UNLEARNING THE LIES ABOUT HEAVEN - 5

WITHOUT HOLINESS, NO MAN SHALL SEE GOD – WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

Hebrews 12:14 is one of the most misinterpreted verse of the bible that has caused a major havoc to the body than the kingdom of darkness. Many have used this particular verse to chase people away from the true faith. Many have scared the life out the people who were supposed to be fruitful for the Kingdom. They see the Christian faith has a burden of laws. They live with fear of hell every day, because of what they have been told that this verse mean

Today is judgment day, we shall uncover the mask that is laid upon this verse and we all shall see how we could have been useful for the kingdom as a body, rather than spending all of one’s life chasing an ambition of Holiness that is not needed.

Dear reader, salvation is not achieved by works but received by faith in Christ Jesus and by FAITH ONLY!

No works is required for salvation! Not a single work is required!

God does all the saving! Believing the Gospel of this saving is entering into the Kingdom of God. 

You cannot enter into the kingdom by YOUR RIGHTEOUS WORKS OR HOLY LIVING!

It is unfortunate how many have used Hebrews 12:14 to scare believers into thinking that what Christ did ALONE is not enough to save a man and keep him saved— you have to pursue peace with all men and holiness if you want to "see the Lord" Very few have tried to find out what the writer was REALLY saying?

Let’s settle this quickly…

Hebrews 12:14 “Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord”

A problem arises when we attempt to read a text, especially from the Bible, and conclude for the writer. This is extremely dangerous. An honest exegesis will let us understand better.

Now before this particular chapter, see what the writer said earlier…

Hebrews 10:14 “For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified”

So he's not asking believers TO BE holy in order to "see" God. He ALREADY tells you that you are!

We are not in the PROCESS of becoming holy, we ALREADY are. Under the Old covenant, they strive to be holy, under the new covenant, we have been made Holy! You remember how that Peter said we are royal priesthood and a HOLY NATION? Good!

The passive tense in Heb 10:14 means that we did not make ourselves holy, the action was performed ON us. How? By the offering of the body of Jesus Christ! His offering made us holy! We are holy once for all!

Remember that the book of Hebrews is an ENTIRE letter and the SAME pattern of thoughts permeates the entire letter. It wasn't chapterized and versed at the writing. Chapterizing and versing the Bible was a human conjecture. It was originally a WHOLE letter. So, the writer CANNOT begin by saying we are holy and then later say that we should try to be holy again.

Now when you read the whole chapter or read contextually, you will find out that the passage is not related to going to heaven at all…

Before this, the writer talks about the discipline of God, that is, persecution which believers face because of their faith. He encourages them to stand strong in vs. 12-13. It speaks of the CONDUCT or THE LIFESTYLE of the believer and not his STATE.

After writing about the STATE of the Man in Christ in previous passages, the writer goes on to talk about our conduct with one another and with the world (which persecutes us). The whole context speaks of CONDUCT.

That is, there is a way we as believers should live when we are been persecuted that will draw people to God. They will be surprised at how we respond to every persecution we face and therefore SEE GOD IN US! That is what the verse means!

In other words, the verse can be paraphrased as: In your CONDUCT, live peaceably with all men for if you don't, men CANNOT experience God in your life. You are the means by which men PERCEIVE Christ. That is, let others see Jesus in you.

This is not a SALVATION verse but a CONDUCT verse!

No heaven in this verse at all!

Rather it means live peaceably with all men, this is holy conduct. For if you don't, men cannot experience God, whom you profess, in your life. You are the only means by which men can perceive the invisible God. Make Him evident and visible in your conduct.

This is not talking about HOW HOLINESS MUST BE ACHIEVED

IT NOT ASKING YOU TO ATTAIN A LEVEL OF HOLINESS TO BE SAVED OR TO MAKE HEAVEN

SALVATION IS BY FAITH IN THE FINISHED WORKS OF THE CROSS ALONE

So it is foolishness to start putting up some self holiness to make heaven, it is a slap to the finished works of the cross of Christ. It is saying that what Jesus did was not enough!

The verse in Hebrews is not about making heaven! Wake up!

It is about your lifestyle, in bringing souls to God!

Without Holiness, no man (unbelievers) can see God in you (a believer)!

I hope this bless you!

UNLEARNING THE LIES ABOUT HEAVEN - 4

ENTERING THE KINGDOM IS SAME AS SALVATION

Jesus told Nicodemus "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the Kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit"

Entering the Kingdom of heaven or the Kingdom of God is the same as salvation!

