Resonance

Tag: God’s agenda for the Body of Christ

  • Appreciating the Body of Christ

    Last year, we explained a lot of strategies of the Kingdom of darkness. Their strategies are well-known to the people in that kingdom to the extent that it’s as though we in the Light don’t know what our agendas are. However, we don’t have to know it all before we can play our part in this Kingdom. The Kingdom of God we are in is the most organized, most excellent, most strategic, most aligned and most transgenerational. I’m not talking about Heaven; I’m talking about the Body of Christ. I know you don’t believe me but stay with me on this one. We are not going to talk about what applies to all of us. We are rather going to talk about what we think should separate us when it clearly doesn’t. It will make you appreciate the Body so much.

    Different Ministries: Same Spirit

    I Corinthians 12:4-5 says, “There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord.” In writing to the Corinthian church, Paul knew they were Greeks and had gods for everything. The god of thunder is different from the god of beauty and so on, in the kingdom of darkness. Every demon has its stronghold, ability, influence and infliction. Just like doctors can know which particular disease you’re suffering from based on diagnosis and the combination of symptoms you have, every demon has their signature on their victims that we can ascertain by discernment.

    However, in our Kingdom, it’s the same Spirit for everything. The one in charge of the Body of Christ is not your head pastor or your denomination’s president. It is the Holy Spirit. It is His Government. He is in charge of gift allocation, character development and even diversity of ministration. The Body of Christ is not as haphazard as we think it is. Some are crying for a governmental body that will oversee certain things, like the establishment of new churches, who gets to minister and which Bible versions should be put out of use. I’m here to tell you that someone is already in charge, and that Person will be here when you and I are gone. The Body of Christ will still continue to flourish no matter who leaves or dies.

    Differences of ministries is not a disadvantage at all to the Body of Christ. Two people can have the same gift and even the same office but there can still be differences of ministries. John the Baptist didn’t perform any miracle, Daniel never said “thus saith the LORD”, Abraham never uttered a word of prophecy and yet, they were all prophets. In fact, David is the one who prophesied about Christ the most in the Psalms. Abraham’s entire life was the prophecy itself and every time he spoke, prophecy was embedded in his words. Same office, different ministries. Paul said it this way, “If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling?”

    See, we need each other o. I don’t know why we criticise each other for doing diverse things. We want Apostle A to address matters like Apostle B. We want Ministry A to do the things Ministry D is doing. Meanwhile, it is the same Spirit that is ministering to the Body in diverse ways. Everything everyone is doing is important. I shouldn’t expect you to be like me and you shouldn’t expect me to be like you. Yet, we are all expected to be like Christ. In this short life, each of our lives will exhibit Christ in a certain fashion idiosyncratically. Abraham is to fatherhood and faith as John is to love as David is to praise and authority. Solomon is to wisdom as Barnabas is to encouragement. We need each other as a Body because we are all different parts of the same whole.

    Different Streams: Same River

    There are different streams in the Body of Christ. There are ministries with a divine mandate for deliverance. Another into prosperity. Yet another into the Word of Faith. Another again into even wisdom. The mistake we make is that we think unity is conformity when the Spirit is focused on diversity. We can all prophesy but there are prophets. We can all teach, but there are teachers. We can all evangelize, but there are evangelists. We can all shepherd but there are pastors. However, everyone has what their ministry will point to.

    A stream is not a specific church but various similar ministries that follow a certain trajectory based on the mandate the Spirit gave to such a ministry. So if you see a pastor preaching about only marriage issues, don’t think it’s not important. Being a spiritual person doesn’t automatically make your marriage work. It is their mandate. If you stop them, it will explode into a problem far worse than you thought existed. The Prosperity Gospel is not from hell; it was a timely stream set up by the Spirit in an age where everything runs on money. Peter didn’t need money to preach on Pentecost Sunday but your fellowship needs it in our world today. To deny the importance of the Prosperity Gospel is sheer hypocrisy.

