What No Eye Has Seen 2023-Four Voices You Must Remove To Go To Another Level
Disclaimer: This article is the best attempt to capture the wisdom and knowledge delivered during this inaugural camp meeting. It's a literal impossibility to put into words the anointing contained in this message and in the ones that will proceed it. It's written to inspire you to click the link at the end of the article, tune into the broadcast and receive as much as you can through listening to the full Word of God that was preached. God Bless you!
Today I want to discuss the four types of people you need to remove from your life if you want to make it to the next level. Every example of people throughout the Bible who attempted to hinder the progress of people God called, fit into these four categories. Let’s begin in Genesis with the story of Jacob and Laban.
“And Jacob said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep your flocks: Let me pass through all your flock today, removing from there all the speckled and spotted sheep, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and these shall be my wages. So my righteousness will answer for me in time to come, when the subject of my wages comes before you: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the lambs, will be considered stolen, if it is with me.”
And Laban said, “Oh, that it were according to your word!” So he removed that day the male goats that were speckled and spotted, all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had some white in it, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and gave them into the hand of his sons. Then he put three days’ journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks. Now Jacob took for himself rods of green poplar and of the almond and chestnut trees, peeled white strips in them, and exposed the white which was in the rods. And the rods which he had peeled, he set before the flocks in the gutters, in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink, so that they should conceive when they came to drink. So the flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks brought forth streaked, speckled, and spotted. Then Jacob separated the lambs, and made the flocks face toward the streaked and all the brown in the flock of Laban; but he put his own flocks by themselves and did not put I them with Laban’s flock.
Laban was not a stranger to Jacob, he was a relative. Yet Laban used every opportunity to take advantage of Jacob. He would underhand Jacob in the middle of the night in an attempt to block his increase. Many times the people Satan uses to hurt you are people closest to you. You can’t allow that to slow you down. At some point you have to decide to rise up. God has ordained you to rise.
I'm going to provide you with practical information that you can begin to apply immediately. God will give you information today that will set you ablaze. The back half of this year will be the greatest six months you've ever had.
Dr. Jerry Savelle gave a word from the Lord and said 2023 will be a year of wealth transfer. He said the wealth of the wicked will come into the hands of the just. The financial testimonies we’ll see and hear in 2023 will be the type you typically hear once every 30 years. Not only would 2023 hold great financial testimonies, they’ll be commonplace in the life of every believer. I can attest to the accuracy of that prophetic word. Revival Today has been unusually blessed.
Recently, a lady flew in to drop off a check for a million dollars! In addition, we were gifted 24.8 acres of commercially zoned land, right off highway 279. The second half of the year is going to be greater than the first half of the year! Nothing in the natural position you to reach the heights you’re about to enter into. It’s your birthright as a blood bought child of God.
When Laban tried to steal from Jacob, by instructing his sons to remove all the spotted, speckled, and streaked animals from his herd, an angel gave Jacob a plan to overcome Laban’s wickedness. That plan caused all of Laban’s animals to have black spotted and speckled offspring.
The angel told Jacob to shave the bark off a tree and put it in the watering trough so that when they looked at it as they mated, it would cause them to be born with spots, specks and streaks. How is that possible?
I don't have a half Puerto Rican daughter because I watched a lot of baseball during the time of conception. My daughter is half Puerto Rican because I have a Puerto Rican wife. So how did Jacob end up with spotted sheep by having them look at something spotted? It was an operation of the working of miracles. When Jacob vowed to give one tenth of everything he had to God, God ensured Jacob was equipped with a supernatural plan to succeed.
You may think it doesn't make any sense. It also doesn’t make any sense to stick a rod over a body of water and see it part. The working of miracles doesn’t make sense to your mind, it's supernatural.
Every plan from government, family, or witchcraft that's designed to keep you poor, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob gives you something from your spirit today to break that barrier. You will cross that line and go from glory to glory, victory to victory and strength to strength, in Jesus’ name!
1. Bad Advisors
Pastor Rodney said something that stayed with me. He mentioned that when he was believing God for increase, he didn't realize he already had the increase he needed, but people who were around him were spending it all. Many people don't realize they already have the thing they're believing God to do. It’s the people who the devil has positioned around them who are impeding their increase. The purpose of this message is to help you identify who you must remove from your life to fulfill your assignment.
One of the things I've tried to model as your pastor is increase. We don't just speak of increase, we manifest increase for you to witness. I announced the theme of Revival Today would be the road to 1000. We reached 10000 only months later. Now, we're getting ready to leave this wonderful building that God gave us by His grace. Soon, I will make an announcement that will be heard around the world.
