Kenneth Copeland - Correction Comes Before Healing
Turn with me please, first of all, to 2 Timothy 3. Now, I notice he begins this know also. Well, nobody starts with a sentence like that they walk up there and this know also. No. So back up. He began talking about... There's correction here. Verse 20 in a great house, there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and of earth. Some to honor, some to dishonor. If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor, sanctified and meet or useful for the Master's use and prepared under every good work, flee youthful lust, but follow righteousness.
Now, to whom is he writing? Pastor Timothy, correct? This young pastor is undoubtedly under pressure. He needs his spiritual father. The great Apostle Paul, because the Apostle John and Mary, the mother of Jesus is in his congregation. And he said, don't let people despise you. Easy for you to say so you're not here. So he begins to talk about things that gender strife verse 24, the servant of the Lord must not strife, but to be gentle unto all men, apt to teach patience, maintenance, instructing those that impose, that oppose themselves. If God per adventure, or perhaps will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth, that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil who are taking captive by him at his will. Strife is a nasty thing. And it will really get you into trouble. It is just not worth it. This know also that in the last days, perilous times shall come.
Well, they're here, for men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy without natural affection and trucebreakers, false accusers un-continuant, or unable to restrain or contain themselves. Fierce... Now, see that comma? You realize there's no commas in Greek. Fierce accusers of those that are good. The fierce about it. Fierce accusers of those that are good. That didn't take you long to think, think through that a little bit. It happens right here in the United States. Now, traders, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasure, more than lovers of God having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof from such turn away for of this sort are they, which creep into houses, lead captive, silly women laden with sins led away with divers lusts, you see how lust plays into all of this, ever learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses so do these all resist the truth, men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith, but they shall proceed no further for their folies shall be manifest unto all men as theirs also was, but thou has fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, long suffering, charity, patience, persecution, afflictions, which came under me at Antioch, Iconium and Lystra what persecutions I endured, but out of them, all the Lord delivered me so there was no more thorn in the flesh. People read that like it was something he had the rest of his life. Well, I believe he had bad eyes. No, it says a messenger of Satan sent. And he just said, I asked the Lord to get rid of him three times. And he was said, my grace is sufficient enough. Well, this is the same man in the sixth chapter of Ephesians wrote, we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but principalities and powers, rulers of the darkness of this world, wicked spirits in the heavenly.
Well don't tell me he didn't know something about the devils. He did know. And if you take time to read that correctly in your Bible, you find out that thorn in the flesh was his worry about all of the churches. That's what the care was. Jesus used the same thing, the cares of this world entering in. Anyway, continuing the things which you have learned, been assured of knowing of whom you have learned them and that from a child, you have known the holy scriptures, which are able to make you wise under salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture... Say it. All scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof or for correction, for instruction in righteousness that the man of God may be perfect or complete, thoroughly furnished under all good works. I charge you, therefore, preach the Word. I don't care if Jesus' mother there preach the Word. I don't care if the Apostle John's on the front row preach the Word. In season and out.
Now what is that saying to that young pastor? That is saying to him, if you will preach the Word, it will do the correcting. If you will preach the Word, the Word will do the correcting. Praise God. Now, turn with me, you're going hear some answers today, to 1 Peter 2. Glory be to God. Now I have been guilty of this myself. Go over and read Isaiah 53. Well, why start there? It starts in 52, goes all the way through 53 and then 54. And you find out what happens to Jesus that this visage, his appearance was marred more than any man. He no longer looked human. It began... They beat him to a pole. He didn't even look human when they hung him on that cross. Then he continued, then his spirit went into hell. Anyway. And just jump right down here, who his own self bore our sins in his own body on the tree.
Now wait a minute. How many times have you read that scripture and kept failing to get results? I don't want to count the times. Could be, probably is some correcting needed to take place. Let me give you another for instance, and sometime or other, we'll probably get up before these meetings are with we'll get there. The book of James is laid out like this. Correction, correction, be a doer of the Word, not hearers only, your faith needs corresponding action. And you go to all on the way till you get to the fifth chapter. And then it talks about healing. All the correction comes first. You start out any man lacks wisdom, let him ask of God. No, that in the way it started, it said count it all joy. Now, if you're not going to do that, forget just to close your Bible, forget the fifth chapter where you're supposed to get healed.