    Family System: the Kingdom of God

    I have come to realise that whatever stream you condemn will be eradicated from your life. Whatever you dishonour, you won’t benefit from. Anything you despise, you will lack. You see others with the gift of miracles and healing (although we can all be used to heal) performing signs and wonders all the time. You think it’s not about miracles? You will need a miracle one day and you’ll realise a miracle is not a luxury. Why is so-and-so always talking about spiritual warfare? Why is that one too always talking about success? See, inasmuch as every preacher is mandated to preach the whole counsel of God, there will always be an emphasis. The emphasis can be for a season, but a mandate can be for a lifetime.

    Different Emphases: Same Truth

    If your emphasis is about holiness, you’ll tend to think holiness is the most important thing so all the others with a lesser focus should stop theirs and focus on holiness. However, the Spirit of God is the one in charge of what should be emphasized at what time. Be careful of what you condemn. You may be condemning something orchestrated by God Himself. Daniel, Jeremiah and Ezekiel were all alive at the same time at a point. Yet, although the Scriptures they wrote were about God primarily, they all had different emphasis. They were in different locations under different circumstances. In fact, what God revealed to each one was unique. In Daniel 9, we see Daniel reading the book of Jeremiah.

    In one sect, fasting is at the core. When you are assigned to such a sect, you’ll fast as part of your consecration. Even though fasting is important to everyone in the Body, it is not necessarily given for all of us to fast all the time. There is no formula. Not every ministry is meant to go global. Some will stay at the local church level and be of tremendous help to their community. There is no need to put pressure on a local church to go global. Not every church will start a school. To one, God will say go. To another, He will say Wait. However, to all, He says love. In this Kingdom, we don’t assume how things should be. All things are possible and yet our extensions and boundaries are set by the Spirit of God. Don’t waste your time on “side missions” because of the external pressure of how things ought to be.

    Sometimes, in our bid to emphasize to the Body the emphasis of the season or of our mandate, we sometimes deemphasize some other things. In emphasizing wisdom, we de-emphasize prayer because there can be a lot of prayer but a lack of wisdom. Or in emphasizing power, we de-emphasize wisdom. I’m not saying it is wrong to do so. It is the work of the same Spirit. The people who are meant to keep emphasizing prayer shouldn’t be offended at such deemphasis. They should keep emphasizing prayer. There are times and seasons for everything. Fasting is important, but the disciples didn’t need to fast when Jesus was around, for instance. Thus, there are times where something deemphasized is overly-emphasized to bring balance to the Body.

    Different Parts: Same Body


    There are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.

    It takes many parts to make a single body. That’s why the eyes cannot say they don’t need the hands. That’s also why the head cannot say it doesn’t need the feet. In fact, we cannot get along without the parts of the body that seem to be the weakest. We take special care to dress up some parts of our bodies. We are modest about our personal parts, but we don’t have to be modest about other parts. God put our bodies together in such a way that even the parts that seem the least important are valuable. He did this to make all parts of the body work together smoothly, with each part caring about the others. If one part of our body hurts, we hurt all over. If one part of our body is honoured, the whole body will be happy. Togethe,r you are the body of Christ. Each one of you is part of his body.

    So you see, we need to appreciate the Body of Christ more. The Same Spirit but different manifestations. One can pray for hours and years and never see angels. Another person drinks encounters like water. There are ones who can wake up and start prophesying. Others can teach all day if you give them the chance. There are some with the gift of administration like no other. How about the gift of helps? It is by the Same Spirit. We need to appreciate each other. There are those with eyes. Others are the arms that help the hands. Some are the ribcage who minister to their leaders. Some are the kidneys that make sure no evil doctrine enters the bloodstream of the Body. You may not like them o but they are necessary to the Body. Don’t expect the ear to play the role of the kidney, and don’t be mad at the kidneys for not acting more like the feet. This is the Body of Christ for you.

