The book of Ephesians is one of the most powerful
books in the bible. It is divided into 3 phases.
Eph 1:1-3:21, Eph 4:1-6:9, Eph 6:10-6:21
In Eph 1:1-3 speaks about your position in Christ (Sit)
1st Phase:
A Believer’s Position in Christ:
Man was born into rest. Redemption is not the establishment of God’s program
but the recovery of God’s program. Everything you get as a Christian comes from
your position in Christ. The bible said “He has blessed us with all heavenly
blessings”. You don’t need to struggle for anything as a Christian. We are not
working to gain God’s acceptance rather we are working because God has accepted
us. Is true that you need to carry out penance but you don’t have to do it as
to convince God. God has unconditional love for us. If you genuinely love
somebody you will not hurt the person. You make prayer from your position in
Christ Jesus. You command and expect to be obeyed and it works because you are
in your position. If you know your position in Christ Jesus you will begin to
make declaration. Where the word of the king is there is power the bible said.
Ephesians 2:4-6
says: But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He
loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with
Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us
sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,(NKJV)
2nd
Phase: A Believer’s Work of Faith:
There are certain ways a believer should function. Redemption takes us back to
the standard that God set. God gave Adam dominion over other creatures but
before then He gave him His own image, but Adam lost this image. Adam took up
the image of satan and lost dominion. Redemption is meant to restore the image
of dominion mandate because dominion mandate is impossible without this image.
God requires the standard that existed in the time of Adam to exist in us. What man fell from is dominion. All have
sinned and come short of the glory of God, this is God’s dominion.
Luke 14:17 says:
and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, 'Come,
for all things are now ready.'(NKJV)
Redemption took us back to rest, on the sixth day
and on the 7th day is man’s day of rest. You don’t work so as to get
rest. You rest to conserve energy before you work. You are born into
inheritance, though there are things you have to do so as to unlock it. You can’t
be paying tithe and be complaining of finance. This is because God has given us
all that pertains to life and godliness. This is part of the rest you are born into;
it is your inheritance in Christ Jesus. Genuine redemption took us back to the
position of rest.
John 3:1-3 says;
There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The
same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a
teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except
God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto
thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.(KJV)
Nicodemus’s definition of success is what a man can
DO. Jesus said to him, the emphasis should not be on what you DO but who you
are. This is the greatest level of success.
Proverbs 16:32
says: [He that is] slow to anger [is] better than the mighty; and he that
ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.(KJV)
The person who rules his spirit takes charge of his
world. In the society, we have people who do not have values, people who don’t
work but they want to receive. This has led to so many problems because lack of
values produces vices.
If you are genuinely saved, God’s values will
manifest in you. Such values as purity, loyalty, love justice, mercy, humility,
respect and honesty.
Psalm 24:4 says:
He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul
unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.(KJV)
The person who genuinely has the image of God will
have truth in him, gossiping and backbiting will not be part of him. He will not
tolerate evil. This is the type of person who receives favor from God.
Psalm 15:2-5
says; He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the
truth in his heart. [He that] backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to
his neighbour, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour. In whose eyes a
vile person is contemned; but he honoureth them that fear the LORD. [He that]
sweareth to [his own] hurt, and changeth not. [He that] putteth not out his
money to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doeth these
[things] shall never be moved.(KJV)
Your conduct affects your reward. There are two
books that God will use to reward us. The book of life and the book of works.
The bible said on the basis of our works, he will reward us. There are certain
ways a believer should function. You can’t be saved and be committing adultery
Mark 12:28-34
says: And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together,
and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first
commandment of all? And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments
[is], Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the
Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind,
and with all thy strength: this [is] the first commandment. And the second [is]
like, [namely] this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none
other commandment greater than these. And the scribe said unto him, Well,
Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other
but he: And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and
with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love [his] neighbour as himself,
is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices. And when Jesus saw that
he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of
God. And no man after that durst ask him [any question].(KJV)
Loving God is not crying in church. Paying your
tithe is good but is not enough to obey God. Loving God is obeying him; you
don’t need emotion to obey him. You cannot base anything in feelings and become
successful in life. You have to do all that are good but also give more
attention to the weightier [matters] of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith:
these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone
Matthew 23:23
says: Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint
and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier [matters] of the law,
judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the
other undone.(KJV)
If you are genuinely saved, humility will be found
in you, you will not like to cheat others. You will respect your elders and
even your younger ones. You will not want to keep the money of those who worked
for you.
James 5:4 says: Indeed
the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud,
cry out; and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of
Sabaoth.(NKJV)
There are certain ways a believer should dress,
speak and act.
Micah 6:7-8
says: Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, Ten thousand rivers of
oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, The fruit of my body for
the sin of my soul? He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the
LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with
your God?(NKJV)
These are genuine values of God. Someone who is
genuinely born again will manifest these values. Though you don’t have the
power to manifest them yourself, you need to evaluate yourself and find out
where you are erring. If you have issue with adultery, fornication, lies and so
on, you need to work on them and desire change to act in a righteous way. This
is because you don’t have the power to manifest the values of God. The Holy
Spirit can help you to begin to desire the right things.
Romans 6:1-2
says: What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?
God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?(KJV)
Most times, sin shows up and grace also shows up. There
are keys that will help you manifest the deliverance that God has purchased for
you.
Romans 6:3-6
says: Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were
baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into
death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the
Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been
planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also [in the
likeness] of [his] resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified
with [him], that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should
not serve sin.(KJV)
You have heard it is not enough; your level of faith
will never grow beyond what you say. Proclaim it ‘God said it’. The same way
you know that Jesus died to take care of your sickness, you should also call
forth abundance, you can call forth healing. The same way the provision was
made for sin.
Romans 6:3-11
says; Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were
baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into
death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the
Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been
planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also [in the
likeness] of [his] resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified
with [him], that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should
not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin. Now if we be dead with
Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: Knowing that Christ being
raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. For
in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto
God. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive
unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.(KJV)
You have to personalize this as you account yourself
to have died with Jesus to sin. After committing sin, stand up and keeping on
proclaiming it over yourself.
Romans 6:12-13
says; Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it
in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members [as] instruments of
unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are
alive from the dead, and your members [as] instruments of righteousness unto
God.(KJV)
The bible said “Neither yield ye your members [as]
instruments of unrighteousness unto sin:” You don’t have to present your ears for
example for gossip. Open your mouth and keep proclaiming that which God has
spoken.
