(22 May 2016)

Pastor Mark (3rd service live)

Relationships / making connections with people in life is very important

Who do you connect / hang out with?
When you encounter Jesus, your life transforms bcos Grace is the antidote to sin
Eg. Zacchaeus the tax collector met & connected with Jesus and become the most generous person

I am not ashamed of the Gospel bcos it is the power of God unto salvation (Romans 1:16)
To save you from every problem in your life
The Gospel is able to deliver us from all problems 

2 Cor 5:21
We were made the righteousness of God in Christ
We were made (Ie. we were on the receiving end and our part is passive), and so no action of ours can un-make us 

There's no way to un-make your righteousness bcos you didn't make yourself righteous in the first place 

Just live by faith believing that you are still the righteousness of God in Christ bcos that's what God's word says about you

God defines me not by my actions and deeds but by His Son, bcos as Christ is, so am I (1 John 4:17)
We are not measured by what good deeds we do, but by the Grace we receive
Not how much I do, but how much I receive

Amos 3:3

To walk with God means to agree with Him

Homologeo = say the same thing as what Jesus says about you!

You are righteous, you are healed, you are beautiful!

2 Cor 5:17

When we are in Christ, we become new creations
We're a spirt. The real us is a spirit. The body is just a shell.

So changing your outside (eg. doing good works) doesn't change the real you on the inside 

How to change the real you? Since we're a spirit, we must be transformed spiritually - by death on the cross and by receiving Jesus 

Similarly, when we receive Jesus inside, the inside has changed but the outside may still look the same. Be patient. Inside is the real you. Eventually the outside will change to reflect the real you that's inside.

The Lord's prayer (Matt 6:9-13)

Life like heaven on earth is possible when we first receive from Christ

Isaiah 61:1-3

All these are fruits / results
1) Good tidings to the poor 

God doesn't want His children to be poor

We as imperfect parents don't want our children to be poor. How much more our Father in heaven (Matt 7:11)

The Bible has numerous promises of provision 

Eg. Ps 23:1 The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not lack 

Eg. Phil 4:19 My God shall supply all your needs 

2) Heal the broken hearted 

3) Proclaim liberty to the captives 

Includes being captive by anger, worry

We don't want to be angry or worry, but on our own effort we can't get out of it 

Only our Lord can get us out and He proclaims our freedom from these things 

4) Open prison to those bound 

Includes those bound by disease 

V2 acceptable year of the Lord is proclaimed first, vengeance of the Lord comes later after the rapture / during tribulation. But for now, we're in the acceptable year!

V2-3 the good news proclaimed is

I) Comfort all who mourn

II) Give us beauty for ashes
Ashes = our background / history, the bad words we said or bad things we did which we cannot take back 

III) Oil of joy for mourning

IV) Garment of praise for spirit of heaviness

Don't complain that life is unfair or that your family is not perfect

All families have their own share of problems / are imperfect bcos when 2 imperfect pple come together, there can't and won't be perfection

We tend to project what our earthly father / mother are like unto what our heavenly Father is like. Don't do that. 

(Me: To see what our heavenly Father is like, see what Jesus is like in the Scriptures bcos whoever has seen Jesus has seen the Father (John 14:7,9))

It took Pastor Mark 2-3 years to accept that God is his Father bcos of his family upbringing 

We are connected to the most important family in this universe - the family of God

Unfairness is all around in this world - parents, spouse, boss, family, wealth, background etc

We're not here to compare bcos then we will never be happy

If you want to compare, look to Jesus who is unfairly good to you & who died for you when He didn't deserve to

Jesus took the phrase, "Why me?" on the cross when He cried "Abba, why have you forsaken me?" so that now we cry "Abba, why are you so good to me?"

When we fail, our heavenly Father will never leave us (Deut 31:6)
When we feel insecure or loss, we can run to our heavenly Father who makes us whole

Greatest possession to possess in this year of POP is household blessings / salvation of our loved ones 

Don't forget your parents & grandparents too

How to receive the breakthrough / fruits of 1-4 above?

