Good evening, God bless you. I hope you're well wherever you are across this beautiful earth this evening. May God bless you and strengthen you in the mighty name of Jesus Christ. We're going to turn to the book of the Gospel of John, we're going to Gospel of John Chapter 20, verse 24, through two around about 29, somewhere around about that, as well, Thomas. I hope you're all well, wherever you are. Thank you so much for joining us here. And thank you so much for all the 1000s of downloads of the podcast that are going off across the world, I do pray that you will just find peace and rest. But don't interrupt interesting call these texts. Really interesting. Presence, you know, and I believe God is really, really with you tonight, wherever you are, I fulfill this is really important to us to continue to for all of us to pray, you know, yesterday in church with pray for one of the brothers, his wife of watches online, their family, his brother was in hospital, I believe that he may be out now with heart failure. So can we just please continue to pray for this gentleman that God will touch his heart touch with mine is very lean. And as we gather around the word of God this evening, you know, he put me into thinking and understanding. Sometimes you feel like Jesus is absent. You know, and let's be real. Sometimes we think God, where are you the last few weeks we've been looking through some of the podcasts and from the stuff that we stretched ourselves in. And some of the stuff that we've been looking at is, Lord, are you really quiet? Why are you quiet, but God really isn't quiet, because God is speaking, and has spoken for 1000s of years through his word from the very, very beginning when God said, Let there be, you know, there we have the very beginning of the word of God, as soon as God said, let you know as soon as that that first word as soon as these, his voice was spoken as soon as you heard and, and who heard that spoken word himself, the Father, Son, the Holy Spirit, as soon as God spoke, suddenly, God has been making a noise, what I will say, making a noise, and I shouldn't maybe change the vocabulary, the way I push this this evening, is simply by the power of his speech, we suddenly suddenly we have the word of God from Let There Be right back those 1000s of years ago, suddenly we find that we have the word of God. So when we have been looking on, we may ask ourselves in certain areas of life, Father, it feels like you've gone quiet, Lord, it feels like you've, you've gone quiet on his Father, where are you in our situation? It feels like Lord, You've disappeared, Lord, there seems to be a silence. Lord, we're praying and we can't hear from you, Lord, I believe the issue that we have here, and maybe if we're completely honest, is that we find within the Pentecostal movement, a lot of loud movements, and certain denominations that we find that we are almost chanting, and almost screaming, and almost making so much noise, that when there is a silence, and I'm not referring to His Word, I'm referring to when we when we realize Hang on a moment, this is this is there is a silence, suddenly fear can come in because we we are brought up well, I would say I've been brought up in a very loud, a very noisy, a very pushy, very pressing Pentecostal movement, and that has its greatness, and that has its failings, like every issue. You know, there are great parts to it. And there are parts of that that are a little bit iffy. And that's that's just a general humdrum of life, isn't it? But but when I look at this text, and from the prayers yesterday, from where we was, and what we was looking at the other week, God, are you silent, we come to the full understanding, not just through our thinking, and our looking at the Scripture and our interpretation. But we've also come to the understanding through revelation or knowledge that God is always revealing. So God is always speaking, and how does he speak? Let's just remind ourselves, God speaks through this word. So when God said, Let there be and there was right back in the very beginning of Genesis, when you turn into Genesis, you know, it says, In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, and darkness was hovering over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit, God was hovering over the waters. And then then it says in verse three, and God said, Let there be light as soon as it said, And God said, suddenly, we find ourselves we had the beginning of the spoken word, delivering Word of God, when God suddenly said, And God said, sorry, in verse three, let there be light. And there was suddenly we have over, over all these 1000s of years ago, 1000s of years gone, right, the word right the way back to when God said, when creation and if you believe in creation, and if you are a creationist, and you believe in the word of God, and you believe in the six day creation, and you believe that God said, Let there be, and that is enough for you and the word is solid and enough. So we understand if we go around about 6000 years back, we find that that's when we hear, for the very first time, the world creation, because we know that, that God was on his own when he when you understand what I'm saying, when he's on his own, he's never been on his own because he got the Father, Son, Holy Spirit, but without any human life form without any creation, because we see through creation. So what I'm trying to press out tonight is that, as I said, at the very beginning of this Holy Communion, this this podcast recording, do you ever feel like that Jesus goes quiet? Do you ever feel like there's a silence? Well, from the last few weeks, and we've been looking at God is never quiet, Christ, never quiet. The Holy Spirit is never quiet. But as for me being brought up in a fierce, a frontline Pentecostal movement, coming through that it has always been very loud. It has always been very noisy. And it's almost been in a bit of a rhythm and a bit of a trance moment, sometimes through prayer meetings. It's so loud, you'd come out of a premiere and feel like you've been, you've been battered with a with a with a hammer sometime you think God What was all that about? And actually, we have to question Was God really in that all that noise was he really in, in that absolute chaos, of, of pray, to be really careful when it's made us look, analyzing