Posts

Featured

In the mind of the unforgiving servant : Justifiable or not?

Image
    Anger, they say, lies in the bosom of fools (Ecclesiastes 7:9). But what defines a person as a fool exactly? Is it the thought process, or the angry action itself? Backing up a bit, Jesus told a story in Matthew 18 : 21-35, of a servant who owed his boss a lot of money and couldn’t pay up when it was accounted for by him. From the description NIV gave of him, he owed ‘millions of dollars’ which implies he’s also kind of rich to an extent (at least enough to amass that kind of debt) or doing some kind of business that gave him the confidence to borrow that large sum…enough to lend another.  So, given his reputation and the ‘respect’ he commanded from ‘Junior servants’, it is imaginable the humiliation he felt when he was bundled off with his wife, his kids, and all he had to sell off at the slave market - reputation in the mud, his shoulder pad balloon was deflated and he felt exposed.  But why the take out on the ‘lesser servant’ though? Was it sheer frustration?...

A fu ihe ka ubi... (Selling the storehouse)

Image
  The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure that a man discovered hidden in a field...and sold everything he owned to get enough money to buy the field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it. -Mt 13 :44-47 "A fu ihe ka ubi eree oba" is an Igbo adage  which loosely translates to : " when one sees what is greater than the farm, he sells  the barn. This implies that when one sees something of high value and important he gives up his 'storehouse' (his entire treasury/savings) to get it....at all cost.  On the face value, this adage feels like just about any other saying, but on a close look, it has a lot deeper implication. 'Oba', which means 'barn', in the traditional Igbo context connotes one's storehouse where they stock up the volume of yams harvested (as yams was one of chief food and yardstick for measuring wealth in the ...

The mystery of the Corn, Meat and Wine - A secret to Sustainability.

Image
  Therefore God give thee the dew of heaven and the fatness of the earth and plenty of corn and wine.   - Genesis 27 : 28.  Corn, meat and wine are three words that are concurrently mentioned in the scriptures especially as regards to food and sustainability. When Isaac blessed his son, he said :  “…with corn and wine have I sustained him” -Gen 27:37. It always talked about or signified abundance, wealth, etc. In our present time, corn, meat and wine corn could be used connotatively or still literally, just like in the old Israeli times. Here’s a little backstory to it: In the ancient time, the most common professions among the children of Israel were farming, herding, and wine growing. So, some of them were farmers owing to the large expanse of lands of their inheritance, where they planted wheat, barley, corn, or grape vines for wine. Some were sheep herders, taking care of sheep. The rich among them had all three : Farmland, vineyard, and sheep. The abundance...

The wall from across your house - A strategy for reducing complex tasks.

Image
  There’s an interesting story taken from the third chapter in the book of Nehemiah. It is about how the expansive wall of Jerusalem -spanning about 4,018 meters- which lay in utter ruins from previous wars, was rebuilt in only fifty-two (52) days under the leadership of Nehemiah. Nehemiah was formerly a cup-bearer to the Babylonian king who took him and his country-men captive. He was however, burdened in his spirit with the state of his home country and requested leave of the king, which was granted. On getting back to Jerusalem, he met the city’s wall in a deplorable state -utter ruins! Now, he is faced with the challenge of rebuilding the wall with very limited manpower and resources in the shortest possible period of time. By the Wisdom of God, he devised a strategy that was able to raise up the 4,018 meter-wall in less than two months. In this strategy, each family or clan was to rebuild the portion of the wall from across their house or closest to them. In that way, the giga...

Fringe benefits of the Communion

Image
  The Flesh and the Blood of Jesus, also known as the Holy Communion is one mystery that has not been fully understood as well in the Christendom as in the non-believing circles. There are divergent opinions about the concept of the Holy Communion and how often it should be taken, that has made it seem 'out-of-reach' to the layman.  However the scripture did not place any cap or duration on how it should be taken. 1 Corinthians 11: 25 rather reveals that we as believers in Christ, are at liberty to take it AS OFTEN AS we drink it :   This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink  it , in remembrance of me. Also, Matthew 26 : 26 shows that Jesus took the bread he used as his body out from the same bread that they were eating from :  And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed  it , and brake  it , and gave  it  to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. This therefore validates the flexibilit...

The Kingdom's Playbook

Image
            The Kingdom of God is a thing. It is real, and it's becoming more and more revealed in our time and generation. People are gradually realizing the reality and tangibility of it's existence so much that some are already living in it while on earth. That is to say, they are not affected by whatever that is happening to the rest of the world even though they are in still in the world.  However, because this revelation is not so popular, many do not know how to go about living in it or securing their place in it, they either mistake it as a religious / church activity or misunderstand it altogether and avoid it completely. Also, the devil, knowing he has only a short time, is using this ignorance as a tool more and more violently to jam people's heads together against themselves : Christians/non-Christians alike, believers/non-believers alike...in fact, all religions of the world put together. He turned humanity against themselves, be...

On Condemnation

Image
     There is therefore now NO CONDEMNATION  to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.  Romans 8: 1   Condemnation is one pit that almost everyone must have once fallen into at one point or the other in their lives. You are either thrown into it by others or by yourself, but either way, it is not a good place to be. The good news is that it was never meant for anyone to be there in the first instance, neither is it in the place of any human to condemn another. however, the enemy uses it as a tool to trap those who do not know or understand this truth.  The first thing you need to understand is this very important truth : God DOES NOT condemn you...neither has he given any human the right to do so. He rather find a way to justify and save you. Yes, your sins, the law, or your conscience may try to make you feel condemned, but not God. John 5:22 said :  The Father does not judge anyone but has entru...