PARTAKERS OF THE DIVINE NATURE

“No one born (begotten) of God [ deliberately, knowingly, and habitually] practices sin, for God’s nature abides in him [His principle of life…the divine sperm, remains permanently within Him]; and he cannot practice sinning because he is born (begotten) of God” – 1 John 3:9 (AMP)

LIGHT FOR THE NOW: When your nature is captured, your actions change.

By virtue of Adam’s disobedience, sin entered into the world. This means that everybody was born into the sinful nature. Man did not have to do anything to be called a sinner. He was already born a sinner. But when a man comes into Christ Jesus by believing in the Gospel of Christ that is preached, the sinful Adamic nature was captured and replaced with the divine nature of God in Christ Jesus. When your nature is captured, your actions change. The nature of God is a righteous nature. Just as man did not have to do anything to be called a sinner by virtue of the Adamic nature, when a man comes into Christ via belief, he is automatically made righteous. Righteousness is therefore a gift from God to man. The righteous nature is the DNA of God that contains the totality of what makes God who He is. This DNA contains life, love, kindness, purity, mercy, truth, light etc.

As a believer in Christ Jesus, you have no right to continue in sin. This is because there is no sin in God’s divine nature. And we are partakers in that divine nature. A believer in Christ is righteous. What makes God to be God has been deposited inside the believer in Christ.  You are the headquarters of divinity; the residential address of the God-kind; a partaker of the heavenly calling called only for good works. You are to manifest the works of God. When you enter into a place; that is God entering the place. Therefore, you have no right to leave a situation the same way you met it. You are a God walking here on the earth. Yes! You are a walking God. This is not heresy. If Christ dwells inside of you and Christ is God, then you are a god. “For ye are gods…” (Psalm 82:6). You are a partaker of the divine nature. Hallelujah!!!

 INSTRUCTION: Focus on your new nature.

PRAYER: Father, I receive capacity to live and operate in my new nature, in Jesus Name. Amen.

QUOTE: When Grace kidnaps you, no ransom is demanded.

BE GOD MINDED

“Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world” – 1 John 4:4

LIGHT FOR THE NOW: The Greater One lives in you.

The Christian is the God-man; one in whom Christ literally dwells. Knowing this, therefore, you must be God-minded; the greater one lives in you, meaning that you have nothing to fear in life. This was the mentality of Apostle John. It should be the mentality of every believer in Christ too. In 1John5:4, he said, “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world..” it does not matter what is out there in the world; the truth is that you have overcome them all because you are born of God, and Christ lives in you. You have overcome every force, every power, everything that is against you. In John 16:33, Jesus said, “These things I have spoken to you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world”. God’s word is spiritual law. If He says you have overcome the world, with its troubles, failures, and darkness, then of a certainty, you have.

You must therefore acknowledge and walk in this reality – the reality of your divine life in Christ. You must have the knowledge of who He has made you to be and all that He has bequeathed unto you. Reign and rule over circumstances. Refuse and reject anything that is inconsistent with the life of Christ in you. Let the evidence of the indwelling Christ be seen in the quality of the life you live. Let it be a testimony to those around you that indeed, there is a higher life in Christ, and you are living and enjoying that life. You must be God-minded.

 INSTRUCTION : Be God-minded.

PRAYER: Father, I thank you for the indestructible and unconquerable life of Christ I have in me. Thank you for the privilege I have to live the higher life, in Jesus Name. Amen.

QUOTE: When Grace kidnaps you, no ransom is demanded.

HAVE A SPIRIT-FILLED MIND

“Now the mind of the flesh which is sense and reason without the Holy Spirit is death, death that comprises all the miseries arising from sin, both here and hereafter. But the mind of the Holy Spirit is life and peace” – Romans 8:6 (AMP)

LIGHT FOR THE NOW: It is your mind that controls you.

Believers in Christ Jesus have a responsibility to renew their minds daily. No man has ever overcome the power of sin and death without a mind filled by the Spirit. From our text for today, we understand that there is a mind of the flesh or the carnal mind. The carnal mind is the mind of sense and reason without the Holy Spirit which is death. It is a mind without God and not controlled by the Spirit of God. The thoughts that proceed from this kind of mind are evil and lead to evil actions. It makes men to conform to the standards of this world, fashioned and adapted to its external, superficial customs.

