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  LET YOUR LOVE GROW IN DISCERNMENT
  by Zac Poonen
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Summary: This sermon emphasizes the importance of being careful with
money and speech, highlighting the true riches of partaking in God's
nature. It discusses the various reasons people avoid sin, stressing the
ultimate goal of partaking in God's holiness and nature. The sermon
delves into the significance of having God's nature as the highest
reason to avoid sin, comparing it to the automatic nature of a worm or
snake. It encourages believers to progress towards having God's nature
naturally reject sin, aiming for a level where sin falls off like water
off a duck's back. The sermon also touches on the need for discernment
in leadership, urging elders to have discernment to protect the church
from wrong influences and make wise decisions.

Topics: "God's Nature", "Discernment in Leadership"
Scripture References: Genesis 20:11, 2 Corinthians 7:1, 1 Timothy 5:22, Proverbs 26:4, Isaiah 30:20, Philippians 1:9, Matthew 5:8, Romans 8:9, James 4:7

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DESCRIPTION
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This sermon emphasizes the importance of being careful with money and
speech, highlighting the true riches of partaking in God's nature. It
discusses the various reasons people avoid sin, stressing the ultimate
goal of partaking in God's holiness and nature. The sermon delves into
the significance of having God's nature as the highest reason to avoid
sin, comparing it to the automatic nature of a worm or snake. It
encourages believers to progress towards having God's nature naturally
reject sin, aiming for a level where sin falls off like water off a
duck's back. The sermon also touches on the need for discernment in
leadership, urging elders to have discernment to protect the church from
wrong influences and make wise decisions.

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CONTENT
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I told you that we have to be careful with our money and with our mouth.
If you want to receive, you want to be God's mouth and you want to
receive heavenly riches. Who will give you the true riches if you are
not faithful with money? What are the true riches? The true riches are
number one, partaking of God's nature.

There is nothing greater than that. See, there are many reasons why we
can avoid sin. We can avoid sin because I don't want to go to hell.

This is the lowest reason. Or I can avoid sin because it will spoil my
testimony before others if I lose my temper. It's also a good reason,
but that is not the best.

Or better than that, I want to avoid sin because I want God to use me.
Or there could be other reasons like that. I want to avoid sin because
it's good to be a holy man.

My testimony before people will be good. That's also not the highest.
The highest is, why did Jesus avoid sin? Not because I want my father to
use me.

No. It is displeasing to God. God hates it.

That's why I want to avoid it. You can avoid sin because it's harmful
for me. Sin is like poison.

I want to avoid it. It's harmful for me. I don't drink whiskey because
it's harmful for me.

I don't sin because it's harmful for me. That's not the reason. It
displeases God.

But the highest reason is that it's not my nature. You know the
difference between a worm and a snake? You stamp on a snake, you know
what it will do? Sting you immediately. You stamp on a worm, it will
just curl up.

Why? It's not because it's trying to be spiritual and say I must not
sting. I must just humble myself. No.

It is nature. It's automatic. And that is the highest level.

It has become my nature. I just don't sting. If somebody stamps on me, I
curl up.

It doesn't begin like that. Because in the beginning we are used to
stinging back. And we gradually progress in different stages.

Ultimate is we partake of God's nature. There is nothing higher than
that. God does not sin because that's his nature.

It's not because he's afraid of going to hell or because of some
punishment or some sickness. Nothing. It is his nature.

Holiness is his nature. And that is the ultimate goal we want to come
to. Where holiness becomes my nature.

It's not because I want a testimony in the church or I want God to use
me or anything. All that is stages. But we come to say, Lord, I want to
partake of your nature.

It says in 2 Peter 1. 2 Peter 1. That the divine power of God, verse 3.
Has granted us, verse 4. Precious and magnificent promises. The whole
Bible full of God's wonderful promises. And that's not just victory over
sin.

But that you might become partakers of the divine nature. And that will
help you escape the corruption in the world by lust. This is more than
victory over sin.

This is where nature, you know, just rejects sin. Just flicks it off.
Flicks it off.

That should be our goal. Lord, I want to come to that place where.
There's an expression in English called, water off a duck's back.

I don't know how. But it's really true that if you pour water, the water
will not stick on a duck. Or the wings will not get wet.

I don't know. I've never tried it. But there's an expression, water off
a duck's back means you pour the water and it doesn't stick.

If you pour water on me, it will be there on my skin. But not on a duck.
Nature.

That's a wonderful thing. My reaction to sin is like that. Temptation
comes and it just falls off.

That is God's goal. So, in the same way, I can come to the place where
little by little by little, I come to the place where money doesn't have
any hold on me. And I'm not thinking about it.

If I lost something, I'm not going to be worried about it. And if I gain
something, I'm not going to be excited about it. In the beginning, you
know, particularly if you're in need, and you get some money or a
promotion, you're excited.

