What is the significance of the soul?

 

What is the significance of the Soul?

Since the soul and the spirit are mysteriously linked together and forms the heart, which is central to all our emotions and will, it is considered to be the new man in the spirit, and its significance is to:-

a. Keep and sustain it

This we do by taking heed to ourselves, and diligently keep ourselves, lest we forget the things our eyes have seen, and lest they depart from our hearts all the days of our lives, and we should teach them to our children and our grandchildren. We also are to "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" (Deuteronomy 4:9; Psalms 103:1-2).

b. Seek the Lord

For we have been admonished saying; "You will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul" (Deuteronomy 4:29).

Also, with my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You" (Psalms 119:10-11).

c. Love the Lord

For the admonition is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, with our entire mind and with all our strength.' This is the first commandment." And the way the love of God is expressed is by obeying Hs commandments, for thus says the Lord, "For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments" (Deuteronomy 5:9-10, 6:5, Mark 12:30).

The Lord said again, "Oh, that they had such a heart in them that they would fear Me and always keep all My commandments, that it might be well with them and with their children forever!" And Jesus said, "If you love Me, keep My commandments" (Deuteronomy 5: 29; John 14:15).

d. Serve the Lord

For this what the Lord said to His people, "And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the Lord and His statutes which I command you today for your good?" (Deuteronomy 10:12).

And as we have been duly instructed saying;" And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ" (Colossians 3:23-24).

e. Store God's word

For the Lord instructed His people saying; "Therefore you shall lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall teach them to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up" (Deuteronomy 10:18-19).

f. Keep God's law

To those who are special to God this is what He says; "this day the Lord your God commands you to observe these statutes and judgments; therefore you shall be careful to observe them with all your heart and with all your soul.'

"Today you have proclaimed the Lord to be your God, and that you will walk in His ways and keep His statutes, His commandments, and His judgments, and that you will obey His voice. Also today the Lord has proclaimed you to be His special people, just as He promised you, that you should keep all His commandments, and that He will set you high above all nations which He has made, in praise, in name, and in honor, and that you may be a holy people to the Lord your God, just as He has spoken" (Deuteronomy 26: 16-19).

g. Obey God

For this is what the Lord promised those who returns to Him, "And you return to the Lord your God and obey His voice, according to all that I command you today, you and your children, with all your heart and with all your soul, that the Lord your God will bring you back from captivity, and have compassion on you, and gather you again from all the nations where the Lord your God has scattered you.---And the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live".

"The Lord your God will make you abounds in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your body, in the increase of your livestock, and in the produce of your land for good. For the Lord will again rejoice over you for good as He rejoiced over your fathers, if you obey the voice of the Lord your God, to keep His commandments and His statutes which are written in this Book of the Law, and if you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul" (Deuteronomy 30:2, 6, 10).

h. Get Wisdom

There is security in wisdom, and one is advised to, "Get wisdom! Understand! Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth. Do not forsake her, and she will preserve you; Love her, and she will keep you. Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding. Exalt her, and she will promote you; She will bring you honor, when you embrace her. She will place on your head an ornament of grace; a crown of glory she will deliver to you." And, "He who gets wisdom loves his own soul" (Proverbs 4: 5-9, 19:8).

 The soul is definitely not the same with the body, because Jesus said in no uncertain terms, "And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10:28).

And so, the significance of the soul, the living being is to allow the nature of Jesus Christ to be formed in us and ultimately at the first resurrection will be reunited with the physical body which will be transformed from corruptible to incorruptible and from mortal to immortal. Only those in the first resurrection that will inherit immortality,

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With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

What is the soul (part three)

3. The Soul

To have a better and thorough understanding of the soul one should give consideration to the fact that man is dual in nature, and therefore, he is both a natural being and a spiritual being, and the soul differs in both instances. This can also help resolve the issue as to whether the soul is mortal or immortal.

For example, we have been admonished saying; "There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. And so it is written, "The first man Adam became a living being." The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual. The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven. As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man" (1 Corinthians 15:44-49).

Bearing the image of the man of dust, which in effect is the natural man, the soul is regarded as that which animates man, the living being, the self, it is the life of every creature and it is found in the blood which contains man's DNA and chromosomes.

For example; A vivid illustration of this is in the case of Noah's flood where it is stated that, "And all flesh died that moved on the earth: birds and cattle and beasts and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, and every man. All in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, all that was on the dry land, died. So He destroyed all living things which were on the face of the ground: both man and cattle, creeping thing and bird of the air. They were destroyed from the earth. Only Noah and those who were with him in the ark remained alive."

