Righteous Invasion of Truth

Dr. Abel Damina: Glory! Somebody excited this morning shout glory. Hallelujah. Lift your right hands to heaven, let's pray together. Father, we thank you for this another opportunity to come before your holy, precious, written word. Thank you that the mighty Holy Spirit lives on our inside, so revelation knowledge is gifted everybody under the sound of my voice. I decree that whatever is not planted by God is rooted out. Burdens and yokes are destroyed. Sick bodies be healed. Sick bodies be healed in the name of Jesus.

And we declare that your word comes with clarity. Your people are built up, equipped, edified. Jesus is glorified. Nobody leaves here the same way they came. So we give you praise and glory for answered prayer. In Jesus' name we pray, and every believer says a powerful amen. Glory to God.

Lift your right hands to heaven, let's release our faith together as we say these words. I am born of God. I am born of the word. The word of God is my nature. I do not struggle to do the word. I do the word naturally. Therefore, today I will understand the word of His grace. I will be built up. By the end of this service, I will never be the same. Never ever be the same again in Jesus' name. And every believer says a powerful amen.

Hallelujah. Grab your pen, your notebook, your Bible. You can be seated with your sweet smart self this morning as we get into the word of His grace. We are still examining the Church of God in Service. The Church of God in Service, this is Part 62. Part 62 and we're going to be looking at the culture of giving. The culture of giving.

I want us to examine the culture of giving. We just finished why you must be committed to the local church and how to be committed. And one of the things we taught this morning from the scripture is that you get committed to the local church by giving. By giving. You cannot be committed to the local church and not give. It's impossible. Any commitment to the local church without giving is hypocrisy. You can't be committed to the local church and not give of your time, of yourself, of your resources, and of your money. It's impossible. Okay?

So I want us to examine the culture. There are acts of giving where you give as occasion permits, where you put your offering as occasion permits. But there is a culture of giving. It's like in Nigeria, we have the Hausa language. And among the Hausa-speaking people, those of you that have been opportuned to live in the north where the Hausa people are, it is part of Hausa culture that when you wake up every day and you come out, you greet everybody. Whether you are the eldest or you are the youngest, if you are the first to come out, you greet everybody. Whether you know them or not, everybody greets everybody in the north. It's a normal life. Hello, good morning, well done. Everywhere all over the north, everybody greets everybody every day. It's part of life. It's culture.

It's culture. And anybody who doesn't greet is seen as a stranger. It's lifestyle in the north. Everybody greets everybody. Even if they are your enemies, you greet them first, then you continue enmity after greeting. You see, that's culture.

The Yoruba people have what they call "dabale," right? They dabale where they lie on the floor. The younger lies on the floor in respect to the elders. It's part of their culture. It's not hero worship; it's just culture among the Yoruba-speaking people. Now, but when I went abroad the first time and I traveled out of this country and I went abroad, I took my Hausa culture with me abroad. And I was greeting everybody and they were looking at me funny because abroad, you're on your own. Nobody cares. You greet me, I suspect you. Everybody minds his business. Everybody is on his own. Nobody is greeting anybody. That's the culture there.

So I began to suffer what we call counter-culture because I'm greeting and nobody is responding. Because in the north, when they say, "Ina kwana," "Lafiya." "Ya gajiya," "Ba gajiya." All that, there's an interaction where everybody is greeting. It's such a beautiful culture, you know? But now I'm greeting these white people, everybody just looks at me. "Hello, good morning."

And then among the British people, when I went to London the first time, you remember one kind of fake smile. You know fake? So when I saw everybody doing like this, me too I started doing like this. So when they do like this and you think they are smiling, then you want to open your 32, they frown back. So if you open your 32, you wonder who you're smiling with because the man has or the woman has frowned back. Now, that's culture. That's the way it is over there.

Now, culture therefore is what makes a people unique. Culture is what makes a people unique. You can't take away their culture from them. If you take away the culture of a race or you take away the culture of a nation, you take away their uniqueness. Now, Christianity has a culture of giving. Christianity has a culture of giving. And it's not a deep revelation when we are asked to give. No, you don't need a deep revelation. Just know that Christianity was founded on giving. Christianity was founded on giving.

Now note this: giving is to honor, giving is to respect, and giving is to express faith in God. Giving is to honor, giving is to respect, giving is to express faith in God. It's important for you to know that since we started teaching on the Christ revelation over 12 years ago now, I have never done any deliberate teaching on giving. Of course, I spoke about tithing, what tithe is, what the tithe is not, how the tithe is not New Testament. I spoke about giving is not transactional. But I'm talking about a doctrinal approach to giving. So this is about the first time I'm going to be teaching something like this, and it's important because you need to know why you do the things you do as a child of God. You need to be well-informed because when you are not well-informed, you will be misinformed. And when you are misinformed, you will be deformed. See that? So you have to be well-informed.

So that's why I'm taking it precept upon precept to show you that one of the major cultures that must be found in a local church is giving. It's a culture, not spontaneous. It's a lifestyle of the local church. And the reason is because Christianity was founded on giving. Giving is to honor, giving is to respect, and giving is to express faith in God. When you give, you honor God. When you give, you respect God. When you give, you are expressing your faith in God. And you will see what I mean in a few minutes.

The Bible is replete with so many examples and teaching on giving. Like I said, Christianity is founded on giving. John chapter 3, verse 16. John chapter 3, verse number 16. "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." So even salvation is built on giving. Salvation itself is a product of giving. "For God so loved the world that he gave." So whatever you love is what you give to. Whatever you love is what you give to. "For God so loved that he gave." Giving is a proof of love or an expression of love.

