Cdc — 19 MAR 2018

[Music: Sons of God marching on, the gospel of the Lord, he’s coming after us with the presence of the Lord. He has given us the grace of mercy to go on. Glory to his name...] [Voiceover]: Church and fellowships cannot be more spiritual than the individuals and families that constitute them. God greatly desires a godly home front. These are words of restoration and instruction in righteousness from Family Term Ministry. May you be blessed as you listen. [Leader]: Today we will take the matter from 1 John 5:18. This matter of "beyond the edge." 1 John 5:18, please if you are there. King James says, "We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not." Another translation, Living Bible. [Reader]: No one who has become a part of God's family makes a practice of sin. But Christ, God's Son, holds him securely, and the devil cannot get his hands on him. [Leader]: It's the other way around as it puts it. For Christ holds him securely, the Son of God holds him securely, and the devil cannot get hold of him. Another translation? Message. [Reader]: We know that none of the God-begotten makes a practice of sin—the God-begotten are also God-protected. The evil one cannot lay a hand on them. [Leader]: Amplified. [Reader]: We know absolutely that anyone born of God does not deliberately and knowingly practice sin, but the one who was begotten of God carefully watches over and protects him—Christ's divine presence within him preserves him against the evil—and the wicked one does not lay hold (get a grip) on him or touch him. [Leader]: We know absolutely. That word attracted me. We know—not relatively. We know absolutely. It's an absolute truth. What do you mean by absolute? What's the implication when something is absolute? It means in all situations, it remains the same. Some truths are relative. For example, "honor your father and your mother" is a truth of God, but the truth is relative. There are situations where you may be forced not to obey your parents. So, obeying them is relative, even though honoring them is absolute. You honor them constantly. When you want to disobey, you say, "E jo, ma binu, sir, mi o le se yen." The honor is absolute, but the obedience is relative. That's what happened between Nebuchadnezzar and the three Hebrew boys. There was something they wanted them to do that was contrary to God. So, obedience is relative, depends on... but honor is absolute. But when you say "we know absolutely," it means there is no situation where we can vary it. The reason why I'm saying these things, because the church has come to a point where we believe that there are sinning saints. There are sin that continued to stay, as long as they continue to repent, there's no problem. But we are looking at another side. Please, let's use the microphone. Look at Philippians chapter 2, verses 12 and 13. [Reader]: Dearest friends, when I was there with you, you were always careful to follow my instructions. And now that I am away, you must be even more careful to do the good things that result from being saved, obeying God with deep reverence, shrinking back from all that might displease him. For God is at work within you, helping you want to obey him and helping you do what he wants. [Leader]: Do you see the two sides again in that scripture? What are you to do? You are to work out your salvation. What is God doing again? God is the one working in you both to will and to do. You see the two sides again. "Work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God that is at work in you, both to will and to do of His good pleasure." The question yesterday was: what is the meaning of the trembling? "Work it out with fear and trembling." What is the fear and trembling? The Message translation brings it out. [Reader]: You should simply keep on doing what you've been doing since the beginning. When I was living among you, you lived in responsive obedience. Now that I'm separated from you, keep it up. Better yet, double your efforts. Be energetic in your life of salvation, reverent and sensitive before God. That energy is God's energy, an energy deep within you, God himself willing and working at what will give him the most pleasure. [Leader]: Do you see it again? That energy is God's energy. So, work it with fear and trembling. What is the fear and trembling? Sensitivity, awareness, watchfulness, knowing that God is at work in you. The way God works in us, if you are not alert, if you are not at the edge—that's what's called fear and trembling. You are not sensitive, you are not careful. Over and over and over again, you would have missed God. He may just give you a nod, "Pray a little more." It may just be a quiet word, "Meditate further." It may just be, "Don't go out this morning." The way God works—God is at work. The work of salvation is not so much power, it's not so much effort. It is God that is at work. But God works in us both to what? To will. Even the willingness to do, God works it, and then He works it again to do. But many times, you will not know it is God. You will miss God over and over and over and over again, and you will be struggling in your faith because you have missed God severally and diversely. Don't forget where we are coming from. We're talking of why do men go beyond the edge? Last week we saw that a bait is always placed beyond the edge. The bait comes in form of something attractive. We didn't mention the other one: it comes in form of plausible reasoning, good argument, philosophical logical reasoning. You look at it logically, you say that, logically