tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10829707893088225702024-03-12T21:46:28.761-07:00LIFEONLINEWelcome to my blog! This blog is dedicated to inspiring people. It is specially dedicated to those who hunger and thirst after the fullness of God in their lives and those who want to influence the world with the Kingdom of God within them. I hope to keep it always fresh and updated. Experience the God-kind of life. Experience Jesus!David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.comBlogger113125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-51715930823572460262016-05-28T05:56:00.000-07:002016-05-28T05:56:19.195-07:00FACE TO FACE WITH A LION – MY ENCOUNTER<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcMBkPAtZk_YHmVhZV_wjeLcSvvIqY5z4wiijFfYgXMDtoyVM3LbWszRTiPjAoXAkpwqYs_s3n5hl9kW2CIqjveMhu49H6a4IJwYlqpmhyphenhyphenQSxgVdxH-TqfL0I8V9lcCFLOFXqcz6Q66IBJ/s1600/Lion-wild.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcMBkPAtZk_YHmVhZV_wjeLcSvvIqY5z4wiijFfYgXMDtoyVM3LbWszRTiPjAoXAkpwqYs_s3n5hl9kW2CIqjveMhu49H6a4IJwYlqpmhyphenhyphenQSxgVdxH-TqfL0I8V9lcCFLOFXqcz6Q66IBJ/s320/Lion-wild.jpg" /></a></div>
Sometime ago, I, some of my siblings and friends went to visit my elder brother. While we were there at his house, we noticed that he had a trained lion that roams his compound unchained. We were so concerned about this that we all started advising him against it. We even told him of the popular story of a man who also had a trained lion in like manner which later killed and devoured him. All these we said to convince him about chaining the lion but he seemed so confident in the fact that he had been with this lion for such a long time that it would be impossible for it to come against him. Well, we have done our best to convince him to no avail.
Now, after spending much time with him, it was time to leave. As we stepped out of the main house into the compound area, we (I particularly, on behalf of others) asked him to be sure the lion was chained, at least while we were there, especially since we were strangers to the lion (more like meat to it, not friends like my brother). Well, he confirmed that it was chained because of us. Then we walked out of the compound to the car. While we were by the car, a close neighbour of his (my brother) came to him to ask for a favour which he granted. Then my brother gave this neighbour a key to go into the compound and access whatever it was he had asked for. Before this neighbour went into the compound, I asked my brother again to confirm the key again to the neighbour since it was a bunch of keys and the key that unlocked the lion’s cage was among them and what the neighbour wanted was just around where the lion’s cage was and the locks where somehow connected. So he casually assured me that the neighbour knows exactly which key to use since he was not a stranger to him (most likely he had done that before). However, I was still scared and concerned for this neighbour’s life, just hoping he doesn’t make a deadly mistake.
Then the unthinkable happened! While the neighbour went in to get what he wanted, my brother gave me the key to the main house to get something for him. I didn’t like the idea of going inside since I didn’t want that neighbour’s problem to become my problem (guess you understand!). Well, he’s my big brother and I have to obey him. So I managed to summon a little courage to go in. All the way into the compound, the thought that filled my mind was “I hope that neighbour doesn’t make that mistake I’ve been thinking about to mistakenly open up the lion and it confronts me while I am within the compound.” So I walked to the front of the main house fearfully looking around for any strange signal to run off fast. Well, I managed to get to the front of the main house to open the door (very scared) and for some reason I decided to look back (just checking). Guess what I saw? The lion unchained in front of me! Finally it has happened! Suddenly my brain stopped working. I didn’t know what to think.
The lion looked at me for a very brief moment and then lowered its head as though grazing. Well, I had enough sense to know that lions don’t graze. The thought that filled my mind was what I had previously heard here and there about the way of a lion, that sometimes when a lion sees a prey it doesn’t attack immediately; it simply takes its time and then suddenly pounces on the prey. Here I was in-between two lines of thoughts: “Has the lion been so trained that having seen me with my brother earlier in a friendly mode it knows not to devour me?” or “Is the way of lions which I have always heard of about to play out?” Well, even if a lion is not hungry, it devours its preys, right? Well, I felt the gate of hell had been opened against me. I had opened the door of the house partly before I saw the lion and since the lion was playing cool (not sure what was in its little crafty mind – I didn’t trust it either) my thought was to completely open the door gently but fast and then run into the house for safety first since it was such an emergency! But I was so paralysed by fear that my hands became so heavy to do anything. Guess what happened next? I woke up!!
Men! It was a dream! Thank God it was a dream! So I started laughing and wondering what would have happened if it was real. But what I noticed was that I still had the feeling of that fear I felt in the dream for a while before it dissolved. However, the first thing that came to my heart when I woke up was: “For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me.” (Job 3:25). A big lesson indeed. Fear paralyses! It makes what you are afraid of to actually happen to you. Several years ago, I was told that, even scientifically, it is proven that when you are afraid, your body secretes a particular fluid, it is so real that even a dog can sense it. You might not even look afraid or simply pretend not to be but a dog can tell that you are afraid because it is sensitive to the fluid. Fear is not just an emotion, it is a spiritual substance. In fact, the Scripture calls fear a spirit – an evil spirit – in 2 Timothy 1:7. It’s a force just as faith is. Fear is corrupted faith. It is faith in the devil’s (or whatever the subject of fear) ability to hurt or harm you. Fear is a trademark of the devil! Fear actually empowers your fears. It makes it real! What faith is to God, fear is to the devil. If the devil can get fear into you, he can carry out his evil work (steal, kill and destroy) in you unchallenged because fear creates a conducive atmosphere for him to operate.
When God says to fear not, He actually meant for us to fear not! As believers, His guaranteed presence with us is the basis for us to fear not! He says “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” (Isaiah 41:10). What are you afraid of today? Never allow fear or phobia of any kind in your life. Never talk fear! Treat fear the same way you treat sin. Challenge every fear in the Name of Jesus and it will flee! Glory to God! The antidote to fear is faith in God. And faith in God is faith in His Word. And faith comes by hearing and hearing comes by the Word of God (Romans 10:17)! Also, fear comes by hearing and listening to the lies of the devil. Therefore, be careful what and how you hear.
Hope the suspense was not too intense. Of course, you should have known how it turned out. If I was devoured by the lion I wouldn’t be writing this piece anyway. Hahaha.
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-44515447303247846672014-12-10T12:50:00.000-08:002014-12-10T12:50:58.317-08:00A NEW THING<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKvYl-6bA6Oi1dAIlIza8mQRYlSDU5fpHGRzeLddyUTx-mb5lxCjAA35-990lvvsccnYGdpBRzHPOzvokrIY_kK_xYL1Kh5HLy1WiL3Se_s1ESmaF-yJSC93lQrLXBJfiVuGspf-en2uvD/s1600/New+Thing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKvYl-6bA6Oi1dAIlIza8mQRYlSDU5fpHGRzeLddyUTx-mb5lxCjAA35-990lvvsccnYGdpBRzHPOzvokrIY_kK_xYL1Kh5HLy1WiL3Se_s1ESmaF-yJSC93lQrLXBJfiVuGspf-en2uvD/s320/New+Thing.jpg" /></a></div>Is the Lord done working? Did He stop working after He created man on the sixth day? I have heard lots of views along this line. I have heard people say that since the Bible tells us that God rested on the sixth day, it means he stopped working. And I have believed that myself for a while until the light came on. You see, we don’t rest because we wouldn’t work again. That isn’t the purpose of resting. In fact, that wouldn’t be resting but giving up! But then, we rest every day, after the activities of the day, we all go home and sleep at night in preparation for the next day – that’s the meaning of rest. We rest to work again or continue our work, as the case may be. Let me state here that work is never a bad thing at all. It wasn’t a result of the fall. It is a good thing – a blessing! We were meant to work from the place of rest, just as God does. Work is about fulfilling a purpose and we all have a divine purpose to fulfil here on earth.
God never and has never stopped working since creation! He has a purpose for the earth that must be fulfilled and He isn’t about to give up on His purpose and plan for the earth. There was a reason why He created the earth and put man in it to govern it. In fact the Lord Jesus declares in John 5:17 “My Father has been working until now, and I have been working.” Also 2 Corinthians 5:19 tells us that “It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor with Himself...” (AMP). God has been at work on the earth! You see, there are two dimensions to the creation of the earth – the direct and the indirect. On the sixth day, God simply finished the direct creation of the earth and rested, not because He was tired, but because He was done with that phase of creation. This was also to show His Man the need for rest. We don’t only rest because we are tired, rest is very important if we must keep our productivity intact. Rest is so important to man that God gave the law of the Sabbath to the Israelites.
The earth God created directly (in Genesis) was the seed-earth. Understand that many things God created between Genesis 1 and 2 were in their seed form. Even man (Adam and Eve) was the seed for populating the earth with human beings like you and me. The earth God created was simply the blueprint for man to continue the creation of the earth. God was going to continue with the next phase of creation – the indirect creation through His man. He created Adam in His own image, as a speaking being to speak forth new things into being just as He did in His direct creation. God put His creative ability into His man to continue His creation upon the earth. In other words, Adam was not the end of God’s creation, but a means to the end of it. That was actually the next phase of God’s work and He is still at it till date, as long as this earth remains. That is why the earth has been constantly advancing. Today, we are in a technology age. It hasn’t always been this way! When you do a proper study of Genesis 1 and 2, from God’s purpose for creating man and His instructions to him, you’d clearly see these facts.
However, when sin entered the world, this plan was interrupted. Man fell short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23 tells us “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” (NKJV). Influenced by the devil, men started using this creative ability from the Lord to accomplish their selfish and evil purposes. Unfortunately, this is still happening today among the unsaved. But thank God, through Jesus Christ, He reconnected us back to the original plan. Today, every man that is born again is a New Creation in Christ. The New Creation is God’s new thing upon the earth. It changed everything! Now, the glory of God has been restored back to us! When the Glory of the Lord is upon a man, he produces new things! He becomes a wonder to the world. We’ve become New Creatures in Christ and have been empowered to keep God’s agenda for the earth in motion (2Cor. 5:17, Eph. 2:10). Ephesians 2:10 says “For we are God's [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live].” (AMP). Praise God!
The Lord declares in Isaiah 43:18,19 “Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.” So, we often sing: “Do something new in my life, O Lord” and we go to bed unaware that this would happen in partnership. When we recognize the power that has been divinely vested on us, we’d rather start creating new things through our words in the same way God did in the creation of the earth. Do you want to see a new thing in your life? Then declare a new thing into your life and the power of God would make it happen! God is actually waiting on you. He is waiting for your words to establish it. Job 22:28 declares “Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways.” Glory to God! Therefore, we’ve got to recognize our roles in the things the Lord is presently doing on the earth. Just like God worked through the Lord Jesus Christ while on earth to reconcile the world to Himself, He wants to walk through you to bring about new things on the earth.
I speak to you, in the Name of Jesus: Get ready for new things! New things are going to spring forth for, from and through you. Great things never seen or heard of before would show up through you! When men hear what the Lord is doing in and through you, their ears would tingle. All these would happen because the glory of the Lord is upon you! Concerning you, it shall yet be said: “Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things? Shall the earth be made to give birth in one day? Or shall a nation be born at once? For as soon as Zion was in labor, She gave birth to her children.” (Isaiah 66:8 NKJV). You are going to birth new things never heard of before. Keep those divine visions and dreams alive because they would come to pass in grand style. Like the Psalmist, you’d yet say “I am as a wonder unto many; but thou art my strong refuge.” (Psalm 71:7). Glory to God! Watch out for it. Give God the praise. Glory!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-34355972069333124622014-11-15T14:01:00.000-08:002014-11-15T14:01:21.657-08:00LIGHT<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm_65e2NcmoW-YbXmVM6z679Ruwl7YUShR8x9aiPHXHr8EkM9Kmf6S0yV4S_gpVtZonIxcUCErI1xIGORm8nn3zx-pYpJdLisBOJ6WxLL8u6D4Yq3LJIiOPi6lRMmomx1rtWD87r4ynmW5/s1600/Lightened+world.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm_65e2NcmoW-YbXmVM6z679Ruwl7YUShR8x9aiPHXHr8EkM9Kmf6S0yV4S_gpVtZonIxcUCErI1xIGORm8nn3zx-pYpJdLisBOJ6WxLL8u6D4Yq3LJIiOPi6lRMmomx1rtWD87r4ynmW5/s320/Lightened+world.jpg" /></a></div>
In the account of creation, we see that the first thing God created was light. A careful study of the creation account shows us the fact that God created both spiritual and physical light. He created the spiritual light first and then the physical (see Genesis 1:3 & 14). Of course, the spiritual always gives birth to the physical. The entire physical world was birthed by the spiritual substance called: words – The Word of God! Our focus in this discourse is on the spiritual light. The mere fact that God created the light first is a clear indication that the light was top priority to Him. However, when sin entered the world, darkness also entered the world. Man began to grope in darkness – searching for reality. This darkness affected man’s whole being – spirit, soul and body. Humanity was plunged into darkness by the sin of one man – Adam. That’s the reason the world is the way it is today. That’s the reason for the misery, wickedness, corruption, mishaps etc. in the world today. People without this understanding blame God for these bad stuff. Well, God is not the Source of evil, but good! God gave man the power to choose and when he chose to sin against God, he equally chose what sin offers.
The coming of Jesus Christ into the world was the return of light! The birth of Jesus Christ was the legal birth of light into a darkness-doomed and dominated world. Jesus said “I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.” (John 12:46). Also He says in John 8:12 “…I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” Christianity is simply walking in the light. I John 1:7 says “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” (NKJV). The world had been in darkness ever since the fall. What is light and what is darkness? Light is anything that reveals, illuminates, exposes and expels darkness. Light is simply revolutionary! Its presence anywhere brings about radical change and transformation. On the other hand, darkness is misery, bondage, confusion, futility, etc. and it is brought about by the presence and influence of sin.
The Word of God clearly tells us the reason many are not saved today: “whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them. For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” (2 Cor. 4:4,6 NKJV). This is the reason we do not only preach to the lost but also take time to intercede on their behalf before God so that their minds would be flooded with the divine light brought about by the Gospel we preach. The devil loves to have and keep men in darkness because that's the only way He can keep them bound and under his control. He makes men to love darkness just as the Lord Jesus declares in John 3:19: “And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” (NKJV). But thank God there's hope in Jesus Christ. When the truth of the Gospel is believed and received, it brings light and liberation from the claws of the devil and there is a birthing into a new kingdom just as Colossians 1:13 says “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love,” (NKJV). Glory to God!
However, it is also possible for a believer to walk in darkness. So many believers are walking in darkness in one area or the other of their lives. Ignorance is darkness. You see, you are actually in the dark in whatever area you're ignorant. The Word of God takes away that darkness. Psalm 119:130 says “The entrance of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple.” (NKJV). God wants us to walk in the light in every area of our lives. In which area of your life are you in the dark? Is it in your health, finances or is it in your life in general? Jesus wants to invade your life with light. And the good news is that He wants to do it right now! He is so eager to do it right away! That's why He came (See John 12:46). That's why you're reading this right now. He has purposed to bring the light into every dark area of your life. Simply expose your heart to God’s Word and let Him turn on the light and bring illumination into every area of your life!