and looking at prayer, because when you look at prayer in the New Testament, what the Christ gives us the model that Christ gave us for prayer, there wasn't no chant, and there wasn't no rhythm. There wasn't no shouting. There wasn't no hollering, there wasn't no dancing, and doing one end, and stands and backflips across the church and selling holy oil and doing this and doing that, and dancing and loud music and shouting and hollering. Christ just gave us that beautiful model prayer. And he said, Our Father who art in heaven, when you look at that prayer, that devil rebuke in powerful prayer, that we have this beautiful prayer that God has given us that Christ has given us that the Holy Spirit has given us when you look at the Godhead, Father, Son, Holy Spirit, yes, we understand that there is there or not, when I say separation, there is there is definitely different layers to when, when God works, when Christ works when the Holy Spirit work without going into the theological press, when we're looking at that at this moment in time, but as as I said, and bringing us to this text that we're in, we are in the Gospel of John, and we are in John chapter 20. For those that are hopping online at this moment, the reason I brought Genesis into this tonight is there's two reasons. Genesis and creation is a fundamental teaching, and a fundamental point that the church and preachers and teachers we should really be teaching. Because when we understand creation and the formation and the power of the spoken word, we understand how powerful God is. But if if the church and and teachers and preachers lead out, creation, it knocks so much out so so what we have do and I really believe that we are in a time where, where God is leading us to look at to look again, and maybe revisit and God is drawing us clearly into Genesis where we should be looking at the power of creation because creation is doing exactly what God's said it would do through the power of His word at this moment in time. So we have creation and we have eschatology, the rapture of the church and where we sit at this moment in time, in in times I'm looking at across the studio window right across to the other side of the town right over there. And I can see the clouds i see to the sun I see the rain, I've seen the beauty of creation, I see that the light over there and through that window there is a little bit darker. The way the Earth moves away the the sun and the move and the universe and everything goes together. So So creation is extremely empowering, extremely powerful. Sorry. So it's important for me as a believer to understand the power behind that the spoken word because when I understand the spoken word, I actually don't need to go to prayer meetings and shout on Allah and almost command God God, you're gonna do this god, you're gonna, you know, I don't know if you've been in areas where I've where you've had this loud, loud noise. It's so loud and almost, you're getting in this rhythm, this ungodly rhythm of this trance, and you're thinking, God, are you really here? Because this feels absolutely crazy. So the reason I'm bringing all this together is because it runs beautifully, and it runs seamlessly together. We have the Gospel of John Chapter 20, that we're looking at Thomas. And coming back to what I said at the beginning. Do you ever feel that Jesus is quiet? Thomas experienced for quite a number of days, the quietness of Jesus, but he didn't have the spoken word like we have. What he had was a very different scenario and a very different audience and a very different activity in a very different area of life. He had something very different to what. So what we have we have the completion of God's Word, the written format of this holy word God is and as never been quiet. If you go to Genesis and you look where it says, And God said, Let there be obviously before let there be the stillness on what was we will never really understand that is too big for our understanding, and our stretch. But we was talking about prayer a moment ago praying for that Brother, brother in Christ and his wife that's online, and their little family that I see yesterday, you know, praying the power of the of the spoken word, the power of the spoken word over someone's life. And it is very simple prayer is very, very simple. But there has been a pattern and there has been, I wouldn't even say a foundation there has been there was sand has been laid by many denominations, and many cultural churches about how we should pray and this prep book and that prayer book and and all this and almost commanding God to actually move when I speak when actually, God commands and I moved to what he has said, not the other way round. So through lockdown, through prayer, through podcasting, through studies through everything that we're doing here, together. I'm starting to look and start to journey very differently as a believer in Christ Jesus, and God is moving and he is opening up the fabric of His Word. Now we're going to stretch and we're going to go into the Gospel of John, if you have a Bible, you know what I'm going to say many that have stayed with me for quite a long time for this lockdown. And I thank God that you have stayed with me for all these weeks and all these years that we've been studying God's word and as we've all been journeying very, very differently together. I am not frightened to say that sometimes I feel now I feel this in my emotions, I feel this in my skin I feel this in my my been in my physical because my physical is separated from the spiritual me. So there is two me's there is two me's and what I've got to be careful of is that the physical me doesn't drive the faith me that the faith me has to drive the physical me. So I've got I've got to get this right now. How can you say there's two of us? Very simply slightly this Paul writes are wretched man am I why do I do the things that I hate and I can't do the things that I know that I should do? So the spiritual me will always be drawing me to Jesus. And there will be many out there and many out there that will will have a life where, where there's no rubbish come into the front door. There's no dustcart tipping up black sacks of junk outside out. But sometimes don't you feel like just through through the dustcart of life that the Escape is just dropped on a drive