Anyone who has believed the finished works of the lamb has been translated into the kingdom of God.

Believers are not travelling to the Kingdom of God! There is no travelling, neither is there any race involved at all! Believers are already in the Kingdom of God and are doing all things from there!

See how Paul puts it to the Colossian Church …

who has delivered us from the power of darkness and has TRANSLATED US INTO THE KINGDOM of his dear son” – KJV, and has BROUGHT US INTO THE KINGDOM of the son he loves – NIV, and has TRANSFERRED US INTO THE KINGDOM of his son of his love – AMP

You see how that HE HAS BROUGHT US INTO THE KINGDOM AND THAT WE DID NOT BRING OURSELVES THERE OR THAT WE ARE GOING THERE! No one can bring his or herself into the kingdom; it must be by God himself. Salvation is by GRACE through FAITH in Jesus Christ ONLY! There is no addition, no subtraction! So we are not just going into the kingdom, we are there already!

ALL BELIEVERS ARE ALREADY IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD!

Oh but you may say, we are talking about making heaven – a location we go after we die. We have said it over and over again in the previous lesson that, going to heaven is not in the list of the believer’s goal. That the believer will visit the location called heaven was not emphasized by Jesus Christ at all. Paul never emphasized it too. All of those verses or passages of the scripture that has been coined by legal and heavenly-minded teachers will be dealt with one by one before the end of this teaching. What the bible teaches is the coming of the kingdom to earth, not the going of the believers to stay in heaven forever. Even if the believer would go, it is yet not a big deal, because servants of God like Elijah, Moses, Enoch among others have been there, so what’s the big deal with the SONS?

Let’s see some scriptures now…

Paul said in Philippians “but we are CITIZENS of the state which is in heaven, and from it also we earnestly and patiently AWAIT the lord Jesus Christ”…can you see how that we AWAIT and that we are going there to live forever?

Ok see how Jesus Christ puts it …

“Behold I AM COMING soon, and I SHALL BRING my wages and rewards with me…” can you see how that we are not GOING THERE to get the reward but that HE IS COMING WITH THE REWARDS?

This is plain scriptures! This is the word of God!

Forget about those bible passages that have been interpreted to mean that we shall go to heaven to eat food and live in mansions. They are all MISINTERPRETATIONS which we will do our best to attend to before the end of this teaching series.

ALL BELIEVERS ARE CITIZENS OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN!

THERE IS NO BELIEVER THAT IS NOT A CITIZEN!

NOT ONE BELIEVER!

The day you became born again is the day you enter the Kingdom of God. You remember Jesus’ word to Nicodemus? Good! The born again experience is the ONLY requirement for entering the Kingdom!

There is no other requirement! Not even your Holiness and your Righteousness! Many have taught falsely that holiness is the requirement for the kingdom of heaven MISINTERPRETING THE SCRIPTURE IN HEBREWS 12, don’t fall for it. This is the next lie we shall attend to in the next lesson.

One common scripture again that is used to defend the saying that not all Christians will live eternally is Matthew 7:21-23, we would just take a few important part of this passage because of space…

“Not everyone who says to me, Lord, lord, will ENTER the kingdom of heaven … And then I will say openly I NEVER KNEW YOU; depart from me …”

Now this same scripture is what we have in Psalm 6:8, a scripture under the old covenant … it is important to note that this scripture is referring to UNBELIEVERS not BELIEVERS.

It says not everyone who says to me lord, will ENTER…believers have entered already. We are citizens!

Again Jesus said I NEVER KNEW YOU! He didn’t say I KNEW YOU BEFORE or THAT YOU HAVE BACKSLIDE. The word was “NEVER’, so he never knew them, they have never been saved before. They are pure unbelievers!

Don’t ever harbor the thought that a believer will go to hell

NO BELIEVER WILL GO TO HELL

EVERYONE WHO HAS RECEIVED ETERNAL LIFE ARE SAVED FOREVER AND ARE PART OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD FOREVER

NOTHING CAN UNSAVE YOU

A person can go astray but is still part of the kingdom!

Have you read the parable of the prodigal son? That’s a typical illustration for anyone who you think has been removed from the kingdom because of one thing or the other. Aren’t you surprised how Jesus calls him PRODIGAL and still retains the identity SON? Let alone, they later end of his story.

Don’t live a life of fear!

You can enter the kingdom of God by believing the Gospel and by believing ONLY! NOTHING ELSE!

