Reverend Ben Cooper's Podcast
Reverend Ben Coopers podcast, offers an inviting space for listeners to explore Christianity and spiritual growth with wisdom, humor, and a deep commitment to biblical truth. Through Rev. Ben's engaging conversations with guests, the podcast not only explores the timeless wisdom of the Bible but also tackles the pressing issues of life, faith, and hope in a way that is accessible, thought-provoking, and enriching. Whether you’re seeking spiritual nourishment, answers to life’s big questions, or simply a place to reflect on your faith, the Rev Ben podcast is a valuable resource on your journey.
In each episode, Rev. Ben guides listeners through profound theological reflections, personal stories, and practical insights drawn from the Bible and the broader Christian tradition.
Reverend Ben Cooper's Podcast
From Persecutor to Preacher (#1066 - Elim)
From Saul to Paul — When God Redefines Your Story
The remarkable transformation of Saul into Paul remains one of the greatest testimonies of divine redemption in all of Scripture. In today’s powerful message, we explore how a man once known for violently persecuting Christians—a man who stood approvingly at the stoning of Stephen—became the most influential apostle in Christian history and the author of thirteen New Testament books.
What does it mean when your history doesn't match your destiny?
Saul's background was impressive: a Roman citizen, a Hebrew of Hebrews from the tribe of Benjamin, multilingual, and highly educated under the renowned teacher Gamaliel. Yet, despite all these advantages, Saul was spiritually blind—committed to eradicating the very faith he would one day passionately defend.
The dramatic encounter on the Damascus Road didn’t simply change Saul’s name—it completely transformed his mission, his identity, and his legacy. Through this story, we are reminded that God does not call the qualified; He qualifies the called. No matter your past, your failures, or the labels placed upon you by others, God’s mercy is greater.
We also draw sobering comparisons to today’s climate, where Christians in many parts of the world face fierce opposition—not always through violence, but through cultural pressure, legal battles, and societal rejection. As Stephen kept his gaze fixed on Jesus amid persecution, we are called to stand firm, even when the stones of public opinion and policy come flying.
This episode also challenges the Western Church's temptation toward comfort, comparing it with the underground and persecuted Church worldwide. Many believers gather in secret, risking their lives for a glimpse of the Word of God. Their boldness and faith remind us that the true Kingdom of God advances not through buildings or wealth, but through steadfast, courageous devotion.
The transformation of Saul to Paul teaches us a vital truth:
Your past does not disqualify you. It prepares you.
What the world labels as broken, God sees as ready. What others reject, God redeems for His glory.
🎧 Listen now to discover how your history might be the very thing God wants to use to showcase His greatest work in your life. Surrender it. Release it. Watch Him redefine your story.
conversion of Saul explained, Damascus road encounter podcast, Paul's transformation Bible study, overcoming your past with faith, how God redeems brokenness, biblical story of Saul to Paul, Christian hope after failure, strength in spiritual adversity, facing persecution as a believer, biblical courage under pressure, lessons from Stephen’s martyrdom, persecuted Church today sermon
https://www.pastorbencooper.co.uk/
https://www.rbchristianradio.net/
May God bless you wherever you are. Welcome to the house of the Lord this morning. Welcome to everybody online this morning, welcome to everyone, wherever you are in the house. We're going to turn to a really, really beautiful piece of scripture. I believe Every word is beautiful, every word of God, from the beginning to the end. But we're going to turn to the book of Acts. We're going to turn to the book of Acts and we're just going to look at a really interesting character. We're of Acts and we're just going to look at a really interesting character. We're going to go to the book of Acts. We're going to go Acts, chapter 7, verse 54. Acts, chapter 7, verse 54.
Speaker 1:And he was so instrumental in the New Testament, so instrumental. He was such a powerful character in many ways, let's say, before salvation and after salvation. Let's use that for the quickness of conversation. The character that we're looking at it was Saul. Then he became Paul, but I just want to just read something out he was the writer of Romans 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, galatians, ephesians, philippians, colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, one Timothy, two Timothy, titus and Philemon. He was the author of 13 books. His life was a very interesting life.
