Australia Apostolic Conference Perth by Apostle Michael Orokpo: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

The Three Pillars of the Move of God

While meditating and preparing, the Lord put a strong burden in my spirit — because somebody needs this truth in order for their faith to be firmed up and established.

The move of God is not just excitement. It is not an adrenaline thing. The move of God is a definite spiritual reality that makes God tangible and releases the influence of God so that territories can be colonized for his kingdom to find expression. And when this begins to happen, there are tangible evidences to show that what is going on is not a function of human emotion — it is actually the move of the Spirit of God.

There are three major forces that must be present any time there is a move of God.

1. The Word of God. When the move of God is finding expression, the word of God begins to aggressively prevail, because the word of God is a pillar upon which the move of God finds expression. The Bible said in Ephesus, so mighty prevailed the word of God. When the word of God is preached, accepted, and begins to form the ideology of people and redefine their culture — you know the move of God is finding expression. In Acts 2:37, Peter preached a sermon and the people were cut in their hearts and responded. Acts 2:41 tells us 3,000 were added to the church. Acts 4:4, 5,000 were added to the church. The word of God kept prevailing. This is why Paul said in 1 Corinthians 1:18 — they preached Christ and him crucified, and wherever they went, the word took over cities and territories.
2. The Spirit of God. The Bible said in Isaiah 32:15 that unless the spirit of God is poured again upon us from on high, the wilderness cannot become a fruitful field and a fruitful field cannot become a forest. When you find God's presence tangible and his influence finding expression, you know the outpouring of the spirit is what is manifesting. The operation of the Holy Spirit expresses itself in different fashion — from conviction to signs and wonders, to repentance, to consecrated living. The appetite of the spirit is awoken in people and triggers a desire for intimacy and prayer.
3. Men of God. Not ecclesiastical entities — but people that have been separated unto God; people that the Holy Ghost has influence over who are willing to submit everything, including their lives, for God's agenda to find expression. In Acts 2:1, when the first revival of the New Testament was to happen, all three components were present. There were 120 entities present who carried the word and the spirit for the move of God to be complete. This is why every time God wants to advance an agenda, he invites you and I into the equation — because on account of his sovereignty, he has chosen that we will be the vehicles through which he will facilitate his agenda upon the face of the earth. That is the biggest honor of a person's lifetime — that the Almighty will find you worthy to summon you to join hands with him to advance an agenda that is eternal. That agenda will certainly outlive you. There is nothing else you do in this world that will outlive you except as you serve God and pour out your life in advancing God's purpose.

An Accurate Revelation of Christ

For this to happen, we must come into an accurate revelation of Christ, because every move of God is designed to exalt Jesus — to make Jesus known so that Jesus is received and the ways of Jesus become our ideology, thereby redefining our culture.

Jesus had to be revealed in two contexts.

• Jesus as Savior. When Jesus was to be born, in Matthew 1:21 and Matthew 1:23, the angel came to Joseph and let him know his wife was going to be with child. His name shall be called Emmanuel — God with us. But in verse 23 he went further to say this God that is with us came to save us. So the first context of the revelation of Jesus is of him as Savior. Everyone who is brought into the move of God knows Jesus as God and knows him as the God that saves humanity. We submit our lives to him because it is only through him that we will find meaning and purpose and essence.
• Jesus as Lord. In Philippians 2:5-9, Paul told us to have the mind that was in Christ Jesus. Although he was equal with God, he did not consider it robbery to operate as God, but rather stripped himself of the garment of divinity and put on the garment of a man. He chose to die the death of a man — even the death of a criminal. And because he did that, God gave him a name that is above every other name. At the name of Jesus — it was not about the nomenclature; it was about the designation of revelation. Not as Savior this time, but as Lord. As Savior it takes you out of sin and gives you eternal life. As Lord, you submit your life to him to serve his purpose. If you only know him as Savior, you cannot serve his purpose. But when you know him as Lord, you realize he has an agenda and your life will only find meaning to the degree that you stand with him in fulfilling that agenda.