The blessings of the Lord and the message of prosperity are not just things to shout about, though it's good to shout. Let out a shout from your spirit. There's nothing wrong with jumping, clapping and declaring yourself blessed. But once you're done jumping, shouting and clapping, you have to take what comes into your spirit, and receive a plan from the Holy Ghost as to how to implement it in real life.
That's how I want to help today. I know what it's like to not know what you're doing. What I want to share with you comes from a humble heart. I believe it will help you in your business and ministry.
When you incorporate you will have to have a board of directors. You are also required to have a constitution and bylaws. Can you ever fathom me approaching the pulpit one Sunday and saying, “The board has asked me to resign my pastorship at Revival Today. So I'll no longer be here.” Can you imagine that? There’s no way, and that’s because I've set up our board of directors and our incorporation.
The Bible says in the multitude of counselors, there is safety, but once a board of directors goes beyond counseling, you’ve left the realm of safety. James O'Keefe from Project Veritas was voted out of his own business that he founded and created. Project Veritas wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for him.
Once you begin to rise, there will be people who’ve made it their mission to take what you built. The entire Bible, Genesis one through revelation is full of stories of wicked people taking things from godly people. God gave Adam and Eve a garden, but they found themselves sitting in the dirt, outside the garden three chapters later.
Say this: Anything I don't protect, I will lose.
That's a spiritual law.
The church has taught people to assume the best of everyone. That's a dumb way to live. Believe the best for everyone and love everyone. But Jesus said to be as harmless as doves, but as wise as serpents.
Good people with pure intention can turn bad. Judas was not demon possessed when Jesus called him into the ministry. But during their time together, the Bible says, “and Satan entered into Judas.” Let that be a lesson to you. Not only is it necessary to make sure you have good advisors, you have to keep an eye on people. Stay alert. People change. They develop drug problems, they become mentally unstable, they cheat on their spouse. You can't go to sleep.
The things of the Spirit are not carnally discerned, they're spiritually discerned. That means I can’t afford to run what the Lord tells me by a group of people to see if they think it’s possible. When the Lord called me into the ministry, I had a speech impediment. I'm glad I didn't have a board of directors to tell me, “Jonathan, it’s great that you love God, but your speech is awful. You will never be able to do what God’s called you to do.”
Have advisors, but do not have a constitution and bylaws that allow you to be voted out of your own business. From the inception, set everything up knowing there will be people who will try to steal what you’ve built. Whatever plan God's giving you during this time in your spirit, protect it legally. Make it impossible for anyone to take it from you.
I hire airplane pilots often. I don't care about their view of the rapture. I don't care about their prayer life. In fact, if I hear a pilot praying, it would make me nervous. I would prefer they don't pray. Just fly the plane. Find professionals, people who are the best of the best. God will bring them into your life to help you, and as He does, allow them to advise you.
“Then David spoke to the men who stood by him, saying, “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” And the people answered him in this manner, saying, “So shall it be done for the man who kills him.”
David took a run against a giant, and you should too. Now is the time to attempt to accomplish something great in your life.
We could just as easily held What No Eye Has Seen this in a Holiday Inn Express, cut back on advertising, have less people and talk about how much money we saved. Instead, we're gathering in the biggest venue in this part of Pittsburgh. We have the best sound, the best lighting, and the best preachers. I didn't book two of my best friends from Bible college who live nearby. We have the best pastor, best evangelist, best word of knowledge operator, best whatever Rodney Howard Browne is.
“Now Eliab his oldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab’s anger was aroused against David, and he said, “Why did you come down here? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and the insolence of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle.”
Take note of who became angry. It wasn’t a stranger, it was David’s brother. There will be people who become angry when you set out to do something big. “Who do you think you are?”
I’ve had people try to insult me, but they’re really paying me a compliment.
“Reverend Moneybags”
“Why, thank you!”
“Do you think you’re holier than us”
“Maybe?”
Never be ashamed of the blessing of God! No one will make me feel ashamed for taking private jets to preach the gospel. Jeffrey Epstein wasn’t ashamed to use jets to molest children, why should I be ashamed to use jets to do the work of the Lord?
God gave me a Cadillac Escalade. I paid for it, but it came into my possession in a supernatural way. I felt the Lord speak to me to pull into the Cadillac dealership. The man working there as the head of sales had a son with had Tourette Syndrome. His son was sent home from school because he made too many verbal tics in class, causing the kids to laugh and disrupt class. His son was baptized in the Holy Ghost in one of my meetings and began to speak in tongues. When he did, his Tourette's went away.