Romans the eighth chapter, the 32nd verse. Romans chapter 8, verse 32. "He that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?" He gave His son so that we can have all things freely. He gave us the best and He gave us His only best. Not just one of the best, His only best, His own life. Bible says Jesus poured out His life an offering for sin. He poured out His life. So salvation would not be available if there was no giving of an offering. The life of Jesus is called an offering, an offering for sin. Christianity, therefore, is founded on giving.

First John the third chapter, the 16th verse. First John chapter 3, verse number 16. "Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren." We ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. Without giving, you will not be a Christian. Without giving, you will not be a Christian. Some people say "give your life to Christ." I know they don't understand salvation. Giving your life to Christ is not salvation. Giving your life to Christ is service after salvation. Salvation is Christ who gave His life to you. Then after you are saved and you receive the life of Christ, you now give of your own life to serve the purpose of God and be a blessing to mankind. In salvation, it is Christ that gives His life. You receive at salvation; you receive what God has given. But now that you are saved, as an act of service to Christ, as an act of service to the brethren, you give your life. And we will see that in this series.

So you cannot take away giving from Christianity. Giving founded Christianity. Giving founded Christianity. Second Corinthians chapter 5, verse 15. "And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again." The same way He died for all of us, we are also enjoined to give our lives for the brethren. See that? That's Christianity. What He has done to me that I have benefited from, I give my own life to as an offering for other people to benefit. So there is selflessness in Christianity and there will be no Christianity without sacrifice. There will be no Christianity without sacrifice. Christianity without sacrifice is hypocrisy. Christianity is embedded, built, and enshrined in a life of sacrifice. Christianity is embedded, built, and enshrined in a life of sacrifice.

"He that does not deny himself and take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me," Jesus speaking. "is not worthy of me." So following Jesus in Christianity, which is what we call discipleship, requires a life of sacrifice. It cannot be convenient; it must be sacrificial. It must be sacrificial. The Christian life is a sacrificial life. The Christian life is not a convenient life; it is a sacrificial life. You must understand that Christianity calls for a life of sacrifice. That's very important.

If the purpose of God will be carried out on earth, if the will of God will be done on earth, if the nations will be reached, if men will be impacted, if the gospel will penetrate the territories of this world, people must lay down their lives by way of sacrifice. By way of sacrifice. It's critical in the Christian life. I will read some portion, but I need you to go through the whole of Second Corinthians chapter 8 and chapter 9 within the week. Second Corinthians chapter 8 and chapter 9 within the week. But I'm going to read a few portions. And why I want you to read the whole of those two chapters is so that you can get the whole context and understand that context very well.

Second Corinthians chapter 8, verse 1. "Moreover, brethren," this is not a letter to unbelievers. This is a letter to brethren. So what I'm teaching here, an unbeliever will not understand it. This is for brethren. "Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia." So he says there's a grace of God bestowed. Now that's a tautology because grace means bestowed. It's like saying "grace, grace." Okay? So there is grace on the churches where? In Macedonia. Verse 2. "How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality." Can you see that construct? That's some expertise in playing with words. "How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy in affliction and trial, and they were in deep poverty, yet they abounded unto the riches of their liberality."

That means this particular group of churches in Macedonia were going through economic crisis. They were going through economic times. Things were rough; things were hard financially. Yet in spite of the economic situation of their country, he said their joy—they were full of joy as they were giving in their lack. They were full of joy in the midst of famine, in the midst of tough times financially. They were full of joy and they were giving in the midst of scarcity. They were giving because Christianity is founded on giving, and there will be no Christianity if there is no sacrifice. Christianity without sacrifice is hypocrisy. In the depth of poverty, in the midst of lack, in the midst of national economic crisis, the churches in Macedonia were liberal and in their liberality, there was joy. They were happy to be a giving church.

I thought when you don't have or when you have some financial challenges, you shouldn't give. That is the worldly way of thinking. That is the ungodly way of thinking. But Paul is saying here that this church demonstrated the grace of God by giving even when they didn't have enough. Look at verse 2 and 3 of that same chapter. Verse 2 and 3. "How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality. For to their power, I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves."

Give me the AMPC of verse 2 and 3 of this Second Corinthians 8. AMPC. Pay attention. "For in the midst of an ordeal of severe tribulation, their abundance of joy and their depth of poverty together have overflowed in wealth of lavish generosity on their part." Pay attention. Next verse. "For as I can bear witness, they gave according to their ability. They gave according to what they had. Yes, and beyond their ability, and they did it voluntarily." They gave what they had. They went out of their way to look for money to give in the midst of a tight condition, the churches in Macedonia. Pay attention.

Now, lavish generosity. You know these days when you teach people giving, they think you should focus on people who have and ignore people who do not have. Paul is saying if you function in the grace of God, if you have the grace of God on your life, if you're a product of God's grace, if you have been saved by grace, there is grace in you. He said once there is grace in your life, you will give irrespective of your financial situation. Once there is grace in your life, because that's why he started by saying "the churches in Macedonia, there was grace." It's called grace giving, grace-based giving. And that is available to everyone that is saved by grace.

It's a worldly spirit to think that those who have should give to those who don't have all the time. That's a worldly spirit. That's an ungodly spirit. It's a worldly approach to Christianity. The Bible doesn't teach that those who have should always be giving to those who don't have. Even those who don't have should give for the work of God. In their lack, they should be a blessing to others. There is no useless man on earth. Moreover, "the grace of God that bringeth salvation has appeared to how many people? To all of us." To all of us. Grace is made available to every one of us.

