Manifesting the Kingdom of God pt. 7

Welcome to NECF Sermons. Each message here is

designed to uplift and strengthen you in your

walk with God. Don't miss out. Stay with us until

the end for a rewarding experience. Let's dive

right in. Thank you, Holy Spirit. Thank you,

Father. Thank you, Lord. So I receive revelation.

I receive revelation of your word. I walk by

revelation. My eyes are open. Your word is revealed

to me. And I walk by the power of your word.

Your name is exalted. The name is exalted. By

the entrance of your word, I receive understanding.

I receive liberty. And I live by the power of

your word. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Hallelujah.

Let's have our seats. I hope you can hear me

well. Can you all hear me? All right. And oftentimes

when we read the Bible and we see different miracles

that Jesus performed, it amazes us. We see the

power of God at work in healing the sick. We

see the power of God at work. In making the blind

see, the lame walk, the dead reason from the

dead. And one of the important miracles that

we don't really put to consideration is Jesus

speaking to 5 ,000 without a microphone. And

they will see, hear him, understand him. Hallelujah.

So I just want you to be attentive, okay? And

pay attention to what we're doing. And I want

to encourage you to keep praying for the church,

all right? That we will have a much more conducive

environment and that we can utilize our facilities

at all times. And then worship God effectively.

Hallelujah. Matthew 16. Matthew 16 from verse

18. Let me read from verse 18. I'll read verse

18 and verse 19 together. And I also say to you,

Simon Barajas. Okay. And I also say to you that

you are Peter. And on this rock, I will build

my church and the gates of Hades shall not prevail

against it. And I will give you the keys. Look

at verse 18 attentively, verse 19 carefully.

It says, and I will give you the key of what?

Let's read verse 19 together. All of us, let's

look at the screen and read it together. One,

two, go. and I will give you the keys of the

kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth

will be bound in heaven, and whatever you lose

on earth will be loosed in heaven. Hallelujah.

Now, on Sunday, we established two important

fundamental things that I said will help us as

we continue our study on the kingdom of God,

of course, which we also refer to as the kingdom

of heaven. And we said, we look at two things.

And what are those two things? The foundation

of the world and what? And the end of the age

or what we call the end of the world. All right.

And we said, God began a project from when? From

the foundation of the world. God began a work

from the foundation of the world. And we say

that the foundation of the world refers to which

part of scripture? From Genesis, right? We'll

begin to see the plan of God. We'll begin to

see the purpose of God. We'll begin to see the

activity that God began. All right? And then

this work that God began will be completed or

will be brought to its conclusion at the end

of the age or at the end of the world. The completion

of God's work at the end of the world. Hallelujah.

And we say that the end of the world is not what?

It's not meaning that the earth that we are,

the physical earth we are, will be destroyed.

As seen in Matthew 24, you know, the questions

that the disciples were asking Jesus Christ,

you know, when will the end of the age be? And

we study contextually and we say that this is

not referring to the destruction of the world

as normally discussed from that particular passage.

So we also mention again on Sunday that there

is a concept in scripture. And what's that concept

that is consistent through our scripture? The

idea of building, right? The idea of construction,

the idea of building. And then we say that the

foundation is in Genesis. And the end of this

building is what we will call the end of the

world. Therefore, we concluded that the end of

the world has a positive word connotation. and

not a negative one. So when we say the end of

the world, it's not something that we should

be scared of. Isn't it? When we say the end of

the world, it's not something that should terrify

the believer because we understand what that

is. It is about the work that God is doing on

the face of the earth. So it would be wrong to

associate this with the destruction of the world.

Hallelujah. Now I want us to continue on our

story of the kingdom of God. Let's turn to Mark

Mark 11 · chapter mention

chapter 11. A passage I think Brother read for

us earlier on in John. Yes, John. Is it John

or Mark? John chapter 2. Well, let's read from

John 2 · chapter mention

Mark and we'll come to that one. Mark chapter

Mark 11 · chapter mention

11. Mark chapter 11. From verse 15. Mark chapter

Mark 11 · chapter mention Mark 11 · chapter mention

11. From verse 15. Mark 11. from verse 15 to

19. So they came to Jerusalem. Then Jesus went

into the temple and began to drive out those

who bought and sold in the temple and overturned

the tables of the money changers and the seats

of those who sold doves. And he would not allow

anyone to carry wares throughout the temple.

