By Pastor Kwabena Akufo
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Text: Hebrews 3:1
Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your
thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess.
Discussion
We visited Ghana in the summer of 2001 with our
children. While I was in the living
room I could hear some excited voices outside of kids playing. When I went out I saw our two girls playing
Ampey with their great grandmother – a woman in her eighties! She is very quickened in her actions, alert,
walks like a young person. Obviously in
her mind she thinks of herself as a youthful person.
I also know a man who is about my
age who walks slow, acts slow, wants everyone to know that he is old, always
wants someone to run an errand for him.
Obviously in his mind he thinks of himself as an old person. Therefore, when you see him he looks old and
comes across old.
I know a person who is lazy; even
thinking is painfully hard for him. His
laziness in thinking has resulted in his inability to do anything because he
does not want to do anything.
Proverbs 10:4 Lazy hands make a
man poor.
I know a person who thinks
everyone is against him and so he has a constant frown and as result he is
suspicious of anything that happens to him.
If someone gives him a gift of a $100 he wonders how that is going to
trap him into trouble.
I also know a person who thinks
the world is his playground. He thinks
that so much that everything is supposed to be fun and so he cannot hold on to
a serious job or serious relationship.
All he wants to do is play.
Thoughts as a cause for your essence
The Bible tells us that in Proverbs 23:7 (KJV) that, “For as he thinketh in
his heart, so is he.” In other words “you are what you
think!” That is, your complete being is
the combination of all your thoughts.
James uses this concept to describe the development of a sinner when he
says “14 but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is
dragged away and enticed. 15 Then,
after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is
full-grown, gives birth to death.” (James 1:14-15). What James is saying is that your evil desires (thoughts in
your heart) lead to sinful actions that bring destruction and death into your
circumstances.
Generalizing what James teaches about the development of
sin, your thoughts are like a seed that you plant which germinates and results
in your actions. There is a cause in
effect; your thoughts cause your actions.
Your actions in a large part contribute to your circumstances. And so in that linkage your thoughts affect
your circumstances. This does not mean
that any circumstance you are in is wholly because of your thoughts; but your
thoughts are a contributing factor.
Two people each are given a glass with water to the half
mark. Each has the choice to think that
the glass is half-full or half-empty.
Both people are thrown the same starting circumstance. One decides to think how to best utilize it
viewing the glass as half full. Another
decides to think how hopeless his situation is thinking the glass is half
empty.
A British writer, James Allen,
wrote in the first decade of the 20th century:
·
Lazy thoughts crystallize into habits of uncleanliness
and dishonesty.
·
Beautiful thoughts of all crystallize into habits of
grace and kindliness.
·
Energetic thoughts crystallize into habits of
cleanliness and industry [hard work]
·
A particular train of thought persisted in, be it good
or bad, cannot fail to produce its results on the character and circumstances.
That is, your thoughts lead to
certain specific actions that affect your circumstances.
I believe this is possibly the motivation for the “I am
somebody” crusade of Jesse Jackson.
“How we think affects what we
see, how we interpret our experience, and how we act.” (Daniel Aronson, www.thinking.net/Cognition/cognition.html)
You become like Jesus as you fix your thoughts on him
Our main passage says “fix your
thoughts on Jesus.” This means we must
concentrate our thinking on Jesus. This
does not mean the person Jesus alone but what he represents in totality. So we fix our thoughts on his omnipotence,
his omniscience, his healing power, his patience, his perseverance, his
goodness, his peace, and his love.
Since we have established that
you are what you think then as we fix out thoughts on Jesus we become like
Jesus. In fact this is what we are
called be. If as we begin to fix our
thoughts on Jesus we starting becoming like Jesus it means we start becoming
not just the person Jesus but all that he represents; we begin to take on some
of his attributes.
