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YOU ARE THE LIGHT OF YOUR FAMILY. There is more in god. LOOK TO THE PRIzE SET BEFORE YOU. MA RI R A WRITTEN BY: OPALE FRANK. BY THE INSPIRATION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. WITH SPECIAL THANKS TO: APOSTLE GRACE LUBEGA. 1ST EDITION. GE

Scriptural references are from the Amplified Bible. About this book. This book talks about very many aspects concerning the faith we have in God, it talks about marriage in its entirety, it talks about family, it talks about love, the contemporary situation, and very many things that the Holy Spirit will be teaching you as you go through it. Table of contents. Heavenly minded saints…………..9. The dust…………………………………..10. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel..13. Marriage ……………………………………24. 2

Spiritual things spiritually discerned……36. Every spoiling has origin………………45. Why burn with passion? ……………..58. The fruit of Love……………………………63. Under persecution principles…………70. Single for the service of God…………..75. Children………………………………………….92. Predestined by God………………………..96. The value of a soul………………………….100. Dying to find God……………………………..103. You are the Light of the world…………114. The prize set before you………………….132. 3

It is amazing to see that Scripture revolves around the relationship between God, man and woman. However we realize that it was all an initiative of God as He created and formed man and woman, reconciled the lost relationship by sending forth His Son to purchase their eternal Salvation when they fell. One of the most wonderful truth is that we have an attachment to everything the Scriptures talk about, for the Bible says in ROMANS 5:12-19 “Therefore, as sin came into the world through one man, and death as the result of sin, so death spread to all men, [no one being able to stop it or to escape its power] because all men 4

sinned. [To be sure] sin was in the world before ever the Law was given, but sin is not charged to men`s account where there is no law [to transgress]. Yet death held sway from Adam to Moses [the Lawgiver], even over those who did not themselves transgress [a positive command] as Adam did. Adam was a type (prefigure) of the One Who was to come [in reverse, the former destructive, the Latter saving]. But God`s free gift is not at all to be compared to the trespass [His grace is out of all proportion to the fall of man]. For if many died through one man`s falling away (his lapse, his offense), much more profusely did God`s grace and 5

free gift [that comes] through the undeserved favor of the one Man Jesus Christ abound and overflow to and for [the benefit of] many. Nor is the free gift at all to be compared to the effect of that one [man`s] sin. For the sentence [following the trespass] of one [man] brought condemnation, whereas the free gift [following] many transgressions brings justification (an act of righteousness). For if because of one man`s trespass (lapse, offense) death reigned through that one, much more surely will those who receive [God`s] overflowing grace (unmerited favor) and the free gift of righteousness [putting 6

them into right standing with Himself] reign as kings in life through the one Man Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One). Well then, as one man`s trespass [one man`s false step and falling away led] to condemnation for all men, so one Man`s act of righteousness [leads] to acquittal and right standing with God and life for all men. For just as by one man`s disobedience (failing to hear, heedlessness, and carelessness) the many were constituted sinners, so by one Man`s obedience the many will be constituted righteous (made acceptable to God, brought into right standing with Him).” We realize that to God there are 7

only two [b] Beings who ever lived this earth, namely; Adam and Jesus. In 1 CORINTHIANS 15:45-49 the Bible says “Thus it is written, The first man Adam became a living being (an individual personality); the last Adam (Christ) became a life-giving Spirit [restoring the dead to life]. But it is not the spiritual life which came first, but the physical and then the spiritual. The first man [was] from out of earth, made of dust (earthlyminded); the second Man [is] the Lord from out of heaven. Now those who are made of the dust are like him who was first made of the dust (earthly-minded); and as is [the Man] from heaven, so also 8

[are those] who are of heaven (heavenlyminded). And just as we have borne the image [of the man] of dust, so shall we and so let us also bear the image [of the Man] of heaven.” In the Book of Genesis 3, what befell the first Adam is revealed to us in this way, GENESIS 3:14 says “And the Lord God said to the serpent, Because you have done this, you are cursed above all [domestic] animals and above every [wild] living thing of the field; upon your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust [and what it contains] all the days of your life.” And Verse 19 says “In the sweat of your face shall you eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you 9

were taken; for dust you are and to dust you shall return.” In analyzing the above verses, we see that although Adam was formed from the dust as revealed to us in GENESIS 2:7 which says “Then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath or spirit of life, and man became a living being.” God did not intend man to have an attachment to it [dust]. We also realize that the dust itself was good according to God`s mind, however the issue was in the precedence of the curses and punishments which were [the serpent, Eve and Adam], in other words the principle of preeminence changed as 10

we all know that God had subjected everything inclusive of woman to the authority of man; this meant that it would be understandable if it was only woman who ate what was forbidden, because whenever God visited the Garden of Eden, His first concern was where Adam was [who then gave accountability for every creature]. We see that when sentence was being passed by God, the serpent was to “eat dust [and what it contains] all its days” meaning that since man was made from the innocent dust, he was to be subject to the mind of the devil all his life, and this is why the preposition changed as he was 11

to return to it [not just being buried after he died, but he was at end of the day to partake of the very destination of the devil]. This is the very reason why Jesus in JOHN 8:43-44 said “Why do you misunderstand what I say? It is because you are unable to hear what I am saying. [You cannot bear to listen to My message; your ears are shut to My teaching.] You are of your father, the devil, and it is your will to practice the lusts and gratify the desires [which are characteristic] of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a 12

falsehood, he speaks what is natural to him, for he is a lair [himself] and the father of lies and of all that is false.” Here we see that Jesus did not tell these people that they were of their father Adam from whom they came from; but He said that they are of their father the devil. This meant that although these men struggled in whatever way possible to walk in the path of God, they would eventually end up gratifying their father the devil. Thanks be to God Who made Abraham [by faith through believing] a Father of the faithful because of the preparation of the coming Jesus Christ the Redeemer of the lost bringing them 13

to reconciliation to the Father [God], as we know that Jesus to come in the flesh had to come from a lineage. This is why the Bible in MATTHEW 1:2 starts the genealogy of Jesus Christ from Abraham saying, “Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers.” This is the very reason to as to why when Jesus Christ was manifested in the flesh, His message was about faith which comes by believing His Word and His Person. By Scripture we are revealed to the reason why God allowed Himself to be called the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Israel. In the Book of 14

HEBREWS 11:8-10 the Bible says “[Urged on] by faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed and went forth to a place which he was destined to receive as an inheritance; and he went, although he did not know or trouble his mind about where he was to go. [Prompted] by faith he dwelt as a temporary resident in the land which was designated in the promise [of God, though he was like a stranger] in a strange country, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs with him of the same promise. For he was [waiting expectantly and confidently] looking forward to the city which has fixed and firm foundations, whose Architect and 15

Builder is God.” Verse 13-16 says “These people all died controlled and sustained by their faith, but not having received the tangible fulfillment of [God`s] promises, only having seen it and greeted it from a great distance by faith, and all the while acknowledging and confessing that they were strangers and temporary residents and exiles upon the earth. Now those people who talk as they did show plainly that they are in search of a fatherland (their own country). If they had been thinking with [homesick] remembrance of that country from which they were emigrants, they would have found constant opportunity to return to it. But 16

the truth is that they were yearning for and aspiring to a better and more desirable country, that is, a heavenly [one]. For that reason God is not ashamed to be called their God [even to be surnamed their God--the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob], for He has prepared a city for them.” We see maturity spoken of in this portion of Scripture, relating it to GENESIS 13:14-18 which says “The Lord said to Abram after Lot had left him, Lift up now your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward; For all the land which you see I will give to you and to your posterity 17

forever. And I will make your descendants like the dust of the earth, so that if a man could count the dust of the earth, then could your descendants also be counted. Arise, walk through the land, the length of it and the breadth of it, for I will give it to you. Then Abram moved his tent and came and dwelt among the oaks or terebinths of Mamre, which are at Hebron, and built there an altar to the Lord.” We realize that from what God was willing to give to Abram inclusive of the whole earth as He had instructed him stating all the four directions of the so called compass, descendants as many as the dust [remember the subjection of the 18

