Follow Me As I Follow Christ

19 places in the Gospels tell us that Jesus said follow me.  1Corinthians 4:16 and 1Corinthians 11:1 say: Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.  Paul gives the same message in Philippians, 1Thessalonians and 1Timothy.  When God gives us someone who has evidence of God blessing their life as they follow Jesus Christ and Paul, and we refuse to follow their example, we are disobeying the command of God.  We are rejecting the blessings from God and daring God to punish us and our followers.  You cannot expect your followers to be godly in areas where you refuse to follow godly men.  Therefore, refusing to follow men who have God's power on their life not only separates you from the blessings from God but it also causes your followers to go into error and lose the blessings from God and even get punished by God.  This is not just about you but about your followers also.

Paul tells us that he had better credentials than the people who criticized him in Philippians 3.  In other places, such as Acts, Paul tells other people about his credentials.  However, while Paul did have the best credentials, he also said that credentials were not how we are to judge if a person represents God.  Credentials are recognitions from men.  God wants us to look for recognition from God, which is the power of God in a person's life and ministry.  The religious leaders who led the crowd to crucify our Lord, had the best religious credentials that anyone could have.  If we trust credentials and the way that the world measures authority we will be led into error and sin which often will get punishment from God instead of blessings.

Many preachers talk about their ability to preach.  Many saved people measure a preacher by his ability to preach.  However, 2Corinthians 10:10 says about Paul: For his letters, say they, are weighty and powerful; but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible.  That means that most 'good godly people' are using the wrong way to measure a preacher and his doctrine.  Most churches today would not have Paul as a guest speaker.  However, those saved people who really want the blessings of God will listen to how God says to measure if someone truly represents God.  The truly godly will listen to someone who tells them what the Bible truly says even if he is not a dynamic preacher and even when he disputes popular religious doctrine.

In 1Corinthians Paul repeatedly says that we are to look for the power of God  and 1Corinthians 2:1-5 says: And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God'And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.  Again, 1Corinthians 4:20 says: For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power.

In 2Timothy chapter 3 Paul warns us against religious leaders who are Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.  This was after 2Timothy 1:8 where Paul told Timothy but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God.  The word according  tells us that the amount that a person represents the gospel  is in proportion to the amount of the power of God  which is displayed in their life.

While I could go on with more of what the Bible says about the power of God,  that is not my message.  It is only the basis for what I truly have to say.  That is: honestly consider how much power of God  I have in my life and honestly consider the lack of the power of God  in the lives of people who tell you that you don't have to do as I do.  In particular, your culture, which is the wisdom of this world, tells you that it isn't important to do what I tell you comes from the Bible.  If I was preaching American culture then you would be right to reject what I say.  However, if what I tell you comes from the Bible then I am just a messenger sent from God and you are rejecting God and God's blessings.  Matthew 7:13-15 says: Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.  Think about this.  Your culture has many people following it and they have reaped many generations of poverty.  However, insanity is defined as 'doing the same thing and expecting different results'.  Expecting God's blessings while you refuse to enter God's narrow way  and continuing on the broad way  is insanity.  So, look at the blessings from God in my life and determine if you want the same results.  If yes, then you must reject your culture and follow the same narrow way  that I followed.  If you do anything else you are rejecting the blessings from God.

Our first verse told us Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.  The word as  means 'do the same thing that I did', but it also means 'do it in the same way' and it also means 'do it as much as I did'.  If you do something different or do it in a different way or do less of the action, you will not get the same results.  Shouting 'praise God' when you hear about others getting blessings does not get you those blessings.  Hearing about the blessings which others receive lets you know what you can receive but you must do the same things for God, in the same way, if you want the same general blessings.

I told you about my nephew who lifted over 300k.  He started out fat but decided to turn his fat into muscle when he was 12.  He started lifting weights and studying what it required to build muscles.  He had to control what he ate along with doing other things.  While the other things helped, the main reason that he achieved his results was an attitude of being willing to do whatever it took to reach his goal.  He had to be willing to change his life habits.  He had to be faithful to daily lift weights and control his diet.  He had to study the right way to reach his goal by reading what was written by people who had already done the same thing.

Most guys decide to build muscles but most fail and even those who succeed do not succeed as well as he did.  The number one point of failure is not understanding what is required in order to reach the goal.  The next point of failure is a lack of faithfulness.  There are other points but these two are the main reasons for failure.

As I've said before, faith is like building muscles.  Both require people to understand what is required to achieve the goal, both require faithfulness to basic requirements, both take years to achieve, both have many who decide to reach the goal but both have most people quit before reaching their goal.  Both have a few who reach extraordinary results which few can match.  Both have people who are extraordinary but who started out regular.  Both require people to be faithful in their pursuit, to have an attitude of being willing to learn from those who reached the goal before and of being willing to be different and to change their life from the general culture around them.

