Eternal Glorious Fountain Ministry (EGFM)
Programme: Believers’ Convention 2023 (Day 2 - Evening Session)
Date: Monday, 7th August 2023
Minister: Pastor Emeka Egwuchukwu
Transcript Excerpt
The appearance of the Lord does not just refer to His physical manifestation. The Lord is coming to the Church, coming for the Church and then, coming with the Church. He cannot come for the Church without coming to the Church. When the Lord is coming to the Church, it is for the restitution of all things (Acts 3:21).
“But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.” (Rev. 10:7). Voices usually carry things; they carry teachings, administrations, and portions that have to be given. There is a time when the voice would begin to sound and also a time when it should culminate. The agenda of the coming of the Lord will be finished when the voice of this seventh angel begins to sound, and the mystery of God is finished. This mystery is that which He has declared to His servants, the prophets.
When it is said that ‘the mystery of God is being finished’, it means the mystery of salvation is being completed. This is expected to happen in the days of the seventh angel. The essence of the coming of the Lord is to empty Himself into the Church, for He has been estranged from the Church for a long time. Thus, He has to continually come to it/her because He wants to come in a greater measure.
The devil made sure that the Church became estranged from the Lord by removing His ways from it. The resultant effect of this is so that it would become impossible for the Lord to come back. Rapture will not take place until the Lord has finished coming to the Church. Therefore, we have to keep looking for the coming of the Lord. But unfortunately, the Church is not looking for it.
“I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith…” (2 Tim. 4:7). Paul understood the course and agenda. He understood the heavenly vision, which is nothing other than salvation. Hence, he knew when he finished the course. He kept the faith. This faith is not faith towards God but the most holy faith. Faith graduates from one level to another, hence, we go from faith to faith (Rom. 1:17). It is the end of faith that would result in the salvation of the soul.
“Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.” (2 Tim. 4:8). The crown of righteousness is a mastery of the life of righteousness which makes one reign in life. You cannot reign in life if you have not entered the kingdom. The Lord is a righteous judge, giving to every man according as his work shall be (Rev. 22:12) and according to those that love His appearing. We need to love His appearing or unveilings of salvation at all levels, and finish the work.
“If ye love me, keep my commandments. [16] And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever…” (John 14:15-16). The ministry of the Comforter will only come when men begin to love the Lord’s appearing. This ministry is one that the Holy Ghost has to begin within the Church. The Comforter is the Spirit of Truth, who will guide you into all Truth. The properties of salvation are ‘Truth’. Therefore, if He will guide us into all truth, He will guide us into everything that has to do with salvation.
“Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” (John 14:23). The qualification for attaining a state in which the Father will love a man, come unto him and make His abode with him, is that the man should love His appearance and revelation. The essence of all these appearances is to bring the Holy Ghost, the Son and the Father; for the coming of three of Them is salvation. That is what is called salvation to the utmost.
The essence of the coming of the Lord is to change us. Some people will finish the course and attract Him to come forth to the earth. It is the level of salvation you have acquired in your soul that you would be rapturable with, for we would not all be on the same level. Bodies are not going to be the same in glory. It is how well the soul has imbibed salvation that would determine the kind of body one would have. This is why one ought to work out his salvation, even while on earth.
When we love the appearing of the Lord, we will look for His appearance. He appeared once to take away sins, but to those that look for Him, He would appear to them the second time (Heb. 9:28). This appearance is not rapture, but something that should take place even while we are on earth. The essence of these appearings are to move us from one level of salvation to the other, until we come to the fullness of salvation. Therefore, the Church has to wake up and come to a place where it would begin to look for His appearing.
Some of us are struggling with loving the Lord’s appearing because we have a lot of encumbrances. But the Lord has to come back fully into us before He comes for us; and when He comes for us, He will make us full of Him.
Round-Off by Reverend Kayode Oyegoke
“He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.” (John 14:21). Jesus watches till His Father loves a man first because it is the Father that proves a vessel that He can love. Jesus cannot just love of His own volition. This does not refer to the general love that God has for sinners, but the love that brings God's commitment to a man.
Jesus never trusted anyone because he knew what was in men. Until that which is in man is purified and removed completely, He can trust no one. The proof of His trust is that He can come to a man. One cannot truly love Jesus of his own volition. We did not even love God to get born again. Instead, God breathed into our souls which were becoming children of perdition. Then, God convinced our souls to get our spirits born again. The heart believed and with the mouth, confession was made by faith (Rom. 10:10). The spirit was quickened by grace through faith, not of oneself. God knows how to communicate to the dead, for we were dead in trespasses and sin. It is great love that got us born again.
What God wants us to know is that being born again is not the end because He also wants to move us deeper into His resources. Jesus’ death was a heavy price, therefore, He did not die for us to have mundane things. Jesus has an origin. He was not a man at first and He had no business with men. He created angels who are higher than men. Jesus also made Lucifer. But this same Jesus made himself of no reputation (Phil. 2:7-9). Jesus wants to give us something that is more than the natural. Therefore, we ought to get into God's thoughts of what the future is. This future is the vision of God. It is not a better planet than earth or heaven, but what we should become. This vision is what God has in His thoughts or what He has designed in His books about a man.
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” (Jer. 29:11). This expected end or hope is not the hope of a man (but of God). What God wants to give to men is not what men desire but what He wants them to be. One can never think better than God, for the vision is in the person. Satan can allow one to have physical abundance and yet, he might not allow him to attain the vision. When one attains this vision, he has attained stature in the spirit.
Salvation is more than an escape. It is a trophy that even the angels are envious of. Satan is jealous of us because of what God wants us to be, but God is helping us to become it. The comings of the Lord are installations of salvation. Everlasting life is the exercise of salvation. It is the practice of being saved. God’s appearance will cause a nature to be formed in us, for as He appears, He would be teaching us how we should look like. We ought to keep looking like Jesus and get to a point where we cannot turn again.
“God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?” (Num. 23:19). The Son of man is not a man. Man lies but the Son of man cannot lie. God cannot lie and the Son of God cannot repent. The place where one does not repent is the end of salvation. When you begin salvation, you end all lying. And when you get to the end, you become unrepentant and cannot turn into the corruptible. This is why a person who has gotten to this point cannot be tempted.
What can bring this kind of blessing is salvation, for it is an appearing. But we do not know what it is. Therefore, someone needs to come to us and show us how these things can be. This economy is being supervised by the High Priest of good things to come.
Blessings!