Now, no matter how great the darkness is, it can never stand the light. Darkness can thrive anywhere but as soon as the light is turned on, it disappears. In John 1:4,5,9 we read “In Him [Jesus] was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.” Glory to God! Jesus declares “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” It is very important for every Believer to know that we are not just the ones needing light but we are the light of the world just as Jesus was while He was physically on earth. Jesus said it Himself in Matthew 5:14 and 16 “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid... Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” We are not called to hide but to shine forth the light of Christ in us. We must shine as God's dazzling light in a world full of darkness! All we need do is to let God use us to bring the light into the dark areas of the lives of the people we come across every day. The effects would be salvation, healing, peace, prosperity, restoration and all the blessings of the Lord. It's a divine responsibility for you to reflect that divine light in you if you have it. And if you don't have that light, YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN!
God is saying to you today: “Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people; But the LORD will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you. The Gentiles shall come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising.” (Isaiah 60:1-3, NKJV). Glory to God! So what are you going to do about this? It’s time to shine. Blessings!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-57620876496191150182014-10-23T11:38:00.000-07:002014-10-23T11:38:51.702-07:00THE RESURRECTION POWER<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0JGXpgaZHC_ZO4WaKMHI3Qu3k39_Fgd5AnXoUn1QQ4iMF3GQv2HEBI6I6JxkCu1EFFvY85O_iMnNRfLr6gMgi7hja6M_2biPKUe_lhFDWsvX47D0apYbk_zAzwitUEuS0ViFILvme2Cmg/s1600/ResurrectionPower.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0JGXpgaZHC_ZO4WaKMHI3Qu3k39_Fgd5AnXoUn1QQ4iMF3GQv2HEBI6I6JxkCu1EFFvY85O_iMnNRfLr6gMgi7hja6M_2biPKUe_lhFDWsvX47D0apYbk_zAzwitUEuS0ViFILvme2Cmg/s320/ResurrectionPower.jpg" /></a></div>
Did you know that at the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, God made the greatest display of His power? The Word of God tells us so. It says: “And what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,” (Ephesians 1:19,20, NKJV). Can you carefully read that Scripture again and observe the construction. Weymouth New Testament renders it this way: “and what the transcendent greatness of His power in us believers as seen in the working of His infinite might when He displayed it in Christ by raising Him from the dead and seating Him at His own right hand in the heavenly realms,” It simply tells us that the power which God exercised in this operation (the resurrection of Jesus Christ) exceeded every other display of His power! No wonder if any man be in Christ he becomes a new creation, a new breed full of resurrection power, full of the God-life and nature! He dominates everything. He becomes master over satan, his works and all the evil forces of the universe. Glory to God!
Can you imagine what Jesus' resurrection was really like? Can you imagine what happened at the resurrection? The resurrection power is God’s miracle-walking power. Everyone who is born again has experienced that power. It is the same power responsible for the new birth, it is the same power that produces the New Creation in Christ. God didn’t produce a powerless New Creation! As a Christian, there is an anointing on your life, but it might not do much until you recognize it and function in it, in the same way a man who is fully equipped with dangerous weapons could be defeated by a weakly equipped individual simply because the former is ignorant of what he has or how to use what he has. Do you know what you've got? Do you know that the resurrection power is at work in you? Thank God Jesus Christ is alive! Thank God He didn’t remain in the grave! And guess what? You are just as alive as Jesus is because the Word of God tells us that it is the same resurrection power that raised up Jesus from the dead that raised us up too. Ephesians 2:6 says “And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:” Glory to God!
The Scripture tells us in Romans 8:10-11, “And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.” Praise God! The good news is that, of a certainty the same Spirit that raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you if you are born again! That means eternal life has taken control of your whole being. Eternal life is at work in you now. No dead thing can thrive in your domain. No dead thing can thrive in your whole being – spirit, soul and body. Things simply come alive when they are connected to you. Your words become life-dominated. When you speak, dead things come alive. Glory to God! This is the kind of New Creation God produced in Christ. With such knowledge of the Word you become a wonder! Sickness and disease cannot thrive in your body. They simply can’t be accommodated, they’d simply be crushed by that resurrection power of God. Praise God! It is very important we meditate on these things (ponder on and confess them regularly) and give ourselves entirely to them and our profiting would be so evident before the world (1Timothy 4:15). Then the world will see our good works and glorify the Father in heaven by coming to Him. Glory to God!
The Lord Jesus declares in John 10:10, “The thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give life in all its fullness.” (NLT). The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is the very foundation of the Christian Faith (1Cor.15:16-20). The big thing about Christianity is the resurrection – both of Jesus Christ and of us (believers). The Christian life is not an ordinary life! We must register this in our spirit. We are not called to live an ordinary life. We are called to express and display the eternal-resurrected life of God here on earth. That’s why Jesus came. He came to give us this kind of life and to have us live it, not just in the sweet bye and bye, but right here in the rugged here and now! Jesus said His purpose for coming was to give us this class of life in all its fullness. Hallelujah! Remember, in the mind of Justice when Jesus our Perfect Substitute died, we (believers) also died with Him, we were buried with Him, conquered Satan and the demoniacal forces with Him, were raised together with Him victoriously and are right now seated IN HIM in the heavenly realms (positionally), far above principality and power! And now “…we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10). Praise God!
Christianity is simply living the Resurrected Life by the resurrection power at work in us. It is Christ Himself, living His life in and through men. In Galatians 2:20, Apostle Paul declared by the Spirit “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” It’s our call as Christians, to experience and express the resurrection life and power in every area of our lives. We must earnestly desire and hunger to manifest this resurrection power in everything we do and everywhere we go just as the Lord Jesus exemplified on earth. The Apostle Paul again declares by the Spirit “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection...” (Philippians 3:10). This must also become our desire. When this resurrection power of God is at work in us, we become alive to God (Romans 6:8-14). We would have resurrected visions and dreams. We would have resurrected economy just as the early Church had (Acts 4:32-35, 2Corinthians 9:8). We would simply live in a life-dominated world where anything dead cannot survive. We become aromas of life (2Cor. 2:14-16). Glory to God! May the resurrection power which God exerted on the Lord Jesus Christ when He raised Him from the dead be operative in you – spirit, soul and body and in the lives of everyone connected to you in Jesus' Name. Amen!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-29562557436119144572014-09-17T04:58:00.000-07:002014-09-17T04:58:42.111-07:00WHY WORSHIP?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYbhzX-XxPzz8H5lrOJDCa-hRCrqUgiKvX5ufd7N8w7STWE2MiUA0JWnkS8qpCCbi2y5beOm_G5_kSTW9V6zQVQH8x3ggIbkaTwc9N-lo8YxMZ4T-rXSUqtO1iNZELY5nn-mOl1rg1DxXa/s1600/WhyWorship2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYbhzX-XxPzz8H5lrOJDCa-hRCrqUgiKvX5ufd7N8w7STWE2MiUA0JWnkS8qpCCbi2y5beOm_G5_kSTW9V6zQVQH8x3ggIbkaTwc9N-lo8YxMZ4T-rXSUqtO1iNZELY5nn-mOl1rg1DxXa/s320/WhyWorship2.jpg" /></a></div>There is no telling of how much God can do in and through the life of a worshipper. The Lord Jesus Christ tells us something so amazing about this, something we must cling to and see as an opportunity all the days of our lives here on earth. He says: “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” Jesus’ discourse with the woman at the well in John 4 reveals so much about what God thinks of worship and what He wants in worship. Jesus tells us that we have come into a new season where there is a redefinition of worship to exactly what the Father has always wanted. There’s a new order. Things would henceforth be done differently. Worship will no longer be just an outward show but an experience that flows from the spirit of man to the outward part of him. The Father is seeking for a new breed of worshippers and these new kind of worshippers would worship the Father in spirit and in truth. These new kind of worshippers are first new creations born of the new covenant! This new order of worship is totally different from that of the old order in the Old Covenant. Praise God!
We must pay close attention to this if we must come to the climax of true worship. Worship that the Lord receives is done in spirit and in truth. What does it mean to worship the Father in spirit and in truth? To worship the Father in spirit means to worship from the heart (not the part of you that pumps blood). The heart here means the central part of a man which is his spirit. This is because worship is first a spiritual thing and God is a Spirit and so must be worshipped accordingly, not in the flesh. To worship in truth simply means to worship according to God’s Word, not just as we choose. Remember Jesus’ Words in John 17:17, He prays to the Father: “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.” (NKJV). God’s Word is Truth. And Jesus also adds that this kind of worship is not limited to a particular mountain or location, but can be done anywhere and everywhere. Praise God! I’m always blessed by the words of this song by Michael W. Smith: “When the music fades, and all is stripped away, and I simply come, longing just to bring something that’s of worth, that would bless Your heart. I’d bring You more than a song, for a song in itself is not what You have required. You search much deeper within, through the way things appear, You’re looking into my heart.” Oh! What a song!
Before we can know why God wants worship, why this quality of worshippers or even why we worship God; we must first understand what worship really is. Worship is more than a song! It’s so unfortunate that singing is all a lot of Christians know about worship. Personally, I find the best definition of worship in the prayer pattern which the Lord Jesus gave His disciples during His days on earth: “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:10). He thought His then disciples and us today to pray after this manner for one purpose: for there to be a partnership or a sharing of God’s passion for the earth with men. God had a purpose in this! So worship is coming into partnership with the Father to see His Kingdom come and His will done on earth just as it is in heaven in any way and in every way – but in spirit and in truth! Singing to the Lord is an act of worship but not all there is to worship. Presenting our bodies unto God as a living sacrifice (to do His will only) is an act of worship but not all there is to worship (Romans 12:1, Hebrews 10:5-7). Obedience to God is an act of worship but not all there is to worship (Genesis 22:1-5). Over the years, the Church seems to have placed so much emphasis on the acts of worship as against the art of worship which is priority. It is foolish to keep doing things without even paying attention to whether you’re doing it the right way or not. Worship has a singular purpose but the acts of worship are so vast, multidimensional and unlimited. But one thing is central to all acts of worship – the essence of worship.
So, why is worship so important to God? Worship does something to the spirit of a man that enables him take his rightful place in God and in His grand plan or agenda for the world. Worship conditions our spirit to take our rightful position in God. Worship makes us the connector between the natural and the Supernatural. Worship brings a man into a divine synchrony with God’s passion for the earth. His passion becomes our passion. It brings us into a holy oneness with God’s purposes on the earth. Worship brings such a Divine order in the lives of men. Worship gives God His rightful place in our lives. We were created to worship! In absolute worship to God we find our completeness. In worship we give our best – our heart, our entire selves! Once your heart is given you have given your all (2Cor.8:5). The foundation of true worship is that it is coming from the heart and it is according to God’s Word – it must be in spirit and in truth. It is important we understand that whatever act we carry out in the spirit of worship can only be authentic and acceptable when it is coming from the heart and is according to God’s Word – in spirit and in truth. Apostle Paul understood this truth and hence his words: “For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son...” (Romans 1:9). Not every service or worship is acceptable, but every service or worship that is done in spirit and in truth is always accepted because that is what the Father wants! The Father has told us what He wants in worship and how He wants it, we must then stop giving Him what He doesn’t want! If it is for Him, let’s just do it His way!
Worship is a decision – true worship is never forced! All over the world, people worship all manner of things – physical and spiritual. Permit me to say that whatever you’re living for is truly your object of worship. Where your heart is, what your entire life is more focused on and what you are preoccupied with daily defines who or what you’re actually worshipping. This is the reason Jesus counsels us: “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33). Worship brings us into oneness with the object of worship – We eventually look like what we worship (Psalm 115:4-8). The more we worship God the more we get a revelation of who He is. The more of the attributes of God we acknowledge, the more we see how He wants to reveal these attributes through our lives. Worship begins when we acknowledge God for who He is and start relating with Him in that light!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-29490411903506888412014-08-08T14:14:00.000-07:002014-08-08T14:14:58.786-07:00THE SPIRIT OF REVELATION<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-jS5sSWwuVJk9yEFGwvvXUvaGK-2l-9dGF1FLFSIXkO4sTI75T35VPDVFDVqYYpccEn_4kZxYXp9zPIZIZzaxhgqva3n1zKPOvHAQ0Q20qYb_Gzgx3t8hURRynb3ksXkinCLrdWogQuqQ/s1600/spirit+of+revelation.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-jS5sSWwuVJk9yEFGwvvXUvaGK-2l-9dGF1FLFSIXkO4sTI75T35VPDVFDVqYYpccEn_4kZxYXp9zPIZIZzaxhgqva3n1zKPOvHAQ0Q20qYb_Gzgx3t8hURRynb3ksXkinCLrdWogQuqQ/s320/spirit+of+revelation.jpeg" /></a></div>All over the world, people – saved and unsaved – read the Bible for various reasons. Some read the Bible for the right reasons, some for the wrong reasons, some just to satisfy their quest for knowledge. There are those who even read the Bible to use the principles therein to better their lives or advance their selfish purposes but don’t want the God of the Bible. However, millions of Believers read it daily to draw strength and inspiration for life. Whatever the case may be, the Word of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit, was written to reveal to us God’s thoughts, purposes, will and intentions. The Psalmist rightly declares in Psalm 119:130 “The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.” You see, everyone can read the Bible but not everyone can ‘see’ what is written therein. Why? Because it takes a revelation (an unveiling) that comes by the Holy Spirit – The Author – to understand it.
Beyond the letters, there is the spirit of the Word. The Word of God tells us “for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” (2Cor.3:6). Take note that the word ‘spirit’ here doesn’t refer to the Person of the Holy Spirit or to a spirit being but to the activity or ministry of the Holy Spirit in helping us receive the revelation of the Word. It’s just as the Lord Jesus says in John 6:63 “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” He wasn’t referring to the Person of the Holy Spirit here, but to His activity or ministry in that regards. You’d also observe from the King James Version that all these verses (Including Eph.1:17 and 2Cor.4:13) have the word ‘spirit’ in small letters. There is what is called ‘the spirit of revelation’! Why is this so important? If we must fully understand the mind of God as revealed through His Word, we must understand the nature and role of the spirit of revelation. It is the Holy Spirit Who imparts the spirit of revelation. This spirit of revelation is given for one purpose – to deliver into our hands what has been written, to take the written Will of God and make it a happening Will of God in your life or that situation! God’s desire for His children is that they not just become readers, hearers or receivers of His Word, but the manifestation of His Word – the manifested Word just like Jesus was the Word made flesh (John 1:14)!
From the words of the Lord Jesus in John 6:63 and 2Corinthians 3:6, we can clearly see that the revelation of God’s Word makes the Bible a living thing to us – it is lifeless and dead to the man without a revelation knowledge of it. That’s why when the Word of God is preached, taught or received by revelation, it simply begins to happen! The purpose of revelation is to make the Word of God not just a written text but a happening experience! The purpose of revelation is manifestation! Praise God! You can read the Bible and only get the sense knowledge of it just like you can read any book, magazine or newspaper and learn something. However, it is yet another thing to get revelation knowledge of what has been written in the Bible! Once you receive a revelation of the Word, faith is stirred up automatically to receive the delivery of that Word (Romans 10:17). Just like in creation, whatever God does, He does by His Word. God’s Word is His material for creating anything! The moment you can see it by revelation in the Word, you have it! All you need is to see it!
However, we have a role to play to experience the spirit of revelation. It’s not going to happen just like that. There is cooperation with the Holy Spirit on our part. We must go beyond just reading the Bible for reading sake to studying it with a purpose and strong expectation of the manifestation of the spirit of revelation. We’d do this if we are truly hungry for the revelation of God’s Word. If we are really serious about receiving the revelation of the Word, we must learn to NEVER READ OR STUDY THE BIBLE WITHOUT ASKING THE HOLY SPIRIT TO REVEAL IT TO US! The Bible is the only Book that requires the presence of the Author to actually understand its content. Therefore, whenever you have a need, get to the Word! Find out what the Word of God says about that situation (God’s Word has an answer for every single situation!), then stay with that Word until you receive the revelation of it. You’d certainly know when you’ve received the revelation of that Word! Never be in haste or just run off prematurely, the answer to that situation is in the revelation of God’s Word! Once you receive that revelation, you have that need met! This is how God wants us to have all needs met!
