Excerpts

The Lighthouse Apostolic Center

Koinonia

17th July, 2022

Exercise in Godliness

Pastor Tosin Gabriel

Exhortation Begins

Reverence is deep respect and high regard for God. When anyone walks about while prayers are on-going, angels look at such persons as unserious.

Ephesians 4:3

Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

The unity of the Spirit means that we do whatever everyone else is doing when service is going on. Let us align with whatever the saints are doing. It is okay to greet, but don’t be gisting. Scriptures point out the need for reverence and trembling. However, trembling is higher than reverence.

Philippians 2:12

Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

Trembling is a sense of unworthiness before God. This doesn’t mean that we feel guilty, but there is this awe we should feel, like what we feel when we enter the office of the Governor. When we enter the presence of God, we should be so full of awe that we wait for God to commend us.

Luke 17:10

So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.

This means that we may have done everything we were commanded to, but even after all of that, we should still wait for the Lord’s approval; we don’t approve ourselves.

Hebrews 5:5

So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee.

The realm of the Father is a great realm; it is the finishing of the work. The reward is not the work; it is what we get after we have finished the work.

1 John 4:18

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

When we arrive at the place of perfect love, it means God has perfected His work in us: that is the realm of perfect work. After the work has been done in us, we would have trembling and reverence. Although, we don't have this kind of fear (mentioned in the verse above). It is possible for a man to work and not be accepted by the Lord.

Colossians 1:10

That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;

There is a way Gabriel would have stood in the presence of the Lord.

Psalm 103:20

Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word.

A man that is made better than angels must do more than they do.

1 Corinthians 6:3

Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?

If we are going to judge angels who hearken to his word, it means that we must be swifter than they are; if they fear God, we must fear Him more.

Message Begins

2 Timothy 2:19

Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

The foundation of God stands sure. What this scripture simply means is that the foundation of God is very firm. This foundation is both for the living and the true God. From the above scripture verse, the foundation of God is Christ. That is the foundation of the living and of the true God. Before God can be involved in anything, a foundation must first be laid. What makes Christ (the foundation of God) firm is charity. We need to respond more to God as a people and take these things more seriously. The secrets of God are precious to Him; they must be precious to us also.

Revelation 20:6

Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

Scripture never said they would be priests of God only; it mentioned Christ. This means that what we get first is Christ before we can consider the things of God. For Christ to be firm (an unshakeable Christ), he must have finished the curriculum called charity. Christ is not charity only; it is faith, hope and charity (1 Corinthians 13:13). The exercise in Christ is to make fatherhood easy. There are things of high commandments like what we have been learning for the past few weeks; but if you have exercised yourself well in Christ, those things would not be grievous. To pay your brother’s rent even though you have the money for another purpose won’t be grievous if you have done Christ well.

The early church found the commandments of Jesus more difficult to obey than the law of Moses. The law of Moses taught that a tooth can be taken for a tooth (Matthew 5:38). Nonetheless, Jesus still said His yoke is easy and His burden light.

Matthew 11:30

For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

What made this scripture unreal to us is insincerity. A spiritual man agrees with God; that is sincerity. Every time we agree with God, we are sincere.

1 Corinthians 13:5

Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

We cannot do the Father's love if we still do evil towards our brother. In the Father's love, when our thoughts vary from the Father’s, it is evil. We may not think evil towards our brethren, but think evil about ourselves. To think we can’t make everlasting life is evil thinking. Whenever God raises a judgment and we think we can’t do it, that is evil thinking. We should rather say, ‘Lord, I want to do it, but I need grace; help me.' If His commandments were not easy, He wouldn’t tell us to do it. If the Lord tells us that we will arrive at the incorruptible estate before the end of a certain time, and we say ‘Lord, I know myself’, we are insinuating that God doesn't know us. We should rather reply as Mary did.

Luke 1:38

And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.

Ezekiel 37:3

And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest.

If Ezekiel said ‘Lord, these bones can’t live’, there would not have been any performance. He would have just waited for another prophet to be on the same page with Him.

John 21:15

So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.

Peter should have replied, saying ‘Lord, You are the one that knows if I love you; but You know I don't love You enough.' To a carnal man, the commandments of the Father are grievous and heavy; but they shouldn't be to us if we have exercised ourselves in Christ.

1 Corinthians 13:13

And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

Christ is faith, hope and charity.

Romans 1:16

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

The gospel of Christ is the foundation of God.

Romans 1:17

For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

There is only one righteousness of God. The above scripture simply means that Christ would reveal that righteousness from faith to faith.

2 Corinthians 5:21

For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

This righteousness of God as described in the above scripture is not Christ; it is everlasting righteousness. The righteousness of God is incorruptible. The above verse didn't say ‘ the righteousness of faith. ' There is the righteousness of faith and there is the righteousness of God. Righteousness is a hope.

Galatians 5:5

For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.

