Tag: christianliving

Occupy till I come

Emmanuel Ebinyu3 Comments

Someday, you will read your Bible as you always mundanely do. It could be sunny outside or even murky; it does not matter. But that day, your heart will burn as you eat away the words of life. Then, as you go through the pages of scripture, something of an epiphany will happen. Like the sight of a red-dressed damsel across the street, your attention will be drawn to one particular utterance in scripture, like a beckoning of eternity, a call familiar to the sons of the kingdom. Just like Father Abraham had when he was still in Ur of the Chaldea’s (Genesis 12:1). That scripture will sink into your subconscious, resonating into the very essence of your being, as though it is your life’s purpose to give it expression. Then for a moment, as though Einstein’s inertial frames of reference all stopped at once, as though the scripture is the manifestation of a man, in whom your true essence lies and your predestined inheritance resides, the evidence of things unseen will find a place in your heart. Then perhaps John 1:14 will start to make sense, or perhaps you have not come to think of the Word putting on flesh yet.

Perhaps, lightly, you will dismiss the motion in your heart first. Then, you will read the scripture again, marking it in your Bible and proceeding to note it down in your notebook. It could be that you may go about your daily business, but a reverberation of that scripture will linger in your heart and mind. The phrases and lines of that scripture will pop up in your mind like a man being troubled by digestive heartburn. As I have come to find out, the Lord God has made provisions in His grace that as men seek Him, he may be found of them.

Isaiah 55:6
Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.

If there was a single-entry verse into the mystery of God revealing himself to men in the Bible, then I yet have much work to do in understanding. For it is revealed that we are the members of one body (Romans 12:4), but we have different offices (which, being interpreted, means a doing, a mode of acting, a deal, a transaction, a thing to be done, a business). Therefore, every man will experience the same Spirit, submit themselves to the same Lord, and find the same God. But our transactions will differ, each according to the grace given (Ephesians 4:7), according to the measure of Christ.

In any case, the revelation of God is not for sport, that we may brag amongst colleagues or accrue mental acuities, but for the profit of the body and the exaltation of the Kingdom of God. “For whom much is given, much is expected (Luke 12:48)” remains a pillar of stewardship in all arenas of human endeavour, even so in the Kingdom of God.

Luke 19:12-13
And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.

In one of those sermons of the Lord, he made a statement that I have grown to endear. He said, “Occupy till I come.”
As I turn the pages of the Bible and walk about my personal life, he tells me that I have spaces – businesses, papers to author, audiences to address, souls to win, etc. – to walk into and utilise the “unrighteous mammon” to find a “home” according to Luke 16:9-11. Our entry into places of our occupation will always come by natural, worldly orderings. Perhaps it is a job, an assignment, a friendship, or a relationship. The Lord expects that we occupy. And as the proverbial “Trojan Horse”, the Lord will come to occupy that space if we stand strong in the grace that He gives.

Hebrews 10:37
For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry.

As sons of God, we have been given the Spirit of God and an assurance to cry to him, “Abba Father”. This same Spirit has been given to us, that we may have the earnest of the Spirit (2 Corinthians 5:5, Romans 8:23) in bringing forth salvation to creation. We possess a Kingdom mindset to occupy, that in there we may “groan, agitate, cry, workout, influence, possess” and that by us God may have a victory upon the earth.

For the Lord will show us the path of life; He will call us to deliver talents, businesses, and “pounds” into our stewardship, and it will be required of us to be found faithful (1 Corinthians 4:1-2).

As for me, the statement “Occupy till I come” became that lingering phrase by which I saw the Lord (1 Corinthians 15:8). I pray that today God will be found of you and that you will embrace his calling to occupy till he comes.