In Ephesians 3:17-19, we see something amazing! It says: “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,” To Paul, this was a prayer, but to the Holy Spirit, this is what He wants to manifest in the life of every saint right now through the spirit of wisdom and revelation! Remember, the sole purpose of revelation is manifestation! You receive the revelation of God’s Word for the purpose of manifesting it! Now, understand that the spirit of wisdom and revelation always work hand-in-hand. While the spirit of revelation shows you what it really is, the spirit of wisdom shows you what to do and how to act or apply it to manifest that Word – all by the activity and ministry of the Holy Spirit!
Jesus’ Parable of the Sower gives us great insight into this subject (Study Matthew 13:1-23, Luke 8:4-15, Mark 4:1-20). Jesus says, if we don’t understand this parable, we can’t understand any other (Mark 4:13). The sole reason the devil makes people receive the seed of the Word by the way side, on stony places or among thorns is just for them not to receive it on good ground – the place of revelation and manifestation – so he steals the Word-seed before it can be understood (Mark 4:15)! Every seed has the potential of producing its fruit, when planted! More revelation equals more manifestations. No revelation equals no manifestation, plus a great loss (Matt.13:12). Even the devil understands the value of the Word-seed of God. Treasure the Word of God – it produces what it talks about! Develop a great value for the Word of God – that’s where to begin! When you see it, you automatically have it. It’s time to start manifesting the Word!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-64979016388642451482014-07-20T12:48:00.000-07:002014-07-20T12:48:02.512-07:00THE SPIRIT OF FAITH<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVAb34sHs1RfYotaCMzmxMcU-BnE-Xxzg8RtyYOHfP_aCwrlpsWLHpKGNrpdBmNdjKLwv74Yf_3pHT4kPFy6UPqZQ6B1KKpi2AeRGhowJr-j6OiExp-ct5GOvRPfHdpmiETAQgf5Q2IU_9/s1600/The+spirit+of+faith.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVAb34sHs1RfYotaCMzmxMcU-BnE-Xxzg8RtyYOHfP_aCwrlpsWLHpKGNrpdBmNdjKLwv74Yf_3pHT4kPFy6UPqZQ6B1KKpi2AeRGhowJr-j6OiExp-ct5GOvRPfHdpmiETAQgf5Q2IU_9/s320/The+spirit+of+faith.jpg" /></a></div>
The Word of God is voice-activated! This could just be the missing link in the effectiveness of your faith. God’s Words remain potentials in our lives until we speak them out. When you speak His Words, you are coming into agreement (partnership) with God and His Word in your life and the power of the Word can now manifest what it talks about! Amos 3:3 says “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” Therefore, for you to work with God, you must come into agreement with Him via His Word. Thank God we can. It really costs nothing to just voice out the Word of God, saying the same thing with God, just making God’s Word your word and it pays off as sure as God’s Word is true. Praise God!
“What’s the big deal about speaking God’s Word?” You may ask. “Isn’t God’s Word so potent to work without me having to speak it out with my mouth?”, “Can’t God’s Word work in my life independent of me?” Well, these are great questions and the Word of God has the answers. 2Corinthians 4:13 says “We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;” Now, understand that the word ‘spirit’ here isn’t referring to the Holy Spirit or a spirit being, but to an attitude – the attitude of faith – the same the psalmist who Paul quoted had. He believed and spoke out (Psalm 116:10). It’s just like saying: “that’s the spirit of the game.” We need to understand this because it tells us on whom the responsibility is placed. For instance, if you think the word ‘spirit’ is referring to the Holy Spirit, you’d be waiting for the Holy Spirit to do the speaking or even think He has to do ‘something’ before you can say something. Simply put, you’d become irresponsive about your responsibility. Well, if you’ve been on this faith walk a while, you’d have discovered that God wouldn’t play our roles and we can’t play He’s! He has His role and we ours. Therefore, we must take the responsibility of speaking out what we believe in God’s Word.
2Corinthians 4:13 makes it so plain that Bible faith has an attitude, a characteristic. We can see that there is a way Bible faith operates. We can actually identify Bible faith by a definite sign: Bible faith speaks what it believes! That’s the sign of Bible faith – it speaks! Faith is active and not passive. Faith has a voice – our words. Your words is actually your faith speaking. Your words are the first expression of your faith before even your actions. Faith always speaks what it believes! A lot of ignorant people mock this principle of confessing the Word of God to their own hurt. They think it is just blabbing some things, they think it’s just positive speaking or talking oneself out of ‘reality’, unknown to them that this is the very principle by which God does things. Yes, I know there are erroneous teachings on this subject, but we have the Bible to see for ourselves what God says about the matter. God created the heavens and the earth through Words – faith-filled words (Genesis 1). In fact, Hebrews 11:3 tells us “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” You see, words have creative abilities. Words are so powerful! Hebrews 1:3 tells us that the whole world is sustained and kept in order through words – the words of His (Jesus’) power. Can you just imagine that for a moment? God created man in His own image and after His likeness and gave man that creative ability through the privilege of words – no other creature has it.
You know, sometimes we make faith look so mysterious. But when you study the Word of God carefully, you’d find that faith is never mysterious, men make a mystery out of it! Without faith it is impossible to please God and so God makes the subject so clear, clear enough for anyone to function in and with it. What is faith? “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1). However, Romans 10:17 tells us how faith comes. It says “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” This is exactly how we receive faith for the first time (salvation) through the Gospel-Word preached to us and this is still how we stay in faith as believers – hearing the Word of God. Every believer ALREADY HAS FAITH (Romans 12:3)! Now then, the more of the Word of God we hear or receive, the stronger and more effective our faith become. Acting on the Word is acting in faith. Your actions tell so much about your faith life. When you do the Word, you’re walking in faith. So you can know whether you’re in faith or not.
It is not so much about the size of your faith as it is about WHAT you do with your faith. Even a mustard-seed-size-faith can reposition a mountain, Jesus says in Matthew 17:20. Just use your faith! Every Christian has got faith, otherwise they are not saved (Eph.2:8, Rom.10:9). We use our faith by speaking God’s Word. You can speak words without faith but you can’t operate in faith without speaking words! That’s the attitude of faith! Faith is a force, it causes you to speak! When you’re actively functioning in faith, you just find yourself speaking words! The attitude of faith is to speak what has been spoken, speaking the same thing with God. We must develop the habit of confessing God’s Word daily and in every situation we find ourselves. That’s really how to come out of problems. Simply find out what God has said about what you’re going through and begin to confess or declare it to yourself, instead of confessing what you feel about the situation because that won’t help the situation but gets it complicated and remember you eventually have what you say (Mark 11:23). God said something so that we could say something and have it manifested (Heb.13:5,6). The proof that you are actively in faith is that you are making God’s Words your words – you’re confessing His Words instead of yours.
You can create your world through faith-filled words, just like God created the universe (Heb.11:3)! So, what do you want in your world? Oh! I’m so excited that God gave man the opportunity to create his world, to fill it with what he wants. If you speak bad words, that’s what you’d have in your world because your words is your faith speaking! Wisdom demands that you start by creating a salvation-dominated world by confessing with your mouth the Lordship of Jesus Christ (Rom. 10:9). That’s the foundation and then you can make God’s Words your words and just speak those words into your world and create heavenly realities in your world. Praise God! The Lordship of Jesus is the Lordship of His Word!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-31721959402492189842014-06-22T15:12:00.000-07:002014-06-22T15:12:10.712-07:00THE SIGNS OF OUR GENERATION<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSOtzK1qJXywKMOJHiqFY14IAnqqK5TpIwapYDx4VxEbyNi7efaLVGClnLRvBtvgVTqUK6-mAGSHF9bVGCGXuyVJxKL3sSn4JccCVaVnZB3XVtgBI56DYFf7ojuPIdyHecOdiCPiBn5K5M/s1600/Signs.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSOtzK1qJXywKMOJHiqFY14IAnqqK5TpIwapYDx4VxEbyNi7efaLVGClnLRvBtvgVTqUK6-mAGSHF9bVGCGXuyVJxKL3sSn4JccCVaVnZB3XVtgBI56DYFf7ojuPIdyHecOdiCPiBn5K5M/s320/Signs.png" /></a></div>
It’s one thing to have signs follow you because you believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ and it is yet another thing to become a sign to your generation. Looking at the very Words of the Lord Jesus Christ in Mark 16:15-18, we see that the Lord Jesus made it so clear that the signs that follow the believer are the basic indicators and should never be an issue. “And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.’” In fact, all the things listed in this portion of Scripture should never be a problem to the believer. In other words, it should be the easiest thing in the world for the Believer to function in the Name of Jesus – to cast out demons, speak with new tongues, take up serpents, be unhurt even if they drink any deadly thing and lay hands on the sick and have them recover. This is simply the lifestyle of the believer – the least expected of anyone who believes. Glory to God!
Unfortunately, today, the Church seems to function as though Jesus said “these signs shall follow the Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers of the Word who believe.” No! Let’s get it right! Anyone who dares to believer the Gospel of Jesus Christ is qualified to, in the Name of Jesus, function in this realm – it’s the least expected of the believer! The question is: Do you believe the Gospel? Are these signs following you? If you truly believe you’d act! The only proof that you really believe is acting out what you believe. Faith without works is dead just as the body without the spirit is dead. A lot of saints are not seeing these manifestations in their lives simply because they are not acting out the Word. They are too concerned about if it doesn’t work. So unfortunate! Archbishop Benson Idahosa said that he prays for the sick not because he considers himself a healing minister or giant of faith but simply to be obedient to Jesus’ command to do so! That’s a good one there. Zechariah 4:6 says “...Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' Says the LORD of hosts.” We must renew our minds on this matter to function in the light of it!
Lately, the Lord has been dealing with me on the subject of becoming a sign to my generation. There’s so much the Lord is doing and yet to manifest through this generation. The Lord is so passionate about having a generation of believers that is not only followed by these signs but become signs themselves! That’s right! God wants a generation of sons that become signs to their generation. The Prophet Isaiah, speaking by the Spirit, declares “Here am I and the children whom the LORD has given me! We are for signs and wonders in Israel From the LORD of hosts, Who dwells in Mount Zion.” (Isaiah 8:18) What are signs? Signs are indictors, they are pointers showing something. Signs are a part of our everyday life – road signs, doctors look out for signs and symptoms, we use sign languages in our expressions and conversations etc. There are good signs as well as there are the bad ones. The Lord is doing an unprecedented work in the earth in these last days to usher in the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, and He is raising up sons who would be signs, indicators of what He’s about to do in order to get people ready to connect with it and not miss out.
God has always used men as signs to what was to come. For instance, David was a sign of the New Creation, Abraham was a sign of the faith life, Gideon was a sign of what God’s Super coming upon a man’s natural could accomplish, Daniel was a sign of the Kingdom of God ruling over the kingdoms of this world etc. I can go on and on. When you study the Book of Ezekiel, you’d observe that God instructed Prophet Ezekiel to communicate many things to the apostate Israelites by becoming a sign to them in many ways, same with some other prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah and Hosea. On the negative side, we have people like Nebuchadnezzar, Sodom and Gomorrah, etc. The Lord Jesus described Jonah as a sign to His death, burial and resurrection (Matt.12:39-40). He also declares thus: “For as Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man be to this generation.” (Luke 11:30). So, we see clearly that the Lord Jesus Christ Himself was a sign to this generation (Isaiah 7:14). Evidently, God must have a grand purpose in all these.
However, it might be difficult trying to grasps the entire purpose of God in using men as signs but it’s always been effective. One thing we can easily observe about all the people God used as signs of the great things He was about to do, is that they were men who dared to take God at His Word and ventured the seemly impossible, leaving a legacy for generations to come! They became signs of God’s desired manifestation to an upcoming generation! Now, the Lord Jesus was a sign and a wonder to the world during His earth walk. Acts 10:38 tells us “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.” He came to show us the way of the New Creation and tells us that we are meant for even greater works than these (John 14:12). God wants us (believers) to be signs. Signs of what? Signs of the living Jesus (Mark 16:17). The calling of the Christian is a calling to re-present the living Jesus to our world! We are to be an express reflection of the Jesus of the Bible in the same way He expressly reflected the Father during His earthly ministry (Heb.1:1-3). We can then boldly declare that these are still the days of Jesus on earth, as long as the believers are still on earth. We are RE-PRESENTING Jesus to a world desperately in need of the real Jesus. We are to continue the ministry of Jesus! We are not only meant to preach Him but RE-PRESENT Him in character and power before men. This simply means when men meet us they meet Jesus Himself! We are for signs and wonders! Signs, wonders and miracles should be part of our identity everywhere we go in the same way they were for Jesus during His earthly ministry. This would only happen when we awake to this reality, taking up our responsibilities as signs and wonders to our generation!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-21080788983642900492014-05-09T14:24:00.000-07:002014-05-09T14:24:51.648-07:00UNDERSTANDING THE TIMES<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYdHyINoku6sgecV9vhDrGRFX9apDcsk_oEaSA_4XYq3f_JyijAuhBbzYH468nvY0GER4PlBYNbvDg0fhfRB0fxUQu_zwvDM0jmG7N8lCqN8UyNVD8o1KK7eP4puj_OCN3Dw5fi0RuHQh9/s1600/Military+on+duty.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYdHyINoku6sgecV9vhDrGRFX9apDcsk_oEaSA_4XYq3f_JyijAuhBbzYH468nvY0GER4PlBYNbvDg0fhfRB0fxUQu_zwvDM0jmG7N8lCqN8UyNVD8o1KK7eP4puj_OCN3Dw5fi0RuHQh9/s320/Military+on+duty.jpg" /></a></div>
What’s happening to our world? With the increasing tragedies all over the world – the missing Malaysian aircraft, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the over 200 missing Nigerian girls, sinking of ship, bombings, terrorism, violence, natural disasters, falsehood, unthinkable immoral policies celebrated all in the name of freedom etc. All these put questions in the mind of every right-thinking individual. Why are all these happening? Would these ever stop or how long are they going to last? People all over the world are searching for answers to these questions and more. Well, it’s so easy for someone to come up with some religious answers like “only God knows...” But as nice-sounding as that might seem, it isn’t true. The Lord Jesus Christ expressly spoke about these events to His disciples in the days leading to His suffering, death and resurrection. We can see much about what He said when we study Matthew 24 and Luke 21:5-36 (Pls, study these Scriptures). We either stick with the Truth of the matter or we try to figure things out ourselves which, indeed, is futile. Jesus asks: “...ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?” (Matt.16:1-3).
Is God concerned about what is going on in the world today? Of course, He is. He’s more concerned than we could ever know. But we must also understand that God is not surprised, in a panic mode or taken unaware. He’s not sleeping either. But then, He has it all figured out. Remember, He is God and this is His earth and ever would be! So why then is the Lord allowing all these? Deuteronomy 29:29 tells us “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.” While there are things which are known to God alone, there are things He has revealed to us through His Word. The Bible is the Book of Answers. The tragic events we are seeing and hearing about today are signs of the end of this age. We are seeing the highest extent of man’s wickedness and perversion fully expressed. This would lead to the Second coming of Jesus Christ to physically rule the earth for 1000 years (the Millennium) in which the devil would be chained and locked up in the bottomless pit for those years, evil would be conquered, etc (see Revelation 20). When you study the Bible you’d discover that there’s nothing happening today that has not been clearly foretold and explained to us. God never wants us to be in the dark about anything. It’s good to know that! We look to the Word of God, not to the media!
