Melchizedek the Priest of the Most High

It is exhilarating to imagine that there is a divine being who serves the purpose of advocacy between God and His subjects. This “being” without doubts has the very form of God because the life of God is in him. He has direct access to God, dwells in His bosom, in other words, He sees Him and advocate on behalf of His subjects. He is Himself subjected to God because He was appointed by God and has always been from the very beginning with God; of such a personage is Melchizedek who was the priest of the most high God (Genesis 14:18).

Apparently, it shouldn’t be speculative to think that, this enigmatic being has always been with the most High from the very beginning. He was before Abraham and has always served as a Priest of the most high who stood in the gap for the patriarchs that were before Abraham.

Before the Mosaic Law was given, Melchizedek was not just a Priest here on earth; He was a Priest also in heaven. Interestingly He was a major personage among the mighty, of whom the Psalmist spoke of in Psalm 82:1;

God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.

The writer of the book of Hebrews described Melchizedek as the King of righteousness and peace. The use of the word “king” places this personage in the position of authority. Consequently, as the King of righteousness, He has the God-given authority to judge in the stead of the most high; accurately and divinely placing what’s good as being good and defining evil as what it is. As the King of peace, He has the God-given authority to stand in the gap as the “peaceful advocate” between the most High and His subjects. See Hebrews 7:2-3;

“2 To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace;

3 Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.”

 

This mysterious being as we can see from verse 2 of the scriptures above was not biologically given birth to and as such has no biological descent. In other words, he has no earthly father or mother. These facts readily debunk the ideology which suggests that Melchizedek was a king here on earth and has an earthly empire called Salem.

He has no beginning of days and no end of life. It has been buttressed above that the life of this personage is the very life of God which has no beginning or end of days. He has always been with the most High as stated above and abides with Him forever. So it then appears that He who had no beginning of days has always been with the ancient of days. Melchizedek is part of God’s consciousness.

It is interesting to note that the presence of Melchizedek in the court of the most high readily defines the immeasurability of the righteousness of God. In other words, Melchizedek is a faithful witness of the righteous judgment of God. He (Melchizedek) knows that the most high is a righteous judge; consequently, all He ever learned about judgments were learned from the most high. The point here is that, unlike a power-drunk tyrant, who would execute judgment to his own pleasing, God is so righteous that He had to set up for Himself or make as part of His own consciousness a witness to behold His righteous judgments on His subjects be they spirits or mortals.

There is however something unique about this personage, in that He was made like unto the Son of God. In other words, He has the sort of relationship which Jesus Christ has with God. So this implies that the most high is a Father to Him. Consequently, the son can only speak the words of His Father and execute the judgment of His Father (John 5:30). So there are certain parallels between Melchizedek and Jesus Christ. We shall shed more light on this in chapter five.

Note also that the writer of the book of Hebrews also described Melchizedek as a great man. See Hebrews 7:4;

Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils.

A fact that must be appreciated is that the Priestly Order which the man Melchizedek occupied is the highest priestly order there is. A priest in this order has direct access to the most high and can advocate on behalf of His subjects. He is the one between the most High and His subjects. It suffices to state here that, Melchizedek is the word of God; a mouthpiece that conveys the mind of God in words to His subjects.

Remember that Melchizedek has no father or mother, no descent, no beginning of days and no end of life. Nevertheless, we have ascribed to Him a human nature which makes Him physically visible to anyone whom the most High sends Him to. The catch here is that Melchizedek has the potency to present Himself in duo-form.

Whenever He is sent to execute a priestly function here on earth He will appear as a physical being and whenever He is going back to the tabernacle of the most high, He transforms into a spiritual being. His tabernacle is with the most high; remember the words of the Psalmist about the tabernacle of God. See Psalm 76:2;

1 In Judah is God known: his name is great in Israel.

2 In Salem also is his tabernacle, and his dwelling place in Zion.

Aside from His priestly office as the priest of the most High, Melchizedek is also King in Salem while the most High is His God. We should not find it strange that Melchizedek could present Himself in duo form viz as a human being and as a spiritual being. The scriptures are replete with accounts that validate this fact.

The Significance of Melchizedek’s Meeting with Abraham

Remember that the most High had promised to make Abraham a great nation in whom all the nations of the earth shall be blessed. Upon this premise, it becomes incumbent that the priest of the most high meets with him. The meeting which Melchizedek is to have with Abraham is of an inestimable value, because it was pre-arranged by the most High.

It is interesting to point out here that Melchizedek did not come to Abraham empty-handed. He brought bread and wine along. See Genesis 14:18;

And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most High God.

The bread and the wine which Melchizedek brought to Abraham was significantly meant to serve as an ensign of God’s plan for the redemption of man. It was a symbol indicating the gospel of Christ.

It should be noted also that David according to whose seed, Christ came was still in the loins of Abraham. So the bread and wine is not just a symbol of the Eucharist, but of something much deeper. It is the symbol of the redemption of man. Let’s see what Christ Himself later revealed to us about the significance of the bread and the wine. Matthew 26:26-28;

26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.

27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;

28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

 

Apparently, the bread signifies the body of Christ while the wine signifies His blood of the New Testament that was shed for the remission of sins. This then suggests that the bread and the wine which Melchizedek brought to Abram serves as a prophetic annunciation of the coming of the Messiah by whom the nations of the earth will be blessed in Abraham. This was God’s declaration to Abraham “…and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed”. Apostle Paul described this word of promise to Abraham as the gospel. Galatians 3:8;

And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto

Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed.

After the breaking of the bread and the drinking of the wine, Melchizedek went ahead and blessed Abram. See Genesis 14:19;

“And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth…”

It should be brought back to mind, that the words of blessings which God had pronounced upon Abram were still yet to come to fulfillment. The word of the Lord to him was “I will…” the word “will” is used in the future tense. So the blessing has not been ordained to be because it was still a word of promise. Consequently, a major reason amongst others why Melchizedek met with Abram was to ordain the blessings which God had pronounced on him. This is because He was the Priest of the most high. Let’s take a look at the scriptures. Genesis 14:19;

“And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth…”

A careful examination of the phrase “blessed be Abram of the most high” readily proves the aforementioned. In plain terms, what Melchizedek meant was “Abram of the most high be blessed”. Who else can bless if not the most High, but because Melchizedek has the God given potency to, He conferred upon Abraham an actualization of God’s blessing. So it is no longer “I will bless you” but “you are blessed”.

The use of the phrase “Abram of the most high God” distinctly present Abraham as a son of the most High. He belongs to God and as such he is of God because he was called by God. The phrase also shows the uniqueness of the man Abraham among his contemporaries.

Upon blessing Abram, Melchizedek also blessed the most High for delivering Abram’s enemies into his hands. Genesis 14:20;

And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand…

The phrase “blessed be the most high” as seen in the scriptures above, is an expression of thanks and praise to God.

Some Thoughts For The Lovers of The World

Beautiful landscapes, green vegetation, everywhere seem calm and peaceful. Hmm, I like it. Blue skies with wonderful birds hovering about it, lovely and beautiful creatures living in harmony. Everything is in order just the way I had intended it to be. Excellent! Excellent! This is good, very good. This is presumably God expressing excitement over the work of His hand. He was happy about His creation. So upon looking at everything He said it was very good. Genesis 1:3;

“And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good…”

Apparently in the beginning the world was very good, no pollution, no stains and there was no sin. Harmony thrived and peace rained. Nature enjoyed equilibrium. There was balance and the mechanics of the elements of the world was in order. It was a beautiful world.

We can see from the foregoing that the idea of creating the universe was exciting to God. The most High was happy about it. A major reason for God’s excitement apart from the beauty and splendor of the world, and of every other elements of nature, whether they are living or non living, was that, it was creation that marked the beginning of the existence of man, a creature that bears the image of God. Genesis 1:27;

“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”

The scripture above explains why God was delighted in handing over to man, the dominion of the world. It’s simply because he (man) is a bearer of the image of God. So God gave him everything. Let’s take a look at Genesis 1:28;

“And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.”