Speaker 1:So the title of this sermon. However you want to look at this is my Background Disqualifies Me. It's really interesting when you look at the life of Saul. There's no way, jose, that this man qualified in any way to do what he done when he had that encounter on that road, up until that point. This is a character that this is such an interesting man because he was a Christ-hater. We understand, without going into all the theological wills of everything, when you read the text Acts, chapter 7, verse 54 to 60, and then you go to Acts, chapter 8, verse 1, and then you read about his conversion in Acts, chapter 9, verse 1, and there on in. When you look at this man's life, his history was so far away, so far away. He didn't like the word he didn't like. I'm using this terminology because it's for easiest for us to understand it. When you look at this man's life, his history, he was a Jesus hater. He was getting letters. He was getting everything. He wanted to imprison believers of Christ. He stood and watched this man, stephen, be stoned. Read for yourself.
Speaker 1:When you look at this scripture, it says they laid the coats at the feet of a young man called Saul and he allowed this to go on. He was a man of notoriety. He had Roman citizenship. You read that in Acts, chapter 22, 28. His Jewish heritage was so strong and so powerful. Paul was a Jew. He'd come from the tribe of Benjamin, philippians 2, verse 5. He was born of Tarsus. He was important in the Roman city. His name, his Hebrew name. He was named probably after King Saul.
Speaker 1:When you look at this man's history up until God took him off the horse. When God took him off, he was brought up in education. He was really trained as such a strong, pharisee, strict group in judaism. He come under a great, powerful teacher, a respectful teachers through the jewish law. But more than that, he was a persecutor of christians.
Speaker 1:His history did not qualify him to be a Bible believer. Let's use that. His history didn't look like he could be a Christian. His history had blood on his hands. His history had blood on his hands. His history he was a bad man. He allowed murder to go on. His history showed that he didn't want anyone to be a believer. His history showed that he didn't want anyone to serve Jesus. His history was showing so clearly, his history was showing so much, that it was impossible. It was impossible for him to be a writer of the gospels of Jesus Christ?
Speaker 1:13 books. He wrote 13 books. How can this be to be a writer of 13 books? To watch and to be at the stoning and to see everything that went on? When you look at everything that's going on in this man's life, read for yourself, read for yourself, read it for yourself, see what's going on, read for yourself, read it for yourself, see what's going on. When you look at it so clear, when everything that's happening, when everything is is is breaking out. He's, he's at the stoning of Stephen. Let's read it for ourselves. Let's read it for ourselves. Let's see what what the scripture says. Let's have a look.
Speaker 1:And we are in acts, chapter 7, verse 54. When he heard this, there was ferocious gnashing of teeth at him. But stephen, full of the holy spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of god and jesus standing at the top of their voices. All rushed towards him, dragging him out of the city and began to stone him. City and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. While they were stoning him, stephen prayed Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he fell to his knees and cried out Lord, do not hold this sin against them. Knees and cried out, lord, do not hold this sin against them. When he had said this, he fell asleep. And Saul, chapter 8, verse 1, and Saul was there giving approval to his death.
Speaker 1:You can go ahead of me and, if you like, I don't believe that we will get to Acts, chapter 9. But when you look at Acts, chapter 9, you will read about the conversion, the conversion of this man, the conversion of this man that stood and watched a Holy Spirit filled believer be struck to death. See, I'll speak about my life. Our history doesn't qualify us, doesn't qualify us in any way. But isn't it interesting what God has for you and what God has for me? It looks like in many areas of life at the moment that our history is going to be a stumbling block for what God has for us. But that's what the world and that's what religion says, that's what society says. Your history, ben, is going to cause you trouble in your future. But God says I will use all things for good, what the devil meant for harm, when the devil tries to trip and where the devil tries to bring it all up. God used this killing machine. God used this man.
Speaker 1:God used this young man called Saul to write 13 Holy Spirit inspired books. God uses us when religion says look at his history. When the world and family says who does he think or think they are? When you look at this man's history, his history doesn't qualify him for his destiny, but this is the miracle, working power of the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ. When you look at the mercy of God, when you look at the mercy of the Savior of the world, when you look at this word.
Speaker 1:He was a Jewish man. He was anti, he wanted to put men and women in prison. He was a persecutor of the faith. He went out his way. He was an educator. He could speak four languages, he was educated, he was powerful, he had power, he had the law behind him, he had everything in his pocket to do what he wanted to do and he wanted to destroy Christians' lives. He wanted to take them out.
