The Order of Melchizedek IV- This Melchizedek

Text: Hebrew 7

There is so much to say about Melchizedek, certain things about him are hard to explain (Heb 5). This means Melchizedek is very deep and has a lot of mysteries surrounding him. ‘This Melchizedek, king of Salem is the priest of the most High God.’ This means the priest of the most High God is a king. How can someone who has executive power be the priest of the most High God? How can a ‘secular ruler’ be a priest of the most High God?

We should understand that Kingship isn’t limited to a geographical zone or throne, a CEO of a company/organization is a king in his business. In every sector of the economy, there are kings- in banking, IT, music, health etc. It doesn’t necessarily require a physical throne; anyone who is sitting in the CEO position of a company can be regarded as a king. There are people who don’t preside over a country but the organization they preside over is bigger and higher rated than a country. Being a CEO should not prevent priesthood, the problem Christians face today is when they assume the position of kingship, their priesthood begins to reduce. They become excellent kings but bad priests. The order of Melchizedek is a call to great kingship; great priesthood. It presents the right picture of Christianity which is to manifest endless life. Melchizedek gave equal expression to the secular and spiritual without either undermining the other. This order ensures the manifestation of the power of endless life on earth. Other orders existed before Christ came, such as the order of Aaron, this order made people so much spiritual but secularly irrelevant but the order of Melchizedek shows a king in his affairs and a priest of the most High God, both secularly and spiritually relevant. David manifested this order in the bible. He was a secular king but a priest of the most High God.

The first translation to Melchizedek is that he was the king of righteousness. Anyone who pursues righteousness is destined to be an executive because righteousness exalts and exempts a man. In practicing honesty and upholding integrity, one may seem cheated but, eventually, that person reigns in life. It is important to understand that whenever there is a situation that presents a contradiction between kingship and priesthood, priesthood is forever. When we choose priesthood over kingship, we encounter Abraham- The blessing!

Priesthood will always bring restoration, even when physical prosperity isn’t evident as long as our soul prospers, restoration is sure. It is important to value relationships because our Abraham may just be in disguise. We should learn to be ‘one from amongst them’ and not despise contemporaries.

Another interesting fact about this order is that it despises pedigree. Background, family wealth and influence don’t count. The blessing cannot be inherited, passed on or stolen, it has to be pronounced.

There is a dimension of Christianity God is yearning for on the earth and the order of Melchizedek is the only order that exemplifies the tenets of this wave of Christianity God demands from His people. A man becomes CEO of a bank and begins to find it difficult to pray and study the Word, his priesthood becomes weak. Jesus for the first thirty years of His life on earth manifested as a business man before He began His ministry. Behind the suit and the executive swagger, we need to be spiritually on fire, strong in faith and in the place of communion. The product of our communion with God brings essence to our salvation.

You will succeed in Jesus name!

Pastor Dele Osunmakinde

                      

Sunday Service Message of The Baptizing Church delivered on 13th November, 2011.

ETAL Hall, NNPC/John Holt Junction, Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun, Ikeja. LAGOS

To obtain the full message on cd, please call- +2348023695846.

The Order of Melchizedek - III

Text: 1 Samuel 16

It is interesting to know that most people want to be kings but not priests. Kings in their homes; kings on their jobs; kings in their businesses; kings in the social and economic world but not necessarily priests. It is however important to note that there’s no kingship without priesthood. Priesthood precedes kingship and spiritual authority precedes executive dominion. The first institution God established was priesthood. When God instituted priesthood, the Israelites were just a bunch of slaves and they didn’t know they would have a king.

Between the priesthood era and kingship era were about a period of about 2000 years. Before God raised a king for them, God firstly introduced them to priesthood. The problem with most believers is we want to give executive expression first before giving spiritual expression. In the protocol of God, priesthood must precede kingship, it is a divine protocol.

