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Having the word of God as your plowshare

By Pastor Lazarus Muoka
08 December 2019   |   3:08 am
Joel 3: 9-10 says, “Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up: 10 Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong.” Brethren, the indisputable fact every Christian in this…

Beneficiaries of God’s miracle during the last Hope For The Needy Crusade held at Lagos

Joel 3: 9-10 says, “Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up: 10 Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong.”

Brethren, the indisputable fact every Christian in this generation should be familiar with is that there is an ongoing war between the kingdom of darkness, made up of the devil’s followers and the kingdom of God, made up of genuine followers of Christ, that is the born again and spirit-filled Christians. This war started in heaven, when Lucifer, with one-third of the angels, rose up against their Creator, the Almighty God, but was defeated and thrown out of heaven unto the earth. Notwithstanding, his falling unto earth didn’t preclude the war, for as soon as he found himself on earth, he continued the battle against anything that stands for God/good. And this battle is still going on.

No one who proclaims Christianity should be ignorant of this battle. The reason is that, once someone closes his eyes to it, the enemy construes that he has surrendered, and will then take undue advantage of him and treat him as a defeated foe. That is why the Scripture admonishes us to be vigilant in all manner of our conversation. It says, “Be sober, be vigilant; because of your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:” (1Peter 5: 8).

Beloved, we are exhorted to be awake and watchful over all we do, be it in thoughts, words, and actions, so that we will not compromise our position on the ongoing war and thus displease God. We should understand that the devil is a foe, an accuser, one that seeks all advantages against us and who will do all possible mischief to destroy us. He is the restless adversary, who adds terror to his cruelty while dealing with us, as it goes about seeking what soul he may devour. It grieves him to find soul aspiring to go to heaven and doesn’t relent until he sees that soul plunged into the same condemnation and misery as himself.

That is why God has commissioned us to resist the rampage of the enemy, through spreading the gospel to all ears, which is our plowshare that has been put on our hands for such purpose. All these wars waged by Satan to this effect are nothing but to destroy our precious souls. Thus, we are admonished to know that the only way to overcome him is not by yielding to him, but by preaching the word.

Our basic weapon of warfare in this battle is the word of God that proceeds from the mouth. Remember our Heavenly Father created the world by the word of His mouth (Gen.1: 1-3). Satan, on the other hand, used the word of his mouth to deceive the first man and woman, by negatively twisting the divine information (Gen.3:.1-6). And since he had successfully used the power of the tongue to deceive our forefathers, he has not relented in using it to fight the Kingdom of God and the Children of God. He holds the dissemination of deceitful information as his only effective weapon to defeat the world, and many are ignorant of this strategy. So, the ongoing war is the war of good versus bad news. And from all indications, he has found the use of digital communication as an effective tool for the execution of his programme.

It is no longer in doubt that devil has captured and corrupted the whole world, particularly the leaders of tomorrow (the youths) through the media, such as Radio, Television, Newspapers and has advanced to computer and Internet, using captivating influence of some platforms like Facebook, Chat room, YouTube, Instagram and Snapshot, among others to pollute the whole world and win followers.

Many people have become victims of the negative influence of these media, including those who lay claim to being born again Christians. As they become obsessed with corruption dished by the media, they have by extension turn out to be Satan’s prisoners of war (POW) or captives. The younger generation that is expected to lift the mantle of morality and values is now under the threat of satanic influences cum falsehood. And this can be witnessed by the level of moral decadence in the society today, vis-a-vis cultism, the marriage of the same gender, lesbianism, homosexual and assassination among others. Many nations have fallen victim of the effect of negative media and are now ruled by Satan’s followers. That is why our Lord Jesus Christ mandated all Christians to preach the good news in and out of season, for this is the only way to fight the devil and win the battle. Born again Christians should stand up now and live up to expectation and make the world sees the light and escape from the imminent danger associated with demonic darkness.

Mark 16: 15 says, “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature”

If we are to overcome the devil, we must spread the good news. If we must stop violent crime, political thuggery, corruption, abortion, homosexuality, human trafficking, lesbianism, stealing and everything about moral decadence, we must spread the good news, for our plowshare is the word of God. The gospel is the only news that changes life and cleanses man from sin and above all, brings him to everlasting bliss at the end of this life. Our Master, Jesus Christ has handed us the weapon, which we can use to secure victory against satanic battle in all our endeavours, and that is the good news of the kingdom. And there lies our righteousness, faith, power, miracles, and blessings. So, every Christian should wake up to the ongoing war, arm himself with the gospel and spread the good news of salvation, mercy, forgiveness, miracles, signs, and wonders.

Go ye, therefore, for all powers have been bestowed upon you, the world has been placed under your control. Although you may be weak, but God Who is sending you is strong and will neither leave nor forsake you. Although you may encounter many troubles and dangers, He will defend you. Although the task may look like an impossibility, but with Him, nothing is impossible. Your duty is to go to all nations and make them disciples. Go therefore and populate the Kingdom of heaven.

Matt. 28: 18-19 says, “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.”

The whole design of our commission is to teach godly moral value to the world’s citizens. This gracious commission is the foundation of the authority bestowed on us to turn the world to God and through it, win the word war. The doctrine of the gospel far transcends the wisdom of earth’s most renowned sages. And they are destined to work such a glorious change in man’s condition, as never entered the heart of any philosopher. Henceforth, I charge you as a soldier of the Kingdom of heaven to fearlessly preach the gospel to all ears for through it, we shall conquer the world for Christ. Make preaching the main business of your life and it shall be well with you.

2 Tim 4:1-2 says, “I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; 2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.”

If you are for Christ, you must be lover of souls and as such, must preach ceaselessly, not minding the associated pains, tribulation, poverty, disappointment and derision. God has called you into His workforce. Thus, you owe it a duty to meet the demand of the calling, by engaging yourself in preaching, not only when a fair occasion is given, but when there is none also.

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