Transcription
Hallelujah! This morning, we'll share. We round up our three-point upper teaching on the importance of partnering with God's choice. The importance of partnering with God's choice.
There are three things about divine purpose. One, God has a purpose for your life here on earth. You didn't come here to look for purpose; it was the existence of purpose in the spirit that brought you here at this time, at this time in this generation.
Number two, your divine purpose has timelines and phases. Your divine purpose has timelines, and it has phasing. The things that God has ordained will happen at a particular time, a particular season of your life.
And number three, you can help or hinder God's purpose for your life. You can help God's purpose for your life, and also, with one's own hands, one can also hinder God's purpose for his or her life. And one very critical factor that can hinder or help God's purpose for your life is your choice of relationships, your choice of partners, your choice of close friends, and even more critically, your choice of a lifetime partner.
As a believer in fulfilling divine purpose, you will need to discover God's purpose for your life and then you need to pursue it, pursue the fulfillment. There are certain things you will need to ask yourself in the call, in the process of time, for instance, surrounding this issue of a marriage partner.
In Genesis chapter 2, verse 18, God said it was not good that the man should be alone, so He decided, the Trinity decided, to provide a help meet, a wife for Adam. As you proceed in life, you will need to ask certain questions when the time comes. Why does God want me to marry this particular man? Why does God want me to marry this particular woman?
And there are times where you will hear clearly from the Spirit of God that is not your husband, that is not your wife. It doesn't always imply that the person is evil. It doesn't always imply that there's anything wrong with that person, but God is just saying that in His arrangement for your life, this is not the man I chose for you. This is not the woman I ordained to be your husband, to be your wife. So you need to ask that question: Why does God not want me to marry this particular man? Why does God not want me to marry this particular woman?
Every one of us here, we, we are operating, or we operated, for those who who are already married, operated under this instruction on a general context because God says, "Do not be unequally yoked together with an unbeliever." Do not be unequally yoked.
Then, even in the realm of strategic relationships and your cycle of influence, in Esther chapter 4, verse 14, Esther 4, verse 14, you could see that it's, it's critical. It connects with your divine purpose, your strategic relationship, your cycle of influence. At any point in time, it connects with your divine purpose. And Mordecai, the mentor, guardian, and father, not biological to Esther, had to bring this to our attention. He had to point into her that she should discern that God Almighty had put her in that strategic relationship of a marriage to that king for certain reasons. And one of those reasons was played out at that point in time. And he was prompting and challenging her to rise up to the occasion. This is why God positioned you in this strategic relationship. You can't afford to keep your peace.
So, you sometimes, for those who are already married, you need to ask the question: Why has God connected me in marriage with this particular person? Why has God connected me in marriage with this particular person?
The perfect will of God involves many things, including the choice of people. Every one of us, we have a responsibility to find out at every point in time God's perfect will for your life and walk in that light. The perfect will of God involves the choice of specific people for different roles, different assignments, different roles, different assignments.
The perfect will of God is about what God wants. It's about what God desires. It's about what God prefers, and those things that are pleasing to Him. Then, in the realm of choice of people, it is about specific people that God personally prefers for His specific purpose. It is about those He has personally chosen or divinely appointed for specific things. God is the one that has personally chosen them. He is the one that has divinely appointed them.
First Samuel chapter 16, verses 1 to 13, we'll see clearly how God chose one of the sons of Jesse to become king of Israel. God's preferred choice, God's specific choice for different assignments, are part of His perfect will. God's preferred choice for an office, for a position, or for a specific purpose, a part of His perfect will. The perfect will of God is about God's choice of specific people for different areas of your life, different areas of your life. For instance, your spiritual life, God will provide you with a spiritual cover. He will provide you with a father in the faith, a father in the Lord. Also in ministry, Jesus had 12 disciples and apostles. He also had the 70. Then in your marital life, God will have a specific person in mind. In your career, in business, God from time to time will have certain people He will want you to partner with. And over the scriptures and over time to date, we see how God deliberately chose certain people to become...
One of the things going to happen this morning is that the Lord Almighty is going to anoint you to become. You shall be anointed to become something greater than what you are right now. If that man has already arrived, let heaven hear your amen! [Applause] If that sister or woman is in this service, let heaven hear your amen! If you are really ready for this anointing, let the Lord hear your amen! [Applause] You shall be anointed to become what God has said you will be, in the name of Jesus.
