Dynamics of Assignment

Chapters

• 0:08 Setting The Stage In Acts 10
• 1:40 Cornelius’ Character And Posture
• 2:45 Angelic Visitation And Instruction
• 4:00 Holy Spirit Versus Angel: Different Means
• 5:05 Responding To God’s Encounters
• 6:02 The Supernatural Crossing Into The Natural
• 8:30 Hunger For God And Saying Yes
• 10:00 Why God Sends People
• 11:22 Filled With The Holy Spirit
• 12:08 The Dynamics Of Assignment
• 14:55 The Harvest Is Plentiful
• 16:06 Obedience, Hospitality, And Message
• 17:34 Receive, Believe, Obey, Follow Jesus
• 18:00 Closing And Invitation

Transcript

SPEAKER_01: 0:08

Ministering out of Acts chapter 10, and it's the story of Cornelius and about angels. I'm going to be talking to you about the dynamics of assignment. In Acts chapter 2, the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the Jews. And this particular chapter here, God is setting the stage. And you know, when God wants to bring us into something, he sets the stage, doesn't he? When God wants to lead us in a certain direction, when we arrive, we can look at that and we can look back and we can see where certain events occurred and they led up and to bring us to where we ought to be. We know that Cornelius, according to verse 2, this tells us something about his character. These are the kind of people that God uses. This is how we position ourselves that we can expect God to come and move for us. We know that he was devout. That means he was godly. We know that he feared God. In other words, he respected God. He recognized that God was all supreme. And he was a man of position. He was a man who had authority, and he realized that God gave him that position. And may I say today that everything that we have in God, who we are, where we are, that is God's provision for us. And that he gave alms or gave money to those in need. And when it says he gave money, he wasn't just talking about a few coins. He was known as a generous giver. When you choose to be a blessing, you will be blessed beyond measure. And I have found that giving really says a lot about us and how open we are for the things of God. We know that he was a man of prayer. Prayer is recognizing God, worshiping God. But prayer is also asking God. We go into verse 3 of Acts chapter 10. Events now that are unexpected, supernatural, this actually happened to a human being. It says about the ninth hour of the day, this is about three o'clock in the afternoon, he saw in a vision an angel of God who had come in and began to talk to him. When I look at this and I'm thinking, okay, it's a vision. He sees something. There's certain things that really catch my attention. First of all, he walked into the room. I don't know if he used the door. Cornelius was praying. He was waiting before God. This angel begins to interact with Cornelius. I think it's something that angels will visit mankind. The angel's going to give instruction. He's going to send them down to Joppa because they've got to get Simon Peter, the disciple, and bring him back to Caesarea. When God visits Simon up on the rooftop, Peter, when he visits him, there's no angel involved. It's all through the Holy Spirit. And I'm going to give you my understanding on this matter. Cornelius and his group of believers that gathered knew nothing about the Holy Spirit. They knew nothing about the Spirit of God being poured out and man being filled with the Holy Spirit. When God came to Peter, he began to minister unto him through the ways of the Spirit. But here he's using an angel. And angels appear throughout Scripture. And this angel that came and spoke to Cornelius, he had a message. He had an assignment that Cornelius had to follow up. Now, whether you get visited by an angel or you're in prayer and God speaks to your mind, or if by the Holy Spirit you feel inspired and God gives you clear directions, one thing is clear. When God visits us, may I suggest that you respond to Him. May you respond to Him. Lots of times people say, I felt God and I was afraid. Sometimes they'll feel God and they'll say, It's something strange. I don't understand it. But when you spend time with the Lord, you're going to know when something is of God or not. This man and Caesarea named Cornelius, he began to have an interaction with the angel. And throughout scripture, every time an angel comes, there's an interaction. That's how God moved. Every time that the Holy Spirit moves upon us, there is an interaction. Something is taking place. The Holy Spirit wants to do something for us. He wants to do something through us. And our response is absolutely critical. I was thinking about Mary at the tomb. We read about in John 20. And when they arrived there, the body of Jesus was not in the tomb, but there were two angels there, and interaction began to take place. I believe when that angel came in, that was phenomenal. That could take place because there was going to be an engagement. There was going to be an encounter. In John 151, it talks about the heavens and open. Angels, when they come to us, they travel from another dimension. They're in the heavenlies. They're not in the dimension that we are now in this earth. There is a dimension in the realm of the spirit that is real, maybe more real than we are in here today. And this angel was able to come from the supernatural to the natural. Here's what I'd like you to think about. If an angel can travel from the supernatural realm into this realm in which we are, why is it sounding so impossible that a God that is in the heavenlies, a God that moves in the realm of the spirit, and you're thinking, how can that have any effect upon us in the natural state? The same way that an angel can travel. God makes it possible to make power and authority move out of that realm, and it's called in the realm of the spirit, and it comes in and it engages us as human beings. And when God engages us, there is events unfolding. There is encounters with God that's taking place. The devil wants you to doubt and go without. And the Bible is filled with events where the invisible engages the visible. I believe that it's within the heart of every human being to know God. I