In fact, Jesus was in a temple and there was a rich man who put in an offering and a poor widow. Poor what? Widow. Who put in the widow's mite. And Jesus said she gave more. I've told you already giving in Christianity is not measured by quantity; it's measured by sacrifice. True giving in Christianity is not measured by quantity; it's measured by sacrifice. Somebody has 10 Naira, somebody has 5 Naira. The man with 10 Naira gave 2 Naira. The man with 5 Naira gave 3 Naira. Who gave more? The man with 5 Naira. Because the man with 5 Naira gave 3; he has only 2 left. The man with 10 gave 2; he has 8 left. The man with 5 has made more sacrifices than the man with 10. So in the kingdom, it's not the volume you gave, but how much sacrifice is involved in what you give.

It's not the volume. God doesn't look at giving like that. The way God measures giving is by sacrifice. How much sacrifice? What did it cost you? That's why David would say, "God forbid that I should offer to God what cost me nothing." If it doesn't cost you anything, it is of no value. It's worthless. If it doesn't cost you anything, it is worthless. The value of your giving is in the sacrifice involved. The value of your giving is in the sacrifice involved.

This woman gave widow's mite. It looked small, but the sacrifice was huge. And God said she gave more than the rich man who must have given higher volume than her, but little sacrifice. Now look at verse 3 again. They were willing to give beyond what they had. They were willing to give beyond what they had. Verse 4 of that scripture. Verse 4. "Praying us with much entreaty that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints." Give me the AMPC of verse 4. Second Corinthians 8:4. "Begging us most insistently for the favor and the fellowship of contributing in this ministration for the relief and support of the saints in Jerusalem."

They were begging to give. "Please let us give." What an example. They were begging Brother Paul. Brother Paul said, "Macedonian churches, we understand you're going through very challenging times. Macedonian brethren, we understand when you used to have, you used to give. But we know that the times are not good now, so please, Macedonia, all the churches, stay away from this giving to the Jerusalem brethren." And the brethren in Macedonia said, "No, no, no, no, no, Brother Paul. Times are hard, but we have the grace of God on our lives. Times are rough, but we have grace on our lives. Please, we beg you, don't deny us the opportunity to be a part of this giving."

They were begging. They were begging. "We may not give much, but please let this little be an expression of our commitment to Jesus, an expression of our worship to God. Our own may not be much, but from our hearts, we want to be part of this project. Please allow us. We are believers. The grace of God is upon our lives. Please, let us give."

Look at verse 6 of that same chapter. Verse 6. "Insomuch that we desired Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also finish in you the same grace also." Can you see grace, grace, grace? Because this is grace-based giving. Grace-based giving, which is what establishes the culture of giving in the church. Grace-based.

In the context of these verses, the church in Jerusalem had needs. So they were gathering support in all the churches in Asia to send relief to the church at Jerusalem. So the context here is to meet the need of the church. Ladies and gentlemen, the church has needs. What were the needs? We were not told what their needs were, but for the church in Jerusalem, it was not a prayer need. Their need was material things. Their needs were financial.

But the fundamental truth here is in verse 5. Verse 5 is where you see the culture of giving. The fundamental foundation of giving is first of all consecration. Give me that verse 5. Consecration, please don't miss that in your notes. Consecration is the fundamental foundation of giving. Consecration. "And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God." They first gave themselves. That's the foundation: consecration.

Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to thee. Take my moments and my days, let them flow in ceaseless praise. Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to thee. Take my moments and my days, let them flow in ceaseless praise. Take my hands, take my intellect and use. Take my resources, take my everything. Let it be consecrated, Lord. Beginning from my life, take my life. If my life has been given to the Lord, my money will not be an issue. If my life has been offered to the Lord, my money means nothing.

It begins with consecration. You see, when you are not consecrated to God and to the service of God, giving is always a burden. Giving is always a burden when you are not consecrated. You will think it's a stress. You will think it is strange because you are not consecrated to the Lord. Then it becomes a burden rather than a lifestyle. Giving ought to be the lifestyle of the believer because consecration is you giving yourself to Jesus. And that is how to give your life to Jesus. By consecration.

"I will make my life your dwelling place. I will build your throne in my heart. Come and take your place in my life." That's not salvation; that's consecration, that's service. "My body is your sanctuary." That's not salvation; that's service. "Purify me like gold so I might be bold to say my body is your sanctuary. I give it to you, I give you my life, I give you my all." That is consecration. That is consecration. Making God number one, making God a priority, making God the most important part of your life.

"I wouldn't trade you for silver or gold. I wouldn't trade you for riches untold. You are, you are my everything." That's consecration. Because consecration is you giving yourself to Jesus. And that's how you give your life to Jesus. When you are consecrated to serve Him. Don't forget what we said: giving is to honor God, giving is to respect God, and giving is to also express faith in God. So if you serve God, if your heart is serving God, giving will never be a burden to you. Never. It will never be a burden to you. Even when you don't have, every opportunity to give will bring a smile on your face that you are still useful to God even in your lack, that you can still bring value to the work of God.

I preach the gospel today and I never feel burdened. I'm always happy to preach. Always. Always. If you see me looking like I'm about to die, just give me a microphone and put people in front of me. I will stand up. You say, "Are you never tired?" Heavenly race! Oh, on your marks, get set. I don't feel burdened. I have been doing it for almost 40 years of my life, gladly and joyfully. 30 Days of Glory is loading in July, the whole month teaching the word of God daily with joy. It looks like I'm just starting ministry.

The point is, if you take ministry out of my life, I can as well die. I will be nothing without ministry because my life is ministry. So it's the same thing with giving. If you're serving the Lord, it will never be a burden for you to give. It's never a burden for me to preach because I've consecrated my life to serve the Lord's purpose. Once you're consecrated, giving is never a burden. Never. Because you cannot claim to be giving to the Lord and be burdened. Uh-uh. You are happy to give because you and your life and all that you are, you are His property. Amen? I said amen.

By now you know that you cannot have a serious relationship with believers who are allergic to the local church. I'm sure you know that by now from what I have taught on the local church. You can't. You can't be close with people who don't have regard for the local church. No, no, no. That relationship will destroy your commitment to Christ. People stay away from commitment to the local church because they see things wrong with the local church or they have had wrong experiences from wrong churches and pastors. But that somebody took medication and died doesn't stop you from taking medication. That a doctor injected somebody wrongly and killed him doesn't mean all doctors are giving people bad injections.

We were traveling somewhere some years ago when Nigerian planes used to crash. They just announce, crash! One plane just crashed. Then they are announcing the next flight. See everybody running to the plane. They didn't say, "Ah, the plane has crashed, we are not flying." No, no, no. The moment they announce boarding, see people running to go and enter another plane. Are you with me? So that somebody abused the church and abused the purpose of the church doesn't mean that the church is useless. That somebody abused giving and abused taking advantage of people's ignorance in the place of giving doesn't mean that giving has been removed from the Bible. No, no. That something is counterfeit doesn't mean the original is not there. It's just that you didn't know. That's why we're taking time to teach you and show you from scripture so that even if you were a victim before, now by knowledge, you can never be a victim again. Somebody say I hear you.

Yeah. That's why we're teaching you from the word of God. So giving therefore is culture, and it begins with you first of all giving yourself to the Lord. That's the foundation of all givings: consecration. Giving yourself to the Lord. So giving is the culture of those who are consecrated to the service of God. Giving is a culture of those who are consecrated to the service of God.

Now let's look at the Bible, the history of giving. The first giver and the main giver and the sole giver is God. The first giver, the main giver, and the sole giver is God Himself. God made the heavens and the earth, and He didn't make heaven and earth for Himself. He made heaven and earth for man. He made everything for man. Everything God created was for man. And after creating everything, He now said, "Let us make man in our image, let them have dominion over these things we have created." Which means everything was made for man.

You know, Psalm 24:1 says, "The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and they that dwell therein." And when Paul was teaching the same thing, when he was talking about food offered to idols in First Corinthians chapter 10, he said, "Whatever is set before you, eat." He didn't say whatever is offered to the Lord, whatever is set before you, eat. So the Lord created the heaven and earth for man and God blessed man. So the first giver on earth is God. The main giver on earth is God. The sole giver on earth is God. After all, what do we have that was not given to us? What do we have?

How do you know? I saw yesterday night the plane that crashed in India, the plane crashed where about 260 or 280 people died. I mean, that was a tragedy, a global tragedy. 300 people dying at the same time is a global tragedy. It's not, you know how many families are connected to those 300 people, how many families and relatives and how many job professional associates and, you know, it's a global, it's a global, you know, calamity. And then I read the story of a family that touched my heart. A medical doctor who was working day and night, day and night, day and night to fly his family to London to relocate his family to live in England. And after saving a lot of money working day and night, securing for them a place to stay, securing everything, bought tickets and then resigned his job in India. Him, the wife, and three children boarded the plane. But before they boarded, they did a selfie, they snapped a nice picture of their last day in India as they are leaving for London. And all of them perished in that flight. And the person writing it said, "Hours wasted, investment wasted, life wasted, moments wasted, everything wasted in a flash."

That's life. What do you have that you were not given? Everything you have, you were given. Everything. Everything. Life, money, clothes, food, cars—you were all given. God gave them to you. You're a steward; you're not the owner. That's why nobody goes to the grave with a Mercedes Benz. If by any mistake they bury you with a Mercedes Benz, that night that grave will be visited by men on earth who need the Mercedes. Nature will fight that burial because Mercedes Benz is not supposed to be buried; it's supposed to be driven by the living. Life itself is a gift. Life itself is given to you by God.

So to start bragging, honey, did you hear the video of that man, that politician in Nigeria that was, that escaped a plane crash? "Oh Jehovah! Oh Jehovah! Oh Father! Show your love! Show yourself! The blood of Jesus! The blood of Jesus!" Nigeria is a cruise. This man, when he talks here, he shakes. In the plane, he said, "Oh Jehovah!" He said, "I'm a Christian but I'm not a born again." Inside the plane, he became born again. "Oh Father!" Only a born again man will call God Father. He didn't say, "Oh creator," he said, "Father." You must have a relationship with God to say Father. And look at the beauty of God's grace. God had mercy on him. Isn't God a good God?

Life itself is a gift. That's why when it comes to God, you don't brag. You don't brag when it comes to God. You don't brag. When the work of God comes before your face and you see the need of God's work, you don't brag. Anything you have that you can add to the work of God out of gratitude for the gift of life. That's why I say first of all they gave themselves to us. They gave themselves first before they gave of their resources. Because you need life to have resources. If you are not alive, where will you get the money? All this one you wake up in the morning, you don't even know how you slept. And when you wake up, you lift your leg, it responded. You lift another one, it responded. You move your hand, it responded. There are people when they wake up in the morning and they want to move their body, everything is paralyzed. So for the gift of life, when you see the work of God out of gratitude to God, you want to support it, not to make mockery of it. You want to support it.

Like I've told you before, why do I want to live one more day on earth? It's not to eat burgers. I'm not living one more day on earth to eat pounded yam or gari; I've eaten enough. Why do I want to live one more day of my life? To advance the kingdom of God, to show appreciation for this life that God has given me by advancing God's purpose on the earth. So in giving, it begins with consecration. A consecrated life will not see giving as a burden, but giving as an opportunity. An opportunity to show how grateful you are for the gift of life. I'm teaching good.

So God is the first giver. Brother R.W. Shambach said you can't beat God giving. No matter what you give, it can never, you can never outgive God. No man can outgive God. Mark Hankins said God is the number one giver. He gives all things that we give. Did you hear that? God is the number one giver. He gives all things that we give. So the first giver is God. He gave life and He gave the universe to man. God didn't become greater when He created the earth. He gave it to man to function, to live in, to enjoy.

So God the first giver and from that point, you read about Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham. We see the culture of giving right from Genesis. Genesis chapter 4, Abel brought the best to God. Did God need it? No. Was God going to use it? Yes. It was his own faith expressed in God. Giving is faith expressed. Did I say that? Giving is faith expressed. Look at Noah, same thing. Noah built an ark, put all the animals two by two. Did God need the ark? No. Did God use it? Yes. To communicate His redemptive purpose. So again, that is giving as an expression of faith in God.

Then we find Abraham of the most high God, who was called to come out of his father's house to a land I will show you. "And I will make you a blessing. I will bless those that bless you and curse those that curse you, and in you shall all families of the earth be blessed." God began to teach him and we began to see Abraham giving. Genesis chapter 14, Lot was captured, the nephew of Abraham, and Abraham goes to war and Abraham recovers all. On his way back, he meets Melchizedek, who was a type of the priest of the most high. And Abraham, without anybody instructing him, removed 10% of the spoil of war and he said, "Melchizedek, I honor you with 10%." And Melchizedek said, "Blessed be Abraham of the most high, the possessor of the heavens and the earth." And that is where they get all this their tithing theology from. Abraham was, I mean Melchizedek, Abraham was just expressing his gratitude and at that level, his understanding of giving was 10%. Nobody told him to do it. That's why the Bible didn't say he paid tithe to Melchizedek; he gave to Melchizedek. It was his own giving. That was his understanding of giving. And it came from the spoil of war. It wasn't from his personal income. It came from the spoil of war. Just to show how much he respects, how much he honors, and how much his faith is in God who gave him all things. That's the principle there. That's the principle there.

Much later in Genesis chapter 22, God says, "Abraham, take your only son whom you love. Your only son," a typology of God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son. That's the culture of giving. Christianity has a culture of giving. So when you have the culture of giving, it is not strange to give your only. To give your only. You read about the widow woman, honey, Zarephath, right? The widow of Zarephath. Elijah said to her—is it Elijah or Elisha? Elijah. He said, "Shunammite, make me food to eat." She said, "What is left is for me and my child to eat and die." The man said, "Go and make for me first." Seek ye first, go and make for me first. She went and made. Even in today's world, social media, "wicked men of God. The only small food that a woman and her child will eat, the man of God says bring it to me, bring it to me." They'll start making skits and all kinds of caricature. Again, that's why this teaching is for believers. We're not teaching mankind; we're teaching brethren. If you are not a brethren, clear! Because your input and contribution is not needed. You cannot understand what we are talking about. This is for Adelfos.

He said go and make for me first. Make for me first. And she expressed faith in God by going to make for him first. He ate, ate it well. Then he stood up and said, "You'll never lack." And the Bible says from that day forward, that woman never lacked. Why? When you express faith in God, you never get disappointed. Somehow, somehow, God will make a way. The guy on the computer has woken up. He's doing Bible interpretation. First Kings chapter 17, verse 14. "For thus saith the Lord God of Israel, the barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail until the day that the Lord sendeth rain upon the earth." Next verse. "And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she and he and her house did eat many days." Many days. A miracle happened in that house because faith was expressed. Just like Jesus would take bread and fish and touch it and it would feed 5,000 people.

That power of God is still alive today. I say that power of God is still alive today. And if you would believe, you will see the glory of God. I speak to believers in this building, you will see supernatural supplies. Supernatural supplies! Supernatural supplies! Hey! There shall be no wind, there shall be no rain, but the ditches shall be full of water. Somebody shout I believe in miracles. Say it again, I believe in miracles. Say it one more time, I believe in miracles. Sit down if you can. You will not see wind, you will not see rain, you will not see cloud, but the ditches will be full of water. I speak to somebody here: your days of struggle are over. Receive grace! Receive grace! Receive grace! You will never be ashamed. You will never be ashamed. God's favor is at work in your life. Somebody shout I receive. Sit down if you can.

When you have the culture of giving, it is not strange to give the only son. It would not be a big deal for Noah to build an ark. The first thing you need to understand is that Christianity has the culture of giving and it's not strange to give your best. It's not strange. It's not strange to give your all. It's our culture. Is it not our culture? So it's not strange to give your all. It's not strange to give your best. That's our culture. The first thing you need to understand is that everything you have, God gave you. Everything you have, God gave you. What do you have that God didn't give you? Everything you have. There is nothing you came to this world with. You were born naked. When you die, you'll be buried naked. Maybe you're not aware. Even if you buy a suit and they bury you with it, ants will eat the suit. They will eat it and leave you naked. You cannot break that law. You cannot break it. Ants will naked you underground. Ants will naked you underground. Because you must go naked. You came to this world with nothing.

