Taken from the Emmanuel TV archives, The SCOAN Sunday Service message that was rebroadcast on 1^st August 2021 was yet another opportunity to glorify the name of the Lord Almighty and to stress the importance of faith in the Christian walk. Entitled “FAITH IS NOT A FEELING”, the sermon, which was given by Prophet T.B. Joshua on Sunday, 10^th February 2008, was anchored in various Bible verses, including 2 Corinthians 5:7, Acts 19:1-6, John 7:38, Romans 8:12-15, Galatians 3:2, Romans 14:17, Galatians 5:16, John 5:6-7.

Before launching into the message proper, Prophet T.B. Joshua gave an illustration of how God’s power had been visible in his life since childhood. He recalled a remarkable experience in Arigidi-Akoko during his early years in primary school when he had commanded a mentally unbalanced man to hand over his weapons to him. The sick man had been brandishing a cutlass, a knife and other dangerous items inside the school premises, causing fear and panic among teachers and pupils. Although everybody had taken flight as they tried to avoid the unhinged man, there was one little boy who had dared to stand his ground and insisted on disarming the man who was the source of everybody’s fear: little Temitope Joshua, then commonly called ‘Small Pastor’.

As it turned out, following further elaboration of the story by Prophet T.B. Joshua’s former teacher, the man in question had sheltered overnight in the school, a situation which had given him the opportunity to surprise teachers and pupils with his early-morning display of potential violence. Unruffled, young Temitope Joshua, then a primary two pupil, had urged the troubled crowd to stay calm. “In the name of Jesus, give me this cutlass,” little Temitope had commanded the mentally deranged man, who had promptly surrendered his collection of deadly weapons. Pointing towards the way out of the premises of the school, wonder child Temitope then told the man, “Take this way—run!” And, indeed, the man began to run! “That was how the Lord used me to liberate the teachers and students,” Prophet T.B. Joshua recalled.

On that faith-lifting note, Prophet T.B. Joshua read from 2 Corinthians 5:7: “For we live by faith, not by sight.” He told the congregation, “Some people base their spiritual experiences on feelings and emotions. The Bible says faith is not a feeling. For faith to be consistent, genuine, it must be based on something with more stability than your feelings. Feelings are influenced by temporary things – what we see, hear, read, what others tell us.”

Speaking further, the man of God noted, “Everyone is exposed to things that are not consistent with God’s Word. Problems arise when feelings and emotions change.” According to him, so many people claim to be Christians and they are controlled by satan’s devices. He therefore told congregants: “If you are a Christian, you must be controlled by the Spirit of God, which the Bible refers to as ‘right reason’.”

Prophet T.B. Joshua reminded all that the Christian is command to walk by the Spirit, stating that: “They that are protecting us, supporting us are more than the forces of the adversaries. This statement is spoken to all faithful Christians, to all faithful children of God who without are fighting and within filled with fear, tension, pressure, trouble, panic. You will see them waving their hands in worship, fasting and praying, but within, filled with fear.”

The man of God then encouraged all, saying, “Jesus is willing to heal you now. His desire is to heal you now. If you are not healed now, it may be to strengthen your desire for Him. He’s willing to deliver you now. If you are not delivered, it may be to keep you for a new level or to preserve you for redemption or to reform you for a better position in Christ Jesus. He is willing to bless you now. If you are not blessed, it may be to strengthen or to prepare you for the challenges ahead.”

Prophet T.B. Joshua referred congregants to the Book of John 5:6-7, explaining that the man, who had been infirm for 38 years, had lost hope in man. He then said, “Before your desire for Christ can be strengthened,” he explained, “you must see the cause for losing hope in man. When we lose hope in man before receiving our miracle, we value our miracle, we value the blessing and see the reason for it.” He then concluded: “That total submission to His will can only come when we see the cause of losing hope in man.”

God’s Wonders At The Prayer Line

Thank You, Lord. Fill this assembly, Lord, with the Spirit of Truth. Fill our heart, our soul, our spirit with the Spirit of Truth. Fill the assembly, the church with the Spirit of Truth, with the Spirit of revelation, with the Spirit of deliverance, with the Spirit of blessing, in Jesus’ name we pray!”

At the prayer line, many received instant healing and deliverance in the mighty name of Jesus Christ. Among the sick were those who had come with various afflictions of many years, such as swollen belly, fractured legs, whitlow, anus cancer and numerous other bodily afflictions. The people had come from all over Nigeria and other countries of the world. Among those healed was a man who had been suffering from inability to walk and had to depend on the use of crutches. The moment Prophet T.B. Joshua laid his hand on him, he received strength in his legs and began to walk unaided.

As the man of God continued to pray for the afflicted, many reacted in different ways to the anointing. In one particularly striking case, a stocky, ample-framed man reacted vigorously as Prophet T.B. Joshua moved towards him. Owing to his size, he was quite a handful for the ushers restraining him as the spirit in him manifested. Nevertheless, God’s servant asked that the man be left unrestrained. Although the contrary spirit in him had given him a growling, angry face during the encounter with God’s Spirit in His prophet, the man had done nothing else but rip off his shirt as the spirit expressed anger at being commanded out of a body that it said it had been inhabiting for the last 35 years.

“I have been here for almost 35 years,” the evil spirit growled. “Now, you came to pursue me. Why?” it demanded from God’s servant. Asked where it had come from, the spirit said it had come from the marine world.

In the dramatic encounter, the unshirted – known as Lucky – walked in a daze behind Prophet T.B. Joshua as he carried on ministering healing and deliverance to other congregants. After a few pokes of Lucky’s upper midriff, the afflicted man became further dazed as he kept bowing and rising in apparent discomfort. “Do you know there’s an old woman inside you – and the woman is as old as 300 years?” asked Prophet T.B. Joshua. “Yes, I know!” Lucky agreed, wincing yet again in distress. God’s servant then told Lucky that he had been doing the bidding of the old woman. “I’m tired of staying in this boy’s body – it’s been a long time since he’s been dragging me all over the place – to various churches,” the spirit complained. “I want to go!” it restated, asking the man of God to quickly finish the job of expelling it. Then the spirit began sobbing and pleading to be allowed to leave the man’s body, threatening to break up the camera filming the scene if not allowed to go. God’s servant promptly called its bluff, daring it to destroy the camera, which had now been placed on the floor before it. However, it simply pushed the camera aside and continued sobbing.  

During Lucky’s deliverance session, other contrary spirits manifested among the congregants, and the spirit in Lucky confirmed that they were indeed agents from the world of darkness. In particular, he identified one of the spirits as one of those who had been tormenting him in spiritual prison. After further confessions, Lucky became sober and normal again after the expulsion of the evil spirit in him. Glory be to Jesus Christ!

There were also words of prophecy for some of the worshippers, including a woman into whom the spirit of her late father had jumped during his lying-in-state, a man who was in possession of a bottle containing a mystical object, a man who had refused to pay back a loan given to him by a friend who later died, and a man whose life had been dogged by problems caused by a lack of motherly love during childhood. After receiving prophetic messages on their situations, they were all delivered in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Leading the congregants and viewers in a powerful time of Mass Prayer, the prophet prayed thus: “When God called His children out of Egypt, He made a promise of deliverance, healing and blessing with them. This is your day of deliverance, healing and blessing! Begin to receive your deliverance from everything that threatens your future! I command sickness, disease to get out of your system, in the name of Jesus! Be blessed when you come in and when you go out, in the name of Jesus!”

Given that distance is not a barrier to the move of God, we urge you to continue using your faith to put a demand on the anointing in these powerful prayer points. As these people received their freedom, you too will be set free, in Jesus’ name!