TOPIC: OUR GOD IS THE SAME YESTERDAY, TODAY - AND WILL FOREVER REMAIN THE SAME.

- THE SCRIPTURE –
Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying, why do Thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they wash not their hands when they eat bread.

But He answered and said unto them, why do ye transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? For God commanded, saying, honor your thy father and mother: and he that curseth father or mother let him die the death.

But ye say, whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, it is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightiest be profited by me; and honor not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.

Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, this people draweth near unto me with their mouth, and honoreth Me with their lips; but their heart is far from Me.
But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men…….MATTHEW 15:1-9.

- THE MESSAGE -
Brethren, the true Church of Jesus Christ is firmly founded on the Prophets and the Apostles – Jesus Christ anchoring as the chief cornerstone. Nothing was lacking when Jesus presented his body as the church on earth – He made all things available – and for those that would believe.

Jesus laid the foundation of His Church on this platform: “all power in heaven and on earth has been given unto Me. Therefore go ye unto all the earth and preach the gospel”. Brethren, the mandate is to all who would accept Him as Lord and Savior and the gospel is His doctrine and His life – even the life of God.

Jesus did not even stop at bestowing “all power” on His Church. Knowing the challenges that would follow, He went further to accord us the privilege of “greater works”. By this He gave us the rarest privilege to manifest the power of God amongst men beyond what Jesus Himself showcased even in the days of His flesh. And when we remember that the same Jesus raised Brother Lazarus from death after four days in the grave, we would then truly understand the very significance of this greater works!

But to the dismay and consternation of lovers of Christ world wide, the power of God even in the body of Christ has continued to decline from the days of the Apostles. As a matter of fact, the present Church has virtually been stripped of the power of God even to truly save the lost. And when we find patches of the manifestation of this power in the Church, many are tempted to dismiss such as the powers of occult!

Many in the Church today have not for once experienced the tangible movement of the power of God; yet they claim they are saved. But the irony is that the power that saves is the highest power of God in operation…..”For as many as received him He gave power to become the sons of god….”see John 1:12. And wherever this power is available, the power to do all other things is also readily available.

Brethren, it takes power to become a true child of God. And that same power is the power that can do all other things, including raising the dead! But in the midst of absence of the power of God in most places of worship today it is futile for folks therein to even claim that they are saved in the first place– very futile. If the power to truly save is available in any place, that same power is also available for all other things. If you say you are saved, do you also have the power to walk even as a child of God? Wake up folks!

Brethren, the decline in the manifestations of the power of God in the Church of today is as a result of carnality, worldliness and the teaching of the doctrines of men as the doctrines of Christ. The Church has become so carnal in our times that most places called Church today are not more than club houses, or at best, village meetings. The only significant difference between some places we call Church today and club houses is the reading of the bible. Indeed if the Bible is removed from certain places we call Church today, it will be very difficult to differentiate such places from mere social gatherings.

Brethren, worldliness has become a very heavy yoke on the neck of the Church of Jesus Christ. For instance, the scriptures say that when we lift the name of Christ He will draw men and women unto Himself. But in the church of today, the best way to attract folks to Church is to make the “church environment” conducive enough for the unbeliever! From what is taught on our pulpits to the manner of worship – everything has now been made to appeal to the unbeliever. And all these fleshly manifestations are done to attract folks to Christ!

Brethren, in most places of worship today, the doctrines of men are taught as the doctrines of Christ. In some places of worship today we find preachers teaching psychology, history, logic, business administration, chemistry, philosophy and all manners of worldly subjects as the doctrines of Christ. Marriage counselors in our churches today are mere psychologists and sociologists dressed as ministers of this gospel. Simply put, the Church has fallen from grace.

In the midst of all these, the Holy Ghost, Who is the Carrier of the power of God, has virtually abandoned us to our own ways and means. And in desperation some preachers will resort to certain manipulations in order to “demonstrate” the power of God that they do not have. And some will readily run to satanic posts to acquire small powers the effect of which is just to hypnotize those that patronize them. The house of God has again become a den of thieves – a place of buying and selling all manners of wares. And our Lord Jesus Christ is ready yet again to cast the thieves out!

But, brethren, our God is the same yesterday, today and will forever remain the same. The lord will not fold his hands and look at errant men and women reduce His church to family and personal businesses. Our God is today much more determined to restore all things. And He is yet raising folks all over the world to step out with the truth and cast aside these thieves and enemies of righteousness. And you that are reading this message this morning may just be among them that He has chosen for this moment.

Therefore, come out from among them and be ye separate. Do not allow yourselves to be tainted by the impunity of our days. Prepare yourselves for a shift. The revival has already started – and this time, not by men, but by the Holy Ghost himself, in manifest and manifold operation. The day of our Lord is fast approaching, the trumpet may sound sooner than we expect. And this message is a wake up call.