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THE TRIAL OF OUR SONSHIP – PART 5

Adam didn’t fall.

Math.17: 2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light….

 

Now this transfiguration was the display of the garment of the priestly office. It was the Body of glory, the kind of Body Adam had before the fall. We can rightly say, Adam fell from a paradise state into the realm of carnality. He allowed the wrong voice to communicate to him through the wife and so lost the glory. When I used the word, Adam allowed, it is deliberate because there was no way Adam could have been made Adam fall. The word is clear..

 

John.1: 5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

The word comprehend which is katalambano, means ‘to take eagerly, i.e. seize, possess, etc. ,apprehend, attain, come upon, comprehend, find, obtain, perceive, (over-)take.

 

So the Amplify will say.. John 1:5 And the Light shines on in the darkness, for the darkness has never overpowered it [put it out or absorbed it or appropriated it, and is unreceptive to it]. AMP.

 

Meaning as long as Adam was living in the light, there was no way he could have fallen to the voice of the serpent. Just like the serpent tried it on Jesus “Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me”.( John 14:30).

 

What was the devil going to do to Jesus, he was to question the authority of his sonship and what he knows about himself as a son of God.

Look at the way he worked on Eve.. “ …And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?”Gen.3:1).

 

Can you not see that it was a question? Hath God said? It’s like saying ‘are you sure? Do you believe what God said about you?. So to Jesus is like asking him, are you truly sure you are the son of God even though you have heard him say so to you? What evidence do you have to prove that you are the son of God? etc etc

These are the very questions that confront us every day. Do you think this Christianity of a thing is real? Is there truly any benefit in worshipping God? Is Jesus truly God in the flesh? What do you stand to gain being a Christian? If you think you are a son of God why are you not performing miracles etc etc. All these accusations in our minds are aimed at nothing but our sonship in God. That’s how the devil talks to us.

 

But how do we overcome? by simply replying back with the word by saying .I am a son of God because the word says so, I don’t need any evidence to prove that not even a miracle.

 

Now this is where the light you have in Christ takes effect, for the darkness, which is ignorance produced by the accuser in our hearts cannot comprehend the light.

 

I mentioned that Adam was not deceived and so didn’t fall . How do I know that, because the word says so.

“And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.” (1Tim.2: 14)

So how did Adam fall? He gave himself willingly to it because Eve the wife has fallen.

 

Now there is a major ministry to this fall of Adam here, also that we need to understand. After all Pual’s admonition concerning the husband and the wife,(marriage) he ended up by saying it is a ‘mystery’ “This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church”.Eph.5: 32.

 

What then is this mystery of the marriage of the church and Christ; it’s that if Adam has not willingly given himself to the fall by following the woman that was deceived, Christ would not have died for the church, the redeemed sinful humanity.Becasue Adam died in flowing the sin of Eve, Christ have to die that through death man, the wife of Christ, the church would be redeemed.

 

Therefore, the light body that Jesus demonstrated at the time of the transfiguration was a revelation of immortality

This is why we are told in Lev.8: 35 at the consecration of Aaron’s sons into priesthood that

“Therefore shall ye abide at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation day and night seven days, and keep the charge of the LORD, that ye die not: for so I am commanded”.

 

Now Peter got that revelation too hence he requested of Jesus.. “…Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias”.(Math.17:4).

You know what he was saying? Master, we can stay on here and enjoy immortality as represented by the feast of tabernacles, just as Aaron’s son were supposed to stay in the tabernacle and never die. No more going down to the earthly realm from the spirit dimension of glorified sons, to manifest immortal light Bodies.

 

In Luke’s account (Luke 9:33) it was added to the request of Peter “not knowing what he said”. So why did Peter not know what he said? Because he was trying to structure that which is future from the time they were. Jesus has not even gone to the cross yet and he wants to manifest immortality. This was the very reason that God has to drive out man from the Garden less he partake of the tree of life and live forever, meaning if man has eaten of the tree of life after he has eaten that of the knowledge of God and Evil, he would have immortalized death, so it was for man’s good that he was driven from the Garden.

 

Adam fall was a willful submission to death so Christ can submit to the death of the cross for the redemption of mankind, the church. For darkness cannot comprehend the light that we carry even now. “The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light”. Math 6:22.

