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Tag: Femi Aribisala

  • There is none good but one (1) – By Femi Aribisala

    There is none good but one (1) – By Femi Aribisala

    “We can do nothing that God asks us to do”.

    I recently discovered two gems of scripture: The one from Jesus says, “No one is good but One, that is, God.” (Matthew 19:17). The other one from David says, “Lord, You are my Lord, my goodness is nothing apart from You.” (Psalm 16:2).

    Goodness of God

    Like David, I have discovered that my goodness is nothing apart from God. I am completely overwhelmed by God’s goodness. I am overwhelmed by God’s love.

    This has nothing to do with what God has done for me. It has everything to do with what He has done in me.

    I cannot stop thinking about God. I cannot stop blessing Him. I cannot stop praising Him. Nevertheless, I know that this is not my doing. He is the One making me do this.

    I now see everything in the light of God. God is in all my thoughts. (Psalm 10:4). I see everyone and hope they know God. I want all men to be saved. (1 Timothy 2:4). I am grieved when I hear that someone has died, especially if he was not a paragon of godliness.

    I was upset when I heard of the death of Buhari, especially because I do not think he knew my Jesus. I was grieved when I heard Hulk Hogan died of cardiac arrest. I hope he knew God and received forgiveness before his passing. I have difficulty talking to Muslims. I don’t know what to do about Indians. I am very afraid for Donald Trump. I know Bola Tinubu is in trouble with God.

    I see a stone and I think of God. I see a flower and I bless the Lord. I see an orange and I give God glory. I bless God for every bite of food that goes into my mouth. I see God in everyone in Healing Wings. I pray that every one of us will take God seriously.

    God is the precious pearl we find for which we sell everything else. Jesus was at pains to make us understand this:

    “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.” (Matthew 13:44-46).

    Arranged marriages

    You fell in love with a woman and, as the relationship developed, you became more and more convinced that she would be your life partner.

    But then, suddenly, your parents introduce you to another woman, and they tell you she is the wife they have found for you.

    “But I don’t know her,” you protest.

    “It does not matter,” they reply.

    “But I don’t love her,” you insist.

    “You will grow to love her,” they reply.

     What should you do? Should you marry the wife they have chosen for you, or should you marry the woman you love?

    Modern Western culture says you should marry the woman you love. But the culture of the kingdom of God prescribes that you should obey your parents. What would you do? Would you obey your parents or follow your heart?

    Be careful!

    “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9).

    Arranged marriages

    God arranged the marriage between Adam and Eve. Abraham arranged the marriage between Isaac and Rebecca. But Esau and Jacob broke the mould.

    “When Esau was forty years old, he took as wives Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite. And they were a grief of mind to Isaac and Rebekah.” (Genesis 26:34-35).

    Jacob also decided to choose his own wife. Laban, his uncle, had two daughters, Leah and Rachel. Jacob chose Rachel, the younger girl. But Laban deceived him by giving him Leah instead. However, Jacob would not relent in his love for Rachel and ended up marrying both sisters.

    In this marriage, Leah was unloved. All Jacob’s affections were lavished on Rachel. God responded by shutting the womb of Rachel, while Leah bore Jacob six sons. Nevertheless, Jacob refused to love Leah. On occasion, Leah traded one of her son’s mandrakes to Rachel so she could go to bed with Jacob.

    What was wrong with Jacob? He did not understand the love of God. He only understood the love of women. He did not know that true love is a decision. We do not truly love emotionally. We love by an act of the will. And:

    “It is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:13).

    When love is a decision, it is unconditional. It does not grow cold. It is till death do us part.

    Only God

    God is love, but man is not. God is love, but man cannot love. God is good, but man is not.

    We can do nothing that God asks us to do. The things God wants us to do can only be done by God. The things God wants us to do are beyond us. So why does God tell us to do what He knows we cannot do? Why does He ask us to do what is beyond the capacity He has given us?

    Moses gave the law to show us that God’s requirements are beyond us. He gave us the law to show us that God’s standards are way beyond our reach. His thoughts are not our thoughts, and His ways are not our ways. (Isaiah 55:8).

    Only Jesus can do what God requires:

    “Therefore, the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.” (Galatians 3:24).

    Thank God

    This is what I learnt at the feet of Jesus. When I do something and someone thanks me, I readily correct them by saying, ‘Thank God.’ Many think I am only trying to be religious or spiritual. Or that I am only trying to be humble.

    It is nothing of the sort. God knows that I know I cannot do anything good. But there is a goodness of God in me. It is God and His goodness in me that does every good thing. I came to realise this a long time ago. Since I met Christ, I lost all confidence in myself.

    “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.” (Romans 7:18).

    It is God who performs all things for me. This is confirmed in David:

    “I will cry out to God Most High, to God who performs all things for me.” (Psalms 57:2).

    Jesus says:

    “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5).

    In Jesus’ Name

    The Lord gave me this scripture early in my relationship with Him:

    “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” (Colossians 3:17).

    I, in turn, give it to whoever is willing.

    I discovered something strange only this year. I discovered that I am not the author of my prayers. I discovered that the Lord puts in my heart and my lips prayers He wants to answer. He plants in me prayers for which He has already prepared answers.

    This is confirmed in Isaiah:

    “It shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear.” (Isaiah 65:24).

    Have you experienced this before? This is my testimony: it now happens to me habitually. When you want to speak to someone, they phone you. As you are about to pick up the phone to call them, the phone rings, and it is the very person you were just about to phone. Or, you want to see someone, and the person comes to see you. You pray in your heart for someone, and the person suddenly appears.

    “This was the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.” (Psalm 118:23).

    This relationship we have with God is a great privilege. It is wonderful and amazing.

    Loving God

    Jesus says:

    “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” (Matthew 22:37).

    How can this happen? The love that man knows is emotional and erotic. Agape love is anathema to man. “You shall love the Lord Your God” is an instruction. It is a commandment of God. But no man can obey God’s commandments.

    “There is none righteous, no, not one.” (Romans 3:10).

    Only Jesus can obey the commandments of God. So what does God do? God has to work His love into us. (Philippians 2:13). It then becomes our responsibility to work out what God has worked into us.

    God gives a new heart to His new creation. The love of God is then poured into His elect by the Holy Spirit.

    “The love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” (Romans 5:5).

  • The wrath of God – By Femi Aribisala

    The wrath of God – By Femi Aribisala

    “There is no escape from the living God”.

    The Bible testifies that God does not take back His words:

    “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” (Numbers 23:19).

    God Himself declares:

    “My word that goes forth from My mouth shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11).

    Let us deal here with something God has said that must surely come to pass. God says:

    “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.” (Romans 12:19).

    I always saw this as a scripture telling us not to retaliate. But I have come to realise that it is saying something more fundamental than that. It means God is a God of vengeance. He has sworn to avenge every sin committed by men. Every sin is either avenged on the cross of Jesus Christ or in the fiery furnace of hell.

    Blood of Abel

    Those who have endured persecution for Christ’s sake are holding God to this word.

    “When (the angel) opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, ‘How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?’ Then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.” (Revelation 6:9-11).

    Jesus confirms that all such wrongs shall be avenged. He asks:

    “Shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily.” (Luke 18:7-8).