Then he taught to them, saying, Is it not written,

My Father's house shall be called a house of

prayer for all nations? But you have made it

a den of thieves. And the scribes and the chief

priests heard it and sought how they might destroy

him. For they feared him, because all the people

were astonished at the teaching. Verse 19. When

Eve had come, he went out of the city. Hallelujah.

Now, whenever we read this part of the scripture,

what really draws our attention is the activity

of Jesus Christ. That he made a whip, a court,

and then when we watch the movie, most of the

movies we watch, what was the name of this movie?

Passion of Christ, right? The Passion of Christ

and many of them. We see how Jesus was flogging

people out of the temple and the drama is focused

on Jesus. flogging people and, you know, overturning

the table of the money changers and scattering

places and making things happen. But there's

more to it than this. Hallelujah. So now, why

was they buying and selling the temple? That's

the first thing we should ask ourselves. Why

was they buying and selling the temple? Why was

they buying and selling the temple? Was they

buying and selling something bad or evil? that

Jesus had to come and then flog them out because

they were buying and selling in his house. Amen?

Now, we can only speculate, all right, that there

were some shady deals happening in the temple

because the scripture did not clearly put it

for us in that context. So oftentimes, people

will say, oh, these people were doing some dirty

deals, you know. Or they've turned the house

of God, instead of people where people come and

pray, they've turned it into transaction, a business

center. Now it is essential to note that various

types of animals, because we see the table that

was scattered, right? Various types of animals,

oxen, sheep and doves were sold in the temple

for those who required them for the sacrifice

mandated by the Lord of Moses. So the temple

worship, comprises sacrifice of animals. Okay?

Sometimes they sacrifice doves, sheep, and oxen.

So Jews who travel from far and wide wouldn't

need to carry animals on their journey because

Jews were scattered all around the world. So

imagine the Jews in, let's say Jews in Africa,

Ethiopia, as an example now. If they are traveling

for temple sacrifice, if they are traveling maybe

to Israel to go and worship in the temple, they

don't need to carry animals from where they are

coming from, to the temple. Hallelujah. They

knew that when they arrive, there will be provision.

All right? And they will have supply for what

they will use for the sacrifice. So they don't

need to carry, you know, animals alongside with

them. He said, they will bring the money from

wherever they are coming from. and exchange it

and buy the required animals for the sacrifice

with the specified, you know, specifications.

Because, you know, there is specification to

the kind of animals you sacrifice. When you read

through Deuteronomy, through all the testimony,

you see the specification of the kind of animals

that should be sacrificed in the worship in the

temple. So obviously, when you come to the temple,

you find this available. And what you do is that

you... Come with the money from wherever you're

coming from and there's exchange that happened.

Some of you do money exchange. They'll exchange

the money for the currency and then they'll get

the animals and then they'll do the temple activity

they need to do. Hallelujah. So it is important

to note that the action Jesus took, the action

that Jesus took was an illustration of a teaching

he gave in the temple. Okay, what action are

we talking about? The action of the overturning

of the table of the money exchangers and the

dust ceiling in the temple was an illustration.

It is an illustration of the teaching. Did Jesus

teach in the temple? Verse 17. Give me verse

17. Let's look at verse 17. Let's look at verse

17. Then he taught. So it means that Jesus did

not only come into the temple and scatter their

table and walk away. Right? There was something

that Jesus did in the temple. And it was a teaching

ministry. We will look at it from other rendition

of it in other gospels that it was a days long

activity. Then he taught saying, he taught, he

taught. Amen? This is it. This is the subject

of his teaching for all those days. This is the

subject of his teaching for those days. as he

overturned the table of the money exchangers

and those that sold in the temple, saying to

them, is it not written that my house, whose

house? My house shall be called a house of prayer

for how many nations? For all nations. Okay?