Like I always say, there is a law on earth which recognizes happenings and events on the earth as the prototype and when we do things outside this described protocol or trend as identified and concealed by the earth, the earth prevents its success. Everything that has happened on the earth is stored in the earth. For example, whenever God was going to do anything on earth, His Spirit moved.

This means that anytime God will do anything on the earth, His Spirit must first move. The only operation the earth understands is that a seed must be planted in it. He who is not a sower cannot connect with the provision God has deposited in the earth. It is already programmed that when a seed is sown, the earth favours it. If there is a person who seems to be harvesting without having sown, it is just a matter of time before that harvest runs dry because that person isn’t doing anything to connect with the storehouse of the earth. He is doing something contrary to the vibration of the earth.

We know that the greatest law on earth is love, so when we walk in love, automatically, we cause all grace to abound towards us. Also, the only conduit through which all the families on the earth will be blessed is The Abrahamic Covenant. If you see people who don’t belong to this covenant getting blessed, it won’t last. The Arabs are blessed because they are seeds of Abraham.

The covenant says ‘through your seed all the families of the earth will be blessed’.

We as believers need to understand the dimensions of priesthood and get the right perspective about our affairs and business. Most successful people are priests. A priest serves and is given to something, pursues his focus with undeniable passion and is totally committed to it. He is disciplined to ensure its success and will deploy all it takes to ensure that.

If we do not exercise our priesthood, we become weak and susceptible to other priests. We need to exercise to build the required strength we need to develop our priesthood. Just like exercise builds muscles and the more you exercise them, the bigger they become, we also need to build our spiritual ‘muscles’ to establish our priesthood.

There’s no success outside priesthood. True riches are a function of priesthood. Priests are revered, they are deep. We only reign on the earth to the extent to which we reign with God. How long do you pray? Do you pray in tongues? How well do you study and meditate on the word? These practices sustains and builds into the future, they are seeds.

Believers need to rise up to the call to priesthood and take it seriously. True success is a function of priesthood. When we become priests, transfiguration occurs; we automatically experience growth and become relevant in all wise. When we are priests, it becomes easy to overcome obstacles to kingship; by priesthood alone, David killed goliath and by kingship, he slew many goliaths.

You are a  succeess in Jesus name!

Pastor Dele Osunmakinde

                      

Sunday Service Message of The Baptizing Church delivered on October 30, 2011.

ETAL Hall, NNPC/John Holt Junction, Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun, Ikeja. LAGOS

To obtain the full message on cd, please call- +2348023695846.

The Order of Melchizedek - II

Today, we would discuss the Abrahamic Covenant with reference to the Order of Melchizedek. One major reason we need to understand the Order of Melchizedek is that outside of that order, we can't get into the covenant of wealth and prosperity that is due to us as believers. One of the things that will facilitate the expression of the covenant dimension of this order is ownership. That means there must be something on earth that is yours - that you exercise control over.

Melchizedek was one person that manifested the law of the Spirit and Life in Christ Jesus in its fullness. We need to develop spiritual endowment and give them tangible expression.  We must be able to express our spiritual endowment in our fields because we need the Word to become flesh.  Jesus came to show us that the Word can become flesh without the flesh limiting the expression of that Word.

Most believers have powerful ideas and spiritual expressions locked up within them but how come a lot of people are unable to bring it out? The weakness of the flesh is what stops our ideas from finding executive (physical) expression. So when God sent Jesus, He was able to express everything He carried in its fullness. What did Jesus do to give executive expression to spiritual dimensions? The Word became flesh. That is why confession of the Word is necessary that it may become flesh.

Jesus showed us what to do to translate the Word into what we need on earth because all things were made by the Word - visible and invisible; thrones and dominions. One order that fulfilled all of these things is the Order of Melchizedek. Heb. 7

To facilitate your covenant walk with God, you must be backed up by priesthood. When God was going to liberate the children of Israel from Egypt, He did not do it outside the operation of Priesthood. What this means is that whenever God wants to do something new in the life of a Christian, He introduces a new priesthood and whether you like it or not, at this level, you are operating a type of priesthood. The type of priesthood you operate determines the laws operational in your life. Until you change your priesthood, the laws governing your finances, your prosperity in life etc will never change.