Jesus said “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; REPENT ye, and BELIEVE THE GOSPEL” Mark 1:15…just note the keywords, that’s how to enter into the kingdom, very simple!

No works is required

No struggle

No strive

No holiness

No righteousness

Except ALL THE BLESSINGS IMPUTED AND MADE AVAILABLE BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH IN CHRIST JESUS!

Remain blessed!

UNLEARNING THE LIES ABOUT HEAVEN - 3

THE GOAL IS NOT TO MAKE HEAVEN

Jesus told his Father in John 17, “My prayer is not that you take them out this world… … as you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world”

What is Jesus talking about here? He should be talking about how we are supposed to leave this world and make heaven, so why is he praying that we should not leave the world?

Paul said in Ephesians 1, that the God of our lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him. The eyes of your understanding may be enlightened; THAT YE MAY KNOW WHAT IS THE HOPE OF HIS CALLING, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints…

The amplified Version of the Bible renders the words I have capitalized as SO THAT YOU CAN KNOW AND UNDERSTAND THE HOPE TO WHICH HE HAS CALLED YOU

With many heaven seekers and heavenly-minded Christians rampant in this generation, it is clear that some believers don’t know the reason why they have been called out of the world

There is a reason why the plan of redemption was exhibited

There is a foreordained counsel which was hidden throughout the old covenant but manifested to the sons revealing the essence of salvation

There is a reason for the death and resurrection of Jesus

There is a reason God had to sacrifice Jesus Christ to save the world to himself

It is simply because of the Kingdom!

The kingdom of God is the whole essence of salvation!

If you have ever wondered why you need to become a believer or that you are already a believer and have been wondering what’s next, I tell you that it is because of the kingdom of God!

The kingdom of God needs to be established on earth and this can only be done through the saved ones, through the believers!

The kingdom of God was given to the first man Adam, but he lost this Kingdom to Satan

And through the death and the resurrection of our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ, we regained back the dominion and kingdom from Satan

The kingdom was restored back into the hands of the sons of God

Jesus Christ being another Adam, the last Adam to be specific, came and recovered the lost kingdom of God from the Devil and handed it over to Man who was supposed to propagate this Kingdom

That is why all of Jesus’ preaching and parables was centered on the Kingdom!

Jesus Christ’s major goal was to defeat the powers of darkness and regain the lost Kingdom!

This is the theme of all the scriptures too!

The prophets Isaiah and Daniel have mentioned many times in their books about this Kingdom of God been established on earth and that this kingdom is everlasting

Due to their deficiency of not been filled with the Holy Spirit, they could not explain better, and that’s why Jesus centered almost all his teachings on the Kingdom of Heaven.

Painfully, the legal carnal Pharisees have taken the kingdom to be a physical restoration of Israel and the unskillful legal Christian have taken the Kingdom to mean a future ecstasy.

Jesus Christ, wanted the people of that era to change their mindset about this kingdom

And that is why both Jesus and John the Baptist always like to start their preaching about the kingdom with the word REPENT… and then they say the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.

This is because the word “repent” as used in the scriptures means “to change one’s mind”, it is not associated with sins or guilt at all. It is a changing of the thoughts you have about something. It is the English meaning of the word that many are preaching today not the scriptural meaning.

In order words, Jesus was saying CHANGE YOUR MINDSET EVERYONE, THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS NOT A PHYSICAL KINGDOM NEITHER IS IT A FUTURE THING BUT IT IS AT HAND/IT IS NEAR!

All of Jesus parable is talking about Kingdom establishment!

All of Jesus parable about the kingdom is talking about how this kingdom will overthrow the current kingdom of darkness and how believers would be saddled with the responsibility of regaining our dominion over creation

All of Jesus parable is compelling us to see our dominion mandate and responsibility as believers

This is the meaning of what Paul said in Romans that “The creation waits for the manifestation of sons”. The creations have been subjected to corruption and death for a long time since the time that the kingdom was lost. Satan had been ruling the creation

God’s utmost intention for saving YOU AND ME is to ESTABLISH THE KINGDOM OF GOD ON EARTH

It is not TO MAKE HEAVEN!

ANY BELIEVER WHO GETS BORN AGAIN and then they are thinking of MAKING HEAVEN is AGAINST THE ETERNAL PLAN OF GOD and therefore calling the work of redemption unnecessary.

Those who teach that believers should START THINKING ABOUT MAKING HEAVEN are enemies of the CROSS

The MANDATE HAS BEEN GIVEN even before we were born! WE ALL HAVE BEEN SADDLED with the responsibility to bring about kingdom establishment and kingdom advancement, you are not to waste all your live playing church or playing religion.

