Power is missing (more on the gift of tongues)

2 Timothy 3:5 NLT

" They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!"

Over the past century, the modern day pentecostal church movement has been weaned on many biblical "facts".

One of them is a phenomenon called the "infilling" of the Holy Spirit. The arch-advocate of this strand of modern Christian thought is the late Kenneth E. Hagin.

In several books he wrote, he insisted on 2 key phenomena.

1. That in becoming born again, the Holy Spirit plays a role, in bringing the spiritually dead person to life and making a home in the person's heart. This is called the "indwelling" of the Spirit

2. That this "indwelling" is not all of the Holy Spirit that such a born again Christian can have. There is therefore a further dose of the Holy Spirit known as the "infilling" of the Holy Spirit.

He buttresses his point with [1] above described in John 20:22 NLT

" Then he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit"

Acts 2:3-4 NLT then describes [2] above

"Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability"

Throughout his ministry, brother Hagin consistently identified speaking in tongues as a clear evidence of 2 above, the "infilling" of the Holy Spirit. In other words, His ministry (and that of several protégés and offspring today) revolves around the doctrine that the 1st sign of an "infilling" of the Holy Spirit is the gift of speaking in tongues.

Therefore, according to Kenneth Hagin &  Co, the inability to manifest the gift of speaking in tongues means one does NOT have an "infilling" of the Holy Spirit, and therefore no accompanying power.

Is this view strictly biblical though? Or is it merely biblically contrived?

The first specific biblical mention of being "born again" is done by Christ himself, In John 3:3. Jesus specifies being born again as what can enable the visualization of God's Kingdom.

In verse 5 of the same passage, Jesus went further to specify being "born of water and the Spirit", as what allows entry into God's Kingdom.

There is only one instance of a birth by the Spirit in the above instance. Therefore, as we ascertain from Jesus lips Himself, only one phenomenon of Spirit birth is what enables a man to access God's Kingdom.

In Luke 10:19 NLT Jesus said,

" Look, I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions and crush them. Nothing will injure you"

Further down in Luke 24:49 NLT, Jesus told His disciples,

" And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven."

In other words, Jesus first gave his disciples (and other followers) authority, but the power to exercise that authority was delayed till Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to them.

Of the Holy Spirit, Jesus said in John 16:7 NLT,

"But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don't, the Advocate won't come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you"

Who is this Advocate? John 14:16-17 NLT

"And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you.
He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn't looking for him and doesn't recognize him. But you know him, because he lives WITH you now and later will be IN you" (emphasis mine).

The Advocate is the Holy Spirit, and He couldn't come into the world until Jesus ascended into heaven as the sacrificial offering and was accepted by God in heaven. Jesus alluded to being the Holy Spirit in the last sentence of the verse above.

Therefore, in John 20:22 when Jesus breathed on His disciples, and said "receive the Holy Spirit", they couldn't have done so until Jesus had ascended into heaven.

So why did Jesus say so at that time if it wouldn't happen immediately? The reason is because Jesus had to physically give the gift of the Holy Spirit to his disciples before He left.

But they could only receive the gift after he had ascended into heaven!

In Acts 1:7 NLT, Jesus laid in His disciples the secrecy of the timing of events,

"He replied, "The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know"

So the precise date of the release of the Holy Spirit was unknown even to Jesus himself! The apostles only instruction was to wait in Jerusalem till they were filled with the Holy Spirit!

Therefore, before this time, they had not received any part or form of the Spirit. They were "born again" (John 3:3), so they could now begin to understand the purpose of Christ's ministry on earth (which is the Kingdom of God), but they could not yet enter into it (John 3:5), because they had not yet been born of water and the Spirit!

We will agree that not one miracle was performed by Christ's apostles or disciples until after Pentecost. At that event, they gained power, in addition to the authority they had already received earlier from Christ. And it then became evident that they had entered into the kingdom of God by the power they were able to wield.

In Mark 16:17-18 NLT Jesus said,

"These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages.
They will be able to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won’t hurt them. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.”

These signs which Christ enumerated above are an indication of power. But the verses don't stipulate one attribute over another. They are simply characteristics of believers, those who have accessed God's Kingdom and the power therein.

Apostle Paul said in Romans 14:17 NLT

"For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit"

In other words he also acknowledged that the Kingdom of God is not a place but a lifestyle (I will discuss this in another topic). Suffice it to say that the Coordinator of life in God's Kingdom is the Holy Spirit. He alone distributes spiritual gifts at God's discretion.

True, in the Acts of the Apostles, it was recorded extensively how several believers received the Holy Spirit and indicated this through speaking in tongues. But this cannot be a conclusive reason we should think that only speaking in tongues signifies an infilling or indwelling (we have established  that the two are the same) of the Holy Spirit.

Finally, I close this piece with the question; Where is the power today? Virtually every pentecostal church in the world today is full of "tongue speakers", but how many of them exhibit the power that was evident in the 1st golden era after Pentecost?

Where is the power today?

What do you see?

What you see, is highly dependent on what you decide to focus on.

If you focus on your wife or your husband, you will only see their faults and shortcomings

If you focus on the economy, you will despair at the seemingly bad situation

If you focus on other human beings, the system of the world, the government, politicians, wars, terrorism, etc, your heart will sink in despair at the seeming futility of it all.

Let us Focus on Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our Faith.

Hebrews 12:2 NIV

"fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God"

From a slave. . . To a friend

John 15:14-15 (NLT)

"You are my friends if you do what I command.
I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me."

1 John 3:1 NLT

" See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don't recognize that we are God's children because they don't know him"

Everything God has done, is doing, and will ever do, stems out of love. From the beginning of time, His motive in the creation has always been love. His love manifests itself in so many ways! Ways sometimes difficult for us humans to understand.

A neighbor's baby died recently and I felt burdened to comfort her in her grief on the very day her baby died. I was initially at a loss for words, but I overheard her mumbling, in confusion, the words "thanks be to God".

I took my cue from that and spoke about the goodness of God and His great love. I told her the truth. That God loves that baby more than she ever could, and knew the baby likewise. In His infinite wisdom and goodness, he decided to take the baby away and however painful, we should accept His decision in good faith.

An inferno had just occurred in Lagos which led to multiple explosions, uncontrollable fires which burnt several buildings, and deaths of both old and young.

These incidences, to a western audience sound like a recipe for litigation and other forms of redress, and not merely a resignation to the will of God. But in such a country where helplessness in the face of incredible disarray in governance, is the order of the day, we find ourselves regularly seeking solace in the omnipotence of God, and in the knowledge of His love.

God loves His entire creation. His love means integrity and adherence to His rules. God's love doesn't waver. Neither does it change. In spite of the wrong we do as His children, he still lovingly leads us towards His predetermined destination.

A brother in Christ lost his job recently, and being very prominent in church, I found my eyes wondering over to his wife during Sunday's church service. They are very strong financial supporters of the church and I wondered how the setback would affect them. But lo, when she sang worship that morning, I felt tears running down my cheeks. I could feel the total dedication to God, come what may.

I was spiritually strengthened with such faith in our God and I felt so glad to be a Co-heir in Christ with this faithful sister. It reminded me of a passage in the Bible about the Roman centurion in Matthew 8:5-13, & Luke 7:1-10.

Jesus was heading over to his home, when called, to heal his servant but the officer begged Jesus not to bother embarking on the journey, but simply to speak! The officer understood the power and Authority that Jesus represented and told Jesus all he needed was His Word. Jesus was astounded.  In Luke 7:9 NLT,

"When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. Turning to the crowd that was following him, he said, "I tell you, I haven't seen faith like this in all Israel!"

Jesus is all powerful! And we are his friends!

May God grant us the faith to put all our trust only in Him, amen.

Perfection or Power?

What was the difference between the acclaimed passovers celebrated by Hezekiah and Josiah?

In 2 Chronicles 35, Josiah's passover was done accurately and precisely according to the law of Moses. In 2 Chronicles 30, Hezekiah's passover was improvised, prolonged and even had many grevious errors!

However, it was Hezekiah's passover that generated so much power, that the people themselves (the solemn guardians of all the pagan shrines that had been erected all over Israel) went out after its completion and destroyed all shrines erected all over Israel.

Hezekiah's passover generated a widespread anointing from the Holy Spirit, that moved every single individual with Holy zeal to bring about the purification of the land!

Josiah's passover was individual (or pastor) driven, while Hezekiah's passover was Spirit driven, resulting in an outpouring of power.

Lesson for the church today:

We must seek to spread out the good news as far and wide as possible in unity. What matters is not the accuracy or "purity" of the procedure, rather the leading of the Holy Spirit and the willingness to interdenominate is key.

Jesus is not interested in what denomination your local church is called. What will unleash the power of the Holy Spirit in these latter days, is the ability to combine together in unity  to birth God's great Kingdom.