    Even Moses, whose ministry was primarily to the Jews, also spoke the same comforting words to persecuted Gentiles on God’s behalf:

    “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people; for He will avenge the blood of His servants, and render vengeance to His adversaries.” (Deuteronomy 32:43).

    God of wrath

    Christians easily overlook the fact that God is a God of wrath, despite over 600 scriptures telling us this in the Bible. The psalmist asks God:

    “Who can comprehend the power of Your anger? Your wrath is as awesome as the fear You deserve. Teach us to realise the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom.” (Psalm 90:11-12).

    The scriptures warn that God’s wrath against sin and sinners is going to explode at the end of the ages. Nahum asks:

    “Who can stand before (God’s) indignation? And who can endure the fierceness of His anger? His fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by Him.” (Nahum 1:6).

    Jesus, who eloquently displayed the love of God, also warned us about the wrath of God.

    “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.” (John 3:36).

    John, the so-called apostle of love, talks about the wrath of God more than anybody else in the Bible.

    “Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, ‘If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.” (Revelation 14:9-11).

    Fierce anger and wrath

    Many times in the scriptures, the Bible aligns God’s anger with His wrath. But Christians ignore this and only talk about God’s love. The psalmist pleads with God:

    “O Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger or discipline me in your wrath.” (Psalm 6:1).

    “We have been consumed by Your anger, and by Your wrath we are terrified.” (Psalm 90:7).

    Paul warned that:

    “For those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.” (Romans 2:8).

    God Himself acknowledges this:

    “I gave you a king in My anger, and took him away in My wrath.” (Hosea 13:11).

    Jesus displayed an inkling of God’s anger when He sacked the buyers and sellers in the Temple:

    “He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business. When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers’ money and overturned the tables. And He said to those who sold doves, ‘Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!’” (John 2:14-16).

    Fear of the Lord

    The Bible warns that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Many hear this and simply forget about it. But Jesus gives us friendly advice:

    “I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!” (Luke 12:4-5).

    The writer of Hebrews amplifies this:

    “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Hebrews 10:31).

    You can escape from a man through death, either by dying yourself or through the death of your oppressor. But there is no escape from the living God. He does not die, and you cannot escape from Him by dying. The living God will deal with you in life and even after you are dead.

    Listen to what David says to God:

    “(Even) if I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.” (Psalm 139:8).

    Terror of the Lord

    Paul says the God who is love is also a terror.

    “Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men.” (2 Corinthians 5:11).

    Joel says more or less the same thing:

    “The day of the Lord is great and very terrible; who can endure it?” (Joel 2:11).

    The very fact that God sent Jesus to save us shows how terrible the wrath of God will be. Accordingly, Paul tells us Jesus delivers us from the wrath to come. (1 Thessalonians 1:10).

    John the Baptist warned his countrymen about this:

    “When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” (Matthew 3:7).

    The message is clear: beware of the Day of the Lord. Joel proclaims:

    “Blow the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; for the day of the Lord is coming, for it is at hand: A day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, like the morning clouds spread over the mountains.” (Joel 2:1-2).

    Isaiah presents an equally scary picture:

    “Enter into the rock, and hide in the dust, from the terror of the Lord and the glory of His majesty. The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. For the day of the Lord of hosts shall come upon everything proud and lofty, upon everything lifted up, and it shall be brought low. Upon all the cedars of Lebanon that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan; opon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills that are lifted up; upon every high tower, und upon every fortified wall; upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all the beautiful sloops. The loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be brought low; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day, but the idols He shall utterly abolish. They shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, from the terror of the Lord and the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake the earth mightily. In that day a man will cast away his idols of silver and his idols of gold, to the moles and bats, to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the crags of the rugged rocks, from the terror of the Lord and the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake the earth mightily. Sever yourselves from such a man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for of what account is he?” (Isaiah 2: 10-22).

    CONTINUED.

  • Should Christians support Israel against Iran? (3) – By Femi Aribisala

    Should Christians support Israel against Iran? (3) – By Femi Aribisala

    “Believers in Christ are the true Jews”.

    Biblical Israel wandered through the desert for 40 years in rebellion against God. The wilderness was their graveyard. They all died there. But Jesus spent only 40 days in the wilderness during which He prevailed against the temptations of the devil. Jesus passed all the tests that biblical Israel failed.

     Israel was told to serve only God:

    “Fear the Lord your God, serve Him only.” (Deuteronomy 6:13).

     But Israel served other gods.

    “All the people broke off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them to Aaron. And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a moulded calf. Then they said, ‘This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!’ So when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made a proclamation and said, ‘Tomorrow is a feast to the Lord.’ Then they rose early on the next day, offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.” (Exodus 32:3-6).

    But Jesus served only God.

    “The devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour. ‘All this I will give you,’ he said, ‘if you will bow down and worship me.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’” (Matthew 4:8-10).

    Biblical Israel was warned not to put God to the test:

    “Do not test the Lord your God.” (Deuteronomy 6:16).

    But Israel disobeyed and tested God:

    “The people were thirsty for water there, and they grumbled against Moses. They said, ‘Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?’ Then Moses cried out to the Lord, ‘What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me.’ The Lord answered Moses, ‘Walk on ahead of the people. Take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink.’ So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel. And he called the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarrelled and because they tested the Lord, saying, ‘Is the Lord among us or not?’” (Exodus 17:3-7).

    Jesus, on the other hand,  refused to test God:

    “The devil took (Jesus) to the holy city and had Him stand on the highest point of the temple. ‘If You are the Son of God,’ he said, ‘throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He will command His angels concerning You, and they will lift You up in their hands, so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.’ Jesus answered him, ‘It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” (Matthew 4:5-7).

    The Israelites insisted on living by bread alone. Moses said to them:

    “(God) humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.” (Deuteronomy 8:3-4).

    But the Israelites rejected manna and despised it.

    “The mixed multitude who were among them yielded to intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said:”Who will give us meat to eat? We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; but now our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!” (Numbers 11:4-6).

    Jesus, on the other hand, agreed to live by the word of God:

    “When the tempter came to (Jesus), he said, ‘If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.’ But He answered and said, ‘It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” (Matthew 3-4).

    True and false bread

    The manna that Moses gave the Israelites in the wilderness was not the true bread. Jesus is the true bread from heaven. As He said to the Jews:

    “Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.” And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.” (John 6:31-35). 

    Rejection of the gospel

    Biblical Israel rejected the gospel of the kingdom of God:       

    “Although (Jesus) had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke: ‘Lord, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?’ Therefore, they could not believe, because Isaiah said again: ‘He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, lest they should see with their eyes, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them.’” (John 12:37-40).

    As a result, God created a new Israel, the Israel of God and faith. This fulfilled the kingdom principle whereby the last became first and the first last. So Jesus said to the Jews of biblical Israel:

    “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’? ‘Therefore, I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it.’” (Matthew 21:42-43).

    Believers in Christ are now God’s Chosen People. Peter proclaimed this to New Testament followers of Christ:

    “To you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, ‘The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone’ and ‘a stone of stumbling and a rock of offence.’ They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed. But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.’” (1 Peter 2:7-10).

    Paul also confirmed it:

    “If you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Galatians 3:29).

