The Surpassing Peace of God PDF

Distress upon the seas
1

GOD
Valking in ihc pcacc o God
ihai surpasscs all undcrsianding
Icacc
o
EDISON MACUSI
TheSurpassing
Icacc
o
TheSurpassing
GOD
Other resources by the same author
Unmasking evolution
Kicking evolution
Freedom from religious bondage
Restorers of the breach
The ransom
Dreaming with God
Icacc
o
EDISON MACUSI
TheSurpassing
GOD
Eaglestar Publications
22 Tabuk, Kalinga 3800 Philippines
www.takethelandministries.org
The Surpassing Peace of God
By Edison Macusi
Copyright 2009, 2010
Published and distributed by EagleStar Publications
a division of Take the Land Ministries
22 Tabuk, Kalinga 3800 Philippines
Preparing the way of the King
Visit us at: www.takethelandministries.org
E-book ISBN: 978-971-0561-13-1
ISBN: 978-971-0561-04-9
Book cover design and layout by the author
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from
the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE, Copyright The
Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973,
1975, 1977 Used by permission. All rights reserved. Bold or italics in
Scripture are for emphasis only.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form
or by any means, electronic, mechanical, including photocopying, re-
cording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without
written permission from the author.
All rights reserved.
Printed in the Republic of the Philippines.
6
Contents
Preface 8
Chapter 1 God is shaking the nations 10
Chapter 2 Distress upon the seas 22
Chapter 3 Finding Gods rest 42
Chapter 4 Divine Shift 54
Chapter 5 Following Gods Presence 70
Chapter 6 The dwelling place of God 82
Chapter 7 The anchor of the soul 96
Chapter 8 The peaceful mind 106
Chapter 9 Rock solid foundation 120
About the author 142
7
Dedication
This book is dedicated to my friends Robert Katikiro and
Felix Ebojie who have been my constant companions during
the times I stayed in Bremen, Germany
8
Preface
The peace of God is one of the most popular and
important Christian literary topics around the world
but few have touched on how this can be relevant to to-
days emerging issues. The aspects of Gods salvation
and making peace with our Maker have been covered
by many others but one missing piece where I want to
contribute is how we can reconcile this peace to events
that happen around us and how our new found peace
can be useful to us.
I hope that through this study, our perspective of
Gods peace will help transform the way we view things
around us. Some of the topics covered are not new,
though I tried to expand and expound a bit on them.
Others though are new. But what matters most is we
receive the message of the Lord and use it to overcome
evil with good. The more we can receive, the greater
our role to stand as well as to apply them in our lives.
The greatest value of Gods peace is not just the
stability it brings but the power of His presence that
transforms our personal lives into His mighty fortress-
es! It is this power of His presence that changes lives.
There can be no lasting peace that man can produce
on earth. We have manufactured everything we needed
but we cannot fake peace. If it were so, there would
have been no single incidence of war, battles, quarrels
and violence in the past one hundred years or even in
one year. This proves how petty, how shortsighted we
9
are and how vulnerable our human laws and agree-
ments are without the Prince of Peace. Only the Lord
can bring healing to our divisiveness and it begins with
His peace residing inside the hearts of everyone. The
Scriptures are clear that the day of the Lord is fast ap-
proaching when His army prepared in battle shall be
exactly as depicted in Joel 2:28-31:
And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit
on all people. Your sons and daughters will
prophesy, your old men will dream dreams,
your young men will see visions.
Even on my servants, both men and wom-
en, I will pour out my Spirit in those days. I
will show wonders in the heavens and on the
earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke.
The sun will be turned to darkness and
the moon to blood before the coming of the
great and dreadful day of the Lord.
This day of the Lord shall be great for those who
have prepared for His coming and it will be dreadful
for those who have scorned, disregarded or were indif-
ferent to it. This army shall stand because they have
learned to abide in His peace.
Edison Macusi
Bonn, Germany
10
Chapter 1
God is shaking the nations
For thus says the Lord of hosts, Once more in a little while, I am
going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea also and the dry
land. 7 And I will shake all the nations; and they will come with the
wealth of all nations; and I will ll this house with glory, says the
Lord of hosts. (Haggai 2:6-7)
Today we cant afford to live in extravagance. We
are all living in a world whose economy had just been
shaken from the 1997 Asian financial crisis to the Amer-
ican mortgage crisis this year. The economic woes and
recessions that the world is facing right now can tip the
balance of power and set in events that could bring a
deeper depression and hardship to everyone. Almost
all people have complaints against their governments,
but this is clear that not even the worlds most powerful
government can solve its own peoples problem.
The Katrina debacle to the present financial crisis
in Wall Street proves that no government could eventu-
ally pay for all the entire financial burden that compa-
nies whose wrong decisions and actions brought it into
this mess. All governments built by men will always be
fragile without the strength and protection of Christ.
Every time an economic downturn occurs, compa-
nies and individuals alike will either experience pain
or gain. Those who will survive the downturn will
11
be stronger when they will come out but those who
will not survive will be gobbled up by those who will.
Those who have foreseen it would have gotten ready
and prepared for such events as economic recession.
They would have been quick, ready and sell out
their stocks and pack up. Investments in land as well as
its development would be seen as one of the most sta-
ble ones during these times. Immunity to recession in
the global community is not easy unless one has been
living in isolation or one has already experienced one
in the past and has laid down strong financial muscles
in place.
We might ask why do recessions occur and why
does God allow it? Recessions do not simply imply
shrinkage of money or stocks. It can imply shrinkage
of all other businesses too such as the fast food indus-
try or the cosmetics industry. It is truly revealing that
the Lord would want to bring economic recession to
the whole earth today in many ways we might not have
seen.
The whole earth today is in agony for the fulfill-
ment of the revelation of the sons of God. Recession
or economic shaking will release many people from the
captivity of thinking that they have it allan insurance
to the present economic system.
This shaking of God brought about by our false be-
lief systems will show the true colors of many nations,
friends and alliances will be made and wrong friend-
ship will bind many into future conflicts which they
have never imagined to come; while the right decisions
will bring out the best of friends in the hard times.
It will purify and cleanse the people prepared by
the Lord to be used by Him in His vineyard. Others
will have to start anew and build a deeper foundation.
When one passes by a construction site and sees the
The surpassing peace of God
12
whole block covered, there is no doubt that a whole
new structure will be built over the area. Deep foun-
dations are required for those whose works would
be as extensive as their roots. We begin to do that by
believing that apart from Jesus Christ, there is really
no salvation for everyone else for there is no other
name under heaven that has been given among men,
by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12). Therefore
He too is the One who casts fire upon the earth that
sifts men, testing their hearts and innermost beings, I
have come to cast fire upon the earth; and how I wish
it were already kindled! (See Luke 12:49.)
God tests the hearts
Every skyscraper is tested by the strength of its
steel trusts and beams, how deep its foundation and
the quality of cements used to bond the materials to-
gether. When you build a skyscraper, you wont be us-
ing a loamy or clay soil to build on it. You will look for
the bedrock. You will dig deep enough to anchor the
trust beams into the bed rock.
Once an earthquake occurs, a skyscraper which
is unanchored on the bedrock will not only sway and
dance in the sky, it will break and fall away ending the
lives of thousands. A great team of dedicated engineers
and architects would see to it that if they are to build
one, it wont simply last for a few earthquakesthey
design it to last for 500 years. Likewise, the shaking
of God is like a furnace of fire. This fire will burn up
chaff in its path and consume the hay and stubble in
many Christians who have been hiding in the prom-
ises of earthly wealth. No one will survive it except the
gold, the silver and the bronze.
each mans work will become evi-
13
dent; for the day will show it, because it is to
be revealed with fire; and the fire itself will
test the quality of each mans work.
If any mans work which he has built
upon it remains, he shall receive a reward. If
any mans work is burned up, he shall suffer
loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as
through fire. (1 Corinthians 3:13-15)
We can rephrase each mans work to mean each
mans heart. It is the heart of man that determines the
quality of his job and the strength of his character. A
work with gold seal speaks of the quality of workman-
ship which has been approved of Christ.
When we think of gold, we think of the highest
value in precious metals. Precious metals are in fact
measured by how much they compare to a gold stan-
dard. Before paper money and credit cards were in use,
gold and silver coins are the means to buy and sell in
the market.
Gold in the Bible does not only symbolize purity
but also an exquisitely radiating character. In fact the
items in the Holy of Holies are covered with beaten
gold. Gold is symbolic of the purity and holiness of
God which means above reproach or blemish. When
Jesus Christ walked the earth, he often mentions, who
convicts me of sin? Attesting to His integrity that no one
can besmirk, not even the most righteous of the Phari-
sees or the Sadducees.
A silver quality may not completely depict the holi-
ness required of a gold standard but still a silver quality
means purity. Silver is also purified by fire. The longer
it has been put on the fire, the clearer and shinier it
becomes. Mirrors of today may be made of lustrous
glasses, but before, these were mainly made of polished
14
high quality silver which can reflect better the image of
a person. Matter of factly, a silversmith will not stop
the fire until he has seen his own image cast on the
molten silver. The Lord will not stop either until He
sees His image stamped on us because we were shaped
to be that way, we were destined to bear His image. The
prophet Malachi wrote,
And He will sit as a smelter and puri-
fier of silver, and He will purify the sons of
Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so
that they may present to the Lord offerings in
righteousness. (Malachi 3:3)
Dross and corruptions
What is dross? The greatest enemy of bronze works
is corrosion. Corrosion can easily erode the beauty of
metal sculptures and works. This is why high quality
silver is used in dental works and kitchen utensils so
that they wont easily corrode. Even so, unused metal
works through time when unmaintained still corrode.
Reactive oxides in the air or fungi can form a layer on
bronze and silver works which can degrade its value.
Gold does not.
Could this be why the Holy of Holies was coated
with gold and not silver? Jesus said, Watch out and
beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Saddu-
cees (Matthew 16:6). Leaven is yeast which symbol-
izes sin in the Scriptures. Christians who carry a lot of
dross can only be refined through the fiery furnace of
affliction.
Thus, economic recessions which are not limited
geographically depict this godly shaking occurring all
over the globe. It is a godly shaking taking place all
over the world to prepare the hearts of the people of
15
God for His coming. Jesus will not come as a beggar
asking people to receive Him. He will come as a King
for a lovely queenHis Bride, awesome in deeds and
beauty.
The continuing verse in Malachi says, He will pu-
rify the Levites, refining them like gold and silver, so
that they may once again offer acceptable sacrifices
to the Lord (verse 3b). Hardships can sometimes be
the only way by which God can talk people into action.
Godly shakings in whatever form they may come
should not be misconstrued as evil, but received and
prayed for that we may understand what He wants to
accomplish in us. Sometimes we accomplish this by
our own greed, taking more than what we can actually
purchase or releasing toxic wastes in the air, in the sea
and even on land. These wicked schemes such as buy-
ing forbidden things and withholding the Bible to the
common man has the effect of turning the great light
of God to darkness are consequences of sin which is
spoken of as a corruption of the flesh.
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked;
for whatever a man sows, this he will also
reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh
shall from the flesh reap corruption, but the
one who sows to the Spirit shall from the
Spirit reap eternal life. (Galatians 6:7-8)
This godly shaking right now is both a consequence
of our sin and the corruption in the market place. We
are living in the end of the age. We shall reap what was
sown, both good and evil. Havent you observed the
increasing degree of depravity of man in crimes, drugs,
syndicate, death, riots and unrests? This is the reason
for the shaking, to call forth into repentance every err-
16
ing believer and to drive the unrighteous to the cross
of Jesus.
He will purify every one of us so that we will come
out of the shaking stronger and able to offer acceptable
sacrifices to the Lord. When the Lord spoke, Once
more in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens
and the earth, the sea, He was not joking! He had spo-
ken in a serious tone that warns us of His impending
judgment. He had shaken this world before to such a
magnitude that Noahs generation perished except for
himself and his family.
The Lord is making clear a demarcation point be-
tween the righteous and the unrighteous, the obedient
and the disobedient, the faithful and the betrayer. The
sea swallowed the people of Noah and all their monies
and valuables perished with the flood. The sea repre-
sents Gods shaking not just the literal sea but also the
sea of peoples in the earth today. We just had a real
experience of what happens when God wakes up the
sea; He has indeed hidden a vast armory beneath the
earth that can shake and cause trembling to anyone if
they learn about how precarious we really are.
The 2004 tsunami tragedy was just like what hap-
pened in Noahs dayfault lines and deep sea volca-
noes snapped causing a massive damage and carrying
with it not just a few lives but more than two hundred
thousand that perished instantly.
The question is, are you ready for the fire? Has the
fire of God consumed your heart? Fire is also symbolic
of purging. Take gold again. Gold like silver is refined
through the fire where dregs separate from the pre-
cious metal as it passes through the fire. Our present
afflictions, sufferings, trials are meant to do just that,
to refine our character and to form in us a needed de-
pendence on God. These are sometimes circumstances
17
which God uses to teach us and lead us into the right
directions. God does not author evil in our lives, but
He uses circumstances meant for evil and turns them
into good. He uses them as a tool to cleanse our lives.
When gold comes out of the fire, it is red hot and pure.
Likewise when we come out of a fiery trial, we are con-
sumed with a passion for Jesus. We do not come out
weak but strengthened and able to succor those who
will undergo the same circumstances as we had. This
passion for Jesus is the fuel that will ignite the fire and
consume any evil in our lives.
We must learn to receive not just the blessings of
God or the victories that we have wrought with Him,
but also welcome Gods purging with a character of
resolve and strength. God sits as a judge and tells when
things should stop through. Have you wondered why
trials seem so long at times? Have you wondered why it
seems so hard? The Scriptures tell us why
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when
you encounter various trials, knowing that
the testing of your faith produces endurance.
And let endurance have its perfect result, that
you may be perfect and complete, lacking in
nothing. (James 1:2-4)
The end goal of any trial in our lives must be seen
as a chance or opportunity to grow over in any areas
needing attention. In fact, God does not send any tri-
al that does not have an equivalent of character that
needs refining. Every time I have a trial I always ask
what is God teaching me here? What do I need to learn
from here? The goal of the Lord in trials we experience
is not to punish us but to transform us into His im-
age. Trials are useless when we dont get out renewed
18
with clearer visions, stronger resolve and transformed
in our character. We must therefore learn to ask our-
selves what aspect of Christs character we are pres-
ently learning from. We must all do this if we want to
be true Ambassadors of Jesus Christ on the earth.
When we avoid these opportunities to straighten
out any lacking character in us, we will end up weaker
and our journey becomes longer and harder. The apos-
tle Paul gave an advice that is apt for everyone to follow
especially when we are in the midst of a trial, do all
things without grumbling or disputing; that you may
prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, chil-
dren of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked
and perverse generation, among whom you appear
as lights in the world... (Philippians 2:14-15). He
wrote this epistle for the Philippian church while im-
prisoned which makes it all the more compelling as the
apostle in spite of a grim environment manages to even
console and give advice to his disciples and children in
the Lord.
This is a classic study providing evidence that a
Christian is not to be controlled by what is happen-
ing around him but by what is happening inside him.
Pauls true strength comes into play in his trials as it
shows who he really is. It shows his character, his long-
ings and his selfless care for the churches of God. You
may not believe it but when the Lord sees our reactions
to opportunities he sends to us, He weighs them on
how they measure according to a Christ like character,
and when we pass, He tags it, quality check-pass on
to the next stage.
And we proclaim Him, admonishing ev-
ery man and teaching every man with all wis-
dom, that we may present every man com-
19
plete in Christ. And for this purpose also I
labor, striving according to His power, which
mightily works within me. (Colossians
1:28-29)
For the anxious longing of the creation
waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of
God. (Romans 8:19)
Therefore, we are ambassadors for
Christ, as though God were entreating
through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ,
be reconciled to God. (2 Corinthians 5:20)
All creations expectantly wait for an army of God
that exhibits the very nature of Christ. It cannot be
done without the shaking happening in our lives. We
all are delivered to every trials and tribulations so that
we can have a share in Christlikeness. Ambassadors
are sent to represent his countrys interest.
If we do not learn how to be citizens of heaven
now, how can we more fully represent Him before oth-
er people? We have been bought with a price, the shak-
ings will come but how we go through the shaking will
determine if we have buried our foundations deeper
into the Rock. The deeper we anchor ourselves into the
Rock, the more secure and the higher we can go up. It
is also true that the more sufferings we go through, the
more authority we can be trusted with and the more
people we can save and disciple.
For no man can lay a foundation other
than the one which is laid, which is Jesus
Christ. (1 Corinthians 3:11)
For you have been bought with a price:
20
therefore glorify God in your body. (1 Cor-
inthians 6:20)
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when
you encounter various trials, knowing that
the testing of your faith produces endurance.
And let endurance have its perfect result,
that you may be perfect and complete, lacking
in nothing. (James 1:2-4)
Just as Jesus suffered the most terrible fate, and
agonized over the most excruciating pain one can
go through in this world, God trusted Him, with the
Highest authority because He was proven, tested as not
only the Son of God but also the Son of Man. For this
reason, it was not any different that the Lord entrusted
the greatest message to His servants such as Moses and
Elijah because these prophets were able to endure suf-
ferrings for the sake of the Lord and Israel, the pro-
phetic type of His bride in the New Covernant.
Therefore James the Just tells us that we must re-
joice, because all sufferings perfect us, conforming us
not just in the very character of Christ Jesus but also
in His power and resurrection lacking in nothing.
This could be the greatest reason why Paul the apostle
desired more than anything else, to be conformed
to His death (Philippians 3:10). Because in death,
there is release of resurrection life and the knowledge
of His will just as Jesus showed us. Without the death
of the Lord, there would have been no Pentecost, and
the church would not have been birthed.
21
22
Chapter 2
For momentary, light afiction is producing for us an eternal
weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the
things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the
things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen
are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:17-18)
All the people that drowned in the judgment of
God during the days of Noah cried for mercy. None
of them received one except those living inside Noahs
ark. King David wrote, Therefore, let everyone who
is godly pray to Thee in a time when Thou mayest be
found; Surely in a flood of great waters they shall not
reach him. Thou art my hiding place; Thou dost pre-
serve me from trouble; Thou dost surround me with
songs of deliverance (Psalm 32:6-7).
When disasters strike and we have been fore-
warned to leave the area before hand, it would be fool-
ish to expect another kind of mercy. Gods mercy is
never intended for carelessness. Noahs generation
was offered warnings for one hundred years but they
ignored the Word of God through this great prophet.
As He did before, the Lord does continue to reach us
but there will be a clear demarcation line after several
ways that He has already reached unto us and we re-
jected His offer of help. The judgement of waters came
23
because man hardened his heart and chose death over
life. The distress of the seas that will come upon our
times will become more evident as the days unfold
and as we move nearer to the end of the age spoken
of in Matthew 13:39, the harvest is the end of the
age which will be characterized by great harvest of
all things from righteous acts to wicked works of dark-
ness. Just as mentioned, there will be messengers from
God who will pick up the wicked and throw them
into the furnace of fire [where] there shall be weep-
ing and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 13:50).
And when you hear of wars and distur-
bances, do not be terrified; for these things
must take place first, but the end does not fol-
low immediately.
Then He continued by saying to them,
Nation will rise against nation, and king-
dom against kingdom, and there will be great
earthquakes, and in various places plagues
and famines;
And there will be terrors and great signs
from heaven Woe to those who are with
child and to those who nurse babes in those
days; for there will be great distress upon the
land,
and wrath to this people, and they will
fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led
captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem
will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles
until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.
And there will be signs in sun and moon and
stars, and upon the earth dismay among na-
tions, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea
and the waves, men fainting from fear and the
24
expectation of the things which are com-
ing upon the world; for the powers of the
heavens will be shaken. And then they will
see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with
power and great glory. (Luke 21:9-11, 23-
27)
For then there will be a great tribula-
tion, such as has not occurred since the begin-
ning of the world until now, nor ever shall.
(Matthew 24:21)
The end of the age will be the culmination of good
and evil. It will be the harvest of everything sown in
the flesh and in the spirit. There will be great distress in
the nations and great earthquakes, roaring waves and
seas. As these things occur one after another, it signi-
fies the end of the age and we have seen some fore-
warnings of just how it will look like in the coming
daysthe death of thousands unequalled in history for
any catastrophe marked the undersea quake that cast
its death spell upon thousands in the Asian tsunami
catastrophe last 2004.
Sadly this catastrophe is just a sign of what might
take place again when people do not repent of their
sins. In fact the American economic crisis this year will
be remembered not only as a recession but it will be a
depression just like the economic depression of 1929.
