Program: Lekki Soul Centre (LSC)
Date: Wednesday, 17th May 2023
Transcript Summary
1. “But godliness with contentment is great gain. [7]For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. [8]And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.” (1 Tim. 6:6-8). These are the most profound words for anyone who has a mind for the gospel. Although the words might seem casual, they will revolutionize our walk with God if we give attention to them and find favour from the Lord to live by them. These are scriptures that are difficult to live by when we bring them to practicality. We can quote, explain and teach scriptures, but it is not just about those things. Every scripture, particularly those in the New Testament, describes the natures of the Lord that He wants us to inherit.
2. “Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, [5] Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil…” (1 Cor. 13: 4-5). Satan has done a work in man that makes him easily puffed up. This shows when we achieve certain accomplishments, either in the natural or spiritual. However, the Lord can take us through paths of brokenness which will work out a nature that will not be puffed up. One cannot stop himself from being puffed up because it is part of the program in the soul. But when the Lord introduces His dealings, it can deal with that evil nature; this is the essence of the leading of the Spirit in the life of a believer. One cannot inherit God’s nature without the leading of the Spirit.
3. Charity is a warfare for breaking down the old man. When Scripture says charity is not easily provoked, it means it can still be provoked (but not easily) because it is not everlasting life. However, it takes a lot to provoke a charity man. Charity thinks no evil. When charity increases, the Lord begins to teach us the mastery of thinking about what is good. The curriculum for the reconfiguration of our thinking begins with our actions because thoughts are difficult to tame. The beginning of taming thoughts is the coming of revelation to us. When revelation saturates a mind, instructions come. Many times, we cannot stop thinking evil about a person or circumstance without taking steps of faith towards that person. This is how those evil thoughts are undone.
4. Satan has a language for every soul to make it discontent. When Satan comes to unsettle us, we must fight to remain content. Contentment added to godliness is the putting of eyes on a Christ man to see into the everlasting realm, but a lack of contentment is a blindness to things everlasting (2 Pet. 1:9). The Lord wants to give us something precious, so He would make sure none of us misses it. If the Lord excuses us, we would never enter everlasting life. Contentment is like the fixing of eyes; it is meant to remove a blockage in seeing things everlasting.
5. The soul is saved by the preaching of everlasting life (1 Pet. 1:8). Just as everlasting life is needed to save a soul, the corruptible nature present in the devil is also needed to lose a soul. To lose one’s soul to the devil means that everything present in the corruptible sphere of the devil has been taken up by that soul, hence, that soul cannot be saved. As such, God has lost such a soul and Satan has gained it. Until a soul gets to this point, God has not lost such a one. One who has learnt Christ and has added contentment will have entrance into the everlasting Kingdom for his soul to be saved.
6. This world is a wisdom of life present in the devil; this is what has also been given to men. When people live by this wisdom, they would easily come unto certain privileges, exaltations and advantages that Satan has raised for men here on earth. That wisdom gives some kind of profit when it is put to use. The wisdom of this world is the wisdom of life to succeed (not in God’s definition of success). There is nothing wrong with success but Satan has given a kind of wisdom to succeed, and being born again does not make one free from this wisdom.
7. This world is a wisdom. A spiritually mature person can see the world from afar. This world gives a profit of name, gain and advantage. This world is so bold that it brings its profit into the Church; this is why one can be in the Church but live by the principles of this world. A man gains the world gradually until he gains the whole world. One may be materially poor and yet may gain the whole world. This means gaining the world is not really in the possession of material things. The Lord wants to train us how not to treasure the gain of this world; He does not want us to see the riches of this world as anything so that our hope will be clear and our pursuit will be strong.
8. One who does not have charity has no profit in this life. Profit is registered in the soul, and it is the Lord who judges and estimates our profiting by checking the nature of the soul. The estimation of a man’s profit is not in natural additions because the Lord adds at His discretion. Sometimes, some of us have profited so much but we look at the wrong indices to tell our profiting. Our profiting is in the storage of the godly nature; it is in our change! That which is 'gain' in God's definition is what we ought to carry. A meek person has gained so much because he can be instructed and led. Such a man is so rich that when angels see him, they bow. We should have a spiritual sense of how much we have gained or changed and we should pray more in this direction because Christianity is all about profit until we gain God (lay hold on everlasting life and Eternal Life).
9. Anyone who is not ashamed of the gospel of Christ (Rom. 1:16) would count losses in the world because he wants to win Christ (Philipp. 3:8). To win Christ, we have to lose things. Anyone who does not lose things does not gain in the Kingdom. For one to go up in the Kingdom, such needs to go down in the things of this world. To be seen (by God), one needs to be unseen in the natural. Just staying around some holy people here on earth, one can be intimidated to the extent that the shame can become obvious. How much more when one is with Jesus! Jesus said He would deny some people (Mark 8:38) because they do not deserve His proximity. But we would not be denied by Jesus as long as we are inheriting His nature. We should trust God to inherit nature upon nature at whatever cost it is. May the Lord help us to desire the real thing (Amen).
Blessings!