The Kingdom and Its Choice Men

The Kingdom and Its Choice Men

Our text this morning comes from 2 Samuel 6:1–5:

David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. David and all the people with him set out and went from Baale-judah to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the name of the Lord of hosts who is enthroned on the cherubim. They carried the ark of God on a new cart and brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were driving the new cart with the ark of God, and Ahio went in front of the ark. David and all the house of Israel were dancing before the Lord with all their might, with songs and lyres and harps and tambourines and castanets and cymbals.

My message is the kingdom of God and His choice men. The New King James uses the word choice; other versions say chosen. And though it says "men," in the Bible men often represent what women can do too. So this is about the kingdom of God and His choice people — that means you and I. We've been chosen. Hallelujah.

I Made Up My Mind to Make a Difference

Early in my Christian life, I made up my mind that I wanted to do something for God. I wanted to make a difference.

Perhaps it came from my background — I came from a Muslim family in Nigeria. I never really knew God until my early twenties, and it was in this place that I gave my life to Christ. In fact, it's exactly 35 years ago, on the 20th of July, that my wife and I stood here and made our commitment in marriage. It's been a journey — but it's been good. And now, 35 years later, we've welcomed a grandson into our family, in the name of Jesus.

I thank God for this church — for the grace, for the anointing, for the vision. It's unique. We're not boasting or arrogant; it's simply the plan of God for our lives.

London and the World for Jesus

Our mission statement is bold and big: London and the world for Jesus Christ. What does that mean for me? Two things: influence and impact.

Everywhere we go, we make an impact. Everywhere we go, we influence people. Influence is all about salt and light. Salt influences the taste of what you eat — and we are out there to influence lives by the way we live, so that people ask questions about the God we serve.

I believe God is reminding us again and again who we are and what we ought to do for His glory: to go out and influence the nations for Jesus. We preach, we teach, we live it out.

What We Used to Do — And What God Wants to Do Again

I want to remind us of where we've been, because it points to where God is taking us.

• Albania — We were one of the first London churches to go there. From about 1992 to 1998, every single summer we packed our bags for two weeks. It was not easy — the kitchen and the toilet were often in the same place. Albania was a communist country, and many people there had never even seen a black person before. They would touch us on the streets of Tirana; they had never heard of a continent called Africa. Yet we saw many conversions and baptisms in the sea.
• Rwanda — We went about nine months after the genocide. It was tense; we needed United Nations backing and security to do what we were doing. But we went there preaching Jesus.
• Jamaica — Because of the favour of God, we had about fifteen churches wanting to work with us, and we could only choose four.

I show you these things because many of us started when we were in our twenties. My first mission to Albania was in 1992, when I was 28 — and I led the team. There's a reason I'm telling you this.

He Gathered the Choice Men

Turn with me to 2 Samuel 6:1. "David again gathered..." — that word gather means he assembled, he brought together. And he didn't gather just anybody. He gathered people who had made up their minds, who saw the need, who saw the cause.

There's a reason. There's a reason for you to be here. I didn't just wander into church, and neither did you. Paul said, "For me to live is Christ." There's a reason for you to live.

David gathered thirty thousand men for a purpose: to bring back the ark, the presence of God. What a privilege. And there's a reason why you are in KT. If you've been here for four months and beyond, and you're here every Sunday, then there's got to be a reason. You're part of the choice men — the chosen people God is calling to make a difference.

God Is Gathering Us — And Interfering

That's exactly what God is doing now. He's gathering the choice men to change London and the world. Church is beyond these walls; this is only a small percentage of what we're called to do. There's work to be done in London.

And notice: he gathered them. Sometimes somebody needs to interfere in your life. David interfered and said, "Guys, there's a reason — we've got to bring that ark back." Things are not just given.

I didn't come to this stage just because I felt like it. I've served under many leaders in this church for over 30 years, from the days of Wynne Lewis. Three times Pastor Malcolm called me and told me what I was meant to do — and three times I said no, because I had my own plans. But he was interfering. He was saying, "You're part of the gathering. You're part of the choice men." And God spoke.

I believe God is interfering with your life too. He's calling you. He's gathering you. And the word is: let go. It's not about you. Let go, so He can use you. Sometimes you have to let go of your own plan.