So don’t doubt your faith or calling. Stay with what God says about you. Know firstly, you are a born from above son of God., you maybe a nepios, (an infant) now, but you are a son coming to maturity ultimately ..

To be continued…

(c) 2016 – Dr. David O. Ogaga

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THE TRIAL OF OUR SONSHIP – PART 4

The covenant of sonship.

 

Again we reiterate the fact that Adam never fell from Grace but from sonship realm into a carnal man, and so the word says “…Adam, which WAS the son of God” (Luke 3:38) But Christ IS the son of God (Math.16:16) .

 

To the Galatians Church Paul said “1 O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?..This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? .Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?” (Gal.3:1-3).

 

This is falling from Grace, when you move from faith of the simplicity that is in Christ into legalism in your worship, you have falling from Grace.

When God gave Abraham the law to circumcised every male child “that is eight days old” (Gen17:12, Luke 2:21), that was the covenant of sonship. And it was ever understood as a consecration of the person to God.

 

Now the Jews have what is called an adoption ceremony, this is not picking someone who is not part of your family to join you. That is the western sense of adoption but for the Jews, adoption is the placement of a mature son into position of authority before the elders in a city that henceforth, the young man can as from this hour be able to stand to transact business on my behalf. He can sign my signature, he is matured enough to manage my estate so you people should honour him if he does so when am not around.

 

So when we read of “And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” .( Math 3:17) at the time of Jesus Baptism in River Jordan by John the Baptist, that was an adoption ceremony. And in scripture, this adoption of Jesus took place three times, you began to wonder why?

 

Firstly, in Math. 3, account, he was adopted as a Prophet, everybody saw and believed John to be a prophet, and now the father was turning their attention from John to Jesus as the ordained prophet that has just risen for the people of Israel by God Himself.

In Math . 17:5. We have his adoption as a priest, and in Heb.1:5-8.we have his adoption as a king. Therefore we have Jesus functioned as a Prophet, Priest and king.

Now we are going to be more concerned with his priestly adoption as it relates to our walk in and with God as the father intends to bring many sons to glory in Christ. “For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings”. . Heb 2:10 (KJV)

 

Jesus transfiguration.

We read in Math. 17: 1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, 2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.

In other words, he was transfigured before them on the eight day. In fact Luke’s account says. “..eight days”. “And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray.

And as he prayed, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment was white and glistering.”( Luke 9:28-29)

 

So why the difference?. The answer is found in the Book of Leviticus, in relation to the consecration into priesthood of the sons of Aaron.

Lev.8: 33 And ye shall not go out of the door of the tabernacle of the congregation in seven days, until the days of your consecration be at an end: for seven days shall he consecrate you.

34 As he hath done this day, so the LORD hath commanded to do, to make atonement for you.

35 Therefore shall ye abide at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation day and night seven days, and keep the charge of the LORD, that ye die not: for so I am commanded.

36 So Aaron and his sons did all things which the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses.

 

So we can see that, the sons to be consecrated were not to leave the tabernacle until seven days, which is their consecration period and then on the eight day the glory will appear. (Lev.9:1-23)..So the eight day is the glorification period.

Therefore, Luke’s account gives us the glorification period while Mathew’s account speaks of the consecration period, it’s just one and the same ceremony taking place.

So could it be we are in the consecration period in God’s agenda to be gloried in the revealing of our true sonship as priest to rule and reign on the Earth (Rev.5:10)?

 

Now why do you think Moses and Elijah have to appear to him at this moment ..

Luke 9: 30 “And, behold, there talked with him two men, which were Moses and Elias:31 Who appeared in glory, and spake of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem”.

They appeared to strengthen him to be able to go to the cross for if Jesus should fail to go to the cross, then that makes the testimonies of the law and the prophet to fail, they will be made liars.

Here then is the trial of our sonship, the ability to endure, remain focused and to finish up with that which the father has given to us as true sons in the making.

To be continued…

(c) 2016 – Dr. David O. Ogaga

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THE TRIAL OF OUR SONSHIP – PART 3

The tail of the dragon is false ministries (Rev.12:4)

 

So when we read that .. “ the dragon ….and his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth” (Rev. 12:3-4). What does the dragon-tail symbolize?

