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The Corporate Anointing | Understanding the Anointing 3 | Pastor John Greiner
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John Greiner continues a series he's been teaching on "Understanding the Anointing", then turns the focus to something bigger: what happens when a whole church moves in agreement. He walks through Ephesians and 1 Peter to show believers as living stones being built into one house, then pushes into Acts, tracing how the early church's unity produced healings at the temple gate, a prison break for Peter, and a shaking room during corporate prayer. He doesn't shy away from the harder parts of that story either, including what happened when Ananias and Sapphira tried to fake their generosity in front of a Spirit-filled congregation. Along the way he touches on reverence, deception in the modern church, and what it costs a body of believers to carry real spiritual weight together.
Welcome And Anointing Basics
SPEAKER_00Praise God, let's uh reach down and pick up our Bibles and lift them up, wave them around, make Jesus glad and the devil mad. Let's say this together. Say, Heavenly Father, so glad to be here in your presence and in the presence of people of like precious faith. Lord, there's power and agreement. Love plus unity equal miracles. And indeed, we have a miracle atmosphere here this morning. We're reminded that there's nothing too hard for the Lord. All things are possible with him, and all things are possible to him who believes. And we are believers today. In Jesus' name. Amen. You can be seated. And we can look at our foundation scriptures. I've been teaching along the last two weeks on understanding the anointing. And so our foundation scriptures found in the Old Testament, Zechariah 4.6. It says, not by might nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord. And then Isaiah 10.27, the yoke shall be destroyed because of our reputation. Because of our resume. No, because of the anointing. Yokes shall be destroyed because of the anointing. And so we've been speaking about it. We've found out that really the words power, spirit, holy spirit, Holy Ghost, the anointing, glory, all of those are kind of interchangeable, really. The anointing is just the mark of the Holy Ghost's presence. The gifts of the Spirit are a manifestation of the anointing upon. You know, the anointing within is needed in order to support the trials and tribulations and oppositions that'll come when you dare to help people. When you dare to intervene and try to help people. That's the anointing upon. So we've received both, we've everybody that's saved has the anointing within, but the only people that have the anointing upon are the people that have decided to go on with God and receive the baptism of the Holy Ghost. And so it's only optional in the sense of going to heaven. I mean, you can go to heaven without it. In fact, you might go there early without it. Because really you're in disobedience when you know that Jesus commanded the disciples. He didn't say it's good, that it's it's profitable. No, he said he commanded them not to leave Jerusalem and try to obey the great commission, which is to go into all the world, preach the gospel to every creature. Don't even try that until you receive power from on high. The baptism of the Holy Ghost. So we spoke about those things, and I really don't want to go too long on that because I've spent two weeks on it. So if you weren't here, be sure and get the media and listen to that. I've had people here recently saying, Man, I heard that and I'm listening to it over and over. That's a way to get it into your spirit. I mean, you know, quit listening to everything and everybody that's online and on TV and get with these messages first. Now I'm not saying don't do that, but get these first. And then you'll be profited because the Holy Ghost is uh warning us to pay attention.
Why The Corporate Anointing Matters
SPEAKER_00So today I want to get into the corporate anointing. And the corporate anointing, quite quite frankly, is all dependent on you and your faith that you have the inward anointing, which you know, we all again, we were saved, we received the Holy Ghost. So the inward anointing came into us when we were saved. Period. A lot of people don't even know that, they don't recognize that their bodies are the temples of the Holy Ghost, that they're not their own, they've been bought with a price. And so our bodies are the temples. He lives inside. The anointing is within us. And we need to keep that very uh built up, be filled with the Holy Ghost. And all we talked about that in week one. And then going to week two, the anointing upon you. If you don't have a strong anointing within you, then the anointing upon you is going to be your downfall. Because you become an enemy of the devil at a greater, greater rate. You know, he'll let you just be a little believer and go kumbaya and do nothing. Put a penny in the offering plate. You don't have much, then he doesn't have to worry about you. He's gonna come against people who have Holy Ghost power, who are not, who are bold, tell people about Jesus. Amen. So, but likewise, the corporate anointing then is when we get together, we all get together, and the total is greater than the sum of the individual parts. There is a there's a multiplication factor that happens, and that's by design. And I want to make that case today. So let's look at Ephesians chapter 2, and we'll get into something that you can believe in your heart and and begin to confess with your mouth, and you be you can your your faith in this anointing, the corporate anointing, uh, is gonna grow. If our faith corporately grows in the corporate anointing, we're gonna see greater signs and wonders right here in the house. We're gonna project those out