Eternal Glorious Fountain Ministry (EGFM)
Programme: Lekki Soul Centre (LSC)
Date: Wednesday, 30th November 2022
For one to be carnally minded is death (Romans 8:6). Death, according to this scripture, is flesh. To be flesh is synonymous with being dead. A newly born child can only be regarded as flesh and not dead. This is because the baby has not done anything sinful. No man becomes this kind of flesh without being in enmity against God. This death is the flesh that is against God.
Jesus, speaking to Nicodemus, talked about flesh birthing flesh (John 3:6); this birth is one of dominion. This shows that this dimension of flesh is a king. The heart of a baby is not carnally-minded because he has done nothing yet and the law of conscience is still preserved in him. But if the child is not brought up in the way he ought to go (Prov. 22:6), such a one would end up becoming a superior flesh— he will be properly born of flesh. This flesh is the adaptation that Satan took for his kingdom.
Satan decided that flesh can easily be born; which is why he cannot undertake the task of birthing a spirit or be subject to the law of God. The basic knowledge of flesh is that it is the hide (skin) for expression in a visible world. The body will interpret manifestation more than the soul; the soul will also interpret manifestation more than the spirit. This does not imply that the spirit is powerless; rather, the spirit is the generator but its expression is not seen. The physical realm is not the only manifest world. Jesus was manifest as God in the flesh.
“And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.” (1 Tim. 3:16). There is a dimension of sight that is beyond the physical. Jesus was manifest in the flesh and seen of angels, yet the carnal man could not see or read the manifestation because it is not yet in their dimension. The manifestation was in the spirit, thereby making it limited for only spirits to see. The season of being justified in the spirit was when Jesus was raised from the dead— then angels saw him and were rejoicing. There was something they saw and read as manifestation which is not seen by the carnal man. This manifestation was preached to the Gentiles. After Jesus has been preached, believed on in the world, he was then received up into glory (1 Tim. 3:16).
“For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom …” (1 Cor. 1:22). Apostle Paul was not a preacher of the sign; rather, he was a preacher of wisdom, the wisdom of God. The Jews went to Jesus seeking a sign but the Greeks were drawn to Jesus by wisdom (John 12:20-23). Without Jesus being glorified, the Greeks cannot see Him. What God gave to the Jews was a sign. Jesus was a sign right from His conception and throughout His lifetime (Matt. 1:23, Luke 2:12) because the Jews were masters of sign. Jesus performed miracles and they were still interested in seeing a sign (John 6:30-31).
“But He answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas …” (Matt. 12:39). They are evil because they had adulterated the position of those who were supposed to see signs. The only sign they were given was a sign they could not see but believe. No sign will be given except the sign of Jonas (Matt. 16:4), which means you will have to be in the water for three days. The cross was meant to crush the Jews’ craving for signs but it is a stumbling block to them (1 Cor. 1:23). They needed that stumbling block for their minds to be arrested and raised from the dead. The continual giving of signs would not permit them to be raised. To be raised from the dead, the stand of the Jews needed to be crushed.
So, the preaching of Christ crucified to them is a stumbling block. They needed to be stopped from continuing in their tradition. The bringing of the Cross is a waterloo to the tradition of the Jews. It is supposed to arrest it so that they can start afresh. The Jew is therefore given a new beginning; the Greeks seek wisdom (1 Cor. 1:22) but they should not be given wisdom, but the cross. Hence, the cross is an answer to both the Jews and the Greeks.
It is foolish so they can believe. It is the Grecian wisdom that says they need proof and the proof of reality is sin. God said He would not give any of those things as one needs to be foolish to have life. The Greeks and Jews would not follow different paths to arriving at the same as God hates both their stands. God crushed their paths so they can follow His way, which is “believe the unseen; believe the foolish offering.” That is why those called are helped by grace through faith
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." (Eph. 2:8-9). When an individual becomes born again, it is not by his power or wisdom. The gift here is not what natural men define gifts to be. It is how one believes. The grace of God brought an ability for that person to become born again. If that ability was not given, that would have been impossible. It was God's help at work. The gift of God is the belief. The day you believed, it was not your faith in operation, it was the gift of the faith of God. God offers grace and grace releases faith for the heart to believe; that was how you were called. We were called by grace through faith.
The gift of God is above the realm of the ability of men. The sign-seeking attitude of the Jews was an enablement by God for them. The Grecians in the natural were blessed by God to be wise, but Lucifer saw the gifts God placed in nations. All the nations of the earth are tribes in Israel. Each nation has its own inheritance, and their inheritance is their tribe in the spirit.
