YOU ARE CALLED TO THE MINISTRY OF INTERCESSION

   

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi

Acts 12:1-5 NLT  “About that time King Herod Agrippa began to persecute some believers in the church.  He had the apostle James (John's brother) killed with a sword.  When Herod saw how much this pleased the Jewish people, he also arrested Peter. (This took place during the Passover celebration.)  Then he imprisoned him, placing him under the guard of four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring Peter out for public trial after the Passover.  But while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him.”

Num 16:44-47 NIV  “…and the Lord said to Moses,  "Get away from this assembly so I can put an end to them at once." And they fell facedown.  Then Moses said to Aaron, "Take your censer and put incense in it, along with fire from the altar, and hurry to the assembly to make atonement for them. Wrath has come out from the Lord; the plague has started."

   The importance of the ministry of intercession in the church cannot be over emphasized .  Believers in Christ are called to the ministry of intercession . The scriptures says in  1 Tim 2:1 KJV  “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for ALL MEN;”  Intercession is a cardinal test of our love walk with Christ especially those who aspire for leadership roles in the church . It may amaze you to know that your present situation is as a result of a Christian leader who have been instructed by the Holy Spirit to intercede for you (Col 4:12.)  

    The word ‘intercession’ is the Greek word ‘enteuxis’ , it means a falling in with , meeting with , a coming together  , to visit , a petition , supplication . It involves speaking on behalf of persons who have taking God’s grace for granted as in Numbers 16 .1-50 , where a rebellion was led by Korah with his friends against Moses . They were not willing to be under the rules and regulations instituted by Moses and endorsed by God for the day to day running of the community. Consequently, they lost their spiritual cover and were struck with a life threatening pandemic like the world is witnessing. .  Moses had to stand between the dead and living in intercession and offered an offering on behalf of the rebels and the pandemic was stayed. It is worthy of note that when a person begins to take God’s grace for granted, their religious offerings are of no value before God. The Lord prevents the arrogant  from giving Abrahamic tithes and offerings and their acts of benevolence are of no value before God (Psalm 50:5-23) Pastors are not allowed by the Holy Spirit to ask for the Abrahamic tithes and offerings from the arrogant and presumptuous ( Genesis14:21-23 ) but to pray for their repentance .

   The second condition requiring intercession is when a person  suffers overwhelming injury , under such circumstances , the person being prayed for may have given up on life and surrendered to his or her fate but because of his or her inputs in the lives of many , intercessions are made on their behalf , resulting in a supernatural intervention like in the case of Apostle Peter whose leadership qualities strengthened the church in a time of crisis . He experienced a supernatural deliverance from prison because of the prayers of the saints .

  We are also called to pray for the nation we dwell in to evert chaos ( Jeremiah 29:7) that's why you should not speak evil of your country for that will be against the law of faith .

    To be an effective intercessor one has to be filled with the fruits of the Holy Spirit . As a pastor I have been instructed by the lord to intercede for persons who have taken God’s grace for granted repeatedly and still do . I am able to do this by the unconditional love of God. By the Holy Spirit you have pity for them because of their ignorance of  the consequences of their actions . That was why Jesus Christ while on the cross said “Father forgive them for they know not what they do .“  Allow the Lord use your heart in prayers , he will direct your heart to persons needing intercessions  this is how we become effective in our prayer lives .

Prayer : Heavenly Father forgive me of my sins against you I believe Jesus Christ died and was raised again for my salvation , I receive him as lord and savior and receive the Holy Spirit and grace for effective intercessory prayers in Jesus name.

+2348098536911, +2348035536911 email:michaelbensonajayi@gmail.com

ALL ENCOMPASSING SALVATION

 SALVATION IS FOR ALL

June 8, 2023

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi 

Luke 3:6 “And then all people will see the salvation sent from God.'"

The word ‘Salvation’ used in this scripture is the Greek  word  ‘soterion’  and it means defender or defense. It is likened to a legal counsel sent to defend a person in a court of law.

      Sin is the contravention of God’s holy laws  and all it takes to be a sinner is to break one law . James 2:10-11 “For the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as a person who has broken all of God's laws.  For the same God who said, "You must not commit adultery," also said, "You must not murder." So if you murder someone but do not commit adultery, you have still broken the law”  therefore going by this principle nobody can have access to heaven through any of the world’s religions including religious Christianity which requires obeying laws instituted by founders and church elders .