Just as there is a carnal mind or the mind of the flesh, there is also the mind of the Spirit or the Spirit filled mind. This is a mind that is not fashioned after the external and superficial practices of this world. It is a mind that is at peace with God here on earth and in eternity. This is a mind that has been renewed. A man with a spirit-filled mind acts like Christ. He is Christ-minded. This goes to prove that it is your mind that controls you. The Bible admonishes that we should guard our hearts diligently for out of it proceed the issues of life. A believer in Christ therefore has the responsibility of renewing his mind by getting his mind filled with the desires of the Spirit.

 INSTRUCTION: Have a Spirit-filled mind.

PRAYER: Lord, as I study and meditate on your word, let my mind be constantly renewed, in Jesus Name. Amen.

QUOTE: A Spirit-filled mind is a regenerated mind.

THE RICHES OF HIS GLORY

“To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” – Colossians 1:27

LIGHT FOR THE NOW: Christ in you is the hope of glory.

The mystery behind every believer is Christ in him, which is the hope of glory. In other words, once you receive Christ into your life, you become a carrier of God’s glory.The strength of the Christian faith is Christ in him. Our text for today tells us that when Christ lives in a man, he becomes a partaker of God’s glory. So, a believer in Christ Jesus does not hope for the worst in life. No! The hope of every believer is glorious. Hallelujah! What defines your hope is not any kind of situation or condition you are facing, but Christ does.

Remember that Christ Jesus was reproached so that you might be glorified. You must be consistent in what you are hoping for. Hope is the confident expectation of something. The Bible records in Romans 5:18 that Abraham “against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations; according to that which was spoken”. Also, Apostle Paul in Romans 5:2 says, “By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in the hope of the glory of God”. When Christ is not the hope of your glory, you may easily be distracted by the greed for material things. And when your expectations are not met, you may become depressed. In the contrary, when you focus on Christ and not on material things, the joy of the Lord becomes your strength. Hallelujah!!!

INSTRUCTION: Let your hope be in Christ.

PRAYER: I am in Him justified and He is in me glorified, in Jesus Name.

QUOTE: Glory is not a feeling, but tangible.

THERE IS NO DISCRIMINATION IN CHRIST

“To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentile; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” – Colossians  1:27 

LIGHT FOR THE NOW: Salvation is the work of God all by Himself.

The Apostle Paul became a prisoner of the gospel of Christ. He revealed the mysteries as concerning Christ. Paul disrupted the Jewish tradition and presented Christ in such a way that the Gentiles were no longer strangers to the glory that was freely made available. The inheritance of the promise is no longer by fulfilling the law but by faith. It is by faith that we share in the fulfillment of the promise and not by the law (John 14:15-17). A believer in Christ Jesus is a replica of God having been produced by the genetic make-up of God. A born again man is like the wind. He cannot be predicted. The Holy Spirit is the right shepherd that takes the believer to the right pasture. We share in the glory of God. We have the same authority and power He has. As He is, so are we in this world.

He is our High Priest and we are His priests. He is the King of kings and we are kings. He redeemed us unto Himself as kings and priests. If you are a believer in Christ, a new unique identity has been apportioned to you. You have to recognize your identity and enforce it in order to do exploit. You do not need to do anything special to be spirit filled. All you need to do is to believe. The moment you believe, Christ comes into your heart and makes your heart His dwelling place. You need to understand his ability to communicate and share fellowship with you.

 INSTRUCTION: Stand firm in your salvation.

PRAYER: Father, thank you for making me a partaker of your glory, in Jesus Name. Amen.

QUOTE: He lives in you.

WE MUST DEMONSTRATE THE LOVE OF GOD

“And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us” – Romans 5:5 

LIGHT FOR THE NOW: Divine love is not something to be prayed for; it is a feature of your recreated human spirit.

Christianity is all about the demonstration of divine love. 1 John 4:8 says, “He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love”. God is love personified. He demonstrated His love towards us in that He gave Christ to die for us while we yet sinners (Romans 5:8). When you are born again, you become born of God. Therefore, if God who is love by nature gave birth to you, then you are a child of love and love personified. Divine love is not something to be prayed for; it is a feature of your recreated human spirit. Galatians 5:22 says, “But the fruit of the spirit is love…” what is therefore expected of you as a born again child of God is to demonstrate the love that is stored up in your heart, and be a blessing to your world. Be an oasis of love in a troubled world.

Jesus, in John 14:15 says, “If ye love me; keep my commandments”. An example of His commandment is that we go into the world and preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15). You will be demonstrating the love of God to your world when you reach out to othes with the gospel of Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:14 says, “For the love of Christ constraineth us…” We are propelled by His love to preach the Gospel, just as He was propelled by love to take the place of sinful men on the cross. He was the expression and communication of the love of God.