Do not LIVE WITH HEAVEN AS YOUR GOAL!

HEAVEN IS NOT THE GOAL OF THE CHRISTIAN!

Those who teach that heaven is the goal have forgotten how that the book of revelations says that we shall live on earth forever! Nowhere in the bible will you see that believers will live in heaven forever!

We were created to live and function on earth; angels are the set of God’s creation that should live in heaven forever, not man!

Man was created to dominate the earth and to rule all of God’s creation on earth!

IF YOU SPEND ALL YOUR TIME TRYING TO MAKE HEAVEN, YOU WILL BE DISSAPOINTED TO SEE THAT WE ARE COMING DOWN TO THE EARTH TO LIVE FOREVER!

THE BELIEVER WHO FAILS TO JOIN KINGDOM ESTABLISHMENT WILL BE BEATEN WITH MANY STRIPES, he or she is not doing his or her lot in fulfilling the eternal counsel of God!

I hope you were blessed?

Philip Oklu

UNLEARNING THE LIES ABOUT HEAVEN - 2

THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN – WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

One of the lies we have swallowed deeply into the body of Christ through some unskillful bible teachers is that - to ENTER INTO THE KINGDOM OF GOD OR HEAVEN is to die and then live forever with God in Heaven after. What a WHITE LIE!

This was exactly the theme of all of John the Baptist’s and Jesus’ preaching. Most times they say “the Kingdom of God is at hand”. Almost all of Jesus’ parables are about the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Heaven. The kingdom of God is not different from the kingdom of Heaven. I have heard many teachers try to distinguish between the two, but all are just putting up coined human manipulations and theological jargons.

The “kingdom of Heaven” was used interchangeably with the “Kingdom of God” several times by the both Jesus Christ and John the Baptist in the four gospel books.

Since Heaven is considered as the throne of God, which is same as his presence and territory, then it is sufficient to interchange the word “Heaven” for “God”.

So the KINGDOM OF GOD is the same as THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN

Just like saying, “the government of Nigeria”. Since it is the president that is ruling the country, we can as well call it “the government of Buhari”.

I hope that is clear now?

Now we define properly the kingdom of God as the rulership of the Sovereign King, God. It does not refer to a place in paradise! That is heaven, not the Kingdom of Heaven!

The kingdom of God or Heaven is an act of God’s control over his territory. The kingdom of God is not a location you go after death, it is a location you go after salvation.

The kingdom of God or Heaven is NOT THE SAME as The Heaven!

Since the word “kingdom” refers to RULERSHIP, CONTROL AND DOMINION over a certain entity

So the kingdom of Heaven is the rulership of heaven (the presence of God) over an entity

So when the bible talks about ENTERING THE KINGDOM OF GOD, just like Jesus told Nicodemus, it is not the same as MAKING HEAVEN.

Entering the Kingdom or becoming part of the Kingdom of God does not mean that after you die, you wear white cloth and joyfully enter the gates of heaven with dances and songs.  NO! The bible does not teach that drama!

Entering the Kingdom of God is becoming born again!

Entering the Kingdom of God is receiving the Holy Spirit!

Entering the Kingdom of God is regaining relationship with God to dominate this earth!

Entering the Kingdom of God, is receiving from God and acting in his stead!

We will see this in few scriptures now…

See how Jesus put it in Matthew 6:10, “thy Kingdom come (the Kingdom of God), THY WILL BE DONE IN EARTH, as in heaven” this was a prayer before the death and resurrection of Jesus and before the day of Pentecost.

See what John the Baptist said in John 1...”the TIME IS FULFILLED, and the Kingdom of God is at hand… “Time is fulfilled means NOTHING IS DELAYING the kingdom to arrive, referring to the COMING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT!

See a scripture that will raise your eyebrows in Luke 9:27… “but I tell you of a truth, there be some standing here; WHICH SHALL NOT TASTE OF DEATH, TILL THEY SEE THE KINGDOM OF GOD” You see?? Jesus cannot be talking of a kingdom that you will enter with white cloth after death if he said to those people that THEY WILL NOT DIE BEFORE THEY ENTER INTO IT . For him to say they will not die, it means arrival of the kingdom is near to happen as at that time he was speaking and that the kingdom he was talking about is meant to be on earth. I hope you get it?