Though this maybe the case, there is a way out. Dis-
tress does not have to only mean physical disturbance
but includes economic disturbances as well. Anything
today which causes distress will not actually lessen as
we approach the end of days, rather, it will increase in
degree and magnitude because God has to judge the
earth for the sin of man. When the personification of
25
the sin of man who is called the Man of Sin appears,
the last judgments will be poured out by God.
This is not to merely kill humans, but rather judg-
ment is the last resort of God to forewarn mankind
of the paths and consequences of their decisions. His
mercy will be the time to prepare, it maybe a hundred
years from now or five hundred years more but that
does not make any difference, it will still come.
For then there will be great distress,
unequaled from the beginning of the world
until now and never to be equaled again.
If those days had not been cut short, no one
would survive, but for the sake of the elect
those days will be shortened.
At that time if anyone says to you, 'Look,
here is the Christ!' or, 'There he is!' do not
believe it. For false Christs and false proph-
ets will appear and perform great signs and
miracles to deceive even the elect if that
were possible.
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my
words will never pass away. No one knows
about that day or hour, not even the angels in
heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
As it was in the days of Noah, so it will
be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in
the days before the flood, people were eating
and drinking, marrying and giving in mar-
riage, up to the day Noah entered the ark;
And they knew nothing about what
would happen until the flood came and took
them all away. That is how it will be at the
coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be
in the field; one will be taken and the other
26
left.
Two women will be grinding with a hand
mill; one will be taken and the other left.
Therefore keep watch, because you do not
know on what day your Lord will come.
(Matthew 24:21-24, 35-42)
Lies and false gifts
The Lord saw our times just as He saw Abraham
even beforehand since He is the Alpha and the Ome-
gaknowing the end from the very beginning. This
makes Him different from any impostors, accuracy
and precision is one hundred percent. His words as He
mentioned will never pass away though we may leave
the earth and though the earth maybe destroyed by
water or by fire. He characterized this age to be filled
with deceivers even preaching that, He [Jesus Christ]
is indeed the Christ using His name to proclaim another
gospel. Isnt this rampant today?
There are many sects professing He is the Christ
but do not believe in His deity nor in His doctrines.
Some even proclaim their gifts come from Him but
then what? Use it to manipulate and gain advantage
of ignorant people deceived by their clever and subtle
prevarications. These are the modern Pharisees and
Scribes who look handsome on the outside but are full
of lies and deceit inside. These men devour the proper-
ties and wages of widows to spend it on their vanities.
It is no small matter that these darkness of the hearts
grieves the Lord and could only be exposed in His light.
Lies will be exposed by the truth and a false gifting
will be exposed by a real one just as Paul the apostle
exposed the false gifting of Elymas the sorcerer (see
Acts 13:8-12). Only a real teacher can expose a false
one and only a true apostle can expose those who are
27
not. This is why Paul and even John the beloved men-
tioned and warned the churches about false apostles
in their epistles. Only those who truly know the per-
son of Truth could discern the error of the deceivers.
Wayward believers who have known Jesus Christ but
have come back to their wallowing mires will become
especially the target of these errors as they have greater
access before the Lord to actually cast accusations be-
fore His people.
Most often times, those extraordinarily gifted could
become so deluded and perverted that it will only take
His grace to restore them back. It happened to Samson
and when he compromised, he paid dearly for his in-
discretion. It happened to many others since because
we all walk in a precarious path that could only be
navigated by His grace. As it is written in Matthew 24,
let us take heed that no one deceives us, that we should
beware of false prophets who will rise up to deceive
many (verse 11).
Note here that Satan can come like an angel of
light as he did to Adam and Eve, to Samson and so
many other saints who were distracted by his guile.
Some believes that this enemy could come from settled
teachers who would suddenly pull out and bring many
into error. Often, the greatest good can be used as a
cover for the greatest evil. To be saved from such, we
must love the truth enough to be willing to die for it.
Only those who lack this fervent love will be overtaken
by the elements of lawlessness and delusion (2 Thes-
salonians 2:10).
But the Spirit explicitly says that in later
times some will fall away from the faith, pay-
ing attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines
of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of li-
28
ars seared in their own conscience as with a
branding iron, men who forbid marriage and
advocate abstaining from foods which God
has created to be gratefully shared in by those
who believe and know the truth. (1 Timothy
4:1-3)
Deceptions and marked false gifts will abound as
described but our refuge shall be the fortress of Truth.
The Lord shall be our guide. His Holy Spirit will always
be more powerful than any lies or lying wonders of the
enemy since Jesus has already overcome the world! We
will understand those who are false because we will
know they glory not in Christ nor have the true glory
of Jesus Christ residing in them. Above all, a passion
for Jesus Christ will always consume every sin hiding
in nook and crannies in our lives because our God is
a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29). The fire of God
will consume even the false Christs and prophets. Lies
are easily disarmed because the fire of God will con-
sume all darkness. His truth will set free even the most
unyielding and resistant of all men. No lies can hide
when exposed under His searching light.
Arising glory
Our everyday lives would be different if we could
catch a glimpse of this glory shining upon every Chris-
tian. But the truth is, it is in fact shining in the spirit
but we do not see it physically with our own eyes. The
glory we carry in this fallen vessels are indeed aromatic
and we can only understand that it is indeed scented
with a Christlike life when we are touched by His
hand, His healing, His truth, His love and His compas-
sion through other vessels.
This is why the Lord is very patient to each one of
29
us because the renewal of one persons life can change
and influence the attitudes, behaviors and perspectives
of others. You can change the world, you can reform
it but what does that mean to you when you are not
reformed yourself ?
Thus, we experience, light afflictions, for the
Lord wants to bring about this glory in earthen vessels,
the glory of a Christlike character which is more pre-
cious than refined gold or any earthly possession. Our
spiritual gifts and talents and character will always be
more valuable than any treasures this world can give
us. This makes it reasonable enough why even Solo-
mon said that a dead dog is not any different from a
dead man because both are dead. Could someone who
is dead praise the Lord? Could someone who is dead
feel pain, joy or elation? Our destiny will always be far
more valuable than simply being a CEO of the largest
company in this world or in this country.
Your destiny in Christ Jesus cannot be valued more
because it is priceless! Our trials therefore are meant to
bring purity and masterythis is one way the Lord is
refining and purifying our character to bear His glory,
For everyone will be salted with fire (Mark 9:49).
Through the fire, pretenders will soften and either re-
pent or leave the fellowship, discarded just as chaffs are
thrown away, blown by the wind.
The greatest life
Many are preaching Christ but the greatest preach-
ing anyone can have is a Christlike life; this life is a
greater witness than an apostle who does not exude the
inner life of Jesus Christ. The fire of trials will reveal
those who have true devotions from those who do not.
In a desert biome, seeds of flowering plants sprout only
after being cracked open by fire. Hard life or poverty
30
does not have to serve as a debacle to any people.
Rather, it should motivate us all to strive for the
best that we can reach for, living for Christ everyday.
This should not drive us to imagine quick relief, be-
cause if we do so, we might end up in the dungeon of
a tyrant named IMMEDIATE. Life to be more fulfill-
ing needs to be cracked open, like the seed of a desert
plant, the fires of this life should drive its roots deeper
into the nourishing soil, take in the water and sprout to
renewed vigor and vitality.
Jealousy and quarrels
What is the source of quarrels and con-
flicts among you? Is not the source your plea-
sures that wage war in your members? You
lust and do not have; so you commit murder.
And you are envious and cannot obtain;
so you fight and quarrel. You do not have be-
cause you do not ask. (James 4:1-2)
What started the first war was jealousy. Cain killed
his brother Abel because he was jealous of Gods ac-
ceptance of his offering. This was the first apparent
consequence of the sin committed by Adam and Eve
in their offsprings. The Lord did not take this lightly
and in fact branded Cain as a killer. James describes
this evil as a desire within man to have more and to be
jealous of what others have. Jealousy is rooted in the
predicament of man, that he too needs to possess what
the other has.
This enemy tries us to focus on our needs by get-
ting this need from the others and not from the Lord.
When I had this desire to look on my neighbors prog-
ress to be far better than I am, the Lord told me to look
from above and not from the person. He told the same
31
to Cain, but he simply cared too much for himself that
he did not receive the implanted word of the Lord that
could have delivered him from evil.
It is an uncontrollable greed. In the global eco-
nomic arena, this is what motivates big companies to
devour other smaller ones, simply to survive, and to
take more and more and be the dominant player in the
scene. The success of Microsoft does not only mean at
the expense of others but rather that it will continue
to play the rat race because this is what capitalism is.
God did not make nor implement the first capitalism;
he also did not consider communism.
His is a Kingdom based on principles of love and
justice which could be both expressed in capitalism
and communism but as long as we are on this earth,
capitalism may yet be the best way to do business to
protect the liberty of individuals which is more pre-
cious than the type of government or market princi-
ple. Nevertheless having mentioned about this, Gods
kingdom is similar to many free market principles. His
kingdom is composed of sort of aristocracy (remember
it is a Kingdom and He is the King, the Church is His
Queen). His disciples are mentioned as kings and lords
(Revelation 17:14; Revelation 19: 16); He provides es-
tates and dukedoms (Luke 19: 17; Matthew 25:15). He
gives rewards according to our deeds here on earth and
they are stored in our houses in heaven, which he said
He has gone first to prepare a house for us.
Simply, the Kingdom of Heaven does not operate
in many ways as the way capitalism or socialism does
or even communism but it has its elements in these var-
ious types of governments. In capitalism, we have the
reward system which is embodied also in Gods king-
domif you do well the Lord has a great reward for
you and if not you face the consequences. In commu-
32
nism, there is collectivism and equal distribution while
in Gods Kingdom He gives a commensurate grace
to each one of us according to what we need and He
treats all of us as His children regardless of heavenly
ranks so there is a community of sharing.
In socialism, we bear the burdens of those who do
not work; in heaven, the Lord has borne all our bur-
dens through the cross while on earth. He has subsi-
dized all our needs being the Jehovah Jireh, the God
who provides and fill up that which is lacking. More-
over, the appearance of different types of governments
on the earth was not without any reason.
Rather, it would be to show us that ultimately,
mans government will not succeed though some will
be transformed into the Kingdom of God when the
Lord returns (Revelation 11:15). Just as prophesied
by Daniel, this stone which the builders rejected has
already struck the foot of the body of this world (see
Daniel 2:44-45). This is our confidence that we have
why the Kingdoms of this world has already fallen. It
began when Jesus Christ, who is the rock and the stone
which the builders rejected have ascended on high and
released the Holy Spirit to the fledgling church on the
Pentecost.
The power and significance of this could not be
discounted by the princes of this world and when-
ever the seed of God sprouts in a place, it is quickly
trampled by the world. But the seed is not only hidden
and some even sprouts a hundred fold that grows into
a mighty tree able to crack and destroy the systems of
this world. For example when the Moravians were per-
secuted by the Catholics in Bohemia, it was thought
that they would never survive again as any entity. But
when a rich young ruler took them in as refugees in
his estate in Dresden, they quicky revived and they too
33
through the wise leadership of Count Nikolaus Ludwig
von Zinzendorf quickly sprouted again in many places
where most are afraid to go and preach the gospel.
Persecution of the seed of God, the church has al-
ways been a normal process and the more demented
it becomes, the faster its multiplication. Wherever the
church has multiplied so much, like a leaven, it has
overtaken the whole structure so that it has been said to
be a community that closely resembles that of the king-
dom of God. Although mankind has experienced the
age of civilizations and empires, the age of feudalism,
exploration and colonialism, the age of communism
and capitalism and now the age of knowledge and
technology, it can be said that there is always some-
thing more to be desired. This desire for greater close-
ness and common vision towards one whole body or
community is rooted in what the Lord has placed in
us, to be intimate with Him while at the same time we
fellowship with each other.
Just as the time for His coming draws near and the
age of His Kingdom on earth comes, human govern-
ments are feeling these drumbeats though but a whim-
per. Therefore they have a lot of movement towards
common government and economy, but just as the
Tower of Babel demonstrates, when we build commu-
nities for the sake of human fellowships, it will ulti-
mately fail. True communities will not be built on the
principle alone of human gathering or community, it
needs to go higher than that. To maintain true life flow,
it cannot focus on itself alone, when it does, it becomes
stale until it self-destruct.
Nature teaches us that no single unit of living thing
or population could live by itself alone. It derives its
being by being dependent wholly or in part to other
smaller or bigger communities. In the same way, hu-
34
man communities on earth depend so much not on it-
self or with its fellow creatures but on the Creator. All
communities on earth derive their life flow from the
Lord, the Fountain and River of Life.
Like Abraham and the saints of old, we must all
desire to be part of the city whose architect and builder
is God (Hebrews 11:10). In this way, we can bring re-
newal that would so transform the world until they too
become the kingdom of God. That said, our desires
to impose on others what we may think of as ours or
what we may think as theirs have resulted to devastat-
ing wars and violence.
Wars and rumors of wars
Rumors of wars which are mentioned as precursor
to the cataclysmic event of the end of days can come
as a consequence of such events. When the disciples
asked the Lord about signs of the end of days, He men-
tioned that such things must happen but the end will
not yet be in sight. So what will be the end? It would
be when nation shall rise against nation and kingdom
against kingdom. Yet this is not the end but the begin-
ning of the end. I have lived in a province where trib-
al wars have been a way of life for many generations
among our people.
Even more than one hundred years since the
Americans have landed in the mountains of Cordil-
lera in Northern Luzon, this savagery still happens in
Kalinga and Apayao. One tribe will be the target of
another for the sin of one of their member. No peace
can be set on such kind of enmity and compromises
are often forged on such struggles to end the fighting.
In the coming days, this will not just be in provinces
but rather kingdom to kingdom and nation to nation.
Another example of this happened in the Rwandan
35
genocide where one tribe wanted to annihilate another
with such savagery unimaginable these days. This hap-
pened when the enemy sees such differences and vents
off his anger towards another group of people using
unhealed differences and old wounds between the two
tribes, attracting the lord of the flies like a magnet to
ignite the fire of enmity between the tribes resulting to
massive destruction and loss of lives.
Such loss becomes inescapable when one does
not know the Lord, when one has resigned his will to
fate and forgot that our destiny have to be charted by
our own hands. God works but He has chosen these
days to work through us. One businessman visiting the
vast field of banana plantation quipped to the farmer,
you could not have produced such bananas with-
out the Lord. Smiling at his visitor and a bit feeling
chagrined, the farmer pointed to a vast field at his left
hand, look at those fields, he said, Gods plantation
will be all weeds without me. Like this farmer, all men
are called to do His work but only those willing to go
and do it will also be the sent ones to make a difference
in this world.
The Lord can only be there to guide us but we make
the decisions. Solomon was given the gift of wisdom
but he has to decide when and how to use it; his first
try was when asked to chose between two prostitutes
whose baby is the one alive.
God gives but we decide whether to use our gifts
properly or simply misuse or neglect them. But any
impending disaster can be averted if only we learn to
focus on Jesus. Just as a woman who is about to give
birth focuses on her husband, we all need to focus on
Jesus, the heavenly Solomon who imparts righteous
judgement and wisdom to discern the times and the
tasks at hand so we can learn and do as He did. The
36
Bible exhorts us, that when troubles come your way,
consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you
know that when your faith is tested, your endurance
has a chance to grow(James 1:2-3 NLT). More than
having relief and pleasures in this world, the greatest
joy one could ever feel is when we have brought joy to
the One who is ever watching and caring for all of us.
Suffer hardship with me, as a good sol-
dier of Christ Jesus. No soldier in active ser-
vice entangles himself in the affairs of every-
day life, so that he may please the one who
enlisted him as a soldier.
And also if anyone competes as an ath-
lete, he does not win the prize unless he com-
petes according to the rules. The hard-work-
ing farmer ought to be the first to receive his
share of the crops. (2 Timothy 2:3-6)
So no matter what kind of trial comes our way, no
matter what kind of distress it would be, let us put our
hope on the living God who only cares for our own
good. Hope is the anchor of our soul (Hebrews 6:19)
and it is hope that the enemy wants us to lose. For once
we despair, we will lose the good fight of faith and be
easily tossed to and fro.
The throne of grace and our daily needs
When problems and daily burdens come upon us,
we should learn to face them squarely. The best prepa-
ration one can do is to face the day with a prayer. Only
the kneeling Christian could ever make a difference in
this world. We must learn to draw near with con-
fidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive
mercy and may find grace to help in time of need
37
(Hebrews 4:16). When we have the presence of the
Lord, His presence soothes the pain, soothes the toil
and gives us fresh perspective and understanding of
what needs to be done. One does not need to under-
stand all things at first so one can do them. But faith
brings us to do things that can matter for life and death
and we may understand them later.
This is contrary to the worlds thinking that we
need to understand everything before we can do them.
In the spirit, the physical realm is subject to the spiritu-
al realm and what happens behind the spiritual realm
manifests in the physical. This is why we are called to
have faith because faith believes all things, it is the con-
viction that things exists though they may yet be seen
physically.
In Physics, no one has seen an electron or atom
with the naked eye, nor has there been anyone who has
seen the structural formula of water. Both physicists
and chemists unknowingly apply the principle of faith
in their day to day work as do many of us. Yet we know
that the very properties of light and water keep us alive
and well on planet earth. Without the wave properties
of light, how can it travel? How can it enlighten our
darkness? Without its particle properties, how can we
explain its heat generating capacity? In the same way,
without the ingenious bonding of the molecules of wa-
ter, it would be impossible to imagine its usefulness or
versatility.
Now faith is the assurance of things
hoped for, the conviction of things not seen
And without faith it is impossible to please
Him, for he who comes to God must believe
that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those
who seek Him. (Hebrews 11:1, 6)
38
It is the presence of the Lord that lingered on lead-
ers such as Moses, Aaron, Samuel, or Isaiah or Paul.
His presence cleanses us like a stain remover so that we
can do our work each day filled with hope and faith. Is
this not what the Lord wants for every one of us? Is this
not what he desires?
But you are a chosen race, a royal priest-
hood, a holy nation, a people for Gods own
possession, that you may proclaim the ex-
cellencies of Him who has called you out of
darkness into His marvelous light;
for you once were not a people, but now
you are the people of God; you had not re-
ceived mercy, but now you have received mer-
cy. (1 Peter 2:9-10)
But sanctify Christ as Lord in your
hearts, always being ready to make a defense
to everyone who asks you to give an account
for the hope that is in you, yet with gentle-
ness and reverence. (1 Peter 3:15)
Trials in our lives are not measured by their inten-
sity or magnitude of troubles. God measures them by
how we respond to them. The more Christ-like our re-
sponse is, the better prepared we are in facing trials that
would come our way. Our afflictions too become very
light when we ponder of the Lord, when we thank Him
and praise Him for who He is instead of complaining.
There is a general thinking that whenever trouble
comes our way, the first reaction should be to think
about the problem or put the blame on someone else.
But the right reaction should be to pray for the solution
that the Lord will give us clear mind and whole under-
39
standing of the matter. Problems do not come alone.
Part of the consequence of the fall of man is that we
react to problems. Only, our basic reactions are often
motivated by fear and self-preservation which yields to
demonic rage or sensualities.
When Jesus was facing the crucifixion, He did not
go to the Priests and Pharisees and paid a consultation
fee just to jump and mumble inaudible words to the air.
Nor did he go to a medium to consult them if He can
simply evade the cross. Rather, He showed us a better
way, He consulted the One who ordered it all, and He
went with a select group of disciples and then prayed
alone. The prophet Daniel did the same. When faced
with the biggest crisis in his life, he presented himself
before authorities and asked them time to figure out
the problem. In order to solve the crisis, Daniel and
his friends knelt before God and prayed what was the
dream of Nebuchadnezzar.
He asked Arioch, Why has the king
issued such a harsh decree? So Arioch told
him all that had happened. Daniel went at
once to see the king and requested more time
to tell the king what the dream meant.
Then Daniel went home and told his
friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah
what had happened. He urged them to ask
the God of heaven to show them his mercy
by telling them the secret, so they would not
be executed along with the other wise
men of Babylon. That night the secret was
revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel
praised the God of heaven. He said, "Praise
the name of God forever and ever, for he has
all wisdom and power.
40
He controls the course of world events;
he removes kings and sets up other kings. He
gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to
the scholars. He reveals deep and mysterious
things and knows what lies hidden in dark-
ness, though he is surrounded by light.