It is crystal from the scripture above that it was the will of God for man to have dominion over the earth and the air. A careful look at the words “earth and air” implies total dominion over the cosmos. Meaning man can go towards any length in the cosmos as far as his wisdom can take him. So while man celebrates his breakthroughs in rocket science, astronomy and the like, it was not a thing of marvel before God because He had declared it already in the beginning. The point here is that, the most High gave it all to the bearer of His image –man.

While being caught up in a misty cloud of deep wonder, the Psalmist gave the expression:

“What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?”

The words spoken by the Psalmists can be summed up as God, what’s so special about man?An answer has been presented to this question above. Man is special because he is a bearer of the image of God. He is so special that God gave him dominion over the cosmos. This “specialness” of man is of priority to God such that upon the derail of the first man (Adam) and his progenitors, God had to send His only begotten son “Jesus Christ” to place them back on track. See John 3:16;

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Apparently the key to getting back on track is to simply believe in the only begotten of God. To believe Him as the one sent to restore man. To believe Him as the savior of the world.

The world is ours. God gave it all. Apostle Paul knew this, his words to the Corinthians was: all things are yours. See 1 Corinthians 3:21-22;

21 Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are yours;

22 Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours…”

We can see in verse 22 of the scriptures above that even the world is ours. God gave it all. He did at the very beginning of creation.

Nevertheless, many are ignorant of this reality. The reality that God has given man all things. So here is the problem, many have upheld the things of this world more than the creator of the world. In other words, they have given honour to the gift rather than the giver of the gift. It’s like lusting after what you own. It’s yours already so why lust after it. In the light of the foregoing, John the beloved instructed us not to love the world or the things contained in it. See 1 John 2:15;

“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”

The use of the word “love” in the scripture above could imply “lust coupled with a strong attachment”. So the instruction is that we should not lust or attach our minds to this world or the things contained in it. Why? Because all things belong to us. The world and all its elements should not be given priority over its creator. Apparently what makes us lovers of God rather than lovers of the world is in detaching ourselves from lusting after the world and things contained in it. Anyone who has detached from the world and the things contained in it is attached to God.

 

Did Jesus Really Die For the Sins of the World?

There is a huge dichotomy between the ardent Calvinist, who believes on the concept of Limited Atonement as developed by John Calvin, a French theologian who lived from 1509-1564 and the Arminian who believes on the contrast –unlimited atonement as developed by the Dutch theologian Jacobus Arminian who lived from 1560-1609. The Calvinists believes that the redemption plan of God the Father in sending His only begotten Son is solely limited to the elect. In other words, Christ died for the elect only and not for everyone. This belief then suggests that Christ’s atonement is not universal but definite and limited.

Contrarily the Arminians takes on a different approach about the redemptive work of Christ. They believe that Christ death was for everyone. His death was not in anywise limited but unlimited. Hence the term “unlimited atonement” was coined out to represent this view which suggests that Christ’s atonement is universal.

Irrespective of the standpoint of John Calvin and Jacobus Arminian, an important question that must be addressed is: did Jesus really die for the sin of the world? Before I attempt to give an answer to this controversial question, it is imperative to make certain things clear about the use of the word -elect.

Who are the elect of God? Simply put the elect of God are the ones chosen by God unto salvation. However, we must understand that the use of the phrase “chosen by God or predestined by God” could also imply accepted by God. This then is a pointer to the fact that there is a condition that must be met before God can accept anyone as His elect. It is an election because of God’s attribute of omniscience. He declares the end from the beginning. It should be borne in heart that God cannot be caught up in a quagmire of contingencies. He knew it all and there is nothing new that is strange to the Most High. See Isaiah 46:9-10;

9 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me,

10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure…

It is without doubt that God knew what would become of man. He knew that Adam will fall and all his progenies will fall along with him. So God being a just God had already made provision for the redemption of man before the foundation or creation of the cosmos. Now God’s redemptive plan is something that should be accepted by anyone who wants to be saved. This then implies that the sinner would have to accept God’s provision in order to be forgiven. Once God’s provisioned redemption strategy has been accepted and adopted by anyone, that person automatically becomes an “elect of God”. It is important to note that on the part of man it is an election or predestination, but on God’s part it is foreknowledge. See the words of Peter in 1 Peter 1:2;

Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ…

Apparently God is not holding anyone back from accepting His provision. Anyone who simply accepts God’s provision becomes an elect according to God’s foreknowledge. Speaking of the condition that leads one into becoming an elect of God, we can see from the scriptures above that those that will be accepted or elected by God must be sanctified through the “Spirit”, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus. An unsanctified person can never become an elect of God. So the sole condition is to simply accept Christ.

A major reason why God sent Christ is so that He can give life to as many that will believe in Him. The Spirit of God is life and this life is immeasurably domiciled in Christ just as it is in God the Father. John 5:25;

For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself.

So any one that believes in Christ becomes sanctified through the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus, which is meant to cleanse and purge the sinner from his old ways. This is the key to becoming an elect of God according to the foreknowledge of God. The point here is that the process of election is conditional. The sinner has to respond to God’s provision for his redemption by believing in Christ so that he can be accepted or elected according to the foreknowledge of God.

The sprinkling of the blood of Jesus is mandatory since there can be no remission of sin without the shedding of blood (Hebrews 9:22). It is important to state here that the death of Christ on the cross was an actualization of what has already been done before the foundation of the world.

Another important fact that we shouldn’t lose sight of is the fact that the elect of God are sons of God. They are sons of God because they have received and believed in Christ. See John 1:12-13;

12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

It is apparent from the scriptures above that the only means for attaining God’s sonship is to simply receive Christ or believe in His name. Notice that the use of the phrase “as many as” could also imply “anyone” which indicates that there are no restriction given by God to hinder anyone from becoming His son. Hence since the elect of God are the sons of God, it then follows that anyone can become an elect of God without restrictions. Verse 13 of the scriptures above states that the recreation of those who accepts Christ into becoming sons of God or God’s elect is solely due to the will of God. In other words God does not desire that anyone should perish, but wills that as many as possible should become His sons. So there are no restrictions.

John 3:16;

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Apparently the elect of God are those who have accepted Christ and have been sealed by the Spirit of Christ. Now the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in those who have accepted Christ will serve as their guide. Leading and directing them. As a matter of fact the proof for being a son and an elect of God is in this act of being led by the Spirit of God. Here are Apostle Paul’s words as found in Romans 8:14;

For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

It is crystal from the foregoing that one of the major reasons why Christ had to lay down His life is so that we can have life and have it in abundance. This is because the first Adam lost this very life in the Garden of Eden when he fell to the deceit of the serpent. Consequently all his progenies were also without life in them. The life we are speaking of is not the breadth of man but the Spirit of God which is the seal of man’s sonship unto God. Anyone without this life is not God’s own and definitely not an elect of God. Christ being the last Adam came as quickening Spirit to quicken as many as possible that will believe in Him. The result of this quickening process is that it gives one the privilege to become God’s elect. See 1 Corinthians 15:45;

And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.

So we have an inkling of the “very sin” of the first man. The very sin of the first man is not just due to his disobedience in taking out of the forbidden tree, but due to the result obtained from eating out of the tree. In other words it was disobedience that expedited the very sin of the first man. The scriptures made it known that after the Adam and Eve ate out of the forbidden tree, their eyes were opened. Genesis 3:7;

And the eyes of them both were opened…

The opening of the eyes which Adam and Eve experienced was a translation from the marvelous light of God into darkness. It was a translation or a cutting off from the life of God. See the words of Apostle Paul in Romans 3:23;

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God…

The phrase “the glory of God” as used in the scripture above is the life of God. In other words man is found wanting of the life of God which is the presence of the Holy Spirit in the spirit of man. So the very sin of the first man is in his departure from the life of God. Now because the father (Adam) has been cut off from the life of God, then his unborn children which were still in his loins will also be cut off from the life of God.

Due to His foreknowledge, God had already prepared a Lamb before the foundation of the world that will take away the very sin of man. See 1 Peter 18:20;

18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;

19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:

20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you…

In verse 20 of the scriptures above we can see that Christ was foreordained before the foundation of the world and was made manifest when He came in the flesh according to the seed of David. This readily explains why John the Baptist exclaimed that (John 1:29);

…Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

The writer of the book of Hebrews puts it as (Hebrews 9:26);

…but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

Recall that the “very sin” is the cutting off of the life of God from spirit of man. Man can never have a relationship with the true God without this life in his spirit. This life was described in the book of John as the light of men. In other words it is this life that guides a man into doing the things of God. See John 1:4;

In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

So there is the need for a restoration of the life of God back into the spirit of man. Consequently the death of Christ signifies the result of the very sin of man as it serves as an insignia for his cutting away from the life of God. While the resurrection of Christ signifies the restoration of the life of God back into the spirit of anyone who would confess, believe and proclaim his name. In describing the nature of His death Christ told His disciples the following as found in John 12:24;

Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

The “corn of wheat” in the scripture above is symbolic to the body of Christ. Just as the corn will have to fall into the ground and die, Christ will have to die and then buried, otherwise the life which is in Him will be resident in Him only. So Christ must die so that just as the corn grows and “bringeth forth much fruit”, Christ will resurrect from the dead and also give life to as many that believes in Him. It should be noted that the dying of the corn implies the bearing of the sin of the world in the body of Christ. Consequently upon His resurrection, Christ came up from the dead with a sinless body which signifies our restoration back to God. Romans 6:10;

For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.

It is without doubts that Jesus lived a sinless life. See Hebrews 4:15;

…but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

So just like a lamb without blemish, the body of Christ was immaculate. A body which can bare the penalty of the “very sin” which made the first man and all his progenies to be cut off from the life of God. In paying this penalty of the very sin of the first man, Christ automatically paid for the entire human race. See Isaiah 53:12;

Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

Back to our question: did Jesus really die for the sin of the entire world? The answer to this question is NO. Christ did not die for the sins of humanity neither did He died for the sins that the world is still committing but did died for the sake of the “very sin” that made the first man and all his progenies to be cut off from the life of God so that he that believes in Him and look up unto Him might have life and have it abundantly. This explains why the death of Christ was meant for all humanity including the first man because the cause of the sinful nature of man is as a result of the very sin of the first man. So when Christ died and was amidst the dead, He also preached to them about the liberty which they now have in Him. All that they (the dead) just have to do is to believe in Him. See 1 Peter 4:19;

For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.

There are no contradictions in the scriptures. Read the words of the Psalmist in Psalm 49:7;

None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him…

Ezekiel was much more explicit in Ezekiel 18:20;

The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.

Everyone will be held responsible for their deeds. However the grace to live a holy and righteous life has been restored back to man in Christ. So it is crystal from the foregoing that Christ did not die for a select set of people according to John Calvin neither did he die for the sins of the world according to Jacobus Arminian, but died for the sake of the very sin of the first man, so that by virtue of His death He could pay the penalty of the curse of death which God has placed upon the fruit of the forbidden tree in restoring man back to God. See Colossians 1:12-14;

12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:

13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:

14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.

 

 

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The Omniscience of Christ

The only limitation which the Lord had during His earthly sojourn was that He wasn’t omnipresent. This was because He took on flesh for our sake. The scriptures attesting to this fact described Him as being made a little lower than the angels. Hebrews 2:9;

But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.

While this is true, the Holy Spirit which was given to the Son without measure is omnipresent and not limited to time and space. Nevertheless, the divine attribute of omniscience was displayed by Christ during his earthly ministry on several occasions. As a matter of fact His disciples firmly believed that He was omniscient while in the body of flesh. See John 16:30;

Now are we sure that thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask thee: by this we believe that thou camest forth from God.

To know all things is to be omniscient and this is one of the major attributes of God. In the scripture above the disciples of Christ said he knew all things, thereby testifying to His omniscience. If the words of the disciples were not true, Christ would have rebuked them in all honesty. But He did not because what they said about Him was true. Hence it becomes a necessary requirement for every believer of Christ to affirm this truth. The Lord knows all things. For example He knew peoples thought (Mark 2:8);

And immediately when Jesus perceived in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, he said unto them, Why reason ye these things in your hearts?

The phrase “why reason ye these things in your hearts” is a striking proof of the omniscience of Christ. He knows our thought. Nothing can be hidden from Him. Amongst other scriptures an interesting scripture that presents Christ as been omniscient is John 2:24-25;

24 But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men,

25 And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man.

He knew all men and knew that the spirit of man was in gross darkness and as such He needed no man to testify of man because He knew man’s state. He had a precisely accurate and detailed knowledge about the Samaritan woman from whose hands He requested for a drink from the well. See John 4:16-18;

16 Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither.

17 The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband:

18 For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly.

The Lord having never met this woman physically, knew everything about her spiritually. See the words of the woman as she testifies to the omniscience of the Lord of glory. John 4:28-29;

28 The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men,

29 Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?

Indeed, He is the Christ to the glory of the Father. Now that the Lord of glory has resurrected and is seated at the right of power, He is the Judge that searches the minds and hearts of everyone. Nothing can be hidden from Him. See Revelation 2:23;

… and all the churches will know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts; and I will give to each one of you according to your deeds.

In order to fully grasp with understanding, the omniscience of Christ, it becomes incumbent for us to understand His nature and modus operandi with His Father. While Christ was on earth, He referred to Himself both as the “son of man” and the “son of God”, thereby presenting us with a dual nature. As the son of man He was made of the seed of David according to the flesh, which explains why He was called the “son of man”. In other words according to the flesh, He was the son of a man called David. On the other hand Christ was called the “son of God” because He came forth from God and has the very kind of life which the Father has. The Lord said himself that (John 5:26);

For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself

Since the life of God cannot atrophy and die, in the same vein the life of Christ cannot also atrophy and die. As a proof, when He willingly laid down His life, He also brought it up again from the grave. Apostle Paul puts all these together in the following wise (Romans 1:3-4);

3 Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;

4 And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead…

It is the life of God that is in the Son that made Him God. The point here is that the Son of God is God because just as the Father has life in Himself so has He given the Son to have the same. This life is the Holy Spirit. John the Baptist had such a clear understanding of this very fact. Consequently He said (John 3:34);

For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.

The implication of this statement is that the Son of God has a direct flow of the Spirit of God which is the life of God without measure and as such He has a direct and not a prophetic knowledge of things.

The modus operandi of the Son with the Father is in the following wise: Christ can only say and do those things which the Spirit of the Father communicates to Him. John 8:28;

…I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.

The communication of the Son with the Father is instantaneous by the Holy Spirit which is the life in the Son. Notice the words of Christ “I do nothing of myself”. In other words He receives instantaneously from the Father. See Revelation 1:1;

The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John…

Now that we have unequivocally established the omniscience of Christ. It is important to look at certain scriptures which seem to portray Christ as not being omniscient. In Matthew 24:36 and Mark 13:32 Jesus said himself that of the day and hour no man knows, not the angels which are in heaven and surprisingly He also said neither does He know the day. This then seems to contradict the fact that Christ is omniscience. Interestingly some critics and certain religious group have held on to these words spoken by the Lord to claim that He is not all knowing. If this is true, then Christ is not omniscient and cannot be God.

However there is something which these critical minds have failed to notice: while Christ had said He doesn’t know the day and hour, He was still able to project into the unknown and elucidate about what would transpire in those days. Consequently He said (Mark 13:23);

But take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things.