Speaker 1:But when you look at this text that we are in, when you look at the scripture acts, chapter 7, he witnessed the stoning of a man that was spirit filled and heaven was torn open. And Stephen, what did he say? Forgive him, my goodness. Jesus. He's got a crowd coming towards him brutal text we're in this morning. He's got this crowd coming towards him acts, chapter 7. He's got these people gnashing their teeth filled with anger and rage.
Speaker 1:I believe let's use this analogy that there are people around you that would love to stone you, that would love to see you taken out of culture, out of life, because they're jealous of you, because they're not sure of you, because they're uncertain of you. This man, stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, filled with the glory and the power. And they came to him and they wanted to take his life. And they took his life, but the Bible says he fell asleep. Imagine what he went through. And imagine a young man called Saul standing there watching this horrific action.
Speaker 1:God, how do you use historical events like this to gain your glory? But then, if you accelerate up to his conversion and you read about Ananias and Ananias went, god, you want me to pray for that man? Do you know what he's done? Be quiet, ananias, just do what I'm telling you to do. What a lesson to be learned. Don't look, don't judge, because this human being in your eyes deserves death, but this human being in my eyes, I'm using him or her for the glory of my will to be done so the world can look upon us and might want us to be stoned. Society and culture and the world is trying to persecute us as Christians, as Bible-believing believers. But trust me, there is a plan over your life. Trust me, there is a plan in your life. Trust me, the history doesn't fit for the future.
Speaker 1:Calling the history doesn't look any way. Which way good and shape. Whatever way you look at it, it looks mucky, it looks dirty, it's cloudy, it's horrible. How can God use me when I have been A, b, c, d, e? I can't go no further. I don't know my alphabet. How can God use me? How can God use us? How can God use us when I was standing and watching Stephen, filled to the holy glory not only filled to the holy glory.
Speaker 1:Think about what he see. He looked up and as he looked up, he see Jesus, and he see Jesus at the right hand and as he see Jesus, the stoning commenced. See, as you keep your eyes on Jesus, the stoning will continue. You got to keep your eyes on Jesus. Don't look at those that are trying to stone. You Don't look at those that are trying to bring stuff in your life. Don't look at stuff around you. Keep your eyes on the author and the perfecter of your faith, because as soon as you look at the stoners, the pain starts to come in. And it says he kept his eyes on Jesus and he focused on Jesus and he saw.
Speaker 1:Let's read that text for ourselves. Let's get back into the text in chapter 7 of Acts. And it says there when they heard this, they were furious and gnashing their teeth. But, stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, you can be full of the Holy Spirit, full to the full measure of God. And you've got people around you gnashing their teeth, looking to tell you and to take you out. Not everyone is for you. You might be amongst the crowd, you might be amongst a society, a culture where you've got people around you wanting to bring and bring a rock to your life, wanting to wipe you out.
Speaker 1:But it says there, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. He said look. He said Hebrews, chapter 12. Keep your eyes on Jesus, even when there's a stoning coming, even when the arrows are coming, even when when, when the bullets are being fired, even when the words, even when the emails and the text, even when the fists are being raised, even when the voice is allowed, even when every area. Keep your eyes on Jesus. Keep your eyes on Jesus when the stoning from the world is around you. Keep your eyes on Jesus. You're filled with the Holy Spirit.
Speaker 1:What does it tell us? It tells us, it gives us a quite a startling wake up when you look at this text. Even a man like Stephen, that was so filled with the holy and the glory, had an attack on his life, had an attack on his life, had an attack on his life. So this is where we need endurance, this is where we need to dig deep, this is where we need to keep our eyes on. This is the time when you've got to keep your eyes on Jesus when the stones are out, when there's gnashing of teeth, when the crowd is coming for you, when it doesn't line up, coming for you when it doesn't line up. So what we have? We have two characters. We have Stephen being taken out, but also you have the ones that are the ones, obviously, that are doing that work, but amongst that, even greater, you've got the one that is allowing the attack.
Speaker 1:Isn't it interesting how God uses people and who God uses, even in the circle of our lives, to get his glory done? When you look at this, there was a of step back, but very instrumental, very instrumental. Watching, going to the authorities, getting the letters, getting the writings, getting everything that he needed. He was a persecutor. He wanted to see Christians in prison. We know what he was like. We know that he was on his way, that he was on that great journey.
