Bill Winston - Living Eternal Life
Jesus challenged the rich young ruler to sell all he had, give to the poor, and follow Him to gain treasure in heaven, but the man walked away grieving because of his great possessions. The preacher emphasizes that true faith requires letting go of worldly attachments, renewing the mind, and trusting God's Word without fear to receive miracles and eternal life.
The Rich Young Ruler's Challenge
We talked about this rich young ruler. This man was rich, he was young, and he came to Jesus. He said, you know what? What can I do to inherit eternal life? Obviously, Jesus was teaching on it. And Jesus said, well, you know the Scriptures, and began to name some: do not commit adultery, do not kill, do not steal, do not bear false witness, do not defraud, honor thy father and thy mother.
He said, well, wait a minute, all that have I done from my youth. Jesus said, well, that is one thing you lack. Go your way, sell whatsoever you have and give to the poor. You will have treasure in heaven. Take up the cross and follow me. In other words, you will be a part of my team here.
The Grief of Great Possessions
The man was sad at that saying and went away grieved, for he had great possessions. Grieving takes place when you suffer loss. And he could just see himself losing all that money he worked so hard to get. But no, he was not really losing it, because the Bible says he that gives to the poor lends to the Lord, and that which he has loaned to Him, the Lord will repay him again.
So he did not really know the Scriptures. But Jesus was talking about a whole lot of "do nots" and what not to do: do not this, do not that. Each one of those really belongs in a kingdom called the kingdom of darkness. And those things the kingdom of darkness needs, which is run by Satan.
Kingdom of Darkness vs. Kingdom of Light
The kingdom of darkness needs strife. It needs murder. It needs manipulation. See, if you take all these things out and put love in there, the kingdom of darkness will disappear. It cannot afford to have love going on, and Satan cannot keep his kingdom going.
But over in the kingdom of light, or the kingdom of God, you have love, peace, joy, and you have sharing and blessing and so forth and so on. All those are in the kingdom of life. Integrity—you are over here in this kingdom. You have to lie to keep that kingdom going. You need to come out of there.
Coming Fully into God's Kingdom
So a lot of God's people have been translated into the kingdom of God's dear Son, Colossians 1:13. But they have not put down some of those kingdom of darkness ways. And we have to come out and really come out totally from those ways. So what we said is what we think is where we end up. And we said this: if you can think it, you can have it.
He said over in Mark chapter 9:23, if thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believes. See, if you think on something long enough, you will believe it. Really, you get people who have been lying about their age for a long time and they have lost track of how old they really are. So all you can think it, you can have it.
Miracles and Renewing the Mind
Now what we said is this word "miracles" has to do with the supernatural acts of God that override time, space, and matter. So they are really on a higher level than this natural world, the Bible tells us. Romans chapter 12, verse 2: Be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
So we are saying there are thoughts that Adam could not think until he fell, and now he can think certain thoughts. So what God is trying to do now is saying, My thoughts are not your thoughts. He is not saying do not think My thoughts. He is saying open up, let Me think through you again.
The Battlefield of the Mind
See, He gives you thoughts because we are not sovereign. In other words, we need an overlord. So Satan tried to speak to Eve's mind and got her to believe something that was not true. You got what I am saying? So we have to watch that. This whole mental place—this is the battlefield right here. It really is.
Over in Second Corinthians chapter 10 and verse 3, though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds, casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God.
The Power of Imagination
See, this is Second Corinthians chapter 10, verses 3 through 5. So my point to you is that this whole idea about imaginations is really significant with God. Because He said in Genesis chapter 11 that nothing would be restrained from them which they have imagined to do, and these were not even full gospel businessmen—these were devil worshippers.
You hear what I am saying? So I said, if you can think it, what can you do? You can do it. Or you think it, you can have it. All right, so we have to get our thinking right now.
Thinking Beyond Time for Miracles
The first step to get your thinking right for a miracle is that a miracle has no time. So I cannot think time. So when He came and told Abraham he is going to be a father of many nations, He said, A father of many nations have I made thee—because it was already done.
Eternal life is life that has already been done that you are partaking of on the earth. So everything is already done. See? It is already done. God has already delivered you. God has already made you rich. God has already filled you with joy. It is already done.
