Nothing Can Stop Christmas' Bleessing

Something strikes me about Christmas
No one is left behind, no one
Nothing can stop the joy it brings
It has pleased the Lord to come
Nothing will hold Him back

From the intellectuals, wise men, to laymen shepherds
From the astrologers who traveled thousands of miles to hosting shephards
From the rich who could afford to bring a gift to men who could only afford their time

Distance can't stop the blessings of the season
Neither can societal status

From old and forsaken Elizabeth, to young and desirable Mary
People whom the world had forgotten and people who had just begun to live
From the expectant Simeon and Ann to the 'caught unawares' generation
Age can't stop the blessings of this season
People's perception cannot change a thing either

From ministry inclined Zechariah, to business oriented Joseph
From the priest who doubted to the Dreamer who hearkened
Not even doubt could stop the blessings of the season
Men and women from all walks of life

From those who walked in darkness to those who came to bear witness of the light

From the wailing mother's in Ramah to the joyous and chorousing angels
From Mother's who just lost their children to Angels who saw their God in flesh
Not one person is left behind
Circumstances cannot stop the blessings of the season

Most importantly, the entire Christmas story isn't just a day. It is a story of years compressed into one single day
Be rest assured that there's enough to go round not just today but from today henceforth
Time can't stop the blessings of the season

Joy to the world

Merry Christmas

In the Beginning, It was not So

Everything has a Beginning

Everything we see today has a beginning. Formal education, politics, democracy, philosophy, science, medicine, etc. Ideas have beginnings. Even the institution of marriage has a beginning. Our generation has come to a place where there is no clear-cut definition or distinction about sexuality, gender, marriage and raising children. The fresh water from the river of morality has travelled so far from its source. Close to the gigantic sea of modernism, it losses it's freshness and bears the taste of the salty sea. Nonetheless, there is a definition for marriage and sexuality. Let the well-meaning people take a trip with me back to the beginning, as we see marriage from its very source.

The popular phrase 'in the beginning, it was not so,' is Jesus' profound reply when questioned about marriage. Jesus teaches about marriage and sexuality with reference to the beginning. He further goes on the mention the origin of the 'makeshift' laws they were currently living by. He said it was the hardness of their heart that allowed God permit Moses to give laws regarding divorce. This teaches us a number of things. Every culture or philosophy we imbibe has an origin. It could either be God or not. Another point to note is that when our hearts are hardened, we get a makeshift commandment. When there is a perfect, why settle for the temporal? When there is a celestial, why settle for terrestrial? When there is an eternal, why settle fit the ephemeral?

Matt 19:4-6 And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.

Matt 19:7-9 They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away? He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning, it was not so. And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery.

Man is made in the image of God. Marriage is a prototype of the relationship Christ intends to build with His Church, the bride. Marriage isn't just a mutual agreement, it is a union. They have become one and no longer two. When these truths are hidden from anyone's heart, man no longer appreciates who he is made to be. He changes the image of the incorruptible God to that of a corruptible man, beasts and other demeaning creatures.

Honestly, many truths of the kingdom cannot be understood intellectually. We need to follow instructions to experience them. We need to be in great relationships to have a glimpse of God's great care. We need to build great families to teach our kids by experience the fatherhood of God. We need to practice love and forgiveness to appreciate what great sacrifice Jesus made on the cross. We need to keep our homes intact to prove God's word that nothing can separate us from the love of God. Even though the grace to do all these come from God himself, the manifestation comes by our obedience.

Our Way or His
Gen 6:3 And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.

God need not struggle with us while making His demands. Man's days will be over shortly; like vapour and midst that disappears in the sun; like a flower that withers in no time. And then His will shall eventually and eternally be established. It is the Son the father loves that he chastises. If you feel pressure to do right, you are experiencing the restraints of chastisement. Woe is he whom the Lord Has abandoned to himself. The hardness of his heart will drive him to unimaginable depravity. Only homes, relationships, principles and structures established as it was in the beginning will abide forever.

Man of faith rejoice, the pervasion today will pass away shortly. Man of hope prepare, make sure everything you built will last. Man of love, take the reconciliation you have received to many others. Everything that bears the sign 'In the beginning it was not so' will soon pass away. And everything that bears 'as it was in the beginning' will abide forever.

More About the Beginning

After the first 5 posts, I would like to back up a little. In this post I would like to examine different words that capture the concept of the beginning. As usual, one word cannot deliver all we need to know. The limitations of one are covered by the other. However it comes, enjoy it, test it and hold on to truth.

The Source
We have discussed the beginning as a person and not just a period in history. God is the beginning. His existence is the basis for everyone thing. By Him all things were created. We are because He is. Life is because He is. Science says the sun is the fundamental source of energy, even the energy that is in a form impossible to trace back to the sun. Nature always has an eternal story to tell. The scriptures say God is the fundamental source of life. He opens his arms and satisfies the desire of every living thing. He is not only the source but the sustainer. When everything is traced back we find God. When time is rolled away, we see God. When technology is traced back we hear the proclamation of God 'dominate.' God is the beginning, the source.

A fool says in His heart that there is no God. A fool says that there is no beginning.

The First
In addition, the beginning is also the first in succession. Jesus is the beginning of the creation of God. The first born among many brethren. Jesus prayed in John 17 that the Father restores the glory that He has before the worlds were made. Conforming into the image of Christ is a restoration to the original intention and creation of God.

The Intended
God had foreknowledge and predestined all for an explicitly defined purpose. This thought, this idea is the beginning. God knows the end from the beginning. He declared the end from the beginning (Is 46:10). God doesn't have contingency plan. He has a perfect plan. He had purposed the end right from the beginning. Hence, the beginning is critical in gravitating towards the end God intended. We need knowledge of the beginning. We need a revelation of the beginning to actualise God's purpose. Eschatology will remain an unresolved puzzle until we draw our lines from the beginning. God declared the end from the beginning. The beginning holds the end. God's will will intimately prevail over all. His will is the end. His intention is the end and He declared it from the beginning.

The Created
God moved from thinking to doing. He conceived us then created us. Sin is an aberration of perfection. Sin is simply altering the will of God. Sin is an alternative to the plan of God. When sin manifests, there is a change. What we are left with is no longer the original. What we are left with is no more what God created. What God created is the beginning. Everything else is either an exact image or an adulterated one.

The Best
Some more words used to interpret the beginning are the best, the choicest, the chief. In physical reality, when one thing comes before the other, we say the former came first. However, when we say something is the best, which came first becomes immaterial. The beginning, as it manifests in the realm of time always comes next. Abram then Abraham; Sarai then Sarah; Rehab the Harlot then Rahab the righteous; Jacob then Israel; Saul then Paul. Even when is is generations apart, the natural manifests first hoping to deceive the very elect. Saul then David; Adam then Christ and many more. Even when it comes to the inanimate, the tares manifest first before the wheat.

However, in all these comparisons, we aren't confused about which is better. This better part is the beginning. Though it is manifest in eternity. It manifests in the realm of time usually not as the first. But it was the intended. Apostleship was the beginning for Paul but he went the Pharisee way at first. Ezekiel was predestined to be a prophet but He was born a priest. Our present reality might not be what God intended, but what God intended is undoubtedly the best.

The Eternal
Heaven and earth will pass away but not a single stroke of God's word will pass without accomplishing its purpose. This word is that which was with God in the beginning. This was was God. The beginning not only speaks of what was there when time started ticking. It emphatically suggests the eternal state existent before time broke away from eternity. It is the same that will continue to stand as sin, death, corruption and all their fellow intruders pass away. The eternal was the seed, it is the fruit. The eternal was the beginning, it is the end. Only the eternal will abide. Everything built according to God's eternal counsel will stand. Whatever tree that wasn't existent in the beginning will be rooted out irrespective of how deep or how far the roots have grown. God will shake all things once again. This time both the heavens and the earth will be shaken. Only the things that spring out from God himself, who is the Eternal One and the Beginning will abide.

Reconciliation and Restoration

Many words describe the conversion of an individual into Christianity. Some of the words are new birth (John 3:3), adoption (Rom 5:8), engrafting (Rom 11:24), translation (Col 1:13), reconciliation (2 Cor 5:18), redemption (Eph 1:7), restoration, liberty (Gal 5:1), salvation (Luke 19:9) and so on. This is not a basis for confusion or contradiction. Salvation is a spiritual process. One word in the human language is incapable of articulating what happened or what started at that moment, hence, the many words and analogies. However, each word complements the other and accommodates the limitations of the other.

For instance 'adoption' describes salvation with reference to one's life before Christ. It describes the once lost and now found phenomenon. However, new birth captures the inability of our destiny to be held to ransom by our past. We are entirely new. Also, birth caters for any limitation of the word adoption and eliminates any discrimination that might come as a result of the cultural prejudice against adoption. Salvation defines the new birth experience as a deliverance from looming destruction. Translation defines the same occurrence as a change of citizenship. A single word cannot convey the whole truth. All together, we have a more accurate perspective.

The focus, as we might have guessed is redefining salvation with reference to the beginning. I particularly pick interest in the two words in our title: reconciliation and restoration. They both make reference to a state which was lost and now recovered; a relationship that was broken and now being restored; a nature that was compromised and now salvaged from the ruins. Man's birth isn't his beginning, God's creation is. God's creation predates our birth. His works are perfect. Salvation is man's return to the image of God and not corruptible man as we know him today.

Reconciliation
Reconciliation in basic terms implies that there are at least two parties involved. It implies there was past, there is a present and a future. The past here is the cool-of-the-day kind of interaction between Adam and God. Not just the visitation but the inhabitation. Man's creation was completed when He received the breadth of God, the spirit of God. In the beginning, God dwelt in man. As a matter of fact, man started to live only when He was inhabited by God. But there is a present. The image of God is compromised by sin. The spirit of God departed from man and He died, insensitive to God. Life became a countdown rather than progressing light. As our days are, so our strength depreciates. This wasn't God's will. It's the exact opposite of Moses' prophetic declaration to Asher. However, it is not over.

2 Cor 5:18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;

Jesus was manifested to restore man's relationship with God. Remember, this relationship is not just about being in good terms. It is more of a union than a cordial relationship. By Jesus we can receive God again into our heart. By Jesus we can enjoy veil-less worship. By Jesus we can say 'Abba, Father.' When we are in Christ, we are a new creation. Old things pass away and all things have become new. The broken relationship passes away and the original, ever fresh, ever new, ever progressing God-Christ union breaks forth.

Restoration
While reconciliation emphasises on the God-man relationship, restoration puts all is eggs into the actual nature of man. Salvation restores the man God made. His crown of glory and honour is restored. The nature that is capable of dominating over creation is restored. The nature that is capable of replenishing the earth was reborn.

Eph 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

God made man and employed him to tend the Garden based on his qualification as the image of God. However, he lost the spirit of God, his certificate and guarantee of his competence. He fell short of the crown of glory and honour. Consequently, He lost his job too. Man was created and ordained to do good works. Works of multiplying Godliness, replenishing the earth, subduing it and having dominion over all. Works of making the earth Heaven's annex. But in Christ we are restored to our job post. God's spirit returns to us and we are restored into His image.

Like a Dream
Psa 126:1 A Song of degrees. When the LORD turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream.

When the Lord turns the captivity of His people, their slavery and subjection to sin and death seems like a dream. Dreams are short compared to the length of life itself. They virtually have no effect on life itself. The effect of our salvation will make life like a dream. It's exciting to know that all our suffering and shame will pass away like a dream. It is even more interesting to know that the times we think we have had fun are nothing compared to the reality of eternity. The dreaded moments of Godlessness and hopelessness pass like a dream. Time folds up and eternity continues as it was in the beginning. This time bigger, better, brighter and more appreciated.

The Original Man: Man as God Made Him

(Part 4 in 'The Beginning' Series)
What is Man?
Psa 8:4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?

We often read this passage as God giving responsibility to man out of pity. We interpret it as: man is worthless, God is only empathetic. But this isn't the case. Our worth is sourced in God. However, God is not just relating with us out of pity. God has a purpose for creation. He has a purpose for man. He made man with a purpose and that purpose is why He is so mindful of us and constantly interfering. He is always devising strategy to make sure we do not fall short. He is confident that we will rise up to this responsibility, so He makes all things needed for life and Godliness available. This passage gives an explicit answer to the question of why God is overly concerned about man of all the billions of species that exist. This passage addresses it from the beginning- the most accurate perspective ever.

We must understand that God didn't create everything first and began to find use for them later. God doesn't practice modernism. He said to Jeremiah: before you were formed I knew you and assigned and predetermined that you would be a prophet. God had a purpose for man and he was made for that purpose.

Psa 8:5-6 For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:

Permit me to paraphrase:
God, who did you make man to be that you are constantly thinking of Him? Why do you always check up on him, intervene when He falls, assists when He asks and even just being with him for the fun of it? I see. You made him next in line to your very self; You made a crown for him from the same elements from which Your own crown is made - glory and honour; You put him in charge of all the works of Your hands and made nothing else to be above him.

Now, I think this is close. This Psalm reveals man's identity from the beginning. It reveals man as God intended.

Adam, the Son of God
Gen 5:1 This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him;

Adam was made in the image and likeness of God. Luke 3:38 calls him the Son of God. But there is something shocking about verses two and three of Genesis chapter five. The same man who was made in the image and likeness of God begat sons later, but in his own image. At that point man had fallen from the image and likeness of God and so couldn't bear children after that kind. He had to bear children after his new fallen image. This image is Man as we see today. However, it was not so in the beginning. Every reference to Adam in the New Testament about bringing sin and death is Adam in his fallen state. In the beginning, it was not so.

The Last Adam
When the Author of Hebrews would introduce Jesus, He introduced with the same 'purpose statement' of man in the beginning. He called Jesus Son, Brightness of God's Glory, Express Image of His Person, Made next to God, Heir over all things etc. This is the Son that God intended Adam to be. This is the man Adam was made to be. God didn't just say 'let us make man in our image and likeness,' He went further to 'male and female created He them.' It wasn't just an intention, it became creation. It wasn't just a thought it was the beginning. He, that is Jesus, is the beginning of the creation of God.

Rev 3:14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;

That All be Conformed
Rom 8:29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

We understand that Jesus is the beginning of the creation of God. We understand that He is the Son. This passage, I believe, is the definition man's destiny. In lieu of this, I have some questions to discuss. What does it mean to foreknow or to be foreknown? What does it mean to predestinate or be predestinated? What does it mean to conform or be conformed?

Foreknowledge is the type of knowledge that is gotten before the manifestation of such knowledge in reality. Foreknowledge about man is an awareness and understanding about man ever before He was created. Predestination is a determination of purpose or destiny before the reality or manifestation of the object in view. To be predestined is to have the course of life or path of life charted out even before creation. This is what was amplified in Jeremiah's call:

Jer 1:5. Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

We see foreknowledge and predestination in effective. Another manifestation of foreknowledge and predestination was the introduction of David eight years before he was born. God already knew him as a man after His own heart and ordained him to be King.

1Sa 13:14 But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.

God has foreknowledge and has predestined every element of creation. God foreknew all men and has predestined all to be conformed to the image of His Son. This image is not just an intention of God. He was manifested in creation. He was manifested in beginning. He was with God We are called to be conformed to the image of Christ who is the Beginning of God's creation - the original man.

Understanding the Beginning: What is the Beginning?

(NB: This is the third part)
We have seen that the beginning isn't merely an event or a period in time. God himself is The Beginning. Truly, that is all there is to it. This revelation puts every bickering about time and the existence of God to rest. However, the scriptures further reveal that the beginning is a 'state of creation.'

Behold, It was Very Good
When God made all things, He looked at it and said 'good.' However, there was still work to do. He saw the works of His hands but He didn't see and accurate reflection of Himself. So, He continued creation. However, when He made man, His report was 'very good.' This is the Beginning. The beginning is the state of completed creation; the moment when creation was complete; the moment when man assumed responsibility. God put all things in place and made man to kick it off. The beginning is the state of creation when God took His rest.

The word 'created' depicts completion. It reflects perfection. It portrays satisfaction. Whatever would warrant God to take His rest is indeed a complete work.

In the Beginning, it was not so
Mat 19:4-5 And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh?

Mat 19:8 He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so.

My motive here isn't about divorce or the hardness of man's heart. I only intend to examine the phrase 'in the beginning, it was not so.' We see that at the beginning, there was order. In the beginning, there was man-male and female at that. In the beginning, there was marriage. There was order and sanity. Unlike popular notions where the beginning is perceived to be characterised by 'nullness and voidness.' Some versions of the Bible translated Gen 1:2 as 'the earth became null and void.' The Hebrew word translated 'was' actually means 'became.' This again corroborates the fact that creation is complete and the beginning is the moment of bliss, when God took His rest.

Righteousness, Peace, Joy
1Ch 17:9 Also I will ordain a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, and they shall dwell in their place, and shall be moved no more; neither shall the children of wickedness waste them any more, as at the beginning,

This is another snapshot of the beginning. God ordained a place for man, He planted them and established them. There were no children of wickedness to torment or terrify them.

Isa 1:26 And I will restore thy judges as at the first, and thy counsellors as at the beginning: afterward thou shalt be called, The city of righteousness, the faithful city.

Again, the city of righteousness is used to define the beginning. At the beginning, the dwelling of God's people was a faithful city.

The Beginning: A State of Perfection
The beginning is a state of perfection and completion. It is a state of synchrony between heaven and earth; where God can transverse both realms without man hiding in shame and fear. It is the state in which man is a perfect reflection of God. The beginning is the state in which creation was subject to man; the days that man was still awake to dominate, replenish and subdue (Matt 13:25 says that man slept and the enemy came and sowed tares). The beginning is a literal heaven and earth as one.

Prelude to The Beginning

'Understanding the beginning is the beginning of understanding.' - Debo Adesina

Where did all things begin? What happened in the beginning? When did the clock start ticking? What was the earth like at the beginning? What was man's routine at the beginning? What was man's duty at creation? Why did God make man? What exactly dies sin deprive is of? When sin is done away with, what is left of life? What is man's destiny? Answers to these questions and many more will continually move in unending cycles if we do not seek answers from the very beginning. I strongly believe that the beginning is a very strong and formidable foundation to base doctrine and all understanding.