In this instance we see thtat all the human beings that died in the flood were regarded as souls, as alluded to by the apostle Peter who wrote, "When once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water." (Genesis 7:21-23, 1 Peter 3:20).

We see also in the New Testament that living human beings were regarded as souls, for it is written; "Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles" (Acts 2:41-43).

With reference to Jesus Christ coming to earth in the form of the natural man in order to die and pay the penalty of sin in man's stead, it is stated that; "Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand.'

"He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, for He shall bear their iniquities. Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong, because He poured out His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors, and He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors" (Isaiah 53:10-12).

The way Jesus Christ poured out His soul or gave up His life unto death, was by shedding His blood, which is the life of every creature. The composition of the natural man is, body, soul and spirit, and so it is written concerning the death of Jesus Christ that; "But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out" John 19:33-34).

Blood and water (flesh) is the symbol of our humanness and the certainty of Jesus Christ as God's witness, as it is written; "This is He who came by water and blood --- Jesus Christ; not only by water, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is truth. For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness on earth: the Spirit, the water (flesh), and the blood; and these three agree as one" (1 John 5:6-8).

Therefore, soul, in its natural state refers to " A living being" whose life is in the blood" and it is mortal as clearly states; "Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood (soul) cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption" (1 Corinthians 15:50).

In the spiritual state however, soul carries a different connotation, it refers to something that is spiritual and indwells in man and leaves the body at death. It refers to the inner being, that is being developed whilst the physical body is being animated by the breath of the spirit of life, as we have been admonished saying; "Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith --- the salvation of your souls." And, "Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart."--- "Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator" (1Peter 1:8-9, 22. 4:19).

Also in the case of Rachel during her difficulty in giving birth to Benjamin, it is stated that, "Now it came to pass, when she was in hard labor, that the midwife said to her, "Do not fear; you will have this son also:" And so it was, as her soul was departing (for she died), that she called his name Ben-Oni; but his father called him Benjamin" (Genesis 35:17-18).

And in the case where the prophet Elijah revived the widow's son by stretching himself out on the child three times, and cried out to the Lord and said, "O Lord my God, I pray, let this child's soul come back to him." Then the Lord heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came back to him, and he revived" (1 Kings 17:21-22).

Therefore, the assumption that, the soul and body being the same is preposterous, because the soul is the end product of the life which has been animated by the spirit in the body.  The analogy of the soul can be compared to, body + spirit = Soul. Or, cellular phone + batteries/electricity = the production of music or picture. Or, light bulb + electricity = light. The soul therefore is, the inward man which is being formed in the body while it is being animated by both the breath of life and the spirit in man.

The soul consists of the mind, including the conscience, the will and emotions. It is the seat of the senses, desires, affections and appetites. The soul and the spirit that is in man are mysteriously linked together and make up what the scriptures call the heart, and we have been instructed saying; "Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life" (Proverbs 4:23).

We have also been admonished saying, "For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12).

There is therefore, an outward man and an inward man, the outward man is our physical human body and the inward man is the soul, the living being and so we have been duly admonished saying; “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16).

The outward man is being sustained by, air, water and food, in like manner; the inner man is being sustained by the Holy Spirit, the blood and body of Jesus Christ; and hence the reason why Jesus Christ said unequivocally, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed” (John 6:53-55).

But the huge question is how many professing believers believe this passage of scripture and take it literally?

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With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

What is the soul (part two)

 

To have a thorough understanding of what the soul is, I think it is imperative that one should begin with the creation of man, where it is clearly stated that, "And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

Here one can see clearly that there are three distinctive features of a human being.

1.       Man formed of the dust of the ground

2.      Breath of life breathed into his nostrils

3.      Man became a living being

The apostle Paul also alluded to the three distinctive features of man by stating; "Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1Thessalonians 5:23).

On another occasion the apostle Paul admonished believers by saying, "For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's" (1 Corinthians 6:20).

Here we see the apostle Paul admonishing the believer (the living being), to glorify God in his/her body, and in his/her spirit, signifying that the body and spirit are properties and responsibilities of the living being. To properly understand how significant the soul is, we should look at all three distinctive aspects of a human being so as to know how to deal specifically with the soul.

1. The body

The creature or the man which was formed by the Lord from the dust of the ground is the body, the mortal and physical aspect of man, which will at death return to dust as the Lord reminded Adam after the fall saying, "In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; For dust you are, and to dust you shall return" (Genesis 3:19).

The patriarch Job and wise king Solomon respectively echoed a similar sentiment by stating; "If He (God) should gather to Himself His Spirit and His breath, all flesh would perish together, and man would return to dust." And, "Remember your Creator before the silver cord is loosed, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the well. Then the dust will return to the earth as it was" (Job 34:14, 15, Ecclesiastes 12:6-7).

Now the body is not synonymous to the soul as some people are suggesting, because at death, the soul is said to leave the body. One example is that of Rachael's death during child birth, where it is written, "And so it was, as her soul was departing (for she died), that she called his name Ben-Oni; but his father called him Benjamin." There is also the example of the righteous dead, who while their bodies were buried and turned to dust, their souls lay under the altar, and later will live and reign with Christ (Genesis 35:18; Revelation 6:9, 20:4).

Jesus Christ also attested to the fact that the body and the soul are two separate entities by saying, "And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10:28).

Thankfully, due to the second Adam, the heavenly Man, the body is not simply dust you are, and to dust you shall return, but it is now the temple of the Holy Spirit, and we have been therefore admonished saying, "Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's" (1 Corinthians 6:18-20).

And finally, those who are heavenly and bearing the image of the heavenly Man will win the final victory when, this corruptible body will put on incorruption, and this mortal body will put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory. O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?" (1 Corinthians 15:53-55).

The crux of the matter is, man is incomplete without the three aspects of body soul and spirit and so the soul is not immortal unless the body is immortal, and so, the soul who sins shall die.

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To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

What is the soul?

 

What is the Soul?

 Full credit has to be given to Mr Sean Buranahiran for a video posted on the internet concerning the story about a king with four wives, and showing the morale behind this story, which gave me the impetus to write this article about the soul.

Permit me to paraphrase the story before dealing with the subject of the soul. The story goes this way, "One day a king with four wives was sick and on death bed, afraid of facing the afterlife alone asked his fourth wife whom he loved the most, and bought her diamonds, gold and expensive jewelry and clothing, he asked her, "will you die with me, and go with me to the afterlife?" She replied, "I can't do that, and walked away.

He then asked his third wife, "Will you accompany me to the afterlife?" She replied, "I love my life too much, and I'm sorry I can't go with you, and when you die, I am going to remarry."

The second wife has always been there for him in his time of need so he asked her, "Will you accompany me to the afterlife?" She replied, "I'm sorry, I can't help you out this time, but what I can do is arrange your funeral and I will be there for your funeral.

Then he heard a voice called out and said, "I will leave with you and accompany you, even it is to the afterlife", and the king looked and it was his first wife, but this was the wife that he took care of the least, he felt embarrassed and ashamed and said, "I'm sorry, I should have taken better care of you, and given you more attention when I was alive.

There is morale to this story and it is that we all have four wives and they are as follows:-

1.      Our fourth wife is our body, we like to decorate it with nice jewelry, nice clothing but in the end it can't follow us to the afterlife.

2.      Our third wife represents our possessions. We spend so much time trying to gather possessions but in the end, they can't follow us to the afterlife, it will be given to other people and divided just like the third wife said, she is going to remarry.

3.      The second wife represents our friends and family, we trust them, they are there for us in times of need, but the furthest they can go with us is to our funeral and send us off.

4.      The first wife represents our soul; we usually neglect taking care of it which is the only thing that will follow us to the afterlife.

The wisest thing that we all can do is to care of our body, keep it healthy, enjoy our possessions and the comfort they provide, cherish our friends and family for the love that they provide, but don't forget to take care of our soul, nourish our soul, take time to be alone, take time to pray, take time to meditate because it is the source of all our life, and our most faithful friend.

What is our Soul?

Before one can give duly care and attention to the soul, it is imperative for one to know what exactly the soul is and how it can be nourished. Unfortunately, there are at least three different perceptions or beliefs as to what the soul is. One set of belief is that the soul is synonymous to the body, another belief is that it is synonymous to the spirit, and there is another belief that it is an entity by itself, so what is the truth.

One thing for sure, judging from the words of Jesus Christ, it is obvious that the soul is the most valuable part of a human being, for thus says the Lord, "For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matthew 16:26).