Believing You Receive
Then eternal life is partaking of that through something called a spiritual process. Whatsoever things you desire when you pray, just believe you receive them and you shall have them. Now understand you cannot feel a thing. You cannot feel a thing.
And that is why some saints have never gotten there, because they are still trying to feel this thing. You feel me? And so they are trying to feel this thing. And so what they are finding out is, wait a minute, this is not feeling. Because if I can feel it, it is not faith.
Faith Beyond the Five Senses
And if it is not faith, I am not doing anything. So I have to live in what we call the sixth sense. And that is not in some occult way. That means your five senses—eyes, ears, nose, and so forth and so on—have no place in faith. They have no place in faith.
So when I stand on these steps and say we turn in jails, in the boarding schools, I did not ask my flesh, what do you think about that? Because my flesh would have said, I do not know how you are going to do that. My flesh does not know anything. It is just my house used to carry me around.
Walking on Water
But the real me is on the inside, living eternal life—life that is beyond the flesh. Are you following what I am saying? So when Jesus told Peter—Peter said, If that is you walking on water, tell me to come. Jesus said, well, come on.
And he got out of the boat and walked on the water to go to Jesus. Is that not wonderful? Say miracle. That was a miracle. But notice what he did in the middle of that miracle. He took his eye off of Jesus, off the Word, and turned away.
Next thing you know, he started to sink. All right, so I am just saying to you that when you start in that miracle, do not take your eye off that Word until that thing is already done.
Miracles Override Natural Systems
Now let us look at a couple more things here because this idea about your inheritance or your possessions—God, Jesus died to provide for you. These things are for you. But the enemy's job is to keep them from you.
His job is to make you so that you will not fulfill your dominion mandate here, to rule this earth. Now, we said that miracles are so needed because most things that you come in contact with today on the earth take a solution that did not come from this planet.
Receiving Direction from God
I am going to have to get an answer from God. At the time that they said we could not have services in the mall, I said, Lord, what do we do now? Well, He said, go to bed early, wake up early and pray in tongues. So I did that. Amen, brother.
So I did that. And when I did that, God spoke to me and said, go take this particular chapter in Romans. Go read it to the mayor. Now, anybody in that natural mind say, well, now, what is that going to do? You know, the mayor is not ready for a Bible study, and so forth.
Miracles Do Not Take Time
But I cannot apply any logic to that. See, that will keep me down in a place called time. Say amen. And time—one of the things about time is time always needs another treatment. You ever gone in the doctor and said come back in three weeks and another one said take this until you are dead or whatever.
But it always takes time. Miracle does not take time. I said a miracle can happen to you today. I am saying by the time you get in here next week, you can be a millionaire—those who are not millionaires already. Are you following, saints?
Miracles Leave No Trace
I am saying now, these are miracles because they can come all over the place. And I think in the last days, the church is going to be loaded with miracles. Things are going to be happening because it is going to be the year of the miraculous.
They are going to be happening to you almost every day. Things are going to be happening to the saints of God in terms of miracles. Now, the other thing about a miracle is it leaves no trace. Now, this is why the devil really hates it.
I remember my dad, he had to have some surgery. I remember, and I guess he had an ulcer or something. And he really enjoyed showing you his incision—nothing wrong with that. And I thank God for him because for him I probably would not be here.
The Woman with the Issue of Blood
But he really enjoyed it. He said, look, son, this is where they cut me. I did not want to see it. He said, look here, son, this is where they cut me. Are you following? I am saying, but a miracle will not leave an incision or any kind of thing.
Come on now, see a miracle can in a number of hours make you forget your past. This lady had gone to all these physicians and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse. But she heard about the miracle worker.
Now understand she is going to all these doctors, spent all that she had. Now here is what happened when she touched the hem of the miracle worker. Virtue flowed. And when virtue flowed, then she knew in her body she had been healed of that plague.
And she sat down and told Him all the truth. He said, daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole. Now I do not believe that He just made her whole physically. Come on now. I believe everything that had been cut on her body got healed.
All the time that she had been without her husband in intimacy—that got healed. All the time she did not have with her children—that got fixed. All the money that she had spent on hospital bills—that got healed. All the joy that Satan stole—that came back.