    The Israelites of today are not Abraham’s children. Instead, naturally-borm Israelites who reject Christ belong to the synagogue of Satan:

    “They answered and said to (Jesus), “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, ‘If you were Abraham’s children, you would do the works of Abraham. But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham did not do this. You do the deeds of your father.’ Then they said to Him, ‘We were not born of fornication; we have one Father — God.’ Jesus said to them, ‘If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me.  Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.” (John 8:39-44).

    Jesus reiterated this in a letter to the church in Smyrna:

    “I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.” (Revelation 2:9).

    Paul also confirmed that believers in Christ are the true Jews. We are the Israel of God for whom God made the promise to Abraham:

    “It is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, ‘In Isaac your seed shall be called.’ That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed.’” (Romans 9:6-8).

    So, when Paul says, “All Israel shall be saved” (Romans 11:26), he is not referring to physical Israel, nor biblical Israel, nor the nation of Israel. He is only referring to the believers who are in Christ Jesus.

    “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God.” (Romans 2:28-29).

    CONCLUDED.

  • Should Christians support Israel against Iran? – By Femi Aribisala

    Should Christians support Israel against Iran? – By Femi Aribisala

    “Biblical Israel is not the Jewish people or the state of Israel”.

    Jesus, who appears as the Angel of the Lord in the Old Testament, sent Philip to an Ethiopian eunuch going from Jerusalem to Gaza. Philip overtook the man’s chariot and heard him reading from the book of Isaiah. He then asked the Ethiopian:

    “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him. The place in the Scripture which he read was this:

    “He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and as a lamb before its shearer is silent, so He opened not His mouth. In His humiliation His justice was taken away, and who will declare His generation? For His life is taken from the earth.”

    So the eunuch answered Philip and said, “I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?” Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him.” (Acts 8:30-35).

    “Of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or some other man?” Readers of Isaiah 53 still ask this question today.

    Servant of God

    The preface to Isaiah 53 is Isaiah 52. This shows that Isaiah 53 refers to “the servant of God.” (Isaiah 52:13-15).

    Jews insist that throughout Isaiah, the term “servant of God” refers to biblical Israel.

    “But you, Israel, are My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the descendants of Abraham My friend.” (Isaiah 41:8).

    However, Christians maintain that the term refers to Jesus, the suffering servant of God:

    “It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles, that You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth.” (Isaiah 49:6).

    But God, who knows all things beforehand, provides the answer beforehand: “Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him.” (Acts 8:35).

    So, the scripture refers to Jesus.

    Israel-Iran War

    This age-old question has come up again today in the shadow of the Israel-Iran war.

    In 2004, I wrote an article entitled: “Why Christians Must Stop Supporting Israel Against the Palestinians.” On that occasion, the Israeli government massacred 2,000 Palestinians without reprieve, and Christians still supported Israel because the  Israelites are presumed to be God’s Chosen People.

    For 77 years, Israel has been the bully in the Middle East. Israel attacks the Palestinians, the Houthis, the Lebanese, and the Syrians. But a few days ago, it went a Bridge Too Far. Israel attacked Iran, and came up with a comeuppance.

    The Iranians responded by breaching Israel’s defences. For the very first time in the history of the modern Israeli state, the Iranians have been teaching the Israelis a lesson they will never forget. They have been dropping big bombs on Israel and have practically destroyed the small country. Israel then pleaded for the United States to come to its defence.

    A discussion between United States Senator Ted Cruz and internet blogger Tucker Carlson has gone viral. Ted Cruz wanted the United States to intervene on the side of Israel. He said God declares in the Bible that He will bless whoever blesses Israel, and will curse whoever curses her. Therefore, the U.S. should curse and bomb Iran.

    Tucker Carlson was not convinced. He said the current Israeli nation is a 1948 creation. It did not exist in biblical days. So, God is not telling believers to bless the current Israeli government of Bibi Netanyahu.

    This morning, Donald Trump took sides with Israel and the warmongers. He took the illegal move, according to the American Constitution, and bombed Iran.

    Should disciples of Jesus automatically support Israel against Iran as Donald Trump and the Americans did?

    Certainly not!

    Believers are required to support the weak. Paul says:

    “I have shown you in every way, by labouring like this, that you must support the weak.” (Acts 20:35).

    Israel and the United States are “the strong” in this affair.

    Abraham’s blessings

    God’s covenant of blessings was not given to the nation of biblical Israel but to Abraham:

    “The Lord had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Genesis 12:1-3).

    Every covenant and promise of God to Abraham pointed to Jesus. Jesus is all in all. (Ephesians 1:23). It is in Him alone that all the promises of God are answered and fulfilled.

    “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through Him, the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.” (2 Corinthians 1:20).

    “Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, ‘and to seeds,’ as of many, but as of one, ‘and to your Seed,’ who is Christ.” (Galatians 3:16)

    Jesus Himself became the blessing:

    “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.” (Ephesians 1:3).

    “That the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” (Galatians 3:14).

    Biblical Israel

    Biblical Israel is not the Jewish people, not the state of Israel, and not the Christian Church. Most Israelites were not Jews. Jews only relate to the people of the tribe of Judah.

    Judah was the fourth child of David. He was just one of the 12 tribes of Israel. So, the other 11 tribes were not Jews.

    Solomon sinned against God, and God, in judgment, divided Israel into two under Rehoboam, Solomon’s son:

    “Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon. And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods. So the Lord became angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned from the Lord God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice, and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he did not keep what the Lord had commanded. Therefore, the Lord said to Solomon, “Because you have done this, and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant. Nevertheless, I will not do it in your days, for the sake of your father David; I will tear it out of the hand of your son. However, I will not tear away the whole kingdom; I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen.” (2 Kings 11:7-13).

    Thereafter, the  Bible refers to the 10 tribes of the Northern Kingdom as Israel (or the Israelites). It then refers to the 2 tribes of the Southern Kingdom as Judah (or Jews).

    So, according to the Bible, the Jews are different from the Israelites. In any case, all the 12 tribes of Israel are lost.  So, no one knows biblical Israel or the Jews any more.

    Two firstborn sons

    There are two Israels in the bible. One is a shadow of the substantive One, so there are parallels between them.

    The nation of Israel was God’s firstborn son:

    “Thus says the Lord: Israel is My son, My firstborn.” (Exodus 4:22).

    Jesus is also God’s firstborn son.

    “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.” (Colossians 1:15/18).

    Water Baptism

    The Israelites were baptised in the Red Sea.

    “All our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, all were baptised into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.” (1 Corinthians 10:1-2).

    Jesus was baptised in the River Jordan. (Matthew 3:13-15).

    God was displeased with the firstborn Israelites.

    “They drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ. But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.” (1 Corinthians 10:4-5).

    But God is well-pleased with firstborn Jesus.

    “A voice came from heaven, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.’” (Matthew 3:17).

    Out of Egypt

    The first Israel was in Egypt for over 400 years until God sent Moses to deliver them from Pharaoh by a strong hand.

    “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called My son.” (Hosea 11:1).

    Jesus was also called out of Egypt:

    “An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, ‘Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him.’ When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, ‘Out of Egypt I called My Son.’” (Matthew 2:13-15). 

    Temptation in the wilderness

    The first Israel wandered around for 40 years in the wilderness because its children did ot trust God.