I thank and praise you, God of my an-
cestors, for you have given me wisdom and
strength. You have told me what we asked of
you and revealed to us what the king demand-
ed. (Daniel 2:15-23 NLT)

Daniel and his friends did not only save their lives
when they asked God what was the dream that both-
ered King Nebuchadnezzar, they even spared the lives
of the wise men of Babylon because they dared to ask
God. The Lord will protect those whose lives are given
to Him, those who have committed their hearts to fol-
low Him.
When we learn what it truly means to love the
Lord, we will not only pray to Him when a need arises
but we pray because we wanted to be with our Friend
and Big Brother. Fellowship does not have to mean
worship without camaraderie, companionship and
brotherhood. The word fellowship evolved from two
fellows in a ship. Basically we have a relationship with
Jesus that is worth developing and strengthening; this
is our quest as long as we live.
41
42
Chapter 3
Finding Gods rest
You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and sur-
round me with songs of deliverance.(Psalm 32:7)
One of the greatest revelations I had, that kept me
from living an insecure life, is the understanding that
Jesus Christ died for me and loves me. With this love, I
find rest and peace that I do not need to struggle to find
someone to love me unconditionally. I do not need to
put my best foot forward and do many stunts and lies
to cover up who I am.
In Christ, I feel secure and free because He has paid
the price for my freedom. Today many people engage
in activities that can lull the mind, pull them into ad-
dictions and make them hallucinate. Things like drug
addiction, eastern religions, yoga, transcendental med-
itations, occult readings and new age has only pulled
many into a false sense of security and false safe ha-
ven. The so-called New Age movement has everything
but Christ and a true lasting peace. Many Christians
also engage in horoscope and fortune telling which
God forbids that no one who calls himself a Christian
should dabble with.
Don't dabble in the occult or traffic
with mediums; you'll pollute your souls. I am
Finding Gods rest
43
God, your God. "I will resolutely reject per-
sons who dabble in the occult or traffic with
mediums, prostituting themselves in their
practices.
I will cut them off from their people.
"Set yourselves apart for a holy life. Live a
holy life, because I am God, your God. (Lev
19:31; 20:6-7 THE MESSAGE)
The apostle Peter also wrote that we are to be dis-
cerning because of the nature of the events that would
transpire in these last days. He succinctly puts that we
are to Know this first of all, that in the last days
mockers will come with their mocking, following af-
ter their own lusts, and saying, Where is the promise
of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep,
all continues just as it was from the beginning of cre-
ation. For when they maintain this, it escapes their
notice that by the word of God the heavens existed
long ago and the earth was formed out of water and
by water, through which the world at that time was
destroyed, being flooded with water (2 Peter 3:3-6).
When knowledge abounds, it is finding the right in-
formation that would most benefit us, which one to ac-
cept and which one to reject. It takes lots of practice to
sharpen this skill of knowing and discerning the right
from the wrong. Just as anyone who wants to compete
in the Olympic games does not merely practice without
proper knowledge and equipment, everyone should be-
ware to do the same in our spiritual lives. We are to
endure hardships as good soldiers of Jesus Christ.
In science, there are many published papers on
many issues, but in everything we write, we need to
cite the references which we think does not only justify
our position but expounds on the truth of our findings.
44
In every book I write, I do not merely justify my posi-
tion when I am called to stand for that issue, but seek
ways to understand why this must be the truth and why
it must be biblical too. In other words, we can simplify
things by seeking only those knowledge and wisdom
that best conforms to what Jesus has shown us in the
Bible or whether it rightly conforms to the word of
God. This is the way we judge sound practices as well
as sound living.
Just because someone from a megachurch does
this, it does not mean it is applicable to everyones
churches. No, there are certain practices that are ap-
plicable for big churches and some which are only fit
for the small ones. Both are needed to impact our com-
munities in ways we may not have even imagined.
For example, it is harder to actually know how deep
is the foundation of the people attending our churches
when we suddenly explode in numbers compared to
when we just started small and patiently anchor our
roots deeper into the foundation of Christ. Even so,
we cannot continue to remain bound to the powers of
darkness or to open ourselves into this kind of practice
just because we attend a big church and no one seems
to pay attention at us personally.
The knowledge of truth
The greatest enemy of most Christians today is not
Satan, but our lack of knowledge of the truth (Hosea
4:6), this is in spite of the explosion of knowledge in
many areas. We have hardly scratched the whole trea-
sure load of the Bible. Only we have become superfi-
cial in the way we deal with it and the way we dispense
knowledge arising from it. The Lord does not have to
be an elusive Being called the Old Man upstairs, He
must become your Father, your best Friend, your Com-
Finding Gods rest
45
forter, and your Rock of refuge. He called all of us to
come to Him and to find rest for our souls need.
Come to Me, all who are weary and
heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take
My yoke upon you, and learn from Me,
for I am gentle and humble in heart; and
you shall find rest for your souls. For My
yoke is easy, and My load is light. (Matthew
11:28-30)
Since the Lord called everyone of us, our excuses
are not acceptable. None could really find true peace
or true rest apart from the Prince of Peace, the everlast-
ing Father (Isaiah 9:6) for He decreed that we will only
find rest for our souls in Him. Problems and pressure
from work and everyday living does not mean that He
condemned us or judged us to this condition. This is
the meaning of toil, part of the wages of sin (Romans
6:23). Salaries are paid to anyone who works for a job;
so are the consequences of sin which has been likened
to salaries or wages. From the very beginning since the
fall of man, sin has continued and increased in magni-
tude today until its personification in the Man of Sin
will be revealed to this world.
The Christian life is not for cowards. It is one of
confrontation with truth and reality. Problems should
not drive us away from God but towards Him who has
all the answers that we are seeking. He is the Light
of the world. No matter how different, how big your
problems are, His everlasting light could shine through
your night. The radiance of His light will always be
stronger than any foreboding darkness just as light
pierces the darkest night of the soul. The first century
Church understood that sufferings and trials are part
46
of the life that we have in Christ; they understood that
we must go through tribulations to enter the Kingdom
of God (Acts 14:22). They have learned that through
much tribulations, God is teaching them the Kingdom
lifestyle. He is purifying them from imperfections of
character. Daniels story tells us how he made the Lord
his refuge and how the Lord preserved him and his
companions from certain death.
The rock of refuge
When we make the Lord our refuge, He will find
ways to do so. Davids life was marked with both joy
and sorrow. Even though he was anointed as a king in
his teen years, he did not become the king of Judah
and Israel until the death of King Saul. With constant
battle and being on the most wanted list by the govern-
ment, his life was always on the verge of death, often
hiding and persecuted.
It was this kind of preparation that exactly made
him the greatest king of Israel. King Saul became the
choiced tool whom God used to shape the character
of David and prepared him for kingship. His greatness
lies in his forgiving heart and trust in the Lord that
no matter what circumstances he was in, he knew the
Lord would protect and keep him.
My God, my rock, in whom I take ref-
uge; My shield and the horn of my salvation,
my stronghold and my refuge; My savior,
Thou dost save me from violence.
I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be
praised; And I am saved from my enemies.
For the waves of death encompassed me;
The torrents of destruction overwhelmed
me; The cords of Sheol surrounded me; The
Finding Gods rest
47
snares of death confronted me. In my dis-
tress I called upon the Lord, Yes, I cried to
my God; And from His temple He heard my
voice, And my cry for help came into His
ears. (2 Samuel 22:3-7)
O Lord my God, in Thee I have taken
refuge; Save me from all those who pursue
me, and deliver me (Psalm 7:1)
Preserve me, O God, for I take refuge in
Thee (Psalm 16:1)
For Thou hast been a defense for the
helpless, a defense for the needy in his dis-
tress, a refuge from the storm, a shade from
the heat;
For the breath of the ruthless is like a rain
storm against a wall. Like heat in drought,
Thou dost subdue the uproar of aliens;
Like heat by the shadow of a cloud, the
song of the ruthless is silenced. (Isaiah 25:4-
5)
Like David and the prophet Isaiah, we must make
the Lord our hiding place, our refuge and strength be-
cause He will deliver us from any sickness, from any
problem, from any distress or from any foe or bondage
in this life. The word of God simply says, is anything
too difficult for the Lord? (Genesis 18:14). It was
not hard for Him to remove Saul from kingship or even
to give an Isaac to Abraham; it was not hard for Him
to bring revival in such hard places as Wales, a little
known place in Great Britain at the turn of the previ-
ous century. And it wont be hard for us to invite the
48
Lord in our schools, offices and places because God
is able and God is great. It is only our own percep-
tions that limit what God can do through us and in us.
When we truly believe in faith, we will trust, and we
will believe there is nothing impossible with God.
The right response
The biggest setback can be turned by God into
our biggest victory. He gives abounding grace to even
the chief of sinners and when we are weak, God will
be our strength, and God is able to make all grace
abound to you, that always having all sufficiency
in everything, you may have an abundance for ev-
ery good deed (2 Corinthians 9:8). This abounding
grace is for us. We can become vessels of His grace if
we respond the right way. Pauls secret for every en-
counter of problem is not hidden, for he has written it
for us, rejoice always, pray without ceasing; in ev-
erything give thanks; for this is Gods will for you
in Christ Jesus (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). When we
think of the word rejoice, what emotion does it evoke
in us? Does it mean laughter? Or does it mean an inner
sense of joy?
When the word of God says REJOICE, it means
exaltation regardless of the circumstances we are in. It
means we worship the Lord even in the most desper-
ate of circumstances we are in. Paul and Silas demon-
strated this truth when they were beaten and dragged
in Philippi.
And the crowd rose up together against
them, and the chief magistrates tore their
robes off them, and proceeded to order them
to be beaten with rods.
And when they had inflicted many blows
Finding Gods rest
49
upon them, they threw them into prison,
commanding the jailer to guard them secure-
ly; and he, having received such a command,
threw them into the inner prison, and fas-
tened their feet in the stocks. But about mid-
night Paul and Silas were praying and singing
hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners
were listening to them;
and suddenly there came a great earth-
quake, so that the foundations of the prison
house were shaken; and immediately all the
doors were opened, and everyones chains
were unfastened.(Acts 16:22-26)
Although both of them were tired and needing
medical attention, Paul and Silas stood up and praised
the Lord. They did the very thing that few of us would
dare to do, to focus on God and solve the problem.
Since the fall of man, mankind resorts to looking at
himself more than to God for any solution. And the
very first thing that we learn as disciples is to remove
our eyes off ourselves and focus on the Lord. Some of
us think that by focusing on God, we waste our time
but the end result of those who use carnal means com-
pared to those who overcome by the Spirit of Jesus
Christ would attest to their superficial understanding
of the ways of God. Faith is not abstract nor beyond
reach to anyone.
Faith in God means knowing your Lord and Sav-
ior as He isthe all powerful Almighty God. He is the,
Great I am. The meaning of I am cannot be pos-
sibly listed for everything that it stands for. It is limit-
less in power, beauty, magnanimity, character, love and
truth. Paul and Silas knew that God could set them
free even inside the most secure prison of their times.
50
To be fettered does not only evoke humiliation but also
to be counted as the most dangerous criminal of the
land. Yet, the Lords power could not be limited by any
human authority, even by the highest authority in the
land. When we call on God, He shows Himself strong
in behalf of those who trusts in Him. When we pray
and believe in what we pray for, trusting in the Lord,
there is no limit to what He can do. God hears every
prayer that we utter.
So there was great joy in Jerusalem, be-
cause there was nothing like this in Jerusalem
since the days of Solomon the son of David,
king of Israel.
Then the Levitical priests arose and
blessed the people; and their voice was heard
and their prayer came to His holy dwelling place, to
heaven. (2 Chronicles 30:26-27)
Though Paul and Silas were constrained by human
authority, their authority with God could not be hin-
dered by even the powers of human or demonic agen-
cies. Their worship ascended to heaven and God could
not disregard any true worship arising from the human
heart. He seeks worshippers! When we pray and thank
the Lord, we enter His gates but when we worship the
Lord, we enter His courts (Psalm 100:4). Gates refer
to doors or openings of either earthly or heavenly au-
thority while courts refer to reception held by a sover-
eign. By way of our thanksgiving we are ushered into
the heavenly gates but when we come and worship the
Lord, we are ushered into His presence.
It is being in His presence that will open our hearts
and minds to our true conditions. This is also the time
that we adore our Father no matter what is happen-
Finding Gods rest
51
ing around us. At first, Paul and Silas may not even
be aware that their chains already fell! When we come
before our Father, He knows what we need, the Sover-
eign King of the universe extends His scepter to us and
asks, what do you want my son? What do you want
my daughter? Is this not the reason why we are sup-
posed to be spending time with the Lord? Many have
removed this personal element of our relationship with
God, for though we worship in adoration and praises,
that does not negate our needs. We are also encour-
aged to pray that God fill up our needs apart from pray-
ing that His Kingdom come and His will be done.
We are to also ask that He give us bread and that we be
delivered from evil!
This is why the Lord encouraged us to pray with-
out ceasing and to always be thankful in everything
because God inhabits the praises of His people. The
word inhabit here certainly means He comes to us,
and when He does, there is no lack that He could not
provide for, there is no problem or sin we cannot be
delivered from. We are then to devote ourselves to
prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanks-
giving (Colossians 4:2).
Praying without ceasing does not have to mean
we do a formal prayer, rather, we should understand
this to mean a way of entrance into a holy communion
with the Lord throughout the day. This seems silly to
me and how can a man pray that it never ceases? The
Lord answered my question and said,set your affec-
tions to the most High. It is not really praying, but
communing or entering into a common union with
the Lord that this verse or any prayer is addressed.
Just as there would have been many events trans-
piring in the days of Enoch, yet the Lord focused on
this one man and they walked in such common union
52
that even world events could not disturb their walk un-
til Enoch has to be taken away without tasting death.
He desires nothing less with us.
In fact, the rapture events that would come will
come because His church have made herself ready
and have such a close walk with the Lord that only
His coming could take them away. Our Father by then
could not restrain Himself but to take us with Him. By
saying this, I do not mean that our motivation of get-
ting close with God should be to escape this world, no,
but we draw close to Him because our desire is noth-
ing else than by becoming one with Him in purpose,
life and works. This is why the overcomers in the La-
odicean church in Revelation 3:14 which describes our
generation will be ruling with Him, sitting down with
the Lord on His throne. Because in such great dark-
ness, they became sources of light that shine out. To
begin to walk in this, we all need to rise up beyond our
petty boundaries and desire to walk up higher, to keep
on seeking things from above. Just as no swine will ever
soar because it always looks on the ground, only the
eagles will fly because they cast their vision above.
If then you have been raised up with
Christ, keep seeking the things above, where
Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.
Set your mind on the things above, not
on the things that are on earth. For you have
died and your life is hidden with Christ in
God. (Colossians 3:1-3)
But a natural man does not accept the
things of the Spirit of God; for they are fool-
ishness to him, and he cannot understand
them, because they are spiritually ap-
Finding Gods rest
53
praised. But he who is spiritual appraises
all things, yet he himself is appraised by no
man. (1 Corinthians 2:14-15)
Communion with God is necessary if we are to
overcome this world. There is no saint that has not
done violence to himself without having called on the
Lord. To deny ourselves, we must let our eyes off from
us and focus it on Jesus. This is the life that overcomes,
it is focused to the One who has already overcome the
world! Because His Kingdom is not with words but of
the demonstration of power and love, there is no pow-
erless citizen in the Kingdom of God, the least of the
saints should be even as David! This is not hard thing
to do considering that we can do all things through
Him who strengthens us. In fact, serving the Lord and
worshipping Him must not even be considered a job
because it should be a pleasure to give all to the very
One who loved us even to the point of death.
54
Chapter 4
Divine Shift
Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose trust is the
Lord. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends
its roots by a stream and will not fear when the heat comes; But its
leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought
nor cease to yield fruit. (Jeremiah 17:7-8)
There are instances in our lives when changes
happen and set a milestone. These events become so
memorable because their impact could not be hidden
even when we try to hide them. The repercussions of
change and its effects become so dispersed that even
the most ordinary man knew that it happened. One of
these so called milestones in our lives includes tests we
overcome in the Lord. We can count that our very own
salvation in Christ is one, the deliverance from bond-
age and curse is another, as well as our high school and
college graduation day.
Events like these could be divine shifts because of
their impact in our lives. I count my salvation in the
Lord to be the first of the major shifts in my life because
of the way it has impacted my perspective and career.
Bringing salvation to mankind is not an easy task for
the Lord and neither an easy task for any evangelist
to save souls. Apart from the need of prayer as well as
new fellowships for the young believers, discipleship is
necessary if they would ever grow in Christ. Salvation
Divine shift
55
is the very first step in the stairways to Gods intimacy.
The Lord does not want us to remain in any steps apart
from moving up and being found in His throne. This is
described in Ephesians 1:20, where Christ was set up
at the Fathers right hand far above any power or prin-
cipality and the most surpassing revelation of all is to
know and understand that as we composed His Body,
so we are also set far above any power or principality
in the heavenly places.
which He brought about in Christ,
when He raised Him from the dead, and seat-
ed Him at His right hand in the heavenly
places, far above all rule and authority
and power and dominion, and every name
that is named, not only in this age, but also in
the one to come.
And He put all things in subjection under
His feet, and gave Him as head over all things
to the church, which is His body, the fulness
of Him who fills all in all. (Ephesians 1:20-
23)
This is why we are inscribed in the palm of His
hand (Isaiah 49:16), secure and free, well provided
with love and care by the Father of Lights. The same
reason holds why we are always admonished in the
Bible to set our affections above because the Lord has
made us to dwell in the heavenlies by virtue of Christs
death and resurrection.
This is like a virtual reality where we are both liv-
ing in two worlds, only it is not virtual but in fact very
real. Our connection to God is through our spirit while
on earth, we have our body so we continue to exist in
the natural. When Paul wrote that he desires to depart
56
and be with Christ but it is better that he remain for
the sake of the church, he meant that he is a conduit
through which God can continue to bless the church
(see Philippians 1:23-24).
All messengers of the Lord can become conduits
of His grace to impart not only understanding of His
dark sayings but also the wisdom to build up His
body and to maintain order and array the church as
an army ready to be commissioned and do its part in
this world. Our first call is as one family but ultimately,
this family is also an awesome army with banners to
restore the earth from mans depravity. To do that, we
need to remain connected to our source, our connec-
tion in heaven is our spiritual life while our connection
on earth is the fact that we are not dead yet and what-
ever blessing and revelation we receive from heaven,
we bring here on earth by our deeds.
The ladder of maturity and revelation
So just how do we do this effectively? In the Old
Testament, we are told of the story of Jacobs ladder
that reaches to heaven, as he dreamed, he saw a stair-
way stretched from the earth up to heaven. He also saw
that the angels of God were ascending and descend-
ing through this stairway and at the top of it stood the
Lord, I am the Lord, the God of your father Abra-
ham and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie,
I will give it to you and to your descendants (Gen-
esis 28:13).
Jacobs dream was not only significant for him but
also for us. Every rung of the ladder could have been
events in his life leading to his encounter with God;
nevertheless he did not persist to ask God about it. But
for us, every rung of the ladder represents the mile-
stones of trials we learn in this life for every step of
Divine shift
57
the way, we are learning Gods characters that bring us
nearer to the knowledge of Him.
We are told in 2 Peter 1:5-11, that we need to learn
while we are here on earth, Now for this very rea-
son also, applying all diligence, in your faith sup-
ply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence,
knowledge; and in your knowledge, self-control, and
in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perse-
verance, godliness; and in your godliness, brotherly
kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For
if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they
render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true
knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who
lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, hav-
ing forgotten his purification from his former sins
(2 Peter 1:5-9).
Here we are given promises that we shall never be
useless nor unfruitful or blind or short-sighted. In
the succeeding verse it says, when you continue to
practice these things you shall never stumble (verse
10) and an entrance shall be ministered unto you
abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord
or in short, God will amply provide us access into His
kingdom. The apostle is not talking about our salva-
tion here. Because he is talking before saved believers
already, but he is pointing to us that if we continue to
do these things and practice these qualities, we shall
not lack any provision from the Kingdom of the Lord.
God wants every one of His children to be able to open
the door and enter through in His presence (Revelation
4:1). He wants us all to experience Him deeply because
that is where we are called to, deep calls to deep:

Deep calls to deep at the sound of Thy
waterfalls; All Thy breakers and Thy waves
58
have rolled over me. The Lord will command
His lovingkindness in the daytime; And His
song will be with me in the night, a prayer to
the God of my life. (Psalm 42:7-8)
Just as Peter, James and John started from scratch,
being ordinary fishermen and common folks but were
so transformed and became extraordinary ambassa-
dors and apostles of Christ after being with the Master,
their lives show us the way of discipleship and life in
the Kingdom. When we follow in their paths, it shall
not be long when the church shall march forth as the
greatest epitome of change and one who in one day
was reborn again!
