The Highest and Ultimate Trophy to Win

**[Music/Choir singing]** **[Speaker 1]** Truly, a fellowship cannot be more spiritual than the individuals and families that constitute them. God always desires a godly home. These are words of restoration and instruction in righteousness from Family Tent Ministry. You will be blessed as you listen. **[Speaker 2]** Honestly, it has been God and we believe it is still Him and we know that by His mercies it will yet be Him to all ages come in the name of Jesus Christ. We want to appreciate Him that we have entered into the ninth month of the year, the ember months. The month that the Lord has made, the months that round up every year: September, October, November, and December. We are grateful to God who has been there for us from January through to the end of August. And we want to particularly glorify His name for His work among us last Monday when we gathered before the Lord in prayer. It was a time of refreshing, talking to the Lord, casting our cares upon the Lord on some of the things that God has been raising with us in the course of the discipleship class. It was the Lord our refuge. The name of the Lord is indeed a strong tower. The righteous can run into this name and be safe. And on His name we called and we believe that indeed He has responded to our cry. So this evening as we gather unto Him, we want to commence again a new topic that will take us for some time again. In our last—that was two Mondays ago—we reflected on **2 Chronicles 21**, looking at the life of Jehoram that Jehoshaphat the father handed over the kingdom to. And there were several lessons to learn. There were several things that became instructions for our lives. And I believe that as we gather again this evening, the Lord will work within us, among us, to the glory of His name. Today we want to begin to look at the highest and the ultimate trophy to win in life. The highest and the ultimate trophy to win in life. Let us have a word of prayer and then we commence this evening. Our Father and our God, we bless Your holy name. We give You glory, we give You honor, we give You praise. We give You adoration. We thank You for all who You are. We appreciate You for all that You are. We bless You for Your love, we bless You for Your mercies. We bless You, our Father, because it has been You through January till date. Lord our God, accept our thanks in the name of Jesus Christ. Lord, as we gather unto You this evening, our brethren who are joining us on Mixlr, our brethren who are joining us on Telegram, and we who are physically here on ground at Ilere, Lord our God, we are asking that Your Spirit will work within us, Your Spirit will work among us. Your Spirit will meet each and every one of us regardless of our locations in the name of Jesus Christ. Lord, as we begin to consider this matter of the highest and the ultimate trophy to win in life, Lord, we beg You, instruct our hearts. Lord, deliver us, oh God, from a life of emptiness and vanities. Help us, Lord, that we may go for the highest and the ultimate trophy. Help us, Lord, that every penultimate or opening or preliminary trophy that we have been pursuing in life and they are appearing to us as if they are the ultimate thing, Lord, help our hearts. Help our heart to see that which is the ultimate. And deliver us, oh God, from what may be mere mirage in the name of Jesus Christ. Lord, our eyes on You wherever we are located this evening and as we begin this series, Lord, go ahead of us. Every life that need to hear, that needs to encounter this teaching, Lord, they will encounter the teaching. Thank You, eternal Father. Blessed be Your holy name our God. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. The highest and the ultimate trophy to win in life. What I will first want to do as we commence today is to attend to have what I call conceptual clarification, that is, trying to explain the use of the words that are in the topic. We will now begin to relate each of those words to the scriptures and then begin to learn the application of each of these words to scriptures and then to our lives. Now when we talk about the highest, we are talking about that which is the peak of anything. The highest in anything is telling us that there are different heights, but the highest is the one that is the peak of all the heights. Now when we talk about ultimate, it means we are saying that there are several like it, but the ultimate is talking about the one that is the final of all the finals. So when you say the final final, I remember sometimes as academic person, when we design, when we have drawn up the exam timetable for our students, we call the first one draft. Then the one that will follow, they will say exam timetable. And then few weeks to the exam, you will now see final final timetable. It means this one is the ultimate of all of them. It means those other ones there were possible errors, there were points of disagreement, there were issues to reconcile. But you see this final final one, all interests have been considered. There is no consideration that has not been made. Everybody came up with their observations