    “‘According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, for each day you shall bear your guilt one year, namely forty years, and you shall know My rejection. I the Lord have spoken this. I will surely do so to all this evil congregation who are gathered together against Me. In this wilderness, they shall be consumed, and there they shall die.’” (Numbers 14:34-35).

    Jesus, the second Israel, was only 40 days in the wilderness.

    “Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights.” (Matthew 4:1-2).

    CONTINUED.

  • Election and predestination (2) – By Femi Aribisala

    Election and predestination (2) – By Femi Aribisala

    “Abraham’s adultery fulfilled the will of God”.

    Paul says there are “vessels of wrath prepared for destruction,” and “vessels of mercy, prepared beforehand for glory.” (Romans 9:22-24). Vessels of wrath prepare themselves for God’s wrath. But God Himself prepares the vessels of mercy for glory. The vessels of wrath deserve God’s wrath, but the vessels of mercy do not deserve God’s mercy. They also deserve God’s wrath, but God decides to be merciful to them.

    Hardening of Pharaoh

    God said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do all those wonders before Pharaoh which I have put in your hand. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go.” (Exodus 4:21).

    Who will harden Pharaoh’s heart? God will.

    He repeats this: “I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply My signs and My wonders in the land of Egypt.” (Exodus 7:3). He (God) will harden Pharaoh’s heart.

    But when Pharaoh himself is brought into the equation, the hardening came from Pharaoh:

    “When Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and did not heed them, as the Lord had said.” (Exodus 8:15).

    “Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also; neither would he let the people go.” (Exodus 8:32).

    “When Pharaoh saw that the rain, the hail, and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet more; and he hardened his heart.” (Exodus 9:34).

    When the Israelites finally left Egypt, God retook the initiative:

    “I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, so that he will pursue them; and I will gain honour over Pharaoh and over all his army, that the Egyptians may know that I am the Lord.” (Exodus 14:4).

    As a result, the Egyptians decided to pursue the Israelites, and they ended up drowned in the Red Sea, according to the determinate counsel of God.

    Paul explains all this:

    “For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, ‘For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.’ Therefore, He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.” (Romans 9:17-18).

    Jesus’ elect

    Paul writes that God opened the eyes of those He chose and left the rest in blindness:

    “Israel has not obtained what it seeks; but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded. Just as it is ‘written: ‘God has given them a spirit of stupor, eyes that they should not see and ears that they should not hear, to this very day.’” (Romans 11:7-8). 

    Note that it is said here that God blinded them. However, Jesus says the unbelievers are the ones who blinded their eyes:

    “The hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear,

    and they have closed their eyes— so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.” (Matthew 13:15).

    There is a divinely ordained coincidence between the decrees of God and the will of men.

    Numbering Israel

    Samuel says God was angry with Israel, so He made David conduct a census.

    “The anger of the Lord was aroused against Israel, and He moved David against them to say, ‘Go, number Israel and Judah.’” (2 Samuel 24:1).

    But the writer of 1 Chronicles says it was Satan who moved David to number Israel:

    “Satan stood up against Israel, and moved David to number Israel. So David said to Joab and to the leaders of the people, ‘Go, number Israel from Beersheba to Dan, and bring the number of them to me that I may know it.’” (1 Chronicles 21:1-2).

    In both scenarios, David is the one said to have ordered the numbering. But God did not punish David for ordering the numbering. He punished Israel. 72,000 Israelites were killed in a plague.

    David pleaded with God: “I am the one who numbered Israel, so kill me. Why kill all these innocent people?” David did not know that he numbered Israel because God wanted to punish Israel. He thought he did the numbering, but it was God who did it.

    Election of Abraham

    God chose Abram without saying why. He said to him:

    “My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations.” (Genesis 17:4-5).

    It was God who decided to make Abraham a father of many nations. But it was Abraham’s decision that laid the foundation of the original two nations. Abraham had an adulterous relationship with Hagar, his househelp, who gave birth to Ishmael. Then his wife, Sarah, gave birth to Isaac. Ishmael produced the nation of Edom, and Isaac the nation of Israel.

    How come Abraham’s adultery fulfilled the will of God? That is the power of God. As Paul observes, God “works all things according to the counsel of His will.” (Ephesians 1:11). To those who love God and are called according to His purpose, God works all things together for good.” (Romans 8:28).

    When Hagar ran away with Ishmael from Sarah’s hostility and oppression, God met her and said she should go back: “Arise, lift up the lad and hold him with your hand, for I will make him a great nation.” (Genesis 21:18).

    In effect, the first nation to come out of Abraham was the result of his adultery with Hagar, arising from his unbelief that God would fulfil His promise with Sarah.

    Did God decree the adultery, or did Abraham commit the adultery? Mind your business. The union between God’s will and Abraham’s sinful action is the result of the unsearchable power of God.

    Abraham’s adultery was a sin against God. God does not need our help to fulfil His promises. Nevertheless, God worked Abraham’s sin together for good. Abraham was responsible for his adultery. At the same time, Abraham’s adultery was the will of God.

    “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!” (Romans 11:33).

    Joseph

    Joseph’s evil brothers were responsible for his travails. They threw him down a well and sold him into slavery in Egypt. Nevertheless, their actions were the will of God. Had they not sold him into slavery, he would not have ended up as prime minister in Egypt, a position that enabled him to save their lives in a famine.

    Joseph recognised the power of God and reassured his nervous brothers that he had no intention of retaliating: “You meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.” (Genesis 50:20).

    How does God bring about such reversals? Only God knows. “We may throw the dice, but the Lord determines how they fall.” (Proverbs 16:33).

    David’s adultery

    When David slept with Bathsheba (Uriah’s wife) and got her pregnant, he killed her husband to hide his sin and married her. God’s judgment on him was exacting. Nathan, the prophet of the Lord, said to him:

    “You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon. Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife. “Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbour, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, before the sun.” (2 Samuel 12:9-12).

    This judgment was fulfilled in rapid succession by members of David’s family acting seemingly of their own volition. Amnon raped Tamar and Absalom killed him. Absalom tried to overthrow David, and Joab killed him. Solomon killed Adonijah. Absalom raped David’s wives in the sight of all Israel. The sword has never left Israel to this very day.

    All these seemingly independent actions of David’s sons fulfilled God’s judgment against David. Did God decree their actions, or did his people act according to their free will? Both! And how God brought this to pass is, again, the unsearchable power of God.

    Jesus’ crucifixion

    Jesus was crucified according to the determinate counsel of God, and by the will of sinful men. So, the disciples prayed to God:

    “Truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done.” (Acts 4:27-28).

    Their evil actions against Jesus were all predetermined from the foundation of the world. Nevertheless, they were fully responsible for their sins. That combo is the power of God.

    Election of Isaac

    God told Abraham, “Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted.” (Genesis 21:12). Nevertheless, Isaac’s wife, Rebecca, was barren. Isaac did not have a child for 20 years. God did not give him children until Isaac prayed for them.

    Why did Isaac still need to pray to have the children that God had decreed? Mind your business. That is how God decided to do it.

    When we pray according to God’s will, He answers. Nevertheless, His will precedes our prayers. God says: “It shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear.” (Isaiah 65:24).

    How come our prayers coincide with His will? “The preparations of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord.” (Proverbs 16:1).

