Miss Annie (Singing)… You will never leave, your love sustains me….
Pastor Ray: Thank you, Lord. You’re beautiful. Just, you know there’s something about those, the words that you just sang, Annie. They kind of, to me it was just like, this is what I saw. Well, lots of years ago and my father-in-law’s in Heaven now, but he used to take us sometimes (Sandy and I), we’d go to a Vikings game, and I had these like little, almost pretend binoculars, cause I didn’t want some giant thing. But, he may as well forget it. Because I couldn’t see anything better than with my natural eyes. But he’d come with this huge, really old set of binoculars. And if you put those things on, those people way down on the field were like they were right in front of you. So, you could see so much more clearly.
And I saw this for a few people that I know. So, I just mentioned them before the Lord. But they need to see more. That love that He gave to them personally. And that love, in that love there’s complete and total restoration. You know, so I’m praying that, we can all see better. That the eyes of our understanding, our spiritual eyes will be open, and even more wide, you know, so we could see absolutely that great love that He gave to us. And everything that is in that love.
All of the goodness, all of the wholeness, all of the prosperity of every kind. Because He’s so good. He’s faithful. You’re good and your faithful. Things through you turn completely around. And so, we declare what you’ve already given unto us, complete turning around.
No, we will not focus on what we can see, like in those little, teeny binoculars or what we can see in the natural. But we’ll keep our focus on Him. And what He said. What the Word says. Keep on moving. Keep on expecting. This morning, let’s just turn up, let’s take hold of that switch and turn up our expectation about the things that are about to come. About the things that have already been provided for us. And begin to see the favor of God. Even more clearly what He did in the past for each one of us personally, or together, corporately, you know, what He’s done for us.
Just that alone is enough to motivate us and give us momentum to go further. What He’s already done for us. But then our expectation about what He’s doing right now, and how things will turn, how they’ll turn out, how they’ll be rearranged, opened. Some things need to be closed. Hallelujah!
He’s good. And His mercies are new today. Hallelujah. Thank you, Lord. Yesterday morning, there’s something yesterday about Saul. If you were here, we did a Saul/Paul deal, and so this morning I thought there’s something else about that. And so, I want to just read down through that Damascus road event. Just not a whole lot, but just some, while Saul, you know after he’s been just going wild.
He thought he was doing just great, but his eyes were closed before they were supernaturally closed. And so, as he traveled on, so he’s just, he got an official deal from the heads to just raise even more havoc. And bring everyone that would call on Jesus – lock them up. Chain them up.
As he traveled, he came near to Damascus and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. And he fell to the ground. Then he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” “Harassing, troubling, molesting.” And Saul said, “Who are you, Lord?” That’s an interesting turnaround right there. And He said, “I am Jesus.” Oh, the Great I Am, we could say. Whom you were persecuting is dangerous, and it will turn out badly for you to keep kicking against the goad, to offer vain and perilous resistance. Trembling and astonished, he asked, “Well, Lord, what are you desiring me to do?” And Jesus said, “Arise, and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
The men who were with them, accompanying him were unable to speak for terror, because they heard the voice but they didn’t see anyone. Then Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were opened, he could see nothing. So, they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. And he was unable to see for three days. He neither ate nor drank anything.
Verse 10, “Now there was in Damascus a disciple named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias,” and he answered Him, “Here I am, Lord!” And the Lord said to him, “Get up. Go to the street called Straight and ask at the house of Judas for a man of Tarsus named Saul. For behold, he is praying there.” So, Saul is blinded and he’s in there praying.
And Verse 12, and he’s seen in a vision a man named Ananias enter and lay his hands on him, so that he might regain his sight. But Ananias had some questions about that. He answered, “Well, Lord, I’ve heard many people tell about this man, especially how much evil and what great suffering he has brought on your saints in Jerusalem. Now he’s here and has authority from the high priests to put in chains, all who call upon your name.” But the Lord said to him, “GO! Go for this man is a chosen instrument of mine to bear my name before the Gentiles, and Kings, and the descendants of Israel. For I will make clear to him how much he will be afflicted and must endure and suffer for my name’s sake.”
So, Ananias answered the call. Thank God. Otherwise we wouldn’t be reading this. Anyway, so Ananias left and went into the house, and he laid his hands on Saul and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you along the way by which you came has sent me, that you may recover your sight AND be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Ooh, I love it.