Do we see this happening around us? Or is there
a church so blessed that even the world has beaten its
path to its doors? Until we see all churches experienc-
ing this normal life, our work is not done and our pas-
sion continues to call the church into passionate love
with the Lord. There is no limit to how far this passion
goes, just as there is no specification to how deep and
how far the river of life can go.
Thus, when King David described his experience
of deep calls to deep, he meant his very whole being
flooded and swallowed up in the River of Life. When
this experience comes to us, it would be natural to feel
and see the pulsating glory of God. But we are not af-
ter these signs or even at these wonders, beyond it, we
look to Him who dwells between the Cherubims.
We long for Him that He may abide with us, that
His presence shall not only overshadow us but we are
caught up and kept in His presence. Let us not waste
our daily struggles but use them to move up by simply
calling on the Lord as deep calls to deep. This is part
of our quest.
Divine shift
59
Our preparation
There is a saying that goes, those who failed to
plan, planned to fail. None of us can do time travel
and move through the space time continuum or even
have a precognition of impending events. Unless you
have a prophetic gifting, there are simply too many
physical laws you have to break in order to do that.
At least this is our condition on earth, but the fact that
we hear stories of angels, stories of how God deliv-
ered people from certain death through interconnected
events are strong enough to warrant our attention and
how we should order our day.
God is a good planner, there is no question to that.
In fact the things that are happening to us have been
planned long time ago by the Lord. Planning there-
fore must be one of the skills we should be the best to
reckon with because we are His children. Just as there
were no instant genius who were never taught, we are
being taught to be so good, skillful and obedient by the
trials we undergo and the schools we are being trained
with. Consequently, those who persevered and patient
enough to be discipled also end up with better educa-
tion and decision making later in life.
Surveys of top achievers in schools are usually chil-
dren who are not only gifted intellectually or diligent
readers but also because they learned how to make
plans and schedule their activities well before-hand.
They also have the discipline that it takes to accom-
plish what they planned to do. Just by these two char-
acteristics, most educators could predict who would be
the achievers and those that would usually end up as
failures. There is therefore much to be desired in being
a good planner apart from the fruits of good planning.
The Lord has told me that if I were to study, I must
study diligently, for only the diligent can be rewarded
60
and who has no cause to be ashamed with. Planning
must be one of the best skills I should possess if I were
to achieve anything in this life. I must plan to do well
and to work hard in it, even to stay the course when
storms broke out and to steer it clear when my vision
clouds (see Proverbs 14:22-23; 2 Timothy 2:15). Even
history testifies that those who did most in this world
did only so rarely as a serendipitous discovery, but
most by virtually forcing their way to reach their goals.
Galileo has to invent his own telescopes in order
to peer through the solar system; Newton has to in-
vent calculus so he could easily calculate distances and
Pasteur has to experiment so that he could debunk the
theory of spontaneous generation. Each of these scien-
tists are celebrated figures who in their own ways have
helped mankind move forward in giant strides. They
could not have done so without careful planning and
analyses involved.
Their main difference with us is the passion and
devotion to excellence involved by which they have
stayed their course until they have achieved their goals.
Should we who believe in the Lord not do the same,
even excel them far more than they did? If these men
ran for the wreath of glory that perishes, should we
who run for the eternal wreath of glory not be more
passionate and excellent?
The trap of old wineskins
Gods timings are always right. We may be tempt-
ed to sometimes think that it is slow or too fast, but it
just comes right no matter what. We certainly think of
time in terms of a chronological order. Just think about
your daily routines and schedules and you know that
it must go by this order. Though this is good, when
we are bound by the present appointments or by the
Divine shift
61
past, we forget to receive new things or to allow flex-
ibility in our schedules. It is this set of mentality that
basically distrusts things that are unexpected because it
simply forces our schedule to keep changing. To bring
the needed changes force us to consider the cost. But
when we dont allow these changes we become like the
Pharisees who were obstinate and recalcitrant to the
point of killing any would be reformers.
In the days when the Lord walked the earth, Je-
sus was sent to battle their folly and thwart their wis-
dom. Mans wisdom is to behold the Lord in his own
ideas and interpretations forming religious convictions
that hid in the recesses of our minds but do nothing to
change the heart. When man believes with his mind but
not his heart, we have human parrots playing religious
games. It is only when we believe with our hearts that
our religious convictions result to righteousness. Those
who walk in this vision do not only bring changes in
their families but also in their communities at large.
Apart from avoiding the trap of the Pharisees, un-
reasonable and unbiblical obstinacy of our position
that does not give merit to new insights, revelations
and movements of God will in the long run only fool-
ishness. The Lord therefore gave a statement that we
are wise to consider for our own sake, And no one
puts new wine into old wineskins. For the old skins
would burst from the pressure, spilling the wine and
ruining the skins. New wine is stored in new wine-
skins so that both are preserved (Matthew 9:17
NLT). Old wineskins refer to people who have become
so hardened and so tough on their positions that they
literally become explosive when suggested with new
ideas. They want to continue going in their trajectory
even when it is unwise to do so. Those who do these
things have lost sight of the real value of their existence
62
or walk with God. Doctrines will never be the center
piece of our walk nor only our experience even if both
are needed. It will always be to love the Lord our God
and to walk with Him in such closeness that we too are
transformed day by day. To old wineskins, what they
have is enough and okay. This kind of people cannot
be entrusted with new revelations lest they cut it off or
simply ridicule it. Old wineskins have become familiar
with things around that they have forgotten the God
they serve. They do things around because it is their
routine. They have lost their passion for their first love.
When things go berserk and we forget God, we
endanger our relationship with the One who loved us
most. The spiritual state of the Pharisees can be the ul-
timate state of delusion and hypocrisy that any Chris-
tian can fall into and this happens when we forget our
first love. Revelations of the things of God have been
likened to a wine because they are intoxicating; apart
from the new knowledge we receive, we are imparted
with new strength and spiritual faith muscle that we
can use for the things we need to do.
When we stop communicating with God, we stop
receiving His revelations. Revelations are products of
our relationship; it comes naturally as we grow in His
likeness. Gods revelations may come by seeking them
but no believer will leave empty handed who does not
seek the face of the Lord. As believers we therefore
seek to balance the way we plan things and the way
the things of God come or appear. It does not have to
go disorderly or in confusion because God is not the
author of confusion or disorder.
The Lakeland revival
When the Lakeland Revival first occurred, many
believers were confused whether what was happening
63
was real or under false pretense. Most of the old wine-
skins simply labeled the young revivalist as false. Since
when did the Lord taught us that to figure out some-
one as false was because of his tattoes? Or because of
the signs and wonders happening around Lakeland?
Revivals like what has happened in Ontario as well as
in Lakeland should always be acceptable to Christians
who love the appearing and fellowship of the Lord.
Genuine revivals are the mark of Gods last out-
pouring before He returns again and this will not be
limited in a few pockets of cities but it will happen in
many places around the world just before the Lord will
come again. In addition, we also need to always re-
member, that Gods Kingdom is not the United States
of America, nor will it be because this is far too small
to picture or typify the Lords Kingdom but we are sure
that as the days go by, there will be countries that will
become Kingdoms of the Lord because they have been
so transformed by the salt and light in these countries
(see Revelations 11:15). One way of producing such
kingdoms will be revivals and communities that walk
in true love and vision of the Lord.
Persecution is rooted in our lack of brotherly
love
Criticism of others and persecution is rooted in
our lack of understanding and brotherly love. The first
recorded murder in the Bible happened because the
older brother could not understand nor accept his own
younger brother. Though their story revolve mainly
around the sacrifice offerings to God, it can be safe to
conclude that the older persecuted the younger because
he could not understand nor discern why the favor of
God rests upon his younger sibling. Both of them knew
that they need to sacrifice but Abel went the extra mile
64
by giving his best for God. He is therefore remembered
for his sacrifice offerings as a better sacrifice, more ex-
cellent than Cain because he understood that he is of-
fering this not merely to a stone or wood but to the
God of the universe, the Maker of man and animals.
All persecutors in history have this basic premise that
because they were first, or knew something, they could
impose their will on others at their whim. When this
is not enough, their hatred could lead them to murder
just as it happened to Cain and Abel. Most religious
movements, including politics have this tendency to
commit murder in order to keep the others out of the
way. Jesus was persecuted by the religious establish-
ments of His day, and so were the apostles.
When the Church grew into the most powerful and
feared institution of the world, it gave birth to a new
movement that she also wanted to kill because of dif-
ferences in standing or positions. And again, when this
new movement called Protestantism came to a halt and
fast approaching to becoming stale, it too, persecuted
the other movements that were sent to renew her. This
tendency to persecute others is rooted in our insecuri-
ties and lack of vision to give grace to others. It has be-
come the demise of many other movements in history.
By our lack of brotherly love, we have withold the
affections due our Brethren, and in the process, instead
of love, we nurse bitterness, envy and wrath until when
it is full, it gives birth to death. We shall still see a move-
ment or a church that would not try to kill her children
but nurture them in the admonition of the Lord, pre-
paring them till they reach the stature and maturity of
Jesus Christ; a church which wont be self-centered but
Christ centric in passion and devotion so that she will
be just too happy to help prepare the others.
They will be the John the Baptists whom the Lord
Divine shift
65
honored and said to be the greatest man born of wom-
an because instead of persecuting Jesus, he was so
willing to give way. He allowed the Lord to increase
and then he decreased. A testimony of the power of
brotherly love, which is able to bind us perfectly as one,
though we maybe utterly different in purpose or view.
The grace of accepting new things
Some have given themselves to the view that there
is indeed nothing new under heaven. They cite Solo-
mons views written in Ecclesiastes to persuade others
into their misunderstanding. Even so, is there really
nothing new? The Scriptures need to be understood
as it isThe SUM of Thy word is truth (Psalm
119:160). Or all of the Word of God is Truth, when
we view only the Word of God using the lense of Solo-
mons in Ecclesiastes, we will fail to actually hold on
to this principle of summing up His whole Word as
Truth.
The main reason why this book of Solomon was
canonized as Scriptures is because of its valid obser-
vations of life and at the same time, a testimony of
what happens when an extraordinarily gifted man of
God falls to depression. The meaning of seeing things
under heaven and under the sun literally means
seeing without the light of God. Anyone who will view
things in the lense of this world will find himself con-
tinually panged. We are therefore exhorted to always
set our sights above, to set our eyes on Jesus, to set our
minds on things above because when we do otherwise,
we will see as Solomon saw the world, vanity of vani-
ties, a chasing in the wind.
Nevertheless, the Lord also said that He shall do a
new thing, that He shall create a new thing (Jeremiah
31:22), and even proclaim new things (Isaiah 42:9;
66
48:6). It is always wise to inquire of the Lord, and also
test if the new things we see happening are truly from
Him. We must not fear to be involved or to participate
in these things of God because if these were truly His,
it shall bear fruit exuding the qualities of the Lord.
Gods works are not apart from His character that is
why the fruit is always one test that never fails. All trees
will be known by their fruit whether these are planted
by the Lord or simply wild trees that were planted by
the enemy.
In science, new revelations and discoveries have
not been always welcomed, but because of its ability to
evolve, innovate and change through times, it has be-
come a force to reckon with in all communities around
the world. Because of its almost uniform methodology
and conduct of inquiry, it basically allows most discov-
eries and inventions to continue to impart useful tech-
nologies and be adopted into commercialized ventures.
The fruits of these inquiry may not have been con-
sistently good at all times, but having the basic frame-
work allowed science to continue to push the limits of
our knowledge of nature. It is understood by all practi-
tioners of science that continuity is basic into the fab-
ric of discovery, without which there is no foundation
to build upon or we will be repeating the same errors
made 10 years ago or 100 years ago.
This shames us who believes the Lord because this
is contrary to His basic nature of being creative or the
Creator-God, Elohim. For one to believe He is, one just
needs to look at the majestic mountains of the Hima-
layas, or the meandering rivers of the Amazon, or the
stars that twinkle above. Has anyone duplicated these
natural wonders yet? It shows the testimony of how
far more superior, creative and powerful our God truly
is. If so, we should not limit Him or His works to be
Divine shift
67
mainly past in nature because if we do, we have made
Him very minute and falsified the claims of the Bible
of who truly is the Great I Am. Some leaders today
are always looking for ways not just to hinder the new
but to even crucify it. There has been no area in church
advancement that has not come under the scrutiny of
critics and false brethren. Nevertheless, every trials and
victories we go through could either make us better or
bitter. We have to choose which way we must go, to be
agents of His creative force, or to be hinderers.
The victory
The ultimate preparation we have would bring us
the ultimate victory we need. When I was in college,
as far as I can remember, my goal was to graduate as a
Cum Laude. Unfortunately every time I targeted a high
grade at the beginning of the semester, I then begin to
lower it by the end of the semester which only resulted
to hope deferred. The results of our being with Christ
should never result to defeats because He has always
been an Overcomer; there are times however when de-
feat comes because we have lowered our guards and
did not look towards the Master.
But thanks be to God, who always leads
us in His triumph in Christ, and manifests
through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge
of Him in every place. (2 Corinthians 2:14)
If God is leading us in His triumph why do we
learn defeats in life then? Unfortunately we have for-
gotten that we are not yet perfect, so we have to learn
this way. Our time of preparation is important just as
any unprepared army will ultimately face defeat, the
better our preparation, the better the outcome of our
68
training. The best preparation in this life depends also
on the desired results. While everything can depend
on the amount of preparation, the grace of God could
also succeed where man fails. I shall never forget an
example from Bob Jones who recounted one from his
dreams. It was the last inning in a baseball game and
the Lords team was on bat while Satan was the pitch-
er; all the bases were full and the score was still 0-0.
The name of the batter was Grace, and when Satan
threw a swerve ball, he hit it and it was a home run!
We may have all the best preparation we can do
but still we must remember that everything comes by
the grace of God. It is indeed tragic to see unprepared
students take their exams only to expect a failing mark
by the end of the semester.
But what could be more tragic instance than to find
a Christian who has not prepared himself for any task
in the Lord and when their time of opportunity comes
they fail to do anything of value for the Kingdom of
God. Josephs great promotion came as a result of his
ability to endure hardship in the heat of trials. He was
sold as a slave to a master who was subservient to his
wife. He was tempted by a seductress and imprisoned;
he gave his service for free to Pharaohs cup bearer but
was forgotten. What could be a more unfair treatment
and situation that a man could endure?
And yet, Joseph never complained or ridiculed
God; in all of his sufferings, he acknowledged the hand
of God so that He trusted him with the highest author-
ity in the most powerful country. And who could forget
the richest man from the east? Job who was accused by
his thoughtful and concerned friends and a bitter wife
never forgot that from God comes good times as well
as trials. In all of his sufferings, he never surrendered
to baseless accusations or allowed his wifes bitterness
Divine shift
69
to influence his perspective on God.
Now faith is the assurance of things
hoped for, the conviction of things not seen...
And without faith it is impossible to please
Him, for he who comes to God must believe
that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those
who seek Him. (Hebrews 11:1, 6)
For whatever is born of God overcomes
the world; and this is the victory that has
overcome the world our faith. And who
is the one who overcomes the world, but he
who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
(1 John 5:4-5)
70
Chapter 5
Following Gods Presence
Now therefore, I pray Thee, if I have found favor in Thy sight, let me
know Thy ways, that I may know Thee, so that I may nd favor in
Thy sight. Consider too, that this nation is Thy people.And He said,
My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest. (Exodus
33:13-14)
Moses asked for it and the Lord gave it. How many
leaders are wasting their time asking for other things
but not the presence of God in their congregation,
parishes, families and offices? Many ask for general
blessings from new cars to new houses but all of these
fail comparatively in measure to His marvelous pres-
ence. What makes babies attractive are because they
are born with Gods resplendent presence surrounding
them. Matter-of-factly, this is why most of us whether
we like children or not are compelled to look at them
either because of their teeny voices or their lovely fac-
es. We may ask, what is in the presence of God that all
leaders should be asking for?
Behold, I am going to send an angel
before you to guard you along the way, and
to bring you into the place which I have pre-
pared.
Be on your guard before him and obey his
voice; do not be rebellious toward him, for he
will not pardon your transgression, since My
Following Gods presence
71
name is in him. But if you will truly obey his
voice and do all that I say, then I will be an
enemy to your enemies and an adversary to
your adversaries.
For My angel will go before you and bring
you in to the land of the Amorites, the Hit-
tites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hiv-
ites and the Jebusites; and I will completely
destroy them. (Exodus 23:20-23).
This is the presence of God; He goes ahead of us,
we follow closely from behind and we obey anything
He says. Does it go as literal as that? For some this
maybe the case but for most it may not be as literal
as that. To have Gods presence in our midst could
mean many things but to have Him abiding with us
is another story. It is Gods presence that will compel
many followers to obey their leaders because His pres-
ence comes only in the hallowed and devout life of a
disciple. When we have His presence we will not only
have peace but also rest.
Real peace emanates from those who have the
Prince of Peace living in them. This is why the first
step always involves making peace with your Maker.
Without this step, you will always be in want trying
many things to bring your inner self into peace but
finding nothing. Peace with your Maker is the only wa-
ter that satisfies your thirst.
Come to Me, all who are weary and
heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take
My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I
am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall
find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy,
and My load is light. (Matthew 11:28-30)
72
And He said, My presence shall go
with you, and I will give you rest.(Exodus
33:14)
Here we find, that asking Gods presence is not af-
ter all a presumption as Moses did but rather it is an
act that God is also waiting for us to do so. It is the
Lords presence that can heal a broken heart, a broken
relationship or a divided family. His presence can bring
refreshing and quickening to our mortal bodies (Ro-
mans 8:11).
Diseases, infirmities and mental oppressions could
not stay long when we have His presence abiding
with us. As we spend more time in His presence, this
is transferred not just into our beings but also in our
physical bodies. This is why the face of Moses shone
brightly before the Israelite congregation after 40 days
and 40 nights spent with God at the top of Mount
Sinai. Today we dont often see this kind of physical
manifestation but we do see its equivalent today in lives
changed and touched by people of God who has His
presence indwelling them. This is what makes an ef-
fective leader, the indwelling presence of God which
provides strength and wisdom necessary to serve a
congregation or body.
The life that we now live, if lived for the Lord, we
will also enjoy the abundant life just as Moses did. He
was so filled with the presence of God that even at the
day the Lord would take him to heaven, his strength
and eyesight was never diminished. God had to take
him anyway so He just buried his body somewhere so
that succeeding generations will not find out where
and use it for idolatrous worship. Likewise, Enoch
was so filled with His life so that God has just to take
him intact without tasting death. To both men, think
73
about it, all of science is trying to find a cure for age-
ing but the secret is a life lived in communion with the
Lord. Living in communion with the Lord does not
need to mean stern looking, fist pounding preachers or
disciples. To change the world, we do not need to be
another copy cat of a revivalist or apostle.
We simply need to do the part God has for us. It
begins by simply obeying the Ten Commandments
and praying daily for your family, nation and yourself.
When we fall in love with His presence, the time spent
with God increases. This time does not need to be all
intercessions or supplications; it could simply be your
story and the Lord hearing what you have to say. It
could begin as that and end up hearing what He has to
say to you.
Set your mind on the things above, not
on the things that are on earth. For you have
died and your life is hidden with Christ in
God. (Colossians 3:2-3)
Therefore, since we have so great a
cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us
also lay aside every encumbrance, and the sin
which so easily entangles us, and let us run
with endurance the race that is set before us,
fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and
perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before
Him endured the cross, despising the shame,
and has sat down at the right hand of the
throne of God. (Hebrews 12:1-2)
Living the balanced life
Living a balanced life should always be our goal
whether we are in a heavy or stressful situation or sim-
74
ply enjoying a vacation. Jesus always lived a balanced
life thats why we do not see his character sketch in the
Bible tainted with any nervous breakdowns or neglect
of his family members. Well it is easy to judge Him and
say because He was God so these things did not hap-
pen to Him when He walked the earth. But the truth
is, just as we are flesh and blood, so He became so that
He could save us and succor those who suffers in the
same way. He suffered more than we could ever try to
bear so that we do not need to remain poor, forsaken
and dead. But anytime during His sufferings He could
have easily reclaimed His deity but He did not because
He did all things for our sake.