Our knowledge of the beginning will help us understand so many other things. Our knowledge of the beginning will help understand sin more than ever. Our glimpse of the beginning will help us know the height from which man fell. Our knowledge of the beginning will help us appreciate redemption and know to which height to which we were restored at the cross. Our knowledge of man's duty at creation will help understand the essence and purpose of life. Knowledge of the beginning will help us lead such a life that perfectly matches that which God intended.

For the whole of this month, we'll be dwelling on the theme "The Beginning." When the foundation is in place, the building has remarkable potentials. We can rise to any height if we have the right basis. We can know the hope of our calling, the riches of the glory of God's inheritance in the saints and the exceeding greatness of His power towards us who believe. Unfortunately, there are so many truths we cannot bear because our foundation didn't have that in consideration. We had foundations customised to our denominations such that any external brick or truth unlike what we are familiar with becomes repulsive. This attitude is a great defence from error. However, is also a great mitigant to genuine truth.

We often have to constantly patch our fundamental beliefs to accommodate finer details as more mysteries are unveiled. The entirely of the word of God is truth, when we can't accommodate some because of weight or peculiarity, what we have is still partial. Understanding the beginning will put a lot more things in perspective. Not that all knowledge will suddenly be revealed to us. But as we get a little here and a little there, all learning and revelation will converge into one grand purpose. If we know, for instance, that all things were made of gold in the beginning, when we see stubble we would discard it. And when we see gold even in it's unrefined and crude state, we would covet it.

Understanding, the beginning will help us identify what we have and where we are. It would help us appreciate what we have received. It will help us anticipate what we would become. It will help us know how all things are working together for good. It will help make sense of every sermon. It will help put all doctrine in it's right place.

As we take a trip back to the beginning, 'The One who was' is capable to reinforce our foundations and make it capable to hold the structure of the temple to which the Lord wants to make our lives. May the Spirit of Truth himself lead us to all truth and make every human input obvious and harmless. Our one true desire is to know Him who is from the beginning. May our desire be fulfilled.

Understanding the Beginning: Who is the Beginning?

Isa 40:21 Have ye not known? have ye not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth?

Even God would have us know and understand the beginning. He rebuked Israel sharply for being so ignorant. Our opening verse as well as many other portions depict that. He constantly referred to 'the beginning' in many admonitions to Israel. Many of the blessings He conferred on people where also referenced to 'the beginning.'  Jesus made several references too. 'It was not so in the beginning' is a very familiar phrase. Hence, in order to make sense of every occurrence of the word 'beginning' in scriptures we ought to get a snapshot of exactly 'what' or 'who' the beginning is.

The scope of this piece will be streamlined to the most basic, most popular (according to scriptures) and most important definition of the beginning. I will lift my theme from one of the verses...

Who is the Beginning?
Often times we view God as one of us and measure Him with the same scales as ourselves only that we inflate the results. We say 'bigger than what people say' etc. What if what we say is nothing close? What if He is nothing like we imagine? He is not a man that we should expect a day He began to exist. This is the confusion of the one who counters God's existence with 'before God.' He is the beginning!

The Beginning, God
The very first verse says it all. There are three (as far as I have seen) perspectives to Genesis chapter one. First and most popular is 'In the beginning, God....' The word 'in' is absent in the Hebrew manuscript. Therefore, some theologians actually say that, 'The Beginning' was supposed to be the title of the passage. They say Gen 1:1 actually reads 'God created the heavens and the earth. But the most interesting and the one I advocate is this: 'The Beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. I am more inclined towards the third because several other portions of the scriptures corroborate this view.

The Beginning and the End
Rev 22:13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.

This is a title exclusive to the Godhead. It actually presents God as The Beginning and not just the beginning but the end; the first and last; Alpha and Omega. These are all popular phrases in our worship. It shouldn't be a hard thing to comprehend.

The One Who is the Beginning
Col 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

Again, the scriptures affirm that the beginning isn't merely an event or some moment in time when the clock began to tick. The Beginning is a name. That name belongs to God and is shared by Christ. A name, unlike what western culture propagates these days, isn't just an arbitrary means of identification. Western culture assigns name and hope that after several uses will be identified with a person or an object. A name is a description of nature and purpose; the explicit and most concise summary of essence. God as The Beginning isn't arbitrary. It is an explicit and concise depiction.

Col 1:17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

John 1:3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

The Source and Origin
The name 'The Beginning' isn't used for God because it best fits Him. The only reason can think of the name is because He is the Beginning. Another close appellation for our God is Father. To be Father means to be the source and the first from whom others emerge.

Sin of Ignorance
Acts 17:28-30 For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device. And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:

I read from a great man that ignorance of whom God is is the violation of the very first commandment. He said that the first commandment didn't begin with 'thou shall not have any other God besides me.' What we usually think is the prologue is the beginning of the first commandment- I am the Lord your God.... Again, God warns us against the sin of ignorance of who He is.

This last portion from Acts seventeen is both elating and scary. It is elating because we have a sense of worth to know that God is our source and origin. However, it continues on a stern warning that God is not as we see Him. He is not the creation or invention of man. The admonition to repent here is basically from 'sin of ignorance' - ignorance of who God is. Our world is a little too advanced to worship images made from gold, silver, stone. Abstract ideas and philosophies rule our own world. God is bidding us to repent from any false or even inaccurate image of Him in our heart.

Rev 22:13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.

Perfect Love Overcomes Fear

1 John 4:16-19
And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. We love him, because he first loved us.

I wish I can say the same that I know and believe the love God has for me. Paul gave me a glimpse when He said it has length, breadth, depth and height. Scientists can query that depth and height means the same. But depth here means quality. 24 carat gold bar is 'deeper' than an 18 carat gold bar even though both may have the same length, breadth and height. This love is God himself and infinite, I have eternity to search it out.

Again, love is the basis on which we can stand boldly even in the day of judgement. Again the issue of identity is highlighted. The gravity of love cannot be accurately measured outside the family setting. God saw His reflection in man at creation and He was very pleased. He calls it very good. He saw Himself in Jesus and said 'This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.' God falls in love with himself in us. He is gracious and perfect. When He sees himself, he is pleased. He is the treasure that attracts Him to us. He is the inheritance He looks forward to in us. Sonship is one word that describes homogeneity of identity. We can only be bold in judgement if we are just as He is.

Adoption
Adopted children have the same access as begotten sons. Unfortunately, our culture would not allow us appreciate this reality so much. I personally believe we still have prejudice for adoption. This and many more factors will limit how much impression the word makes on us. But for a second, let's appreciate adoption for what it really is. Adoption gets all the rights and benefits of birth. We can say it is equal. The scriptures uses many words to illustrate truth. It uses birth as well as adoption. Both end up as sons.

The Basis for Adoption is Love
There are many ways to show kindness. One is to give from what you have. Another way is to give access to what you have. I picture an adoption scene in my mind and there are many ways to be kind to the helpless child. One can always send relief materials monthly accompanied by a frequent visit just to show how concerned one is. At least, he had survived that long before you came by. Many people do that and the children are eternally grateful for such kindness. Yet another person decides to take the child in, put a robe on him, put a signet on his finger and make him a heir in the occasion of death. The former is empathy, the latter is love.

We are not saved in pity or out of empathy. We are saved out of love. God commanded His love long before we realised we needed Him Rom 5:8. He gives to all but He gives access to sons. When the father brings us home, He gives us access. The Joy in heaven is that of a new birth. This adoption into the family is the heat that melts out our fears. Love is God's reason.

Fearless in Judgement
Judgement means quite a number of things to a number of people. For some it is a day of recompense, for others it is the day of reward. Judgement is also division of lot and inheritance. Fear here is the feeling that we would be left out or undervalued in reward. However, we have no reason to fear since the are exactly like Him on this earth. He loves us and made us sons for that reason. Perfect love, casts out fear and that's why all our fears melt way.

Perfect love, I see as the love that inspires adoption. The love that make itself vulnerable. It is a love that gives access to all that is owned so that ownership is now equally shared. It is a love these bequests all that is owned. Perfect love bequests authority as well. Perfect love shares the lovers very essence. This is the love that begat us. As there is no fear in God, fear ought to be alien to us.

Fear Not
Isa 43:1 But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.

We belong to God. Our love for Him is as a result of His love for us. Our fears are dispelled because we are His; we are family; we abide in Him; we belong to Him.

Spirit of Adoption

Rom 8:15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.

Some of us have come to know the Lord as our saviour. However, we still have fears in our heart. We say like the awakened prodigal son 'I'm no longer worthy to be called your son.' This is fear. We need the baptism of the spirit of Adoption so that we can cry 'Abba, Father.' The new birth is the beginning of a new life. Fear in Christians will manifest as inability to approach God as father. This will deprive us of fullness.

Spirit of Adoption
The primary solution to fear isn't courage, it is an issue of identity. God doesn't tell us to overcome fear by motivating us to act against all odds. He does by telling us who we are. Or better still, He affirms His relationship with us. As we would see from several passages, only love conquers fear. Our first passage shows us that we overcome fear being engrafted into the family of God. He pulls His garment over us and tells the world we belong to Him. The Spirit of Adoption actually is a seal of our sonship. He brands our spirit with His identity. He places His name upon us and grants us legal access to all the benefits of a son. Unlike the signatures that validate an earthly covenant, endowment of Spirit validates an eternal and spiritual agreement. This is the basis upon which we overcome fear-adoption.

If we remember clearly, the first fear we need to overcome is approaching God. No amount of courage can break the repulsion of God's Spirit to the fallen man. Only the status of sonship can. The Son of God, became the son of man so that the sons of men can become the sons of God. The Spirit of Adoption only validates the relationship that Jesus establishes. He is the corn of wheat that died and was buried that many more sons will emerge. Sonship, or Adoption is the basis upon which fear is overcomed.

Come Boldly
Heb 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

This is the first sign of victory over fear-the ability to approach God boldly to obtain mercy and grace in times of need. 'Oh what peace we often forfeit, oh what needless pain we bear...' all because we're lacking in courage to meet the Lord who is most merciful. This scripture refers to them who believe, who have an high priest who knows and understand their frailties. The same scripture teach us that this class of believers are those who have been given power to be called children of God (John 1:12).

The author of the book of Hebrews was teaching the Jews with the priesthood which they seemed to understand so well. He was very careful not to mention father and son. Fatherhood seemed to be farfetched as far as they were concerned. That's one of the anchors on which they based the accusations against Jesus before He was crucified. He had to prove with several quotations from Psalms. David was a legendary figure to them. Gradually, until the twelfth chapter (Heb 12:7-8) before he was able to finally and boldly mention that we are sons and God is our father. Fear is overcomed by a father-son relationship.

Do not Be Afraid... Come
Matt 14:27-29 But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.

The word of God that bids us 'fear not,' is that same voice that beacons come. Actually, the reason God will ask us not to fear is so that we can come boldly. The scriptures abound with several such examples. We have been taught that 'fear not' primarily means summon courage. But nothing within us has the capacity to withstand fear. It is the words 'it is I' that bestowed courage on Peter. Fear not is usually accompanied with a reminder of our identify and is aim is 'come closer.'

Stair Up your Gifts
Another manifestation of fear is to hide the goodness and grace of God upon us. Paul encouraged Timothy to stair up God's gift. Fear hides God's gift and deprives us and others of the blessing they ought to receive by our ministry. The unprofitable servant hid his talent of gold because of fear. 'And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.' Matt 25:25

2 Tim 1:6-7 For this reason, I want you to remember the gift that God gave you. He gave you that gift inside yourself when I put my hands on you. You must use that gift. You must make it grow stronger, like when a wind blows on a very small fire. The wind makes that small fire grow into a big fire. Do this, because God has given us his Spirit. And his Spirit does not cause us to be afraid of things. Instead, he causes us to be powerful. He causes us to love God and other people. And he causes us to rule ourselves properly.

We must overcome fear to unlock our full potentials; our true identity and our limitless possibilities. This happens by the Spirit of Adoption.

Prologue to Spirit of Adoption

Fear is one of the single greatest forces that can paralyse a man. It is manifested in different forms: guilt, shame, cowardice, terror, depression and many more. Fear cripples our ability to pray because we consider ourselves unworthy. Fear can cripple one's ministry by painting a picture of serial failure. Fear would never let us test our limits and discover possibilities. Some fear seem harmless but nonetheless, venomous. Such a fear is one that would make us content with what we have and not pursue more.

The past 2 posts have been about fear. 'Fear of God' discloses how fear for God has been mistaken by several as fear of God. Many walk miles behind when God says walk before me. We saw how Israel shifted responsibility to Moses and unknowing delegated their ministry duties to the tribe of Levi and lost an opportunity to approach God personally. When God says fear not, it is primarily that we may first overcome every limitation that make us avoid His holy presence. It is the fear of God that makes fearless.

Secondly, we talked about 'Getting All Drenched.' Even as many have recieved grace and approach God for fellowship, they still fear that God will be angered by our numerous requests. By this many have resorted to managing rather than reigning. This is also fear. Jesus said we haven't asked enough to deplete heaven's treasuries by a billionth of its content. We don't have primarily because we don't ask. We might be excited by what we have, but we deprive ourselves of full joy when we refuse to ask. Many, pitch a tent around forgiveness of sins and refuse to pursue God to perfection of the soul. This is nonetheless fear.

Never be satisfied by only wetting your feet and walking with the Lord. Partake in divine assignment in establishing His kingdom and will by intercession. Press on to seeing that many more sons emerge. And press on still till your overwhelmed and have completely conformed body, soul and spirit to the image of Christ. Don't let fear keep you at the river bank where only your feet is wet. Step into the river of life at God's call.

However, fear isn't just something we overcome by summoning courage. Fear is overcome by love. How is this? What this space for the next post 'Spirit of Adoption.'

Let's Get All Drenched

At the beach, quite a number of people are comfortable with playing by the edge of the sea. They are excited as long as the waters just cover their feet. But deep in many hearts, even as they enjoy the waves crash at their feet, they fear to go a step further. Everyone crowds at the river bank. But as the waters get deeper, you meet fewer people. So is it in our walk with God.

There are 4 different depths as described in Ezekiel 47: The ankle-deep water, the knee-deep waters, the waist-deep water and the all encompassing waters. In essence there are four (4) classes of apprehending the knowledge of God. They are
1) Participation
2) Prayers
3) Propagation
4) Personification

It also describes that, everywhere the river flowed, it brought life. Even, when it flowed into the sea, it purified the sea.

Participation
When the waters of the knowledge of the glory of God covers our feet, we begin to get involved. We attend church and meet with like minded individuals. We get busy. Our feet come alive we receive the ability to walk with God. Without doubt this is a great start. But God never intended attendance to be the end. There is so much more.

Prayers
Having being involved with people, we need to need God himself. We meet with God in prayer. When the waters of the knowledge of the glory of God reach our knees, that's when we begin to pray. Our prayer life comes alive because the living waters touched our knees. The knees represent our ability to pray. Prayer ceases to be a struggle and an integral part of one's life if such depth is reached.

Christ is the basis of our relationship with the father. His intercession helps us to get in. However, our prayers make us get more acquainted with God and build a more intimate personal relationship with him. This is the knee deep waters. Here we realise the divine privilege we are given in the place of prayer. Prayer is a privilege to participate in the establishment of God's kingdom on earth; a honour to do His will.

Prayer is a superior form participation. It is a spiritual participation. We know that the things which we see emanates from the unseen. The spiritual is the origin of the physical. The depths of quality personal devotion and corporate intercession affords us the opportunity to have much more than physical impact. By virtue of prayer we can have a more eternal and weightier impact on the people, places and purposes for whom we pray.

Propagation
When a man truly meets God, he desires that every other person gets a similar experience. He is moved with compassion such that He wants to reproduce such experiences in as many people as he can. That's when the waters hit his waist. His ability to propagate the truth and raise men in God's image come alive. At the waist, we have the reproductive organs. This symbolically means when God's revelation reaches that depth, we can convey the truth of the gospel. We must bear fruits, we must bring forth. And it is the living waters that activate this in us.

Personification
Finally, there is an all encompassing waters. When it is feet-deep, our prayers may be infiltrated by our selfish desires once a while. When it's waist-deep other aspects of our lives may suffer neglect even though we have made an impact in God's name. But when we are all drenched, no part is left out. Every single part of us come alive. What a great destiny. God's intention is not that we get acquainted with truth alone. His sole intention for prayer is that his kingdom be eventually established. He would want us to press further than just being puppets. He wants us to be the embodiment of truth.

Fear Not
I have made the graduation from one depth to the next sound interesting because I presented only the benefits. If we look at any other thing, fear will deprive us of getting to the next level; fear deprives us of depth. Jesus endured the cross because of the joy set before Him. We can overcome fear and move to greater depth if we look at how much God would have transformed us when its all over. We overcome by fixing our gaze on Jesus. Fear shifts our focus so that we are either satisfied with the status quo or frightened by the future.

Everywhere that river flowed there is life! Let's not just wet our feet, knees or wait. Let's not just participate. Let's materialise our prayers. Let's not just echoe the truth but be an embodiment of it. Let's get all drenched.

Fear of God

Origin of Fear
Fear is a result of the fall of man. The man God made was fearless, intelligent and perfect. Scriptures say all God made was good. As a matter of fact, the man God made was in God's image and likeness. So you can expect that he was perfect. The first mention of fear was after disobedience. Fear came as a result of sin and the fall. Fear isn't just false evidences appearing real. That's a motivational definition. Fear is the feeling of inadequacy especially in approaching God.

Since the fall fear began to manifest in the human nature. It spread from approaching God to being who He wants us to be. Since then, man dreaded the presence of God. Man considered perfection an impossibility. Man viewed godliness as an exclusive reserve of the family of priests. Man feared the will of God. However, in the beginning, it was not so. God said man will die the day he eats the forbidden fruit. Man died, just as God said. Fear is death in the spirit.

Fear of God
The phrase 'fear of God' is used too loosely. But before I address that, I want to address fear. Fear is not always expressed as dread. There are silent fears that we never express. Sometimes, fear is just lack of interest-the loss of interest to pursue or continue.

- To fear, revere, be afraid
- To stand in awe of, be awed
- To fear, reverence, honour, respect
- To be fearful, be dreadful, be feared
- To cause astonishment and awe, be held in awe
- To inspire reverence or godly fear or awe
- To make afraid, terrify

The genuine 'fear of God' is never dreadful or terrifying. It is pure and perfect. The false fear of God is described in Hebrews 12:18-23. Whatever makes people draw back from God isn't the fear of God. That is not God's desire either. Fear is anything that makes us avoid truth, light, correction, change and God himself.

With this, I draw a line between being afraid of God and the 'fear of God.' They are worlds apart and the latter is not better than fear of dark or the devil or the unknown because it does not draw us closer to God. Shouldn't the fear of God be the most significant? Absolutely. Only the fear of God should remain in our heart.

Consuming Fire and a Refiner's Fire
God is a consuming fire. Should this not cause us to fear God? This passage is taken from Her 12:29. It does not refer to God being consuming fire to all. Malachi says 'refiner's fire.' That passage talks about the things which can be shaken. To the righteous, God is a refiner's fire. To the wicked and unrepentant, He is a consuming fire. Fear in us will prevent us from being purified by the same fire. Faith will cause us to approach so that sin is utterly consumed by his flames.

Ridding our Hearts of Fear
It is possible that only the fear of God is in us. Not only that, that is the sign of maturity. Jesus said 'when the enemy came, He found nothing in me.' Our destiny is that we are rid of every other fear.

Balance between loving God and fearing Him. This is answered already. For emphasis. Time won't permit me to prove this now. I will do so later. Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. The love of God is the perfection of wisdom. Fear causes us to obey because we respect Him. Love causes us to obey because we have known Him. Fear here, as explained earlier, is not terror, horror or dread. It is respect, awe, adoration and honour. No need for balance. The fear of God is the love of God budding; the love of God is the fear of God matured.

Can We Be Completely Free from Fear?
Yes fear can be totally eradicated. Let me as, can sin can be totally eradicated? For this purpose the Son of man was made manifest to destroy the works of darkness (1 John 3:8). Fear is a work of darkness, the result of the fall and a scar sin left behind. The same way our heart is purified by worship, prayer, study, obedience and fellowship is the same way fear is eradicated. Fear is sin. Sin isn't lying and fornacation. Sin is imperfection which includes fear. One of our hopes, along with victory over sin, is victory over fear.

Does God Condone our Fears?
God does not condone our fears any more than He condones our sin. He is working in us to attain perfection eventually. He's changing, washing, cleaning, aligning... He doesn't judge us by it but He expects us to grow out of it soon. When the fruit of the spirit begins to emerge, fear is swallowed up by faith, hope and love.

Fear Not
In conclusion, almost 90% of the use of 'fear not' in scriptures is a call to approach God rather than face life boldly. When we overcome our fear of God, we can live life to the fullest. It is in His presence that we loose our fear.

Shalom.

The New Age, Sexuality and the Gospel

One of the major issues that plague our world is sexuality. The male is not confident about his sex and want to change it. The female is more sexualy attracted to other female and she thinks it is right to explore and exploit those feelings. Homosexuality, transgender, divorce, single parenting, surrogacy, incest have become everyday words. Pornography has become a standard for the best selling movies. Sex appeal has become a model for advertisement. Though, civilisation is not the origin of this. These things date back to Sodom and Gomorrah. However, civilisation has made a giant but backward leap in institutionalising them all. We now have constitutions that protects, and advocates gay marriages while prosecuting ministers who refuse to join them. Transgenders are icons and the normal human is called 'transphobic.' What exactly is wrong?

I will attempt to answer by letting us study through the first chapter of Romans together. I'm sure we will appreciate some background.

Rome was a luxurious city. Reports say it had more slaves than citizens at a time. Its citizens had nothing more to do than eat, sleep and idle around. There were social security measures. The truth is: Idleness breeds abnormal desires. The man God made, He made to tend the garden - to work. Sexual perversion in Rome rose to a height even the western world today envies. This was the normal environment in Rome coupled with the political corruption in the leadership. Right in the midst of all these, Paul wrote to a tiny group of people - Christians.

Rom 1:16 - 17  For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.  For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

In such an environment like Rome where the norm is far from the truth, hearalds of the gospel face all sorts of things from persecution to ridicule. Fear or shame might be a natural response to persecution and ridicule. But since the gospel is not just some words that we claim to believe, we can act differently in a strange world. The gospel is a deposit in our heart that redefines everything-who we are, how God sees us and our destiny. The gospel is the power of God. It can create and recreate. Those who believe are recreated. It is in this Gospel that righteousness manifests. This is the lifeline of the just.

Rom 1:18-20  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;  Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

God doesn't just save those who believe and leave the earth in a cycle of decay, He removes every trace of ungodliness and iniquity. He roots it out and destroy its seeds so it never grows again. He destroys every tradition that holds down the gospel. That is why the Roman Empire fell. That is why Babylon fell. That is why communism fell in Asia. These are just signs of the true cleansing. However, God will not do so unjustly. He has hardcoded His message into nature, history and science. Whoever observes carefully will see. If not, there are messengers. No one will claim ignorance.

Rom 1:21-23 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,  And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.

This is the beginning of the actual issue and cause. We needed that background to understand. Sometimes, these perversions are not just in the 'city.' They are also in the Church. If not, how come we hear churches ordaining gay ministers or sanctioning gay marriages or honouring divorce requests? These are people who claim to know God. Verse 21 says it is true they know God, but they did not glorify Him as God. It also says they became vain in their imaginations. What does it mean to glorify God as God? What does it mean to be vain in one's imagination?

Glory or glorify is interpreted in many ways. One definition that beats my imagination is "opinion, judgement, view." God has an opinion. He has a view of life. He has a perspective. To glorify Him would be to honour and submit to His opinion and views. Glorifying God as God means letting God take His due position as our source, motivation and focus. Our life has been already planned out by God but we have a choice to fulfill it our fulfil our own plans. He should be the origin of our ideas, the basis for our decisions and the person we aim to please. When we miss this something fundamentally goes wrong - our imagination becomes vain.

Vain means "fruitless, empty, purposeless, foolish, without truth, without momentum, without success, without result." Those are heavy words. Remember that until God spoke, the earth was void and formless. It is exactly the same. When men turn deaf ears to God's opinion and perspectives, everything, no matter how glorious (Solomon testifies in Ecclesiasis) becomes void. God is the definition of purpose. In Him we live, move and have our being. Outside Him is death, darkness and futility. But that is not all.

We are yet to define imaginations. Imagimations are not merely pictures in our mind. They are there trafic lights of our destinies. Our life moves in the direction of our imagination. Bible dictionary uses many words to describe imagination. I took particular interest in five of them "thoughts, doctrines, purpose, teaching, speech." Without explaining what each means, we know that, when we ignore God, we think purposeless thoughts; preachers preach doctrines void of TRUTH. Before we know it, individuals act based on these, then families, then cities then nations.

Rom 1:24-25 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

Because people willingly chose to ignore God, allowed them to be led by their vain imaginations. Because God is out of the picture men cannot but abuse their bodies. The body is the temple of God. Ignorance of this causes abuse and living short of purpose, Godless men consider the body as just ordinary and treat is as such. Only a relationship with God will reveal the purpose of something, even our bodies. They do not know the purpose of the body because they are cut off, so they abuse it and defile it. They begin to dishonour it. All sins are without the body, but sexual sins are sins within against the body. They are fulfillment of the desires of the body. Worship is the fulfilment of the desires of the worshipped one. These indicate that men with a perverse perspective of sexuality worship what is created than who created all.

Rom 1:26-27  For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.

This, apart from Sodom and Gomorrah and the Law of Moses is the most explicit mention of homosexualism in the Bible. A society that removes God gradually leaves room for unimaginable evils. And sexual perversion is not left out. Sexual perversion, especially when the law recorgnizes it and the people defend it and celebrates it is the height of unrighteousness. Sin has filled such a city to the brim and spilling over as sexual perversion. Remember Babylon in Revelation? Adultery was her signature.  Homosexuality is the mother of transgender issues. Adultery is the mother of divorce. I also strongly believe divorce and remarriage with mature kids is the portal for incest. Irrespective of what form sexual perversion takes, they all have their roots in ignoring God. Although the tree might have grown so tall and its branches are so far from its root that men can't easily trace it, the truth remain - the devil is the father of all evil.

Rom 1:28-32  And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;  Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,  Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:  Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

An attempt to explain this will only be an emphasis on all we have been saying. An addition is that, even onlookers who enjoy watching and are not really partakers will face the same judgement. We cannot hide, it is either we let the gospel change us and save us or we face consequences.

I would love to end on the a note of hope. The gospel is the power of God. He can keep us in such a cruel world as He kept the Christians in Rome. Even more, He can pull down these strongholds by our hands if we keep at the gospel. Rome fell because of the gospel. Babylon fell because of God's purpose. The Iron Curtain of Communism fell so the Gospel can travel. The Gospel is the power to keep us, save us and save our world.

The Spirit Upon and The Spirit Within

But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. Acts 1:8 KJV

And not only so, but we who have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we have sorrow in our minds, waiting for the time when we will take our place as sons, that is, the salvation of our bodies. Rom 8:23 BBE

The spirit upon endows us with power to do. The spirit within endows us with power to be.

The spirit upon is intended basically to endow with strength and ability for a specific assignment or ministry. We see examples with Judges, Kings and Prophets. However, the Spirit within is intended basically to conform us to the image of Christ. It is foundational. That is what identifies us as sons of God. It is a seal that we belong to God. (Eph 1:13, 4:30)

The Spirit upon in the new testament can be seen as the various ministry gifts (apostles, prophets, teachers, pastors, evangelists, care, administration, giving, intercession etc), gifts of the spirit (tongues, interpretation, prophesy, healing, miracles, faith, discernment, word of wisdom, word of knowledge) etc. As much as they are important, it is not the ultimate. They are important but as soon as their work is done, they are lifted. "Prophesies will cease..." 1 Cor 13:8. All these ministries are to prepare the body of Christ to become the habitation of God. "He gave... until we come to the measure of the fullness of the stature of Christ" Eph 4:11-13

However, the Spirit within is a more permanent expression. God designed us to be the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 3:16). He intends to make His dwelling among men. (Rev 21:3). While Paul encourages us to covet spiritual gifts (1Cor 14:1), He encourages us that love is the main thing (1Cor 13:1-13). Love is the platform upon which all gifts of the spirit are most efficient. Love is the most excellent way. We do not attain love by the 'Spirit Upon.' We attain love by the 'Spirit Within' (Rom 5:5). God is Love and God in us will help us become and manifest love-the main thing.

Both manifestations of the Holy Spirit aren't disjointed. As a matter of fact, while we fellowship together, the 'Spirit Upon' helps to edify and encourage others and also the entire body of Christ together. The gifts of the spirit as well as the ministry gifts are for edification (1 Cor 14:5). The word edify means to add brick to brick as in building up an edifice. So in essence, the purpose of the spirit upon is to create a perfect dwelling for the spirit within.

As we covert spiritual gifts, even more earnestly we should desire to be filled by the Holy Spirit. God will not restrain His spirit from those who ask genuinely. As a matter of fact, it is one prayer He longs to hear. If His will is to make His dwelling among men, asking for His spirit to dwell in our heart is foresight. It is like asking God to give us what He wants us to have. God's intention is for us to become and not to do. The most dreadful comment in scripture was directed at those who assumed doing could compensate for being. (Mat 7:21-23)

On a final note, I am personally convinced that the barrier between percieving the Holy Spirit as a 'thing' or 'person' largely depends on whether He dwells within or upon. Let me put that in another way: we fall into the delusion that the Holy spirit is not a 'person' because He doesn't live within. If all we have from Him is his anointing for ministry, knowing the personality of the Holy Spirit becomes an abstract adventure. A number of people view Him only as a force or divine influence, now we know why. However, when He dwells within, without controversy and having being a witness of His life, we know without doubt that He is indeed the third person of the trinity.

As we journey towards destiny, may every deed, thought, word and intention be focused on further conforming us to the Sons of God, the image of Christ and the habitation of the Holy Spirit.

The Torch and the Wood: Retaining God

Both the torch and the firewood are made of wood. Both will be lit up. Both with have a taste of fire. Both will give light. Both will generate heat. Eventually, time will tell the difference. One will eventually burn out while the other will keep burning. While the ashes of the wood is being blown away by the wind, the frame of the torch is intact. One is destroyed and the other remains unperturbed. This looks to me like Isaiah 43:2 "You will walk through the fire without being consumed...." This describes two classes of people. Firstly, a people who are ignited, burn to give light and such light never go out. The other class are those whose light go out because there's no capacity to retain light. What makes the difference?

Torches are usually covered with a layer of clothe soaked in sulphur. They are soaked to form a flammable layer that can sustain and keep fueling the fire. And at the same time, the layer of clothe prevents the wooden frame from being consumed. When eventually they are lit they ignite faster, they burn brighter, for much longer and the flames never destroy the wood. Interestingly, the fire is said not to go out even when dipped in water! There are men clothed in glory, like the Original Adam, whose life would keep burning to give the world light for all eternity. He would have kept burning brightly to light up the rest of creation and illuminate the universe if he hasn't removed his covering of glory by disobedience. We are the light of the world, we ought to keep burning and not be consumed.

God is the father of lights. Jesus is the light that lights up all creation. He gives a worthy share of light to everyone. He lights everyone up. However, some retain light and some give up and stop giving light after a while. Exodus 3:2 records an experience that is quite related. It was a burning bush that wasn't consumed. Why was that? God was there! God was in the midst of the bush. It is the presence of the Lord that can help us sustain the light of God. When God dwells within, we can burn without being consumed. This first expression of fire or light is a pure one. God Himself is that light. Even in its purity, God's light is not convenient for the godless. It makes them uneasy.

However, there is another such fire aimed to destroy. An illustration of this is in Daniel 3. Even when the source of the light or fire is the devil himself, the inherent nature of the man determines the outcome. The soldiers who dumped Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah into the flames got consumed. However, the men with whom God was lived. Job said "when I've come through the fire, I with shine like pure Gold." While flames destroy the godless, it purifies the godly. While persecution weakens the fearful, it strengthens the faithful. He that has nothing, what he has will be taken. While he that has, will get more. This can be paraphrased to read, He who has no godliness, even as small as mustard seed, will loose all. However, he will add to whoever has God, even if it be the seed of Christ in him.

Lets talk about water too. The spirit of God is sometimes described to come as rain. Joel 2 typifies this. How do we survive such a massive outpour of the spirit so that we are not moved by the heavy torrents or displaced or buried by His flood?

Noah's ark wasn't tested by fire but by floods. The ark made it and everyone in it. Here is the answer. It was coated with pitch, inside and outside. Pitch protects the wood from decay. It protects the water from getting into the grains of the wood. Asides decay, it also prevents the wood from soaking in too much water thereby making it too heavy to float. As much as wood can float, it cannot float for so long. And once exposed to water, it is soaked and becomes too heavy to float. Also, the process of decay starts. Coating with pitch prevents all of that. This in no way imply that we can get in too much of God that can destroy us. It simply implies that, when we are properly prepared we can endure Gods heavy torrent.

What is this process of preparation. Coating with pitch-inside and outside. From by favourite bible dictionary, I realised that pitch symbolises a process of purging or cleansing. Coating the ark inside and out will mean not just an outward display of morality but also an inward transformation into the image of Christ. This is the process of our justification and sanctification. We are washed and purged both in our hearts and in our deeds. Only then, can we receive and retain the Holy Spirit. Only then can we survive his visit. There no wrath in the nature of God. However, those who keep Him in and allowed Him to remodel their lives into a befitting place for himself will not be obliterated when He shows up in majesty.

What then happens if we can't retain light? Or survive the deluge? We already stated earlier that our inability to retain God will make us burn out. Truly wood will hold fire, but not for so long. It exhausts itself and since He has none-of-Christ in him, there will be nothing-of-him left. A more practical illustration will be the 10 Virgins. For a moment, put away what you think you know about the story and picture one lamp without sufficient oil. The lamp burns brightly for a while and soon the wick begins to glow. A glowing wick is we expending ourselves, we'll burn out soon. We ought to be simply channels-be a conduit for godliness (oil) to sustain righteousness (flames). When oil is exhausted the wick is destroyed. Wisdom ensures that there is sufficient oil. The danger of foolishness is not just darkness when the touch goes off but just before the lamp goes out, the wick is destroyed.

Another quick illustration is the new wine and the new wine skin. When the skin is new, it can retain the new wine. However, when the skin is old, the skin is destroyed and the wine spills. Many times we stop here, but there is indeed a way to put new wine in old wineskin. This is no other way than purging. The process of purging the wineskin is different from the wood. But the principle remains the same. It is all a process to change the wineskin from what it was to what God wants. And that's same for the wood.

Joel prophesied that the Spirit of God will be poured out upon all flesh. However, He will have different effect on different categories. Upon the torches He will bring Light. But, although the unprepared wood will also burn brightly, it is only for a moment. Such cannot retain God. Rom 1.

Luke 12: 49  I came to start a fire on earth. I would be happy if that fire were already burning.

The fire will be kindled in a short while. All will be lit. How bright you shine, how long you'll last and whether you'll be there when all is done depends if you're a torch or just wood.

Bruce to Caitlyn, How About You?

The whole world is still experiencing the ripples of the news of season-Bruce Jenner's transformation into Caitlyn. Hundreds of others have gained confidence and have begin to speak up. As a norm, I love to find answers. I search through the scriptures to build a formidable argumet. However, this time I seem hesitant both to find answers that alread stare us in the face or to air my views. Even now, I do not intend to prove anything about 'transgender' from scripture. I have learnt that facts do no good to those without faith. Even the most accurate details could be misinterpreted when revelation is absent. So, I have a simple task to achieve with this piece - make us realise that this is simply a big distraction from our own transformation.

While reading Rick Joyner's Delivered from Evil, I found words for the disturbance in my heart.

Matt 13:24-30
Then Jesus told the people another story. ‘This is what the Kingdom of Heaven is like’, he said. ‘A farmer planted some good wheat seeds into his field. But one night, when everyone was sleeping, a bad person came to the farmer’s field. He did not like the farmer. This bad person planted seeds from weeds among the good seeds. Then the bad person went away again.

The good seeds grew and the plants began to make seeds. But when this happened, the weeds also grew. So the farmer’s servants came to speak to him. “Master, many weeds are now growing in the ground where you planted the wheat seeds. How did this happen?” they asked him.