Wasn’t just, okay here you go – you can see. No, there was more to that. He was filled with the Holy Spirit, and then instantly, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes and he recovered his sight. Then, he arose, and he was baptized. I mean, he’s making some serious steps. And after he took some food, he was strengthened for several days afterward. He remained there with the disciples, and immediately in the synagogues, he proclaimed Jesus saying, He is the Son of God.
This is the guy who was just on the road to Damascus, three days ago. So, he had a radical, supernatural turnaround and a change. All right, so then my question this morning was, I got in and I started reading about this, I’m like, what? Wait a minute! So, when did Saul turn into Paul? When was this name changed from Saul to Paul? I almost kinda thought, Yeah, when you know, Ananias came in there and he just called him Paul. No.
So, Chapter 13. This is where it changed. And it’s interesting what he did when it changed. But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with and controlled, by the Holy Spirit, looks steadily at Elimas. That’s, you know, about Elimus, and said, “You master,” you know, he was always trying to turn the straight places crooked. Whatever. So, He said, “You master in every form of deception and recklessness and unscrupled and wickedness. You son of the devil! You enemy of everything that is upright and good! Will you never stop perverting, and making crooked the straight paths of the Lord. And plotting against his saying purposes. And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind. He’s, this is Paul that was just as blind. Or Saul. Now he’s Paul. And so, he’s declaring these things with a new intensity. First, he just declared, you know, Jesus. Believe on Jesus in the synagogue, but now behold the hand of the Lord’s upon you. You’re going to be blind. So blind that you’ll be unable to see the sun for a time. Instantly, there fell upon him amidst in a darkness, and he groped around, seeking persons who would lead him by the hand. Then the pro-counsel did what? Believed and became a Christian. What he saw what had a curve for he was astonished and deeply touched by the teaching that concerned the Lord, and from him.
Okay, so, suddenly, Saul was referred to as Paul. Jesus referred to him still as Saul when he said, “Go into the city, you know, you’ll go to the house there and ask for Saul. Suddenly, he’s referred to as Paul. It doesn’t, it doesn’t say, you know, who changed his name or why his name was changed, so I looked this up. Couple different things. According to the book of Acts, he was a Roman citizen. First, and as a Roman citizen he also bore the Latin name of what? Paul. Essentially, a Latin translation of Saul, in biblical Greek and in Latin, Paulus, it was typical of the Jews of that time to have two names. One Hebrew, and the other Latin or Greek.
Okay. So then, there’s one testimony, I’ll tell you just a minute, but, I looked up, well, who’s names were changed in the Bible? And who changed them. It goes on, and I think it’s three pages long. Just a couple of them like Abram was renamed, Abraham. Who named him that way? God. It wasn’t, he didn’t just think “I’ll change my name.” And so like Barnabas was Joseph, Cephas or Peter was Simon. Dorcas, I can see why that name was changed, anyway it’s all right (laughing). You can’t resist that. Changed to Tabitha. That is way, way better! (laughing)… Hey Dorcas! Hadassah. Hadassah became Esther. And Hosea, Joshua. And Jacob, Israel. Jedidiah, Solomon. Levi, or Levite, Levi turned into Matthew. I mean, Sarai became Sarah. God changed her name.
Okay, so all the way through, and it’s still true. It’s still true today. Jewish people, if sometimes they’ll actually change their name because they’re suffering from some kind of sickness or disease. And they’ll change their name to something that means healing or restoration or something like that.
And so, always in these name changes and what it says about it is that when they were about to depart from the past ways. And enter into a higher level of responsibility from God, their names were changed. Because they were about to step into a new chapter, spiritually.
I’m not saying you have to change your name if you don’t like it. A friend of ours, in France, her name is Elizabeth. All throughout when she was small in school, grade school, high school, whatever. Her teacher gave her a nickname called Bubbles. And everyone thought, Isn’t that cute! But she didn’t give her that name because she was so outgoing, or happy, or joyful. She gave her that name because she was so introverted. Like you’re in a bubble.
Okay, but we always thought, “What a cute name!” You know, so Bubble, must mean bubbles, bubbly. But it didn’t. And so, a few years ago, she started having some difficulty just finishing some sentences, or you know, just coming up, what was that word, you know. Like that. Just a little bit of, I don’t know, it was just not normal.