The African man has his own inheritance. His inheritance is his tribe in the spirit. This inheritance is his darkness. Darkness is where you keep treasure and you do not want anyone to know about it. The tribe of Joseph is the tribe of the black man because the sons of Joseph - Ephraim and Manasseh - were black.
"And the fourth row a beryl, and an onyx, and a jasper: they shall be set in gold in their inclosings. And the stones shall be with the names of the children of Israel, twelve, according to their names, like the engravings of a signet; every one with his name shall they be according to the twelve tribes." (Exodus 28:20-21). The last stone is Jasper, being Benjamin. The previous is Onyx, a dark stone. Onyx is the colour of Urim. Urim is dark, and it means complete. Satan knew what God placed in each nation and he can use it against the rest of the nation. God told Moses to put two Onyx on the shoulders of the High Priest, which represents Manasseh and Ephraim because there are actually fourteen tribes, and Jacob blessed them with their uncles. They admitted them into the tribal division, but they did not take the tribes of the other children. This is because Joseph was the man with the dark inheritance. Joseph married the daughter of a priest of Egypt. This marriage tells us something about Africa and priesthood. There are treasures that Africa can give the world, which is not about natural things. Africa is one place that God will keep the hidden treasure of darkness (Isa. 45:3). Nigeria is a cornerstone hiding behind an edge.
For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. (Rom. 8:6). There is a flesh on earth, though sinful, that has not gotten so much account of sin to lead to a carnal mind; for example, the flesh of a baby. Any flesh born through the conception of a woman is still flesh. Even if it was a conception in an artificial womb, it was still generated by sin. Sin here speaks of an alternative to God generated by flesh. Sin is another lifestyle from which wisdom can be generated.
Flesh cannot be generated without sin. Sin married flesh and became flesh. Sin found a way into man’s bloodstream; so, it can be transferable by conception. It is necessary for believing parents to ensure that the the traces of flesh found in their children must be rebuked and taken out. Do not let sin express itself in your child’s mortal body.
“For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.” (Rom. 8:5). Satan quickly sold the idea of flesh to man but the original owner of it is God. Satan is a thief (John 10:10). Satan knew what God wanted to do with man. Satan ran ahead of God. The purpose of flesh is for the seeing dimension. God is Eternal but His flesh is everlasting life. There are many unseen dimensions in God. In the spirit, no one knows how the Holy Ghost looks. He is a Being having a form of God and manifests. No man can see who the Holy Ghost is. It is only God and the Lord Jesus that knows Him. The eternal dimension was an unseen dimension. But when God wanted to come into creation, He needed a visible show of Himself which creation relates to. Jesus is the image of His invisible God (Heb. 1:3). So, Jesus had to take a form of man for God to read and know.
The scripture says that “no man has seen God at any time” (John 1:18). However, we saw that Moses and the elders of Israel saw God (Exo. 24:9-11). Also, Ezekiel and John described God. Ezekiel likened God as unto a Son of man who sat upon the throne. He described the colour of His body from the head to the waist, then to the leg (Ezek. 1:26-28). But it is only the Son of God who is in the bosom of the Father that has seen Him and has declared Him (John 1:18), but only a few people hear this declaration. The declaration can neither be seen nor read in the Bible. Heaven has to show us. What was declared was hidden in the words of the scriptures. It takes mercy for us to see it.
God manifested Himself to angels and they saw Him. But Jesus has promised us another manifestation, that He and His Father will come and manifest themselves to us (John 14:21). This is Maranatha — the Lord will come and manifest Himself to us. Then He will bring His Father. The Father sent the Son to come and assess how ready we are for His coming. Another promise is that They will make an abode with us (John 14:23).
The issue of the flesh is not ordinary. The flesh is for manifestation. It is for showing that which is hidden. The idea of flesh is God’s invention. One needs the outward man to attain carnal-mindedness. The mind is part of the soul, not the body. So, to be carnally-minded means that the mind has taken things that are aligned with the idea of flesh that is not of God. God made flesh so that things that are hidden will find expression. There is a beauty in bringing things from hiddenness to the outward; that is, pushing things from where they are to the board for all to see. If it is seen in angels, it is not a complete sight nor a full manifestation. Manifestation can only be full when earth and heaven can see it.
Manifestation is the pleasure God is looking for. God made man to bring things from Himself and make them real in man. The things of God, Eternal Life, can be made flesh. This is where God is going. He wants Eternal Life to be flesh. The manifestation of the sons of God is for Eternal Life to be expressed in the flesh. Paul’s prayer was that Christ would be magnified in his body (Phil. 1:20). We should have this earnest expectation because that is the earnest expectation of creation
(Rom. 8:19) The earnest expectation is that God should be seen in our flesh. We were made to carry God, and that is why we are Christians. If we go to heaven without this hope and expectation, we will be ashamed. The shame will come from our inability to attain this because we will see people who were able to get there and their status. Then we would realize that we never had this earnest expectation. All of us have earnest expectations. Servants of God have several expectations pertaining to their ministries, but their expectations should be that of Paul, which was Jesus’ expectation.