Revelations 12:1-2 NLT

"Then I witnessed in heaven an event of great significance. I saw a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon beneath her feet, and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant, and she cried out because of her labor pains and the agony of giving birth"

Brethren, the woman clothed with the sun is the body of Christ, His bride! And she is travailing in birth. Birth of who? We may ask. Birth of God's glorious Kingdom. The second golden era is here children of God, and Christ's body needs to be united to bring forth this precious child. It is vital, because God's word WILL come to pass!

Rebellion in the body of Christ (part 2)

1 Corinthians 11:3-15 NLT

3. But there is one thing I want you to know: The head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.

4. A man dishonors his head if he covers his head while praying or prophesying.

5. But a woman dishonors her head if she prays or prophesies without a covering on her head, for this is the same as shaving her head.

6. Yes, if she refuses to wear a head covering, she should cut off all her hair! But since it is shameful for a woman to have her hair cut or her head shaved, she should wear a covering.

7. A man should not wear anything on his head when worshiping, for man is made in God’s image and reflects God’s glory. And woman reflects man’s glory.

8. For the first man didn’t come from woman, but the first woman came from man.

9. And man was not made for woman, but woman was made for man.

10. For this reason, and because the angels are watching, a woman should wear a covering on her head to show she is under authority.

11. But among the Lord’s people, women are not independent of men, and men are not independent of women.

12. For although the first woman came from man, every other man was born from a woman, and everything comes from God.

13. Judge for yourselves. Is it right for a woman to pray to God in public without covering her head?

14. Isn’t it obvious that it’s disgraceful for a man to have long hair?

15. And isn’t long hair a woman’s pride and joy? For it has been given to her as a covering.

I have taken the pains to copy and paste such a long passage here to have the liberty to explain each verse individually, as apostle Paul methodically does.

As stated in the preceding post, God himself stated clearly in Gen 3:16, the order of authority in the home. That is, (v3 above) the wife is under the authority of her husband, who in turn is under the authority of Christ (our redeemer who paid the price to purchase all mankind from sin), and the head of Christ is God.

Following from our previous post, once a couple disengages from their individual families, the Bible says they become one. One flesh. In other words, God only sees one person, when viewing a family unit. Therefore, in describing Christ as the head of the man, apostle Paul is saying the man is merely the spiritual representative of the family unit. This unit is under the authority of the man for administrative purposes (so that there is no dispute on this), but the family unit is one flesh.

Verse 4 above states that a man dishonors his head (Christ) if praying with his head covered. This is undoubtedly true. All over the world even today, it is viewed as a sign of disrespect (as a man) to speak to one's superiors with the head covered.

But verse 5 conversely says that a woman dishonors her head if she prays with her head uncovered. V6 goes on to equate the shame associated with a woman fully shaving her head to that of praying or prophesying with the head uncovered.

If we believe the Bible As God's word (which it is taken for granted that every Christian does) then we agree that in Genesis, God had already made the man from dust, and delegated authority to him, including the authority to name all animals, before putting him to sleep and creating the woman from him.

So, the the story of creation confirms that man was made directly from dust (reflecting God's glory), while woman was made from man (and named by him). The first thing Adam said when he saw his wife was "flesh of my flesh, and bone of my bone!" Adam recognized himself in his wife. And he named her woman, saying "Because she was made from man". Adam himself confirmed that his wife "reflected his glory".

Verses 8 &  9 confirm the above explanation.

Now, verse 10 has been seen as very confusing to many over the years. It justifies the covering of a woman's head, by giving a spiritual dimension to the issue. "Because the angels are watching". In other words, the spiritual symbolism of the act of covering or uncovering the head in prayer is exposed in the verse.

As said earlier, the family unit is seen as one person by God. Similarly other spiritual entities witness the same unity. Therefore, when offering up a spiritual act, it is important that the proper order is observed. A wife who covers her head is signifying spiritually that she is submitted to her husband, and that the husband is the arrowhead through which the family requests are channelled. In other words, the family is one.

There is nothing wrong in offering up individual prayers, but it is important that the woman is not trying to usurp the spiritual  authority of her husband, anymore than she would try to usurp the physical and spiritual authority of her father had she not yet been married.

The repercussions of such an act recall what happened in the garden of eden. The serpent channelled his trickery through the woman, and succeeded in drawing mankind into the slavery of sin and death through her action, and the man's acquiescence.

In that case (as in many cases when the family unit is jeopardized) the proper order of authority was not followed. What apostle Paul was saying is that spiritual forces (both good and evil) are watching closely, and a deliberate covering of the head by the woman in prayer or prophecy signifies submission to authority. If a woman cannot submit herself to her husband (who she can see), then it will be extremely difficult for her to submit herself to God (who she cannot see). Therefore, non-submission is a sign of rebellion, to God.

Do we remember who also rejected authority (in heaven)? Do we recall what happened to him?

With the above spiritual reality in mind, is it any surprise that the family unit is in such a disarray as it is today? Divorces, abortions, adultery, depravity, homosexuality, and so many other reflections of the broken home?

It sounds fantastical to tie all these contemporary societal problems to non-submission by the woman, but we need to realize that physical problems are merely the manifestations of spiritual edicts.

The Greek translation of v10 refers to a woman's head covering as a symbol of authority, a crown. So the head covering serves 2 purposes; it tells spiritual forces that the woman is submitted to her husband (therefore emphasizing the unity of the family), and it signifies her status as the crown of her husband (proverbs 12:4).

Verses 11 &  12 then places emphasis on the equality of the man and his wife. They both came from each other! So none is inferior to the other, and none is a slave to the other.

1 Peter 3:7 NLT says,

"In the same way, you husbands must give honor to your wives. Treat your wife with understanding as you live together. She may be weaker than you are, but she is your equal partner in God's gift of new life. Treat her as you should so your prayers will not be hindered"

In finality, apostle Paul closes the admonition by  comparing the natural order (where shorter hair is more societally acceptable from men and longer hair is more societally acceptable from women) to show that hair is the pride of a woman, which should therefore be covered in submission to God.

We cannot conscientiously bare the symbol of our pride openly to the same God we are praying to, and expect our prayers to be answered do we? We must humble ourselves by keeping all symbols of pride hidden in God's presence, as a sign of reverence for our maker.

Concluded

The Second golden era (part 2)

Hezekiah sent messages to the length and breadth of the entire land of Israel. At this time, the northern Kingdom had begun being disbanded and a majority of the Israelites who lived in several cities and  towns had been carried off to slavery in Assyria. They had been replaced by conquered peoples from other lands, who had begun interbreeding with the remnant Israelites in the land.

In Samaria, King Hoshea, son of Elah, was on the fringes of his last years of rule before the entire northern Kingdom headquartered in Samaria was terminated.
Upon receipt of Hezekiah's invitation to close ranks and worship the God of their ancestors in purity and unity of purpose, the inhabitants of all the Israelites cities approached scorned and scoffed at it.

Therefore, only a few inhabitants of Samaria, and others from surrounding cities all over Israel acceded to the invitation, and partook in the first ever passover feast since the time of King Solomon.

The king, Levites and priests, being inexperienced in the rites of the passover (none of them had ever witnessed it before),  did not make adequate plans as to how to carry out  the rites and festivities, and thus found themselves having to react to different issues that came up on the fly. As noted in the previous part, they made several mistakes which normally would have rendered the sacrifice invalid.

Hezekiah however recognized (accurately) that what matters to God is the heart. They (king, levites and priests)  were all young and inexperienced, but they were fired up and inspired by Hezekiah's anointed leadership. Their hearts were right before God, and they were in awe of God's  glory.

These were the ingredients which God must have found so useful for His work. God willingly overlooked their missteps and unleashed the kind of power unseen even in King Solomon' era! The passover lasted seven days and there was abundant joy.

The Israelites left after the festivities to return to their own cities, where they first proceeded to destroy every trace of shrines, high places, asherah poles, images, groves, trees and all other symbols of worship present all over the land.

These actions reverberated all over the known world at that time. All Israel's adversaries  were baffled. They felt all the shrines were dedicated to God. And so the Assyrian king Sennecharib in his successful wars against various powerful nations attempted to conquer Judah.

At the end of that attempt, without any battle from the Israelites, the Assyrian troops were devastated, and their king was murdered back home in the temple of his god.

Hezekiah's Kingdom enjoyed peace till the end of his life. The era was spanned by trying times, but ultimately ended in peace.

The Second golden era (part 1)

The victorious life of King David (which engendered an unbroken royal lineage that led to the emergence of Christ on earth) gave birth to a golden era in the reign of King Solomon.

It is recorded both in scripture, and many other sources, that at no other time before or after in Israel's history had there been so much abundance, wealth and peace, as in the time of Solomon.

He was reputed to be the wisest king that ever lived, and his admirers spanned the entire known world and it's great and established Kingdoms.

