Transcription
Let's go to first Peter chapter 5, verse number 8. 1 Peter chapter 5 and verse number 8. I feel so much destiny here tonight in this church. So much destiny. The future is bright. Not just for this church, not just for Matune, but for the regions that God is going to give you. Well, all four of you, I'm glad you believe that. I said, I'm excited about the regions that God is going to give you. The entire congregations that are going to call and say, "We want what you've got. Brother Dowy, can you come preach for us and tell us what you believe?" and they'll get the revelation of Jesus name baptism and you'll baptize entire congregations. I told you it's bigger than a building. If you just want God to give you a building, your vision is too small. But if you believe God can give you regions, he can fill this building up like it's nothing. I think we've forgotten exactly how big our God is. Praise God.
1 Peter chapter 5, verse number 8. Be sober. Be vigilant because your adversary the devil. Everybody say my adversary. Come on, everybody say my adversary. The devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about seeking whom he may devour. Your adversary. Not just your pastor's adversary. Not just the old prayer warrior's adversary. Your adversary. Everybody point to yourself. You've got to make this thing personal. Say, "My adversary." My adversary. Every person in this room has an adversary. And I think at some point, we have probably all wondered, what would it be like without a devil? What would it be like without an enemy? What would it be like without that temptation that pays us a visit every now and then? What would it be like without that struggle that we just have to keep on dealing with? What would it be like? But before we get finished here tonight, I believe the Holy Ghost is going to help us have a new found appreciation for the adversary in our lives. I know you might not see how that's possible, but right now, but just let's just go where God wants to take us here tonight. And you're going to leave thankful for every devil, for every opposition, for every enemy, for every adversary in your life. So, I want to preach to you about an absent adversary. An absent adversary. Would you just lay your Bibles down and every person in this house, would you just grab somebody by the hand and lift those hands under the heavens? We love you, Jesus. We thank you for what you're about to do in this house. God, let us discover the power of an enemy in our lives. That thing we've asked you time and again to take away, to remove. God, you've let it remain for a purpose. Don't let us avoid that purpose. Let us lean into that purpose here tonight. We thank you, God, for every enemy you saw fit to stay in our lives. And we believe that if God be for us, then who can be against us? We thank you for victory in this place. We thank you for victory in this place. That's it. Go ahead and step into that victory. It's yours. You're not fighting for victory. You're fighting from victory. We're going from glory to glory here tonight. Come on. Oh, if you believe victory is yours, those hands you have raised, let's just clap them unto the Lord all over this house. Come on. He's worthy. He's worthy. Somebody shout Hallelujah. Come on, everybody shout Hallelujah. An absent adversary, God bless you. You can be seated.
In April of 2016, a man by the name of Ed Young released an article with National Geographic stating that birds on a specific island are losing their ability to fly. He notes that before the arrival of humans, New Zealand was an ideal haven for birds. And without ground predators to bother them, many of the local species lost the ability to fly. These birds are part of a pattern that plays out across the world's islands that wherever predators are kept away by expanses of water, birds become flightless quickly and repeatedly. This process has happened on more than a thousand independent occasions, which produced the club-winged ibis of Jamaica and the flightless cormorant of the Galapagos Islands. He said that the call of the ground is a strong one, and it exists even when the skies are still an option because mediocrity will never stop calling you just because greatness is available. Natalie Wright from the University of Montana demonstrated this by collecting data on 868 different species. She showed that even when island birds can still fly, they are gradually edging toward flightlessness. Because compared to their mainland relatives, their muscles are smaller and their legs are longer. Because without an enemy in their life, they have grown accustomed to the atmosphere down here rather than reaching for the atmosphere up there. And across nine major groups of birds with a wide range of lifestyles and body shapes, Wright found a common thread among them all. On smaller islands with fewer species and no predators, birds have