and you've got to go all the way through this stuff. And sometimes, have you ever said, Jesus, where are you? Where are you? What is going on Lord, the skip has been emptied on my drive. I got to wade through this concrete of life Lord, the church is telling me that Christian or Christianity is powerful Lord, they're telling me that church life is one the folder bouncing around waving flags, But Lord, I feel like I got skipped being emptied in front of me, Lord, actually, I feel like some days, Lord that the dustcart Lord, the refuge guys have just dropped the rubbish straight on top of me, Lord, it smells bad. It looks bad, it stinks. It's wet. It's sticky. It's horrible, Lord, where are you, Jesus. I'm happy to say to you tonight, that I've said that many times. So I can draw an understanding from this gentleman that we're going to be looking at this this great, this great guy, I will say he's a great man, because he's very, he's very open. And he's very honest. Thomas, you know, he's that that labeled Doubting Thomas, but I would say, honest, he's absolutely honest. And he's talking and He's weird. And he's got this dialogue going on. Let me just grab this quick cup of coffee here. So if we turn to the book of the Gospel of John, chapter 20, Chapter 20 of John chapter 20, verse 24. And if you were to follow that story through, it's a very interesting story has been preached has been taught, talked about, it's been looked at. But I believe tonight, God is going to reveal more to us. I believe God is going to allow the scripture to sit in our hearts for many days. And not that we're going to ponder on it because we don't ponder in, in Christianity, we meditate. We're posh. We meditate, because that's what Joshua said. He said, meditate. You know, this is what God has said, This is what God has said God is speaking to Joshua. Joshua is telling us meditate on the word day or night we don't ponder. We're a bit better than pondering. It's a lifestyle. So let's see what the scripture says. So let's go straight into the Gospel of John Chapter 20, verse 24. Now this is a character that I can draw a real sense of strength from. This is a character that I can literally walk holding his hand and I'm not coming out of a closet. Please don't worry about that. But you understand what I'm saying? And I can walk with this gentleman I can walk with Thomas I can understand. I see. And I get what he is saying very clearly. Because what we have here we have the setting of church, we have the setting of ministry, we have the setting of so much activity going on here. So what we have is a real believer, a real believer in Jesus, but he's been completely honest. He says, Unless I see him with with my eyes unless I can touch them now marks unless I can. Sometimes there comes a point in our lives where we go, you know, what, Jesus, where are you? Where are you, Jesus, and it's not because Jesus has gone quiet. It's because of this, The just shall live by faith. You know, God has spoken, as I said, I've taken us back to Genesis, taken us right back to Genesis, when God said, Let there be we suddenly, we have this, this creation coming into being and not only do we have the creation, we have the Rhema we have the spoken, we have the word of God coming, coming into us and around us and upon us all these 1000s of years ago, when it when the earth was spoken into being 6000 years ago, very, very clearly, you know, the world talks about millions of years of old or have layers and layers of light form. But that is just theory that that is just that is that is what it is. I don't want to get into that tonight. But we can unpack that if you want to unpack that we can look at that very, very clearly. So we we understand that through a six day creation, we understand that God spoke this world into been, we understand that he's put the stars to flight, we understand that he brought everything into being we understand that he's that he's put everything in correct formation through the power of His Word. And the reason I'm saying about His Word, His Word, His Word, His Word. The Word is so critical for me and for you, as a believer, the word is so important. And Thomas said if I do not see Jesus, now, who is Jesus without I'm just checking the time, gotta be careful, because I know it's communion, I don't want to turn it into a full sermon is stretching Bible study expository, looking at the scriptures in too much depth, because this is just the most we lay it out before for Christ, just bringing everything before him. So the spoken word we understand was around about 6000 years ago, because as soon as God said, Let there be suddenly we have the Living Word coming into being, we have the word spoken. And then a few 1000 years after that we around about can't remember the time layers. But then we have Moses starting to pen started to put Genesis into into into formation as in written form. But the actual spoken word was way before the written word in in way we understand it in a way of reading it and understanding it through the Torah was actually penned and put into business. I know they didn't have pens, and you know what I'm saying? But you get what I'm saying. So first, we have the spoken word. So the spoken word was spoken before Adam and Eve came into being. before Moses wrote Genesis, we had the spoken word was spoken out, and the word was spoken over the world was spoken over the surface at a deep, the word the word was spoken over everything and everything came into being, without going into too much depth. So the the word is, is critical. The word is critical, but we are living within the UK and and bless those that are in New Zealand that capture this. May God bless you, the family in New Zealand and all those across the world that capture this through podcast and through all the other readings. So the word has been spoken at the very beginning of creation. But Moses didn't pan out until he got revelation from from the God of Israel so that we understand that for the spark from the spoken word. Until the written word, we have a timeframe and a gap but that's that's irrelevant, because what we understand as soon as God said, Let there be so the word is critical. The word is important, the word changes things. The world what what is the word Jesus says I am the Way the Truth and the Life No one comes