God chose Abraham to be part of the nation of Israel. He chose him, and he became. God chose Moses as a deliverer for His people, for His nation. God chose Samson as a deliverer for the nation of Israel, and they both became what God said they would be. In fact, it was quite interesting because in the case of Samson, God spoke through an angel, even before he was conceived, even before he was conceived. God spoke to an angel that appeared to his mother and then appeared to his father, revealing that God Almighty was going to give them a son who, in the process of time, was going to grow and emerge as a deliverer for the nation of Israel. And to the glory of God, what God said through that angel subsequently came to pass.
At this time of your life, at this phase of your life, at this season of your life, there is something more that God has ordained you to become. And by the grace of God, the Lord will release an unusual anointing this morning. And by the reason of that anointing, things will just begin to work out, and you shall emerge in that new order, in the name of Jesus.
God ordained and chose a man called Cyrus to be king of his gentile nation. Long before the current president of America became president, there were prophecies. Some moved at 30 years ago that he was going to become president of America. In the case of Cyrus, the prophetic word was so, went ahead of him, was so strong that even the name was mentioned over 150 years before this man was conceived. I had a prophet standing in the prophetic grace of God declared that a man called Cyrus, Caleb. And when the time came, without his parents knowing that their newborn son, then that newborn baby boy that had just been given to them, was going, was ordained by God to become a future king, the Spirit of God influenced the parents to name him Cyrus, without them knowing that they were fulfilling prophecy, without them knowing that they were fulfilling prophecy.
When it was time for that prophecy to come to pass, God did not just look for any man called Cyrus and use him to fulfill the prophecy. No, it was already programmed and predetermined before the time. I joyfully announce to someone here this morning that something that had been predetermined even before you were born is about to unfold in your life. Isaiah 61, He said, "For your shame, I will give you a double portion, double honor." The season of shame ends in the life of someone here. The season of endless disappointment ends in the life of someone here. The season of barrenness finally ends in the life of someone, and a new season of fruit, a new season unfolds. A new season unfolds. A new season of fruit. Watch it, watch it.
God ordained and chose Cyrus to be king of his nation, to be president of his nation, and by divine influence, he emerged. By divine influence, they were emerged. You will emerge. You will show up in God's new order. God chose David, He chose Solomon, He chose Jehu to be kings of Israel, and they became kings of Israel. They actually became kings of Israel. He chose Samuel, He chose Jeremiah, He chose Elijah, and John the Baptist to be prophets, and they actually emerged as national prophets. There were many other prophets, but for these four I just mentioned, it was clear from the beginning. When we have evidence in scriptures where God spoke ahead of time. Elisha was doing something else completely, and then God spoke in First Kings chapter 19 to his prophet Elijah that when you come down from the mountain, anoint Hazael to be king of Syria, and anoint Jehu to be king of Israel, and then anoint Elisha to be prophet in your place. And it came to pass. It came to pass. Same for Samuel, same for Jeremiah. Jeremiah chapter 1, God made it clear that even before he was born, he was already ordained to be a prophet, carrying God's word to the nations, to the nations, to the nations.
You are not an ordinary person. There is more about your life than what you are right now. There is a greater value upon your life, and a new dimension of that greater value will unfold from now.
God also chose Apostle Paul. He chose Paul to become an apostle to the Gentiles. That we just read in Acts chapter, Acts chapter 9. The same man that was on the other side, the Lord brought him, He saved him, and then the Lord said, "He is my chosen vessel."
God also chose Deborah. What He can do with a man, God can do with a woman. What He can do with an adult, God can do with a child. What He can do with an elder, God can do with a young man or a young woman. So God's choices were not limited to men. He is the same God. Somebody said, "The same God." One more time, "The same God." Was the same God who chose Deborah as a prophetess, and not just as a prophetess, also as a judge over the nation of Israel, and she became what God said she will be. In Judges chapter 1, verses 1 to 2, there was about to be a battle, and then God said that the tribe of Judah, God mentioned the name of a particular tribe out of the 12 tribes. God said that the tribe of Judah was His chosen instrument for securing victory for Israel in that particular battle.
Listen to this. It has nothing to do. You see, these are the dynamics of God's, behind God's choices and God's decisions. At the end of the day, it's not really about the person. It's not really about the person. It has more to do with the hand of God and the verdict of God concerning that person. He said, "It is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of the Lord that showeth mercy." And He says, "I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy." Otherwise, there is no way under normal circumstances that a child like Solomon will become king. Under normal circumstances, that Solomon will be the one to succeed David. But God sits in heaven and does whatever pleases Him. So for that particular battle, God said Judah will be the tribe He will use to secure victory for Israel. Thank God that they obeyed, and God did the needful. They were the specific instruments chosen by God to be used by Him to secure victory in that particular battle at that point in time.
Now, something very interesting that you, we, we need to emphasize here. God has the power to foresee every event of the future. It has the power. It has the power. That is why, for instance, the destiny and the future accomplishments of an unborn baby, unborn baby, can be foreseen, can be foreseen even before the child is born. How do you explain that? Something, for instance, details of what will happen in his lifetime. John the Baptist, details of what he will become and what he will do in his lifetime, we are revealed before they were born, before they were conceived. So God has the power to foresee every event of the future.
Secondly, the future actions of people can be foreseen by God. This point is too critical. The future actions of people can be foreseen by God. Sometimes you will need to put the past behind. Don't let the pains of the past poison the glory of your future. There are times where God, irrespective of what happened in the past, may tell you, "Forgive and let go. Continue with the old order. Continue with the existing order." There are also times where God will tell you clearly that "I have no hand with you in this direction." It is like going to God to plead with Him to allow you get married to an unbeliever, and then you begin to give Him reasons that, "Lord, You are the one that converted me. You are the one that converted so-and-so. You converted these people who were deep in darkness. You can also convert this man, Lord. Do it for me, Lord." So there are times where God would make it clear that going forward in a particular dimension of relationship, He will not go with you. He will not go with you.
And when God also says otherwise, positively, put aside every doubt. Put aside what has happened in the past. Like God had to, Jesus had to reassure Ananias. The moment his name was mentioned, and then Ananias raised the red flags, "Ah, no, Lord, in case you are not aware, we are on ground here. This man is a terror to the kingdom. This man has caused so much damage to the kingdom." Was it true? Very true. Very, very true. In fact, what Ananias said was just a tip of so much evil and damage that Saul had caused the church and the kingdom. And they said, "Even presently, he is still carrying out the agenda." We are not talking of his past up to today. This man is still causing damage. Jesus said, "Calm down." Help me talk to your neighbor and say, "Neighbor, come down and let God's will prevail in your life." Will you accept the will of God? Will you accept the will of God? Because going forward, certain people will have to accept you. Certain people will have to accept you as well, because you are God's choice for a particular thing. Praise hear the Lord.
The future actions of people can be foreseen by God. Certain people who will surprisingly later change, later change from their current positive beliefs, from their convictions, their current convictions, their values, their principles, their attitude, their behavior. People who will surprisingly later change from their current sense of loyalty, friendship, love, personal preference, and later do something completely opposite, something completely opposite. Like Saul, now called Paul, who changed from real darkness and evil to light and righteousness. People who will change later can be foreseen well ahead of time in the spirit realm. They can be seen well. Even the man does not know he will change. It happened to Peter. In the spirit realm, it was clear that very soon, around the corner, something will happen. Peter will be overwhelmed by the temptation of that hour, that moment, and so he will be overwhelmed to the point he would do something against his wish, his personal desire. And Jesus told him, "You would deny me three times." Not even once, three times. Now, Peter was not lying, or he was not trying to impress Jesus. When Peter insisted that that can never happen, he was speaking from the bottom of his heart. He says, "You will fall. You will fall. Don't go there. If you go there, you will fall." Don't look at your current conviction. And said, "No, that is out. I have no thought in that direction. That can never happen." If the Lord is the one saying, "If you go there, you will fall," my brother, my sister, don't go there. Don't go there. And the Lord told Peter. And what happened? He actually did what the Lord said. What the Lord has seen. It was already seen ahead, and the man did not have it in mind. So today, what you think you can never do, but you are going to end up doing it. You are not even aware because it's not in your mind. It's not your intent. It's not your plan. God knows you will do it, and He knows it ahead of the time. He knows it ahead of the time.
So you can see why it's so critical that when we are going to make certain decisions that will not have to do, and that the decision has to do with your partnership with people that would go on in the days ahead, you can't see and predict what will happen in the days ahead. Only God can see, and only God can influence anything that will subsequently happen.
Psalm 127, verse 1: "Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it. Except the Lord watch over the city, the watchman watch it but in vain." So that emphasizes many things. One, God must approve. Two, God must be involved. Three, God must bless it. So your close relationship must be approved by God. Your close relationship must be blessed by God. It is when God is involved that when anything goes wrong in the days ahead, including that person misbehaving, that husband misbehaving, because it was God I told you to say yes to him in marriage. When you pray, God has the responsibility to answer your prayer. He has a responsibility to bring back that misbehaving husband. But when from the beginning God told you not to marry that man, when the man begins to misbehave and you cry out to Him, one of the things that may even happen is that sometimes God will laugh. May God not laugh at you in the name of Jesus.