 INSTRUCTION: Share the love of God to others.

PRAYER: Lord, thank you for loving me and taking my place on the cross, in Jesus Name. Amen.

QUOTE: God is love personified.

THE LOVE OF GOD (2)

The Lord hath appeared of old unto me saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee’- Jeremiah 31:3

LIGHT FOR THE NOW: Christ is the proof of God’s love. In His love, you are marked right.

God loves you with an everlasting love.  God’s love is an unfailing love. God’s love stands the test of time – always. The love of God comes with kindness to draw men to Himself. In the Love of God you don’t pray to receive kindness – it comes to you naturally and continuously. In God’s love you find life, wealth and good health. As He loved you before, He loves you now and He will continue to love you eternally. Hebrews 13:8 speaks of the unfailing, Divine Love of Christ ‘Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever’. Christ loved you even before you were born; and He will never change His mind towards you. You are His beloved and the apple of His eye! If when you were once useless to him, yet He loved you, how much more now that you are useful to Him. ‘For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly’ (Romans 5:6).You were wicked, helpless, powerless, far too weak and rebellious; despite these, Christ died for you. He loves you. He came and gave you voice. So, you can speak audibly. Go and tell the world about His love for humanity.is

Due to this love, His mercies are new every morning. His mercies do not allow the devil to defeat us. No man can show you mercy except he loves you. In the love of God there is justification. The love of God justifies you and draws you closer to Him. ‘His sins I will remember no more’. 1 Peter 4:8 ‘Above all things, have intense love or one another … love covers a multitude of sins’. Prov 10:12 love covers all transgression’ love is not fault-finding. God does not need people’s approval to love you. YOU ARE THE ONLY OPTION IN GOD’S LOVE. He loves you the way you are – even in your sinful state. God loves you beyond words. Christ is the proof of God’s love. In His love, you are marked right; in His love you are complete. We have nothing to exchange with the love of God (1Peter 1:18-19). I am in Him justified and He is in me glorified.

INSTRUCTION: Christ loves you the way you are. Show appreciation. Be thankful to Him.

PRAYER: Lord, I thank you for your love for me. I adore and praise you, in Jesus Name.              

QUOTE: The Love of God for you is undiluted.

THE LOVE OF GOD (1)

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life’. - John 3:16

LIGHT FOR THE NOW: The love of God to man is expressed in the gift of Christ.

The love of God is expressed in the gift of Christ. Many people claim to love but do not have the ability to prove their love. Men love because of what they stand to benefit, others love those who have already shown them kindness. Oh, how conditional is the love of man! Unfortunately, when the desire is not met, disappointment sets in. In contrast, the love of God is unconditional. This is why He sent Jesus to die for us in order to make us alive in Him. Christ was made sin, so that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him (2Corinthians 5:21). According to Romans 5: 8 (NLT), God sent His great love for us so that while we were yet condemned sinners, Christ died for us. God loves us the way we are. He used His own love to destroy your sin (Romans 3:10-11). We did not love Him, yet God loved us by covering us with His love.

Jesus Christ says that whosoever believes and trusts in His love shall not perish but have eternal life. You just have to believe in His love. In His love there is life, wealth, riches, healing and perfection (Isaiah 53:3-5). So, everything you need in this life, and hereafter is found in His love. You should wisely believe in that love. Salvation is a total package - in Him, you have peace, love, joy. Men only love when they are to gain respect. Once a woman receives care, she feels loved. To men, when they receive respect, they feel loved. Once they are deprived from them, they no longer feel loved. However, the scripture does not define respect this way. If men had love, the scripture would not have deliberately instructed them to love their wives. Agape is the extravagant love that God pours on man. In this love, your color, height, nationality, educational background, social and economic backgrounds do not matter. The only standard for this love is Christ crucified and Christ resurrected. If you can have the love of God, then you have everything. It is not your love that counts; it is God’s love that matters.

INSTRUCTION: You are under a command to believe in the love of God.

PRAYER: Lord, I believe in your love. By this knowledge, I stand justified in you, in Jesus Name.

QUOTE: It is not your love that counts, it is the love of God that counts.

JESUS: THE LOVE OF GOD TOWARDS MAN

“For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God” Romans 8:19.

LIGHT FOR THE NOW: As a believer in Christ Jesus, you are to manifest or function in the awareness or consciousness of who you are.