And so, she did what the Jewish people do. She did away with, cause all of her family, everyone, just called her, Bubbles. And she went back to her original name, Elizabeth. Guess what? Everything turned around and she became normal because everyone was calling her Elizabeth, instead of Bubbles, like you’re in a bubble, and you’re so introverted you can’t get out. But, by changing back to her original name, she was set free.
It’s just, it’s interesting. (laughing) My dad’s nickname was Pickles. And we didn’t even know what the deal was as kids, but my mom always referred to him as Pickles. What a nickname. And guess what? He was given that name when he was a small boy, because his hat fell off in the store into a pickle barrel. And they, and so I guess his dad, that’d be you know, my grandfather. So, he just started calling him Pickles. And his name was Bernard. And so that’s how he exited the earth as Pickles Kelly. (Laughing)
So, hmmm, Thank You, Lord. Do you have anything about that Annie? What’s your middle name?
Annie: My middle name?
Pastor Ray: Yeah.
Miss Annie: Catherine
Pastor Ray: What is it?
Miss Annie: Catherine.
Pastor Ray: Oh, okay.
Miss Annie: I guess it’s very Catholic. Annie Catherine. My mother always called me Annie Catherine.
Pastor Ray: My name is Joseph.
Miss Annie: “ANNIE CATHERINE!” (LAUGHING) “You come here!” Saint Catherine, she was really a martyr of the church.
Pastor Ray: Mine is Joseph. That’s my middle name.
Miss Annie: What Joseph means is, he shall add. So, my son’s name is Joseph, so I always used to joke, it means he’s going to be really good at math. He shall add. But anyway, what I was thinking when you were talking about that, It just illustrates how powerful our words are. And I think it was Joseph Prince who I heard talking about Hebrew tongue the Hebrew language that somebody did an experiment. You know, where they kept saying some Hebrew words to like a pile of sand, and the sand rearranged itself. But there’s a scripture that says, thou shalt be called by a new name. That the mouth of the Lord shall name.
And then in Revelation, it also talks about being given a stone that has something written on it that no one knows but you. You know, the person who gets the stone as something that God gives people. And so I’ve always wondered what’s written on that stone. Is it your new name? You know because your name, is it something new that God is calling you? You know, calling you fruitful, you know, calling you blessed, calling you His beloved. Calling you forgiven. Calling you healed. But there’s a scripture in the Old Testament, thou shalt be called by a new name. That the mouth of the Lord shall name. So, it doesn’t matter what name the devil has put on us. He puts names on us. He calls us terrible words,
Pastor Ray: Defeated!
Miss Annie: Yeah!
Pastor Ray: Sick!
Miss Annie: Yeah!
Pastor Ray: Poor
Miss Annie: Yeah. Confused, fearful.
Pastor Ray: Confused, fearful
Miss Annie: You know. But God has given us a new name. That His mouth has named.
Pastor Ray: True.
Miss Annie: And He calls us accepted and beloved.
Pastor Ray: Hahaha, that’s a good one.
Miss Annie: He calls us Righteous.
Pastor Ray: He does.
Miss Annie: He says, I’ve sworn I’ll never be angry with you, or rebuke you. And He’s calling us all new names. In His mouth names. Not the mouths of men. Not the mouths of the accuser of the brethren. Or even our own mouth. You know we’ve got to watch our own mouth, about ourselves. Right. Cause our words have power.
Pastor Ray: They do.
Miss Annie: So, we take the names God gives us. Thank you, Lord, for what you’ve called us. We accept those names joyfully, today.
Pastor Ray: We do.
Miss Annie: We accept all that Jesus did for us on the cross
Pastor Ray: We do, oh, we accept it, Lord.
Miss Annie: He’s given us new names. That His mouth, the mouth of the Father has named.
Pastor Ray: Yes!
Miss Annie: Oh, we receive all that you call us, Lord.
Pastor Ray: We do!
Miss Annie: In all humility. We, we receive it, Lord. In meekness. We believe what you say. About us. Thank You, Lord. We’re called by new names. Hallelujah. So just as Paul, you know, Saul received a new name that he wasn’t any longer that old person that he used to be. And each one of us, every day, we’re leaving behind who we used to be and we’re pressing on to the high calling of God. The mark of the high calling. Mark of the prize, the high calling. In our new names. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. But I wouldn’t mind being called Bubbles. (laughing) That’s kind of a fun name, Bubbles!