But we do see Him who has been made
for a little while lower than the angels, name-
ly, Jesus, because of the suffering of death
crowned with glory and honor, that by the
grace of God He might taste death for every-
one.
For it was fitting for Him, for whom are
all things, and through whom are all things,
in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the
author of their salvation through sufferings.
(Hebrews 2:9-10)
These Scriptures simply tell us why He was made
flesh and blood, and that was to make Him suffer for
mankinds sin, to taste death for everyone. Thus, no
one could simply reason out that He did suffer it but
did not feel it because He was God. For us, the appli-
cation is clear, we could live a fruitful and healthy life
in Christ not just by watching our diets but more than
these, we actually spend more time with Him during
our prayers. When we do so, we will be so transformed
75
just as the Korean Church did. When complaints arise
in our hearts due to our situations, we would know
what to do. Before we go to our offices, business meet-
ings, or our daily tasks, asking for His presence will
always be a better choice for a Christian to do. It is by
abiding in the Lords presence that Moses was able to
lead a stiff-necked and stubborn generation from defeat
to victory, from bondage to freedom. Because of this,
his name will forever be remembered in the annals of
history for setting free and leading a generation full of
bitterness and complaints that any leader would better
leave of and set out alone.
There is something big and evil in complaining
which is why the Lord punished the Israelites severely
for their complaints. Complaining reveals the state of
ones heartit is a heart without faith. It shows how
weak we are and how disconnected we have been with
the Lord. The reaction of the Lord to the Israelites dur-
ing their complaints can be gleaned as a similar reac-
tion when we complain against Him about our situa-
tions, our spouses, our teachers or our leaders.
And Moses said, This will happen
when the Lord gives you meat to eat in the
evening, and bread to the full in the morning;
for the Lord hears your grumblings which
you grumble against Him. And what are
we? Your grumblings are not against us but
against the Lord. (Exodus 16:8)
And the Lord said to Moses, I have
seen this people, and behold, they are an ob-
stinate people.Now then let Me alone, that
My anger may burn against them, and that I
may destroy them; and I will make of you a
76
great nation. (Exodus 32:9-10)
He was against complaining because this shows
our lack of faith in His ability to deliver His promises.
When we complain, it is evidence that we have given
up hope which is the anchor of our soul. Now we need
to understand that the Lords goal for the Israelites was
not simply freedom from Egypt as much as deliverance
from Egypts influence within their hearts.
He allowed them to march through the wilderness
because the trial will bring about the best or the worst
in man. The Lord bets that it would give the best in
man; the first generation actually failed to be the gen-
eration that would be completely free from the influ-
ence of Egypt, for their bitter complaints led them
into 40 years of trials in the wilderness. Although this
was a tragic case, a newer and bolder generation arose
from this that fully obeyed the Lord and conquered the
Promised Land so that in the end it did not frustrate
the Lords hope. Thus, when we have a complaining
heart, it really shows who we are, that we do not re-
ally trust Him that He is in control. When we lose this
perspective, we will lose everything and begin to blame
everyone. We can only do one thing at a time, either to
complain or to trust the Omnipotent and Omniscient
God.
The right reaction
What shall we do then when we are trapped? When
we feel the need to vent off our anger at someone who
did us wrong? What shall we do when we find our lead-
ers seem to be slow in finding solutions to problems we
referred to them? Shall we be bitter and complain? Our
reactions to problems and situations are actually our
reaction to what God is doing in our life. When we do
the same foolish mistakes as the Israelites did, we are
77
sure to end up defeated. There is however a better way
than this and it promises sure victory.
Therefore, let us fear lest, while a prom-
ise remains of entering His rest, any one of
you should seem to have come short of it.
For indeed we have had good news
preached to us, just as they also; but the word
they heard did not profit them, because it was
not united by faith in those who heard.
For we who have believed enter that rest,
just as He has said, as I swore in My wrath,
they shall not enter My rest, although His
works were finished from the foundation of
the world. (Hebrews 4:1-3)
The doorway, the gate to enter His presence is no
other than faith! Complaining is counterproductive to
faith. It is a false faith. True faith is not founded on cir-
cumstances or based on people. True faith will always
rest on this truth, God is powerful enough to be able
to deliver His promises and omniscient to do it in His
time. True faith will always be centered on what the
Lord can and not on what we can or cant do. To those
who believe Him, he has a great reward because He is
a rewarder of those who seek Him even though they
do not see Him.
If we will seek Him, we will always find Him. It
begins when we stop trusting ourselves and we start
looking at Him. If we believe that He cares, we will
not waste our time and effort complaining of our situ-
ations but rather we start praying and giving our wor-
ries and anxieties to Him, Give all your worries and
cares to God, for he cares about you (1 Peter 5:7
NLT). When we realize what the apostle Peter is say-
78
ing we will stop worrying and spend the rest of our
time praying before God. This does not mean that we
should only pray our concerns during our prayer times
as Muslims or Hindus do, but we pray wherever and
whenever we can because Jesus said, why are you
sleeping?...Get up and pray. Otherwise temptation
will overpower you (Luke 22:46 NLT).
Prayer should not be a religious duty as some of
us counts, but it must be a tool and a way of life that is
more powerful than any nuclear bombs and more trav-
elled than any other path. Prayer alone brought deliver-
ance from flood and famine, delivered Lot and his fam-
ily, brought the promised son into this world, blessed
the righteous man to rule Egypt, freed His people to
live in the Promised Land, pulled down the walls
of Jericho, stopped the sun, destroyed the temple of
Dagon, strengthened the valiant man who otherwise
feared, anointed a prophet and king, fulfilled the prom-
ises of a dwelling place for His presence, bound the
mouth of lions, removed death in the bitter well and
sent the lies of Satan back to the pit of hell, restored
His temple and walls of Jerusalem and vanquished
slavery and subdued communism.
There is no limit to what the praying man can do.
In fact, the word prayer, literally means pray-er or one
who prays. Let us believe God even for the impossible
because His hands are not bound, nor His mouth si-
lent or His ears plugged that He could not hear our
words and desires. Only the foolish would not enter
into His presence because of his pride that he alone
could weather all situations he faces.
Our victory is rooted in this, by faith and patience.
Faith to believe the best in everything, the hope in the
most abrupt and pernicious events, and the sunniest in
our dreams and the future. However, we too shall fall
79
away without the patience and perseverance required
to mature and ripen the seeds of prayer. In the King-
dom of Heaven results are not determined by simply
looking at the beginning, but also having visions for the
future and the end.
Therefore, we are not those who withdraw because
they are fixed into what they have in the present. Not
so, for even the Lord showed that a tiny seed could
grow into the biggest of herbs where even the birds of
the air find shelter. In other words, patience and per-
severance in watching our prayers not only produces
endurance and the maturity required to receive the an-
swer but also incubates and ripens the seed of heaven
we are asking and desiring for.
This is the reason we are called to watch in
prayernot only to utter or speak prayer. I have not even
seen any biblical inscriptions that says, speak prayer
but rather, to watch in prayer. Again, let us not grow
weary nor be impatient for the Lord because a bless-
ing hastily received will not be much appreciated. It
would also be a great disservice to us if at our will,
prayers become like genie boxes to answer our whims
and fantasies.
For we have become partakers of Christ,
if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance
firm until the end; while it is said, Today
if you hear His voice, do not harden your
hearts, as when they provoked Me.
For who provoked Him when they had
heard? Indeed, did not all those who came
out of Egypt led by Moses? And with whom
was He angry for forty years?
Was it not with those who sinned, whose
bodies fell in the wilderness? And to whom
80
did He swear that they should not enter His
rest, but to those who were disobedient? And
so we see that they were not able to enter be-
cause of unbelief. (Hebrews 3:14-19)
That you may not be sluggish, but imita-
tors of those who through faith and patience
inherit the promises. (Hebrews 6:12)
81
82
Chapter 6
The dwelling place of God
However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human
hands; as the prophet says: Heaven is My throne, and earth is the
footstool of My feet; What kind of house will you build for Me? says
the Lord; Or what place is there for My repose? Was it not My hand
which made all these things? (Acts 7:48-50)
There is probably no greater desire for most believ-
ers than to find the next day when they woke up that
the Lord has actually been with them all the time. All
visitations of God are but foretastes of heaven where
His throne is and His presence dwells. But Gods ul-
timate desire is also rooted in the very statement of
the Lord when John asked, where do you dwell? of
which He only said, come and see and the Bible de-
clares that from that day, they abode with Him. (See
John 1:39.) Many disciples are still seeking answers to
that question, Lord where do you dwell? or where
is the place that You can indwell? Just as David de-
sired to provide the dwelling place of God on earth,
there are very many who are not only asking for reviv-
als or visitations but to be inhabited by God.
Answers to these questions however do not only
start up by building towers, or places where He should
visit, but just as John first sought the Lord and desired
to be with Him, it is personal vision rooted in seek-
ing God and edifying each other that became the only
83
theme works of the 12 apostles. Even the desire of
David to build Him a resting place, a habitation or a
temple was only birthed because of Davids enduring
vision of the King who inhabits the whole universe.
There is probably no better sacrifice one should make
other than to seek the Lord all the days of our lives. Co-
menius who set the course of modern education more
than anyone else before or since has this to say, our
earthly lives are but preparations for eternity.
Those therefore who have become habitations of
this world more than the Spirit of God only stored for
themselves things that perishes by fire and water for the
earth is perishing and it shall become new again but not
of materials that are made of this world. This is why it
is coming from heaven above. John who saw this said,
And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the
first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there
is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new
Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,
made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And
I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, Be-
hold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He
shall dwell among them, and they shall be His peo-
ple, and God Himself shall be among them, and He
shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there
shall no longer be any death; there shall no longer
be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things
have passed away. And He who sits on the throne
said, Behold, I am making all things new (Revela-
tion 21:1-5).
It is clear from these verses that first, there would
be the passing away of the old earth so that the new
one could come. But simply waiting for these to hap-
pen will do us not one good thing, even the people of
Noah understood that there will be a flood but none so
84
believed and trusted the servant of God that they all
perished except he and his family. In the same manner,
we all are to wait expectantly, not as one with unbe-
lief as the people of Noah did but one that trusts in
the word of the Lord. Next, when the old earth passes
away (2 Peter 3:13; Revelations 21:1), God recreates
everything new, out of materials from heaven above.
This is a proclamation that no earthly materials will be
used, but only that which is from above, His dwelling
place.
Only those with visions of this new earth and new
heaven could be used by the Lord because they are as
one born from above who is coming down to renew the
earth. Third, we must consider that though this is from
heaven, yet it directly comes from God. Jehovah Elo-
him, the all powerful and wonderful God will always
be the Source, the Raw Material and the Ingredient to
bring changes on earth. The prophesied Joels army
by the prophet could not have the power so great and
mighty that it can scale the walls without overcrowding
each one, and so well ordered that they can fix the des-
olate places and bring Eden in what is supposed to be a
barren and wasteland. Fourth, as was His desire from
the very beginning, Gods tabernacle is not with ani-
mals nor of immaterial beings nor of thingsHe made
man for one purpose, to dwell and commune with him.
And fifth, Gods power and ability will always be suf-
ficient to renew us, even keep death at bay because He
is the life-giving Fountain that nourishes everyone.
The place of community
Most of us go every Sunday to fellowship with oth-
er believers, some who have thought that it isnt needed
panged themselves into diverse lusts to the point of
wallowing back into the mire of their past lives. Sun-
85
day fellowship though imperfect is the beginning of
building up our community. Just as heaven is a place or
community for all believers from diverse backgrounds
and tongues, our fellowship should be the same. We
must all be increasing in common unity through which
the real foundation of Gods visitation is imparted and
kept. Since the debacle of the Tower of Babel (dis-
cussed more fully in my book Unmasking Evolution),
men have become so insecure and distrustful of their
fellows that we all have emptiness which could only
be filled by fellowshipping with other believers. This
is one reason why we avoid breaking fellowship with
other believers because God commanded His life flow
from where His body is located.
Again the blessed apostle who knew and who
probably walked the longest with the Lord always
preached, even saying, that what he saw and heard, he
proclaims, that we are to walk in fellowship with one
another, to those who fellowship with the Father, and
with His Son Jesus Christ (1 John 1:3-4). Adding more
that those who do, walk in the light because He is light
and His blood cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:6).
It is good to note here that we dont merely fellowship
with anyone, but those who fellowship with the Father
and the Son for there are people who go to perdition
for not holding on to the truth, even denying the Lord
who saved them.
It can also be said, that just as there were errors
which crept into the church during which the apostle
lived and he was correcting the understanding of the
believers, his children, he addresses the same to us, for
people who disbelieves in life together or a community
of believers. These also are deceived, failing to under-
stand that our purposes, our callings will not be ful-
filled apart from the community of believers at large.
86
When we break ourselves away from others, we are
in effect proudly saying that as his eyes, we can stand
away, alone without needing His ears, or His hands
or His feet. Those who do these, have their visions
steadily growing dim until such a time they become
blind and taken away as captive by the enemy. Just as
no single organ cut-off from the body will continue to
live, everyone who do so will be cut-off from the very
Source, the River of life.
Preparing communities
The book of Acts shows a blue print for the life of
a normal believer. As we are told, they were found as
one, dwelling together, having things in common (Acts
2:44). Some who became idealists tried to copy these
things to the point of becoming or having things in
common. But true vision is not even rooted in mainly
sharing what we have but foremost in having a vision
of seeking the face of God together and making Him
known to the ends of the world. This is what led to
what became known as the Moravian Pentecost that
set the tone of the Church in the coming decades and
centuries.
Count Nicolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf (1700-
1760) changed the face of Christianity by saying yes
to the Moravian pilgrims who became his flocks and
congregation in his own estate in Herrnhut and Herrn-
haag. He used all that he had for the sake of the gospel
to reach out to even the farthest reaches of the known
world at the time; there were missions to Greenland,
Suriname, South Africa, Algiers, and among the
North American Indians and even at stop points of
the slave trade. Such passion and devotion to the cross
could only come from the heart of a man who was so
touched by the love of the Lord for the lost that he too
87
bear the burden of God for these people. If the count
could have been mainly working out of zeal, he could
not have produced and maintained such passion in all
his life and the community which grew in his estate
could not have lasted for many many years. In fact,
their prayer vigils for 24 hours each day and for more
than a century have become the hallmark of all prayer
movements since. They were the soul and spirit that
covered the missionaries sent around the world.
Just as the count did not seek to bring communi-
ties mainly to have people around, their passion was
born out of conviction that true fellowship grows from
a genuine community of believers who are seeking the
heavenly city and country whose architect and build-
er is God (Hebrews 11:10). Those who are truly seek-
ing the Lord, He will gather and bring them together
just as a hen does to her chicks to protect, nurture and
keep them until the time to send them away. Had the
communities of missionaries of which the Moravians
became well known only sought to do their own works,
they too could have been relegated and way laid eas-
ily by many human concerns; but because they have
learned to navigate the River of life, to feed on its over-
flowing banks and to not stop at the shore and simply
gaze at the passing river, they became the pilots and
captains whose map of the river have been used by so
many other movements since.
But as the count clearly said, his greatest convic-
tion came while looking at a painting of the Christ,
Ecce Homo. While looking at this particular painting,
the count said, I have loved the Savior for so long but
what have I done for Him? His religious convictions
were not born out of the mind but rather a heart religion
that seeks to dispel the darkness of the mind through
the enlightenment of the heart. Because of this, the
88
count was able to draw out truths and wisdom not only
from the Protestants but even from the Catholics. He
rose above the petty politics that so often distracts and
divert the purposes of many other movements. Theirs
were a community that even John Wesley said could be
the closest thing to heaven.
Without much fan fare and ads, their missionar-
ies traversed the whole wide world, often, even selling
themselves so that they could reach the slaves. They
took the cross that many preachers have left and not
only used it as their rallying point but lived what it
means so that more souls could be brought into the
Kingdom. For every soul saved, one missionary died
especially in hard struck areas. But they continued to
blaze the path so that seeds of revival have been im-
planted whenever they have set their foot.
This could have been the greatest definition of a
Christian community since the first century, they were
all singing Psalms, praising the Lord, breaking the
bread and sending people to turn many from darkness
into His marvelous light. When once again we behold
and honor the King, we will not only find the blessing,
but we too will have been so transformed that we are
unified in Him. Community is really the result of com-
mon unity arising in every ones heart as they behold
and focus on the Lord rather than on their petty doc-
trines and differences. It is hard for heaven not to take
notice for such people because from there, God com-
mands the blessing of His life and fellowship.
Behold, how good and how pleasant it
is for brothers to dwell together in unity! It
is like the precious oil upon the head, coming
down upon the beard,
even Aarons beard, coming down upon
89
the edge of his robes. It is like the dew of
Hermon, coming down upon the mountains
of Zion; For there the Lord commanded the
blessing life forever. (Psalm 133:1-3)
Becoming His habitation
In the beginning of this chapter I posed the ques-
tion that John asked, Lord where do you dwell? And
of which the Lord gave an answer, Come and see.
The very start of becoming His habitation is not to
build a place or to put bricks layer by layer. No, this is
not the temple that God desired because He also said
that if earth was His footstool and heaven is where His
throne is, where is the place that we could build Him
a resting place? None. But Jesus compels us to find the
meaning of Come and see.
Just as the Moravians did not merely produce mis-
sionaries at their whims, we could not bear that which
we are not. The very first answer of the Lord is also
the first step to becoming His habitation, that we first
come and then see. When Nicodemus came to vis-
it Jesus, he wanted to encourage the Lord, saying that
He came from God for no one can do what He was
doing unless He came from God. Knowing the main
reason for his visit, Jesus told him he must be born
again so that he could see the Kingdom of God.
Now there was a man of the Pharisees,
named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; this
man came to Him by night, and said to Him,
Rabbi, we know that You have come from
God as a teacher;
for no one can do these signs that You do
unless God is with him. Jesus answered and
said to him, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless
90
one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom
of God. (John 3:1-3)
All our endeavors in this life would be counted use-
less and without any value if we wont be able to mea-
sure up or enter into the Lords Kingdom. The heart
beat of God has never changed, it is still the same,
to call a people submitted to Him, empowered to do
mighty exploits in His name and called to bring the
Kingdom of God on this earth. For us to start in this,
we are all admonished to come, all men have been
called, invited to the wedding feast of God but few
would go on to write an acknowledgement or receive
this invitation because they were too busy engaged in
doing their own works.
Therefore, when the Lord comes, some will be left
out and the others will be taken away to be with the
Lord (Matthew 24:40-41). Just as any invitation is the
first step into walking into that event or feast, we too
have been invited to become His habitation and that
step is to be born again. Once a person is renewed, then
he starts to see the Kingdom of God. We can all un-
derstand that new born babies do not start seeing not
until a few months later. In the same way, those who
are new in the Lord are understandably weak, needing
shelter and care because they are simply helpless.
But when a baby starts to see, then he also starts
to grab and later on, to walk. All these basic human
growth processess have spiritual equivalents that we
need to learn so we can be more effective in minister-
ing to other believers. The sense of vision have always
been meant to be used to look far not mainly to look
near. So when Jesus told John to come and see, He in
effect is telling the young apostle to first enter, be with
Him, spend time with the Lord and then he could see
91
His dwelling place. Enduring vision is therefore the re-
sult of seeing the Lords habitation, His dwelling place
and none could ever do that not unless they too would
come and see Him first. In building Gods habitation,
it is a prerequisite to all master builders that they must
first behold the Lord. Genuine ministry comes from
genuine relationship and communion with God.
Only a fool would not count the cost to follow
Christ. As the Lord laid down His life for everyone and
bore His cross, we too need to do the same. We all must
bear our own crosses; we all need to deny our flesh and
submit ourselves to His will. No one who truly loves
the Lord would waste his time looking after worthless
stones when he could actually mine the motherload
of gold just found in his library. He must become our
Gold and our exceeding Great Reward that Abraham
partook. He can be your best friend now and it would
be the best investment one would have ever done so.
To be His best friend entails that we become His
habitation, just as Peter James and John abode with the
Lord, we too need to do the same thing. Because the
Lord richly indwells those who keep His words, these
are clues that God sticks closer than a brother only to
those who also follow His commands out of a pure
heart. As you have already seen, habitation, is more of
a process than an instant grace that simply fell down
from heaven.
Every believer is given the chance to be His habi-
tation but just as in a race, not everyone are awarded
with gold, silver and bronze, there is a price to pay so
that we could obtain a better report. Abel paid that
price and everyone since who directed their paths into
this have paid the price in order to get it. Pauls advise
could be the best apostolic rendition of this teaching of
Jesus Christ,
92
If then you have been raised up with
Christ, keep seeking the things above, where
Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.
