Kenneth Copeland - Receive Your Victory
In 2023, you'll know the truth and the truth will make you free. This is truth. It's not a truth, it is the truth. You agree with that? Because this is a manifestation of God. Thank You Lord Jesus. All right, let's go back over there to the Book of Numbers once more in the 23rd chapter and the 19th verse. Oh, you got to love this. "God is not a man that he should lie, neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good"? He will make it good. And that's why his spirit is in the earth today. That's why he's here, is to make it good. For anybody that will believe it.
Now Jesus laid down the framework for it in the eighth chapter of John's Gospel. Now he's teaching and preaching. We talked yesterday about the woman that was caught in the very act of adultery. He didn't condemn her. And he just acted like he didn't hear them at all and just wrote on the ground. Didn't even look up and they kept on asking and asking and asking and asking and he didn't pay any attention to them. But then he talked to them in the 44th verse. He said, "You're of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do". Mm hmm. Now, for he is a liar and the father of it.
Now we have the drastic comparison, so look at this. "As he spake these words, many believed on him. And he said to those Jews, which believed on him, If you continue in my Word, then are you my disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free". Verse 37. "I know that you're Abraham Seed, but you seek to kill me because my Word hath no place in you". Why? Well, verse 36, "If the Son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed". Didn't he say, you're of your father the devil and he's a liar.
All right let's go over here now to the 14th chapter of John. Now, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17th chapters of John are in the last Passover meal. I like to call it the Passover meal that changed heaven and earth forever because he went right out of that meal into the Garden of Gethsemane. And it all started right then. And you want to know something? That's when we were made free, because we know from the Word of God. We know from what Peter preached and the other scriptures. We know from what Jesus said that he had been in the heart of the earth three days and three nights.
Now, that doesn't work with Friday, Saturday and Sunday. John said it was a High Sabbath which began on Wednesday. So it began Wednesday night and he came out early Sunday morning. The moment, class that he was raised from the dead, we were free, but we had to receive it. He bore our sins in his own body on the tree that we being dead to sins, should live under righteousness by whose stripes we were healed, Hallelujah. Well, that's never changed.
Now how do we deal with that? Well, right here in this 14th chapter, I want you to look here. "Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me. In my father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself. That where I am, there you may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither you go; and how can we know the way"?
Here it is. "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works".
And that same Father is dwelling in us today. And if he's not dwelling in you right now, this is the time to fix it. This is it. Jesus did all the hard part. He made it just as easy as he could possibly make it. He went to hell and suffered there. He bore our sins in his own body, on the tree that we being dead to sin should live under righteousness or in right standing with God by whose stripes we were healed. God's never changed. It's down to the receiving of him as Lord and Savior. That's where the victory is. Hallelujah. So let's look over here in first John, and take a look for ourselves. Look in this fifth chapter, "Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God:"
How many in here believe that? Let me be first to answer. "and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God", one translation says this is loving God, "that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous. For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God"?
Hallelujah. This is it. So do you believe that? Say, "yes". I'm talking to you. Yeah. Amen. He's done the hard part. He went to hell so you don't have to go. He bore your sins in his own body on the tree, glory to God. And forgiveness of sin is readily available. Amen, because this is a covenant we have with him. These are blood covenants here, and this is in his blood. Amen. So just accepting. Just say:
Lord, come into my heart. I receive you now as my Lord and my Savior. I see here from the Word that you bore my sins in your own body on the tree. That I being dead to sin should live in right standing with God. And by your stripes I was healed. I take it and I receive it now.
Glory to God. So what is that? Well, let's go to the third chapter of the book of John. We're talking about, you know, the truth and the truth will make you free. Now, Nicodemus was ruler of the Jews, and he came to Jesus in the night. And here in this 6th verse he's talking to this very high authority man, and he said in the 13th verse, "And no man hath ascended up to heaven," or died and gone to heaven. "but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life".
Now, here it is. Are you listening to Jesus? You're not listening to me. Listen to him, this is written in red, "For God so loved the world, God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved".