 

We know that the stars of heaven stands for the sons of God..God promised Abraham that his sons shall be as the stars of Heaven,, The eleven stars that bowed down to Joseph were his eleven brothers., who were actually the stars , the sons of Jacob that Lucifer, the very king of Babylon wanted to rule over (Isa.14:13) even as we do know that “the sides of the North” to which he wanted to ascent to is Moutn Zion, the city of the living God, the church.(Ps 48:1-2) Jesus Himself is the bright morning star. No room to explain of Isa 14 here.(But you can request for our message on JUST WHO IS LUCIFER.?

 

So what is the tail of the dragon that caused the stars to fall? It’s right there in the scriptures for us.

“The ancient and honourable, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail. For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed”.(Isa 9:15-16.)

 

The word teacheth, here is very important .. yarah, yaw-raw’ a primitive root; to flow as water (i.e. to rain), to lay or throw (especially an arrow, i.e. to shoot); to point out (as if by aiming the finger), shoot,

 

Interesting, what we are seeing here is the unceasing flow of the false prophetic ministries aim at the sons of God in the making, to get them off course. As through these ministries/teachings, other thoughts will begin to arise in their heart as touching who they are and what they can now do even though it’s not yet time as allotted by the father to do such. They are promising things that could make them assume power in no time and do a lot of miracles as well outside of the mandate of the father

 

Again, we see Jesus the firstborn son being tempted in this regard..Math.4: 8 “Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;

9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me”

 

The fact beloved is, there is no mountain in the whole world that you can climb and see the entire world talk less of being in Palestine. The highest that I know of, is Mount Everest and it’s not in Palestine. So which mountain is this that the devil took him to? It was the mountain of his own imagination.

 

Yes, that is the only mountain you can climb and assume and see anything. That tells you that the real devil is working from within the hearts of men. To be on the mountain top is to be in total dominion, here the thought was you can now rule the world because the father just said to you, you are his only begotten son. But what needs to be done first like going to the cross has not been done. So the overcoming ability here was Jesus mastering his thoughts to wait and come to the obedience of the cross and the rule over the universal was and is rightly his. This is what Adam and Eve could not endure, they became gods in the flesh. We cannot assume full sonship in a presumption manner .

 

The tail of the dragon therefore is nothing more than false ministries that teach things that prevents and turns us away from attaining to the place of full sonship in God. When men begin to teach you and proclaim that sonship is not attainable or that you have already attained to all that the father has for his sons, the dragon tail is at work.

 

While it is true that as many as believe, the father gave power to become the sons of God (John1:12-13) The fullness of Christ sonship was made manifest only after resurrection..

 

“Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Rom.1:3-4) Therefore “…but ourselves also, which have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body” Rom.8:23.

 

Friends, the trouble we are facing today is not about Grace not being available, but how to be focused in God to attain to the place of full sonship with dominion on the face of the Earth. The birthing of the cooperate man-child that can shepherd the nations with the rod of iron is the problem.

And this is what the dragon doesn’t want so we are immersed in one form of religious deception or the other through the tail of the dragon. But the fathers will shall prevailed; He shall yet have a son. For in the “.. evening time it shall be light”. Zech.14:7.

To be continued…

(c) Dr. David O. Ogaga

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THE TRIAL OF OUR SONSHIP – PART 2

The fallen stars were sons of God.(Rev 12:4)

“And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and, behold a great red dragon…and his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth” (Rev. 12:3-4).

 

First of all let as understand that this dragon have nothing to do with some monsters running around in the world, but rather this is a spiritual reality amongst men. It is a negative, corrupted, and carnally perverted spiritual dimension in operation.

Have you ever wondered that the same said dragon is the same creature that was in Eden.?. see it

 

“And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him”. Rev.12: 9.

 

Did you noticed that the major weapon and strength of the dragon is nothing but deception ? and that was what it used against Eve in the garden to cause the fall of Eve and Adam? Gen.3:1. From a mere serpent he became a dragon as men multiplied with his ministry on the earth, yes, that is how it grew from a tiny serpent to a dragon when men began to multiply on the face of the earth.