As I walked into the Cadillac dealership I had no clue about any of this. I pulled onto the lot to buy a used GMC SUV to transport our television equipment. As I was speaking with one of the salesmen, a man came out and said, “Hey, brother, Jonathan” Then he told me about his son and what happened to him in one of my meetings. After he finished telling me about his son he asked me if I was looking to buy a Cadillac, to which I replied, “I am now.”
He showed me a black Cadillac SUV that had just been turned in. The dealership just put new tires on it and he offered to sell it to me at cost, which was less than what I was going to pay for the GMC. So, the Lord gave it to me. He knew the vehicle I liked.
I told you this story because at 31 years old, the Lord gave me this vehicle, but when I drove it to preach at an Assemblies of God church, there were people who were upset that I was driving it.
I recommend you make a list of everyone who wouldn’t be happy to see God bless you and permanently remove them from your life. That brings me to the next person you must remove from your life to fulfill the assignment God’s placed on your life.
2. A Discourager
You cannot go anywhere in life, surrounded by discouragement and discouragement comes through discouragers.
David killed Goliath in three sentences. The rest of the chapter is David dealing with people trying to discourage him from killing Goliath. All the discourages David dealt with were in his own camp.
You won’t battle the devil often in your lifetime. You battle people the devil uses who are already close to you. “Who do you think you are? You just have pride.” They’re accusers. They accused Jesus. They called him Satan, himself.
The way to deal with discouragers is to have a gatekeeping system in place. Not everyone should have your phone number. Anyone the devil’s ever used to send you an errant text or a call that puts you into a 90 minute mental tailspin, should be blocked immediately and never give them access again.
You can't give people access to you that are used by the devil to take the wind out of your sails. It's called body blows that wears you down over time.
No one has my email address. Even those who do, often don’t get their emails read by me. At the present moment, I have 55,310 unread emails. So if someone did get my email to discourage me, I guarantee it's not been read. I have people in our office who receive email and send me the ones that matter. Those, I read. The type of emails that get through to me are the ones that tell of someone who was missing two vertebrae and after I prayed the vertebrae came into place.
Can you imagine if I had to read four emails every morning about how I'm a false prophet sent from the devil to deceive the church from the last day, and then responded?
When you sow encouragement you reap encouragement. “He who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.” (Prov. 11:25).
Not everyone can grow with you. You can’t bring everyone from your childhood along with you as God continues to elevate you. Identify the discouragers in your life and shut off their access to you. As you do that, begin to praise God for sorrow-free increase, in Jesus’ name.
3. Parasites
Whether you’re the pastor of a large church or a small church, you cannot allow people to call your cell phone. You can help everyone individually, any suggestion that you do is a plan of the devil to keep you small. Yes, people need help and they always will. You help them on Sundays by preaching a fresh word and praying for them. The help you receive from listening to the men and women at this camp meeting is worth more than 90 counseling sessions. If you’re a pastor, your job is to help the people from the platform. Otherwise you'll end up being pulled in a million directions and you’ll be of no help from the pulpit you're exhausted and have no word from the Lord.
Let me provide you with a modern day example of a parasite. Don King couldn't box. So, he found people who could box, had them fight, and took all their money. The boxers Don King took advantage of were the ones with busted jaws, broken knuckles and swollen eyes. At the age of 30, Mike Tyson had made over $300 million. By his 35th birthday, he was penniless. Someone was taking all his money while he did all the work.
That's why I highlighted the story of Jacob and Laban. Laban increased because of Jacob. Laban benefitted from Jacob’s work and left him with nothing.
I wish someone would have explained this to me15 years ago when a man came to me and said, “Jonathan, you're one of the best young preachers I've ever heard. America needs your message. I want to put you on TV, the world needs to hear the message God’s given you.” I was so dumb. I bought television time and thought wow the Lord sent me a helper. Then I found out the guy was getting a cut of all the TV I was paying for and he had me on some station that no one even watches.
Years later, I met with a friend who wanted to share his testimony with me. He told me he had just received a call from someone who wanted to put him on a Christian broadcasting network for only $1000 per month. He was really excited. The name of the agent who tried to rip me off came into my spirit in that moment and I asked if that was who he was referring to. Sure enough, it was the same guy. I told him to get his money back right away. If the agent refuses to give it back, let him know your friend Jonathan will fly to wherever he is and take it back. He got his money back quickly. When we looked into the “broadcast network” it was a Facebook livestream with 161 views. My friend was paying $1000 a month for nothing. That agent was a Don King. A parasite.
Don't look at everybody that comes your way as a door God's opened. Some of them are sent from the devil to take your money or to embezzle funds. This applies to business people and pastors. Don't be a dumb Christian business person. Be harmless as doves but as wise as a serpent.
