Three-fold reason for proclaiming the Lord's death

 The reason why Jesus Christ Jesus Christ took on flesh and suffered and died for humanity is three-folds:

1. Love

Jesus Christ did all that to demonstrate His love for us by paying whatever penalties we normally would have to pay, for we have been duly instructed saying; “For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6-8).

2. To heal

The second important reason why Jesus Christ had to suffer all these things was for our healing because as clearly demonstrated in scriptures stating; “And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people. Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them” (Matthew 4:23-24).

3. To forgive

The third important reason why Jesus Christ came in the flesh and suffered all these things in our stead is for our forgiveness. It is imperative to note that, forgiveness is derived only by the shedding of blood.

For we have been duly instructed saying; “And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission” (Hebrews 9:22).

In Him (Jesus Christ) we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence” (Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:14).

I therefore beg to ask the question, since the main reason why Jesus Christ took on flesh is to love, heal and forgive why are the majority of us who profess to believe in Jesus Christ do not trust, have faith and rely on His healing powers? Why have we placed so much faith in the wisdom of men when the option or the choice is made absolutely clear which states; “that our faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God” (1Corinthians 2:5).

The crux of the matter is, the ability or capability which man has to treat and deal with sicknesses and diseases comes from man’s wisdom which was attained from eating of the fruit of knowledge of good and evil.

The moment Eve and Adam partook of the fruit of the knowledge of god and evil which the Lord forbade them to partake of the Lord said; “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever" ---therefore the LORD God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken” (Genesis 3:22-23).

Man has the capability to do whatever he sets his mind to do even though it ultimately leads to death because; “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Proverbs 14:12; 16:25).

From the very inception of man’s existence the LORD said, "Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them” (Genesis 11:6).

Today, knowledge has definitely been increased with people  travelling as never before and has the capability of understanding one another/s language as never before and therefore, what is being promulgated and presented to humanity as science and the method of treating sicknesses and diseases is not from God but it is from the wisdom of men.

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With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

The benefits in commemorating the Lord's death

It is imperative that we who profess to be believers in Jesus Christ demonstrate our faith with positive action for example:

If we claim to believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior who came to love, heal and forgive us and we are willing to proclaim His death until He comes, I think that we should imitate the example of King David who wrote; 

; “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 lovingkindness and tender mercies, Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle's” (Psalms 103: 1-5).

And so, I beg to ask the question, why are we so assured and positive that the Lord loves and forgives us but do not express and demonstrate that same level of faith, trust and confidence in the healing power of God?

Especially since we have the ultimatum which states; “that our faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God” (1Corinthians 2:5).

One common mistake which the majority of believers fall victim to is that of associating the wisdom of men with the power of God. For this is what the Lord in no uncertain terms said; “I am the LORD, that is My name; And My glory I will not give to another, nor My praise to carved images...For My own sake, for My own sake, I will do it; For how should My name be profaned? And I will not give My glory to another” (Isaiah 42:8; 48:11).

The Lord does not share His glory with machines, robots, vaccines and medicinal drugs, healing in real perspective comes as a result of, intercession, repentance, prayer, faith and in God’s word.

A typical example was that of a noble man whose son was sick. When he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to Him and implored Him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. Then Jesus said to him, "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe." The nobleman said to Him, "Sir, come down before my child dies!" Jesus said to him, "Go your way; your son lives." So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way.

And as he was now going down, his servants met him and told him, saying, "Your son lives!" Then he inquired of them the hour when he got better. And they said to him, "Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him." So the father knew that it was at the same hour in which Jesus said to him, "Your son lives." And he himself believed, and his whole household” (John 4: 46-53).

Now the same power and authority which Jesus Christ used to heal the sick son of the noble man has been administered to the disciples of Jesus Christ because, in in dispatching His disciples Jesus Christ commanded them saying; “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give” (Mathew 10:5-8).

There is no shadow of doubt that Jesus Christ has empowered His disciples with the power to heal the sick for it is clearly stated that; “He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick” (Luke 9:1-2).

The reasons why Jesus Christ the Beloved Son of God took on flesh, experienced life like any other human being, suffered and paid for the wages of sin which is death in man’s stead, left us His flesh to eat and His blood to drink thus commemorating His death until He comes is three-folds.

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To be continued

Lucius Joseph

 

The benefits in proclaiming the Lord's death

 And so let us with an open mind focus our attention now on the rationale and benefits for partaking of the bread and proclaiming the Lord’s death.

In the book of Psalms King David wrote; “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 lovingkindness and tender mercies, Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle's” (Psalms 103:1-5).

As one can clearly see the benefits of the death of Jesus Christ is not only to express His love for mankind and forgive our iniquities which is made feasible though the cup of the New Covenant but it is also for healing all our diseases, redeeming our life from destruction which is made possible through partaking of the bread which represents the broken body of Jesus Christ.

I therefore beg to ask the question, since Jesus Christ was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed, why are so many of us who profess to be believers in Jesus Christ are so weak and sick and some have also perished?

Why should someone pay for a debt that has already been paid in full? The reason for that is quite obvious which is, either being ignorant of the fact that the debt has been paid and how to claim it or, not having faith and confidence in the manner in which the debt ought to be settled.

Because the same way no one can say that, I have no sin or, I have not sinned and therefore require the blood of Jesus in the form of the wine to be cleansed from sin, in like manner, no one can say that I have no sickness or will never be sick.

But there is a reason why many of us who profess to be believers in Jesus Christ are weak and sick and some are even dead and therefore, we should take time to examine ourselves as we have been duly instructed saying;

“Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep” (1Corinthians 11:27-30).

In addition to this if peradventure a believer who esteems the sacrificial body of Christ is sick the instructions are stated as follows; “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much” (James 5:13-16).

One thing we as believers should always bear in mind is the fact that, faith is the key to our success in our Christian journey because, it is clearly stated, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6).

In the same token, we must also bear in mind the instructions which states; “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?”

“You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe --- and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?” (James 2:14; 19-20).

Therefore, it is imperative that we who profess to be believers in Jesus Christ demonstrate our faith with positive action. For example:

If we claim to believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior who came to love, heal and forgive us and we are willing to proclaim His death until He comes, here is an example of how we should go about doing it.

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To be continued

Lucius Joseph

The rationale for proclaiming the Lord's death

One should also bear in mind of the fact that,” If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness: If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us” (1John 1:8-10).

One has to conclude therefore that, since no one can say that I have no sin, or I have not sinned and God in no way will coexist with sin therefore, in order for anyone to have fellowship with the Father sins must first have to be confessed for which the Father is faithful and just to forgive but there must also be cleansing, and there is only one established way by which sins can be cleansed.

What I perceived is that, we are taking too lightly the profound, destructive effective wages of sin which is death. The shedding of blood is the only means by which the wages of sin can be paid for.

It is imperative therefore that we do not under estimate the rationale for the Cup of the New Covenant which the Lord established on the night before He was led to be crucified when He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to His disciples, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins” (Matthew 26:27-28).

The only assurance of having a continuous relationship and fellowship with the Father is through the Cup of the New Covenant because; it is only through the blood that our sins are forgiven and cleansed in order to have fellowship with the Father.

Let us confirm this very important aspect of our spiritual life which unfortunately has eluded the minds of so many people to their own detriment.

It is clearly stated in scripture the following; “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul” (Leviticus 17:11).

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:23-26).

Please note carefully that propitiation which is to appease the wrath of God or to be reconciled to God is feasible or made possible only through the blood of Jesus Christ; For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

For, “in Him (Jesus Christ) we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace, which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence.” It is also stated quite clearly that; and according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission” (Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:14; 20; Hebrews 9:22).

So far I have been focusing on the rationale and benefits of the blood which is for our redemption, cleansing and forgiveness but we must also bear in mind of the fact that the rationale for the bruised body and shed blood of Jesus Christ was to love, heal and forgive.

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To be continued

Lucius Joseph

The rationale for proclaiming the Lords death

What is of humongous benefit to all believers is that of proclaiming the Lord’s death till He comes. But what is the rationale and benefits of proclaiming the Lord’s death?

The word proclaims is to, announce, declare, and promulgate. But please note carefully that this proclamation is centered on the Lord’s death and therefore, stresses on the rationale and objective, the purpose and benefits for the death of Jesus Christ.

So then, what is the main objective of Christ’s death? The main purpose of Christ’s death is stated as follows; “Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted.

 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:4-6),

So the main objective for the death of Jesus Christ is three-folds which is to express His loving kindness towards humanity, His healing powers and His forgiving mercies in order that we can have fellowship with the Father and the Son and with one another since the wages of sin is death and the Father has absolutely no fellowship with sin (darkness).

For; “If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness (sin), we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1John 1:6-7).

And so, the main objective for proclaiming the Lords death which is symbolic of partaking of the bread and drinking the wine is to cleanse us of our sins so that we can have fellowship with the Father and the Son and with one another.

And so it is imperative to note that, proclaiming the Lord’s death by partaking of the bread and wine which represents His flesh and blood is the pre-requisite for having fellowship with the Father and Son and with one another.

One must also consider the fact that, true Christian fellowship should always include the Father and the Son for this is what we have been admonished saying; “that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ” (1John 1:3).

The apostle Paul alluded to this pre-requisite for true spiritual worship by admonishing us saying; “Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry. I speak as to wise men; judge for yourselves what I say. The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion (fellowship) of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion (fellowship) of the body of Christ? For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread” (1Corinthians 10:14-17).

I should also make mention at this juncture that, proclaiming the Lord’s death is the main objective for having a Sabbath worship service. For we have been duly instructed saying; “'These are the feasts of the LORD which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire to the LORD, a burnt offering and a grain offering, a sacrifice and drink offerings, everything on its day ---besides the Sabbaths of the LORD, besides your gifts, besides all your vows, and besides all your freewill offerings which you give to the LORD” (Leviticus 23:37-38).

Therefore, proclaiming the Lord’s death by partaking of the bread and wine is the main reason for having a holy convocation and it is besides or in addition to observing the Sabbaths, and whatever gifts, vows, or freewill offerings one would like to offer to the Lord.

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To be continued 

Lucius Joseph

 

Proclaiming the Lord's death

 

Proclaiming the Lord’s death

With reference to the institution of the New Covenant which the apostle Paul said that he received from the Lord he made a very clear, interesting and profound statement by saying; “For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes” (1Corinthians 11:26).

Unfortunately however, the majority of professing believers have not been able to grasp the profoundness and magnitude of this statement which reminds me of a statement made by the apostle Paul which reads; “They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient, and disqualified for every good work” (Titus 1:16).

Although it is categorically stated;, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

Nevertheless, we have also been instructed saying; “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:9-10).

We need also to remind ourselves of the fact that, in the final analysis the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works” (Matthew 16:27).

 Even at the great white throne judgment when the sea, death and the grave will give up the dead who were in them, they also will be judge each one according to their works (Revelation 20:13).

Therefore, works are extremely important even when we claim to have faith, for this is what we have been instructed saying; “But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?...For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also” (James 2: 20, 26).

Since we have been duly instructed to proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes my humble question is, are we proclaiming it? And if we do, how and how often do we do it and what is the rationale or significance for doing it?

The how to proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes should not be difficult for anyone to know and understand because it is stated clearly that it is by eating the bread and drinking the wine which represents the body and blood of Jesus Christ that we proclaim His death.

How often has become very controversial among different sects and denominations which should not be because, the Lord has ordained specific times for His people to offer to Him the food for His offerings and this is what He says: “Command the children of Israel, and say to them, 'My offering, My food for My offerings made by fire as a sweet aroma to Me, you shall be careful to offer to Me at their appointed time” (Numbers 28:2).

This sweet smelling aroma which we are to be careful to offer to the Lord at their appointed time in our New Testament dispensation is the body and blood of Jesus Christ and so, we have been duly admonished saying; “Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma (Ephesians 5:1-2).

We should also take into consideration the fact that, as believers we are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that we may proclaim the praises of Him who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light; and our main duty as a chosen generation, a royal priesthood a holy nation and God’s chosen people is to offer to the Lord the food for His offerings at their appointed time. Because the most important criterion of this important group of people is that; “They shall be holy to their God and not profane the name of their God, for they offer the offerings of the LORD made by fire (zeal), and the bread of their God; therefore they shall be holy” (Leviticus 21:6).

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With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

To be continued