where we're supposed to. Amen. Ephesians chapter 2, verse 19. Now, therefore, you are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and of the household of God. And are built. Everybody say, I am built. They are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone. We talked about Christ is our firm foundation, comes right from the word. I love our songs because they're full of redemptive truth. We don't sing begging songs, we don't sing poor me songs, we sing songs that are filled with redemptive truth that will put you in the throne room where the corporate anointing can start to manifest. In whom, talking about Christ, in whom all the building, see, fitly framed together, groweth unto a holy temple in the Lord. Now he's talking about you personally, but he's really, really not talking about that here. He's talking about the corporate, he's talking about the church being built together. In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you are also builded together for a habitation of God through the Spirit. We're built together. See, it's not, you know, we could say that's true of us personally, but look at the language, it's talking about the church. The church is a habitation of God through the Spirit. And again, that habitation manifestation is greater when we all have individual faith in that, and we also have faith in the fact, and we act like it when we come to church. You know, people are just in this modern time, they're not very reverent toward God. They come dressed in junk, junky clothes, flip-flops. I mean, look, you know, I think you ought to wear your Sunday best. If you went, if you had an uh uh an appointment with a king of England, you wouldn't go in there with flip-flops and Jamaica shorts and a dirty t-shirt. I'm look- I don't see anybody dressed that way, but we've had people like that. Well, if that's all you got, that's different. But we got better, don't we? And we ought to wear it. We ought to look like that we believe that we're having fellowship with the Most High God. Think about that. See, you're well, it's all about how you dress. Well, it is about how you dress. It shows me that you really care and that you really value what we've got here. You've got to act like the Bible's true. That's faith. Faith is
Truth Love And Avoiding Deception
SPEAKER_00acting on the word. All right, and then Ephesians chapter 4, uh verse 14. That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, but by the slight of men, cunning craftiness whereby they lie in wait to deceive. Lots of deception out there. I saw a video of the pastor in Umble last week. I'm not going to call his name, I'm not going to call the church's name, but he stood up in his pulpit with James Talarico and gave him a full-throated endorsement. You fool. I mean, this is what I'm talking about: deception. That's the Antichrist. You just endorse the Antichrist. But he has an Antichrist spirit. You know, the Gospel of John, or the epistle of John says there's there's many Antichrists. That was true 2,000 years ago. How much more is it? Now we know there's going to be an Antichrist, a single person. But there are many that carry that spirit now. They're liars. They twist the word of God. And that talerrico, I mean, he's he's just talking like he's an expert in the Bible. He's a he's a creep. He's a talifrico, is what he is. All right. But I'm talking about, see, this is, we gotta, we gotta be smarter than that. If I had a church that was woke, I'd get out of there. I wouldn't give them another dime. I wouldn't be there and lend my agreement to that. I still talk to people that go back to woke church. I had a lady not long ago. Well, go back to her woke church because her husband won't leave there. Leave, leave him behind and come over here. I told her that. You told her, yeah, I sure did. Who's Lord? Is your husband Lord? He's obviously not listening to God. You don't have to follow him down off the cliff. Uh-oh, I'm preaching really good now, but some of you. Alright, so speaking the truth in love may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ. Speak the truth in love. That's where you ought to hear the truth, is at church. When you don't hear the truth there, you need to get out of there. Uh, from whom the whole body fitly joined together. Here's that that same language that he used there in chapter 2. Fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplies. See, he's obviously talking about the assembly of church people. They're compacted together. They're knit, the word compacted means knit together. And you form a net or a network or a net that can catch fish. Are y'all with me now? From that which the whole body fitly joined together, compacted by that which every joint supplies. See, you you're a member and you have a supply that you need to give. See, we got to quit coming to church always wanting to receive, receive, and let me have my needs get met. Well, they will get met, but your first priority would be if you walk in love as you put the other person first and you want to make sure their needs get met. So you come with an attitude that I've got something to give. Well, you've got to you've got to come stirred up. You've got to come filled with the Holy Ghost then. Instead of dragging in here, oh, I just can't wait to get to church. I know we've all been there, but we can't stay there. I said, we can't stay there. We're gonna have to, we're gonna have to come up a notch here. And I believe we are. So, compacted by that which every joint supplies, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, make it increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love. So he's talking about the church being built together. Now let's look at 1 Peter in case you just thought, well, that's just Paul. Well, Peter had the same revelation, 1 Peter 2.5.
