By Jesus For Jesus Jesus came into the world for one reason and one reason alone. That is to build the church. To build a church comprising people who would be committed to the true living God. A group of people who would place their faith in God. Today I will share why this is the reason of what Jesus came for. Why the church is the main focus of God. We will see that the church was started by Jesus, built by Jesus and for Jesus. We will come to an understanding of the position that the church has in relation to Jesus and since we make up the church how we as Christians should respond. What God expects of us. What we must do. Jesus prayed on many occasions. He prayed for various things. Today, we will look at one of these prayers. We will see that Jesus was very concerned for the church. This was expressed in the prayer. JN 17:1 After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: "Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. 2 For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. 3 Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. 4 I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. 5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began. JN 17:6 "I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. 7 Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. 8 For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. 9 I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. 10 All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. 11 I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name--the name you gave me--so that they may be one as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled. JN 17:13 "I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. 14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. We note that Jesus is praying for the church here. He is not praying for the world but the church. The church comprises people who know God the Father. This knowledge of the Father is through Jesus. Jesus has made known the Father to us. This knowledge of the Father is eternal relationship with God. It is eternal life. It is an indication to the powers and authorities that we have chosen to serve God and not Satan. There is a battle going on in this world. This battle is larger than World War 1. It is larger than World War 2. It is larger than any war that we have ever known. It is a war not waged by human beings. It is a war between God and Satan. It is a war with us, human beings, as the prize. We are the trophies. Will human beings choose to serve God? Or will they choose to serve Satan and the demonic powers? This is the bottom-line. This is what the war is about. This is what this world is about This is what life is all about This is what Satan had challenged God about. Jesus came so that He may lead people to follow God. Starting with His disciples a group of people who choose to follow God began to form. This is the Church. This is a group of people who have openly declared to all the powers and authorities that we have chosen to follow God. Jesus said that the Church will continue to grow and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. From the time of Jesus till now the Church has extended beyond just a handful of people to billions over the last two thousand years. There are at the moment millions all over the world who belong to the Church. They belong to Jesus. When we accept God we are not automatically taken into heaven right away to be with Him. We are left on this earth. But this earth is the devil's domain. It is enemy territory. Satan is the prince of this world. We are left here In enemy's territory - but for a purpose. . And the purpose is this. That we may show to Satan and His forces that there are people who would not bow down to them. We would only serve the one and only true living God. Not only that, we will be used by God to destroy Satan and demolish his domains as well. God could have had mankind saved all by Himself if He wanted to. He could have destroyed Satan and his demonic forces -- all by Himself if He wanted to. But where will that place us as human beings? We would not be able to exercise our will - we cannot say that we have chosen to follow God and not Satan. Also, we will just be a recipient of God's grace passively. Without us being involved. Where will our sense of self-worth be? It is only when we can say to Satan and his demonic forces that we have not only chosen to follow God but we will be used by God to destroy him that we can stand tall as a human being. That we can be the proud trophy of God. How can we be used by God to destroy Satan? By actively participating in the Great Commission. As God the Father has sent Jesus, so Jesus is sending us. After He has liberated us He has asked us to go forth to proclaim the gospel so that more may be brought into God's Kingdom. We go forth to plunder hell and to populate heaven. This is how we can be used by God to destroy Satan. But then, as long as we are on this earth, we are in enemy's territory. Well, how else can we free prisoners who have been captured by Satan. We penetrate the enemy's territory so that we can release these prisoners. We therefore go forth into the world as God's Rambo. Will Satan and his forces do anything. Of course yes. They will do all they can to stop us. This is where Jesus' concern is It is expressed in His prayer. He asked God the Father to protect us. Do you think God the Father will answer the prayers of Jesus? Of course, yes. Now, let me ask you another question? Will most fathers protect their children? Yes? Do some children get into trouble in spite of what their fathers have done? Oh..yes….Why? getting into wrong company? Not listening to the advice of their fathers? I see ee. Now, can Christians who are under the protection of the heavenly Father get into trouble? But why? First of all, coming under the Father's protection require us to know what our heavenly Father's advice and commands are. Young children do not know what is right and wrong unless they are told by their parents. Don't touch that kettle Johnny. Ahhhhh! Ouch. He did not listen. We can hear the audible voice of our natural parents and yet at times we don't listen. Do we know what is right or wrong? Are we following the values of the world - embrace them and then come under Satan's domain - or do we know what the values of God are. How do we know? Even if we know, how can we be strong enough to follow them? We know God through His Word, the Bible. We know His values, His ways, and all about Him through the Bible. If that is the case, the Bible becomes our primary source of living a life in following God. If we do not know the Bible, tendency is that we will follow the ways of the world. That is following