speaking, this thing is okay. And we warned ourselves last week, beware of logic. Truth is not necessarily logical. In fact, sometimes truth is so much lacking logic, and that is why you see the average philosopher always find themselves fighting truth. Why will he say Jesus is the only way when there are several ways? On what basis is He the only one? He says Jesus is a way to God, don't say He is the only way. Mohammed is one, Ogun is another, Sango is another. What makes Jesus "only"? And they will tell you that is "religiocentrism." Religiocentrism means you are looking down on others, you are promoting yours above others. And so we should be careful of religiocentrism, we should avoid it. There should be relativity. That's why "Olorun ko ni gbogbo wa n sin." And when you talk like that, everybody seems to say, "Yes, you are okay." "Olohun a se t’eni. To ba n pe Ogun, ko pe Ogun. Sango ko pe Sango." Then you look—relativity—then that person is a balanced Christian. Jesus was not a balanced Christian. He was not looking balanced from that argument. When you say, "No, He is Only," then... I'm talking about reasoning. We said that another reason why we go beyond the edge is things that look very logical and reasonable. But we warned ourselves. God has spoken, and God doesn't need to argue. Many times, man doesn't realize that the person he is dealing with is somebody that he cannot change the person's mind. You cannot change God's mind about a matter. That you can say "you see"—like I gave an example last time—"you see, two people, after all, if there are people who are already sexually active, it is nothing wrong if you give them condoms and they are using it so that it will prevent HIV and all that." It looks arguable. But that does not change the mind of God. He—the person we are dealing with—is somebody we cannot change His mind. He has spoken, He has spoken. So, reasoning this way, reasoning that way, it doesn't change what He has said. It remains what He has said. But what we are looking at today is the fact that we are looking at something from inside. We have looked at the matter from outside, we are looking at the matter from inside. It says, "He that is born of God keepeth himself, and the evil one toucheth him not." But when you look at some other translation, it makes you to see that the keeping is not really about himself; it's the man's work as God works. Do you get what I'm trying to bring out this evening? It's not really about himself. There are inside to stay within the edge, he that is born of God keeps himself. But that keeping of himself, there is something about it. That thing that is about it is for him to realize that it is God that works. The reason why I'm emphasizing this thing, I want us to look at something in Proverbs. Proverbs 14:27. Or let's take it from... Proverbs 10:27. First, Proverbs 10:27. Who is reading for us? [Reader]: The fear of the Lord prolongeth days: but the years of the wicked shall be shortened. [Leader]: The fear of the Lord prolongeth days. Don't forget we talk of being cut short outside the edge. I want to show you something about within the edge. The fear of the Lord does what? Prolongs days. Can we have another translation? [Reader]: The fear of God expands your life, but a wicked life is a puny life. [Leader]: Puny life. Short one. A very short one. Puny life. Just... is cut short. Yes, another translation. [Reader]: Reverence for God adds hours to each day. How can the wicked expect a long, good life? [Leader]: Reverence for God adds hours... I love this so much. It adds hours to each day, as if you have more than 24 hours. Reverence for God adds hours to each day. How can the wicked expect a long, good life? Okay, 14:26. [Reader]: In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge. [Leader]: Another translation? [Reader]: Reverence for God gives a man deep strength; his children have a place of refuge and security. [Leader]: Proverbs 14:27. Amplified. [Reader]: Reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, that one may avoid the snares of death. [Leader]: Reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord is a fountain of life that we may avoid the snares of death. Don't forget that last week we were looking at the snare. We said what makes a snare a snare is what? It does not appear like a snare. The strength of a trap is that it does not appear as a trap. Once a trap appears as a trap, it is no more a trap. Now, we are looking at another... "he that is born of God keepeth himself and the evil one toucheth him not." But we are looking at the fact that this keeping of himself, I'm trying to say is not in one capacity that is himself. It says the fear of God is what? The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life to depart from the snares of death. Now, death has a snare. The snare we don't know it. The snare we don't even understand it. The way they come sometimes, we not even realize that it is a snare. But we saw why men depart. It's attractive, plausible reasoning. Now, the scripture is giving us another side to it. That there is something that makes a man depart from the snare. What makes a man depart from the snare is not about looking out for the snare. Are you following me at all? It's about what? It now talks about another fountain. What is that fountain? It says the fear of God is a fountain of life to depart from the snares of death. I want to show you something. We will still come back to some of these scriptures. I want you to see something that David said in Psalm 25:15. Let's