Transformation Through Knowledge

This knowledge is not meant to make us theologians. The goal of God is not to make us biblical scholars. The goal is to transform us. As Jesus said in John 8:32 and John 8:36 — you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free, and if the Son of Man sets you free, you shall be free indeed. The purpose of knowing truth is not to become knowledgeable — it is to become free. This freedom is not just freedom from sin; it is freedom to become. This knowledge is designed to make you become as he is. This is why 2 Corinthians 3:18 says we are with unveiled face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, and we are transfigured — the word is metamorphoo.

There is a metamorphosis that you and I must undergo — from weak to strong, from fallen to regenerated, from condemned to glorified. That metamorphosis happens when we begin to behold and know Jesus. When you know Jesus, you do not just increase in knowledge — you become another entity. The same Jesus you know, you become like him. That is why the believers were called Christians in Antioch — because when people saw them, they resembled Jesus.

Five Levels of Dominion

When that transfiguration happens, you are made a king — a custodian of power, authorized to exercise dominion. Every believer is expected to exercise dominion, and this dominion operates in five levels.

1. Dominion over devils. Jesus said in Mark 16:17 these signs shall follow them that believe: in my name they shall cast out devils. We do not cooperate with devils. We do not manage demons. When we see them, we command them out and they have no choice but to obey, because we have been made partakers of his divine nature and brought into his authority to co-reign with him in power. Casting out devils is not for apostles or evangelists alone — it is for everyone that believes. Even in Luke 10, when Jesus sent out the 70 and they returned celebrating that the devils were subject to them, Jesus said, "Why are you surprised? What you should rejoice about is that your names are written in heaven." Then Jesus turned to the Father and said, "I thank you, Father, that you have revealed these things not to the wise and the prudent but to babes." So casting out demons is for babes. If you are a baby in Christ, you cast out devils.
2. Dominion over circumstances. In John 2:3-11, the mother of Jesus told him the wine was out. He said it was not yet his time. She told the servants, "Whatever he tells you to do, do it." Jesus changed circumstances even when it was not yet time. That means you do not need to be on time to change circumstances — if it is circumstance-related, you can change it any time. Where the word of the king is, there is power — and when you speak, you release power, and that power can create change.
3. Dominion over systems and territories. In 1 Kings 17:1, Elijah stood before a king and said, "Before God whom I stand, there shall be no rain or dew except by my word." For three and a half years, no rain fell until Elijah released it. Even the king eventually recognized there was a prophet in the land. We were given dominion over systems. That is why the Bible calls us the salt of the earth and the light of the world — Matthew 5:13-14 and Matthew 5:16. We are the ones who influence how things happen wherever we find ourselves. We are not inferior. We are the head and not the tail.
4. Dominion over the constellation. In Joshua 10:12, the Israelites were fighting the Amalekites, and Joshua stood before the congregation and commanded the sun and the moon to remain still — and both constellations obeyed him. And he did not even have the Holy Ghost living on his inside. There are people who can occasion rain by means of darkness and they do not know God. But we who have authority over the constellation are not wielding it. In 1 Kings 18:43-45, Elijah prayed and brought the rain back. The same Jesus who calmed the storm told us in John 14:12, "The works that I do, you shall do also, and greater works than this shall you do." The Bible is your script — read it to act, not to cram. The apostles were not talkers; they were actors, demonstrating what they saw in Jesus. Don't read the Bible to quote it — read it to demonstrate it.
5. Dominion over self. This is the highest level. When your emotions no longer dictate for you. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9:27, "I beat my body, I bring it under subjection." The absolute circumference of dominion is dominion over self. If the Holy Ghost can conquer you, then he can conquer the world through you. The limitations we face sometimes is not the absence of revelation — it is the inability to conduct the grace of God that is in our spirits, because in our rebellion we frustrate the operation of the Holy Spirit. The Bible said in James 3:2, "A perfect man is one that has control over his tongue." When we get to that level where we have control over our senses and yield them to God, there is no power God cannot demonstrate through us. We literally become theaters through which God manifests the excellencies of his spirit.