dust] of the earth; we see that the Abram chose them not as Verse 18 says that he moved his tent and came and dwelt among the oaks or terebinths of Mamre, we see that Abram looked not at not at this offer but by faith looked forward to the city [New Jerusalem] which has fixed and firm foundations, whose Architect and Builder is God [HEBREWS 11:10]. This is the reason to as to why the Bible tells in Verse 9 that Abraham [prompted] by faith he dwelt as a temporary resident in the land which was designated in the promise [of God, though he was like a stranger] in a strange country, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs 19

with him of the same promise; this is the reason as to why Moses although did not reach the land promised to the children of Israel, was revealed to us in the transfiguration of Jesus Christ [MATTHEW 17:3] because of his faith in God, this is the very reason to as to why promised land to the Israelites was attached to carnal things such as milk and honey because them who followed after [the descendants] did not understand Abraham, this is the very reason to as ROMANS 9:7-8 which talks about the descendants of Abraham does not in any way reconcile them to the physical world but the Spiritual, as it says, “And they are 20

not all the children of Abraham because they are by blood his descendants. No, [the promise was] Your descendants will be called and counted through the line of Isaac [though Abraham had an older son]. That is to say, it is not the children of the body [of Abraham] who are made God`s children, but it is the offspring to whom the promise applies that shall be counted [as Abraham`s true] descendants.” What I seek to mean in all this is that marriage and family can only defined from the perspective of faith. In the Book AMOS 3:3 God asks a profound question saying “Do two walk together except they make an 21

appointment and have agreed?” Analyzing the above Scripture, in GENESIS 2:18 the Bible says “Now the Lord God said, it is not good (sufficient, satisfactory) that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper meet (suitable, adapted, complementary) for him.” Furthermore, in GENESIS 2:21-24 the Bible says “And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam; and while he slept, He took one of his ribs or a part of his side and closed up the [place with] flesh. And the rib or part of his side which the Lord God had taken from the man He built up and made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. Then Adam said, 22

This [creature] is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of a man. Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and shall become united and cleave to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” We see God when making woman, made her from the rib of man, and from the place where the rib was taken from, the Bible says that flesh was put as a covering. This reminds us of the place in EZEKIEL 36:26-27 which says “A new heart will I give you and a new spirit will I put within you, and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I 23

will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you shall heed My ordinances and do them.” In the New Living Translation the Bible calls the heart of flesh as a tender and responsive heart; this is the reason why when man at the Garden of Eden arose from sleep directly and positively responded to Woman the creation from God saying “This [creature] is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh”. This meant that then and then Woman could understand man just as man understood her, this is no mistake that at the end of the day when man finds a perfect mate [wife] just as Adam was meant for Eve, they 24

introduce each other to their parents [Guardians] and the two become one flesh. The Bible says that God blessed and ordained marriage; it is big to understand the magnitude of the Words from God, the Bible in ISAIAH 55:10-11 says “For as the rain and snow come down from the heavens, and return not there again, but water the earth and make it bring forth and sprout, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, So shall My word be that goes forth out of My mouth: it shall not return to Me void [without producing any effect, useless], but it shall accomplish that which I please and purpose in the thing for which I sent it.” If 25

we see that God is very sure about His Word, He too desires our meditations to be in the surety of the promises He promised us. The Bible clearly speaks of the water watering the earth and because of this the earth carries the ability to bring forth and sprout; more than this, because of the waters the earth still carries the ability to discern between the sower and eater, who both require different results from the ground. We saw this manifestation when Christ was on this face of the earth, the Bible speaks of Him being the Sower, it speaks of Him being the Seed which is the Word of God, it speaks of Him being the Bread of Life 26

from Heaven, it speaks of Him being the Giver of Living water that those who take from it never thirst or hunger anymore; this means that to God, He is sure of the Son Whom He gave unto us that He is able to solve anything that is beyond your control; this means that we ought to look at the Word of God deposited in our heart which is able to do all things. In MATTHEW 19:3-9 the Bible says “And Pharisees came to Him and put Him to the test by asking, Is it lawful and right to dismiss and repudiate and divorce one`s wife for any and every cause? He replied, Have you never read that He Who made them from the beginning made them 27

male and female, And said, For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be united firmly (joined inseparably) to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder (separate). They said to Him, Why then did Moses command [us] to give a certificate of divorce and thus to dismiss and repudiate a wife? He said to them, Because of the hardness (stubbornness and perversity) of your hearts Moses permitted you to dismiss and repudiate and divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been so 28

[ordained]. I say to you: whoever dismisses (repudiates, divorces) his wife, except for unchastity, and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.” From the above Scripture, we see that the root cause for Moses permitting divorce was because of the hardness of heart that was in the men of his time, which hardness derived its roots from the Law which signifies a heart of stone. This heart God promised to replace with a new heart of flesh accompanied by His Spirit; this we see that in the New covenant we were established in having received Jesus 29

Christ as our personal Lord and Savior, the Bible says that we received a heart of flesh which is tender and responsive to the things of God. We realize that certain things are impossible to men of this world [although united into one flesh, such as forgiveness] but with God all things are possible; this is the very reason for Jesus Christ being the center of our marriages. In ROMAN 5:4-5 the Bible says “And endurance (fortitude) develops maturity of character (approved faith and tried integrity). And character [of this sort] produces [the habit of] joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation. Such hope never disappoints or deludes or 30

shames us, for God`s love has been poured out in our in our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us.” We see that the love of God has been poured out [shed abroad] in our hearts which are of flesh and not that of stone because of the Holy Spirit Who was given us; this means that the doctrine one listens to also matters, as we see that that in PROVERBS 4:23 the Bible tell us “Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance and above all that you guard, for out of it flows the springs of life.” because it is very possible to be with a heart of flesh which is well fed by stone [the Law], that means that such a heart 31

will produce inconsistent results. Such a heart is spoken of in MATTHEW 9:16-17 “And no one puts a piece of cloth that has not been shrunk on an old garment, for such a patch tears away from the garment and worse rent (tear) is made. Neither is new wine put in old wineskins; for if it is, the skins burst and are torn in pieces, and the wine is spilled and the skins are ruined. But new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved.” This means that for the temple in everyone corresponds with the right Message of grace and not the Law; it is so sad to see some hearts of flesh yielded to the Law, as we saw that the 32

Pharisees were walking in divorce, issuing divorce certificates just because Moses said so, and yet we realize that although Moses permitted it, it was not meant to be so from the beginning as we saw God in GENESIS 2:24 say “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and shall become united and cleave to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” This Jesus re-affirmed in MATTHEW 19:5 repeating the same statement. In reality men whose marriages were [are] established by their own strength do not last and yet marriage is meant to be an eternal covenant. This I do not speak in my own mind but by the mind of God, 33

and this is not also mockery to the broken ones; what I seek to mean here is that when Jesus is at the center of your marriage, indeed there is no situation that He cannot reconcile. In the same Book of MATTHEW 19:9, Jesus touched the heart of the religious leaders of then, because we saw that they sheltered behind the Law of Moses to do and approve and satisfy their lusts, as to them issuing a divorce certificate was not a problem, and in this Verse Jesus zeroed them down by telling them that whoever married a divorced wife committed adultery. We see that these men considered themselves to be holy and yet 34

dying and being overcome with lusts and this is what we see in the now modern society as connivance, collusion and condonation to break up marriages have become the order of the day. There is a reason to as to why Christ compared marriage between a husband and wife to His love for the Church [Him being the Husband and the Church His wife]; this shows that just as the Christ cannot forsake the Church as nothing can separate us from His love, so should be marriage. Therefore partners ought to understand each other and be tolerant to 35

one another walking in Agape [Love of Christ] and forgiving one another1. Looking at certain Nations which have chosen to exalt the manmade Law above the Divine Law of God; see what happens, let no man deceive you that they can understand the things of God using carnal senses; it is impossible. In 1 CORINTHIANS 2:13-14 the Bible says “And we are setting these truths forth in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the [Holy] Spirit, combining and interpreting spiritual truths with spiritual language [to those who possess the Holy 1 I recommend you to listen to Apostle Grace Lubega`s sermon on Love and Forgiveness. 36