and comment and all observations, all comments had been entertained. So the final final is trying to say this is the perfect one. The ones that were before it, although they were timetable for exam, they were not the final one, they were not the ultimate one. So we're talking about the highest, we're talking about the peak. We're talking about the ultimate, we're talking about the final final of all trophies. A trophy actually comes with several definition. And according to the Oxford Dictionary, the Oxford Dictionary gave us about four different definitions. It says number one: an object, usually in form of a statue, a cup, or a shield—a particular object. That object is normally awarded for success in a competition. So when you look at something like the European League for those of us who are very familiar with football, or the World Cup, after all the opening matches, the quarterfinal, the semifinal, and then the final, the person who came first will be given what is a trophy. That cup is a trophy. That thing is actually an award, award for success, award for coming first. So we are talking about the highest, the peak, the ultimate, the final final of all trophies. That is, that success, what is the ultimate, what is the final of the final of success? What is the highest of all success? It means there are different dimensions to success. There are different dimensions, there are different levels to success. But there is a success that is the peak. There is a success that is the final final of success. That's one way to look at it. Another way to look at the word trophy according to the dictionary is to look at it again as something that is awarded as a mark of special achievement. So a trophy is something, is also a cup or a statue or something or a shield that marks that you see this person, this person actually had achieved something that is special. So we are saying that when things are special, special again actually has level. There are different levels in what is special. When you say an achievement is special, some achievement appear higher than some special achievement. So we're talking about the highest, the peak of special achievement, the ultimate of achievement. Another way to look at it is an object taken as the prize, as the prize, or an object taken as the prize by a conqueror. A conqueror, that object that a conqueror takes as the prize for victory is also a trophy, especially one that is displayed. And lastly, any emblem of success or status, status symbol. So putting all of these things together, it's talking about something that shows that is a sign that this person had done the unusual. So a trophy is actually a prize. So actually what we are trying to discuss from the scripture is when you want to win prize, when you are talking about achievement in life, when you are talking about success in life, what can we describe from the point of scripture as the peak of achievement? What can we describe scripturally from the point of scripture, please we are saying from the perspective of scripture, not from the perspective of philosophy, not from the perspective of science, not from the perspective of the world, not from the perspective of unbelievers—from the point of scriptures. What can we describe as the peak among prizes? What can we describe as the peak among different type of success or diverse achievement? Which one is the ultimate? Is the final final? The one that is the best of them all? And in a bid to do that, that's why I said that it's a series that we are starting today. Today is the first episode. I don't know how many episode it will take us, but I trust that the Holy Spirit will be helping us to take this journey one after the other to see how we travel through scripture, using scripture to compare scriptures and be able to come to where we can give, okay, from the point of scripture, this is what the scripture describe as the ultimate. So we first want to do some background study, some background study and that background study will begin it from the book of **2 Timothy chapter 1**. **2 Timothy chapter 1**. **2 Timothy 1**, what the word of scripture says around verse 9 and verse 10. **2 Timothy 1**, so that what we are saying can be clear. Our focus is actually verse 9. It's actually verse 9 and 10, but we will be dwelling on the verse 9, but I will read verse 8 to 10 just to bring out some understanding in reading the text. **2 Timothy chapter 1**: "Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the suffering for the gospel according to the power of God." So actually there is no need to be ashamed of the testimony of the Lord, nor of the various humiliation that it makes you to experience. The testimony of Jesus makes you to experience some kind of humiliation, some kind of situations and circumstances and treatments by the world. But we don't need to be ashamed. Paul here was a prisoner, in chain, and of course he was taken among other prisoners. Just like our Lord Jesus Christ was taken among thieves. People will see him, would think that okay this is another condemned criminal. How can somebody call himself the Messiah and be side by side with