Teaching #1
Teaching – By Prophet Anita McCoy
The Connection of Worship and Healing:
Matthew 15: 21- 28: The Faith of a Canaanite Woman
21 Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.”
23 Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.”
24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”
25 The woman came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said. (In the KJV it says., “Then she came and she worshipped him saying, ’Lord, Help me.’”)
26 He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”
27 “Yes it is, Lord,” she said. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” (KJV reads: “Truth Lord, YET the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their master’s table.”)
28 Then Jesus said to her, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed at that moment.
When you can worship in the midst of your pain, suffering, calamity ~ Heaven takes notice and says, “Woman, Sir, you have great faith!”
I’m reminded of another incredible story in the Word of God about the man named Job.
Job 1: 8-10; 20-21
About Job God said, “There is none like himin the earth! God went on to describe Job as a perfect and upright man, one that fears God and shuns evil! Imagine that! God Almighty, the Creator of Heaven and Earth~ none can compare to our God; He is the God of all gods; the God of the Universe! A song writer even penned in reference to God, “Nobody greater, nobody greater than You!” Yet here God is singing the praises of Job, a mere mortal like you and I, why, because of Job’s worship!
In the midst of all Job suffered, the tremendous lost that he experienced, in Job 1: 20 -21 the Word of the Lord says, “Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground and worshipped! Job absolutely ruined the power of the enemy and stripped the sting of death of its power by saying, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord!"
As you read the book of Job in the Bible you can see that the battle continues to rage against Job from chapter 1 on through to chapter 13. But in the midst of it we find Job declaring in Job 13: 15 these words: “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him!” What gave Job that kind of faith in the face of what looked like death itself? It was Job's worship!
You see beloved there is a power in your worship that liberates you from the grasps of the enemy! Satan who is responsible for all sickness, pain, infirmity, and all manner of evil, he doesn't know what to do with a worshipper. You see your praise confuses the enemy!
THERE IS POWER IN YOUR WORSHIP!
In this story about the life of Job satan reveals truth about worship. The Word of God clearly says that satan is a liar, he's the father of lies, yet here we see the power of worship – Let’s take a look.
In Job 1:8 God puts satan to the challenge by asking, “Have you considered my servant Job?" Look at God bragging on Job, the one He had created! Then in verses 9 and 10 satan replies to God by saying, “Doth Job fear (reverence, worship) God for nothing, for no reason at all?” Satan doesn't wait for God's reply, but in essence satan answers his own question saying, “Have you not put a hedge of protection around him and his family so that I can’t even get to them? All of Job’s needs are met and You give him everything He wants! No one has ever had it as good as Job! You do all of this for Job because he worships You!" (emphasis mine)
You see beloved, worshipping God while waiting on God for the manifestation of your healing places a hedge, a shield of protection around you so that the devil can’t kill you! So when you are a worshipper, you can boldly declare and decree: " I shall not die, but live and declare the works of the Lord!" I encourage you to worship the Lord in the midst of what you are going through and watch God lift up His standard, His hedge of protection over you!
THERE IS POWER IN YOUR WORSHIP!
Teaching #2
“RISE UP, SHOULDER UP, IT’S TIME TO SERVE UP!” – Pastor Anita McCoy
Joshua 24: 1- 15
“And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God. 2 And Joshua said unto all the people, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood in old time, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nachor: and they served other gods. 3 And I took your father Abraham from the other side of the flood, and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed, and gave him Isaac. 4 And I gave unto Isaac, Jacob and Esau: and I gave unto Esau mount Seir, to possess it; but Jacob and his children went down into Egypt. 5 I sent Moses also and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt, according to that which I did among them: and afterward I brought you out. 6 And I brought your fathers out of Egypt: and ye came unto the sea; and the Egyptians pursued after your fathers with chariots and horsemen unto the Red sea. 7 And when they cried unto the Lord, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea upon them, and covered them; and your eyes have seen what I have done in Egypt: and ye dwelt in the wilderness a long season. 8 And I brought you into the land of the Amorites, which dwelt on the other side Jordan; and they fought with you: and I gave them into your hand that ye might possess their land; and I destroyed them from before you. 9 Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and warred against Israel, and sent and called Balaam the son of Beor to curse you: 10 But I would not hearken unto Balaam; therefore he blessed you still: so I delivered you out of his hand. 11 And you went over Jordan, and came unto Jericho: and the men of Jericho fought against you, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; and I delivered them into your hand. 12 And I sent the hornet before you, which drove them out from before you, even the two kings of the Amorites; but not with thy sword, nor with thy bow. 13 And I have given you a land for which ye did not labor, and cities which ye built not, and ye dwell in them; of the vineyards and olive yards which ye planted not, do ye eat. 14 Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and PUT AWAY the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; AND SERVE ye the Lord. 15 And if it seems evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