   The Bible said in Philemon 1:6 that the communication of your faith will become effectual when you acknowledge every good thing that is in you in Christ Jesus. If you do not acknowledge that you have it, you may never walk in it. In Ephesians 3:20, God is able to do exceeding abundantly above all you ask or think according to the power at work in you — meaning, God will only be able to do when you think it and declare it. You have dominion over devils. You have dominion over circumstances. You have dominion over systems and territories. You have dominion over the constellation. And that is not all — you have dominion over self.

God has not left us without a witness. The reason he gave us the scripture is to show us what we have and what we can do in connection with him. In Romans 15:4, the things written before were written for our learning, so that through patience and comfort of the scripture we might have hope. When I read what God did with Elijah, with Moses, with Paul, I am encouraged because Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.

The burden of this message is not to create religious fanatics. It is to raise witnesses.

What Jesus Has Done for You

The assignment is to help you appreciate what Jesus has done for you. When you appreciate what Jesus has done for you, five things will happen in your life.

When people think about the death of Jesus, they appreciate it from the context of the suffering — how he was beaten, how he carried the cross, how he was naked. But the mistake is this: Jesus was not a man. He became a man.

The gravity of what was happening to Jesus is nothing a man can understand, because Jesus was God in human form. To become a man alone is several degrees of condescending that you cannot imagine. It is not first about the sufferings of Christ — it is first about who is suffering.

The pain of becoming a man is worse than crucifixion.

Imagine if you were the creator of mosquitoes and a crisis arose in the mosquito kingdom, and based on the law you created, only a mosquito can save mosquitoes — but no mosquito exists that is able to save, so you have to become a mosquito. The only direction a mosquito knows is toward where it will be killed. Now you have to battle that degraded intelligence your entire lifetime as a mosquito. The theologians call it the kenosis doctrine — the doctrine of self-emptying — where everything that makes him deity was set aside so that he could wear the garment of a man and function as a man.

All his existence, he was worshiped, he was served, he was honored. He had to condescend to become like the entities he created. If the woman he was born through was hungry, he was hungry. If she caught cold, God caught cold. If her life was threatened, God was threatened. So much so that when Herod gave a decree that children should be killed, they carried God and ran to safety.

You have to understand what Jesus let go. If you do not know what he let go, you will not appreciate the fact that he died for you.

The Supremacy and Sovereignty of God

There are two major infrastructures that capture the understanding of who God is: the supremacy of God and the sovereignty of God. The supremacy of God speaks of the class, the height, the realm where God exists. The sovereignty of God speaks of the authority that God wields.

Within the supremacy of God, there are six attributes that he possesses that no other being possesses:

1. He is eternal. He is the only being that has no beginning and no end. Everything began in him and will end in him. The Bible records four major beginnings, and God predates all of them. Genesis 1:1 — God created, which means God is before the beginning. There was also the beginning of laws — Jesus said in the beginning he made them male and female — and even at that beginning, God predates it as the creator and lawgiver. In Psalm 90:2, the Bible says from everlasting to everlasting, he is God. There is no spirit older than God. Because God is the oldest, every spirit draws reference from God. All of us came out of him and will end in him. The idea of worship is to acknowledge him as our reference. There is no other spirit with that stature.
2. He is self-existent. God is the only being that exists for himself. Every other creation lives for something. God is the only one that lives for himself and is morally correct — because once upon a time there was nothing else apart from God, so there was nothing God should have lived for except himself. When he introduces himself in Exodus 3:14, he introduces himself as the I Am That I Am — the self-existent one. He will be what he will be. He is what he is. Before Australia was created, before heaven was created, before earth was created, God was first — so God lived for himself. God is the only being that every other being lives for. That is why before you came you heard people talking about him, and while you are alive you have seen people go and they are still talking about him, and you will still go and they will still be talking about him.
3. He is omnipotent. He is the only being that has absolute power — and that absolute power does not corrupt him. He has the power to do what he wills, yet also has the power to put his power under control. God can do anything, but God will not do anything except as is within his moral law. He has absolute power, yet has the power to put absolute power under control. He is the only one who functions like that. It is within the context of that power that God can speak and things are created. God is the only person who does not need raw material to create. Science and technology have never created anything — they have only formed things, transformed one thing from one form to another. But God, because he has all power, speaks and it comes to pass. Light be — and light appears. When God is talking, he is not only communicating — he is also creating. Even when we insult him, he does not hold a grudge. He considers it ignorance and looks for a way to save us. The power to put his power under control is even greater than the power to do anything he wants.
4. He is omnipresent. He is everywhere at every time and in every time. At every time means every second — today, God is everywhere. But in every time means not only today: God is still in yesterday, in last week, in Genesis 1:1, and God is already in tomorrow, already at the end of time. He is present everywhere at every time in every time. Because if God were to leave tomorrow, creation would collapse. When Jesus sat on the throne in heaven and was being worshiped, at the same time he was on the cross being tormented — because he is omnipresent. He knew every pain he was going to feel. From the moment Jesus conceived to save man, existence became unbearable — but he was willing to bear it until it happened in our history. The Bible says he is the lamb slain before the foundation of the world. When the angels were worshiping him, he already knew the pain of the cross, and he did not change his mind. He knew the shame, yet he still insisted that he would come for you.
5. He is omniscient. He knows all things. Some argue: if God knows all things, why did he allow man to sin? God did not allow man to sin. God gave man the right of choice called the will. Without choice, existence is useless — even worship has no value without it. Because he is omniscient, he knew we would fall. And instead of overriding our will, he created salvation — so that the same choice with which we fell would apply to being saved.

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6. He is immutable. He said in Malachi 3:6, "I am the Lord, I change not. So you, the children of Jacob, are not consumed." He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Nothing can change God. Nothing can improve God. Nothing can modify God. He is as he is, and he will remain so for all eternity. What God has beyond integrity is called immutability. He cannot change — what he says is who he is and he can never deviate from it. Only God possesses these qualities. And because he possesses them alone, he has the stature to sit above all creation and receive worship.

Within the sovereignty of God, he operates in three key offices:

• Creator. In all history, there has never been a record that any spirit or mortal created anything. Only God is creator, because God is the only one that can produce without raw material. Genesis 1:1 — in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
• Lifegiver. Every species that exists on the earth today — if you trace them back to the first in that species, God was the one that gave it life. In Genesis 2:7, when God formed Adam from the dust, he breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and he became a living soul.
• Judge of All. Hebrews 12:22-23 says we have come to Mount Zion, the city of the living God, to God the Judge of All. One day all of us will stand before him and give account of how we led our lives. Revelation 20:11-15 — at the end of time a great white throne will appear, and every creature that lived on earth will pass before it. Those who are in Christ will pass inside Christ — Christ is the only one who met the standard of God. Those not in Christ are condemned.

The Bible said in John 1:1, "In the beginning was the Word. The Word was with God and the Word was God." And in verse 14, "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us." This God we are talking about — his name is Jesus.

The next time you look at the cross, do not just think it is a young Nazarene that hung there. Remember that it is the Omnipotent who sacrificed power to hang there to save you. Remember that it is the Creator that hung there to save you. Remember that it is the Lifegiver that embraced death to save you.

A man did not die for you. God became a man to die for you.

The Cross — The Message of Love

What does this God think about you to make that sacrifice? God had every right to let you go — he was not the one who rebelled. We were the ones who rebelled. But he decided in his love to make the ultimate sacrifice. He had already added it in his law that the wages of sin is death. So when we sinned, he paid the price for us. And what was paid for us was far more than what we owed. God paid and paid in excess.

The cross is the substitutionary death of Jesus taking your place so that you take his place. The cross is God taking the place of a man so that man can be included in God.

In dying for you, he put aside his glory, his worship, his power, his authority, his divinity — and he embraced shame in order for you to be saved. That is the love of God. When we say God loves you, it is not a feeling — it is a sacrifice. It was demonstrated through sacrifice.