shifted their energy from their forelimbs to their hind limbs, creating smaller flight muscles and longer legs. To her surprise, the trend even applied to the hummingbirds, for whom flying is an essential part of life because flight is absolutely necessary for the survival of a hummingbird. And I found it interesting Wright noted that a flightless hummingbird is a dead hummingbird. She went on to state that it's very easy to see why a diving bird like a cormorant or a ground-dwelling bird might lose its ability to fly in the absence of predators. But why should a hummingbird, which flies all the time, have to sacrifice some of its aerial prowess? She answered her own question by concluding that flight muscles come with a cost. Because there is a price to pay, uh, if you want to be elevated, even at rest. Larger flight muscles require more energy to maintain. Large flight muscles are especially useful when birds take off from the ground because that's the most energetically demanding part of flying and also the piece that is most important for escaping ground predators. If such predators are absent, birds can take off at a more leisurely pace, and they can afford to have smaller flight muscles, uh, because without an adversary, there is no urgency in them to be elevated to the next level. So, to parallel the animal kingdom, the spiritual kingdom should consider that in the absence of an adversary, these birds live an easy life, but they do not live an elevated life. Uh, Wright's results from her study suggest that island birds might be more vulnerable to introduced predators than anyone might have expected. And even those birds that can fly are not as good at flying as their mainland relatives. Uh, ultimately, Wright concluded that islands without predators, uh, create birds that never leave islands. Uh, because they do not have an adversary in their life, uh, they lose the ability to fly and reach new heights, uh, and possess new territories. Uh, in other words, without an adversary, they can never reach the level, uh, that they were created to reach. And I have come to preach about your adversary, the devil, who is a roaring lion, and walks about seeking whom he may devour. I came to preach about that hated thing. I came to preach about that feared thing. Uh, I came to preach about that thing that causes tears to flow. Uh, I came to preach about that thing, uh, you don't bring up at the dinner table. I came to preach about that thing, uh, that causes you to lose sleep at night. Uh, I want you to understand, uh, you better be thankful for an adversary in your life. Uh, because it is that adversary that will disrupt your complacency and elevate you to another level. I've come to preach to this church. Uh, you were not created to settle for earthly realms. Uh, you were created to soar in a heavenly dimension. You were not created for dead church, uh, dead youth groups, uh, dead prayer meetings, uh, dead preaching, uh, dead singing, uh, empty altars, uh, and dry baptistries. Uh, you were created for revival. You were created for miracles. You were created for the next level. And every devil you fought in Matune, it's going to lift you up to a greater dimension.
And so I've come to tell apostolic sinners, never settle for less than your created purpose. Because Isaac was the son of promise in whom the Abrahamic covenant would continue. But Abraham had an Ishmael. He had a mistake. And Sarah saw the conflict between past and promise. And she said, "Cast him out because he's mocking my promise." They tried to get rid of what seemed to be an adversary. And Hagar laid her son Ishmael under a tree and left him there to die. But the pain that Ishmael brought couldn't die because the pain of Ishmael was necessary for the promise of Isaac. And God spoke to Hagar and said, "Arise and lift up the lad." He was saying, "I want you to take the thing that is causing the pain, and I want you to elevate it, and I will make him a great nation." God told her to lift up the lad. He wanted to take what was causing the pain and raise it to another level. But if the Arab nations would come from the seed of Ishmael, and he would always be an adversary to Isaac, why not just let him die? Why would God promote the very thing, uh, that was bringing pain into their world? Uh, the answer is God understood. This enemy is not preventing your promise. This enemy is provoking your promise. God did not lift up Ishmael to lift up Ishmael. But God lifted up Ishmael so Ishmael can lift up Isaac. If it seems like God is elevating your pain and elevating your opposition, it's a signal to let you know God's about to elevate you. Your Ishmael is not just an enemy. He's a staircase that's going to lift you up above every devil, above every opposition. You ought to shout in this house because God is elevating this church. Come on, you ought to shout until you feel that elevation in this house.