Spirit]. But the natural, nonspiritual man does not accept or welcome or admit into his heart the gifts and teachings and revelations of the Spirit of God, for they are folly (meaningless nonsense) to him; and he is incapable of knowing them [of progressively recognizing, understanding, and becoming better acquainted with them] because they are spiritually discerned and estimated and appreciated.” We see that the Word of God clearly tells us that the world and its people cannot understand the spiritual things, and therefore it will also be unfortunate for us spiritual people to seek guidance or even walk in principles 37

established by flesh and blood and not God. Why do you think in even nations which know God marriages are failing day and night rapidly and divorce is the order of the Day? The answer is simple, men have forsaken their God, and chosen to do things the worldly way. This is also why unnatural relationships have also been tolerated with even in some so called churches. This is sad but a fact! Apostle Paul warned this generation concerning the same matter in 1 CORINTHIANS 6:1-6 which says “DOES ANY of you dare, when he has a matter of complaint against another [brother], to go to law before unrighteous men [men 38

neither upright nor right with God, laying it before them] instead of before the saints (the people of God)? Do you not know the saints (the believers) will [one day] judge and govern the world? And if the world [itself] is to be judged and ruled by you, are you unworthy and incompetent to try [such petty matters] of the smallest courts of justice? Do you not know also that we [Christians] are to judge the [very] angels and pronounce opinion between right and wrong [for them]? How much more then [as to] matters pertaining to this world and of this life only! If then you do have such cases of everyday life to decide, why do 39

you appoint [as judges to lay them before] those who [from the standpoint] of the church count for least and are without standing? I say this to move you to shame. Can it be that there really is not one man among you who [in action is governed by piety and integrity and] is wise and competent enough to decide [the private grievances, disputes, and quarrels] between members of brotherhood, But brother goes to law against brother, and that before [Gentile judges who are] unbelievers [without faith or trust in the Gospel of Christ]?” We see that Apostle Paul saw that the root cause of the problem was in seeking 40

counsel from ungodly men or men who do not understand the covenant in which you the Born again saint is in. For example we have seen partners whose first option is to run to men for counsel or advice. My father Apostle Grace Lubega wrote and preached about the Seven Guiding Lights of the Spirit and these include; 1. The inward witness, 2. Confirmation of Scripture, 3. The prophet, 4. Godly counsel, 5. Circumstantial evidence, 6. The peace of God, and 7. Provision. These things are so instrumental in a Christian life, you ought to desist from seeking opinions from every one concerning spiritual things like 41

your marriage, your family; this is why some of them fail. The Bible says in PSALMS 1:1-3 says “BLESSED (HAPPY, fortunate, prosperous, and enviable) is the man who walks and lives not in the counsel of the ungodly [following their advice, their plans and purposes], nor stands [submissive and inactive] in the path where sinners walk, nor sits down [to relax and rest] where the scornful [and the mockers] gather. But his delight and desire are in the law of the Lord, and on His law (the precepts, the instructions, the teachings of God) he habitually meditates (ponders and studies) by day and by night. And he shall be like a tree 42

firmly planted [and tended] by the streams of water, ready to bring forth its fruit in its season; its leaf also shall not fade or wither; and everything he does shall prosper [and come to maturity].” Analyzing the above statement we see the Bible urge us to desist from living or walking in ungodly counsel as this is a place of wisdom for us to discern which company to seat in as wisdom as a Person speaks in us. In addition to the above, the Scripture tells you [and I] not to heed to their advice, nor relax and rest where mockers gather. We see that as a wife and husband your company has to be comprising of believers, those who can 43

add up to you and those you add up to Spiritually, and because of this the Bible says that you shall be like a tree firmly planted by the river side ready to bring forth fruit in its season. What God seeks to instruct you is to have wisdom in making choices concerning decisions, achievements and weaknesses in your marriage [life]; may you seek solutions in His Word and Godly counsel. We have seen a certain spoiling creep into people which cannot be understood or even explained and many who have adopted to it have termed it as a Western culture, yet too destructive in its own way. Briefly, there was a time in Africa 44

when people shot videos in songs when clothed decently, however a time has come where one does not feel that they have sung well until they expose their mortal body which in reality has an end or until they have spoken in a vulgar language. But why? In 2 SAMUEL 13:1-19 the Bible says “ABSALOM SON of David had a fair sister whose name was Tamar, and Amnon [her half brother] son of David loved her. And Amnon was so troubled that he fell sick for his [half] sister Tamar, for she was a virgin, and Amnon thought it impossible for him to do anything to her. But Amnon had a friend whose name was Jonadab 45

son of Shimeah, David`s brother; and Jonadab was a very crafty man. He said to him, Go to bed and pretend you are sick; and when your father David comes to see you, say to him, Let my sister Tamar come and give me food and prepare it in my sight, that I may see it and eat it from her hand. So Amnon lay down and pretended to be sick; and when the king came to see him, Amnon said to the king, I pray you, let my sister Tamar come and make me a couple of cakes in my sight, that I may eat from her hand. Then David sent home and told Tamar, Go now to your brother Amnon`s house and prepare food for him. So Tamar went to her 46

brother Amnon`s house, and he was in bed. And she took dough and kneaded it and made cakes in his sight and baked them. She took the pan and emptied it out before him, but he refused to eat. And Amnon said, send everyone out from me. So everyone went out from him. Then Amnon said to Tamar, Bring the food here into the bedroom, so I may eat from your hand. So Tamar took the cakes she had made and brought them into the room to Amnon her brother. And when she brought them to him, he took hold of her and said, Come lie with me, my sister. She replied, No, my brother! Do not force and humble me, for no such thing should 47

be done in Israel! Do not do this foolhardy, scandalous thing! And I, how could I rid myself of my shame? And you, you will be [considered] one of the stupid fools in Israel. Now therefore, I pray you, speak to the king, for he will not withhold me from you. But he would not listen to her, and being stronger than she, he forced her and lay with her. Then Amnon hated her exceedingly, so that his hatred for her was greater than the love with which he had loved her. And Amnon said to her, Get up and get out! But she said, No! This great evil of sending me away is worse than what you did to me. But he would not listen to her. He called the 48

servant who served him and said, Put this woman out of my presence now, and bolt the door after her! Now [Tamar] was wearing a long robe with sleeves and of various colors, for in such robes were the king`s virgin daughters clad of old. Then Amnon`s servant brought her out and bolted the door after her. And [she] put ashes on her head and tore the long, sleeved robe which she wore, and she laid her hand on her head and went away shrieking and wailing.” When Adam and Eve fell in the Garden of Eden, GENESIS 3:11 says “And He said, Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you that 49

you should not eat?” For we know that God knew that Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, but His issue was with the one [satan] who told them about their nakedness and directions concerning the eating of that fruit; this means that for every spoiling there is an origin; this is why Tamar pleaded with Amnon saying “This kind of thing isn`t done in Israel! Don`t do this terrible thing!” We realize that this evil upon Tamar by Amnon was because of a wrong company of Amnon whose good friend was Jonadab who the Bible says was very crafty [exceptionally streetwise; very subtle; very shrewd]. This we see that due to God`s principles in 50

Israel, the Bible says “Amnon thought it impossible for him to do anything to her”, for as we know that the Bible in PROVERBS 22:6 says “Train up a child in the way he should go [and in keeping with his individual gift or bent], and when he is old he will not depart from it.” We see that this Amnon also was taught, however we realize friendship is a heart to heart relationship; this is why the Bible in PROVERBS 18:24 says “The man of many friends [a friend of all the world] will prove himself a bad friend, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” This means that there is a friendship that precedes even blood, 51

meaning that such a one also has access to one`s heart or the hidden treasure deposited into ones, and this means that such a friend can corrupt that treasure to one`s detriment, and for this the Bible says in PROVERBS 4:23 “Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance and above all that you guard, for out of it flow the springs of life.” For we see emphasis put in one guarding their heart with all that they guard, because from [out of] it are issues of life; this is why I now see why Jesus warned us in LUKE 11:35 saying “Be careful, therefore, that the light that is in you is not darkness”, because it is possible for one to be deceived that they 52

are standing yet they are fallen and this is the essence of self-examination lest we run this race of faith in vain. When closely looking at the situation between Tamar, Amnon and Jonadab, we realize that a thing still happens even up to date however having undergone mutation. We see that it was Jonadab who opened Amnon`s eyes to a possibility of him fulfilling his lusts on his sister Tamar as PROVERBS 12:26 tells us that the godly give good advice to their friends; but the wicked lead them astray. Due to a spoiling learnt from the wicked ones, certain people have ended up corrupting the Truth of God, as some have 53