       The only cure to the problem of sin is a unilateral and universal forgiveness and this can only be made possible by a savior .  This savior must be able to meet the demands of the laws of God and be able to serve as a vicarious atonement for mankind before the judge of the universe. He should also be able to bear the sins of many and carry the burdens of humanity.  He also must be able to serve as a mediator for mankind . That mediator must be in the same class as God , just as a president from a third world nation does not qualify to mediate in a conflict between super powers . Only God can fulfill these demands for He alone can forgive sins and He did this through the sacrifice of His symbol of authority (Jesus Christ)  over 2000 years ago.

    Salvation is a gift to all and it so easy to be saved. It is more difficult to be a sinner than to be righteous . Salvation is as easy as acknowledging the need for a savior and consciously asking Jesus Christ to be your lord and savior,  I took this step on the 31th of December  1987 at the Victory Christian Church Lagos  and my life has not remained the same. Salvation is for all regardless of your sins , before God, sin does not exist in sizes , therefore , the so-called worst sinner is as qualified as the next person. Acts 2:21 says “And it shall be that whoever shall call upon the name of the Lord [invoking, adoring, and worshiping the Lord — Christ] shall be saved .” [Joel 2:28-32.] AMP the scripture says whosoever (terrorist ,rapist ,thieve ,child molester, drug baron, false prophet  etc)  there is no limit to who can be saved except Satan and demons . Rom 10:13 says For "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."  Salvation is as easy as calling on the name JESUS , wherever  you are now shout the name Jesus and salvation shall be yours . He is our defender in God’s righteous court . He declares us not guilty of any crime Satan – the accuser levels against us.  Jesus  Christ does not remind us of our sins rather He reminds us of the price that has been paid for our justification.  

   It is God’s will for all mankind to be saved , unfortunately , many will miss heaven by their choice to achieve salvation by their religious ways and self effort . The consciousness of the judgment day dwells in all of us through our conscience, however, only a savior can deliver us from the coming wrath of God upon mankind. God wants everyone to be saved and has made the process  accessible and affordable to all ( 1Tim2:4,Titus 2:11-12, 2Pet 3:9,Rom 10:9)  

Prayer : Heavenly Father , forgive me of my sins against you, I believe Jesus Christ died and was raised again for my salvation .I receive as lord and savior and receive the Holy Spirit and grace to walk in righteousness in Jesus’ name amen.

Prayer / counseling +234 8098536911,+2348035536911  email:michaelbensonajayi@gmail.com

KEY TO A HAPPY HOME

KEY TO A HAPPY FAMILY

May 07, 2023

By  Rev Michael Benson Ajayi

…..”who is that my neighbor?” Luke 10:29

 Prov 3:13KJV  " Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding"

         Happiness is the reward of working in God's wisdom and having an understanding of why people behave the way they do . Through God's wisdom we know that we can influence a person's actions towards us , that's what the scripture means when it says do unto others as you would want them do to you (Matt7:12). A man desirous of love from his wife should first show unfeigned love to her and vise versa . A kind deed evokes happiness. Sadness is a by-product of selfishness. Its the selfishness of one or both partners or children in a marriage that makes for a sad home. We should always ask God to reveal the consequence of our actions on others before we take action.

       Through God's word we can predict a person's reaction when we take certain actions therefore,  making deliberate and conscious efforts to show kindness to a stranger every day is the sure path to living a happy life.  This is the essence of Jesus’ teaching on who our neighbour is .This is contrary to the popular religious belief that limits who our neighbour is to just our close friends and those that are kind to us.   

That is why the question  on the definition of who our  neighbor is if not properly understood  can be used by Satan to discourage us in our walk of faith.

        Sometimes we adopt the messianic mentality assuming we are called to  meet the needs of every single person on earth. That’s is not God’s plan for us. There were so many sick and infirmed persons at the pool of Bethesda and yet only one was healed by Jesus Christ  (Jn5:5-9) . So many persons suffer from burnouts by their desire to please everybody, not even Jesus Christ could not please everybody during His earthly ministry. Our acts of benevolence requires total dependence on God , faith in Him to meet the needs of others through us brings happiness (Psalm 146:5).

              This wounded man in Luke 10:29 ,was directly in the path of these three men and they had no excuse for not attending to him. A kind word may just be what one may be able to afford at that time, it is sufficient for that moment. We should take advantage of the opportunities at our disposal to be of help to  those daily life brings across our paths. Our inability to  help everyone is not sufficient excuse enough not to help somebody.  