V3 trees of righteousness planted by God that He may be glorified 
Know your identity first = you are righteous in Christ Ie. clean not shameful

Why not tree of wealth or health? Bcos if you're wealthy and healthy but feel condemned, you'll lose it all anyway
As a tree of righteousness, you will bear fruit in everything

Who plants you? The Lord
For what purpose? That He may be glorified 

God sees us as trees
What does a tree do? Nothing, it just stands still and is rooted

Tree rooted in grace = soak yourself in messages of grace

Trees don't grow overnight

Similarly, don't give up. Be patient and just keep soaking in the Word even if your actions continue to be incorrect / circumstances don't seem to have changed.

The only way to grow in the Christian life is to grow in grace

To know you're righteous - that's growing

Say what God says about you. Agree with Him!

Speak to cholesterol, blood pressure, excess fats be gone in Jesus' name!

The just shall live by faith (Heb 10:38)

Jeremiah 17:7-8

Will not fear, will not be anxious, will yield fruit 

Romans 10:10-11

Whoever believes on Him as your righteousness, will not be put to shame

Grace will never reject you

The path of the righteous shines brighter and brighter (Prov 4:18) 

(8 May 2016)

Pastor Joseph Prince (1st service live)

(2nd svc was also live and seems like that was the "selected" service for playback. Content still largely the same)

Sermon proper
How to rightly divide the word
Which part is law, which part is grace?
It's not always OT law, NT grace

Many OT laws actually represent NT truths
Eg. Do not mix wool (self effort) and linen (righteousness of God)

How did Jesus teach the OT

Luke 24:27

V25 All discouragement comes from lack of belief 

V27 Books of Moses = first 5 books of OT 

Prophets = Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel etc

Didn't talk about Psalms bcos they reached the destination

Even in the law, He taught the things concerning Himself

Eg. Jesus in the offerings
Fine flour used only in the meal / grain offering
Fine = bcos in Jesus there's perfect balance, He's  altogether lovely, no uneveness about Him; never has to retract a statement, never too aggressive or too mild etc
Frankincense on top of the offering = smells very nice when burnt = His every thought / word / deed exudes a fragrance to God
Oil on frankincense = anointed of God

1 thick bread = 30 years of Jesus unseen by men but seen in His totality by God
1 thin bread = 3.5 years of Jesus seen by men, but men only sees Him partially / doesn't esteem Him fully

Luke 24:44

Now He has time to talk about Psalms and again it is about Him

Ps 1 is about Jesus 

Ps 22 is also about Jesus when He cried on the cross

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You never know how much God loves u until u know how much God loves Jesus

When u find Him, u find u! Bcos as Jesus is, so are we in this world (1 John 4:17)

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Importance of rightly dividing the word

2 Tim 2:15
If u don't rightly divide, u'll be a workman who will be ashamed

Different applications - law is for the proud and grace for the broken hearted (Martin Luther)

Law is Holy but it can't make men Holy

Dispensation truths

(Also talked about in last week's sermon)

In every dispensation, there is a change in God's way of treating man
And in every dispensation, man is tested & man fails

Purpose of all the dispensations is to show that man needs God 

It's not right to apply everything today; important to find out which dispensation we're in and the truths of it that apply to us today 

1. Innocence = Adam & Eve

2. Conscience = everyone lives by the knowledge of right and wrong / morality teaching

People ended up doing the right things but for the wrong reasons

Eg. Don't commit adultery, but never love wife
Eg. Don't covert, but never give 

All flesh was corrupted / wickedness of man and evil intentions of the heart (Gen 6:5,12)

Heb 10:22

Afraid of going to God =  evil conscience
Know that the blood of Jesus gives you the right to be there in God's presence 

God chose Noah

3. Human Government
Tower of babble was to contact power of darkness
Recap stars and story of Jesus written in the stars (21 Feb 2002 sermon)
Ended with man scattered 

God chose Abraham

4. Promise

There were unconditional promises that depended only on God (eg. land)

And there were also conditional promises that depended on man's behavior 

Ended in bondage in Egypt. Why?

They were not supposed to worship other gods but they did (ie. idolatry)

All 10 plagues were to judge the idols 

Eg. Plague 2 frogs = bcos they worshipped frogs

Eg. Plague 9 darkness = bcos they worshipped the sun

Recall that children of Israel still worshipped other gods but nobody died until Sinai when law was given 

5. Law

Once law given, this is when they started dying 

It's a picture of all mankind being unable to keep the law, not just Jews 

Recap Nebuchadnezzar's dream / statue sermon 

Feet of gentiles = democracy rule 

Not a dispensation, but time of gentiles

How to use the law lawfully / correctly 

1 Tim 1:8-11

Law is not made for a righteous person (= those who are justified by faith)

Law is made for the lawless, sinners, unholy, murderers, ... etc

Ie. we still need the law to govern others; like in society / police laws 

But there is no heart transformation, only behavior modification so as not to violate law outwardly 

Law given to sinners to let them know they're sinners

What happens if we use the law on the righteous 

Romans 7:1-3, 4-19

Illustration (V1-3) then application (V4-19)

V5 sinful passions r aroused by the law
When u forbid something, u stir it up in the flesh 

V6 delivered from the law = delivered from the 10 commandments law (from v7 context)

Dead to law but now governed by His spirit; not dead to law and free reign!

V8 apart from the law, sin was dead

We are not perfect. Stumbling, but stumbling upwards!

V9 death includes sickness. Bcos sickness is the beginning of death

V18 I want to do good

The moment you say you want to do smth nice, your will is present and sincere, but that's the day you'll likely do worse than intended

Why? Nothing wrong with the law

There is nothing wrong with the law. He is perfect, but too perfect for the bride. Compared to Grace who fulfils everything He demands. 

Jews believe that they're married to the law at Sinai, so they can't go to Jesus bcos that's adultery 

The only legal ground for us to leave the law is for either party to die - either law dies or we die 

But the law can't die. So Jesus provides the death for us to die in Christ (and hence die to the law) and then married to another who is the resurrected & glorious one! 

Not that we put aside the law, but that we're dead to it

And not that we're just dead to the law and free reign to do anything, but that we're dead to the law AND NOW MARRIED TO GRACE / JESUS.

For what purpose? For bearing fruit

There won't be fruit in ur life until u know that u're dead to the law

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Like Ruth and Boaz

Ruth = by law, she's a moabite and she cannot enter the kingdom, but she ended up in the line of Jesus; what law cannot, Grace can

Un-named man closer to Ruth than Boaz = unbending & cannot save Ruth; picture of law

Boaz = richest man who redeemed Ruth; picture of Jesus

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Now that we're married to Grace, if the law asks us to do this or do that, tell it to go do it itself. We're married to Grace now and take orders from Him. 

Even if we feel strong from having been in the presence of Grace, there's still no need to go back and try and please the law. Doing that is spiritual adultery.

Demands of the law no longer have a hold on us.

Law must come first for us to see our need 

Sometimes must get lost first to be found / saved later

Justification is by faith. Sanctification is also by faith 

Acts 15:5-11
V7 referring to when Peter preached at Cornelius' house in Acts 10

gentiles = Cornelius and family 

V9 hearts are purified by faith

V10 yoke = law

Holy Spirit fell, purifying their hearts by faith, when Peter was preaching Grace (Acts 10)

End of law dispensation = Jesus fulfilling the law

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Likely that Cornelius is the centurion at the foot of the cross who said "truly this Man was the Son of God"

Why?

Army at the foot of the cross is the army from Caesarea who would follow pontius pilate when he needed to hear a trial. This army would also be the one that carried out the verdicts of pontius pilate.

Few years later, Peter went to Caesarea to the house of Cornelius who happens to also be a centurion (Acts 10)

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6. Grace 

Eph 3:2-3

Church age started, but church was a mystery hidden only to be revealed later 

Bride of heros of bible = picture of the church = Rebecca, Rachel, Sarah, Ruth

OT prophets saw second coming and first coming as together cos they saw from far

Like seeing 2 mountains from far - they look close and even look like the same mountain until we are nearer 

In grace dispensation, God doesn't demand. He gives righteousness to man
Don't mix the dispensations

Previously = repent / confess first before u're forgiven
Now = goodness of God leads me to repentance, and I confess bcos I am forgiven 

Eph 4:32

God in Christ forgave us = past tense

We forgive others bcos we've been forgiven

We don't forgive others bcos we don't have a revelation of ourselves being forgiven

1 John 4:10, 19

V10 definition of love

But greatest commandment is that we love God with all our heart, soul & strength (Deut 6:5)

Ie. Know tt u can't possibly keep that commandment to love God with all your heart, soul & strength. And now watch Me love u with all My heart, soul & strength

V19 and now we can fulfil the law bcos He first loved us

We've been in this grace dispensation for > 2000 years; shows that grace is what's in God's heart 

But even then, this will end in man's failure & lawlessness will come 

End of grace dispensation = rapture followed by 7 years of tribulation

7. Kingdom 

Then we will return with Jesus and that's millennial & Kingdom rule. 

But even then, it will also end in man's failure

Eph 2:4-7

V7 in ages to come / even after the 7 dispensations, there's still exceeding grace to come 

Grace still goes on!

(1 May 2016)

Pastor Joseph Prince (4th service on 1st service playback)

Recap last week

Gen 18:1-33

A picture of God at Abraham's house - eating, fellowshipping, some family jokes (about Sarah laughing)

God eats with them, celebrates with them and gives them the news they want (that they will have a child)

That's how God wants our family to be like = homely, warm, intimate, joyful and with God in the midst

Sermon proper

Theme 1: Understanding God's nature

Micah 6:8

To do justice, love mercy & walk humbly with God

"Do justice" not "love justice"

Especially for leaders

God's nature is not to judge

His heart loves mercy = hesed = grace

There's a difference between being familiar vs being intimate with God

12 disciples walked with Jesus and were familiar with Him, but not all were intimate with Him

vs syrophoenician woman and centurion who didn't walk with Jesus everyday, but who knew His heart

2 Peter 3:9

God is long suffering, not willing that any should perish

There are people who perish, but God is not willing. Why doesn't God just "grab" them? Bcos God respects the free choice He has given to man

He wants to gather them like a mother hen gathers her chicks, but they were not willing (Luke 13:34)

Ie. It's a choice

Example of God's long suffering: during the time of the flood

Methuselah = his name means "death will bring". i.e. when he dies, the flood will come, and he was the longest living man on earth at 969 years

Why? Bcos God is not willing that any should perish and wants to drag for as long as possible

That's the heart of God - a long suffering heart

Similarly, God wants to delay the rapture & second coming for as long as possible

Why? Bcos he's waiting for more pple to be saved

There are those who will be raptured like Enoch, and then those who are saved in the judgement

Delivered but will go through the flood, and there's protection for them still

Every born again person goes up. Regardless of faithfulness

Needed for every marriage = long suffering

Love is patient = love is long suffering

Theme 2: Continuing last week's sermon

Angels can turn into the form of man

Some have entertained them and not aware (Heb 13:2)

Gen 18:20-33

2 Angels went to Sodom

Jesus stayed with Abraham in Hebron which is a mountain higher up but possible to look down and see Sodom from there

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Recall how Lot ended up in Sodom

Gen 13 & 14

Abraham let Lot choose where to go to split ways bcos there were too many of them and the there was strife among the herdsmen

Lot chose Sodom because it looked like the garden of Eden. Lot chose by sight

Later, Abraham rescued Lot when Lot was taken captive in the war 

Abraham tithed to Melchizedek after the victory; no record of Lot tithing

Then Lot went back to Sodom

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2 Peter 2:6-8

Lot is righteous, and God emphasises it 3 times in 2 verses

But he is a defeated righteous man - he had a family but lost it all except 2 daughters, and ended up in wrong relationships with them

Watching and living in filth, and a leader amongst them. But he's still righteous, bcos righteousness is by faith not works

Compared with Abraham who is a victorious righteous man 

Abraham = in Hebron (heaven), looking down at the judgement and knew about it long before Sodom knew

Lot = in the destruction, but still protected 

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The 7 dispensations

Dispensations = the way God treats man; God testing man to show that man needs God

1. Innocence = ended with the fall of Adam
2. Conscience = ended with the flood (Noah)
3. Human government = ended in idolatry
4. Promise = started with the promise God gave to Abraham (that in him all nations will be blessed not just Israel); ended with man boasting in self efforts / inventions and forgetting God & law being given
5. Law = ended with man's inability to keep the law / God finding fault with the law as too severe 
6. Grace = ends with the rapture <-- we're here now
7. Kingdom = 1000 year millennia rule / return of the King. There will be perfect rule on earth with Jesus visibly ruling. Faith becomes sight. Devil is bound, can't blame him. Everything is perfect (family, health, finances etc). Like Garden of Eden conditions without lack. Also no more excuse of unbelief, but this will still end in rebellion and man's failure.

Every dispensation ends in failure of man & man blaming God for it. That's the whole point - to show man up; that we need God desperately / in and off ourselves, we cannot

Watch that with everything we have through grace, we don't fall into greediness and materialism

Like church of laodicea vs philadelphia

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Gen 18:20-33

V17 Shall I hide from Abraham what I'm doing 

But Abraham is called friend of God (James 2:23)

And as friend of God, Jesus tells Abraham all things that He hears from the Father even before it happens (John 15:15)

Likewise for us

V23 Abraham came near
God wanted someone to intercede
If God wanted justice, He would have gone straight to Sodom, without telling Abraham, but He knew Abraham would pray!

Example: Jonah's case

Jonah 4:1-5
Jonah was very reluctant & unwilling to preach to Nineveh. Shortest sermon even (Jonah 3:4)

Bcos he knew God's nature - gracious, merciful, slow to anger, abundant in loving kindness 

(Also see above on God's nature)

V25 righteous man referred here is Lot

V32 Why did Abraham stop at 10 and not go to 1?

Lot's family:

At least 2 son-in-laws + 2 daughters

At least 2 sons
At least 2 unmarried daughters
Plus Lot and his wife
= Total 10

Abraham had a purpose

Why is it important to study the destruction of Sodom? Bcos as it was in the days of Lot, Jesus will be revealed (Luke 17:28); Sign of last days

Gen 19:1-38

V1 Lot was sitting in the gate

Ie. Lot was an established man in the world / worldliness

The effects of the blessings of the righteous were still on him

Like how Jews today still enjoy the remnant blessings of Abraham even though they don't believe in Jesus yet

V1 Bowed with face to the ground = has heart, but not totally bcos compared to Abraham, Abraham bowed totally prostrate to the ground 

V1 Angels only. Jesus was not there = Jesus is not at home with Lot

(Me: V1 rose to meet them = compared to Abraham who ran to meet them 

        V2 rise early and go on your way = almost like can't wait for them to go)

V2&3 Angels didn't want to stay in Lot's house & preferred to stay outside in the open square but Lot insisted 

Compared to at Abraham's side where they stayed in his house and had a warm gathering even 

V3 unleavened bread without the shedding of blood

Compared to at Abraham's side bread and calf (i.e. bread plus shedding of blood)

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Recall Joseph interpreting dreams (Gen 40)

Bread alone = something bad = Jesus is a good man, but nothing about His sacrifice

Wine alone = something bad = … ? 

Must be bread and wine together = Melchizedek with bread and wine and Abraham responding with the tithe

Exodus 12:8-9

Do not eat raw nor boiled with water

Raw / boiled with water = fire didn't touch it = Jesus died as a martyr, not receiving the judgement of God = the sacrifice never took our judgement / our sins have not been punished 

But our sins have been punished in Jesus our sacrifice, so there must be fire

And if God punishes us now, that's unholy

God is righteous by making us righteous bcos it has already been paid for at the cross by Jesus

God is righteous by not remembering our sins now, because He remembered them on the cross 

Like Jesus died this morning

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V8 How far Lot has fallen that he will offer up his daughters

Lot is righteous but defeated bcos he compromised

Just bcos you hear the grace message doesn't mean that you are under grace
If you are under grace, sin has no dominion over you (Romans 6:14) 

Ie. If you have a lifestyle of sin (eg. adultery), that means sin has dominion over you and you are not under grace. 

Don't bring grace into it. Be a man and take responsibility.

We don't condemn you, but we condemn your actions

V10 men = angels

V14 son-in-laws thought Lot was joking
Talk / drink / act like them such that when you try to talk to them about the rapture / want to be serious, nobody believes bcos you've lost your influence & credibility

V16 Lot lingered & angels had to hold his hand

Here is the Lord being merciful to him. God is so slow to judge, even helping and holding his hand to force him out

V17 the mountains = where Abraham was

V18&19 Lot didn't want to go to the mountains and didn't believe that it was safe there. He wanted to choose where to go

V19 Increased your mercy = first mention of hesed 

3 things about Lot:

1. Lot never tithed
2. Lot never focused on the blood
3. His name means "a veil" = law (2 Cor 3:13-14)

We are delivered from the law to be governed by the Spirit. If someone is under law, it manifests by lust. (Romans 7:5-6 ?)

V21 Lot saved the city Zoar bcos he chose to flee to it
Ie. A defeated righteous man can still have his prayers answered and can still bring blessings to others 

V22 I cannot... until you're safely away

V26 professing Christian
She looked back bcos she lived that life too long

V27 Abraham went back to the place where he was negotiating with God

V28 What we'll see up there, looking down

V29 God remembered Abraham
Thank God for people who are praying/prayed for us!

God remembers our prayers prayed in Jesus' name and this saves people

V30 Lot chose Zoar instead of the mountains the angels told him to go to. But now he is restless / unhappy at Zoar

Mountains here is not Hebron where Abraham was at

(Me: Better to follow what/where God tells you to do/go)

V34 where did the daughters learn this from?
Be careful what your children are watching

Parents are kings and priests over the house

Speak normally / calmly and trust that God gives weight to your words. God is on ur side

There's no need to raise your voice / shout / yell. If u do that, you've lost control. Don't lose control.
But do speak up and restrict. Don't keep quiet
Even if children go, trust that your words have power and glory

V37 Moab = from here came the Moabites (Ruth)

V38 Ben-Ammi = from here came the Ammonites
These were difficult people for Israel later on

That's the end of the story of Lot. No more mention of him and we don't know what happened after all this.

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Hebrews 9:28 NLT & AMP versions

Second coming of Christ is not to deal with our sins 

Salvation = of our bodies

To those who are eagerly and confidently waiting for Him = us

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Be like righteous Abraham, unafraid of the judgement that's so close! And just enjoying the fatness of fellowship with Jesus
But pray for others that their conscious be purged from sin with Jesus (Hebrews 10:2)

God will delay for us to pray

We lead a victorious life, not for our glory, but for the glory of Jesus

Closing prayer

(Me: I especially love this week's closing prayer!!) 

The Lord bless you with the blessings of Father Abraham. The Lord bless you with the blessings of Deut 28. Even as He has blessed you with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. You are blessed, you are blessed, you are blessed. And the Lord preserve, protect and keep you and your loved ones throughout this week from all manner of evil. The Lord deliver you from every evil work and preserve you unto His heavenly Kingdom.

The Lord give you grace never to go down from the mountain of fellowship. The Lord give you grace never to be like a Lot. God give you grace to bring your family with dignity and honour, not legalistically, not in a domineering way, but with power in your words.

Father, in the name of Jesus, grant power, irresistible power that does not have to be yelled out but spoken in quietness, with firmness with love to all the parents here. Be it not spoken word or written word.

The Lord preserve everyone throughout this week from every sickness, from every disease, from every accidents, and dangers and harms and from all the powers of darkness. The Lord grant to you and your family a blessed blessed family life. A family like Abraham's family where there's laughter and God speaking to you intimately, where there's no sin consciousness, only Jesus consciousness.

In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.