It's all right. Good. I had a need and God met with me.

But you gradually come to the place where you say, Jesus was never
excited when he got money. That's why he let Judas Iscariot handle it.
And if Judas Iscariot stole it, he was not disappointed.

He had come so much above that, that he knew that my father will provide
my need however much Judas steals or whatever happens. He was free from
it completely. And when we say we want to be like Jesus, it is in this
area to be completely free, partaking of God's nature.

God has zero love for money. I say, Lord, I want to be like that. I'm
supposed to partake of your nature, my nature, which is just like Adam's
nature did such a perfect job in us, right? What a perfect job Adam's
nature has done in us.

Makes us get angry, makes us selfish, makes us murmur, complain, love
money. It's a perfect job. In every area.

In the same way, the Holy Spirit can do a perfect job of giving me God's
nature. Adam's nature can come so perfectly in me from childhood. That
it is no effort to tell lies, it's no effort to be selfish, it's no
effort to think only of myself.

It's not a great strain to think of myself. It's natural. It's natural
to gossip, it's natural to criticize, it's natural to find fault, it's
natural to defend myself.

Adam has done such a fantastic job in perfectly giving me his nature.
Can't the Holy Spirit do a perfect job in giving me Christ's nature?
When I had Adam's nature, I was not struggling to tell a lie, or
struggling to be selfish. You know, I'm so battling unselfishness.

No, selfishness comes naturally. Pride, anger, everything comes
naturally. That is the work that God can do in us through the Holy
Spirit, where it comes naturally over a period of time.

But it is a stage. You get there only if you are faithful in the lower
stages. So that is God's desire, and that nature God gives us is love.

But in leadership, I want to tell you something about this love, which
is God's nature. It says in Philippians, in chapter 1, Philippians 1,
Paul prays for the Philippians, and says, I pray that your love will
increase. A good prayer to pray, that our love will increase.

But, it must abound more and more in real knowledge and discernment.
Discernment is more than knowledge. Discernment is where you love
people.

There is no hatred in your heart against anybody. You love people,
that's why you help them. You love people, that's why you correct them.

It's like you love your children. You discipline them because you love
them. The Bible says, if you don't discipline your children, you don't
really love them.

And if I am a good elder, I will have to discipline people in the
church. It's a part of my love, to protect them, preserve them. But that
love must abound in discernment.

And that means, as we grow, as we walk with the Lord, it's one of the
very important requirements for elders, that God should be able to make
me discerning, that people can't fool me with their language. Somebody
comes and talks spiritual language, and I'm not fooled. You can come to
the place where some new person comes to your church, and five minutes
of conversation with him, you know where he stands.

You don't know anything about his private life. But you talk to him for
five minutes, and you know where he stands. Discernment.

Sometimes you just look into his eyes. I remember one person came here
from Tamil Nadu, one new person to our CFC. I looked into his eyes and I
knew he was a crook.

Not a crook in terms of cheating money or something, he was a wealthy
businessman. But something lacking straightforwardness in his life,
which became evident later on. If you don't have discernment, and you
don't seek for it, you will end up giving responsibility in your church
to the wrong people.

That has also happened. I must give responsibility to this person,
because otherwise he'll get offended. I gave responsibility to this
person, but not to that person.

So in order not to offend him, I'll give him also a responsibility. If
you do that, I would say to your face, you are totally unfit to be an
elder. CFC, go and join the Catholic church or something like that.

To give a responsibility to a person because you're afraid he'll get
offended? Are you a disciple of Jesus or what? Are you building the
kingdom of God or some private club? You cannot be an elder if you're
not willing to offend people. Just forget it. Resign.

We must be willing to offend people. Discernment. That you discern that
this person is speaking the right language, but I don't feel it's right.

Something wrong there. It's very important for us that beyond the
language, you must be able to discern. That is how Peter detected
Ananias.

Ananias never said anything. But the way Ananias came and kept the money
there and his look, Peter said, come here. There's something not right
in you.

Discernment. Very, very important requirement for an elder. And there's
no course you can take for discernment.

There's no Bible study you can take to get discernment. It only comes
through faithfulness in your personal life. If you are faithful in
judging sin in your own flesh, God will give you discernment.

Otherwise, you'll remain a blind elder, able to see things only when
everything happens. When calamity happens, then your eyes are open. Oh
ho, I didn't realize this man was like that.

Okay, at least you woke up then. But if you had discernment, you would
have known that long ago. So it's very important that you don't swallow
everything that people say.

I have to be careful when I say that also because you can take that and
make a law about that and you look at everybody with suspicion.
Everybody who comes here is suspicious until you drive everybody out of
the church with your suspicious looks. That is the other extreme.

Always remember that the narrow way has got two extremes. One cliff is
this side, one cliff is this side. I can warn you so much against this
cliff that you fall over that side and you say, yeah, I'm not going to
be fooled by anybody.

But you fall over the other side. The narrow way is between these two
extremes. It's not that you're looking suspiciously at everybody.

At the same time, you're not swallowing everything that people say. Find
that narrow way. And who will show to you what the narrow way is? I'll
tell you.

Turn to Isaiah chapter 30. How to have discernment? This verse has many
applications. It has an application for personal life but also for
discernment.

Isaiah chapter 30 and the last part of verse 20 and 21. Number one,
verse 20, last part. Your eyes will see your teacher.

That's where you have to begin. You have to see Jesus Christ in your
spirit. Look at his example.

Seek to follow him. And as you see him in your spirit's eyes, you will
hear a voice in your spirit saying, this is the way. When you're going
too much to the right or too much to the left, when you're in danger of
falling over this side or falling over that side, the voice will say,
no, you're going too far.

You're becoming too suspicious. Or, you don't have any discernment
there. Be careful.

And he will keep you on that narrow path. You're becoming too legalistic
there. You back away from that and the Holy Spirit will say, now you're
becoming too worldly.

The Christian life is walking a very narrow path with steep cliffs on
either side. So you see a particular danger and you back away and back
away and back away from it. Remember, there's a cliff behind you.

So you can hear certain things and get so taken up with something. I'm
going to do that. Remember there's a cliff behind you.

So I pray that you will love and your love will grow in discernment.
That's what he read in Philippians. Not just discernment.

You start with love. And you can't have spiritual discernment if you
don't begin with love. You go home now and say, OK, I'm going to discern
everybody.

You'll destroy your church. Begin with love. But say, Lord, don't let my
love be foolish.

I want to be discerning. Not suspicious. Who will show you the
difference between suspicion and discernment? You'll hear a voice
saying, this is the way.

This is too much to the right or too much to the left. And look at your
teacher. That's how that word began.

Your eyes will see your teacher. Look at Jesus, how it was. He knew the
right answer always.

There were times when he would answer a person. There are other times
when he would say, no, I will not answer you. Or I'll ask you another
question.

You say, we can't answer that, then I also won't answer you. So Jesus
did not have a standard reply for everyone. So in our dealing with
people, turn to Proverbs 26.

Here's a great two verses. Tell me how you interpret it. Proverbs 26,
verses 4 and 5. What is the right answer? What should you do when you
meet a fool? What should you do when you meet a fool? Do not answer a
fool according to his folly, otherwise you'll be like him.

Answer a fool as his folly deserves, that he be not wise in his own
eyes. Wonderful! Are you confused? You need to be confused so that you
don't depend on your intellect. But then the Holy Spirit will tell you,
this is fool A and this is fool B. This is fool according to 26, verse 4
and this is fool according to 26, verse 5. Who can tell you that? Only
the Holy Spirit.

Answer this fellow. Don't answer this fellow. Jesus lived by that.

That's why sometimes he would answer, sometimes he wouldn't. We have to
follow him. And it's not a technique.

Nobody can train you in this. You have to walk with God. The secret of
discernment is to walk with God with a clear conscience all the time.

And then God sees that you are taking your responsibility in the church
seriously. He will give you discernment. I believe one of the great
lacks in Christian leadership today is discernment.

They get taken up with all types of things. Some film star, you've seen
that in India also. Some film star says, I've accepted Jesus.

Ah, finished. Every church wants that film star to come to their church
and give a testimony. Rather, a film star accepted Jesus Christ.

Oh ho. So Christianity must be the true religion because that film star
also accepted Jesus Christ. What a level our Christianity has come to in
India.

If a film star comes to CFC, they'll be made to sit at the back. And
I'll get some brother to examine that film star and see whether he's
born again. No, we don't show any preference to anybody.

We've had people come from the Gulf. You know, these Indians who go to
the Gulf after some time, they suddenly begin to think they are somebody
important. Just because they have a lot of money, they build their own
house and all that type of stuff.

And they come to CFC and they expect to be given some special place.
There's no special place. I always make them sit at the back.

And after some time, they get offended. They're never asked to share.
They're never given any responsibility.

They get offended and they'll join some Pentecostal church. They
suddenly become elders there. That's where you're supposed to be,
brother.

You came to the wrong church. You're supposed to be over there. Discern,
discern, discern.

If you want to build your church in purity, you need discernment. And
you must have absolutely no partiality for a rich person, or your
relative, or your friend, or your father, mother, uncle, anybody. No
partiality.

Don't give your wife responsibilities in the church because she's your
wife. I have been so blessed, I'll tell you, beyond measure by having a
wife who had no desire for any prominence in CFC. In the early days,
people would come for our conferences and they'd say, who is Aquinan's
wife? And I told her, that is a good testimony that people come there,
they don't know who you are.

You're just like the other sisters in the crowd somewhere. Have you seen
Pentecostal pastors' wives? Very different. They are assistant pastors.

Don't let your wife be like that. I'm sorry to say, there are some
elders who are slaves to their wives. And I've seen it.

When I go to the conferences and all in the past, I've seen how they try
to give their wives some prominence. They don't say anything. They
think, Jack is a dumb person, he doesn't know what's happening.

I know everything what's happening. And I can make out, and it
immediately makes me lose my confidence in that elder, down to zero.
I've seen it.

I remember in one conference, where my wife was, they wanted to take
some video of the conferences or the message in the crowd. And my wife
was, she usually has a clinic for the poor women and children and giving
out medicines. And this elder wanted to bring his wife to sit there next
to to help give the medicines.

And the video person is focusing on his wife. My respect for that elder
went down to zero. And it has been at zero since then.

What is this? Promoting your wife? You want her to be in the video? No.
He who has ears to hear, let him hear. You need discernment, brother.

Don't be fooled by such people. You will not build the church of Jesus
Christ if you are fooled by people who are trying to promote their wives
or promote their children or promote something else like that. Many few
years ago, I had a tremendous battle in should I ask one of my sons to
speak in the conference or not.

I never thought of it until all by themselves, without my help. They had
a church on their own in the United States and they were invited in
different places to speak. I remember going to one meeting where one of
my, Sandeep was speaking and I was introduced.

By the way, this is brother Sandeep's father who has come here. I was so
thrilled. They didn't know who I was.

I said, great. It is after I saw such things that I said, okay, I feel
they've got a ministry there. I might as well ask them to speak here
also.

But I was so hesitant. I said, Lord, let's cause misunderstanding. I
don't want to stumble anybody.

And then I saw that Jesus, when he selected his disciples, he selected
two of his cousins. James and John were the children of Mary's sister.
His mother Mary had a sister called Salome and her sons were James and
John.

And when Jesus selects the three close to him, he takes James and John.
And the others say, aha, he's just choosing his cousins. That's not why
he chose them, because they were spiritually minded.

And the Lord spoke to me that time. I was not disturbed what people said
about my choosing James and John. Don't be disturbed.

But I said, Lord, I still want some confirmation. I want to be very
careful. As I sat there, Brother Ian Robson came up to me and said,
Jack, I think you should get your sons to speak.

Thank you, Lord. I got that confirmation. I'm very careful, very
careful, because I've seen the calamity that has come.

All over India you see preachers promoting their children. They have
contact with America and they built a huge organization with American
money. They are the ones who raised that money.

The organization is after their name. I've spent 20, 30, 40 years
building up this organization. Why should I give it to a stranger? This
is my business.

I'll hand it over to my son. And the son will be the next in charge of
that Christian organization. See it all over India.

Some ministry they start, connect up with some organization abroad and
then their son or son-in-law or somebody will be in charge of this. This
is the corruption there is in Christendom. I got sick and tired of it.

Be careful that you don't promote your children unless you see that God
has anointed them and given them a ministry quite independent from your
trying to promote them on their own. I believe God can use your
children, sure. But make sure that God Himself promotes them, not you.

Because I tell you, God will not spare you. He'll take away the
anointing from you if you try to touch the work of God with your dirty
hands. Definitely He's touching the work of God with your dirty hands to
push somebody up whom God is not pushing forward.

Don't push your wife forward in any ministry in the church as well.
Always take the low seat and encourage your family members to take the
low seat. Let God exalt them, not you.

I've seen people trying to do it to their wives and their children and
I've seen it always destroys that whole family. If you want to destroy
your family, you can do it. I've never done it and I'll never do it.

I want to preserve my family for the kingdom of God. His earthly honor
and all means nothing. So discernment is so important in this area.

Discernment, discernment. People can come to our church who are crooks.
They're coming for some benefit.

Discern it. We won't be perfect. Once or twice we may be fooled and I've
seen that also in the church that sometimes I've been fooled by people
who I thought were really spiritual but over a period of years it got
exposed they were not spiritual.

They got pushed out and that's what I'm thankful for. I say if a man
comes to CFC with a crooked intention seeking something for himself I
know that one day or the other he'll get exposed. It may take time.

Like Judas Iscariot got exposed after three and a half years. Jesus knew
this fellow was a crook but it was not time for him to be exposed. Some
of the people sitting in your church, Jesus may know right now this guy
is not really fit to he's not a spiritually minded person, he's a crook.

He's seeking his own. He's just pretending to be spiritual. Okay.

I say Lord I don't know all my discernment is not perfect but I know one
thing he'll get exposed. One day or the other he'll definitely get
exposed. How do I know? Because I've seen what has happened in the last
40 years in CFC.