 

The greatest war against our sonship is deception. You found that the appearance of the dragon into the scene is directly connected to the birth of the man-child. That mature son of God that is expected to rule the nations with a rod of iron, which actually speaks of shepherding the nations, for that is what the rod stands for.

 

So we state again that as soon as Jesus was proclaimed to be the son of God , the tempter, the dragon that old serpent came.

 

And so in verse 5 of Math 4. “Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple”

 

Yes the devil wanted Jesus to be religiously relevant outside of the will of the father. That is where the sons of God have fallen into today. We proclaim ourselves to be who we are not. He took him to the temple, yes the highest point in religious attainment if you will in the Holy City, the very church of the living God. He wanted him to proclaim himself who he was as the head of the church before time, but even in a wrong location.

 

Essentially you find that the three major areas wherein he was tempted was in the areas of Economy, Religion and power-politics, if you will.

To be continued…

(c) 2016 – Dr. David O. Ogaga

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THE TRIAL OF OUR SONSHIP

Adam did not fall from Grace but from sonship. This is why the trial of Jesus was centred on his sonship as soon as the father declared him to be his beloved son in whom he is well pleased.

We preach more on falling from Grace than falling from our realm of sonship in God. But it’s our sonship that is really on trial on how we can live in total obedience to the will of the father.

 

Jesus turned down the demand for him to turn the stones into bread because the command or suggestions didn’t come from his father. That was his sonship on trial.

So religion tries to give us things to do that are not in the will of the father just to prove how much power or anointing we have, without realising that it is our sonship that’s on trial. The word says, ‘As many as are led by the spirit of God they are the sons of God ‘(Rom. 8:14)

 

Living and walking in true obedience to the will of the father, in all that we do, so his will might be done through us is the beginning of the manifestations of our sonship.

Jesus word is ‘I do nothing except what I see the father do,’ That is walking in sonship.

So friends, while we rejoice in the Grace that we have received, let us notice that it’s really our sonship that’s on trial on a daily basis.

 

That is what Adam lost, that is what we are being restored back into, and because that is what really requires our obedience.

Jesus never demonstrated power until he first demonstrated his obedience to the will of the father.

 

(c) 2016 – Dr. David O. Ogaga

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The Knowledge of Emmanuel – Part 6

Isa.7: 13 And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also?

14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel

Math.1: 23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us”

 

In part one of this deliberation I did indicate that the prophecy in Isa.7: as quoted above was born out the fear that was in the heart of King Ahaz of Judah as the kings of Syria and Israel were teaming up to come and invade his kingdom. God therefore asked him for a sign in order to prove to him that he will protect him. But he responded by saying he wouldn’t ask God for a sign. So the Father personally gave him this sign of a virgin that shall conceive, to insure his fears as He God will come in his defense from those Kings.

 

In fact the lord said “…before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both her king” verse 16.Meaningnthe two kings should have been dead.

 

Now this factor of fear is one of the greatest evils that have be-deviled the Christian world. We have the fear of death, the fear of failure in life, the fear of not giving birth and yet have been married for some years, the fear of not getting married and you above age, the fear of business failure, the fear of being killed in an accident as you travel or even God killing them for not doing certain things right in their prescribed mode of worship.. The catalogue goes on and on.

All these manners of fears concocted by the devil, begins to interfere with the worship of the Father in our spirit and so colour the mode of our prayers.

 

What is the next thing? We start running from pillar to post to seek solution from the so called prophets, paying exorbitant consultation fee to see them in other to get a word of prophecy. And some in the quiet of the night sneak into homes of traditional worshippers, all in a bid to get answers to alleviate their fears.

But there is only one solution to all these your fears and it is in your knowing who the Christ of God is and why he came. Hear the prophecy of Zacharias about the birth of Christ..

Luke 1: 68 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people,

69 And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David;

71 That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us;

74 That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear,

 

Can you get it? His presence with us is that we might be able to serve the Father without the spirit of fear. So many programmes that we put up today are strictly based on fear , and how to wade of death from our lives and homes etc. We do not sincerely worship God because He is worthy of our worship and so just giving Him thanks for His goodness and mercies that are renewed every morning .

 

Now hear the word of the Lord.