deliberately chosen to call certain things normal so as to satisfy [gratify] the lusts of their flesh whose end is destruction. Just as Amnon thought it to be love that he had for her sister, however we see that this was deception; it should be noted that there is no love outside God, for Christ Himself is Love. We have seen that a certain deception of this form creep into people`s minds to think that giving in their bodies to others is love; No! This is not true; Love can only be expressed in the person of Christ, for He speaks in JOHN 14:23 “If a person [really] loves Me, he will keep My word [obey My teaching]; and My Father will love him, 54

and We will come to him and make Our home (abode, special dwelling place) with him.” We see that to one who thinks loves God, there is a place of obedience at all costs to His Word, lest people perish in the compromise of the worldly and fleshly dictates. We have seen relationships built on the wisdoms of this world turn into hatred overnight, we have seen people be ashamed beyond the so called love in their engagements; we should know the principles of Love; for the Bible says in 1 JOHN 4:18 that there is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out all fear, and this is why the story of Amnon and Tamar stands in history to 55

instruct and direct the people of our times concerning the way we ought to renew our minds by the Word of God. A certain friend of mine one time laughed saying that Christians entitle everyone a title “Sister, Brother, Mother, Father, Uncle and Auntie”, as to him he beheld things another way not inspired by the Spirit of God. HEBREWS 13:4 says “Let marriage be held in honor (esteemed worthy, precious, of great price, and especially dear) in all things. And thus let the marriage bed be undefiled (kept undishonored); for God will judge and punish the unchaste [all guilty of sexual vice] and adulterous.” This means that in 56

all things marriage should be held honorable to both the married and unmarried [young]; this means that we ought to behold marriage as sacred, as well as honoring the married people from whom we learn from things concerning marriage. And also the Bible speaks of the marital bed being undefiled; this means that there is no other bed the Bible recognizes except the Matrimonial bed; therefore why should people be deceived in cohabitations, fornications, adulteries and all manner of lusts whose end is destruction. For Apostle Paul says in 1 CORINTHIANS 7:8-11 “But to the unmarried people and to the widows, I 57

declare that it is well (good, advantageous, expedient, and wholesome) for them to remain [single] even as I do. But if they have not selfcontrol (restraint of their passions), they should marry. For it is better to marry than to be aflame [with passion and tortured continually with ungratified desire]. But to the married people I give charge--not I but the Lord--that the wife is not to separate from her husband. But if she does [separate from and divorce him], let her remain single or else be reconciled to her husband. And [I charge] the husband [also] that he should not put away or divorce his wife.” We see Apostle 58

Paul clearly tell us that it is expedient for one to remain single, however he says if one does not have self-control or instead of one burning with passions; they [unmarried or widows] should marry. This excludes the married because indeed it is foolishness for them also to burn with passion; this is why the Bible tells the wife that her body belongs to the husband and that of the husband belongs to the wife [1 CORINTHIANS 7:4]. We also see Apostle Paul by God urge the married stay married in other words not to separate or divorce, why? Because it is for their good, or if they are separated, they be reconciled. 59

We have seen people blame the up bring of their marriage partners but this should not be an excuse, because the Bible says that when one marries, the husband leaves the father`s house to be joined with the wife [not again in the wife`s parents home but their own] and the two become one flesh; this means that one ought to apply wisdom in all aspects of this long life marriage instead of blaming parents, because they become parents of their own with God as their over role Parent; for example there is need to apply wisdom in everything, Brother Kenneth E. Hagin wrote in his book entitled “Love The Way To Victory” saying 60

“I`ve trained myself through the years to think like: “How is what I’m about to say or do going to affect the other fellow? Love worketh no ill to anyone. Is what I’m about to say or do going to hurt the other person? If it is, then I can`t say it or do it.”” This is what Apostle Paul sought to mean in ROMANS 14:15 saying “But if your brother is being pained or his feelings hurt or if he is being injured by what you eat, [then] you are no longer walking in love. [you have ceased to be living and conducting yourself by the standard of love toward him.] Do not let what you eat hurt or cause the ruin of one for whom Christ died!” The question 61

is, How many times are we willing to abandon certain things just for another brother or sister`s sake? Most especially we the born again Christians, although we have a cloud of witnesses cheering upon us in heaven, we ought to know that here on earth we also have very many people who learn from us; for example, how do we conduct ourselves outside Church [fellowship], and in our homes or at work place and very many other places, therefore we ought to know that in us dwells a temple not made with human hands but one Whose maker is God, meaning that we are always before the presence of God. 62

The Bible has much to do with instructing people on issues concerning the use of the tongue. For it is true that we are the righteousness of God through Christ Jesus and because of this even our speech and responses change; for the Bible says in GALATIANS 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the [Holy] Spirit [the work which His presence within accomplishes] is love, joy (gladness), peace, patience (an even temper, forbearance), kindness, goodness (benevolence), faithfulness, Gentleness (meekness, humility), selfcontrol (self-restraint, continence). Against such things there is no law [that can bring a charge].” The man of God 63

Kenneth E. Hagin explained the issue of fruit saying that fruit grows on the branches and not on the stem. In JOHN 15:5-8 the Jesus says, “I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much (abundant) fruit. However, apart from Me [cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing. If a person does not dwell in Me, he is thrown out like a [broken-off] branch, and withers; such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, and they are burned. If you live in Me [abide vitally united to Me] and My words remain in you and continue to live in your hearts, ask whatever you will, and it shall be 64

done for you. When you bear (produce) much fruit, My Father is honored and glorified, and you show and prove yourselves to be true followers of Mine.” This Scripture is wonderful, for we realize that we are the branches connected into the Vine [Jesus Christ] and He tells that unless we abide in Him [allow His Word to work in us], we cannot bear fruit; this means that it is up to everyone to allow the Word of God to work in them. This is why we realize that although a good tree bears good fruit, some branches can choose to be dormant [silent; inactive and indifferent] concerning the things of God, these the Bible says in JOHN 15:2 65

that “Any branch in Me that does not bear fruit [that stops bearing] He cuts away (trims off, takes way); and He cleanses and repeatedly prunes every branch that continues to bear fruit, to make it bear more and richer and more excellent fruit.” This means that even to God, He rejoices in His servants who bear much fruit; for the Bible says that in this God is glorified and this is what shows that we are true followers of God; for these ones the Bible says that He repeatedly prunes, and this is why even in the old ages we shall always bear fruit, glory to God for His faithfulness. Back to GALATIANS 5:22-23 when the Bible says 66

“But the fruit of the [Holy] Spirit is”; this simply means that the person of the Holy Spirit is Fruitful, and because He now dwells in us permanently, His fruit are with Him in us and awaiting us to yield to His leading and by this we are exercised and exercising ourselves in His nature which is also ours. For example, in 1 CORINTHIANS 13:4-7 the Bible speaks of Love a nature that is in us because of the residence of the Holy Spirit in us saying that this love never gives up [never fails], it cares more for others than for self, it doesn`t want what it doesn`t have, it doesn`t force itself on others, it doesn`t keep score of the sins of others, it takes 67

pleasure in the flowering of truth, and Trusts God always; this means that if the Holy Spirit is in your leading, He responds to the nature in Him by the Word deposited in your spirit man. This is the reason why the God tells us in ROMANS 12:2 to transform our mind which transformation is by hearing, reading and meditating on His Word, and by this our mind is renewed; meaning that the mind lets go of certain things or habits it once esteemed good, so that it abides by the Truths it has conceived hence proving [by experience] what is good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. In PROVERBS 15:1 the Bible says “A SOFT 68

answer turns away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger.” Here we see that because the Holy Spirit is in us whose character is gentleness, kindness, joy, love and peace; our nature is the same and so we exercise ourselves in Him through His leading, for example, in MARK 15:1-5 the Bible says “AND IMMEDIATELY when it was morning, the chief priests, with the elders and scribes and the whole council, held a consultation; and when they had bound Jesus, they took Him away [violently] and handed Him over to Pilate. And Pilate inquired of Him, Are You the King of the Jews? And He replied, it is as you say. And 69

the chief priests kept accusing Him of many things. And Pilate again asked Him, Have You no answer to make? See how many charges they are bringing against You! But Jesus made no further answer at all, so that Pilate wondered and marveled.” In the Scripture above we see Jesus lay down certain principles of wisdom when faced with persecution, and some of the include; 1) Polite response; for we see Him gently respond to Pilate the governor who inquired from Him whether He was the King of the Jews. 70