One day or the other these crooked people get exposed. They become
elders and they get exposed and they're removed from eldership. It has
happened again and again and again and God determines the time when it
should happen.

And then as it happens we get more and more discerning. So don't be
afraid because if you're honest and upright God will back you up and
even if you slip up somewhere he will expose you. You know like these in
the military institutions there's a check post it's down and the car
comes they say stop I must check your identity and all checked okay go.

So like that somebody comes to the church I lift up the okay brother
come in but I tell them listen there's another check post further up
which is manned by God he will send you back. You can fool me but don't
forget there's another check post up there this is not the final one.
He'll chuck you out of the church and it'll be very bad when that
happens.

So that has happened to us also where sometimes in the early days
particularly we were deceived by some people who came with wrong
intentions they wanted money they wanted some type of benefit but we
grew in discernment. We didn't start I mean we all started in the
kindergarten I did not know multiplication when I was 3 years old I know
it now the same way discernment I did not know when we began but little
by little we grew don't be ashamed to say I'm growing I'm not in the PhD
level yet maybe gone from kindergarten to first grade first standard but
I'm growing but we must grow in discernment. I pray that your love
Philippians 1.9 what is that verse we read I pray that your love will
grow more and more in real come back to that verse and see it and don't
ever forget it that your love will grow more and more in real or true
discernment so the growth of love is in real knowledge of God's ways and
discernment because when you have discernment verse 10 then you can
approve the things that are not the things that are good but the things
that are excellent have you heard this English proverb which says the
good is the enemy of the best good is here and best is here on top I
choose the good I can miss the best the good is the enemy of the best so
I must sometimes reject the good because I want the best so it says here
that you may approve not the things that are good but the things that
are excellent that means you choose the absolute top thing because this
is the church this is the church of God we don't want things that are
good we want things that are excellent in order to be sincere and
blameless until the day of Christ and this discernment comes through the
Holy Spirit and that's why it's very very important dear brothers that
first of all you have a genuine experience of being filled with the Holy
Spirit I remember the years when I sought for it and I said Lord I know
that something is missing in my life I knew the Bible I was preaching
but this is before CFC began and I was praying and fasting and seeking
the Lord and I said something is missing and I knew I needed to be
filled with the Holy Spirit and I know that it's a continuous thing but
I needed to have this anointing for ministry see in Jesus' case let's
see the stages He was born of the Holy Spirit conceived in the mother's
womb born of the Holy Spirit we are also born of the Holy Spirit when we
are born again the Holy Spirit comes there the Bible says in Romans 8
Romans 8-9 which says if any man does not have the Spirit of Christ he
doesn't belong to him Romans 8-9 if you don't have the Holy Spirit you
don't even belong to Christ that is the verse that teaches us when you
are born again you receive the Holy Spirit when you ask Jesus to come
into your heart who comes in? Jesus is in Heaven it's the Holy Spirit
who comes in when Jesus the second person of the Trinity was walking on
the earth you could invite him to your house he would come to your house
like Mary, Martha, Lazarus invited him today it is not the second person
of the Trinity it's the third person of the Trinity the Holy Spirit who
is here and you invite Christ to come into your heart it's the Holy
Spirit who comes in it's the Spirit of Christ that's why when it says in
the early Christians they receive the Spirit it is what we say when they
are born again they told early Christians believe in the Lord Jesus
Christ and receive the Holy Spirit we combine the two and say receive
the Lord Jesus Christ into your heart there is a reason for it if we
tell people in India receive the Spirit there are all types of people
who want to receive the Spirit what Spirit? Believe in the Lord Jesus
Christ receive the Lord Jesus Christ into your heart the one who comes
in is the Holy Spirit don't have any doubt whether you have received the
Spirit you are born again I am trying to clarify confusion in your mind
but you may not be filled with the Holy Spirit because our heart is like
a house with many rooms and the Holy Spirit will only come into the
rooms that you open up to Him the guilt room guilty of my sins in the
past all of us want the Holy Spirit to come there please cleanse the
guilt of my sin we are ready to have Him come there and so light comes
into one room so if you look at a house on top of a hill and there is
light in one room of the ten rooms of that house and you look at it and
I ask you is there light in the house? yes, there is light in the house
is it filled with light? No, nine of the rooms seem to be dark that's
how many believers are have they received the Holy Spirit? Sure are they
filled with the Holy Spirit? No because they have not allowed the Holy
Spirit to come into certain rooms there are believers who are more
interested in watching the Tamil television serials some of them are not
very clean so I have heard there are Malayalam serials I have never seen
any of these but I have heard there are things like this even if there
is not open sex in it there are suggestions which can influence your
mind I will tell you honestly, I am not against watching clean movies,
children's movies pilgrims progress, different Christian ones even other
secular ones which are clean but you have to be very careful you must
not become enslaved to it and definitely if it's got some dirty scenes