Because of space, we take this final one… very special one for those that are always dreaming of a white kingdom of Jesus Christ with a massive show of angels. Luke 17:20-21… “And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, the kingdom of God COMETH NOT WITH OBSERVATION: Neither shall they say, Lo here! or Lo there!, for behold, THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS WITHIN YOU” Case closed!

So when Jesus Christ or John the Baptist says that the kingdom of God is at hand, they refer to the nearness of the coming of the rulership, dominion and control of the earth through the believers by the help of the Holy Spirit. In order words, the kingdom of God THAT WAS NEAR according to John the Baptist and Jesus was referring to nearness of the day of the Pentecost, the arrival of the Holy Spirit of God. This is because the Holy Spirit is the orchestrator of the Kingdom of God.

See how Jesus puts it in Matthew 12:28 “but if I cast out devils by THE SPIRIT OF GOD, then THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS COME UNTO YOU”

The believer is connected to God through the Holy Spirit joined together with his or her born again spirit. That is why Jesus told Nicodemus, except a man is born of water and of SPIRIT; he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. The presence of the Holy Spirit is the presence of the Kingdom of God/Heaven!

So the KINGDOM OF GOD IS AT HAND does not refer to some future event.

The Kingdom has already come more than 2 THOUSAND YEARS BACK!

The kingdom of God is in every country right now and is already taking over the earth through citizens of the kingdom!

The kingdom of God is not physical kingdom; it is the Holy Spirit ruling through the kings (believers)

We (believers) are the ones legislating God’s kingdom on earth! We are the ones who will establish FULLY this kingdom.

We have been made Kings! That’s why Jesus Christ is called the King of kings! We are the ‘kings’ he rules.

We are the ones who will bring about the full establishment of the kingdom of God; going to heaven is not why we were saved!

We were saved in order to restore the kingdom of God lost by the first man, Adam!

Though not yet fully established, we are in the kingdom of God already, don’t be deceived!

Philip Oklu

UNLEARNING THE LIES ABOUT HEAVEN - 1

HEAVEN – WHAT ABOUT IT?

Although it is good that we should always sit and learn from our Christian fathers and teachers of the

word of God. It is however expedient that we do not swallow everything they offer us. Some of these things sound cool and perfect, but we ought to be careful with how we bind them to our hearts without proper scrutiny of what was offered.

And because most of us have allowed our pastors to do our thinking for us (we are lazy to sit down, study and think), we have believed a lie for long and it has become part and parcel of our faith also. Some of us (believers) nevertheless have taken time to research many of these things in the history books and the Holy books, but again we are yet ruled by our imagination of what the movie industry have depicted. One of these misunderstanding is the subject of HEAVEN. We have allowed our movie industry to rule our hearts with their view of what heaven is, and we put away or neglect the true word of the Creator God.

So an average person will say with confidence that heaven is a place where God lives or that heaven is a spiritual location of the good people who have died. Unbelievers have no different definition either. Majority believes that Heaven is white, beautiful and located above the clouds.

Alright, we will uproot many things during and before the end of this series. We hope that you will be liberated!

Let’s see Genesis 1:1…since it is the first place the word “heaven” was mentioned…

In the beginning, God created the HEAVEN and the earth

So, heaven has a date of creation. Heaven was the first thing created by the lord God of the universe in the beginning.

So if God created “the” heaven (note the word “the”), it is clear that he (God) was existing before the heaven. He created it at a certain day and time, or we say that time began to tick when heaven was created. So heaven did not existed before God, God existed before the heaven.

This is the foundational point we all need to understand. Also, man came out of God and has its source from God.  Another point is that heaven has a beginning and an end, heaven is not forever or I should say that the heaven that was created is not going to exist forever. Since it was created in a day, it will be destroyed or will stop existing one day.

Let’s see how the bible puts it in Revelation 21:1…

 And I saw a NEW HEAVEN and a new earth: for the FIRST HEAVEN and the first earth were PASSED AWAY…

So the heaven created by God in the beginning was meant to span a period of time. How then can heaven be the home of God? or the home of the saints?

Heaven is not the home of God!

God existed in eternity and will never stop existing in eternity! He cannot be bound with time!

God has been dwelling in LIGHT and will continue to be there!

See how Paul puts it in 1 Tim 6:16…

Who hath only Immortality, DWELLING IN THE LIGHT which no man can approach unto, whom no man hath seen, nor can see …

That’s it! God dwells somewhere in eternity where everything is LIGHT. Not the light you think, it is the only way Paul can convey the message, that’s why he said NO MAN CAN APPROACH THE LIGHT, NO MAN HATH SEEN THE LIGHT, and NO MAN CAN SEE THE LIGHT!

Forget Moses and those who you think saw God, they did not see God!

God had never appeared to any MORTAL MAN!

Moses saw an ANGEL whom God appointed over the OLD COVENANT, not God!

Jesus Christ was first to clear the doubt of his disciples and the multitude when he said “no man has seen God at anytime”, he said NO MAN!

It was Paul through revelation that then made it clear that the law was given to Moses by AN ANGEL not God. So Moses never saw God! God dwells in an UNAPPROACHABLE light, when they say something is unapproachable, it is!

You may say, Jesus taught his disciples a prayer beginning with “our father who art in heaven…” what then is Jesus saying again…is heaven the light? Or is the light heaven? NO! We have just said that the light cannot be approach by any, but heaven has been habited from ages.

Now listen, heaven, earth, everything you could think of, all of God’s creation came to be because of man and the God’s desire for the kingdom of sons!

Man existed in God, before the heavens and earths were created in the beginning! Yes! You heard me right, you and I (or I say believers, the elect of salvation) were existing with God from eternity past. This is a mystery which I cannot demystify now, it is important that we stick to the theme.

So the heaven and the earth were creations subject to God and to his sons (Man).

It is true that God created man after he created the heavens, but it is also true that MAN ONLY CAME INTO PHYSICAL EXISTENCE at that time.

Paul said in Ephesians that “he has chosen us in him, BEFORE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD”, in Titus, he said “he promised us eternal life BEFORE THE WORLD BEGAN” and many more scriptures like that, so we existed before heaven existed and we existed in God.

So God is our source, God is our home!

Heaven was created for a PART of God to inhabit in other to rule the earth from there. David said, it is the THRONE OF GOD! Throne means where God rules from, so heaven is just like an office where God must move to, in order to relate with the SONS he put on earth.

Heaven is not our Home, God is our Home!

Heaven, earth and everything are constituents of the divine God of which we are joined to!

Hebrews 2:10 says “for it became him, FOR WHO ARE ALL THINGS (you get that?), and BY WHO ARE ALL THINGS (you understand?), in bringing many sons unto glory…”

See a clearer one in Colossians 1:16…

For by him were all things created, that are in HEAVEN (you hear?), and that are in earth, visible and invisible…all things were created by him and FOR HIM (including heaven). And HE IS BEFORE ALL THINGS and by him ALL THINGS CONSIST.

Stop chasing an ambition to make heaven!

The kingdom will be established on earth, not HEAVEN!

You have been deceived!

Don’t be in a hurry; all other lies about heaven will be exposed before the end of the third day.

I hope you we were liberated?

Feel free to express your thoughts or ask questions.

Philip Oklu

UNDERSTANDING SALVATION - Part 9 - Final

JUSTIFICATION

This teaching on salvation is much more longer than this. I had highlighted up to 21 lessons before, but because of time and space, I chose nine of it and I am sure many who read them will be blessed by them all. You can share your testimonies later, there have been testimonies already.

Now to the issue of Justification, let us make it clear that everyone who has received salvation is FULLY JUSTIFIED!

It is important to also note that we the gentiles were not given the law in the first place, so we need not be judged by the law. The Jews were once under the law and now have been delivered from the curse of the law as well as the burden of the law. But the whole world has been sold under sin, whether jew or gentile. 

The blood of Jesus Christ has been shed for the remission of sins.

You and I have been justified.

We have been declared not guilty by the Father!

Jesus Christ took our place in redemption
He was made our sin
He went to the Hell we were supposed to go
He was punished in our place
He was judged in our place

All this because of our justification!
We have all been justified by faith in these things.
Our justification is not in our works!
We were not involved in the redemption work
God started it and finished it!

Someone asked, after I have been saved, if I commit fornication will I need to be saved again?
Answer is NO!
It is impossible!
You cannot be saved twice!
The death of Jesus was once, his resurrection was once. Therefore the sacrifice for sins was offered JUST ONCE!
So you can only be saved ONCE!
Yes, just ONCE!

There is no more sacrifice for sins,and hence you cannot be saved twice!
You may say, but sir...what then will happen to me if fornicate after my born again experience?

Answer: NOTHING will happen to you. You HAVE BEEN JUSTIFIED freely BY HIS GRACE!
The sacrifice of sins is for PAST,PRESENT and FUTURE sins. Yes! You were not born when Jesus was sacrificed for your sins. Your past sins before you become saved were future sins as at the time Jesus died, so his death paid for all sins thousands of years into the future.

So your future sins have also been paid for.

The lamb of God has taken away the sin of the world!

There is no more sin as far as God is concerned. He has ended the reign of sin.

You have been JUSTIFIED!
You may say how?
Your salvation is ETERNAL!

Since GOD is an EVERLASTING FATHER, you and I cannot be TEMPORARY sons, we are EVERLASTING SONS!

We can never be disowned!

This is FULL JUSTIFICATION revealed throughout the word of God.

You may ask, what exactly is the basis for our Justification?

See it now...

Before you got saved...

You = Sinner
Jesus Christ = Righteous

When you BELIEVE the gospel of your redemption
Your Sins were exchanged with the Righteousness of Jesus Christ!

That's what we call the SUBSTITUTIONARY Work of Redemption!

Your dead spirit was substituted for the life of God in Christ Jesus.
You became Holy!
You became Righteous!
You became all what Jesus Christ is.

In return, Jesus Christ became all what you were.

Then he received your judgment!

You can no longer go to hell if you are saved!

You have been saved forever to be in the kingdom of God

NOTE: I have not encouraged sin, and I have not encouraged fornicators. I have only emphasized on the WHOLE TRUTH OF JUSTIFICATION!

THAT JUSTIFICATION is annoying to the LAW MINDED CHRISTIANS does not make the word of God a lie!

Keep basking in God's love!

Amen.

THE END!

UNDERSTANDING SALVATION - PART 8

CONFESS, REPENT OR BELIEVE?

This is another critical issue we need to look at closely. Since we have established that salvation can only be received but faith in Christ Jesus from lessons 3 and 4, what about other things attached to receiving salvation like REPENTANCE and CONFESSION? 

REPENTANCE

The word repentance means TO CHANGE one’s mind

Repentance does not mean that you should smash yourself on the floor and begin to cry about your sins

Repentance does not include any form of restitution

Repentance simply means changing your mid and believing the gospel.

The original word used for repentance in the word of God is metanous and that’s it meaning, meta means Change, nous is the mind. It is the English dictionary that has a different meaning for the word, which many have adopted in the church today. The original word used in the scriptures simply means changing of the mind about something.

Have you seen the scripture in the book of Exodus talking about GOD repenting?

So if the word was used for God, then surely it is not related to sin or restitution or whatever we have called it today.

Now repentance which is changing of one’s mind is a simultaneously activity with believing during salvation.

When you repent, you believe at the same time.

They are not two separate events

Repentance and believing goes hand in hand. You repent in your mind, you also believe in your mind.

There is no difference!

Jesus Christ, John the Baptist and Peter used the word more often than anyone in the bible during their preaching because they were almost all the time preaching to STUBBORN Jews who would not believe the son of a carpenter as Jesus Christ. Paul is not conversant with the word at all. on the other hand , they all used the word BELIEVE.

Believing the gospel has repentance attached to it. It is simultaneous and does not involve the confession of sins or feeling guilty for sins.

CONFESSION

According to Romans 10, it says one must CONFESS with the MOUTH and BELIEVE in the HEART

We are OKAY with the word BELIEVE, and of course it further said that - with the heart, a man believes unto righteousness and with the mouth a man confesses unto salvation

So what about those who cannot confess? Like the DUMB?

Remember that Paul specifically mentioned “mouth” for confession and “heart” for believing

Now this is the problem which only contextual meaning and proper division of the word of God can solve.

In lesson 6, we learnt about the tenses of salvation. In it is the solution to this problem.

The salvation mentioned in this passage is not the born again experience. You can only be born again, receive eternal life or receive the righteousness of God by BELIEVING the GOSPEL and BELIEVING ALONE. You cannot receive eternal life by CONFESSION!

You would notice how that this problem of confessing with the mouth for salvation occurred only ONCE in this passage throughout the entire bible. No one ever asked anyone to confess to be saved, not even Paul throughout his missionary days.

So our misinterpretation of this verse is in the meaning of the words "CONFESS" and "SALVATION"

The word confess in the passage goes beyond talking, it means “to make covenant with or to acknowledge” so confessing Jesus is not just speaking, it is an activity that is rooted in the heart. Therefore it is also simultaneous with believing. For you to hear the gospel and believe, you have repented and have confessed Jesus as your savior also. All is rooted from the same heart. So the confession in the passage is not necessarily in words.