Those who understand this love — Paul said in Romans 8:32, "If he did not withhold his only begotten Son but gave him freely for us, how shall he not with him give us all things?" The reason people go to pray and are not sure if God will answer is because they do not know the love of God. If Jesus gave the throne away, if Jesus gave divinity away, if Jesus gave everything away — healing is too small for him to withhold. When he asks for favor, favor is too small for him to withhold.

The reason Christians are weak is because they do not know the love of God. Your children are more educated in dealing with a father than you are — because when they come to you for needs, they do not beg. They simply ask. The Bible said in Romans 5:8, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. He did not even wait for us to ask for life — he gave us life while we were yet sinners. He gave us righteousness. He gave us deliverance. Now that we have a need and approach him, will he not give?

Healing is the children's bread. It is now our prerogative to live healthy. That is how God designed it.

The Cross — The Message of Power

The cross is not only the message of love. The cross is also the message of power.

Jesus said, "This commandment I have received from my Father. No one has the power to take my life from me. I have the power to lay it down and to take it up." That means Jesus cannot be killed. Jesus can only lay his life down. For Jesus to lay his life down, he had to die for sin — and he laid it down willingly.

The devil did not know. He orchestrated a coup and got men to falsely accuse him. They arrested Jesus, and the devil thought, "We have gotten him." The night they arrested Jesus, before morning, he went through six trials — three Jewish trials, three Roman trials. But the devil did not know. Jesus spoke in parable: "When the son of man is lifted up he will draw all men to himself." He said, "The same way the serpent was lifted up in the wilderness, so shall the Son of Man be lifted up, and whoever looks upon him shall be saved." The Bible said if the princes of this world had known, they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory.

When Jesus was crucified, he accomplished two things:

• He paid the price of sin through death.
• He took back the power that Satan had stolen from Adam — but he could not take it until he completed the sacrifice of a man.

On the third day, having spoiled principalities and powers, the Master rose up. The word spoiled is a military term — in the age of kingdoms, when you defeat an opponent, you return home in a victory parade and the defeated king walks naked behind you. When Jesus rose on the third day, he disarmed every demon, every principality. He did not fight them in heaven. He did not fight them on earth. He fought them in hell — where Satan has the greatest advantage. Having spoiled principalities and powers, the Bible says he made a public show of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

When he rose from the dead and returned to heaven, the power he had taken from Satan was not for himself — he has his own. So he called the disciples and said, "All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go in that power." That is why these signs follow those that believe — in his name they shall cast out devils. If you say "In the name of Jesus," demons go because they have fought him before, they have lost, they have surrendered. When we meet devils, we do not fight — we command, we rebuke.

Jesus did not just save us through his love for us to approach him. He also gave us power to rule here. We are rulers over devils. Rulers over sickness.

The Bible says in Acts 10:38, how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and power, who went about doing good, healing all that were oppressed of the devil. Anybody who is oppressed — who is behind it? The devil. Everyone Jesus healed was oppressed of the devil. When I show up, I counter it. One attack.

We have two cards to play: we can approach God and demand healing based on the love of God, or we can confront the devil directly and say, "What are you doing here? In the name of Jesus, come out." And the devil has no choice. We live in the realm of victory and dominion.

Your success is his return on investment. God will not allow his investment go to waste. His investment was too great for him to allow sickness, defeat, or oppression to have the final word over you.

Any health crisis you came here with — it is terminated now. Every yoke is broken because of the anointing. The devil has no stake here, no authority here, no privileges here. We are the ones calling the shot because Jesus has given us the right to do so.

Father, we take authority over every contrary tide, over every contrary wind, over every contrary circumstance. In the name of Jesus, be healed now. We take authority over every devil afflicting God's children — from mental breakdown to muscular breakdown to bone crisis. In the name of Jesus, we command pain be gone, paralysis be gone. Legs begin to work. Hands begin to work. Muscles begin to work. Bones begin to work. Heart begin to work. Brain begin to work in the name of Jesus. Thank you, Father.