PREPARING
FOR RAPTURE, PART 11, (CRUCIFIXION OF THE FLESH)
TEXT: GALATIANS 5: 16-24
16 This I say
then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.
17 For the
flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh:
and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the
things that ye would.
18 But if ye
be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.
19 Now the works
of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication,
uncleanness, lasciviousness,
20 Idolatry,
witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
21 Envyings,
murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of which I tell you before, as
I have also told you in
time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the
fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness,
faith,
23 Meekness,
temperance: against such there is no law.
24 And they
that are Christs have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
Introduction
A man driving on a highway where the
traffic is free-flowing may soon overspeed and have accident if a conscious and
deliberate effort is not made to check his speed. Many people have died in
accidents arriving from overspeedings like these. Bumps and speed breakers are
often deliberately constructed on roads to limit the speeds of drivers on that
road in order that road accidents may be avoided. Road warning and caution
signs are placed at strategic places to make sure accidents do not happen at
all cost. If all these measures are taken to avoid physical road accidents,
concerted and deliberate efforts must be taken to avoid spiritual accidents.
To avoid a fatal ‘spiritual accident’, you
must deliberately control the speed (desires) of your flesh. You must erect
Spiritual bumps and speed breakers for your flesh so that it will not
spiritually crash-land you. When you do this, you are crucifying your flesh.
All they that are Christ’s must reach this
level in faith where the influence of flesh in their lives is reduced to an
insignificant level. Then, their spirits can be at work. This teaching is aimed
at exploring possible ways of limiting the influences of flesh in our lives.
The Flesh and Its Sinful Nature
The flesh has a natural tendency for sins.
The book of Psalm 51 infers so.
Psalm 51:5
5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin
did my mother conceive me.
Most sins that men commit, today, arise
from the desire to satisfy the sinful demands of their flesh. I will give some
example.
-
When
you take strong drink, you fulfill your body’s desire for drink.
-
When
you fornicate, you fulfill the desires of your flesh for pleasure.
-
When
you dress worldly, you satisfy the desire of your flesh for ego.
-
When
you smoke, you satisfy the craving of your body for Cigarette.
-
Lust
of the eye arises from the desire to please your eyes.
Almost all sins arise as a result to please
one or the other desires of the flesh.
The Heart and Its Key Role
The role of a man’s heart in overcoming or
yielding to sins cannot be over-emphasized. Throughout the Word of God, this
truth about heart is underscored. Let us look at a few of them.
Proverb 4:23
23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out
of it are the issues of life.
34 O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good
things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth
speaketh.
8 Blessed are the pure in
heart: for they shall see God.
Mathew 15:19-20
19 For out of the heart proceed
evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts,
false witness, blasphemies:
20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with
unwashen hands defileth not a man.
There are many other scriptures that emphasize
the all-important role of the heart of a man either towards salvation if his
heart is sanctified or towards destruction if his heart is full of evils.
The Heart as the Chief Flesh Officer
The heart of a man is the one that dictates
whatever sinful behaviors that a man does with his body parts. The heart is the
chief flesh officer of the body. It is the one that gives signal to the eyes to
look lustfully, to the mouth to tell lies, to the flesh to desire strong drink,
and to the feet to run to do evils. If you can actually tame the heart you can
tame all other parts of your flesh.
Consider what the scripture below says.
Proverb_16:32
32 He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty;
and he that ruleth his spirit (heart) than he that taketh a city.
The scripture above infers that the spirit (the heart) of man is the
most difficult to control by a man and that any man that can successfully
control such is better than any mighty man. Make every step to crucify your
flesh today.
The Heart as a Reservoir For Evils
Though, we mentioned above that the heart
of a man is the one giving signals of sins to the members of his body, still,
it is worth stressing that those signals are not primarily its own. They are
the signals of sins that the members of the body that it controls have stored
inside of it. The heart acts like a reservoir of sinful behaviour, if it has
not been sanctified, or a reservoir of godliness, if it has been sanctified.
The scripture below suggests such.
Mathew 12:34
34 O generation of vipers, how
can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart
the mouth speaketh.
The 3 Major Gateways to The Heart
The scripture in Mathew 15:19-20 makes us
to know that every evil behaviour that a man does proceed from his heart.
Mathew
15:19-20
19 For out of the heart
proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications,
thefts, false witness, blasphemies:
This is why we said that the heart is both
the ‘chief flesh officer’ and a reservoir of evil deeds. And again, we said
that every evil that proceeds from the heart are in turn what the heart have
been fed with.