Putting away childish things

Emmanuel Ebinyu6 Comments

Jacob is my favourite biblical character thus far. He embodies the characteristics of a man who had his fair share of the salvation journey. In Genesis 27, he is the child of his mother, supplanting Esau for the blessing. Genesis 28 is his first encounter with the God of Abraham and Isaac, the first glimpse of what his life was about. In Chapter 29, he continues life’s sojourn to the place of stewardship in Laban’s house. Throughout Genesis 29 to 35, we read about his progression from a young trickster to an old wise man whose encounter with God changes his identity forever, culminating in his ultimate life testimony when he was passing the blessing to Joseph, as captured in Genesis 48:3-4.

Genesis 48:3–4 (Amplified Bible, Classic Edition)
3  And Jacob said to Joseph, God Almighty appeared to me at Luz [Bethel] in the land of Canaan and blessed me.
4 And said to me, Behold, I will make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will make you a multitude of people, and will give this land to your descendants after you as an everlasting possession.

When I read Jacob’s story, I see a man who struggles with life, culture, choices, destiny, obedience, stewardship, honour, and everything that living on this earth may bring to anyone. But the scriptures tell us of a man who found the place he may call home—the place God always called him to—the place of his encounters at Bethel.

As a young Christian at the university, in our beloved Makerere University Christian Union, I always looked forward to gaining more knowledge. ‘Epignosis’ and ‘Gnosis’ (and many other Greek words) were part and parcel of the sermon content we looked out for because we were young and grasping for the spectacular in a bid to show our prowess and prove our potential. It was indeed a glorious time; much of it was spent reading the New Testament and continuously immersing in Paul’s letters and his gospel. Gazing back at that time, I now understand why this was important. I see the significance of Christ being formed in us (Galatians 4:19), and I honour every labour that men put in for our growth.

Then came the time after university, when we leapt into the great expanse of the marketplace and nations, just as Jacob had to leave the covering of Rebecca, his mother, and his father’s house. It was inevitable that we dispersed after university; as scriptures elaborate in Ecclesiastes 1:4, ‘one generation passes away and another comes.’ From then on, I had to intentionally walk by the statutes, laws, judgements, testimonies, commandments and ultimately the fear of God, as I had so learned, and I had to ‘allow another to take hold of me.’

“Learning” Christ was wholesome. But, soon after, I had to ‘work out my salvation with fear and trembling’, because I was no longer in the presence of fellow Christians nor under the covering of University Christian Union leaders (whom we affectionately called Papas and Mamas) (Philippians 2:12). Therefore, another had to take hold of me—the Lord’s Spirit himself. God, in his faithfulness, has been and is still ‘working in me,’ as he does in all of his children, ‘both to will and to do.’ Teaching me principles through the lives of men like Jacob, some of which have become increasingly relevant to my salvation journey as I progress through young age towards maturity and sonship:

Discipleship
Possibly the most significant component of the journey. Jacob went into Laban’s house and learned how to raise cattle (Genesis 30:29), and this would be his testimony as his occupation (Genesis 47:3). Every Christian must become an apprentice to a system of soul-winning, follow-up, service, and patterns (Matthew 28:20). It is thus necessary to be planted in a church or ministry in order to be instructed (Psalms 92:13).

Stewardship
Genesis 30 and 31 outline the back and forth between Jacob and Laban’s family concerning the wealth of Laban–his cattle. Laban greatly prospered during Jacob’s tenure with him (Genesis 30:27–29), and the testimony of scripture is that Laban bore witness of increase because of Jacob’s stewardship.
We are all to be stewards of God’s mysteries (1 Corinthians 4:1-2), whether in employment, family, or ministry. Our way is the way of God—to be true to Him who called us into the fellowship of his dear son.
The Word of God, the Way of the Lord, is our way, and we are its custodians in this world. And because we are children of God, guaranteed to bear fruit if we abide in Him (John 15:1–15), the world will only recognise us by our fruit, whose manifestation it surely yearns for (Romans 8:19-22).