2) Silence; for we see that although Pilate tried to pressure Him to give His defense against the accusations and allegations directed to Him. We also realize that the point of silence was not because He had no words to retaliate the accusations; but it was because He knew Who was on His side in spite of the multitudes, clergy and witnesses which all could have proven Him guilty. This is the same with us who have also been justified through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. 71

3) Proving self to be right is not in our nature because we know who we are; we see that in the first place Jesus responded to Pilate when given an opportunity answer Who He really Is, however on the second opportunity given to Him to justify Himself, He just turned it down by saying nothing. 4) We judge and evaluate the hearts of men; we see previously the Bible say that Jesus did not commit Himself to them when they wanted to make Him King as He knew the hearts of men, later on we see the same people accuse Him for 72

blasphemy as King of the Jews. From this we know that not all opportunities are for utilization, remember these men`s hearts were even waxed and dull of hearing, and so silence was far much more than speaking. 5) The way we conduct ourselves and respond to persecutions communicates our maturity in God; this is the reason Pilate wondered and marveled at Jesus, in other words Pilate was taught and learnt much in Jesus` persecution. This is the same reason as to why the Bible in ACTS 12:24 73

says “But the word of the Lord [concerning the attainment through Christ of salvation in the kingdom of God] continued to grow and spread.” This means that the Gospel eventually outlives its persecutors as Gamaliel rightly spoke in ACTS 5:38-39 saying “Now in the present case let me say to you, stand off (withdraw) from these men and let them alone. For if this doctrine or purpose or undertaking or movement is of human origin, it will fail (be overthrown and come to nothing); But if it is of God, you will not be able to stop or overthrow or 74

destroy them; you might even be found fighting against God!” In the Book of 1 CORINTHIANS 7, Apostle Paul addresses a number of issues from the questions asked him by the Corinthian Church, however our point of discussion will be on two main aspects namely; 1. Sexual relations and sexual desire, and 2. The service of God prevails over everything. 1. Sexual relations and sexual desire. Looking at the Corinth Church, it was very spiritual however unlearnt in very many aspects; this is why in most cases they pursued knowledge so as to further grow 75

spiritually, in 1 CORINTHIANS 1:8-9 Paul tells them saying, “And He will establish you to the end [keep you steadfast, give you strength, and guarantee your vindication; He will be your warrant against all accusation or indictment so that you will be] guiltless and irreproachable in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah). God is faithful (reliable, trustworthy, and therefore ever true to His promise, and He can be depended on); by Him you were called into companionship and participation with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” In the Message version, Verse 9 says “God, who got you started in this spiritual 76

adventure, shares with us the life of His Son and our Master Jesus. He will never give up on you. Never forget that.” From this portions of Verses, Apostle Paul sought to awaken and align the consciences of the Corinth Church to the faithfulness and love of God as we see him emphasize that in all circumstances they ought to look up to God, as he used words like, “God will establish you to the end as He would keep them steadfast, strengthen them and guarantee their vindication [plead in their favor], He would keep them guiltless and irreproachable in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ, God is reliable, trustworthy 77

and ever true to His promise”, Apostle Paul further urged them never to forget that God will never give up on them. This all Apostle Paul reminded them because it was very possible for a born again Christian to forsake salvation because of the weaknesses [persecution and many troubles] they are facing in the flesh and yet God is able when given an opportunity to sort everything. Remember Paul was not speaking this to only the Corinth Church but to also you and I. In addition to the above, 1 JOHN 3:20 says, “Whenever our hearts in [tormenting] self-accusation make us feel guilty and condemn us. [For we are in 78

God`s hands.] For He is above and greater than our consciences (our hearts), and He knows (perceives and understands) everything [nothing is hidden from Him].” This means that whenever condemnation, guilt and whatever could come into our mind [heart], we heed to God [His Word] because He is greater than what could ever condemn you. Back to our point of discussion, in the Message Version 1 CORINTHIANS 7:1-2 says, “Now, getting down to the questions you asked in your letter to me. First, Is it a good thing to have sexual relations? Certainly--but only within a certain context. It`s good for a man to 79

have a wife, and for a woman to have a husband. Sexual drives are strong, but marriage is strong enough to contain them and provide for a balanced and fulfilling sexual life in a world of sexual disorder.” Here we see that the question asked Apostle Paul by the Corinth Church was as though there were many sexual relations, which Apostle Paul corrected there understanding pointing them to one sexual relation and that is; that of a husband and wife. The question from the Corinth Church when modernized to the situation of the nowadays, it includes issues to do with the girlfriend and boyfriend relationship, 80

cohabitations and all sexual vices; talking about this so called relationship, it is out of [not within] the Biblical context; meaning it is was laid down through the wisdoms of this world which are brought to naught [nothing]. When I tried to search out for the so called meaning of girlfriend and boyfriend, the definitions I got was that “it is a relationship in which parties are romantically involved”, and the question is, involved with husband or wife? Whose answer is a “No”, this therefore should open the eye of a Christian believer to know that the world has a pre-conceived plan to belittle the Biblical truth to just something small; for 81

we have heard of situations where a husband is called a boyfriend, and wife a girlfriend; this is a wrong perception of Godly things. Furthermore, Apostle Paul speak of the strength of Marriage, in 1 CORINTHIANS 7:2[MSG] he said, “Sexual drives are strong, but marriage is strong enough to contain them and provide for a balanced and fulfilling sexual life in a world of sexual disorder.” From the above Verse we realize that even in the times of Paul [since they lived in the same world we live in today], the people of his time also had ungodly sexual desires. We see him say that sexual drives are strong, however 82

marriage is strong enough to contain this sexual drive. More than that, when a marriage is not established on purpose, it will be as though the aim of marriage is to only fulfill the sexual drive which is a wrong mentality; to you [me] we look to the bigger picture, for example to one with a broadened perspective of marriage, they see an opportunity to reach out to the relatives [in-laws] of the wife or husband with the Gospel of Jesus Christ; this is what keeps married partners faithful to one another even in long absences of the other partner, my Spiritual Father Apostle Grace Lubega 83

often tells us “to Look to the bigger picture.” 2. The service of God prevails over everything. We see in the Book of 1 CORINTHIANS 7 Apostle talk about the issue of one either being married or remaining single, as to him he preferred and urged those able to remain single. Verse 8-9[MSG] says, “I do, though, tell the unmarried and widows that singleness might well be the best thing for them, as it has been for me. But if they can`t manage their desires and emotions, they should by all means go ahead and get married. The difficulties of 84

marriage are preferable by far to a sexually tortured life as a single.” Verse 29-35 says, “I do want to point out, friends, that time is of the essence. There is no time to waste, so don`t complicate your lives unnecessarily. Keep it simple-in marriage, grief, joy, whatever. Even in ordinary things--your daily routines of shopping, and so on. Deal as sparingly as possible with the things the world thrusts on you. This world as you see it is on its way out. I want you to live as free of complications as possible. When you`re unmarried, you`re free to concentrate on simply pleasing the Master. Marriage involves you in all the nuts and bolts of 85

domestic life and in wanting to please your spouse, leading to so many more demands on your attention. The time and energy that married people spend on caring for and nurturing each other, the unmarried can spend in becoming whole and holy instruments of God. I`m trying to be helpful and make it as easy as possible for you, not make things harder. All I want is for you to be able to develop a way of life in which you can spend plenty of time together with the Master without a lot of distractions.” From the above portion of Scripture, Apostle Paul introduces us to a beautiful realm in God called Worship [Fellowship], to him he 86

preferred to be single [unmarried] just because he wanted to commune with God in an unbroken Fellowship [in simple terms without too much distractions and commitments with many other things]. It should be noted that this does not mean that all those who marry have a loose relationship with God. What this points us to is that we need to incline to the Spiritual aspect rather than the physical while making choices of our spouses, for example, the definitions of the physical are to what the eye can see, what the ear can hear [generally senses] and yet these are too destructive to the Spiritual destiny of one’s life. To us [you and I], we 87