The farmer said to his servants, “A bad person who does not like me has done this.” “Do you want us to go and pull up the weeds?” the servants then asked the farmer. “No”, replied the farmer. “I do not want you to do that. If you pull up the weeds, you will also pull up some of the wheat plants.

Let the good plants and the weeds grow up together. After that, it will be time for the workers to cut the plants that have large seeds. They will bring them inside from the fields. I will ask the workers to cut the weeds down first. They can tie them together and burn them. Then they can cut the wheat and bring it into my building. I can store it there.” ’

God has left the tares to mature with the wheat so that the in the process of weeding, genuine sons of the kingdom are not lost. He has allowed this, not perpetually, but till the harvest. Another reason is that we can hardly tell the difference at an early stage. The wheat and tares look alike until the harvest. Then the wheat will bend over because of substance and content while the tares remain upright because it's empty and light. We have come very close to the harvest. Evil is beginning to mature, so is good. The difference between righteousness and iniquity is becoming clearer. People no longer sin out of ignorance, people choose to.

But here is my concern: while the workers of iniquity are perfecting strategy and reaching the zenith of their depravity, where are the saints? Have we perfected the art of living right? Has our righteousness exceeded that of the Pharisees? Have we been able to discern God's voice both in the earthquake and the still wind? Have we learnt to transverse the narrow way by prompt response to instruction? Have we become skillful in warfare and trustworthy in our dealings?

I have another concern. We can only be transformed by paying attention to the process and faithfully following all of God's prescriptions so that we don't have complications or become half baked saints. Caitlyn has gone through years of precise therapy. Pints of hormones has gone into his/her veins and soon, a very delicate surgical procedure will stamp his physical transformation. He has endured days of councelling and psychological therapy to take care of the transition in the mind. What have we done?

I must say, along with our lethargy, Caitlyn's story among many others have kept us busy and distracted. Our focus have shifted from Jesus to proving them wrong. The devil doesn't mind if we speak against him from now till he is crushed in victory. He doesn't care if we compile scriptural backings that prove him wrong, so long as it keeps us busy and unable to complete our own transition into the image of Christ. Friends, get cracking. Let fix our gaze on Jesus and His word. In Him is our only hope for the much expected change.

While Bruce says call me Caitlyn, what would you like to be called?

God's Comfort

Comfort isn't the same as sympathy. Sympathy identifies with your circumstance and attempts to pacify or mitigate the situation. It intends only to make one feel better and not necessarily repair the situation. However, comfort is a replacement for a certain loss. It is a correction of the disaster; a repair of the damage. Comfort makes you feel better, not by taking your eyes off the problem but by proffering a solution.

Comfort might come in the same form as what is lost like a new job in place of a lost job or a new car in place of the one destroyed by accident. The lost coin, the lost ship, the lost son are scenarios of comfort by restoration.

Comfort could also be different in form. A child could never really be replaced. But when God decides to comfort such a family, he could give them another child. Comfort could even be intangible to physical senses, but undoubtedly real. Comfort could be a word or prophesy that addresses longstanding issues in your life. Comfort could be an in depth revelation into the purpose of a tragic occurrence. When such revelation dawns, the weight of the loss could be borne more easily or entirely relieved. This also is comfort.

Comfort is better. Whenever God intervenes to give comfort, He gives something better. The better wine at the wedding in Cana; the restoration of the family of Job; death of David's unnamed son with Bathsheba; Hannah's dedication of Samuel many more. Even when it is an exact replacement, the joy that accompanies it will outweigh what you could ever have if it wasn't lost at all. If it isn't better, it's probably not God's comfort. If you are certain it is God and it isn't better, you probably haven't understood the value of what you have received.

The disciples needed comfort. They were not just about to witness the redemption of the entire creation. They were also about to loose a friend. Many who have lost dear friends can tell. Jesus was not just Rabbi and Lord. He had become their friend. He had been hewn into their heart. They had become one. Christ's death on the cross was not so simple. He sacrificed His life, the disciples lost a friend. The work of the Holy Spirit was not just to empower them to preach and understand the scriptures. He was also to heal their hearts from all wounds, including the loss of their greatest friend ever.

Noah's name means comfort. He lived at a very strategic age. There had being a warning from God. They had an inkling of impending judgement. Methuselah's name continually remind them. However, such massive sanitisation of humanity can easily be misunderstood and make someone resent truth. God then brought comfort to at the time of such judgement. When we look at the world as a whole, we would not understand what comfort means. So let's picture a single man.

There is a man whom God made but has become infiltrated by other influences over time. God desires to retrieve His original idea from the rubble and mixture, so He decides to judge. Judgement is not all about destruction, it is more about separating the original from the reality. It is about separating day and night, light and dark. In this process, there are many losses. God gives us comfort to bear the losses and understand what He intends to achieve.

In a single statement, comfort is God's strategy to pacify us while He deals with us. Comfort is God's anaesthetic. He administers it as He cuts through our souls to remove cancerous cells. Comfort is God dipping His newly forged instruments of war into water to quickly relief them of the excessive heat of the furnace. It also doubles as a process to strengthen the newly forged weapon.

I have just a prayer, that God will not relent in the process of retrieving His original intention from the rubles of our life. Whatever it takes, even if it means great losses or massive destruction, He should proceed. However, He should comfort us deeply to bear the losses, pain and understand the transient disaster.

The Christian and the Secular

Recently, there has been a clash of opinions regarding secular music and the altar. I have read a number of views and but none seems to strike a chord with me. I do certainly agree with some of the points made, but when the person in question (subject of consideration) or the scope of operation (occupation) changes, the points can no longer hold. I realized that the definitions we have are smudged. There is virtually no distinction. This argument spans beyond music. It reaches far into other professions. I hope that this piece will iron out the overlaps and wrinkles that have already spread. I will not necessarily provide an absolute answer, but I hope to bring us to the place where the answer to all these stares us right in the face.

Of all the views I have heard, these extremes stand out:

1. No secular music should be done in the church
2. No Christian artiste should perform secular music

Before I can pass a comment on either of the two. We ought to go over our definitions and the standards with which we would proffer a solution to the problem at hand.

Definition of Christian

Basically, a Christian is one who believes in and professes Christ. He believes that the Son of God was manifested in the flesh to redeem man and restore ‘all of creation’ to God. It is necessary to note that the redemptive work of Christ is not just for man but for all creation which includes music, arts, science, economy, culture and so on. However, it begins from man. Only when we understand this can we truly understand the place of a Christian in the secular world. Many claim Christianity and do not hold these beliefs. A few more hold this beliefs but only as a mental and theoretical notion, not a tenet for life. These ones profess Christianity but have not grown to a point where they see how man is the center of the redemption of all creation. Mark 16:15 speaks about preaching every creature (not just men)!

"That the redemptive work of Christ is not just for man but for all creation"

Christians are not just those saved by the Lord, they are the seeds that grow and spread to ensure that the rest of creation is redeemed. It is easy to fall into extremes here. A Christian who has not grown to understand the relationship between the Christian and the secular world will either rule out the participation of the Christian totally or rush into it too early and be submerged. Those who rule it out totally will say “Christians should not do secular music or work in a brewery etc.” And rush into it too early will say “it doesn't matter where you work.” The truth is we ought to be in the secular world, but not casually. It is a work for ‘elite forces.’ It is a task that requires special training and unless we are deployed by instruction, we maintain positions. Our mission is to redeem this aspects of life not just to be part of it casually.

Christian and the secular world will either rule out the participation of the Christian totally or rush into it too early and be submerged

How then do we redeem? That brings us to the place of the Church.

Definition of Church

It would have been easy to say church is where Christians gather. But without the epistle above, it would be difficult to answer why. Definition of Church will be dependent on the discourse. Church is the nursery where apostles to the secular word are first raised before being deployed. Church, with reference to the secular world and the redemption of all of creation, is a training ground. But basically, Church is the community of Christians all over the world and across all dispensations.

It would be worthy of note that the physical church we see is not homogeneous. It comprises Christians as well as non-Christians. Some are saved while others are yet to be. It comprises people growing at different rates. At the same time, we must not shy away from the fact that it also comprises of rebels and multitudes who always clamor for “pleasure.” This heterogeneity has made the boundary lines fade out, nonetheless, they are there. It is also worthy of note that a lot more activities are done in church than discipling and training people to conform to Christ’s image. It would be safe to say that at times when anything else is done (even in the same venue, by the same people for the same people), the same gathering we can call church will not be worthy of that name.

At times when anything else is done, the same gathering we can call church will not be worthy of that name.

In as much as the Church is a training ground. It is a training ground for all. There, we are groomed to grow into the image of Christ. There we are trained to efficiently and effectively execute our redeeming all creation mandate without being a casualty in the system. In Church (in Christ), we find purpose and are trained to fulfil it. Primarily, purpose should be becoming like Christ in character and in deeds. Secondarily, purpose should comprise the area to which we would be deployed after training. This could be entertainment, commerce,  education, science, technology  and research, politics and government, military, fashion, health, family or religion (which we popularly call ministry).

We must realize that none is inferior to the other. Being sent to the academic world doesn't make me less fulfilled than a pastor. Being sent to the entertainment industry also does not imply that my training in the church would be less tedious and maybe unnecessary. All that are foreknown are predestined to be conformed into the image of Christ (Rom 8:30). Even the eventual governor or entertainer is meant to be conformed into the image of Christ and nothing less. It is Christ alone who has the capability and audacity to redeem all of creation. If we do not attain this height or at least be on this path by virtue of our training in church, we cannot effect change or bring redemption to whatever sector we are deployed to. Without maturity, we will only be one of them, we cannot be one among them.

Without maturity, we will only be one of them, we cannot be one among them.

Ministry is not the Climax of Christianity

Many people have got this notion, even church leaders. That is why every Christian in the secular wants to retire to the pulpit so that they would have pleased God in their life. That is why Christians in music wants to stand on the pulpit. The Climax of Christianity is Christ-likeness. God called Jesus 'beloved son in whom he was well pleased.' This is the testimony we get when we are conformed into the image of Christ. We ought to stop using the pulpit as a reward for success in the secular world. The pulpit is meant to aid this transformation and nothing more. 

Definition of Secular and Definition of Ministry

Ministry is not about being a pastor and a preacher. Ministry is simply your place of deployment by purpose. If by purpose, God would have you be an entertainer, ministry for you would be not just to one of Nigeria’s entertainers but to be one among them. There are several platforms for ministry (media and entertainment, education, politics and government, commerce, military, fashion, family and health and religion) only one is religious-Religion. Every other platform for ministry is secular. My definition of secular is “non-religious.”

Secular simply means 'non-religious.'

One cause of intimidation and segregation is that those in the secular do not understand the gravity, value, worth and delicateness of what is committed into their hands. They envy the man in on the pulpit. They think only those on the pulpit please God. This is difficult for the Christian called to the secular. He feels until He stands before the altar, he is not fulfilled. God didn’t say we will stand before the brethren, He said we will stand before kings.

This spans beyond intimidation and insecurity. The man who is supposed to thrust into the secular world now thinks it is not spiritual to have a song without Jesus or a jewelry without a cross. In doing this, He makes a compromise between the gospel and a great entertainment song. Eventually, we have a mediocre song and a mediocre gospel. This is not entirely the blame of the artiste, it is also the blame of the ‘church’ for not teaching the artiste to go all out while the nature of Christ is intact.

Analogy of the University

The Church is like a university. The only difference is that no one graduates really. Every Christian is enrolled and at a safe point of the training, each one is deployed to various sectors of the community. However, some are retained to continue the work of training others. That is what religion is to the secular. Religion is the school where we all learn to live as Christ in the secular world. The five-fold ministry equips the Saints for the work of ministry. Five-fold ministry is not all there is about ministry. It is just one among the many platforms for ministry. The Secular world forms the larger chunk of 'true ministry.' Church is, however, the assembly plant, Potter's wheel, the forging furnace for Christians who will transform the world. 

The Analogy of the Book of Esther

The book of Esther is one book of the scripture without the mention of God. However, you will agree with me that every page and verse of that book bears the signature of God. That our company is branded with Christian terminologies does not imply it is fulfilling the redemption mandate in the secular world. That the we call Lord,  Lord doesn't guarantee anything either. The book of Esther tells the story of  a Jewish family in Babylon. I personally believe that is the model for living in a secular world-class. We can live and fulfill ministry without 'christianizing' the procedure. We need not blind people with the light of the gospel. We only need enough to illuminate the path so that they eventually find God.

Noah,  Joseph, Daniel

These names are not those of priests. They are the people of God planted in specific areas of the society. In contemporary terms, priests will be those in 'religion' while Noah, Joseph and Daniel would be those in the secular. Joseph had grown in the knowledge of God before he was planted in Egypt. He transformed agriculture by the wisdom of God.  Noah had a testimony that he was righteous in his generation. Then, God used him to preserve humanity from total extinction. Daniel was on government. One common denominator with all three and every of such persons in scripture - they did not get into the Secular world casually. They had a testimony. They had grown in faith. 

Finally, regarding Christians and the secular world, there is a purpose for every aspect of society. The convention is that Christians live within the walls of the church. They provide their own education, define their own fashion, create their own government, provide their own entertainment and so on. The result is that we the church creates a system within itself that already exists outside the church walls. This unfortunately is a distraction and can suppress the intended purpose of religion. These systems are made to survive in the secular domain not within the church walls. Bringing them in is extra and unnecessary load. Moreover, Christians meant to champion the redemption of these systems are handicapped in the church or alienated in the world without backup.

Another impact is that, the secular system continues to sink into worldliness and sensuality. Corruption becomes the order of the day because the redeemers are locked up within the church walls. Pollution of secular music has caused Christians to hide in the church and even demand to be entertained there. That is not the way it is meant to be. We are to be entertained by the entertainment industry; Educated by the schools; cloths by the fashion industry; but transformed by the church.

Here, I find it a safe spot to differentiate between secular and immoral. From this piece so far, we know that secular simply means “not religious.” I define immoral as diminishing standards for life such that the value of life is lost and the purpose of life is ignored. A whole new argument can ensue from the inability to differentiate between secular and immoral. There is nothing wrong with secular. Secular is simply a non-religious platform. But everything is wrong about immoral. Immoral is a platform that cannot hold anything without contaminating its content. Secular becomes immoral when Christians abandon or neglect their position and authority in the secular world.

Secular becomes immoral when Christians neglect their position and authority there.

The Christian in the Secular World

If you have followed carefully, you will realize that a Christian can do secular songs. You will realize that Christians can do secular jobs. You will even understand that God can have us be ambassadors to particular secular sectors of the society. The golden question then is “What then will set apart the Christian in the secular world?” "How can we identify Christians in the secular world?" 

We do not identify Christians in the secular by opening prayers at their AGM's or the company named after a biblical character or location. Secular songs written by Christian should be identified by the desires we have after listening, the depth of the lyrics, the philosophy it projects, and the creativity put into it not by successive insertions of Christian terminology. We know it by its fruits. We know it by the principles and policies implemented. We identify it by the source of the ideas and motivation for success. God inspires. The Holy Spirit, scriptures say, will teach us all things including strategy for doing our regular secular work. 

Creativity and Innovation

The Christian who has been trained and deployed into any sector, including secular, will have a brighter mind. An intelligence measurable to that of the original Adam that named all the animals with precision. Such a person will be endowed with the spirit of wisdom and revelation to be efficient in his craft (Arts and Craft - Exodus 28:3; 31:3; 35:31, Leadership and Government – Deuteronomy 34:9; Judges 2:18; Science and Research - Daniel 5:11; Ministry - Luke 2:40). We can also make references to the anointing.

Creativity will mean that one will operating at a higher efficiency than one you gained as a result of formal training. Doctors will be able to improvise procedures that will work perfectly when they have exhausted those they learnt while training. Programmers will be able to proffer more efficient solutions and open up a whole new world of learning.

Sanity and Modesty.

Within the church walls, we might call it righteousness and holiness. However, in the secular domain where they do not use the religious terms, we call it sanity and modesty. The entertainment industry is almost entirely built out of sensuality and greed. The worth of the woman is trampled upon just so that another person’s desire is gratified. When a Christian steps into such a world, he delivers intelligent entertainment. He respects human dignity and doesn’t make a joke and earn a living out of the misfortune of others.

I bet several people are wondering how the music industry can survive without sensuality. I have met with a couple of musicians who are already tired of the mess and noise over the media. Pure music itself has a soothing effect. How much more with intelligently coined lyrics? Sensuality only tickles a small portion of our brain. Beauty, glamour, ambience, music and creativity goes far deeper, lasts much longer and leaves us even better.

Hope and Peace.

This is one important element that the work of a Christian in the secular will hold. Hope is an integral part of Christianity. Irrespective of the sector of the society one finds himself, it should never be lost. Anxiety should not be a part of the life of a Christian. Desperation is the result of a life without hope. Anxiety is the disposition of a life without peace. Even when obviously your profession writes of certain cases as hopeless, The Christian‘s hope is Christ not in the circumstances he faces. That ought to be practical.

My answer to the question

Having understood who a Christian is, what the real church is and what obtains, the definition of secular and ministry and place of a Christian in the secular. I can conveniently answer the question with sufficient reasons.

Can secular songs be done in church? Can comedians perform in church? Should politicians campaign in church? NO. However, if you agree that it is not a ‘church’ gathering, that is, there is no intention to worship, teach and train men towards conformity to Christ, you may sing secular songs, invite comedians to entertain, call politicians to give a political address and so on. Religion is a sector of the society. It is the ministry assigned to certain people just as comedians, politicians, doctors have their jurisdictions. Each sector holds exclusivity and no one should dabble into the affairs of the other. However, if they want to edify the body of Christ they may. At that moment, they are not comedians or musicians, they are ministers who want to exhort the people, whose aim is that Christ be formed in you.

Can Christians do secular songs? Can Christian architects construct mosques? YES. However, such songs will be characterized by sanity, modesty, creativity and hope. Such projects will be an architectural masterpiece that always makes reference to the architect or hold coded or hidden messages that redirect the admirers to the origin of the concept which is primarily God.

This is rather a long read, but I am sure it was worth it. Asides, the yes and no we have been able to establish why and why not. The fact that things happen does not mean it is right. The fact that we do not see something happening yet does not imply impossibility. Our task is to know what is right and do what we ought.

The fact that we do not see something happening yet does not imply impossibility.