In the beginning, God gave man a free-will (the freedom to choose). Everything was okay until sin came into the world through Adam’s decision to disobey God. What happened next? From that moment, man started using that free-will against his Creator God, being blinded by the devil who now had total control over him until Jesus came. This is the origin of the wickedness and atrocities in the world today! And that is why until a man freely wills to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, he remains under the control of the devil whose aim is to work against God’s original purpose and plan for the earth. I’ve heard many people say that the world would get better someday. I would have loved to tell you that too. I would have loved to believe so too, but it just isn’t true. The Word of God never said anything like that. These evils we are seeing today are signs leading to something. This whole thing is leading to something prophetic and historic. As long as the devil remains the ‘god’ of this world system or in control of the people of this world, nothing would change for good, it only gets worse and worse until the rapture (See 2Cor.4:4, 2Tim.3:1-5). God’s Word presents the assurance of hope and protection for God’s people, those who have received the Lordship of Jesus Christ – the only escape route!
So, is there any hope? Sure, there is! The Good news is: The Believer in Jesus Christ is not hopeless! We are full of hope. Any believer in Jesus who is not hopeful in this season is only ignorant of the future God assures us of. The moment we come to terms with it, nothing in this world matters again. The Bible describes this hope: “This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil, where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus, having become High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.” (Heb. 6:19-20). Hallelujah! The Lord Jesus says “And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.” (Luke 21:28). These are truly amazing days for the believer. These are the days of unprecedented harvest of souls! Days of our greatest opportunity to let the world know about the HOPE we have in Jesus Christ. This is the greatest moment in history where the world would be confronted by the Truth: Jesus Christ – The Way, The Truth and The Life! 1Peter 3:15 says “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;”
However, as believers in Jesus Christ, we must understand our roles and responsibilities in this prophetic hour that has come upon us. Yes, there’s going to be great persecutions and trials. It’s part of the Christian life (Phil.1:29). We must be faithful to Jesus even unto death (Rev.2:10). Never allow fear dominate you, stay in faith! Always stay in an attitude of prayer; it enhances sensitivity to the Spirit. Focus on the Lord’s agenda. Actually, these shakings all over the world ought to serve as an awakening for the Church, but as lamented by a woman of God, the Church seems to be less concerned and are still occupied with her selfish interests – the ‘me and mine’ stuff. We must wake up! There’s an urgent need for the Gospel to be preached all over the world. It’s urgent! More urgent than any other thing no matter how urgent they seem. The more we delay, the more souls are dying and being forced into eternal damnation. The world is searching for answers and is looking at the wrong places. We must point them to where the answer really is: JESUS IS THE ANSWER! This is the time to tell the world about the hope we have. Never be afraid, you are covered! “Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, To God our Savior, Who alone is wise, Be glory and majesty, Dominion and power, Both now and forever. Amen.” (Jude 24,25). Therefore, let not your heart be troubled neither let it be afraid. Set your eyes on Jesus. Peace to you!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-56677943642198311442014-04-06T16:43:00.000-07:002014-04-06T16:43:30.078-07:00KINGDOM PROSPERITY<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5zxfb3MnxUGYtvHGSfstNGP56Z_kHU56rNv8oZXzWbgr0z1De1QFm8ETm1Dtr9KoA5_KwC4U_o4W6rFnmXk18Dlp7Vg9Zjgh9nD8VtM0jeHiixC9iOfcHUu8iO2p7ToE4RZztMLesKr8N/s1600/KingdomProsperity.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5zxfb3MnxUGYtvHGSfstNGP56Z_kHU56rNv8oZXzWbgr0z1De1QFm8ETm1Dtr9KoA5_KwC4U_o4W6rFnmXk18Dlp7Vg9Zjgh9nD8VtM0jeHiixC9iOfcHUu8iO2p7ToE4RZztMLesKr8N/s320/KingdomProsperity.png" /></a></div>Prosperity is the will of God for His children. God wants His children to prosper in every way! Irrespective of any man’s opinion, it is God’s will for His children to walk in all that He has made available to us through the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. The finished work of Christ is the foundation for Scriptural prosperity. Those who say they don’t believe in prosperity or who condemn the prosperity message, they’ll do little or nothing for the Lord here on earth. People who think and talk that way are either selfish or myopic (short sighted, lack vision). Prosperity is part of the Gospel!
The Sovereign Lord of all the earth says “My cities through prosperity shall yet be spread abroad; and the LORD shall yet comfort Zion, and shall yet choose Jerusalem.” (Zechariah 1:17). Recently, the Lord opened my eyes to something amazing I had never seen along this line. As I read through the above Scripture, the Lord immediately referred me to Matthew 5:14 which says: “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.” And He brought my attention to the phrase ‘A city’ and it suddenly dawned on me that the Lord actually called us a city! What does that mean to us in the light of this? When the Lord said “My cities through prosperity shall yet be spread abroad;…” He wasn’t referring to locations, structures or buildings but to His children. This simply means that God is spreading us, His children, all over the world through the provisions He has made available to us through His Son Jesus Christ. This means, the Lord is making us so big to take over nations for Him because we shall serve Him and do big things for Him lacking nothing whatsoever! Then we can answer the question: shall a nation be born at once? (Isaiah 66:8). I don’t know about you, but that’s good news to me! Praise God!
Now, to a large extent, I understand why some believers kick against the prosperity message. They do that because it’s been so abused by so many preachers and believers alike. But that doesn’t justify that. The fact that something has been counterfeited doesn’t change the fact that there is the original. It’s so unfortunate that many times the false precede the true. Well, I believe in prosperity because God wants me to prosper and to be big for Him and His cause here on earth! What we need is to have a renewed mind on the subject of prosperity just as in other subjects of the Bible. What is a renewed mind? To have a renewed mind about something is to think like God about that thing. We must then search the Scriptures and see the mind of God about that thing. The Words of God are the thoughts of God! We can know God’s mind concerning anything through the Word. Instead of going by the opinion of the majority, we can choose to find out God’s mind on the matter for ourselves and connect with Him on that.
Understand that Kingdom prosperity is not just about money, it is all encompassing – spirit, soul and body. We get into error when we narrow it down to just one thing. I believe this is one thing that marks Kingdom prosperity from what the world calls prosperity. When a man has money but lacks peace of mind he isn’t prosperous. Or when a man has good health but he isn’t saved that’s not prosperity. But you see, only in Christ we can have all together – totally whole spirit, soul and body! The Gospel is all about prosperity – God’s plan to make His man whole and entire once again! God wants us to be complete – nothing missing, nothing broken! That’s His will for us. The word ‘salvation’ is from the Greek: ‘Soteria’ which implies total wellbeing or wholeness in our temporal stay on earth and for eternity. Apostle Paul, speaking by the Spirit, in Romans 1:16 tells us that the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation! What’s the Gospel? The Gospel is simply all that God accomplished IN CHRIST for humanity, which works for anyone who believes!
There is a reason why God wants His children to prosper. I believe this is one area that the Church has missed it. We have emphasized a prosperity that is void of purpose. When a man thinks of prosperity without focusing on the purpose of it, he becomes selfish, greedy and entangled by materialism. 2Corinthians 9:8 tells us the purpose of Kingdom prosperity: “And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.” Right there is the purpose of Kingdom prosperity. We must never forget that we have all sufficiency in all things in order to have abundance for every good work. Praise God!
However, when it comes to the monetary aspect, Haggai 2:8 declares “The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts.” Our Father owns the ‘box’. It belongs to Him! We would become good stewards of the money we receive from the Lord when we walk in the consciousness that He owns it all. Money is not the root of all evil but the love of it (1Tim.6:10). Money is a good servant but a cruel master. Money is neutral just like time and decision. It only takes on the character of its owner. For instance a gambler spends his money on gambling and a soul winner on soul winning. Money never defines a man but men define money because it is only a tool, an amplifier! Today, so many worship money because they’ve been made to believe that money answers all things. Unfortunately this error has been sponsored by the Church. When the Bible tells us: “A feast is made for laughter, and wine maketh merry: but money answereth all things.” (Eccl. 10:19), contextually, it was simply telling us that the feast and the wine are the function of money and when you observe carefully from the KJV translation you’d discover that the word ‘things’ is in italics, meaning that that word was not in the original manuscript but was added by the translators to aid understanding. In fact, it is so ridiculous to even think that money answers all things. We’ve seen people with lots of money but so miserable. Some even commit suicide because they’ve been made to believe that once they had the money they had everything, only to discover that there is so much money cannot buy. Yes, money can do a lot in the natural, but it can never buy spiritual things! Money has its limits too. Time is even more precious than money. Well, let’s look to the Father as our Source for everything. Let’s receive all He has made available to us through Jesus Christ and reach out to a dying world!David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-75742614812702729202014-03-12T02:51:00.000-07:002014-03-12T02:51:22.865-07:00MANIFESTING CHRIST TO OUR WORLD <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBqY40Xiq16UpdI4ytSTYB38lF0R2kUFvz4MWp6TnX33QDDVARfyDiBvkBTyAYq4tvmUEJxOVVnfkSa82DEJGvG2MmF4rnQxgMx_zsuTgedNjasV1IxFdZ_LOkcU6UHQ8diCBjQDjW7Of5/s1600/ManifestingJesus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBqY40Xiq16UpdI4ytSTYB38lF0R2kUFvz4MWp6TnX33QDDVARfyDiBvkBTyAYq4tvmUEJxOVVnfkSa82DEJGvG2MmF4rnQxgMx_zsuTgedNjasV1IxFdZ_LOkcU6UHQ8diCBjQDjW7Of5/s320/ManifestingJesus.jpg" /></a></div>The greatest need of the world today, as ever, is to see the living Christ! They have been hearing about Him, some have even been talking about Him and others have been trying to figure out if He is real or if at all He ever existed. Therefore, if the world is not seeing Christ today there’s a problem somewhere and I believe that problem is from the Church. When I say the Church, I’m not referring to physical buildings or auditoriums, but to you and me (the New Creations in Christ)! Our No.1 goal as Believers in Jesus Christ is to manifest Him everywhere we go. This is top priority! We seem to sit indoors claiming to be waiting until we’ve advanced more spiritually before taking action, while we leave out our ultimate responsibility to manifest Christ to a sick and dying world! We stay in our ‘closets’ instead of stepping out to reach a confused world with the Gospel and power of the resurrected and living Jesus! We are so indifferent and still wonder why the world keeps getting deeper and deeper into unthinkable perversions and policies by the day.
All through Scriptures, we see God’s earnest desire to manifest Himself to the world through men. He started this out by coming into this world Himself in the Person of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ came to reveal the Father fully to the world (Heb.1:1-3) and before leaving the earth, He transferred that responsibility to the Church! During Jesus’ days on earth, He expressed His desire to afterwards manifest Himself first, to men and then through men. We must understand that the Lord Jesus Christ is not just the Son of God but the Pattern-Son of God! God has Jesus Christ as a pattern for all His sons. He wants to see many JESUSES all over the world. Sure! That’s what God wants. Romans 8:29 tells us “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.” This is the ultimate goal of Christianity! Besides all that Jesus Christ came to earth to accomplish on man’s behalf, the Father sent the Lord Jesus Christ to come and exemplify what the life of a man anointed of the Holy Spirit should be like here on earth. This is the reason when any man truly meets Jesus Christ Himself by revelation, he cannot but become a different person.
The whole idea of Christianity is manifesting the Christ to the world! The word ‘Christian’ simply means ‘like Christ’. I know the Church has made great efforts in the area of good Christian living and conduct but there’s more. We must understand that there’s more we’re yet to venture into and it is now in urgent demand. As Christians, we are called to manifest Christ both in life style and in power! For so long we seem to have just been content with having just the form of godliness while denying the power thereof. We are so thrilled when we see ‘few’ manifesting the life and power of Jesus Christ, whereas, that’s the mandate from Jesus Christ Himself to every Believer. Jesus said “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.” (John 14:12). See, until we awake to the fact that we are meant to manifest Christ fully, we’d remain incomplete ambassadors for Christ! It’s absolutely abnormal for a Christian not to have an appetite for the Supernatural. It’s abnormal for the Christian not to walk in the Supernatural! The New Creation is born Supernatural!
The Church of Jesus Christ needs to wake up! We need to wake up to the power of God available to us to help our world. It is not only available to some select few, but to all that believe in the Lord Jesus Christ! In Mark 16:17 Jesus declares “And these signs shall follow them that believe;…” Believing in Jesus is the basic requirement to walking in the miraculous! Wait a minute; Jesus wasn’t referring to some ‘mega’ faith here. He was referring to that same faith that got you saved (See Mark 16:15-17). The moment any man believes and is saved he immediately becomes God’s potential agent for manifesting the miraculous, releasing the Kingdom of which he is now a part of – The Kingdom of God! That is what the Great Commission is! The Great Commission is about manifesting Kingdom Dominion through words AND deeds, not just good behaviour but also power demonstrations (1Cor.4:20). Praise God!
During His earthly ministry, Jesus’ ultimate focus was to manifest the Fathers Person, nature, love, character, etc. The Word of God tells us “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.” (Acts 10:38). Today, in that same way, our mandate is to manifest Jesus Christ, the express manifestation of the Father (Heb.1:1-3, John 20:21). That’s our commission. Jesus showed us how to go about it. It all begins with having a personal revelation of the Person of Jesus Christ. It all begins with meeting Him by revelation (John 14:20-23). The question is: Have you met Jesus personally for yourself? Have you encountered Him through the Word? There is something about meeting Jesus for yourself (that is, experiencing Him) that I find so difficult to explain. It’s a deeper place of fellowship. It is my prayer that this would come to you as a revelation, not just as mere words. This is the mind of the Holy Spirit for the Body of Christ.
We would never know what God could do through us, that God could use us in a certain degree until we step out in faith. This is a call to action! We can’t keep looking to ourselves and expect to manifest Christ. We must look to Him! Just as Moses saw the glory of God and reflected it, when Jesus manifests Himself to us, only then can we manifest Him to our world (Exo.34:29-35). As we behold Him, we become like Him and manifest Him to the world. We look to Him by paying attention to the Word and the Holy Spirit. The need for more Supernatural labourers after the order of Jesus Christ is so urgent (Matt. 9:37-39). This is about expressing the Christ – the Anointed One and His Anointing – everywhere we go and everywhere we are, whether at work, school, business, market, neighbourhood, etc. That’s the first reason we are there. Manifest Christ!David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-44053477391257561092014-02-07T21:01:00.000-08:002014-02-07T21:01:53.062-08:00HEAVEN ON EARTH<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQKSOlSErIN_-nKimZ20C9du2Et-Ssywau2_mEcsC_jpANtATxvD1OS4Nt7pR79WNMpB5hWxzuBsmzqRgfTD-FLamvo9cNigmDYe5NCK5ygEiPp5AKKSsep8EW96v-9ee9eCzAdoIy3MZZ/s1600/Heaven+on+earth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQKSOlSErIN_-nKimZ20C9du2Et-Ssywau2_mEcsC_jpANtATxvD1OS4Nt7pR79WNMpB5hWxzuBsmzqRgfTD-FLamvo9cNigmDYe5NCK5ygEiPp5AKKSsep8EW96v-9ee9eCzAdoIy3MZZ/s320/Heaven+on+earth.jpg" /></a></div>
Ever been to a country’s embassy in your country before? What was the first thing you observed? I guess the first thing you observed was the different atmosphere based on what you saw. Though you were in your own country, that country’s embassy was strictly customized to represent that country to the latter. I guess at some point you might have almost lost the consciousness of the fact that you were in your own country. What happened to you was that you got the experience of another country in your own country. In the same way, the Church of Jesus Christ is the embassy of Heaven here on earth. The Church is the link between heaven and earth. Praise God! While the headquarters of the Kingdom of God is in heaven, the Church is the Kingdom of God in miniature here on earth. The Scripture makes it so clear that as Believers in Christ, our citizenship is in heaven (Philip.3:20, NIV). In the Kingdom of God, dual citizenship is never permitted – you’re either in fully, wholly and completely or out! It’s a strict Kingdom. We are Ambassadors for Christ (2Cor.5:20). Like every ambassador of a country, we represent heaven’s interest on earth.