For example, until God introduced a new priesthood through Moses and Aaron, the Israelites were in slavery and would have remained at that level perpetually because the law governing them was the law of sin. However, when God decided to liberate them, He introduced the Aaronic Priesthood. He did this because liberation is a function of some kind of priesthood.

Check yourself. Why have you been unable to enter into a new dimension of financial prosperity? How come you are not bringing forth ground breaking ideas? The Israelites were slaves for 430 years and during that period, nobody gave them anything but the moment their priesthood changed, they received favour.

You also need to ask yourself, what kind of priest am I? The greatest strength of the order of Melchizedek is that he was a priest forever. A lot of believers joke with their priesthood. They don't establish their priesthood by praying, studying the Word, confessing the Word etc. Any time you don't do any of these things, you are allowing your life to go according to fixed laws.

One thing worthy to note about the priesthood we have in Christ Jesus is that it allows us break records. Heb. 7 tells us that Jesus came from a tribe (Judah) with no mention concerning priesthood yet He was a priest. When you embrace this law and begin to act according to its principles, you will start doing things that no one has ever done in your genealogy. When this grace comes on you, you bring forth some amazing ideas and concepts. Under this order, you cannot afford to copy anybody; you will rather start dimensions that are new.  It will always be what eyes have not seen, what ears have not heard and what is yet to enter into the hearts of man.

This grace is for pace-setters, who will accomplish feats that no one has ever achieved.  This grace is for people who want to take over. It is this grace we will use in taking over the political terrain in Nigeria. This grace makes you step into areas where naturally you don't have endowments or antecedents.

The reason some of us cannot handle certain levels of financial resources is because the level of resources God commits to us is a function of our priesthood. This grace is what makes you God’s official on the earth. Every high priest is ordained by God for men not for personal gain.  All of us in church need to take our places in society and alleviate the suffering of the masses.  Prosperity will surly come but it is better not to prosper if your heart is still foolish because the prosperity of a fool will destroy him.

Heb. 7:14 – ‘It is evident that our Lord arose out of Judah of which Moses spoke nothing concerning priesthood’. As it stands, there are certain things the leaders of the church are not saying that are in tune with what the Spirit is doing. That is why you have to find out for yourself what the Holy Spirit is saying.

Let’s take our Christianity beyond what 'Moses' is saying because Moses is not the only mouth piece of God. A believer must commit himself to continuous learning. Don't limit yourself to only materials from your local church because there is no Moses on earth that has the full bandwidth of God. That is why the entire bible was not written by one man.

You will succeed in Jesus name!

Pastor Dele Osunmakinde                      

Sunday Service Message of The Baptizing Church delivered on October 23, 2011.

ETAL Hall, NNPC/John Holt Junction, Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun, Ikeja. LAGOS

To obtain the full message, please call- +2348023695846.

The Order of Melchizedek

There are times in life when Christians try to do certain things but find themselves coming short of their target (God’s best for them). Some Christians might even be tempted to think a witch is at work because often times believers fail to take cognizance of laws at work in their lives.

God makes us to understand that things don’t just happen on the face of the earth; there are laws (both physical and spiritual) that govern everything, and it is important for believers to realize the laws at work in their lives at every point in time.

As a Christians, being sensitive enough to determine what laws are at in work in our lives (for the purpose of mastering them) is the hallmark of spiritual maturity. If you don’t master these laws or change them for the better you will continue to come short of God’s plan for your life.