Speaker 1:Isn't it powerful? The journey of life. See, his agenda was very different to the agenda of heaven, even when he didn't want God, even when he didn't want Jesus, even when he was living a life that was outside the framework of salvation, even when he ridiculed Christians, even when he didn't want to go to church, even when he didn't even know Jesus. God had a plan for Saul, even when he was doing the atrocities that he was doing, even when he didn't want to go to church, when he was doing the atrocities that he was doing, even when he didn't want to go to church, when he was ridiculing people at work, where did you go yesterday? You went to church. You went to church. You believe in Jesus.
Speaker 1:Even when he was in the world, even when he was a persecutor, even when he didn't want anyone to progress in the power of the Holy Spirit, he tried to erase it, he tried to remove it. He had all power. He had the authoritarians behind him. He had society and culture. He had the heritage of where he was brought up from. He had everything in his favor.
Speaker 1:Isn't that interesting? It looks like the law can be stronger than our faith. Doesn't it look like the culture of the law that we have? Doesn't it look like, when you look across the platform of society and everything, that, as a Christian, we are taking a stoning because we are? Doesn't it look like the authoritarians in certain places across the nation? Doesn't it look like, through natural living, that that is stronger than our God? It looks like the policies are stoning us.
Speaker 1:It looks like these ones that are getting the letters and trying to remove Christianity. It looks like they're making progress. It looks like they've got the heritage and the law behind them and wherever they go, they're getting a backing to say, yeah, we're going to wipe Christianity out of that school, we're going to wipe Christianity out of that area. You're not going to be able to preach the gospel on the streets. We've got a policy, it looks like. But God? So when you study Paul and you look at Paul, just imagine what is coming out of a certain number 10. Look at what's coming out against.
Speaker 1:There was a great show they put on the other week because it was the Passover and they had to have a little bit of Jesus over the four-day bank holiday. He had to have something to do with them four days, but behind the curtains the policies are being written. They're being drawn up for education, for street preaching, for certain areas of workplace, for schools, for colleges, for lecture halls. Policies are being written up. You can't talk about Jesus because it's written.
Speaker 1:As Paul said, I've got letters that are telling me that I can put you in prison if you stand on the street corner and you tell the world they're sinners. If you tell anybody that they are a sinner preaching the gospel on the streets of the UK, you're going to feel the force of the law. And Paul had letters. I'm coming for you and it looks like the souls. The souls are coming for Christianity, but they're on the outside. They don't realize that they're going to have an encounter on the road, because that's what God does. God will knock people off their horse. God will drop them to the floor. It doesn't matter how many policies there are. It doesn't matter. Even the churches are adopting the policies that are being brought in and written up and looked at GDPR, safeguarding, covid, this that we're following the policies of Saul that's what is written. But when you think about it, the ones that bring the policies God is seriously looking at them. So the policies are coming and it looks like the authoritarians are giving us a stoning and it looks like we are being crushed under the stone.
Speaker 1:It looks like that Christianity could be. It might be wiped out because numerics are not lining up anymore. But look what Jesus did with 12. There is a religion out there that as soon as you are birthed, you're stamped with it over your forehead before you can talk, before you can speak, before you can do anything, and you're labeled with a certain name because it goes with the culture. A lot of religions work on mathematics. That's why they're growing, because it's mathematics and it has to be. But Christianity is a calling, so it doesn't matter about the numerics. It doesn't matter about the mathematics of the numbers. When you see statistics, it's better to see that christianity is lower, not because it's being wiped out, but because God is stripping back and preparing the army for the last days. We are watching a great preparation for the coming of Jesus Christ. So just because there are letters out there, just because souls are driving and being driven showfully around with policies in briefcases being put across the tables, numerics doesn't matter in the kingdom Because, with 12 renegades sitting around the Passover table and they went, what are them two talking about?
Speaker 1:They didn't have a clue what was going on at the other end of the table. They didn't know that the scriptures were being fulfilled. They was just at the Passover table. The Bible says that they didn't know what was being spoken about. They didn't know what was going on. So look what God can do with 12. When God drops the power of the Holy Spirit in and let's remind ourselves the author of 13 books. His history didn't line up with his destiny. So there comes a time in our lives where we have a bring into the floor moment, damascus Road, a moment where God looks directly at and says enough is enough. He was on his way, fully charged, fully loaded, armed up, soldiers with him, everything.
