Wednesday, December 11, 2013

TIME

As the year comes to a close, there is so much rush. Everyone is in haste to catch up with time. There are things we believe must be done this year and time is running out on us. Everyone is at different levels in meeting the target. In moments like this, sometimes you want to ask: “What have we been doing all the while, when there was still enough time?” The answer to this question could be as numerous as the number of people attempting to answer it. However, one thing is a common denominator – we all have 24 hours each in a day and we spend them differently based on our priorities – our definition of value. God lives in the world of eternity, we live in the world of time. Though God lives in eternity, so long as the earth remains, time is very important to Him. While the Lord Jesus Christ was on earth He made a striking statement in John 9:4 “I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.” He worked with the consciousness that He didn’t have all the time – time was in limited supply. He further said “…Are there not twelve hours in the day? If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this world. But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth, because there is no light in him.” (John 11:9,10). Time is more valuable than a lot of people think. Time is more precious and valuable than money. When your time on earth is up, no matter how much you own, you can’t pay for an extra time because time is more valuable than money. This is why God gave every human being 24 hours per day – no one has it more and no one has it less. 24 hours for everyone – rich or poor. With this in mind, everyone has the chance of deciding what his life turns out to become since we all have equal supply of time. Sometimes the use of time could be the difference between wealth and penury. Everyone has a chance; it’s just about how we use our daily supply of 24 hours. Every human being on earth has a generous supply of 24 hours from God and how we spend them decides and defines our experiences here on earth and ultimately in eternity. So, what are you spending your time on? Are you spending with eternity in view? We spend time just in the same way we spend money. In Economics, we are told that man’s needs are unlimited but his resources are limited. Many a times we think of these only in terms of money or other tangible materials but this also refers to time. Imagine, we all have 24 hours per day and so many things are calling for our attention but because we have limited time, we only choose what we ‘think’ are of more priority to us and that is why what a man spends his time on tells so much about his person and his value system just the same way it is with money. We must understand that when we spend time; we are actually spending our lives. On the other hand, when we waste time, we are actually wasting our lives. This is very important! This is the reason the Word of God admonishes us “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.” (Eph. 5:15-17). Our purposes in life are connected to time. When a man is ignorant of God’s will for his life, he becomes a major time waster. When a man is not focusing on the will of God for his life, he becomes a major time waster. In life, not everything should get your attention. Select what you spend your time on just in the same way you do with your other limited resources. The real value of your time is greatly defined by what you spend it on. It appears as though the devil is taking advantage of technological advancement today to find more ways of wasting our time. Some people are good at wasting other people’s time. We must avoid time wasters in our lives such as sin, excess media, useless relationships/conversations, procrastination, excuses, laziness, purposeless living etc. – We haven’t got all the time! There’s a time to every purpose under the heaven says Ecclesiastes 3:1. Lateness today seems to be a norm in our society. You hear things like “I was just 5 minutes late” as though it doesn’t mean anything. Some organisations – even Churches – have a culture of lateness. They schedule a meeting for 5pm but it kicks off at 6pm or even 6:30pm and this accounts for the reason a lot of people go to some meetings late – they don’t take their time seriously. In fact some organisations have even made it a culture that in their planning when they schedule a meeting, it starts one hour later to allow for lateness. This is so unfortunate because this borders on the integrity of the organisation or the person involved. One of the virtues of the spirit of excellence is punctuality or proper time management. The Psalmist prayed a passionate prayer in Psalm 90:12 he prayed: “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.” May this prayer be answered in our lives in Jesus’ Name. Amen! Here are Top 5 things that earnestly worth our time (Not exhaustive): 1. Intimacy with God – The Word, Prayer and meditation (Time with God is the most invested time). 2. Purpose in Life (Which must lead us to become daily soul winners for Jesus – it’s a must!). 3. Time with our family basically, then other relatives/friends 4. Business (Develop skills, capacity, know more about your trade, ideas, profit etc) – Romans 12:11 5. Time to rest (No matter how busy you are, if you must be effective, you must find the time to rest). What do you want your life to be like in the next few years? Now is the time to decide. When time is used rightly it pays off well. Time ought to be invested. When we spend it well it is invested and when we waste it it is lost forever. What we make out of our 24 hours per day decides our experience in life. Hence, what we do with our every second, minute, hour and day counts greatly. This then makes it up to us and not up to God. God gave man the power of decision, we must use it rightly. God doesn’t give every human being the same amount of resources but the same amount of time of the day because time is the denominator on earth. Consider the parable of the talents – different capitals, but the same amount of time. May God help us to maximize our time on earth and to finish our task before the night shows up. Grace!

Wednesday, December 4, 2013

THE NEW DNA

What happens when a man comes to Jesus Christ? What really happened when we responded to the call to come to the Lord Jesus Christ? What did we receive when we came to Christ that made us a New Creation? Was it a new or superior religion, character, culture, idea, tradition etc.? Well, I don’t think so! Something absolutely amazing happened to us when we came to Christ. Something happened that made us so different. Something extraordinary happened to us – noticed or unnoticed but sure! We received a new nature that redefined every single thing about our lives! We received a new DNA, that’s right, a new DNA! 2 Corinthians 5:17-18 defines that so perfectly to us. It says “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;” This is the moment that redefined everything. This is where it all begins. Praise God! The DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) of a man deals with the entirety of his life. It deals with the source of his life. It deals with his origin. The DNA of a person determines the property of his person (what he has in him and why he is the way he is). It deals with the blueprint handed down from one generation to another. However, this ceases to be when a man is born again. The New Man in Christ is absolutely different from the natural man. When a man is born again he is also genetically reborn, He is born of God. God becomes his Father! The New Birth changes his entire identity! This may sound too good to be true, but it's true nonetheless. The Scripture shows this truth so clearly (See John 1:12-13, 1John 4:4, John 3:3-6, 1Cor.5:17-18). This thing must come to you as a revelation for you to truly function in it. When this truth comes home in the heart of any sick person, that sickness has come to an end. You see, as long as you remain ignorant of who and what you have become by coming into Christ, the devil would keep having a field day in your life. As a New Creation in Christ, you must register this in your heart because that’s exactly what happened in your life. If the Scripture is true then this is not an exception. The Scripture cannot be broken (John 10:35)! As a New Creation, everything that should be permitted in your life must be OF GOD. 1Corinthians 5:18 speaks so clearly of the new genetic properties of the New Creation in Christ: “And ALL things are OF GOD, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ…” Praise God! Therefore, anything that is not OF GOD should never be given a legal permit in your life. Refuse to accommodate it! You become responsible for what stays or doesn't. It's up to you! What's in our (The New Creation's) DNA? Salvation and all that accompanies it, such as eternal life, health, love, righteousness, holiness, the anointing, prosperity, excellence, success, blessings etc. Praise God! And what's not in our DNA? Just the very opposite. We don't have sin in our DNA, no sickness, disease, death, hatred, poverty, curses etc. So when you find any of these negatives attaching themselves to you, you shake them off in the Name of Jesus Christ! Yes that's your job. We've got Heaven's backing! See what Matthew 18:18 says "Take this most seriously: A yes on earth is yes in heaven; a no on earth is no in heaven. What you say to one another is eternal. I mean this." (Msg). Whooosh! I've got a shout in my spirit. This is the Master Himself talking. Hallelujah! So, no more talks like 'I got diabetes from my dad' or 'I picked up this anger problem from my mum' or all such downward talks. What's vital now is that NOW YOU ARE A NEW CREATION WITH A NEW DNA! The old is gone and the new has come! That was then and this is now! That was true when you were still in the world but now you're in Christ. You've come into a new place. It's a different place where you function with a new nature - the divine nature! It is very important that we observe that these OF GOD properties that are in us are inside forces and not external. The DNA of a natural man is the internal forces that govern him and produces the external experiences. So it is too with the New Creation with the New DNA. It’s on the inside of us. It’s the unseen forces which makes us who we really are. So, for instance, whenever you see the manifestation of sickness in your body, you don’t have to start running all over the place in search of help. All you need do is look inward – into your spirit – and draw Divine health from the Divine deposits inside of you. This you can also do with any of the negatives of the devil that shows up in your life. With this New DNA we’re eternally covered. Nothing can stand us. Praise God! Always be conscious of the fact that it’s not outside of you but on the inside of you (1John 4:4). The inside forces are always stronger than the outside forces and that’s why the Word of God admonishes us to guard our heart with all diligence for out of it flows the issues (forces) of life! Prov.4:23. Therefore, as New Creations, we must keep beholding. The word ‘behold’ is an old English word which means to see or look upon. According 2Cor.5:17, we must consciously see (behold) that all things have become new. This is very vital. This could be the difference between living like a New Creation or like the old man. Many Christians today, though born again, are still living under the dominance of the devil through those outside forces simply because they have not beheld or are not beholding. Note that beholding is an everyday responsibility. That’s why we study the Word daily – to keep beholding what God has made us and given to us in Christ. Beholding makes all the difference in our Christian experience! A lot of Christians are not beholding and so they still find themselves struggling with ancestral curses. They haven’t come to terms with Col.1:13 which says “Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:” It matters what you set your eyes on, even as a Christian. I’m so concerned about the fact that Christians who are not beholding may be suffering from the same effects of sin the world is suffering from even though they’ve already been delivered from the power and effects of sin. So how do we behold? We behold by searching the Scriptures to know what’s in our new DNA and what’s not! The Scripture tells us that the Holy Spirit was given to us to help us know those things that have been freely given to us (2Cor.2:12). Glory to God!