That was why I shared that in the last two meetings that was a criteria behind the choice of David. The choice of David was not necessarily based on his past alone. God had looked into the future in the context of the throne of Israel that if I put the first son of Jesse there, what will happen? And God saw ahead what the man would do. He would perform. But there are times when God will tell him, "Don't do this thing," because people want him to do that thing. The man would rather do what the people want and ignore the obvious voice of God. But God saw ahead that David will be willing and ready to ignore the voice of the majority and do what God is saying should be done at any point in time, at any point in time. And to the glory of God, David never failed or disappointed God concerning God's specific instructions to him as the king of Israel.
So the future actions of people can be foreseen by God. This is the reason why Judas Iscariot was deliberately, somebody said deliberately, he was deliberately chosen by God to also be among the twelve because there was a prophecy that was irreversible. That prophecy must be fulfilled that one of His own will sell Him off. One of His own will betray Him. And even the judgments that will happen to that same traitor among His disciples was also prophesied, and it was also irreversible. So God looked at the future of Judas and God saw that despite his having to walk with Jesus so closely, encounter the compassion and love of Jesus so closely, see the obvious hand of God upon Jesus so closely, Judas will still sell Him out to His enemies. So Judas was a sure candidate for an evil assignment.
When the devil wants to mess up the rest of your life, one of the things he would do is to position someone directly close to him that he's so sure that no matter the manner of love, the manner of care they met, the obvious grace of God around your life that the person will see and benefit from, the person will still afflict and betray you. The devil will not position someone that he knows if you show him so much love, he will change his even from his previous intentions and begin to relate with you well. No, he will look for someone that will not fail, that will never, will never be touched by the level of love you will exhibit in the process of time. May God save you, save your son, save your daughter, save your loved ones from such deadly partners, in the name of Jesus. That was why Judas was chosen.
Can you lift your voice right now and say, "Heavenly Father, one more time, have mercy upon me and let me never be chosen for an evil assignment or against Your church, in the name of Jesus." Pray that prayer for one minute. Pray that prayer for one minute. Let me never be like Judas. Let me never be chosen. Let me never be chosen to carry out, to fulfill a terrible assignment, an assignment of affliction or pain, destruction to Your chosen ones, to Your anointed one, or to the church, or to the kingdom. Let me never be used, Lord, for an evil assignment all the days of my life, in Jesus' name, we pray. Let heaven hear your amen.
God can foresee the end of everything that will happen in the future. God can foresee how anything you do will end. How anything you do will end. He can foresee. God can foresee how every decision you take will end. So when He tells you, "Go ahead," then go ahead, my brother. Go ahead, my sister. But when He says, "Don't go ahead," better heed to what God initially. There may be some manifestations of supposed success, but at the very end, what God said will simply out. God can see how every choice you make will end. Every choice you make. God can see how your relationship, your friendship, or partnership with any particular person will end. He can see it ahead of time. Ahead of time. God can foresee how your marriage to a part, to any particular person will end, to any particular person. Within and I pray that God will not kill you before your time. I pray that God will not take you out before your time, in the name of Jesus. In the name of Jesus.
Let me give an illustration. My sister, please come now. My sister here is praying to God concerning a husband. And different men are showing interest. Ordinarily, she just wanted the good things of life. At least three of the men showing interest have so much of those things. I should have just said yes to one of them. But because she really wants to be in God's will and fulfill God's purpose and please God, she decides to act in God's wisdom and rather settle for a man that is born again and a man that God will endorse. So the men continue to show interest, and she keeps on praying, and God keeps on saying no. Then another man comes up. I represent that man now, but I'm not that man. I represent that man. And then the other man comes up and also begins to pray to God. Pray to God, "Lord, give me, give me a good wife. Give me a Christian wife. Give me a God-fearing wife." And the Lord will ask, "Are you really ready? Are you really ready for My for My chosen daughters?" And say, "Lord, I won't disappoint." Then eventually, God now leads the man to her, and he proposes to her. She prays, and the same God that told her no every time she prayed in the past concerning other men, for the first time, that same God now would tell her, "Yes, this man is your destined husband."