Instruction (And to be instructed (Jeremiah 6:8))
Heeding to godly counsel, convictions, testimonies, commandments, and laws that keep us in the way of righteousness and justice is important. Several aspects speak to any young person, including cultures, family, trends, the physical, and the economy. But only the Word of God can give us ‘light and life‘ (John 1:4, 8:12) and a sure inheritance. For Jacob, he made a vow (Genesis 28:20-22), whereby the Lord would be his God, and he followed it up with action (the paying of a tenth – Genesis 28:22). I believe that it is this conviction that got him through the difficult periods of his eventuality.

Contentment
The evil day is a surety beneath the sun (Ecclesiastes 12:1-7), the floods of ungodliness will appear someday (Psalms 18:4-5), and worries of all kinds will sneak in because of the sinful nature of this present time. It is good to be still and know that the Lord is God (Lamentations 3:27) and that he is the ultimate inheritance of the saints (Acts 20:32). You must carry contentment and a grateful heart along (1 Timothy 6:6).
After naming himself Esau (Genesis 27:19), Jacob had to eventually answer to his own name (Genesis 32:26-28). For in the acknowledgement of his identity and the unwavering acceptance of himself, his destiny was then truly blessed.

The Secret Place
The encounter at Bethel, where Abraham first raised an altar to the Lord (Genesis 12:7), was Jacob’s first stop on his journey away from home. During his life, the altar of his meeting with God, which he raised (Genesis 28:18-19), called to him and guided him to the blessing that was his inheritance.
As a Christian, you must learn to pray (Luke 18:1), seek God from a pure heart (Isaiah 55:6), meet him in his sacred tabernacle (Psalms 48:1), face to face (Isaiah 33:17, Job 19:27), and observe the beauty of his holiness (Psalms 27:4).

Jacob met God in his life and certainly fulfilled his mission, dying in Egypt at the beginning of the children of Israel’s sojourn there, as prophesied in Genesis 15:13. His life bears witness to the fact that he lived according to the God of his fathers and was buried alongside his people (Genesis 49:29-33). And now the Lord is Jacob’s God, speaking of the people who seek their God (Psalms 24:6).

Every man and woman must therefore put away childhood (Ecclesiastes 11:10), “embrace sound doctrine”, and “make full proof” of their life and destiny as God intended it in Christ Jesus (2 Timothy 4:3-5). And if you’re still unsure, remember those who, through faith, received a favourable report (Hebrews 11:2). And might I take the liberty to say – remember Jacob.

The Lord will help us, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

A cruel imposition

Eunice Patricia AberLeave a comment

No one probably has the courage to say this, so I will say it for everyone. Christianity, at least the version which I practice, is unimaginably cruel. So much so that many times I ask myself whether I should encourage a person who practices another faith to leave all and follow Christ. So much so that I relate with (and pity) those who eventually renounce the Faith. Christianity is a cruel imposition. That is why Jesus never forced anyone to follow Him, and neither did He entertain any suggestions that Christianity is something that could be inherited through associations of blood (Matthew 12:46-50).

Why do I say this? Let me start by taking us back to the day when man ate the forbidden fruit and lost favour with God and heaven. Although the narration of this story has always only emphasized man’s loss of favour with God, on that day man also gained something he was never meant to or designed to have. The events of that day awakened in man a part of himself which is eternally rebellious against God, and helplessly so (Matthew 16:23-24).

First forward to God’s great plan for redemption and reunification with man. For man to gain favour with God and heaven, two things had to happen. (1) God himself had to do something to close the wide chasm which had been created on that day when man ate the fruit. I know you’ve probably heard this story a thousand times, but please stay with me. I am headed somewhere here.