to the Father except through me. And it says very clearly in the Gospel of John Chapter One in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. So we understand very clearly that Christ is the living word. Christ is the spoken word. And we see in the Gospel of John Chapter one down further, a little bit further down in the text, when the gospel writer makes it very clear. And he says, And the Word became flesh, very important and the Word became, it wasn't birthed that, you know Christ wasn't birthed. We understand what birth means that the Word became the word was already in existence, the word was already at the very beginning of time, the word was already before the formation of the world. But yeah, because we understand that, that Christ is the image of the invisible God. And Christ came into this this world and he chose through his way and his way of dealing with presenting himself to each and every one of us and the universe, that he chose the dressing room of Mary to come and present himself but also we understand for the Gospel of Matthew, very clear Elie, in the very beginning of Matthew, the genealogy of Christ, you will find three layers, three sets, you will find very clearly where Christ has come through 14 generations. And it's very interesting that the characters, that the seed has come through very, very interested in the seed that it's come through, you will find rehab, we won't mention any more about rehab. But it's very interesting how God used rehab in more ways than we can ever imagine. Or think about. So now we come to the New Testament we have so we understand that Christ is the living word. And we understand at this point, Christ was being revealed to many to many across the layer, and the audience that was around him. And it says in verse 19, that Christ appeared to the disciples. It says, on the first day of the week, when the disciples were to give the together door to a lot for fear of the Jews, Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you. After he said this, he showed himself, his hands, his side, disciples were overjoyed. We have seen the Lord, we have seen the Lord, I know that I said, I was gonna start in verse 24. But I've gone obviously, to verse 19, to bring it a little bit further. And it says, in Verse 21, of John chapter 20, and it says, After this, Jesus said, Peace be with you, as the Father has sent me, there is so much fundamental teaching and foundational doctrine, listening to what Christ says the way he addresses his father, even though he is the father, he even though he is the living word, even though he is the image of the invisible guard. So here we have Christ speaking about his father. But if you want to unpack that later and be a little bit more daring go, well, actually, this is God speaking to God speak into the audience speak this, whatever way you look at this, yes, we understand that their roles and their stretch Christ stretch was on the earth as in the physical formation of God, because the book of Colossians chapter one says, Christ is the image of the invisible gods, no one can see God and live. I love that fact. But we got many false prophets actually living upstairs, we've got more than they actually live on the floor at this moment, crazy things that are happening. So let's pick it up in verse 21, of John chapter 20. It says, again, Jesus said, Peace be with you, as the Father has sent me, I am sending you. And with that he breathed on them and Sid, received the Holy Spirit. So that I'm, I'm struggling to get to the point that I would like to get to, but I've got to say, I've got to sit where we are. What's really important at this moment, because I believe God, God is speaking through this through His Word tonight. It says again, Jesus said in verse 21, peace be with you, as the Father has sent Me. So there is always a sending the sending. So sending is important for ministry, ministry, pastors, leaders, what church we go to what ministry will run, do, and Lord, where are you sending me? What are you, Lord? Who do you want me to listen to? Where is the word coming from? What is the correct teaching? Lord, we understand about the calling of pastors we call it of the elect. This is very, very important for for ministry. This is very important because Christ said, As the Father has sent me, so will I send you saw no part now please, please, please don't don't take this. I've got to be careful our word this pastors and leaders and evangelists. We need to be very careful how we use and present what we say to people in the church, because there are many that will use this I believe God is calling you to ministry. I believe God is calling you to be a prophet. I believe God is calling you to be a healer, I believe. We have to be very careful. When someone speaks a word like that over our life. Why are we hearing that word, rather than hearing from the word so if anyone has been given a word from a human being and let's change that to a pastor, a leader, a spiritual prayer, whoever that may be someone that is a believer, if someone is saying, I believe God is calling you, and God is drawing you to ABC and D ministry, whatever that may be. What's really important is here we have very strong very strong biblical teaching about this is what Christ says as the Father sends me so will I send you so there has to be a sending from from the Father to Christ Christ to us. So the confirmation of Mr. Pastor Mr. Leader I find that through the word of God and we understand as I said, and bro very quickly and very, very machine gun starved and I'm sorry, I'm speaking very quick. That Genesis tells us about the spoken word. So the word is critical. The word brought the universe the word brought everything into being the word brought humanity to the earth. The word is everything. So where do I find the answer that I'm looking for? For my life, in the Word who is the word Christ is? The word Christ is the living word, Christ. It's a spoken word. So if I want answers to my life, where do I go, I go to the Word, and I listen to the word and I pray through the Word. And I sit, and I Be still and know that he's God. So we understand that through this tech, there is a lot here. Now, in verse 22, it says, And with that, he breathed on them. And then he said, received the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone sins, their sins will be forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven. Now. Now. Now, Thomas, this man Thomas steps into the arena, Thomas steps into the dialogue, Thomas rolls up, stretches into into their life, and they've been together. So what what we must pick up very quickly as we come to the table, I'm just looking at canceling the clock, what is the time we're going to lean are going to lean 758 Right? So what I've got to make sure is that I clearly understand that Thomas is a real disciple of the living Word of God, because He is completely open and completely bare before his church family. So first, we see Christ has appeared to many, and he'd steps through the wall. So here we have something else, coming into the arena of this dot off this word, we have Christ completely in his fullness, stepping, as the living Savior of the world's stepping through space, time, and matter and stretching, and coming straight through this, this dimension coming through this wall, the you know, that must have been so, so crazy to see as a human being, to see Christ die on the cross the for him to say, It is finished, to seem taken down off the cross by Joseph taken taken to the term and the stone rolling and suddenly asked them after a few days to see him and to hear about and then suddenly see Christ in the fullness of the Messiah step from from the spiritual dimension as he is in and stepping back into the physical dimension. Now, we understand there are dimensions and there are layers of this world, we are living in the dimension of what we see our dimension is is very clear is our central perception, the perception is by what we perceive, and what we perceive is by what we see and what we hear with our ears. Not you know what I'm saying? Not see with our ears, but what hear where, as I see with our eyes. So I see what's in front of me, you see what's in front of you. So our life and our mechanical motion, and our physical being is always reacting by what I see him but what is here? So there was there was a word going around. We've seen Jesus, we've seen Jesus, what did you mean? Where have you seen Jesus? So that's why I'm bringing us to this position. Have you ever thought to yourself, Jesus, where are you? Where are you, everybody else seems to be seeing you in other churches, or you've popped up over there. Lord, the ones that I normally sit wherever said, I've had a miracle, the father has blessed me. And we were sitting in church and in congregations and we're going, I ain't feeling it today, brother, sister, I ain't rocking on that hodi chair with you today, I'm actually rocking on a chair, that you don't want to rock with me on because today, I am not feeling this at all. So this is where Thomas comes into the arena of my life, and maybe your life. And for those that are bold enough to say, gee, you know, what, how many times have we heard the others around, have seen, have seen have seen? But I haven't. Now, this is the boldness, this is the boldness of of Thomas, verse 24. We're coming. We're coming to the table in in a few moments. So I just want to encourage anyone tonight that has the boldness to say, Jesus, where are you? Because that that word is is spending a lot of time on my lips through through COVID is not because I lacked faith. Now this is clear, it's not because I lacked faith is because there is a battle between the spiritual me and the cat in the flesh me. It's the same with with Adam. It's the same with Eve in the garden. They heard God's voice. God gave them strict instruction. But what instruction Did they follow over the voice? Isn't it interesting? We got many in the layers of church within the context of church within the settings of saying, you've got to stand on God's word. You've got to believe it. Yes, I understand what you're saying that I've got to but so often I listen to another voice. And I'll make a bad decision just like Eve because I've listened to the lesser voice rather than I've let listen To the voice, I know what the Bible says, My sheep will recognize my voice, Adam, and Eve recognized his voice, the God of Israel, we recognize his voice. And what happens is I become obedient to a different voice, because I'm not strong enough like Christ when he was in the wilderness. And he said, It is written. But because I am a human being, I make mistakes, I make correct choices, I make wrong choices. I make not bad decisions, I make terrible decisions, because I am human. And I was birthed into this earth, and God has saved me. So what I find is that there can be a Thomas living in May, or that's gonna make people flip a little bit tonight when I say living in Me, not Thomas himself, but his understanding of where he was. Because firstly, let me clear this up for the theologians that will bang me and hit me with texts. Greater is He that is in me, then he that is in the world, I understand that. I get that he is living in me. Jesus is in this skin that I walk in. But there's my mind. Yes, I hear people saying, you should have the mind of Christ, I do have the mind of Christ. But also I have thoughts. Yes, but you should have the thoughts of Christ. Yes, but I have my thoughts because I have been made into a human being. And then when Christ saved me, I suddenly change into someone completely different to who I was, the old is gone, the new has come. But there is a battlefield of the thoughts of the cognitive processing of the natural layer of living as a as a believer and as a human being, whether male or female. So we are in a position at this moment in time where our faith is being elongated, being stretched. Do you feel like you're an elastic band, you've been stretched so far, and you feel that you're going to snap, you're tired, you're really tired, you're weary, you're sleeping, but you're not getting enough in sleep. I will just say this. Keep in the Word of God. Keep in the Scripture, put it on an app on your phone. Listen to the word while you're driving while you're in the in the house, put it on, on on your air pods, put it go to bed listening to the Word of God, the Word of God is power. The Bible says put the word on the on the tablet of your heart. I spent years and years and I still do have listening. I am dyslexic. I struggle with reading. My reading is atrocious. My pronounciation is terrible. I struggle reading