at making money
and if i start doing that that thing
starts getting back into me and i
he said i can't have any of it i said i
totally
understand what you're talking about and
for me i'm a preacher i give all of my
focus all of my attention
to the ministry and i trust the lord to
bless me
could i go do something on the side i
could i'm not saying that's
uh not lawful and i'm not saying it's
wrong for a minister to do
to do that i'm just saying for me it's a
distraction
and i don't want to do that i just trust
the lord to take care of me i trust the
lord that blessed me
and he has been very very good to me
praise the lord here's a quote from
thomas aquinas
in the catholic church thomas aquinas
was considered a doctor
now when i say a doctor i'm not talking
about a doctor
that does medical surgery on somebody
but a doctor of the word of god he was
brilliant in teaching brilliant in in
the scriptures
and i want to read a quote uh to you
from him
about something that happened in his
life that i think could be very uh
relevant now remember i'm talking about
how to conduct yourself when you're
dining
with a ruler when you're dining with the
king
with a pharaoh or whatever the scenario
might be
praise the lord i want to help you keep
your special anointing
so that what god has given you never
becomes deluded
not one bit but that you're actually
increasing
in the grace of god upon your life
in these unique arenas that god
places you in aren't you glad that
daniel didn't go backwards
that daniel serving in the royal court
there in babylon
didn't say oh look at all this food look
at all this wine
look at them all look oysters and
scallops
no he kept the law he refused to eat the
food why it wasn't kosher
but he also kept
his balance even to the point where
later
in his prophetic ministry when he's
serving now the king's son
and decades have gone by and he gives
the prophetic
interpretation to the new king
about this the mystery of what was
written on the wall
well uh when the interpretation was
given the young king says
you know what i'm going to give you all
this gold and i'm going to give you all
these gifts and daniel just said no
keep it to yourself you can have it
daniel was
more interested in
integrity ethics
right governing you know we don't need
to be doing this corruption we don't
need to be doing all this crazy stuff
we need to do things right that's where
his heart was at
he could not be bought praise the lord
amen and so if
if you overreach though you will corrupt
that safeguard so you have to be in a
place where
like apostle the apostle paul said i
know what it is to
have abundance i know what it is where
there's times where there's an
insufficiency where there's a need
but see god will always come along if
you hold steady and he will supply
that need that you have praise the lord
oh he always will he always will so
you have to stay strong in the lord
and be consistent now
thomas of aquinas was called the angelic
doctor
because he was a celebrated scholastic
teacher
he was born in the kingdom of naples
that wasn't of course naples florida
that would be naples italy
born about the year 1225 he was a
dominican
and uh he was famous for his tremendous
teaching ability
but see he also had a deep walk with god
and he taught in paris and he taught in
rome and he died in the year 1274.
now one day
when he went to go see the pope that
would have been
innocent the second pope innocent when
he went before the pope
there before the pope was a large sum of
money
that the pope had spread out all kinds
of money and
representations of wealth and the pope
was all happy
and he said to thomas aquinas he said
you see the church is no longer in that
age
in which she said silver and gold
have i none true holy father
replied aquinas neither can she any
longer say to the lame
rise up and walk
see there's a balance there's a balance
and if you're not careful with that
balance and you start
overextending overextending
you'll lose the anointing you'll lose
what's of true
value oh it doesn't mean you can't have
prosperity god will bless you
god will bless you but you have to also
realize that it is very advantageous
to be happy in your heart and to have a
wallet full of money
and to be able to walk through the mall
and see all kinds of things
but say you know but just say to
yourself you know what
there's all kinds of things i could buy
there's nice stuff but you know what i'm
happy don't i don't really need to buy
something to make me happy
and you know i i don't really see
anything that i need
i'm fine i'll just keep the money maybe
i'll bless somebody
maybe i'm just walking around looking
for somebody that i can be a blessing to
see that's when you're getting into that
place where
you'll always be comfortable around the
ruler it doesn't matter if you're a
multi-billionaire
you're comfortable you're secure in who
you are in the lord you're not trying to
you know drop hints so that you can pull
something out of somebody
hey you know i can use one of those i
could use a new one of those
you don't need to you don't need to play
those games you don't need to do stuff
all that stuff like that is in the flesh
now somebody wants to bless you sure
you're you're
you're you have a good heart and you had
to receive and you know how to show
thanksgiving and gratitude
but you're not just trying to grasp
trying to you know always reach and uh
manipulate people you don't you don't
play those games
praise the lord
thank you jesus i think if there's any
area where perhaps
we could show maybe an
over extension it should be for the
kingdom of god
it should be for the lord in our own
lives
let's show self-restraint let's show
self-control yes let's be blessed but at
the same time it doesn't mean you always