somebody like Barabbas, who was a notorious armed robber as at that time? Now, the same thing Paul was saying here that he was identified with criminals. So he was telling Timothy that you don't need to be ashamed of the circumstance or the situation or the suffering that may come with the gospel. Sometimes what may come with the gospel could be very humiliating, could be shameful, could be something that when you look at it you can, ah, you don't want to identify with it. So Paul was encouraging Timothy that even though the Roman government is treating me as if I'm a criminal, but remember that we don't need to be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord Jesus no matter what situation it may, no matter how it may make the world to look at us. But he should share with him in the suffering for the gospel, but of course nobody can do that without the power of God. And that's why I tell people, when people have a form of godliness, they are so much churchy, they are so much popular in the temple of God. Bible say they have a form of godliness, but they deny the power. They don't know the power. Nobody can live for Jesus without the power of God. The Bible says you will receive power when the Holy Spirit come upon you. You see any life that is destitute of the Holy Spirit, any life that is not in fellowship with the Holy Spirit may not be able to go through the suffering that may come alongside with the gospel. So when people are very, very churchy and you see them not able to live the Christian life, it is because they are thinking that having a form of godliness is the same thing as being godly. No. We must not only have a form of godliness, we must not deny the power. Encounter, we must not be destitute of the Holy Spirit. Our life must be a life that is in constant fellowship with the Spirit because it is by the power of God that we can actually endure the gospel. It is by the power of God that we can endure the suffering that may come alongside with the gospel. Now, having said that, he went on to the verse 9. He said, "Who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began. But has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel." Now in the verse 9, the scripture began to point our attention to something very crucial. The Bible says God, "who has saved us and called us with a holy calling." The NIV translation, the NLT translation and NIV translation read: "Who has saved us and called us to a holy life." That's NIV. NLT says: "It is God who saved us and chose us to live a holy life. He did this not because we deserved it, but because that was His plan long before the world began to show His love and kindness to us through Jesus Christ." So there was a plan. That plan, it was a plan that started long before the world began. So before the word of scripture says "In the beginning, God created heaven and earth," before the creation of the universe, God had a plan. That plan was long, long, long, long ago before time. The plan was long, had been before time long before time. The time that plan came into being was long before time began. It says: "But according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ before time began." So God had purpose, God had grace. According to God's own purpose, according to God's own grace, God gave us purpose, God gave grace. It was given in Christ before time began. When Jesus came to bring that thing into time, Jesus brought that purpose and grace in the form of eternal life. So the appearing of Jesus actually brought eternal life. That eternal life that came, it came through the preaching of the gospel. So actually when you preach the correct gospel, what it should give people is eternal life. Any gospel that don't abolish death and bring immortality to light, any kind of gospel that don't connect men to eternity, any kind of gospel that don't connect men to living eternal life is not the gospel that Jesus brought. The gospel of Jesus, the gospel about Jesus, the gospel that is the instrumentality by which Jesus accomplishes eternal life is the true gospel. So the true gospel is actually to make men to have life, and that life abundantly. That's the purpose of the gospel. So anywhere you gather that they call fellowship or church and the matter is not bringing to light a daily manifestation of connecting with eternal life, connecting with eternity, connecting with what Jesus came for. Jesus came to bring something into time. That something that he came to bring to time was what? The purpose. Look at it, I'm going back now to verse 9. It says, "But according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ before time began." So God had purpose, God had grace. God gave us purpose, God gave grace. It was given in Christ. When Jesus came to bring that thing into time, Jesus brought that purpose and grace in the form of eternal life. So eternal life is not a vague thing, brethren. Eternal life is not a vague thing. Eternal life is actually an encounter with purpose and grace in Christ. Eternal life is an encounter with purpose and grace. God had purpose, God had grace. God gave them to us in Christ. Christ came to manifest