Think about the theme of this meeting which is from 1Kings 18:38, which says Then the fire of the LORD fell.  The word Then  tells us that God acted AFTER God's man acted.  Starting in 2Kings 17 we read about Elijah the Tishbite.  You should prayerfully read the two chapters of 2Kings 17 and 18 while you consider the circumstances that Elijah was living in.  He had to go through more than three years of God's judgment upon God's people.  He went through the same judgment.  James 5:17-18 tells us: Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the Heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.  Elijah was a man of faith who had a different relationship with God than most of God's people had.  He proved beyond a doubt that he had different results because his relationship with God was different.  He acted different during the time of trial.  It was only after this that God acted upon his prayer.  If you want God to do miracles in and through your life you also must be a man of faith who is different from most people including other Filipinos and even including other Filipino pastors.

If we are to receive the blessings from God then we must first pass God's test and trial which proves that the results which we have come from God after we have lived by faith.

Insanity is defined as 'doing the same thing and expecting different results'.  If you act like other Filipinos, you are insane to expect different results.  You must study your Bible to see how God tells you to be different from other Filipinos if you want different results.  Every true godly leader acts different from other pastors because they study their Bible and build their personal relationship with God in order to see how God wants them to act different from other pastors.  Most of you have testified that I am different from moist Americans that you know.  You know that I have different results from God than most people have.  I would encourage you to Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ  so that you can also have these better blessings.  You must be willing to be different from other Filipinos and even be different from other Filipino pastors if you want different and better blessings.

That said, you have all heard how I have results of faith which few achieve.  The power of God  in my life is evidence of my faith.  I am going to tell you three ways that God has blessed my life and showed the power of God  as a result of my faith.  Many want the results that I have but few will be willing to do what is required.  However, if people do what I did, even if they are less faithful in their efforts, God will bless them because God always blesses faithfulness.

You all agree that the Bible is our basis for life and doctrine.  You all agree that we must obey the Bible in order to get the blessings from God. You have all heard and seen the blessings from God on my life.  I testify that I have blessings which others don't have because I spend more time studying the word of God, and obeying what the Bible tells me to do.  You have heard Dr. Nono say repeatedly that I am constantly studying the Bible.  In addition, my web site is the results of my making notes when I do my personal study.  You can verify the results for yourself.  You don't have to take the word of anyone else.

I already dealt with the Biblical requirement to keep records while you study the Bible.  It does not matter if anyone else ever sees your notes, if you do not keep notes then you are reading your Bible you are not studying like the Bible commands.  I did not start out planning on showing my notes to anyone.  Hebrews 11:6 says: But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.  True Biblical faith requires us to find the promise of God in the Bible, find God's requirement for receiving that promise and obeying God's command with the firm conviction that God will keep His promise.  I did not know what reward  God would give me but I determined to be diligent  in my study of His word and fully expected God to reward my diligence.  I kept records of time spent studying God's word and determined that, beyond regular Bible reading and what was required to teach Sunday School, I spent at least 20 hours/week in study of God's word.  I did this for 13years before coming to the mission field and, basically, doubled that amount since.  My being on the mission field and teaching is a direct result of this study.  Everything on my web site is a direct result of this study.

Just like my nephew had to be faithful to daily do the basic requirement of lifting weights and controlling his diet, so also did I have to be faithful to daily study and keep notes and control the sin in my life.  Just like he started out as an ordinary fat kid, so also did I start out as a regular church member who never went to Bible School.  Just as he achieved extraordinary results through diligently do the basic requirements, so also did I receive the results that I have.  Just as others started with my nephew but quit before reaching their goal, so also have many others failed to receive the results of faith because they refuse to meet God's requirement to be diligent  or they fail to do the study  which God requires because they believe the lie that reading  is the same as studying.

Now, here is the problem.  Every generation needs its own leaders or that generation will fail.  Right now, Filipinos look to America for spiritual leaders.  However, as you have heard repeatedly, America is turning their back on God.  God is starting to use Filipinos to lead in His service.  Every prior American spiritual leader did the true study  required by the Bible and most, if not all, published books which came from that study.  So, the question is where are the Filipino leaders of tomorrow? If they do not follow the example of spiritual leaders in the past and do true study,  which includes keeping notes and building upon those notes and the lessons learned earlier, then they will not get the same results from God.

People should expect it to take at least ten years of diligent and faithful study,  with keeping notes to build upon and organizing those notes, in order for anyone to become a true spiritual leader used by God.  All can do it but only those preachers who do what is required and are diligent and faithful to do the basics on a daily basis will become the spiritual leaders of tomorrow.  God is looking for those men today who will commit to doing what God requires so that they can become God's chosen leaders of tomorrow.

You have seem God bless me because of the way that I have diligently studied God's word for the last 17 years.  Many of you have testified about how the ministry that God gave to me has been a blessing to you and your ministry.  These blessings are because I keep organized notes as I study.  Our primary verse was Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ,  which is in 1Corinthians 4:16 and 1Corinthians 11:1.  God is looking for godly men who will study their Bible and keep organized notes, like I did, so that God can make you the spiritual leaders of tomorrow.  God is looking for men who are not just pastors but leaders of other pastors and that not only requires studying the Bible but also keeping records of what God reveals to you when you study.