Pastor Ray: So, let’s, actually this kind of goes along with something that Kenneth Hagin said. Sorry! I’m just talking to myself in my brain, right now. Well I don’t want to be in my brain, Holy Spirit. Miss Annie.
Miss Annie starts playing music…
Prayed…
Reign. Fill. Change. Reign, fill and change. We change what we’re seeing. We change what we’re hearing. We change what we’ve been saying. And we call the things that are not, as though they were. Thank You! Your plan, Lord, we get it, was to prosper. Be in health. Prosper in every way. Spirit, soul and body. Hallelujah.
Thank you for what you’ve called us. And called us to be. Thank you, that maybe when we get to Heaven, we’ll see we had a different name. Hallelujah. Whatever You want to call us. We receive it. Because You are such a good, good, great Father. Thank You! (tongues)…Names, names, all kinds of names. All those names, Lord, You know the names. You know our names. Oh, You know who we are, what we are, what we’ve been called on to do.
Thank You, Lord. We can see just by what we’ve read. How if all these things are so intertwined and connected together. And what we say, like, Miss Annie said, Hebrew, some Hebrew words were being spoken and the sand moved. And when we speak, the name that’s above every other name. Here, now in these days, things get rearranged. Even ideas get rearranged. Even words (into tongues). Just like Paul, in just a few days, was rearranged and changed. And when we see him on the scene, speaking against Ananias his name was changed to Paul. Hallelujah.
We lean not on our own understanding. We just don’t believe everything that we can lean on naturally. But we do believe everything that you supernaturally have spoken over us. We have Your written words on it. Hallelujah. (tongues)…
No more delays, that’s what just popped up. No More Delays. It’s over and done and finished. We resist it, we call that out, and say, No more! And we also say, now is the time. Oh, if not us then who, Lord? Hahaha…(tongues)… Hallelujah! Glory, Lord. Hallelujah! Thank You, Lord.
Do you have a scripture, Jeani? And we say what? Yes, Lord , yes to Your will, yes to Your plan, yes to Your purpose, yes to Your ideas, yes to Your goodness, yes to the names that you call us. Beloved! We’ll take that name today. (tongues)…Hallelujah! Okay, go ahead.
Jeani: Okay, I’ll tell you, I didn’t have a scripture, but I did get “No Trespassing.” (tongues)… You shall not pass… Boundaries, boundaries, boundaries restored. Boundaries built up. In hearts, in cities, in states, in countries. It starts in the heart. It starts in the heart. It starts in the heart. In the heart of leadership, boundaries are being built right now. Boundaries rebuilt. That say, You shall not pass. No more trespassing.
Pastor Ray: There you go!
Jeani: You shall not trespass.
Pastor Ray: No.
Jeani: Boundaries with boldness! Boundaries with kindness! Boundaries with gentleness! Boundaries that protect. Boundaries that reject! Boundaries, boundaries, built up in the heart of leadership! They’re being built up in the heart! They’re being built up in Revelation! Your revelation, boundaries! Leadership! Leadership, Leadership! There are too many boundaries! That protect! That protect! And reject evil! Boundaries that say you shall not trespass! And boundaries that protect! The goodness of God! The goodness of God!
Pastor Ray: Boundaries
Jeani: A new identity. The new name. Okay, so when Paul got his new name, kingdom culture crashed in!
Pastor Ray: It did.
Jeani: Kingdom culture crashed in everywhere!
Pastor Ray: And it still is. It still is crashing.
Jeani: It still is crashing and it’s happening now!
Pastor Ray: Yeah, it is. Answers will begin to come more quickly than ever as we expect answers to come more quickly. Finances will increase as we expect finances to increase. Today. Hallelujah!
I’m adding another name to my name. it’s Raymond Joseph Prosperous Kelly. All right, so. Let’s just add some new names. The names that He’s called for us. Prosperity! In Jesus’ name. Healing. Joy. Strength. Power. Anointing. Authority.
Miss Annie: Authority!