        Man-made religion is selfish and insensitive and results in the lack of emotional intelligence and eventually bankruptcy. Religious folks often desire love from others but cannot express love openly to their neighbour. Most relationships have failed as a result of this. This is seen in the attitude of the priest and the Levite . Some prophets teach  followers not to give money to strangers for fear of being bewitched. This is contrary to what the scriptures teaches (Matt.5:44-45, Rom12:20-21) , Jesus taught that

kindness be shown to one's enemy and that it is more blessed to  give than to receive. Whoever seeks for our help at any given time is our neighbour and we are to do whatever we can afford to do at that time depending on available resources remembering that someday we may be in distress and will be treated the same way we treated our neighbour according to the law of sowing and reaping  (Gal.6:7).

           The church of Christ is no place for the propagation of racial ideologies , religious bigotry ,tribalism and nepotism, we are all children of God .Despite the animosity and barriers between Samaritans and Jews (John4:9), the Samaritan in Luke 10 broke through racial and religious barriers in other to help a person in need. Love should be the driving force behind our actions and not the promotion of our infinitesimal religious ideologies. 

Prayer : Heavenly Father forgive me for my sins against you I believe Jesus Christ died and was raised again for my salvation I receive him as lord and saviour and receive the Holy Spirit and grace for supernatural provisions and benevolence in Jesus name 

Free prayer/ counseling   +234 8035536911, +234 8098536911

email: michaelbensonajayi@gmail.com

DO NOT TAKE GRACE FOR GRANTED

 Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi

 1 Cor 10:6-13 NLT “ These things happened as a warning to us, so that we would not crave evil things as they did, or worship idols as some of them did. As the Scriptures say, "The people celebrated with feasting and drinking, and they indulged in pagan revelry." And we must not engage in sexual immorality as some of them did, causing 23,000 of them to die in one day. Nor should we put Christ to the test, as some of them did and then died from snakebites. And don't grumble as some of them did, and then were destroyed by the angel of death. These things happened to them as examples for us. They were written down to warn us who live at the end of the age. If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall. “ Ps 106:7-8 Mssg After our parents left Egypt, they took your wonders for granted, forgot your great and wonderful love. They were barely beyond the Red Sea when they defied the High God — the very place he saved them! — the place he revealed his amazing power! 

   There is a tendency to be over familiar with God’s grace whenever we experience breakthroughs. This results in a disinterest in worship with God’s people , lull in praying for others apart from oneself and close friends and family, spending less time reading Christian or faith-based literature and eventual abandonment of the bible , withdrawal of financial support for our local church and neglect of our duties in our local church. This leads to a hardened state of mind where nothing matters but our self-interest.

    Under such circumstance we take God’s grace for granted, though he may still grant our heart’s desires like the people in Psalm 106, they were drifting away from God’s protective shield. Whenever, a person receives the Spirit of grace, there is usually circumstantial evidence but the same cannot be said when we are away from God’s protective shield . An example of a person who took God’s grace for granted is Sampson. 

   The scriptures say in Judges 16:20-22 TLB Then she screamed, "The Philistines are here to capture you, Samson!" And he woke up and thought, "I will do as before; I'll just shake myself free." But he didn't realize that the Lord had left him. So the Philistines captured him and gouged out his eyes and took him to Gaza, where he was bound with bronze chains and made to grind grain in the prison. “ 

Whenever a person feels invincible and secure based on personal preparations founded on the worlds’ wisdom , it’s an indication , they are vulnerable and are taking God's grace for granted. Avoid them as much as possible while praying for their deliverance . The scriptures says in Rev 3:17-19 TLB "You say, 'I am rich, with everything I want; I don't need a thing!' And you don't realize that spiritually you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. "My advice to you is to buy pure gold from me, gold purified by fire-only then will you truly be rich. And to purchase from me white garments, clean and pure, so you won't be naked and ashamed; and to get medicine from me to heal your eyes and give you back your sight.