My plan was never to be a pastor. I'm Nigerian — I was thinking business, money, nice car, nice shoes! But a man named Kingsley kept interfering, telling me to go and plant a church. I said no. I said I'd do it part-time — the part-time didn't last. But I wouldn't swap this life for anything. God has been good to me. There's nothing my friends who never entered ministry can do that I can't do, by the grace of God.

Listen: if we don't do it, I'm not sure anyone else will. That's how we must think. We are called to influence London and to make a major impact.

Five Qualities of the Choice Men

The word choice speaks of people who are able, capable — the "can-do" people. Not in their own power or strength, but by the grace of God that flows through them. Men and women who have put aside their own agenda. Let me give you five qualities.

1. Courageous

A choice person must have courage. Nobody does anything for God unless they are brave. Courage means you're ready to face challenges and not run away from them. When the lion comes your way, you don't run — you confront it.

Early in my Christian life I learned to confront debt. I once called a "prayer meeting" over my bills — I sat every bill on a chair and addressed them: "From today, you will not harass me." Champions have challenges for breakfast.

You must learn to fight with confidence — not your own, but the confidence you have in Jesus. Paul says, "God has not given us a spirit of timidity."

When a doctor once told me I was diagnosed with cancer, I said, "You and who?" I told him, "Whatever is written in that report — a mí ò kàn, it is not me." That was 14 years ago, and I'm still standing. God will give you a boldness to say things you could never say unless He was with you.

"Be strong and courageous" (Joshua 1:6).

Twice God told Joshua to be strong and very courageous. Receive that into your heart. London is ours. London belongs to Jesus.

2. A Pioneering Spirit

A pioneer breaks new ground — going where it's never been done before. There are places in this city that some of you are going to break into in the name of Jesus.

"Behold, I do a new thing... shall you not know it?" (Isaiah 43:19).

God is saying to us, "I'm doing a new thing — can you not perceive it?" He is talking to pioneers. It's not about where you've been before or what you've done before. My prayer is that some of you will do something new — something never done before — before the end of 2026, in Jesus' name.

3. Barrier Breakers

A choice person breaks barriers — obstacles, challenges, "no-go" areas.

Remember 2 Samuel 23:15. David simply sighed, "Oh, that someone would give me water from the well of Bethlehem!" Three of his mighty men heard him. But Bethlehem was occupied enemy territory, held by the Philistines. Yet these barrier breakers broke through the camp of the Philistines, drew the water, and brought it back to David.

That's the kind of person I want to be. They broke through. God will put strategies in your heart of what to do. Barriers are there to be broken — shift them, move them.

I once told a pilot to stop a plane because my bag with mission money was missing. "Who are you?" they asked. "I don't care — stop the plane, get my bag." And he did. The chief flight attendant said she would never forget me for the rest of her life. Sometimes you must break through.

4. Standing Your Ground

You stand your ground for victory. When everybody else is retreating, you stand. Think of David and Goliath — everyone else was in retreat, but David ran toward the battle.

Not only will you stand, you'll move forward and stand. God is asking you not to retreat. Some of you have been on retreat for too long. It's now time to stand your ground. "If anything's going to move, it will be the enemy — I'm not moving for any enemy." (See 2 Samuel 23:9–10.)

5. Decisive

Finally, a choice person is decisive. You've got to decide, make up your mind, and stand on it. You cannot be double-minded — a double-minded person gets nothing done in their life.

"If I perish, I perish" (Esther 4:16).

Esther decided to confront the king, knowing that if the scepter wasn't extended to her, she would die. But something greater was at stake — a whole nation, the Jewish people. She said, "Just pray for me. I've decided to go."

I too have been decisive. When God put my wife in my heart, I decided — and now we're celebrating grandchildren. On the mission field I've had a gun pointed at me twice, once in Albania. But I would not compromise. Coming from a Muslim family, one of the easiest points of compromise is family pressure — but you have to decide.

Esther said, "There's something bigger at stake." And likewise, if we don't do this, London is at stake; the nations of the world are at stake. So we must come to a place where we say, "If I perish, I perish — but I'm going to do it."

Be Part of the Choice Men

That is the quality of the men and women God is raising in this house. The question is: if we don't do it, who will? Who thinks the way we think — a thousand souls in a hundred days, and perhaps next year even more?

My challenge to us as KTLCC: let's be part of those choice men. Find out what God needs you to do. Pray about it. Then find someone in our leadership — even your cell leader — and say, "This is what God is saying to me." And let's see London changed for the glory of God.

Are we together in this? Amen.