Eternal Glorious Fountain Ministry (EGFM)
Programme: Believers’ Convention Prayer Meeting (BeconPM Week 2 Day 3)
Date: Wednesday, 29th June 2022
Minister: Pastor Emeka Egwuchukwu
The oracles of God (1 Pet. 4:11) are not limited to the gifts of prophecy that we experience in the church today. A privilege that the Jews have is that they know about the oracles of God better than the Gentiles who have the learning of dumb idols (1 Cor. 12:2). We cannot worship God accurately without learning Him. If we do not know Who we worship, we would still worship God like the Gentiles worship dumb idols (John 4:22).
“But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.” (John 4:23). Truth is not just a confession, rather, it is the learning of God. Truth is the body of knowledge that defines the oracle. There is a truth that is of Christ and another which is of God. This is why it is referred to as the “oracles” of God.
There are basic principles of the oracles of God and a believer who is oblivious to them will remain a child. It was the learning of God that separated the Jews from other nations of the earth. In the same way, we would be separated from men of the earth when we learn God. God will not call any nation (or soul) His “people” if they have not learnt Him. If we learn the oracles of God, our tongue (which defines or signifies our person) will change in the spirit, just like it changed the Jews whose natural descent is from the Ur of Chaldees. Learning can change a person’s tongue, countenance and natural features; it gives us an advantage over those who do not have knowledge.
“Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” (John 17:17). Truth has the ability to separate us. Truth refers to the oracle and the oracle refers to the word. The learning of God is intricate and should not be taken lightly. As we learn, we do not just acquire knowledge but also change inwardly in our souls. It is a Gentile mind that gets weary while learning, for they only seek physical blessings. There is a deception in the hearts of many that makes them think they know God but we must follow on in the quest to know God.
The knowledge of God is calibrated just like the Tabernacle. We can not talk about God and not speak of the Tabernacle, for the Tabernacle depicts God and His laws. God designed that through His knowledge, He would be given to us in our souls. God is an inheritance and He would only be committed to us by His knowledge. The inheritance of God to man is chiefly the oracles of God.
Paul was given the first administration of the oracles of God, which are the oracles of Christ. There is no way one would fully come into the oracles of God without learning Christ, but to the Jews, Christ was a stumbling block (1 Cor. 1:23). Paul began teaching Christ to the churches of the Gentiles; all his epistles were the teachings of Christ. Paul’s meetings were mainly teaching meetings, in order to cause a change in the souls of the Gentiles. Paul was interpreting the law by revealing Christ, even the spiritual aspect of the law; he was showing them that the law was just a schoolmaster (Gal. 3:24) until Christ came.
The oracles of God make up the ark and the mercy seat. The mercy seat is the seat of the oracle, therefore, as we learn the mercy seat, we learn the oracles of God. The things pertaining to God are the knowledge of God; they are the things concerning the mercy seat. Therefore, we should learn them. We must obtain mercy as Gentiles not to cheat ourselves of the things that should be committed to us. Many Gentiles do not understand the epistles but the epistles are the learning of the truth, which is Christ; they are the first tier of the oracles of God.
The Gentiles disqualify themselves by judging the book of Hebrews as a book for the natural Jews. However, Paul was bringing out salient truths and understandings about our inheritance as children of God in that book. There are many things to be understood, therefore, we must not be weary so that we do not become dull of hearing (Heb. 5:11). We must also not think that we have been fully healed of the dullness of hearing because there is still a lot to be done.
The second tier of the oracles of God has to do with the things that pertain to the mercy seat. The realm of mercy is the realm that is exclusive to God. We do not know as we ought to know. Therefore, we must be humble to be raised fully. Presently, our minds are being upgraded by learning, but we must also press to come into accurate judgement and appreciate what we are learning.