Having said that, let’s look at something more amazing here. Apostle John, by the Holy Spirit, narrates a striking event in his Epistle. We see that in John 1:43-51. While still choosing His disciples, Jesus found Philip and said to him “follow me.” Philip finds Nathanael and says to him “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote--Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” (verse 45). You can just imagine the excitement in Philips voice. The Jews had so longed to see the Messiah and here He comes and Philip has seen Him. Oh how I share in this excitement. I could just imagine what it felt like for Philip. Then, in response, Nathanael says to Philip: “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” and Philip has just one comment for Nathanael (the sceptic): “Come and see” and, of course, Nathanael comes along. I see this playing out so much in this new season the Lord has brought us into: The Greater Glory – The season of seeing. We shall not only see, but also display the greater glory of God to the world. Praise God!
Now, when Jesus saw them coming, He said of Nathanael “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!” and Nathanael (must have been in shock) says “How do You know me?” Jesus answers “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” This gets Nathanael’s attention so deeply, he is convinced and says: “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Now, Jesus answers Nathanael with words that he’d never forget as long as he lived. Jesus says to him “Because I said to you, 'I saw you under the fig tree,' do you believe? You will see greater things than these. (In other words, you haven’t seen a thing yet!) And He said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man."” (John 1:50,51). Wow! What in the world was Jesus talking about? That brings me to the point of this piece.
I want you to ponder on those words again. First, He says “…you shall see heaven open…” in other words, I am walking under open heavens. Remember, at His baptism, the heavens were opened unto Him (Matthew 3:16). Well, the heavens didn’t close up later, but remained open unto Him. And then, He says “…and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.” Jesus was simply saying, “I have come as a link between heaven and earth.” Understand His statement. Jesus didn’t mean that He has come to create a link between heaven and earth but that He was (and still is) the Link between heaven and earth. That statement alone was the whole process of His redemptive work in just one statement! Jesus came to serve as the Link through which fallen man could connect back to God for the restoration of everything to the original plan. Oh Hallelujah! From this stand point you can now understand the purpose of all that Jesus did while on earth for man. He came to reconcile all things back to the Father. He came to be the Link!
So how did the Lord Jesus Christ manifest this? He carried about the atmosphere of heaven everywhere He went. Men marvelled at His Words. He spoke with the wisdom and authority of heaven. He went about doing good and healing all that were oppressed of the devil. He carried the aura of the Presence of God! He brought circumstances under His control. He couldn’t be defeated. He was a terror to every demonic being and He simply crushed their enterprises wherever He went. The Scripture is filled with His mighty, awesome and Supernatural work on earth. Finally, before He left the earth, He suffered and died in man’s place, as man’s Substitute. It didn’t end there, on the third day He rose from the dead by the power of the Holy Ghost! And before ascending to Heaven, He transferred to us (the Church) the mandate of being the link in His Name. That’s what the Great Commission is all about! [Mark 16:15-20, 2Cor.5:17-21].
Now, we must recognize that the Lord Jesus Christ was simply showing us how to live from heaven while still on earth. The Christian is not a weakling. Jesus didn’t do all He did for man in order to produce a weak or substandard New Creation. We're called to manifest Heaven on earth. This is what the Lord Jesus meant when he, in teaching His disciples the principle of prayer, said "Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven." (Matt.6:10). We ought to demonstrate the lifestyle and authority of heaven here on earth! Yes, we must be heaven conscious! We must think home. That's our Headquarters. We ought to operate from there. Indeed, these are days of heaven on earth (Deut.11:21). Our responsibility as Christians here on earth is to manifest the lifestyle and authority of heaven here on earth, the Lord Jesus Christ being our ultimate pattern. Think of it. In Jesus’ days on earth, He was the only Man with the open heavens but today, every believer has the privilege of walking under open heavens. This is what Jesus meant when He said: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.” John 14:12. Saints, let’s do it for the Lord. Get immersed in it!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-88160225929921281522014-01-15T15:34:00.000-08:002014-01-15T15:35:34.001-08:00ALL-NEW WEBSITE!Hello Friends, please checkout my all-new website and be blessed! Visit www.lifecommission.org and get inspired for life! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIZr_JMaGfkciWuj0_Dh3Jwirk5HgNXosj6Ff_JHZLpNtTkTmmu4clGuJsQ7y91-IzkGC4fSqzUKXJ7RIey1oACA5JGsB-hmiPFrLsscbjJ9ZSyXqdhoBLDxThOWVOfK5I1K6EeJxdCE7Z/s1600/Web+Ad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIZr_JMaGfkciWuj0_Dh3Jwirk5HgNXosj6Ff_JHZLpNtTkTmmu4clGuJsQ7y91-IzkGC4fSqzUKXJ7RIey1oACA5JGsB-hmiPFrLsscbjJ9ZSyXqdhoBLDxThOWVOfK5I1K6EeJxdCE7Z/s320/Web+Ad.jpg" /></a></div>David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-66659812901996714232014-01-15T15:29:00.000-08:002014-01-15T15:29:40.402-08:00THE GLORY IS HERE!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeMMy9BvezS9w5wn0vSlaZyc3vW5xGi9A0tcFO5eoLM_MO2EBWGaoIb3dIUSHJ_-EggpiRS7-w_gwRcg35IF2-1D7NuJNAg4rojBX2NiVcJL-RAGqPHCYAGIy45Sg0fuCjqgMZ9rk7aESM/s1600/Glory+is+Here!.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeMMy9BvezS9w5wn0vSlaZyc3vW5xGi9A0tcFO5eoLM_MO2EBWGaoIb3dIUSHJ_-EggpiRS7-w_gwRcg35IF2-1D7NuJNAg4rojBX2NiVcJL-RAGqPHCYAGIy45Sg0fuCjqgMZ9rk7aESM/s320/Glory+is+Here!.jpg" /></a></div>Have you ever walked into an unfamiliar room that was dark and couldn’t just figure out where the switch that turns on the light was? You knew there was electricity in that room but just couldn’t find the switch to turn it on. The fact that you didn’t feel electricity wasn’t enough proof that there was no electricity there because you knew there was! It really had nothing to do with feelings but it had everything to do with reality. This is same with the glory of God! The glory of God had been on the earth ever since God created the earth in Genesis. Man fell short of that glory in Adam when he sinned (Romans 3:23). However, the coming of Jesus Christ into the earth was the return of the full glory of God and it’s been on earth ever since. Praise God!
The Scripture tells us in Isaiah 60 “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.” (vs.1). Notice it’s in present tense. It clearly indicates that this is not in the future but in the now. It says: “...for thy light IS come, and the glory of the LORD IS risen upon thee.” This doesn’t appear to be a prophecy, but a call to action and a notification of what’s happening right now. To the then Israelites it was a prophecy but to us it is a present tense reality. Praise God! It goes on to say “For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. The Gentiles shall come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising.” Praise God! Here’s something else you must observe: the Light comes first before the glory is risen. This is very instructive. Habakkuk 2:14 confirms this truth. It says “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” Light signifies knowledge, understanding, revelation, insight etc. The Word of God tells us in Psalm 119:130 thus “The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.” The light signifies the knowledge of God’s Word.
The knowledge of the glory always precedes the manifestation of the glory. We only experience the glory when the light comes on and we can only have the light come on when we give ourselves to the Word of God. Therefore, if you want to see the glory, get to the Word! The glory and the Word are already here but not everyone is experiencing them because it’s a decision – not automatic. This then means that when we experience the glory is up to each one of us individually. It’s good news to know that we can decide when to experience the glory of God! All through the Scriptures the Word and the glory are always linked to each other. We also see that is Isaiah 40:5. “And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.” It tells us that the glory shall be revealed because the Lord has spoken. So, we are seeing something because He has said something. Praise God!
What then is glory? Glory means manifestation, a showing forth, splendour, a display, etc. The glory of God means the manifestation of the Person and Presence of God in a tangible form. The glory of God is the very essence of God. It is the weight of God! It is not just a cloud. Yes, it could manifest in form of a cloud just as it could in any other form. In the Old Testament, we had much of its manifestations in the form of a cloud but that is not all there is to God’s manifestation! Generally, the glory of God is the manifestation of God and there are different levels of that glory. There is the general glory of God which can be seen by every human – saved or unsaved, believing or unbelieving. The Scripture talks about this in Romans 1:19-20. However, as believers, there is the glory of God we can experience here on earth and there are diverse degrees to its manifestation. Then there is the degree of the glory of God we can’t experience here on earth – it’s reserved for us when we get to heaven, our human bodies can’t contain that kind. It’s so unfortunate that the devil has deceived so many believers into believing that the entire glory experience is reserved for heaven. This has resulted in making many believers content with living void of the glory of God here on earth. Isaiah 60:1 and 2 explicitly shows us that the glory of the LORD IS risen upon us and that it shall be SEEN upon us – not in heaven but here on earth. Verse 3 goes on to tell us that this glory shall be visible to the mortal gentiles and kings who would equally respond to it!
Now, someone might ask, if the glory of God is here on earth today, why is everyone not experiencing it? It’s same as asking if Jesus died for the whole world why is everyone not yet saved? Remember, the fact that I don’t feel electricity doesn’t negate the presence of electricity. Apart from not having the light turned on, as we saw earlier, another reason why many don’t experience the glory of God is found in the Words of the Master in John 11:40 and it’s still linked to the Word of God. He says: “...Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?” So we see that it’s because not everyone is connecting to it. Faith is the connector! When we function in faith we’re connected to it but we are disconnected from it when we are in unbelief. It’s pretty much like turning on or off an electric switch! It’s a decision. Observe from that verse the phrases: ‘wouldest believe’ and ’shouldest see’ These are clear indications that faith is a decision and that when we choose to walk in faith seeing the glory is both inevitable and automatic! Well, I don’t know about you, but I’ve made up my mind to experience all there is of the glory of God available to the believer here on earth!
In Isaiah 60:1, the Lord stirs us up to something. He tells us to arise! Notice that verse says “Arise, shine...”. It doesn’t say ‘arise and shine’. This is to say that when we obey the Lord to arise, we’d shine automatically. Why because our light has already come and the glory of the LORD is already reason upon us. In other words, the stage has been set already; all that is left is for you to arise. The Lord is simply asking us to arise to the occasion. So will you arise? All creation is waiting for you to arise now. Can’t you see the problems in the world and how that men are looking for solutions everywhere? The unfortunate thing is that if you don’t arise, you become part of the problem. God help us! Be challenged by the words of Deborah the Prophetess in Judges 5:7. It’s time to arise. It’s time to shine. The greater glory is here!David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-70295143838523004612013-12-11T05:00:00.000-08:002013-12-11T05:01:48.039-08:00TIME<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi10r4kth13vVRvf3Xq9kSBCmY8DCbkZCmtj4Z9dJ7q5FW0VZzGkyBd-npfOPKHlauFPw3p7_0Muok0iMa-pOLjwT1Ofk27LVQTiB7GU3-UvRoAXHYKg-J3fMxliUJyT3pQKTIXYkElOnLV/s1600/Time.png" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi10r4kth13vVRvf3Xq9kSBCmY8DCbkZCmtj4Z9dJ7q5FW0VZzGkyBd-npfOPKHlauFPw3p7_0Muok0iMa-pOLjwT1Ofk27LVQTiB7GU3-UvRoAXHYKg-J3fMxliUJyT3pQKTIXYkElOnLV/s320/Time.png" /></a>
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!David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-81140657815429181802013-12-04T03:07:00.000-08:002013-12-04T03:07:02.209-08:00THE NEW DNA<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKuV4KbMot276TYlnsBMzfcXFL9d5E1-lA3FG2whKVa_oxsFcS1VeHA0TC4tZnje4F2BvpuZOHGuWrpIy3u2a5Iq6E7PRSS6i_4OSWE6bbdeqBkQa80GyvWyGzCMEKbyaIcag2-bz3LQ3v/s1600/DNA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKuV4KbMot276TYlnsBMzfcXFL9d5E1-lA3FG2whKVa_oxsFcS1VeHA0TC4tZnje4F2BvpuZOHGuWrpIy3u2a5Iq6E7PRSS6i_4OSWE6bbdeqBkQa80GyvWyGzCMEKbyaIcag2-bz3LQ3v/s320/DNA.jpg" /></a></div>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!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-12073873611137738402013-10-10T19:41:00.000-07:002013-10-10T19:41:50.142-07:00INTIMACY WITH GOD<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBxP0uxQ1odRJU4vKI7DrZqq80qPgAnREauJIgK_j4sPUgI4BN9v4okNnC-IlqgzNwdNrYBw7fEhs3yDRkgx9UZmHfxoyx9htYbAoWviP4lZQTRUJ1nRuuuQES6WY2uVIYZKY6mzUSDTH6/s1600/Intimacy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBxP0uxQ1odRJU4vKI7DrZqq80qPgAnREauJIgK_j4sPUgI4BN9v4okNnC-IlqgzNwdNrYBw7fEhs3yDRkgx9UZmHfxoyx9htYbAoWviP4lZQTRUJ1nRuuuQES6WY2uVIYZKY6mzUSDTH6/s320/Intimacy.jpg" /></a></div>I grew up in a day when people’s hearts were deeply longing for something more and higher than this physical, material world. Many believers in Christ had a seemingly unquenchable hunger to know the Lord more in a deeper way. This desire was clearly evident by the kind of songs sung in Churches, the kind of prayers prayed in our prayer meetings, the kind of sermons preached, and the kind of fellowship among the brethren. The prayer meetings were packed with spiritually hungry hearts – people with ardent desire for God. But when you juxtapose those days and these days, one would want to ask ‘what’s gone wrong?’ Today, it seems our hunger for God has been cheaply satisfied with physical substances. Our songs are more focused on our physical needs than our need for the Lord, our selfish agendas come first in our prayer meetings, the sermons are regulated by the laws of demand and supply, altar calls for salvation seem not to be the priority of the day and the conversation among brethren is clouded by other selfish desires. Whatever had gone wrong, we earnestly pray that there be a restoration to the Divine order in Jesus’ Name!
Intimacy with God doesn’t just happen, it is built overtime. Intimacy with God is a personal thing just as it is with every other relationship. The more mature we become as believers the richer our fellowship with God becomes if we are truly cultivating it. There are things that don’t just happen to us in life, we make them happen. The decision to develop intimacy with God is the second most important decision we’d have to make in life. The first most important decision is to receive Jesus Christ as our only Saviour and Lord because there can’t be any fellowship or intimacy without a relationship – that’s the foundation for everything else. However, fellowship is the life of every relationship. To develop intimacy with God (just as it is with anyone else), we must spend quality time and attention on Him. What you spend the most of your time on or give the most of your attention to really tell your definition of value. You can’t say that God is the number one in your life and you don’t spend quality time with Him. You can’t give God the leftovers of your time or other things and claim to have Him as the number one in your life.
