Tuesday 3 May 2016

THERE IS A PATH(VI)


Text: Romans 6:6

“Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin”. KJV
In the book of Romans chapter 6 you will find 3 types of knowing. Verse 6 is intellectual knowing. You need to be educated because this event has taken place. Jesus by an act of His authority crucified the old man when you were included with Him on the cross. You were substituted. He was your substitute. It was something He did that becomes effective in your life when you connect with that cross by faith. The old man loses his authority to give you direction. The effect of that crucifixion begins to break in on your inside – and the spirit life, the spirit voice, the spirit power begins to knock harder.

Then when you are faced with the same temptations that Adam was faced with in the Garden of Eden, what will you choose? When you ignore the voice of the soul and embrace life, life may not be as intelligent as the voice of the soul; the voice of the soul comes with graphs, charts and maps. It comes with Blackberry pinging and whatsapp messages. But the voice of the Spirit is gentle and it is not cohesive. It doesn’t force. It is the voice of a King; the voice of a loving God.

There were many things Jesus could have been – a tyrant, a killer but He decided to be a God of love that will stretch forth His hands and bring salvation to all people. It is that God that we serve. Not a God that mutilates and kills and sheds blood. So choose Jesus. And as He rises up within your heart to point the path of spiritual progress; when He says, ’Fast’ He is pointing a path. Will you yield? Everything depends on your obedience.

Now that the cross as put an end to the old man; yes the old man is still there trying to speak from the grave. But the new man is trying to seek a place where he can have authority with you but you will make a choice of what will rule you. Hence, the first law of the spirit realm; whatsoever you yield yourself as servants to obey, servants of the same you shall become.

If you decide to turn away from light and to embrace darkness; you will be dark and your darkness will be blackness. If you choose to face mammon and you make the God of breakthrough your God, mammon will possess your soul. Until you come to a point where the only thing you can think about is gain and money and your estimation of progress and spirituality will be on how much money you have gotten today. And that is why we have many Christians that leaped out of the path of spiritual progress and embraced mammon for so many years. They experience dryness of soul and hunger of spirit because mammon doesn’t come alone. He comes with a veil to cover your eyes and keep you perpetually in bondage. But somebody needs to say today, I WILL ARISE!

We need to make a choice that will open up the vistas of the kingdom. That was how men like John became valiant in the kingdom of God when the Spirit began to beckon upon them. God is willing to open a path for you, but the extent to which you will go is dependent on how much of obedience you subscribe to. He says come up hither and I will show you things that will take place hereafter.

You know you are not used to the spirit life. You will always fall to that terrain that you have used. You trust your mind; you trust your analysis much more than the voice of the Holy Spirit. BUT THE HOLY SPIRIT LURKS IN YOUR HEART. IF YOU CAN GIVE HIM HALF A CHANCE, HE WILL GROW AND BECOME SO ENLARGED THAT YOUR EYES WILL BECOME BLIND TO EVERY OTHER THING EXCEPT HIM.

You say you want to conquer sin, how much have you turned to Christ? If you turn to Christ and make your body a slave of righteousness –‘that I will only do His will, I will always do right. I was bought with a price. It means I am His property. I cannot do what He will not permit me to do with my body. I am going to stick with Him even though heaven falls, I will stick with Him. Even though hell rages, I will stick with Him’. It is a radical decision. That is why the Bible says, “That the laws were changed from the time of John the Baptist until now”, it will be by radical violence that you will embrace the kingdom of God and every charlatan; every slow paced personality does not have a place when it comes to fighting for the enthronement of spirit life. It will be and must be by war!

You cannot become a successful Christian without being a radical. You will have to fight and rebel against sickness. You will have to fight and rebel against that which wants you to disobey God. You must come to that point where even though they call you names, your story will be that, ‘I am going to walk this path for all my lifetime until the devil becomes convinced that he has lost me’. That is when the grain has fallen to the ground and died. Even the devil himself had lost hope..

May that be our testimony in Jesus' name