Kenneth Copeland - Why Joseph's Faith Worked at Christmas
Kenneth: Welcome everybody to Christmas week 2020. Let's have a word of prayer. Father, we thank you today. Oh my, the greatest event in the history of this universe. The most important thing that has ever happened on Earth. the birth of Messiah, Christ Jesus, Son of the living almighty God. And we are so grateful to You. We thank you for revelation concerning it. Open the eyes of our understanding and give us a wide screen view, of this incident. That is so well-described throughout the Bible, and we thank you for it that Jesus is on every page of this book, the first covenant and the second, it's about Jesus all the way through it. And we thank you, thank you, thank you Jesus. Thank you Holy Spirit. We praise You and thank you this day. Amen. Praise God. Well, Merry Christmas girls, praise the Lord.
Gloria: Thank you, Merry Christmas to you.
Kenneth: And I wanna say this about something we mentioned yesterday. That Jesus said "Your traditions, make the Word of God no effect". So something you have seen all of your life, and you've never heard anything that's any different, and so you wonder, and you wonder, and you well but that's just the way it is. the nativity scene you know, we all know that's the way it was we know there were the three wise men and no they weren't there. they didn't come for roughly two years. And the scripture very well says the young child was in the house, not in the manger. So, you really need, well, what difference does that make? Because there are things in this, that show us the uncanny accuracy of God's Word, what He said and what He has written.
Gloria: And what came to pass.
Kenneth: And always right on time. And all of the first covenant paints the picture of the second, so accurately, just a marvelous thing. Beginning from the very very first.
Gloria: Amen.
Kenneth: Abel, the shepherd, was the one that was killed. I mean you know and Adam's name. Adam is blood. I mean, it's just huh, but this story, the most magnificent of all. So, I want to go back to this in the Gospel of Luke, and where we were yesterday when we closed. The second chapter. "It will come to pass in those days". No, "it know it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed". Now, Micah let's go over there. The Prophet Micah, said in the fifth chapter. "Now, gather thy self and troop oh daughter of troops. He hath laid siege against us. They shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek. But you Bethlehem Ephrathah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah yet out of these shall come forth onto Me, that is be ruler in Israel whose goings forth have been from of old from everlasting".
Gloria: From everlasting.
Kenneth: Bethlehem, Ephrathah, both words are important, but Bethlehem, I mentioned this yesterday, but this is just, it's just 715 years later, "A decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. This taxing was first made, when Quirinius was governor of Syria, and all went to be taxed everyone to his own city, and Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the City of Nazareth unto Judea unto this City of David which is called Bethlehem".
Gloria: Amazing is it.
Kenneth: Yeah see quite God said 715 years before, governed the world. It governed armies, it governed leaders.
Gloria: You know you can learn something from that. Don't give up.
Kenneth: Don't ever give up.
Gloria: On the Word.
Kenneth: Don't ever give up on it.
Kellie: There's something in here that I just saw, in Micah 5, "the people of Israel will be abandoned to their enemies". They went what is it 400 years between a word from God before Jesus came, but He said "Until the woman in labor gives birth, then at last". I mean it keeps talking about the timing of it, but they were abandoned and I'm sure they felt like they were abandoned forever. We can feel that way, in the middle of something, but He's coming He's much quicker now.
Gloria: Don't stop, don't quit.
Kellie: When Jesus came it escalated everything there's no 400 years waiting.
Kenneth: No.
Kellie: Not anymore we have Jesus.
Kenneth: Let's talk about that 400 years. Now, God said to His covenant friend Abraham. "Your people are gonna be in bondage 400 years". Now, they were in bondage 400 years, but then Joseph came, so it was 425 years. They were delivered. The Bible says "They were delivered, on the day, 425 years later they walked out of Egypt". On the day, not yesterday, not tomorrow, on the day. So Joseph had to be where he was, Joseph said that. And he had to be 30 in order to take over second in command of Egypt. Well, see what God said in Micah happened. But all of these different exact days, exact days.
Gloria: Yeah.
Kenneth: Now, we mentioned yesterday that at that moment right there in the Book of Matthew, Joseph had a dream and said get that baby out of here and go to Egypt. Where on Earth did he get the money that it would take, he did not know how long he was gonna be in Egypt, and it had to have been something like two years. Because the Kings of the Orient, three Kings but there are a lot of people. Well, we can rest assured there were three because they brought three gifts. Traditionally that's where that came from. Gold, frankincense and myrrh. But now, I mean you can research it you look it up Google the same as I can. At that time, frankincense and myrrh, whereas worth as much or more than the gold. So here God moved these men, from the Orient, following that star till they found this young child, and they financed their time in Egypt. I tell you that just really fixes it for me.
Gloria: It says to me don't ever give up.
Kenneth: Don't ever give up.
Gloria: Don't quit.
Kenneth: Don't quit ever quit. God has a plan.
Gloria: That's right.
Kenneth: He always has a plan.
Gloria: He'll do it.
Kenneth: He's never without a plan.
Kellie: And you're never abandoned.