The three major gateways by which evils are
fed to the heart are ‘Mouth’, ‘Eyes’ and ‘Hear’. These are the members of the
body that principally feed the heart with all evils and the heart in turn gives
it back to them when they need what they have deposited. What you give to your
heart is what it gives you back in return.
If you always look at lustful images with
your eyes, your heart will be filled with desires of fornication, masturbation,
lust, prostitution and the rests. If you
always say loose and vain words, your heart will always be filled with such
words. If you always drink strong drinks, your heart will always desire to be
at the clubs, parties and so on. If you always listen to slanderous and
defiling words, your heart will always give you more desires of such.
It is therefore our belief that if we
successfully ‘crucify’ our eyes, mouth and hears, then we will have succeeded blocking
evils from gaining access to our hearts.
In view of this, we will dealing with how
to tame our eyes, mouths and ears from evils. If we are able to successfully
tame them, then very soon, our flesh shall be crucified.
How to Tame The Tongue and The Mouth
The tongue and the mouth together play a
great role in making a man to sin. If therefore, we can control these two
important organs of speech, then very soon, our flesh will be crucified.
The following few scriptures emphasize the
gross importance of both the mouth and the tongue.
James 3
2 For in many things we offend all. If any man offend
not in word,
the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body.
James
3:6-8
6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity:
so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and
setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.
7 For
every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea,
is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind:
8 But
the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of
deadly poison.
James 3:10
10 Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing
and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be.
The following ways are useful in crucifying
the tongue and the mouth.
How to tame your
mouths/tongues
-1. Fast and Pray
Mathew_17:21
17 Howbeit
this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.
The first instruments of deliverance and crucifying the flesh are
fasting and praying. We have taught about fasting in great details, here.
-2. Always Speak the Word of God
Joshua_1:8a This book of the law shall
not depart out of thy mouth;
-3. Give thanks always
Ephesians 5:20
20 Giving thanks always for all things
unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;
-4. Sing hymns, psalms and spiritual
songs.
Eph 5:19
19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms
and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your
heart to the Lord;
-5. Be slow to speak.
James 1:19
19 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man
be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:
If you are always slow to speak, most of the
things you will have said in anger will have been avoided. It is particularly
advisable to be quiet when you are angry. Someone was even quoted as saying
that, if you are angry, count from one to twenty before you talk. It is
believed that before you counted up to twenty, the anger will have soften and
you might say any harsh word, any more.
-6. Being a man of few words.
Proverbs 10:19 (NLT)
19 Too much talk leads to sin. Be
sensible and keep your mouth shut.
The scripture above
says it all. Avoid too much talk. Talk only when it is necessary and say, also,
what is necessary.
-7. Avoid Murmuring and Complaints
Numbers 14:27
27 How long shall I bear with this evil
congregation, which murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of
the children of Israel, which they murmur against me.
God hates murmuring. Rather than murmuring, let
us take our petition to Him in prayer.
-8. Do not blaspheme
Most comedies today
are blasphemous. Name of God, Word of God, and Spirit of God are used to crack
jokes. We must avoid such. Exodus 20:7.
-9. Avoid Swelling Words
Jude 1:16
16 These are murmurers, complainers,
walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling
words, having men's persons in admiration because of
advantage.
-10. Avoid Vain Words
Words that do not
glorify God should be avoided.
-11. Avoid Swearing
-12. Avoid Pride and pompous words.
-13. Avoid Condemnation and judgment
-14. Do not curse
Romans 12:14
14
Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.
-15. Avoid Jesting and comedy
Ephesians 5:4
4 Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting,
which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.
How To Tame the Eyes
In these last days, there are constant and
deliberate plans by the enemy to attack the eyes of men. Many clothes that
reveal the sensitive parts of woman’s bodies have flooded the world. It is
almost difficult to walk the whole length of a street without seeing at least a
woman wearing the attires of an harlot.
The reason why the enemy has flooded the
wardrobes of women with body-revealing clothes has largely to make men disobey the
words of our Lord, Jesus Christ, in Mathew 5:28 quoted below.
Mathew_5:28
28 But I say unto you, that whosoever
looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with
her already in his heart.
From the underlined words from above, we
see how the look of the eyes of man can trigger lust and then adultery of
heart. But are we excusable to commit lust because we have no control over the
type of clothe that another woman wear? NO!
The next verse to the one above Mathew 5:29 infers to us to deal with
our eyes rather than falling to sin.
Mathew 5:29
29 And if thy
right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one
of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should
be cast into hell.
Now that we know that we have no excuse
based on the shortcoming of our eyes to fall into lust and satan’s deliberate
attempt to attack the eyes through women’s body-revealing clothes, our own
responsibility as heaven-minded believers is crucify the eyes and make them insensitive
to those women riotous end-time clothes.