have the translation that we have. [Reader]: My eyes are ever toward the Lord; for he shall pluck my feet out of the net. [Leader]: He shall pluck my feet out of what? Do you get something? My eyes are ever where? On the Lord. Listen. There is a snare. Where are your feet? Where do you walk with your feet? Is it not on the floor? Where are your eyes? Are you looking for the snare? Your eyes are on the Lord and He is keeping your feet from the snare. Are you getting what I'm showing you? We have looked at why men break the snare like this. But I'm showing you something about "he that is born of God keepeth himself." The keeping of himself, I'm trying to say is not in one capacity that is in himself. You see, "except the Lord watch over the city, the watchman stayeth awake in vain." Work out your salvation with fear and trembling. However, it is the Lord that is at work. The Psalmist said, "my feet is going, but my eyes are not on my feet." You know normally, if they say a trap is on the floor, what do you do to walk? You begin to, "E j'a pa m'olowo o," and then you begin to... you get the point I'm making. But the Psalmist said that is not the way to escape the snare. What did he say? He said my eyes are on the Lord and yet the snare, my feet did not enter the snare. Are you getting something? The death and the snares of death are ever around us. They are ever with us. But, you see, once our confidence to escape the snare shift from the Lord to ourselves, then there will still be a problem. There will still be a problem. You see, the snares of death—there is only a fountain that makes a man to escape it. That fountain is a fountain that comes from the fear of the Lord. It says the fear of the Lord is the fountain of life. Fountain is something like a source. You need a fountain. Fountain is something that keeps—you understand me? Something keeps... except life keeps coming. Except life is constantly coming. Except God is constantly working in us and through us. It's not the common-sense reasoning that can help us through. Let me give you a good example for instance. The Lord told Abraham, "Don't go down to Egypt." The Lord told Isaac, "Don't go down to Egypt." When it got to Jacob, Jacob was told what? "Go down to Egypt, for I will be with you and I will bring you up again." If Jacob was to be looking at Abraham, Isaac—you get the point I'm making—what would have happened? He would have assumed that... but he knew that God said we should not go to that place. So, that was why he was struggling with the... he was going but he was struggling. God now appeared to him at Beersheba and said, "Don't be afraid to go down." I'm talking about the fountain of life. Are you understanding me? To escape the snare of death, the fountain of life. There is something that is springing. Something is always springing up. Something is always coming up. Something is always springing up. You see, one major problem Christianity is facing today is that we are people that our flow of life is from our common sense. One major thing that rules our life today is our common sense. It is less of that flow. Are you understanding what I'm trying to say? It is less of that flow. There is a flow. That flow is the one that keeps our feet from the... Look at this episode of Abraham and Lot. If you look at everything going at the point of the decision, Lot will make it faster. Everything going, Abraham was given a land that was not fertile. Lot chose all. "All." Everything going, you will be very sure that Lot will make it faster. Now, in that situation, what made opportunity very certain and clear? You can see. It's clear. Now, but you know ordinarily, nothing could have changed that fact except that something is going to interrupt the process that is unknown to everybody. Even Abraham himself was discouraged when Lot chose everything. You know he was discouraged. God had to tell Abraham, "Abraham, Abraham, lift up your eyes. Look to the north, look to the south. Everywhere your eye—I will give you. Arise, arise, walk, walk, walk round, walk round." God had to... because Abraham could not see a future himself. But what was guiding Abraham was "we are not supposed to strive, for we are brethren." If you choose to the right, I will choose to the left. What was guiding him? "Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth." That meek man, as far as all of us are concerned in that situation, was a foolish man. Was he not a foolish man? Was he not a foolish man? When you are like that... what happened? He took everything. So what happened? what happened? Go and ask your parents. "S'ebi omo Yoruba ni yin, se won o d'afa n'le yin?" Go and ask your parents. Oracles! Did they do oracles among you? Go and ask your parents. It's oracles in those days. And what do they do? They trust the oracles. Am I not correct? They trust the oracles. Go and know the future of Africa, read *Things Fall Apart*. When the white man first came, they went to meet the oracle, and they told them that this is just like a locust. This is just one that has come, that many more will still come. That was what the oracle told them and so in order to kill the spy, that's why they killed that first person, hoping that the others but eventually colonialism took over. But trying to represent that the fathers went to the oracles. Look at what Chinua Achebe was trying to say in that thing. What did he tell Okonkwo? He said, "This boy calls you father. Don't have a hand in his death." But they made you to see how much they trusted these oracles. Eventually, it