I'm preaching a Sarah in this house over the last few months and years. And as a matter of fact, even this church as a whole, you've been looking at the opposition and you've said, "God, take away the issue." You're asking God to get rid of what's causing you pain. But God is letting it stay so it can lift you to a higher level because God understands, uh, up to this point, uh, without the adversary, you would have grown comfortable. Uh, you would have never been dependent on God to do what only God can do. Uh, your pain is the very thing, uh, that keeps you going back to the altar, going back to the prayer closet. So if God lets your pain stay, it's because God knows, uh, I can do more through you with it than I can without it. Uh, let it drive you to prayer. Let it drive you. You ought to let it drive you to 40 more days of prayer and fasting. Uh, and when that happens, uh, there's a breakthrough that's coming. There's a revival that's coming. There's a miracle that's on the way. I want you to shout with everything you've got in this house. Come on. Let it break. Let it break.
So, if you ever wonder what it's like for your adversary to be absent, the answer is it would be easy, but you'd never be elevated. You see, David had an adversary. Caught a lion and a bear. And a lion and a bear led to a Goliath. And Goliath led to a Saul with a javelin in a cave. But his adversary was not sent to anoint him. His adversary was sent to advance him. It was the prophet that anointed David, but it was the problem that promoted David. And eventually, his position was in alignment with his anointing. The problem is too many people have an anointing, uh, that they don't operate in because they don't have an enemy to provoke them out of their complacency and into their potential. And God said, "Joseph, you might have, uh, the interpretation of the dream. But you don't yet have the fulfillment of the dream." Uh, so he said, "I got to take Joseph and let him go to the pit, uh, and the pit will lead to Potiphar's house, uh, in Potiphar's house, uh, will lead him to the prison. Uh, and the prison led him to the palace." And Joseph finally looked at his brothers, uh, and said, "You thought evil against me, but God turned it around and used it for the glory of God." Uh, what God has allowed to stay in your life, uh, the devil wanted to use it to destroy you. But God's about to turn it around. And he's going to give you a revival. You ought to just turn in your seat right now and say, "He's turning it. He's turning my depression. He's turning my sorrow. He's turning my bankruptcy. He's turning my sickness. He's turning my depression. He's turning it. He's..." You ought to shout right now like God's turning it around. Go. I release you in this house. Uh, shout with everything you've got. Give God a big praise.
There's going to be a point in this service where somebody finally just says, "I've had enough." And you just knock your neighbor out of the way and you shout until this thing's over with. But God said, He said, "If I be lifted up, I'll draw all men unto me." And Paul said, when the princes of this world, if they had known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But Jesus said, "Go ahead and pluck my beard. Go ahead and beat me at the post. Uh, go ahead and nail me at the cross. Uh, go ahead and place the thorns on my head. Uh, go ahead and feed me the vinegar. Go ahead and stick the spear in my side. Uh, go ahead and cast lots for my garment. Go ahead and put me in a borrowed tomb. Uh, but in 3 days, I'm getting back up." Uh, you ought to say to the devil, "If you didn't want me to get up from the grave, uh, you should have left me in the garden. Uh, if you never wanted me to go to glory, you should have never let me go to the grave. Uh, but because you pushed me, because you poked and brought it, you're about to see me have a revival you never wished I would have had." I've come to tell this church, uh, because the devil has messed with you, you're about to have a revival he wishes you never. My God, you ought to shout right now. God is... You need to be out of your seat shouting in the devil's face. Hell wanted you to shut up. Hell wanted you quiet, but it backfired. He's turning it around. Go. I loose you to have a praise break in this house. Shout it until you're elevated. Shout it until you're lifted up. Don't wait on your neighbor. Get out of your seat and dance right now. Go, go, go.