How can He foretold, if He had not known? The Lord went ahead to present them with a graphical illustration of what would happen to the cosmos and how He would come with His holy angels. (Matthew 13:24-25);

24 But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,

25 And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.

26 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.

27 And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.

How can the Lord present all these facts if He is not omniscient? Nevertheless as a response to the posit of the critics, it should be borne in heart that there are certain secrets which are meant for God only. Remember the words of Moses (Deuteronomy 29:29);

The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.

These sorts of secrets are not to be revealed to man. They are exclusively meant for God only. On a certain occasion after Christ had resurrected from the dead, the disciples asked Him about when He would restore back the kingdom to Israel. The Lord’s response to them was (Acts 1:7);

…It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.

The response of Christ to His disciples was in accordance to what He had told them. Remember He had said to them that just like a thief in the night, He would come unannounced. However He advised us to watch. Matthew 24:24;

Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.

The day and hour for the coming of Christ is sealed and it is not meant for any man to know. Otherwise the Lord would have revealed it to His disciples. It is important to note that revealing the day and hour to the disciples would contradict His words because He had told them that they cannot know the time He would return.

More so is the fact that the coming of Christ is something which the Father has not decided on yet because of His longsuffering and mercy. So there is no way the Son could know what the Father has not decided on yet. The point here is that there are certain events which the Father would deliberately not make an instant decision on in order to give room for His longsuffering and mercy. A very good example is the return of Christ which would mark the end of this present age. If the statements from the foregoing are factual, then we should be able to present some biblical proofs for its validity. Let us begin with Isaiah 30:18-19;

18 And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.

19 For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more: he will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; when he shall hear it, he will answer thee.

We can see the loving kindness of God being portrayed in the scriptures above. He is the one waiting for us to come to Him, so that He may be gracious unto us and bestow His divine mercy upon us. There is a connection between the “waiting of God” and “His longsuffering”. The time frame for His waiting is none of our business. However at the right time according to the counsel of His wisdom, He would step in and decide.

God is the God of Judgment who has no pleasure in the death of the wicked. So He is waiting patiently, expecting the wicked to turn away from their wicked ways. See Ezekiel 18:23;

Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord GOD: and not that he should return from his ways, and live?

We can see the expectation of God in the scriptures above that the wicked should return from his ways, and live. God is not in haste about bringing this present age to an end because of His longsuffering. Nevertheless the day of the Lord Jesus Christ is ever sure. 2 Peter 3:9;

9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. 

In his letter to Timothy, Apostle Paul also wrote in agreement with the words of Peter that God’s heart desire is to have every one come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4);

Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

Apparently, the waiting and the longsuffering of God is something that was so clear to the Apostles so much more that Apostle Paul advised us not to despise it. (Romans 2:4);

Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

Apostle Peter on the other hand agreed with Apostle Paul and concluded that the longsuffering of God leads to salvation. See 2Peter 3:15;

And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you

So we can see that the words of the Lord to His disciples are justified. Apparently it will be illogical to state a precise day and hour for His return. Consequently He said to them that (Mark 13:32);

But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.

No one else “but the Father” so that He can bestow His mercy and exercise His longsuffering.

If the patriarch Abraham could plead for the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, so that God will not destroy them and their city peradventure an acceptable number of righteous people were found there in, how much more the beloved of God in whom He is well pleased. Remember the thoughts of the Lord concerning Abraham (Genesis 18:17);

And the LORD said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do

Notice that in the scripture above, the Lord had made His decision and is set to carry out “His divine plan”. But Abraham was able to convince the Lord and make negotiations with Him. So if a man could with so much wisdom negotiate God’s divine plan how much more Christ. Now that Christ is seated at the right hand of God as our advocate and high Priest, He is constantly pleading for the cause of the righteous. Romans 8:33-34;

33 Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.

34 Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.

So the day and hour is not fixed, not until the gospel of the kingdom has been preached all over and the elects of God have heeded to the herald of the gospel. Matthew 24:14;

And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

 

  

Overcoming Life’s Storm

Storms are part of life’s trials. Our response to them determines the level of our faith in God. The first action we take when a sudden storm rages before us is very important as it shows either a lack of trust or trust in God. Interestingly, God permits certain storms in our lives as a form spiritual exercise to establish our trust in Him. This He does because each time we overcome a level of storm in life, we attain a new level of trust in God. Child of God, God wants you to trust Him. Consequently He will permit the storms to rage before you while He steps back and watch your point of action. Do not forget that the Most High is omniscience; He knows our abilities and the point of action which we would follow. So just like a patient teacher He will keep repeating the exercise until we learn to overcome and become masters at overcoming the storms of life.

So the very first thing that is expected of a child of God in the midst of a storm is to trust God with all the heart. This is a requirement. See Proverbs 3:5;

“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.”

The scripture above is very instructive. Do not lean on your own understanding or brain power because the end result of such physical help could tend towards destruction. Proverbs 14:12;

“There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.”

Each time we trust God in the midst of a storm and commit our ways before Him, He maps out a plan for our salvation by directing and instructing us on the right path to follow. See what the Psalmist says about this. Psalm 37:5;

“Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.”

The sort of “trust” that God requires is that of an unwavering heart. Such a heart sees God as its only help. This was the kind of heart that the patriarch David had. A heart that sees the Most High as its only help. Irrespective of how tempestuous the raging storm might seem, just turn to the Lord by trusting Him with an unwavering heart. The help that comes from God is ever sure. We have to learn from the patriarchs. It was king David the writer of the Psalms that asked the question …From whence cometh my help (Psalm 121:1). His response was (Psalm 121:2):

“My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.”

In other words, what David is saying here is that his help is from the Almighty, the very source of the cosmos and all that is in it. Since the storm itself is a constituent of the cosmos, it will take the Almighty who made heaven and earth no single effort to still it. There is an interesting account in the scriptures that describes the sort of trust David had in God. 1Samuel 30:1-2;

“1 And it came to pass, when David and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the south, and Ziklag, and smitten Ziklag, and burned it with fire;

2 And had taken the women captives, that were therein: they slew not any, either great or small, but carried them away, and went on their way.                                                                     

3 So David and his men came to the city, and, behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives.”

We can see from the scriptures above that David and his men came to the city only to find that the Amalekites had burned down the city with fire and have taken their wives, sons and daughters captives. Anyhow he expressed some emotional dissatisfaction with what had taken place because he and the people with him lifted up their voice and cried. 1 Samuel 30:4-6;

“4 Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep.

5 And David’s two wives were taken captives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite.

6 And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God.”

We read in verse 6 of the scriptures above that David was greatly distressed because the people spoke about stoning him. Nevertheless he did something remarkable, instead of been despondent, David encouraged himself in the Lord his God. This is remarkable. The phrase “David encouraged himself in the Lord his God” is an expression of the sort of trust that David had in God. He encouraged himself in the Lord because he knows that God is a mighty deliverer. He could have relied on his abilities. He was a good warrior, so he could have gathered his men and chase after the Amalekites. Instead he encouraged himself in the Lord his God. This very first step taken by David is an expression of his trust in God. A man can only encourage himself in something he trusts. So David’s trust was in the Lord his God.

The next step he took was to enquire from God about what to do next which is representative of prayer. See 1 Samuel 30:8;

“And David enquired at the LORD, saying, Shall I pursue after this troop? shall I overtake them? And he answered him, Pursue: for thou shalt surely overtake them, and without fail recover all.”

God’s response to David was positive. He told Him to pursue after Amalekites for he will surely overtake them and without fail recover all. So our action in the midst of a storm is very important. We can see how David encouraged himself in the Lord his God by trusting Him and enquiring from the Lord by committing his ways into the hands of the Lord.

That ability of turning to God and fixing the gaze upon God for help is very crucial in the life of a Christian. Do not trust in your abilities. The storm might seem scary, quit your fear and turn your heart in trust to God. Psalm 56:3;

“What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.”

Do not trust in your potentials or abilities because God is your provider, He gave you those things which you have. So look up to the provider. Although David was a good warrior he said the following as found in Psalm 44:6;

“For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me.”