Set your mind on the things above, not on the
things that are on earth. (Colossians 3:1-2)
But I am afraid, lest as the serpent de-
ceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds
should be led astray from the simplicity and
purity of devotion to Christ. (2 Corinthians
11:3)
Eagles fly high and they soar even through the
midst of any storm because they were so trained to
gain strength and prevail against any adversary. No
storm is too big for any eagles because they rise above
the updraft of the wind and use the opposition to speed
her up or glide through the storm. All afflictions and
troubles in this life are meant to bring us closer to God
if only we approach these processes with the mind of
Christ. Without any adversary, we will become weak
even standing armies of the world know this principle
that without constant exercise and battle, their judge-
ment, agility, order and decision making could quickly
deteriorate.
Even as we desire for more of God in our lives, for
His presence to follow us, we must all be determined to
become worshippers and seekers of God. We all must
look to Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith. No
one can truly produce a revival by their own methods
because God only lit the tinderbox where there is coal,
and firewood ready to be burned. He can only bless
those who have emptied themselves and hungered for
more, because it is the degree of our hunger that God
can fill us to overflowing. Truly, blessed are those who
93
hunger for they shall be filled and those who desire to
be Gods habitation for theirs is a true kingdom and
house that stands forever.
The process of habitation
Yes, it is He who will build the temple
of the Lord, and He who will bear the honor
and sit and rule on His throne. (Zechariah
6:13)
As we have seen in the previous topics, becoming
Gods habitation will entail us to come and see, then
to sit and walk with Christ Himself. Just as what Solo-
mon did is a prophecy of God building His people into
His temple of habitation, He is in charge of His house.
This is the reason why the prophet also said, He
will build the temple of the Lord. So how did Solo-
mon build the temple of God? Without any blueprint
to build the temple, except the wisdom through which
God endowed him, it was enough to make a difference.
In fact, it was said of Solomon that God gave him
wisdom and very great discernment and breadth of
mind, like the sand that is on the seashore. And Solo-
mons wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the sons
of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt. For he was
wiser than all men, than Ethan the Ezrahite, Heman,
Calcol and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame
was known in all the surrounding nations (1 Kings
4:29-31).
For a person to have a breadth of mind such as
the sand that is on the seashore it means that he un-
derstood and has knowledge of the workings of nature,
from trees, stones, the universe, animals, insects and ev-
ery creeping things. One could just imagine the impact
of such one man and we can also understand based on
94
this why the Lord chose the son of David and not Da-
vid himself to build the temple of God. Above other
qualities, wisdom is required to build things up from
nothing. This is the wisdom that God has in build-
ing His people into His spiritual temples. Because the
temple of God is holy, the builders of Solomon hewed
stones and cut timber from the mountains of Lebanon
where they took all of these and then had all the things
fitted and assembled in Jerusalem. None were needing
polishing and planing for all of these materials were
already finished and polished, so there was no sound
of hammer, ax, or any other iron tool at the building
site.
What do all these things mean? We are the Cedars
of Lebanon that the heavenly Solomon had plucked
off from this world, separated by His grace and pol-
ished in the mountain of affliction, planed and shaped
in the couldrons of His fire. Therefore as long as we
live on earth, we expect that we will be finished and
planed by the Lord ready to be fitted and assembled in
heaven, fit to be placed in the city of New Jerusalem.
No wonder all our afflictions and sufferings are bear-
ing for us immeasurable weight of glory that though
few among us appreciates what it is, they are basic to
making us fit in His temple.
Let us therefore not lose sight of this vision, that
we may endure all afflictions that come our way and
bear them without complaining but praising God that
He is preparing us to be His habitation. To the degree
that He sees us fit, the Master Builder will place us in
His house, a tested stone, though burnt by the furnace
of afflictions, yet ready to be used as His foundations,
walls and beams. Let us therefore not waste a single
trial that we have, for just as the apostles spoke, suffer-
ings and afflictions will perfect us!
95
For momentary, light affliction is pro-
ducing for us an eternal weight of glory far
beyond all comparison, while we look not at
the things which are seen, but at the things
which are not seen; for the things which are
seen are temporal, but the things which are
not seen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:17-18)
96
Chapter 7
The anchor of the soul
This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and
steadfast and one which enters within the veil, where Jesus has en-
tered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever ac-
cording to the order of Melchizedek. (Hebrews 6:19-20)
Hope is the greatest force that this world will ever
know as the days degenerate into chaos and confusion.
The church is probably the only institution in this world
that would have the answer to offer all human beings.
This solution is not another law, nor is it another mind
altering drug; no, but this will be the only hope and
the only answer for all the problems that humanity will
endure in the coming days.
When just the shallow portion of this message was
preached and heard by the people of the most power-
ful country in the world, they voted him into office. It
was not because he was the most qualified man for the
job, for as we have heard him, he wants change and
he wants to give hope to every man. Coming with a
muslim name and from the most unlikely background,
Obama became the 44th president of the United States.
Hope can never be denied as the greatest need at this
hour.
Obama may not be the best president nor the man
for the office but his election marks a sign for the
Church that this message of hope, the glorious gospel
97
of the Kingdom of God have just been released to be
preached to all nations. Jesus did not just preach about
the Kingdom of God, He demonstrated and brought
this Kingdom! Wherever his party went, He preached
the everlasting Kingdom and brought hope to hundreds
and even thousands who were captive of deceit and lies
of the devil. We can see this in Luke 4:43-44, But He
said to them, I must preach the kingdom of God
to the other cities also, for I was sent for this pur-
pose. Jesus kept on preaching in the synagogues of
Judea, and even as far as in the region of Tyre, Sidon to
the sea of Galilee and within the region of Decapolis
(Mark 7:31).
This is not to say that the Church at large forgot to
preach the gospel of the Kingdom, but it has happened
since the gradual lost of the different ministries of the
church. The very first ministry that opened the church
age, will also be the one that closes it and be used to
preach this gospel of the Kingdom with such force and
power that the world will come and take notice of it.
The apostolic ministry that released all the other
ministries into the church will also be the one that will
gather them together and work as a team that shall
bound the broken nets of the church which have be-
come gateways of hell. By not understanding the place
of gifts and anointing in the church, many have unnec-
essarily lessened their impact to the community so that
they are not effective ministers of the gospel.
But to each one of us grace was given
according to the measure of Christs gift.
Therefore it says, When He ascended on
high, He led captive a host of captives, and
He gave gifts to men.
(Now this expression, He ascended,
98
what does it mean except that He also had
descended into the lower parts of the earth?
He who descended is Himself also He who
ascended far above all the heavens, that He
might fill all things.)
And He gave some as apostles, and some
as prophets, and some as evangelists, and
some as pastors and teachers, for the equip-
ping of the saints for the work of service, to
the building up of the body of Christ;
until we all attain to the unity of the faith,
and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to
a mature man, to the measure of the stat-
ure which belongs to the fulness of Christ.
(Ephesians 4:7-13)
As clearly written here, all the different ministries
and gifts were given for the purpose of attaining into
the full stature and maturity of Christ. Unless we have
all become like Christ in everyway, we are not there
yet, and basically we need not just pastors or teachers
or evangelists but also prophets and apostles. The mes-
sage of hope that we preach is much more than the
hope for a change that president Obama talked about.
It is the hope and miracle for the salvation and deliver-
nace of man.
It is the hope to live in the supernatural realm of
miracles, signs and wonders so that we can touch the
world like Jesus did. If we reject this aspect of the
Lords ministry, we have not taken part of the lamb
as a whole, but we only took His entrails, His inmost
heart but not Him completely. It is those parts that we
reject of Christ that will become stumbling block to us
just as it was Him whom the Pharisees rejected because
they neither want him in part or as a whole. The lamb
99
of God should be taken as a whole. He is not torn into
parts so that we can only enjoy His heart but not His
feet or His hands. The purpose of the Passover Lamb
was for the salvation of man from debilitating sickness
and death passed to this world. The lamb was the hope
of the world, just as it was to Israel when they were
about to be freed from Pharaoh.
Hope to live by
There were stories of tragedies as well as hopes
during the second world war just as there were also
hopes of freedom during the reign of the Spanish em-
pire. One of the greatest stories of hope that I heard of
World War II was how both the American and Filipi-
no soldiers fought the Japanese Imperial Army to such
extent as to delay their time table of conquering the
whole of Asia.
The Japanese ambition remains to conquer Asia
for their growing trades and burgeoning population
during the last moments to scramble for colonies in the
Far East. To do this, they first bombed Pearl Harbor
in the early morning of December 7, 1941 so that the
Americans will be crippled and could not mobilize by
air or by sea. By cutting the communication lines of
the U.S. in the Pacific, the Japanese could easily take
over the colonies of Britain and Netherlands in British
Malaya and the Dutch East Indies.
However, although the Philippines was bombed in
the morning of December 8, 1941, it did not capitulate
as easily as thought by General Masaharu Homma.
The fledgling state continued to fight until the official
proclamation of surrender by General Jonathan Wain-
wright on May 6 of 1942. Because of their heroic stand
in Bataan, the Filipino and American troops gained
wide admiration the whole world over for showing
100
what they are really made of. This tough stand by our
fighters saved Australia and New Zealand from pos-
sibly falling into the hands of the Japanese Empire.
One added dimension to what made the fighters stand
the greatest atrocities of the war were the promises of
hope that Douglas MacArthur stood for, I shall re-
turn. These three words were repeated often by the
soldiers in the trenches, the gunners and the officials
who were left to face the aggressors. Though it seems
faint, those three words became their rallying cry even
for the guerilla fighters.
Day and night, those three words possessed their
souls and their spirit to fight. To keep human spirits
under such influence and guidance one needs to have
the greatest light and hope to offer their agitated souls.
It has been said that a hungry man will goble up any-
thing...hope is the most contagious force that man
needs during times of strain and hardship, the greatest
hope we would ever need is the Lord. And the greatest
message we can have is to live in His Kingdom, now.
That kingdom does not consist of words nor of bricks
and mortar but it is made of power and authority that
is found under His rule.
If the Filipino forces numbering more than 60,000
fought the fight because of that simple promise by man,
how can we who have been given the most extraordi-
nary promise not fight and move the darkness that so
entangled us? How can we who have been valued more
than the world not even give value to His Word that
gathers dust in most libraries? The effectual working
power of God is not lacking but we have only relegated
it as past so that our present does not get any benefit.
When man forgets that God can work in the present
as He did in the past, it leads to apostasy. If we really
believe that God is for us, where of are we afraid then?
101
Then my enemies will turn back in the
day when I call; This I know, that God is
for me. In God, whose word I praise, In the
Lord, whose word I praise, In God I have put
my trust, I shall not be afraid.
What can man do to me? Thy vows are
binding upon me, O God; I will render thank
offerings to Thee.
For Thou hast delivered my soul from
death, Indeed my feet from stumbling, so that
I may walk before God in the light of the liv-
ing. (Psalm 56:9-13)
God is for us
One delusion that many repeats in their foolish
disensions is the thought that God cannot be for us,
thus, we are left alone to fend for ourselves. When Je-
sus ascended on High, He indeed left us to do some-
thing for His Kingdom, The Son of God appeared
for this purpose, that He might destroy the works of
the devil (1 John 3:8b) because we know that we
are of God, and the whole world lies in the power of
the evil one (1 John 5:19). Just as Jesus Christ did
not come to be served or to be idle, His church, He
called to be the same as He was in this world, the light
and righteousness that we are.
We are indeed the children of God, and if chil-
dren made of the very substance of our Father! We are
supposed to be the radiant light already shining in this
world. John the beloved wrote that we are the chil-
dren of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we
shall be. Yet because He is the Light of the World,
we know that, when He also appears, we shall be like
Him, because we shall see Him just as He is. To be
102
transformed just as exactly as He is comes when we
have our hopes fixed on Him. To fix ones hope on
Him is the same as the soldiers did waiting for the ful-
fillment of the words of General Doughlas MacAr-
thur, to do as what we are supposed to do, continue to
fight, to purify oneself, just as He is pure (1 John
3:2-4). This is what it means when we learn to abide
in Him, sin will have no time to grow nor the time to
multiply or spread on us, thus, No one who abides in
Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows
Him. Little children, let no one deceive you; the one
who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He
is righteous (1 John 3:6-7).
The present bickering among many leaders is not
the structure nor the look of an army of God. We have
all of these bickerings and struggles that we have be-
cause we keep on navel gazing instead of looking for
what we really are here for, to win souls for Christ, to
establish people in righteousness and remove the dark-
ness that have kept this world in much ignorance. Be-
cause there is not many who keep on sounding this
alarm, though they must have seen it too, I want to
belabor us all that our task is to shine the light that we
have; train the people in righteousness by bending their
hearts into truth.
By first doing this, we avoid the mistakes of the past
of having people bending their knees before us because
of our arms and not because of true salvation. Doc-
trines have their places of emphasis but we are here not
for doctrines but because of Christ and like Paul, we
are to preach what we have been foremostly ordained
of, to preach Christ! Again God is for us to the extent
that we do His will, to preach Christ crucified!
Where is the wise man? Where is the
103
scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has
not God made foolish the wisdom of the
world? For since in the wisdom of God the
world through its wisdom did not come to
know God, God was well-pleased through
the foolishness of the message preached to
save those who believe.
For indeed Jews ask for signs, and Greeks
search for wisdom; but we preach Christ cruci-
ed, to Jews a stumbling block, and to Gen-
tiles foolishness,
but to those who are the called, both Jews
and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the
wisdom of God.
Because the foolishness of God is wiser
than men, and the weakness of God is stron-
ger than men. (1 Corinthians 1:20-25)
Trials that shake the world
There are trials that take the world by surprise such
as during hurricane and typhoon attacks or during out-
breaks of plague. Even so, the Christian soldier should
never be shaken of what is coming because all these
things have been outlined in the Bible that we discuss
during our meetings; it should surprise us however
when we dont discuss the Bible but we talk only of
problems. All the coming trials will come because of
mans hardness.
It should not be necessary but when one studies
history, human nature resists change and tend to repeat
itself in the path of destruction. The judgments of God
will only come because the mercy of God has not been
chosen by the people and the severity of judgment does
come to the extent that it shows our very hearts. When
104
Pharaoh received the judgments of Egypt, it only re-
flected his folly. For instance, the plague of death could
have been averted had he agreed to Moses. But the
Lord also said that He hardened the heart of Pharaoh
to more fully reflect the kind of heart Satan has and the
principalities of this world.
Even so, no powers of the enemy could overcome
and affect us not unless the Lord also allowed it. There-
fore it is written that these common trials happen and
is happening right now but will have no power over
us, No temptation has overtaken you but such as is
common to man; and God is faithful, who will not al-
low you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but
with the temptation will provide the way of escape
also, that you may be able to endure it (1 Corinthi-
ans 10:13). This way of escape, as mentioned before is
to run and hide under the shelter of the almighty. The
way is the hope that we are given, it is this hope that
gives us anchor for our souls so that our minds are not
blown away by news of disasters and plagues reported
daily.
We can be sure that nothing happens in our lives
that God does not allow it for our good. This also
means that everything that comes on our way, we will
be able to handle not because we are a genius in solving
our own problems but because He has ordained that
there will be a way of escape which He will provide for
us. There are no random or arbitrary trial in our lives
but instead has a purposeso that we can find the light
in the dark times, and then be a light to others who are
in the same darkness.
Most trials in this world that we go through are not
for condemnation nor destruction but to free us from
delusions that this world is everything that we hope for,
and everything that we should build for. The word judg-
105
ment translated in 1 Peter 4:17 comes from the Greek
word krisis which means turning point. The Lord only
allows trials such as financial needs, emotional down-
turns, sicknesses and plagues so that man will turn to
the Point, or the Way of life. Even before there was an
economic meltdown, many Christians suffered finan-
cial travails so that they can minister life on others who
would go through the same travails later.
The light and comforts that we received first from
the Lord are for the sake of us and for the others so
that we can all stand on solid ground, stronger than the
earth itself. We have the sure promise of salvation and
deliverance from all circumstances because our God is
the One who is above all rule, authority, and domin-
ion, He will never leave nor forsake us and thanks
be to God, who always leads us in His triumph in
Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of
the knowledge of Him in every place (see 2 Corin-
thians 2:14).
106
Chapter 8
The peaceful mind
The steadfast of mind Thou wilt keep in perfect peace, because he
trusts in Thee. (Isaiah 26:3)
War is the result of lack of peace. Peace is the rule
of light while war is the consequence of darkness. As
Jesus has said, one of the prime evidence that we are
currently living in the last days will be the rise of law-
lessness. Because of this, the love of many will grow
cold and will not anymore attend the feast of the saints
nor the ingathering of the people of God. When the
Lord said that ...nation will rise against nation, and
kingdom against kingdom (Matthew 24:7-8), He
was not joking; the root word of nation here comes
from the Greek ethnos from which we derive our mod-
ern word, ethnic referring to tribes.
Most nations around the world have in fact derived
their existence from their tribal origin. France and Ger-
many for example have come from the Franks and the
Goths. While the Philippines were from an agglomera-
tion of different tribes and religious convictions shaped
by different colonial masters. The rivalries that have oc-
curred and regionalistic divisions of most Filipinos are
rooted in this crude structure, that we are mostly made
of many tribes and races. Knowing how far different
we are from each other should all the more make us
thankful for president Manuel L. Quezon for his efforts
The peaceful mind
107
in making us one and unifying the varied tongues that
we have. Diversity is good but the lack of unifying fac-
tor can divide us and keep us all focused on problems
rather than the very solution that could save us.
A tongue for everyone
Language barrier could be the biggest barrier of
communication between two different people groups.
This is just as cruel as racial discrimination because we
are all tied with our identities in what we speak. For
this very reason the whole of humanity was actually
dispersed abroad from the land of Shinar in Babylon. I
will not discuss much of this as I have already written
it in Unmasking Evolution. Suffice to say that much of
our differences came from language confusion because
of the pride of man. As the Lord has pointed to us,
the first counter to unity is to confuse the unity of the
people so that they will disagree about much of every-
thing.
And they said, Come, let us build for
ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will
reach into heaven, and let us make for our-
selves a name; lest we be scattered abroad
over the face of the whole earth.
And the Lord came down to see the city
and the tower which the sons of men had
built. And the Lord said, Behold, they are
one people, and they all have the same lan-
guage.
And this is what they began to do, and
now nothing which they purpose to do will be
impossible for them. Come, let Us go down
and there confuse their language, that they
may not understand one anothers speech.
So the Lord scattered them abroad from there
108
over the face of the whole earth; and they
stopped building the city.
Therefore its name was called Babel, be-
cause there the Lord confused the language
of the whole earth;
and from there the Lord scattered them
abroad over the face of the whole earth.
(Genesis 11:4-9)
When people tried to reach God by their ways and
efforts, the Lord rejected this folly and confusion was
the result. Every other succeeding generation that tried
to follow suit and build their towers of folly only result-
ed to further division and confusion. Everytime we try
to build a name for ourselves in the guise of religion or
reaching God, the Lord will scatter us from the earth,
and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over
the face of the whole earth. Religious men can try
to build the biggest church that reaches to the highest
heavens but everytime the motive is to do it for selfish
ambitions, the Lord topples down the tower and cuts it
to its base.
Some may survive the pruning and be scattered all
over other denominations but the base is cut down for
all to see that no one can build on the foundation of self
righteousness and the name of man. It has happened to
the Medieval Catholic church, and it has happened as
recently as it did with the Praise the Lord Ministry of
Jim Bakker. Most of the people of the Medieval Catho-
lic church were scattered into many other Protestant
denominations while those of PTL joined other char-
ismatic groups and ministries. It is worth noting today
that the ministry of Jim Bakker have been restored and
continues to become a testimony to the power of God
to change and restore the fallen. As Paul wrote, ...if a
The peaceful mind
109
man is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual,
restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one
looking to yourself, lest you too be tempted (Ga-
latians 6:1). In addition to restoring anyone who is
fallen, the way to do it is to not condemn them but we
are to Bear one anothers burdens, and thus fulfill
the law of Christ(verse 2).