Well, where is joy? Are you born again? Yeah. Were you do too. No, I don't either. Yes you do. No, I don't. Yes you do. No, I don't. Well, what is the fruit of the spirit? Well, there's love, oh. That's joy it all about. Well, what did you read over in the book of Nehemiah? No, that's not what it says. It says they were grieving and then they told them stop grieving because the joy of the Lord is your strength. I've done the same thing. I've started towards the joy is the Lord is my strength. Go back over there and read about the joy of the Lord before you start jumping around. Hallelujah. There's not anything wrong with that. But what I'm saying, we get over into the joy of the Lord's my strength and it becomes a cliche. You need to put your eyes on it and read around it. That joy. They had to make a decision that the joy of the Lord was their strength because they were grieving. Hallelujah.
So, instead of jumping right to verse 24, let's go back to the 25th verse of the first chapter. But the Word of the Lord endures forever. And this is the Word which by the gospel is preached to you where for laying aside all malice, well. Laying aside all malice, that company, I don't even know what malice is. Well, it ain't good. Lay it aside, whatever it is. Open your iPads. Isn't that strange? All right, I'm going to read these from the New King James so I'd like for you to just listen. Laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evils speaking as newborn babies desire the pure milk of the Word that you may grow thereby. There's far too many Christians that don't even get warm milk. Just rehash the same old problem over and over and over again, not in this church.
So when church is like this, and meetings like this, and those of us that live in these circles, we are responsible for a lot because we call ourselves Word people, people of faith and people say that about us as if it's a slanderous thing. Ooh, man, it tickles me when they say I'm a Word, man. Yeah, I'm a Word, bird. And Bill you remember when we used to be tape worms? I've gone back to my cassette tapes. I got tired of listening to those CDs and you can't stop them do anything with them. I got a treasure trove of cassette tapes. Amen. Coming to him as a living stone rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God a precious, you also, as living stones are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Therefore, it is also contained in the scripture behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone elect precious and he who believes on him will by no means be put to shame.
Well, there's a lot of things here before we ever get down to the healing part. A stone of stumbling, a rock of offense. They stumble being disobedient to the Word, to which they also were appointed. You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, his own special people that you may proclaim the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light, who once were not a people, but are now the people of God who had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. Beloved I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims abstain from fleshly lust, which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evil doers, they may, by your good works, which they observe glorify God in the day of visitation, therefore submit yourselves. Are you listening to this? Are you reading it? You're reading it along with me? Are you seeing that?
Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man, but don't stop there for the Lord's sake. Not yours. For the Lord's sake. Or to governors as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evil doers and for the praise of those who do good. Now all of this is for the Lord's sake. For this is the will of God that by doing good, you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men as free yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God honor the people for the Lord's sake. Love the brotherhood for the Lord's sake. Fear God for the Lord's sake. Honor the king. Honor the king. Whether you like it or not, whether you like him or not for the Lord sake, honor him. Honor the president. Honor him. Didn't say anything about liking his politics, but he's there.
And in 1 Timothy 2, we are told to enter seed and with prayers of supplication, we're all men for kings and all that are in authority for this is good in the side of God, our savior, who would have all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth, that there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus who gave his life as a ransom for all to be testified of in due time. And we are words of that testimony. Now let me get back over here. That 18th verse servants be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good in general, but also to the harsh. This is commendable if because conscience toward God, one endures grief, suffering wrongfully for what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently. But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God.
Look at that 21st verse, for to this, you were called because Christ also suffered for us leaving us an example that you should follow. Leading an example for us to follow. This has a way of kind of getting on your skin. Leading an example you can recall because Christ also suffered for us leaving us as an example that you should follow in his steps, who committed no sin nor was deceit found in his mouth, who ... now we're supposed to act like this. So if we commit sin, what do we do? Repent right now. I mean, don't even think about it. Just repent right on the spot. If you have, you're looking at some person and you said something, you said, no, wait a minute. Wait a minute. No, I just lied to you. I hadn't said that a thousand times. I said it three times. I just lied.
What are you doing? Correcting. You're correcting yourself. You're judging yourself. Who when he was reviled did not revile in return? When he suffered, he did not threaten, but committed himself to him who judges righteously, who himself bore our sins in his own body on the tree that we having died to sin might live for righteousness. By who stripes you were heal. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the shepherd and overseer of your souls. There was a lot of correction there before you ever got down to the healing.