Fixing your thoughts on Jesus makes you mini-Omnipotent
And so for example we can say
that we start gaining a smaller version of “omnipotence” for no power can
supersede Jesus’. But we act as a
delegated vassal with all the powers attending to. And therefore we say as Paul says in Philippians 4:13 I can do
everything through him who gives me strength.
You mini-omnipotence is further
backed by the fact that “the one who is in
you is greater than the one who is in the world.” (1 John 4:4)
And so because of that you are
more than a conqueror, no weapon formed against you shall prosper and so you
become invincible as God is!
Peter’s Example of overpowering the Laws of Gravity
Matthew 14:25-31 25
During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the
lake. 26 When the disciples
saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. "It's a ghost,"
they said, and cried out in fear. 27
But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I. Don't be
afraid." 28 "Lord,
if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the
water." 29
"Come," he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the
water and came toward Jesus. 30
But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out,
"Lord, save me!" 31
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little
faith," he said, "why did you doubt?"
Example of Jeshoshaphat fixing his thoughts on the Word
Joshua 1:8 Do not let this Book of
the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may
be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and
successful.
In the above passage we are asked to meditate on the Word of God
constantly. As Jesus is the Word of God
this is the same as what the writer of Hebrews is saying when he writes, “fix
your thoughts on Jesus” for to meditate is to fix solidly your thoughts on the
object of the meditation. Then this
passage says that the result of fixing your thoughts on the Word is “that you
may be careful to do everything written in it.” That is, when you fix your thoughts on the Word then you will be
inclined to do it because “as a man thinketh so he is.” Then the final sentence in this passage
gives the result of fixing your thoughts on the Word: “Then you will be
prosperous and successful.”
After Jehoshaphat came into power, he wondered why Judah was besieged with
war from neighboring nations. Then he
took this Joshua 1:8 passage to heart.
And so he sent his officials and “9they taught throughout
Judah, taking with them the Book of the Law of the LORD; they went around to
all the towns of Judah and taught the people.
10 The fear of the LORD fell on all the kingdoms of the lands
surrounding Judah, so that they did not make war with Jehoshaphat.” (2
Chronicles 17:9-10)
When the people began to fix
their thoughts on Jesus they began to pray and worship God the right way. And so God put fear in the hearts of the
surrounding nations. When you
constantly win war, your neighboring nations fear you and they’ll give you
tributes to preempt war with you. Now,
listen to what happened when they began to fix their thoughts on and use the
Word of God in Judah:
“Some Philistines brought Jehoshaphat gifts and
silver as tribute, and the Arabs brought him flocks: seven thousand seven
hundred rams and seven thousand seven hundred goats.” (2 Chronicles 17:11)
So you see as God told Joshua fixing thoughts on Jesus – the Word of God,
obviously led to Godly actions by the people, which brought prosperity, success
and peace to Judah.
CONCLUSION
As a man thinketh so is he. If you think positive thoughts you are
inclined to do positive things and get positive results. The converse is true. If you fix your thoughts on Jesus you will
gain in proportionate measure the power and attributes of Jesus. If you fix your thoughts on the Word of God,
which is also Jesus, you will have peace and prosperity. The choice is yours.
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Text: Hebrews 13:9-15
In this text, Paul commands us
not to be carried away by strange teachings. We are saved by grace, not by
ceremonial foods. We have a most holy altar at which even those who serve at
the tabernacle are not allowed to eat.
Jesus suffered outside the city gate to make the people clean just as
the animal offerings were burned outside the camp. Let us go to Christ outside
the camp bearing His reproach. For we have no continuing city, but we seek one
to come. By Him let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, the
fruit of our lips, and give thanks to His name.
Our Most Holy Sacrifice: The
priests were not allowed to eat the most holy sacrifice. Man cannot be saved by
animal sacrifice. And man is too sinful and imperfect to live with a perfect
God. Therefore there was a need for a perfect sacrifice. And He chose His own son
Jesus, the only ideal man, perfect and sinless as we find in Revelations 5:1-5,
9
Jesus died for us and sanctified
us (Romans 5:9). Therefore we must do the will of God from the heart as
servants of Christ (Ephesians 6:7,6). We have the grace of God to go into the
presence of God. The Blood of Jesus is the only thing that cleans our sins and
fulfills God’s requirements (Hebrews 9:12-14).