The Lord says in 1Samuel 2:30 “...for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.” Honouring the Lord is based on the principle of the first and the best. It simply means that if we truly honour the Lord, He must come first in our lives and He must get the best of our everything! And when we’re not honouring the Lord this way, we’re simply despising Him – there are no middle grounds! We must stop those things that stop our advancement in developing our intimacy with God, those things that seem to want to take the first place in our lives instead of God. We must fight anything that wants to come between us and the Lord. Yes! It’s worth fighting for. It is very important you know that if you must go deeper in God, it can’t just happen with the time of the day you set aside for prayer. He must occupy your every thought, action, word etc. 24 hours of the day! You must be saturated with the consciousness of His presence. You must involve the Lord in every single thing you’re involved with. You must care about what He has to say concerning what you do. Your every decision must stem from your fellowship with Him. This helps you live from within, uninhibited by external forces! This helps you to easily hear when He speaks to you at any time. God is always speaking and only those who care to listen hear what He’s saying, just like tuning to a radio station.
In Psalm 42:7, the psalmist, by the Spirit of God, expresses a very powerful dimension to our intimacy with God. He says “Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me.” This helps us see that it is not the Lord who decides how deep we go with Him. We decide! It means that it’s up to us to decide how deep our intimacy with the Lord would be. The depth of our hunger or desire for the Lord will determine the depth of the fullness of God we’d receive and that is why we are all at different levels in our spiritual experiences. People always want to put all the responsibility on God forgetting that God gave man the responsibility to choose and He’ll never do that for any man. When you see a man who has decided to value intimacy with God in his life you’ll know. God decides to honour that man with the tangible manifestation of His presence. There’s something about that man who carries the presence of the I AM Himself. That man cannot be hidden and the Lord honours him with His tangible presence in order to set him apart from other men and to also draw men to Himself through him.
It is the Holy Spirit who brings us into intimacy with God! Without the Holy Spirit just forget about it. Apostle Paul, by the Holy Spirit, expresses this in the benediction of his second epistle to the Corinthian Church: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.” (2Cor.13:14). It is the Holy Spirit who brings us into that oneness with Divinity. The Holy Spirit is God Himself and He ushers us into and sustains in that divine fellowship. Praise God! Thank God, the Lord Jesus says He’d abide with us forever (John 14:16). Intimacy with God begins with our earnest desire to know God more. The Holy Spirit stirs up that holy desire in our hearts but we must respond accordingly to make it happen. Many a times we don’t respond to the desires the Holy Spirit stirs up in us and so we lose out on the experiences He intended for us to have. We must learn to respond. We must learn to yield to Him.
Therefore, to sustain the development of our intimacy with the Lord, we must nurture our hunger for the Lord. Never allow anything to steal away your hunger – your ardent desire for God and His Kingdom. It’s really a great experience when everything that comes to you in life stems from your intimacy with the Lord. This makes you safe and secure because you now see God as your Source for everything including the smallest details of your life. This is one thing that will help us live unspotted by the world. Our hunger for God swallows up our hunger for the world and its evil pleasures.
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-38342345091641799142013-09-23T06:10:00.001-07:002013-09-23T06:10:24.579-07:00TRUE VS. FALSE RELIGION<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYG2fSxnKtyok8pgKu5SMJMu3_I9pAVbPWLY_op5kuETzaxT6SLh_6LrF5zJuvhyt3zVaroKM0I-hZQWQL0sx4db-Oz6x-uRXftSpmSupqZJwqD0KTMmmHRy7cFvuPrQ2dpgWPe_DMR6lj/s1600/bigstockphoto_Yoga_1112514.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYG2fSxnKtyok8pgKu5SMJMu3_I9pAVbPWLY_op5kuETzaxT6SLh_6LrF5zJuvhyt3zVaroKM0I-hZQWQL0sx4db-Oz6x-uRXftSpmSupqZJwqD0KTMmmHRy7cFvuPrQ2dpgWPe_DMR6lj/s320/bigstockphoto_Yoga_1112514.jpg" /></a></div>A while ago, while teaching the Word in a meeting, I said “Christianity is not a religion” supposing that was already a well known and understood expression but was amazed as a lady couldn’t help but responded immediately “then, what’s it?” That really got my attention because so many times we make certain assumptions that are detrimental. A lot of people, even Christians, have been thrown into confusion by that expression. I also grew up with the view that Christianity was a religion and even when I started hearing from certain ministers of the Gospel that it isn’t a religion I believed but didn’t really get it until I started studying the Word for myself. Today, there’s so much talk about how Christianity is not a religion and this has put a lot of people into confusion as to what then it really is. This ought to be properly explained.
According to the dictionary, the word ‘religion’ simply refers to the belief in the existence of a god who is in control of a thing or things. Based on this definition, the world sees every form of belief in a god, whoever he or it may be, as a kind of religion and so they say there are so many religions in the world and they go ahead to name them including Christianity. So in dealing with the world (e.g. filling a form or legal documents etc.), we can go by their definition of religion. But then, we must be careful about using the dictionary to define spiritual things. Dictionaries are written by men. However, when you study the Bible critically you see that there’s more to Christianity than just being one of the groups of people who believe in a ‘god’ just like every other groups believe in their own god. You see, religion actually came into existence after the fall. After the first man, Adam, fell, he lost his spiritual consciousness as a result of spiritual death and gradually men started searching for ways to satisfy their desire for the presence of God in their lives. But now man was being controlled by his senses instead of his spirit because he died in spirit (was separated from God. Death means separation). Now man wanted to feel, see, touch and relate with God in a tangible way. And this is the same reason we still have idol worshippers of different kinds today. Now, it is impossible for those who are outside Christ to understand this but we who are in Christ, having been enlightened by the Spirit of Truth, can have an understanding on the matter.
The word ‘religion’ or ‘religious’ appear only 7 times in the entire Bible. 4 times used in relation to Judaism and 3 times to express God’s view on the subject. God’s definition of religion is found in James 1:26-27. It says “If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.” Christianity is not a religion but there is a religion (devotion) that is practiced in Christianity. It would be wrong to use a part to define a whole. The fact that there is a religion we practice in Christianity doesn’t make Christianity a religion any more than having a baseball pitch in a school makes the whole school a baseball pitch. Now, if there is a pure religion then there are impure religions. If there is an undefiled religion then there are defiled religions. We equally see the definition of impure and defiled religion in 2Timothy 3:5 “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” False religion has two dimensions. The first is man’s effort to reach God when God has already reached out to man, that is, not accepting God’s solution – Jesus Christ. And so they have various methods, traditions, and figures (idols and other stuff) which they believe they could use as a medium in their efforts to reach that ‘unknown God’ somewhere. This is found among the unsaved people of the world. The second dimension of false religion is found among nominal Christians. They have the form of godliness but deny the power thereof. These can pray but never expect God to actually answer, they pray as a form of ritual. They go to Church just because they are ‘supposed’ to go to Church, they don’t really expect anything. They lack the influence of the Holy Spirit in their lives. This dimension deals with stubborn ignorance. Apostle Paul, by the Spirit, describes this in Col. 2:20-23.
So then, what is Christianity if it is not a religion? Well, no-one can really understand why Christianity is not a religion until they first understand what Christianity really is. Christianity is Christ Himself, living and expressing Himself on earth through a surrendered man (or woman). Christianity is defined explicitly in Galatians 2:20 “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” When you come to Christ you cease to exist, it is now Christ living and expressing Himself in and through you because God wants more Christ-like sons on the earth, Jesus Christ being the pattern-Son (See Romans 8:29). Whenever you think of Christianity, the question you must always ask yourself is why did Jesus come? For what purpose? Why was it important that He came? Jesus didn’t come and die for the world just to give the world another religion or a superior one – the world already had a lot of them. Jesus didn’t only bring reality as the answer to the endless search of man for God but He Himself was and is The Reality (John 1:17; John 14:6). The word ‘truth’ in those Scriptures actually means ‘reality’. If Jesus came as God’s answer to humanity’s search for the true and living God through religion, then He must have come with something superior to religion. That’s why whenever anyone gets born again the search ends – he’s found the reality. Understand that every man born into this world is naturally in search of reality. That’s the reason for philosophy, science, religion etc. These are man’s way of searching for reality. You can study for yourself to see how Apostle Paul handled the subject of religion in Acts 17:16-34.
Christianity is not a religion. It is not, has never been and would never be a religion. The Bible is not a religious book; it’s the Book of Reality. Christianity is not a religion; it’s a living relationship with the Living God – the sole Creator of Heaven and earth. Religion has never saved anyone! Religion has never imparted eternal life to any soul but Christ came to save the world and to give men eternal life. Praise God! According to the Bible, religion is what we do and not what we are. As we, Christians, practice the pure and undefiled religion we must always remember that our focus is Christ Himself!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-59143219758710305372013-08-08T15:26:00.001-07:002013-08-08T15:26:24.286-07:00MOMENTUM<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDfTqc0X8of4twqgkt0ojIYSV3Y4EMIdesxRk9BlUUS1Fl1xfE_0dD_5T2pl1MA0l4GQgX5Khp6ayTdoZatP90cg9g-7pVSyctVd1HaB8h5jEtu00iNCIxnJOgCDUiuZ2y9TPW7GlcRvw1/s1600/Momentum.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDfTqc0X8of4twqgkt0ojIYSV3Y4EMIdesxRk9BlUUS1Fl1xfE_0dD_5T2pl1MA0l4GQgX5Khp6ayTdoZatP90cg9g-7pVSyctVd1HaB8h5jEtu00iNCIxnJOgCDUiuZ2y9TPW7GlcRvw1/s320/Momentum.jpg" /></a></div>With the passing on of Dr. T.L. Osborn, Oral Roberts, Kenneth E. Hagin and the likes, I’ve been compelled to observe the trend of the Christian faith and to ask what Christianity would be like in the next 50 years from now should the Lord tarry. Closely observing the up-coming generation, there’s so much to say. When you study the Scriptures carefully you’d discover that God has always been interested in posterity. Whatever God does, He doesn’t just do for a generation, but wants it passed on to the next generation and to the next and to the next and to the next onward. His works are eternal. His dealings with men are also eternal. He’s indeed the King Eternal. Praise God! God always sees things differently from the way men see them. For instance, when Esau and Jacob were still in their mother’s womb God said to Rebekah “...Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels;...” (Gen. 25:23). He spoke of the children as nations. Men look at people as just individuals but when God sees a man, He sees a nation; He sees a generation and generations unborn. And that is why His dealings with men many a times could be misunderstood. Men only know about the here and now but God is Omniscient, He sees the mega picture. Praise God!
God’s dealings with men are progressive. Many things that seem to be new to our generation had long started as a seed in a previous generation. And many things the Lord is doing today among us are just seeds for future generations. It is very important we get this right. You see, if we must really walk with God effectively we must upgrade our minds to become generation-thinkers because that’s how He thinks and two cannot walk together except they be in agreement (Amos 3:3). This is the reason we can’t go far in God with the ‘me and mine’ kind of thinking. Therefore, understanding the progressive workings of God among men helps us see our roles in sustaining God’s purposes in and through us. For instance, we see these progressive workings of God between the Moses and Joshua generations. In Moses’ generation, the sea had to be divided before the Israelites could cross over (the sense realm) while in Joshua’s generation, the priests had to first stepped into the water before the sea was parted (Faith realm). In Moses’ generation they ate manna & Quail (Babes) but in Joshua’s generation manna ceased, they sowed and harvested (Maturity). Moses’ generation was a civilian generation while Joshua’s generation was a Militant generation. Moses’ generation describes the infant Church while Joshua’s generation describes the matured Church. This is very instructive! Today, we are a New Generation. A New Breed. A New Specie of God’s creation (2Cor.5:17). 1Peter 2:9 says “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people;...” The Moses and Joshua generations were only types and shadows but we have come into the real thing. Praise God!
However, it takes spiritual momentum for these progressive workings to be passed on from one generation to the other. What is Momentum? Momentum is strength or force gained by motion. Something that is preserved alive for a long time. That means for us to preserve alive (not dead) and transfer what the Lord is doing in and through us in this generation to the next generation, we must be actively in motion in order to maintain the force of these dealings. The best picture that comes to mind is the relay race – that simply describes momentum! We don’t have to hand down dead things to up-coming generations as has been the case for generations. I don’t really know why, but God has ordained it that many of the things that must be passed on to future generations are at the mercy of men like you and me, not angels or even Himself. He has ordained it so! In the Book of Judges we read of a generation of Israelites that did not know a thing about the God of Israel. What happened? How did that come about? A generation had broken the link! (Judges 2:7,10).
A while ago, while listening to Bill Johnson, I was so stirred by his emphasis that revival was never meant to die off but to be sustained and passed on to the next generation, but unfortunately, most of the revivals we’ve experienced end up in the tomb because they lacked momentum. They are not sustained for several reasons but all point to ignorance or selfishness. God meant whatever He does on earth to outlast generations. He wants His works to be passed on from one generation to another. Revivals where never meant to cease. Every new outpouring of the Holy Spirit ought to be built on the previous ones because the Lord is building up His Church and every level is important in it. Ignorance of this truth has, possibly, done more harm to the Church than any other thing. Take the Holiness and Prosperity movements for instance. The Holiness movement preceded the Prosperity movement. But when the Prosperity movement came, instead of the Church to build it on the existing Holiness movement, it seemed to replace it. But both are so vital to the purposes of God here on earth. Actually, movements are about the Holy Spirit awakening the Church to vital truths that have been neglected or haven’t been properly emphasized by the saints. And it is sometimes a reawakening. This doesn’t mean we build camps where the Lord intends for us to just walk through. One of the things that have weakened momentums is selfishness. Take a look at this: Prophet Isaiah had just declared God’s Judgement on King Hezekiah’s household in the future because of King Hezekiah’s error, and this is what King Hezekiah has to say: “... Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. He said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days.” (See Isaiah 39:6-8).
The Psalmist prayed a heartfelt prayer that cannot be overlooked, not even for a moment. In Psalm 71:17-18 he prayed: “O God, thou hast taught me from my youth: and hitherto have I declared thy wondrous works. Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, forsake me not; until I have shewed thy strength unto this generation, and thy power to every one that is to come.” Also in Psalm 145:4, he declares: “One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.” . Prov.13:22 tells us “A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children's children:...” Inheritance here doesn’t just refer to physical things, but to eternal virtues and verities. It’s time we began asking ourselves what we are handing down or transferring to the up-coming generations because we shall be asked! Grace!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-38054325906653050102013-07-03T09:23:00.001-07:002013-07-03T09:23:47.927-07:00FAITHFULNESS<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglijJt9AosizBw0Zx8C7DiHzqMuuJIce5WpYtso6iz8R9wfpHKVjwzC3g8NJkiQbYlT_5af-AleCO_j_9EiSz3p3AcJ6F5qwgARnNbobakebC8JQHLLSDQcw8hwnAiwJMd1FWfpkCgPpRF/s618/Faithfulness.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglijJt9AosizBw0Zx8C7DiHzqMuuJIce5WpYtso6iz8R9wfpHKVjwzC3g8NJkiQbYlT_5af-AleCO_j_9EiSz3p3AcJ6F5qwgARnNbobakebC8JQHLLSDQcw8hwnAiwJMd1FWfpkCgPpRF/s618/Faithfulness.jpg" /></a>As the coming of the Lord draws nearer, there seems to be a continuous need for faithful men and women. The Lord continues to look for faithful men (permit me to use ‘men’ in the generic) to whom He could entrust His eternal purposes. He’s looking for men who are consistent not only because of, but also in spite of whatever happens. However, it appears that the level of faithfulness and commitment to the high calling in Christ keeps deteriorating by the day. We seem to be more committed to our desires than to the Lord’s desire. Our prayers are focused on what we want. Our time is spent in carrying out our activities while God takes the leftovers. Of course, we can always come up with several excuses why we do so. But I think these all have to do with our value system. It has to do with what we have defined to be more valuable and deserving of our pursuit in life. Many have been overcome by the need to respond to the pressures or pleasures of this world. I think from time to time we need to revisit 2Timothy 3:1-5. It’s so instructive, especially in these times.
