Sunday sermon by Pastor Rajesh Mathew, Cornerstone church, 2 Jan 2022

A Sunday Sermon Joshua 3:4-4 Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure. Do not come near it, that you may know the way by which you must go, for you have not passed this way before.”

• This is a way you have not passed this way before. Have you gone through 2022 before?

The Holy Spirit threw light on this- “You are going to walk a walk that you never have walked, seen or heard thus far (for as old as you are now). A completely new way, an adventurous way! God is going to make you walk in a new way! A year where you will

inherit your promises, a way that will take you across the Jordan, a way towards your destiny. A way you have never walked on before

A way of miracles, a way of the Lord’s glory, a way of the Lord’s Presence and Healing; A way of My goodness”, says the Lord May the Holy Spirit’s fire bear witness with your spirit that you will experience this in 2022!

Those who never did business earlier will do business. God is opening doors of business foryou!

Those who are already involved in some business, God will open a way even through that business into something new.

Joshua 3:3, 3 and they commanded the people, saying, “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the priests, the Levites, [b]bearing it, then you shall set out from your place and go after.

• You don’t know the way. But there is One who knows the way and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. He Himself is the way, the truth and the life. The ark signifies the Presence of God in the Old Testament. You need to look at the ark. You need to follow after the presence of God. Keep looking at the ark, keep focusing on Jesus; where is His presence leading you? where is the Presence of God making you turn? Where is His presence shifting?

When you go after His Presence, the direction of your life will change, it will become the direction of heaven!

• Receive it! Look at the ark and walk! Only look at pastors too! You only need to look at the Presence of Jesus.
• Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and allthings shall be added unto you. None of us who look to Him shall ever be put to shame.

THE WAY OF GLORY

• As a pillar of fire and a cloud at day time, it was under this presence that the manna kept falling.

In the glory way, there is all the provision you need, all the goodness you need.

• Are you ready to gather? Are you ready to pick up the manna every morning? The Lord will send across the blessing you need.
• When you walk on this way, don’t complain and murmur.

There is a password to walk on this way. What is the password to experience every blessing in your life?

Psalm 100:1-4 (MSG Bible)-On your feet now - applaud God! 2 Bring a gift of laughter, sing yourselves into his presence. 3 Know this: God is God, and God, God. He made us; we didn't make him. We're his people, his well-tended sheep. 4 Enter with the password: "Thank you!" Make yourselves at home, talking praise. Thank him. Worship him.

1. APPLAUD GOD! Stand up on your feet and applaud Him!
2. Bring a GIFT OF LAUGHTER!
3. SING YOURSELVES into His presence.
4. I am WELL TENDED SHEEP- I have all my needs taken care of. I am well kept • Declare that the Lord is your shepherd. David did that.

• Saul was chasing after David for 14 years to kill him. Can you imagine, 14 long years of chase? That’s what jealousy does. Saul is from the tribe of a Benjamin and Benjamin means ravenous wolf. Saul was literally being one. He was chasing David like a wolf with his weapons and his pack of followers. He couldn’t catch him though because David would keep saying this often, “The Lord is my Shepherd”.
• Open your mouth and say, I am a well-tended sheep and the Lord is my shepherd. 5. Your PASSWORD for your blessing, for opening up of God’s new ways in your life is saying “THANK YOU”. Doors will open when you say thank you, Lord. Jesus, I thank you! Enter with the password, THANK YOU JESUS. This is a password that you can share with others.

Joshua 3:1- Then Joshua rose early in the morning; and they set out from [a]AcaciaGrove and came to the Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they crossed over.

• God releases all His blessings “early” in the morning. The first, early. • Joshua rose up early before anybody else was up, even before all others started to pray, he prayed. In your family, more than your friends more than anything else, will you wake up to glorify God first?!
• Early means before the thought even goes through other people’s minds, you will get up and pray.

Joshua had a consecration.

If you need to experience a supernatural life, you need a consecration. I took a decision this year that I will steer clear of all programs and serials that does not have Jesus in it. It might not be wrong stuff but I just want to be fully consecrated for God. It may be comedy, cinema, or nice old songs, I just want to keep away.

• You are mistaken if you think that the world will become a better place. Sounds nice but that isn’t true. The Lord said that wickedness will only increase in the world, in the last days. But the church of God will arise from Glory to glory and will be strengthened.

You and me can become better because God’ grace is working upon our lives. God’s inclination for us is to be completely set apart for God. Early means, before everything else.

God asked me, have you exhausted yourself knowing me?” Why do you want to know the devil?

Consecration is bringing every faculty in your life into submission to God’s Word. Consecration is a decision assisted by determination but fuelled by the Holy Spirit.

• No matter who is with me or not, I will stand with God. I will do what God tells me to. Me and my family will serve the Living God. Holy Spirit, “help me!”

Recently I tried calling a friend who was in a beauty parlour. I did not get her the first time and then when I got her, I understood that she had been there for 3-4 hours! My issue was not that she spent time in the parlour but my issue is that one cannot sit for 30 minutes in God’s presence kneeling down but can spend time elsewhere for so long! That means you are worldly!

• Sit for 4 hours in God’s presence if you have been in a parlour for 3 hours. If you were on the phone for 3 hours, then you pray for 6 hours. That is consecration!

But in 2022, you will get up early and pray and surrender to Him! This morning there is a special grace flowing for it. Let the Fire of the Holy Ghost come upon you.

Consecration means being sold out for God, dedicated for God, devoted to God, addicted to God.

• There is no condemnation in this message. I am just trying to put some Holy Ghost pressure on you.

Holy Spirit pressure on you to want Jesus more than ever before in your life and not just play Christian religion but to be passionate about Jesus Christ.

Under the authority of God’s Word, may His presence come upon you. An intimacy with God. May you not walk like you walked before. May you put God before everything else.

Enoch Adeboy, a pastor of the biggest church in Nigeria, Africa with 90 lakh people. Some meetings there are more than a crore people. For years, he would be the first to reach church before anybody else. If the service starts at 4 AM then he would get there by 3.30 AM.

How many of you will decide to trust God and walk in His grace to get to church before anybody else? How many of you will ask God for this grace? For the one who comes first, the presence of God will be revealed and be rewarded. Lord by your grace I will rise up early! It is dedication!

• Even in our dressing it should be seen. Even if you are sitting at home and watching the service, wear your best for God. You are in GOD’s Presence. I am not talking about expensive clothes, but I am talking about being neat and clean. Even if you have only one shirt, iron it, wear it clean.

Dress well to church- the 11th commandment. Wear your best for God. 2022, a dedication a surrender.

o In my family, we wear our best dress into the House of God. Most people wear good dresses only for parties and wedding functions. Dedication means giving and wearing the best for God. “I don’t want to dress up casually to church”.

o And you think you can walk into church whatever way you want! Sometimes people wear dresses outside “dressed to kill” but they will never give their best to God

• In our giving it should be seen. Haven’t the prices gone up? Has there been no inflation? Milk, slippers, cabbage, petrol are all more expensive but some people are giving God the same 100 rupee note that they have been giving for 20 years! Why?

I told God that I want to give more this year than the years ahead! I don’t want my offering levels to be the same. It means you are not growing! Ask God for His grace to do so.

o Praise God. Supernatural doors will open over your life. God is lifting people who have surrendered their everything to God in 2022

• In our speaking it should be seen. We only speak honour with our lips. God will do what you prophecy through your mouth. God has given us His promises. He has prophesies for this year too and if you open your mouth and speak the same then you will see it happen. You need to keep on speaking what God has promised You need to speak what you expect and not what you experience.

o You should speak what You want God to do for you and not what you are seeing. o Don’t say I have pain, say I am healed by the stripes of Jesus. “God will open doors for me”, you say it!! Don’t wait for pastor to do so.

o “I walk in the power, righteousness, victory, favour of God upon my life.” Only the ones with faith and intimacy with Christ can say this confidently.

o Speak your blessing and declare that “me and my family will serve God”. o “I will see my blessing. I will see my breakthrough. My family will be saved. He will bring the right blessings into my life”. Such are the words that you should speak. Inside that is deliverance. In side that is blessing.

A dedication and a submission and surrender to God.

o The Holy Spirit ahs been telling me this for the last one year: “The number of years I have given you, those many verses you need to have burning inside of you. If you are turning 50 this year, you need to have at least 50 verses in your heart.”

Memorise the word of God. I will be dedicated to put int the scripture into my heart. Just like how Joshua woke up early and sought Him before anything else. Will you dedicate yourself to Him? Hide the words of the Holy Spirit. God will move you and your family into the miraculous and open the doors of nations for you.

Inside that ark was the commandments. Keep looking at the ark!

Joshua 3:4-4 Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubitsby measure. Do not come near it, that you may know the way by which you must go, for you have not passed this way before.”

A dog barks at anything. And looking at that or hearing that, all the dogs in the neighbourhood also start barking but only that dog that started barking knows why it was barking or what it was barking at, in the first place! That dog saw it first and the others only heard it. You must be that first dog. You must see the Lord and see His Word and make a noise for it, no matter who stops speaking, you will continue walking and talking for God!

You be the first to look at Jesus and others will follow you. That’s what sets apart the leader.

• There has to be a distance between you and the ark. There are priests who carry the ark. Don’t go too close. Give them the honour, respect and importance that is due to them. • All of us can get too familiar with the Men of God. The apostles, pastors, preachers, teachers, evangelist are chosen by God who carry the ark. Keep respectful distance from them. You may have studied together or may be brothers and sisters. But you keep that honour and if you do so, God will open a way for you! Don’t say “we went to school together, we drank alcohol together in the past!”

Keep a respectful distance from the anointed ones. Give reverence and respect where that is asked of. They carry the glory of God.

• They carry the glory even for your breakthrough! The priests had to step into the Jordan first for the way to be made for the remaining Israelites to cross over. If they don’t step in first, you will perish in the wilderness. Honour them and respect them. If you do, God will open up a way for you even in the midst of the wilderness.