Heb 2:14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;

15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

 

Did you see it? One of the major reasons of Christ putting on flesh as a human being is to deliver us from the bondage of fear to which we have being subjected all the days of our lives, the very thing Zacharias prophesied about .

 

You abuse Christ if the fear of any sort is still leading you in the things you do and your worship.

 

So what is the solution to all these. Let us hear Isaiah speak to us again.

 

“19 When people tell you, “Try out the fortunetellers. Consult the spiritualists. Why not tap into the spirit-world, get in touch with the dead?”

20 Tell them, “No, we’re going to study the Scriptures.” People who try the other ways get nowhere — a dead end!

21 Frustrated and famished, they try one thing after another. When nothing works out they get angry, cursing first this god and then that one, Looking this way and that,

22 up, down, and sideways — and seeing nothing, A blank wall, an empty hole. They end up in the dark with nothing”. (Isa 8:19-22) msg.

 

Did you see it? When men begin to prescribe to you, solutions from spiritualist etc just let them know, you are going to study the scriptures. Base and build your faith in the word of God. The word is both life and spirit.

 

Prov.4: 20 “ My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings.

21 Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.

22 For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh”.

 

Yes, the word of God is life and health. Stop running around in programs for solution, Search the word, and believe the word for they are life and health unto you if you can find them. That’s the solution to your fear problem, the word coming alive as “Emmanuel”.

 

Whatever feat we can perform in life is factored on Emmanuel, God being with us. Look at this..

 

“And Solomon the son of David was strengthened in his kingdom and the LORD his God was with him, and magnified him exceedingly”. 2Ch 1:1.

 

Beloved , can you see this? That the success of King Solomon was simply because God was with him? And not just that, this Emmanuel factor caused him to be magnified exceedingly. What a secret to success in life.

 

Why did you think Joshua succeeded in his assignment? The secret is in the Emmanuel factor.

 

“And the LORD said unto Joshua, This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee.” Jos 3:7. Imagine!

 

What about Jesus when he walked the earth for three and half years..

 

“How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him”. Acts 10:38 (KJV)

 

The anointing was not enough, “for God was with him” was the secret. Can you see why all our anointing services are not producing the way we expected? It is because, the knowledge of the Emmanuel dimension is missing.

 

People of God, the secret to true success and power in life and ministry is in the Emmanuel dimension. To overcome the fears of life is to know the Lord as Emmanuel not just he who came to save us from our sins.

 

Let us bring back to the household of faith this factor in our worship and see more mature sons worship the Father in spirit and in truth, instead of breeding orphans in orphanage homes called churches.

 

“Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us” (Math.1: 23) Amen!

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The Knowledge of Emmanuel – Part 5

Math.1: 23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us”

 

Again we state , the knowledge and understanding of “Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us” is a whole new realm of life, as we begin to walk in the realization of this grace that is now available . So many of our so called demons chasing Christians activities everyday will vanish away. All of those special programmes called ‘anointing for favour’ and ‘breakthroughs’ will be converted to something more meaningfully glorious to the worship of our Father.

 

Now the point is , no natural father who is rich in the things of this world will want to have his child do a particular dance, sing a special song for him or pray all night long for the father to make provisions available to him or her. Or that the child must rob a special cream or perfume on himself so as to attract the favour of the father’s for a blessing.

 

The word says the lord has given us all things to enjoy

“Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not high-minded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy” 1TiM. 6:17.

 

Evidently, God has all things which he gives liberally for the needs of his children and he does not give merely what is necessary, but he gives what tends to make life more comfortable. So the comforts of life come from God, as well as the necessaries. The word hear is clear, he does not only give us a bare subsistence, but he gives us enjoyments with it.

 

It is the oppressions of men that has made life uncomfortable for his neighbour. God gives liberally; man divides it badly.

 

Our worship is to honour God and not to attract his favour , we are already his beloved in Christ Jesus. There is nothing you can do to make God love you or favour you more than what Christ has done for you. God chose us in Christ as His Children before the foundation of the world. Your only valid instrument of attraction to God for his blessings remains in your union with Christ.

 

The only thing the father will ever asked you to do is to seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all other things will be added to you.(Math.6:33)

 

You don’t need programmes or anything else to get God to bless you. This is why the knowledge of the Emmanuel dimension is so vital to our daily walk in life as believers.