Once something becomes a law it stays forever and cannot be altered. And because sin and death is a law; it is constant, universal and everywhere. However, Christ introduced the law of life which has the power to set us free from the law of sin and death. Rom 8:1

However, the fact that He made us free does not mean that the law of sin and death no longer exists. The law of sin and death cannot be destroyed or manipulated but can be countered as long as we embrace the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus.  

The coming of our Lord Jesus Christ was a new law, and Christ did what the prior laws could not do by embracing the law of life.

The major hindrance to embracing the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus is working in the flesh. If you have been operating under the law of the spirit in Christ Jesus and you suddenly start to work in the flesh; the flesh will weaken the law of the spirit.

The flesh (when introduced) has a way of weakening laws and because of that God sent Jesus. And what God did through Jesus was to make the word to become flesh. What that meant was that Jesus became flesh, and the flesh did not limit His divinity. When we are not careful we allow the flesh to limit the operation of the spirit in our lives to extent that we carry great stuff on our inside but do not know how to make the word become flesh.

God allowed Jesus to be a man just like us but also gave Him capacity to deal with the flesh to the extent that flesh could not weaken His expression of God. This is the mystery of Christianity in that Christ was born as a baby and grew for thirty years without doing any miracle. However, on the day He came out of the baptism of Jordan to become the Son of God, and from that point he has been carrying the fullness of God bodily.

The question then is what is in your spirit, and how do you bring it out?

How can the word become flesh?

How can the word become engineering, IT, Law, Consulting, Medicine etc.?

How do we get to a point that the flesh does not limit the expression of what we carry?

There is only one law in the universe that is responsible for that and that is the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus. When you operate under this law you are made free from the law of sin and death. You also begin to do what other laws cannot do.

As believers we are a privileged set of people because we have our roots in Jesus even though we are often not conscious of that fact. Even those who heard Jesus talk while He was on earth were amazed at wisdom He displayed and wondered where He got it from.

Imagine God telling you that you are going to be the next significant thing in your field but you don’t know how translate the spiritual endowments into market place virtues.

God shows us through Jesus that spiritual endowments can be translated into their physical forms.

In Hebrews 7, the bible makes us to understand that we are called to be kings of righteousness and peace. On the basis of righteousness, Melchizedek became king, and we are made to understand that righteousness is so powerful and has the potential to exalt a nation. So when you say you are the righteousness of Christ Jesus in law it means you are the king of law.

While righteousness exalts, the law of sin reproaches. If in your profession you are bringing forth reproaches, it means you under the law of sin and death and will most likely fall short of God’s expectations. If you are working in righteousness with respect to your profession, in no time you will be exalted; you will continue to get better until you possibly become number 1 in the field.

So in order to change the law, God sent Jesus and He came according to the order of Melchizedek. Through this move, God shows us that the spiritual endowments we carry can be translated into their physical, material, economic, social, political and academic coefficients or equivalents. The hallmark of Christianity is the ability to take this spiritual endowment and do something executive with them. Heb 7:14

Brethren, it is time for your priesthood to change; it is time to embrace the priesthood of Melchizedek, and watch yourself operate in areas that had previously been exclusive and not available to you. This order allows you to cross fields and also to create new fields. Inaction is not an option; if you don’t take advantage of spiritual endowments, God will allow other people to cross over to make use of the spiritual endowments.

You will succeed in Jesus name!

Pastor Dele Osunmakinde    

                  

Sunday Service Message of The Baptizing Church delivered on October 23, 2011.

ETAL Hall, NNPC/John Holt Junction, Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun, Ikeja. LAGOS

To obtain the full message on cd, please call +2348023695846.

We & our Wives

Text: Ephesians 5:22-28

It was an interactive session in TBC, Sunday, 25^th September, 2011 where the congregation sought answers to some questions about the relationship between man & wife from two couples placed on the hot seat.

Q: What was your courtship based on…..?

Husband A: It was based on God, prayers and the Word, no sex, no kissing, no untoward sexual relations.