    Prayer : Heavenly Father forgive me of my sins against you I believe Jesus Christ died and was raised again for my salvation I receive him as lord and savior and receive the Holy Spirit and zeal for uncommon growth spiritually in Jesus name . +2348035536911, +2348098536911michaelbensonajayi@gmail.com

RIGHTEOUSNESS CONSCIOUSNESS GIVES PEACE

Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi 

 Isa 32:17-18 KJV “And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance forever. And my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places;”

 1 Cor 15:34 AMP “ Awake [from your drunken stupor and return] to sober sense and your right minds, and sin no more. For some of you have not the knowledge of God [you are utterly and willfully and disgracefully ignorant, and continue to be so, lacking the sense of God's presence and all true knowledge of Him]…” 

   The righteousness of God is not devoid of common sense. God has given humans the intuitive ability to know right from wrong without being told, therefore, it is possible to live a life of peace, stability, quietness and assurance forever, these are the effect of practicing the righteousness by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.             

        Unrighteousness requires embracing illogical theology, such as the demands by religion, an example of these beliefs is that which says God dwells in a particular church or a preacher being more anointed than others and the anointing of the Holy Ghost or God’s favour existing in sizes. Another is the belief that God has to be provoked with an offering before He can help a person and certain blessings occur at certain days of the year based on human religious observations. These ideas and others like them grossly misrepresent God’s love for mankind and are against common sense; believing in this is a confirmation of one’s ignorance of God and a lack of sensitivity to His Spirit in us.      

      These kinds of teachings leads to instability and exposes a person to being defrauded and traumatized as commonly witnessed in most underdeveloped countries . It results in disgrace. Marriages and businesses are being destroyed by those who promote these theology . The scripture debunks these evil ideas Ephesians 1:3 says ” All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ.” Common sense says if we are blessed with every blessing ,why do I need to give money to a preacher to provoke God for a blessing ? We should rather be thanking God for our blessings  instead of asking for what has already been given us . God is not trying to bless you , He has already blessed you ; ask for wisdom on how to harness the potentials in you . Start reading more , attend teaching sessions, make wise friends , walk in love . Another scripture that debunks these theology is Colossians 1:12-14NLT “always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son”  our understanding of this scripture puts an end to endless ‘deliverance sessions’ and money spent to receive deliverance .It says you are qualified for the good life and God isn’t trying to deliver the born again Christian from Satan and demons , he or she is already delivered: neither is your womb, babies ,marriage ,money etc in a marine kingdom under an imaginary rock that only the prophet or apostle can see but you are presently in God’s kingdom ruled by Christ (the word) .Awaken to your deliverance by daily declaring “ I thank God I am delivered from the power of darkness and dwell in God’s kingdom free from curses and blessed with all the blessings in the kingdom “ This is how you awaken to righteousness in Jesus Christ . Jesus Christ is the righteousness of God , He is the word of God and dwells in us and we in Him , therefore , to awake to righteousness requires an awareness of the truth of scriptures. 

 Prayer : Heavenly Father forgive me of my sins against you I believe Jesus Christ died and was raised again for my salvation I receive him as lord and saviour and receive grace for overwhelming peace and stability in Jesus name. +2348035536911, +2348098536911 email;michaelbensonajayi@gmail.com 

RIGHTEOUSNESS GOES BEYOND RELIGIOUS DEVOTION

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi

 Matt 5:20 KJV  “ For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.”

    The word ' Scribes' (Greek  ‘grammateís’) which means "lawyers,"  where  those trained in the application of the Torah(Matt 22:35 , Mark 12:28 ) they are described as "teachers of the Law," In old testament times they took down prophet’s dictations (Jer 36:4,18) “The importance of scribes (in the basic sense of those trained to read and write) goes back to the first use of writing in the ancient centers of civilization, Babylon and Egypt. Clearly these skills automatically made the scribe both a necessary and an influential members of society. The ruling class depended on the scribes for a great variety of practical matters, and gradually scribes evolved from mere copiers and recorders to being members of the government and representatives of the king”

       The Pharisees were a Jewish sect or party whose members voluntarily took upon themselves a strict regimen of laws pertaining to purity, Sabbath observance, prayer, and tithing.  The first-century Hellenistic-Jewish historian Josephus; a student of the  Pharisees ;in  his writings  described them  as  "the most accurate interpreters of the law" (BJ ii.8 .14 [162]) and "experts in their country's laws" (Vita 38  [191]). They excelled the rest of the nation in observing religious customs (BJ i.5 .2 [110]). (from International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, revised edition, Copyright © 1979 by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. All rights reserved.) 