  • Understanding the Body of Christ

    I’m so glad that the diction around the priesthood is being claimed back by the church in recent decades. Words like altars, priesthood, shrine and sacrifice are not new to the traditional African man. The diction itself is not evil and has made its way back into the Christian vocabulary. It’s the practice of it that we must make sure to clearly distinguish. First of all, we are a royal priesthood, we have an altar, and we are beseeched to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice. These words are literally in the New Testament. Mind you, even in the Old Testament, God desired a kingdom of priests. That’s exactly what He got in the New Covenant as Christ made us kings and priests unto God. It may sound occultic to present yourself as a living sacrifice, but always remember that the enemy counterfeits. If there is a counterfeit, there is an original.

    Personal Altar & Corporate Altar

    A personal altar is for one person. Any other altar for two or more people is a corporate altar. Such altars include family altars, national altars, etc. Can one person have more than one personal altar? Abraham raised 4 personal altars. Job had a family altar. David raised a national altar to stop the plague. An altar is simply an embassy that gives spirits the visa to operate in our human world. As long as it gives spirits the legal rights to operate within a certain territory and intervene in the physical realm, it’s an altar.

    That being said, the biggest and most powerful altar is the Cross. Ephesians 1:7 in The Message translation states: “Because of the sacrifice of the Messiah, his blood poured out on the altar of the Cross, we’re a free people—free of penalties and punishments chalked up by all our misdeeds“. By this altar, we receive power to become the children of God. By this altar, we are born again, born of God and a new creation. It is the brazen altar in the Tabernacle of Moses because it satisfies the wrath of God, offers a more pleasing sacrifice and enables one to come boldly before God.

    God in the Midst of His People

    For an individual in Christ, one has God with you, God inside you and God upon you. These are different expressions. However, as a community (2 or more persons), we have God in the midst of us. This arrangement is only available where two or three gather in God’s Name. Individually, my body is the Temple of the Holy Spirit. Corporately, we all come together to form the temple in which God dwells. Ephesians 2:22: “In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit. Matthew 18:20 says, “Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them”.

    This arrangement is one of the many things the finished works of Christ secured for us. We are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession. Do you realise our priesthood here is not just personal but corporate, captured in the context of people and nation? The inheritance we have access to in Christ is not only personal but corporate. He has “qualified you to share in the inheritance of His Holy people in the Kingdom of Light” (Colossians 1:12). We are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God. God was not only looking for an individual. He was looking to make us part of His family. We altogether are the bride of Christ.

    The Need for Koinonia Among the Brethren

    Any Christian that isolates oneself will not make it to the end. If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. Please share this with your friends who believe in Christ but prefer not to be part of a church. If you want to pray for 40 days, pray alone. If you want to pray for 40 years, pray with the brethren. “I can pray and worship God in my room”. You won’t even do that for more than a year and you’ll stop.

    Even with keeping our consistency with our personal altars, it is necessary that someone close to you knows. Have time to pray with the brethren and have time to pray alone. Could you let someone else know that you have a scheduled time you pray alone, preferably your spouse? So that on the days when you find it hard, accountability will make sure you don’t quit.

    Baptism

    That is the literal idea behind Christ building His church. As He is building you and building me, He is building a corporate body. That’s why we are called brothers and sisters. We are a family. There is one baptism, one faith, one body, one Lord, one hope of our calling. Just as we are one Spirit with God, we are one Body. Just as the Father and Son are One, Christ’s finished work makes us one with each other. “Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, so that they may be one just as We are.”

    Baptism is not only a matter of repentance, cleansing and washing away. It is also a symbol of death and resurrection. Even more so, it is the technology by which Christ incorporated us into His death and resurrection. It gets better; it’s this same technology that makes us the Body of Christ. There is one baptism, not three. Just as there is one God, not three. Baptism is one of the finished works of Christ. Christ is the Head of the Body and we are the parts. He is the Vine, and we are the branches. We individually come together to form the corporate group and corporately, we come together to form one individual; the Bride of Christ.