need the next
super whopper super duper thing show
maturity show self restraint
praise god but i believe
with the kingdom of the lord if there
were to be a place
where we would extend or reach for the
extra that's
that should be where it's at as we're
trying to reach the lost we're reaching
as far
as we can matthew chapter 6 verse
32 for after all these things
you know the food to drink the things of
the world all the stuff for after all
these things the gentiles seek
for your heavenly father knows that you
need all these things but seek first
the kingdom of god and his righteousness
and all these things
shall be added to you praise the lord
i enjoyed the story that pastor benny
hinn told one time when
there was a building that he and his
uh ministry team leaders had looked at
and
really could use this extra building
because of the growth of the ministry
and uh
you know the the expansion of the
ministry reaching lives
and you know the realtor said this is
how much it cost
and uh they looked at the at the
building and thought this would be great
but you know afterwards uh when the
numbers were crunched uh
and benny han said that he spoke with
his his uh realtor
that they just realized it's it's too
much money it costs too much money
and he said well tell the the realtor
that's selling it that
you know we'd really like it but it's
just we can't do it right now we can't
do it
so um benny had went home
and uh later that evening he said he was
taking a shower
and he was shampooing his hair and when
he was shampooing his hair
the holy spirit spoke to him and said
don't lose that building so he said he
jumped out of the shower
you know wet and grabbed the phone and
called
called this realtor and said call the
realtor we've got to have that building
god wants us to have that building and
so that's what i'm talking about if
there's going to be an extension
if there is going to be a reaching let
it be for the kingdom of god
let it be for the things of god praise
the lord
we see these men in the old testament
ezra and nehemiah the cup
bearer to the king yet one day
he's sad something you should never do
in the royal court something you should
never do in the sense of
dining with the king but the king
noticed
that he wasn't happy and the king said
what's wrong
and he said he said king he said you
know forgive me
for my countenance i know i'm never
supposed to appear before you like this
but i'm troubled
i'm troubled for my my people i'm
troubled for
jerusalem that that lays in ruins and
it weighs on my heart and so
see he's not asking or extending to the
king
for a personal blessing he's thinking
about the kingdom of god
to the degree where the king said you
know what he said i'm going to send you
on a journey
and i'm going to send you provision and
you go back there and you do what you
need to do
you start rebuilding the wall and get
that city back in
shape and i'm gonna give you uh legal
documents that will authorize you to do
it
and i'm gonna give you financial
provision so that you can hire the
workers and get this thing going and
then come back
at this appointed time and uh you know
assume your position
so i believe that if we will use
self-restraint in the areas where
you know what we've got all eternity to
enjoy
some of these things that we're holding
back on you know i don't play golf
not that there's anything wrong with
golf it's a beautiful sport
and you know golf courses are very
attractive because there's that
uh it's an element of paradise restored
with their beauty and so forth
but there are certain things i don't do
because well if i do it i'm probably
going to really like it
and you know the bottom line is i've got
all eternity
to do that maybe when i get to heaven
one day and our race is finished our the
course has been run
maybe maybe i'll ask the lord for a uh
i don't know maybe a mansion where in my
backyard i've got a golf course i don't
know
but i i do know for now that we should
show
restraint but if we're going to extend
and reach out there and take a chance on
something let's let it be for the
kingdom of god
because that will last for all eternity
let's balance these things right
hallelujah glory to god
showing self-control at the table
of the king and at the same time should
there be
should there be a release of your heart
towards the things of god and
it just comes out to the king to the
ruler
then when it's the lord and it's
something totally of the lord
then the lord will move in those
situations praise the lord
hallelujah glory glory to god i believe
the lord
is going to do some interesting things
for you with your placement praise the
lord
glory to god
bless it be the name of the lord watch
what god is going to do
prepare yourself now you're going to
have to walk very close to the lord
so that the wisdom of christ now it says
in the bible that we have the mind of
christ
but that must not just be something that
is a position that we have because of
our standing in christ it must also be
a reality that is experienced by that
mind
of christ that oil of the spirit flowing
into
our understanding and so you're going to
have to walk really close with the lord
so that you can function in these
higher arenas get ready for it now
eventually
you will acclimate to it but when you
first come into it
oh yeah you're gonna have to be on your
toes praise the lord
glory to god glory to god
hallelujah father i pray for your people
today
that they will have that beautiful
balance
of being able to hold the symbolic knife
to their throat
of self-restraint father sometimes
a lot of that has to do with words
sometimes just being quiet
and not saying anything and sometimes
talking
but also talking within the proper
parameter