you may have picked up when I'm preaching and teaching or whatever I'm doing from pulpit. Sometimes I miss words out because I cannot get that word. People may have noticed it. People may have not noticed that, that I'm not worried about that. But I'm just letting you know that I am so dyslexic, he would never understand but through Revelation, and through listening, God puts his word into us and God for the power of the Holy Spirit stirs us and out of your belly shall flow rivers of living water so so educational stretch, academia, has no full bearing on the Word of God. Information has no full bearing on the Word of God. It doesn't matter where we're birthed. It's a matter where we're born, it doesn't matter what and how, what our IQ may be, because that is irrelevant. When it comes to spiritual ways with Christ. I put it in spiritual because that's what it is. It is living as a as a new creation in Christ. So there is a battlefield for many of us and many of us will be bold enough to admit that the battle the battle is not with the enemy. It is with oneself, the Battle of the thoughts, the Battle of the struggle of life, when when the dustcart just tips up life all over you and you can just smell it and you're trying to wade your way through it. Yes, I know that the Bible says the just shall live by faith. So let's come to this Scripture. Let's just bring ourselves to this position. A moment let's put these glasses on now. If grab yourself a Bible, the Bible is critical. The Word of God I will say is critical for anyone that is a believer, the word of God people and we say well I don't quite get it. We will never get it but we will have it revealed. So all I've got to do is get it when I mean get it not get it as in get knowledge of it, but literally just get it in get it into this vessel. Get it into Jarrah clay, get it in, you know, God will reveal it, but I've got to get it in, I can listen to it Frou Frou to the power technology, I can listen to it fruit for the phone, I can read it, I can put it on. Through Alexa, I can listen to the Word of God. So there is no excuse for any of us, for anyone to say, well, I struggle in education, I struggle with reading. Because you know, the great way to get the word is actually to hear it. faith comes from hearing. And the message is heard through the word of God. So when it is coming through the system for the speaker system, and I'm going about for the car for the walking through the running for whatever you may be doing in the gym, or just being at home, it's coming through the sound system at home is coming through the Speak wherever when it's been played when it when God's spoken word has been spoken out. That is power. So my my body and my inner my enemy of is absorbing is absorbing the Word of God. So I've got to get it playing in every room, I got to get playing in the car, I got stopped listening to Harry Styles, I got to stop listening to take that and all that I'll razzmatazz, we got to start listening to the Word ago we got to start listening to the Word of God. I just admitted I listened to one direction Lord give me strength in the name of Jesus. That's another story. Right okay. Now coming back to the Word of God, the word is critical is absolutely critical for me as a believer. So Genesis again, very clear, and God said let there be so the word bro everything into into creation. The word bro everything the word has been prophesied the you know, the Old Testament has come up to the cross. Everything from when God said let there be there was redemption from that point on. So from the failing in the garden right up to the crust of the New Testament. Very, very clear, very clear. The old order prophecies have come up, come up to the point, like an arrow come to the cross. The old was fulfilled. All the prophecies, all the revelations, everything all the history was coming like an arrow went straight to the cross of Calvary. And it could not do anything. It was hanging in suspense, because Christ is the living word. So the word was on the cross. So the Old Testament was on the cross, the new word was on the cross revelational knowledge was on the cross, you know everything the word was on the cross, then suddenly when the word said it is finished, the old was completed at that point, straight away as Christ said, It is finished as soon as as soon as finished began when it when it was finished when the New Testament began, because the Scripture says, the temple curtain was torn in two, and access became available to the God of Israel, only through Jesus Christ. So there's the safeguard. God can only be accessed through Jesus because Jesus says, I am the Way the Truth and the Life no one, no one in any other religion. No one in any part of the world can get to the God of Israel. On their own strength, you've got to come from me, that I'm the keeper of gay, you if you want God, God is accessible. But you got to come for a mean that that that is there is so much there is so so so much in that. But let's just come to this table, let's just let's just just bring this to some form of a polls and a comma, just for a few hours. So this is about Thomas Thomas is saying to the to the to the audience around him unless I see, I will not believe. Now Thomas also known as didn't miss one of the 12. So he is and was one of the 12 one of the chosen was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So when the other disciples told him, We have seen the Lord. But he said to them, Unless I see the now marks and put my hand on my finger, whether now's wah and put my hand in his side or on his side, I will not believe very honest and very open. Sometimes we may sang with our lips and our mind without even moving our lips. Jesus, where are you? Lord? Are you real? Because Lord, I'm going through the trials and tribulations of life. Lord, I'm stretched beyond my physical understanding. My mind is buckling. I've got brain fog. Lord, I'm awash with so much stuff in a world. I feel trapped in the culture I'm in. I'm trapped in the house I'm in I'm trapped in the bedroom. I'm trapped in the kitchen. I'm trapped in a van. I'm trapped in a job. I'm trapped in this culture, I'm trapped in this westernized, dirty way of living. I feel like I'd got a truckload of rubbish tips for me, Lord, help me, where are you? And Thomas was bold enough to