What Christ delivers is the righteousness of faith; by it, we can receive the righteousness of God (which is a height) bit by bit. However, after getting this righteousness of faith, we have to go to a higher righteousness lest we become corrupted. God uses Christ to unearth that righteousness on a level, from faith to faith. But after arriving at the end of that righteousness of faith to faith, God would reveal another righteousness: this is the righteousness in the Father. Salvation is high righteousness. There is righteousness, and there is everlasting righteousness. Everlasting righteousness is salvation; that is incorruptibility. God however has to give us that righteousness in bits: from faith to faith. That is faith that moves to another level of faith, unto another level. Faith to faith is the faith that grows exceedingly.

2 Thessalonians 1:3

We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is meet, because that your faith groweth exceedingly, and the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth; 

This faith that grew exceedingly arrived at charity. Hence, faith to faith is one faith, but it grows. This also means that charity is a stature of faith; for a man to do charity, he must have grown in faith. When faith grows exceedingly, it will produce charity. Christ is the first training of righteousness from faith to faith. When we do milk, we do not receive any training of righteousness. Milk will not teach a man the righteousness of God; it will teach self-righteousness. In it comprises outward appearances, do’s and don'ts, and morality.The milk faith doesn't unveil the righteousness of God; it is in Christ that we get that righteousness. The righteousness of God is not in morality.

Judaism and Islam took their roots from Abraham. A Jew can kill for the name of God; that is why they stoned Steven and Paul to death. This means Jews are like muslims. They do all these for God; but God Himself is love. Both Jews and Muslims are moralists.

All the things that have been taught in the past few weeks will become our experiences. When the doctrine comes, leading follows; but the Holy Ghost will lead us into them when they are not grievous. When God asked Abraham for Isaac, it wasn't grievous. It was not that he didn't have some conflict, but that the commandment was not grievous. This is because he has made grievous sacrifices in the past in letting go of Ishamel.

Genesis 21:9-11

And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking.  Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.  And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because of his son. 

It was grievous for him to let go of Ishamel, even though that was still not his only son.

Genesis 22:2-3

And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.  And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him. 

Now, Abraham could even rise early to let go of his only son. Exercise brought him here.

1 Timothy 4:7

But refuse profane and old wives' fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness. 

We must be able to exercise ourselves unto godliness. When we exercise ourselves to obey commandments, we are developing muscles and might do the next commandment. All the love natures of the new man that we studied in today’s KBS is what we should exercise ourselves in; that is the first life that God gives.

1 Timothy 4:8

For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come. 

The ‘all things’ in the above verse don't relate to cars and houses. Those all things are things of God: godliness is profitable unto the first love and the last love.

2 Corinthians 5:17-18

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.  And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; 

In Christ is the righteousness “of God”. All things are things of God. When we get born again, God removes the old things and gives us new things; those new things are faith, hope and charity. As we exercise ourselves in them, we would be qualified for all things of God.

1 Corinthians 2:9-10

But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.  But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

If we don't exercise ourselves in godliness, all things of God would not be profitable to us; rather than being profitable to us, they would be grievous.

Hebrews 4:2

For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.

The reason the word did not profit them was because it was not mixed with faith in those that heard it; that faith is Christ. Those men did not exercise themselves in righteousness. The promise was rest; that is God’s everlasting righteousness; but when it was mentioned to them, it was grievous because they looked like grasshoppers in their eyes. Everything God was teaching the children of Israel in the wilderness was faith, but they did not stay on faith;they also did not exercise themselves in godliness. Only two people had faith.

Numbers 14:24

But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it. 

Joshua was always with Moses, so he developed a measure of judgment, likewise Caleb. But the rest didn't have faith and therefore couldn't enter the rest. It was good as the children of Israel did not cross Jordan into the promised land. If they did, they would have rationalized the commandment to march around Jericho. Those were commandments. God may tell us to do certain things, but they are to remove things from within us; and they may not look reasonable.

1 Timothy 4:8

For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come. 

There is a life that now is; that is everlasting life. In their day, that life was the life that ‘now is’.

2 Timothy 1:10

But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel: 

During the apostles' days, the life that ‘is’ was everlasting life. The life to come was eternal life; that is why he said, ‘lay hold on eternal life’ (1 Timothy 6:12) that was the life to come. Godliness is the foundation of God.

Titus 2:11-12

For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,  Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; 

The end of the administration of faith is to make us godly. To live soberly, righteously and godly is to have come to the end of the administration of faith, hope and charity. We are to do all these in this present world.

Titus 2:13

Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; 

From the above verse, we are looking for two things: the blessed hope (everlasting life) and the glorious appearing (eternal life). Exercise of godliness is therefore profitable in all things of God, having promise of the life that now is and that which is to come. The righteousness of God is everlasting righteousness; but God has to break it down. That is why we firstly learn Christ and then come to a higher righteousness with a higher altitude. Growing in faith is to grow from the faith of Christ to hope (1 Corinthians 13:13).

Hebrews 11:1

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. 

The substance of things hoped for is one thing; the evidence of things not seen is another. There are things unseen in God that Christ is an evidence of. Charity is the substance of things hoped for in faith. When we do faith, it will open our eyes to see the substance: charity. What we will see in faith is not eternal life; we may hear it, but that doesn't mean we have seen it. What we see is charity, and that is what we will begin to hope for. Christ is the opposite of this world: Christ is the power of God, while this world is the power of satan. The charity of this world is ungodliness. Ungodliness is a manner of life that faith in this world will teach us to hope in: It is a life that is devoid of God but is still successful. Some use a god to get ungodliness; that is religion. This is why people get angry when God makes demands, even if they say they love God. That is why they run to nations that don't uphold righteousness. If a man is invited to the embassy to go abroad, and has charity as his hope, he will be composed and not agitated because it is not his life.

