Sid: My guest Carlos Sarmiento is red hot for the Messiah. As a matter of fact if someone had asked you before you had your heavenly encounter Carlos if you were red hot for the Messiah you probably would have said “Yes.” But what’s the difference between where you are today and before that encounter?
Carlos: You’re right I would have definitely said “Yes.” And especially because of my background in ministry and operating in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. I would say that the difference today between now and then is this that the Spirit of God still operates through me, the anointing is still there. But I would say that it’s my motives, the things that I emphasis the most, the things that I value the most which I seek to make sure that they are the things that Jesus values. It’s basically I’ve returned back to my first ministry and so rather than just focusing on having a successful church, rather than strategizing… and there’s nothing wrong with that but I was making the ministry the main emphasis of ministry. I was seeking to strategize, build the church, build the ministry through strategies and human means and at the point that I was losing that fire, that passion of making the Lord the number one goal of the ministry. So I would say that I have returned to revelations 1:6 when Jesus says “Not only are you a king but primarily you are a priest.” So I returned to my priesthood calling which is to minister to Him first and foremost before I focus on ministering to people at large.
Sid: Now you have been commissioned to be a forerunner of this next great move of God’s Spirit like the world has never seen before. And like you found out in heaven, not only are most people not prepared for it you’re not prepared for it. Have you been able to reproduce yourself so to speak through speaking such as your new book “Encounter by God?” And the workbook and the 5 CD series called “That We May Work the Works of God.” What have you seen the people that you’ve been pouring yourself into?
Carlos: Well I have seen people that were burnt out, people that were faithful, they were very faithful in ministry, very faithful to their tasks that were assigned to them. You know their ministry responsibilities and they were doing it out of loyalty. But I’ve seen them come alive where not much is changed as far as what they’re doing but doing it with passion, a zeal and fire. And again the reason has been because they’ve made the Lord the ministry, they seek Him first. It’s out of a level of closeness. It’s kind of with Adam the Lord said “Adam where are you?” Adam, God walked in the cool of the day; the day of the cool in the garden so he walked with Adam for the purpose of encountering Adam. And I think that we’re beginning to see people return back to that relationship where the Lord is fun, He’s enjoyable they enjoy the presence of the Lord. And so we have a sense of the presence of the Lord. Part of our daily lives is that we don’t do ministry. We don’t seek the Lord to do ministry; we seek the Lord to encounter Him, for Him to transform our lives.
Sid: Okay, what would you say to someone that would say “I’m more of an action person. I’m glad there are people called by God to be intercessors and pray, pray, pray, pray. But I’m an action person; that’s just not my calling.” What would you say to them?
Carlos: I would say that Jesus made it very, very clear that it says “It is written, My Father’s house.” And I believe that means that every one of us in the Body of Christ, in My Father’s house is called to be a House of Prayer. Now He didn’t say “A house of intercession; or a house of spiritual warfare He said “It is written, My Father’s house is called a house of prayer. And I would say to that individual that the gifting, that God has given you go for it, God expects you to use your gift. If you’re an action person, if you are an administrator, if you are a signs and wonders guy go for it. God expects you to be faithful and be a good steward of the manifold grace and gift of God. But I would say that the foundation of your gifting, the foundation of your administrative gift, the foundation of your giving gift, the foundation of whatever it is has to be rooted in a life of loving God and seeking God. To me prayer… I think that people have the wrong impression of prayer. They lump prayer with intercession and toiling, no prayer is worship as well, prayer is spending time with the Lord. Prayer is turning back to our first love, prayer is actually is what… of all of the things that the disciples could have asked Jesus is that they asked Jesus In Luke chapter 11 they said “Lord, can you teach us how to pray.” Now if I could have asked Jesus anything I probably would have asked “Jesus to teach me how to cast out devils the way You do; teach me how to walk on the water, teach me how you do do the miracles the way that you do.” But there was something about Jesus’ intimacy with the Father that these men that were around Him recognize and they chose to ask Him “Can you teach us how to pray.” Because they connected, they connected the power of God, the glory of God to His life of prayer and intimacy. So I would say “If Jesus was a man dependent on the presence of the Father and a man dependant on prayer. How much more do we need to be dependent of prayer today.” So I would say “Every one of us is called to prayer, everyone one of us can intercede. At the same time focus on your gift, focus on your active work, focus on the duty that God has called you to do.”