that purpose and grace in the form of eternal life. So eternal life is not a vague thing. Eternal life is actually the manifestation of purpose and grace. When a man encounter eternal life by the gospel, when the correct gospel is preached that makes a man to enter into eternal life, what that man begin to experience is what? Purpose. And what? Grace for that purpose in Christ. Now, I need to expansion on something a little again in the verse 9. Now in the verse 9, I want us to look at it a little closer again. It says: "But has now been revealed..." that's verse 10, verse 9. "Who has saved us and called us to holy life or with a holy calling, according to His own works, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ before time began." So God had purpose, God had grace. God gave us purpose, God gave grace. It was given in Christ before time began. When Jesus came to bring that thing into time, Jesus brought that purpose and grace in the form of eternal life. So eternal life is not a vague thing. Eternal life is not a vague thing. Eternal life is that I have come into Jesus. Except—please listen to me very well, listen to me very well—outside Christ there is no purpose and grace. When a man have not come, when there is no encounter with Jesus, when a life, a particular life have not encounter Jesus, we cannot be talking about purpose and grace. But you see, anytime a man says that I have encountered Jesus, I am inside Jesus, I now have eternal life, because eternal life is in Christ. This is how we know that we have eternal life, because eternal life is in the Son. He that has the Son has life. Are you getting that? Anybody that has the Son has life. Anybody who truly knows that there is encounter with eternal life, that person should also understand that eternal life is about purpose and grace. What that means is that if you are in Christ, you must understand that you have been given a purpose and a grace. That is, what we are calling eternal life is that I have discovered purpose, I have entered into purpose, and the grace to fulfill that purpose had been given to me. When a man is inside Christ and that man cannot define purpose, that life cannot define purpose and grace in Christ that person is not inside Christ. That person is actually outside Christ. What God gave us in eternal life is that He gave us purpose and grace. So that as a believer, if you don't begin to understand that what was given to you as eternal life is purpose and grace, then you don't really know what you are a Christian for. You don't understand, you have not come into the reality of eternal life. What it means that I have found life, I have abundant life is that I have realized the purpose and the grace that God gave me in Christ. When anybody is coming into Christ, inside Christ, what God gives to us inside Christ is purpose and grace. Anybody who is a believer and is not seeing purpose, anybody who is a believer and is not realizing, is not coming into a revelation of purpose, is not coming to a revelation of grace for that purpose, that purpose and that grace that is in Christ. Is not coming into daily, from glory to glory, realizing purpose and realizing grace for that purpose. That person, in actual sense of it, have not truly come into eternal life. Eternal life is actually living for purpose by grace. I hope you're understanding me. Eternal life is actually the way you say the life, I'm living a life. That life that you are talking about, that life is not vague. It's not a vacuum. It's not just attending church. Because you may attend church and still don't have eternal life. It's not just reading Bible and praying. People may pray and read Bible, but they don't have eternal life. Oh, you are saying how can that be? You remember Cornelius? You remember Cornelius? Cornelius was a man that his alms and his prayer actually became a memorial, but actually Cornelius don't have eternal life. So that that life will not be wasted, an angel appeared to him and he was told to go and send for who? For Peter. So Peter came to preach Jesus so that Cornelius can have eternal life. So please, eternal life is not a vague thing. Eternal life is not that I'm a member of—let me just use, I don't want to use any particular denomination, because my focus is not about a denomination. Let me just call a name—I'm a member of Holy Holy Holy Fellowship Church of God and I attend every Sunday. I'm in the choir, I'm in the Bible study in my church, I'm active in the local assembly. If that is all you are talking about and you are calling eternal life, you still don't understand the matter that we are discussing. Eternal life is coming to understand a purpose. It's not just being a member of a body. It's understanding your purpose. It's understanding, coming to search out what has been concealed. It is the glory of God to conceal a matter. But the glory of kings is to search out a matter. Are you getting something? It is God's privilege to conceal things and the king's privilege to discover them. The purpose and grace is something that God concealed. God planned it before time, concealed. Jesus came to reveal them. Everybody