The need for faithful men keeps increasing all over the world because the rate of unfaithfulness among men keeps increasing also. It is so interesting to know that not only the Lord Jesus Christ is searching for faithful men; men are also on the lookout for faithful men everywhere. I am yet to see a company that is searching for unfaithful men to employ. No one dares that. Why? Because unfaithful men can’t keep things. They can’t hold things together. Things just fall off their hands. They are slack, inconsistent and undependable. There seems to be shortage in the availability of faithful men. Hysterically, even unfaithful men are searching for faithful men. Sounds funny, doesn’t it?
In His message to the angel of the Church in Smyrna, the Lord Jesus had this to say: “...be thou faithful unto death,” (Rev. 2:10). I believe the Master is saying these same words to the Church today. The Lord is serious about faithfulness. One phrase the Lord Jesus never gets tired of telling you and me today is: “Be Faithful.” Why? Because there can be no completion of any work without faithfulness. Faithfulness is the reason a house is built and completed. The labourer puts one block upon the other and before you know it, it’s a house! It’s the same with the Christian. As we remain faithful to Jesus and the Heavenly Vision, we are being built up one step at a time. The moment we stop being faithful it’s like removing the previously laid blocks to start afresh. Hence, the need for faithfulness – consistency. When we are unfaithful we harm ourselves. With time God replaces unfaithful men. His work must prosper!
Faithfulness means consistency in doing a particular thing. In another sense, faithfulness also means to be full of faith! Faithfulness doesn’t just happen to us. Remember, it’s one of the content of the fruit of the spirit. Every Born Again Believer has faithfulness in his or her spirit. But just like every other fruit it must be cultivated. It’s just like the fruit of love. Romans 5:5 tells us that the love of God has been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit but still not every believer is walking in love today. Just as walking in love is a decision, being faithful is also a decision. The Master asks us to be faithful because we can be. Praise God! A faithful man must have first made a decision and then the action follows. “A faithful man shall abound [stay] with blessings” (Prov.28:20). Blessings would not destroy a faithful man. He would know how to manage the blessed life. Sometimes success destroys people more than failure does because so many people don’t know how to manage success. It takes more to manage success than it takes to manage failure.
Every Christian is both a son and a servant of God. I’ve heard a number of preachers say that we are not servants but sons of God. I even believed that and functioned with it for a while. But when you carefully study the Scriptures you’d discover that we are both. In relationship we are sons but in service we are servants. That is not a demotion but a promotion. It’s a privilege to be a servant of the Most High God. The worth of every servant is determined by who his master is. A servant is simply one who serves. Let’s keep it simple. The word ‘minister’ means servant. To administer means to serve. We must be very careful not to read things into Scriptures. We must let the Scriptures define things for us! The purpose of Christian maturity is to take up Kingdom responsibilities and to be faithful, dependable, excellent and effective at it! You don’t treat the Lord’s work with slackness. God’s work deserves the best – better than we give to our businesses. Our God is excellent and He deserves our best! Faithfulness is a requirement in serving the Lord!
The Lord Jesus Christ is the ultimate standard and definition of everything good and perfect. We see the height of faithfulness in Him: “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.” (Hebrews 13:8). Praise God He’s still the same Jesus! Today you’re still saved (if you are born again) because Jesus Christ is still the same today! Being the same doesn’t mean not making improvements. Jesus is perfect and doesn’t need improvement but we need improvements. However, being the same means consistency and advancement in doing the right thing. The Lord only commits things into the hands of faithful men. In serving the Lord, faithfulness is a requirement (1Cor. 4:2). Apostle Paul said to Timothy: “And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.” (2Tim.2:2). When you read the words of Jesus in Matthew 25:14-30 you’d see that it’s more about faithfulness than it is about the volume of work done. God always rewards faithfulness.
So how do we stay faithful before the Lord? Apostle Paul by the Holy Spirit tells us. We see that in his instruction to Timothy: “That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us.” (2 Tim 1:14). Commit yourself and your service to the Kingdom totally to the Holy Spirit and yield to Him always. You must recognize the place of the Holy Spirit in your life daily if you must live faithfully before the Lord. The Word of God tells us “...Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.” (Zech.4:6). That’s it. So, BE FAITHFUL!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-43616770506087982862013-06-27T15:03:00.000-07:002013-06-27T15:03:00.124-07:00NO LIMITS WITH GOD<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_X_EKtz6atLZiAeyilsIqK7_vt34PDxr0AxH2TNmYqTNn7O2fH5oT8tjs2Uck90QyaoJu-W_MpbGpeFfbJXrEocH_Msvy1bAF5McKVwDlphTZVEycWy47_AskYCeWFXWus_Lp4SBh9I05/s200/No+Limits.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_X_EKtz6atLZiAeyilsIqK7_vt34PDxr0AxH2TNmYqTNn7O2fH5oT8tjs2Uck90QyaoJu-W_MpbGpeFfbJXrEocH_Msvy1bAF5McKVwDlphTZVEycWy47_AskYCeWFXWus_Lp4SBh9I05/s200/No+Limits.jpg" /></a></div>I dare you to bring up a ‘mountain’ that faith in God cannot crush! God is God. Man is man. God is not a man that He should lie, neither the son of man that He should repent. He is capable of doing just what He says! Evangelist R.W. Schambach, of blessed memory, puts it this way: “You don’t have a problem; all you need is faith in God!” Glory to God! Humans are used to limitations. The natural man thinks limitations, impossibilities, restrictions, boundaries, I can’t, I can’t, and I can’t! It’s only natural for the human being to think like that. We even find ourselves often saying things like: “well, you know that I’m only human and so I can’t do so and so.” That’s simply just being human – it’s normal to humans! But the Lord, Jesus Christ, brought about something totally different. Speaking to His disciples – and to us by extension – in Mark 10:27, He says “...With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible.” This is so amazing! Many of us have gotten so used to this portion of Scriptures that it has become just a mere quote. Lately, the Lord challenged me to ponder on this verse again, again and again; and I was so shaken by what this stirred up in my spirit. I encourage you to do the same and see what the Lord would do in and through you.
A critical observation of the Words of the Master in Mark 10:27 bring to us something so significant. The phrases ‘with men’ and ‘with God’ are so significant here. As humans we are overcome and overwhelmed by impossibilities. Even when we get the support of other men we are still faced with the impossible because men are just so limited. We are even compelled to attach the ‘Ltd’ stuff on our company and business names. That’s how far it can go with humans. In the end the best of human is still human no matter how many humans are involved. And that is why we can’t trust in or depend on men. Many people really mean well when they promise you things but they end up disappointing you, we tag that ‘human factor’. They suddenly got to their human limits and even to them it’s a surprise that they failed you. That’s about what goes on with men. But with God it’s totally different! The Word of God tells us in Ephesians 3:20 “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,” Praise God! God is unlimited. But there’s something the Spirit wants us to understand here (Can you handle this?): If we are with men we are limited no matter how many of them are involved. But if we are with God we become unlimited too! The more of the ‘with Godness’ (please permit that) we have, the more unlimited we become here in this world! This is mind-blowing! Being with the unlimited God puts us over in life. This is not just cheap-talking, it’s the truth. It’s time we sincerely ask ourselves who we’ve been with. Amazingly, some people have been with themselves. They are or want to be self-sufficient. They feel God has failed them and they’ve encountered several disappointments from men and so have decided not to trust or depend on anyone, even God Himself. It’s so unfortunate!
So what does it mean to be with God or with men? Very simple! You are with whomever you depend or rely on. Being with in this context refers to total dependence or reliance. Being with God is the ultimate and that’s the reason this word is coming to you at this time. Who have you been with all the while? You might need to make that all important adjustment right away because it affects every aspect of your life – spirit, soul and body. This is not to say you go about doubting every human being on earth. There is a kind of [limited] trust or faith you can put on a human being that has proven himself/herself to be trustworthy (but still allow for disappointments because it’s normal with men). However, in our dealings with God we spend all our faith and lavish all our hope on Him because He’s ever faithful. I love what Numbers 23:19 says. In fact, a preacher once said this is the most important verse of the whole Bible because if this is not true we can’t believe anything else in the Bible. We can understand why he said so when we read it. It says: “God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” Friends, if this is true (and of course it is) everything else in the Bible is true!
Man started needing miracles after the fall because initially God wanted His man to live in the miraculous naturally. He wanted Adam, and every man born on earth, to have a life style of the miraculous, a culture of the miraculous. But the fall (sin) interrupted that plan and placed man in a position where he has to think of miracles as something he should expect to receive once in a while. However, the good news is that Christ also restored the culture of the miraculous during His redemptive work. Today, the New Creation can expect to live naturally in the Supernatural. But this must begin with the renewal of our minds in this regards. We must awaken to it. We must realise personally that it is true. It must come to us as a personal revelation from the Holy Spirit and we must live in the consciousness of this truth before we would begin to see the manifestation. It’s time we release our faith for this and begin to expect to manifest the miraculous power of God naturally. We must expect it to be our natural experience because we are with God – not with men!
So what is God’s limit? What is God’s maximum? What is God’s boundary? The Lord Himself tells us “Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?” (Jer.32:27). The Lord Himself said to Abraham “...Is anything too hard for the LORD?” (Gen. 18:14). The Lord Himself said to Moses “...Has the LORD'S arm been shortened? Now you shall see whether what I say will happen to you or not.” (Num.11:23). What should be our response to this? We must declare like Jeremiah: “Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You.” (Jer. 32:17). Glory to God! Can a man place a limit on God? Well, God cannot be put in a box. We cannot place a limit on Him or His Omnipotence but we can limit what He can do in and through our lives. It’s really up to us. Doubt and unbelief bring limits but faith in God, in His Word and ability to perform takes the limits off! So, take the limits off God and experience the limitless God! Blessings!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-29569863690670508962013-06-15T20:43:00.000-07:002013-06-15T20:43:09.776-07:00JESUS UNLIMITED<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCZEXRaH-IUYxdKIEujKFgBcRHfq328prGxeZDOZT6em2jn6Ksp8tVuv-RPJpAJz9Dfue8E_1glFeDMAQKPW23amQK2JIpg-gJ74axdAHZbTFvVLAmjqwS7PJktABULygPRnYbNzM3Aq9F/s1600/Jesus+Unlimited.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCZEXRaH-IUYxdKIEujKFgBcRHfq328prGxeZDOZT6em2jn6Ksp8tVuv-RPJpAJz9Dfue8E_1glFeDMAQKPW23amQK2JIpg-gJ74axdAHZbTFvVLAmjqwS7PJktABULygPRnYbNzM3Aq9F/s320/Jesus+Unlimited.jpeg" /></a></div>How much of Jesus do you really want in your life? So many Christians need just a handful, some just a litre and some others just about 20 litres (Please permit my expression. Jesus cannot be measured by such means, He’s a Person). However, there are those who need ALL of Jesus. Alvin Slaughter’s song “He’s all I need” readily comes to mind. Jesus keeps becoming all we really need till we have all of Him manifested to, in and through us. Just as the inspired Psalmist says in Psalm 42:7 “Deep calls unto deep at the noise of Your waterfalls; All Your waves and billows have gone over me.” The depth of our hunger for the Lord Jesus Christ would determine the depth of His Person and Influence we experience in our lives. It’s really up to us! How deep is your desire for the Lord Jesus Christ Himself? We live in a generation where many things are competing for the place and need of Jesus Christ in our lives. The devil wants to replace our hunger for Jesus with things that don’t even outlast our life span on earth. Years ago, I heard a preacher ask this question while teaching on prayer and it affected me so deeply and I want to ask you that very same simple question today: “If you receive all your heartfelt desires that you’ve been asking God for in prayer would you still need God?”
When Apostle Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, prayed for the Ephesians Church, he prayed “to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” (Eph. 3:19). The Holy Spirit is emphasizing something so deep here. Jesus Christ is the fullness of God! Paul’s Epistle to the Colossians further explains this. “For it pleased the Father that in Him [Christ] all the fullness should dwell, and by Him [Christ] to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him [Christ], whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.” (Col. 1:19-20). Also we see another amazing truth in chapter 2 of Colossians: “For in Him [Christ] dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him [Christ], who is the head of all principality and power.” (Col.2:9-10). Praise God! The whole idea behind the fullness of God is about experiencing the Person and Influence of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is the fullness of God!
Many Christians have been born again for so many years but have never truly met this Jesus Christ of the New Birth through fellowship. They haven’t met this God-Man who so loved us and washed us in His own blood (Rev.1:5). They know so much about religion but have never encountered The Reality Himself. My heart reaches out to such with the longings of the Holy Spirit. How He wants to reveal Jesus Christ to us! No-one on earth has experienced Jesus enough. When you think you’ve come to that place, all of a sudden you see a deeper dimension and you see how so far behind you are compared to where you’re headed. But we just keep pressing into Him because that’s the only way to get there. Jesus made a very clear statement on how to get into this fullness in the Gospel of St. John. He says “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” (John 14:21). Praise God! What commandment was Jesus talking about? He was referring to the New (love) Commandment for the New Creation which He gave them in the previous chapter (John 13:34-35). Now, did you notice the connection between Eph.3:19 and John 14:21? It’s a love deal! Walking in the Agape-love of God is the key! And what’s more? The love of God has already been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit (Rom.5:5). So all we really need to do is to yield to the Holy Spirit and as we do, He’d reveal Jesus to us. That’s why He came (John 16:14). Glory to God!
A baby Christian would want Jesus because of what he can get from Him or what He would do for him. Well, that’s alright for a start. However, the more we truly mature in Christ (I technically didn’t say the longer we are in Christ because there are many old but immature Christians. They’ve been born again for so long but still immature. It’s so unfortunate!), the more we see that the Person of Jesus is what we really want. I have used the word ‘want’ in place of ‘need’ on purpose because it’s one thing to know what you really need but it’s a higher thing to want what you really need. That’s a higher position which is brought about by maturity. So people who just know that they need Jesus may just need Him to meet their needs but people who want Jesus have seen Him to be their one and only desire. Precious Holy Spirit, please bring us to this place. We want to experience the fullness of God – Jesus Christ Himself!
The Lord Jesus Christ said “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.” (Matt.5:6). When we hunger and thirst for righteousness, our desire is for Jesus Christ Himself. The Word of God tells us that Christ has been made unto us Righteousness (1Cor.1:30). He is Righteousness personified. I’ve heard it often said that if you have Jesus you have everything. That’s so true. However, I don’t think we have really come to understand that expression. When we come to know the reality of the Person of Jesus Christ, we would begin to see that He is everything we truly desired. His fullness is the fullness of life, joy, peace, happiness, prosperity, safety, success etc. However, when we focus on these things instead of Him, we become limited in every way. It’s like putting the cart before the horse – you’re simply going no way!
In conclusion, Romans 8:29 tells us: “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.” God wants many sons (not just children) and Jesus Christ is the Son-Pattern and He wants us to look to Jesus. This should be the number 1 priority of every born again believer. We should desire what God desires for us. It is possible to have the fullness of God here on earth. If not, why did the Spirit inspired Paul to pray it for the saints? It’s time to press into the fullness of God. It’s Jesus Christ Unlimited!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-33315032026586760582013-04-15T17:37:00.001-07:002013-04-15T17:37:40.878-07:00SACRIFICE<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV2RPp9WnldIi44aOkvtBBAYPP6ycL9oUMwkItGufEQyfwiVG-usGgt4vwcPvbrmSq2sgWTbwdT7pNO3Eh01q3rsLNunDFKS4SVA69Z8AgLwHIMX0UZNTyxpt6qPFK0XXEU76lXM0M_ZZc/s1600/482656_4334418288462_516918339_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV2RPp9WnldIi44aOkvtBBAYPP6ycL9oUMwkItGufEQyfwiVG-usGgt4vwcPvbrmSq2sgWTbwdT7pNO3Eh01q3rsLNunDFKS4SVA69Z8AgLwHIMX0UZNTyxpt6qPFK0XXEU76lXM0M_ZZc/s320/482656_4334418288462_516918339_n.jpg" /></a>Whenever you see something appear so excellent, outstanding or thriving so much, just understand that sacrifices have been made to see that happen; someone has deprived himself of something – time, comfort, resources etc to see that happen. It’s always that way! Things don’t just happen by themselves. Sacrifice is the act of consciously depriving ones’ self of a given interest, pleasure or substance with the goal of benefiting someone, a people or a cause. If it is actually an act of sacrifice, then it must cost you something. We see the Lord Jesus Christ as the perfect example of this. His sacrifice is the perfect definition of the word ‘sacrifice’ by all standards. Jesus declares in John 15:13 “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.” Also in Matthew 20:28 He said “Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” (NKJ). What a declaration!
Sacrifice always precedes extraordinary progress. Sacrifice brings us to the place where we not only do something because of but in spite of the conditions. God so loved the world and made the greatest sacrifice ever to restore man to His perfect state of being and even much more. He ‘gave up’ His Only begotten Son [Jesus Christ] to see this happen. Today we’re all eternally changed because of that great sacrifice! Sacrifice doesn’t just happen, there’s always a motivation behind it – good or bad, tangible or intangible. So, what was the motive or motivation behind Jesus’ acceptance to come into the earth in human form in order to pay that awesome price for our redemption? We see that in Hebrews 12:3 “looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (NKJ). So what was the joy set before Jesus? It was the joy of the New Creation. It was the joy of seeing humanity restored to the Father and the Divine plan set in motion again. It was the joy of seeing many sons brought into glory. Praise God!
Sacrifice could be both good or bad, depending on the subject in question. On the negative note, someone might want to gain the whole world at the detriment of his own soul. And the Lord Jesus says that there is no profit in that. He says “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26). The law of sacrifice is just like the law of gravity. It’s a universal law – it works for both the saved and the unsaved alike. And unfortunately, it appears as though the world takes advantage of this principle more than the saints. The principle has always been thus: The more the martyrs the more the harvest. This is the same for every religion or cause human beings stand for. When someone dies for a cause, it breeds a harvest of unusual passion for that cause and that cause thrives. When people see that you can go any length for a particular cause, even to the point of dying for it, they pay attention to that. Sacrifices get people’s attention quickly!
In the Scripture, we have the story of how when the Israelites went out for battle and the opposing nation’s (Moab) king, seeing that they were greatly overwhelmed by the Israelites because the battle was fierce against them, sacrificed his son (who was to succeed him as king) and the Bible clearly stated “and there was a great indignation” (2King 3:27). Today, Christians shy away from making even little sacrifices for the cause of Christ. We don’t want persecutions to touch us at all. We even pray against them and if they eventually happen we begin to question God’s goodness. This has to stop! In the early Church it was so different. They expected persecutions because they knew that if this Gospel must be preached then sacrifices must be made and these sacrifices are born out of love and not out of compulsion. If we are going to win a lost world back to God then we must make sacrifices. We must deprive ourselves of something. Salvation is not just free, It is free at the expense of Someone (Jesus Christ) Who paid for it with His own precious Blood. The Gospel is absolutely free, but sacrifices have to be made to take it to the unreached places of the earth.
Today there are so many unreached mission fields in remote areas – villages, slums, rural areas etc. but we would rather crowd ourselves in the cities because of comfort, no-one wants to make sacrifices. We make excuses like: no hotels there, no good roads, no airports, no security etc. How long are we going to continue like this? If the Master must see the travail of His soul and be satisfied, then somebody must make some sacrifices! And many a times the Lord is not demanding much from us – just little adjustments here and there in our flamboyant lifestyle. When the Apostles where persecuted (harassed and flogged) for preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, they went away rejoicing that they’ve been counted worthy to suffer shame for the Name of Jesus (Acts 5:41). What manner of men were these? Paul and Barnabas were described as “men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Acts 15:25,26). Today, a lot of believers give excuses about restricted areas while we are doing nothing about the open areas. May God help us!
Let me close with this: Martin Luther King Jr., in his last speech he delivered the night before his assassination, he said “I don’t know what would happen to me now. We’ve got some difficult days ahead, but it doesn’t matter to me now because I’ve been to the mountain top, I won’t mind. Like anybody else, I would like to live a long life, longevity has its place, but I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will. And He’s allowed me to go to the mountain, and I’ve looked over and have seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the Promised Land. So I’m happy tonight. I’m not fearing any man. My eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.” Paul, the Apostle, said “But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.” (Acts 20:24, NKJ). So what are you going to do with this? Do you see the need? Act now. Grace!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-47184538941736221512013-03-14T19:20:00.000-07:002013-03-14T19:20:25.047-07:00GOOD COURAGE<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Y81jFX_pc6UT4k70nUCJpRrYtFtEcDeJ7CboEHTshgzz0yDq_50TdqeDJKQsZeGbqJAActePOZETPw3r51-WQekIeUsr5epJigbrondz8VAbb2jHcEwCmqxw_27zoFkeb3ssaVoIy2HD/s1600/Courage.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Y81jFX_pc6UT4k70nUCJpRrYtFtEcDeJ7CboEHTshgzz0yDq_50TdqeDJKQsZeGbqJAActePOZETPw3r51-WQekIeUsr5epJigbrondz8VAbb2jHcEwCmqxw_27zoFkeb3ssaVoIy2HD/s320/Courage.jpg" /></a>The English dictionary defines courage as the quality of being brave: the ability to face danger, difficulty, uncertainty, or pain without being overcome by fear or being deflected from a chosen course of action. I think this is a good picture of courage. My attention is particularly drawn to the expression without being overcome by fear or being deflected from a chosen course of action. I believe courage is not the absence of the feelings of fear but the ignoring of the feelings of fear to do what has to be done and to be undeterred by opposing circumstances. Joyce Meyer puts it this way: “do it afraid.” Courage has to do with a lot of risk-taking. Without risk, there would be no need for courage. Whatever you need courage to accomplish is spelt R.I.S.K. Is faith a risk? No. Faith is the lifestyle of the righteous ones – the New Creation in Christ (Rom.1:18-17). The more we know God intimately, the more we grow in our trust for Him, the more we can take any risk for Him knowing fully well and being persuaded that He’s with us. Praise God!
Let’s look at courage from a spiritual perspective. Courage is the act of taking a bold action inspired by an influence higher than the individual involved. Different spirits inspire people to take courageous actions or risks. But my focus is on the influence of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer in helping us take giant strides in the fulfilment of the various purposes of God for our lives. Real courage is born of the Spirit in our spirit – that daring spirit that wouldn’t turn back in spite of opposing factors. This happens when we are strengthened by the Holy Spirit in our inner man (Eph. 3:16). One of the first things the Holy Spirit helps the believer do in this regards is enabling Him build unshakable trust in the Lord. Believe me, you can’t walk with God without trust. It takes courage to step out and do what the Lord has called you to do even when people don’t believe or agree with you. It takes courage to stand alone. It takes courage to stay out of the crowd. One thing that inspires me about risk-taking is how God is so honoured by the risks we are willing to take for His sake. And He always rewards it.
In Mark 8:35, the Lord Jesus made a striking statement: “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.” In other words, the Lord is saying that taking courageous actions (or risks) for His sake and for the Gospel are the only worthy reasons. In Acts 15:26 we read a comment made about Paul and Silas. It says “men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (NKJ). Whenever I read through this text, I can’t but pause and ponder on it. What can we risk or courageously do for the Name of Christ? Have you ever thought about what would have happened if Jesus had shied away from the cross? What would have happened if Jesus had doubted the possibility of rising on the third day and so decided not to die for our sins again? I’ve found out that every man (or woman) who is doing great things for the Lord is familiar with courageous activities because the Lord always stretches us from our familiar grounds to places where we must learn to trust and depend on Him absolutely. If you must walk with God then you must get ready for adventures!
In the Scriptures, almost everywhere the word ‘courage’ is used, it is qualified with the word ‘good’. Moses says to Joshua: “Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.” (Deut.31:6). The Lord said this to Joshua after the death of Moses: “Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them. Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” (Joshua 1:6,9). Good courage. Not all courage is good courage. Courage in itself could be good or bad depending on who or what is inspiring it. If your courage is inspired by the Spirit of God, then it’s good courage but if it is inspired by the flesh or the devil, then it is bad courage. Someone could be accomplishing good things with bad courage. The philosophy “the end justifies the means” doesn’t just seem to work with God. We must always ask ourselves: “what is the motivation behind this.” Don’t waste your time and energy! You’d also observe that the words ‘courage’ and ‘fear’ are always put side by side. They are not of the same bunch – they are opposite forces! We must understand that fear is not just an emotion. Fear is an emotion inspired by a spirit – the spirit of fear (2Tim.1:7). God created man to be fearless, but fear came with the fall. Adam then started becoming (unhealthily) afraid of God, the animals, nature and other things he was given dominion over. Today the world is full of fears – fear control a lot of decisions and actions – especially the fear of death and the unknown. This should be different with the New Man in Christ. Understand, just as faith creates the right atmosphere for the Holy Spirit to operate, fear creates the right atmosphere for the devil to work effectively. We must therefore, resist fear anytime it shows up.
Let our courageous actions aim solely at honouring the Lord. I remember few years ago when I started out in ministry. One day, I was once talking with my good friend, Emma, when I confidently said to him (as though I was making an announcement to the world) “I am not afraid of making mistakes! I trust the Holy Spirit’s leading and even if I miss it I know He would help me out!” Friends, I never knew the power of those words until I got a little deeper into Kingdom service and I noticed how the Holy Spirit reminds me of those words from time to time and uses them to inspire me to venture new, uncommon and unusual things for the Lord. Unknown to me, courage to venture anything was birthed in me that very day. The Bible is full of men and women of courage; in fact, Hebrews 11 chronicles most of these courageous acts. Now the spotlight is on you. What are you going to courageously stand for in this generation? The Lord needs more believers demonstrating the courage of the Spirit in these days, men who would step out and stand out no matter what it takes. It all begins with knowing that you have nothing to lose but everything to gain. Be of good courage!David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1082970789308822570.post-42308445861573016992013-02-10T10:53:00.000-08:002013-02-10T10:53:52.384-08:00THE GREATER GLORY<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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If you are reading this article right now, I want you to know that it’s not by chance. The Lord ordered your steps rightly. The Lord is getting us ready for an unprecedented manifestation of His glory, such a manifestation never seen before since Church history. This year will usher in this greater manifestation. Why this article? You see, the knowledge of the glory of God always precedes the manifestation of the glory of God. Habakkuk 2:14 clearly tells us prophetically that “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” O I love this! The knowledge always comes to us first because without the knowledge we wouldn’t understand the manifestation. Without the knowledge we wouldn’t know how to handle or function in the light of the manifestation. The knowledge comes to help us understand the purpose of the manifestation so that we can take good advantage of it.
There are different levels of the manifestations of the glory of God. Reading through the Old Testament, we see that God manifested Himself in different measures at different times. There was a level of glory the Old Covenant folks could handle and there were levels of glory they couldn’t handle considering their unredeemed state. The Lord didn’t allow them have access to these higher levels of glory because they weren’t ready for them. Take Moses for instance. In Exodus 33, when Moses pleaded with the Lord, asking the Lord to show him His glory, the Lord said this to him “And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy. And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live. And the LORD said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock: And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by: And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen.” (Exodus 33:19-23). There are certain things we must observe from this Scripture. First, we see that the goodness of God is not the glory of God. Now the goodness is very good and sometimes comes as the result of the manifestation of the glory, but there’s much more. A lot of believers are satisfied with the goodness and have remained at that level. I call that cheap satisfaction. We also see that the glory of God is the face of God, meaning that the glory of God is God Himself – His identity, it’s all that He is and has. His very essence! But then, if Moses had seen the fullness of that glory He would have dropped dead. And so the manifestation of God’s glory to Moses was limited.
However, we, the New Creation, have the fullness of the glory of God in the Person of Christ! Colossians 1:26,27 tells us “Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:” Today the glory lives in every saints in the Person of Christ! Now, see this: “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of CHRIST, WHO IS THE IMAGE OF GOD, should shine unto them…For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of THE GLORY OF GOD IN THE FACE OF JESUS CHRIST.” (2 Corinthian 4:4,6). Two things here: First, Christ is the image of God (Hebrews 1:1-3). Secondly, the glory of God is in the face of Jesus Christ. Remember, Jesus Christ is God-made-flesh. This means that the face of God which is the glory of God, which Moses couldn’t look upon else he died has now been revealed to us, the New Creations, in the Person of Christ. Question: How do we now behold His face? Answer: By looking into the Word. Jesus Christ is the Word (John 1:1,14). 2 Corinthians 3:18 tells us “But we all, with open face [remember, Moses’ face had to be covered. But we see with open (uncover) face but are not dead rather are changed from one level of glory to another!] beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” Praise God! So whenever you look into the Word you are looking into the face of Jesus Christ (the glory of God) and as you do, something tangible is happening to you – You are being changed from one level of glory to a greater one! And the ultimate glory is that which we would experience when we meet with Jesus Christ face to face (1Pet.5:1). Hallelujah!
In January, when the Lord spoke to me about this, I could barely contain myself. And the Lord emphatically said that this greater manifestation was going to start this year – 2013! Saints, the day has dawned upon us when we shall see a higher version of the Book of Acts happen. Acts 19:11,12 tells us “And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul: So that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them.” You see, the book of Acts of the Apostles is the account of the Church at infancy. But the Church has come of age. Wigglesworth rightly said, the book of Acts of the Apostles was written because the Apostles acted. We must step out with the full consciousness of the glory of God upon us and present the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ with power! We must take the intuitive. It’s time to spread the glory around. The glory of God is God Himself in manifestation. I’m talking about a moment where even babes in Christ would move from street to street manifesting the glory everywhere, being witnesses of the living Jesus! I believe in the prophecy: “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” The prophetic Word in Haggai 2:6-9 tells us that God will shake the nations with His glory in an unprecedented way and will fill His present day house (us) with His glory and would even prosper us financially in a big way so that we can take the Gospel to the ends of the earth (Zechariah 1:17). The manifestation of the glory would affect the Church financially also. Never forget: The purpose of the greater glory is to bring in a greater harvest of souls into the Kingdom. Get ready for the glory invasion!
David Okoyehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03736504055666525108noreply@blogger.com0