REALITIES IN Scriptures

Friend, God's plan and purpose for your life are written in a book that is sealed (closed). This book is called the Bible (Isaiah 29:11-12). It is closed so that one who reads it cannot understand it. Mark 4:12 says, "That seeing they may see, and not perceive, and hearing they may hear, and not understand." Why? Because "their minds were blinded," and there is a veil over their hearts they cannot understand what the Word of God is saying concerning their life (2 Corinthians 3:14).

They read it, but all they see are parables. Yet, hidden in those stories are the plans of God for their life. So, they go on miserable in life. Now, wait a minute, that's not the case with you and me! "But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost"—unbelievers (2 Corinthians 4:3). Mark 4:11 says, "Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables."

The 'you' there talks about the believer, and those 'without' are the unbelievers. When you got born again, the veil was taken off your heart (2 Corinthians 3:16). This book is open unto you! You have access to God's plans and purposes for your life. Now, not only is the book open unto you, but you have the Author of the book inside of you to guide you along the pages!

The Spirit of God was given to you to know the mysteries behind those parables because the Spirit of God knows the mind of God, which is the Word of God (1 Corinthians 2:11-12).

Friend, this book called the Bible is open unto you. Believe that and ask the Spirit of God to guide you through the pages. I see you accessing God's plan for your life!

• Min. Roi

Friend, some scriptures may never be clear to you unless you understand certain concepts in them. One such concept is the reality of loins.

Paul said, "By one man, sin entered into the world, and death (spiritual death) by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for all have sinned" (Rom 5:12). "For the wages of sin is death" (Rom 6:23). We often say, "Don't take paracetamol for another man's headache," but that was what happened in Romans 5:12.

Are we the ones that sinned? It is clear that only Adam and Eve ate the fruit (Gen 3), yet Paul blamed us and said, "For all have sinned," so death passed upon all men. "Sin is the transgression of the law" (1 John 3:4), but "until the law (came through Moses), sin was already in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law" (Rom 5:13). That is, before Moses even brought the Ten Commandments so that we could sin and die by our own deeds, scripture says sin was already in the world. So "death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression..." (Rom 5:14).

Imagine that! What we did not do, one man's problem, without consulting us or hearing our views, we just died for free. Like Adam, we were thrown out of the presence of God, out of the garden. We passed from life unto death and were translated from the kingdom of God to the kingdom of Satan. 

Therefore, turning each of us into a "child of disobedience" (Eph 2:1-3), under the rule of Satan (Matt 4:8-9), Jesus came and said the same thing: "Ye are of your father the devil" (John 8:44).

We were born into this world innocent; we were not there when Adam sinned, nor did we encourage him. It was Satan. Yet the verdict from heaven says, "All have sinned." Destined for hell when we didn't do it. Condemned without a cause. Ordained for hell without pardon for what we did not do.

Friend, that’s reality. Have you not heard? "Levi also, who receiveth tithes, paid tithes in Abraham"—though Levi was not yet born—while Abraham paid tithes, "for he was yet in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him" (Heb 7:9-10). So, there is a reality of loins. Levi was accused of paying tithes before he was born, all because he was in the loins of his father.

Similarly, we were in the loins of Adam. No wonder they did not consult us—they simply said, "All have sinned." But the good news is that "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive" (1 Cor 15:22).

In the same way we were not consulted and ordained for hell because of the reality of loins, so we will not be consulted for our righteousness and our entry into heaven because we were and are in the loins of Christ, being born again. Romans 5:19 says, "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous."

Friends, this is the reality of loins. Remain blessed. Jesus is Lord!

• Min. Roi

The Bible says that God created ALL things by Jesus Christ—things in heaven and in earth, visible and invisible. All things were created by Him (Colossians 1:16, Hebrews 1:2), and in Hebrews 11:2, we find that the Word of God was the principal tool for the creation of those things (Genesis 1-2).

In Genesis 1-2, we see how God created all the things on Earth. However, there was another creature that was not created in Genesis 1-2. It was ordained in the beginning but created after the events in Genesis 1-2.

This creature is a kind that has never been seen before—a new kind of people that the world had not known. 2 Corinthians 5:17 reveals this truth: "Therefore if any man be in Christ, HE IS A NEW CREATURE..." meaning he is a creature unlike any other seen before.

Hebrews 11:2 tells us that the Word of God framed the world, and in 1 Peter 1:23, we see the Word of God as a tool for the creation of this new creature. It says, "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God..." We also read, "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works" (Ephesians 2:10). Therefore, every believer is a new creation, a masterpiece of God, one that has never existed before.

Ephesians 2:15 says, "For to make (create) in Himself of twain ONE NEW MAN..." meaning that Christ created out of the two kinds of people in the world—the Jews and the Gentiles—One New Man, one that is neither Jew nor Gentile. But more on this as we continue.

Friend, there is a creature that was ordained in the beginning but not created in the beginning. This creature is called the New Man, which is why 2 Corinthians 5:17 says concerning this New Man that ALL things have become new!

• Min. Roi

Back in those days, there were two kinds of people on the earth: the Jews and the Gentiles. The Jews were God's people, living under the law and close to God. Every other nation that was non-Jewish was considered Gentile.

The Jews were formed when God called Abraham to leave his country, his kindred, and his people to become a great nation (Genesis 12:1-3). As a result, Abraham became a sojourner on the earth until the nation of Israel was formed.

So, the two types of people on the earth were the Jews and the Gentiles (non-Jews).

Friend, there is now a new set of people that are neither Jews nor Gentiles. In John 17:20-21, when Jesus was praying for His disciples (who were Jews), He said, "Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word," referring to the Gentiles, because the Gentiles received the Gospel when Peter preached to them (Acts 10:30-48).

Then Jesus continued, saying, "That they all—the Jews and the Gentiles—may be one." In Ephesians 2:14-15, the same idea is repeated: "Who hath made both (Jews and Gentiles) one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us... for to make in himself of twain (Jews and Gentiles) one new man."

In Revelation 5:9, we also see this unity, where it is said, "For thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation." Jesus took us out of the Jewish community and the Gentile nations to become "fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God" (Ephesians 2:19).

No wonder Paul said, "There is neither Jew nor Greek, bond nor free, male nor female, for we are all one in Christ" (Galatians 3:28). Peter also affirms this by saying, "Ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people" (1 Peter 2:9).

Friend, we have been called into one new nation. We are no longer Jews or Gentiles. We are a set of people the world has never seen before. We are of the Kingdom!

• Min. Roi

The child of a goat is a goat, and the child of a man is a man. It's simple—everything reproduces after its kind! To create a man, you need the DNA of a man. Nothing reproduces without depositing something from itself. Genesis 1:26 says, "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." The word 'likeness' here means 'after His kind.' But to reproduce after His kind, God had to deposit something of Himself into man. That deposit is what we call eternal life! Adam lost this life and was reduced from the God-kind.

When Jesus came, He said, "I am come that ye might have life"—this life is Zoe, the God-kind of life. "This is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life" (1 John 5:11-12). This life, which we carry in our spirit, is what makes us the God-kind. No other creature on earth was created in the image of God—not even the angels, because they were not made after the God-kind. But we, by virtue of this life, have been "made so much better than the angels" (Hebrews 1:4).

Friend, if you are born again, you are of the God-kind. Anything without Christ is not in the same class as you. Don’t belittle yourself! For with ordinary men, things may seem impossible, but with the God-kind, all things are possible.

• Min. Roi

On a certain day, Jesus sat and observed people as they cast their offerings into the treasury. He noted that the rich cast in from their abundance, but to everyone's surprise, He said the widow who gave half a cent "cast in more" (Mark 12:41-44). You see, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He hasn’t changed, and He is not planning to. He still observes the offerings we bring—watching to see who truly "casts in more."

Friend, God is not mocked; whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. The worth of a seed in heaven is not measured by its amount, but by its cost! Someone once said, "Whatever does not cost you may never pay you." How much you "cast in" during your Christian journey determines your reward. Those who sow in tears will reap in joy. Romans 12:1 tells us to present our bodies as a living sacrifice. The Bible says that Simon Peter "forsook all and followed Him" (Luke 5:3-11). So, ask yourself, what has your following of Jesus cost you? How much have you cast in? Jesus said the greatest among us will be the servant of all, for he would have cast in more than anyone else.

Paul the Apostle lived a life of greatness because he cast in more than others, declaring, "I laboured more abundantly than they all" (1 Corinthians 15:10). Someone also said, "Foolish men think of luck, but wise men think of cost and effect." Friend, the offering that moves heaven is the one that costs you something! A Christian journey without sacrifice will make you an ordinary believer. Jesus is still watching—"cast in more" today.

• Min. Roi

Man is not a sovereign being; he must be joined to a spiritual source to exist. After the fall, man passed from life to death, disconnected from God and yoked with the devil. He came under the rule of the prince of this world, living according to the lusts of the flesh (Ephesians 2:2-3). But when you were born again, you passed from death to life. You moved from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of God. You were "translated" into another realm (Colossians 1:13).

The Spirit of God made you alive, and the anointing of God destroyed the yoke (link, connection) between you and the devil (Isaiah 10:27). You were translated into the kingdom of God, far above principalities and powers (Ephesians 1:20-21). Your citizenship is in heaven (Philippians 3:20). You are no longer under the power of darkness; you have been translated.

All things in you are of God (2 Corinthians 5:18). You are not part Satan and part God—everything about you is of God. Lust is of the world; it is not in you. Evil spirits are of the world; they are not in you. Friends, you have been translated. You belong to the kingdom of heaven. You are not wishing to go to heaven; you are from heaven. Everything about you is of God. Believe it—you have been TRANSLATED!

• Min. Roi

In the beginning, after man sinned, the human race became enemies of God and were described as "children of wrath" (Ephesians 2:3). Instead of receiving blessings, we were cursed; we transitioned from eternal life to death. We were placed under the government of the kingdom of darkness, ruled by wicked spirits in high places (Ephesians 6:12), and were destined for hell because we were "children of disobedience" (Ephesians 2:2).

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love for us, "reconciled us unto Himself by Jesus Christ" (Ephesians 2:4; 2 Corinthians 5:18) and "made peace with us through the blood" (Colossians 1:20). He "blotted out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, nailing it to the cross" (Colossians 2:14) and provided us "redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness of sins" (Colossians 1:14). He "delivered us from the power of darkness and has translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son" (Colossians 1:13), placing us "far above all principality and power and might and dominion" (Ephesians 1:21), which previously tormented us.

So, being "saved through faith" (Ephesians 2:8), we have "passed from death unto life" (1 John 3:14). We are "born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which lives and abides forever" (1 Peter 1:23). "Beloved, now are we the sons of God" (1 John 3:2), "created in Christ Jesus unto good works" (Ephesians 2:10), "made so much better than the angels" (Hebrews 1:4), and have become "partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light" (Colossians 1:12). Friends, this is "MY GOSPEL OF PEACE." 

When Jesus returned from His journey in hell, having "spoiled principalities and powers" (Colossians 2:15) and obtained eternal redemption for us by His blood in heaven (Hebrews 9:24-26), the first thing He said when He appeared to His disciples was, "Peace be unto you" (John 20:19). This implied that the war was over and the strife between God and man because of sin was ended.

Friend, the war is over! We have been reconciled back to God. "Peace be unto you."

• Min. Roi