Now, in the process of getting married, we are now one with husband and wife. She is still very committed to God, but her husband changes completely, and his heart is completely elsewhere. And then, even though she is doing so much to make me happy in the marriage, I find pleasure in causing her pain. Anything that I know would make her weak, make her sad, is what I keep on doing. When anything negative happens, oh, something has happened. Any news that will bring her sadness, that is what will bring me joy now. When she continues in this kind of relationship for a while, you know, one of the things that could happen: God can kill the man because God knows that she's tied up in what has virtually become more or less a captivity. If she was not close to God, she will immediately call off the marriage. But because she is a God-fearing believer, she decides to still hold on. And while holding on, the spouse is doing more terrible things. One of the things that will happen is that God will take out, will take out the problematic spouse. Why? Because of the nature of the union. If it was just friendship, God would have told her, "If it was a job or somewhere, God would have told her, resign, leave." If it was just friendship, God would have told her, "Don't worry about what you will lose in the partnership, pull off." But marriage is supposed to be for life. But have this in mind: don't be deceived. It is not every time that God would decide to kill such a deviant husband or a deviant wife, as the case may be.
The treatment that God gave to Queen Vashti, that led to the emergence of Esther, is a model that God left in the Bible. You see, there are times. There was, I shared with you this many times. Please sit down, mother. And God will give you the very best. No error will come your way. I share this with you very many times. Some years back, a pastor came here. I was sharing some things, and in his presentation, he said, "God is a mafia." When he said that, ah, you know, we were many of us were troubled and disturbed by the term he used. Then he now started giving illustrations of why he said God is a mafia. He gave, for instance, he gave the example of how God was the one that told Moses, "Go to Pharaoh and demand that he let the people of Israel go." Then the same God now will go behind Moses and go to Pharaoh and tell Pharaoh, "Don't let them go. Don't let them go." Not once, not twice. Then God will come back to Moses and say, "This Pharaoh is very stubborn." Then go back to him and tell him that if he doesn't let my people go, this sign will happen. God is the one that will not perform the sign, yet this same God will go to Pharaoh, who is this Moses? Don't let them go. Don't let them go. Many instances. If you watch carefully in the book of Esther, in the book of Esther, God was on the background. God was on the background. There are times when elders of a land, of a community, will endorse war, but the elders will never use their mouth to tell the youth, "Go and fight." The way you will know that the elders have endorsed war is that when the youths rise up to say, "We must fight," the elders will not stop them. That's a sign to show to you that the elders have endorsed it. The elders will not stop them. It will be a record that the elders never told them, "Go and fight," but the truth was that the elders had the opportunity to stop them, but they did not stop them. So it was an indirect way of endorsing it.
Was it God that enabled Esther to emerge? Ask Queen. Is the question. The Esther treatment. God could have just killed Vashti. Killed her instantly. She would sleep and not wake up. And then, of course, the same way Esther emerged. No. But God kept her alive to witness. Because she was very proud, very, very proud and full of herself. So God kept her alive to witness what will happen. And you know, let us also learn from the case of Esther and Vashti. You know, if in our present time, when God eventually pushed forward Esther, you know, the moment Esther became queen, you know, some things will be happening on the background. The clique of Vashti, the clique she will have, a clique of women who also have the same kind of arrogant attitude that she had. And what would, how would they be describing Esther? "Husband snatcher, husband, husband, husband." And they will make mockery of her, make mockery of her. But did that change the situation? God had moved on and left Vashti behind. May God never replace you. May God never drop you behind, in the name of Jesus. In the name of Jesus.
So that's the reality. But go and check it out. Read your book very well. You won't see anywhere where the Bible says, "And God spoke to the king, God spoke to the king, this Esther is the one you should choose." He was operating fully, but he was operating behind the scene. He does it. One time, even with the choice of David, when it was time for him to anoint a new king, he told Samuel, Samuel said, "Ha, you want to kill me. The moment King Saul knows that I have come, I have gone to anoint another king, of course, he will kill me." So God gave him wisdom on what to do. Just go and tell them that you have come to offer a sacrifice and invite, especially the family of Jesse. And in that process, that was how God did what He wanted to do. Praise hear the Lord.
However, in whatever way to please God, to do what He has spoken concerning your life, the Lord will bring it to pass, in the name of Jesus. Praise hear the Lord.
So, in rounding it up, God's choice, another point is that God's choice is always the best. So, learning from the mistakes that many have made, it is so important to always prayerfully find out God's choice of people for different purposes, especially for high-impact roles such as a spouse, a leader, or a successor. A spouse, a leader, or a successor. You see what is happening, continues to happen in a national polity when you know certain people that were perceived to be very loyal, committed to a particular leader, and eventually chosen to succeed him or her, and within a year, that particular beneficiary of that ex-leader's influence becomes his greatest enemy. So you need to depend on God when it comes to making some very, very critical choices like a spouse, a leader, or a successor.