in it better not watch it and don't let your children ever see such
things but it's a form of education today movies and children can be
educated in various ways it's just like they say what you see through
your eye goes more into your mind than what you hear so a lot of
education is by visible things on DVDs and all that so I am not against
that type of thing but we have to be very careful to me a television or
internet is like a library I don't tell people you can't go into the
library there are lots of books in the library I say be careful what
books you pick out of the library so when you go to the internet I go to
the internet, I check my email everyday but I have to see what am I
checking here the same way with movies is that a good book to read? you
want your children to read that? you don't say don't go to the library
but be careful what you select if you watch television, be careful what
you watch but it's very important that we are discerning in all these
things because if we are careless we can pollute ourselves and defile
our children and families and everything so we have to be very
discerning in these days because the devil is so subtle in everything
make us waste our time spend a lot of time on unprofitable things so
let's seek to be discerning and saying Lord and if you are in doubtful
say Lord please give me wisdom in this area and if you have neglected
the Bible then definitely that's not the time to spend time watching
movies to me watching a movie is like a clean one it's just a form of
relaxation we need relaxation especially if you are working very hard in
offices nowadays the work is so tense the mind is so occupied with
particularly people who work on computers and technical stuff you can't
come home and read the Bible you need some type of relaxation so there
is nothing wrong in that just be very careful in this area there is a
great need for discernment that way we can protect ourselves and protect
our children as well and as I said it's the Holy Spirit who gives that
discernment so we need to really seek to be filled with the Holy Spirit
that's what I sought for I knew I had the Holy Spirit but I wanted to be
filled so the Holy Spirit says can I come into this room and decide what
TV programs you watch and you say no no I am a little free there the
Holy Spirit says ok I won't come there let that room remain dark can I
come into your finance room to see how you are handling your money how
are you earning it is it absolutely 100% righteous are you paying your
taxes honestly are you spending your money also wisely and you say well
Lord you know this wicked corrupt world we can't always do everything
honestly if you come here you will tell me to do everything righteously
then I won't be able to make a life so struggle I have to do a few
things underhand in America they say cook the books that means the
financial books if you are worried that those things are wrong the Holy
Spirit will say I won't disturb you just keep doing what's wrong that
room remains dark can I come into the library and see what books you
read what magazines you read many rooms remain dark and this person may
be praying all the time oh God fill me with the Holy Spirit any room I
knock at you say I can't come are you loyal to your wife 100% do you
speak with other women in your office or somewhere else in a very loose
type of way or even some sister in the church I would never speak to a
sister alone in a public place like this yes but alone in my house no
and speak at the door and say sister my wife is not here so maybe come
some other time if I have to speak to her I'll speak to you along with
the other elders but never alone never never speak to a sister alone
unless it's a public place like this if it is in your home with another
elder or let your wife sit there even if the sister wants to talk to you
let your wife sit there very very important brothers the devil wants to
pollute us and corrupt us and there are many sisters who are a bit loose
they're not evil and especially sometimes I've seen some sisters are so
admiring a preacher who's so powerful and anointed that they want to be
a little close to them not for any sex or anything no no no they're not
immoral but they like to be a little close to this elder this anointed
elder keep them at a distance and that's why you need discernment I
remember in the early days when I didn't have that discernment the Lord
would give me a dream of some face of some sister in the church I'd say
Lord what is that? be careful of her now I don't need it because I've
developed a little more in discernment but it's how good God is that he
can warn you in a dream because he sees you're not discerning enough yet
but you want to keep yourself pure he gives you a picture of him, avoid
this person I've had 2 or 3 names of people who are in CFC I mean some
of them have left now but I said ok Lord I'll be careful so I was very
careful after that then over a period of time we get discernment God
wants to protect us because in our unconverted days we were stupid and
foolish and did so many things in ignorance but God has overlooked the
times of ignorance be very careful and my dear brothers I want to say
one more thing sexual temptation is one of the strongest temptations for
men and if you have access to the internet and you have a laptop or a
computer you will be strongly tempted to watch pornography to watch sex
scenes of half naked women on the internet in the olden days I think
they had to pay for it but I think nowadays they tempt you by offering
it free I don't know when I got my first laptop or first computer it was
long after CFC started CFC started in 1975 there were no laptops and
computers those days at least I didn't have any but all these 45 years
I've never seen any pornography, I've never wanted to go there I've
never gone to such a site and I would not go there keep yourself pure
and you say well brother Zak you're 80 years old well I was not 80 years
old 45 years ago I was 35 then and you can have very strong desires when
you're 35-40 years old all the way till you're 45-50-60 desires can be
strong, be very careful because there are many subtle ways in which the