    The scribes and the Pharisees were simply the best authority in matters of Jewish laws and customs , yet Jesus in Matt.5:20 declared  their righteousness insufficient to give a person access to heaven.  From this we see three types of righteousness practiced in the church. The first , is the righteousness of Moses , obtained by the strict observance of the six hundred and thirteen laws of Moses , which no man could fulfill , not even Moses .Secondly , the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees , they had an oral interpretations of the laws of Moses (Halakah) which included human traditions .  Thirdly , there is the righteousness by grace through faith in Jesus Christ and his redemptive work for the salvation of mankind on the cross. This is the same faith by which Abraham was declared justified by God in the absence of the written laws of Moses (Rom4:1-13).

                Jesus said no one can have access to heaven through the first and second kinds of righteousness . The prophet Zechariah prophesied about Jesus Christ and salvation by grace in  Zech 12:10 KJV “ And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son,…”  We are saved by the spirit of grace and supplication. Our hope is on Jesus Christ who was crucified on a cross for our redemption.       Unfortunately, some church leaders promote hatred using the laws of Moses “They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm. ..the law is good if one uses it properly….” 1 Tim 1:7-11  NIV   that law is made not for the righteous. They are for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine of the glorious gospel of the blessed God and by the observance of the laws shall no man be justified before God because failure in one of the 613 laws is equal to failure in all and results in a curse ( Deuteronomy 27:26) Not being able to memorize and recite the laws of Moses is a sin .How many Christians know the law by heart ? Thank God for grace.

Prayer : Heavenly Father forgive me of my sins against you I believe Jesus Christ died and was raised again for my salvation I receive him as lord and saviour and receive the Holy Spirit and freedom from guilt and condemnation in Jesus name.   

  Free prayer/counseling +2348098536911,+2348035536911, email:michaelbensonajayi@gmail.com

DO NOT DISREGARD PROPHESIES IN A HASTE

DO NOT DISREGARD PROPHECIES IN A HASTE 

 

 By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi 

2 Kings 7:1-2 NIV Elisha said, "Hear the word of the Lord. This is what the Lord says: About this time tomorrow, a seah of flour will sell for a shekel and two seahs of barley for a shekel at the gate of Samaria." The officer on whose arm the king was leaning said to the man of God, "Look, even if the Lord should open the floodgates of the heavens, could this happen?"

      There was economic recession in Samaria  and it was so severe that citizens resorted to cannibalism for survival (2Kings 6:28). Like this crisis ,every evil on the face of the earth is caused by human selfishness. Despite this, God’s love for humanity remains the same however; His blessings are conditioned on our submitting to His authority .Rebellion against spiritual authority leads to poverty and chaos.

    As in the case of the Samarians , a prophet (Hebrew: nabiy’ meaning an inspired man) would be sent to us and our response to his instructions would determine the outcome of our supplications. The abuse of divine authority  leads to crisis. Adam abused authority and was displaced from Eden. The inspired servant is assigned to restore order. Hos 12:13 KJV says “And by a prophet the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt, and by a prophet was he preserved.” Whenever there is chaos in a family, business, ministry, the fault is traceable to an abuse of divine authority through an act of dishonour (Eph.6:1-3).Our relationship with our pastors, parents and governing authority  affects our prosperity that's why we are enjoined not to frustrate them but pray for and submit to them.  God does not condone rebellion . 

   In 2kings7:1-2, the kings personal assistant on religious matters was quick to disregard Elisha’s prophesy. He was looking at the circumstance with the natural eyes based on empirical evidence : not all data can be verified scientifically. Some are ethereal by nature. You cannot test for the existence of love,hate, hope, heartbreak, using laboratory equipment. We should not allow ourselves be educated beyond obedience. The man or woman of faith sees with the eyes of the Holy Spirit (2kings6:14-17). Therefore, instead of arguing over the authenticity of a prophesy, we should ask the Holy Spirit for guidance.

       The price of food fell due to a supernatural breakthrough according to the words of the lord spoken by Elisha but the personal assistance did not live to see the miracle (2kings7:2-19). Faith sees plenty in the midst of lack, victory in the face of defeat for with God all things are possible. God is not affected by economic recession and right now He is working out a miracle beyond your wildest imagination, dare to believe his word.

Prayer : Heavenly Father forgive me of my sins against you I believe Jesus Christ died and was raised again for my salvation I receive him as lord and saviour and receive the Holy Spirit and anointing to destroy the yoke of poverty and stagnation in Jesus name.

Prayer /counseling +2348098536911, +2348035536911, email:michaelbensonajayi@gmail.com