examine the hearts of our spouses, we seek God`s mind about it and evaluate whether our would be spouses are able to understand and grow the vision of God upon our lives. This also in one way or another pushes us who have believed to a jurisdiction of choice [of our marriage partners] within the household of faith. Furthermore, being single without the understanding of God [like Paul did] is equivalent to hitting shipwreck, this is so because it will be doing a disservice to yourself. I one time got an opportunity to talk to a certain friend who wanted to be a clergy in a certain faith, my question to him was about what his motive was in 88

wanting to be a clergy. His response to me was that the clergy are given free cars, they sleep in good houses, they neither toil nor sow; this is a timid mind, for it is carnality. Apostle Paul beheld the end of everything saying that there was no time to waste with complications in this life. In addition to the above, Paul lays down a certain principle to the young and unmarried who have maybe not yet attained the age of marriage as per the laws of their nations [countries], or who are still working on maybe resources so as to marry. This principle states that they [young and unmarried] should just devout their life and everything to the 89

service of God, as we do not seek completion by marriage because we the born again believers are already complete in Christ. In the Book of MATTHEW, Jesus also emphasized on the issue of being single to those who are able, He said in MATTHEW 19:9-12[MSG] “I`m holding you to the original plan, and holding you liable for adultery if you divorce your faithful wife and then marry someone else. I make an exception in cases where the spouse has committed adultery.” Jesus` disciples objected, “If those are the terms of marriage, we`re stuck. Why get married?” But Jesus said, “Not everyone 90

is mature enough to live a married life. It requires a certain aptitude and grace. Marriage isn`t for everyone. Some, from birth seemingly, never give marriage a thought. Others never get asked--or accepted. And some decide not to get married for the kingdom reasons. But if you`re capable of growing into the largeness of marriage, do it.” In the Amplified Bible Version, the word “Eunuch” is used to mean those who have given in to live a single life. From this point of Scripture, we see that Paul meant the singleness which Jesus talked of in Verse 12 which states that some decide to get married for kingdom 91

reasons. With all this we realize that choices are made voluntarily at will of the decision maker, hence in all things whether single or married, it is expedient to esteem highly than any other thing your relationship with the Master and Father God. We also see Him say that marriage is a grace and it requires a certain maturity [both Spiritual and physical]. We ought to understand children or who a child is. Before starting this discussion, you a woman and man reading this book ought to always think positive of your children in the flesh and those to come; in other never admit certain thought into 92

your mind, such as thoughts of barrenness and miscarriages. Looking through Scripture, it was in parents of the children to speak into the destinies of their children either when still in the womb or at birth, for example in the Book of GENESIS 4:1 the Bible says “AND ADAM knew Eve as his wife, and she became pregnant and bore Cain; and she said, I have gotten and gained a man with the help of the Lord.” In addition to the above, GENESIS 30:22-24 the Bible says, “Then God remembered Rachel and answered her pleading and made it possible for her to have children. And [now for the first time] she became 93

pregnant and bore a son; and she said, God has taken away my reproach, disgrace, and humiliation. And she called his name Joseph [may he add] and said, May the Lord add to me another son.” As seen above, this was done over and over again in Scripture meaning that it was and is a Biblical principle laid down, so one could be questioning whether they were spoken over by their parents. The answer is yes, your life was spoken over by God. In the Book of JEREMIAH 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew [and] approved of you [as My chosen instrument], and before you were born I separated and set you apart, consecrating 94

you; [and] I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” Remember this God was not only speaking to Jeremiah alone but to also you and I. In other words before you were in existence, God spoke into your life and saw you in His service, is it not wonderful? In addition to the above, ROMANS 8:28-30 says, “We are assured and know that [God being a partner in their labor] all things work together and are [fitting into a plan] for good to and for those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose. For those whom He foreknew [of whom He was aware and loved beforehand], He also destined from the beginning 95

[foreordaining them] to be molded into the image of His Son [and share inwardly His likeness], that He might become the firstborn among many brethren. And those whom He thus foreordained, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified (acquitted, made righteous, putting them into right standing with Himself). And those whom He said justified, He also glorified [raising them to a heavenly dignity and condition or state of being].” From this we see that God spoke His service into your life, and He even prepared you for it by justifying and glorifying you having believed in Jesus Christ. However this does not deny 96

you as a parent from speaking into the lives of your children maybe when still in the wombs, as the Bible says that He [God] has given power over life in the tongue [PROVERBS 18:21]; that means that you can position your children to a life of obedience, joy, love and peace when even unborn; this is why John the Baptist had not to wait until he was born to be filled with the Holy Spirit, but was filled from his mother`s womb [LUKE 1:15]. In MATTHEW 19:13-15 the Bible says “Then little children were brought to Jesus, that He might put His hands on them and pray; but the disciples rebuked 97

those who brought them. But He said, Leave the children alone! Allow the little ones to come to Me, and do not forbid or restrain or hinder them, for of such [as these] is the kingdom of heaven composed. And He put His hands upon them, and they went on His way.” From this portion of Scripture we see that the parents of these children with a right motive brought their children to Jesus so that He might lay His hand upon them, from where they are rebuked by the disciples, which was responded by Christ saying, “Leave the children alone! Allow the little ones to come to Me, and do not forbid or restrain or hinder them, for of 98

such [as these] is the kingdom of heaven composed.” This is so painful, in MATTHEW 23:13 Jesus said, “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, pretenders (hypocrites)! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in men`s faces; for you neither enter yourselves, nor do you allow those who are about to go in to do so.” We have seen such things be, as we all know that we are anointed by God for men, Apostle Paul says that these are the people Christ died for, in other words we by all means need to simplify the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the people; why should we complicate things. For example, why should a price be put in the Gospel? The 99

Bible says in MATTHEW 10:8 “Freely (without pay) you have received, freely (without charge) give.” Another example is in LUKE 13:10-17 which says, “Now Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And there was a woman there who for eighteen years had had an infirmity caused by a spirit (a demon of sickness). She was bent completely forward and utterly unable to straighten herself up or to look upward. And when Jesus saw her, He called [her to Him] and said to her, Woman, you are released from your infirmity! Then He laid [His] hands on her, and instantly she was made straight, and 100

she recognized and thanked and praised God. But the leader of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the crowd, There are six days on which work ought to be done; so come on those days and be cured, and not on the Sabbath day. But the Lord replied to him, saying, You playactors (hypocrites)! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or his ox or his donkey from the stall and lead it out to water it? And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day? Even as He said this, all His opponents were 101

put to shame, and all the people were rejoicing over all the glorious things that were rejoicing over all the glorious things that were being done by Him.” From the above portion of Scripture Jesus opens our eyes to know the value or preciousness of a life or a soul before God; this is what kept Jesus and the Apostles preaching and teaching the Gospel from time to time, this is what kept the approachable, this is what makes Apostle Paul in 1 CORINTHIANS 9:16 say, “For if I [merely] preach the Gospel, that gives me no reason to boast, for I feel compelled of necessity to do it. Woe is me if I do not preach the glad 102

tidings (the Gospel)!” It is so sad that we have seen people value their pet [dogs], assets and businesses than a soul, it would be funny for a neighbor to hunger and one provides a nice meal to a pet; this is what the Pharisees did, to them feeding a donkey is good, and healing a child of God which had failed them is bad because it was done not on their conditions. No wonder why certain people are angered when someone they stepped on is elevated by God. Jesus says that LUKE 18:22 that one has to die to everything which is material gain [the assets, wealth not setting their heart on them but on God.] before they follow 103

Him, for the Bible says that as many as are led by the Spirit these are sons of God. [ROMANS 8:14], because of this we respond to the communications or call of the Spirit, for example, as God communicated to Abraham to offer to Him his only son Isaac who was his only heir and love; in such a circumstance what would you do?; we see that God by this same principle offered His only Begotten Son Jesus Christ, this means that we ought to die to the world and be alive and connected to God. In Scripture Jesus emphasizes on the Christians adopting to the character of a child, in MATTHEW 18:1-4 the Bible says, 104