 

Look at this..

“And the LORD was with Joseph (Emmanuel), and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian….

And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand.

And it came to pass from the time that he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the LORD blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the LORD was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field”. Gen. 39:2,4-5.

 

Can you imagine this? What gave Joseph, a slave boy in the natural so much blessings in a foreign land. The lord was with him-Emmanuel. The word says he was a prosperous man, not because of anything he did to attract the favour of God. ‘The Lord was with him’ was the answer.

 

“And Joseph’s master took him, and put him into the prison, a place where the king’s prisoners were bound: and he was there in the prison.

But the LORD was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison” Gen 39:20-21.

 

Even in prison?, Yes, he prospered, why? Because the Emmanuel dimension was being revealed, God was with him.

 

Listen to this question, “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us”? (Rom. 8:31) The answer is NO BODY. For “When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him” Prov. 16:7.

 

Our focus should not be in the pursuing of enemies and asking God for favour in other to be blessed and to be free from so called enemies, but to focus on our ways, which should be the ways of the lord, the word of the Lord. Trusting and believing in what he says of himself and you as his child. It is to become one with him through the word and so the word becoming flesh, as living Epistles.2 Cor.3:1-2.

To be continued…

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The Knowledge of Emmanuel – Part 4

Isa.7: 13 And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also?

14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel

 

Math.1: 23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us”

 

The understanding of the Father being with us is so liberating and empowering if truly understood. God intentions has always being to be with his people. Therein He will be speaking to his own and sharing fellowship with them.

 

In Exo. 33:7 We are told.. “And Moses took the tabernacle, and pitched it without the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the Tabernacle of the congregation. And it came to pass, that every one which sought the LORD went out unto the tabernacle of the congregation, which was without the camp”.

 

Meaning in seeking the Lord you will find Him in his temple which you are, for we are the temple of the living God. It is from the midst of the temple that you can truly here Him speak.

 

Lev. 1:1 “And the LORD called unto Moses, and spake unto him out of the tabernacle of the congregation, saying”,

 

From where was God speaking to Moses?, from the Temple , even so it is today. The Lord speaks to his people from within the Temple that you are in your spirit man.

 

Look at it

“And there I will meet with the children of Israel, and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by my glory.

And I will sanctify the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar: I will sanctify also both Aaron and his sons, to minister to me in the priest’s office”.

And thou shalt put the mercy seat above upon the ark; and in the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee.

And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel”. Exo.29:43-44, 25:21-22.

 

‘And there I will meet with thee’ That is, over the mercy-seat, between the cherubim. In this place God chose to give the most special manifestations of presence and person.

 

Now it must be seen that the heart of the redeemed man is God’s sanctuary; for as, in the sanctuary, that is where the shechinah or Divine glory resides, because there we have the ark, the tables, and the cherubim; so, in the heart of man, it is necessary that a place be made for the Divine Majesty to dwell in, and that it be the holy of holies, the spirit of man.”

 

Paul specifically declares on this matter’..

“Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.” Eph.2:19-22.

“Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? …And “he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit”. 1Cor.3:16,.6:17.

 

This union of the spirit of the Father with and in our spirit is what truly produces our sonship at the end. Now we have the privileges to express the Father who is the unseen God and we can declare the things that are not known by reason of His union with us..This is the Emmanuel factor of our become one with the Father.

 

See Apostle Paul lived out what I am saying as he set rules for married matters.

 

“Now concerning virgins I have no commandment of the Lord: yet I give my judgment, as one that hath obtained mercy of the Lord to be faithful… The wife is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth; but if her husband be dead, she is at liberty to be married to whom she will; only in the Lord.

But she is happier if she so abide, after my judgment: and I think also that I have the Spirit of God”. .1 Cor.7:25; 39-40.

 

Can you see that? By reason of his union in sprit with the lord, now being one spirit, he could make rules to be observed and the Holy Spirit permitted them to be written down as inspired of the Holy Spirit.

 

This is a doctrine most implicitly taught by the apostles; and the absolute necessity of having the heart made a habitation of God through the Spirit; this is strongly and frequently insisted on through the whole of the New Testament. It is the revelation of our oneness with the Father which should be the answer to Jesus’ prayer

 

“ I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.” ..Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth” Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;. ..That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:

I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world…

And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them”.John.17:15-26.