The second way that God has truly blessed me is financial.  All of you have heard how God has blessed my finances.  According to the way that the world figures money, I did not have enough income to live on when I came here.  All of you have heard how God has provided for me.  As I have testified, this is a direct result of my acting different from other people and my acting in faith based upon what God's word says.  As I have said before, I have put together many lessons on finances since I have been here and they are all on my web site under the Doctrines Menu and called godly Finances.

God always deals with our attitudes and actions but God always tells us to get our attitudes right first.  The main attitude that God wants to fix is our source of provision.  God wants us to prove that we trust God and not the things of this world and the flesh.  You all know about the twelve spies sent into the promised land by Moses.  The ten who looked at the flesh brought God's judgment upon themselves and all of their adult followers.  The two who looked at God's ability to do the miraculous led the next generation into God's provision and blessings.  The lesson is very simple.  IF you look at how poor Filipinos are and at all of the other things of this world, you will lead your people into destruction.  You will teach the next generation to continue to miss God's blessings.  However, if you act like the two good spies who trusted God, and lead your people to act in faith of God's promises to provide miracles, then you will lead them into God's provision and blessings.

Explain 5 centavos.

The third way that God has truly blessed me is as a missionary.  I had lots of blessings from God before I moved to the mission field but those are nowhere near like what I have received since.  Now there are a number of mistakes which people make about missions because Baptist traditions teach doctrinal error about missions.  The first is the claim that people have to be preachers or part of a preacher's family to be a missionary.  However, the Bible names 50 non-preacher missionaries and tells of many more who are not named.  God gave the 'Great Commission' to all of His people including the non-preachers.  Acts 8:4 tells us Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word.  The preachers stayed in Jerusalem while the non-preachers started the church at Antioch and the church in Rome and other places.  Non-preachers cannot organize a church but they can get people saved and start Bible Studies, which is what God commands them to do.

In addition, Baptist churches are currently following the tradition which comes from protestants in England of having Mission Boards send out missionaries.  One of those results is that some Mission Boards impose of non-Biblical requirements such as dictating doctrines for mission churches to follow.  Another problem is churches having a non-Biblical relationship with their missionaries.  They treat the missionary as a hired servant whom they can order to do things because the missionary is paid.  However, the church is our spiritual family.  God wants missionaries sent from the church so that the church will treat them as family members who are away from home.  Paul never asked for financial support but he regularly asked for prayer and wrote about how churches encouraged him.  Prayer and encouragement are the main things which churches are to give to missionaries.  However, when churches are regarded as hired help that the pastor deals with, the church ends up failing in these responsibilities.

The main way that pastors can help their people is to encourage them to get involved in the 'Great Commission' with the idea that they can end up training others to also do it.  Once people can win souls and help in teaching a class or helping in other parts of the ministry, they need to start going on mission trips so that they also get a heart for missions.  They will not pray for missionaries and encourage them like God wants until they have personal experience with missions.

Acts 1:8 says: But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.  The word both  means that we are to do the 'Great Commission' at home and on the mission field at the same time.  Yes, that does mean financially supporting missions.  However, more importantly, it means praying for missionaries and encouraging them and going on mission trips to help them.  We are told to start at home where we have direct supervision but to then go farther and farther from home as we gain experience.  If a pastor is not getting his people involved in mission trips he is disobeying the command of God and keeping his people from getting the full blessings from God.

No one has a baby so that they still need their diapers changed ten years later.  In fact, all godly families teach children the skills required for those children to go out and start their own family.  Not all do but all are supposed to be able to do so.  Likewise, the main job of a pastor is to teach God's people how to spiritually mature to the point that they can go out and help start a new church.  Part of that requires the pastor teaching God's people God's motivation for their maturing spiritually.  No one gives the motorcycle keys to a two year old child.  Likewise, God withholds certain blessings until God's people reach certain levels of spiritual maturity.  I testified how God blessed me in great ways after I moved to the mission field.  I testified how God held those blessings until after I arrived on the mission field.  Likewise, God has blessings for His people who actually become missionaries which God does not give to people who do not become missionaries.  God wants His preachers to teach His people about these blessings, and the requirements to receive them, so that God's people will be motivated to mature spiritually.

The second way is for you and your followers.  You need to prove that you truly trust God for your provision.  You must daily look for ways to thank and praise God for His provision.  You must use things like picking up any coin in order to remind yourself to thank and praise God for all of His blessings, even the small ones.

The third way is what you are to teach your followers.  The Bible expects non-preachers to be involved in missions.  God expects His people to spiritually mature enough that they could go to a place with no church and win souls and start a Bible Study.  God wants His people to spiritually mature enough that they can be a blessing to any existing church when God sends them places.  That requires them getting involved in missions even while they are at their home church and learning how to mature spiritually.  That requires God's preachers teaching God's people that when God gave them His life God expected them to do what was required to grow that life and have the abundant life.

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