WISDOM PERSONIFIED!

For a while now, we have come to understand wisdom as meaning the correct application of knowledge. In truth it is to an extent but there is more to the wisdom that God gives us. Romans 11:33 states that God’s Wisdom is so deep that it is unsearchable, how astounding that is! The nature of God’s Wisdom is found in the Person of Jesus Christ (Colossians 1:19). God’s Wisdom appears ‘foolish’ to the world, yet the world’s wisdom is indeed ‘foolishness’ unto God. But what may we ask is God’s Wisdom? How do we know what it is? How can we identify it?

We find these answers in 1 Cor. 2:6-13 and 16. In these verses before us we come to understand that, the wisdom of God is not an arbitrary lightning force that is zapped into our brain but rather the innate God-ability to discern the things of God and walk accordingly in the things of God. Simply put, the Wisdom of God is the attitude, guidance and revelation of the Spirit of God. This unlimited access has been provided through the Redemptive Work of Christ on the cross for us.

Unfortunately, many have read the Scripture in James where he stated thus, “if any one of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God...” How could we lack wisdom when 1 Cor. 1:24 says Christ has been made unto us the Wisdom of God? Could there be a contradiction? Not so. The Book of James primarily was addressing the Church in Jerusalem, basically the children of Israel who were saved. James’s idea was to blend in some aspects of the Law with the New Covenant. However, we as “Gentile” believers were never under the Law to begin with. Not to mention the Bible aptly commands that we do not take aspects of the Law to live by as anyone who does not obey all the Law is cursed by the entire Law.

The Wisdom of God in essence is part of our New Creation package. As children of God, He has provided us with all the things we need to succeed in the Christian Life (2 Pet. 1:3). “…but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” We can see that not only is Christ in us the power of God but He is also the Wisdom of God. We do believe that now that we are born again, Christ has made His Abode in us (1 John 5:11-13). Therefore it is not ridiculous to accept the truth of 1 Cor. 1:24. We have the Wisdom of God. This Wisdom of God is the “mind of Christ” (1 Cor. 2:16), which we have all been given, the moment we gave our lives to Christ.

So how do we tap into this Wisdom? The same way we tap into His Righteousness, His Grace and His Power. We speak the Word of God over our lives concerning Wisdom, not begging for it or pleading or even asking God for it anymore but rather acknowledging it’s presence in our lives. Accepting God’s Word as true before Him and thanking Him for that Wisdom and operating in it in faith. Wisdom as we all know is a spiritual gift that must be operated in by faith. We cannot wait to feel a surge of electricity from on High in order to realize we have Wisdom. If God’s Word says we have Wisdom, then we walk out in faith and use that Wisdom, believing that because God has said it, it therefore must be true as God cannot lie.

Therefore, walk in that Wisdom today as you have been given. The Holy Spirit is Wisdom unto you. You have the Mind of Christ, HALLELUJAH!

THE MISSING LINK! ( Part 1 )

Over the years, we've been exposed to several teachings with very strong emphasis on man's need of righteousness, his weaknesses, and inability to please God. There has been a very strong denunciation of "sins" in the believer. We've had teachings against unbelief, world conformity and lack of faith but sadly there has been a dearth of truth about what/who we are in Christ or how Righteousness and faith are made available. Most of our hymns and special songs put redemption off till after death; that we are going to have rest,peace and be overcomers when we get to heaven. That we have nothing in this world except failure, misery, disappointment and weakness/sin struggle. In essence, making the whole idea of preaching/teaching the word all about condemnation and always making the believer inadequate, incomplete and always leaving the presence of God with a huge and overwhelming sense of guilt.

Wait a minute! What does He mean when He says " You are complete in him who is the head of all principalities and powers" (Col 2:10 )? When are we to be complete? Is it in this life or in the next? What does it mean in Rom 8:37, " Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us" ? When are we to be more than conquerors? Is it after death when we leave this vale of tears? Phil 4:13 " I can do all things through the 'anointing' that strengthens me" . When are we going to be able to do all things? Is it after we finish the course and stand with him in the New Heaven and New Earth? He declares in Rom 8:1 " There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus." When does this become ours?
Often times we hear nothing but condemnation preached. Seldom do we hear a clear cut distinction between who a sinner is and who a saint ( believer ) really is. When does " Being therefore declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" ( Rom 5:1 ) become a reality? We don't hear of peace for and in the believer in the present but rather always in the future. When are we to find this glorious thing called peace? When is "Jesus Made unto us wisdom from God, Righteousness, Sanctification and Redemption" ( 1 Cor 1:30 ). Is that to come to us at death or is it a fact for us right now? " Him who knew no sin, God made to be sin on our behalf ; that we might become the righteousness of God in him." ( 2 Cor 5:21 ) We know the first part is true, but is the last part true also? Is Jude 24 to be dependend upon? " Now unto Him that is able to guard you from stumbling ( falling ), and to set you before the presence of His glory without blesmish in exceeding joy".

In other words, is our Redemption, Wisdom, Righteousness and Sanctification as expressed in 1 Cor 1:30, metaphysical i.e cerebral concepts we are supposed to be ever running after or praying for and never attaining until we probably get to heaven ( if at all by chance we ever make it there); or a statement of fact, a reality of who we are and what we have in Christ right now?

IT"S ON!

Happy New Year.

This is your Year to Shine.....will be back in a little bit.

NOTHING SHALL BE IMPOSSIBLE UNTO YOU!