and not going beyond that and then doing
something that would cause the loss of
favor
so father if there needs to be a holy
spirit
uh suppressor over their tongue
maybe like a muzzle that would need to
be on their mouth at times where they
just
know i need to be quiet now lord help
that to be there
and other times when they need to speak
let the authority of christ
be expressed through them
thank you oh god thank you thank you
father because
there will be times you you're going to
give them the answer you're going to
give them the solution
that's needed in that board room that's
needed
in the director's meeting that's needed
in this
uh new business or this new build or
this new project that's starting up
thank you father god hallelujah
thank you o god thank you father god
father we thank you that as we put your
kingdom first
then you're going to add to us all of
these other things that those in the
world that don't know you
grasp for with such greed and lust
they would do anything just about to get
it
and some would do anything regardless of
what the price tag was they would
they would do it but father we're
different
you add that to us with no strain no
struggle because we have a
we have your heart oh god so thank you
father in this
hour in which we're in let your kingdom
go forth
with with royal beauty thank you father
god
thank you father god i see that you're
assigning
your ambassadors to certain new
positions
new doors are going to open just like
they did for joseph
and he went through the door and father
there was some even greater things
that were assigned to joseph's life that
time he wasn't aware of
such as the restoration of he and of
he and his relationship with his
brothers and
very importantly with his father
so father we just thank you you have a
lot planned there's a lot writing
there's a lot writing uh on these
um how can we say sit downs with the
ruler
so lord we just thank you for wisdom and
anointing we give you praise
in the name of jesus thank you for the
flow of wisdom in the name of jesus
amen and amen
praise the lord glory to god
you're going to find that you're going
to have to really lean on the lord
because without his help
it's true you don't know what to do yes
you're smart
yes you're uh you're well trained yes
you've done all you can in the natural
but there will be situations where the
only answer
is the answer that comes from on high
now you have access
into that realm through your walk with
the lord but you're going to have to
really lean on him
but as you do you'll be made to stand
out just like daniel
did glory to god you'll be like a star
that twinkles that stands out glory to
god get ready
father we give you all the praise in
jesus name
amen and amen praise the lord
this proper dining with the ruler
comes out of your proper dining with the
lord
when you know the lord and you don't
look at the lord like
some kind of a you know just a person to
go before like
god i want this this this i want that
that that but you're there for much more
than that yes there are times for
petitions and requests
but you're also there for fellowship and
you're also there for like
god i want to know you i want to like be
like
abraham i i want to be a your friend
praise the lord then when you have been
with the king of kings oh it's easy to
go before any
any earthly ruler regardless of their
high status or position
it's very easy very easy to go before
them and talk to them
when you have been in fellowship and
conversation
with the great king himself the lord
jesus christ
hallelujah father we give you praise
if there's anyone watching today and you
don't know
jesus as your king and savior
but you want to well pray this prayer
right now
and he will do a great work for you
just say jesus pray it out from your
heart right now say jesus
i'm a sinner but you died on the cross
to save to rescue sinners like me
jesus i give you my heart
i give you my life wash
all of my sins away with your precious
blood save me right now
write my name in your book of life
jesus thank you i take you now as my
lord and savior
in your name i pray amen
and amen my friend welcome to
the family of god those of you that just
prayed that prayer for the first time
god bless you you belong to the lord now
hallelujah glory to god
let's honor the lord today and let's
take
holy communion grab some
grape juice that's what i have in my cup
here
grab some unleavened bread if you don't
have one of these little wafers you
could get a saltine cracker
or something similar praise god
thank you lord and let's pray over the
the bread and the juice father
we set the bread and juice apart as holy
through this prayer
we consecrated as holy as the body
and the blood of jesus and father we are
told in your word that when we do this
we
and we partake of the communion we
proclaim the lord's death
till he comes we thank you that he's
coming back
and it was through his death that he
purchased our full
redemption we thank you that we are
redeemed
redeemed from sin and spiritual death
and that we belong to you and we're
going to live with you forever in heaven
father let our lives count while we're
here on the earth
lord deliver us from temptation deliver
us from evil deliver us from
greed and grasping
and constantly wanting more and more
never satisfied
let us thank you every day for what we
do have
let us let us not take for granted all
that you have done
we give you praise we give you praise
and father should we reach
should we extend let it be for your
kingdom
let it be for things of eternal value
thank you father and we receive your
word that as we do that
you'll add all of these other things yes
the other things are fun
but father let our focus our heart be
right
let us serve let us honor those that you