Speaker 1:The authorities were coming for the Christians. The authorities are coming for the Christians. They're loaded up, they're on their cars, they're on their cars, they're in their policies. They're flying across the world in fine jets. They're bringing policies. They're trying to stop the word of God and God will stop them. We don't need to do anything. All you got to do is just keep your eyes on Jesus. It's not for us to get in the arena with the authoritarians. It's for us to get in the prayer closet and pray like never before. It's for us to lift up in the name of Jesus and say dear God, in the name of Jesus, the law is coming for me because I'm a believer. The law is against me because I am a Bible-believing believer. The stones are out. The world is gnashing its teeth at spirit-filled believers. The authorities are gnashing their teeth and some of them are standing there peacefully watching persecution happen in the persecuted church. They're standing with blood on their hands.
Speaker 1:The persecuted church 365 million displaced Christians growing as we speak, running for their lives, with many gnashing teeth around them, stones being raised, swords being raised, lives taken out because the souls? And what did Saul stand for? He stood for the authority of the world. We have to erase the believer. But what they don't realize is the believer is filled with the Holy Spirit. What they don't realize is that the believer has a plan over their life and those that are running at this moment in time.
Speaker 1:So you've got those like Stephen in the persecuted church running and on the outside of the fringe of that you've got believers that don't even know that they are believers writing up policies because they haven't had and they're not yet experiencing the Damascus Road experience. So they're gnashing their teeth. They're writing up policies, they're sending emails this way, that way. They are atheists at this moment in time. They are Jesus haters at this moment in time. They are Jesus haters. They don't want to see the kingdom of God progress, but they're happy with religion because they control religion.
Speaker 1:But what they can't control are Bible-believing Stevens that are Holy Spirit-filled, that in the face of adversity, they're saying Father, forgive them, whoever comes against me, forgive them in the name of Jesus. They do not know what they're doing. Forgive them of their sin. Forgive them that they're raising a stone. Forgive them that they're raising a fist. Forgive them that they're stopping this teaching in school. Forgive them in number 10. Forgive them, lord. I forgive them because I am spirit filled, I am blessed and highly favored. I am a child of the living God. Because the authoritarians?
Speaker 1:There are so many areas of Saul scenarios outside. Saul wants to remove Christianity. Saul wants to take out followers of the way. Saul wanted to erase. He wanted to imprison, he wanted to put put behind bars, he wanted to put them out the way. Isn't it interesting what he wanted to do? And then suddenly, at a direct moment, at a direct encounter, he was knocked down and God said Saul, saul, why do you persecute me? Straight away the line that he comes back, he knew who God was. There was a change in his life.
Speaker 1:So every atheist out there will have a Damascus road experience at some particular point in their life. It doesn't matter if they're bringing policies. It doesn't matter if they're bringing policies. It doesn't matter if they're trying to imprison us. It doesn't matter if the law is trying to stop us preach the name of Jesus. It doesn't matter if the HR office is trying to stop us at work have a prayer moment. It doesn't matter if the boss is saying you can't leave your Bible on your desk. It doesn't matter if the lecturer at school says don't talk about Jesus in this class? It doesn't matter, because they will have a Damascus road experience and one day they will call out to the king of glory and that Damascus road experience that I have seen is more often around the dying bed scenario.
Speaker 1:They've reached right to the pinnacle of a thousand breaths and suddenly the horse that they was riding has no value. The policies that they written have no value. And they cry out Rev, where am I going when I die? And they cry out, rev, where am I going when I die? Suddenly, the souls, souls, their language changes when the Grand Reaper is standing by your bedside and you're looking at your own mortality. You can write the greatest policies, you can be the highest, you can be the most educated person in parliament, but when you are facing a thousand breaths and every breath that you take is taking you closer to the grave, and every breath that you take is getting a deeper struggle, and as you breathe it's getting harder and fear starts to come in and you cry out. I've heard the cry. Jesus, will you save me? You can write all the policies, you can be strong and fit and will up to the to the point of the thousand breaths, but then suddenly God comes in to your arena and he says now, what? Why have you persecuted me all these years? Now I'm going to use you. But then, isn't it interesting, ananias?