But PAUL mentioned MOUTH? Yes. See verse 8, it says the word of faith is there in our MOUTH and OUR HEART, so it is a matter of option. We can have the confession both in the heart and in the mouth.

So a DUMB can be saved, as well as a DEAF if they can hear the gospel and BELIEVE in the heart.

Again, Paul said the confession is made unto salvation….

So what salvation is Paul referring to?

It is the salvation of the soul, the alignment of the believer with the Holy Spirit and the release of what is deposited in the spirit of the believer at salvation.

The salvation that confession with the MOUTH can address is the salvation from the motions of sins in our daily life. That is, if you confess to people around you that you are saved, you would help yourself in overcoming the promptings of the flesh.

Confession establishes faith the more, the more you confess your faith, the more you free yourself from addictions and sinful desires. Confession of who are in Christ Jesus is the key to overcoming any struggle you may encounter in the flesh.

Confession is needed for the salvation of the soul. That is what Paul is saying. He is not saying that you must confess to receive eternal life! No! Eternal life is received only by believing. It is a believer that can now confess their righteousness in Christ Jesus in other to save their soul, which is what the context is saying.

Let’s nail it…

See how Paul said later in the passage…

For whosoever call upon the name of the Lord will be saved, notice that before he said whosoever confesses will be saved

Now we know that "calling" = "confessing"…since he said both of them will bring salvation

In other to be sure that the salvation is not the born again experience... See what he said next about the calling

HOW SHALL THEY CALL ON HIM WHOM THEY HAVE NOT BELIEVED? How shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard?

You see? so they must
1. Hear
2. Believe
3. Call

So the confession unto salvation that Paul is talking about is something that must be done after BELIEVING. So it is an after-born-again thing. It is the salvation of the soul. It is the act of trusting God for the outworking power of the Holy Spirit in attending to the weaknesses, addictions and challenges of the flesh

ETERNAL LIFE can only be received by BELIEVING the FINISHED WORKS of the Cross.

REPENTANCE and CONFESSION are necessary, you can practice them but none of it is a BASIC REQUIREMENT for ETERNAL LIFE..

UNDERSTANDING SALVATION - PART 7

YOU CANNOT MAKE HEAVEN

One of the problems we have in the body of Christ is our laziness to carefully study the word of God for ourselves. We have been accustomed into believing everything we hear from any man of God and any spiritual leader who have assumed a teacher of the word. Most times, these people are honest with their teachings, but it is important that a believer sits down and check these things whether they were so, just like the Berean church did in the book of Acts.

Now, let us make it clear that YOU CANNOT MAKE HEAVEN

NO ONE CAN!

Not your pastor!

Not your arch bishop!

Not your general overseer!

Not anybody!

No one!

Everyone who claims that they can make heaven is joking. They will end up in frustration.

NO MAN CAN ACHIEVE SALVATION.

We have established it and I will repeat over and over again that salvation cannot be ACHIEVED BY ANY MAN!

You can only receive what Jesus Christ has ACHIEVED for humanity!

Heaven is not far, for anyone who believes!

Believing the gospel is what makes you a citizen of the kingdom of God

Not forsaking your sins!

You cannot forsake your sins by yourself! The Holy Spirit will help you to do that as you fellowship with him daily. This is what we have established in the previous lesson as the salvation of the soul which takes place every day!

You cannot be holy by your dressing or conduct! NO ONE CAN! All your holiness at the end of the day will not match God’s requirement!

God’s requirement is not your HOLINESS! But Christ’s HOLINESS AND RIGHTEOUSNESS available at salvation for anyone who believes in him!

Don’t be fooled by what you read in Hebrews 12:14, it is not talking about making heaven, it is talking about the world seeing God through you. It is talking about your lifestyle as a Christian. Not about making heaven. I wish there was space to expound more on this verse.

NO ONE CAN MAKE HEAVEN!

Jesus Christ is the way, the truth and the life!

No one can get to the father but by him, i.e by BELIEVING IN HIS FINISHED WORKS!

Not by religiously living a holy life by obeying the rules of the law

The bible said by the law shall no man be justified!

You will fail every day, if you want to build your holiness by obeying the law! Everyone who has tried this has failed!

Everyone who BELIEVE the finished works of the cross have been translated into the kingdom of God. No more translation by your works!

For by GRACE you have been SAVED…Past tense! Not of works!

Stop struggling to make Heaven. You cannot make it! Believe in the finished works!

WHOSOEVER BELIEVES WILL NOT PERISH