If you do not understand the character of God, you cannot walk in faith. Faith reveals the character of God. When you understand God’s character, you receive from God with ease. Fear is perverted faith. The reason a man is afraid is because he believes in it. Therefore, fear is contaminated faith. Your fear connects you to the object of your fear (Job 1:5). Job operated in the assumption of fear which is sin consciousness. Just as God needs your faith to function, Satan also needs your fear to operate. Jesus is God’s love dispensed to man. He is the love of God demonstrated to man.  Romans 8:32-39 says, “He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?; who shall lay any charge to God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord”.

If you did not pray for God to give Jesus to you; as a believer in Christ, you have no business praying for material things. Faith is not a tool to get something from God. Faith is who we are, how we live and what we practice. When you understand what faith is, you begin to enjoy the faith life. If you must live a life of faith, you must have a robust, precise and accurate knowledge of Christ. Every operation of faith is at the instance of the knowledge of Christ. When you do not know, Satan hides behind your ignorance and manipulates, intimidates and dominates you through fear.


INSTRUCTION: Have a robust knowledge of the gospel of Christ.


PRAYER: Lord, may I not pray and fast for what unbelievers do not pray to have.


QUOTE: Jesus is the demonstration of the love of God towards man.

THERE IS POWER IN YOUR WORDS

“Through faith we understand that the world was framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear” – Hebrews 11:3

LIGHT FOR THE NOW: We are to speak the Word, God brings it into fulfillment.

Through faith, we understand that everything came into being by the Word of God. To understand this is to have the express knowledge of the realm from which you operate. The World was framed by words (John 1:1). Everything that was made was made by words (Genesis 1:26). Every action taken is an expression of the word. Words are the media of expression of what is conceived in the heart. For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. And the word is in your mouth. In jurisprudence, words are used to pass judgment.  Recall that, after creation, God did not give out names to animals and vegetations. Rather, He empowered Adam to do so and whatever name Adam called is what they answer till today (Genesis 2:19). Our faith can only be professed through words (Genesis 3:15). Words have a creative force.

Man would not embrace the faith if they were not spoken by Christ Himself and the prophets. We only know because knowledge was declared and communicated to us through the use of words (1John 5:20). We are products of the Word. We are born again by the Word of God (1Peter 1:23). The Word of God is the Word of everlasting life. We believe that we are the righteousness of God because it was spoken and written down for our edification.

 INSTRUCTION: Speak the word. It is in your mouth.

PRAYER: Father, help me speak positive words into my life, in Jesus Name. Amen.

QUOTE: Words have creative force.

BE GENEROUS!

And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased’ – Hebrews 13:16 [NIV]

LIGHT FOR THE NOW: It is unspeakable for believers to beg: Rise to your responsibility.

There are tremendous benefits attached to being nice. Unfortunately, some believers are yet to come to this truth. A lot of professed Christians with-hold good things from fellow humans. While the Bible does not condone laziness, it would not be wrong if you give some form of financial assistance to those in need. Apostle Paul admonished on all believers to be gainfully engaged so they should not just be materially sufficient, but experience an overflow in order to give the surplus to the needy. You cannot empower anyone if you don’t experience an overflow. The Grace of God had made provisions for everything you need pertaining to life and godliness. This means that Christ had empowered you both physically and spiritually. Don’t trivialize the suffering, death, burial and resurrection of Christ. It is unspeakable for believers to beg; Rise to your responsibility.

Being kind goes beyond giving alms to the needy. Your generosity can also be seen in your personal relationship with others in your family circles, neighborhood and business partners. Though salvation is not a function of moral life, it is vital that you lead a peaceful life with these ones, hence, the Apostle Paul showed that all believers should be generous in mercy. The measure with which you measure to others, this will be measured unto you. This is a boom-rise affair. If you are generous in showing mercy to fellowmen, people will readily show you mercy. It may not necessarily be the same people, but whenever you are in need of mercy, you will surely find it. Just be nice! Mercy and kindness can be the positive touch for a total transformation of your business. Also, good business ethics such as transparency, account tability  and proper manners go a long way to advertising your company. In turn, you will reap bountifully in the material things, here on Earth! A generous soul is a wise person! It takes the course of wisdom to be generous (read the story of Abigail, Nabal and David in 1 Samuel 25:1-42). Therefore, acknowledge the source of the wisdom. ‘…of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom…’ (1 Corinthians 1:30). Praise the Lord!

INSTRUCTION: Just be nice!!!

Prayer: Christ lives in me. Therefore, I receive the virtues of kindness and generosity, in Jesus Name!

QUOTE: The world of the giver gets larger and larger, but the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller!