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"Occupy Till I Come": What Does It Really Mean?

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"Occupy Till I Come". Words drawn from the verse of a scripture largely misunderstood and so often quoted to justify the unbridled & misleading ambition of dominionism, which has pervaded present day christendom. What did Jesus actually mean when he said these words?👇🏽 Luke 19:13 And he called his ten servants, and gave to them ten minas, and said to them, occupy till I come. The common english version uses the word "occupy".  The word "occupy" in the text is "pragmateuomai" in the greek and it means to carry on the business/trade, to busy oneself with it. It is thus trade or do business till I come. Contextually, what was the business? Nothing but the business of saving the lost 👇🏽 In the preceding verses(vs 2-10) of Luke 19, the Lord had met the tax collector Zacchaeus who sought to see him. Though reputed as a sinful man, Jesus followed him to his house. Zacchaeus overwhelmed with the presence of Jesus in his house, expresses repentanc...

Questions To Ponder.❓ ❓ ❓

 Q: What happens when you discover that what you thought the Holy Spirit taught you as you studied the word, is actually not right or in line with scriptures? It's part of the learning process, that you may learn that even while being taught by the Holy Spirit, your mind & thoughts, if unchecked, can take the lead to make an assumption or conclusion in the word which is not what the Holy Spirit taught you. It's just like a student in class being ahead of the teacher, in making a contribution/input to what is being taught, which is yet not consistent or in line with what the teacher is teaching or saying. Q: Is there any example in scripture where something like this happened? Sure! When we look at the ministry of Jesus & his relationship with his disciples in the days of his flesh, we will see what our relationship with the Holy Spirit, who is another comforter sent in the stead of Jesus, is like. In Matthew 16, Jesus said something to his disciples and they made a hast...

The Gospel Of The Rejected One...Christ Crucified.

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"We preach Christ crucified"(1st Corinthians 1:23). Christ crucified is the gospel of the rejected one for the crucified one is the rejected one..."the stone which the builders rejected" & delivered up to be crucified. Christ crucified is the heart of the gospel of Christ. Christ came into this world to save sinners and that he did by going to the cross to pay the ultimate price for our salvation - 1st Timothy 1:15. Not only did Christ empty himself to step into our lowly humanity, in utter self-humiliation, he stooped to death, a path of obedience in which God was infinitely glorified - Philippians 2:5-11. But death itself was not the whole matter here. There was a depth far below death merely, "the death of the Cross": not simply a death of shame, which showed man's rejection of Him, but beyond all that, a death in which alone man's need could be reached, a death which alone could work atonement.  Who could have stood in this place to do this...

Your Greatest Battle In Life...Your Heart.

Your Greatest Battle In Life...Your Heart.  The greatest battle you would ever fight in this life is in your heart. The heart occupies so large a place in the bible 781 times in the old testament (lêb-557 times, lêbâb-224 times) & 159 times in the new testament (kardia). The scriptures of truth are replete with matters of the heart and this comes as no surprise for the word of God is a discerner of thoughts & intents of the heart(Hebrews 4:12). The greatest battle of life is in the heart, for out of it are the issues/proceeds of life. All the works of man wrought upon the earth are first conceived in the heart and if the earth be full of wickedness and evil, then what a treasure chest of wickedness & evil the heart of man is upon the earth. Every fellowship with evil or darkness that we may find ourselves caught up in or battling against, was first conceived and embraced in the heart. The real battle is thus in the heart to guard it against the intrusion or invasion ...

Who Are The Two Witnesses?

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Some vaguely interpret the two witnesses as Israel and the church as one of their lame arguments in trying to establish that the church will go through the tribulation. This a very bizarre assertion and grossly contrary to what prophetic scriptures teach about the two last witnesses. If they are Israel and the church, how then do we explain the prophecy of Malachi 4:4-6 concerning their ministry before the great and terrible day of the Lord?👇🏽 "Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse." Now this is a clear prophecy that speaks of the ministries that will be embodied by the two last witnesses, that of Moses & Elijah representing the la...

The Day Of The Lord"...One Of The Most Misunderstood Subjects In Eschatology.

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  "The Day Of The Lord"...One Of The Most Misunderstood Subjects In Eschatology. There is no topic that occupies a large place in old testament prophecy and is yet more misunderstood in the present day church like the day of the Lord. Many confuse the day of the Lord with the coming of the Lord. When they see the day of the Lord, especially in the new testament, they assume it's just another phrase for the coming of the Lord. Am compelled to write on the subject because i get so burdened when I see people mix things up, especially those who are quick to quote 2nd Thessalonians 2:1-3 in trying to vaguely prove that the apostasy and manifestation of the man of sin must precede the coming of the Lord for his bride church & our gathering together unto him. We have to look into the subject of the day of the Lord from old testament prophecies into the new, to understand it's full range and what marks the beginning of the period known as the day of the Lord. Many old tes...

Where Christianity Is Practised Yet In Opposition To The Cross Of Christ.

One of the remarkably striking & surprising texts in the epistles of the apostles is found in Philippians 3:18; A text that reveals not merely professing but practising christians, who are yet of a contrary/opposing mind to the mind of Christ and of the cross of Christ. "for many walk of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: whose end is destruction, whose god is the belly, and their glory in their shame, who mind earthly things." Many walk says the apostle, they do not merely talk/profess but walk their talk, yet their walk/practice is a spiritual disaster, being consistent with earthly mindedness(a mind resolved & set upon early things) which constitutes them enemies of the cross of Christ. The word translated as walk in the text is peripateō in the greek and it means to regulate one's life, to conduct one's self; figuratively to live, deport oneself, follow as a companion or votary(one ...

We're Called To Stewardship & Not Ownership.

The spirit of ownership is a very deceptive, reckless, ruthless & ruinous spirit in the world. It's a spirit that puts a mere creature who created nothing, brought nothing into this world, in a false position of ownership of things; laying up treasures upon the earth & building a fortress around them as though in absolute control to preserve & sustain them. The deceitful thing about this wrong spirit is that it actually enslaves men to material things while giving them the false impression that they own/control them.  It enslaves the poor to the rich, while it enslaves the rich to riches/possessions. Against this backdrop of deception which is prevalent in this dark world, it is very important for us to know that God is not only the creator of all things but also upholds all things by the word of his power. He's the only one in absolute control of all things as the only rightful owner, master & Lord of all things. When we handle & hold all things in the ligh...

The Subtlety Of Fables & Tales On Pulpits Today.

Telling tales and fables is one of the marks of a false ministration, which does not establish people in the faith of Christ, but lures them away from the truth. Scripture severally warns us against giving heed to fables; and one of such fables is called 'old wives fables' (1 Timothy 4:7). A fable is simply a narrative intended to enforce myths or ideologies, as truth; any story told to excite wonder, captivate the audience, highly exalt a religious class as supermen or put the fear of men in the hearts of listeners. So often it is fictitious, false, cunningly devised or preposterous. In 1st Corinthians 15:14-15 the apostle says " if Christ is not raised, then, indeed  is  our preaching vain and your faith also is vain. And we are found false witnesses of God;  for we have witnessed concerning God that he raised Christ, whom he has not raised if indeed those that are dead are not raised." In other words, if in a so called bid to magnify God, we testify that God did so...

Is There Anything Like Standing In The Gap In The New Testament?

"For God is one, and the mediator of God and men one, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all, the testimony to be rendered in its own times". 1st Timothy 2:5-6. It is very important to note that this inspired truth of scripture is written in the context of intercession for all men(Please read vs 1-4). The word translated as "Intercession" in the text(vs. 1) is "enteuxis"(ent'-yook-sis) in the original Greek, and it means  a falling in with, it also means a petition or supplication. To fall in with, is to act in accordance with someone, to agree to something. In intercession we are making a petition/supplication(request) to God for men, to the end that they may fall in with or align with God, however, t he tendency to assume the place of a go-between/mediator between God & men is more in intercessory ministry; it is so easy to cross the line & begin to see one's self as a go-between in what is commonly known as "standin...

Where A Sigh Of Relief Is Misjudged As Mocking The Dead.

Last week, i read some posts fraught with improper interpretations of Proverbs 11:10 by people beclouded by their own judgment, trying to present what the scripture says there as though it's the wicked who shout for joy when the wicked perish.  Simply comparing Proverbs 11:10 with a similar scripture in Proverbs 29:2 gives us a better understanding 👇🏽 "When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn" If the people mourn while the wicked rules, then it's very easy to understand why Proverbs 11:10 says there's a shout of joy when the wicked perish. If the life of a ruler is such that brings so much pain to the people such that they lament and mourn while he is in power, it is most natural that they will heave a great sigh of relief when such a ruler dies, and there's absolutely nothing unrighteous about that. Under the heavy weight of Pharaoh's burdensome rule, the children of Israel groaned in pa...

"EL ROI". What Does It Really Mean?