Kenneth: And you're never abandoned. Never ever, never ever abandoned. But the key here is to never follow your feelings. Feel abandoned. Well, so what? Well, nobody loves me. You're lying. Jesus loves you more than He loved his own life.
Kellie: He gave you a word they said that.
Kenneth: He said that.
Kellie: And I'll never leave you.
Kenneth: Yeah. More than once it says it through the Bible, He will never leave you, He will never forsake you. In fact, that's one of God's names.
Kellie: In all the things He said to the disciples before He left, He kept saying "I'm saying this to you so you won't feel abandoned". So if you're ever feeling abandoned, just go in there and read what he said. He had a medicine for that.
Kenneth: Yes he did.
Gloria: Another thing about prayer is scripture says "Believe you receive when you pray". Well, that means received means take it, take it when you pray. Now, that if they didn't take it, what they were believing, they'd never made it. I mean if they didn't believe they received it, they weren't acting on the Word.
Kenneth: You know, Gloria.
Kellie: It's good Mom.
Kenneth: Of course this would not have happened but these things are types. What if Joseph would have said, "Now, wait a minute. No, we can't accept that".
Gloria: That's too much.
Kenneth: "That's too much. And the first place, we don't accept anything that I don't earn". I mean I'm the father of this family, and so I take care of my own 'cause, you know, I'd be worse than an infidel if I didn't. No, no, no, no, no, he received, it was one step after another, he had no idea what was gonna happen and God didn't speak it to him, he got it in a dream. Well, now I wonder if that's from God. I know you can sit around there and die wondering if something from God. Or you can just like Abraham, God said it, he got up and did it.
Gloria: You know another thing is the Bible doesn't say believe it when you have a dream, says "Believe you receive when you pray".
Kenneth: That's right.
Gloria: And that's what we do. And that's what works.
Kenneth: It's drawn down to that narrow walk of faith. And faith comes from the knowledge that God loves you.
Gloria: Yeah.
Kellie: Yeah, I think there's a little space where people miss it, is not that they don't have faith in God. Like especially people that have put the Word in and He's speaking to them and but the little niche of, was that me or was that God, not about their didn't have faith in God, but their faith in God stopped short of Him being able to overcome our mistakes. I feel like we have to not be afraid we're gonna miss it, 'cause He'll fix it if we're after Him, He can fix that, if we missed it.
Kenneth: That's right.
Kellie: So I learned that from you, you said "Why are you afraid you're gonna miss it, you're not miss it". One time I was struggling with something he goes, you looked at me like I was crazy. You said "You're not gonna miss it". And somehow I'm like, "Oh yeah" Instead of relying on our mistakes.
Kenneth: It makes a difference if you do miss it, but you don't need to be afraid to miss it.
Kellie: He'll fix it.
Kenneth: He, the Lord began to deal with me back in the very early days of this ministry. I didn't know all that much about the gifts of the Spirit. But I know now what was the word of knowledge, just began to work just immediately. But I was afraid to speak it out. And the Lord kept dealing with me about to speak that out. He said "What do you gonna do about this"? Well, there's no use, hey, there's no use trying to con Him around. He already knows". I said, "I don't plan to do anything about it". He said "Why"? I said, "Because I might make a mistake and I don't wanna stand up there and say 'Thus sayeth the Lord' and make some kind of mistake". He said, "Kenneth you're making the biggest mistake you could make now, because you're afraid to fail". "Am afraid to fail," yeah He said, "You're afraid to fail. And you're gonna fail". But He said, "I can handle that, what I can't handle is your disobedience". Oh, okay and there were times that I got off a little bit, and the Lord wouldn't correct me and I said well "Now just back up here a little bit, I was about to miss it". You just need to be open with the people, and with Him, and be willing to be willing and just keep walking one day at a time. And not be afraid of Him and not be afraid of the devil.
Kellie: He's too big for me to miss it.
Kenneth: Oh Yeah.
Kellie: Because when I'm after Him, He knows how to be heard. He knows how to be heard by me. But if my heart is after Him, how am I not gonna hear? And of course He's gonna have to train us along the way. But that's really important I think 'cause people think well I have faith in God but I don't know if I heard, like Joseph could have said, "Was that a dream? Was that just me"?
Kenneth: That's what I was explaining.
Kellie: That's what you were saying but I think that's really a sticking point sometimes that's been that is the very thing causing people to not have their victory is the hesitancy to believe in themselves but just believe in Him.
Kenneth: There's nothing wrong with questioning that dream. But you question it, in the presence of God.
Kellie: That's good.
Kenneth: And you say "Lord I know that it was a dream, but it was so vivid. It's just like you were there, but I'm not acting on anything until I can point to the scripture where that dream fits. And if don't know yet, I just put it on the shelf till I do". There's not anything unless it's a dire emergency, but you're not gonna have a dream to fix a dire emergency, I mean, life and death thing, that's totally different. But you have time to pray about it in the Spirit. You have time to meditate on it, meditate the words and say now, how does that affect my life? As you do that, the Spirit of God will be, continue to begin to talk to you about that dream, and to show you things about that dream. I had a dream right before the turn of 2020 and 2019. Talking about this year. I had no way of knowing COVID-19 was on the way. No way, but He said it's gonna be a year of great change. My goodness, the greatest change that's ever happened in modern times to the whole world. But think about what happened. Here we are at the end of this year. And for the first time in centuries, the canals of Venice are clear and clean, and there's no smog over Los Angeles.