Living Stones Built Into A House
SPEAKER_00In fact, we'll back up and start with verse 1, 1 Peter 2.1. Simon Peter, a servant of an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that obtain like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God, our Savior Jesus Christ, grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, according as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness through the knowledge of Him that hath called us to glory in virtue. That word knowledge is revelation, not head knowledge, it's not going to Bible school, it's revelation knowledge. Everybody say revelation. Your faith has to be built on revelation. It's not based on head knowledge, it's not based on, well, should we have some head knowledge of the word? Well, of course we should. But our faith is spiritual, and we've got to get a revelation of it in our spirit. And whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these you may be partakers or sharers of the divine nature, having escaped. I'm in 2 Peter. Sorry, I'm reading the wrong one. Okay. Let's Pastor made a mistake. First one this year. 1 Peter. 1 Peter 2. 1 Peter chapter 2. Are you, did you find it? I was in 2 Peter. All right. So wherefore, laying aside all malice and all guile and hypocrisies and envies and evil speakings, as newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word that you may grow thereby. You need milk when you're a baby, but after you have grown a while, you need the meat. But he's talking about growing. Everybody say growing. See, Ephesians said if we need to grow up. If so be, you've tasted that the Lord is gracious, to whom coming is unto a living stone. This allowed indeed of men. See, he's talking about Christ the cornerstone. Christ the cornerstone. You come, you come to him. See, you come to Christ the cornerstone. This allowed indeed of men, but chosen of God and precious. You also as lively stones. That word lively is Zoe, Zao, which comes from Zoe, which means the God kind of life. We all are living the God kind of life. We're stones that are living. He's the chief cornerstone, and then us, when we get saved, come to him, and we start getting assembled and built and trued up to the cornerstone. We get squared up, plumbed up, and leveled up. And we're built a building. See, that's exactly what he's saying here. As lively stones are built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. And so, again, the corporate anointing is all about God building the church. In fact, Jesus in Matthew 16, let's turn over there real quick. I
Revelation Rock And Church Foundation
SPEAKER_00want you to see this. Talking about revelation. How many of you were Catholics? Anybody with a Catholic background? I'm lifting my hand. A lot of you. Yeah, you were taught that Peter was the first pope. That was a bunch of bunk. It's not true. No pope. So Matthew 16, verse uh verse 13. Jesus came into the coast of Caperna, uh Caesarea, Caesarea Philippi. He asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? Who do men say? What are the neighborhoods? What's in the neighborhood? What's out there? How is it on social media? What are people saying about it? And uh and they said, some say that you're John the Baptist. That's kind of stupid. And then some say you're Elijah, and others say that you're one of Jeremiah or one of the prophets. See, I mean, you got total ignorance out there. I mean, how could you say that? He's John the Baptist. Didn't you know that he had his head chopped off? He made me John the Baptist. And so, uh, and he said unto them, Well, who whom you say that I am? Who do you say I am? See, he he asked a general question. Now he's getting down to the brass tacks. Who do you say I am? I want to know what you're thinking. Are you as stupid as all these other people on Facebook? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. Everybody breathed a lot easier then. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjonah, for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say unto thee, Thou art Peter. You are Peter Cephas, your little stone. You're a little stone. Your name means little stone. And upon this rock, what rock is he talking about? The rock of revelation. That word rock is great stone. Upon this great stone of revelation will I build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. The rock. The great rock. Christ, the cornerstone, the word of God. You know, you go back to what Jesus said about the storms of life. We sang about it this morning. I mean, winds blew and rain came, and yet I stood on the rock. Well, the church needs to stand on the rock. This church has had winds and rain come beat against it in 32 years. There have been certain really critical times when it looked like this whole church is going to crumble. You know what it didn't because we were founded upon the cry or on the rock, and we had enough people here besides Gladys and I and our family. We had enough people here that that held on to this revelation I'm talking about this morning. And so the rock of revelation knowledge, see all spiritual growth, and the growth in the church itself is based on revelation knowledge. You've got to have revelation of what the word says. And so individually, 1 Corinthians 6 19 says, individually, what know you not that your bodies are the temples of the Holy Ghost, which you have of God. You're not your own. You bought with a prize, therefore, glorify God. In your body, in your spirit, which are God's. We've covered that. Well, it's true of the church. We're a holy habitation. God is here. See, that's what people feel when they come in the door. Countless people, I'll I'll interview them when they come up after service and they're first-time guests. Uh, a lot of times, just a lot of times, all these years, they'll say, Man, I felt the presence of God when I came in here. Well, see, God doesn't live in buildings, but but we're here and that atmosphere is here. And even when we leave the guess what, the atmosphere's here during the week. Why? Because the angels still lag behind. I mean, they're hanging around.
Atmosphere Reverence And Not Grieving
SPEAKER_00I mean, I'm telling you, the presence of God, He doesn't live here in the sense, you know, that the building is his temple, but I want you to know there's an atmosphere. And you have everything to do with it. That's why you can go into some churches, and I've been to those churches. I mean, it just feels cold. And there's nothing there. I went to a funeral one time in our first building. We had a uh a couple whose mother went to another church, and she was like a uh, you know, a very uh influential matriarch in that church, a prayer warrior in that church, and so we wanted to honor this couple, this man's uh he was uh coming to our church, and so we went to the funeral. And uh, and it is really a word of faith church, but when uh the pastors weren't there, they had a uh uh assistant pastor do the service. When he got up to pray, I felt nothing. I I didn't feel anything when I walked in the building. I felt no anointing when he got up there to pray. I felt no anointing during the message, although there was not a thing he was saying and praying the same thing that I would say or pray, but there wasn't any anointing there, folks. What does that mean? It means the Holy Ghost had left. Why? Well, I there's a lot of ways that you can grieve the Spirit. We're gonna cover some of those things this morning. And we we need to be so sensitive to the Holy Ghost that we would never be the source of that grief. That we would rather die than come in this building and be the source of the grief of the Holy Ghost that might mean someone that's innocent doesn't get their miracle that they need. Y'all are looking at me funny. Well, this is good news, see? I mean, because I want y'all to grow up in these things and have a proper uh attitude toward church. It's not just a just not a just a feel-good thing. I mean, this is kingdom business. The closer we get to his return, the more serious it gets. So collectively, corporately, we're growing into a holy temple of the Lord to offer spiritual sacrifices, to show forth the praises of God. Well, what what better way to do that than when people get healed? When people get blessed, people get their finances, they get a financial blessing, they get a raise, they get a promotion. And we all celebrate. Amen. Y'all with me now? Literally to join forces with God and become a premier change agent on the earth. I mean, that's the kind of power this church has. It's become a change agent in the world.