Wife B: I am married to a man whom if I had seen physically first, I wouldn’t have chosen him. We spoke on phone for a long time before we eventually met. I had asked God for a tall man, but my husband says I should have told God, ‘how tall?’ Ours was based on commitment. Feelings are nice, but more important is commitment because it is very important to get someone who is willing to go all the way with you and whom you are sure bailing out is not an option.

Q: How did you know your spouse was meant for you?

Husband A: How do you know yourself? I knew my wife was for me the very first day I met her. There’s no hard and fast rule to it, but the problem is most people love to eat of the tree of good and evil whereas God has set before us life. Part of eating from the tree of good and evil is having ‘a list’. Some people need to tear their list and approach choosing their partner based on the conviction of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God within you will bear witness when you meet the one. This should be the most important factor to choose.

Wife A: I had told God to give only the man who would be my husband the boldness to approach me for a relationship. I had a number of brothers around me whom you could tell had intentions but they never said anything, my husband was the only one who came to me asking for a relationship and when he made his intention known and I prayed about it, God gave me a Word which I always fall back on and it keeps me sure and convinced that I am in the right place.

Husband B: After I spoke to my wife for the first time on phone through a friend, interestingly, I knew I would marry her but I couldn’t just tell her that then, I am pretty sure she would have freaked out. See brothers, we need to apply wisdom even when God has shown you whom your spouse would be. It’s not just enough to know something; we need to ask God for the right timing to expose such knowledge. Never approach a lady with ‘God said…….’ Even if He did say, you need to work it out yourself.

Q:   When is the right time to submit to a man and to what extent- during courtship or after marriage?

Husband A:  Yes and No. In the sense that if you know that this is the person you would marry, you have nothing to lose by submitting to him during courtship but not in all things, for instance you cannot submit to him where sex is concerned. You don’t learn submission over night; it is acquired over time, my wife submitted to me in courtship. Until you are married, your parents still have a measure of authority over you and so in submitting to your intended, it shouldn’t be against the authority of your parents but once you are married, submission is absolute.

Wife A: Some men are over controlling and love to police their women around. A woman can submit to her man but the bible says ‘submit one to another…’ even before it says, ‘wives, submit to your husbands’. Submission should be a part of you as a woman, but it shouldn’t stop you from achieving your dreams. If the man you are submitting to is over controlling and over protective, then there is an issue.

Q:  What is happening to men, responsibility and purpose, especially in the church?

Husband A: Some men in the church today are no longer men in terms of their responsibility. Perhaps because of the poor economic situation of the country today, a lot of Christians are just church goers but you see the spirit life of a man affects his prosperity. God makes our ways prosperous and gives us good success. I think the basic problem with the church is we are becoming less spiritual and more secularized. How many men still take time out to pray and meditate on the Word? Apart from a man being the head of a relationship, he is also the pastor of it. For a man to prosper, he has to be empowered spiritually.

Q:   How did you for the years you courted never kiss or have sex?

Husband A:  The first day I met my wife, her beauty ravished me and all through courtship but we were able to keep ourselves in check by talking about it. Whenever either I or she felt like doing it, we would talk about it to douse the tension. By doing that, we were creating barriers and releasing the tension. We also tried to avoid being alone in secluded places. Be honest about your feelings and don’t pretend with each other.

Wife B:  We said no sex, but we however didn’t define the ‘no kissing’ boundary which brought some trouble. Looking back, I would that we hadn’t kissed during courtship because I feel like it took something out of the wholeness of my purity.

Husband B:  Never close the door on communication. Sit down to really talk about it and also discuss boundaries, else you will find yourself doing the things you initially said you wouldn’t do.

Q:    How do you know if your intended will like to have sex the way you would like to since as Christians we are not allowed to test-run?