“AT THAT time the disciples came up and asked Jesus, Who then is [really] the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And He called a little child to Himself and put him in the midst of them, And said, Truly I say to you, unless you repent (change, turn about) and become like little children [trusting, lowly, loving, forgiving], you can never enter the kingdom of heaven [at all]. Whoever will humble himself therefore and become like this little child [trusting, lowly, loving, forgiving] is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” Here we see that if Jesus only meant to point us to only humility, He would symbolically use a sheep or dove, 105

however by use of the same principles spelt out by the Amplified Bible namely; Trust, Lowly, Love, and Forgiveness. We see that by all means we ought to trust God without much questioning Him on what and how He would do, we ought to be lowly or humble which humility is from the Biblical perspective [such as embracing and taking Him at His Word], we ought to love [walk in Agape] and forgiveness whose principle is forgetting and no more recalling the past for instance narrating the stories of the past.2 2 I recommend you to listen to the sermon entitled “Forgiveness, Love, and the Spirit of Humility” by Apostle Grace Lubega. 106

In EPHESIANS 6:1-4 the Bible says, “CHILDREN, OBEY your parents in the Lord [as His representatives], for this is just and right. Honor (esteem and value as precious) your father and your mother-this is the first commandment with a promise--That all may be well with you and that you may live long on the earth. Fathers, do not irritate and provoke your children to anger [do not exasperate them to resentment], but rear them [tenderly] in the training and discipline and the counsel and admonition of the Lord.” [COLOSIANS 3:20-21]. From this portion of Scripture we see both children and parents given responsibility or certain 107

expectations from God. Firstly with a child, obedience and honor to parents can also be understood from the perspective of them [our dear loving parents] being esteemed to have a superior mind, treating them with dignity, ranking them high above us in everything, treating them with a complimentary manner, putting them into consideration as the first priority, and also to add on this, never at any time being angry with them although they are at fault [loving, forgiving, praying for and supporting them by all means]. We also need to know that the place of honor and obedience is not from outward service 108

but from the heart. For example, how do we address our parents [both biological and those in the Lord], how do we respond to the needs of our parents [remember there is something called “being self-driven” as you need not to wait to be told something for you to act]. If anyone is reading this Book and you have an issue with someone above [superior or even lower to] you, may you release your heart today and do forgive them because of the Jesus Christ you have believed. I have always seen how joyful my mother and father introduce me to their friends; this in one way or another touches deep in my heart. We 109

have also seen some people even fear to reveal their parents to the people; this is so sad, no one in this world should ever be ashamed of either their home or parents. In every situation just know that God is counting on you for Him to change your household, for example if you come from a drunkard family do not be ashamed of it, but believe God for it`s conversion. Talking about parents, EPHESIANS 6:4 says “Fathers, do not irritate and provoke your children to anger [do not exasperate them to resentment], but rear them [tenderly] in the training and discipline and the counsel and admonition of the 110

Lord.” From this Scripture, by the Bible using the word “fathers”, it does not mean that fathers are tougher than mothers, but because the two when married become one flesh, there is no offence in it meaning both mother and father in one expression. By the Bible urging parents not to irritate and provoke their children to anger, it simply seeks to mean that even children can be angered although they have no voice to speak it out. This is so fundamental because this could birth rebellion in a child which is very wrong, for example, which glory is it for a parent to be known in the whole neighborhood as the toughest [in terms 111

of caning], angry [short tempered], abusive, and quarrelsome. These are ungodly elements to be identified with you, how and why should you impose corporal punishment on your own seed from your loins so as to satisfy the invisible and intangible anger in you, we should not take pride in our very own crying and making noise for others over and over again. As a parent, the Bible says that you should rear your children tenderly in the training and discipline and the counsel and admonition of the Lord; this means that as a parent we ought to know and presume our children to be as those whom we know much over and so 112

we seek to teach them from where they fail, which teaching is from the Biblical perspective, for example the Bible says that love draws men unto repentance, he who is forgiven much loves much, and so we apply these truths in our dealings with our children other than applying gruesome experiments and ideas of this world leaving scars on the bodies of our children. When growing up, there was a certain joy in our hearts when our parents told us that we were forgiven and pardoned when in fault which deserved some strokes [kiboko]. As we all know that it is very difficult to preach Jesus to 113

someone you have frustrated and angered. In the Book of JOHN 8:12 says “Once more Jesus addressed the crowd. He said, I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me will not be walking in the dark, but will have the Light which is Life.” Furthermore, MATTHEW 5:14 says to you the believer that “You are the light of the world.” There is something about light which we need to understand today. To most people, they consider whatever shines bright [glitters] and white as light. No, this is not true. The Bible clearly tells us that even Lucifer can transform itself as an angel of Light, the Bible still tells us 114

that even wolves have mastered the art of hypocrisy so that they can wear sheep`s clothing and keep in their company, and even feed around them. When Jesus speaks of Himself being Light, it simply means “An Identity”. In the Book GENESIS 1:1-6 the Bible says, “IN THE beginning God (prepared, formed, fashioned, and) created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and an empty waste, and darkness was upon the face of the very great deep. The Spirit of God was moving (hovering, brooding) over the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light; and there was light. And God saw that the 115

light was good (suitable, pleasant) and He approved it; and God separated the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day. And God said, Let there be a firmament [the expanse of the sky] in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters [below] from the waters [above].” Understanding the above Scripture, we see that according to the mind of God, He did not create darkness, but darkness in its entity forced itself out into existence. As we see that when God created the heaven and earth, darkness forced itself into existence when 116

the earth was created. After this, as we all know that there can be no manifestation of anything without light, as EPHESIANS 5:13 says, “But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light”, in simple words manifest means being “visible and clear.” Because of this darkness yet God still had to create other things, He had to make light in Verse 3. In Verse 4, we see that God appreciated the light and called it good [suitable and pleasant]. We realize that this appreciation forced Darkness again to attach itself with light, which forced God again to re-separate light 117

from darkness in Verse 4 and 5. To further show that manifestation can only be made by light, we see that all the things were created during the day and not night. We realize that the principle of the day [Light] and night [Darkness] remained up to until the days of Adam and Eve as revealed to us in MATTHEW 13:24-30 which says, “Another parable He set forth before them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while he was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed also darnel (weeds resembling wheat) among the wheat, and went on his way. So when the plants sprouted and formed 118

grain, the darnel (weeds) appeared also. And the servants of the owner came to him and said, Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? Then how does it have darnel shoots in it? He replied to them, An enemy has done this. The servants said to him, Then do want us to go and weed them out? But he said, No, lest in gathering the wild wheat (weeds resembling wheat), you root up the [true] wheat along with it. Let them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will say to the reapers, Gather the darnel first and bind it in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my granary.” Glory to God, for we see that in 119

Verse 38, Jesus said, “The field is the world, and the good seed means the children of the kingdom; the darnel is the children of the evil one.” As we know that God neither sleeps nor slumbers, but it was Adam who slept in the case of this parable as he forsook the instructions afore given him by God, from this we see that when man adopted to the words of the enemy, he fell from his place with God; this was the rejuvenation of darkness in the world again. Hereafter, we see that from the mercy of God, He gave man an opportunity to be revived; this we see that Jesus Christ had to come once and for all just as the light created in 120