Speaker 1:In the text, ananias says to God do you want me to pray for him? Do you know what he's been doing? God says yes, you just focus on what I'm telling you to do, let me deal with him. That tells me something. Don't worry about the atheists, don't worry about the devil worshipers, don't worry about what the world is doing. Just make sure I'm doing what I should be doing. And we need to find out, as Bible believing believers, am I doing what I should be doing? Because if I take the attitude and adopt the way and the arrogance that Ananias was in the face of God, god, you've got it wrong. I'm not going to pray.
Speaker 1:But then God drops that line to him. That is a bit of a shaker to the human being. Just go and pray for him, because I'm going to show him how he's going to suffer for me. Oh my God, that is scripture. You just pray, ananias, ananias, I will show him what the cost is. Oh, jesus, Stephen paid a price. Jesus paid the price. The disciples how many were skinned alive upside down. How many were burnt at the stake, how many were decapitated? Look at the martyrs. I tell you what. When you look at the martyrs, it's an area that the mind in the West don't want to go, because we struggle. How could that be? They were crucified upside down, they were burnt alive, they were stripped to their skin, they were decapitated and the heads were put on platters and marched around in courtyards. You want the head of him, darling, I'll give you his head.
Speaker 1:When you look at the text, the cost of following Jesus it takes someone. It takes someone that says I'm a Jesus follower and there is a cost to following Jesus. And there is a cost to following Jesus because there is a cost to following Jesus. When you look at the Bible believing believers there was a cost Stephen filled to the full measure, filled with the Holy Spirit. He still had to go out being stoned. Lord, help me. Sisters and brothers, there's two sides to this that we're in this morning. There's the side of Stephen's and there's the side of Saul. I would rather be on the Stephen's side than on the Saul's side side, than on the soul side. When you look at the scripture, we have 11 minutes online and the camera will go If you're on radio. We thank God for joining us for the world of podcast. God bless every one of you as we continue this.
Speaker 1:When you look at these scriptures, when you look at what we've been looking at, my history doesn't qualify me for a calling. No one's history qualifies them for what God has for us, Because all have sinned and fallen short of thy glory. Everyone has got skeletons in cupboards. Everyone has got stuff that we're trying to bury. Put the coffin lid on, screw it down, chuck it in the grave. I don't want no one to resurrect that in the name of Jesus.
Speaker 1:But what's so beautiful about Jesus when he died on the cross, according to the scripture, that before we lived an event, before I sinned in the event, before I stumbled in an event, it was now to the cross of Calvary. The Old Testament writer writes before you were created, I saw your unfallen body Before you spoke any word and before you stretched out as the physical human. I see your life from beginning to end, but I still called you. I still called you. I knew, ben, how you were going to foul me time and time again. I knew the places. I knew the markers in your life, Ben, where you would foul miserably and you've done a great job of failing. You've done an amazing job, but your history doesn't define what I've got for you, god.
Speaker 1:Think about that. Whatever it has been, whatever has happened, doesn't define God's salvation. So let's erase the calling, because you need to erase the calling, and I'm talking about calling to ministry, because what did God do? First in Saul's life? He converted him over. It's the conversion not to a preacher or a teacher, it's not to that. It's a conversion from an atheist, devil-worshipping sinner at higher level, someone that was persecuting Christians. He was a killer in a roundabout way, because he ordained it, he watched it, he looked at it, he allowed it, he had blood on his hands. So God took him from a non-believer to a believer. That is first. You don't cross over from an atheist viewpoint to a preacher and then get saved. The greatest call we will ever have is the call of salvation. So it's not about getting behind this, it's about getting behind that, it's about getting behind the cross, because, let me tell you, calling in ministry sits down the tube of life. What we need to understand is that I'm saved, I'm redeemed. I've had my Damascus road experience and my history is not defining my redemption, because I'm redeemed. I was redeemed. You was redeemed online on radio in the house. We was redeemed before we lived. Radio in the house. We was redeemed before we lived. It's mind-blowing, but we think that we have all power to run to the preacher when he puts the altar, call out. This is your last moment to give your life to Jesus and on your way down, drop 50 quid in the box in the name of Jesus. Do you realise? Of course you realise.