Because of the Blood of Jesus, we are equal despite and individual
differences.
Jesus zipped His mouth on the
cross. Let us be like Him. All He said was: “It is finished.” And because of
Him we are saved.
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Texts: Acts 2:32-37, Philippians
2:5-11
From the early inception of human life, in the
garden of Eden, God bestowed honor and glory on man, whom He had created. There
are three important aspects which need mentioning.
1.
Creation, including
man, was perfect. (Genesis 1:31)
2.
Man was created in
the image of God. (Genesis 1:26,27)
3.
God breathed the
breath of life into man, and he became a living soul - man had the breath of
life. (Genesis 2:7)
But when sin entered man out of his disobedience
(Genesis 3), man experienced a reversal of the original plan of God for him.
These can be placed in three categories:
1. Curse rather came to replace the original
perfect state.
2. Man lost the image and glory of God.
3. Death came to replace the life that the Lord
of Hosts breathed into man.
These are the changes that came into the life of
mankind as a result of the sin Adam committed, and it amounted to DEFEAT. But
where there was defeat, there was no joy in the life of mankind. Man started to
fall prey to the attacks and intrigues of the devil, whose main mission as
outlined in John 10:10 is: to steal, to kill, and to destroy.
Sickness came our way. Poverty ruled the lives of
mankind. Death, both physical and spiritual, became the lot of mankind.
The prophets of the Old Testament had prophesied
about the coming of the Messiah who would bring the works of the Devil to an
end. Isaiah 9:6,7 and 61:1-5 are all
instances of Messianic prophecies which were awaiting fulfillment in the days
to come. Matthew 1:21 gives an account about the arrival of the much awaited
time of redemption, when it was announced by the angel that Jesus would be
born, and that He shall save His people from their sins.
Reading at Luke 4:16-20, Jesus gives an account
about Himself, fulfilling the messianic prophesy in Isaiah 61:1-5, when he was
crucified, and the precious blood was shed, and the curtain in the temple was
torn from top to bottom, He declared at John 19:30 that "It is
finished." This signifies that He
has overcome, and that His power over death, disease and demons, is available
for the Church today.
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Texts: Romans 8:35,37, 2 Corinthians 2:14
The modern world has little time for the
unsuccessful. If you are not clever, prosperous, popular, and successful, then,
you will be left behind in your attempt to reach the top of the social ladder.
Jesus, however, viewed people from quite a different perspective. He spoke of
the meek inheriting the earth. He described Himself as “gentle and humble in
heart,” urging His followers to find rest for their souls by learning from Him.
Jesus was not interested in popular world success. His aim was to change human
hearts and teach people to triumph regardless of their circumstances or
mistakes.
Now, from the divine viewpoint, there is a vast
difference between a triumphant life and a successful life. In fact, the Cross
of Calvary was not a success, viewed from the contemporary perspective of the
world, in the time of Jesus. The crucifixion of Jesus Christ looked like a
failure for Jesus and His followers. It appeared to be the end of His mission
and the dissolution of all their high hopes.
“Come down from the cross,” sneered His enemies.
But Jesus knew what the will of God was for Him. He knew that He had come into
the world for this very purpose of dying on the cross for the sins of
mankind. Praise God, neither worldly
sneers nor Satanic strategies could make Him swerve from His father’s will.
Jesus waited for God’s time. The Savior believed
for something better than coming down from the cross. He believed in coming up
from the grave. That was God’s will for Him. Coming up from the grave in God’s
time was a supreme triumph and, praise God, the results have been wonderful!
We are going to examine very quickly five
important issues about the Victorious Christ in the light of portions of the
Scripture we have read.