devil pollutes you the whole purpose is to neutralize your ability to
preach God's word nobody knows it and I always teach people always see
your computer or laptop in an open room never in a closed room and
always keep the laptop in such a way that the door is behind you that
anybody walking by can see what you're watching that your wife or
anybody can walk into that room anytime and the laptop is in front of
you and they're coming from behind they can see what you're watching
never turn it around the other way and expose yourself to temptation I
don't do that even now I keep it the way I told you now because I want
to be an example to others I can keep the laptop facing any direction
I'm not even tempted in that area now but I still keep it like that
because I want to be an example to others this is the way you should
watch your laptop and your computer you may think that's very elementary
but for some of you it may protect you from ruining your life it is an
addiction pornography pornography just like drugs, just like alcohol
have you heard of people who start drinking, they can't give it up they
become believers and they can't give it up I'm not talking about an
occasional drink, the Bible says take a little wine it's alright, but
you cannot control it be not drunk with wine that's an addiction I've
heard of the Salvation Army founder William Booth he was mainly working
among these alcoholics and drunkards, bringing them to Christ how many
hundreds of people he brought to Christ there were drunkards on the
streets and he scrapped breaking of bread Salvation Army will not have
breaking of bread because he said this grape juice is tempting these
alcoholics, when they get the smell of it they immediately think of
alcohol again now whether he was right in scrapping the breaking of
bread for that reason I don't know, I'm not here to judge him he was
such a godly man I don't know if I have it written here but I remember
something like this he said when he was 85 years old he'd been working
among drug addicts, prostitutes and these poor girls who were being
brought at the age of 13 from some other part of England to work here in
some hotel or something and they'd be prostitutes and poor boys were
made to work day and night without being paid properly and he said at
the end of his life as long as there is a drunk man going down the
streets of London as long as there are little girls being exploited like
this by unscrupulous people as long as little boys are made to work day
and night in factories and troubled, I will fight, I will fight I will
fight till the end of my life to deliver such people this was the man so
I will not criticize him for scrapping breaking of bread but you know
some people have that they are tempted so easily pornography can be like
that be very careful my dear brothers once you are hooked alcoholics,
it's very difficult to break free drugs, I've never understood drugs I
was in the Navy where alcohol was free almost and I never touched it
smoking, I never smoked because it was such a bad taste some people are
addicted and so I don't understand it myself so be very careful in these
areas once you get hooked it's very difficult to break free so best is
to avoid it if you are on a computer and you see some site come here
don't go there sometimes you are watching something on YouTube and on
the side of YouTube there are a whole lot of other things some of those
are very dangerous those other sites which are little pictures down
there be very careful don't click on them and get hooked I'm saying for
your own protection for the protection of your family life for the
protection of the church this is one of the most serious areas I don't
think many of you or perhaps any of you will become drunkards drugs are
not a very common thing in India like in the West but pornography it's
very easy for you to get hooked on it particularly those of you who have
computers and it's very easy to cover it up and conceal it where are you
concealing it from? demons are standing behind watching you this man
this man is a CFC believer great we have got him we got him and the
angels are weeping Lord what a shame that this child of God is seeing
all this pretending to be holy and tomorrow is Sunday and he is going to
get up there and share the word of God am I telling things which are not
true? I'll tell you honestly I don't know anything about any of your
private lives and I don't want to know I have no interest so I am not
preaching at anybody here because I don't know, I don't want you to come
and confess to me when people come and confess to me I say listen I am
not a Roman Catholic priest please don't come and confess your sins to
me God has not given me any power to forgive you go to Jesus, he is the
one who forgives sins I did not die for your sins, go and tell him your
sins please don't pollute my mind with all the dirty things you did I
don't want to hear it I don't even want to hear what you did or what you
watched why should I even hear about it and pollute my mind keep
yourself pure see this word in 2 Timothy 1 Timothy 5.22 5.22 the last
part it says keep yourself pure what a word keep yourself pure very very
important 1 Timothy 5.22 there is a great need for it in our time I do
not encourage the teaching of psychology which says find a prayer
partner to whom you can go and confess your sin so that you will stop
doing it that is taught in psychology nowadays, I have heard about it so
people, even Christian psychologists garbage if I don't find it in the
word of God, it is garbage that is not the way to overcome sin the Bible
says in 2 Corinthians 7 verse 1 perfect holiness in the fear of God
perfect holiness in the fear of God 2 Corinthians 7 verse 1
psychologists are teaching you to perfect holiness in the fear of man
that means the principle is this you watch some pornography so you have
to go and confess to your prayer partner brother I am sorry he also has
to confess to you so next time you are tempted to watch it I will have
to go and tell my prayer partner I did it again so I won't do it you
avoid it, why? out of the fear of man that is not holiness it is
holiness in the fear of man it is not even second best it is a