has come to our own time when we have what was more than oracles. We threw it away and started with, "Let us date the lady a little and see how compatible, then we will now marry." They are mad. They don't understand. It cannot work it out. It is not by the... There are events and upon events that are going to show up that compatibility cannot make you see. And I keep wondering: if we have a God who knows the future, why are we busy searching the future by common sense? Why don't we just ask God, "God, how will it be with this person?" Even our fathers who don't have God, they trust their oracles. They trust their oracles. You will see them when they want to take decision, they don't do anything by... No, when they want to do marriage, they will go, "Oya, e lo ye wo." Go and consult the oracles, let's see what will come out. Then they will go, "Ah, the oracle says ife ni ko so n'na. Ah, Baba etu ba mi da, Baba, please, pour it again whether I will be able to marry him." And then he will carry it again, pour it again, he will pour the thing on the floor again. "Ah, the oracle says it will be good small, but at the end it will not be good. Eh, Baba! So I won't marry this person?" You can't marry him, the oracle has pronounced judgment, you can't marry him. And then they will go and look for another person again. It was not by dating. Was it by dating? They trusted these oracles. Then we got to our own time where we got what was more than oracles. We threw it away and started... "just go out with her, you should notice that both of you you talk well, you relate well, and you notice that or he can pat you on the back when you are crying..." It means you are compatible, you are very compatible, then just let us know. And then you go, "Ah, in fact, if there's anything about... we are emotionally compatible, we are physically compatible, we are mentally compatible, we are this compatible..." Then what are we waiting for? "That is the will of God! That is the will of God!" There's no other way God works. "Somebody shout Hallelujah, come on now," and then they arrange marriage. But after four, five, six, seven years, "You see, you know..." They say, "Ah, how could he have left her in Nigeria and go and take another wife in... ah, ah!" You don't understand. There are factors. There are factors, there are things that God can... so many things, so many things come up in life that the physical eyes cannot see. That's why I'm trying to bring out is that even if they give opportunity and you open your eye like this and you look and you are careful, you check, you check, say, "Ah, this is okay." What makes it to be okay or not transcends the immediate judgment. What will make it not to be okay may be 20 years later, which only Baba can see. Hope you are following me, brethren. So, when we are talking of "he that is born of God keepeth himself," it transcends "I am careful, I am watchful." I'm not saying that is not relevant. But what I'm trying to say is that the one that scripture shows us more clearly is that the fear of the Lord is a fountain. If a fountain is not coming, if something is not springing constantly, you cannot escape the snares of death. If something is not springing—something must be springing. Something must be springing. A life must be springing. Something must be springing, it springs forth. And what is the life? He said, "The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life." So, when we are talking about this matter of snare, we're talking of escaping the snares of life. The first thing you must see about this matter of snare is that... there is a fountain. There's a fountain that springs from the fear of God. That is what He meant by "work out your salvation with fear and trembling." Have reverence fear for God, worship of God in His presence, having a life with God, having a communion with Him, having something that springs. Something is springing forth. Something is coming out. And every time when I talk with you, I've always given this example... for those of you who have always been with me. I was doing well as an accounting student at Federal Polytechnic, Ado. I mean I was among the first five students in class. When the Lord... it was when I was registering for my second year that the Lord said, "Son, you cannot read accounting." And I struggled, I... oh, my president gave all kinds of reason: "Brother Wale, listen. Number one, if you become a chartered accountant, if it is ministry, you will have time. You will just employ other accountants, you may even be able to have your own private firm and then you will be able to face ministry. An accountant is this and that and that." My vice president came, they spoke. My friends said, "Look, don't be mistaken. God doesn't want us to bury our talent." I mean reasoning. These are reasoning because the truth is that till date, I don't read accounting to understand accounting. When I was in poly, I don't read it. What I just hear in class and the teach it, I don't read again. As complex as accounting is. People will go, they will read through the night. They will still come back and meet me who slept through the night and say, "We have read, we don't understand." And I will sit them down and I will explain. I became an authority in poly. I mean people will come across me, they will come because they don't understand. "Se o ti ka?" I'll say, "Mi o ni o, o ti ye mi ni, o ti ye mi." "How could you just understand without studying something?" So when I was dropping it, my friends said, "See, this is God-given talent. Remember