I. It’s Time to Rise Up!
The book of Joshua is exciting because it marks the exodus of the children of Israel out of Egypt and the Wilderness into their Promised Land, Canaan. The first twelve chapters tell us of Israel’s crossing of the Jordan, the fall of Jericho, and the conquest of the land. Chapters 13-22 gives us the history of the territories the Israelites possessed and how the land was distributed among them. In chapters 23 and 24, Joshua reminds the Israelites of all the gifts the Lord has given them along their journey and sets himself as an example before the people in Joshua 24:15, saying: “If it seems evil for you to serve God, choose whom you will serve, but as for me and my house we will serve the Lord!” Joshua was a remarkable leader not just because he accomplished the job the Lord placed before him and brought the people into their Promised Land, but Joshua was a great leader because of how he became a leader.
Great leaders are not made simply on the merit of natural skills and abilities, but great leaders are forged out of the fires of adversity, fear, disappointments, hardship, pain, and their audacious ability to stand in the face of an enemy and get the job done anyway! That’s what JESUS did! His mother tried to get Him to act out of the timing of God for His life and Judas wanted Him to be a political leader, not a spiritual leader. The crowds even followed Jesus for the fishes and the loaves; for His miracles and healings, but when He got arrested and accused of wrong-doings that He did not commit, what happened - the people scattered, disappeared and even His close friend, Peter, denied he ever knew Jesus! Jesus went through some things!
GREAT LEADERS ARE MADE
Joshua was a great leader because he stuck close to his leader, Moses, and he supported Moses in his job to get the people OUT of Egypt. Moses’ job was to bring the people OUT; Joshua’s job was to take the people IN. Joshua walked with Moses close enough to know all the hell that God’s people put the man of God through; NOW Moses is gone and God, not man, appoints JOSHUA to lead the people into their Promised Land. Imagine, after 40 years of being wilderness dwellers God approaches Joshua in Joshua chapter 1 and says,
“Moses, My servant, is dead. So now arise [take his place], go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land which I am giving to them, the Israelites. 3 Every place upon which the sole of your foot shall tread, that have I given to you, as I promised Moses. God continues with Joshua saying, Be strong (confident) and of good courage, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. Only you be strong and very courageous, that you may do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded (taught) you. Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left that you may prosper wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe and do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely and have good success. Have not I commanded you? Be strong, vigorous, and very courageous. Be not afraid, neither be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
What made Joshua a great leader was his obedience to his earthly leader (Moses) and his heavenly leader (GOD). It was time for Joshua to RISE UP and his ability to focus on what God’s Word said gave him the strength and the courage to RISE.
So here we are in Joshua 24 and verse 1: (Read it) Joshua calls all the leaders of Israel to a place called “Shechem.”
Shechem comes from the root that yields the verb form meaning to “rise early” and the noun form which means “shoulder back.” Hence in the text when Joshua calls the leaders of Israel to Shechem, he calls them to a place of advantage and a place of strength. Perhaps you’ve heard the expression, “The early bird gets the worm.” There’s something about “early risers.” They are diligent and persistent; they get the most out of the day. They understand that time, and not money, is the most valuable commodity given to man in the earth realm. Early Risers seek to live each day to the fullest and seem to be guided internally by a strong sense of purpose and the need to get things accomplished.
Early Risers gain the advantage because they become first partakers of that which is fresh and new. In Psalm 63:1 David exclaims, “O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is” Psalm 90:14 declares: “O satisfy us early with thy mercy; that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.” Psalm 30:5 “For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”
II. It’s Time to Shoulder Up!
The second part of the meaning of Shechem is from the noun form of the word which means “shoulder back.” As a noun this expression speaks to us of a position of the body, a condition of the mind, and a state of “being.”
In Joshua 24:1, Joshua gathers all the tribes, and then he calls all the elders, the heads, the officers, and judges to “shoulder back.” And in the text it says, “they presented themselves unto the Lord.” Notice how the people responded to Joshua’s call, but they understood that in responding to the call they were presenting or positioning themselves before the Lord. In today’s culture, by and large people have no concept of presenting themselves respectfully before those in authority. Why, because today we live in a culture where there is a gross lack of respect for authority. In families, children disrespect parents, and husbands and wives disrespect one another. In the workplace, workers disrespect their bosses and with what’s happening on the political scene – there is a gross lack of respect for the leaders of government, even down to the White House.
