Reckless In Christ

March 19, 2002 PM
Pastor Chris Abernathy
Columbus, Georgia




If you would, turn in your Bibles with me to the book of Second Kings chapter nine. Second Kings chapter nine.

We talked about Jehu and how Jehu was the enemy of Jezebel. Amen? And how we needed to have that Jehu spirit, to destroy that Jezebel spirit.

In Second Kings chapter nine, beginning with verse one, it said... And I am in, tonight, the New International Version. So listen very carefully. It says,

1. And Elisha the prophet called one of the children of the prophets, and said unto him, Gird up thy loins, and take this box of oil in thine hand, and go to Ramothgilead:

2. And when thou comest thither, look out there Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, and go in, and make him arise up from among his brethren, and carry him to an inner chamber;

3. Then take the box of oil, and pour it on his head, and say, Thus saith the LORD, I have anointed thee king over Israel. Then open the door, and flee, and tarry not.

Let us bow our heads.

Most holy and gracious heavenly Father, we thank You tonight for Your Word. Father, hide Your son behind the cross, that Your people would see You and not me. And Father, as I decrease I ask that You would increase. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, oh Lord, my strength and my redeemer.

And I thank You that Satan is bound tonight. And he is forbidden to operate. We loose him from every assignment that he has been sent on tonight. In the Name of Jesus. We command him to bow his knee. In Jesus’ Name, amen.

When we look at Jehu, he had the basic qualities that would make him a great success. And when we look from a man’s perspective, we could say that he was a very successful king. One thing about Jehu, he was fiercely committed to the task. But when he was fiercely committed to the task (hallelujah), he was not under control.

You see, many times we are committed to what God has called us to in ministry. And we are gun hoe about doing what God has called us to do. But unless we stay under the hand of God in obedience, and unless we stay (glory to God) with the action plan to do it exactly the way God has instructed for us to do it, we leave ourselves open for carelessness and recklessness.

When we look at Jehu (hallelujah), the Bible says that Elijah told one of the sons of the prophets to go and anoint Jehu to be the king of Israel. But he told him to gird up his loins. And he said, “After you do it, do not delay.”

The reason why he told him not to delay was because Jehu was about to go on a killing spree. Hello, somebody.

You see, every now and then God will call somebody to do a work. And instead of listening to every instruction, they are so bold. They are so zealous in the work that they’ll kill everybody in... Oh, my God, my God.

He told him to hurry up after you anoint him, and get out of the door. If you don’t want to be in the line of fire, then you need to get out of the door. Do you hear what I’m saying? Because once he is anointed he’s going to be in a position and he’s going to be a in a place where he’s going to be reckless.

He was in a place where he was taking out the idols that were in Israel. But instead of just taking out the idols, he began to worship other idols. He got in another place of disobedience in God.

Jehu went on a killing spree. He went on a killing spree. Jehu was a man of immediate action. But he did not have ultimate purpose.

You see, when I go on a task for the Lord, I may operate in immediate action for the Lord. But I have got to understand what the ultimate purpose is. I cannot just continue to do a thing and not understand what the purpose is or why I’m doing a thing. It’ll cause me to be careless and reckless. Do you hear what I’m saying tonight?

You see, I have got to get a full understanding of the mission. You see, I can’t just take the mission (glory to God) and have tunnel vision with it. I’ve got to take the mission and allow God to add here, allow God to take away here. Oh, my God, my God. I’ve got to get in a place where I allow God to be God. If God wants to make some changes, then let Him make some changes.

It was already prophesied (hallelujah) by Elijah that there would be many people killed by the hand of Jehu. In other words, he was doing the task. But while doing the task he was still disobedient.

Many times we get in a place where we’re doing the task, but we’re not following the Word of God. Many times we get in the path of trying to do the task (glory to God), but our heart is not right in the task. Hello, somebody. In the midst of it I’m accomplishing what God wants for me to accomplish, but my heart is not right. My heart being right makes all of the difference, and what I’m called and chosen to do, to be effective in it.

Jehu was reckless. He was wild in his behavior. He had no control. Even though he knew his mission, he did not allow God to control. Many times we know our mission. Listen to this. We know what our mission is. But we don’t allow God to control the mission. In other words, we don’t allow God to supervise. We don’t allow God to manage. We think we got it, just because He told us what to do. He’s still in control. Oh, my God, my God, my God.

You see, I can’t get the instruction and leave the Manager out of it. I’ve got to get the instructions, and still follow Him. The Bible said, Paul said to the people, “Follow me as I follow Christ.” Because even though I know the mission He’s still in control. Oh, somebody got a revelation.

If I allow Him (oh, I feel the Holy Ghost) to be the Manager, if I allow Him to be the Supervisor, when I begin to get in the place where I ought not to be, He can get me back in line.

But if I just stay on the mission, and once I get the instructions, and I’m not following Him any more, then I lead myself up for what? Error. I begin to walk out of truth. And I begin to walk in error, because after a while I’m going to start to put my own thoughts to it. I’m going to start to put my own mind to the mission. I’m going to start to think about the way that I think it should go.

Jehu, even though he destroyed the house of Ahab, he became reckless. Ain’t nothing worse than somebody that’s anointed and reckless. My God, my God. Do you hear what I’m saying? Ain’t nothing worse than somebody that got the Anointing of God on their life, and they’re reckless. There’s nothing worse.

Because the gifts and the callings of God are without repentance. And still in the midst of their recklessness, the Anointing is still going to work. Do you hear what I’m saying?

Even though he took down the Baal worship, he took that down because the worship of Baal was beginning to destroy the nation. Instead of tearing down all of the idols, he went to worshiping calves. He was reckless. And he was out of control.

When you look at Baalim, whoever Baalim blessed was blessed. And whoever Baalim cursed was cursed. But Baalim became reckless with the gift that he had. Do you hear what I’m saying tonight? That Anointing was still going to work. That’s why he had to enquire of the Lord whether or not he was able to curse Israel.

God gave Him instruction. He said, “No.” Because that Anointing, once you get in the office... There’s a difference in the anointing just coming on you every now and then to prophesy. But once you operate in an office...

I’m in an office of a prophet, so my anointing is going to work regardless. That’s why I’ve got to keep my heart right, somebody. That’s why I’ve got to keep my mind submitted to the Word of God. Because I won’t just take me out. I’ll take everybody out that’s around me. Hello in the house of God tonight. I’m trying to teach you something.

See, God will give you a mission. But you got to listen to Him the whole time. Don’t just get the instruction and then block God out and say, “I got it.” Get the instruction, and let God keep on speaking.

Jehu, he had a reckless outlook on life. It made him bold. But he was prone to error. You see, many people are bold, but they’re prone to error. Why? Because they are in their flesh. Do you hear what I’m saying?

And once that carnal mind takes a hold of a thing, the devil is going to step in. And once the devil steps in, you’ll have a little bit of truth mixed with error. And once you got truth mixed with error, oh my God, you ain’t got nothing but a big old mess.

It would seem that Jehu was successful. But he went past what God instructed him to do. His hands were bloody. His hands had the blood of men on them. Why? Because he was not fully obedient. Do you hear what I’m saying?

When I have God in control He’s going to keep me in bounds. He’s not going... Listen. He’s not going to keep me bound. He’s going to keep me in bounds. He’s going to keep me from stepping out in a place that’s not Him.

You see, once that Anointing, once somebody gets anointed, they got to be very, very careful. Once you have an Anointing (thank you) on your life... The devil mad with me, but I don’t even care. Once you have an anointing (I feel Jesus, though) on your life, you got to be so careful. You’ve got to be careful of what you say, careful of what you do.

It was prophesied to me about three different times that God was going to honor the words of my mouth. Whatever I said was going to come to pass. The Lord told me to be ever so careful with whatever I say. Because there’s going to come a time in my life when He’s just going to immediately honor it. Do you hear what I’m saying?

He will allow us to get to different levels in our ministry and in our lives, where it’s just like He’s speaking. Do you hear what I’m saying? He will trust you to the point where you will just be the voice, because you understand the mind of God. You understand how God operates and how God works, and what’s God and what’s not God, and what to say and what not to say. And the whole while listening for the voice of the Lord.