However, it is far less widely acknowledged in historical and academic circles, that Israel witnessed a second golden era of abundance, prosperity and peace. This happened in the time of King Hezekiah of Judah in 2 Chronicles 29-32.

Coming on the heels of a nasty regime of crass rebellion against God and His laws, commands and edicts, Hezekiah's reign was an unlikely harbinger of another period of glorious splendour comparable to that of King Solomon.

King Ahaz, Hezekiah's father, was arguably the most rebellious, wicked, stubborn and irredeemable monarch in the entire history of ancient Israel's occupation of the promised land.  Only King Ahab of Northern Israel (the husband of Jezebel) begins to approach the heights of insanity that could besiege the mind of any individual to wreak such devastating violence against the sanctity of divine reverence. (See 2 Chronicles 28)

King Hezekiah took the helm of leadership at the age of 25, and is recorded to have reigned 29 years as king of Judah. His emergence as a pious progeny of a rebellious predecessor mirrored the emergence of King Asa, the son of Abijah, and great grandson of King Solomon.

Hezekiah began his reign with a solid display of leadership. He took responsibility, on behalf of his predecessors, for the decline in the fortunes of Judah. He went on to encourage the mostly young crew of Levites and priests and directed them towards re-consecrating the temple after leading it's reopening.

The next step taken was a consecration of the King and all his subjects. Hezekiah recognized very early in his reign that authority came only from God, and quickly set about putting his kingdom in right standing with the Almighty, according to the specific directions in the law of Moses.

Not being sufficiently experienced in the normal activities of temple work, talk less of as massive a renaissance as what took place, the novice Levites and priests made a lot of mistakes. Strangely however, they were not penalized by God, as Hezekiah took responsibility, by proclaiming (truthfully) that what mattered most in God's service is the heart, and by praying for their healing.

Hezekiah had a vision. This became apparent in the deliberate steps he took to gather together as many of  the children of Israel as he could to observe and celebrate the passover feast.

To be continued

Using the blood of Jesus as a talisman

Revelations 12:7-12 NLT

7.Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels.

8. And the dragon lost the battle, and he and his angels were forced out of heaven

9. This great dragon—the ancient serpent
called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels.

10. Then I heard a loud voice shouting across the heavens,
“It has come at last—
salvation and power
and the Kingdom of our God,
and the authority of his Christ.
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters has been thrown down to earth—
the one who accuses them before our God day and night.

11. And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb and by their testimony.
And they did not love their lives so much
that they were afraid to die.

12. Therefore, rejoice, O heavens!
And you who live in the heavens, rejoice!
But terror will come on the earth and the sea, for the devil has come down to you in great anger, knowing that he has little time.”

Brethren, the first thing we need to know about the passage above is that the victory has already been won. Satan has already been defeated (v8)

A spiritual act inevitably becomes a physical reality with time.

How was Satan defeated?

Verse 11 tells us, (we) the brethren (the children of God) defeat Satan by the blood of the Lamb (which purchased for us, freedom from sin's bondage),  and by our testimony (the word of God in our mouth).
Our weapon against Satan is two-fold;

1.our embracing of Christ's sacrifice on the cross of calvary
2.our declaration of the Word of God over every circumstance we face in our daily encounters.

That twofold weapon has been there for over 2000 years, but will be useless in your life if you don't use it.

In verse 7, the angels defeated Satan. This victory is made manifest in our utilization of our weapon:- Embracing salvation through Christ and imbibing the Word of God in our hearts (for out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks).

Dear brethren, shouting "Blood of Jesus!!!" is not the solution to our spiritual  problems. We need to realize the battle has already been won!

We enforce and manifest our victory by accepting Christ as Lord over our lives because He has paid the price to redeem us from sin and death, and we testify the word of God with our own mouth over every situation or circumstance we face in life. This is how we overcome.

Verse 12 says the devil has come down to earth in great anger, knowing he has little time.

Brethren, we need to stand firm today on the word of God against whatever the devil may throw in our path. Speak into your circumstance. Declare the word of God.

We are victorious!

What washes me clean from sin?

What washes me clean from sin?

The Blood of Jesus? Or the Word of God?

The Blood of Jesus is the price paid for my redemption from the slavery of sin and death. It was shed about two millenia ago.

Hebrews 9:22 ESV

"Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins"

All who accept the sacrifice of Christ's blood by faith are set free from slavery to sin. Freed from sin, we then become slaves to Christ.

Christ as the sacrificial lamb, fulfilled (past tense) the terms of the law with His death, by shedding his blood once and for all to be a currency for the salvation of all men (condemned to die in sin) who believe.

Christ as the Word of God fulfils (present tense) the New Covenant by washing us clean in the water of the word through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Hence John 3:5 NLT

"Jesus replied, "I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit"

Ephesians 5:26 NIV

"to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word"

This New Covenant is also signified by His blood that was shed.

This New Covenant is ratified every time believers partake in the LORD's supper.

The blood of Jesus thus serves a dual purpose.

1. It is the currency for my redemption from slavery to sin.
2. It is the symbol of the New Covenant between man and God.

The blood of Jesus has set me free from sin, but it is the Word of God that washes me clean of sin daily. By the power of the Holy Spirit.

Who washes me clean from sin? Why, Christ Himself of course!

Why does Paul call himself a slave?

I noticed something troubling yesterday when I decided to read the entire book of James in the New testament. James referred to Himself in the very first verse (James 1:1 NLT) as a "slave" of God.

Doing a further Bible reference this morning, I was surprised to discover that in Titus 1:1 NLT, the apostle Paul also referred to himself as a slave. He equally did so in the NLT versions of the books of Romans, and Phillipians!

Peter and Jude also followed suit in this self description of slave.

Why would these revered figures in Christianity, who advocated the Salvation of Christ Jesus as a freedom from slavery to sin, then portray themselves as slaves of God?

Firstly, the few versions of the Bible which translate the word "doulos" as "slave" are just the New Living Translation (NLT) and perhaps 3 others. NLT is probably one of the most recent translations of the Bible widely available today.

According to Wikipedia, a person may be described as a slave if he or she is forced to work for another person without an ability on their part to unilaterally terminate the arrangement.

In other words the element of free will seems to be removed as regards slavery.

Why would such pioneers in the faith openly contradict their gospel of willing commitment to God, by essentially referring to themselves as unwilling, unpaid, properties of God?

I then began to do some research. I discovered that over 1100 times, the Greek word "doulos" is mentioned in the old testament, but is only translated "slave"  once in most English translations of the Bible. Additionally, it is mentioned in Greek about 150 times in the New testament, but only translated "slave"  a handful of times (mostly when referring to regular and acceptable forms of slavery at the time).

The Greek word "Doulos" has only one meaning. It is "slave".

Why was this deliberately hidden? Mostly because of the historical stigma that has always been associated with slavery.

Curiously, our faith is hinged on one basic premise. The "Lordship" of Jesus. The Greek word for "Lord" is "Kurios". Without a slave, there can be no Lord, and without a Lord, there can be no slave. So for Jesus to be our "Kurios", we are therefore his "douloi" (plural).

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NLT

"Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body"

Which human, but a slave, is purchased as property?

We cannot serve two masters. A slave cannot be owned by two masters. A servant (hired hand) can serve as many masters as she likes. But a slave has no such luxury.

Jesus said in John 15:14-15 NLT

"You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me"

Jesus acknowledges that his disciples (and in extension all believers) are His slaves! He did not say "you are no longer slaves", he said "I NO LONGER CALL YOU slaves". In other words our role shouldn't be mixed up.

We are slaves of Christ because he purchased us with His blood from the slave-market of sin.

Luke 17:7-10 (Holman Christian Standard Bible)

" “Which one of you having a slave tending sheep or plowing will say to him when he comes in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? Instead, will he not tell him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat, get ready, and serve me while I eat and drink; later you can eat and drink’? Does he thank that slave because he did what was commanded? In the same way, when you have done all that you were commanded, you should say, ‘We are good-for-nothing slaves; we’ve only done our duty.’”

Before today, I scoffed at people who referred to themselves as "slaves of God".

Today I realize that is exactly what I am. A slave of Christ!

Rebellion in the body of Christ (part 1)

1 Samuel 15:23 NLT

"Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft, and stubbornness as bad as worshiping idols. So because you have rejected the command of the LORD, he has rejected you as king."

I was reading 1 Corinthians 14 on Sunday,  when I happened to stumble on verses 33-35. Now, I had read those verses before. But quite a while ago, and certainly before I became truly born again.

My journey through spiritual growth, has taken me to a level where I accept, that every single written word in the Bible has a purpose. Yes we may have had mistranslations, omissions and other mishaps happen to the Bible over the centuries that may have seemingly distorted it's message, but I'm a strong believer that the Holy Spirit, as the Guardian of God's Word, has carefully ensured that the substance of God's message has been retained in the modern Bible.

Besides, I also believe the Holy Spirit has ensured, in spite of the enemy's attempts at distortion, that the true message of God's perfect plan for creation is still being clearly spoken in the world today.

Which brings me to the passage above.

1 Corinthians 14:34 NLT

"Women should be silent during the church meetings. It is not proper for them to speak. They should be submissive, just as the law says"

This verse will cause automatic and instinctive hostility in the mind of any woman reading the above verse. Why are women asked to keep silent when men can speak? Is apostle Paul saying women are inferior?

The rest of the verse then counsels women to be submissive. To who? V35 specifies that they should make any queries they have known to their husbands at home.

The first portion of scripture where the authority of a man is established, is in Genesis 3:16, where God himself predicts a contention for authority in the home, and overrules that contention by confirming the authority of a man over his wife.

In Numbers 30:3-8, the law of Moses confirms the authority of a father over an unmarried woman, and a husband over his wife. Only in the case of widowhood is the woman exempt from authority.

So, apostle Paul is saying in the passage that all cogent issues to be raised in church, should be  done as a family unit, with the husband as representative. He was referring to both physical and spiritual order in God's presence.

God is a God of order. He does not tolerate insubordination.

Only in the case of prophesy (inspired exhortation) was this order exempt (v39).

Paul himself closes the chapter on the note of ensuring propriety and order.

Sadly, as I observed the church service I was attending, I saw the opposite of the order that Paul was solemnly warning the Corinthians to observe.

The submission apostle Paul was speaking about was not just a church submission. He expected it to stem from the normal order of submission in the home.

To be continued

The danger of prolonged peace and prosperity

In 2 Chronicles 14, King Asa had enjoyed 10 years of unbroken peace, and this encouraged him to begin a process of construction and fortification of his kingdom's defences. Shortly after this he was attacked by a million strong army.

King Asa called on the Lord when he saw he was grossly outnumbered and outgunned, and God came to his rescue.

On Asa's return from the battle, he was warned by a prophet (Azariah)  never to forsake trusting in God. In fact Asa's entire Kingdom consisting Judah, Benjamin, Simeon, Ephraim and Manasseh, swore a solemn covenant to always serve God.

Fast forward another twenty five years in 2 Chronicles 16, and Asa had forgotten how to trust in God. He was so prosperous and 'enlightened' that he 'knew' how to solve his problems himself.

Faced with a battle against a superior Israelite army, he sought the help of the Aramean King, Ben-Hadad.

Though the treaty led to Judah's rescue, God sent a message to Asa calling him a fool. God had planned to give the Aramean Kingdom to Asa in defeat! Instead, Judah was now Aram's vassal state.

Interestingly, Asa never recovered that close relationship of trust in God till his death, and he led the entire Kingdom of Judah in the same foolish path.

The entire point of religion and it's various rituals and practices should be complete trust in the Almighty God. Humans have limited knowledge and capabilities, but the ability to trust in God, lifts him far above his capacity.

Perhaps God puts some of us through trials and tribulations in order that the bond we have with Him should never fray or get severed.

For an idea of what happens when man becomes extremely successful, we only have to look West at its rejection of the Almighty!

Power and Authority

Authority : the RIGHT to exercise control
Power: the ABILITY to exercise control

These 2 words may seem similar but they are different.

Jesus gave us AUTHORITY in Luke 10:19 NLT (emphasis is mine)

"Look, I HAVE GIVEN(past tense) you authority over all the power of the enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions and crush them. Nothing will injure you"

However the Holy Spirit gives us POWER daily as we speak forth our authority in Christ!

This is revealed by Christ himself in Acts 1:8 NLT (emphasis is mine)

" But you WILL (future tense) receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere--in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

Brethren, Christ has given us authority, but the power to enforce our authority lies in the Holy Spirit, who daily gives us power as we speak forth the Word of Truth.

Speaking in tongues

1 Corinthians 14:2 NLT

"For if you have the ability to speak in tongues, you will be talking only to God, since people won't be able to understand you. You will be speaking by the power of the Spirit, but it will all be mysterious"

Christians today (including me) hold firmly to the power of prayer, particularly "speaking in tongues" (secularly defined as Glossolalia, it is the fluid vocalizing of speech-like syllables that lack any readily comprehended meaning to the human ear).

Romans 8:26 NLT

"And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don't know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words."

Christians hold that speaking in tongues vocalizes the groanings of the Holy Spirit within us and helps us to pray precisely in line with God's will. This assures of answered prayer.

However, my direction today is different.

Speaking in tongues has been traditionally held by the new age pentecostal church as an evidence of an indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

In other words, since we need to fulfil Jesus' spiritual terms for accessing the kingdom of God (as stated in John 3: 3,5), we are to be born again (v3), and born of "water" and the "spirit" (v5). The 3rd condition of that list is being "filled with the Holy Spirit".

For more teaching on the above see "what does it means to be born again?" in this blog

So in continuation of my premise, the contemporary church has substituted as evidence of the Holy Spirit, the manifestation of a new nature and new life, with the ability to speak in tongues.

In other words, the church is saying, "you don't need to manifest the character of the Holy Spirit, which is holiness, to be identified as "Spirit filled", you merely need to be able to speak in tongues and you are in!"

This has confused many, and so holiness, the fruit of God's free gift of Salvation which is accessible by faith, and potently active through manifest, verifiable changes in the life of the individual, has been portrayed to be a reward which we work for and achieve through our own efforts assisted by the "compulsory evidence" of speaking in tongues.

The apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 14:2 quoted above, alluded to the mysterious nature of the act of speaking in tongues.

He begins his admonition with a conjunction "if". In other words, he agrees that NOT ALL BELIEVERS MAY HAVE THE ABILITY TO SPEAK IN TONGUES!

Believers should not feel under pressure to manifest the gift of speaking in tongues. It, like many other spiritual gifts, is given by the Holy Spirit and therefore allocated according to God's will and discretion.

We must never forget that the goal of salvation is holiness, through the knowledge of God's Word and the corresponding conviction of the Holy Spirit towards life change. This is all by faith.

Says Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 14:19 NLT
"But in a church meeting I would rather speak five understandable words to help others than ten thousand words in an unknown language"

Like Father like Son

Oftentimes I have read few portions of scripture where Jesus spoke about imitating His Father in all things. One of them comes to mind.

John 5:19 NLT
" So Jesus explained, "I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does."

The above verse became vividly clear to me recently.

It is the norm in my home that the lion share of time spent with our child is taken by his mother. She grooms him, does his homework with him when back from school, and spends countless hours simply playing with him.

Yet I note that the boy considers his most special time as the ones spent in my company!

Not that I often even have the time to play with him. However he utilizes such time just imitating me. He wants to dress exactly as I do, carry out the same activities, and even insists on accompanying me in any foray outside the home.

On a particular day I was working on my laptop, the boy brought his mother's laptop close to me, sat in my exact posture, carried the laptop precisely the way I did, and even opened the same software (even though he obviously didn't know how to use it)! At that moment when I marveled at his motivation to be exactly as I was, the Holy Spirit reminded me of the above verse. Tears of wonder rolled down my eyes.

Was this what Jesus meant? The utter devotion, love and loyalty my son was showing in his attempts to imitate his father touched me specially that day. In fact it touches me everyday because I'm conscious that whatever improper action I take will be wholeheartedly copied by my son who is constantly watching my every move.

On a different note, if Jesus was speaking of the same level of devotion I noted in my son as what He has towards the Father, then that bond is very special indeed! It tells us a lot.

It tells us that the Father has the nature of a servant, He doesn't condemn anyone, He is merciful even of those who hate him, He is meek, gentle, quiet, and unassuming. He can also be violent! He blesses and He also curses.

It was a profound revelation!

A stake in the business

Luke 2:49 Weymouth New Testament

"Why is it that you have been searching for me?" He replied; "did you not know that it is my duty to be engaged upon my Father's business?"

Jesus was consumed with only one goal throughout his time on earth. This was evident as early as when he was 12 years old!

In replying his earthly parents, he seemed to have committed a travesty by openly insinuating that Joseph wasn't his father.  Everyone knew by the time they were finally leaving Jerusalem, having searched helter skelter for Jesus, that they were Galileans from far north in a different province from Judaea.  Therefore his father Joseph couldn't possibly have any legitimate business in Jerusalem since they had to travel annually from far away for the festivities.

Before his parents found him, he had spent 3 days in the temple among the spiritual teachers engaged in learning and inquiry. He was so insightful with his questions that the elderly scholars and teachers definitely took note of his young age and uncommon intelligence.

Had he not been eventually identified as Galilean, he would probably have been coopted by the temple hierarchy into some form of leadership training.

Matthew 12:50 NLT

"Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother!"