  • The Bob Jones 100-Year Prophecy: A Timeline of God’s Agenda in the Body of Christ



    In 1975, prophetic voice Bob Jones, after a near-death encounter, was shown a panoramic timeline of God’s move on the earth—stretching from the 1950s to the 2050s and even glimpses into the 2060s. It was a precise divine strategy—each decade unveiling a layer of the progressive restoration of the Church before the return of Christ. As with all divine timelines, God invites us not only to observe but to align, so we may take our ordained place in His unfolding purposes.

    This prophecy reveals that history is not spiraling randomly. Instead, the Spirit of God has been faithfully steering the Church through a course of increasing revelation, maturity, and power, leading to the manifestation of the sons of God. Let’s walk through this prophetic calendar, decade by decade. That notwithstanding, there are still diverse emphases the Spirit of God places for every day, week, month, year and for every individual and church for His purposes and Will.

    1950s – The Power of God

    This decade witnessed the eruption of the healing revivals in the United States. Evangelists like William Branham, Oral Roberts, A.A. Allen, Jack Coe, and T.L. Osborn traveled across continents with undeniable healing anointings never seen before. Tent meetings drew thousands. Crutches were dropped, cancers vanished, the lame walked. In fact, creative miracles were happening before the very eyes of crowds. God was demonstrating that He had not changed. He still heals. The Body of Christ was introduced to a divine power that shook the foundations of cessationist theology. This was the beginning of restoration: the dunamis of God was back in the Church, just like in the book of Acts.

    1960s – The Spirit of God


    The Charismatic Movement broke through orthodox walls. The baptism of the Holy Spirit swept into Catholic and mainline Protestant churches. The Pentecostal experience, once confined to mushroom churches, was now invading traditional pulpits. This was the work of the Spirit restoring His rightful place in the Church. Leaders like Dennis Bennett and David du Plessis were instrumental in bridging the gap between orthodoxy and spiritual vitality. Speaking in tongues, prophecy, and gifts of the Spirit became increasingly accepted across the Body. The Spirit was now moving—not in the corner—but in the center.

    1970s – The Word of God


    This decade emphasized grounding the explosive power of the previous moves in sound doctrine. Teaching ministries flourished. Men like Derek Prince, Kenneth Hagin, Billy Graham, William Kumuyi, Enoch Adeboye, Uma Ukpai and Fred Price laid foundational truths in the Word of God. Bible schools sprang up globally. As God raised more teaching priests and prophets, the Word Movement balanced the Charismatic zeal with biblical literacy. Believers were taught not just to shout, but to stand; not just to receive, but to believe and confess. The Church began to mature into doctrinal discernment. This was God rooting revival in truth and character.

    1980s – The Prophets of God


    The prophetic mantle was restored in earnest. Bob Jones, Paul Cain, John Paul Jackson, and others—often collectively called the Kansas City Prophets—rose with accurate dreams, visions, and national-level words. The language of “prophetic ministry” returned to the Church after centuries of dormancy. In Ghana, this decade birthed prophetic fathers like Osofo Amoako and many others, who began with fellowships in communities. God was raising eyes and ears for the Church. No longer would we walk blindly—we would discern the times and seasons and take advantage of the moves of the Spirit.

    1990s – The Government of God

    Apostolic ministry emerged. C. Peter Wagner, Lou Engle, John Eckhardt, Pastor David Yonggi Cho, Bishop Dag Heward-Mills, Archbishop Benson Idahosa and Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams began to articulate and walk in apostolic authority throughout the continents. Churches shifted from pastor-led models to apostolic networks. Governmental graces began to redefine spiritual territories. The doctrine of fivefold ministry was now more than theological theory—it was becoming an operational blueprint. The Church was being structured for Kingdom advancement.

    2000s – The Glory of God


    The Toronto Blessing, Brownsville Revival, and the Lakeland Outpouring carried tangible manifestations of God’s glory. Unusual signs appeared—gold dust, supernatural oil, glory clouds. While some mocked, others beheld glory. Worship entered a new dimension. Hillsong, Bethel, IHOPKC, and Jesus Culture gave birth to songs that became altar calls in themselves. In Africa, many ministries broke into architectural and global influence. God was clothing the Church with glory. The priestly garments were restored as kings took their rightful place in their high places.