the person who buried his talent." I mean reasoning. I was not acting a drama that I was sure of what would happen next. It was a life story, I didn't know what would happen next. But God said you can go ahead, but know for certain that you will perish. I said, "Okay." And I left it. And I saw God. "Go and become a sociologist," and I went. And today I'm a sociologist. But I can look back today and I look at so many things. Even though my wife once said something one day. You know as far as money is concerned, she is the manager. If you give me money, I confuse it. She manages the family resources. If you give me money for this, money for that, after four, five days, I will have mixed money for Maggi with curry with... she will ask, "Okay, where's the one for this one?" I said, "Ah, I think we used to buy petrol. What of the one for this one?" I would have... when it was becoming a problem between the two of us, I said, "Since we don't run separate account, you can manage the money, so you'll be telling me when I want, I'll be taking from you so we'll be able to do the account." She said, "Thank God you didn't even do accounting. Maybe this is how you would have, even though you are sincere and sincerely, I was managing ministry account." When we brought Funmbi's husband to come and audit the account, the account was confused. I'm telling you a true life story. He said, "Ah, I didn't put the... where did you spend?" I said, "I don't know." He said, "But this money..." I said, "When I have money, I just spend on the ministry." He said, "Oko, thank God you are an internal auditor." That's what he said. He said, "Oko, thank God you're an internal auditor. Come and manage the account. Let's see the ministry account." I could not explain. He said, "Oko, don't worry what we will do. All those ones that you cannot explain—I don't know what to write—put something, put something." So the whole thing was just confused. There was so much expense, we didn't know where the money came from. So I said, "Sometimes I will just turn my money on this..." He said, "So when you want to pay, you first put the money into the bank and now withdraw it?" I said I did not know that one. "Okay, so as from now, let's say all of this one, all the tip, we could not audit this one. Now, from this date..." Just imagine if it's an external auditor. You see, what I'm trying to bring out is that the death inherent in our situation are not things that by common sense you can say, "Ah, I know, ah, I know. This sister that is two-by-three-by-five, this job that is coming from this, this job will lead to this, I can—" my brother, you can't see. Some of the death are so planted in a way that they will come after 15 years' time, which only Baba can see. Let us pray for this evening. Please, don't just take these things, spread this message. Go back to your fellowship, go back to your churches. The Lord is calling His people back into His presence. He is the fountain of life. Marital crisis will not end—towards the end we will relate it to marriage eventually. Personal crisis will not end. People will dwindle, they will dwindle, they will run that way, and at the end they will come to their wit's end. They won't know how they started. You will see medical doctors committing suicide. You see professors committing suicide. You see that one committing... you'll be wondering, "Kil’o n sele?" What is the problem? There are foundational issues. We are leaving the fountain. There is a fountain of life to depart from the snares of death. The death is not the thing that common sense can just pick out. It's not a thing that calculation, that—no, no, no, no, no. The way this death are programmed, the adversary we are dealing with, he understands that no, these people too they have reasoning now, they can reason this one out. He knows human beings. He knows them. He knows... so He will pitch, "No, let me arrange it like this." Several arrangings! But oh, "he that is born of God keepeth himself." That's why he says they are kept by Jesus and the evil one cannot touch them. They are kept by Jesus, the evil one cannot touch them. The evil one cannot touch them. They are kept by Him. He comes to them as a fountain of life. He comes to them as a fountain. Even where everybody will see life, they will say, "No, I'm not going that way." They say, "Ah, young man, go!" He said, "No, I'm not going." Why? He says, "I have a fountain, there is a spring, something is springing inside." That thing is telling me that this thing that all of you cannot see, I can see something. I want you to beg God. God, God, God, let me not carry ordinary broken cistern around. Broken cistern, Lord, Lord, I plug myself into the fountain. The fear of the Lord is a fountain. In His presence is life. Being with Him, staying there, and the life begin to spring forth. My son, turn right. My daughter, turn left. No, no, no, don't go that way. No, you cannot take this one. People will not see it, he says, "No, I'm not going that way. I'm going this way." That is the fountain. It's a fountain of life. That is what we need. That is what we need, brethren. The Lord says tell your brethren to return to the fountain. Return to the fountain, don't carry broken cistern around. Don't carry broken cistern, they will not carry you further. They will not carry you to where you want to get to. They may carry you for a while, but they cannot carry you all through. Thank you, Father. Thank you, everlasting Father. Blessed be your name. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.