The Truth Church

Pastor Hilton begins by reading Leviticus 14:2-9, the law of the leper, which outlines the Old Testament cleansing ritual for a leper who must be brought to the priest. He explains that leprosy, or Hansen's disease, causes a loss of sensation—the infected area cannot feel pain or injury, leading to unnoticed damage that spreads. He then connects this to the body of Christ, citing 1 Corinthians 12 and Romans 12 to describe how believers are members of one body, each with different gifts and offices, set by God. Spiritual leprosy, he argues, occurs when members lose sensation for one another—when they do not care about another's suffering or honor those who seem less honorable. Paul instructs that the body should have the same care for every member, suffering and rejoicing together. Pastor Hilton illustrates this through the story of Naaman, a Syrian captain with leprosy whom a captive Israelite maid directs to the prophet Elisha. Naaman's healing required humility—washing in the Jordan seven times—and submission to the prophet's word. The sermon applies this to the church: to be healed of spiritual leprosy—indifference, division, lack of honor—members must present themselves to the priest (pastor) and follow God's process. Jesus commended the one leper who returned, making him whole. The spiritual purpose is to call the church to unity, mutual care, and honoring every member, so the body can function as God intends and be ready for deliverance and service.

Bishop Riggen concludes his series on tithing in Leviticus, emphasizing that believers are obligated to return the first ten percent of their income to God as the tithe, which is holy and not subject to negotiation. He warns that failing to tithe brings God's curse, and that ninety percent with God's blessing goes further than one hundred percent without it. However, he stresses that giving only the tithe is merely doing one's duty; true profitability to God's kingdom comes from giving offerings above the tithe. Citing Numbers 15, he explains that offerings should be prepared ahead of time, not given haphazardly. He teaches from Luke 6:38 that God's promise to give back pressed down and running over is conditional on believers giving first. Using the story of the widow's mite from Mark 12, he illustrates that God looks not at the amount given but at what the giver has left; sacrificial giving that hurts is what impresses God. He shares testimonies of a home missionary who gave $12,000 to a foreign mission and received multiplied blessings, and a new convert who gave her family's last $2,000 and saw God provide $30,000 in unpaid invoices. Bishop Riggen urges the congregation to make faith promises for an upcoming anniversary service, committing to give sacrificially and trusting God to provide. His spiritual purpose is to ignite a passion for sacrificial giving that unlocks heaven's windows and demonstrates that believers cannot outgive God.

Pastor Hilton opens by reading 2 Kings 13:14-19, recounting the dying prophet Elisha’s instructions to King Joash: to take bow and arrows, shoot an arrow eastward as the arrow of the Lord’s deliverance from Syria, and then to smite the ground with arrows. Joash smote only three times and stopped, drawing Elisha’s anger that he should have struck five or six times for complete victory. Pastor Hilton teaches that while God uses human agents as deliverers, the ultimate deliverer is the Lord Himself. The sermon emphasizes that believers must transition from being recipients of deliverance to becoming deliverers themselves—arrows in the hand of a mighty God. He urges the congregation to personally experience and then carry the delivering power of God to others, especially as the church expands its reach into local schools and the Meadowbrook ministry. Pastor Hilton warns against a ritualistic, half-hearted obedience, like Joash’s, and calls for passionate, wholehearted response to God’s direction. He stresses that without personal deliverance, one cannot effectively help others. The message climaxes with the declaration that we are the arrows of the Lord’s deliverance, and God seeks a quiver full of ready, willing believers to be launched into battle for breaking bondages and setting captives free. The spiritual purpose is to mobilize the church for a year of aggressive, God-empowered deliverance ministry.

Bishop Riggen continues teaching on tithing as an act of submission to authority, grounded in Leviticus 27:30-32. He emphasizes that the tithe is holy and belongs to God; withholding it is robbery. He teaches that tithes should be paid on the first tenth of one's increase—gross income, not net—because a person's increase is what they earn, not what they bring home after taxes. He warns against spending God's money: if a tithe is redeemed, a fifth (20%) must be added, making the total 30%. He illustrates God's seriousness with Achan's death for taking firstfruits and Israel's 70-year Babylonian captivity for withholding sabbatical years. He advises paying tithes as money is received, not monthly, because delaying means borrowing from God. He teaches that parents must teach children to tithe from allowances or gifts, as failure to do so endangers their souls. He stresses that tithing is a heaven-or-hell issue and a spiritual thermometer; backsliding often begins when tithing stops. He encourages faith-driven giving, recounting a woman who tithed on the income she desired and received a raise to that exact amount. He concludes by urging the congregation to make this a year of abundant blessing by faithfully giving first, believing God will open heaven's windows.

Pastor Hilton opens with James 1:2, urging believers to count it all joy when facing trials, and John 16:20-21, where Jesus promises sorrow will turn to joy like a woman in labor forgets her pain for the joy of a child born. He distinguishes between happiness—a fleeting emotion tied to circumstances—and biblical joy, a deep, sustaining gladness rooted in faith, hope, and the Holy Spirit. Drawing from Hebrews 12:2, he explains that Jesus endured the cross for the joy set before Him, showing joy as a compelling force through suffering. The pastor emphasizes that joy is not self-generated but comes from God through the Holy Ghost (Galatians 5:22, Romans 14:17). True joy cannot be taken by others; it is unspeakable and full of glory (1 Peter 1:8). He illustrates that joy also flows from investing in others, as Paul and John rejoiced in their spiritual children walking in truth. The enemy seeks to steal joy through fixation on problems, but the Holy Ghost restores it, empowering believers to endure affliction with joy (1 Thessalonians 1:6). The sermon culminates in Jude 1:24, where Christ presents believers faultless before God with exceeding joy, and Luke 6:24, calling for leaping joy now because our reward is great in heaven. The spiritual purpose is to stir believers to reclaim the sustaining, Holy Ghost–given joy that transcends all trials.