Jehu did what God told him to do when he killed Ahab’s family. But his heart wasn’t right.

If you got something to do for the Lord, you better make sure your heart is right. The Bible said keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it comes the issues of life.

He’s looking at the heart. He was looking at Jehu’s heart.

God gives us all strengths and abilities. And in giving us strengths and abilities, He will allow us to find our greatest usefulness these strengths and abilities, to accomplish His will in the earth. But the whole while still under His control.

So I say to you tonight, people of God, I know this is a house that’s called by His Name, that there are chosen vessels in this house. Keep your heart right. Be obedient to the Lord, and do what He says to do. No more, no less.

You want to know why a lot of times people that prophesy get in trouble? Yeah, the Lord will give them a word. But He might give them one or two words to say. But then they begin to add stuff, because they lean to their own understanding. Hello, somebody. They think it might be this. But in all actuality God is talking about something else.

You can only say what He tells you to say. You can only do what He tells you to do. If you go any further than that, you step over into error.

Jehu, his destination was unclear. That’s why we need spiritual fathers.

When we look in the book of Corinthians, First Corinthians four and fifteen... Go there with me. We’re almost finished tonight. First Corinthians. There was a lot going on in the church at Corinth. Thank You, Jesus. When you get there say amen. Chapter four. Thank You, Jesus.

It was talking about how said that they were of Apolos. And some were saying that they were of Paul. In other words, they had broke off into little cliques. And Paul said, “I speak to you as my little children.” He said, “For I am your father in the ministry.”

Fathers in the ministry help us to stay on track, and help us to stay on target. They’re not there to harm us, but they’re there to help us. Sometimes you’ll run across people that will be your father in ministry, but you know more than they know. But they’re still in your life for a reason. Hello, somebody.

I had a friend of mine in Atlanta. He was a teacher in my Sunday School. And I declare he knew more Word that I could ever know. But he called me his father in the ministry. He submitted himself to me because of my spirit. Do you hear what I’m saying? He wasn’t concerned that he knew Genesis to Revelations. He knew that there was something else that he needed to get.

See, a lot of times what happens with people when they think that they know more than their father know in the ministry, then they think that that person is not their father any more. They go looking for another daddy. Hello, somebody. But if they would understand that that person will still be their father in ministry no matter how far down the road they get, they set themselves up for the blessing of the Lord.

Jehu was in a place where he needed guidance. He had heard from the Lord, from the prophet of the Lord. But he became reckless.

We need people that are going to keep us in bounds. You may not want to be in bounds, but God’s going to get you in bounds. Sometimes what will happen is, folks in the body of Christ will become what you call vagabonds. In other words, they’re drifters, drifters.

You don’t want to be considered a drifter. You’ve got to plant your feet in a place, and grow and receive and be obedient. And allow God to push on you. Allow God to pull on you, to allow God to break you. So that no matter what situation you find yourself in, you know that you’ll be walking in truth and not in error.

Tonight where are you? Are you in error, because you’re out of bounds? You see, your attitude will cause you to be out of bounds. Get back in bounds. Don’t wait until the Lord got to put you back in bounds. You get yourself back in bounds.

You know when you wrong. Don’t nobody have to tell you, so you can get mad at them for telling you that you’re wrong. Hello, somebody. Because we know right from wrong. We’re not on the milk any more. We’re on the strong meat.

And if I get myself back in bounds, then I don’t have to worry. Now you do have those folks that will see you get yourself back in bounds, and they still got something to say. Don’t worry about them. Hello. Let them say what they need to say. And you still keep your heart right.

So don’t be like Jehu in the realm of obedience. Don’t be like him, where you got your mission, but you’re out of control. Don’t be reckless. Don’t just think you’re anointing and you can just do what you want to do, and can’t nobody tell you nothing. Because you’ll get out of bounds. And you’re setting yourself up to be sifted like wheat. Stay in bounds. Stay in bounds.

Give God a handclap of praise today.





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