One of the biggest mistakes anyone can make in ministry is to assume that someone who is on your, your team of staff, your administrative team, your full-time team, is 100% committed to your vision. I'm not saying now that God cannot choose someone who has already been in the system. If you check well, you will also discover that many were also chosen who were already staff in the ministry, who were already engaged with the ministry full-time. But I can tell you from experience that you will discover that members of the church, some members of the church are more committed than someone that is occupying a position of trust in that same ministry. In that same ministry, members of the church who are not even workers are far more committed to the ministry. Their heart is with the ministry 100 percent. And someone who is a staff, his heart is not there. He doesn't even desire the growth of the ministry, but he's collecting pay every month from that ministry. These are realities. These are realities.
God's choice is always the best. Most of the people that God clearly chose or selected as spiritual leaders never turn their back on God in the future. Take note of that. Most of the people that God chose, clearly chose or selected as spiritual leaders, never turned their back on God in the future. Even though some of them sometimes made mistakes. Abraham, check him out. Moses, check him out. Joshua, check him out. David, check him out. Peter, check him out. All the apostles of Jesus Christ, except Judas. Check them out. These were all chosen, clearly chosen by God. Not one of them turned their back on God in the process of life and time, except Judas, who was predetermined to do that. In fact, he was chosen because it was sure that he would do that.
In the process of time, and take note of this, this is very important. Know that even though such divinely chosen persons would make mistakes or even exhibit some negative traits at times, be rest assured that if God is truly the one that initiated and confirmed their choice, then with God's overwhelming influence, He can do it at any time. With His overwhelming influence, He will later influence them to come back to their senses and behave well. Anyone that God has truly given you that is currently misbehaving, the Lord readjusts their mindset in the name of Jesus. The Lord restores back that son, that daughter, that partner, in the name of Jesus. This will happen if it was truly God. If it was truly God.
Be very careful when you say, "Whatever God has joined together, let no man put asunder." There are many of such that has happened, even in the context of a church wedding. It ended in a church wedding. It was never of God. The man himself knew he used a child to hypnotize and manipulate that woman into that marriage. In some other instances, the bride herself knows the baby. She went to. She knows what she used. It was recommended to her, and she has also recommended it to others. And people using charms, using the money, power to manipulate men to marry them, a woman to marry him. They formalize it in a church wedding. So the fact that it was, there was a church wedding doesn't mean that it was God that joined them together. It doesn't mean that it was joy that God had joined them together. It doesn't mean it was going to join them together. But if it is God that made a choice, and when things are going wrong, that same God can just step in and influence that man, influence that woman to come back like the prodigal son, to behave well. So whoever it is in your life that God truly chose, may the Lord influence that person to behave well. Let this amen connect with heaven.
I'll give you an example. Peter, his temporary denial of Christ, must have been foreseen by God. Yes, it must have been foreseen by God before God chose him. God will still permit some, you know, some mistakes. That doesn't mean that the man that God has chosen, the woman that God has chosen, in the process of time, will never make one error, one mistake. No. But if you, you know, distinction is not 100 over 100. It's not, it's not necessarily 100 by 100. It's, you scored 95 is what? It's distinction. 90 is distinction. 85, distinction. 80, distinction. And I think ideally should stop at 70. But I know that in the North East and North West, distinction can be 35, can be 30. Now, that's where we are. Our distinction, 35. Nice distinction in the North East. That's where we are. That's where we are. Praise God. God saw it ahead at a time. In the process of the time, but that didn't stop Him from choosing Him. It is stopping God. Still preferred Him, not only as one of the twelve, but also to become a key leader in the early church. God will not change His mind concerning you. If you know the importance of this prayer, let your amen connect with Him. [Applause]
God has the power to transform or influence any person He chooses. He has the power to influence them to do what? To become compatible with you. To become compatible with you, even if such a person was previously the exact opposite. I gave you a hint a week ago. Yes, certainly. The last teaching that any man or woman that is going to be in your inner circle, because there are things that can be imposed on you in life, but there are things that must never be imposed on you. Jesus had a challenge because Judas was imposed on Him to fulfill a negative prophecy. But every one of us, we have the right to choose our best friends. We also have the right to choose our inner circle. Jesus had an inner circle of three: Peter, James, and John. When He was about to go up to heaven, He handed over His mother Mary to John to help him look after His mother. Those were the three closest persons to Him. And I told us, don't be sentimental when it comes to choosing people. There was nothing like, "Uh, you know, you have 12. There are there are two brothers there, two sets of brothers, and now you have only three in your inner circle." And two brothers, and your inner circle is not fair. Is not fair. He sits. God sits in heaven and chooses and does whatever pleases Him. So God can raise up anybody. Can be two from the same family, and the two of them will love you. The two of them will stand by you. The two of them will highly favor you till the end of time from the same family. So don't look at it that, "Oh, okay, one of them is already close to me, so let me give some distance to the other one." No, it doesn't work that way. Just be careful, be observant, and in the process of time, you will discover who deserves to be your best friend. In fact, the choice of a best friend is even more critical because if a best friend turns into a fool, you can cut off that relationship, unlike a marriage that is not so easy to just terminate. So Judas, Jesus had three in His inner circle, and none of them gave Him problems. They were with Him all through to the very end, even after He left. May God bless you with good friends, and may you also be a reliable and dependable friend to everyone you are close to, in the name of Jesus.