 

‘Emmanuel’…God and man becoming one.

 

© 2016 –  Dr. David O. Ogaga

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The Knowledge of Emmanuel – Part 3

Math.1: 23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us” Math 1:

Again, like we have indicated earlier on, this is the fulfillment of Gen. 3:15; “The seed of the woman shall bruise the head of the serpent,”

 

John rightly said , 1John. 3:8 “He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil”(KJV)

And the man to destroy the work of the devil, was to be the one who came from a woman who knew no man.

 

Here it is

Luke 1: 26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,

27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.

28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. {highly…: or, graciously accepted, or, of much grace}

29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.

30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.

31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.

32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:

33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?..

 

This is why he is called “The seed of the woman…” (Gen. 3:15 😉 Nothing to do with a man. No impute from a natural man in anyway. The Genesis text therefore speaks as fully of the virgin state of the person, from whom Christ, according to the flesh, should come.

 

So Emmanuel is actually talking of God with us, to comfort, enlighten, protect, and defend us in every time of temptation and trial, in the hour of death, in the Day of Judgment; and God with us, and in us, and we with and in him, to all eternity. That is the true incarnation..

 

The Temple.

What was the purpose of the temple? Let us quickly take a look at a few scriptures in Exodus. In Exodus 25: we are told…

“And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.” Exodus.25:8-9,…

According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it…..

“And there I will meet with the children of Israel, and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by my glory.

And I will sanctify the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar: I will sanctify also both Aaron and his sons, to minister to me in the priest’s office.

And they shall know that I am the LORD their God, that brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them: I am the LORD their God” Exodus.29: 43-46.

 

It is evidence that the Tabernacle built by Moses as instructed by God was for the purpose of making Himself available to the Children of Israel all throughout their journey in the wilderness. It was a means of making His presence felt as being in their midst as they journey on. From where also His glory was fully revealed to them as the Father. Here they know that they were not alone but that the Father is with them both for guidance, protection and directive..The Emmanuel factor.

 

Now what is that to us today as believers? Hear this..

 

“Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?… What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?

For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s…( 1 Cor.3: 16; 6: 19-20)

“And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,

And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.( 2 Cor.6: 16-18)

For “God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;” ((Acts.17:24).

 

Meaning He dwells in us and with us as His temple.

 

Did you see that? The Emmanuel dimension of God is what sealed our union with God as our Father. Remember all men all over the world serve different gods and idols as a means to reach to the Almighty invisible God that created the universal. So to them He is just a universal God, but for those of us who are born again by the very spirit of the Father, He is our Father and not just God.

 

“(12 But as many as received him, to them gave the 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”.(John 12-13):

 

He is not just the God that is invisible somewhere in the blues, but very much present with us as our Father – Emmanuel.

In the natural children live in the same environment- house with their Fathers, even so do we live with our Father today in his house which is the Church of the living God , the pillar and ground of the truth.(2 Tim.3:15). “For in him we live, and move, and have our being;… For we are also his offspring. Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man’s device” (Acts 17:28-29).We are not just in the same pace with Him, he is the very environment that we live in.

 

The responsibility of every Father is to provide, protect and guide his children. Isn’t that what the Father is to us today? God is with us so we fear no evil or the troubles around the world; we are sealed in his love. As a matter of fact, the Father God is so jealous of us that He will not allow any evil to befall us. We are so much of a treasure unto Him. Emmanuel!

 

Let the fears of what a devil or witch can do to us disappear henceforth. You are truly with the Father and the Father is with you wherever you go. Pleading the blood of Jesus on the road, tyres etc while we embark on a journey is born out-of fear of death and powers on the highway from killing us. Let these die out-of your life. “lo! Am with you alway” is the promise of the Father. You are too secured to be messed up by a demon of death in any form because of Emmanuel…

© 2016 –  Dr. David O. Ogaga

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The Knowledge of Emmanuel – Part 2

Isa.7: 11 Ask thee a sign of the LORD thy God; ask it either in the depth, or in the height above.