" But you shall receive power , after that the Holy Spirit is come upon you and you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem and all Judea and in Samaria and unto the uttermost part pf the earth" ( Acts 1:8 KJV).

These were the words of Jesus expressing the heart of the father to the disciples about what was to be the next major event in the " scheme of Things " upon his departure. Prior to this verse , the disciples were thinking politically, hence the mention of the restoration of the kingdom to Israel in Acts 1: 6. Jesus did not only redirect the conversation to the subject he started ( the advent of the Holy Spirit ) but also revealed a powerful principle which they were about to experience which would be perpetuated after his departure for everyone that would believe on him. Before going any further, there is a need for a thorough re-examination of this powerful verse of scripture. Jesus wasn't just talking about some inexplicable force that would overwhelm them and make them better preachers or better people, there is a lot more to it than that. The word translated power in the Greek is dunamis; which is where the word dynamo in the English language came from. This is defined as an inherent ability that will not only be resident in them, but also would have the dynamic feature of reproducing itself and cause changes where necessary.

Consequently, the instant you become born-again, the spirit and nature of God is imparted into your spirit. As children of God, we are standing in the presence of Omnipotence. We are standing where God and humanity meet. We are now where man is to take over the strength of God as God took over the weakness of man. He came to our level to lift us to his own, and he has done it! Praise God. We are now so utterly united with him, so much a part of him that we can say with Paul the apostle " It is no longer I that live but Christ ( the anointing ) that lives in me". It is not a problem of faith. Jesus has given us a legal right to the use of his Name, and Jesus has all the authority in heaven and on earth, and we have the power of attorney to use this mighty Name. " Whatsoever you shall ask the father in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son". Can you see the limitlessness of this life and ability with Him? Can you see that he did not mince words when he told us that we shall be witnesses ( ambassadors/ custodians ) of His power and ability. Prayer becomes coorperation with Deity. It is not begging nor soliciting, it is fellowship. It is carrying out the Fathers will as His representatives in every aspect of life. We have taken the place of Jesus to evangelize the world and to make the church see it's wonderful privileges in Christ. Can you feel the throb of the heart of God as you read this? Now you can see why nothing is impossible unto you. That financial problem is not as large as it was, that health situation is no more that formidable, that trouble is not unconquerable! You can hear Him whisper, " fear not for I am with you". Begin to draw on that power that is on the inside of you and speak to every negative/challenging situation in your life today. Remember, "greater is He that is in you than he that in the world."

A FRUIT LIKE NONE OTHER!

The subject of the fruit of the spirit has largely been viewed as "those things" the believer is supposed to be doing after he/she becomes saved. But a careful and dispassionate study of the word reveals, that the fruit of the spirit is not really just what we should be doing but rather who we are in Christ. In Gal 5:22 talking about the fruit of the spirit, the first question is what spirit? In the Greek, the word for spirit is PNEUMA which is the the same word used every where the word "spirit" appears in the bible. So basically there is no way to differentiate what kind of spirit ( God's or Man's ) that is being referred to except if the text is looked at contextually.
The spirit being referred to in this verse is the recreated human spirit . That is the human spirit after he/she is born-again "...If any one is in Christ he is a new creation..." ( 2 Cor 5:17 ) and not the Holy Spirit. How do we know? Because it says the spirit in question and the flesh are in a constant struggle in verse 17 of the same chapter. To think that the Holy spirit struggles with the flesh is ridiculous! For the spirit of God DOES NOT struggle with the flesh.
Being born-again is much more than being saved from sin, you received the very nature of God; everything that Jesus had "...Of his fullness have we received..." John 1:16. When you received Jesus, you received everything associated with him"...For in him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily and you are complete in him..." Col 2:9-10. " For it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell " ( Col 1:19 ). You have the fullness of God in you all the time and you need to "...Work out ( Develop/grow ) your salvation with consistency and reverence ..." ( Phill 2:12 ) to be able to achieve this fullness of God by confessing and dwelling in the word consistently to remind you of who you are.
Jesus did not come to give us morality ( morality is good ), he brought a whole lot more than that. The difference between a Christian and non-Christian is that the Christian has the nature of God embedded on the inside which causes people of the world to actually wonder whator how you are able to be at peace in troubled times, be able to totally forgive when wronged and have no ill will towards those who hurt you but rather blessing them "... Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you..." ( Matt 5:44 ).
Happiness is as a result of happenings while Joy is not dependent upon circumstances because it is the product of the spirit ( recreated human spirit by being bornagain), which makes life worth living, makes you look forward to the next day and be able to take upon any challenge that comes your way knowing that no matter what God has got your back.
Sin was the first thing Jesus saved us from by dying on the cross ( Col 2:13-14) then he went on to set us free from the power of the devil "...Also descended first into the lower parts of the earth... Eph 4:9-10", [God] disarmed the principalities and powers that were ranged against us and made a bold display and public example of them, in triumphing over them in Him and in it [the cross]... ( Col 2:15 ) . We can now enjoy and bask in the euphoria of what Jesus accomplished for us. Praise God!

BACK TO THE BASICS

The whole concept of salvation needless to say has always been a household name especially within the religious circle. It's interesting to also know that every time the word salvation is mentioned, it normally conjures up the idea of sin. So in other words, the word Salvation is inextricably and of course exclusively tied always to and associated with the concept of sin. Although this line of thought is not entirely inaccurate, it indeed has some iota of truth in it. The fact is that it only creates a limitation in the process of discovering and eventually experiencing the limitless potentials that are inherent in the word ( salvation ). This now begs the question; What really is Salvation?