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SPEAKER_00We pray and say here affects America. It affects the world. I mean, I might not have started out that way, but we've grown into that. And I'm not willing for us to come back away from it. I want to keep on going forward and forward and higher and greater. Are y'all with me now? So the anointing within and the anointing upon is pulled together in the corporate anointing and it's multiplied. And so I have some examples in the Bible of the corporate anointing and its power and God's plan, see. Because, you know, individuals are anointed to do things. I've, you know, I have an anointing that I carry with me. I prayed privately for people. I had somebody ask me to pray for them the other day. I said, well, I prefer to do it at church, but we're not at church. I'll pray for you now. But you know, if I was at church, there's a manifestation that happened here that don't happen out there. Why? Because the corporate anointing is stronger than mine. Stronger than my personal anointing. So Acts chapter 2, we'll get the first one.
Pentecost As Corporate Power
SPEAKER_00You know, verse 1. And the day of Pentecost has fully come. They were all with one accord in one place. See, they were obeying Jesus. They didn't leave. They're waiting on being filled with the Holy Ghost. And that's what Jesus told them to do. They're obedient. And so, and suddenly there came a sound from heaven like a rushing mighty wind. It filled all the place where they were seated. And cloven tongues came and sat on each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they all began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them the utterance. And then, of course, in Jerusalem there were uh Jews, devout men out of every nation under heaven. So you had all these different people from different countries in Jerusalem to celebrate the feast. And uh now when this was noised abroad, verse six, multitude came together, they were confounded because every man heard them speak in his own language. They were speaking in tongues, but they heard, they heard their own language. They were all amazed and marvel, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue wherein we were born? And talks about all the different places where they are from. Verse 11, and we hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. So the apostles weren't, they didn't know what they were saying. They're praying, they're speaking in other tongues, and all that multitude of people from all those different places heard them speak in their native language about what? The wonderful works of God. And they were confounded, they were confused. What meaneth this? They were amazed, they were in doubt. What and others mocking. See, you've always got mockers. Oh, these men are drunk on new wine. But Peter, verse 14, standing up, where was he? He was on the ground drunk. See, that's a manifestation of the power of God, the Holy Ghost. The anointing came upon the church. The church consisted of 120 believers. I said the church consisted of 120 believers in that upper room, and the Holy Ghost came upon the church. The corporate anointing was there. Are y'all getting this now? That's the corporate anointing by definition. Well, it doesn't say corporate anointing. Well, you know, we've got to connect the dots. That's what our job is to connect the dots for you to see that when Peter stood up, he was ministering not as the apostle Peter. Yes, that was part of it, but he's ministering under the corporate anointing of the church. And he stood up. And uh he lifted up with the eleven. See, they all stood up, lifted up his voice, and he said unto them, You men of Judea and all that you dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you and hearken to my words, for these are not drunken as you suppose. See, they're drunk, but not as you suppose. They're not drunk on wine. Seeing it's but the third hour of the day, nine o'clock in the morning. But this is that, amplified this is the beginning of that spoken by the prophet Joel. Everybody there knew what Joel said. Joel was prophesying the rain, the former and latter rain. He's prophesying the Holy Ghost, and this is it. This is this, we you're watching the fulfillment of Joel's prophecy. And he began to preach under the anointing, and 3,000 people got saved. Many of them were the same people that screamed, crucify him! They joined forces with the other Jews. I mean, they're all Jews. There's no Gentiles in this group. And uh 3,000 Jews got saved. I mean, some of these same Jews saw Jesus. They didn't get saved under Jesus' ministry. They didn't, they didn't change that. But the corporate anointing, see, Jesus said, the works that I do shall you do also, and greater works than these shall you do, because I go to my Father. What was he talking about? An individual? No, he's talking about the church. He's talking about the corporate anointing that's available on the church to do great things. Are y'all come on, lift your hands right now? God's doing great things in our hour, right? In our day right now. And so then let's keep looking. So they he's got 3,120 members of the church now. That's quite a large church. I mean, where are you going to put all these people? And so it goes on down and says in verse 42, they all continued steadfastly in the apostles' teaching, doctrine, teaching, and fellowship, breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. What fear is that? Reverence for God. It's not being afraid of God. Although I think in the in the in the other part of it, there were a lot of people that were on the outside that were afraid. Because they couldn't understand what was going on with these Jewish people all of a sudden. And man, there's great signs and wonders. I mean, and uh great, many wonders and signs were done. And all that believed were together and they had all things common and sold their possessions and goods and parted them to all men as every man had need. Well, that doesn't happen nowadays, does it? Because we just have ownership. And we're going to give God the tithe because the tithe belongs to him, but the 90% is ours. Well, really, the 100% is all his, is none of it is yours. All you are are a steward of what he assigns to you. You don't own anything, including your house and your car. See, if you have the right mindset. They just got saved and somehow they had the right mindset. The church has not progressed in that area. Bunch of stingy mingies. If you have the right outlook on this, you don't own anything. Nothing belongs to you. It's all his. Why? Because everything he's got belongs to you. I mean, it is a sharing, it's a partnership. And as long as that's the case, then anytime he needs it, which means one of your brothers and sisters needs it, then it's your and you got it, you should at least ask the Lord, can I be a supply? You ought to be willing to be a supply to anybody's need. Oh, it's getting quiet in here now. So they they did, they just they they parted their goods and and and gave them to people that had need. And they, verse 46, continuing daily with one accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved. So I wanted you to see a picture of the corporate anointing at work.