This anti-authority spirit has sought to infiltrate the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ! As a leader I’ve been to places where the Pastor and leaders, set forth to establish vision or direction for the church and some of people pick and choose whether or not the call is important enough for them to respond at all! Not all of those who respond operate as though they understand that they are presenting themselves before the Lord God. Furthermore, what is most interesting is to find leaders who don’t present themselves in a manner that is pleasing to the Lord. In this hour we have to ask ourselves, “What’s happening?” Have we forgotten what the Word of God admonishes, that “whatsoever we do in word or deed, we should do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him.” (Colossians 3:17)
“Shoulder back” “COME CORRECT"
Giving spiritual application to Joshua calling the people of Israel to Shechem, implies that he as their leader was calling them to rising early and to the mindset of the diligence/ persistence of the riser (to get a good start of the day), and to carrying of an actual load or a task or position upon the shoulders. In the word of God the shoulder represents “authority” and one having authority. In Isaiah it speaks of “the government will rest on His shoulders” It is a place of being responsible. The one who rises up is stepping up to the place of authority to shoulder their responsibility. There is to be a love for work –and those that discovered the value of working in the Kingdom of God were guided by their own inner voice which said to them “I must work while it is day for when night comes, NO MAN CAN WORK.”
“Early Risers” – they are not afraid of HARD WORK. Lazy is not in their nature! They seem to love to put their nose to the grindstone, and thoroughly enjoy puttin’ their time in! Their attitude is – NO PAIN; NO GAIN! Now I could spend the rest of this message talking about this SHECHEM CREW – but what I REALLY want to know is “Do we have any Shechems in the House today?” Is there anybody who will say like Jesus said, “I MUST be about My Father’s business!” The Bible says, If we don’t work; WE DO NOT EAT! We understand what this means on a practical level, but as it IS in the NATURAL – so it is in the SPIRITUAL! Jesus said it like this in John 4:34 – “My meat, my food, is to do the WILL of Him that sent me and to finish HIS WORK!”
III. SERVE UP!
In the rest of this chapter Joshua reviews with the children of Israel ALL the things that the Lord has done for them and in verse 15 he concludes his appeal by saying if it seems EVIL to you to serve God, CHOOSE ye THIS DAY whom you will serve, BUT as for me and my house WE WILL SERVE THE LORD!
It’s no more time to waste time trying to get people to do what they should ALREADY know to do! Joshua said to the people in verse 19: “God is holy; you can’t just serve Him any ol’ kinda way! He is a jealous God who wants ALL of you, not just a part of you! Remember how He gave His all; how he delivered you from ALL your enemies, how He gave you houses you did not build and gave you vineyards and olive yards that you did not plant! And considering ALL His goodness to you – SERVE GOD!
If ever the church was at a crossroads of choosing to go in to possess their promises, or returning back to Egypt (turning away from the Lord) or continuing to wander in the wilderness (needlessly) when Jesus Christ has made a way for us to prosper and be in health even as our souls prosper; Jesus has provided us with the ability to not only have eternal life, but life more abundantly – WHY WOULDN’T YOU CHOOSE TODAY TO SERVE HIM WITH ALL YOUR HEART, MIND, SOUL, AND STRENGTH?
Why not give Him EVERYTHING! God forbid that after He has done EVERYTHING to bless us we forsake the Lord and continue to serve other gods. I wanna know --------Who's on the Lord's side? RISE UP, SHOULDER UP and SERVE UP!
(Sermon Preached at First Good Samaritan AME Zion Church, Erie, PA September 2012)
Teaching #3
The Importance of Submission to Authority – To have Dominion - Pastor Anita McCoy
One of the greatest challenges among leadership today in the Body of Christ is to find those who will be faithful. People will readily say that they are full of faith and will give you their spiritual resume of gifts, callings and abilities - and there's nothing necessarily wron with that; but for how God wants to position His body, for where He wants to advance His Kingdom – the question is not are you simply full of faith – but can you be found faithful?