So God has the power to transform or influence anyone He chooses for you to become compatible with you, even if such a person was previously the exact opposite. So today, God is going to choose a new leader for a particular thing. Listen, that leader may not be the best qualified, may not have everything as a today, but if it is truly God saying, "This is my choice," have this in mind: from that moment, God will begin to transform that person, and within a short time, that person is going to become capable. He's going to become capable. If the person didn't even have a heart for that kind of role or assignment, the person would not have the heart for it. And when the person is doing it, the person will do it joyfully. The person will do it. I've been running a schedule for the past, uh, 23 years now. 80 percent of my time is between church and the house, church and the house, church and the house. And you ask me today, would I want to? No way. I love it. It's a call. If you don't have that call, it will become boring. It should become boring. If you don't have the call, whoever God gives you as your true husband will never be tired of you. He may be guilty of familiarity, and you will see that play out many times. It's your birthday, anime. You almost forget his anniversary. You may almost forget Valentine's Day. You would, you would now discover later that he even bought a gift for someone somewhere, and you at home. All he did on Valentine's Day was to give you an assignment, assignment of different things to watch, those things, and make sure this, otherwise, in place, and whatever. And it may have lied to you that there was a board meeting somewhere, unknown to you that he went to hang out somewhere. But ultimately, he will never leave you. That is if that man is God's choice. But take note, if the man, the makeup, oh my God, when you wake up in the morning, you wake up in the morning, you see the real thing. Don't cry. Demon home. Don't, don't shout. Demon. Don't shout. Demon. Don't shout. We've told you ahead of time. Don't shout. Demon. Shall. Demon. Praise God. But if your husband chose you based on some of these other factors, tomorrow, if he finds another person that has a better feature of that thing, he would drift. He would drift. God forbid. There's an accident. There's an accident, and they have to cut off some part of your body. If that man married you because of your breasts, and in the process of time, there is an issue, and the breast will be cut off, the man will drift. He will drift. It's only the love of God that can conquer all things. Praise hear the Lord. Praise hear the Lord. I hope and believe you are learning something today. So let us have it in mind, whoever God chooses, the Lord Almighty will transform that person, and that person will ultimately become the best, in the name of Jesus.