have
placed us under the authority of we're
all under the authority of christ
but there's structure there's order
there's hierarchy
and father you said in your word give
honor to whom honor is due
we thank you father god glory to god for
our
unique assignments as a body and also as
individuals
father we give you praise we give you
glory
we thank you father thank you for the
body of jesus
as we receive it now we thank you for
strength
and anointing to do what you have called
this to do hallelujah let us function
and our unique anointings let us stay in
our lane
not trying to be something you haven't
called us to be or trying to do
something you haven't called us to do
but let us be
the very best and what you have
called us to do let that focus come
alive
thank you father god in jesus name amen
let's receive the body of christ
father thank you for the blood of jesus
hallelujah father the things of you may
seem like foolishness
to those that are in the world the cross
is foolishness to those that are
perishing but to us
it's life because christ went to that
cross to die for our sins
sinless and innocent having never
committed one's sin
he became the perfect sacrifice to
redeem
lost humanity both jew and greek
back to you oh god through his great
sacrifice
so father we thank you that jesus
died to redeem the whole world
that anybody that would put their faith
and trust in him
should not perish but have everlasting
life
so father as we receive the blood of
christ we proclaim his death we thank
you he's coming back
that it's through his death that he has
made redemption for us
hallelujah father for those that
had just got maybe we could say caught
up in the rat race
maybe caught up in the holidays of um
just
the rush and caught up in the glitter
but not caught up in the reality of the
atoning sacrifice of jesus
father let us get back to basics lest we
be like
that that precious pope who got off
track
and thought it was all about the
strength that they had now in their own
ability
when thomas aquinas said well yeah it is
true that we can say that
we no longer have a lack of silver gold
but
we we can't we can't get the crippled up
anymore we can't
say to the lame rise and walk father let
us have the right balance yes we do need
prosperity
but let us have the right balance let us
not lose our spirituality
let us not compromise our walk with you
in the midst of a very lay odyssey and
age we thank you father god let us have
our edge
and let us be increasing in our walk
with you thank you for
the precious blood of christ in jesus
name
amen let's receive
glory to god hallelujah
i agree with the famed british apostle
of faith
smith wigglesworth who said
i would rather be under the anointing of
the holy spirit for ten minutes
than have the whole world with a fence
around it
i agree with that one thousand percent
hallelujah if you lose
your relationship with the lord
nothing else has any life in it nothing
else does
even paul with all of his deep
teachings of judaism and all of that
uh you know all of that training and all
of that intellect he said
he said he called it as dung compared
to knowing christ and if you don't know
the lord
you haven't found what true living is
glory to god glory to god
hallelujah praise the lord the holy
spirit's moving
the holy spirit's moving i believe that
the holy spirit
is going to get behind some
very wealthy even
not just billionaires even
multi-billionaires
and he's going to touch their hearts and
they're going to be one to the lord
they're going to be one to the lord
praise god
and then they will turn around and
they'll be a blessing
oh pastor stephen that's good that we
can start reaching and we can we can
well just let the holy spirit
designate where this or that is supposed
to go
as the holy spirit works through a
person hallelujah we just need to stay
focused and god will
god will supply god will bring provision
praise the lord
don't start grasping stay on task
stay on task we need to be able to save
to the lame
rise and walk in the name of the lord we
need to stay on the major
major on the major don't major on the
minor the lord will be working in these
other areas
stay on the major praise god that's our
challenge
that is the challenge in the in the time
in which we live
we are contending for the glory
distractions are flying
all over the place but we must keep
contending
for the greater glory the mighty
outpouring of the spirit
father we thank you what has been shared
i ask that you would seal it by your
holy spirit
that the enemy cannot come and steal the
seed of the word that has been sown into
the hearts of your people
but that this word will grow in the
heart of their the soil of their heart
producing the 30 60 100 fold harvest
we thank you father god we will see the
greater glory
we will participate in it we will be in
the thick of it
we thank you that the cherubim as they
carried the glory
out of israel when israel went into
apostasy
and the prophet ezekiel saw it leave the
holy place
leave the temple courtyard
leave eventually the nation we thank you
that the cherubim are bringing the glory
back into
the church into the body into the areas
of the body
that want it more than anything else we
want to see you move oh god
we thank you that we will see your glory
now thank you father god
thank you in jesus name amen
and amen you need to see yourself
as a designated carrier of the glory
because the glory is coming
and nothing can stop it praise god get
ready the best is yet to come
get your priorities right don't be
overextending overreaching
in the things that have very little
value stay on task
stay on on focus of what god is
highlighting i look forward to seeing
you back next time till then
stay richly blessed bye