But you have made it a den of thieves. So Jesus

taught in the temple. There was a teaching that

happened in the temple. Now let's read from other

accounts to get a complete picture of what happened

in the temple. Matthew 21 verse 12. Matthew 21

Matthew 21:12 Matthew 21:12–17

verse 12 to 17. Then Jesus went into the temple

of God and drove out all in the temple who sold

in the temple and overtook the table of the money

changers. Help me now. What I do? Which verse

are we? Verse 13. And he said to them, it is

written, my house shall be called a house of

prayer. But you have made it a den of thieves.

Then the blind, look at what happened again.

Not what happened in the temple. We didn't see

this in Mark, right? So it's only teaching that

happened in the temple. What happened again?

Then the blind, okay? And the lame came to him

in the temple. The blind and the lame came to

him in the temple. Note carefully that in the

temple that was established, the blind and the

lame were not permitted to come into the temple

by law. Are we together? But now we see the blind

and the lame came to him in the temple. And what

did he do? He healed them. So we see Jesus taught

and Jesus healed. All right, verse 15. But when

the chief priest and the scribe saw the wonderful

things that he did, and the children crying out

in the temple, which means that there were children

in the temple, of course, Hosanna to the son

of David. They called Jesus the son of David.

Was Jesus the son of David? He was the son of

Joseph. But they were able to see him from the

light of the scriptures that he is the son of

David. Hallelujah. He has taught based on the

teaching he has done. Okay. Hosanna to the son

of David. They were indignant. Who was indignant?

The Pharisees, right? And he said to him, do

you hear what these are saying? And Jesus said

to them, yes. Have you never read out of the

mouth of babes and nosy infants? You have perfected

praise. Verse 17. Then he left them and went

out of the city to Bethany. And he lodged there.

So from Mark, we didn't see his destination,

but here we could see additional information,

giving us a complete picture of what happened

there. Hallelujah. So what do we see more? Jesus

healed the blind and the lame in the temple.

Now Luke chapter 19, verse 45. Luke chapter 19,

Luke 19:45 Luke 19:45–48

verse 45 to 48. 19 verse 45. Luke chapter 19

Luke 19:45–48

verse 45 to 48. Then he went into the temple

and began to drive out those who bought and sold

in it, saying to them, It is written, My house

is a house of prayer, but you have made it a

den of thieves. And he was teaching. He was what?

How was he teaching? We see another additional

information. He was teaching daily in the temple.

Context, full picture. He was teaching daily

in the temple. But the chief priest, the scribes,

and the leaders of the people sought to destroy

him. Verse 48, the last one here. And were unable

to do so, to do anything. For all the people

were what? Were very attentive to him. Hallelujah.

So we will understand from verse 47. Jesus was

what? Spent some days in the temple teaching.

Alright? Now, John chapter 2, verse 13 to 22.

John 2:13–22

John chapter 2, verse 13 to 22, where we prayed

John 2:13–22

about zeal. Alright? Now the Passover of the

Jews was at hand. So now, this passage gave us

the time that that happened. close to the Passover.

Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand and

Jesus went up to Jerusalem and he found in the

temple those who sold. So the reason why he said

Passover was because the Passover usually is

a big occasion, right? Where we have a lot of

people travel to celebrate it. Very important.

And he found in the temple those who sold oxen

and sheep and doves and the money changers doing

business. When he had made a whip of court, now

we have a picture of how he did it. In Nigeria,

we call it koboko. I don't know what you call

it in Liberia or in Zimbabwe or in Kenya. There's

a special whip or a cane they use in beating

thieves. And sometimes they hang it in our homes.

And if you are not behaving, it will be used

on you. So when he had made a whip of coats,

he drove them all out of the temple with the

sheep and the oxen and poured out the changers'

money and overturned the tables. And he said

to those who sold doves, take these things away.

Do not make my father's house a house of what

merchandise. Then his disciples remembered. What

did they remember? It was written, zeal for what?

Underline house. Zeal for your house has eaten

me up. So the Jews answered and said to him,

what sign do you, remember the context that has

been teaching, that has been teaching, and they

understood what he was teaching. All right? So

the Jews answered and said to him, what sign

do you show us since you do these things? Which

things? The healing and all that happened there,

the teaching and everything. And then the illustration

of the scattering of the table and then the chasing

out of the money changers and the sheep. Jesus

answers and said to them, destroy this what?