Restoration Through Miracles
I am telling you, everything is coming back to you. Everything that has been wrong is going to be made right. Everything that has got a bruise is going to be healed. Come on. Everything that has been stolen is going to be returned.
Everything you missed is going to be brought back again. Boy, that came by the Holy Ghost, right? Woo hoo! Some of you missed opportunities that the devil distracted you when it came by. But guess what? God is bringing it back by. Say restore. Restoration of God.
Overcoming Fear for Miracles
Now let us deal with something because that is what my topic is today. This whole idea of fear. Somebody said fear stands for false evidence appearing real. Second Timothy chapter 1:7—God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind.
Bible even says in Hebrews chapter 2 verse 15, through fear they all their lifetime were kept in bondage because of fear—fear of death. Now let us look at this because it is fear. When a person has fear, what happens? The enemy has a system and the system keeps them under control.
Jesus Calms the Storm
Now here it is, Mark chapter 4 and verses 35 through 41. So they are going to the other side at the command of Jesus, who is following the leading of the Holy Spirit or the Father. And so as they went, Jesus fell asleep.
And here comes a great storm. And this storm is so threatening that these fishermen were saying things like, wake up, Master, we are about to die. All right, so they woke Him up and He spoke to the wind and said to the sea, Peace, be still. And there was a great calm.
Then He turned to them and said, now why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith? Now fear negates your miracle. Now Jesus could work the miracle because He had no fear. Say amen to that.
Delivered from All Fears
Now God wants you to have no fear. Now, when I say no fear, I mean Psalm chapter 34 and verse 4: I sought the Lord, and He heard me and delivered me from all my fears. Come on now. From all my fears.
I may not have a fear of sleeping in a house at night. But somebody may have a fear that they will not get married. Okay, my point to you is, see, whatever you fear, it gives the enemy control. Got it. And God does not want you to have how much fear? No fear. Say no fear. No fear.
Fear Blocks Revelation
What it does also—it causes a system to be in control, but it also blocks revelation. It blocks revelation. Now it can disguise itself because here, the system under your control—what kind of system was about to sink their boat out there going across to the other side? A storm, a weather system.
So he has got systems. He has got an education system. He has got a financial system. Come on. He has got a government, a political system. In other words, Satan uses systems to try to get you in fear and sink your boat.
In other words, he can determine whether you will make it to your destiny or not. But those days are going to be over now, because I am going to give you the knowledge that you need to dismantle the whole system.
Fear in Ministry
Here I was in Minnesota. So it was late at night. We started our little church and I am looking for a message from the Lord. And it is 12:00 at night on Saturday night. And I have to bring something in the morning.
I did not know really what I was doing. We had just started in ministry and so forth. And I am crying to the Lord, Lord, your people need a word, Lord. Now I am doing all of that. I am trying to fool the Lord, but really I am in fear because I am thinking that I may not have anything.
So what does fear do? It blocks revelation. So I said, wait a minute. God said, what are you doing? I said, I am trying to get a word. He said, is that the way you are supposed to come to me? I said, well, no, Sir.
He said, how do you come to me? He said, come boldly. He said, well, why do you not do that? I said, well, in the name of Jesus. And that word just came right through, just like that.
Elisha and the Syrian Army
Now, what am I saying? I am saying here was Second Kings chapter 6, verses 15, 16, and 17, where the Syrian army had surrounded everybody. And now the prophet had surrounded the prophet and his servant Gehazi.
And his servant said, master, what are we going to do now? And the first thing that Elisha said was, Fear not, because fear can block the revelation of what God is trying to show you concerning your deliverance. So fear will try to block it.
Fear in Spiritual Warfare
There is something about it. Anybody with fear in war cannot be trusted. How many of you know you are in the middle of a war? And I remember Matthew 26, and Peter said to Jesus, even though they leave you, me and you will be right there.
Jesus said, okay, Peter, let me give you the truth. Let me give you the real deal. Before the rooster crows when the sun is coming up—before this rooster crows in the morning, you will have denied me three times.
Peter said—I am putting my own words in that. See, I sought the Lord. He heard me and delivered me from all. There are some fears down in there that will not come to the surface until the opportunity comes. It is a spirit. And you are going to get rid of all of them. Well, praise the Lord.