Almost twenty years later, he apparently completed his disownment  of his earthly parentage with the above statement.

Jesus placed His overriding goal of reconciliation of mankind to God above His filial allegiance to His earthly mother and brethren.

Before his final ascension into heaven, he made this goal clear in defined duties for his followers.

Matthew 28:19 NLT

"Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit."

Acts 1:8 NLT

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere--in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

At some point in my walk with Christ I find myself overwhelmingly consumed with the desire to carry out God's assigned work for me on earth. I think it has to do with that moment in one's life that you discover with clarity what it is that you have been created to accomplish here.

What is my driving force? I can't really explain it. Just an instinctive concern that time is extremely short. I need to carry out my assignment quickly.

Christ himself said in John 9:4 NIV

"As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work"

This must be what apostle Paul meant when he wrote in Romans 8:17 NLT

"And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God's glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering"

Being an heir of God and joint heir with Christ means that we have the same zeal and desire to ensure that our Father's business, the salvation of his complete elect, is carried out in accordance to his will and direction. In other words, we are equal stakeholders in the business.

We can't fail because we are "more than conquerors through him who loved us"  (Romans 8:37 NIV)

The problem with anger

Anger is a very interesting topic to study in the Bible

As a character trait, can we say it is good or bad?

We know God got angry several times in the Bible. Jesus Christ also got angry. Is that enough to justify anger in ourselves?

Elisha had just been granted a double portion of Elijah's anointing. And one day,  a group of children began taunting him on his baldness. Being of a short temper, he angrily cursed innocent children and many of them were immediately massacred by bears.

Jesus also got angry a few times in the Bible. We notice in Mark 3:5 and 11:15-18, that His anger was usually caused by the distortion of God's divine purpose and never lasted long. In fact, Jesus himself said in Matthew 12:32 NLT,

" Anyone who speaks against the Son of Man can be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, either in this world or in the world to come"

This statement is indicative of the selfless nature of His emotions.

Apostle Paul said in Ephesians 4:26 KJV

" Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath"

This statement alludes to the possibility of anger leading to sin, while agreeing that anger is not sin.

In spite of the many times it is recorded in the scripture of God getting angry, He curiously describes Himself to Moses as "slow to anger" in Exodus 34:6 NLT (this is one of the most awesome verses I've ever read in my life!)

" The LORD passed in front of Moses, calling out, "Yahweh! The LORD! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness" "

So what model should a child of God follow? What are the consequences of anger?

In 2Kings 3:15 NIV,

" Now bring me someone who can play the harp." While the harp was being played, the power of the LORD came upon Elisha,"

Elisha had been angry at the idolatry of Israel's king and thus could not hear from God. After music was played, was he able to connect spiritually and hear what God was telling him.

Thus we ascertain biblically that anger leads to spiritual blindness. It makes us unable to connect with God. It fills us with unnecessary noise and static that clouds our sense of judgement.

In 2 Chronicles 16:10 NLT

"Asa became so angry with Hanani the seer for saying this that he threw him into prison and put him in stocks. At the time, Asa also began to oppress some of his people "

We see above that a once devout king grew angry as a result of God's chastisement through a prophet. This blocked his wisdom and caused him to  harm God's messenger. He also became a tyrant as a result. Scripture records that he didn't turn to God, even for help with a disease, till he died, preferring scientific care.

Anger can cut us off from our salvation! Only pride can cause anger at correction from our heavenly Father. When we get angry, we should pray for the grace to humble ourselves and defeat pride.

Jesus got angry at the helplessness of human suffering

In  John 11:33, 35 & 38 NLT

33. "When Jesus saw her weeping and saw the other people wailing with her, a deep anger welled up within him, and he was deeply troubled"

35. "Then Jesus wept"

38. "Jesus was still angry as he arrived at the tomb, a cave with a stone rolled across its entrance"

It could be difficult to imagine what would make Jesus angry enough to shed tears as recorded in the above passage.

He was watching his close friends in their grief and he grew deeply angry at their plight. Angry at who I wonder? It was zealous anger to fix what was broken. And Lazarus soon came alive.

In conclusion, James the Less puts it best in James 1:20 NLT, when he says:

"Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires"

The burden of unforgiveness

Mark 11:22-25  (NLT)

Then Jesus said to the disciples, “Have faith in God. I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours. But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too. ”

In my walk with God over the past few months, He has taken me on a step by step process of growth and unlocking various  obstacles that stood in my path of achieving my full potential as His child.

It accelerated recently when He opened my eyes to the power of covenants, and the uplifting or devastating effects of the blessings or curses that follow their fulfilment or breach.

I am learning that man is a very powerful creature indeed. He was created to replicate the authority of the Most High on earth. To reign as a King over nature, and spiritual elements.

When we become children of God through our acceptance of Christ, this power is restored to us. Our acceptance of the status quo as Christians means that we are robbing ourselves of the ability to function as we were created to do.

Jesus Christ came to earth to save us. He did this on several levels. The most talked about today is how He saved us from sin and death. However, little talked about is his demonstration to us of how we were created to live and function as children of God.

Jesus performed a lot of miracles. He conquered Satan. More importantly, he gave us authority. The same authority that has been given to Him. This means that on this earth, we are as powerful as Jesus was while He was here on earth!

Over the weeks, the Holy Spirit had been drawing me to the topic of forgiveness. Several times in different media, through the mouth of several people, I was being drawn to forgive anyone who had wronged me.

The problem was that I had no such recollection. I didn't have anyone in mind who had offended me. But you see, we can never see as deep into our souls as our maker can. And so this passage cropped up 3 days ago.

Jesus demonstrated his authority to his disciples by cursing a fig tree. When his disciples noticed the following day that it had truly died, they were amazed and brought it to His attention.

What caught my attention from his reply above was his sole admonition to forgive. This was God speaking directly to me that one of the most powerful inhibitors of my ability to function optimally as a child of God on this earth is lack of forgiveness.

I began to think of who I could be bearing a grudge against to the extent that I couldn't even remember it. All roads led to my wife. My significant other. My flesh and bone.

I went over to her and began to explain what the Holy Spirit had told me. I began to unearth the deeply buried misgivings I had submerged over the years thinking they were best entombed. I asked for forgiveness, and I also forgave.

I was surprised at the depth of angst that existed between us. That night we talked and talked. I realized that we had become so alienated to each other that the solidarity and camaraderie we exhibited, even on the matrimonial bed, was merely a mask covering a deep sore.

It's my prayer that we both heal and grow stronger in love for each other under the covering of God's eternal love.

My point is that such an injury could never allow any of us to function effectively to our full potential as God's children. Grudges, anger and unforgiveness rob us of our power to reign as kings as we were created to do. This is what Jesus was telling his disciples. We must forgive all who have wronged us in order to open the door of the Father's forgiveness into our lives.

Only then can we fully reign as physical and supernatural beings that we truly are.

What does it mean to be born again?

I recently posted the following opinion on social media.

""Salvation does not end with our decision to accept Christ. Rather, the real process of becoming born again is the action of cleansing (having our sins washed away from us; forgiven by God) through the action of His Word, and rebirth (the casting away of our old wordly nature and its replacement with a new one) by the Holy Spirit."

"We cannot be truly born again if these complete processes haven't occurred. It is a supernatural process. But it is unmistakable."

"Many are stuck in the decision phase out of ignorance and unbelief. But this work must be complete if  we are to experience God's Kingdom.""

I was taken to task on the implication of a key premise stated therein namely; the conflict of whether life change takes place DURING or AFTER salvation.

My sister in Christ brought up several portions of the letters of Apostle Paul as "evidence".

They are Ephesians chapter 1 &  2, 1John 3:1-2, Romans 12:2 and 1peter 2:2.
Theses passages explain the sacrifice of Christ's blood as an atonement for our sins and the reality of God's acceptance of us as His children, because of our acceptance of that  sacrifice.

I countered with 1 passage at first in defense of my assertion.

John 3:5
"Jesus replied, "I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit."

I explained that water in the verse refers to cleansing. To  buttress my point, I brought up Ephesians 5:25-27 where Paul admonishes husbands to love their wives "as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word"

I encountered a lot of resistance from this sister to the idea that holiness (an effortless and verifiable departure from sin) was an evidence of salvation. She insisted that this "evidence" was rather a sign of spiritual growth and maturity.

Brethren, 2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT states

"This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!"

A passage that has confused many is Hebrews 12:14 which says

" Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord."

Brethren, truly, No one who is unholy will see the Lord. No one who is unholy will enter His kingdom. Hence the emphasis by Christ that a cleansing by water, and an inbreathing of the Holy Spirit are what it means to be born anew.

We need to understand that before salvation we were dead. All our actions were a manifestation of a dead life. When we accept Christ, the Holy Spirit breathes a new life into us. This happens by faith. After this, we cannot remain the same.