Husband A:  You see, the truth is we cannot be wiser than God, if God did not make sex pre-marital, then whatever we get in marriage can be improved upon. I’ve heard people give excuses for per-marital sex saying they had to be sure their intended can perform before sealing the deal. There are books that can be read; materials on the internet that will help sex in marriage, counseling classes……. It can be learnt without having to experience it. God in His wisdom wants both parties inexperienced and holy thus keeping the bed undefiled. The truth is sex is more than just an exercise; sex is a covenant act which if practiced in a non-covenant manner provokes familiar spirits. When you have sex, you unite with your partner and become one. If the sanctity of the marriage bed is violated, it will affect the marriage and its future. Communication is also very important to understand each other’s sexual needs. Talk about it; let your spouse know how to please you and what your sexual expectations are. Sexual satisfaction in marriage can be worked on.

You will succeed in Jesus name!

 Pastor Dele Osunmakinde

ETAL Hall, Etal  Avenue, NNPC/John Holt Junction, Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun, Ikeja. LAGOS

To get this message on cd, please call +2348023695846.

The Timing of God!

Series: The Life and Ministry of Jesus

Text: Galatians 4:1-12

Have you ever wondered why Jesus did not start His ministry until He was about 30?

How come there was nothing written about Jesus from the age of 12 to 30 except, “He grew in wisdom and stature” even though by the age of 12 He knew he had to be about His Father’s business. 

How did Jesus know when to get baptized? How did He know when to step out?

Why did He have to wait for God’s timing and His season to come before He started His ministry?

God has assigned a purpose in life to all his children and He expects us to fulfil this purpose in the time and season which He has appointed. 

According to Ecclesiastes 3:1; “To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.”

Even Jesus had to adhere to God’s timing and season to fulfil His purpose while on earth. We cannot beat Jesus because He is the same yesterday, today and forever (Heb. 13:8).

His template for living life which he practised while on earth is still sufficient for us today.

We live in modern times when the art of timing using watches, calendars and seasons created by man has been perfected with so much sophistication and precision. However despite all the innovation, sophistication and precision achieved over the years in the field of timing, God’s timing appears to have become a myth. It has become a myth because people no longer understand God’s timing.

So with all the ambiguity about God’s timing around us, how do we then know God’s timing for us?

The answer is simple: How did Jesus break into the time appointed by the Father?

There were some key issues Jesus had to settle with God before he could step out.

1. Sonship – The first thing God did was to bring Jesus to sonship. He did this by breaking free from the slave mentality. In other words, Jesus had to move from being a child (ordinary son) to become a son (begotten son). The first hallmark of sonship is commitment, not necessarily surrender. Jesus had always been committed to the father’s business as a child but in order for him to move to the level of sonship he had to surrender himself. When you live your life solely to please God, you enter into sonship. Some Christians are not able to establish their sonship because they are strong willed and have not surrendered to the will of God for their lives. Abraham and Isaac set the pace many years ago so also did Jesus display sonship many years later and God expects the same from us today.

The question then is:  How do you move from being children to becoming sons?

  i.            Start making decisions on your own

When you are a child you are no different from a slave as decisions are made for you. God will not give you instructions as long as you are still relying on other people.

  ii.            Move from the guidance of governors and stewards to direct access to God

Governors and stewards can be likened to the guardians of boarding school students who often possess a strong level of influence over these students. The guardians, however, do not have the final say in the decisions or instructions the pupils carry out; their parents have the final say.  So likewise our father in heaven has the final say in our affairs not our pastors and prophets.

iii.            Start to know God as a father

There are ordinary sons born of the flesh and there are begotten sons born of the spirit. A father starts to share deep things with a son when he becomes begotten.

2. Priesthood – The next thing God did was to introduce Jesus to His ministry. Just like Jesus, we have been called to order of Melchizedek (who was a king and the priest of the most high).