So, in rounding it up, how do you remain in God's will in your partnership with people? One, always inquire about God's mind before making sensitive choices. Always inquire about God's mind. Number two, align with God's choice or decision. Always align with God's choice or decision. First Samuel chapter 16, verse 7 to 13. Samuel was just an instrument. He was not the one to make the choice of the king. The moment God told him, "No, this is not the one," stop there. Learn to always accept and defer to God's revealed will, His verdict, His counsel concerning His choice or rejection of specific persons. God's preferred choice of people for specific purposes, position, office, relationship, partnership, marriage, appointment, promotion, even ordination. Very important. Go with what God is saying and not what men are expecting. Number three, walk by faith and not by sight or human consideration. Walk by faith and not by sight or human considerations. Acts chapter 9, verse 15. Jesus said to Ananias, "He is a chosen vessel unto Me." In another version, He says, "Go, for this man is deliberately chosen as an instrument by Me." Message Bible says, "Don't argue. Go. I have picked him as My personal representative." And the New Life Version says, "Go. This man is the one I have chosen. I don't care about his past. I don't care about what has happened in his past. He is the one I have chosen. People may not like him, but he's the one I have chosen. He's the one I have chosen. If you don't go with him, you'll be left behind because My Spirit is going to move through him. My Spirit is going to move through him." And number four, connect with the grace upon whoever God has chosen. Connect with the grace upon whoever God has chosen. The moment God puts His hand of approval upon anybody, there is something that will follow. It happens in marriage. It happens in the choice of people for specific and important roles. No wonder Proverbs 18, verse 22 says, "He that finds a wife finds a good thing." And then what happens? Obtained favor is a complete package. Obtained favor from the Lord. Their your ordained wife from God comes with it. Comes with grace. She's carrying a blessing. She's a gift from God to you. No wonder some versions of that same scripture will describe her as a man's greatest treasure. Said, "A wife is a man's greatest treasure. She is a gift from Him, from the Lord." Now, if you are a married man here and you agree with this scripture that in the process of life, you have come to realize that your wife as of today is truly a great treasure and a gift from God, stand up wherever you are, and the rest of us will applaud. The rest of the church. Can we celebrate the wives of these men? I expected the clapping to be more resounding. I expected to hear a loud shout. Offering. Do more. Do more. A lot is happening. A lot is happening. Some of them are looking fresh because of the wine. Some of them are still alive because of the wife. I'm telling you the truth. Amen. God bless your marital life more and more, and God bless your wife in Jesus' name. Please sit. You know, you know, I speak as a prophet now. Something just came to my mind and said, you know, later today, at least one wife will go to the husband and say, "Honey, thank you for honoring me in church. I will not trouble you again. That despite all my wahala, you stood up. Oh, I love you." [Applause] I speak as a prophet. Praise God. Praise God. Amen. Laban benefited from the grace of God upon Jacob. Genesis 30:27-28. Because of Jacob, God blessed Laban, his uncle. Potiphar benefited from the grace of God upon Joseph. Genesis 39:3-5. Because of Joseph, God blessed the entire household of Potiphar. First Samuel 22:1-4, Second Samuel chapter 5:1-5. You will see how men who came as debtors, discouraged men, men in distress, who came to David. In the process of time, something happened in their lives, and by the time when the Bible was reported in Second Samuel chapter 5:1-5, many of those men who came in without nothing had become captains. They had become mighty men. They became great men in the land. Connect with the grace of God upon whoever God has chosen. Connect with that grace.
And the last one: Never oppose or walk against God's choice. Never oppose or walk against God's choice. Do not despise whoever God has chosen. Look at this one. Look at this young man. Look at this woman. Look at this person from this tribe. Look at this person with his qualification. Never reject or set aside the person God has chosen to use. The person God has chosen for you. If there is one thing that is too critical in life, don't joke with whoever God has chosen for you. Whoever God has chosen for you, don't joke with it. There is too much involved in God's choice of that person. Too much is involved. If that, if his marriage, if that woman prays for you, God will answer. Any time she prays for her husband, God will answer because the husband obeyed God's instruction by choosing her as a wife. It also applies to ministry. It's not about what is on ground. It is about who God has led you to. It's about who God has led you to. And that is why you are going to discover that whatever challenge is happening in a small congregation, that challenge is there in the biggest congregation. It is there as well. People have the same challenge in the biggest congregation. So what is important is about you locating and staying with whoever God has given you. Whoever. There are some ladies who got married. They were single ladies. Time was going. Time was going. Time was going. And you know, some of the ladies left the church. Why? Because they looked at the church, "Who will marry me here? Who will marry me here? Who will marry me here?" And then the only, maybe two or three or four that fit into that category, the number of ladies that are targeting them with serious desperation, they can't even stand that fight. So some of them leave the church and deliberately move to a church where they think there are a lot of men. Ten years after, nothing has happened. I'm telling you reality now. And we have seen where a lady is taught by God, "This is your place." And while serving and serving and serving there, from nowhere, a man will propose to her. A man that is not even in that church. A man that may be far away, far away. When you are in the place of obedience, your blessing can never miss you. Your blessing can never miss you. Too much calculation, and people are missing it. Too much calculation. Don't waste your time challenging God's choice. And sometimes God can even take an irreversible stand on a particular person, on a particular choice. When that happens, forget it. Nothing will happen through any other person. Nothing will happen through any other person. You can do all you can. Nothing will happen through any other person. When God takes an irreversible stand concerning His choice of a particular person, everything, nothing will happen except through that person that God has chosen. And you know, there's a mystery about God's irreversible will concerning His choice of people. Once God chooses you irreversibly, you cannot die until that purpose is fulfilled. You cannot die. The irreversible will of God is something else. It's very rare, but when it is playing out, it carries too much in...