John 19:10-11

Then saith Pilate unto him, Speakest thou not unto me? knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee?  Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin. 

Ungodliness is the hope of those in this world; it is the evidence of the things unseen, which the evil one will bring: it is a glory. Likewise, charity is the substance of things hoped for in faith; as we have been seeing the x-ray of the new man, we have been hoping for it. When we have the substance of things hoped for, it is also the evidence of things unseen. When we grow in faith, we will arrive at hope. Faith opens our eyes to see charity.

Acts 26:18

To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. 

When we start learning the doctrine of Christ, God starts painting a life to us, showing us that it is our life. It will sanctify us from this world. We cannot be sanctified if our eyes are not open; hence, the opening of the eyes is by faith. When we grow in this faith, our hope would begin to change from that of those in this world to desire charity. When we grow from hope, we would enter charity properly. In charity, it becomes our life so much that we become restless if we offend the laws of charity. In it, we feel bad when we get angry or are not patient.

1 Corinthians 13:6

Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; 

Iniquity is breaking the law of charity. A man that has exceedingly grown in faith becomes sad when he doesn't walk in charity. He feels like he has betrayed his nature. To take charity as one of those things, treating it lightly, is actually as a result of lack of growth in the faith of Christ. If a man grows in the faith of Christ, charity is his life; if he breaks it, he feels bad about it. Whatever you don't exercise yourself in won’t become yours. In milk, we exercised ourselves in casting out devils. We can exercise ourselves in charity. In fact, the Holy Ghost responds more to those who are exercising themselves in charity. He gives grace to them.

1 Corinthians 13:8-11

Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.  For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.  But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.  When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 

The man in the above scripture is the man of charity. The secret of becoming a man is in exercising ourselves in godliness; we cannot become if we don't exercise.

1 Corinthians 13:12

For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. 

The substance of this is charity; but even this charity man as described in the above scripture still sees darkly.

1 Corinthians 13:7

Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. 

To believe all things is not only to believe in the realm of Christ; he must still believe further that Jesus is the Son of God.

Hebrews 10:39

But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul. 

If we don't exercise ourselves in believing all things, we will arrive at a time when we dont believe.

Hebrews 3:12

Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. 

1 Corinthians 13:12

For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. 

The realm of face to face is after we have exercised ourselves in godliness (charity). Face to face is our interaction with the unseen.

2 Corinthians 4:18

While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal. 

The things that are seen are not talking about this world, but rather the things seen here is charity. The things we see being temporal means that if we don’t move forward, we can lose the things we have seen.

1 Corinthians 13:13

And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

 As for ‘now’, these three abide; but even in the ‘now’, we still see darkly. The realm of ‘then’ is face to face; this face to face means that God would move us from one face to another. We are to exercise ourselves in charity, so that when we get to ‘then’, we will profit in ‘face to face’. The first face we will see is in Psalms 80.

Psalm 80:3

Turn us again, O God, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved. 

The ministration of this face is salvation; but there is another face that ministers glory (that is the face that Moses was asking for). The realm of ‘then’ in the book of 1 Corinthians is our ‘now’; but there will be failure to make profit with what is now if we don't do well in that which is going (Christ). We have to tighten our mastery in Christ. We must go beyond listening to the messages to doing them consciously and deliberately.

In the world to come, there would still be godliness; it is our foundation.

Revelation 21:14

And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

Revelation 21:19

And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;

The walls have foundation; hence, even in the world to come, godliness would still be our foundation. We must analyze all the components of charity and not only pray but also start doing it. Charity endures all things; start enduring. You endure when you complain less. Charity is the love of the brethren; before anyone can do anything to those outside, he must have done that to his brethren first. If you can say that your sister snores to another sister not living with you, you have diminished your sister. The other sister didn’t know her qualms, but you do. There is a phase you will endure; afterwards, you will begin to enjoy what you have endured for a while.

Psalm 40:8

I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.

At a point, it was a duty to do His will; but at another point, it became a delight. Let us deliberately start enduring. In exercise, you may have not been able to lift the weight properly at the first trial; but upon doing it again, you would have gained more strength and capacity to lift it better. Thereafter, you would be able to bear heavier weights. That is exercise. In giving, you can allot five thousand Naira for your brethren. Thereafter, He can increase your capacity to give ten thousand. God would not be able to ask you to give fifty thousand naira if you have not exercised yourself in five thousand naira. God would not give you more than you can bear. As you exercise yourself more in charity, you come to abounding charity (2 Thessalonians 1:3).

Prayer

Lord, grant us grace to exercise ourselves in godliness.

1 Corinthians 13:8 (KJV)

Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. 

Prayer

Lord, teach us how not to fail.

James 1:22

But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

Even in the realm of everlasting life, we will do and we will become.

Message Ends