Will You Stand?

Will You Stand?

Revelation 13:16-18, 2 Tim 3:1

Apostle Paul said in 2Timothy 3:1 that in the last days perilous times shall come. The Living Translation of the Bible paraphrased that as saying in the last days it will be difficult to be a Christian.

We shouldn't forget the activities of the Anti-Christ regime which will hinder economic activities of those who won't worship the image of the evil beast or receive the evil mark on their foreheads particularly Christians.

We shouldn't also forget that the spirit of the anti-Christ is already working in the world manifesting in all manners of hatred, persecutions and restrictions to Christians in economic and social terms. 1John 4:3

One wonders why you hardly find any civil society that would stand to defend the rights to practice Christianity and to uphold her beliefs even if they aren't acceptable by all...but almost every civil society particularly in the West live on the sentiments that fight Christians values.

For instance homosexuals seek for a right to be married but a Christian marriage counsellor for instance doesn't have a right not to attend to them based on his beliefs.

It is also an issue in the educational system to put evolution as the cause of existence while creationism and the theory of intelligent design have no right to be heard at all in schools.

Honestly speaking, These worldy stances aren't surprising to me. It is already a perverse and crooked world that has no place for God. The bible clearly speaks of the god of this world who I believe is the devil. 2Corinthians 4:4

What bothers me is if the Christian man or woman would keep being Christian in the real meaning of it in the face of all the hardship reserved for him and her by a world governed by a Satan god.

Will you stand?

The world is drifting to that point where everyone will depend only on what Satan can control. Satan rules this world by the power of money and the economy. And on his final onslaught, the mark of the beast will target the economies of the world to make it segrational against those who won't abide by his rules.

And so the eyes of the Christian is being taken gradually and subtly away from looking on the supernatural to focusing on the physical. Christians are trusting more and more in money than in God. And it's a lure of the devil to get us on a turf where it'll be difficult to resist him at his final onslaught.

Apostle Paul prophesied the falling away of Christians 2Thessalonians 2:3 and I'm sure the falling away will be more in the heart and in our belief system than in the physical. It will be more in our doctrines, values and beliefs than in churches closing down or people publicly denouncing Christianity. And we need to know this to be prepared as not to fall away. Falling away would mean drifting in focus from God to man, from heaven to earth and from real faith to works...

For instance, we speak of heaven on earth but thinking deeply, we should ask if there's anything on earth in this present world that would replace or compare to heaven in it's real sense? Wouldn't the devil prefer we focus on the earth rather than heaven? This is one of those things Christians should be wary of...otherwise we'll seek earthly things and forget the real heaven.
Colossians 3:1 says we should set our affection on things above and not on earthly things...

Yes, Jesus said we should pray God's will be done on earth as it is in heaven. The question is if God would want to replace the earth with heaven. Of course not, He meant that what God desires for the earth would come to pass as what He desires for heaven comes to pass in heaven...there's the glory of heaven and the glory of the earth and one is greater than the other.

The falling away will be for those who cannot stand the difficulties Satan will throw on the economic activities of Christians. When the fake prosperity message will fail and the real one which depends on the truth of Christ will be the only saving grace to survive, at that time, those who don't have the truth may not be able to stand. Are you prepared?

Then true prosperity won't be measured by the cars you drive and their brands, it won't be by how much money you have either in banks or in your vaults and in how many currencies they are, prosperity in those days won't be by where you live either it's in the silicon valley, Banana islands or Eko Atlantic city, prosperity in those days won't be by the kind of job you do or the connections you have because you won't be able to access any of these without taking the mark...

Then if you have learnt to live by the true faith, happy are you. Then your joy will be full if you understand the true prosperity that fed millions with manna and prevented them from being feeble nor their clothes and shoes wearing out 40 years in the wilderness.

That'll be the day of war and only the strong in faith and in truth will stand... and don't be deceived, those days are here!

Will you stand...?

As at today in Nigeria, only a handful have access to power or fuel and transportation and livelihood costs have skyrocketed and that got me thinking about the spirit of the anti-Christ and its operations and I wonder how many will stand on that day and not compromise their Christian conviction to remain standing and live by faith in Christ and not take the mark...

The mark may not be physical, but a choice to make either to relieve the economic pain that'll be targeted at believers in Christ by bowing to the dictates of satan or refusing to compromise and live by faith... this is technically trending already...

Will you stand?

Good morning!

Join a remnant as we discuss these things and more

@

The Bible Class, TBC
Non Denominational Bible Discussion Class

This Thursday, 6:00pm

@
83 Adeniyi Jones Avenue
Opposite Trevo Office
2nd Floor
Ikeja Lagos

Come with friends and be ready to share your thoughts with the house.

Visit
www.evansademanuel.blogspot.com

I pray God empowers you more and more to prosper truly. I pray He causes His face to shine upon you and give you peace. I pray He eases your pain and heal your hurts, binding up broken heart and restoring hope to you today in Jesus name. Amen

When Was Christ in Prison?

When Was Christ in Prison?

[My Offline Bible] Romans 5
7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. 8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

[My Offline Bible] Matthew 25
34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: 36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. 37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? 38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? 39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? 40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

[My Offline Bible] Isaiah 49
24 Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive delivered? 25 But thus saith the LORD, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered: for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children.

Visiting the sick is considered noble, even visiting those in prison for no just cause can be a ministry one would do gladly, I did that not too long ago but was Jesus was speaking about here to me is more than that...He wasn't just speaking about those falsely accused, or under malicious oppression of the powers that be, but even those criminals who were being punished for what they did.

That's the hard part. One can die for a friend or a person under unjustified oppression, it only becomes difficult if such a person 'deserves' what he's going through.

But there lies the Christian nobility. We aren't called to just care for the righteous but to care also for the unrighteous. We aren't called to love just those who love us but also those who hate us and would even hurt us...

Well, you don't have to go to prison before you visit 'criminals' just as you don't have to do it to Christ Himself for Him to see it as done to Him, just watch how you handle the situations in your relationships...

We don't want to do good, particularly when we feel the one to receive doesn't deserve it. We don't want to help just because the one to receive it caused the problem for himself or herself...every time we refused to do good because of the fault of the other person we betray our Christian conviction and it is to Christ we did that.

The one in error is always an opportunity for others to demonstrate the spirit of Christ. Christ doesn't just care for the good, he cares also for the bad. He doesn't care only for those who can pay back, but much more for those who can't pay back...He has not dealt with us according to our strength or weaknesses but according to His love. Waiting for a perfect man to do good to is being hypocritical and insincere and if you eventually 'find' one, you have just betrayed a bias within.

The lawful captive too should be delivered, he may not deserve it but the love of God covers for him...and if we don't deliver such for the legality of his punishment, Christ will ask it of us someday.

Whatever we do, even when we judge and condemn others and deal with them in like manners we do it to Christ!

It's a big lesson for us all to learn!

Good morning!

Visit
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Join other believers in Bible discussions...

@
The Bible Class, TBC
Non Denominational Bible Discussion Class

83 Adeniyi Jones Avenue
Ikeja, Lagos

2nd & 4th Thursdays of the Month
You'll be glad you did...

The Church's Responsibility towards Societal Morality

The Church's Responsibility towards Societal Morality

[My Offline Bible] Malachi 2
7 For the priest's lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth: for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts.

In a discussion with the family doctor yesterday, Nigerian politics came to fore as usual with so many discussions these days.

The present scenario here in Nigeria projects a chronic fuel scarcity and an extremely low power generation in a matrimonial romance causing unprecedented hardship for a most resilient, will-broken and  passive populace in a land that flows with milk and honey inflicted by a greedy cabal in connivance with a vengeful outgoing administration.

Of course, the result is increasing prices of consumer products as the situation lasts in an economy that rolls on voodoo databases and imaginary economic reforms.

The discussion had drifted to how we got here and what to do to move away. Of course, we spoke of corruption and that's the common enemy. The general unconstitutional corruption and the legalized and the constitutional ones that, for an example, pays quite a non proportional percentage to just an arm of government in the National Assembly.

But why will it be difficult slashing the amount a senator earns constitutionally? The man had said what we all know; the expenses and the demand people place on the senators. Once they return to their constituencies, the visitors start coming and each must go with a financial package: from all the traditional rulers in the communities to the touts at the taxi parks even religious bodies aren't left out . How can anyone sustain on a regular wages that way?

This shows the state of the mind of the average member of our society.
While the fuel importing cabal rages on, the people too want free moneys and we are powered on by greed and so corruption has a root that mere legislation and enforcement will find difficult to handle.

Where does the morality of such a society come from? In those days, the African folklore communicated morality and generally accepted norms. It taught the virtues of modesty, hardwork, generosity, love and so on and the evil of greed, covetousness, hatred, laziness and such negative traits and it worked even without a constitution and elaborate law making and enforcement systems sucking the economic power of the communities.

Then the churches and the likes took over. Today, hardly do parents do anything in moral instructions particularly when they themselves are morally bankrupt. The schools too aren't better.

Rather our society receives a subliminal message that eulogizes and worships riches and wealth even if the root is rotten. The definitions of success and riches are warped and self seeking as defined by out drama and music videos made by the majority in the entertainment industry who had no place for morality or decency.

Where is the church in all these? Do we have any responsibility towards our society in this regard? Of course!

Every pedestrian knows that it's a shame for pastors to be caught doing what's wrong our society hasn't gotten to that point where it's expected of pastors to do as they like but we are gradually getting there.

We are gradually getting to that point as a church where everything that makes us different from non-believers is fast disappearing. Our mentality about marriage, sex, riches, charity, chastity, modesty and so on have become the same and lifestyles have actually merged. Today, everybody is born again and everyone has a pastor, even criminals have special pastors who keep vigils and fastings for them.

This has brought the church to its knees in irrelevance. If we ask if the society is feeling the church, the answer will be yes and no. Yes, in the sense that the noise is bigger from the church these days and no, because the impact on societal lifestyles has no commensurate effect.

Yet there's no other entity entirely burdened with the responsibility of moral moulding. That responsibility can't be absolved to schools, schools' primary role is to teach knowledge, the television is to disseminate information and entertain, and not primarily to mould character.

The church on the other hand isn't there to entertain though that's becoming more and more the preoccupation, neither is it primarily saddled with dissemination of information but that too is already taking a big share in church activities meanwhile that which the church should primarily give to the society in being the conscience and the moral teacher is lacking.

The definition of good and bad, the definition of success and riches, the cry for fairness and justice, charity and responsibility to the poor and the weak are things the church owes the society.

We have no one to push these responsibilities to. In such a corrupt society as ours, the church must tell the citizens how to be modest, hardworking and how to live within ones means without being ashamed or being envious of the corrupt rather than allowing the abomination of desolation in mammon to sit at holy of holies...

The church must redefine success and being rich and separate true prosperity from greed and covetousness.

The church must arise and fight poverty but fight corruption and covetousness much more. To preach a prosperity message that appeals only to the greed centre of the flesh is to encourage people to take more and more of what doesn't belong to them thereby causing more and more poverty amongst the weak in the society and increasing criminality.

In this, the church must arise, otherwise she might not be spared the corruption and decadence reducing everything to nothing and sending everything back to the earth.

Only doing the will of God on the earth as it is in heaven can save the church from the decay sweeping off everything corruptible.

It's time we stood for what's good and righteous! Good morning! 

The Forgiveness in Christ

The Forgiveness in Christ

Understanding the gospel in its simplicity, it should be the best news anyone could ever hear. It is goodnews to every one who have ever sinned.

One major point in the body of the message is that God has forgiven the sin of mankind and He is no longer imputing people's sin unto them.

The Lamb of God has taken away the sin of the whole world...

[My Offline Bible] John 1
14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. 29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

[My Offline Bible] 2 Corinthians 5
19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

[My Offline Bible] Luke 24
46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: 47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

[My Offline Bible] Matthew 26
27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; 28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

[My Offline Bible] Acts 26
17 Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, 18 To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.

The problem is that people don't want to turn. Turning from darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God.

People don't want to believe that the blood of Jesus is all that's needed for them to receive the forgiveness that's in Christ.

But can we enjoy what we don't believe in?
The problem with many is that they want forgiveness but aren't ready to leave their sins. Repentance and forgiveness go hand in hand. When you change your mind concerning sin, and you are ready to receive the grace to stop sinning, forgiveness will be available just for the asking. You won't need to pay any price outside of the blood already paid so long the heart is right...

The grace of God for forgiveness and dominion over sin works with a heart tired of sinning, one that hates unrighteousness, unholiness, iniquity and trespasses.

A heart that loves sinning, that believes holiness is impossible, who believes he can make up for his sin by himself, who believes in some other ways to accessing forgiveness rather than the blood shed for that purpose may never find forgiveness or remission of sin.

It is an unrepentant heart that sees sin as a useful and legitimate tool to dealing with life's issues and getting by in life...repentance is not just a matter of not committing sin...it is a state of the heart towards the concept of sin...the unrepentant heart still keeps and cuddles sin with secret love to be used as occasion permits...such deprives self from receiving the forgiveness provided!

The gospel is simple. Do you want your sin to be forgiven? Do you want to be eased of the burden and the guilt of sin? There's forgiveness in Jesus and if you are tired of sinning, turn to Jesus and the grace for holiness shall be released...

If you will learn Christ and follow His Word in sincerity and in truth, His Word will make a path for your feet and lead you into the way of peace and grace...the truth in Christ will make anyone free from sin who sincerely seeks to be free...

To love sin and to actively defend it as inevitable is to make the grace for victory over sin inaccessible...until a person repents of that stance such can't enjoy the forgiveness available in Christ Jesus as God wants!

Good morning!

Join us@

The Bible Class, TBC
Non Denominational Bible Discussion Class

This Thursday 6:00pm

83 Adeniyi Jones Avenue
Opposite Trevo
Ikeja Lagos

It's a day of questions and answers...

Come with interesting and relevant questions... and be ready for an exciting time!

Disciple's Freedom

Discipleship Freedom

[My Offline Bible] John 8
31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; 32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

The process is simple really. If you would be the disciple of Jesus, the way isn't to get the power, the way is to get into His Word and continue therein. In continuing you will discover the truth because He had said His word is truth...the truth discovered will make free.

The phrase 'make free' suggests that a process is involved. Meaning this freedom doesn't happen spontaneously, the scripture didn't say 'The truth shall set you free'...'set free' connotes opening a door or opening a lock...but to 'make free' connotes a process or a working on the person.

Therefore, to make free is to work on the person who is bound and not just undoing what bound him.

To make free suggests that coming to Christ alone doesn't perfect freedom. Coming to Christ is delivering from the authority and power of darkness and translating into the Kingdom of God's dear Son.

But now in the kingdom, the carry over slavery mentality would need to be exorcised and cast out for a disciple in deed to come forth.

Ignorance of the truth in Christ keeps a believer perpetually in bondage. Religious bondage can be as equally terrible as spiritual bondage and until the believer submits to the indepth knowledge of the truth in Christ, he remains unable to attain to the spiritual level God intended for him.

In a world where people love to keep others bound and dependent, the best weapon becomes that of ignorance and secrecy.

Truth anywhere makes free, and so to keep people perpetually bound ignorance is key.

Ignorance is used to perpetuate fear and fear completes the cycle of bondage. The scripture says
[My Offline Bible] Romans 8
15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.

[My Offline Bible] Hebrews 2
15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

Fear has torment. And the fear of man brings one to a snare. [My Offline Bible] Proverbs 29
25 The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.

Knowledge of Christ and of the truth that's in Him boosts our faith in Him and breaks the snare men have over us through the fear that ignorance brings upon us...

Whenever fear overcomes a man, it enslaves the man and such men can hardly be disciples of Christ, especially if something or someone else is taking advantage of that fear to enforce slavery through ignorance, secrecy, insincerity and lies.

The way out is the way of the knowledge of the word of God that builds faith and trust in God and casts out the fear of man. If a man wouldn't trust God to be a disciple, he'll surely be a servant of men through fear and ignorance.

That's why knowledge is kept away from men by those who hold them captive. Secrecy is the chain that binds, insincerity and lies are the locks that keep in bondage; these are the strategies that are used to keep people perpetually subjugated... be it in social, economical, political, religious or academic cycles...

But Christ has given the answer. If you must be free, you'll need to continue in His Word purposefully...there, knowledge will come and work on you and make you free...such freedom cast out fear being based on knowledge!

So what would you do? Continue in His Word, break free from lies and seek the truth in Christ's Word...the snare will break and you'll be free to be a disciple in deed....

Good morning!

Visit with us this

Thursday, 14th May 2015
6:00pm
@
The Bible Class, TBC
Non Denominational Bible Discussion Class

83 Adeniyi Jones Avenue
Opposite Trevo office
Ikeja

Visit
www.evansademanuel.blogspot.com

Continue in His Word unto your freedom!

The Scornful and The Scoffers

The Scornful and The Scoffers

[My Offline Bible] Psalms 1
1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. 3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. 4 The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. 5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. 6 For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

When a man falters at the place of meditation on God's Word, he joins the train of ungodly counsels, when he would not give himself totally to the Word, he would stand in the way of sinners, and eventually become enthroned as a scorner!

He would miss the chance of being planted by the rivers of water. He starves his roots of nutrients, deprives his leaves of color and robs his seasons of fruits.

He takes on the features of chaff, driven about by the winds of different unstable doctrines and flows around in emptiness of the chaff of unbelieving relativism and rationality...and so in judgment he won't stand.

These last days are filled with scorners everywhere up to the pulpit. It was yesterday I met a man from a reputable denomination, we had a great discussion until in passing he made a curious statement, that the only thing the devil could do is stop you from entering the kingdom of God, he wouldn't stop you from becoming anything on the earth...and he made sense...seeing millions who didn't know Christ or have respect for God becoming rich, living long in health and in significance.

Until I started meditating on it and I saw how dangerous that statement could be.

Didn't Jesus say, the thief comes not but to steal, to kill and to destroy? If the only thing the devil does is stop you from entering heaven Jesus would have told a lie there...

I thought about the woman in Luke 13 whom Satan had bound for 18 years according to Jesus Christ.

[My Offline Bible] Luke 13
11 And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself.
16 And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?

The scorner attitude is based on using the seen to justify the unseen. They are the ones who would later wonder where the coming of the Lord is written and having seen it will explain the contextual content away to argue against the traditional meaning.

[My Offline Bible] 2 Peter 3
3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, 4 And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.

Now that's rationalism. There are platforms where rationality is the way and nothing else, but when it comes to the interpretation of the Word, rationalism must favor the context of divine purpose even if it has to be accepted by faith...because these are spiritual things only judged by the spiritual...they are revealed and aren't discovered by experimentation or experience but by revelation!

Are you a scoffer, a scorner or a believer? What are you rationalizing with your physical experiences and not by the wisdom of the spirit realms? What argument do you have against the promises and the operations of God?

Your answer is in the Word of God! What are your argument against God's principles of holiness, faith, grace, marriage and so on? Are you interpreting God's mind by your tribal and cultural inclinations? Is the society forcing down scriptural interpretations down your spiritual throat and redefining what's good and bad...? Is the current trend confusing you of God's word? Or is it the rot and the insincerity amongst preachers of God's word that's confusing you?

Every answer is in the Word of God...don't let the scoffers and the scorners take your eyes away from the Word...  when they say the days of the Bible are gone, tell them these are the days of the Acts of God... God is still alive and well! He is still saving sinners, still believes in holiness, sex is still between a married man and his married woman, divine healing is still happening, God's still prospering people, making tables in the wilderness, raising the dead...heaven is still real and hell hasn't been eradicated and Jesus hasn't abandoned His trip back even if it looks delayed...there is still the judgment day coming and it's not just about bluffing!

So as we go into this weekend, don't ever forget that the safe house from the scoffers and the scorners remains our meditation day and night in the Word of God...our roots must go deep into the nutrients of the Word and be established in what we have learned of Christ so that we can bring forth our fruit in its season...without being tossed to and from like the chaff!

Good morning! Its a great day!

Visit with us

Thursday 14th May 2015

@
The Bible Class, TBC
83, Adeniyi Jones Avenue
Opposite Trevo office
Ikeja Lagos

Let's take our roots downwards so that we can bear our fruits upwards in its season! The fruits of each season in your life shall not fail and every season of lost fruits shall be restored...in Jesus name!

Visit
www.evansademanuel.blogspot.com

Enjoy the menu...

It is Finished!

It is Finished!

[My Offline Bible] John 19
30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.

What does the phrase 'It is finished' mean? What was He referring to as 'it'? What does the finishing of that thing mean?

It sure didn't mean we are finished. It didn't mean He was finished too. But whatever was finished was ready to be delivered. Whatever He meant went through a process that just ended.

The fundamental thing that He could be referring to would be the purpose for which He had come into the world.

He had come to save sinners. He had come to pay the price for the total salvation of mankind.

The work had gone through different phases and seasons. His conception and birth was one, His declaration as the son of God going about His Father's business at age 12, His encounter at the baptism of John and the announcement, His wilderness temptation, His return with power to preach, teach and do good in signs and wonders ...and then His arrest, trial and crucifixion...
And now the work is done and so the announcement came and it was all over!

The job on this side of heaven is done and the reconciliation between God and man has been made perfect...man is saved and he can now walk in the newness of life. Sin and Satan would not master him anymore, his sins are pardoned, the enmity is gone and he has now become a friend of God as it was originally designed!

Man can now have a seamless relationship with God without another sacrifice, he can relate with God without any other special preparation...the middle wall of partition between us and God is gone, man is reconciled with God!

The process of man's healing, health and longevity was finished. He had paid the price for us to be healed by the stripes He took and His body that was broken and as His body was drained of life, ours that was dead in Adam soaks in the life...to maintain health and swallow death in victory.

He died so that He could destroy Him who had the power of death, that is the devil. And not only that, He also died so that we can live and live life abundantly...He died young that we may live long...abundant life is life overflowing, it is life in the long and full mode...

He died violently too so that we can peacefully depart when we had finished our work and are satisfied with long life here on the earth...

The process of destroying him who had the power of death, who came to steal, to kill and to destroy was complete! It is finished!

Why should a child of God now contemplate dying anytime? When the power, authority, the keys of hell and of death isn't with the devil anymore but with the Christ!?

[My Offline Bible] Revelation 1
18 I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.

Our deal with poverty, lack and want is finished. All He had was taken away from Him and He became naked just as He was born into the world without anything on as He paid the price for our prosperity. If He bacame poor so that we may through His poverty become rich and afterwards announced that it is finished, then the ground should no longer bring us thorns and thistles...but riches and wealth...

We can go on and on talking about the riches of His grace as the result of the finished work on the cross at Calvary but the devil won't desist from his lies...

Satan wants to tell you that what was finished at Calvary is even yet to begin! He'll throw every tantrum to make us lose faith in that good news, 'It is Finished!'

But whose report would you believe? The report of your struggle with sin and bad habits? Or the report that the price for your dominion over sin is paid?
Will you believe the report that the price for our forgiveness and remission of our sins are paid and finished or that God is still paying you back for what you did wrong in time past?

Would you rather believe in the pains, sicknesses and diseases troubling you than believe you are healed by His stripes?

Would you rather believe that you have been made rich or believe in the situation threatening your finances?

Or would you believe your finances are at the mercies of the world economy, corruption and bad management that sponsor poverty or that Jesus had paid the price for our prosperity? Would you rather believe that Jesus didn't finish paying the price for our prosperity?

Invariably, we are the ones who will actualize the riches of His grace in our lives by either accepting that 'It is finished' or not.

The question is that is it finished or not? I choose to believe Jesus...I believe it is finished and in that I rejoice!

Good morning!

Have a date with us on

Thursday, The 14th May 2015

6:00pm

@
The Bible Class, TBC
83 Adeniyi Jones Avenue
Opposite Trevo
Ikeja Lagos

We'll be glad to have you around with friends!

Visit

www.evansademanuel.blogspot.com

Partake of the menu of His grace!

God's blessings today and always!

Representing Christ

Representing Christ

One of the greatest challenges that a Christian should have shouldn't be that of the needs of life but how to adequately represent the Name by which he is called...the name of Christ.

In the Old Testament, the nation Israel was representative of God. They were called by His name, they saw themselves as custodians of the oracles of God and prided themselves as the people of God...and there were consequences to not properly projecting that model.

Today, God has moved on from the shadowy things of the Old Testament to the realities in Christ.

We have moved on from the ordinances that were contrary to us and had them nailed to the cross of Christ.

Today, grace and truth had taken over from the laws that had no power to give life or bring justification before God. The filthy rag righteousness has given way to the righteousness that is in Christ. Man's works to secure divine pleasure have given way to the finished works of Christ on the Cross for our justification. The works done in the flesh motivated by fear and guilt has given up to the workings of the Holy Spirit from within the believer by which he brings forth the fruit of the recreated human spirit.

Instead of groping to discover the direction of the Spirit and the will of God, he is freely led by the Spirit of God as a son of God.... instead of consulting those who had the Spirit of God, the three fold ministry of the the Old Testament, he now has the Holy Spirit as a seal and a down-payment/receipt of the eternal redemption we have in Christ Jesus...

He names the name of Christ...

So having this precious promises and much more, he, the believer becomes the physical image of the unseen God. He becomes the representative of the godhead. He becomes the reflection of the Way, the Truth and the Light and from here those that'll know Christ need to consult with him...he is of the body of Christ, a vital member and part of the body of Jesus with all the authority, power and privileges of the Head from were all the joints receive nourishment.

He becomes the epistle read by all...he is the letter from Christ to the world in word and in deed.

He is the prototype to the product God intends to make out of the nations of the world. He is the gospel, the story of goodness and love God is telling the world...

He has no reason whatsoever to project something else aside Christ and conforming to the world is anathema to his calling as a representative of God and all God has done.

But we often misrepresent him! Even from the pulpit and in His name.

Yes, we are His image but not the express image and the degree of our conformation to His image depends so largely on how much the veil covering the eyes has been removed in beholding His image. 2Cor 3

We can't represent him beyond our knowledge of Him. We can't use our personal desires to color who He is. The scriptures are the primary vehicles into the knowledge of God. Our experiences didn't bring us Christ, it was the Word that brought us Christ. Without the Word our spiritual experiences and encounters would lead us into religions and spiritisms other than following Christ. The written Word is the guidepost that led us into Christ, the prophecies concerning Him in the OT and the practicalities of Him and His apostles after Him...in the New Testament scrolls.

When we deviate from the Scriptures and the spirit of wisdom and revelations in His knowledge we make it impossible for ourselves to adequately represent Him.

In so doing, we tend to substitute the scriptures and the authority therein with superstitions and mundane experiences smuggled in through the back door into the church of the living God, the ground and the pillar of the truth...when this happens we can't say we are representing God and His Christ.

When we leave the scriptures we err...and whatever mentality and lifestyle that comes out of it can't be called Christianity because it won't represent Christ as expected.

It is even more critical as ministers who have the ears of the people. To whom people believe would teach them who God is and how to project Him in daily living. When we project thoughts and ways in support of our own personal inclinations and lusts instead of His eternal characteristics and desires we make ourselves less responsible as ministers of the life of Christ.

When we tailor our teachings and preaching to suit self and our own cravings and make our own ambition the dictator of the color the gospel we preach then we represent ourselves and our bellies...and aren't fit to be called His ministers.

But His mercies cover and we have opportunities to go back to the Word and learn of Him, of His lowliness and meekness with a renewed passion to represent Him as equally as possible....

We should remember that projecting self is nothing more than projecting death...haven't we been crucified with Him already?

He that names the name of Christ shoulf depart from iniquity...in equity sounds like the case when what we project is inequal with what we are meant to project....when we do not represent Him as He is....in word and in deed! God's help be multiplied to us all... in Jesus name

Visit with us
Thursday 14th May

6:00pm

@

The Bible Class, TBC
83 Adeniyi Jones Avenue
Opposite Trevo office
Ikeja
Lagos

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www.evansademanuel.blogspot.com

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