say, Look, you sit him. You've danced around. You've had that. But I need him for myself. Do we have the boldness to say to pastors and leaders and deacons and brothers and sisters in congregations, I'm tired of hearing of your experience. I need him for myself. I need to let you know that I need Jesus. Now, the next part of all this stuff that we're looking at God is your rock. Christ is your Redeemer. God is your salvation. God is with you. And it is okay to sometimes to feel dry. Like the riverbed, it's okay to sometimes I go God by faith, as dropped out of these trainers, Lord, my mind cannot even think about you at this moment. I've got summer holidays breaking out, the kids are running up the wall, everything's going wild in the house. Work is just chaotic. I can't even think right? Help me. He's a rescuer. God rescues when we're tired and exhausted. The Bible says we get this, we understand this Don't wait. The just shall live by faith. I find that really difficult to live by faith, I'll probably get shot down with a few emails and texts. But it can be difficult to live by faith. In a world that is very, I'm going to say humanistic, but actually, it's more occultic. The humanist drum is being beaten. And within humanist, there is no hope. So there is no spiritual experience whatsoever. But even if you're an atheist, why would I be an atheist, I can only be an eighth an atheist. If I'm coming against God, there is so so much I don't want to go off off track. But here we have. So we are living what I'm trying to say. As we come to the table, we are living in a spiritual world. Humanists will tell you, you're dead, you're gone. Nothing. Bye, see you later. To be an atheist, you gotta have some serious faith to be an atheist to believe in nothing, that's for sure. But the just shall live by faith. The jest shall believe in the written and the Rhema, and the spoken, and the Word of God. So it says A week later, when the disciples were in the house, again, Thomas was with them. So what I get from this tech very simply very quickly, Thomas didn't stop going to church, I'll use the word church. Thomas didn't stop gathering with the brothers and sisters that kept going on we've seen we've seen, we've seen we've seen. It's coming a time, when Christ will really reveal Himself to you and to me. And he's always revealing Himself to you and to me, through the living Word of God. So he's always been revealed. But there comes layers in our lives, that becomes platforms where, where we feel that the presence of God just stronger than other times, there's a moment where we read the Word, and it becomes like, lectric, it becomes like rivers, it becomes alive. And it's like, you see this word coming in and capturing you and grabbing you. And there comes a time of a of a Thomas moment. God, this word, it feels irrelevant. Lord, I feel empty. What is it? It's just the circle of the life that we live. So it says A week later, sir. So Christ kept himself back from Thomas A week later. and Thomas was with them for the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you. There's a lot to get through this text where it says, And Jesus came and stood among them. Because the only way that he could, he did and he could have stood among them. The doors were locked and Windows was shot for the fear of the Jewish leaders and the law outside. There's the only way that Christ could do that. And and without going into that, because we do not have the time is that when we read that and Christ stood among them, there is a lot that there is science in that there is mathematics in that there is physics in that there is spiritual understanding and spiritual laws in that, that Christ they find In everything of this natural world, because he is above the natural world, and he came, and he present, he can walk for walls. There is so much in that text, the simple stretch of that read and he stood amongst them. There is such theological, there is so much science, there is so much power and biblical truth in that text alone. Then he said to Thomas, Put your finger here, reach out your hand on your side, put it here, Stop doubting and believe. And Thomas said to him, My Lord and my God. And Jesus told him because you have seen me, you have believed this is beautiful, this is for us. Because you have seen me you have believed, and those who have not seen, and yet believe, that's us. Blessed are those who have not seen, and yet believe the just shall live by faith. We have a hard task, to believe by faith, but for the power of the Holy Spirit, for the power of the written word, through the power of the living word for the power of the Word of God. God knows when we're tired and weary. So let's break bread together at this moment. You know, we've been in this for 4046 minutes, 23 seconds. And let's break bread. Father, we thank you that your body was broken for each and every one of us. And as we break bread tonight as we take this cup, Father, we thank You that we don't need to shout, to dance to holler to make any noise. So Lord in the simple stretch of this process, I believe that this bread symbolizes the body of Christ. And I thank you Lord, as I come to the foot of the cross, as I come to the cross, because at the cross, everything is at the Cross Lord, I'm sorry Oh Lord, when I get dry I'm sorry law when I get angry, I'm sorry, law when I get unforgiving. I'm so low when I get tempted, I'm sorry, low when I found you. I'm sorry, Lord, when I'm unforgiving. I'm sorry, Lord. But tonight, Lord, Lord, I want to learn to humble myself more, to lay out prostrate on the floor to lay before you the holiness of God and say, Father, forgive me for I've sinned and fallen short of your glory. But I thank you for the power of redemption. And I am redeemed, saved, washed in the blood of Jesus. So tonight, Lord, I thank you for this bread, that symbolizes the body of Christ in Jesus name, amen. The body of Christ was broken for us, the body of Christ. He is the word the living word, the body, the body of Christ. I pray that wherever you are tonight we understand clearly, I really, I really just I'm asking God, Please, Lord, will You reveal this to everybody on the line tonight and all those that will capture this through podcast the other side of the world, and all those that might be struggling tonight. Lord, Father, please. I