Listen carefully: whatever the world gives you, the world will take. The only thing that will last is what God gives you. Say I hear you. All the cars you will leave them here. All the money you're busy putting in different banks, different banks, if any [glitch] now, you fly. Some of those moneys may even be used by your enemies. Because as you're busy putting them in places you're not telling your family, you're hiding, you're doing tinini-tanana, which now your family won't know where it is. It's your enemies that will go and find it and use it. I'm not joking.

So why not use it now that you are here? Bring it, let's buy microphone so that when we use the microphone, you enjoy it. Let's use it for crusade, let's use it for TV. Amen. A man's life does not consist in the abundance of things he possesses. What shall it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul? I'm teaching good. Giving is to honor God. Giving is to respect God and giving is to express faith in God as our only source. Only source. Every time you give, you are telling God in practical terms, "I trust you." Every time you give—and I'm talking about deliberate and intentional giving. I'm talking about meaningful giving. Every time you give meaningfully and sacrificially, you're telling God, "My confidence is in you. My confidence is not in my money, my confidence is in you, that I can give you all of this and I still do well. Because my life is not tied to this money, my life is tied to you."

You're my only source. You're my only source. So God gives first. God is the first giver. There was a time the man Jacob was running away from his brother, running away, running away, and stumbled on God and said, "God, if you preserve me, I will give you the tenth." That's not new in the Bible. People made a lot of pledges in the Bible: "God, if you do this for me, I will do that for you." There's nothing wrong with that. There's nothing wrong with that. But you must always remember that God gave first. Every giving we're giving, we learned from God. He's the first giver and we can never outgive Him. Never. He gives and gives and gives every day. Every day. Every day you wake up, He gives you opportunities. He gives you strength. He gives you life. He gives you another day to make an impact. Every day you wake up.

Sometimes you sleep at night, you don't know where you are. You're lost. He's watching over you. He's watching over you, He protects you. Sometimes He allows you to see how destructive things would have been to you by allowing you to see that snake that was lying down by the pot in your bedroom. You woke up and saw it and killed it. It didn't climb you and kill you to show you that there are more serious things than that that God delivers you from. No wonder that David would say, "Bless the Lord, oh my soul, and forget not all His benefits. His mercies are new every morning, great is His faithfulness." See, when you think about all of this, money suddenly is nothing. There's nothing you cannot give.

Sometimes it's short-sightedness. You understand? Short-sightedness. And when you are, when you are short-sighted, it can lead to shortages. It can lead to shortages. When you do not look at the big picture of God's faithfulness, your eye just stays on that small penny, penny increase that came to your salary. Your eye just stays there. You are not looking at the bigger picture of the things that God has delivered you from, the things that God has done for you.

So God is the first giver. God gave first. We are not in a lottery with God. That's why I'm angry with the materialistic preachers who will give you a God of: "Give me, I give you. You don't give me, I don't give you. You give me, I give you. You don't give me, I don't give you. You sow, you receive. You don't sow..." It's an insult. It's an insult to the sensibilities of the owner of the planet. He owns the whole planet. He created the world. He planted the minerals. He planted the oil wells. He planted the gold, the diamonds, the platinum. He put them all over. He knows where all of them are. He is the one that—okay, what will God buy with money? What will God buy?

That's why when we sing that song, "Wetin I go give to you na praise, eh? I no get money, ah praise. I no get..." Because that's the truth. That's the truth. Then after they sing it, they now say if you don't give to God you cannot get. Ah-ah! Are you bipolar? There's nothing you can give. That's why the apostles would say, "What do we have that has not been given to us?" What do we have? What do we have? It's important to know these things and know it well, and make up your mind for the rest of your life to walk with God in understanding. To walk with God in understanding.

There was giving under the law and there is giving in the New Testament. Giving under the law is where they tell if you don't give, devourers will devour you. If you don't give, this will happen to you. All that is giving under the law. 10%. If you don't pay your 10%, all that is under the law. Jesus put an end to all of that. In the New Testament of God's grace today, we give. We give like they gave under the law and better, but now we're not giving to be free from punishment. We're not giving to secure something. We're only giving in response to the graciousness of God.

There are lessons from the tithe, I have taught you that. There are lessons we learn from the tithe. We don't tithe, but there are lessons. What was the tithe used for? It was used to take care of the priests in the temple. Today when we give, what is our giving used for? It is used to take care of the man of God in the house. It was also used for strangers. Today when we give, what is it used for? It's used to take care of people with welfare needs. What was the tithe used for? It was used to take care of the temple. Today when we give, what is it used for? To take care of the house of God. So it is the same things, but the giving method is different. Say I hear you.

We're no more giving under obligation. We're now giving with understanding. We're giving born out of understanding. We're giving not as a transaction, but we're giving as responsible children of the kingdom who are responsible for their Father's business on the earth. That's why we give. So honey, that our Kingdom Investment, we will change it from Kingdom Investment to Mission Offering. Because we're not investing. When you invest, you expect a return. There's no returns. It's missions. Our second offering is what? Mission givings. And listen, when it comes to mission giving, you can bring your car for missions. You can bring anything for missions. It's not limited to small offerings. You can, you can bring anything for missions because missions has to do with world evangelism.

That our Kingdom Investment was actually mission giving, but we started it before we came into the New Testament. And I never thought of changing it. But it's not, it's not investment. It's actually missions. We're not investing into anything. We're not investing. We're not shareholders in God's, you know, we're not shareholders. A shareholder expects returns every year. We collected our returns before we gave. Do you understand? He already gave us all the returns. After all, what do we have that has not been given to us? So it's mission givings.