counterfeit because it will never lead you to true holiness true
holiness is in the fear of God I discovered once in my study of this
phrase fear of God I was studying fear of God in a concordance and I
discovered the phrase fear of God comes first time in the Bible first
time in relation to sexual sin that is in Genesis chapter 20 the first
time the phrase fear of God comes in the Bible the first time God told
somebody fear me is when Abraham offered up his son and God said now I
know that you fear me because you obeyed me but the phrase itself comes
earlier when Abraham went to town and Abimelech was the king there in
Gerar Genesis 20 and he said Sarah is his sister so Abimelech took Sarah
to be his wife and one of his many wives and God verse 3 came to
Abimelech and said you are a dead man because this woman is married to
somebody and Abimelech said Lord I did not know that but he said she is
my sister and God said to him yes I know verse 6 you integrative heart
you know this heathen man I tell you I am challenged when I read this
this heathen man God protected him from sinning because he saw some
uprightness in his heart heathen won't he protect you and me from
sinning if he sees some uprightness in your heart how is it he protected
Abimelech from adultery but so many believers fall into adultery how is
that he says I know verse 6 in the integrity of your heart boy what a
testimony God to give to a ungodly man so I did not allow you to touch
her will God do that for you and me sure if he sees some integrity in
your heart and then he called Abraham Abimelech in the morning and said
why did you do this and Abraham says here is where that phrase comes
surely I thought there is no fear of God in this place therefore they
will do sexual sin the first time the word fear of God comes in the
Bible is in relation to sexual sin never forget that and the Lord told
me I said Lord why have you made it is such a strong passion in men not
so much in women but sex is such a strong force in men its tempted you
can just see a pretty woman and get tempted so strong so strong so
strong that draws you to look at things which are impure and this is the
reply I got from the Lord I have made this desire a strong desire in all
men to test whether they will fear me or not because this is an area
where they can sin without anybody knowing it not their wives not their
colleagues they can retain their testimony for 50 years and they can
keep on sinning and there I test whether these men fear me or not the
secret of the Lord is with those who fear me I will reveal to them
amazing truths and make them partake of my nature but when I test them
in this area and I see they don't fear me I will not do anything I will
allow them to keep on going that way till one day they destroy
themselves repent and turn around before it is too late you can go so
far I always say God is very very merciful tremendously way beyond there
is a red line he draws in front of people and a person sins sins every
time he sins nobody caught me nobody knows nobody knows year after year
after year he doesn't realize he is going closer and closer closer and
closer to the red line I have already done it 500 times nothing is going
to happen continue and one day you cross the red line then I don't know
what will happen I don't want to predict some people lose their
salvation you can't save yourself it is God who keeps you don't think I
will do it one day before it gets too much I will stop you will not be
able to stop I will tell you that dear brothers I have opened my heart
and spoken to you the times of ignorance God overlooks but now he
commands everybody to repent be very careful don't feel that God cannot
use you because you have polluted your mind so much we have all polluted
our minds I remember in my naval days there was no pornographic movies
or any such thing there were all types of books I was unconverted and
these people mostly stories and all that filth some of those things
those other naval colleagues introduced to me in my unconverted days
they polluted my mind I didn't know anything I was an innocent young man
when I got polluted I was brought up in a very God fearing home and they
polluted my mind with all this and affected me but I thank God that
those days are gone the blood of Jesus cleansed me not only cleansed me
I will not remember that anymore so God is very merciful to us he's been
very merciful to me I can say extremely merciful but I don't want to
take advantage of that mercy I can say one thing that since I've come to
CFC my life has been tremendously protected from all these things I've
taken sin seriously and I hope you will take sin seriously it's for your
own protection my brothers ministry is secondary but ministry will also
come Heavenly Father we know the answer to all of these things is to be
filled with the Holy Spirit continuously filled with the Holy Spirit and
I pray every one of my dear brothers here will be filled with the Holy
Spirit and be a credit to your name at least from now on please forgive
us all our past failures we have all failed miserably Lord I know I have
failed I don't claim to be a saint I've sinned and I've failed but
you've been good to me and merciful and I thank you for the blood of
Jesus that has cleansed me I pray that everybody here will rejoice in
the cleansing of the blood of Jesus but will not take advantage of it in
the future but will walk in brokenness and humility protect us Lord we
live in an evil generation we live in an evil days please help us by the
Holy Spirit that we will not dishonor your name not only by other people
seeing us but by the devil accusing us to you Lord we don't want to
dishonor you that the devil accuses us to you we're ashamed of it, of
our past but we want it to be different in the days to come help us Lord
to be the type of servant you want us to be in the CFC churches where
you have placed us I pray in Jesus name, Amen

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Video: https://sermonindex2.b-cdn.net/gbEBGO42uGU.mp4
Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/zac-poonen/let-your-love-grow-in-discernment/
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