The storm can be anything; it could be financial, it could be a storm of sicknesses and diseases, it could be anything scary, only remember and always cultivate the habit of placing your trust in God and you will experience His goodness as He quiets that raging storm.

 

What Is Your Life?

This question was both asked and answered by James the Lord’s brother in his writings. According to James 4:14, his response was;

“…It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away”

The word little in the scripture above could also imply “short”. In other words life is short and should be lived without attachments. Attachments are those things the heart holds onto without letting go. It could also be those things that can substitute our love and affection for God without noticing.

James response to the question posed seems unpleasant to the ears. Just like a vapor he says, life appears and then poof vanishes away. It’s as if his advice to us is that life is nothing worth grappling for. This brings to mind William Shakespeare’s quote about what life entails. It goes thus;

“Life is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing”

It appears as if life itself is vain. There is nothing significant about life that one can hold on to forever. It is vain because it will all end here just like a vapor. Life became vain the very day man ate out of the tree of knowledge because death took over the entire cosmos, not just spiritually but physically also. The reason is because what would have sustained life was caught up out of life. The Garden of Eden which is God’s garden would have sustained life. The garden represents God’s very presence here on earth. There in the Garden is the tree of life which would have made life eternal. See Hebrews 1:10-12;

“10 And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:

11 They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment;

12 And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.”

It is crystal from the scriptures above that the earth and the heavens shall perish; they shall wax old just like a garment. So the child of God should not hold on to vanity. It is believed in the world that the life of a man is a function of the level of successes, achievements and accomplishments he achieves here on earth. There is nothing absolutely wrong with being successful and having great possessions, but there is everything wrong with been attached to it. The Lord Jesus says in Luke 12:15 that;

“Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.”

The Lord is not saying here that we should not be successful and possess possessions, what He is saying is that we should not make such feats god over our life, otherwise such attachments will turn our life into vanity. The Lord is simply bringing our attention to the entrapment of attachments. It could be a thought of something you have or you are about to possess.

In order to buttress what He meant, the Lord gave an illustrative parable about a certain rich man whose farm land brought plentiful harvest such that he has no room to contain them. Consequently he thought within himself to increase the size of his barn so that he can store his harvest (Luke 12:16-18). But there is something else he thought of. See Luke 12:19;

“And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.”

The Provider (God) who allows His rain to fall on the just and the unjust responded to the thoughts of the rich man with great disappointment. See Luke 12:20;

“But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee…”

God called him a fool because he upheld vanity over God. The goods he has laid up are all vanities. His action shows that his life consists of those things which he possesses. Two important lessons we must quickly learn from this rich man.

1. He shows no gratitude to God: Gratitude which is a deep sense of appreciation and thankfulness to the Most High who owns the earth and all that is there in was avoided by this rich man. Gratitude transcends just saying thank you to God. It is also a spiritual form of worship. It makes our earthly achievements become the miraculous doings of God. Gratitude helps us become humble before God. We express our gratitude to God each time we acknowledge Him with a deep and emotional appreciation for His doings. Because this rich man failed to express gratitude towards God, God called him a fool. I think that’s kind of harsh. In other words the rich man’s attitude was annoying to God. So we must learn to appreciate God with gratitude.
2. He was self centered and selfish: The thought of the rich man was a wicked one. His thought was self centered and selfish. See the words he spoke to himself: And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. In other words I have a lot stored up for “me”, so I won’t stress myself, I will eat, drink and be merry. He has no plans for the poor, no plans for charitable works. He was just focused on himself alone. This ought not to be. When God blesses a man with so much good, he is expected to bless the less privileged around him in return. That way he will have a reason to survive long here on earth because of his usefulness to humanity.

It is clear from the above that having possessions is not the problem but being centered and attached to them is. In order to justify the statement from the foregoing Jesus said the following as found in Luke 12:21;

“So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

So what the Lord is saying is simply this be rich toward God and you will have your goods secured. The point here is that life is meaningless without God. There is a God space which must be filled up in the life of every, otherwise such a life will tend to vanity.

Interesting what provoked the question asked by James is synonymous to Jesus’ parable about the rich man who is not rich towards God. In verse 13 of James 4 we read the following:

“Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain:”

This is obviously the intent of the world. Just think about it, it is all about commerce without God. Being absorbed in life itself is not the essence of life. One is expected to live life without being absorbed in it. To live life then implies to fill up our God’s space so that our divine purpose can be accomplished through God. People commit suicide because their God space is empty. Although they were able to accumulate the material things that life has got to offer, but there is a void in their life. Their God space is empty and as such they don’t see the essence for living. A man can never be satisfied with his life unless he fills up his God’s space and identifies his purpose for living.

So James is asking:

“Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life?”

The rich man in Jesus’ parable never thought about it this way. He has no thought about what will become of tomorrow instead he was caught up in the thrill of “now”. James advised the following as found in James 4:15;

“For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.”

The Phrase “If the Lord will” portrays a deep sense of commitment to God which places Him at the center of our lives. “If the Lord will” ought to be the language of every child of God. If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that expresses humility before God. Life without God can be so tiring. Do not live your life without Him.

It Is Finished

It is finished. Those were part of the last words spoken by the Lord as He bowed His head and gave up the ghost (John 19:30). Finished because He had fulfilled His purpose. His purpose was to redeem and restore man back to God. There is no doubt that the phrase “it is finished” was directed to His Father. Another way to say this is that “Father thy will is done”.

Prior to His execution on the cross, the Lord had discussed about the means to accomplishing His purpose with His Father in a prayer. See Mark 14:36;

“And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.”

This discussion which He had with His Father is very crucial. Some critics have capitalized on the texts of the scripture above and have used it to describe Jesus Christ as a weakling who begged God for safety. Quick to draw at such a presumptuous conclusion, what they have failed to conceptualize is the import of the phrase “nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt” which exemplifies the Son’s absolute obedience to the will of His Father at all times. Another interesting fact is that the phrase also presents us with the mode of operation between the Father and His Son.

Due to His foreknowledge of things that should become, Jesus had a foreknowledge of the events that was about to unfold before Him. For example He had hinted Peter that he would deny him thrice before the cock crow (Matthew 26:34). It was after the cock crew that Peter remembered the spoken words of the Lord to him. See Matthew 26:75;

“And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.”

With this in mind it is apparent that Jesus had such a clear visualization of what was about to befall Him and as such He sought an alternative to accomplishing His purpose from His Father. That was why He started His conversation with God on this note “Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee”. Indeed all things are possible with the Father who alone can do all things. There is however an important question which must be trashed out. Was the Lord afraid of the things He saw? The mocking, beating and crucifixion, was He afraid of all these? One cannot just presume, but an answer can be provided for this question in the scriptures. See Hebrews 5:7;

“7 Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared;”

The phrase “in that he feared” of verse 7 of the scriptures above is the answer to the question posed above. Yes Jesus was afraid and as a result He prayed to His Father who could deliver him. Notice also that the writer of the book of Hebrews presented us with the scenery of Jesus’ prayer to His Father in that He strongly cried with tears dropping down from His eyes. Nevertheless a fact that must appreciated is that the Lord was never afraid, He has always warned against fear. He was not afraid of death. As a matter of fact He encouraged us not to be afraid of those who can only kill the body and can do no more. Luke 12:4;

“And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.”

His words to His disciples after rebuking the wind and commanding the sea to be at peace and be still was “Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?”

However in order for Jesus to be able to accomplish the work of redemption, one of the requirement of the path of the Cross requires a submission of His authority. This was what made Him to be afraid, because for the very first time He would have to lay down His authority. A proof of the aforementioned can be found in Jesus’ words to that disciple of His who struck a servant of the high priest with his sword.  Matthew 26:51-54;

“51 And, behold, one of them which were with Jesus stretched out his hand, and drew his sword, and struck a servant of the high priest’s, and smote off his ear.
52 Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.
53 Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?
54 But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be? ”  

Notice the words of Jesus in verses 53-54 of the scriptures above “Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be? ” The scriptures must be fulfilled and as such He has to lay down His authority. This was very scary. The submission of His authority made Him seem like a lamb who was brought before his shearers. See the the prophetic words of Isaiah about this. Isaiah 53:7;

“He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.”