This temple. Which temple? And in two days I

will raise it up. Right? Then the Jew said, it

has taken 46 years to build this temple. How

will you raise it up in three days? But he was

speaking of what? Of the temple of his body.

Okay? Therefore, when he had risen from the dead,

his disciples remembered what he had said this,

that he had said this to them. And they believed

the scripture. What did they believe? The word

of Jesus or the scriptures? They believed the

scriptures because Jesus was speaking from the

scriptures. They believed the scriptures and

the word which Jesus had said. Hallelujah. So

declaring of a temple of sellers, of oxen, sheep

and dove is Jesus declaring the fulfillment of

prophecy. Okay? Jesus is declaring a fulfillment

of prophecy. And we're going to see what a prophecy

is. The system of animal sacrifice will come

to an end. That was what Jesus was declaring.

That a system of animal sacrifices, the system

of slaughtering, doves, sheep and oxen for the

sake of, you know, sacrificing to God for sins

will end, will be over. Jesus was illustrating

his teaching by clearing the table of the martyrs,

declaring that there will be no need for this

sacrifice. Hallelujah. Also, healing of a sick

is an illustration of the forgiveness of sins.

The lame and the blind coming into the temple

is counter -cultural. I said earlier on that

they were not permitted to come into the temple.

But we see Jesus always goes against culture

and enforcing the culture that God desires to

see manifest. Hallelujah. So Jesus is teaching

that in the new system of worship, there's no

barrier. Okay? There's no barrier. Now let us

consider the text. Let's go and study the text,

the sermon, the text to which Jesus was teaching

from. Isaiah 56. From verse 1. Isaiah 56 from

verse 1. We read from verse 1 to verse 8. Thus

says the Lord, keep justice and do righteousness.

For my salvation is about to come and my righteousness

to be revealed. Blessed is the man who does this.

And a son of man who lays hold on it, who keeps

from defiling the Sabbath and keeps his hand

from doing any evil. Do not let the son of the

foreigner. Do not let the son of who? Of the

foreigner. Who is this foreigner? Who has joined

himself to the Lord. Speak. Say. Now the foreigner

will mean someone that is not Jewish. Alright?

The foreigner will mean someone that is not part

of the nation of Israel. Do not let the son of

the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord

speak saying, the Lord has utterly separated

me from his people. Nor let the Enoch say, here

I am, a dry tree. For thus says the Lord to the

Enoch who keep my Sabbath and choose what pleases

me and hold fast my covenant. Even to them I

will give. In my house. Even to them I will give

what? In my house and within my walls, house.

See, most of the scriptures we keep reading,

you see temple, house, building. Take note, alright?

Very important. Even though to them I will give

in my house and with my walls a place and a name

better than that of sons and daughters. I will

give them an everlasting name that shall not

be cut off. Also, the sons of the foreigner.

Remember the foreigner? Who is the foreigner?

A non -Jew, right? Who joins himself to the Lord

to serve him, which means that the foreigner

has decided, has become part of the nation of

Israel, isn't it? To serve the Lord. To serve

him and to love the name of the Lord. To be his

servants. Everyone who keeps from defiling the

Sabbath. And hold fast my covenant. Even them

I will bring to my holy mountain. Mountain? Mountain?

And make them joyful in my what? In my house

of prayer. House of prayer. And make them joyful

in my house of prayer. Their bond of friends

and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar

for my house of what? Familiar? Is familiar?

For my house, O Lord, shall be called a house

of prayer for how many nations? So what will

all these nations encapsulate? What is all nations?

Jew and non -Jew alike. All nations means humanity.

It means all people. Hallelujah. My house shall

be a house of prayer for who? For all nations.

Verse 8. The Lord God who gathers the archers

of Israel, the archers of Israel, those who are

not part of Israel, says, yet I will gather to

him others. Who are these others? Others beside

those who are gathered to him. Hallelujah. So

God's plan is for who? It's for all nations.

Amen. That all nations will be part of this worship.

That these all nations will come into the house

of the Lord, which is a house of prayer. for

all nations. So we consider, according to the

prophecy that Jesus was teaching from, the house

of prayer is for all people. Not just Israel.

It includes the foreigner. Amen? And the prophecy

brings all nations into God's house. So God's

house is for all nations. It's for all men. It's

for all people. Nations means what? It means

people. Let's go back a bit. Isaiah chapter 2.

Isaiah 2 · chapter mention

Isaiah chapter 2. I mean, in this short, this

Isaiah 2 · chapter mention

one will be familiar to us. Isaiah chapter 2,

Isaiah 2:1–3

verse 1 to 3. The word that Isaiah, the son of

Amos, so concerning Judah and Jerusalem. Now

it shall come to pass in the latter days. Amen.

What latter days? Latter days. It's a time and

season in scripture. Amen. There's another scripture

that talks about latter days. The latter house,

right, shall be what? Shall be greater. Latter

house, latter days. Latter days that the mountain

of the Lord's house, the mountain of the Lord's

house, shall what? Be established on what? On

the top of the mountains. On the top of the mountains.

and shall be exalted above the hill. And how

many nations? All nations shall flow to it. From

all over the world, all nations shall flow to

it. Many people shall come and say, come, let

us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the

house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his

ways and we shall walk in his paths. For out

of Zion shall go forth the law and the word of

the Lord from Jerusalem. Hallelujah. So all nations

shall flow to the house of God. The house of

God will be constituted of people from where?

From every tribe. From every race. Okay? From

every tongue. Alright? From every gender. And

etc. Hallelujah. Male and female, that's what

I mean. Don't misquote me. Now let us ask, can

a fiscal house or a temple carry people from

all nations? Is there a building ever in history

that can carry all nations in one place? It's

impossible. Even the one that Solomon built.

All nations cannot enter it. Even the one that

the Jews, the disciples, they were asking Jesus,

where will the destruction happen? Even that

one cannot carry all nations. Hallelujah. So

it will mean that this house is not something

physical. Alright? It's not a physical temple.

It's not a physical house. Are we together? It's

not something material. Therefore, it means that

the customs, from where we read earlier on, that

the customs of animal sacrifice in a physical

temple will come to an end and a new system will

be instituted. That is what Jesus was teaching

in the temple. Hallelujah. Do you know that the

evil Solomon, when he dueled the temple, let's

turn to 1 Kings 8 verse 27. Solomon, even when

1 Kings 8:27

he built the temple, he was the first person

to build the temple, right? Was he the one that

established the temple? Who started the work

of the temple? It was David, right? David mobilized

resources. David prepared for the work. And God

said, no, no, no, you can't build a temple. You

can't build a temple. Why? Because you've done

so many things that your hand carry. He has done

so many wars. Let's look at Solomon who built

the temple. He said this at the dedication of

the temple. He said, but will God indeed dwell

on the earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of

the heavens cannot contain you. Amen. How much

less this what? This temple which I have built.

So what he's trying to say that God cannot, God

will not even live in that temple. Amen? What

he's saying is that God will not live in that

physical temple. It's just an illustration of

the real thing that God is doing. Hallelujah.

Amen? So the physical temple was meant to be

an illustration and not the eternal structure

and not the permanent one. It's not the real

thing. That is why Jesus would say this thing

will go down. Amen? This that you see that you've

adorned, that you turn it into a ritual house.

First of all, it will be desecrated. Daniel will

say that the solution that bring what? Am I saying

the right thing? He prophesied of a destruction

and Jesus came and then he said it in Matthew

24. Hallelujah. So the plan is that the sacrifice

in that temple will end. Hallelujah. So in John

John 2:18–22

chapter 2, verse 18 to 22. The Jews asked Jesus

for a sign. For what? What is a sign that they

were asking for? They were asking for a sign

for when the prophecy of Isaiah, which Jesus

was teaching from, will come to pass. Now note,

a sign refers to what? It refers to something

that points to an event. Amen? A sign refers

to something that points to an event. The sign

is not the event itself. Okay? For example, now

you're entering here with Nigeria, you see one

big billboard. And you see an arrow pointing

to where the gate is. When you stand by the gate,

by that billboard, you are not at the university.

That billboard is to point you to where the university

is, right? Which means that the university is

close by. If you look around, you'll see it.

