Kenneth Copeland - Faith Calls the Promises of God to You
The Gospel is in the book of Romans. It's all in there. "And even as they did not retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind". What was that? "Who changed the truth of God into a lie and worship and serve the creature more than the creator who is blessed forever. Amen. For this cause, God gave them up to vile affections for even their women did change the natural use and to that which is against nature and likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman burned in their lust toward one another. Men with men working that which is unseemly and receiving in themselves the recompense of their error. And even as they did not retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind or a mind void of judgment".
There it is. Right there. I won't go into any more of that, but I can point out a lot of things that, anyway, the fourth chapter. Maybe the Lord will release me sometime to go into some of them. Verse one, "What shall we say then that Abraham our father as pertaining to the flesh hath found? For if Abraham are justified by works, he hath wherefore the glory, but not before God. For what saith the scripture, Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him for righteousness". He believed him. And that very same day he went and did. Here's a man a hundred years old, as I mentioned it before. That same day he was circumcised. He bled into that covenant. It doesn't say how long it was before he could walk, but Isaac was born and that was the contradiction. The covenant and the contradiction. No way that old man, old man you don't count. Old woman you don't either. But only that which God has said. Changed his name. Changed hers. A-I to Sarah. Hallelujah.
"Now to him that works the reward is not of grace, but of debt. But to him that works not, but believes on him that justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also described the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputes righteousness without work saying". Now here's what David said, "Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven and whose sins are covered". Well, how did he know? But he had just come running back to God and he'd write Psalms about it. He wrote the 22nd Psalm. Read it in the Classic Amplified. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And it goes through there all the way through it describing hell and it's closed with it is finished. Then he wrote the 23rd Psalm. He's my shepherd. Though I pass through the valley of the shadow of death. He did that hanging on the cross. Now Paradise at that time, it was in the upper regions. It was a protected region ever since Adam fell. And Jesus talked about being in the bosom of Abraham where Lazarus was there and the rich man was in hell. And he said, "Son, remember"?
So his memory was intact in hell. And there wasn't a thing in the world he could do about it. That's what makes hell, hell. Amen. But then he led captivity captive. And they're all watching what's going on. It's going on right down there. They're in the upper regions here. They're seeing all of this. And of course, they're in the Spirit. There is no time nor distance in the realm of the Spirit, but you can feel. It's hot and it's real. Jesus said, "Hell was made for the devil and his angels". I don't have time to go into angel part, but later maybe. Can you imagine David? He's shouting. He's using my stuff. I wrote that and here he is defeating hell itself on my songs. He was called the son of David. Oh, that's a mile wide and an eternity deep. It's precious. So now we're here. Now watch this. I've not done yet. "He received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of faith, which he had yet being uncircumcised".
See, he believed God before he was circumcised, then circumcision was part of it. He believed him all the time. "Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision. He received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith, which he had yet being uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised, but righteousness might be imputed unto them also. And the father of circumcision to them who are not of circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of Abraham, the father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised". That was when it was more important. He walked by faith. "For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of none effect, because the law worketh wrath, for where no law is, there's no transgression. Therefore..." and Brother Hagin say, when you see a therefore, see what it's there for.
"Therefore, it is of faith so that it might be by grace to the end that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not to that only which is of the law. But to that also, which is of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all. As it is written," Genesis 17 and five was cross-referenced. "As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations before him," it's a little number there, or like unto him, so he did this like him in front of him.
"Even God, who quickeneth makes alive the dead and calleth those things which be not as though they were, who against hope believed in hope that he might become the father of many nations according to that which was spoken. So shall thy seed be. Being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead when he was about a hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb. He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strong in faith, giving glory to God, being fully persuaded that what he had promised, he was able also to perform it. Therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, but for us also to whom it shall be imputed if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was delivered for our offenses and raised again for our justification".
Call on things that be not as though they were. That's where Christian people have more problems. I've heard it said, well, I just can't support that Word of Faith anymore. Well, I just don't think it makes any difference much what you say. That's what Jesus said. Yeah, but you better get your "yeah, but" out of the way. That'll get you killed. Because when you said it, it just opened the door for the devil to run rampant in your life because you already have heard it and you have made a decision that you're not going to watch your mouth anymore and he'll stick your mouth full of death and bring all kinds of stuff your way unless of course you repent. And the more you know, the more you're held responsible for. Amen.