Brother Dowy, you said it's taken a few years to get to 2022 and what you feel like God's about to do in the spirit realm. And there are some battles that have been fought over the last few years. Uh, and you can look at one battle and say that devil was from 2018. And another battle that says that was from 2019. Uh, and another that's from 2020 and 2021. Uh, that means over the last four or five years, uh, hell has tried to shut this church down. But now that you've made it, uh, into 2022, you ought to shout on the devil's head, uh, and say, "You never thought we'd get to where we are." But here we are, baby. And we're about to take a region. We're about to shake the gates of hell in Matune, Illinois. This is for 2019. This is for 2020. This is for 20... You ought to shout for your man of God. He's been through hell, but with that adversary, it's been a stepping stone. The Dowy family is going to lead us in a shout. Can you rally with the man of God? We're with you, Brother. You're going to another level. You're going to another level.
Brother Nix and Daddy, you hear me? In the Holy Ghost, there's an anointing of an apostle on you. And God has put a burden for this area in your spirit. Not just by coincidence. Are not just because you were raised here, but it's because God's going to elevate you at the right time as an apostle to this region. And all of the hail the last two generations have fall, it's going to be a stepping stone and God's going to elevate you and you're going to...
Heat. Heat. Here's what's about to happen. There's a warfare praise in this house. Now, I know you've heard the stories about how those old elders would get to shouting, and they'd literally shout until they didn't have enough strength to stand. This generation is going to get back to that in this service right here. You know why? Hold on. I'm not preaching for a clap right now. This generation is going to get back to that right there. You know why? Because hell would have loved nothing more than for you to go through all the hell you've gone through and then just come in and patty cake around. But eventually, you just got to say enough is enough. We're about to step on every enemy, and we're going to let it elevate us to another level. I'm talking about ladies kicking those heels off and you shout until you literally feel the victory of the Holy Ghost come and overtake you and you can't control it anymore. I'm talking about some of you young men wanting revival so bad that every enemy in your life, you're going to deal with it in this service here tonight. I'm talking about some families hell's tried to rip you apart and put you on the brink of divorce. You ought to say enough is enough. I wish there'd be a husband grab his wife by the hand and say, "We're going to fight that devil and we're going to deal with that mess here tonight." When I count to three, I want you to lose your mind in this house. Are you ready? Up there in the balcony. If you got to get down off the balcony, I want you to come down here on the floor. There's got to be a shout in this house. You don't need to just shout for 10 seconds and then wait on more instruction. You need to shout until you get victory. You need to shout until you feel revival. You need to shout until God heals your body. You need to shout until the depression leaves your mind. Are you ready? You better get ready. There's victory. Boy, I feel that victory in this house right now. One, two, three. Shout, dance, dance, dance. This is warfare. What the devil meant for evil, he's turning it around and he's using it for revival. He's using it for anointing. He's using it for breakthrough. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat.
No, you're being too cute with it. That devil that wanted to tear your ministry apart, he wasn't worried about looking cute. There's got to be a radical praise in this house. I wish those of you against the walls, uh, those of you in the back, uh, those of you in the risers, uh, we got to bind together and let the devil know he's just a stepping stone. We're going up. We're going up. We're going higher. Come on. Go. Go. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat.
That's it. You're making a statement here tonight. Enough is enough. God's elevating you here tonight. That's it. Up there in the balcony, you go ahead and get the victory by yourself. That's all right.
I'm telling you, there are warring angels being released into this house right now. You're not going to go home and fight the same hell you've been fighting, but you're making a statement with your dance tonight. God has crushed Satan under your feet. God is crushing the enemy under your feet. He's crushing depression. He's crushing anxiety. He's crushing mistakes and failures. He's crushing condemnation. He's crushing doubt and fear. He's crushing division. He's crushing compromise.
Are you ready? You need to lose yourself right now. You need to find a dancing partner if you don't want to shout by yourself. Angels have just been released into this house to fight on this church's behalf. Are you ready to shout and dance in this house until you get the victory? Lift your voice in this house, uh, and get ready to put the devil on the run. Get ready to put the devil under your feet. You're going to be healed in this house. Uh, you're going to get delivered in this house. Uh, you're going to receive a miracle in this house. Go shout. Shout. Lose yourself. Shout. Put it under your feet. Put it under your feet.