DOING ALL TO STAND
(week 38/15)
OLUBI JOHNSON
Malachi 3:1-3 KJV: Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts. (2) But who may abide the day of his coming? And who shall stand when he appeareth? For he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap: (3) And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.
Here, the scripture shows that many Christians will not abide: will be cut off and fall when the Lord comes SUDDENLY to His Church in the perfection and fullness of Christ and the fulness of His glory!
This same truth is re-echoed in
Zechariah 13:7-9 KJV: Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones. (8) And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. (9) And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.
This is why this day of the Lord is called the ‘great and terrible’ day: Great for this who stand; terrible for those who fall.
Joel 2:11 KJV: And the LORD shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?
How then do we continue to ABIDE in Him and NOT FALL when He appears in His church in His glory and power?
John 15:3-4 KJV: Now ye are clean through the word, which I have spoken unto you. (4) Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
Here, the Lord Jesus tells us that we ABIDE in Him by staying in fellowship with Him THROUGH HIS WORD.
John 8:31-32 KJV: Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye CONTINUE in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; (32) And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
James 1:25 KJV: But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and CONTINUETH therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
So to ABIDE AND STAND, we need to CONTINUE in the law of liberty: the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.
Romans 8:2 NKJV: For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.
In fact, as we CONSISTENTLY keep the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, it will not just set us free WHEN we sin; it will KEEP us free from sinning!
We do this by watching and praying always:
Luke 21:36 NKJV: Watch therefore, and PRAY ALWAYS that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and TO STAND before the Son of Man.”
Deuteronomy 30:11-14 NKJV: “For this commandment which I command you today is not too mysterious for you, nor is it far off. (12) It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend into heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ (13) Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ (14) But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it.
We use this principle (OF SPEAKING AND THINKING) TO USE the blood (Heb.13.20-21), the Word (1 Jn.2.5, 2 Pet. 1.4) and the Spirit (1 Jn.4.12-13) to keep the commandment of life and love THROUGHOUT EACH DAY:
1John 3:22-24 NKJV: And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight. (23) And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment. (24) Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.
Galatians 5:6 NKJV: For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love.
Also note that by practicing the commandment of love and life in this way, we are fulfilling keeping ALL of God’s commandments and are loving men AS God loves them by giving them everlasting life through the Lord Jesus:
Galatians 5:14 KJV: For ALL the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt LOVE thy neighbour as thyself.
John 3:16-17 KJV: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (17) For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
So to fulfil ALL of this, we pray in this manner: at least once every 6 hours (2 Samuel 6:13): four (Exodus 25: 10 Deuteronomy 6:7, Mark.13: 35) times and at every opportunity (2 Kgs.13.19): making a total of 5-6 or more times DAILY.
‘’Father, I confess our sins to clean with the blood.
In Jesus’ name we have life, I love God with all my heart: will, mind, emotions and strength (Mk.12.30); and I love my brethren as Christ loves them (Jn.13.34): washing their feet (Jn.13.14-15) by forgiving, confessing and so cleansing their sins (Jn.20.23; 1Jn.1.9), asking life for them (1Jn.5.16) and praying for them in tongues frequently (1 Cor.14.18; Jude 20) (at least once every six hours: (2Sam.6.13, Mk.13.35) and at every opportunity to cover for every hour throughout the day by this in every temptation with my thoughts (2 Cor.10.5, Pr. 20.8) and actions (Jas.1.22; 2.18) to help them repent to will and do of God’s good pleasure (Phil.2:13, Heb. 13:21).”
Then meditate: Think for a short while on what you have just said with a determination to practice it.
Pray in tongues for a short while (about 1-2 minutes) and as you pray, say in your heart and determine to practice what you have just confessed, mentally acknowledging with thanksgiving (Col.4.2) the presence of the three Persons of the God-Head in the air around you (Ps. 16.8).
So, by doing this, we will have done ALL TO STAND AND SO STAND:
Ephesians 6:13-14 NKJV: Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. (14) Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness.