The following ways are few ways to crucify
the eyes.
-1. Fast and Pray
Mathew_17:21
17 Howbeit
this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.
Regular fasting and prayer help to check the spirit of lust from
invading our eyes.
-2.
Flee appearance of
pornographic/lust-inducing images
Immediately your
eyes are exposed to any lust inducing images, quickly take away your eyes. Do
not look, the second time, to confirm. If Kind David had flee on catching a
glimpse of Uriah’s wife that was bathing, he could have escaped adultery,
murder and the judgment God placed on him.
The lust-inducing
images include the women that exposed her body on the road, the ones on
billboards, televisions, magazines, computers, phones, social media and others.
-3. Avoid eye contacts with strange
women/men
Proverb 7:13,18,19
13
So she caught him, and kissed him, and
with an impudent face said unto him,
18 Come, let us take our fill of love
until the morning: let us solace ourselves with loves.
19 For the goodman is
not at home, he is gone a long journey:
The above
scriptures show a prostitute that used her face/eyes to pass a message to a
young man of her intention to commit an act of adultery with him.
As it was in the
bible days, so it is in these last days. Adulterous men and women still use
face to communicate sensuous messages to their potential sin partners. If you
are able to avoid their facial communication, you may not fall into their
traps.
-4. Always ask why
Job 41:1
1 I made a covenant with mine eyes; why
then should I think upon a maid?
Before you look twice at an opposite sex on the road, always
ask yourself why. If the answer is because you think she is ‘sexy’ or exposing
some sensuous parts of her body or there is an ‘inviting’ body shape, decide
that you will not look at her. By so
doing, you can overcome many lustful temptations. Make a covenant with yourself
that you will not look the second time at any man/woman that dress in a lustful
way. If you are used to this approach, you will soon crucify your eyes.
-5.
Walk and Look straight on
Proverb 4:25
25 Let thine eyes look right on, and let
thine eyelids look straight before thee. on (Prov 4:25)
Many men enjoy
sightseeing on the road. They look up and down, left and right, trying to catch
a glimpse of everything on the road. If you are such a person, you are exposing
yourself to lustful images. Rather than that, focus yourself on your
destination and reduce sight-seeing on the road as much as possible.
-6. Don’t read captions on females
clothes
Some captions on females’
clothes can be so tempting. Once, I saw a caption like ‘Have a taste’ written
along the breast-line of a female clothe. If a man read such a caption, it can
easily spark an evil thought. On another occasion, I saw another young lady
with the caption ‘love’ written on the buttock side of her clothe.
-7. Be in the Spirit always.
Being in the Spirit
always will help you always not to fulfill the desires of the flesh. You can
sing in hymns, psalms, spiritual songs and so on.
How To Tame the Hears
-1. Fast and Pray
Mathew_17:21
17 Howbeit
this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.
Regular fasting and prayer help to crucify the flesh. Indulge in it.
-2.
Hear the Word of God always.
Romans 10:17
17 So then faith cometh by hearing,
and hearing by the word of God.
Your faith will
grow in whatever you keep hearing and that is what your mouth will be
professing. If for instance, you love to listen football arguments, before you
know what is happening, you will say things along that line. In the same
manner, if you cultivate the habit of listening to the Word of God, your mouth
will be professing spiritual things and you will grow in faith.
Always excuse
yourself where ungodly things are being said. Do not listen to profane songs.
-3. Be in the Spirit always.
Being in the Spirit
always will help you always not to fulfill the desires of the flesh. If you
found yourself where unholy and unruly things are being discussed and you
cannot excuse yourself, for instance in your office, You can start to sing
hymns, psalms and spiritual songs and tune your ears to that song alone. By
that you will be filtering the ungodly conversations from entering your ears.
How To Crucify the Heart
In addition to crucifying the eyes,
mouth/tongue and ears –the three principal gateways to the heart, there is a
deliberate need to tame the heart as well. The following few steps are
advisable.
-1. Fast and Pray
Mathew_17:21
17 Howbeit
this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.
Regular fasting and prayer will certainly help in crucifying the heart
and the flesh at large.
-2.
Wash your heart in the blood
of Jesus
Any time lustful or
evil thought infiltrates your heart, repent of that thought and just say this
simple prayer,: ‘Lord, Jesus Christ, wash my heart with
your blood’. By so doing, you will be cleansing and purifying your
heart. Remember Mathew 5:8.
Mathew 5:8
8 Blessed are the pure in heart:
for they shall see God.
-3. Open your heart
Revelation 3:20
20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my
voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him,
and he with me.