Now, listen, here we are again you remember, he said, "You know the truth, the truth will make you free". "But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God". Comes to the light. I see that like a little cork, a little bobber, and it gets hung up and it's all the way down there to the bottom of where you're fishing. Just snip that line, it'll come right to the top, that's truth. He that does it and you just did the truth by accepting him as your Lord and savior, he so loved the world, you and I are part of that world. Glory to God, it's shouting time in the class today. Praise God, isn't this book, it's a precious thing. So now Jesus said, "I am the truth. I'm the way. I'm the truth. And I am the life".
Let's go to the 10th chapter of John, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber". He'll steal at night if he can but he'll pull up a gun on you, thief and a robber. "But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers".
So Jesus is teaching here, now look at that seventh verse, "Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. I am. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved," You just entered in, "shall be saved and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly". Now the Classic Amplified says, "I have come that they might have life have it till the full, until it overflows, overflowing life", hallelujah. "I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd gives his life for the sheep". Hallelujah.
Now, John 7:28. "Then cried Jesus in the temple as he taught, saying, Ye both know me, and ye know whence I am: and I am not come of myself, but he that sent me is true, whom ye know not. But I know him: for I am from him, and he hath sent me". He is true, now here's something I want to talk about. No, before we do that, let's go to the prayer he prayed in the 17th chapter. We're back over there in that last Passover meal. Now in the 20th verse, "Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also, which believe on me through their word". Well, we're reading from John. Then we've read from Peter. We read from John and Mark, who is Peter's son in the spirit. So we heard from Peter there, glory to God.
So here we are, now verse 15, "I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through thy truth: thy Word is truth. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me"
And when I first read that I was a student there at Oral Roberts University and I had just learned about the prayer of agreement from Brother Hagin. So I thought I'm going to agree with everything Jesus prayed here, I didn't realize this is all at last supper, I didn't know that then. And so I got down to that he loved me as much as he does Jesus and it frightened me to even pray that. And I said, but it's written in red and I was walking around holding my Bible up in the living room in that little house and it's just walking around and I just kept saying that, I just kept saying and kept saying it. And I noticed in my mind I didn't want to say that. But I mean, my spirit just rose up on the inside of me. And I kept saying it. And finally I kept saying, God loves Kenneth, God loves Kenneth. And a revelation of the fact that God loved me and that his mercy endures forever for me. Hallelujah. And it just really, it really, I knew the truth at that moment, and it literally made me free. Thank You, Jesus. Oh, praise God.
Now the written Word is truth. This is what God said, we saw that over in the book of Numbers. Then the apostle Paul said literally the same thing. And this is truth. Now I've heard this and you've heard this. The written Word is the truth, it is not a truth. Jesus said, "You will know the truth and the truth will make you free". It has the same authority as God. It has the same authority as his blood. It has the same authority as his name, when it's backed with his name. Amen. So if you continue reading in that 10th chapter of John or excuse me, the eighth. No, the 10th. You just keep reading that. Oh, it just get gooder and gooder, and then he said, "And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again".
That other bunch is us, we had to come in, but he had to go to the cross to get us. He was the only begotten Son of God back when he was speaking to Nicodemus, but then we read now he's the firstborn from the dead to bring many sons to glory. His family. Praise God. Hallelujah. And that's the truth of that. But now you hear people say, "Well, this is my truth". Well, my truth is, it's my body and my choice. Well, that's probably true. That is your truth it's not God's. Well, my truth is, I just don't want to bring this child into the world, into this old, bad world and now you're lying. Or maybe that's what you have been told and believe. I don't know, because I don't know you. But you have a choice. Now, I know a couple personally. Very, very sweet and good friends of mine, and they have honored me to call me their spiritual dad. And they have a little boy. I'm telling you, he looks like them. And we have 30 seconds but I get this in. They were there when that child was born. Took that child and handed it to her. That baby lives today and God is blessed and so is the woman. She's not a murderess. And we're out of time. We'll be back in just a moment.