    2010s – The Faith of God

    This decade ushered in the audacity of faith. Not just faith in God, but the faith of God. Mark 11:22, correctly rendered in Greek, reads “Have the faith of God.” This was echoed across movements. Bishop David Oyedepo built the largest church auditorium in Africa with zero loans. Pastor Chris Oyakhilome birthed healing schools and global evangelism streams. Faith was no longer an option—it was the operating system. This decade enforced the Word of Faith movement into the average lifestyle of the believer. With purity of conscience and yielded-ness to the Spirit, believers began declaring possibilites and confessions. God’s people were now speaking from His heart, not just to His ears.

    2020s – The Rest of God

    This current decade has seen turbulence—pandemics, political upheavals, and spiritual warfare. Yet, prophetically, it is the age of rest. Hebrews 4 speaks of a rest remaining for the people of God. We now learnt that true warfare is waged from rest. Apostolic voices like Apostle Arome Osayi, Apostle Joshua Selman, Apostle Mike Orokpo and Apostle Femi Lazarus emphasizes both His wisdom and power. The Body is entering a Sabbath dimension as we prepare for the next decade. Ephesians 2:22 is now a reality: God dwells in us cooperately by His Spirit. This decade will dismantle spiritual parasites and false doctrines to prepare the Church for long-term dominion.

    2030s – The Family of God

    Denominations will blur out completely. Streams will merge. It will be hard to tell if someone is Methodist, Pentecostal, or Charismatic. We will simply be sons and daughters, brothers and sisters. The global Church will function like a united family. Prophetic intercession will surge. If one is touched, all willfeel it. Global networks of intercessors will respond with coordinated firepower. There will be transcontinental collaborations for revival and reformation. Even now, movements like “The Send”, “PrayerStorm” and “OneRace” are precursors to this family identity. The truth is, what God starts continues. Also, what matures and manifests today was seeded years ago.

    2040s – The Kingdom of God

    No longer will the Church isolate itself in pews. The church will go beyond the four walls of the building. This is the age of kingdom legislation. Apostles will sit in parliament. Prophets will advise presidents. The model will be Daniel in Babylon and Joseph in Egypt. Theocracy will not mean religious dictatorship, but godly influence in secular systems. Isaiah 2:2 will be fulfilled: the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be exalted. Kingdom culture will override carnal systems. Nehemiahs will be governors and many saviours shall rise and lead nations into milk and honey.

    2050s – The Sons of God

    Romans 8:19 declares it plainly: the earth groans for the manifestation of the sons of God. This is the decade of manifested maturity. These will not be Christians merely in name—they will walk like Christ. Authority over weather, resurrection power, translation, and dominion over death will be normal. Like Enoch, they will walk with God. Like Elijah, they will call down fire. Like Jesus, they will live a sinless life. These are not pulpit-bound preachers. They are kingdom emissaries in every domain. The average Christian will be full of integrity and power.



    Glimpses into the 2060s – The Church in Glory
    Bob Jones once said, “I saw the Church walking in the glory of God. It had power over death, over the weather. You couldn’t stop them.” The saints will not only escape death—they will reverse it. Some will choose to stay or go, like Paul. These will be the dreaded champions of God. The earth will behold the Bride in full regalia—glorious, powerful, and unstoppable. It will be the Church that Christ returns for.

    This timeline is not fantasy—it’s prophecy. As aforementioned, there are still diverse emphases the Spirit of God places for every day, week, month, year and for every individual and church for His purposes and Will. This timeline pertains to the body of Christ. Names of men of God and organisations were mentioned to place emphasis only. Not every labourer and everything that has gone on was or could have been captured.

    Every fulfilled decade proves the veracity of the next. And we are not spectators. We are participants. Do not despise the pain of the process. Align. Prepare. Rise. You were born for such a time as this. The heavens belong to God—but the earth, He has given to the sons of men (Psalm 115:16). Let the Bride arise. Let the Church awaken. Let the sons manifest. Amen.