God is always
standing at the door of our heart. He is ready to give us instructions,
warnings, corrections, guidance and so on. This may come through pastor’s
preaching in the church, bus preaching, song ministration, street cry, tract,
and so on. To be able to receive, you must always be of a willing heart. Your
heart must be open to Him, always. Be alert.
It is important to
stress that as God, through the Holy Spirit, is standing at the door of your
heart, Satan also, through the evil spirits, is also standing at the door of
your heart. It is who you open your heart to that will eventually enter.
-4.
Meditate the Word of God
Joshua_1:8b
8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou
shalt meditate therein day and night,
-5.
Keep your heart
Proverb 4:23
23 Keep thy heart with all diligence;
for out of it are the issues of life.
There is a
deliberate spiritual war against the heart of man. Whether you will make heaven
or not will depend on who wins the war of your heart; whether God or satan
depending on whom you yield the heart to. Therefore, it is your duty to always
remember this fact that there are wars, attacks, arrows against your heart, if
you did not spiritually keep your heart with all diligence, you will be a
spiritual victim in the hands of sin and satan.
Conclusion
Anything that is out
of control is a potential source of danger to the user. To be an order, there
must be some form of control. Can you imagine a highway where there is no
traffic light system or traffic wardens to control traffic at crossroads that
is full of volume of vehicles? Certainly there is going to be chaos at that junction!
The wild animals are wild and different
from the domestic ones because the former are not subject to any control like
the domestic one.
The same goes to human flesh. The flesh of
human has to be under control. If this is not done, a man may want to sleep
with any man he lusts after just because he lusts after them. He may want to do
anything that comes to his heart without restraints and this will ultimately
lead to his self-destruction.
Apostle Paul recognized the danger of not bringing
his flesh under control and he wrote by the inspiration of Holy Ghost in 1 Corinthians
9:27.
1 Corinthians 9:27
27 But I keep under my body, and bring it
into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I
myself should be a castaway.
He realized if he did not bring his flesh
under control, the result will be an eternal damnation. In similar manner, any
believer that has the hope of making the rapture should crucify his flesh and
bring it under subjection.
Summary We have seen from above that the human
flesh can be subjected to control and indeed a believer must make a deliberate effort
to crucify it. We have also seen that the flesh, which is the principal flesh
officer, can be crucified by crucifying the three major gateways to it. We have
also seen that fasting and prayer are also good effective tools at crucifying
the flesh. Always remember the Words of the Lord, Jesus Christ that the flesh profiteth nothing (John
6:63b).
Prayers
1. Lord, Jesus Christ, wash and purify my heart in your blood.
2. Holy Spirit of God, crucify my flesh on the cross of Jesus.
3. Lord Jesus Christ, refine my spirit, soul and body in the fire of Holy Ghost .
4. Lord, Jesus Christ, deliver me from all works of the flesh and prepare me ready for your return.
Actions
Are
you an elect of Christ? Are you truly saved? Are you on the narrow road? Do you
want to make the rapture/heaven? If your answers are yes, then,
• Make all efforts to heed the warnings of Jesus Christ.
•
Be watchful. Pay attention to what is happening around the World and see
whether they match what the scriptures say.
•
Be filled with the Holy Spirit and be in the Spirit all the time.
•
Fast, consecrate yourself, run away from sin and worldliness.
If your answers are NO, then you can repent
today. Accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. Kindly sincerely and
faithfully pray the prayer of repentance below and make a determination never
to commit sin again.
Prayer Of Repentance
Lord, Jesus Christ, I am sorry
for all my sins. I confess them with my mouth and I ask for mercy. Please
forgive me and wash me in your blood. I accept you as my personal Lord and
Saviour. Write my name in the book of life. Give me power over sins and fill me
with your Spirit and Joy of Salvation. When rapture trumpet sounds, let me make
it. Thank you for saving me. In Jesus name, I pray.
Begin to read bible. Begin with the book of
John. Pray always. Fast regularly (you can begin with once in a week). Look for
a bible believing church where they teach repentance, holiness, salvation and
fellowship with them. Pray before you go. Always run away from SINS.
Need More Information?
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Shalom.
To Make Rapture:
Confess your sins to JESUS CHRIST and ask Him
to save you.
Repent of your sins constantly on daily basis
and run away from sins.
Be filled with the Holy Spirit
Live in Holiness and Righteousness
Do all Restitutions
Be filled with the Holy Spirit
Live in Holiness and Righteousness
Do all Restitutions
Cut off all worldliness.
Forgive all people.
Pray and fast.
Consecrate and study the bible.
Watch.