EL ROI. El roi means the God who sees. El(God) roi(see) It is drawn from Hagar's wilderness encounter with God in Genesis 16:6-14, when she felt mistreated by her mistress Sarah & fled from her face. "Beerlahairoi" - was Hagar's exact term ie. the name she called the Lord who spoke to her, as she realized the wonderful care of the Lord for her, how He had met her in her need when she was fleeing from her mistress. "Beerlahairoi" Transliteration: be'êr lachay rô'ı̂y Origin: from be'êr(well), chay(living) and rô'eh(seer/vision) "Beerlahairoi" means the well of the Living One seeing me; the Living One who sees me. That is what it is. It is the "well of Him that liveth and seeth" us, the well of God, the living water. The well itself is figurative of the Holy Spirit; He is the living waters, the living One who is always with us and from whose presence/face we cannot flee/escape so we live by the well & bef...

Anything Like Patterns Of The Bloodline Affecting The Believer In Christ?

Anything Like Patterns Of The Bloodline Affecting The Believer In Christ? Listened to a preacher teaching that there is such a thing called "patterns of the bloodline"; he said that "a man doesn't move just because God blessed him, a man moves because he's able to break controlling influences. That's what gives principalities authority over people."  He went on to assert that God can speak to you but if your family has an evil bloodline pattern and you don't break it through consecration, even though God has spoken, it will never come to pass. This implies that the word of God is impotent in the face of the so called bloodline patterns, and needs the help of a man rising to break it through his own consecration, for the word of God to be fulfilled. Such teachings extraneous & alien to the teachings of the new testament/apostolic doctrine in scripture, are rife in present day christendom, due to a colossal failure in the understanding & appreh...

Singing The Lord's Song In A Strange Land....by the rivers of Babylon.

Singing The Lord's Song In A Strange Land....by the rivers of Babylon. In chains of undiscerned rebellion & captivity Engrossed with devotion to religious activity  By the rivers of Babylon, the heathen bade us sing Sacred hymns of Zion, now anthem of unclean lips that revel in sin. How do we sing the Lord's song in a strange way,  in a strange land? Yet it spirals & goes so viral,  many say it's a sound of revival. Some cry “Culture Shift," Hear the sound!” While foundational truth is cast to the ground. They cheer the beat, the throb, the illusion of light, But see not the mixture & delusion in the dark night Self undenied, man's will glorified  Where is the way of the cross? The groaning for the lost & disciples with aching love that count the cost? Revival’s not in viral trends Not on billboards with captions that trend But broken hearts the Lord can mend. It’s not in chants loud and proud, But heaven's clarion call in the cloud. Echoing tru...

The Faithful Tither.

  The Faithful Tither. The incentive of giving in the new testament is to lay up treasures in heaven and not upon the earth like the rich fool. The rich young ruler was a faithful tither, and indeed faithful in keeping all that was in the law but got offended when Jesus told him to sell all he had and distribute unto the poor to have treasure in heaven, why? Because he was stupendously rich upon the earth and had great possessions, having laid up for himself treasures upon the earth. He had no issues whatsoever with giving a tenth/tithe regularly to a religious system that holds the promise that God will open the windows of heaven and pour him out a blessing on earth he would have no room enough to contain; anything to sustain his wealthy status or even make him wealthier, anything to maintain & massage his ego as belonging to the elites of society, was welcome. Practising tithing was not a struggle at all to him, as it is not to the natural/carnal man in what is called church ...

Laying Hold Of The Great Highpriest.

Your life might be such a wretch and a mess in this world, having messed up and failed countless times, but by faith you can lay hold on him who has overcome this world, you can cling to/fasten your self to the great Highpriest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God. Scripture in Hebrews 4:14 says we have a great Highpriest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God. The common english version reads "Seeing then that we have a great high priest", this however does not capture what is in the original greek lexicon. The word mistakenly translated as "Seeing" is "Echo" and has nothing to do with seeing which is passive, as merely observing something. Echo means to hold one's self to a thing, to lay hold of a thing, to cling to, to be closely joined to a person or a thing. It is thus not seeing as passively/merely observing that we have a great Highpriest who has passed through the heavens, but actively laying hold on and cl...

Which Altar Is Speaking For You?

 Which Altar Is Speaking For You? The altar which speaks for the believer in Christ is the blood of sprinkling which speaks better things than that of Abel; it is nothing but the cross of Christ where we have been redeemed from every curse. The mark of the altar in the old testament is that made by hands, built by man. If you go through the word altar in the old testament you would see pious men of old raising/building an altar unto Jehovah, from Noah to Abraham to Isaac & to Jacob etc. it is man building an altar to God. One of the marks of the veil over the old testament. In the light of the new testament however, it is not so. There is no such record or testimony of a man building an altar to God. No disciple, believer or pious man in the new testament was ever instructed or inspired by the Spirit of God to raise or build an altar unto God. This is very clear in scripture and very instructive for the altar of the new testament is not that which is made by hands or built by m...