“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.”
2 Corinthians 13:14
There are three very powerful things mentioned in this scripture that every believer needs to know and operate in daily in order to survive and succeed in life. They are: the GRACE of God, the LOVE of God and a dynamic FELLOWSHIP with the Holy Spirit.
- The grace of God. There are two aspects of Grace: grace to be and grace to do.
- Grace to be. Four major things took place on the cross: (a)Through grace (through the atonement made crucifixion and shedding of the blood of Jesus), we have been made righteous. We are not trying to be righteous; we are already righteous. Lions don’t give birth to goats; they give birth to lions. (b)Secondly, on the cross, through his stripes, we are healed. (c)Thirdly through His sacrifice, we have been given the blessing of Abraham. I don’t have to struggle to be rich or wealthy; I’m already blessed! The car, the house are not the blessing; they are produced by the blessing. We are delivered from the curse. We are not to live on the thorny perch anymore. (d)Fourthly, we are delivered from death and hell. We have been restored to the original state of authority and dominion. We are currently seated together with Christ at the right hand of God, far above principalities and powers.
- Grace to do. This is a divine empowerment which we need on a daily basis to fulfil our divine assignment on earth. We call it the anointing. Jesus was anointed to carry out his assignment on earth. Whatever you are called to do is your ministry and you need God’s anointing to do it well and successfully. Your divine assignment could be as a pastor, it could be in business to raise money for the spread of the gospel or it could be in politics. Yes, politics could be someone’s ministry on earth. Daniel was a politician; Joseph was a prime minister. That was a political appointment. God wants his people everywhere to influence things for the Kingdom. He needs people in the financial world; He needs people in education to influence the next generation for Christ; He needs people in the educational system, the military, etc. A politician, a businessman etc., should pray the way a pastor prays; for the anointing and grace to succeed.
- The love of God. The love of God covers our sins on a daily basis. The love of God enables us to enjoy the goodness of God daily. For God so love the world that He gave… The Love of God causes the flow of his provision into our lives daily. The love of God enables us to love God and others.
- The Communion of the Holy Spirit. There is no victory without faith and there is no faith without the communion of the Holy Spirit.
First we need to realize that we are in the age of the Holy Spirit. The Father worked in the forefront in the Old Testament, Jesus worked in the New Testament and we are now in the age of the Holy Spirit. He has the mandate to help us, comfort us, lead and guide us even in the tiniest details of our lives.
Our success comes from relying on Him. I was in Lagos when he told me to go to Abuja for the accommodation of the church where we started. In less than 24 hours I got a place. He led us to the land where we are now. He led us to our house which we bought in 2005, remodelled into a beautiful home. We have experienced tremendous breakthrough each time we relied on Him for direction. This is the foundation of faith.
Faith
The just shall live by faith. What is faith? It is believing and acting on the INSPIRED Word of God. The emphasis is on the word INSPIRED. This is what we call rhema. The promises in the holy written Word (logos) are potentially yours but until it is inspired or quickened by the Holy Spirit for a particular situation, it will not work. Rhema is inspired Word made alive in one’s heart today for a specific application. It is the current Word for a current situation. That is why the Bible says, “Now, faith is!” It is getting a ‘now word’ for a ‘now situation’! This discovery has completely changed my results and my life. This is one of the major things we get from our communion with the Holy Spirit. Your number one priority is to get a Word from the Lord in every situation. Acting on the written Word (logos) does not produce results.
Communion
By the way, why is it referred to as communion or fellowship? It is because both parties contribute something to the discussion. Most people don’t wait for God to speak to them after praying. You must learn to get a response from God after you have prayed. He will have something to say to you that will be the foundation of your faith and miracle. Mary the mother of Jesus asked Him for help when the wine finished at the wedding in Cana of Galilee; she then turned to the people and said, “Whatever he says to you, do it.” Most miracles are preceded by an instruction. Faith is released when you act on that instruction. This instruction is the rhema Word which produces faith and hence results. This is what makes prayer exciting.
Why you need to hear (How Faith Comes)
You see, the Bible says faith cometh by hearing. It did not say faith cometh by reading. Romans 10:17, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Notice that hearing is present continuous and it appears twice in the text. If God is not saying anything at the time, faith will not come. He may quicken what is written while you are reading or otherwise. If it is not quickened it is not to be acted upon.
This is not to say one cannot act on the written Word of God where the will of God is known in relating with God and people. There are principles and doctrines we are to live by everyday but when it comes to making decisions even within what is allowed, one needs to seek the opinion of God.
My prayer for you is that the grace of God, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit will be with you. The Lord be with you and prosper you; the Lord grant you your deepest heart’s desires. May your star shine brighter and brighter, in Jesus name! You are blessed!
Bishop Dr. Charles Olowojoba is the General Overseer of Dayspring Bible Church Worldwide with HQ in Abuja, Nigeria & President, Dayspring Christian Ministries Int’l.
Website: www.dayspringcmi.org
e-mail: [email protected]
Help line: 08035150515