Our first offering is honor offerings where we honor the labor of God's word because the word of God says those that labor, double honor. That's scripture. And in this church, we do the word of God. Then the second giving is missions and worship. Missions and worship where we give to support global evangelism, we give to support opening of campuses, we give to support TV, radio, we give to support outreaches, we give to support the things we do around the world. Because that's our responsibility as sons and daughters of the kingdom. That's our responsibility. If under the law, under the blood of bulls and goats, people gave 10%, how much more under the blood of Jesus? How much more under the blood of Jesus?

The key word to giving is honor. The key word to giving is honor. Giving in the scripture is built upon honor. Honor means to respect. Honor means to regard. Honor means to treat as different. When you honor somebody, you treat him as different. That's why when a visitor that you honor comes to your house, your wife goes into the inner chambers to bring plates and spoons that nobody uses. Very special. To give him in honor. He is treated as special. So when we give to God what is unique, or we give to the work of God, we are bringing honor to God because we are treating God as special. We are treating God as special. We are regarding God.

"Honor the Lord with your substance." Proverbs 3:9. "Honor the Lord with your substance." These folks were going to take the offering to the priest of their days in the temple, yet He says "honor the Lord." So because you gave it to a man does not remove the honor of what you are giving. The key is to honor God. Respect God. Treat God as uncommon. Treat God as uncommon. To do for God what you wouldn't have done for anybody. Because honor is worship. Honor is worship. So giving is an act of worship. Giving is an act of worship. It doesn't matter how you sing, how you sob, how you cry. The proof of your love for God is not crying and singing; it's giving. If you sing and cry and you don't give, you're a hypocrite. You're a hypocritical singer. The true proof of love for God is giving. "For God so loved that he gave." When you love God, your resources will give expression to that love. Say I hear you.

I mean Power City, you are a giving church. I mean you are a giving church. But we can do more. That's why teaching is coming. We can do more, we can give more, we can do more for the kingdom. Here we don't follow you with a walking stick. No. Everybody as he has purposed in his heart by understanding, he gives. By understanding. You don't need monitoring; we are not monitoring spirits. You give as God has enabled you with grace, and you give in proportion to the increase that you're making in business. The more money you make, the more you give.

So giving is worship. When you give, you honor God, when you give, you respect God. Giving means you're showing God that you recognize that it came from Him. You're showing God that you recognize that it came from Him. And listen to this one: giving, therefore, releases us from greed. Giving releases us from greed, covetousness, and money-mindedness. Giving releases us from greed, covetousness, and money-mindedness. The opposite of giving is stinginess. That's the opposite. When you give, you are released from greed, covetousness, and money-mindedness.

Many people don't give because they are afraid. "If I give this little one, how will I survive?" They are afraid. They are afraid that they don't have much. When out of fear you don't give, you're money-minded. Honey, you know many people think the love of money is the root of all evil in First Timothy chapter 6 verse 10. Put it up for me. Many people think that scripture, "the love of money is the root of all evil," is for rich people. It's poor people that have love of money. It's poor people. You know, love of money means wrong relationship with money. That's the meaning of love of money: a wrong relationship with money. When you have a wrong relationship with money, that is when you will not sow because you consider the clouds. Say, "Ah, no, yo. This one is remaining 10,000. Uh-uh, I will not give it." You and money are in a wrong relationship. That's the love of money. It's the root of all evil. All evil is rooted in a wrong relationship with money.

When you have a right relationship with money, you use money as a slave. When you have a wrong relationship with money, money uses you as a master. Money is a bad master but a good slave. If you submit to money, money will destroy you. But if you use money, you will do good. I'm teaching here. "For the love of money is the root of all evil." Look at the point. "Which while some coveted after." So love of money produces covetousness. Covetousness, greed. Where you have, but in order for you to depart from that money, you will die first. It's like the man that the armed robbers came and said, "Your money or your life?" He said, "My life." They shot him and they took the money. Idiot.

You need life to have money. If they take the money and you're still alive, you will get another one. "Mumusious." He said, "My life." So they took the life and they took the money, and there's no other day to get another one. Look, let me teach—am I teaching you this morning? Give me your ears oh. Honey, you know two brothers did business. Two brothers did business in the book of Matthew. And after they did business, one brother cheated the other brother. The one that is cheated came to Jesus and said, "Jesus, me and my brother did business, he cheated me." You know what Jesus said to the one that is cheated? "Beware of covetousness." You that is coming to complain that they cheated you, beware of covetousness. Ah-ah! I thought it's the one that cheated him that should beware of covetousness. No, it's the one that feels cheated that is covetousness driving him. You know what Jesus was telling him? Be grateful that you are even alive. The only thing is that they cheated you. Your life could have gone. Then Jesus said, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for a man's life..." So that means Jesus telling him be grateful that you are alive oh and don't let things define you. Tell your neighbor: things don't define you. God defines you. You can do without things, but you cannot do without God.

Beware of covetousness. Giving releases you from greed. Giving releases you from covetousness. Giving releases you from money-mindedness. Because when they want to give, they consider how much is remaining. "He that observeth the wind shall not sow." When we give, every time we give, we release ourselves from covetousness, greed, and from self-centeredness. God is the first giver, don't ever forget that. God is what? First giver.

Good teaching? Brother Hagin says the first qualification for supernatural prosperity is to treat earthly things lightly. Treat earthly things lightly. That is treat earthly things lightly. He said that's the first qualification for supernatural prosperity because when you are treating things lightly, you're not under pressure. And when you're not under pressure, you're happy. And when you're happy, it's easy to be led by the Spirit. When you're depressed, you won't hear the voice of God oh. When you're full of worry—what shall I eat? What shall I wear? Where shall I be? Where shall I hear? Where shall I survive? How shall I pay house rent? How shall I pay... Hey, if the house you are inside you are struggling to pay, go and look for house in Abak local government. Abak to Uyo is 10-15 minutes with Keke. And there the rent you are paying in Uyo, you can use one year rent of Uyo to pay for three years in Abak and be free from pressure. Nobody say you must live in Uyo. Nobody said it. And nobody said those in Abak are inferior to those in Uyo. Nobody said it. Nah you, they put yourself under pressure.

I'm teaching good. Free yourself from pressure and be in peace. Honey, you know some people in Abuja, their homes are one hour from Abuja, but they will tell you "I'm in Abuja." Where they live is one hour drive to Abuja. And they go home one hour drive and you ask them, "Where do you live?" Abuja. Nah you get problem. The man is in Abuja, can you cancel it? You cannot cancel it. There's a way to live without pressure. You can enjoy Jesus when you're free from pressure. Today I take that pressure from your head! Be free from pressure!

Let me close. Take no thought what you shall eat. Take no thought what you shall wear. Take no thought. Jesus said it as I close, Matthew chapter 6, and we will start from there on Wednesday. Matthew chapter 6 verse 21. "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." Next verse. "The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light." Look at verse 26, Matthew 6:26. "Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?" Next verse. "Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?" Next verse. "And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: and yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?"

Next verse. "Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?" Next verse. "For after all these things do the Gentiles seek." That is what the Gentiles are living for. "For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things." You know why He talked about the lilies and the birds? They don't do anything, yet they are living well. What God is simply saying is if you can trust me to be your source, I will take care of you. If you can trust me, I will take care of you. I take care of the animals, the birds, the lilies that don't have any business or investment. I take care of them. Are you, are you not of more value than these? That is, it's not our lusting and struggle and wisdom and our ability that brings the blessing of God. It's none of those.

Take no thought means don't worry. That means every day you wake up, there be needs, whether you're born again or not. But seek not after them. Your heavenly Father knows you have need of all these things. Not only that He knows you have need of them, He has provided. Hallelujah. Honey, you remember, "He that does not take care of his family is worse than an infidel and has denied the faith." I'm the family of God. If God doesn't take care of me, He's worse than an infidel and He has denied the faith. And I know He has not denied the faith, and I know He's not worse than an infidel. Therefore, I am taken care of.

Stand on your feet, let's close this service. Glory to God! Glory to God! Glory to God! I have a Father, I don't know about you. I have a Father. Our Father. Our Father. Our Father. The spirit of adoption crieth, "Abba, Father!" Somebody shout I have a Father! And it is His responsibility to take care of me! If He doesn't take care of me, He has denied the faith. He is worse than an infidel. And I know my Father: He has not denied the faith. He is not worse than an infidel. He is the God of our Lord Jesus. He has prepared things ahead of time. Oh, glory to God!

Guest (Male): God has a plan for me.

And this I'm sure, for this I'm sure.

Jesus, you're my firm foundation.

I know I can stand secure.

Jesus, you're my firm foundation.

I put my hope in your holy word.

I put my hope in your holy word.

Come on, let's sing it.

I have a living home.

I have a future.

God has a plan for me.

Of this I'm sure, of this I'm sure.

Come on! Jesus, you're my firm foundation.

I know I can stand secure.

Jesus, you're my firm foundation.

I put my hope in your holy word.

I put my hope in your holy word.

Dr. Abel Damina: For the last time. Your word is true. Your word is faithful. Mighty in power. God has delivered me. Of this I'm sure.

Guest (Male): Come on, of this I'm sure!

Everybody!

Jesus, you're my firm foundation.

I know I can stand secure.

Jesus, you're my firm foundation.

I put my hope in your holy word.

I put my hope in your holy word.

Jesus! Jesus, you're my firm foundation.

I know I can stand secure.

Jesus, you're my firm foundation.

I put my hope in your holy word.

I put my hope in your holy word.

Dr. Abel Damina: Glory! Lift your right hand and shout, "God is my only source!" Say it two more times. Say it one more time.

Father, our trust, our confidence, our hope, our faith is in you. We look up to you, we are lightened, and our faces are not ashamed. We trust in the Lord with all of our hearts, we lean not to our own understanding. In all our ways, we acknowledge you, and you are directing our paths. So I speak over everyone in this building: as we walk out of this place today, you walk into your wealthy place. You walk into your fruitful place. You walk into your place of favor in the name of Jesus. We dissolve doubts, we dissolve fear, we cancel delays, we dismantle impossibilities, we bring down oppositions in the name of Jesus. We give you praise for answered prayer. In Jesus' name we pray.

Every believer says that amen on a note of finality! Go ahead and celebrate for five seconds. Is that how you celebrate God as your only source? Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah! Give Him some crazy Holy Ghost praise! Hey! Glory! Somebody shout a powerful amen.

Grab your honor offerings, everybody. We want to give and honor Jesus this morning. Glory to God. Honor offerings, all of you giving online, on radio, on TV. Banking details are on the screen for social media, banking details are on the screen for TV. All right, everybody in the building, lift up your offerings in the campuses, lift up your offerings, everybody. Father, thank you for the privilege to give. Our offerings are a sweet smell before you today, and we're grateful that we're able to make a difference through our givings. In Jesus' name we pray. And every believer says a powerful amen. Church, the two baskets are before us. Hit the music, let's do it as we worship Jesus, the risen Lord.