The Lion of the tribe of Judah has to submit His authority in order to become the lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world (John 1:36).

There is however another important phrase which we must not lose sight of. Notice that verse 7 begins with the phrase “Who in the days of his flesh…” This shows that Jesus was completely human and at the same time He was completely God. God because of the very “life of God” that was in Him. Let us examine Jesus’ own words about the sort of life He posses. John 5:26;

“For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;”

We can see from the scriptures above that it is the Father who made His Son God by giving Him His own very “life”. It is the life of the Father in the Son that made Him the only begotten of the Father. Consequently any one that refuses Christ Jesus has refused His Father because and the life of God in the Son and as such will be denied eternal life. So it is crystal that Jesus was completely human and at the same time completely God. Although He was completely human yet He was blameless and was without sin. See Hebrews 4:15;

“For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.”

Apparently the path of the cross was God’s answer to Christ’s request. This was meant to serve as the fulfillment of the prophetic symbolism of the brazen serpent which Moses hung on a stake to deliver those who had been beaten by the fiery serpents sent by God to those who spoke against Him and Moses. Numbers 21: 5-9;

“5 And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread.

6 And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.

7 Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.

8 And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.

9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.”

Notice that it was the same God that sent out fiery serpents to kill the people that also devised a means for their salvation. In the same vein it was God who devised Christ’s cross as the path way to our redemption. The cross is the only antidote for sin. Sin brings death, just as James the Lord’s brother noted in his writings. See James 1:15;

“…and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” 

Apostle Paul also noted the same scriptures and expressed it as “The sting of death is sin…” (1 Corinthians 15:56).

Consequently anyone beaten by the fiery serpent that looked upon the brazen serpent which Moses hung upon a stake lived. In the same vein any sinner who has realized his or her rebelliousness towards God is expected to look upon Christ on the cross in order to live. There has got to be a recompense for the sin of man. Therefore, the flesh of Christ was meant to carry all the sins of humanity while the life of God in Christ is meant to redeem and restore those that would believe in Christ. This is God’s wisdom. He did this because of His immeasurable love. 1 Peter 2:24;

“Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.”

I like the last part of the scriptures above, it reads “by whose stripes ye were healed”. Notice that the phrase “ye were healed” serves as an accomplishment. It is an accomplishment of the finished work of Christ on the cross. It should be remembered that prophet Isaiah had already gotten a glimpse of what should become about Christ’s work of redemption. See Isaiah 53:5;

“But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.”

The phrase “with his stripes we are healed” of Isaiah 53:5 speaks of the future. In other words, the healing has not taken place but it is set for an appointed time. But when Peter quoted the same phrase, he said “by whose stripes ye were healed” which means the healing has already taken place in Christ’s body.  Consequently we are not just redeemed and restored back to God we have been healed from the penalty or better put from the venom of the sting of death which is sin. “Sin” is the major cause of all the miseries of humanity. But because of the finished work of Christ on the cross of Calvary, an end has been brought to all the miseries of those who believed on the only begotten of the Father.

THE PATH TO REDEMPTION

The “man” Jesus was provided by God for the restoration and justification of anyone who would believe. This was exactly the reason why Apostle Paul described Christ as the power and wisdom of God. 1 Corinthians 1:24;

“But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.”

He is the only way devised by God to bringing as many that would believe Him (Christ) to Himself. This was why Jesus Christ boldly declared of Himself as the way, the truth and the life. See John 14:6;

“I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

No one ever gets to God except through Christ Jesus. To seek God outside Christ is to find the devil who will masquerade himself as an angel of light to the seeker. Consequently there are no several paths to the living God. There is only one path and that is through Christ Jesus.

 

The Kingdom of God

One of the central themes of Jesus’ message during His earthly sojourn was about the Kingdom of God. It was of immense priority to Him that He said in Luke 4:43;

“…I must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also: for therefore am I sent.”

The importance of the phrase “Kingdom of God” cannot be over emphasized. We were advised by the Lord that it is the first thing we ought to seek. See Matthew 6:33;

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God…”

Anyone who seeks and finds the Kingdom of God has found the Almighty because where the Kingdom is, there you find the King and His God. As a matter of fact the Lord also told us that anyone who seeks shall find. Matthew 7:7;

“…seek, and ye shall find…”

So it appears that it is the sole responsibility of the King to lead anyone who will be willing to the true and only one God. No wonder the Lord said He must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also: for that is the reason why He was sent.

WHAT IS THE KINGDOM OF GOD?

This is a difficult question to answer because throughout the scriptures the phrase was used in different shades to mean different things. However with a careful examination of the use the phrase by the Lord Jesus, we can come up with a definition which could help us integrate the several meaning of the phrase into a piece. The Lord spoke about the Kingdom of God as a “person”, as an “authority” and also spoke about it as a “destination”. We are going to use the scriptures to examine each of these themes so that we can have a bird’s eye view of what the Kingdom of God entails.

THE KINGDOM OF GOD AS A PERSON

There is no Kingdom without a King. Wherever the King is, there you will find the Kingdom. One of the ways Jesus described the Kingdom of God was to metaphorically liken it to a “person”.

As a result of the dramatic expectation of the Jews who thought that they could observe the Kingdom of God by watching a mighty fellow come up among them, develop a mighty army that would overthrow the Romans and restore the Jewish nation. The Pharisees questioned Jesus about the exact time that the Kingdom of God should come. His response to them was that the Kingdom of God does not come by observation. See Luke 17:20-21;

“20 And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation:

21 Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.”

The Lord made it clear to the Pharisees according to the scriptures above that the Kingdom of God cannot be observed as they expected but is within them. The phrase “within” which was used in the scriptures could also imply “amidst”. In other words the King of the kingdom is amidst them. Jesus is the King and He was right there among them. Apparently He (Jesus) is the Kingdom. The use of the phrase “Lo here! or, lo there!” serves as a warning to the Jews that the Kingdom of God cannot be found elsewhere other than where the Lord is. Consequently, where the King is, there you find the kingdom.

An important question which readily comes to mind from Jesus’ response to the Pharisees is that; what could have made Him the “Kingdom of God”? An answer to this question will serve as a fulcrum upon which the beam of the entire mission of Jesus hangs and certainly the essence for the gospel of the Kingdom.

It should be remembered that the Spirit of God in Jesus was measureless. This was testified by John the Baptist who came to herald the coming of the Messiah. See John 3:34;

“For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.”

In other words Jesus has a direct flow of the Spirit of God. The oneness which Jesus has with His Father is simply in this measureless flow of the Spirit of His Father. The Spirit of His Father in turn is the life that was in Him. John the Baptist had such a clear understanding of who Christ was and as such he described Him as the “life bearer”. See John 1:4;

“In him was life; and the life was the light of men.”

 This can be beautifully summed up In Jesus’ own words

“For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;”

In another place He said the following. See John 5:26;

“I and my Father are one.”

The point I am trying to establish here is that the “Kingdom of God” in Christ is the very presence of God that was in Him and this “boundless presence” of God in Christ is simply the Holy Spirit of God. The statement from the foregoing can buttressed with Jesus’ words to the Pharisees who accused Him of using the power of Beelzebub, prince of the devils to cast out devils. See Matthew 12:28;

“But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you.”

Apparently the Spirit of God is the instituter of the Kingdom of God because the Spirit of God represents the presence of God. So we can clearly see why Jesus told the Pharisees that He was the kingdom of God within them.