Pastor Ray: Authority. Who has the authority? We have the authority! And we can build up those boundaries. Those places of … that kind of protection through the declaration of the blood of Jesus. So, when we place that, or speak that, or believe that when we actually say it. Not just say it. Well I just, you know, I put the blood. No! I PLEAD THE BLOOD OF JESUS! Believe it! And then we see it. We shall receive it. Hallelujah! Now just. I’m gonna just, the way this is, is like I am a king, so we’re all included, it’s not just, I’m not talking about myself, only. I could try to change this to we, but it’s a lot of changing here.
So, this is a great confession, I am a king for Jesus. Made me the same. I will not groan, and I will not complain. If we’re groaning in the wrong way, there is a groaning in the Spirit. But if we’re groaning in the wrong way, and we’re complaining all the time, we’re going against what God’s names are for us. It closes the door to it. But I’ll speak of faith of His greatness, and glory and power, Yea – I’ll not walk in defeat from this very hour. When’s that? Now! Failure, disease, sickness to no longer a part of me shall be. But healing and victory and glory and grace belong to me. Because I stand in His presence and His glorious face. I’ll run the race and I’ll not be afraid. Yea, fear and doubt are a thing of the past. Joy and love now fill us at last! So, we walk in victory, full of His grace. The righteousness of God and we become a new race. We’re not dominated by Satan. We’re not dominated by death. We’re not dominated by poverty, disease, sickness, or defeat. But, we walk on top of every enemy. For in Him, we are complete! Hallelujah.
Kings to reign and rule to dominate. And walk in life way above all this world and strife. We’re above it, let’s just take our seat. By faith and heavenly places, today. Seated in heavenly places, today. Hallelujah. Thank you, Father.
The name of Jesus has given us a new song. We’ll sing of His Power, of His Might, and of His Grace. Yea, we’ll rejoice and be glad in every hour. And though Satan comes with tests and trials, and though momentarily, the sun seems darkened, and the winds of adversity blow. Yet, I know, we know, and are determined to show that in Him, we rule and reign and dominate. So, we’ll speak to the clouds, away you go! We’ll speak to the darkness, you must dissipate and disappear. Now. We’ll speak to the sun, Shine on sun, and the Son of God will shine through us. And His light will drive away the darkness. And His life shall be made real and full in us. For you see, we are Kings! Kings rule and dominate. Their word is full of truth and majesty. And when their word is spoken, then all will obey. So, we’ll use our dominion and our power not only in our own lives, but to bless humanity. There you go.
All over the earth, and release those around us, around about us. And so, it shall be said, “The kings are come to rule and to reign in this domain.” So, let it be known, and shout with a voice that is loud and clear. We are what He says we are! And we can do what He says we can do. We will not accept a substitute for it, because it all belongs to us. Boom!
Hallelujah. In Jesus’ name. Hallelujah. Okay, Miss Annie… Let’s lift Him up. Let’s lift Him up. We worship You, Lord. We honor You. We’re thankful for what You did. For what was done. So grateful. Thank You! Thank You for the cross. Thank You for the blood. Thank You that everything that was lost has been restored. Made new. Hallelujah… Okay, you go ahead Annie…
Miss Annie (singing)…
Pastor Ray: Heavenly Father, now we, we lift up, we see our nation, as one nation under you, and we declare again today that Jesus is Lord. All over America. And we pray for this weekend, we, we go on out ahead now. We prepare, in Jesus’ name, that the flag will be lifted up – not burned up. In Jesus’ name. That we could call it the silent majority will begin to rise up. And stand up for what this nation was founded upon. Freedom! Freedom! In Jesus’ name.
We see that. We declare the blessing of God over the blessings. Of God over America. And we pray over our President. All of the leaders, in Jesus’ name. Those that need to have a paradigm shift. Let them have a paradigm shift. And let them change like Saul. Changed over into Paul. Father, thank You, that this nation is changing. More, and more, and more, in Your right ways. So, the church, and the bells will be ringing. And the voices will be speaking. This nation is a blessed nation. We thank You for it, we can see it. Our President is blessed, whole and healthy, and strong in You. Right words will be spoken. Right decisions will be made. Thank You! Thank You, Father. We give You all of the glory and honor for all these things, Lord. Thank You for what you did, what You’re doing, and what will come to pass. We know it’s all good.
We won’t be here tomorrow or Friday. So, we’ll be back on Monday. God bless your weekend coming up 4th of July. Thank you for tuning in and coming this morning.
Amen! Hallelujah.