    We do not need to know how God answers our prayers. But He does. After 20 years of barrenness, Rebecca is finally pregnant, but the pregnancy is problematic. She prays, and God tells her something unusual is happening to her. She is carrying not one but two children. She is carrying the first twins of mankind.

    Continuing God’s predestination of making Abraham the father of many nations. Two nations are in Rebecca’s womb. Two different people shall be separated from her. Then again, God’s will would contradict man’s convention. The one twin shall be stronger than the other. The older shall serve the younger.

    This is God’s predestination. From one twin, Jacob, we get 12 sons, making one nation, Israel. From Esau, we get another nation, Edom. The older Esau shall serve the younger Jacob.

    This shows God’s counsel is not contingent upon the natural order or man’s tradition. Everything is contingent upon God’s predestination and election. “So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy.” (Romans 9:16-17). God works everything according to the good pleasure of His will. (Ephesians 1:5).

    How did God’s decree that the older shall serve the younger come to pass? Jacob swindled his brother Esau and stole his birthright. Jacob’s swindle brought about God’s decree. God’s decree came about through human action. Men are God’s hands.

    Did God cause Jacob to swindle Esau, or was Jacob responsible for his sin? Both! That is the unsearchable power of God.

    God’s righteous judgment

    It is not God’s injustice that sends men to hell. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. It is men’s sins that send men to hell. But it is God’s mercy that elects to save some of the sinners. God decides who to save.

    God makes no man sin. Man decides to sin. Because of man’s sin, God could have decided to save nobody. But out of his kindness, He decides to save some. These are those he chooses “according to the election of grace.” (Romans 11:5).

    Paul then explains why God chooses some and not others. God desired to show His power and to display the glory of His grace. (Ephesians 1:6). He desired to show the riches of His glory on those He chooses to have mercy, leaving others subject to His wrath. (Romans 9:23).

    Who are those on whom God showers His mercy? Anyone and everyone who calls on the Name of the Lord. Who are those who will call upon the Name of the Lord? Those that God has chosen. Will they call upon the Name of the Lord because God has chosen them, or because of their own volition?

    Both! And that again is the power of God. Jesus says to the Sadducees: “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God.” (Matthew 22:29).

    We were dead in transgressions and sins (Ephesians 2:1), and yet are required to call upon the name of the Lord. But the dead have no volition. How can dead men call upon the Name of the Lord? God must make them do it.

    “Revive us, and we will call upon Your name. Restore us, O Lord God of hosts; cause Your face to shine, and we shall be saved!” (Psalm 80:18-19).

    Why was Mary chosen? Why was John the Baptist anointed in the womb? It is all by election and predestination.

    Why does God tell people to repent when He knows they cannot unless He leads them to repentance? That is the power of God. He calls us to repent, but we cannot unless He helps us. We preach to others: “if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth.” (2 Timothy 2:25).

    Jesus says:

    “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him.” (John 6:44). 
    “No one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.” (John 6:65). 
  • Article of Faith: Election and predestination – By Femi Aribisala

    Article of Faith: Election and predestination – By Femi Aribisala

    “God would have all men to be saved, but none will merit salvation”.

    Jesus says: “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you.” (John 15:16).

    When did He choose us? “He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world.” (Ephesians 1:4).

    Since He chose us, that means we were predestined:

    “(He) predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will.” (Ephesians 1:5).

    What is the good pleasure of God’s will?

    The good pleasure of God’s will is the salvation of souls. So, Jesus says:

    “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”(Luke 12:32).

    Why did He choose us?

    He chose us:

    “To the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.” (Ephesians 1:6).

    We are saved by grace. We do not deserve to be saved, but we are saved. Jesus said to me, “Femi, I don’t give people what they deserve. Don’t give people what they deserve. Give them what they do not deserve.”

    “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

    If we are saved by grace, it means we are elected. Paul says:

    “At this present time, there is a remnant according to the election of grace.” (Romans 11:5).

    If we are elected by grace, then we are predestined. We are new creations.

    “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10).

    God prepared the works we are to do beforehand. That means we are predestined to do them. We do not even do them ourselves; Jesus does them through us:

    “God (who) performs all things for (us).” (Psalm 57:2).

    In Christ and Adam

    God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world. But when we were born, we left Christ. When we are born, we are no longer in Christ, but in Adam. In Adam, we died.

    “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.” (1 Corinthians 15:22).

    In Adam, we were dead in transgressions and sins.

    “That at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.” (Ephesians 2:12).

    In Adam, the Prodigal Son left his father and went to a far country. When he left the Father, he died. He only came back alive when he returned home.

    Dead men have no free will. Dead men have no independent action. Satan propels their actions through the bondage of corruption,

    What does God say to Adamic man? He tells us to return to Him.

    “You turn man to destruction, and say, “Return, O children of men.” (Psalm 90:3).

    Who turns man to destruction?

    God does.

    Why?

    Because we are all sinners.

    How and when can we come back to Christ?

    We can return when we are born again.

    “And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins.” (Ephesians 2:1).

    When we are born again, we go back from being in Adam to being in Christ.

    “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

    What happens when we are back in Christ? We are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus. We are holy and without blame. We obtain an inheritance. We receive the spirit of adoption by which we cry “Abba Father.” (Romans 8:15). We obtain an inheritance. We become heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. (Romans 8:17).

    God brought us back to life from the dead for His own good pleasure and not ours. Therefore, it is not our will but His that must be done.

    God’s foreknowledge and election

    Jesus berated the Sadducees, “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God.” (Matthew 22:29).

    Even today, many people are unfamiliar with the scriptures. Some know the scriptures but not the power of God. But both must be seen in tandem. Moreover, the power of God never contradicts the scriptures.

    God knows everything beforehand. He declares:

    “I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure.” (Isaiah 46:0-10).

    God’s foreknowledge should not be mistaken for foresight. God does not know future events and the actions of men because He foresees them. He knows them because He wills them to happen.

    God’s foreknowledge is by election. His foreknowledge is from His determination to bring certain people into a special relationship with Him. Accordingly, He says to Jeremiah: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; before you were born, I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.” (Jeremiah 1:5).

    If He looks down into history to choose only those who will love Him, He will end up choosing nobody. This is because:

    “There is none righteous no, not one; there is none who understands; there is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; they have together become unprofitable; there is none who does good, no, not one.” (Romans 3:10-12).

    God would have all men to be saved. Paul says, “This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:3-4).

    But none will merit salvation. All are dead in transgressions and sins. Therefore, rather than leave all men in condemnation, He decides to have mercy on a select few. He then decided that He would call the select few (or the elect) by the preaching of the gospel.

    Election by predestination

    God predestines those He foreknew. He selects and elects them.

    “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.” (Romans 8:29).

    The people God foreknew are those He set His affections on. God is not a man. So His knowledge does not conform to that of men

    Jesus says to some, “I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.” (Luke 13:27).

    Surely, He knows them as men know others. He does not know them means He is not intimate with them.

    The Bible says, “Cain knew his wife” (Genesis 4:17). “Adam knew his wife” (Genesis 4:25). This knowledge refers to intimacy. God will only spend eternity with those He wants to be intimate with.  And the power of God ensures that those He wants to be intimate with are precisely those who want to be intimate with Him.

    For this reason, Paul says:

    “What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, even us whom He called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?” (Romans 9:22-24).

    That is exactly what He does.

    How many people will then end up in heaven?

