The Glorious Gospel

Lightbearers MinistriesUncategorized

…according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust. 1 Tim 1:11 NKJV

The great cry in the heart of every man or woman is to be successful, to be victorious, to win. No one was ever born and immediately expressed the idea, I want to be a loser. NO! We inherently want to win, to gain a place for ourselves and our loved ones, to overcome. This is why young people are by nature Idealistic. They believe in good, which in English is an extension of the word ‘God’ – oh yeah, that’ll preach! – until their idealistic ideas are beaten out of them by the systematizing of error in the world. When Christ comes in He reawakens those dreams because He is the ideal personification of them. Thus Paul writes by revelation that we are more than conquerors through Him who loves us (Romans 8:37). Hallelujah! Victory!

The phrase ‘the glorious gospel’ could be translated ‘the gospel of the glory’ of the blessed God. What ignites the power of the gospel of the glory in you is the power of consecration to the ways of God. There is a season in every young believer’s life where they have to learn the ways of God. More mature believers have to take a season from time to time and re-contemplate the ways of God.

How does God do things? For instance, Jesus said, It is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20:35). Explain that to the senses man – he doesn’t get it! The flesh says, Seek to acquire, get everything you can from everyone around you! The Spirit says, Give – genuinely seek to bless someone else – and it shall be given unto you (Luke 6:38). The flesh says, Strive to be number one, to climb over everyone and reach the pinnacle. The Spirit says, Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God that He may exalt you in due time (1Peter 5:6). The ways of God are almost diametrically opposed to the ways of the world.

You and I must choose which ‘way’ we will pursue, because to pursue neither way – to not commit to anything – will consign us to the herd of those who have lost.

The gifts and fruit of the Spirit introduce us in a very practical manner to the ways of God, the gospel of the glory of God. The gifts reveal the power of Christ in us, and the fruit show us the character of Christ in us, and how we can walk into both. Each enable us to grow up in Christ. Both come into full fruition only through consecration to the ways of God.

The most popular books among young people – playing on their idealism – over the last twenty years has been the Harry Potter series. Harry’s power of witchcraft, with the power being both good and evil, was like an extension of ‘the force’ from the Star Wars series of movies. Harry was in a sense learning to become a Jedi knight like Luke Skywalker. It’s interesting how the world takes biblical principles and applies them to latent evil. Both Harry and Luke had to consecrate themselves to the ways of the power that was before them in order to see that power in manifestation. Sound familiar?

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Consecrate to Me all the firstborn, whatever opens the womb among the children of Israel, both of man and beast; it is Mine.” Ex 13:1-2 NKJV

What does it mean to consecrate yourself to the Lord on a daily basis? It is to set yourself apart from the claims of others and devote yourself wholly to Him, His ways and His agenda. When you do the Lord in return meets you at that same level of commitment. This is why the great analogy in Ephesians five of Christ and the church is the marriage analogy, giving yourself wholly to one another, to the exclusion of all others.

For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”  This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Eph 5:31-33 NKJV

Consecration brings out the fullness of the gifts and the fruit of the Spirit. The consecrated man or woman becomes successful in business because the Lord is his business partner, in blessing and guidance, favor and power. The consecrated man or woman gets guidance in all areas of their lives because nothing is hidden or kept away from the Lord God – all are His. Your burdens become His, His successes become yours. Do you see it?

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 1 John 1:5 NKJV

The consecration principle is the great key to revelation and the power of God because it sets you in proper alignment with the Lord who is the very master of our lives. What Luke and Harry aligned themselves with was in reality a very wicked and arbitrary master. We are aligned with Him who is all love, who never changes, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, and in whom there is absolutely no darkness at all. Power attracts, but when you compare the power of Harry’s ‘god’ to the power of the living God, it is like comparing a match stick to the power of the sun.

Awake, lute and harp! I will awaken the dawn.  I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples, And I will sing praises to You among the nations. For Your mercy is great above the heavens, And Your truth reaches to the clouds. Ps 108:2-4 NKJV

How do you enter into consecration to the Lord on a daily basis? I believe the key is in the morning, to awaken the dawn – isn’t that such a beautiful phrase? – with praises to the Lord. In those praises you present yourself to Him. Praise and listen, read and listen, pray and listen. One of the highest compliments in love is utter attention. When the Lord senses you have no other purpose then Him… well, just like with your wife or your husband…that is a place that He truly loves!

The secret of the Lord is with – the Lord confides in – those who fear Him, and He will show them His covenant. Ps 25:14 NKJV

This message of consecration to the ways of God, the gospel of the glory of God, is more pertinent now than ever because of the darkness of the times. With the hundreds of thousands who have died of the Chinese Wuhan virus, and the tens of millions who have died because of the government lockdowns of the world’s economy, the need to be able to hear clearly from God and access easily the promises of God has never been greater. Decide to consciously consecrate yourself to Him daily. I know you have many important things to do, but this, I assure you, outranks them all, and all of them will become easier to handle if you do.  This is the glorious gospel of the blessed God! Love you!

Remember dear ones, we must be about our Father’s business…