PRACTICING YOUR FAITH TO SEE GOD ACT / ENCOUNTER GOD TO MANIFEST CHRIST

Definition

Matthew 13:58 Jesus did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief.

David Yonggi Cho

ENCOUNTER GOD TO MANIFEST CHRIST

Speaker: pastor Jean TEDAH

Definition

To encounter means to get to know, to appear in the presence of, to rise to, to see

To demonstrate: is to expose. To manifest Christ is to make him known through us. ex. His Love, His goodness, His faithfulness, His mercy through us.

However, there are prerequisites for doing this.

Prerequisites to encounter God

#1. Know God first to discover what motivates us to seek to encounter him. In Luke 2:19, the disciples discover another dimension of God which is to calm the storm. Since Genesis, therefore, the Bible demonstrates the manifestation of the power of God, His omnipotence and His greatness. From this knowledge, a person can decide to go and encounter God to enjoy His power or benefit from His promises.

#2. Desire to be transformed as Apostle Paul says in Romans 12:2. Only God can transform into His image because man is incapable of doing it by himself. Receiving the power of God is a promise made to all who desire it (Acts 1:8). In Luke 10:18-19 and in Matthew 5 the first work the Lord does when He calls the disciples is to fill them with His power by deconstructing false doctrines to teach them how to be like Him. Jesus Himself went into the wilderness to be clothed with the presence of God (Luke 4:2).

#3. Believe that God can give what is asked of Him (Hebrews 11:6; Mark 11:22-23). This is faith in action. Drawing near to God is essential to have faith (John 14:13-14).

#4. Intentionally commit to entering into His presence to ask until you receive. In Genesis 32:24-32, Jacob fights with an angel for almost an entire night to receive an answer to his prayer, despite his injuries and fatigue. This THIRST TO SEE SOMETHING CHANGE IS A GUARANTEE OF VICTORY AND FULFILLMENT. In Luke 22:44 Jesus prayed until his sweat became like lumps of blood for an answer. TO MEET GOD, THEREFORE, DOES NOT MEAN GOING AS IF ON AN ADVENTURE — you need real motivation to abandon yourself to God and express your thirst, your desire to be fulfilled, without watching the clock or holding other parallel agendas.

How to manifest Christ?

Manifesting is the moment when people who have encountered God make the benefits of that encounter known to the world. To do this, you must be:

#1. Bold, courageous, and determined, because the world has an oppressive force that sets up schemes to push back the solution to people's problems. By being bold, we are armed with perseverance to solve people's problems even when they reject, deny, or push away the Lord. Having the courage to face situations allows Jesus to come and manifest His power.

#2. Avoid fear, unbelief, and harboring thoughts that kill faith. In Acts 20:22-24, Paul was preparing to go to Jerusalem, and the Spirit of God testified that he would be bound. But he counts his life as nothing precious to himself, refuses to give in to fear, and decides to go on to Jerusalem anyway. In Acts 21, the prophet Agabus confirms the same prophecy to him, but Paul again pays it no mind. Judges 6 shows a bold man, Gideon, who spent seven years under the oppression of the Midianites, to the point of fleeing his home to live in caves. In verses 12-14, when the angel appears to him and calls him a mighty man of valor, he denies the title. The angel strengthens him, he regains his strength, and defeats the Midianites, granting Israel 40 years of peace. Paul sums it up so well in these words: "For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God" (Romans 8:19).

TEXTS

Luke 2:19 but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often.

Luke 4:2 where he was tempted by the devil for forty days. Jesus ate nothing all that time and became very hungry.

Luke 10:18-19 "Yes," he told them, "I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning! Look, I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions and crush them. Nothing will injure you."

John 14:13-14 You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!

Romans 12:2 Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

Acts 20:22-24 "And now I am bound by the Spirit to go to Jerusalem. I don't know what awaits me, except that the Holy Spirit tells me in city after city that jail and suffering lie ahead. But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God."

Hebrews 11:6 And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.