I have been watching a lot of kingdom related dramas and I’ve learnt a thing or two about how kingdoms operate, so I’ll attempt to explain to you why only God was capable of bridging that wide gap. Imagine in a kingdom (think perhaps the old majestic British empire), a subject who is a close friend and confidant of the king one day entertains the king’s arch enemy and the king’s arch enemy tells him how he himself could become king. Imagine that close friend and confidant of the king gets so deluded and charmed by the king’s arch enemy that he actually follows through on that evil advice. Imagine the king finds out before things get out of hand and then banishes his close friend and confidant, whom he loves so much, to a place so far from the kingdom, say Australia (which was actually one of the places of imprisonment for those who transgressed the British throne). Only the king has ships which can journey that far and only the king has the power to lift his close friend’s harsh sentence. The close friend can only keep wondering aimlessly in exile, never knowing how to get back home, unless the king chooses to pardon him and send ships to bring him back home. That is exactly what God did for us when He sent His son Jesus Christ to die for us. Jesus’ blood, shed on the cross of Calvary, is like a ship sent by the Father to carry us back home.

Now, whereas God has to accomplish task (1), task (2) lies solely on man’s shoulder. Let’s go back to our illustration from the British kingdom. Imagine the king’s close friend is forgiven of his transgression and he is brought back home at the king’s command. Even though he is now free of his sins and free to have an audience with the king, he must prove himself worthy of the king’s favour. He cannot once again entertain the king’s enemies or anything that the king hates. He cannot live the way he wants and speak the way he wants. He must live his life in constant acknowledgement and reverence of the king who saved him, and should he choose to rebel and walk in his own way, there remains no place for forgiveness for him, and the king would be justified in exterminating him completely (Hebrews 6:4-8).

In this story it is very easy for the king’s friend to get back to a place of trust with the king. But what if I add a pinch of fantasy to the story? What if the king’s arch enemy has special powers? What if he used those special powers to plant a seed of rebellion against the king inside the king’s close friend and confidant. A seed which the king’s close friend and confidant can only control with meticulous living and by shunning very many things in his life which would otherwise be pleasant to have. What if, if left unchecked, the seed could turn into a dark deathly power that consumed the king’s close friend and confidant with hatred and rebellion against the king, even without his conscious will? Then living a life of loyalty to the king would cease to be an easy road for the king’s close friend and confidant, but a life of daily sacrifice of his own urges and desires.

Would that life be considered attractive? I believe it would be frowned upon by many, and be considered cruel beyond imagination. But that, in essence, is the reality of Christian living. It is not easy. It was never meant to be easy, so much so, that even the rich man who followed all of the law could not be found worthy (Matthew 19:16-30). What then must we do? This question which the young rich man asked 2000 years ago is still a question many ask today, because every one knows deep down in their hearts when they are missing the mark. Like the rich man, we are all starkly aware of when we “still lack”, although rarely aware of what it is that we still lack. The answer which Jesus gave the rich man that day is the same one which He gives everyone today. Jesus had given this very same answer to His disciples about 3 verses earlier. One thing we must know while reading the Bible is that Jesus usually talked to his disciples in much plainer and direct language than he did to those outside the circle of 12. The simple reason for this is because of the relationship which they shared with Him and the calling which had been placed upon their lives. In Matthew 16:24-25, Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”

I have had the privilege to study and observe other religions. One thing is clear about every religion in the world. Every religion requires sacrifice. If you believe in any sort of deity in this universe, the most reverent show of allegiance to that deity is sacrifice. Different religions teach their followers to sacrifice different things. Some religions require believers to sacrifice certain kinds of foods or drinks, others require sacrifice of marriage, while others require sacrifice of certain lifestyles such as leisure activities, dressing codes and the likes.

Christianity. The one I practice, and the one which I believe Jesus died for and the early church preached, requires a very special kind of sacrifice. It requires sacrifice of self. Like the king’s confidant, it requires that one, on a daily basis and in the core of one’s existence, choose the king above oneself. It requires that one willfully strike a blow to one’s body, enslave one’s own desires, and subject every essence of one’s existence to the pleasure of the king and the advancement of his kingdom (1 Corinthians 9:27).

It is a cruel imposition for creatures so rebellious such as ourselves.