I find it interesting that in Luke 18:8 Jesus, after teaching His disciples of the importance of prayer and being persistent in prayer, goes on ask this question: “Nevertheless, when the Son of man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?” Whenever I read this it bothers me not just as a leader in the Body of Christ, but as a member of the Body of Christ. Why would Jesus raise such a question when there are ministries all over the place and churches any where we go? The Church has a presence on television, radio, the internet; in the arts and entertainment industries, in government etc., and along with that there are new converts being added to the Church daily and people in the Body of Christ are discovering their gifts and callings, attending conferences and workshops and the list goes on and on – there is a plethora of spiritual activity going on and yet at the end of the age when the Son of man appears, Jesus asks, Will there be any faith? To think that we stand to be a Church without faith is frightening! It’s alarming!
As I fathom this possible dilemma and survey the present state and condition of our churches today and the climate of society and culture, the thought raise is, "Could it be that this question is raised - because the greater question is CAN WE BE FOUND FAITHFUL?"
I was listening to a prayer call conducted by a dynamic leader in the Body of Christ and among all the needs that were presented on the call, there was an overwhelming number of Christians admitting that they had come to a place of faithlessness of no longer being faithful to the work of God or even faithful in their commitment to the Lord. As I listened further, I discovered that people had gotten caught up in offenses, disagreements, misunderstandings, disappointments, feelings being hurt, etc., ALL THIS JUNK is taking place in the Body of Christ, and you know what - the REAL ENEMY, satan sits back and laughs and makes a mockery of our faith! Instead of advancing as a collective body in the authority and power that the Lord has for the Church – we have allowed the enemy to come in unaware and with strife and division because we failed to realize that were we are right now in the Eternal timetable of God is the place where God is looking for those who have died out to self so that they have possess the forth level of His covenant promise to us – and that is DOMINION!
We know the passage – Genesis 1:28 - "And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing (visible and invisible) that moveth upon the earth."
We know what is visible, but what are some invisible things that we are told to have dominion? The elements such as the wind. In the Old Testament the prophet Elijah prayed that there would be no rain on the earth and for three and half years it did not rain. Jesus spoke to the winds and the waves and commanded, "Peace, be still," and the winds obeyed Him. Some other invisible things are germs, bacterias and viruses that cause sickness and disease and yet God said, "Take DOMINION over it!"
Dominion is defined as supreme authority; sovereignty; ABSOLUTE OWNERSHIP.
In order to have this level of authority – we must embrace submission to authority, for it is submission to authority that will brings DOMINION.
The Gospel of St. Luke Chapter 7 tells the story of the centurion who had a servant who was dear to him. That's very important; to have friends who are dear to you is one thing, but to have servants who are dear is something else. The centurion was a conqueror, a hero, and yet his servant was of importance to him. This tells us that submission to authority is not about lording it over people, but as a leader, it is about loving people. You can tell that the servant must have been good to his master by the love the centurion displays in the text. He sent some of the leading elders of the Jews to Jesus who told Him that this centurion had built them a synagogue and needed Jesus' help. They asked Jesus to come. Let’s pick up the story at verse 6:
Then Jesus went with them. And when he was now not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to him, saying unto him, Lord, trouble not thyself: for I am not worthy that thou shouldest enter under my roof: 7 Wherefore neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee: but say in a word, and my servant shall be healed. 8 For I also am a man set under authority, having under me soldiers, and I say unto one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. 9 When Jesus heard these things, he marvelled at him, and turned him about, and said unto the people that followed him, I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. 10 And they that were sent, returning to the house, found the servant whole that had been sick. (Luke 7:6-10)
The centurion sent his friends to Jesus saying, "Lord trouble not thyself: for I am not worthy that thou should enter under my roof: Wherefore neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee: but say A WORD and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man set under authority. . .
In other words, being UNDER AUTHORITY meant that the centurion he had the authority of the army and all of Rome behind him! This centurion operating under authority engaged an enforcement of military protocol. Protocol is that which enacts the transaction of power! As it is in the natural, so it is in the spiritual – there is in the Kingdom of God, Kingdom protocol. In spiritual matters this is the secret of authority: We do not function from a place of authority, though authority has been given to us; we function “from a place UNDER authority.” There is something in most of us that wants to be in charge, we want to be the boss. But unless we submit to God and all of those that he places over us, we will never know true authority and we will never know our place of DOMINION – supreme authority, sovereignty, the ability to have ABSOLUTE RULE. Your ability to rule is only as great as your ability to be a servant. The Bible tells us that when it came to Jesus fulfilling His mission and assignment, "He made himself of no reputation and He took upon Him the form of a servant." We know the rest of the story - He went to the Cross and He died for our sins; He defeated death, Hell and the grave and NOW HE RULES! You CAN have dominion; FIRST, become a servant.