Sid: Would you almost call it an end-time deception to not cultivating intimacy with the Lord above anything and everything you’re doing for the Lord?
Carlos: Absolutely, because Jesus said in Luke chapter 21 verse 34 and 36. He said, “Take heed to yourselves.” And He says this in the context “Take heed to yourself, watch out less your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the cares of this life. And that day come upon you unexpectedly for it will come as a snare on all those that dwell on the face of the earth. Watch therefore AND PRAY always, that you may be counted worthy to escape all of these things. And to be able to stand before the Son of man.” So it is to me the largest deception in modern day Christianity that we feel that we have to be so busy. I call it Wall Street Christianity where we feel like we have to be successful to be successful we have to have a ministry this big. We have to have this, we have to have all of the lights and all of the whistles. And in reality the greatest successful ministry is to know Him. And so to me the greatest question without a doubt I believe the end-time church that could easily walk in deception but at that same times she’s got the greatest potential for glory, the greatest potential for power. Because it is clearly in scripture we see that the end time church is a church that is walking with the Lord intimately a partner with God. Pretty much similar I compare it to when Moses released the power of God the judgments on Egypt. I believe that the end time church will be in partnership with prayer and intercession to release judgments, and to release glory and to release power on the earth that will usher in the last great movement. And also usher in the greatest harvest of souls the earth has ever seen.
Sid: I don’t know that I have ever heard too many people say part of the job of the end-time church is to usher in judgment. What do you mean by that?
Carlos: Well what I mean by that is you know I believe that there will be a people on the earth when things go bananas, things go crazy when the anti-Christ is here. So I personally believe….
Sid: Which isn’t too far removed but go ahead.
Carlos: Exactly, so I personally believe that there will be a church here in that day on the earth that will be in cooperation with… throughout church history and throughout the Bible God always uses a man to be His instrument to be His partner to release with a blessing or judgment. And so I really, I personally believe that the end-time church will be a partner with God to be able to be a forerunner communicators to bring about the Kingdom of God. And usher in a people prepared for the Lord. So I personally believe that the judgments in Book of Revelation are judgments that God releases through His people. Through His Body, and I believe there are scriptures that back that up.
Sid: Okay, I want you to take Carlos home with you. His job as a forerunner is to equip you to be ready to fulfill your destiny. And that’s why his brand new book just literally off the press “Encountered By God” the workbook and the 5 CD’s… I mean it will equip you step by step to be in position to walk in the gifts of the Spirit; to have intimacy with God. To be the head and not the tail in your family… Carlos, very quickly I need you to pray for people there’s such a strong anointing whatever God tells you to pray, pray.
Carlos: I just want to encourage those that are listening to me right now and listened to this program. The Lord has a great plan for each and every one of us but it begins once again by understanding God’s Divine purpose for us. He says in the Book of Revelation 19 “His wife has made herself ready, and it was granted to her to be arrayed in fine linen.” I believe that the Lord is looking for people to be ready and it begins by just asking the Lord “Lord, come into my life; touch my life afresh, make me Your lovesick believer; I want to love You the way You want me to love You; I want to love You the way I’ve been called and destined to be.” So I encourage you if you are weary in ministry; if you don’t know the Lord. Number 1 the Lord loves you unconditionally, His grace is upon your life even right now. And I believe that there’s many that are hearing the sound of my voice right now that you feel discouraged, you feel tired, you know the Lord but you know there’s so much more. I would encourage you to say “Jesus come into my heart again, touch me afresh, introduce me into this walk of intimacy that Carlos has been talking about, I desire that.” If you do that the Lord will begin to open up truth in your heart and begin to open up new avenues and new ways to begin to encountering. I would say to you ask the Lord like He encountered me, ask the Lord would you encounter my heart. Ask the Lord I want to be ready, I want to be used. Father I pray for all those listening right now in the Mighty Name of Your Son Jesus Christ. Spirit of God, I sense right now to really pray for, to release visions, release dreams, release angelic encounters. Father we don’t seek these things but we have a right to ask for encounters. In the Name of Jesus, release angelic encounters, release heavenly dreams God, release visions oh Lord that will take us out of the rut and take us to where You would have us to be that we could walk in the fullness of all that You have for us. And this I pray God and I thank You and I praise You right now in Jesus’ Name.
Sid: And pain and arthritis in fingers you’re healed in Jesus Name.