Miracles Boldness And Shaken Prayer
SPEAKER_00So then after that, Acts chapter 3, of course, Peter and John go down to the uh, you know, the temple in the hour of prayer, because they didn't have a church building big enough to hold everybody, but so they're still going to the temple. You know, the Bible's progressive revelation. They didn't understand all about how things were. So they're still going to the temple and trying to testify to these dead Jews, the Jews that had a they had a veil over their head. They're not listening to most of them, they didn't listen to them. It's kind of a vain activity, but they went anyway, because that's their custom. So they're going down there to the hour of prayer, and on the way they see the man at the gate, beautiful, been out there. He's above 40 years of age. He's lame from his mother's womb. And uh, you know, you know that that notable miracle was done. Silver and gold have a number, such as I have given by thee in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk. Peter yanked him up by the hand, and immediately his ankle, feet and ankle bones received strength, and he went walking and leaping, praising God in the temple, and the whole multitude saw him. Now, I mean, they wondered, what in the world is old Peter again? See, what was Peter doing? Was he operating in his own anointing? Well, yeah, but really with it was from the church. See, the corporate anointing is going out into the community, it's going out. It's one of the viable ministries of the local church there in Jerusalem. And now he's ministering with his mighty anointing now. And 5,000 men get saved that day, which means at least 20,000. If you give if you've got women and children and all of that, you've got a massive harvest on that day. And man, you talk about making all the uh Jews jealous. Man, they got angry. Your mother's story. I mean, they threatened them. Don't you go preaching and teaching in this name? We we can't deny this is a notable miracle. This is another, we can't deny this man got healed. We can't deny it. We'd like to, but we can't. I mean, it's too late. Everybody knows it, and we can't deny it. But don't you quit bringing this man's blood on us. You stop preaching and teaching in that name. They threaten. So look, we're picking it up in Acts chapter 4 now. I'm talking about the corporate anointing. And what happens when the corporate anointing is uh yielded to. And so they uh got together. They uh verse 19, Peter and John answered and said unto them, whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than God you judge, but we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. So when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding nothing how they might uh punish them because of the people. For all men glorified God for that which was done. See, the fear, the fear of the people came on them. They didn't dare touch them. And for the man was above 40 years old on whom this miracle of healing was showed. And then being let go, verse 23, they went to their own company. See, they went back to their own local church. I don't know how many were in that meeting, but we know potentially it could have been 20,000, 30,000 people. I mean, people have been added to the church. They had 5,000 men saved just now. I mean, you you don't know, but it could have been 30. Could 30,000 people gather in our building? Well, I don't think a building's big enough to hold them in Jerusalem, but they might have been outside, but we they went to their own company. And so, uh, and when they heard that, they reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them. And when they had heard that, this whole company, they lifted up their voice, one, one voice. See, the corporate anointing will allow us to speak with one voice. When we have that sensitivity and that faith in the corporate anointing, when we come to church, we're all in one place in one cord. We have love plus unity equals miracles. That's what it is. And when we get together and like that, it takes the corporate anointing to get us all in agreement. Especially the Jewish. You know, you get 10 Jews, and you're gonna have 25 of different opinions. And these are all Jewish people, they just got saved, they're still very Jewish, and so their their their mindset is fouled up. And yet the corporate anointing got all these people to agree. It's a it's supernatural. I said, It's supernatural. What happens? So they lifted up their voice and one accord and said, Lord, thou art God, and thou hast made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that therein is, who by the mouth of your servant David. And so they started preaching, speaking the word of God. And then they said, Now grant with all boldness. See, they they magnified God, then they spoke his word, and said, Now look at what they've done, behold their threatenings. Verse 29, grant unto thy servants that with all boldness. See, it's scriptural to pray for boldness. Grant with all boldness that we may speak thy word, that they may speak thy word by stretching forth your hands to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of your holy child Jesus. And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together, and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spoke the word of God with boldness. So a corporate prayer meeting had a physical shaking, kind of like an earthquake. And it was a sign that they had hit heaven with their corporate prayer. Their corporate prayer was answered from heaven and said, I'm gonna send a shaking down there. You don't have to worry, I'm gonna be backing you boys up. And so then the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and one soul, neither said any of them, all of the things which he possessed was his own. See, there it is again. But they had all things common. And with great power, mega dunismus, miracle operation of power, gave the apostle witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus and great grace, mega grace was upon them all. This is an outcropping of what? The corporate anointing. Not necessarily the apostle. Yeah, they're apostles. Yeah, they have their office, yeah, they have an