THE KINGDOM OF GOD AS AN AUTHORITY

Every Kingdom is established upon an authority. This then implies that the strength of a Kingdom depends upon the level of authority it has. The authority of the Kingdom of God is given by the Spirit of God which of a certainty every other authority submits to. Apparently the Spirit of the living God is the authority of the Kingdom of God. The authority of the Spirit of God is boundless. The implication of this is that Jesus Christ has a boundless authority because the Spirit of God dwells in Him without measure or simply put “without bounds”. This authority was portrayed in several aspect of His ministry during His earthly sojourn. It was with this authority that He rose the dead up, calmed the storming sea, restored the eyes of the blind, and resurrected himself from the dead and several others which cannot be mentioned for the sake of brevity. I like the way the writer of the book of John puts it. See John 21:25;

“And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.”

Interestingly an aspect of the authority which He displayed here on earth was that of the forgiveness of sins when He told the man who was sick of the palsy that his sins have been forgiven. See Luke 5:18-25;

“18 And, behold, men brought in a bed a man which was taken with a palsy: and they sought means to bring him in, and to lay him before him.

19 And when they could not find by what way they might bring him in because of the multitude, they went upon the housetop, and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the midst before Jesus.

20 And when he saw their faith, he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee.

21 And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, Who is this which speaketh blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?

22 But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answering said unto them, What reason ye in your hearts?

23 Whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Rise up and walk?

24 But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house.

25 And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that whereon he lay, and departed to his own house, glorifying God.”

In verse 21 the reasoning of the scribes and Pharisees was not a wrong one. Their thought was who else can forgive sins if not God alone. Indeed, only God can forgive sins. Nevertheless what qualifies the King of the Kingdom who was in their midst as the son of man to have such an authority to forgive sins was because he carries a boundless flow of the Spirit of God. Consequently He also has the authority or power to forgive sins just as God can. This authority to forgive sins was quickly displayed by Him when He asked the fellow who was sick of the palsy to arise and take up his couch as seen in verse 23 of the scriptures above. Another verse of the scriptures which should be considered is Matthew 12:28;

“But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you.”

The phrase “by the Spirit of God” speaks of authority. Therefore the authority of the Kingdom of God is given by the Spirit of God. So where there is this God’s authority there you will also find the Kingdom of God.

THE KINGDOM OF GOD AS A DESTINATION

Whenever we view the kingdom of God as a destination, then it can also be viewed as the kingdom of Heaven. This was carefully employed by the writer of the book of Matthew to distinguish the Kingdom of God as a person and authority from the Kingdom of God as a destination. For example Matthew 6:33 is expressed as follows;

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

A careful examination of this scripture shows that the use of the phrase “kingdom of God” could be rephrased as “King of the kingdom of God” because of the phrase that follows which is “and his righteousness”. If we should bring it all together the scripture will read as follows “But seek ye first the King of the Kingdom of God and his righteousness”. So the writer of the book of Matthew was very careful to distinguish between the Kingdom of God as a person and authority from the Kingdom of God as a destination.

Anyhow, the anticipatory expectation of the Jews was that of the coming of a Messiah who would restore the Davidic dynasty and the Jewish nation. This expectation was so intense that after the Lord’s resurrection His disciples asked Him if He would at that time restore the Kingdom back to Israel. Acts 1:6;

“When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?”

The Lord’s response to them was can be found in Acts 1:7;

“… It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.”

The Lord’s disciples were astounded by this response which serves as a pointer to the fact that the promised Kingdom of God is yet to be instituted. It then appears that there are three stages for the establishment of the Kingdom of God. The first being the prophetic stage in which certain prophecies were given about the coming of the Messiah. The next stage involves a preparatory process in which the gospel of the kingdom would be heralded about the King of the kingdom who would seal as many that would believe in Him to be sons worthy to be part of His Kingdom. Interestingly, a fact that must be appreciated is that we are still under the preparatory process. Remember the words of the Lord;

“And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.”

What follows after the end has come is the advent of the Kingdom of God which is the next stage for the establishment of the kingdom of God. In this next stage of the institution of God’s Kingdom all nations shall be gathered before the King who would separate the righteous from the unrighteous just as a shepherd separate his sheep’s from the goats. See Matthew 25:31-35;

“31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:

32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:

33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:”

IN CONCLUSION:

If we should put it all together, we may define the Kingdom of God as a realm in which Jesus Christ reigns as King with the authority and supremacy of His Father. The way to becoming a citizen of God’s kingdom is to believe and accept the King who is Jesus Christ. As pointed above although the third stage of the Kingdom of God has not been established, nevertheless we have God’s Kingdom in our hearts as the indwelling of the Spirit of God which is given to us by Christ Jesus.

Not by Bread Alone

But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Matthew 4:4

The first instruction given to man by God after creation was an instruction about bread. The instruction was direct and with so much clarity. The words of the Lord to man was:

But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Nevertheless man disobeyed this solemn warning. His disobedience triggered a curse which was pronounced upon him by God. Genesis 3:19;

In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

This curse has since affected the entire human race. Like a domino effect, it has birthed hard labor and set into motion the course of all the miseries of the entire human race. Consequently, it appears that the survival of man hangs upon his access to bread. The curse of labor has placed humanity in a dire strait for survival. To the carnal man, the pursuit of bread is a thing to be most treasured above all other, no wonder it is written in Ecclesiastes 6:7; “All the labour of man is for his mouth, and yet the appetite is not filled”. This then made it seem as if the entire life of a man is just a tale about his labor and his bread.

However, it is worth noting here that the death which took place in man after he ate out of the forbidden fruit could be termed a “spiritual implosion” which has made the spirit of man to collapse inward rendering him weak, insensitive and non responsive to God’s word because they are spiritual. The effect of this “spiritual implosion” is that the flesh of man became weak to do the things of God but strong to execute its own fleshly desires. Albeit there is still the willingness in man’s spirit to please God and obey His words but this effect is readily suppressed by the will of the flesh since the spirit has imploded. The phrase from the foregoing can be buttressed with what the Lord Jesus Christ said in Matthew 26:41;

… the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak

Nevertheless God’s word is supreme and should be treasured above all other things. The first man (Adam) failed in this regard, in that he highly esteemed his desire for “bread” above God’s word. As a matter of fact the very first impression Adam’s wife (Eve) had about the forbidden tree was that it was good for food. Genesis 3:6;

And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food…

This lustful desire is of course an act of rebellion against God’s word. Interestingly, the woman did not forget about the warning God gave them, for she told the serpent about the instruction of restriction given to them by God that they should keep off from the forbidden tree. Genesis 3:3;

But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.

One of God’s desires for man is simply for man to be obedient to Him. Because to obey Him is to love Him. Obedience is the true test of love. The key to treasuring God’s word above all other things is locked up in obedience. Obedience in turn is engraved in love, which was why the Lord Jesus Christ said in John 14:15;

If ye love me, keep my commandments.

The word “keep” used in the scriptures above could imply “obey” while the word commandments could also imply “words”. So if we should try and reconstruct the words of the scripture it will read “If you love me, obey my words”.

God’s word is of a great significance. It should be revered and instantly obeyed. Interestingly, God is always ready to go an extra mile in order to bring a vessel into conformity and standard to His words. A look at His (God’s) dealings with the children of Israel presents us with this reality. In Deuteronomy 8:2-3 Moses enlightened the children of Israel by making them know why God led them through the wilderness;

2 And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no.

3 And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.

In a clear contradistinction with the thoughts of the carnal man who thinks that survival is hinged upon access to bread alone, the spiritual man on the other hand is expected to live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. It is crystal from the scriptures above that one of the reasons why God had to lead the children of Israel through the wilderness is just to make them know that they are to live by every of His word and not by bread alone. The lesson to be learned here is that we are to make God’s word the essence for our existence. God’s word should be made primary while our labor for bread should be made secondary.