But in order to get to the crux of the matter, I think that it is imperative to begin from the beginning of creation, for it is evident that when the Lord on the fifth day of creation week, created the creatures in the water, the birds in the air, and the creatures in the sea, it was the breath of life that animated them and they as man were regarded as souls.

Also, on the sixth day when the Lord said, "Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind"; And also created man in His own image, it was also the breath of life that animated all of them, and were all regarded as souls.

Then the Lord gave authority to the man saying, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth." And God said, "See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food" (Genesis 1:28-30).

The fact that everything in whose nostrils is the breath of life are considered souls can be proven by looking at the example of Noah's flood, where it is clearly stated that, "And all flesh died that moved on the earth: birds and cattle and beasts and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, and every man. All in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, all that was on the dry land, died.'

"So He destroyed all living things which were on the face of the ground: man and cattle, creeping things and birds of the air. They were destroyed from the earth: Only Noah and those who were with him in the ark remained alive." And, referring to the time of the flood the apostle Peter wrote; "when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water (Genesis 6:7, 7:21-23, 1 Peter 3:20).

I therefore beg to ask a question at this juncture, what do us personally reckoned and consider being the soul! Is it the physical body, the breath of air that animated the creature, or the life which emanated in the body by the breath of life/air?

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To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

Have you been deceived?

 

HAVE YOU BEEN DECEIVED?

As the world is going through this period of trial and testing, let me ask a thought provoking question; Are you among the many who have been deceived? To some people this question may sound rather preposterous and inconceivable in this modern era of higher learning, science, and technology.

Nevertheless, inconceivable as it may sound we have been forewarned saying, “Let no one deceive himself, if anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God” (1Corinthians 3:18-19).

Regardless how wise one may think he/she is in regards to the things of this world, he/she cannot understand the spiritual things, because the natural mind does not receive the things of the Spirit, they are foolishness to him/her and he/she cannot understand them because they are spiritually discerned.

And so,we have been forewarned by the greatest Teacher of all times saying; “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.” He said again, “At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.”

He also predicted of the time when, “False Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect,’ and said, ‘See, I have told you ahead of time” (Matthew 24:4, 5, 10,11, 24, 25). 

There is also the prophetic word which reminds us of the great whore [church] who sits on many waters [nations] with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication [intimate political relation], and intoxicated [deceived] the inhabitants of the earth with the wine of her fornication.

Since it is predicted that the many and not the few that will be deceived, the thought provoking question is, “Are you among the many that are deceived?” The deception will be so intense and widespread, if it would have been possible, even the very elect would have been deceived.

So then, what assurance can one have to ascertain that he/she is not deceived! For example. with this Corona virus pandemic who should receive the highest level of love and affection! Is it first and foremost our neighbor by getting vaccinated, or is it first and foremost to God our Creator by having faith in the power of God and not in the wisdom of men, and ourselves by not  defiling the temple of the Holy Spirit and then extend love to our neighbor?

First of all a deceived person does not know that he is deceived. He is one who has been misled, or made to believe as true something that is false. A deceived person is sincere, but is sincerely wrong. One makes himself/herself vulnerable to spiritual deception when he/she begins to diverge from the faith which was once and for all delivered to the saints. And this was prophesied to happen long ago.

Jude a servant of Jesus Christ wrote saying, “Beloved, being very eager to write to you of our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. For admission has been secretly gained by some who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly persons who pervert the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ” (Jude 3-4).

Ungodly persons have perverted the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord Jesus Christ by placing the wisdom of men over the power of God, by placing love towards our neighbor above the love of God and by showing more respect to the defiled corrupt human body than the natural undefiled human body. What a deception!

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

                                       

Times of ignorance

 

Times of Ignorance

Ignorance of God, ignorance of the laws which governs our universe, and ignorance of who we are, ignorance of the laws which governs man’s relationship with God, and with his fellowman is the main reason why we suffer the way we do, fail miserable in our pursuits of the good life, and not enjoying the abundant life which Jesus Christ referred to when He said; “I am come that they may have life and have it more abundantly” (John 10:10).

Many people are oblivious of the fact that, “God gives to all life.” This life is absent from death, as illustrated by Jesus Christ who said; "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?" (John 11: 25-26).

This life is what man inherited from the Last Adam, Jesus Christ, for according to the scriptures; “The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.” And humanity was begotten by Jesus Christ at His resurrection, for it is stated; “.Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” It is in Christ Jesus that we all live, move, and have our existence (1Corinthians 15: 45; 1 Peter 1:3-5; Acts 17:28).

Many people are also oblivious of the fact that the same God who gives to all life, also gives to all breath. Signifying that man is dual in nature, having life which is spiritual and eternal, and breath which is the air drawn into and forced out of the lungs, and sustains the physical life. This breath is inherited from the first Adam, for according to the scriptures; “The first man Adam became a living being" (1Corinthians 15:45).

Now the reason for receiving from God both life and breath, is for mankind to come to know the one and only true God. For, “He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their pre-appointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, 'For we are also His offspring. Jesus also prayed saying; “You have given Him (Christ) authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (Acts 17: 26-28; John 17:3).

Man is dual in nature, the same way Jesus Christ is God and Man: Mankind is also flesh and spirit. For this reason we are told that “For it was fitting for Him (Jesus Christ), for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying: "I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You. And again: "I will put My trust in Him." And again: "Here am I and the children whom God has given Me" (Hebrews 2:10-13).

Now in order to live both the life, which is life in the spirit, and breath, which is life in the flesh successfully, God has also given to man all things which pertain to life and godliness. And so it is written; “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (2 Peter 1:2-4). 

Man’s endowment of life and breath, is figurative to two different types of trees as alluded to by Jesus who said; “Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them” (Matthew 7: 17-20).

Man therefore as a living being, with a free moral agency has the prerogative to choose whether to live his/her life in accordance to the spirit, or live in accordance to the flesh, with each having its own end results. For it is written; “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart“(Galatians 6:7-9).

The admonition therefore is, “And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God” (Romans: 6: 13).

And to this end we have been further admonished by the apostle Paul saying; “This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.”

Because of our dual nature, there is a constant battle that takes place in our mind between the flesh and the spirit. Therefore we have been instructed saying: “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish” (Galatians 5: 16-17).

But truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead" (Acts 17: 30-31).

A believer therefore should no longer live to satisfy his/her flesh. It is not a question of let us eat, and drink, for tomorrow we die.” For, if in this life only, we have hope in Christ: we are of all men most pitiable.” But we have not so learned Christ, if indeed we have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that we put off, concerning our former conduct, the old man (life in the flesh) which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of our mind, and that we put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:17-24).

Let us by the mercies of God, present our bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is our reasonable service. And let us not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of our mind, that we may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. 

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

God provides for His people

 

God provides for His subjects

 Having been raised under the system of the lesser of two evils many of us have not experience or do not know what it is to live under the ruler-ship of God. Remember, the relationship that we have with God when living under the system of the lesser of two evils is conditional and that is, “we are to fear the Lord and serve and obey Him and do not rebel against His commands,” But if we do not obey the Lord, and if we rebel against His commands, His hand will be against us, as it was against our fathers

 The conclusion of the whole matter according to wise king Solomon is to, “Fear God and keep His commandments, for this are man's all: For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil” (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14).

And according to the prophet Micah, “He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8)

From the beginning of creation God created man to be His subjects. Man was supposed to look upon God as his Creator, his Provider, his Sustainer, his Healer, his supreme King and Lord.

At the beginning God provided Adam with everything. It is written, “The Lord planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil: Now a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it parted and became four riverheads” (Genesis 2:8-10).

This period of time epitomized the 23rd Psalm which reads, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”

But as soon as Adam and Eve rejected the authority of God over them, by being disobedient to God, and choose to believe the devil, and partook of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, which God instructed him not to eat; Adam had to start defending, and providing for himself.

Partaking of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, gave Adam the power of worldly wisdom to choose for himself what is right and what is wrong. For, “When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate” (Genesis 3:6).

It is at this juncture God said to Adam, “Because you have heeded the voice of you wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’: “Cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth to you, and you shall eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for dust you are, and to dust you shall return” (Genesis 3:17-19).

What has eluded the minds of most people is that, when Adam disobeyed God, and obeyed the devil, he cut himself off from God’s sovereignty, and placed himself under the sovereignty of the devil. For it is stated; “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slave whom you obey, whether of sin to death, or of obedience to righteousness” (Romans 6:16).

Therefore, regardless of what we are going through God promised to provide for His subjects and so we have received the consolation saying; “Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:5-7).

This is indeed a time of trial for the people of God who rather exercise their faith in the power of God than in the wisdom of men.

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph