Kenneth Copeland - Jesus Made You Rich
Let's go to the 10th chapter of the book of Mark. Some very very interesting things here that have to do with the traditional idea that Jesus' things here that have to do with the traditional idea that Jesus' ministry was a poor ministry. Couldn't be anything any further from the truth. How many of you are familiar with the tithing scriptures in Malachi? You think Jesus tithed? Well of course he did.
Let's look at some things here in Mark 10 from the beginning of the 17th verse. When he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, "Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life"? Jesus said unto him, "Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is, God. Knowest thou the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honor thy father and mother". And he answered unto him, "Master, all these have I observed from my youth". Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, "One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: come, take up the cross, and follow me". And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions. Jesus looked round about, and...
Well I wanna make one comment here. Did you notice he said come follow me? Do you remember that the only people he said that to turned out to be the apostles? What a replacement for Judas. Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, "How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God"! Now listen. And the disciples were astonished at his words. How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God? And the disciples were astonished. Doesn't sound like a bunch of poor folks to me. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, "Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God"! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God".
And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, "Who then can be saved"? Every man he had was wealthy before he picked them. John and James, sons of Zebedee in the fishing business. Peter and Andrew, Matthew, oh yeah what about Matthew, yeah he's a tax collector brother. That's the reason they hated tax collectors, because they skimming. "You mean Jesus picked a man like that"? Well yeah he picked you didn't he? "But I never done anything like that," well you haven't quit lying have you? This is one of them nights I can already tell. They were astonished out of measure.
Now just a minute, just a minute. Let me show you something here. Hang on a second. Look at verse 10. And in the house, that is Hang on a second. Look at verse 10. And in the house, that is always referring to Jesus' home in Capernaum. Do you remember when all the doctors of the law and so forth came from all different places, and they had to break open the roof? That was Jesus' house. Look it up for yourself, just look up the word Capernaum, and every time he said he went to Capernaum, he's going home.
Now notice this, they were in the house, his disciples asked him again and so forth. So they had just come from the house, his very large home, and they're looking at him and they're thinking, "What? What is this"? Oh I love it. They were astonished out of measure saying among themselves, they didn't say it to him. They said, "Which one of us could even be saved? We got too much money. And besides that, he wouldn't let us even bring any with us. But we've got riches since we've been with him then we were when we started out this thing". He said, "When I told you not to bring anything, did you lack anything"? They said, "No Lord, we lack nothing".
Let me remind of something else. You remember he said, "Sell one of your garments and buy a sword". Can you see somebody selling a garment that's the only one you had for three and a half years? Had to be some pretty nice clothes. If you could sell it. Are you here? You know, amen is allowed. Some of you thinking, "Boy he's off of it tonight. Listen to him talking about rich disciples". Jesus, the only time he became poor was when he went to the cross and bore our poverty. He became poor so that we might become rich. Rich r-i-c-h, rich is a bible word. Amen.
Jesus looking upon them saith, "With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible". Then Peter began to say unto him, "Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee". Jesus answered and said, "Verily I say unto you, there is no man," that means women too, "Nobody that hath left house, brethren, sisters, father, mother, or wife, or children, or lands for my sake and the gospel's. But he shall receive a hundredfold now in this time. Houses," it's alright to have more than one house. "Brethren, Houses," it's alright to have more than one house. "Brethren, sisters, mothers, children," not wives he left the wife part out, "With persecutions".
Now I'm gonna tell you right now if you stand the heat get outta the kitchen brother, because you'll get more persecution over money than anything else, and you want me to tell you why? Because that's the only thing Satan has to cripple the church. He thinks money belongs to him. Jesus has tripped him, hallelujah, and left him a zero. Brought him a not, amen. But he has controlled the preaching of the gospel over the centuries by preaching poverty to the church, and the church bought that lie, and bought it, and bought it, and bought it, and bought it, and bought it. Amen. Hallelujah. Persecution's coming, so brace up, just brace up.
Let me tell you something the Lord said to me, this will help you. Years ago, the Lord said to me, now I've never heard the audible voice of the Lord, I'm open Lord. That same still small voice of your spirit that every born again person has, and anyone can hear it, but you have to develop it, you have to listen for it, you have to be quiet sometimes. Amen. I doubt very very seriously if you're going to learn much about hearing the voice of the Lord driving down the freeway listening to whatever that junk is you listen to on the freeway. Don't be doing that. Amen. Be listening to the Word. You got a phone with an app that'll play the scripture to you, download it, praise God. That's what that thing's for. Boy you don't have any excuse today.
Gloria and I go to bed and listen to Brother Hagen every night on the phone. Oh yeah, yeah. I put the IPad up one night 'cause there was some service there that I wanted to see that he preached. And so I had the Ipad up there in the middle of the bed between the two of us, and we were laying there watching, he began to give the invitation. Well since she and I was already saved, I turned it off. But it was still on. I leaned over there to kiss her good night, she said, "Not in front of Brother Hagen". Hallelujah. You develop hearing the voice of the Lord by reading scripture, you know what you have to have to be scriptural? Scriptures.
For instance, go to the 10th chapter of John, my sheep know my voice, they hear my voice, they follow me. Read that, look at that, put it in your eyes, put it in your mouth, say it with your mouth, get it in your ears, get it down in your heart. I hear the voice of the spirit of God. I hear my Shepard's voice, I hear the great physician's voice, I hear him all the time, because you see he's speaking all the time, you and I've just been so spiritually dense, we weren't hearing it. But practice his presence, practice it and listen, listen, listen, listen, just listen. Lord you got something to say?
The night before I was to register the next day at ORU, scripturally illiterate. Like Gloria said, I was the oldest freshman in the world, 30 years old, I had just turned 30. Boy I remember 30 that was good. Wasn't near as good as 81. I wouldn't go back to being that stupid again for anybody. Not when I'm just as strong now as I was then, well almost I'm getting there. I told Gloria I said, "I don't know what to do here. I could go to the airport and get me a job, but if I get me a job I can't go to school. And I haven't got any money, what are we gonna do Gloria. I'll tell you what, I'm just gonna go in the bedroom there and I don't care if this takes all night long, I'm just gonna obey in there and pray in the spirit. I don't know what else to do".
So I went in there and just fell on the floor and went to praying just as hard and fast as I could in tongues. And I stopped and I thought, "I wonder if I just be quiet here, he'd say something". And it was not that still small voice, it was that still loud voice. "Well it's about time. I haven't been able to get a word in edge wise. Get up on your feet"! Man I jumped up on my feet. He said, "I sent you here, and I'll take care of you here". And he had some other things to say about the ministry. I walked about, I said, "Glory to God"! She said, "What happened to all night long? You ain't been in there but 20 minutes". I said, "I didn't need to be in there no more than 20 minutes, glory to God I got my answer," hallelujah. Thank you Lord.
Rufus Mosey, a great man of faith in earlier part of the 20th century. He said he was in Chicago crying out to God over the meeting they were having and it wasn't going well and all that. And he said he stopped and said, "Huh, here lies the fool that knows nothing doing all the talking to somebody that knows everything". Now that's a fool that knows nothing doing all the talking to somebody that knows everything. Amen. And I'll tell you something else while I'm at it. You have never informed Jesus of anything. But you do have to ask. He already knew it. Amen.
And there's a lot of times he's just sitting there smiling at you saying, "Oh my, oh my. We still got some work to do on her. My goodness. But we can do it". And he just keeps talking to you, just keeps calling you, just keeps raising you up, just loving you, and loving you, and loving you, and loving you, and loving you, and loving you, and loving you. Hallelujah. Thank you Jesus. Thank you Lord Jesus. He shall receive a hundredfold now in this time, in this lifetime, houses, brethren, sisters, mothers, children, lands with persecutions. And in the world to come eternal life. Hallelujah.
Father we thank you tonight for your Word Lord Jesus, we're just so thrilled to hear these things, to know these things. You looked at that rich young ruler and loved him, money and all. Hallelujah. And we are so blessed that you've revealed these things to us. We no longer have to be laboring under just barely enough, just living from paycheck to paycheck, know everybody in the world nearly, but we can be debt free. Oh yeah, thank you Lord for reminding me, I said I was gonna tell you something that really helped me back in the early years.
The Lord said to me, he said, "Kenneth I can't advance your ministry any further". I said, "Why"? He said, "You're too high tempered. Somebody says anything ugly about you, it makes you wanna fight". Now here's what he was talking to me about, is don't hear that. He said, "Don't read anything about yourself in print again ever, good or bad. It takes too long to get the bad stuff outta your mind," and I'd just go to that never ending thing that just goes on and on and on and on, and you have to get rid of it. And he said, "You don't try to get rid of the good stuff, and it's more dangerous than the bad. You get to believing all that good stuff people say and write about you. Don't touch it".
Well I went through crisis after crisis and didn't know it was on. If you'll roll all that care over on Jesus, he'll turn it around for you. Don't pay any attention to what people say about you. Amen. They talking ugly about you anyway. Name it, claim it, blab it, grab it. Oh yeah. I named it, claimed it, blabbed it, grabbed it, and that's the reason I still got it, hallelujah.