believe that man needs to have encounters with God. And we can have encounters with God. And it's like when the angel came to Cornelius and spoke to Cornelius, Cornelius had to listen. He had to be willing to entertain this angel. He had to be willing to think this is a real event that's happening for me. The same way when we encounter the Lord. When we've encountered God for the first time in our lives, and we are aware of it, most times it's when God comes and he convicts us of our relationship with him. When he talks to us about our fallen nature, anytime that you feel that you need the Lord, you know what to do? Just like Cornelius, you need to listen and you need to respond positively. And the way we respond positively is that we say yes to Jesus. God has ordained for us to carry truth. We would know it as the gospel. In John 8, 32, Jesus said, You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free. And the angel said, You need to carry this message. Now, don't you think it's interesting? Why didn't God just simply go to Peter in the first place and just tell him and send him up to Cornelius' house and knock on the door? And Cornelius would have opened the door and said, Yes, can I help you? It could have been that way. But I find what really works is when they're expecting you. Cornelius had an encounter. And the angel spoke to him and said, You send men down to Joppa. God still sends preachers. He still sends his people. He still sends believers to go and reach people. That's why when we pray, God will speak to us about certain things. And we should just follow up on that. God works through people. We are empowered by God. Bear in mind, Cornelius is not yet filled with the Holy Spirit. How important it is to be filled with the Holy Spirit. When I received the Holy Spirit, a full other realm and dimension opened up to me. Everywhere I looked, God was just flooding me and speaking to me and showing me things. That really helps your faith when you've heard from God. When you've been praying and you've heard from God, that really helps your faith. You're thinking, I'm on a God assignment. And when Cornelius sent those men, they were on a God assignment. Now, I want to talk to you about the dynamics of assignment. I have an assignment. Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. That almost seems like an impossible task to do. Let me talk to you about the dynamics of assignment. When God sends us on assignment, number one, it is critical that they receive what you've got for them. That they're willing to listen. Number one, they have to receive. We have a choice. As human beings, we can say yes, I receive, or we can say, no, I reject. It is critical. The one to whom I was sent must receive me. Secondly, they're going to have to receive Jesus. I'm talking to you now about spiritual assignments. And when they receive Jesus, they recognize that Jesus is Lord. They recognize that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. That is critical. That is the second dynamic when we're going to help somebody spiritually that they have to understand. Whoever receives Jesus receives the Father and all the blessings of heaven. It is so critical when we are on a spiritual assignment that these things fall into place. And when they fall into place, we have success. And I believe that if we pray before we go, if we pray as we go, and if we allow ourselves to be used by the Holy Ghost, in other words, we follow the leading of the Spirit, I believe that they will receive us. I believe that they will receive Jesus. And I believe that when they do that, they're opening themselves up to everything that God has to offer. That to me is just so absolutely critical. I don't know exactly all the reasons that God chose Cornelius. I don't know that. I'm not privileged side information, but I do know this, that Cornelius was the type of guy that God could work through. And may you be the type of man or woman that God can work through. We live in a very critical time. And Jesus said to us in Luke chapter 10, verse 2, here's what he said. The harvest is plentiful. The laborers are few. Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. According to Jesus Christ, he says that the harvest is plenteous. Is it going to be easy going? Jesus said, Go. Behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of the wolves. But you're on assignment. And when Cornelius was talking and engaging this angel, the critical part that was being carried out, that there is an assignment given to him. We have an assignment that's been given to us today. And that God makes no mistakes. When he calls you, he has not made a mistake. So we find that Cornelius is going to do what he's told to do. He gets his people ready to go. He sends his top servants. He sends his top military man. And they're all going to Joppa and they're going to look for Peter. This is in Acts chapter 10, verse 6. The angel says, Peter, he's staying with a tanner. The fact that Peter would obey God, go to Joppah, and that he would live and visit and stay and accept the hospitality of a tanner, and he's sitting there and he's a guest, but he's a guest that's been positioned. But Simon the tanner gave hospitality. There's a lot of people that don't see the importance of giving hospitality and how important that is. What a wonderful ministry that is. Why? Because Jesus said, You did it onto one of the least of these, you've done it is onto me. When the messenger comes, in this case it was the angel coming to Cornelius. When the messenger comes to you, you're going to have to receive the message. Just like today, you have to believe that I'm of God. If you believe that I'm of God, you're going to believe my message. And if you're going to believe my message, you're going to accept Jesus because you know the importance of that. This is just the dynamics of assignment. And this is an assignment that we have today. And my recommendation is that you listen and that you obey and that you walk in the ways of the Lord, that you take Jesus and make him Savior of your life.

SPEAKER_00: 17:47

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