GENESIS 1:3. This is the point from which Jesus Christ says that He is the Light of the world [JOHN 8:12, 9:5] although to the carnal eye could see the sun was still shining normally. Thereafter we see that this Light not only came to shine into the world, but He came as a door of manifestation us who believe in Him as children of God. This is why for this Light, John the Baptizer testified of Him saying in JOHN 1:5 “And the Light shines on in the darkness, for the darkness has never overpowered it [put it out or absorbed it or appropriated it, and is unreceptive to it].” We see that for this Light, it is exceptional in that there is no 121

competition between Him and darkness, because darkness cannot stand or even compete Him; this is why He is a Light in the dark world, making of saints from the dark world; this is why when He died He could preach the Gospel to the dead as the devil looks on from a far off as Hell is emptied [depopulated] as COLOSSIANS 2:12-15 [MSG] says, “If it`s an initiation ritual you`re after, you`ve already been through it by submitting to baptism. Going under the water was a burial of your old life; coming up out of it was a resurrection, God raising you from the dead as he did Christ. When you were stuck in your old sin-dead life, you were 122

incapable of responding to God. God brought you alive--right along with Christ! Think of it! All sins forgiven, the slate wiped clean, that old arrest warrant canceled and nailed to Christ`s Cross. He stripped all the spiritual tyrants in the universe of their sham authority at the Cross and marched them naked through the streets.” This is the Jesus Christ we speak of, as He purchased us from Darkness [which could not fight for us anymore to be under its authority] and He set us into [inside to be one and the same, partaking of His] Marvelous Light. We see that having Him set us into His Marvelous Light, He also calls us the Light 123

of the world [MATTHEW 5:14], from where He adds on to say “A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.”; in other words, it means that, we have found an identity in Christ. However, it is worth knowing how we came to see and receive of that Light. ROMANS 10:8-10 says “But what does it say? The Word (God`s message in Christ) is near you, on your lips and in your heart; that is, the Word (the message, the basis and object) of faith which we preach, Because if you acknowledge and confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and in your heart believe (adhere to, trust in, and rely on the truth) that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For 124

with the heart a person believes (adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Christ) and so is justified (declared righteous, acceptable to God), and with the mouth he confesses (declares openly and speaks out freely his faith) and confirms [his] salvation.” From the above Scripture we see and realize that everyone in the Light had to believe in Jesus Christ as their Personal Lord and Savior through the preaching of His Glorious Gospel. Through this Gospel, someone comes to believe in his or her heart that Jesus is Lord and Savior, which is accompanied by the confession of the same unto salvation; this is what you came for in this world. In the Book of 2 125

CORINTHIANS 4:3-6 says, “But even if our Gospel (the glad tidings) also be hidden (obscured and covered up with a veil that hinders the knowledge of God), it is hidden [only] to those who are perishing and obscured [only] to those who are lost. For the god of this world has blinded the unbelievers` mind [that they should not discern the truth], preventing them from seeing the illuminating light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ (the Messiah), Who is the image and Likeness of God. For what we preach is not ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves [merely] as your servants (slaves) for Jesus` sake. For God Who 126

said, Let light shine out of darkness, has shone in our hearts so as [to beam forth] the Light for the illumination of knowledge of the majesty and glory of God [as it is manifest in the Person and is revealed] in the face of Jesus Christ (the Messiah).” It is true that it is only by the Gospel of Jesus Christ that people`s eyes are open to behold the Truth and believe for their salvation, in this portion of Scripture Apostle Paul gives of a scenario where they preached the True Gospel of Jesus Christ however there were some who did not respond positively by believing in Jesus Christ; he later concluded that the god of this world had 127

blinded them that their eyes should not discern the Truth which is able to illuminate [enlighten] them; this is the same issue Jesus kept addressing in MATTHEW 13:14-15 which says, “In them indeed is the process of fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah, which says: You shall indeed hear and hear but never grasp and understand; and you shall indeed look and look but never see and perceive. For this nation`s heart has grown gross (fat and dull), and their ears heavy and difficult of hearing, and their eyes they have tightly closed, lest they see and perceive with their eyes, and hear and comprehend the sense with their ears, 128

and grasp and understand their heart, and turn and I should heal them.” We realize that having the devil deprived non-believers of their eyes, they will indeed use ears to see, of which it is impossible; these the Jesus says that they are judged already because of unbelief in Him [JOHN 3:18]. It should be noted that the devil can transform itself in each and every way, but it cannot reveal Truth to the hearers [if any] because there is no Truth in it but deception; for example, the devil cannot callout people for Salvation [it can never make alter calls, no matter what situation]. 129

Finally, HEBREWS 12:1-3 says, “THEREFORE THEN, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses [who have borne testimony to the Truth], let us strip off and throw aside every encumbrance (unnecessary weight) and that sin which so readily (deftly and cleverly) clings to and entangles us, and let us run with patient endurance and steady and active persistence the appointed course of the race that is set before us, Looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus, Who is the Leader and the Source of our faith [giving the first incentive for our belief] and is also its Finisher [bringing it to maturity and 130

perfection]. He, for the joy [of obtaining the prize] that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising and ignoring the shame, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Just think of Him Who endured from sinners such grievous opposition and bitter hostility against Himself [reckon up and consider it all in comparison with your trials], so that you may not grow weary or exhausted, losing heart and relaxing and fainting in your minds.” In this Scripture, we are revealed to that Christ faced great opposition and trials, however there was something that kept him moving in spite of such grievous opposition and bitter 131

hostility; and this was, the prize set before him. When we were young, we used to be told that God`s eyes are upon us and therefore we ought not to sin just because He sees and watches over us. However with all this said, this could not liberate us from sin, because sin felt like a force whose call we responded to every time it demanded. However when we grew in God, we realized that firstly, it is the Law which awakens our conscience to sin, secondly, we realized by the teachings of the Great Men and Women of God and attested to by the Scriptures that we were forgiven of God through His Love and Mercy which is unmerited and 132

for this we respond to that Love by faith and not of works. Even after this, some still felt some manifestations of the very weaknesses which were indeed dealt away by Christ, and the question is about what the problem is? The Bible in 1 CORINTHIANS 6:20 says, “You were bought with a price [purchased with a preciousness and paid for, made His own]. So then, honor God and bring glory to Him in your body.” We see that the Bible speaks of us being bought by a price, the Bible says in LUKE 14:28-30 [KJV] “For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, 133

whether he have [sufficient] to finish [it]? Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish [it], all that behold [it] begin to mock him, Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.” We realize that Christ paid the cost and did everything for us; which means that we are living under the Finished Works of Christ. And the question is, what then is our responsibility in Him? The answer is simple. You should know that; You are in a race for an incorruptible crown, and the Bible says that just as the earthly races have rules, so has this Spiritual race [2 TIMOTHY 2:5]. The Bible in MATTHEW 134

5:13 “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste (its strength, its quality), how can its saltness be restored? It is not good for anything any longer but to be thrown out and trodden underfoot by men.” We see that the reason to as to why salt is good is because its flavor which makes it possible to be seasoned; remember that there is a demand and mandate by God to every Christian, we ought to know the price by which we were bought; in simple terms we ought to know the Foundation in which we have been built in, after this we ought to understand and know the Prize that has been set before us; this is what 135

distinguishes one Christian from another. As we know that we have the authority over everything, sin inclusive, but how come that even to lips of the Church addictions are praised [exalted] day and night, and yet there are bigger things God expects us to indulge in, JAMES 5:12 says, “But above all [things], my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath; but let your yes be [a simple] yes, and your no be [a simple] no, so that you may not sin and fall under condemnation.” The principle is laid down here, that no more do we say “no” to satan`s works without power, but we say it with power and authority which is 136

resident in us as temples of the Most High God. We also realize that salt itself is responsible for its loss of flavor, this is the same with Christian believers; do you have substance? We see that as the Light of the world Jesus was able to transform the lives of His physical family into active ministry, and so it is with us, because our family status changed [to that of Faith], we by the heartbeat of God have a demand to reach out to our families for God, remember this is the reason God positioned you in that family. 137

If anyone there wants to receive Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, having believed in your heart, please confess the words below with your mouth, say; Dear Lord Jesus, I believe that You died for my sins and that You were raised for me, today, I receive You as my Lord and Savior, I am born again. Amen. You are now a child of God, and you have eternal life in you. Therefore you can join a Grace teaching Church and continue to know about the New Life you are begotten into. Amen. 138

Other books written by the author. 1. BORN AGAIN, THE NEW BIRTH, THE NEW YOU. 2. BEYOND MASTERY IN THE LIFE ABOVE WEAKNESS. 3. THE JESUS GENE. 4. THE SPIRIT OF ERR. 5. RESURRECTION. 139

ABOUT THE AUTHOR. Opale Frank is a son to Mr. Ojame Okiror Robert and Ms. Tino Ketty. My Spiritual Father is Apostle Grace Lubega. PLOT. This book handles many aspects of which it focuses on marriage, family and a child. It is one thing for you to be born in a family and it is another thing to seek the mind of God concerning the reason to as to why you were sent by God into that family. Amen. For any information email: opalefrank94@gmail.com.

1 Publizr

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