    Only the exact number that God has appointed. Not one more, not one less.

    “Since (man’s) days are determined, the number of his months is with You; You have appointed his limits, so that he cannot pass.” (Job 14:5).

    Everything is carefully calibrated:

    “You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.” (Psalm 139:16).

     

    CONTINUED…

  • Good and bad pleasure (2) – By Femi Aribisala

    Good and bad pleasure (2) – By Femi Aribisala

    The pleasures of men are varied, “(King Ahasuerus) had ordered all the officers of his household, that they should do according to each man’s pleasure.” (Esther 1:8). But God prescribes only One pleasure for believers. That One pleasure is Himself.

    God hates what pleases men. Jesus says, “What is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.” (Luke 16:15).

    “God hates the pleasures of men

    God requires man to forsake his pleasures for His sake. He told me to forsake my favourite drinks, Coke and Fanta, and I have not had any of them in over 25 years..

    Some pleasures He will require you to forsake permanently for His sake. Others He will require you to forsake for a season or some days. But if you are His son, one thing is certain: He will require you to forsake your pleasures at some time or the other. Jesus says: “Whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.” (Luke 14:33).

    God’s good pleasure

    God is passionately committed to His pleasure. He declares in Isaiah, “My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure.” (Isaiah 46:10). He says of Cyrus: “He shall perform all My pleasure.” (Isaiah 44:28).

    God the Father declared from heaven that He was well pleased with Jesus on two occasions, at His baptism and transfiguration. He said: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:17, 17:5).

    God was pleased because Jesus knew the “good pleasure” of God, and He was determined to do it.

    The Israelites thought it was their sacrifices and offerings that pleased God. But God kept sending His prophets to tell them He was not concerned about them. But they did not listen.

    The Holy Spirit spoke a Messianic psalm by the mouth of David: “Sacrifice and offering You did not desire; My ears You have opened. Burnt offering and sin offering You did not require. Then I said, ‘Behold, I come; in the scroll of the book it is written of Me. I delight to do Your will, O My God, and Your law is within My heart.’” (Psalm 40:6-8).

    God was pleased with Jesus because the man Jesus did not come to the earth to do His own will, but the will of God. Jesus did not do what pleased Jesus but did what pleased God. This is all the more remarkable because what pleased God was not convenient for Jesus.

    “It pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand.” (Isaiah 53:10).

    The pleasure of the Lord was to put Jesus through a terrible ordeal so that man would be saved. Paul says:

    “Having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth — in Him.” (Ephesians 1:9-10).

    Jesus did not pursue His own pleasure but was devoted to what gave pleasure to God. He knew that what gives pleasure to God is the salvation of men. As He said to His disciples: “It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32).

    On the way to the cross, the man Jesus asked God the Father if there was any other way that His good pleasure in the salvation of men could be accomplished.

    “He knelt down and prayed, saying, ‘Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.’” (Luke 22:41-42).

    The answer was that there was no other way. The good pleasure of the Lord in the salvation of souls could only be achieved with the cross. For man to be saved, Jesus would have to face a bruising and agonising death on the cross on behalf of all men. He would have to be a sacrifice for the sins of mankind. Thereby, the good pleasure of God would be fulfilled through the redemption of men to eternal fellowship with God.

    “For the Lord takes pleasure in His people; He will beautify the humble with salvation.” (Psalm 149:4).

    What is the work that God is doing in believers for His good pleasure? He is “working salvation in the midst of the earth.” (Psalm 74:12).

    The Father loves Jesus because Jesus agreed to embrace this plan of salvation, even though it was unpleasant. Jesus says:

    “Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.” (John 10:17-18).

    Jesus then tells us we are required to follow His example:

    “He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honour.” (John 12:25-26).

    Who are those who love their lives in this world? They are those who are devoted to their own pleasures. They are those who do their own will. They are those who live in pleasure. Paul says: “She who lives in pleasure is dead while she lives.” (1 Timothy 5:6).

    Lovers of pleasure cannot be lovers of God. Lovers of pleasure cannot do the will of God. Jesus says: “Not My will but Yours be done.” But lovers of pleasure say, like Frank Sinatra: “I did it my way.”

    Avoidance of suffering

    Those who opt for the bad pleasures of this life and try to avoid suffering cannot enter the kingdom of God. This is because God has decreed, “We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.” (Acts 14:22).

    Those devoted to bad pleasures who try to avoid tribulation easily fall into sin. Thus Elihu cautions: “Take heed, do not turn to iniquity, for you have chosen this rather than affliction.” (Job 36:21).

    We cannot learn obedience without suffering.
    Obedience requires us to do what we don’t want to do, or what we find inconvenient.

    Sacrifices of righteousness

    Why do believers fast? The classical answer says we fast to draw near to God, subdue the flesh and be spiritually minded. But we don’t just fast, we fast to the Lord. “For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever.” (Romans 11:36).

    We fast because Jesus returned to heaven, and we want to be near Him on earth. The scriptures tell us:

    “The disciples of John came to Him, saying, ‘Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but Your disciples do not fast?’  And Jesus said to them, ‘Can the friends of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.’” (Matthew 9:14-15).

    Those days are already here.

    But even more significantly, we fast because God hates the pleasures of men. When we fast, we fast our pleasures. God asks:

    ‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and You have not seen? Why have we afflicted our souls, and You take no notice?’ ‘In fact, in the day of your fast, you find pleasure.” (Isaiah 58:3).

    Then He counsels:

    “If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honourable, and shall honour Him, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words, then you shall delight yourself in the Lord; and I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth,” (Isaiah 58:13-14).

    Therefore, James cautions:

    “You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.” (James 4:3).

    God is jealous that we find pleasure outside of Himself. He insists “(He) is the Desire of All Nations.” (Haggai 2:7).

    The word of God must be our food and drink. Jesus says:

    “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” (Matthew 4:4).

    Jeremiah says to God: “Your words were found, and I ate them, and Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; for I am called by Your name, O Lord God of hosts.” (Jeremiah 15:16).

  • The mind of Christ (4) – By Femi Aribisala

    The mind of Christ (4) – By Femi Aribisala

    The worrisome mind is anathema to the mind of Chist. The mind that is fretful and full of anxiety is a mind that does not glorify God. The worrisome mind is the mind that does not trust God. It is the mind that does not believe that God is God. It is the mind that does not have faith in God. It is the mind that is not fed on the word of God. It is the mind that is not built on the rock of God’s word. 

    Paul says:

     Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7).

    (NKJ)

     Don’t be anxious about anything. Have you told God about it? Then you can relax. Look at the case of Hannah. She was all hot and bothered, but after she prayed about her barrenness in the temple, she went her way and was no longer sad. (1 Samuel 1:12-18)

    We go to parties and have a few drinks so we can be out of our minds.

    Jesus says:

    “I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? …Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?” (Matthew 6:25/27).

    The doubtful mind

    Jesus says:

    “Seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind.” (Luke 12:29).

    The doubtful mind is anathema to the mind of Christ.

    “Love never gives up, never loses faith. (1 Corinthians 13:7).

    The doubtful mind gives up. It does not believe the testimonies of God. It says: “God, if only you would do it just one more time.” It does not believe God’s promises.

    In the doubtful mind, the worries of this world choke the word of |God and render it powerless.