We can only be used to the degree that we also
have worked in the vineyard of Christ, able to succor
others and keep them focused to what is real and last-
ing, their relationship with the Lord. Our ability to be
used by God to unify and restore others is rooted in
our availability to become His agents of grace. We can
be used to do the greater good for all humans without
needing much of the political and legal counsel of the
government if only we also learn to trust the Lord, to
be so requires that we do ...not lose heart in doing
good, for in due time we shall reap if we do not grow
weary. So then, while we have opportunity, let us do
good to all men, and especially to those who are of
the household of the faith (Galatians 6:9-10).
Connection matters
It is true that there will be no lasting peace unless
man will find peace within himself. The second factor
that can lead to divisions especially within a lose ag-
glomeration of many nations is the lack of roads con-
necting each sections or regions. The human body is an
example of how a typical nation looks before the eyes
of God. It has a head, heart, hands and feet as well as
veins and arteries.
The veins and arteries of a nation is typically rep-
resented by its network of roads and railways. It is
the roads and highways that will eventually form the
backbone of its trade and development, so a greater in-
110
vestment on good roads and highways will eventually
pay off in handsome returns. Germany is connected
throughout by railways and autobahns so that day and
night the railways and stations never sleep, making
Germany and its ports one of the busiest in the world.
They were never satisfied of mediocre jobs so that
they continue to bring breakthroughs and innovations
in the field of science, technology and publishing. It
can be said that the unity of the German people is
made much closer by its single language and lack of
disenfranchised groups but it can also be added that
their roads and railways have brought all the cities and
regions much closer together.
During the ancient times, trade routes are the melt-
ing pot of life and exchange of goods and services that
could mean the lifeline of a city or civilization. The
Khyber pass for example have been the gateway of
caravans and multitudes of ancient civilizations such
as the Greeks, Persians, Mughals, Afghans and the
British, keeping it busy and important as it was in the
ancient days to this very day. This is the reason why
roads are called the arteries and veins of a nation be-
cause it connects it to other countries and civilizations.
Therefore improving services and the byways of our
roads could actually bring greater development and in-
terchange of information within a region making them
as one.
The common goal
Once we all walk in common unity, we form a true
community. Because community cannot be simply de-
fined as a geographic location of a unified people, we
must add the missing dimension in most communities
that we call todaythe vision. Every living commu-
nity must have one vision or it results to diverging evo-
The peaceful mind
111
lution. A group of people with a single language and
head will often form a tribe, since they are not as big as
a collection of nations, the roads and highways are not
that much a matter of contention, but it matters that a
community must be moving somewhere else.
The lack of vision for a community will make
them a lose collection of people or tribes, therefore all
groups that wanted to go somewhere else must be care-
ful to build on a vision that could bring greater unity
and satisfy the people of the group. We must note here
that human liberty is often also a license to venture
into the unknown and expressly to get as much ben-
efit as we can in the pool of resources. Thus, we find
that by giving lands to be tilled by the occupants will
always make them the most productive members of the
community, because men always tend to be selfish and
motivated by self preservation. The common goal of
a community then must be expressed as to seek that
which edifies its members the most. In view of this,
productivity can only be enhanced by giving people
their own responsibility and the consequences which
they must suffer for carelessness.
It is for this very reason why the Chinese govern-
ment did not follow the Soviet model of communism.
They observed that people lack the motivation to work
for their masters, the government. Finding this to be
the main reason, they assessed that if they want to
remain competitive and survive the economic mine-
field of this world, they have to change and allow all
their farmers to possess their own land and give them
the seeds to till the soil and cultivate it for the govern-
ment. This way, they could reduce hunger and keep
the people from idle chatter. This program have been
the backbone of land reform in China making it one of
the biggest in the world. If the Philippine government
112
would just heed the cry of the farmers and give them
land to till so they could feed their own families instead
of tenants, they will be able to feed even the more than
90 million of population that we now have. It is ex-
actly because of this oppression that binds many poor
farmers to choose to fight and rebel against the govern-
ment. Though there are two sides of this story, the land
owner and the tenant, giving land to the farmer will in
the end be better for the common vision of motivating
the farmers of this country to become self sufficient
instead of net importer of agricultural products. As it
was written for us, we are to share all the burdens of
each one.
By keeping blind on these issues, many of those
who were given voices will one day lose them and be
given to those who are vocal and fighting for what is
right and true. Our method of growth, development
and obtaining the land cannot be forced by bloodshed.
But it somehow always tend to go to bloodshed when-
ever the oppressors never tried to learn to give even just
a tiny piece of land they have accumulated over the
years. For example, the existing haciendas of many
land owners could be given and divided to those who
are truly deserving.
But what made the former president Cory Aquino
ineffective in starting this very revolution that could
have relieved and benefited millions of farmers is her
dilluted attempts of reforming land ownership and
land distribution. Paul wrote that to the degree we are
able to obey the rules set for us, so are we able also to
have authority to make others obey and follow us. He
said, we are destroying speculations and every lofty
thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and
we are taking every thought captive to the obedience
of Christ, and we are ready to punish all disobedi-
The peaceful mind
113
ence, whenever your obedience is complete (2 Cor-
inthians 10:5-6). Here, it is clearly elaborated that we
are only ready to punish all disobedience whenever our
obedience is also complete. As to how we are able to
know when our obedience is complete could be known
when we take every thought captive to the obedience
of Christ.
This means that we direct every efforts that we
have in a way that clearly shows and demonstrates that
what we are doing or planning is biblical, just and true.
Partial obedience is still disobedience and this cannot
be compensated by working it out in other areas of
our life. It is also true that there are good land owners
in the sense that they build their farms into complex
megastructures such as into a university, research com-
plex, or factories that hire laborers and workers. This
can be a good alternative if it benefits the workers and
the town and not only the land owner or the factory.
The Lord often reminds us that we are not to forget
the poor, even Paul obtained money for them so that
they could have capital and resources for building their
lives.
For Macedonia and Achaia have been
pleased to make a contribution for the poor
among the saints in Jerusalem. (Romans
15:26)
and recognizing the grace that had been
given to me, James and Cephas and John,
who were reputed to be pillars, gave to me
and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship,
that we might go to the Gentiles, and they
to the circumcised. They only asked us to re-
member the poor the very thing I also was
114
eager to do. (Galatians 2:9-10)
And when Jesus heard this, He said to
him, One thing you still lack; sell all that
you possess, and distribute it to the poor, and
you shall have treasure in heaven; and come,
follow Me. (Luke 18:22)
Works and faith
If I were a rich ruler, it would be difficult decision
indeed to go and sell all my possessions and then give
it all to the poor. But the promise of Jesus to this rich
young man could have made it all the difference, he
shall have treasure in heaven and be a disciple of the
Lord. One such man did answer the call of God in his
life, Count Nikolaus von Zinzendorf. He was a man
destined to rule and sit in the high courts of Europe
but deferred to do so chosing the high calling of a shep-
herd to care and nourish the Moravian refugees. He
used most of his riches and wealth sending missionar-
ies in the most remote missions outposts so that they
can know Christ.
The influence of such man cannot be contained in
a single denomination so that most groups claim him
to be theirs. Even so his greatest impact is in preach-
ing a religion of the heart that not only placates the
doctrines invented and placed by man on the footstep
of the new believer but purifies his passion and de-
sire to follow the truth and bear responsibility to live
it in its truest sense. Such man believes that with the
heart man believes and is counted to him as righteous-
ness just as Abraham was justified by his acts and not
merely by religious talk. Faith finds as its expression,
to do all things for Christ because love motivates him
to do more. The passionate man always desires to bring
The peaceful mind
115
more and do more for the Lord. Because most men
who do not understand the ways of the Spirit are al-
ways insecure of the blessings or the goodness of God,
they who think that human efforts are needed to please
the Lord always invariably become the most intolerant
of other believers.
This intolerance do not just lead to self preserva-
tion and territoriality but also to our lack of coopera-
tion and becoming a stumbling block to others. Those
therefore who have become the greatest source of con-
flict and division are often the very ones who seem to
profoundly express and know the truth, but their lack
of depth is shown when they speak evil of others.
Our justification do not come by our works be-
cause no works can justify us in the sight of the Lord.
These are but rags in his eyes that are not even enough
to buy our freedom from sin and debauchery. Man can
only do two things in such case, to bend the knee and
accept the truth that we can never buy Gods grace for
our salvation and deliverance. Those who do otherwise
walk in the grandest delusion, their works will save them.
And the Scripture, foreseeing that God
would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached
the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying,
All the nations shall be blessed in you.
So then those who are of faith are blessed
with Abraham, the believer.
For as many as are of the works of the
Law are under a curse; for it is written,
Cursed is everyone who does not abide by
all things written in the book of the law, to
perform them.
Now that no one is justified by the Law
before God is evident; for, The righteous
116
man shall live by faith. However, the Law is
not of faith; on the contrary, He who prac-
tices them shall live by them.
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the
Law, having become a curse for us for it is
written, Cursed is everyone who hangs on
a tree in order that in Christ Jesus the
blessing of Abraham might come to the Gen-
tiles, so that we might receive the promise of
the Spirit through faith. (Galatians 3:8-14)
Men can only be justified under the law if they
practice all of what is written there. But we are not un-
der the law nor is it applicable since Christ Jesus died
for us so that the blessing of Abraham, that is justifica-
tion by faith will come to us, the righteous shall live
by faith. Gentiles are justified to practice what they
do as long as they do it by faith in God. Faith is the
law that supersedes the Law of Moses in their hearts.
We should learn to respect this separation between the
Jews and Gentiles who must practice their traditions to
honor the fathers and observe the rituals in view of its
prophetic foreshadowings.
There are many lessons in Jewish traditions and
rituals but Jewish Christians only practice them not as
means of salvation or justification but to observe them
and their meaning in the New Covenant. For we
maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from
works of the Law. Or is God the God of Jews only?
Is He not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles
also, since indeed God who will justify the circum-
cised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith is
one (Romans 3:28-30). It is also written that even be-
fore the circumcision of Abraham, the Lord reckoned
that Abraham believed God and it was accounted to
The peaceful mind
117
him for righteousness (see Genesis 15:6). This pro-
phetically foreshadowed the engrafting of the Gentiles,
that they too will receive the mercy of God because
the Lord wants to save all men, both the circumcised
and the uncircumcised. This is the foundation of our
justification as Gentiles, we did not earn it but the Lord
gladly gave it to us, a mercy and grace.
Therefore having been justified by faith,
we have peace with God through our Lord
Jesus Christ, through whom also we have
obtained our introduction by faith into this
grace in which we stand;
and we exult in hope of the glory of God.
And not only this, but we also exult in our
tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings
about perseverance; and perseverance, prov-
en character; and proven character, hope;
and hope does not disappoint, because
the love of God has been poured out within
our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was
given to us.
For while we were still helpless, at the
right time Christ died for the ungodly. (Ro-
mans 5:1-6)
The root of insecurity
The only cure for our divisions and disensions
could be found in the Lords statement for Cains prob-
lem, if he would only do well, will he not be accepted?
Then the Lord said to Cain, Why are you angry?
And why has your countenance fallen? If you do
well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if
you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and
its desire is for you, but you must master it (Gen-
118
esis 4:6-7). Cains root of insecurity is his problem of
justifying the cause of the Lords action, how could
the Lord bless the work of Abel but not his? But this
portrays a much deeper sinister in Cains personality,
he thought that by giving his best grains and wheat, the
Lord will look to his sacrifice.
No, that was rebellion for the Lord desires not the
sacrifice of man but that which he prescribed as the
way to approach Him, to shed the blood of a lamb or
animal (see Genesis 3:21). Because Cain thought that
his best will be better than what the Lord has told them
to do, it became an affront before the Lord so that He
did not accept his sacrifice.
If He did accept it, it would rather cement his
thought that the Lord could be approached his way
and by his own efforts or works. In the same way,
many today are trying to approach the Lord through
their ways and efforts...Gods grace cannot be bought
which Abel had earlier realized. It can only be received
and by clearly accepting the Lords way, we too shall
receive what we are asking of Him, without the need
to buy because the cross of Jesus has made all the way
possible, to be as close with God as possible.
The Lords advice that Cain should do well is not
for him to work harder and bring more wheat or grains
into the altar, rather that he should follow the Lords
way. If we too shall follow the Lords ways and learn
from Him, can we like Abel not also experience the
outpouring of His grace in our congregations? Can
we really become the church so blessed that we indeed
reign and rule with Christ in the midst of chaos and
confusions? It must be because the promise that we are
given far outweighs all the worries and anxieties that
this world can heap upon us for the Scriptures tell
us that for his sake we must be ready to face death at
The peaceful mind
119
every moment of the day-we are like sheep awaiting
slaughter; but despite all this, overwhelming victory
is ours through Christ who loved us enough to die for
us. For I am convinced that nothing can ever separate
us from his love. Death cant, and life cant. The an-
gels wont, and all the powers of hell itself cannot
keep Gods love away (Romans 8:36-38 Living).
120
Chapter 9
Rock solid foundation
As it is written, Behold I am laying in Zion a Stone that will make
men stumble, a Rock that will make them fall; but he who believes
in Him [who adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Him] shall not be
put to shame nor be disappointed in his expectations. (Romans 9:33
AMP)
Except the foundation of Christ, there is none that
will last on earth. The only lasting legacy one can have
is a good name to be remembered and anything other
than that will not stand the test of time. When one
thinks of history, you can either remember the good
name or the bad name of a person who shaped that
period or era; we seldom here someone of distinction
because of his fabled riches apart from the legendary
King Midas or Solomon. The Bible exhorts us to be
men who are seekers of a good name, not merely mon-
ies or fabled riches.
The words good name evolved from the contrap-
tion of Gods name. It was the Lord who called the
first man Adam, and since then man has begun using
names. Suffice to say that having a good name is also
a blessing from the Father above. Even today, God
is seeking men endowed by God to provide not only
monies and riches but mighty exploits that would leave
legacies treasured for a long time.
121
A good name is to be more desired than
great riches, favor is better than silver and
gold. (Proverbs 22:1)
A good name is better than a good oint-
ment, and the day of ones death is better
than the day of ones birth. (Ecclesiates 7:1)
On that day I will gather you together
and bring you home again. I will give you a
good name, a name of distinction, among all
the nations of the earth, as I restore your for-
tunes before their very eyes. I, the Lord, have
spoken! (Zephaniah 3:20 NLT)
The leaning tower of Pisa is fabled precisely for its
tower which tilts. Built on a soft soil, the foundation
can scarcely hold the solid building of marble. Our
lives can be much similar to this tower, though ornately
adorned with Romanesque arts, the tower is basically
useless these days for its purpose; no matter how luxu-
rious our lives can be, the true significance of living
is not built around what we have but what we can do
with what we have.
A precursor to a life of significance is living with
the foundation of eternity and there is none better to
provide that answer than Jesus Christ Himself. He is
the eternal Rock by whom our lives should be built on.
David wrote, To Thee, O Lord, I call; my rock, do
not be deaf to me, lest, if Thou be silent to me, I
become like those who go down to the pit (Psalm
28:1). The Lord became the Rock of King David; but
just exactly what it means when the Lord becomes the
rock of our lives, is a question not of security or vulner-
ability alone but of foundation. David sung,
122
The Lord is my rock and my fortress and
my deliverer; my God, my rock, in whom I
take refuge; my shield and the horn of my
salvation, my stronghold and my refuge; my
savior, Thou dost save me from violence.
I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to
be praised; and I am saved from my enemies.
For the waves of death encompassed me;
the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me;
the cords of Sheol surrounded me; the
snares of death confronted me. In my dis-
tress I called upon the Lord, yes, I cried to
my God; and from His temple He heard my
voice, and my cry for help came into His
ears. (2 Samuel 22:2-7)
The meaning of Christ being our Rock according
to David is when the Lord becomes our Savior where
we find protection from our enemies. He becomes our
shield from every accusation and traps; He becomes
our Refuge and Safe Haven that not even death could
get near us. Thus, our rock solid foundation can only
be Jesus Christ for whom we shall find salvation and
redemption. He must become our personal Lord and
Savior because the Lord does not have grandchildren.
It is by making peace with our Maker that we stay at
peace within ourselves and without. The prophet Isa-
iah wrote,
Therefore thus says the Lord God, Be-
hold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested
stone, a costly cornerstone for the founda-
tion, firmly placed. He who believes in it will
not be disturbed. (Isaiah 28:16)
123
And the work of righteousness will be
peace, and the service of righteousness, qui-
etness and confidence forever. Then my peo-
ple will live in a peaceful habitation, and in
secure dwellings and in undisturbed resting
places;
and it will hail when the forest comes
down, and the city will be utterly laid low.
How blessed will you be, you who sow beside
all waters, who let out freely the ox and the
donkey. (Isaiah 32:17-20)
When we make the Lord, the Eternal Rock, the
true foundation of our lives, righteousness will flourish
and there will be peace this is why His people will live
in peaceful dwelling places and secure homes because
He will be the lofty foundation by which their lives will
be built on. The alternative for us will be judgment and
condemnation,
...For when the earth experiences Thy
judgments.The inhabitants of the world learn
righteousness. (Isaiah 26:9)
For behold, the Lord is about to come
out from His place to punish the inhabitants
of the earth for their iniquity; and the earth
will reveal her bloodshed, and will no longer
cover her slain. (Isaiah 26:21)
Seek the Lord while He may be found;
call upon Him while He is near. Let the wick-
ed forsake his way, and the unrighteous man
his thoughts;
And let him return to the Lord, and He
124
will have compassion on him; And to our
God, for He will abundantly pardon. (Isa-
iah 55:6-7)
For God so loved the world, that He
gave His only begotten Son, that whoever
believes in Him should not perish, but have
eternal life. For God did not send the Son
into the world to judge the world, but that
the world should be saved through Him.
He who believes in Him is not judged; he
who does not believe has been judged already,
because he has not believed in the name of
the only begotten Son of God.
And this is the judgment, that the light
is come into the world, and men loved the
darkness rather than the light; for their deeds
were evil. (John 3:16-19)
God connection
We stand in this world only because of the grace of
God. That grace was given to us when we first believed
and were forgiven of our sins. Consequently, our en-
mity with God was broken and removed. Paul writes,
we now have access through faith into Gods grace and
we rejoice with God for this new standing that we have
(see Romans 5:1-2). The cleansing of our hearts is one
of the greatest miracles we could ever experience. We
were unrighteous but He has made us righteous. We
were undeserving but still He chose to forgive us.
The only One who could only possibly do that is
no other than the One who also died willingly for us.
He was a King yet He left His first estate and took the
form of a humble servant and was willing even to the
point of death, to call all who are willing to be with
125
Him. He was in fact so full of love that He was so
willing to die and give His life for us. Again it is writ-
ten, that He emptied Himself, taking the form of
a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of
men. And being found in appearance as a man, He
humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point
of death, even death on a cross (Philippians 2:7-8).
Jesus became the sacrifice, the lamb which Abra-
ham foresaw, the offering which Abel favorably re-
ceived and sacrificed. Thus, when we were utterly
helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for
us sinners and we know and understand that no one
is willing to die for anybody, except for a good per-
son, yet God showed his great love for us by send-
ing Christ to die for us while we were still sinners
(Romans 5:8 NLT).
The apostle Paul writes that none are so much will-
ing to die for a sinner though a few will do for a good
man. Yet Jesus Christ volunteered Himself to actually
die for us though we were still sinners. Think of that,
He died for us, the unjust, even when He has seen us at
our present ugly conditions. In the King James Version,
Romans 5:8 speaks, God commendeth His love,
which when translated plainly means He demonstrat-
ed, He proved, He showed His love while we were still
sinners. He was willing to die disfigured, flogged, hu-
miliated, and mocked all because of His love for you
and me. When Paul had this revelation, that was the
beginning of his revelation of Christ living in him. He
wrote, I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no
longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life
which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son
of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for
me (Galatians 2:20).
He realized that indeed this Jesus whom he tried
126
to persecute and destroy His churches loved him very
much and died for him. Not many of us realize how
much God loved us in the first place because of the
ambiguities in our mind of His Fatherhood.
Many of us are raised up with a father figure who
may seem to be too harsh for us to be truly a father.
But God is much more than any human father we
could think of, and though he may have semblance to
human fathers, his fatherhood can be compared only
roughly with even such Patriarchs who followed His
heart closely like Abraham and David. Does that mean
that all have failed as fathers because they did not reach
the stature that Abraham or David had? Indeed no, the
message here is that though we may have experienced
harshness with the way we were treated by rude earthly
fathers, we cant generalize that God is so.
I only compared Abraham and David because of
the way they were expressive of their love to their chil-
dren. In fact Abraham loved Ishmael and Isaac both
and this is captured by the way Sarah seem to have
mistreated Hagar when Isaac was born. He could not
have been simply standing and doing nothing during
those times when bickering inside his family occurred
because of trouble about inheritance.
We can take a glimpse of how Abraham could
have loved his two sons by the way God tried him by
asking the life of his own son Isaac. With David, even
the death of Absalom was too painful for him, though
Absalom was a renegade son, and yet he said, it would
have been better that he had died instead of Absalom.
The fatherhood of God is expressed in the way these
two Patriarchs unselfishly showered love to their chil-
dren.
This is the same way that the Lord loved us and
even more for He emptied Himself and died on the
127
cross for us. Jesus became human for our sake so He
could be crucified and ransom us from the clutches of
sin and death (Hebrews 2:9). This is one aspect that we
should always be wary of, He became human so He
can be crucified otherwise there could have been no
crucifixion since a spirit could not be crucified. With-
out Him tasting death, there would have been no res-
urrection from the dead. How could He claim victory
from death? And how could we be redeemed from sin
and death? It is therefore required that Jesus has to go
through much sufferings and death so He could be the
Savior, Redeemer and Mediator of man.
But we do see Him who has been made
for a little while lower than the angels, name-
ly, Jesus, because of the suffering of death
crowned with glory and honor, that by the
grace of God He might taste death for every-
one.
For it was fitting for Him, for whom are
all things, and through whom are all things,
in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the
author of their salvation through sufferings.
(Hebrews 2:9-10)
For there is one God, and one mediator
also between God and men, the man Christ
Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all,
the testimony borne at the proper time. (1
Timothy 2:5-6)
[Just think] how much more will the
blood of Christ, who through the eternal
Spirit offered Himself without blemish to
God, cleanse your conscience from dead
128
works to serve the living God?
And for this reason He is the mediator of
a new covenant, in order that since a death
has taken place for the redemption of the
transgressions that were committed under
the first covenant,
those who have been called may receive
the promise of the eternal inheritance. (He-
brews 9:14-15)
The Teacher
As we start our journey with God, He must also
become our personal Teacher and Pastor from whom
we rely for everyday spiritual food to feed our souls and
spirit with heavenly manna. Just as He fed the Israel-
ites with manna during their 40 years of wanderings in
the wilderness (see Exodus 16:1), the Lord has chosen
to feed His people with daily manna from His Word,
from the lives and writings of His servants as well as
from fellow Christians.
Just as a baby would always desire a bottle of milk,
we must also desire the pure milk of the word that
we may grow in the knowledge and wisdom of Jesus
Christ (1 Peter 2:2). Personally before receiving the
Lord in my life, the word of God sounded like a brass
whenever I tried to hear from sermons; its just that
I could not really understand what it means and why
when I tried reading it, I just feel sleepy and dozed to
sleep. But when I got saved, the word of God tasted
differently; it has become a guide and a book that
breathes out life to my body. Again, the prophet Isa-
iah makes this clear that our separation from God has
blocked our understanding of Him or His Word.
Behold, the Lords hand is not so short
129
that it cannot save; Neither is His ear so dull
that it cannot hear.
But your iniquities have made a separa-
tion between you and your God, and your
sins have hidden His face from you, so that
He does not hear. (Isaiah 59:1-2)
Now we have received, not the spirit of
the world, but the Spirit who is from God,
that we might know the things freely given
to us by God, which things we also speak,
not in words taught by human wisdom, but
in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiri-
tual thoughts with spiritual words.
But a natural man does not accept the
things of the Spirit of God; for they are fool-
ishness to him, and he cannot understand
them, because they are spiritually appraised.
(1 Corinthians 2:12-14)
The goal
We must understand that once we have grown and
matured, the goal of the Lord is to release us to do
ministry. This means we replicate the ministry which
has been entrusted to us by the Lord. This truth is
profoundly illustrated by the DNA molecule itself
and shows to us the roadmap of our discipleship. Ev-
ery single cell contains a core of DNA which in turn
contains chromosome that mainly functions to dictate
our genes. It is this DNA that will direct the overall
arrangement of structures and function of the cell it-
self. When a DNA replicates, it unwinds itself from
the bottom up. Once separated as single strands, each
strand will form a new partner strand. Likewise, when
we have undergone discipleship or been trained, it is
130
part of our Christian duty to spread Christianity and
disciple others too.
Whether this happens inside our workplace, in
mission outposts or in sports arenas you determine it.
Even Paul the apostle advises this to every Christian
soldier, And the things which you have heard from
me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust
to faithful men, who will be able to teach others
also (2 Timothy 2:2). And the Lord Himself taught
this to us: All authority has been given to Me in
heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make dis-
ciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name
of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teach-
ing them to observe all that I commanded you; and
lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age
(Matthew 28:18-20).
Another amazing facet of DNA replication is that
the old strand passes all the information it contains to
the new strand, while at the same time it freely releases
this new strand to also replicate itself. In the same man-
ner, the person whom we disciple receives all that we
have given him and he also passes this legacy to many
others. Jesus did the first model by teaching His twelve
disciples well and then leaving them to do as He did.
An added lesson from here is to freely release our
grip on others we have discipled; whether they remain
with us or move on to other congregations or fellow-
ships, we should be happy to release them knowing
that the Lord will continue His work in their lives. In
Christianity, there is no feudalism or territoriality for
if this happens, we are not serving the Master but our
own little dukedoms.
Discipleship of others is a field not only for the
mature or grown ups but a church paradigm model by
which we grow in numbers and at the same time in-
131
crease in the knowledge of Christ. No one can do this
better than the Lord Himself but He tasked us not be-
cause we are the best in the field but rather because He
trusts the Holy Spirit will empower us to do.
Weeds and good seeds
The advancement of the Kingdom of Heaven is
likened to cultivating a vast field of wheat in the Bible.
In this field, the land owner has hired His servants to
prepare the ground and sow the seeds of the Kingdom.
He presented another parable to them,
saying, The kingdom of heaven may be
compared to a man who sowed good seed in
his field. But while men were sleeping, his
enemy came and sowed tares also among the
wheat, and went away.
But when the wheat sprang up and bore
grain, then the tares became evident also.
And the slaves of the landowner came and
said to him, Sir, did you not sow good seed
in your field?
How then does it have tares?And he
said to them, An enemy has done this! And
the slaves said to him, Do you want us, then,
to go and gather them up? But he said, No;
lest while you are gathering up the tares,
you may root up the wheat with them.Allow
both to grow together until the harvest; and
in the time of the harvest I will say to the
reapers,
First gather up the tares and bind them
in bundles to burn them up; but gather the
wheat into my barn. (Matthew 13:24-30)
When the Kingdom of God advances, Satan does
132
not lie in wait to merely watch; he also tries to bring
distractions and hinder the work of God. He sows
doubts, accusations, confusion and tries to bring bick-
ering among leaders. Moreover the newly born babes
of the Kingdom are the favorite target of the enemy to
try to dissuade them from following Jesus Christ. He
can do this by countless ways from simple distractions
such as stopping attendance of fellowship, bringing
persecution from family members, ridicule of others
and even spiritual confusion; the enemy shows himself
as a roaring lion who seeks to devour the new believer
(1 Peter 5:8). The Scriptures above show how the en-
emy tries to accomplish his purpose; as the Lord plants
the true seeds of the Kingdom, the enemy also plants
weeds.
Weeds are representative of his devious ways
to choke the true seeds of the Kingdom. Just as real
weeds try to suck the life out of a wheat plant, Satan
tries to suck the life of Christ in every new believer.
Who can even try to help the child of God then? How
do we overcome the enemy? The answer to all of these
is as simple as prayer. If we continue to pray, to hold on
to God, our night shall become like the broad daylight.
Thou art my hiding place; Thou dost
preserve me from trouble; Thou dost sur-
round me with songs of deliverance. (Psalm
32:7)
And when He arrived at the place, He
said to them, Pray that you may not enter
into temptation. And He withdrew from
them about a stones throw, and He knelt
down and began to pray, saying,
Father, if Thou art willing, remove this
133
cup from Me; yet not My will, but Thine be
done. Now an angel from heaven appeared
to Him, strengthening Him. (Luke 22:40-
43)
Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your
adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roar-
ing lion, seeking someone to devour.
But resist him, firm in your faith, know-
ing that the same experiences of suffering are
being accomplished by your brethren who are
in the world. (1 Peter 5:8-9)
Crushing the serpents head
And the God of peace will soon crush
Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord
Jesus be with you. (Romans 16:20)
Do we really believe we can crush Satans head un-
der our feet? The Bible says so. During these days, the
revelations of the Kingdom of Heaven and darkness
are both increasing. Though darkness increases, light is
destined to overcome darkness. As we look around us,
it would seem to be that darkness gets the upper hand
just by basing our own observations from the dailies we
read every day.
But then the word of God declares that His chil-
dren will overcome, I am writing to you, fathers,
because you know Him who has been from the be-
ginning. I am writing to you, young men, because
you have overcome the evil one. I have written to
you, children, because you know the Father. I have
written to you, fathers, because you know Him who
has been from the beginning. I have written to you,
young men, because you are strong, and the word of
134
God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil
one (1 John 2:13-14). I will show you how this hap-
pens. When the word of God indwells our lives, every
pocket of lies that the enemy has purposely planted
will be exposed. When truth resides in us we are not
only set free but become the agent to expose the lies
that bound many others too.
Satan primarily brings corruption and death into
this world through the lies he propagates (see John
8:44). For example, Hitlers belief that the Aryan race
is the greatest race comes from the lies that the enemy
has entrenched in science such as Eugenics. This false
science believes that wars are tools of natural selection
where only the fittest and best human race survives.
This was released through the idea of Darwins evolu-
tion where mankind is the result of primeval selection
from outer space and there is no concept of a Maker
whatsoever.
When this concept is applied to our societies,
there will be no need for religion, culture or concepts
of morality. This will be in fact the utopian society of
many Darwinists. But lies such as these are debunked
by many natural examples and questions that demand
answers. For instance in nature, cannibalism rarely oc-
curs within a group of family. Mankind is supposed to
be the family that it was called to be and an example
to the smaller creation of God. In spite of our intel-
ligence, mankind has not found a true solution to this
problem; there has been no rest from war even in the
last 100 years. We are still predating on each other; kill-
ing the vulnerable and hindering others we think are
a threat to us! The Lord commands Christians to cast
down such vain ideas and overcome them,
For though we walk in the flesh, we do
135
not war according to the flesh, for the weap-
ons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but
divinely powerful for the destruction of for-
tresses.
We are destroying speculations and every
lofty thing raised up against the knowledge
of God, and we are taking every thought cap-
tive to the obedience of Christ. (2 Corinthi-
ans 10:3-5)
Neither give heed to fables and endless
genealogies, which minister questions, rather
than godly edifying which is in faith: so do.
(1 Timothy 1:4 KJV)
But have nothing to do with worldly
fables fit only for old women. On the other
hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of
godliness. (1 Timothy 4:7)
Jesus therefore was saying to those Jews
who had believed Him, If you abide in My
word, then you are truly disciples of Mine;
and you shall know the truth, and the truth
shall make you free. (John 8:31-32)
This study though we just passed by it cursorily de-
serves greater attention because of its demand that we
explain and show the truth. Truth though it seems to
be easily trampled in this world does exactly the op-
posite of what we see, it changes and breaks barriers in
the heart of those that accepts it. But we have this testi-
mony that though the enemy laughs at how the truth is
much evil spoken of, truth shall prevail and those that
trusts in it will not be dissappointed in the end because
it leads to life. Lies will ultimately bring death and de-
136
struction and the fruit of it can be seen in the lives of
those that are captive. The sum of Gods word will al-
ways be truth and nothing more and nothing less. The
Scripture, The God of peace will soon crush Satan
under your feet, aptly expresses the deliberate truth
that God has spoken long time ago, He shall bruise
you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the
heel (Genesis 3:15). It was a prophecy spoken when
Adam and Eve sinned; they did not ask for mercy or
salvation but out of Gods abundant love, He pardoned
them by believing the coming Savior who will redeem
mankind from sin.
And when the Savior came, He dealt a fatal blow
on the serpents Head, a wound that cannot heal, be-
cause just as Satan thought he killed Jesus Christ, the
act of His sufferings and death was a means to bring
justice and redemption to mankind. Though we suf-
fer persecutions and slayings, the blood of Jesus Christ
was enough to pay for our sin and salvation just by
looking at the cross of Jesus. If the patriarchs and peo-
ple long time ago has to have faith in the coming re-
demption through a Messiah who would die by being
crucified, we are redeemed by looking back to the time
when Jesus Christ was crucified.
It seems a paradox that it is the God of Peace who
will bruise Satan under our feet and not the Lord of
Armies or Hosts; what this really means is that beyond
ammunitions and armory what brings true victory is
the morale of the fighters. When the Christian soldier
has peace inwards, he wont be troubled by distress sur-
rounding him but he can focus to do what his Master
bids him to do.
This was demonstrated during the Falklands war
between Britain and Argentina where the Argentine
army though more numerous, well equipped and po-
137
sitioned at a more strategic ground lost their will to
fight and thousands of them surrendered to a fewer
British commandos simply because they thought their
government has forgotten them. In a similar manner,
Christians who possess the inner peace of God in their
hearts can profoundly impact their landscapes precise-
ly because of their resolution to never surrender before
the enemy. When the enemy thought he has surround-
ed us with his minions, we have him surrounded! And
its time to raise this battle cry, to attack and take the
land as Gideon did. Let us break the jars that veil our
lights, and let the Enlightenment of God blow across
the land!
Peace of mind brings victory in the battlefield
When peace prevails within our hearts, it will be
like a fortress that no arrows of the enemy can pen-
etrate. This is why the apostle Paul confidently wrote,
[And] in no way alarmed by your opponents
which is a sign of destruction for them, but of salva-
tion for you, and that too, from God (Philippians
1:28). When the enemy shoots arrows of accusations
and confusion to a child of God, His peace will be a
strong bulwark that will thwart the arrows of the en-
emy.
Cease striving and know that I am
God... (Psalms 46:10)
for the kingdom of God is not eating
and drinking, but righteousness and peace
and joy in the Holy Spirit.
For he who in this way serves Christ is
acceptable to God and approved by men. So
then let us pursue the things which make for
138
peace and the building up of one another.
(Romans 14:17-19)
This too is the secret of the success of most victori-
ous generals in the battlefield, they are decisive, strong
willed and had hope that they will win. Admiral Hora-
tio Nelson, the British naval hero who is worshipped
by his peers, sailors and superiors alike is one whose
primary duty is to love and defend his country from
the aggression and plan of Napoleon to humiliate the
English people.
From the onset of the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805
the French and Spanish battleships were positioned in
a single line heading north and far outnumbered the
English ships. But number and resources does not
always decide who will win the war, in a bold plan,
having lesser number of men and ships, Nelson ma-
neuvered his faster and more agile fleet to form two
squadrons that would engage the enemy at right angle
to their line. Then with his famous battle lines, he cried
England expects that every man will do his duty.
Then with his squadron of 12 ships, he attacked the
van and center of the enemys battle lines. Unable to
mount quickly and to move with speed and agility as
the approaching English fleets, the combined forces of
the French and Spanish ships went into disarray. Fear
and distress easily struck their hearts so that they could
not mount any single shot with precision. The majority
of Nelsons squadron broke through and shattered the
lines of the enemy in a rapid gun fire and confusion.
About six of the other leading French and Spanish
ships were not involved at this first gunfight but later in
the afternoon of that fateful day, they were able to turn
about and aid those from behind. But the weak coun-
terattack sealed the plans of Napoleon to invade Eng-
139
land leaving him defeated and bolstering the position
of England as the mistress of the seas. Though far
outnumbered, Nelson rode to victory and captured 20
ships of the original 33 ships and 14,000 men of whom
half is said to have become prisoners of war. Even so,
the cost of this victory was the death of Nelson who
was mortally wounded by a sniper, but when he died at
4:30 PM he was certain of his complete victory. About
1,500 British seamen were killed or wounded, but no
British ships of the original 27 were lost. Trafalgar
shattered forever Napoleons plans to invade England
and keeping the English power for another century.
This decisive victory could have only come because
of the clear thinking and peace of mind which the
great admiral displayed and boosted the morale of his
men. Even at his death bed, he only muttered, Now I
am satisfied. Thank God, I have done my duty. Any
general knows that resources are unthinkably most
needed in any battle front but the rarity of which such
superior planning could have been displayed anytime
is the result of Nelsons ability to focus on the problem
and attack it using ingenious ways, given what he has.
Such qualities of man made England the greatest naval
power and assured her colonies around the world for
more than a century.
Ponder about that, if we too who have a heavenly
country and who were sent by the Lord to take back
the land for His honor and glory do likewise, cant we
colonize and explore more lands for Him? This colo-
nization is not another imposition of ones power over
people, but we take the land and fill it with the knowl-
edge of Him, who deserves all honor and glory.
I will surely tell of the decree of the
Lord: He said to Me, Thou art My Son, to-
140
day I have begotten Thee. Ask of Me, and I
will surely give the nations as Thine inheri-
tance, and the very ends of the earth as Thy
possession.
Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron,
Thou shalt shatter them like earthenware.
Now therefore, O kings, show discernment;
Take warning, O judges of the earth. Wor-
ship the Lord with reverence, and rejoice
with trembling.
Do homage to the Son, lest He become
angry, and you perish in the way, for His
wrath may soon be kindled. How blessed are
all who take refuge in Him! (Psalm 2:7-12)
141
142
About the author
Edison was raised in Tabuk, Kalinga, in the northern
part of the Philippines. He first learned abc and the rudi-
ments of drawings from his mother who taught him during
his primary years. As a young kid, he was a member of the
protestant congregation of the United Church of Christ in
the Philippines. There he learned his basic Bible catechism
so that as a young boy he knew more of Bible stories than
legends taught in school. He finished his elementary and
high school both as a Salutatorian and went on to study
BS Biology at the University of the Philippines Los Baos
(UPLB) with an NISGP scholarship.
It was during his freshman year that he met the Lord Je-
sus Christ in a holy club meeting of the Students of Destiny
and thereafter became involved in discipleship ministry with
the Destiny and Lakas-Angkan ministries. After graduation,
he held jobs as instructor and research assistant at several
government offi ces. He recently received his degree of Mas-
ter of Science in International Studies in Aquatic Tropical
Ecology (ISATEC) from the University of Bremen with the
help of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)
scholarship.
He believes in the full restoration of the five fold min-
istries of the church, the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the ap-
ostolic mandate to disciple all nations. His main goal in life
is to plant, establish and equip local churches so that they
would be salt and light in their towns and cities amidst confl
ict and distresses.
143
Other books by Bro. Edison
Freedom from Religious bondage
How do we bring reformation in the society?
How do we bring heavens revival on earth that never
stops? Freedom is the cry of every human heart and
there is only one thing that can fulfill that. It would
be when love is released in our hearts, love that frees
us to be grounded in truth.
Restorers of the breach
Build your dreams. Fulfill your destiny. How do
we build a nation of builders rather than a nation of
takers and losers? How do we rise up from the ashes
of shame and bondage? Change must come and it
must be in the right direction. Or otherwise we will
fail to take heed of the call.
Unmasking Evolutiontread down the ser-
pents lie
Build your foundation and be secure in your
relationship with Jesus Christ and above all trust
the validity of the word of God even in this age of
relativism and postmodernism. Fill your vessel with
truth and life that ministers refreshing fire to others.
Kicking Evolutionlifting Jesus up!
Continuing from Unmasking Evolution, the au-
thor further tackles the question of true education
and explores how one can become an agent of grace
in transforming his community.
Build a mighty fortress of peace
in the midst of conflicts
Take the Land Publications and Ministries
www.takethelandministries.org
The greatest weapon on earth will not be the
weapons of mass destruction but the presence of
God that brings comfort, stability strength and
courage. It is this power that comes from the abiding
peace of God that shall bring transformation in our
lives and in the lives of our families and communi-
ties.
The peace of God works as the armory of the
believer over all kinds of accusations, distractions
and storms in this life. Without the peace of God
built into our lives, we will never find true satisfac-
tion and basis for our existence. Everything can be
manufactured except with the abiding peace that
comes from His presence. This proves how petty,
how shortsighted and how vulnerable our human
laws and agreements are without the Prince of Peace
in our midst.
Learn how to overcome fear,
Abide in the victory of Jesus Christ,
And become a fortress of His peace
Tabuk, Kalinga
3800 Te Philippines

The Surpassing Peace of God PDF

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Surpassing Peace of God PDF

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Distress upon the seas

You might also like