The mercy seat and the ark (upon which the mercy seat is) are being exposed to us. The mercy seat is made of wood and gold (Exo. 37:10–15). Shittim wood which is an oak wood was used to make the mercy seat. Oaks are woods that have everlasting strength compared to other trees. The shittim wood was overlaid with gold because the oak wood has an everlasting strength. If the wood has no everlasting strength, it cannot take a hot liquid gold. Our souls must also gather enough substances of everlasting life for it to be overlaid with gold. As we learn the oracles of God, we are acquiring everlasting strength.
A man who is increasing in the knowledge of God will increase strength in everlasting life (Prov. 24:5). It is those who wait upon the Lord that shall change or renew their strength (Isa. 40:31). As we learn and stay hearing, we are changing strength. We will then begin to gain victory over certain infirmities that have lingered over us. We will keep exchanging strength as we learn the oracle until our souls become as shittim or oak wood. Oak is an oath wood because it has the capacity or strength of oath.
The mercy seat is made of gold, so the ark itself has a touch of the mercy seat. As such, the ark received mercy. The wood that is overlaid with gold is merciful, for it has received a touch of mercy. This is the end of the work of everlasting nature. Everlasting life makes a man partake of divine nature.
The wood overlaid with gold has partaken of divine nature; this is the nature of a God-man or an everlasting man. Those who have been overlaid with mercy are merciful. A man will not be overlaid with gold when his soul does not have the properties of everlasting strength otherwise, he will crumble.
Everlasting life, which is the work of God, is wrought in mercy. The essence of the ark of the covenant is because of the work that mercy did. Mercy will not sit on any work that it did not wreak or work. God is plenteous in mercy. The realms of everlasting life and Eternal Life are all merciful and the mercy is new every morning.
“God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah.” (Psa. 67:1). There are blessings but there is a blessing of mercy. What commends the face blessing is mercy. Mercy comes upon the shittim wood and blesses it with the face blessing, which is the gold it is overlaid with. This overlaying prepares it for the mercy seat. Mercy is not meant to give a man things in the natural, for the true blessing of mercy is God.
Mercy and faithfulness go together. Mercy fortifies a man to be faithful. This faithfulness does not refer to being accountable when money is committed to us. Faithfulness is a work that mercy will do in a man. To be faithful is to have the strength to carry the weight of God. The cherubims who overshadow the mercy seat are faithful beings; they are the ones who carry God and they do it faithfully. They do this because they have strength. A man who is not built with the strength of everlasting life will not be faithful in bearing God.
The ark is also a merciful throne; it is built up to be faithful. What is kept in the ark is the covenant and it bears the weight of the mercy seat faithfully. “For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever: thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens.” (Ps. 89:2). The first thing that mercy does when it comes to a man is to build him up. There is a building up that occurs in the realm of Christ, but there is the building that takes place in the season of God.
The overlaying of the shittim wood with gold is a build-up of mercy, for as God is overlaying it, He is building it up with mercy. This is the same thing God wants to do with our souls – He wants to overlay our souls with gold.
After a man has inherited everlasting life via the knowledge of the oracles of God, He will then be overlaid with mercy or gold. Mercy is a stature or nature of gold and it is only on such that it can sit. Mercy does not sit on a building that it did not raise. Our Lord Jesus, therefore, had to become a merciful and faithful High Priest (Heb. 2:17) in order to bear God. The things we are hearing are to make us acquire an everlasting nature. We will keep changing strength until we become oaks, which is the tree that is qualified to be overlaid with gold.
Blessings!
Summary
1. (John 4:23) Truth is not just a confession, rather, it is the learning of God. There is a truth that is of Christ and that which is of God which are altogether referred to as the “oracles” of God.
2. God is an inheritance and He would only be committed to us by His knowledge. The inheritance of God to man is chiefly the oracles of God.
3. A man who is increasing in the knowledge of God will increase strength in everlasting life (Prov. 24:5). It is those who wait upon the Lord that shall change or renew their strength (Isa. 40:31).
4. A man will not be overlaid with gold when his soul does not have the properties of everlasting strength otherwise, he will crumble.
5. Mercy is not meant to give a man things in the natural, for the true blessing of mercy is God.