    Jesus says:

    “The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful.” (Matthew 13:22).

     The worries of this life choke the word. They strangulate the word. They make the word of God unproductive in our lives.

    Peace and rest are evidence of God’s presence in us. When we are exhausted or anxious, it is difficult to hear God clearly. Therefore. be still and know that God is God.

     “Jesus says to Martha:

     “You are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.’” (Luke 10:41-42).

    You are worried about too many things, whereas all you need to do is concentrate on the word of God.

    Casting all your care upon (Jesus), for He cares for you. (1 Peter 5:7).

    Jesus Himself says:

    “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30).

    The peaceful mind

    The mind of Christ is a mind at peace. “For (Jesus) Himself is our peace.” (Ephesians 2:13). The peaceful mind belongs to he whose heart is set on the Lord. The psalmist says:

    “My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.” (Psalm 57:7).

    The heart that is fixed cannot be swayed by events. It cannot be swayed by situations and circumstances. It is not easily destabilised by storms and raging waves of the sea. “He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the LORD.” (Psalm 112:7).

     Isaiah concurs: 

    You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. Trust in the LORD forever, for in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength.” (Isaiah 26:3-4).

    Mothers have to be very careful. A lot of mothers lose their faith if something bad happens to their children.

     The spiritual mind

    The mind of Christ is the spiritual mind. Paul says:

    “To be spiritually minded is life and peace.” (Romans 8:6).

    To be spiritually minded is to be open to those feelings that the Holy Spirit produces and be subject to His leadings. The spiritually-minded can easily be in the spirit and remain there without being distracted.

     Some say, “I can’t pray for any length of time.” This is because we are not spiritually minded. Our senses are not exercised to dwell on spiritual matters. Even when we pray, all our prayers are about the flesh. But if we are spiritually minded, we esteem spiritual things. We appreciate the beauty of holiness. We hunger and thirst for righteousness.

    The carnal mind

    The carnal mind is anathema to Christ. 

    To be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. (Romans 8:6-7).

    The carnal mind is the mind that follows the propensities and inclinations of the flesh. It is the mind that thinks sex, sex, sex. It is the mind filled with vain imaginations. It is the mind that dwells on the vainglories of this world. It is the mind that can only be appealed to by what is advantageous to itself. It is the greedy mind: the lustful mind. It is the mind that is set upon the things that are in this world. It is the mind that is set upon riches. It is the mind that seeks pleasure and is devoted to pleasing the flesh:

    She who lives in pleasure is dead while she lives. (1 Timothy 5:6).

    The fleshly mind

    The fleshly mind is the antithesis of the spiritual mind. It is not the mind of Christ.

    Those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. (Romans 8:5). 

    Col 2:18

    18  Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind. (Colossians 2:18).

    The fleshly mind is vain. Paul says:

    “This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind.” (Ephesians 4:17).

    The mind, being the head, is supposed to govern the flesh. But in the fleshly mind, the flesh governs the mind.

    Many women have fleshly minds. It is all about makeup, hairstyles, jewelry, perfumes, and snazzy outfits.

    Peter counsels:

    “Do not let your adornment be merely outward — arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel — rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God. For in this manner, in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves, being submissive to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid with any terror.” (1 Peter 3:3-6)

    Who is the “oga pata pata?” Is it your mind or your body? Can you resist adherence to the sensuous principle? If the answer is “No!,” then you have a fleshly mind.

    The sound mind

    The sound mind is the mind of Christ. 

    Do you doubt the grace of God? Do you doubt the mercy of God? Do you feel it applies to others but not to you? Are you fearful? Then you do not have a sound mind.

    God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” (2 Timothy 1:7).

    A sound mind is well-balanced and under the divine influences. In this regard, a sinner does not have a sound mind. It is said of the Prodigal Son:

    “When he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! ‘I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.’” (Luke 15:17-19).

    He looks back and says: “I must have been out of my mind.” “I must have been out of my mind.”

    That means he was out of his mind when he engaged in riotous living. Indeed, the whole philosophy of what some call entertainment is to make sure we are out of our minds.

    We go to parties and have a few drinks so that we can be out of our minds and do and say things that we would not have said if we were in our right minds. We take drugs so that we can be out of our minds. We watch certain films (like horror films) so we can be out of our minds.

    Within the context of the text, the sound mind is the mind that is not afraid or fearful. It is a mind that is sober and not easily excited. It is a mind not easily given to anger. It is a mind that is not captive to lustful passions.

  • The mind of Christ (2) – By Femi Aribisala

    The mind of Christ (2) – By Femi Aribisala

    Paul is the chief exponent in the scriptures of the imperative to have the mind of Christ. He taught what he lived, so we have him as our chief example.

    Paul teaches that:

    “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)/

    This new creation is new and will become new. He comes fully loaded but starts like a child, with everything needed to become a man already in place. In effect, if anyone is in Christ, he has the potential to become like Christ. But he must grow in Christ. He has put on Christ and must put on Christ.

    “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” (Galatians 3:27).

    He must work out what God has worked in him. (Philippians 2:13). So, Paul tells us to put on what God has given to us.

    “Put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.”(Ephesians 4:24).

    “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfil its lusts.” (Romans 13:14).

    The single-minded believer has joyful confidence in the Lord.

     The future is now

    Jesus says:

    “The hour is coming, and now is.” (Hohn 4:23).

    One new thing that is coming, and now is, refers to our mind. Paul affirms that:

    “We have the mind of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 2:16).

    But this mind must be developed.

    “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 2:5-6).

    Allow the mind of Christ to be in you. Do not impede it. God is at work in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

    Therefore, we have to jettison the old and put on the new.

    “Be renewed in the spirit of your mind.” (Ephesians 4:23).

    “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Romans 12:2).

    Single-mindedness

    Paul was single-minded. He says:

    “I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.” (1 Corinthians 2:2).

    James says:

    “A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.” (James 1:8).

    Paul was pre-eminently Christ-centred. This single-mindedness was the source of his stability in affliction and adversity. Paul’s concerns were never about himself. His concerns and preoccupations were always about Christ and the gospel.

    Can you forget about yourself for some time? After all, you are supposed to be dead. A dead man is no longer concerned about himself.

    Paul says:

    “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20).

    Paul’s body was not his own. His future was not his own. His reputation was not his own. He tried to put himself last in every situation.

    He regarded everything that happened to him as circumstances sent by God to exalt Christ and promote the gospel. If he is jailed, it is to Christ’s advantage.

    “I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ.” )Philippians 1:12-13).

    Nothing can happen to Paul that he would not see from Christ’s vantage point. Whatever happened to him, he regarded it as being to Christ’s advantage. This meant he would not grumble or complain about anything.

    ´According to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.” (Philippians 1:20).

    Fellowship of suffering

    Paul considered it to be a privilege to suffer for Christ.

    “For to you has been given the privilege not only of trusting him but also of suffering for him.” (Philippians 1:29).

    In Philippians 3:10, he calls it the fellowship of Christ’s suffering. Similarly, in the book of Acts, the apostles were excited when they were beaten for Christ’s sake.

    “When they had called for the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name.” (Acts 5:40-41).

    Jesus prescribes this fellowship in adversity:

    “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:11-12).

    Paul understood that the purpose of God was in every situation and circumstance of the life of a believer. Therefore, he prescribes that in everything, give thanks.