thank you that Your word is revealed. And let your word be revealed to everybody online tonight. Let your word father be revealed through revelation or knowledge. Let your word be revealed through the reading through the listening Father, Lord, let the word of God be be ringing out through homes tonight. So Father, as I come to you tonight as a son, I have many failings but through being saved by grace, through the power of redemption through the power have been redeemed through the power of confessing and saying Jesus, Jesus, I have sinned and fallen short of your glory. But as I take this cup tonight I present my life my lifestyle choices my my yeses, and my amens. I present them to the cross tonight I lead them at your footstool. And Lord helped me to walk away from the baggage helped me to law law to lead the layers of trouble. Help me Lord to leave everything at the cross. So Lord washed me in the Crimson Tide that was shared at the cross of Calvary. The Lord I thank you for there is power in the name of Jesus. But Lord, I thank you for the blood, the blood of Christ that was shared for us, cleanse us from the crown of our head, right the way through my inked body right the way through my failings right the way through to the very soul of my feet, wash me and cleanse me in the blood of the Lamb. So tonight, Lord, I thank You that I am redeemed. I'm saved cleanse by the blood of Jesus In your precious name, amen. washed in the blood, there is nothing finer, there is nothing, you know. However, we are educated however our thinking is however our learning is however, our knowledge is there is no way to really to capture to bring to a to an understanding of the power of salvation. No dictionary no thesaurus, no great thinker, no, no great learner, no great scholar can really Fathom and grab the power of salvation. It is beyond the human stretch. So you are redeemed aren't iron redeemed, we just broke bread together, we just take another cup together. So wherever you are, across this beautiful earth, this beautiful creation, that God said, Let there be 6000 years ago, there abouts said let there be and there was. And then when Moses came into the arena, and he started to write Genesis, that gap that we have from the spoken to the written word, and all that stuff. So what what do I want to take from tonight, this is what I want to take from, from what God is saying through his word. I want to be more in the word. Because when I'm in the word, I'm in Jesus, when I'm in Jesus, I'm in the Father, when I'm in the Father, I'm in the will. When I'm in the will of the Father, I'm in that perfect I'm in the Garden of Gethsemane, the will of the Father is a very powerful place to recognize the will of the Father can be a guest 70 a garden of guests 70 experience of sweat of agonizing prayer. If fear is possible, take the next stage. But not my will, thy will be done. So finding the world for any believer is not going to a pastor and texting and talking and emailing and chat around the dinner table finding the will of the purpose of living, because that's what we all are here for is living for Christ is firstly, Lord, where do you want me to be? Am I in the right house? Am I in the right marriage? Am I in a right relationship? Am I in the right house? Am I know right? There? There are so many things to look at. Because the flesh makes decisions on the drop of a coin. The flesh is making decisions all the time. Am I in the right workplace? Am I in the right postcode? Am I in the right University? Am I in the right job? Am I in this career? Because you called me am I in ministry? Where Where? Where the will of the Father, the will of the Father? And you know what? What can be a very powerful and almost breaking point for so many of us to suddenly realize what the will of the Father is for me is not that I've been living out of the will of him living outside of what he will I have to have to that degree is trying to bring a compromise. Anyway, let's get out of here. Let's Let's Let's go Come on. So wherever you are across this earth thank you so much for joining us tonight. You've been joining me Reverend Ben Cooper here at Elim church and we are 53 minutes in 40 seconds into this podcast you can find us on Buzzsprout Spotify you can find us on Alexa I Heart Radio you can find us on so many other platforms across the podcasting world. And Amazon music just type in Reverend Ben Cooper has podcast you will find that very simple. The reason that we titled it like that, because if we put Elam up there, there are 1000s of aliens amongst all that so by name, you will find a CZ by name so typing the name my name you will find that very very clearly. And I pray that whether you're a podcaster whether you're watching this visually, whether you capture this on the socials wherever you are, I just thank God for your life. I just thank God for you. I thank God that God is drawing you I think God is speaking to you. I think God is has saved you. I thank God that His word is in you. I think God is around you and God is drawing you never give up hope there is always hope because when there is hope, we suddenly realize that God is hope and there is always hope. God is always so wherever you are tonight. We'll see you Wednesday evening. We'll catch you on Wednesday. Take care have a beautiful rest of the evening wherever you are tonight. And I can't even see the clock. I don't even know what the time is. I know what we've pressed in to almost the hour. So it must be ramping up to 830 or there abouts. 825 just guess Off the top of my head. So thank you for sharing all this stuff out. Please share it across your socials. Please seek God's word but above all that. Get the word of God through the speakers in your home, your car, your air pods, through your apps, through your laptop through your gadgets at work. Get let's get the word of God. Let's be brothers and sisters, that are brothers and sisters of the Living Word. The Word of God is power. And it is sharper than a double edged sword. Good night God bless. We will see you soon. Have a great evening and a wonderful neighbor Jesus.
Close:Thank you for listening to Elim church Swanleys latest podcast. You can find us on buzzsprout, Spotify, Apple Music, I Heart Radio, Google Play, Alexa, Mixcloud, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.