Each time we come to a fork in the road of choosing between bread and the word of God, we are expected to boldly walk the path of the word without fear. It is no coincidence that the first attempt of the tempter to tempt the Lord Jesus was to tempt Him about choosing between bread and the word of God. See Matthew 4:4;

2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.

3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.

4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

The sole aim of the tempter was to inquire about the Son ship of the Lord Jesus because he knew that God’s son would at all time obey every word that proceeds out of the mouth of His Father. The “Son of God” will never disobey His Father and that was why the response of the Lord Jesus to Lucifer the tempter was a sharp one “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the of God”. It should be remembered that what transpired prior to the temptation of the Lord could be alluded to the annunciation made by the Father about the Son-ship of Jesus. See Matthew 3:17;

And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

So Lucifer was set to check the validity of this significant announcement. That was why the tempter asked “If thou be the Son of God…” this simple question is the crux of the tempter’s attempt to tempt the Lord Jesus. An important lesson to learn from this is that a son would always stick to every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the Father.

 

The Flaming Faith

Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.

Mark 9:23

A remarkable definition of faith can be found in the book of Hebrews 11:1 which reads thus:

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

The substance spoken of in the scripture above depicts an assumption which is backed up by a strong conviction. However to the natural man, the definition of faith given by the writer of the book Hebrews makes no absolute sense. How can there be evidence of things not seen? The natural man likes to see a concrete proof of the existence of things before believing it. Apparently, faith to the natural man is the substance of things known and experienced and the evidence of things seen. This explains the popular philosophical and colloquial speech of “seeing is believing”. Nevertheless this is not so for the spiritual man. Faith is simply the breath of the believer, the language of the spiritual man and the life of the just, as it is written in the book of Habakkuk 2:4;

“…the just shall live by his faith.”

It is impossible to please God without it. Hebrews 11:6;

“But without faith it is impossible to please him (God)…”

It then becomes crystal, that faith is the key to pleasing God. Interestingly, God Himself is a God of faith because He is the author of faith. In other words, God has faith. An important question that readily emanates from this bold claim is that: in whom or in what is the faith of God? This is a very crucial and logical question to ask because having faith in someone or something would imply trusting and believing the fidelity of that thing or someone. It has been pointed by the Psalmist that God magnifies His word above His entire name as found in Psalm 138:2;

“I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.”

The words spoken by the Psalmist in the scripture above presents us with the answer to the question, because if God magnifies His word above His entire name then God’s faith is wrapped up around His word. Consequently God’s power lies in His word. When He speaks He believes without an iota of doubt that, that which He has spoken will surely come to pass. In expressing the potency of His word, God told the prophet Isaiah the following in Isaiah 55:11;

So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

So God’s faith is in the power of His word and as such during creation He has to speak to create. See the thoughts of the writer of the book of Hebrews in Hebrew 11:3;

Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

Notice that the phrase “through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God” could also imply “God, through faith in His own word created the worlds”. In effect to the foregoing, since God has faith and has also created mankind in His likeness, it then follows that “it is Godlike for man to also have faith in God”. Hence the words of God to the prophet Habakkuk “The just shall live by his faith” crystallizes the fact that every living soul has a quantum measure of faith given to them by God. Apostle Paul also made this clear in Roman 12:3;

“… God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.”

Since there is a quantum measure of faith given to every man, God expect us to put our faith into practical use. The order of faith is not in any wise complex. Just as God’s faith is in His word, our faith in turn should be in God.

THE FORCE OF FAITH

The key to keeping the flame of faith burning is to simply believe and trust God and His word. So “believing” is the force that keeps the flame of faith burning. The Lord made us to understand that nothing is impossible with God. See Mark 10:27;

“…for with God all things are possible.”

Since God can do all things, then our faith should be in Him. All that is required is just to believe Him. The way to believing God is through Christ. He, who believes Christ, believes God. In fact, to believe in Christ is to work the works of God. In other words no one does exploit without believing in Christ. The Lord said in John 6:29;

“This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.”

The Lord also said in John 14:1;

“…ye believe in God, believe also in me.”

Apparently, belief is the force of faith. All that is needed to be done in order to activate and keep the flame of faith burning is just to believe. It is the key to an answered prayer. There is therefore the need to eliminate fear because nothing extinguishes the flame of faith like fear. Fear is very destructive; it generates into doubts which then results into unbelief. A descriptive example of the destructive nature of fear can be found in the book of Matthew 14:26-31 when the Lord walked upon the sea and also permitted Peter to step out of the ship and join Him. However when Peter saw the wind boisterous he became afraid and began to sink. See verses 29-30:

29 And he (Jesus) said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.

30 But when he (Peter) saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.

Peter actually walked upon the sea at the command of the Lord but immediately he permitted fear, doubts sets in which later generated into unbelief, so instead of walking like the Lord on the sea he began to sink.

So what could have been the problem? The Lord asked him to come, he did and enjoyed a moment of walking on the sea but because of unbelief he began to sink. The point here is that “faith begets faith”. The word “come” spoken by the Lord to peter was a word of faith which requires a response of faith.

The scriptures is replete with depictive examples of practical faith portrayed by certain individuals. In the book of Mark 5:22-36, a certain ruler of the synagogue by the name Jairus whose daughter was ill and was at the point of death met the Lord and fell at his feet, and besought him greatly, saying, my little daughter lies at the point of death, please come and lay your hands on her, that she may be healed and she shall live. Notice that Jairus’ words were backed up by his own faith in that he believed that if the Lord Jesus lays His hands on his daughter she will be healed and live.

However before they got to Jairus’ home they received a message that the little girl had died. Those were discouraging words which obviously brought fear into Jairus’ heart. This was noticed by the Lord who encouraged him with these words “Be not afraid, only believe”. Those words were spoken to Jairus in order to encourage him, so that he can generate the requisite faith needed for her daughter’s healing. Notice that the Lord also exercised His own faith too when He got to Jairus’ home where he noticed the tumult and the people wailing by saying “Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth.” Unbelief says she is dead but faith said she is asleep. It is important to understand here that the languages of faith and unbelief are words which are backed up by a strong conviction. Consequently the Lord did not speak the language of unbelief which the people spoke and also made them to laugh Him to scorn but spoke the language of faith by saying the damsel is not dead but asleep so I am going to wake her up. Verses 40-42 of Mark 5 beautifully put what transpired afterwards:

40 And they laughed him to scorn. But when he had put them all out, he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and them that were with him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying.

41 And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise.

42 And straightway the damsel arose, and walked; for she was of the age of twelve years. And they were astonished with a great astonishment.

Interestingly, a woman who had an issue of blood came up the scene on Jesus’ way to Jairus’ home. Although much people followed the Lord, and thronged Him, nevertheless this woman who had suffered so many things from the hands of physicians and had spent all she had on her disease believed in her heart that she shall be made whole if she can only touch the Lord’s clothes. So this woman came behind the press and touched the Lord and the fountain of her blood immediately dried up and she felt in her body that she has been healed. Now here is the point, the faith of the woman with the issue of blood was activated at the very moment she believed in her heart that she will be made whole if she can only touch the Lord’s clothes.

Nothing moves and transfers the power of God other than faith. It is apparent that the press that thronged upon the Lord constitutes a set of people whose faith has been mixed with unbelief. They thronged upon the Lord because they wanted him to deliver them from their problems, but however lacked the requisite faith. Nevertheless the faith of the woman in pains was able to transfer from the Lord the required virtue needed for her healing. Notice that immediately virtue left the Lord’s body into that of the woman He asked “who touched my clothes”. This question posed by the Lord was surprising to His disciples and they retorted by saying “Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, who touched me?” So the Lord is only touched and impressed by our faith. Sobbing, crying, and worrying will not touch Him, only faith does.

Upon looking around and discovering the woman, the Lord said to her “Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.” The Lord’s response to the woman is a proof that not until faith is activated he can but do nothing. Notice He said to her “thy faith hath made thee whole” which means “your own faith has made you whole”.