Charles Capps drew an upside down triangle like this. And we're down here. And he said things that were in the will of God here, he's going this way and you're going this way. And the more you know, the more you're responsible for not following that line and staying with him by staying in the book. Well, I'm a little too busy. Then you're too busy. You're too busy. I get really busy, really get going, but it didn't make any difference. That says no excuse whatsoever. You better get that book and spend some time in it. Amen. I have a treasure trove in our media room upstairs. You go back behind the screen and it's a back screen projector and you can sit out in front. It's a large screen. And back there, albums. I'm talking about albums, cassette tapes of Kenneth Hagin. Seminar after seminar after seminar. Did you know they're beginning to make cassette players again? I have one.
Now some of the old tapes are stuck. You have to be careful with them. They kind of hang up. But you can send them to the office and put them over on CDs. And I have a lot of it in my phone. I listened to that message, God, The Covenant And The Contradiction. I don't know how many times calling things that be not as though they were. I listened to it and I listened to it and I listened to it and I listened to it and I listened to it until it got so strong in me that sometimes it just comes out. I call my body well. I call my body well. Thank You, Jesus.
Now Charles Capps put it like this. Don't call the cat when you want the dog. The Lord told him, he said, "My people are calling things like they are and it doesn't change anything". He said it just causes more. And he'd go through that and he'd say, "Here dog, come here dog. Come here dog". Somebody said, "Isn't that your dog laying right there"? "Well, yeah, but I'm calling the dog". "What's the matter with you"? "No, I got it wrong". He said, "I'm calling. Isn't that your dog laying at your feet? He's calling the cat". He said, "I want the cat, but I need to call things like they are. So I call the dog and he's here. I really want the cat". You're going to have to call the cat, but the cat's not here. I know it, but you're going to have to call the cat to get the cat to come here. No, I call it like it is. The dog's here. And I've heard some people say, "I finally get it".
This is where people have the hardest time with that concept. So finally, I did it like I did most things. I demonstrated to myself, I call things that be not as though they were. As though they were. Yeah. I call things that be not as though they were. I keep calling things that be not as though they were. I call things that be not and though they were, and now they are. Or you could put it like this. I'm calling things that be not as though they were. And by doing so, it turned me around and there it is. But what you have to watch is to stay in love. We walk in love. That is our commandment. So fear is faith. It's a spiritual force, so it's faith. It's the opposite. Fear is faith in storms, snakes, poverty, people. So you're into that same area. So some person is, we walk in love. Perfected, developed love casteth out fear, for fear has torment.
You know where that is, in 1 John. So I'm on the love line. And this is what Jesus is talking about. There is a narrow way and most people never find it. And it is that love walk. You're walking here. Oh, the devil's right there. You got out of love. You better repent because he's right there. Let's go over to 1 John. Fifth chapter of 1 John. This is powerful. "Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God. Everyone that loves him that begat loves him also that is begotten of him. And this we know, we love the children of God when we love God and keep his commandments. For this is loving God that we keep his commandments. His commandments are not grievous. Whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world and this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith".
So then you hear that on Victory News all the time. Well, 4:4 says, "We are of God, little children, and overcome them because greater is he that's in you than he that's in the world". Now come on down here in this fifth chapter. Verse 13, "These things have I written unto you that you believe on the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you may have intimate relationship with, that you may know that you have eternal life, that you may believe on the name of the Son of God. This is the confidence that we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will or according to his Word, we, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him. If any man see his brother sin, a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death. I do not say that he shall pray for it".
And we don't have time tonight. It's not the right place for it. I've taken and show you exactly what it is, but "I do not say that he should pray for it. All unrighteousness is sin. And there is a sin not unto death. We know whosoever's born of God sinneth not. Whosoever is born of love doesn't..." Well, here, wait a minute. "We know absolutely that anyone born of God does not deliberately and knowingly practice committing sin, but the one who is begotten of God carefully watches over and protects him. Christ divine's presence within him preserves him against the evil and the wicked one does not lay hold or get a grip on him and touches him not".
That was worth the whole night. He can't touch you. How many times I've used that. Mr. Devil, I want to remind you of something. You're a defeated foe. I can prove it in the book of Hebrews, particularly in the second chapter. He brought you to naught. For you had the power of death and you no longer have it. All that's left of you is a lie. I am a tither, a prompt, hilarious giver. I read that to him. You touch me... You take your hands off me right now in the name of Jesus.