Though Jesus was God-made-flesh, He still had that earnest expectation. The flesh He was first made into was one without manifestation. Then, He grew in bringing God into the flesh. The first obvious manifestation was in Jordan when God came down. God had been waiting for this manifestation from a man. And for the first time, He saw a Man bearing Him on earth. This spurred Him to say, without shame or care for Satan, “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased” (Matt. 3:17). God was pleased with Jesus because He was a Man that is His Son (Son of Man). The title ‘Son of Man’ means manifestation. It means He is not a man that is barren. A fruitful man is called a son of man – a man that can manifest.
“And Jesus, when He was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto Him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: and lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Matt. 3:16-17). The calling of a son of man is higher than Jordan. At Transfiguration, another (higher) manifestation came forth.
The Holy Ghost lighted on Him in Matt 3. This was not a dove; the Holy Ghost rested on Him comfortably. Some people cannot allow the Holy Ghost rest properly on them. They become unnatural and stop eating or talking just because the Holy Ghost is resting on them. Some men of God cannot be greeted because of their demeanour. In those days, preachers had a fearful, unapproachable look. Men of God can be powerful but they should not scare people. Jesus was one of the friendliest beings on earth. He was a dove. If He were to be amidst us today, we would forget about going home because He is home.
We ought to be ourselves, not our flesh. In other words, we should not aggregate what we are not to ourselves. We should admit our weaknesses and remind ourselves that it is the Holy Ghost that is helping us and pray for more grace that He would keep keeping us. But if we rise above our measure, we would be implying that we can maintain the measure by ourselves. The solution to all of these is to be ourselves.
A son of man is one that can birth God’s intention or bear God’s fruit. He is a man that can manifest God to all degrees. There is the beginning of it, then there are different measures. Though Jesus is God, He still loves to be a man. He did not want to give up the human nature. If Jesus complained in the body at that state, He would have only borne it for a season. But He loved to be like us. Jesus never complained to God or cited His former status in the Godhead. In fact, He decided to still keep His human state. He interceded that God should not change Him from being a man. He asked to be a God while still being a man. God made it possible by taking Him up to the Throne.
Angels should not ask God for His throne. One of them desired it and he became a curse till today. Satan detests the nature of angels. What he really wanted was the form of God (Isa. 14:14). He was looking for the state of God’s person but God said it was impossible. Meanwhile, Jesus in His meekness decided not to change state because of His brothers.
Jesus has brethren (Heb. 2:12). When He was raised from the dead, He delivered a message through Mary to His brethren (John 20:16-17). A change in class usually comes with pride but this was not so with Jesus. Rather, He came down to Galilee of the Gentiles. Jesus was only concerned about saving His brethren. He told them to meet with Him in Galilee and they journeyed from Jerusalem to go there. Jesus met with them in eagerness. If Jesus was very tough, Thomas Didymus would not have talked to Him in doubt (John 20:24-27). It means Jesus was someone He could talk to and argue with. Nobody can be like Jesus or talk like Him.
Blessings!
Summary
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(Romans 8:6) Death, according to this scripture, is flesh. To be flesh is synonymous with being dead. A newly born child can only be regarded as flesh and not dead. This is because the baby has not done anything sinful. No man becomes this kind of flesh without being in enmity against God. This death is the flesh that is against God.
-
The basic knowledge of flesh is that it is the hide (skin) for expression in a visible world. The physical realm is not the only manifest world. Jesus was manifest as God in the flesh. There is a dimension of sight that is beyond the physical. Jesus was manifest in the flesh and seen of angels, yet the carnal man could not see or read the manifestation because it is not yet in their dimension. This manifestation was preached to the Gentiles.
-
The purpose of flesh is for the seeing dimension. God is Eternal but His flesh is everlasting life. But when God wanted to come into creation, He needed a visible show of Himself which creation relates to. Jesus is the image of His invisible God (Heb. 1:3).
-
Manifestation is the pleasure God is looking for. God made man to bring things from Himself and make them real in man. The things of God, Eternal Life, can be made flesh. This is where God is going. He wants Eternal Life to be flesh. The manifestation of the sons of God is for Eternal Life to be expressed in the flesh.
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(Rom. 8:19) The earnest expectation is that God should be seen in our flesh. We were made to carry God, and that is why we are Christians. If we go to heaven without this hope and expectation, we will be ashamed. The shame will come from our inability to attain this because we will see people who were able to get there and their status. Then we would realize that we never had this earnest expectation.