Hitherto, we were taught in church that we had to strive to be holy. The above passage seems to buttress this misconception. Before the death of Christ, in the old testament, the Jews had to make personal effort at holiness. This did not work! They had to sacrifice bulls and sheep periodically to serve as atonement for their imperfect attempts at holiness .

God knew this (old testament) covenant was imperfect, and that is why he came up with a perfect covenant.

Hebrews 8:6 NLT

"But now Jesus, our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood, for he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God, based on better promises."

God himself explained it in Ezekiel 36:24-27 NIV

"‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws."

This work of holiness in us is done by God Himself. Not us. It is not spiritual maturity. It is rebirth! However to connect to it takes faith. We cannot be born again without faith.

My final reply to her went as follows

"A new born babe does not smoke cigarettes, tell lies or commit fornication. She is a clean slate. Fresh. New. THAT is life change. And it happens immediately the "process" of rebirth is complete! "

The difference between wisdom and knowledge

Hosea 4:6 NIV

my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. "Because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my priests; because you have ignored the law of your God, I also will ignore your children.

Wisdom comes from God.

James 1:5" If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you."

But knowledge comes through our own deliberate effort. According to the scripture, what causes peril for the believer is not a lack wisdom, but a lack of knowledge.

Knowledge comes after applying wisdom (God given)  to intense study, research and meditation.

Many gifts are freely given to us by God without requiring any effort. Salvation, righteousness, the Holy Spirit, divine favor.  Knowledge is NOT one of them. We have to seek knowledge. It is through our knowledge that the Holy Spirit works his miracles in us.

Proverbs 2:3-5  (NIV)
3. Indeed, if you call out for insight
and cry aloud for understanding,
4. and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure,
5.then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God.

Daniel 11:32 NLT
He will flatter and win over those who have violated the covenant. But the people who know their God will be strong and will resist him.

A child of God, ignorant of her power is no more than a slave

Honour your father and your mother (covenants part 10)

In continuation of our treatise on covenants, we want to take a more serious look at a little-noticed one in the old testament.

What disguises it is its positioning within the all-famous ten commandments.

We have already identified idolatry (seeking to enter covenants with negative spiritual forces in addition to our covenant of salvation through Jesus Christ) as a covenant breaker which brings a curse (commandment 2 in Exodus 20:4). [See mystery of covenants unveiled part 3]

In Exodus 20:12 (NIV),we come across the hidden covenant of filial loyalty.

"Honor your father and mother. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the LORD your God is giving you."

I claim it is hidden because it seems very little in the verse suggests a covenant. However, if we go with our earlier definition of a covenant, we begin to identify the various conditions in the verse.

It is implying that not honoring one's parents could cause a shortening of lifespan. A curse is not known to prolong life. In fact, curses bring negative impacts on the lives of those so afflicted. Therefore, curses directly or indirectly cause a premature end to life.

On the other hand, the promise given in the verse is a long, abundant (full) life for honoring our parents. In other words, a blessing.

The first parent documented in scripture to directly curse his offspring was Noah. This was several centuries before the ten commandments were given by God. Interestingly the same portion of scripture also documents the first filial blessing.

Ham, Noah's last born, happened to have come across his father in a compromised state. Noah was drunk, and naked (as many who have been drunk usually find themselves). Ham stumbled onto Noah and obviously felt some contempt. He looked down on his father judgementally and decided to broadcast his father's moment of vulnerability. He did nothing to cover his father or even show some form of loyalty to him.

His brothers on the other hand, immediately they heard it, quickly covered Noah while not observing his nakedness with their own eyes. They were loyal, respectful and truly loved their father. They did not want to remember him as a naked drunk, so they averted their eyes.

Ham didn't have a choice not to see Noah naked, but his fault came in his response.

But what has baffled many scholars over the years is Noah's response to what happened. Noah did not curse Ham. He cursed Canaan, Ham's son. Why?

The answer is in Genesis 9:1 NIV
"Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth." "

"God blessed Noah [ AND HIS SONS ]" (emphasis mine). You cannot successfully curse a man blessed by God.

As early in history as this was, even Noah knew that whoever is blessed by God cannot be cursed by anyone else.

And so while blessing Shem and Japheth, he skipped Ham and cursed Canaan. Noah did not lay any blessing on the generations of Ham.

Noah didn't curse Ham because Ham was blessed by God. But he blessed his other sons and cursed Canaan his grandson. Canaan had no hand in the crime, but his generations bore the brunt of the punishment for Ham's crime.

If you don't honor your parents, you are laying a foundation for curses on your generations. Your children also will not honour you, and the trend of dishonor for parents will continue from generation to generation with their attendant curses.

Break the cycle today. Start to love, care about, and treat importantly your father and your mother. Cover their nakedness, defend them, don't judge them. Then the blessing of long and abundant life, and their own blessings of wellbeing will abide with your generations.

The unintended consequence of our actions

Upon his elevation as King, Solomon performed, as his first act, a pilgrimage to Gibeon (a place the Israelites had been tricked into preserving with its indigenes in the time of Joshua)  in order to sacrifice to God at the tabernacle of the congregation. This tabernacle was supposed to be the outer area  covering the inner sanctuary where the Ark of the Covenant was placed. However, in Samuel's time, the Ark had been foolishly taken into battle and lost to the Philistines.

The Israelites had grown accustomed to life without the Ark, and the periodical rituals they normally undertook at Shiloh (it's resting place), to commune with God, had been abandoned. Instead, they took the outer covering of the Ark (the tabernacle of the congregation, or tent of meeting) to Gibeon and began to make their sacrifices in a foreign shrine covered with the sacred tent.

God appeared to Solomon in response to his sacrifice. Indeed God appeared to Solomon more than twice in his life. He was rich, he was wise, his kingdom was famous and had peace. Yet the Bible says Solomon's heart was not as perfect as that of his father.

David on the other hand couldn't rest until he brought the actual Ark of the Covenant back to Jerusalem from where the Philistines had abandoned it. He wanted to build a brick and mortar temple for God but was restrained by God in favour of Solomon.

God is not recorded to have personally appeared to David, instead He preferred to speak to him through prophets Nathan and Gad. But Davids' is still regarded as the highest standard of devotion to God among the Kings of Israel and Judah.

The high place (or shrine) in Gibeon went on to become a place of idolatry for the Israelites because they believed a vestige of the supernatural was domiciled there. It caused great spiritual havoc for them.

Solomon communed with God at Gibeon and God answered. But that didn't mean Gibeon was the right place to commune with God.

Do we concern ourselves with the outside while disregarding the inside which matters most?

Brethren, not everything done by Men of God is right or proper, even if God answers. Some have a level of favour that others don't have. This has nothing to do with their standing with God. God looks at the heart, and therefore God found David's heart more pleasing than Solomon.

Everything done by us which leads others astray will eventually be brought to us to account before our maker.

Ask, seek, knock

I stood just outside the front gate of my home. My eyes were squeezed shut. I was at my wit's end, pushed to the wall.

He had finally said it, my son.

The one sentence that could force me out of my shell.

"Daddy, I want to eat Indomie" he had earlier mentioned to me boldly .

"OK dear", I answered him cheerfully as I threw on some clothes and made for the front door.

"I'll go buy from the mallam", I lied.

I knew I had no money to buy even a sachet of "pure water"  (packaged water in transparent sachets commonly sold in West Africa) from the neighborhood kiosk manned by the usually friendly Nigerien mallam.

Ibrahim was a dependable ally in my struggle against poverty. He always ensured my family never went hungry, especially when we had no cash to purchase much needed food to eat, snacks for my son to take to school, or just tidbits to salve the gloom of our condition.

But every kind gesture must have a breaking point, especially when one was already owing a humongous sum of money for such a micro-enterprise.

Ibrahim had been hinting at his expectations of at least some payment of the outstanding debt and I had been copiously promising to pay. . . . Soon.

The problem was, I hadn't. So I found my frequency at his stall begin to dwindle. The going got tougher. But it just gets to a point when there's no more luck to push. No more rope to spread out. Everything comes to an abrupt halt.

This was one of such times.

My five year old kid was hungry. He had no part in any deal I struck with whatever devil for sustenance. He just deserved to be fed when he was hungry. And that was my duty as a father.

So here was I out my front gate and out of options.

I decided to pray.

"Dear God, I'm in a mess" I mouthed silently.
"Help me feed my child, spare him the consequences of my inability".

After a few more words I walked cautiously down to Ibrahim's kiosk.

Miraculously he wasn't there but a young cousin of his was.

He gave me all I asked, further increasing my "credit line" (though he wasn't aware of my previous exposure).

I never expected not to have to make yet another tedious explanation of my indebtedness to Ibrahim.

I was grateful God answered my prayer.

My son got fed that day. . . . He still gets fed today. I can't help but be grateful to my invisible benefactor who answers prayers when I ask.

Even though, several times I take for granted the propriety accompanying the admonition to "ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and the door shall be opened unto you".

I thank him for his unending faithfulness.

Who is Jesus?

The Qur'an and Bible hold these 9 points in common about Jesus.

1. Jesus is the Messiah (Not was, but IS)

2. Jesus is not dead

3. Jesus was born to a virgin Mary

4. Jesus said he would die and be raised to life

5. Jesus neither married nor had children

6. God raised Jesus in bodily form to Himself in Heaven

7. Jesus is the Word of God (kalimat Allah)

8.  Jesus is the Spirit of God (Ruh - Ullah)

9. Jesus is the most important and enigmatic character in both Holy Books

I think it then becomes very important to study the meaning and implications of the above points in totality. Don't you?

The mystery of covenants unveiled (part 9)

Let us examine various examples of covenants in the Bible.

We have established that Salvation from sin and death is a covenant.

(Heb 12:24a Weymouth New Testament "and to Jesus the negotiator of a new Covenant")

Tithing has also been established as a covenant. (see part 8)

Another key example of a covenant is marriage.

That marriage is a sacred agreement between 2 people is rarely disputed. The ceremonies and exchange of vows make it difficult to call it anything other than a covenant.

The question is, does the physical covenant entered into between a man and his wife at the point of marriage constitute a spiritually bona-fide covenant?

Malachi 2:14-16 NLT says

14. "You cry out, “Why doesn’t the LORD accept my worship?” I’ll tell you why! Because the LORD witnessed the vows you and your wife made when you were young. But you have been unfaithful to her, though she remained your faithful partner, the wife of your marriage vows.

15. Didn’t the LORD make you one with your wife? In body and spirit you are his. And what does he want? Godly children from your union. So guard your heart; remain loyal to the wife of your youth.

16. “For I hate divorce!” says the LORD, the God of Israel. “To divorce your wife is to overwhelm her with cruelty, ” says the LORD of Heavens Armies. “So guard your heart; do not be unfaithful to your wife.”"

In V15 above, we see that it is the Lord who consummates marriage. V14 calls God a witness in the contract. V16 says God hates divorce, and V14 alludes to divorce/adultery being a cause of ineffectual worship.

A child of God should be wary of doing anything God hates.

In Genesis 1:27-28 NIV, we read,

27. So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.

28. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

After God created both man and woman (V27), he blessed them and mandated them to follow a process of growth(V28).

Fruitfulness, numerical increase, saturation of the earth, authority, and finally dominion.

What are the consequences of the breach of the Covenant of marriage?

As all covenants are stipulated biblically, it's breach inevitably brings a curse.

As stated in Malachi 2:14 above the Lord refuses to accept the worship of such a person.

Another effect of divorce is that it breaks the hedge of protection around God's children and allows the enemy run amok over their lives.

Galatians 6:7 NLT

"Don't be misled--you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant."

The mystery of covenants unveiled (part 8)

What are the 4 signs (possibly among others) that tithing is a covenant?

1. We have identified in Genesis 14:18 that the High Priest brought forth bread and wine as a symbol of a covenant. This symbolism was repeated by Jesus at the last supper.

We mentioned in Part 2 that adhering to the terms of a covenant bestows a blessing, while its breach bestows a curse.

2. Malachi 3:9 NLT, says " You are under a curse, for your whole nation has been cheating me". We see clearly that God stipulates the breach of a covenant and thus a curse.

3 . Likewise in Malachi 3:10 NLT, God says,  "Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the LORD of Heavens Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won't have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!"
Here we see God proclaiming a blessing on those who adhere to the covenant.

4. We mentioned in Part 1 of the series that God is a God of covenants. Another evidence of tithing as a covenant is the exhortation for us to test him in V10. Nowhere else in His Word does God permit man to test Him. We are usually expected to accept His word in faith. But curiously as concerning tithing, God says, "Test me"! This can only mean God is operating as he has always done over centuries of engaging His chosen. Through covenants.

Children of God today need to understand that true abundance is sustained through 2 primary and complementary means.

The first is God's unmerited blessings through Grace. This is the "receiving" end of abundance.

1Cor 4:7 NLT, " For what gives you the right to make such a judgment? What do you have that God hasn't given you? And if everything you have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift?"

As we see, abundance is freely given from God. It is a gift.

The second arm of abundance comes through preventing the enemy from devouring it. We will all agree that it is one thing to receive abundance, but it is another entirely to successfully retain it.

We may have an extremely fast gushing tap of water in our backyard, but if we only have baskets to fetch the water, then we cannot enjoy the abundant water, and when the tap stops running we are as starved as those who never had a tap!

It is crucial spiritually to be able to retain God's blessings in order to enjoy abundance. And the only way to achieve that as a child of God is through the faithful payment of our COMPLETE tithes.

Note that the passage in V10 says "bring ALL the tithes into the storehouse". This is an indication of the importance God places on it. God can only protect the abundance you declare through tithing. It's just like insurance. The value you declare as the worth of your property, which is signified by the premium you pay, is indicative of the payout the insurance company will pay should there be a loss on that property.

The devourer mentioned in V11 refers to spiritual forces working directly against God's children. They are aware of all that goes on with God's children and always seek out a means to shortchange us. 

When we omit fulfilling the terms of any covenant with God, it is these forces that point out the clauses in the spiritual contract which we have breached. God cannot go against His word and therefore is legally forced to permit the repercussions for the breach.

I will repeat here again that the covenant of salvation of man from the consequences of sin is NOT negotiated between man and God. Therefore nothing can erase our salvation accepted through faith in Christ and spiritually affirmed through baptism (full immersion in water as done by Jesus himself). Our salvation was negotiated between Jesus our High Priest and God the Creator of the heavens and the earth. Therefore our salvation is sealed and untouchable by any spiritual force in existence, period. We have eternal life whether the enemy likes it or not!

However there are other covenants that we must adhere to if we must fulfil all the potential that Christ placed in us through his death on calvary's cross. Tithing is a crucial one of them.

Our secret weapon in all these legal maneuvering is the Holy Spirit. The truth is that we may not be aware of many of the pitfalls and potential errors we can commit especially in the spiritual, but it is the Holy Spirit that let's us know how to manoeuvre and fulfil our spiritual obligations in order to achieve our destinies as mapped out for us by God.

"Walk in the Spirit ", says Galatians 5:16 NIV, " and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh".

Let us not just follow blind instinct and be carried away by our physical needs to the extent of neglecting our spiritual obligations. This is where complete reliance on God is key. Your income may not be enough to meet your monthly needs even without tithing, but it is very foolish to dig ourselves into spiritual holes which lead us into physical debt while applying human logic to our situation.

Debt in a child of God is an indication of a spiritual problem.

"Walk in the Spirit" brethren. Tithes should be paid FIRST!!! Especially for business men and women, this is extremely crucial. There is the temptation to want to complete a transaction before calculating the profit. As a businessman I understand this perfectly. But tithes must be paid immediately income is received! This will enable us spiritually rebuke the devourer and ward him away from our abundance under the authority of Jesus Christ.

"To be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace " Romans 8:6

These admonitions may sound illogical, but so go spiritual things. They often seem to turn logic on its head.

To be continued

The mystery of covenants unveiled (part 7)

Jesus said in Matt 5:17 NLT " "Don't misunderstand why I have come. I did not
come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose".

In other words the lethargy and evasion of the body of Christ  towards the admonitions of the old testament may be doing us more harm than good.

The old testament is equally a part of the authoritative Word of God as much as the new testament is!

An example is Malachi 3:8-12

8."“Should people cheat God? Yet you have cheated me! “But you ask, ‘What do you mean? When did we ever cheat you?’ “You have cheated me of the tithes and offerings due to me.

9. You are under a curse, for your whole nation has been cheating me.

10. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the LORD of Heavens Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!

11. Your crops will be abundant, for I will guard them from insects and disease. Your grapes will not fall from the vine before they are ripe,” says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

12. “Then all nations will call you blessed, for your land will be such a delight,” says the LORD of Heavens Armies."

A tithe is a spiritual symbol. We observe it for the first time in the Bible in Genesis 14:20b NLT " Then Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth of all the goods he had recovered".

Abram had just returned from a battle where he had defeated 5 strong and recently victorious armies with just 318 of his servants and 3 other allies. He knew his victory had not come by his own strength or that of his allies.

He was met by King Melchizedek of Salem, described as the High priest of God Most High. This elusive character then goes ahead to give Abram bread and wine before blessing him.

Let us recall the symbolism of bread and wine in the new testament where Jesus (our eternal High priest of the new covenant) shares out bread and wine amongst his disciples.

Jesus describes the bread as his body, and the wine as his blood, a symbol of a new COVENANT.

Mark 14:24 NLT " And he said to them, "This is my blood, which
confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice for many".

In other words, Jesus presents bread and  wine as a symbol of a COVENANT!

This is a vital clue as to the purpose of King Melchizedek's presentation of bread and wine to Abram. It was a symbol of a covenant. This means the presumed meeting was actually a covenant remembrance, which culminated in Abram handing over a tithe of all the recovered spoils to the priest of God Most High.

Let us now look at the passage in Malachi 3:8-12 with more clarity.

To be continued

The mystery of covenants unveiled (part 6)

As a Christian, it is important to note the power of substitution in our lives. Christ became a substitute for us on the cross of calvary so that we no longer have to face the consequences of sin, which is death, but can now live eternally. When God looks upon us, he sees our substitute, Christ.

Likewise it is important that all we have is substituted to the ownership of Christ in order that our wealth is beyond the jurisdiction of any curse or force of spiritual retribution.

When we gave our lives to Christ, it meant our lives were removed from the jurisdiction of the enemy and therefore our lives are no longer at the mercy of any evil force. It is therefore very unwise to leave our material abundance at the mercy of the same enemy our lives have been removed from.

It is foolhardy to embrace Christ without taking laid down steps to hand over our possessions to Him, and then sit back and complain that we are not reaping from the abundance purchased for us through Him.

Jesus said, the enemy has come for no other reason but to steal, kill and destroy John 10:10. Christ also said his own work was to bestow on us a life of abundance! (" The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly").

In clear language, the first part of the verse means the enemy wants to steal from us.  Steal what? Our abundance; from stealing, he then tries to kill us, but he can't since our lives are hidden in Christ. And then he tries to destroy our future, our relationships, and everything we hold dear. This too has to be substituted in Christ.

In other words, a child of God living in poverty is not manifesting the purpose of Christ!

I would normally shy away from being tagged a "prosperity preacher", were it not so important to the destiny of the body of Christ for this message to sink into each and every one of us!

It is part of Christ's purpose on calvary's cross that all God's children experience a life of abundance.

Sadly, the Bible also predicts that there will always be poor people in the land (God's Kingdom) Deut 15:11 NIV " , There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be open handed toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land", Matt 26:11 NIV " The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me".

The question is this, does the fact that a prediction of poverty exists in God's word (for those  too ignorant to overcome it) make it compulsory that YOU have to be the one that ends up poor?

Not all humans will inherit the gift of eternal life. Must you be one of those that won't?

To be continued

The mystery of covenants unveiled (part 5)

In our walk as children of God, it is crucial that our complete trust and reliance is on only Him.

The Bible says in Jerusalem 17:5, "cursed is he who trusts in man". Jesus also mentions that material things will eventually decay or get stolen, but that value should be placed on only intangible things that will outlast our lives on earth.

Matthew 6:19-20 NIV, " Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and
where thieves do not break in and steal".

After the flood, God made a solemn promise never again to truncate the natural order of progression on the earth. Consequences would always follow actions without fail.

Genesis 8:22, NLT " As long as the earth remains, there will be planting and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night."

In several passages also, there have been agreements made between men that have been binding and honored even by God. An example is Esau (Isaac's firstborn son), who swore an oath selling his birthright as firstborn to Jacob for a bowl of stew.

By doing so, the Bible says Esau despised his birthright. And the agreement was ratified by God.

Likewise, agreements (covenants), oaths, and even curses have been invoked severally over time between flesh and between spirits, or a combination of both, that have become binding on men.

An example is told in Joshua 9 where the Hivitte Kingdom of Gibeon pledged loyalty to Israel under false pretenses and obtained a covenant of peace from Israel. They were spared destruction because Israel didn't consult God first before making the covenant. When Joshua the leader realised Israel had been tricked, and realising that the covenant was binding and recognized by God, he placed a curse on Gibeon (Joshua 9:23) and consigned their future generations to servitude to Israel. They remained under this curse until Israel was exiled away from the promised land.

As human beings, there is a limit to what we know about the agreements or trespasses which have been binding on our ancestors. Some have made covenants which their descendants have unknowingly contravened. This has brought them under spiritual bondage that they are not aware of.

Many of these types of spiritual constraints hold back the children of God from fulfilling their destiny of abundance and overcoming.

In the area of wealth, these spiritual constraints act as rodents which devour our savings and conspire to keep us in poverty.

This is why it seems some are financially successful even when they do not know or fear God, and many of God's children are perpetually in poverty.  Spiritual covenants are either constraining some or giving others amazing leverage to be exceedingly successful.

In all this discussion, let us not lose sight of what is most important. Even when we break every stronghold which holds back our claim on abundance which Jesus already purchased for us, we should never forget our trust and reliance and sustenance MUST remain on ONLY God.

Jesus says this about our spiritual authority. Luke 10:20 NLT "But don't rejoice because evil spirits obey you; rejoice because your names are registered in heaven".

To be continued

How God teaches us to love

Marriage can be a very stressful experience. From almost the moment when the knot is tied, the new couple starts to realize the difficulty in two people with different backgrounds and mindsets coming together to form a single unit. Oftentimes this "unit" feels like one only in name.

In the  book of Genesis (3:16) during the time of Adam and Eve, God alluded to the woman's desire to always seek control of the man in her relationship, while countless researches have confirmed the man's greatest desire in marriage is respect. And it always seems respect is the last thing a man's wife accords him.

I recently got thinking though, what is God's desire for us in marriage? The clearest indication of this is in Ephesians 5:25. Husbands are commanded to love their wives.

Why?

In my walk with God I've severally been tempted just to "make do" with a right standing with God, and any other addition with my wife. In other words I (rightly) felt my relationship with God is all that matters. However I've felt more lethargic about the importance of my relationship with my wife. For those who are married this isn't too hard to understand.

But I got thinking, could part of the reason for God's creation of the institution of marriage be to teach us how to love? Think about it from God's point of view. Man is an exasperating creature. With all our character inconsistencies, negative behavior, consistent misdemeanors, and other mental and emotional flaws, God still loves us and never abandons us.

Could he be teaching us how to do the same through marriage? It's so easy just to disconnect from our wives when misunderstandings arise, and "face"  God, rather than thrash things out with them. But God never disconnects from us even when he doesn't approve of our direction.

When we offend him, he still looks out for us. This is love! God please give me the strength to love my wife, for love is the most difficult gift to give.

The mystery of covenants unveiled (part 4)

The reality is that an alarming percentage of Christians today aren't fulfilling their God - given potential in prosperity and abundance due to their ignorance of the power of covenants.

Firstly, what are God's children entitled to through Christ's covenant with God the Father?

Galatians 3:14 (NLT) "Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing he promised to Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith."

In Genesis 12:2-3, God began laying out a comprehensive covenant with Abraham and his descendants Israel. Collectively known as "the blessing of Abraham" , it encompassed abundant fruitfulness in descendants, productivity, influence and spiritual authority. It also promised the descendants of Abraham, ownership of the "Promised" land of Canaan.

Jesus Christ's covenant connected all mankind with this blessing as an inheritance through faith. Interestingly, Jesus also spoke of the arrival of the "Kingdom of God" (Matthew 12:28).

In other words, the prosperity of Abraham, his influence, spiritual authority, divine health, and virility are our inheritance by faith.

We will take an in-depth look at one of the most rampant causes of poverty amongst God's children today.

I will first lay a background to my analysis.

1. Firstly, Jesus, as the only begotten Son of God, existed from the beginning of time. (John 1:1,14, 29)

2. Jesus came to earth in form of a man at some point roughly 2050 years ago or thereabouts

3. Human Jesus, though flesh and blood, was conceived not as a product of Joseph' sperm and Mary's egg, but by a supernatural invitro fertilization (i.e.  A sperm and egg combination not from earthly origin)

4. Therefore Jesus, not an actual blood descendant of Adam, though grafted in through his earthly parents Mary and Joseph, was not legally subject to the curse of Adam (spiritual death) and all Adam's generations.

5. Because Jesus was spiritually alive, this gave him the power to prevail over sin and enabled him to live a perfect life.

6. Having this unique advantage, it thus enabled him to negotiate a covenant with God the Father to be a substitute for all who are under Adam's curse

7. Therefore, Jesus paid the penalty every sinner is required to pay, so that sinners no longer need to pay it.

8. He therefore connected us to the initial edict God gave man in Gen 1:28 (i. be fruitful, ii. multiply iii. fill the earth iv. subdue it v. have dominion)

9. The new covenant negotiated by Christ upon His death at calvary is so comprehensive that it covers every aspect of life a human being lives on earth, and enables us to subdue the earth and reign in it, just as God commanded man in the beginning.

10. The new covenant of salvation through Christ's Jesus is superior to any other covenant we can ever have, as it connects us with the past, to several covenants God made with His chosen people centuries ago as recorded in the old testament, and it also connects us with the future, of everlasting life in eternity.

To be continued