Seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read: no one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate: for my mouth it hath commanded, and his spirit it hath gathered them – Isaiah 34:16.
REIGNING IN LIFE BY CHRIST JESUS
Text: Rom 5:17-18, Rev. 5:10
And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.
Exodus 19:6
Introduction: One wise man said, "no one can make you feel inferior without your consent". I believe he said this in the light of the fact that your identity in life is very closely associated with your thoughts and feelings. And, in turn, these thoughts and feeling are closely linked with what you hear, receive and believe.
You must realize that now, and at this moment, you are creating: you are creating your next moment in life based on how you're feeling and what you're thinking. In short, the thoughts and the feelings you allow now will certainly determine the future you'll see. That is what's real.
Since the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, the possibility of reigning alone had eluded man once and for all time. This is so because death has enthroned itself as a big monarch and man cannot free himself from its rule. All those who wish to reign today can only do so through Christ Jesus.
The subjects of dominion and kingship are critical issues that can never be over-emphasized and should never be ignored. Why? It is either a man dominates or he is being dominated upon by situations that he does not understand and cannot control. Your mind must be made up to receive the offers of God; you must never chose to perpetually remain under the circumstances.
This world is a product of the realm of the spirit. There is nobody who makes it big in this world who does not have a very strong connection in the realm of the spirit to start with. That's the Bible truth which we all must fully internalize.
YOU WERE SAVED TO REIGN IN LIFE AND IN ETERNITY
IF WE WILL RECEIVE IT: the very hard fact is that the dominion on the earth has been given to the saints (Gen.2:28; 2 Pet.1:3). God expects that His people who were redeemed by the blood of His Son Jesus will be so much in the ascendancy and that the affairs of the nations will be in their hands.
Revelation 1:6
And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
And the settled fact is that God had provided abundant grace to put this position into effect in our lives and day-to-day experiences:
Romans 5:17-18
17 For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)
18 Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.
‘By one man’s offence’. Under the administration of a just and merciful God, it occurred that by the offence of one man, Adam in Eden, death exerted a very wide dominion. Thus, we have reasons much more to expect under that same administration and justice system, that they who are brought under God’s plan of saving mercy shall be brought under a dispensation of life.
Adam transgressed one commandment of the law and that was the cause of death to himself, and to all the world. But Jesus died to redeem us and to restore unto us the lost platform of dominion: to reign in life!
Death reigned by one - Death is here personified and is represented as reigning over the human race as a mighty monarch, a powerful king. Death, of course, reigns unto death. It is known as reigning, by the destruction of his subjects.
Abundance of grace - The abundant favor; the mercy that shall counterbalance and even surpass the evils introduced by the sin of Adam.
Shall reign in life - The word “reign” is often applied to the condition of saints in heaven.
Revelation 22:5
And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.
"Reign", as it appears here, means that:
They shall be exalted to a glorious state of happiness as it is in heaven;
They shall be triumphant over all their enemies;
They shall gain an ultimate victory; and shall partake with the Captain of their salvation in the splendors of His dominion above, (Rev.3:21; Lk.22:30).
They shall experience no more sorrow!
Hence, reigning denotes complete freedom from condemnation, from temporal death, sickness, pain, and sin. It is the usual expression to denote the of the saints in glory (Jn.3:36). As such here we can see the provisions for the experience of heaven on earth.
Revelation 5:10
And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
THIS ABUNDANCE LIFE IS BORNE OUT OF JUSTIFICATION
Romans 5:18
Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.
Life springs out of justification, in contrast with the death which springs from sin and follows condemnation. We thus can lead a life possessed and enjoyed with the good will and in conformity with the eternal law of “Him that sitteth on the Throne”.
This is life therefore in its widest sense - life in the whole man and throughout the whole duration of his human existence, the life of blissful and loving relationship to God in soul and body, for ever and ever. While freedom and might are implied in the figure of “reigning,” “life” is represented as the glorious territory or atmosphere of that reign.
By one, Jesus Christ - As the consequence of his work. The way in which the work of Christ had contributed to this he had stated in (Rom.3:24, 28). The effect of the second Adam cannot fall behind that of the first. If death reigned, there must be a reign of life.
If one man’s one offense let loose against us the tyrant power of death to hold us as its victims in helpless bondage, ‘much more,’ when we stand forth enriched with God’s ‘abounding grace’ shall we expatiate in a life divinely owned and legally secured, ‘reigning’ in exultant freedom and unchallenged might, through that other matchless ‘One,’ Jesus Christ!”
Testimonies
Twins in Portland
The Cancer healed in Germany
Myself healed of a sudden attack.
Evangelist Abiola healed of fibrous attack.
VALIDATING YOUR REIGN IN CHRIST JESUS
1. Receive This Truth
Reigning in life is the consequence of receiving the grace and the gift of righteousness. Receiving the grace is a necessary qualification on our part for reigning in life. And this necessarily implies our believing in Christ Jesus as having died for our offenses and receiving the grace so freely offered us.
Receive must here have the same sense as in:
Mat.13:20: ‘He heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it.
Jn.1:12: ‘But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God.
Jn.13:20: ‘He that receiveth whomsoever I send, receiveth me’.
Jn.17:8: ‘I have given them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them’.
In all these passages it is evident that receiving and not receiving imply improving or not improving. They which receive - Not those who just mentally or believingly accept, but the phrase refers simply to the RECIPIENTS. This talks of a dynamic engagement by faith.
Jesus is the One who has been given the authority to dominate and rule this earth. So, only Him can initiate and establish people into the spirit realm. When you give your life to God through Jesus Christ, you become initiated into the spirit realm (John 3:3).
Salvation is the key to becoming enlisted among the approved operators of the realm of the spirit.
2. Retain This Truth
Becoming initiated is just the beginning of the process of reigning in this life. The truth must also be retained if we must truly reign in life. Our reigning is not just in the future, but actually begins in the present if we go on to daily engage the grace bestowed on us.
3. Daily Engage This Truth
Those who receive, retain, and engage the abundant grace offered by Jesus Christ, shall be redeemed from the empire of death, and exalted to the throne of God, to live and reign with him ever, world without end (Rev.1:5,6; Rev.2:7,10,11; Rev.3:21).
This brings us to the other important qualification for being an active operator in the realm of the spirit is to be a meditating Christian. This is a practical approach to engaging the grace of God daily in our lives.
Why meditation? It has been proved in the Bible that you would end up becoming what you habitually think of.
Proverb 4:23
Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. (KJV)
Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thought. (GNB)
God told Joshua to keep meditating on the word of God so that he can experience good success.
Joshua 1:8
This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Please Read: Ex. 19:6; 1Cor. 4:8, 1Pet. 2:5-9, Rev. 1:6, Rev. 5:10.
Revelation 5:10
And hast made us unto our God kings and priests - See the notes on Rev.1:6.
And we shall reign on the earth - The idea clearly is, in accordance with what is so frequently said in the Scriptures, that the dominion on the earth is been given to the saints. That is, the redeemed will be so much in the ascendancy and that the affairs of the nations will be in their hands.
Righteous people will hold the offices; will fill places of trust and responsibility; will have a controlling voice in all that pertains to human affairs (Dan.7:27, Rev.20:1-6). The simple affirmation is, that they will reign on the earth.
And we shall reign on the earth; meaning not merely in a spiritual sense. We reign on earth:
When through grace reigning over sin and corruption,
When Satan is being bruised under their feet, and
Through the victory they have in Christ over the world,
Also in the future millennium state, in the thousand years' reign with Christ in the new earth, wherein dwells righteousness (Rev.20:4).