12 But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the LORD.

13 And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also?

14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel

 

Math.1: 23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us” Math 1:

 

In the part 1 of this meditation, we have indicated that fear came upon king Ahaz because of what the king of Syria and that of Israel planned to do to Judah through invasion.

And in verse 11, in order to reassure Ahaz that He God will protect him from their planned attach, He said .

“11 Ask thee a sign of the LORD thy God; ask it either in the depth, or in the height above. In other words, tell me what I can use to prove to you that I will surely protect and defend you from hands of your enemies. The reply of the king was  ”… I will not ask, neither will I tempt the LORD”.

 

And so the lord said, if you will not ask for a sign from me, I am going to give you one and here it is …

“Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel”

Futherrmore, that by the time this child is weaned and knows right from wrong, the two kings you fear so much-the kings of Israel and Syria -will both be dead. Verses 15-16

 

So, again this is the background to the promise of the virgin giving birth to a son whose name shall be called Emmanuel as a sign to king Ahaz to take away his fears.

The prophetic words of Priest Zachariah at the birth of John confirm this to us that we who have come to know the Lord as Emmanuel are truly being delivered from the fear of men and everything that obstructs us in the worship of our God the Father. Hear him prophesied as it relates to the birth of Jesus.

 

Luke 1: 67 And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying,

68 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people,

69 And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David;….

71 That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us;…..

74 That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear,

 

This then is the Emmanuel factor in our worship and life. To live and serve God without fear

 

IM-MENU-EL; literally, means the STRONG GOD WITH US: Now what is the true meaning of this in the New Testament for us and to us.. It is simply

‘the Word which was God-was made flesh, and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth’ ( John 1:1,14). In other words, the strong invisible God was made manifest in the flesh..

1Tim. 3:16. 16 “ And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”

 

This then is the full mystery of the meaning of the name ‘Emmanuel’.  This is what we are called to see and understand, Emmanuel,God with us, it implies that God incarnated, took on him the human nature.

 

Paul sharing this thought said…Rom.1: 3 “Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;

 

His being born as the seed of David is the God incarnating as man..’Emmanuel’. And so we are told

“Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God. And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. ” 1 John.4:2-3.

 

In other words, the antichrist spirit will not accept the fact that God became man and lived amongst us as the Jesus Christ. it simply means therefore whosoever will not believe or accept the fact that the word again can be made flesh in the believer is the antichrist. If we can’t live up to ‘flesh’ the word in our daily lives and in the world, then we are manifesting the spirit of the antichrist. We are called to make the word flesh again, that is the meaning of Emmanuel, the strong God is with us.

 

Let us  understand that ‘Emmanuel’;  was not just the  common name of Christ or his surname,  but rather this name  points out his nature and office; as He is God incarnate, and dwells by his Spirit in the hearts of his people.

 

Maybe scriptures like Isa.43:6-7 will begin to make more sense to us..

 

“I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, keep not back: bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the ends of the earth; .Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him”

 

It is man that is made in the image and Glory of God who lost it through the fall.  And so “That which hath been is now; and that which is to be hath already been; and God requireth that which is past”( Eccl..3:15).

 

That which is past , which is required, is the restoration man to his dominion mandate, back from the realm of decay and corruption through Adam. For Adam WAS the son of God, (Luke.3:38) But Christ IS the son of God.( Mtah.16:16).

 

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new”.( 2Cor.5: 17).

 

This is the revelation of the Emmanuel dimension in the believer. The new creation man.

Again,  this union of the Divine and human nature is what is termed a sign or miracle, (twaoth), i.e. talking of that which goes beyond the power of nature to produce.

Therefore, this miraculous union of the divine with the human nature should be perfected in a divine way, i.e. a virgin bringing forth. And this miraculous union was to be brought about in a miraculous way, a sign indeed!.

So, we found  the fulfillment of Gen. 3:15; “The seed of the woman shall bruise the head of the serpent,”

It is the seed of the woman without the impute of the man that shall bruise the head of the serpent. Meaning the incorruptible nature of God coming in union with us destroys the power and source of the serpent, the deceptive spirit within our being. Resulting in ‘old things being passed away and all things becoming new’. Because of Emmanuel, the strong God is with us.

 

To be continued…

 

©2016 –  Dr. David O. Ogaga

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