were prophesying about the purpose, were talking about the purpose, but they don't understand it. Everything was concealed. It was when Jesus manifested in time that there was a revelation, a coming into time of that plan that God had. That purpose, that thing that God purposed. God has purposed some things, God had different plans, God have things He purposed in mind. Those things are to be done in time. Don't misunderstand something. That purpose of God is to be done in time. That is why Jesus Christ said, "I must finish the work of Him that have called me while it is day, because a time is coming when no man can work." I hope you understand me. That purpose is for time and it is to be accomplished in time. But the revelation of this purpose began with Jesus through bringing eternal life. So eternal life is not vague. Eternal life is not something that is vague. Please don't forget that eternal life is actually an encounter with purpose and grace in Christ. Eternal life is an encounter with purpose and grace. God had purpose, God had grace. God gave them to us in Christ. Christ came to manifest that purpose and grace in the form of eternal life. So eternal life is not a vague thing. Eternal life is actually the manifestation of purpose and grace. When a man encounter eternal life by the gospel, when the correct gospel is preached that makes a man to enter into eternal life, what that man begin to experience is what? Purpose. And what? Grace for that purpose in Christ. So, the point I am making and where we are closing for today is this. Eternal life outside Jesus, the ultimate, the highest and ultimate is different. Where men exist, what is the highest and the ultimate is a complete is completely a different thing. When we come into a kingdom where men are alive, the ultimate and the highest and the ultimate in the kingdom is completely a different thing outside the kingdom. It's a different ball game altogether outside the kingdom. And one greatest mistake you may make in life is to pursue the law of existence and get to the peak of existence, but you never lived. You only existed. That's where we are closing the meeting today. We must endeavor to live and not just exist. We must endeavor, we must strive, we must painstakingly—it is your honor to search out a matter. It is the glory of God to conceal the matter. It is your honor to search it out. It is the glory of God to conceal it. It is your honor to search it out. I pray you will not live a life that is not honorable. Until you search out, you can never be honorable. You must search out what was concealed to be honorable. You must search out what was concealed. What was given to you in Christ. The package for you in Christ, you must search it out. If you don't search it out, your life can never be honorable. Let us pray. Let us pray. Wherever you are, just talk to the Lord this evening. Wherever you are, just talk to the Lord. I must not just exist, I must live. That is our opening, the opening charge for this topic: the highest and the ultimate trophy to win. You must pray this evening that God, I must not just exist, I must live. I must not just exist, I must live. I must not just exist, I must live. Lord Jesus, Lord, it is my honor to search it out. It is my honor to search it out, that which was given to me in You. The purpose and grace that was given to me before time began to be fulfilled in time. I must fulfill it in time and night comes when I can no more work. I must fulfill it in time. Talk to the Lord this evening. Our Father, we thank You. Our God, we bless Your name. Our God, we lift You high. We appreciate You for this evening. Lord, we thank You, we thank You. O Lord, we are just praying, Lord, grant us revelation, grant us inspiration. Lord, help us, Lord, help us. As we have started up today, Lord, go ahead of us. Bring us to a the fullness of understanding of this matter. That Lord, we may not just exist, that we may live. Thank You, eternal Father. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Let's share the grace together. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us now and forevermore. Amen. **[Speaker 1]** This message is coming to you from Family Tent Ministry, a Christian ministry involved in reaching the lives of singles and married through preaching and teaching of God's word, discipleship, family life enrichment, social and community development, and mission aid. Our regular activities are: discipleship class every Monday, 5:00 PM; adolescents and singles club every first Saturday of every month at 10:00 AM; marriage forum, second Saturday of every month at 10:00 AM; family life seminars, regular school out-reaches, and everyday counseling. For further counseling, you can reach us at our location: Life Camp, by the first bridge, Ilere community, opposite Verajoy filling station, along Iju-Ishere Road, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria. You can also reach us through our social media handles: familytent@yahoo.co.uk, familytentministry01@gmail.com, www.familytentministry.org. Our phone numbers are 08033861136, 07033613848. God bless you all. **[Music/Choir singing ends]**