anointing, but their ministering under this corporate anointing is massive. Neither was there any among them that lacked, but for as many as were possessors of land or houses, sold them and brought the prices of the thing that were sold and laid them down at the apostles' feet, and distribution was made unto every man according to as he has need. See, it doesn't say that Peter got up there and said, Okay, you rascals, now I want y'all to sell your houses and land. We've got some poor people up here, and y'all go sell everything and bring it. Nobody had to tell them anything. They saw that out of their number, that massive number of people, there are a lot of them, there were mostly Jews, and some of them were disowned, they were disinherited, they were kicked out of their family compounds. They had, you know, Jews had had their own trail of houses and lands and farms and places outside of town and all that, and they were kicked out by the Orthodox. I mean, they they didn't they they hated what was going on. So they came, some of them were destitute. Guess what? I mean, everybody got together and they and they decided, you know, we're gonna sell our, we've got a little plot of land over there. I've got a house. Let's sell that, Mabel. Okay, uh Fred, we'll we'll sell that and bring the whole thing and bring the whole thing and lay it. Nobody told them to bring the whole thing. Who told them? The corporate anointing told them. There was such a move of God in the area of finances in that brand new church that it supplied the needs of everybody. Nobody had any needs. Every need was met. Nobody had lack. Everybody was filled. Are y'all getting this now? And one of the ones that did that was Barnabas. We heard about Barnabas later. But this is before he's an apostle. He's just a believer in that early church. And he had a heart to give. I mean, when you're a giver, when you when you realize that everything you've got is his, and you're willing to give whatever it takes, you're not looking at the you're not looking at your, you know, and that also governs your spending. In other words, you know, when Jesus is Lord over your checkbook, I'm telling you, God is really God then. And he's able to do mighty things. All right, so talking about the corporate anointing.
Ananias Sapphira And Holy Fear
SPEAKER_00All right, let's look look at chapter 5 now. Something, uh-oh, something comes up. But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira, his wife, sold a possession and kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and bought a certain part and laid it to the apostles' feet. But Peter said, Ananias, come here. I got a bone to pick with you, Ananias. Now see, how did he know that? Is he got a CPA? Is he doing an audit? Is he auditing everybody's finances? The Holy Ghost was grieved when this couple decided to look like they gave it all and they didn't. It wasn't that they didn't give it all. It wasn't that they didn't have the faith to give it all, it was that they acted like they gave it all. They lied. They lied. And so Ananias, he brings Ananias. He said, Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Ghost and to keep back part of the price of the land? While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was so, was it not in your own power? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied unto men, but unto God. And Ananias, upon hearing these words, fell down, gave up the ghosts, and great fear came upon all of them that heard these things. And the young men rose and wound him up and carried him out and buried him. Who's the head of our burial team? If we got, Stan, will you will you will you lead the burial team? Train some young men how to wind them up and carry them out. Well, we've got plenty of land, we can plant them out there, have a special little. These lied to the Holy Ghost. You know, they died. We laughed, but I mean, look what happened. Because the power of the corporate power of God was so strong that God would not allow some liar to get away with it. It would have ruined, he they grieved the spirit, and and being the director, he's the head of the church in Jerusalem. There's no mistake, he's not the Pope, but Peter was the head, he was the pastor of the church in Jerusalem, and he was the head, and so the Holy Ghost let him know the spirit is grieved. I've had services where the spirit was grieved. And you know, I mean, it was just the most weird thing. And while it was going on, I didn't understand until I got home. One time I had with testimony, and somebody got up here and started talking about me, and and I thought they were joking. And uh, and I thought, oh, that's not that's not so. Said that I was hard to deal with because I needed five-star hotels to stay in. I said, I never stayed in a five-star hotel, and there aren't any in the Philippines anyway. There's one-star hotels in the Philippines. And I just kind of shook it off. I didn't think anything about it. So then when I preached, I it was like pulling an anchor off the bottom of the ocean. And when I got home, I was just worn completely out. And I laid on my couch and I said, Well, I'm going back tonight, but man, I feel like I'm exhausted or something. And all of a sudden, uh I heard what was said about me, and the Holy Ghost said, she grieved the spirit because she lied about you. Woman up here. And so I confronted her. The next day I called her and told her what the Holy Ghost said. She didn't accept it, she didn't receive it. So she laid it, it took a while, but she she just went on off into oblivion. See, I mean, you you cannot, I won't allow the spirit to be grieved without confronting the problem. Are y'all with me now? Y'all are so solemn. This is what's lacking in the modern church. We just let anything go, everything is okay. Oh, well, they're just look, there's a certain point, yes, baby Christians do have, we have to take time to clean them up and let them know that there are better ways to live. That's that's true. But when you're a mature Christian and you act like that, you grieve the Spirit. And when you grieve the Spirit, he leaves. And the corporate anointing is affected, and and someone who comes