1. The Reality of Christ’s Victory
Brethren, I am sure you will agree with me that
the triumph of Christian living is necessary
and important because of the victory that was won at Calvary by the one
who prophesied before He was crucified that when He was lifted up from the
earth, He would draw all men to Himself.
The Bible says nearby the Cross of Calvary, there
was a garden tomb where Christ was laid. He had also prophesied that He would
be raised again the third day. It was
Jesus, the Messiah, God’s Eternal Son, who died for our sin, our salvation, and
our redemption, and rose again for our justification. His bodily resurrection
thrills our soul because He lives!
The barriers of sin and death have been bridged
as a result of Jesus’ death on the Cross. And the bridge builder brings His
blessings to all men in the New Way. It is an everlasting bridge which will
never fall or fail. Hallelujah! Brethren,
there is no alternative way to the Heavenly terminus. So let is draw near, for
there will be no toll charge because the way has been opened to the eternal
city for all Christians. Isn’t that wonderful!
2. The Relevance of Christ’s Victory
The triumphant resurrection of Jesus Christ is relevant to all Christians
because the triumph of the Church is based on the finished work of Christ on
the Tree of Calvary. The triumph of the Lord was a constant factor through His
life. He walked in it, and talked in it. In fact there was nothing defeatist
about the Lord when He was in the world. He never said one non-victorious
statement in the whole of His life on earth. And praise God, if He is the
victor, then we too are victors. Hallelujah to His Name!
The Old Testament is full of victory in the Triumphant
God. We see this in different portions of scriptures:
·
“ Shout unto God
with a voice of triumph.” (Psalm 47:1)
·
“I will triumph in
thy praise.” (Psalm 106:47)
·
You know Moses and
Miriam shared in God’s triumph over Pharaoh as they sang: “I will sing unto the Lord for He has
triumphed gloriously.” (Exodus 15:1,21)
·
Now, the plea of
David is always “Let not my enemies triumph over me.” (Psalm 25:2)
You know, all these people were conscious of the
victory they could walk in, but only when they walk in Jesus. So my sister and my brother, if you want to
live in victory, if you want to serve God in victory, you must trust the
victorious Jesus in every area of your life.
3. The Basis of Christ’s Victory
Brethren, the ground of our victory, as we have
said, is set securely in the death and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus
Christ. In Colossians 2:15, we read that Christ triumphed over the enemy
through His death on the Cross. Paul
says: “And having disarmed principalities and powers, he made a public show of
them, triumphing over them in it.”
Brethren, Christ, in His death and resurrection,
stripped away for Himself all the forces of evil that sought to frustrate and
gainsay His mission on the planet. But thank God, in His ascension, He paraded
the forces of evil like a triumphant general for all the heavenlies to see
their nakedness and humiliation.
The victory of Christ on the Cross was that a Man
who was God, died to bring fallen men back to a Holy God. Here was a victory
that all the malice and grudge, all the poison of the enemy was poured out on
the Son of God. All the wrath of God the Almighty was rained and flooded over
the body of Jesus Christ. But thank God, He still conquered victoriously. And
He came out as pure fine flour; as sparkling as pure gold.
When Jesus arose triumphantly from the tomb, He
declared: “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth”. And, “I
am He who lives and was dead, and behold, I am alive forever more. Amen, and I
have the keys of Hades and of death.” Hallelujah, Jesus’ victory was
appropriate in the light of His wonderful ministry of salvation on the Cross of
Calvary. That provides for the basis and foundation of Christ’s victory.
4. The Result of Christ’s Victory
Let us remember that Christ died for us and not
for Himself. Everything He did was done to bring us victory. We need to accept
this, we need to believe it, and begin to live it out.