Kellie: And He's removing sin out of people's lives and hearts.
Kenneth: Yeah so but back to the point.
Gloria: Could I say something.
Kenneth: Surely.
Gloria: That scripture that tells us to believe we receive when we pray, that settles the issue. Now, if I'm going to believe I receive when I pray I can't start getting in unbelief. I believed I've received, and I have to hang on to that. Now, anybody can do that, especially if they have knowledge of the Word and how it works.
Kenneth: That's right.
Gloria: And I think that is a key to the everything.
Kellie: It's good.
Gloria: That you don't quit that word "receive" means take. You take it when you pray, and it seems like it's easier for us to get hold of that. You take it when you pray, and you don't let go of it. You don't say I'm not gonna get it, you don't say it's not working, I've taken it, I prayed, I have it, it's mine I won't let go of it.
Kenneth: Yeah. Whether we go to Egypt, or whether we go somewhere else, no He's taking care of me. He's supplied for me, and am gonna do what He says.
Gloria: That's the way operate.
Kenneth: And I've come to that place, where I've meditated on this, and I know what the scripture says about it, and I'm not turning loose of it.
Gloria: Yes, it's that way.
Kellie: He's made us too many promises.
Gloria: Praise God.
Kenneth: So but, that's of course the key.
Gloria: Yeah that's where faith comes from.
Kenneth: This is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit manifested in the Earth. And first covenant and the second. It's all about Jesus.
Gloria: Right.
Kenneth: The first covenant and the second is all about us.
Gloria: Praise God.
Kenneth: 'Cause Jesus is all about us. And we're all about Him. I remember on a very very precious young woman, good friend of ours. And she died and went to Heaven. And Jesus met her there, I mean she was clinically dead, I mean she was in the hospital and just died. And, Oh you know, her Janny Grein, Janny wrote so many of the songs that are sang in the early days and she and Bill anyway, precious people, both of them in Heaven now. But Jesus told her that she'd have to go back. And she's standing there watching Him walk away. He stopped turned around and looked at her and said, "Janny you don't owe me anything". What! Owe Him my existence? No, it was a gift. He said you don't owe me anything. It was a gift. I gave myself. And now like Gloria is saying, you're gonna have to take that.
Gloria: Yeah
Kenneth: You have to take that gift. I don't know whether I can take that or not. You better.
Gloria: That's just the way you know it...
Kenneth: Well I just couldn't, no don't start that. Take it, right then it's a gift.
Gloria: You know you can get in your car, you can have a finest car, you can get in your car and sit there all day long. But if you don't turn the key on, you're not going anywhere.
Kenneth: That's right.
Gloria: And that's a key that believe you received when you pray.
Kenneth: You know this brings up something that right into all of this whole story. Because everybody involved in this story did exactly their part and then did exactly what they were led to do and got right there at exactly the right time. Now, let's bring in faith is so simple, I remember Charles Capps say, "Faith is so simple you have to have help to misunderstand it".
Gloria: That's true.
Kenneth: And I heard Brother Hagin, say this again and again, and it is this simple. It is this simple. Faith is not of the mind. It is of the Spirit, the heart, why is it the heart? Because it is not your physical heart, your spirit being the heart of man, the hidden man of the heart, the central focus of the life. The simple difference. I think I'll go to the store. That's nothing, you could start and not and you don't have any commitment to it I mean, you're just thinking.
Gloria: Maybe I will maybe, maybe I will.
Kenneth: Maybe I will maybe I won't, probably won't, you know, but I believe I'm going to the store.
Gloria: That changes...
Kenneth: And then you get thinking, yeah, I'm going to the store, and I need to go right now. I believe I'm gonna go to the store, you're believing. You're not there yet.
Kellie: But you're putting new shoes on.
Kenneth: Yeah, I mean you're moving.
Gloria: You're committed.
Kenneth: You're moving.
Gloria: Yeah.
Kenneth: It's the same thing. Now when you first begin, like when Gloria and I first began. And when you first began, we didn't know much. I don't know a whole lot now but I know a whole lot more than I did 54 years ago. But why? Because I live it every day.
Gloria: Yeah.
Kenneth: We do it every day. We walk, we live by faith.
Gloria: We did.
Kenneth: And we practice it every day, we talk about it every day. It's just part of...
Gloria: The other thing we do, we don't say anything different.
Kenneth: No don't.
Gloria: Then what we're believing.
Kenneth: And we're out of time. And it's only Tuesday. Christmas day is Friday. Come on, come on Friday.
Gloria: Merry Christmas to us.
Kenneth: Hey, Gloria and Kellie and I'll be back in just a moment.