to church who needs to get saved, there's no real conviction of the Holy Ghost here because the Holy Ghost left. Or when somebody needs healing from cancer and the healing anointing was normally present, is not here. Why? Because the Holy Ghost left. Y'all, man, I'm telling you, serious business here. So uh, so then the next, we'll go on down. So, so the fear of God went everywhere when they heard about it. So he confronted the wife and said uh in verse 9, he said, Tell me whether you sold the land for so much, verse 8. She said, Yeah, we sold it for that much. He said, How did you degree it together to tempt the spirit of the Lord? Behold, the feet of them which have buried your husband are at the door shall carry you out. See, he gave her a chance to say the truth. All they had to do was when he and when he confronted Ananias, Ananias, listen, listen, Peter, I'm sorry. I don't know what came over us. Please forgive us. I'll get it, I'll make it right. I'm gonna get up in front of the church and I'll confess to everybody. See, he could have saved it, he wouldn't have to die. And the Spirit wouldn't have had to have been grieved. I mean, it was a sin that could have been easily forgiven, and everybody could have learned, but they learned anyway. Because their death taught everybody. You see what I'm saying? And so he gave her a chance, and she she skipped the chance, and so she died, and uh fell down straight away at his feet, yielded up the ghost, and found her dead. They carried her and buried her by her husband. And verse 11 great fear came upon all the church and upon as many as heard these things. See, God didn't waste it, God multiplied his the reverence went all through, including the Jews. I mean, even the Jews heard about this. Are y'all getting this now, though? I'm talking about the corporate anointing. Well, Pastor, this is so negative. Well, I'm just giving you the basis for what we have today. I mean, we have the opportunity to have the greatest harvest that the This world has ever seen, but it's going to take a price. We're going to have to pay a price of separation and holiness. We're going to have to reverence God with everything that's in us. We're going to have to come to church with a different attitude, an attitude of giving, an attitude of love, an attitude to see what I can, God, I want to contribute to the atmosphere here today. Do you have needs? Of course, but you just put those, you shake that all off and you put it on the side, and up in the top shelf of everything is making sure that the corporate anointing is strong. You bring a supply. You have a supply to bring. And make sure when you come, you bring that supply. That's all I'm saying. Glory to God.
Divine Order Releases More Power
SPEAKER_00And so in the next chapter, Acts 6, they set things in order. They said, you know, we need somebody to be ushers. It's not right for us to leave the Word of God and serve tables. Look out among you seven men of honest report, full of Holy Ghost and wisdom, and point over this business. And they did. And they laid their hands and appointed those seven as the first deacons in the church. And when God set that thing in order, I mean it magnified the corporate anointing. I mean, it gave all of these things. It was powerful what happened after that. Says here. And the word of God, verse 6, increased, and the number of disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly. And a great company of the Jewish priests were obedient to the faith. That's the that when divine order comes into the church, the corporate anointing multiplied. Then one of the ushers, Stephen, decides to go out and preach to the Jews. He goes out and preaches, and I mean he preaches, and he great signs and wonders were done. Miracles and signs and wonders were done. And he's an usher. He's not an apostle. He's a believer. And when things are set in order and he had decided, I'm going to be part of this, I'm going to be part of the usher's group. I'm going to serve tables. I'm not too big to serve tables. But then on the side, I'm going to go over here and preach to these people. I see a need. He goes over there and preaches, and he does great wonders and miracles among the people. They couldn't deny it. And then he kept preaching to them. They got so mad at him, they stoned him to death. They stoned him to death. And then after that, a persecution arose, and all of the church was scattered abroad except the apostles. And then you see about the other one that went to uh that went down to Samaria and preached Christ unto them. And he was not an evangelist. He just he was a believer. And uh and so you had uh Philip. And so God used Philip, and he had some signs and wonders down in Samaria, and then the apostles were sent and got them filled with the Holy Ghost. And the enemy of the church was saved. I mean, they they uh there was a guy there that was blocking the blocking the you know things up and he got saved. Barred Jesus. Um Acts chapter 12, another corporate anointing, you
Corporate Prayer Breaks Prison Doors
SPEAKER_00know. Let's look at that real quick, talking about the corporate anointing then. So powerful. We're changing, everybody say we're change agents. I mean, you know, when the church is operating under the corporate anointing, things that you see out there are subject to change. Acts chapter 12, now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church. He killed James, the brother of John, with a sword, and because he saw it please the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. And uh, and these were the days of unleavened bread. And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him, intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people. Peter therefore was kept in prison, but prayer, number three, prayer, and in my margin it says, instant and earnest prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. See, what was that? That's another corporate prayer meeting. Corporate prayer meeting. I mean, the church got together and opposed what Herod the king was about to do. He'd already killed one of them, and now he's gonna kill Peter. And they prayed. And so we know the story. The