In
as much as Jesus Christ has taken away our sins and sorrows and made them His
very own, even bore the burdens on Calvary suffered and died alone. we should
all be able to confidently say, “Bless the LORD, O my soul; And all that is within
me, bless His holy name! Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His
benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, Who
redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with loving-kindness and
tender mercies, Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth
is renewed like the eagle's” (Psalms 103:1-5).
Unfortunately,
not too many of us are reaping these benefits because, our knowledge and
understanding of Jesus Christ which we all claim to know and believe is very
limited. To most people, our knowledge of Jesus Christ can be compared to the
limited amount of knowledge and understanding we have of the digital gadgets we
have in our possessions such as the smart phones, laptops, smart televisions.
I am sure that the majority of us can attest
to the fact that these devices contain more apps and features that we are not aware
of and cannot operate, than those we know about and are able to operate
successfully. So it is with our knowledge
and understanding of Jesus Christ, who possesses more features than that of a
digital gadget and his accomplishments more profound than that of any software.
But the good news however is, while the natural man does not receive the things
of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them,
because they are spiritually discerned. Those who are spiritually minded are
able to understand and judge all things, because they have the mind of Christ.
Therefore,
it is imperative that we all have the mind of Christ as we have been duly
instructed saying; “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who,
being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but
made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in
the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself
and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians
2; 5-8).
Having
established this essential aspect of who Jesus Christ is, let us now extend our
focus on the heart and core of the gospel which is the grace of Jesus Christ
and Him crucified. But the irony of truth is, despite the simplicity of the
gospel, it is very profound and only those with a spiritual mind are able to
comprehend it because, the natural man does not receive the things of the
Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because
they are spiritually discerned.
Unfortunately,
since the inception of the church, during the time of the apostle Paul many
people expressed a zeal for God but without knowledge, because this is what the
apostle Paul wrote; “For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but
not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and
seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the
righteousness of God: For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to
everyone who believes” (Romans 10:2-4).
Here
is one of the major reasons why there are so many divisions and confusions in
the body of Christ, the ignorance of God´s righteousness and how to submit to
the righteousness of God. It is therefore imperative that we first and foremost
establish what God´s righteousness is and how do we submit to it because, there
is a huge price to pay for being lack of knowledge as eluded by the prophet
Hosea who wrote, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you
have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me;
because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your
children” (Hosea 4:6).
I
think it is important to note also that believers are a chosen generation, a
royal priesthood, a holy nation, God´s own special people and have been made kings
and priests to our God to rule with Jesus Christ. Therefore, there is a heavy
price to pay for being ignorant of God´s righteousness.
To
be continued
With brotherly love
Lucius Joseph
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