Brethren, I can understand this truth but it
cannot become a working reality in my life if it is a useless piece of
information. Jesus has given us His Holy Spirit in order that we should do to
Satan what He did to him on the cross. He bruised his head. Yes, Jesus
conquered Satan in a human body like ours. Therefore with His Spirit in us, we
can also conquer Satan in Christ’s glorious name. Jesus has given us an
overcoming victory, that overcomes the world; and this victory is based on our
faith in Him (1 John 5:4).
5. Our Responsibility in Christ’s Victory
Brothers and sisters, there is power to overcome
in the Word of God which is a sharp two-edged sword. The Bible says “The word
is mighty to the pulling down of strongholds.” The whole of God’s Word is
described as a sharp double-edged sword in Hebrew 4:12. And specifically
quickened portions of that word are called the Sword of the Spirit or Rhema in
Ephesians 6. Brethren, whether Rhema or Logos, the word of God is most powerful
when it is declared and faithfully applied.
The spoken Word is a mighty weapon whether it is
spoken in preaching, teaching, prayer, testimony or praise and worship. The
word of God, spoken this way, exerts the authority of God and allows you and me
to be victorious over the enemy. But let me tell you we can only triumph in
Christ if we are at war, because triumph is victory gained over the enemy or
opponent.
The Bible says we are constantly struggling against the
world, the flesh, and the devil. Our involvement in the spiritual battle is not
optional, nor can we become spiritual conscientious objectors or protestors.
The apostle Paul’s statement in Ephesians 6 makes that abundantly clear: “For
we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against
powers of darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the
heavenly places.” Praise the Lord! This is a bold statement. You can experience the
triumph when you take authority, victory, and power of the Resurrected Christ
and use them to defeat the enemy in whatever situation you find yourself.
Praise the Lord!
We should be violent in attack, and wise in strategy.
We must, in effect, enter into Christ’s experience of victory at Calvary, and
that means death to ourselves in order that the power of the victory can work
in us and through us. Hallelujah. Victory is possible, brethren, in every
situation, because the Victor is with us everyday, everywhere.
By Pastor Dan Agbeteye
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Text: John 19:30 When Jesus therefore had received the
vinegar, He said it is finished: and He bowed His head, and gave up the ghost.
Napoleon Bonaparte could not say,
I have finished, because he met his Waterloo.
But Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, was able to say it is
Finished.
He is the only person who was
able to say It is Finished.
The Apostle John who wrote the
Gospel of John was a witness to Christ’s Suffering, death and
Resurrection. He worked with Jesus when
the Word became Flesh. Remember when
Christ was suffering he was close to Him.
That made Christ to say, “WOMAN BEHOLD THY SON”, and to the disciple
“BEHOLD THY MOTHER”. (John 19:26-27).
In the book of John, this beloved
Apostle portrayed Jesus 21 times.
·
In Chapter 1 he portrayed Him as the SON OF GOD.
·
In chapter 2 he portrayed Him as the Son of Man.
·
In chapter 3 he portrayed Him as the DIVINE TEACHER.
·
In chapter 4 he portrayed Him as the SOUL WINNER.
·
In chapter 5 he portrayed Him as the GREAT PHYSICIAN.
·
In chapter 6 he portrayed him as the BREAD OF LIFE.
·
In chapter 7 he portrayed Him as the WATER OF LIFE.
·
In chapter 8 he portrayed Him as the DEFENDER OF THE
WEAK.
·
In chapter 9 he portrayed Him as the LIGHT OF THE
WORLD.
·
In chapter 10 he portrayed him as the GOOD SHEPHERD.
·
In chapter 11 he portrayed Him as the RESURRECTION AND
LIFE.
·
In chapter 12 he portrayed Him as the KING.
·
In chapter 13 he portrayed Him as a SERVANT.
·
In chapter 14 he portrayed Him THE CONSOLER.
·
In chapter 15 he portrayed Him as the TRUE VINE.
·
In chapter 16 he portrayed him as the GIVER OF THE HOLY
SPIRIT.
·
In chapter 17 he portrayed Him as the GREAT
INTERCESSOR.
·
In chapter 18 he portrayed Him as the MODEL SUFFERER.
·
In chapter 19 he portrayed Him as the UPLIFTED SAVIOR.
·
In chapter 20 he portrayed Him as the VICTOR OVER
DEATH.
·
In chapter 21 he portrayed Him as the RESOTRER OF THE
PENITENT (He welcomed wandering Peter back to the Fold).
Now because we are talking about “VICTORY”, you cannot be
a victorious person without passing through three (3) stages of
COMMITMENTS. Jesus passed through these
stages before He won that victory.
1. He
passed through the Stage of SERIOUSNESS.
When he was working for Redemption and Salvation Jesus was really
Serious; so He said “I must work the works of Him that sent me, while it is
day; the night cometh, when no man can work” (John 9:4). Because of the Seriousness about His work,
He said, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the
Son of Man hath not where to lay his head” (Matt. 8:20).
2. He
passed through the Stage of SACRIFICE. He sacrificed His kingship, His Kingdom
and His Glory and became Victorious for mankind. So the Apostle Paul said, “For ye know the grace for our Lord
Jesus Christ that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor….” (2
Cor 8:9) Jesus really sacrificed every
thing of His, for our sake.
3. He
passed through the Stage of Suffering.
Isaiah 50 speaks about His
Suffering. “I gave my back to the
smitters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair; I hid not my face
from shame and spitting.” Beloved there
are three sufferings which Jesus went through that no man has ever gone
through. They STRIPPED HIM of His clothes.
(John 19:23) They SPAT on HIM.
(Matt. 27:30) They SCOURGED HIM. (John 10:1 & 3)
Before somebody is awarded
with a University degree and declared victorious, he goes through seriousness,
sacrifice and suffering. Christ is
right to say “It is Finished”. Because
He went through these stages. Beloved,
I want to tell you that there is another three things that the Victory of
Christ has done for us.
1. His
VICTORY HAS CONFOUNDED THE POWER OF SATAN:
To be confounded means to
be perplexed or confused. Christ’s
Victory over death confounded the devil.
The devil never thought he will ever be confounded but my Lord’s victory
did it. The devil cannot harm you for
Christ has confounded Him.
2. HIS
VICTORY HAS CONFISCATED THE POWER OF SATAN:
The power Satan has been
exercising over us for centuries was confiscated on that Easter Friday some
2000 years ago. It was revealed to
Apostle Paul and he said “… Death is swallowed up in victory. O’ death, where is thy sting?, Oh grave,
where is thy victory…. But thanks be to God which giveth us the Victory through
Our Lord Jesus Christ”.(1 Cor 15:57)
Finally, Apostle Paul declared, “And having spoiled principalities
and Powers, he made a show of them
openly, triumphing over them in it” (Col. 2:3).
3. HIS
VICTORY HAS COMFORTED ALL SAINTS.
We are comforted, are
satisfied, due to His victory. Our
Salvation has been secured. Oh my
beloved Saints, we are comforted. We
shall not lack any good thing, because of His Victory.
The “It is Finished”, that
He said on the Cross means:
a. Jesus
took our CANTANKEROUS LIFE and gave HUMBLE LIFE
b. Jesus
took our CONTAMINATED LIFE and gave A HOLY LIFE.
c. Jesus
took our Place on the cross and gave us HEAVEN.
Let us Celebrate Christ’s
Victory today, because that victory I am talking about this morning:
1. IS
A UNIQUE VICTORY. Nobody under the sun has ever won such a victory.
2. IS
A UNIVERSAL VICTORY. ALL OVER THE world
today, people are celebrating this victory.
3. IS
AN UNCHANGEABLE VICTORY.
·
Nobody can change this victory
·
Personalities in this world cannot change it.
·
Politicians cannot change it.
·
Powers of the darkness cannot change it
·
Principalities cannot change it.
I wish you well, May you be
Victorious in everything. For Christ
has won the Victory already, Amen!.