Satan. So, which side of the fence are we on now? Are we following God or are we following Satan? The Church is made up of people who are determined to follow God. Are we following God? Do we know His Word? Do we know the Bible? Knowing the Bible is not the same as having the Bible. Many people have the Bible. They have more than one copy of the Bible. They have various translations. NIV, NASB, KJV, NKJV, NLT, LHC…Some have beautifully bound Bibles - leather cover, gold wordings on the front - gold trimmings at the side - different types of fonts. These Bible looks beautiful especially on bookshelves to impress guests to their homes. No, people have Bibles all right. But do they know the Bible. If they do not know the Bible how do they know God's ways. If they do not know God's ways, then who are they following? Knowing the Word of God is not about attending services to hear the Word preached. It is not about reading devotionals such as the Daily Bread. It is not about attending CGs and discussing the Christian life. It is not attending HSM and Word Nights. These are important no doubt. But unless we read he Bible for ourselves. Unless we meditate on what we read. Unless we pray over what we read. What we read will remain in our heads. It will not penetrate our hearts and change our being. We will then find that our spirits are willing but our flesh is weak when the testing comes. Satan will never leave us alone. He does not want the Church to plunder hell and populate heaven. So, he is going to place many obstacles in our paths. He knows our weaknesses and he is going to tempt us in those areas that we are weak in. Oh just round up the figures in your claim forms. Add in a few more dollars. You deserve it. After all, the company has made you worked so hard. You have spent so many hours working overtime. They have not paid you for the overtime, have they? Just add in some dollars to the claim. Did God say that you cannot lie? He has kept so many things from you. Is He not lying as well. Did He talk to you about the dinosaurs. He did not. He did not tell you so many things. He is not telling you the truth. Just go ahead and in those few dollars to your claim form. Oh, did God say that you should not watch all those girlie pictures? That you should not see those pictures of the hunks? He created us with eyes to see. Then he tells us not to use them? He created us naked anyway. So, what's wrong with seeing pictures of naked people. Go ahead. Watch them. You will enjoy it. You mean you are going to let him get away with that. Show that you are a man. Didn't Jesus go into the temple with a whip. You should go after that guy with a whip as well. The devil will just sit back with his hands folded waiting. Waiting for that fish to bite. For one of us to take his bait. And then he will turn to God the Father and laugh "ha ha ha didn't I tell you that they will never follow you." Yes, the devil will tempt us into various things. On a daily basis. In all sorts of situations. Do you know God's Word well enough to counter him. Are you strong enough in your own spirit to resist the temptation? Or will you follow after the ways of the world? The Church comprises people who have chosen to follow God. Jesus started the Church. He is in the process of building up the Church. Will we be counted as one in the Church or as one who is in the world? Will we be on the side of Jesus or will we be on Satan's side? The Church was started by Jesus. He has also sent the Church into the world to be His Rambo. To penetrate enemy's territory. To release those who are being held in prisons. How does Rambo enter into enemy's territory to free the prisoners? Does he walk in unprepared? Or does he walk in fully prepared and armed? When we are in a war especially when we are penetrating enemy's territory, there are 2 things that we need to be prepared for. To be shot at and to shoot. Since there is always a possibility that we may be shot at, we must put on helmets, we must wear bullet proof vests. The battle we are in is a spiritual battle. We need therefore to go into enemy territory with our spiritual armour on. When the fiery darts are aimed at us, it will hit our helmet of salvation, it will hit our breastplate of righteousness, it will hit our belt of truth, it will hit our shields of faith but it will not hit us. And we will use our sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God to smite down the enemy. Like Rambo, we must be ready. Like Rambo we must go in with our armour on. And like Rambo we must use our machine guns which is praying in the Spirit. We must go in like this --- (pray in tongues) - every word in tongue is like a bullet coming out from us. It will hit and knock down the enemies. Then when the walls holding in the prisoners are no longer guarded by any of Satan's guys, we can go in and release those who are held captives. This is what God expects of the Church. This is what the Great Commission is about. Trouble is that too many Christians forget once too often that the Church is caught up in a cosmic war larger than what we have seen or experienced. We live a comfortable life in a stable prosperous society and we think everything is flowing along alright. We see things from the physical angle. We forget about the larger spiritual world that surrounds us. When we see the global warming, Australia in drought and then in floods, storms ravaging many parts of the world, disasters happening here and there we just see them as natural disasters. We forget that these are signs pointing to the times that we are living in. a time when Jesus is going to return at anytime for the Church. Yes, the Church was started by Jesus and it is for Jesus. When Jesus had finished training His disciples, the Church was formed. Jesus knew then that His purpose in coming to earth was finished. He returned in glory to be at the right hand side of the Father. Before He went He gave the Church the commission - as the Father has sent me, so send I you. We have been commissioned to go into enemy's territory and release those who have been held captives. This is the Great Commission. This is what we have been called to. When this is done, all knees will bow and all tongues including Satan will confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of God the Father and to the glory of Jesus the Son. The Church was started by Jesus and it is for Jesus. The trophy that will be His. The bride whom He will return for. The Church comprises people who choose to follow God and who would be used by Him to destroy Satan and his forces. Today, which side of the fence are you on? Are youfor God or are you for Satan? When Jesus returns, which side are you on?

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