angel came and broke him out of prison, and he goes over to the prayer meeting and knocks on the door, and Rhoda, the little girl, comes to the gate, and and and she just leaves him out there and says, Hey, it's Peter. Peter showed up at the door. Oh, it can't be Peter, it must be his angel. See, they didn't really have a whole lot of faith of what they were praying. They doubted Peter showed up. But finally, so they go and let Peter in. I mean, it's amazing. I mean, they prayed and angels were dispatched and broke him out of prison. And then, you know, they came after him and they, you know, said, Well, you leave me alone. I'm I'm, you know, forget it. I'm I'm that they they the fear of God came on. And so uh, verse 18, now as soon as it was day, there was no small stir among the soldiers, what would become up here. And then it says, Herod had sought for him and found him not. He examined the keepers, he beat, he beat the jailers, he beat them with whips, and uh and commanded that they should be put to death. He was so mad that he escaped. And he went down from Judea to Caesarea and their abode, and Herod was highly displeased with them of Tyre and Sidon. But they came with one accord to him, and having made blastous the king's chamberlain, their friend, desired peace, because their country was nourished by the king's country. And upon a set day, Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat upon his throne and made an oration unto them, and the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a God and not of a man. And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory, and he was eaten of worm worm worms and gave up the ghost. And the word of God grew and multiplied. And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their ministry and took with them John, whose surname was Mark. So the church just kept on going. The corporate anointing broke Peter out of jail and handled Herod. I mean, an angel was assigned to Herod and followed him around, and when he got up there and acted like he was God, he paid the ultimate price. They didn't pray that that he died, but they prayed in the Holy Ghost. See, when you pray in the Holy Ghost, God can release judgments in the earth and cause things that happen. Are you getting anything out of this today? See, I could go on and on. Uh the corporate prayer.
Love Unity And Change Agents
SPEAKER_00Uh we're here in our 32nd year. We have our 32nd anniversary in January, and uh we've grown one lively stone at a time. We've been assembled together, and uh we're doing things now that we saw as a result of corporate prayer years and years ago. Some visitations I have by myself, but some that I had during corporate prayer. We're entered into these things that we're doing right now. Um and so I just want to keep you encouraged. Let's uh let's keep going, let's keep this momentum. You know, a few years ago we had the year of momentum, you know, then we had, you know, this is the year of the new and so forth. We've got these these things that the Holy Ghost is is putting before us so that we can use our corporate faith to access this power that He wants to use. He wants to use us to bring change. I said He wants to use us to bring change on the earth. But it takes two things, love and unity. And those are both factors of the of the corporate anointing. If you if you're willing, God can make you love people that are unlovable. God can make you so tender-hearted to people that you would normally not even give the time of day to. That's the love, that's what happens in the corporate anointing. That's what happened to the church in Jerusalem. They weren't they weren't just ready to just give everything away, but the Holy Ghost, they were so filled with love and concern for each other, they didn't, they were reckless. Well, guess what? God didn't let them go broke. I mean, they all got a return on what they did. So I just believe that that uh this foundation, we talked about Christ the foundation this morning. He's been the foundation. But we've got a superstructure that's being built. And he's not finished with that superstructure. The foundation is pretty well set, but the but the superstructure is being built. Let's all just realize that when we come to church, we're coming not just for ourselves, we're coming for the body. We are the body of Christ. We're needed. We're members individually of the body of Christ. Every member. I mean, if you if you went down, you know, just how many of you would like being without your leg? I mean, it wouldn't be fun to walk around with one leg. You wouldn't walk around, you'd have to have a, you know, a titanium leg like some of our soldiers have. Uh, you know, it's not it's not any fun getting used to that. You never get used to it. You just cope with it. And see, the the church has been like almost like a paraplegic. We have not, we have not developed it. I'm talking about the church at large. We've got millions of Christians that don't know anything about what I'm talking about here this morning. That's that's that's a shame. Well, guess what? That's what we're doing. We're we're beginning to encourage people. God is connecting us up with people and getting them to understand how important it is to occupy till he comes. We're gonna occupy this midterm election. We're gonna change agents for this midterm election. Are you with me now? We're not gonna have communists taking over this country. We're just not gonna do it. After we leave, they can do whatever they want, but while we're here, we're not allowing it. So um, praise God. Last one I want to show, John 11, 40. You know, when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, he turned uh to his dear friends Mary and Martha. And he said, Didn't I tell you that if you believe, you'll see the glory of God? So if you'll believe, what is a believe? It's an acting, it's an action verb. You believe is based on revelation. And I believe if you'll give yourself to this revelation of the corporate anointing, we will all see the glory of God and we see we will see things change that are going on on this earth. Come on, lift your hands and receive the corporate anointing. Hallelujah.