God led Jesus to pray before His ministry was introduced. Brethren, is God leading you or placing a burden on your heart to pray; it might be time break into you calling in life. Heb 5:6

3. New ministry – God will introduce you to a new ministry. Jesus had to submit to the ministry of John the Baptist even though he was soon going to start His own ministry. We often miss God’s timing by not being faithful in the ministry he places us in or in some cases, not seeking out the ministry that will help us discover our ministry. This period requires spiritual sensitivity because (1) God might send someone who we could easily be despise due to familiarity, difference, age and relative obscurity (2) There will be similar ministries in operation in your environment and you have to be sensitive enough to God’s choice. Acts 5:7

 4. Announcement – The last thing God did before Jesus could step out was to announce Him “This is my Son, in whom I am well pleased.” You ability to please the father will determine when He announces you.

God moves in dimensions of times and seasons, and He has a way of making things right in His time. His timing is critical to living a successful and purpose driven life and understand that there are consequences when you allow God’s timing and season to leave you behind. You will succeed in jesus name!

Pastor Dele Osunmakinde

Sunday Service Message of The Baptizing Church delivered on September 18, 2011.

ETAL Hall, Etal  Avenue, NNPC/John Holt Junction, Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun, Ikeja. LAGOS

To get this message on cd, please call +2348023695846.

How to Get your First Miracle!

Are you looking to start something new on earth?

Or perhaps looking to move to the next level of in life?

Are you waiting on God for your first miracle as you start (or plan to start) something new?

Then look no further as there is nothing new under the sun as our Lord, Jesus, as already gone through everything we are starting or planning to start. If we already have a template in Christ Jesus, then why reinvent the wheel!!!!

According to Heb 13:8, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. And because of this unique characteristic his ministry continues in us today. If his ministry continues in us, it means we can apply the principles Jesus used while he was on earth and get the same (or even better) results today.

Every miracle Jesus performed was the first of its kind, and His first miracle at the wedding in Cana [John 2:1-11] is widely regarded as the most significant as it set the pace for his ministry. If this miracle set the pace for the ministry of Jesus, it is important that has a child of God you also tap into those principles when starting something new.

How do you get your first miracle?

1.      Invite Jesus [Do everything in His name, and acknowledge Him in all your ways].

Jesus had to be invited for the miracle to happen at wedding and you also need to invite Jesus into your situation for a miracle to happen.

2.      Get ready for ideas / instructions that might not make sense [Keep an open mind]

Take a cue from Mary; she told the servants to do whatsoever Jesus asks of them- notwithstanding the fact that Jesus said His hour is yet come.

3.      Obey and do your part [The hour is here when instructions start flowing].

Open your heart to every instruction from Jesus, and understand that obeying requires that you give Jesus lordship over your affairs. Also realize that obedience to one instruction will determine if you get the next instruction. God often uses a series of instructions to deliver our miracle as such total obedience is required.

4.      Pay attention and be sensitive to potential tools/vessels in your environment.

The vessels (Mary, Pots, Water, Servants and Governor of the feast) Jesus needed for the miracle were already at the venue of the wedding.  The vessels God will use for your first miracle are already around you and in you (including your gifts, talents, physique, background, temperament etc.). Be sensitive; don’t look too far!

5.      Have faith [Make bold steps towards carrying out Jesus’ instructions]

The ball is in your court after you receive God’s instructions. If you cannot stop the fear of men and be foolish for god, you might miss your miracle. If the servants did not have faith, they probably would have tasted the water/wine before presenting it to the Governor. Mary and the servants practiced total obedience (not partial obedience as we sometimes do).

Brethren, don’t try to help God; in between the Governor receiving the water and tasting the wine, God will step in. As you practice the principles of the first miracle today, Jesus will take you from being a fetcher of water to the presence of the governor. You will succeed in Jesus name!

Pastor Dele Osunmakinde      

                

Sunday Service Message of The Baptizing Church, Lagos delivered on September 4, 2011.

ETAL Hall, NNPC/John Holt Junction, Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun, Ikeja, LAGOS.

Please call +2348023695846 to get this message on CD!