4. Saboteurs
The fourth and final person to remove from your life is saboteurs. Get rid of what the Bible calls false brethren.
“Even that question came up only because of some so-called believers there—false ones, really—who were secretly brought in. They sneaked in to spy on us and take away the freedom we have in Christ Jesus. They wanted to enslave us and force us to follow their Jewish regulations.”
Jesus did not teach that everyone's a sheep. He spoke of sheep, wolves, goats, and wolves in sheep's clothing. Don’t view everyone that comes around you, your business, or your church as someone sent by God to help you. There are people who are sent from hell to destroy what God instructed you to build.
How many times have you heard someone tell you a story about a situation that devastated them, and they tell you they knew something was wrong with the person before it happened? Go with that feeling. You don't have to point at someone and say, “Thus saith the Lord something's wrong.” No smile, shake their hand and make a note of it in your spirit. If someone at church strikes you as a creep and they want to work with the youth, you don’t have to honor their request. Maybe they would be better in your trash-putting-away.
Brother Jesse told me a story about a time when he met a guy and said, “How come I don't like you?” That's one of the funniest questions I've ever heard. How do you even answer that? But it’s a valid question, Brother Jesse likes just about everyone. Pay attention to who you don't like sitting with. Pay attention to people you don't like to be in the same room with. As a caveat, if you feel that way about everyone, then you’re the problem.
“But as the believers rapidly multiplied, there were rumblings of discontent. The Greek-speaking believers complained about the Hebrew-speaking believers, saying that their widows were being discriminated against in the daily distribution of food. So the twelve called a meeting of all the believers. They said, “We apostles should spend our time teaching the word of God, not running a food program. And so, brothers, select seven men who are well respected and are full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will give them this responsibility. Then we apostles can spend our time in prayer and teaching the word.”
As the believers multiplied. There were rumblings of discontent. Don't allow the devil to distract from what God’s called you to do by presenting you with issues that don’t require your attention.
We have a zillion volunteers at this church. Don't allow the devil to convince you into being offended. It would be just like the devil to plant a seed of discontent in a volunteer because Patrick, my right hand man in the ministry, didn’t acknowledge them as he walked by. They’ve worked 60 hours in the church during our camp meeting, they’re tired, hungry, and Patrick was the last straw. It's not because he doesn't like you. It's because he's German. He doesn't look at anybody. He greets his infant son with a handshake. Don’t allow yourself to stir up discontentment. It’s a plan from the devil.
Every time I start to get upset, I ask myself when was the last time I've eaten? When's the last time I slept and how long did I sleep? Don't let the devil turn you need for a nap into you leaving Christianity.
In the Book of Acts, the Greek speaking believers complained about the Hebrew speaking believers, saying that their widows were being discriminated against in the daily distribution of food. So the 12 apostles called a meeting of all the believers and told them that apostles should spend their time teaching the Word of God, not running a food program. They instructed them to select seven men who are well respected and full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom to give them the responsibility. That allowed the apostles to spend their time in prayer and the ministry of the word.
A few verses later, we see that God's message continued to spread once the apostles dealt with saboteurs.
“So God’s message continued to spread. The number of believers greatly increased in Jerusalem, and many of the Jewish priests were converted.”
God's primary plan is to increase the church by the seed of the Word. If you're a pastor, the devil will work overtime to try to pull you out of a place where you can wait on God and get ready to preach.
I don't arrive 45 minutes late to service because I'm lazy, or because I don't like our praise team. I chose our praise team. I do it so no one has an opportunity to make a stray comment to me on the way to the platform. “Jonathan before you go to the platform just so you know, your office burned to the ground.”
We are to be given to prayer and the ministry of the Word. One of the reasons this church has exploded in a year and a half is because we don't give a 28-minute message on Sunday. You're given scripture after scripture after scripture. Don't let the devil pull you out to put out little fires. Keep your primary focus on prayer and the ministry of the Word.
The same concept of saboteurs exists in business as well. Many business owners have a Laban in their lives. You have someone who is actively working against your prosperity. Laban changed Jacob’s wages 10 times. Jacob didn’t just leave it in the Lord’s hands. He got a plan from God and took action. Every plan of the devil to sabotage you, to discourage you, or to have demonic people weasel their way in and take the fun out of your ministry or business, comes under a curse today. By the wisdom of the Spirit of God, you will outmaneuver the devil at every turn, in Jesus’ name!
As you begin to examine the people in your life, God will bring things to your attention and as you begin to take action your increase is inevitable.