Speaker 1:The persecuted church don't even have a church. They don't even have a preacher preaching. Because they have the Holy Spirit and they are saved. They are being taken out of world religions. They go to bed as a certain person. They wake up as a Bible-believing believer. There was no Billy Graham in their life, there was no Reinhard Bonnke, there was no preachers of old, there was no generals preaching from churches. Because they don't have churches, because they're not allowed a church, because God has told them you are the church and wherever you gather in the basement, wherever you gather under the tree, wherever you gather in the back of the van, that is the church. They got no preacher calling them out, preaching the prosperity gospel.
Speaker 1:Do we realize that the prosperity gospel of cash doesn't apply to the persecuted church? Because I'm not worried if I'm running for my life, if I'm going to get 50 quid in my account later on, because what I want to do is make sure that I'm going to get through the afternoon. So the prosperity gospel doesn't fit in the persecuted church. It fits in the West, because we've been cloned and we have been made into robots in certain ways that without money you can't succeed. But the persecuted church is growing at such a rate it doesn't even have money, it doesn't have a pound. But if you look at the persecuted church, no government, no human being is stopping the power of god.
Speaker 1:They are gathering in hundreds, they are gathering in twos, they are gathering in the most dangerous places of the world with souls all around them, and they haven't got a pound in their pocket. They haven't got a bean. They haven't got anything. They're running in the clothes that they got. They got no church, anything. They're running in the clothes that they got. They got no church. They are just gathering under bullets, under shrapnel fire, under everything. They're gathering and they're praying and they're seeing power move. They're praying in adversity and God is moving. They're praying in the face of souls, they're praying in the face of Her's, they're praying in the face of Herod, they're praying in the face of Pilate, they're right under the breath of Lucifer, and God is building his kingdom, because it's about kingdom, it's not about the four walls, it's not about the structure.
Speaker 1:We've got to come to the table extremely quickly. Wherever you are across the world, grab a bit of bread and let's grab this cup. Father, in the name of Jesus, father, in the name of Jesus, we break bread and we recognize there is power in the name of Jesus, and as we break bread together now, online and in the house, father, we thank you that this bread symbolizes the body of christ. Bless this in jesus name, amen. The bible says he took the cup, he given thanks, and it's a great study to study the, the passover, the breaking of bread and the taking of the cup. He took the bread, he dipped it in that and he gave it. He passed it over over to Judas Iscariot. You know it became salt. So, lord, I come to you in these closing moments of this live stream service and, lord, I just pray right now that you'll cleanse me from the crown of my head to the sole of my feet, in the name of Jesus, that you'll wash me in the blood. In Jesus' name, amen. See, there is power. In the name of Jesus.
Speaker 1:See, the persecuted church is running and they are the church. They're not interested in buildings, you know. Do we realize, as we come to the close of this service, two minutes do we realize that this book is being smuggled? Do you realize that it's not drugs that is being smuggled the most, the Word of God, the word of God. It's being taken into nations where you'd get killed. There are container loads, there are boatloads, there are people carrying bibles. Their lives are at risk. It's not drugs, it's bibles that are being smuggled at the greatest volume across the world, because it is the word of god and the souls want to destroy it. It, it is alive and it is well. The persecuted church is not looking for four walls, it's looking for the author of the paperback version. It's running, it's hungry, it's stirred, because they know that this, this Bible, this is so powerful it's beyond human understanding.
Speaker 1:So we thank you for joining us across the world today and as we come to a close in a few moments and as we stop this recording in just a moment. I pray that, wherever you are across the world today and as we come to a close in a few moments, and as we stop this recording in just a moment, I pray that, wherever you are across the world, I pray that the love of God and the power of the Holy Spirit will carry you and you will know that your Redeemer lives and because he lives, you can face tomorrow. Thank you for listening on RB, christian Radio. Thank you for listening on live stream, on camera, today, for on all the platforms and for everybody in the house of the Lord. As we just gently backtrack out of this service, may God bless you. Wherever you are across the world, we will capture you again. You can find us on radio. You can find us on Reverend Ben Cooper's podcast. All the services, 1300 podcasts. You can find us on all the platforms. God bless, take care, see you soon.