    Self abnegation

    Paul made it a habit not to think of himself, but to think of others. He also made a point of praying for others. He sought to encourage others. His heaven on earth was helping others.

    “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy.” (Philippians 1:3-4).

    “Just as it is right for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart, inasmuch as both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers with me of grace. For God is my witness, how greatly I long for you all with the affection of Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 1:7-8).

    If there were chains on Paul’s wrists, he re-conceptualised them as his “bonds in Christ.” If his adversaries were causing trouble in his absence while he was under house arrest, he rejoiced that they were preaching Christ.

    If his friends were worried about his incarceration and were praying for him, he became excited that this would exalt Christ. If there was a possibility that he might be killed, then he believed that Christ would be magnified in his death.

    In his single-mindedness, Paul put Christ and the furtherance of the gospel ahead of everything else.

    In effect, nothing that man can do can take away Paul’s joy in Christ. Imprison him, and Paul simply tells you he is a prisoner of Christ. Chain him to a guard, and Paul is convinced that the whole design was to give him a captive audience who is to be won over to the gospel.

    Confidence in Christ

    As a single-minded Christian, Paul refused to allow circumstances to overcome him. On the contrary, he turned every circumstance into an opportunity to magnify Christ and to win souls.

    Above all, Paul was confident about the supremacy of God. He was confident that the Philippians would continue in their Christian walk, not because of any diligence on the part of the church, but because of the power of God.

    “Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 1:6).

    He was confident that his trials had given believers in Rome new confidence in the gospel.

    “Most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.” (Philippians 1:14).

    He was confident that he would soon come through the trials and be restored to his friends.

    “And being confident of this, I know that I shall remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy of faith.” (Philippians 1:25).

    This is the blessing of being single-minded. The single-minded believer has joyful confidence in the Lord, knowing that Jesus controls all situations and circumstances.

    One mind

    Christian single-mindedness leads to submissiveness. Submissiveness to God yields sacrifice and service. The mind of Christ is submissive, meek, and lowly. Humility is not thinking of ourselves at all. But exaltation always follows humiliation.

    Therefore, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.” (1 Peter 5:6).

    With Christ at the centre and as the glue, Christians are supposed to be like-minded, having the same love, of one spirit, and of the same purpose.

    “Therefore, if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.” (Philippians 2:1-2).

    Nothing is to be done out of selfish ambition and each believer is enjoined to consider others better than himself and to be concerned about the interests of others.

    Jesus is the prime example of this selfless humility.

    “Let each of us please his neighbour for his good, leading to edification. For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, ‘The reproaches of those who reproached You fell on Me.’” (Romans 15:2-3).

    “Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus, that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 15:5-6).

  • The mind of Christ (1) – By Femi Aribisala

    The mind of Christ (1) – By Femi Aribisala

    In 1997, I rented a building in Victoria Island, Lagos for two years for N1.5 million naira. When I did, God told me He had given the building to me, even though I was only a tenant. I believed Him because I have a mind of Christ. He says to me, “Blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear.” (Matthew 13:16).

     The mind of Christ hears the voice of Jesus and believes the word of God. Jesus says, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” (John 10:27). Jesus’ sheep do not lean on their own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5). It did not make sense to presume I would own an expensive house in an exclusive part of Lagos when I was just the tenant.

     “Nevertheless, at Your word (Jesus).” (Luke 5:5). So, I spent N6 million renovating a building not my own, but promised to me.

    After 2 years, when my tenancy expired, the landlady’s lawyer approached me. She said the landlady would like to sell the building and would like to sell it to me. I never even asked to buy it. She told me the landlady’s father willed the building to her. She had never even seen it before. She lived in Chicago with her American husband.

    She wants to sell the building in Lagos so she can buy a building in Chicago.

     So, in 2000, I bought a building in Victoria Island, Lagos, at the ridiculous price of only N26 million naira. I did not even have the money to pay for it. I paid in instalments over four years, and God miraculously provided the final N10 million.

     Fast forward 25 years, and I now understand the building is worth N3 billion naira. That is now the cost of the land. That is what Jesus does. “It is He who gives (us) power to get wealth.” (Deuteronomy 8:18).

     Nouveau Schools

     In 2010, I established a school in the building. It grew to comprise 104 children. But then I lost most of my international children during the COVID-19 pandemic.

     So, God gave me a dream in 2020, at the height of the pandemic. I saw a classroom in the school full of children. Next door, I saw my assistant. I knew even if heaven and earth passed away, this dream would not pass away.

     “For the vision is yet for an appointed time; but at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.” (Habakkuk 2:3).

     So we started looking for additional space to accommodate the increased number of children God promised to bring.

     We found a suitable building just two doors away from us. This building seemed purpose-built for us. It had about 24 rooms, and it was vacant.

     I went to inspect the building with two delegations. The first time,  with people from the school. The second time, with my wife and family. We all agreed the building was ideal. But when we asked how much it would cost to rent it, we were told N25 million naira a year.

     That immediately put paid to our plans. The money was just too much. There was no way we could afford it. In any case, the additional children had yet to arrive.

     A few years later, we went back to enquire about the place. We were told the landlord was tired of waiting for us but had rented it to someone else. That “someone else” has spent a lot of money renovating it. It is now an exceptionally beautiful building two doors away, with colourful flower decorations.

     Blunder upon blunder

     The Bible says about the church in the wilderness. “Again and again they tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.” (Psalms 78:41).

    I have now discovered that that is precisely what happened to us. We limited Jesus, the Holy One of Israel. That was why we thought we could not afford the N25 million naira rent.

     A few weeks ago, a colleague, Simon Ezeh, alerted me about some people who could help us develop our own property into a high-rise building. They said they would give me N300 million naira to relocate, while the new building was being constructed.

     I then realised that I had made a big blunder in 2021. Why did I think God could not provide me with the N25 million rent? I did not think so because I limited the Holy One of Israel. I forgot that with God, nothing will be impossible. (Luke 1:37). I did not think it was possible because I reverted to the mind of a man instead of the mind of Christ.

     Jesus says, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.’” (Matthew 17:20).

     Unanswered questions

     Why did God give me the dream at the time he did? Why was the perfect house vacant at that particular time when I could not afford the rent? Why did the agent tell us the landlord was tired of waiting for us? Do coincidences exist? Certainly not! God is not a coincidental God. “He works all things according to the counsel of His will.” (Ephesians 1:11).

     The mind of Christ recognises that everything he needs is at hand. He automatically meets everyone God has appointed to help him. He is led to everyone that God has appointed for him to help. The psalmist says, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way.” (Psalm 37:23).

     When I am broke, God tells someone to register their child in my school. Or He tells my wife to buy me lunch. Or He tells my niece to send me some money.

     “The Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.” (Jonah 2:10).

     The God who speaks to fishes surely speaks to men. Indeed, He speaks to so many people without speaking to them and they do what he wants them to do. They think they are the ones doing it, but no, it is the Lord.

     “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” (Revelation 1:8).

     The person who has the mind of Christ recognises that God is the determinant of everything. He proclaims:

     “I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure,’ Calling a bird of prey from the east, the man who executes My counsel, from a far country. Indeed, I have spoken it; I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it; I will also do it.” (Isaiah 46:9-11).