So a sign is a pointer to the main event. So

Jesus said, destroy this temple. So which temple

was he talking about? A physical temple? Listen,

there is physical temple, okay? You must know

which temple Jesus is speaking at every point

in time. Now, destroy this temple is referring

to what? It is referring to his body. Okay? Now,

you cannot say anyway, see temple, it means the

body of Christ. No. Context is important too.

Finding meaning towards the scripture. Okay.

So. Destroy this temple. And what? And I'll raise

it up in three days. Now he was not referring

to the physical temple as I said. But rather

to his body. Meaning that he was referencing

his death. Okay. So there's time. For what? For

what will happen. Is his death. Okay. His burial.

And his resurrection. When he dies. And he rises

again, which will usher in a new system of worship.

They ask him, show us a sign that this thing

will happen, that this will end. He says, destroy

this body, this temple, and I will rise it again.

I will raise it again. And this becomes the point

to which the new system of worship, a new temple,

a new house, More glorious and more permanent

than this that is physical will be established.

Hallelujah. Now the Father's house is not a physical

structure, right? The temple, we refer it to

the temple, we refer it to the Father's house,

right? It's not a physical structure. But it

is what? It is people. Okay? It is people. It

is people. John chapter 14. John chapter 14,

John 14 · chapter mention John 14:1–4

verse 1 to 4. All right. Let not your heart be

troubled. You believe in God, believe also in

me. In my Father's house. What house are we talking

about here? We begin to understand what that

house is, right? In my Father's house are many

mansions. If it were not so, I would have told

you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if

I go and prepare a place for you, I will come

again and receive you to myself. The way I am,

there you may be also. Amen. If you are new or

you are just coming this semester, we have agreed

before you came as a church. that this place,

okay, it's not talking about heaven in the sense

that there are mansions and houses in heaven.

There is no Range Rover in heaven. There is no

flats in heaven. Why are we, how did you come

to this conclusion that this is not talking about

buildings? First of all, we say that, he said,

in my father's word, My father's house. We say

that even by just reading it, it's not logical.

How can a mansion, you know what a mansion is?

Think of, what is a mansion? Your presidential

villa, maybe from Kenya. What do they call the

name? State house. State house. It's a name they

call it. They put it at somebody's name, they

use name in it. People don't want to speak. In

Nigeria, they call it Asa Rock. Right? In America,

they call it the wife house. They don't like

Ruth too. But they voted him. Amen. So that's

just by the way. Imagine in a house, it's a white

house, a mansion in a house. Was it fitting?

So first of all, by reading the English, you

know that this is not adding up. Alright? Now

contextually, the background of this text is

that Jesus has informed his disciples about His

death and also his betrayal. His betrayal and

his death, obviously. Jesus told them that he

will believe in them. Let's go back to chapter

13, verse 31 to 36. John chapter 13, verse 31

John 13:31–36

to 36. Please, let's be fast so that we can...

Yes. John chapter 13, verse 31 to 36. We're trying

John 13:31–36

to read and have understanding on chapter 14,

verse 1 to 4. So when he had gone out, Jesus

said, now the son of man is glorified. No. Yes,

yes. Okay. He's glorified in him. If God is glorified

in him, God will also glorify in himself and

glorify him immediately. Little children, I shall

be with you a little while. This is Jesus telling

them. You will seek me. And as I said, to the

Jews, where I am going, you cannot come. So now

I say to you, a new commandment I give to you,

that you love one another, as I have loved you,

that you also love one another. By this, all

will know that you are my disciples, if you have

love one for another. Verse 36, this is where

Peter asked him, he said, Simon Peter said to

him, Lord, Where are you going? It's a question

Peter asked, right? Where are you going? Jesus

answered him, where I am going, you cannot follow

me now. Okay? Where I am going, you cannot follow

me where? Did Jesus say that Peter will not follow

him? But what? The timing, right? He says, you

cannot follow me where? Now. But you shall follow

me when? Afterwards. So the problem is the timing.

Peter said to him, Lord, because he didn't have

understanding. Why can I not follow you now?

I can just imagine conversation like a baby.

Victor and his daughter, she like questions.

Why can I not follow you now? I will lay down

my life for your sake. That's Peter. Jesus answered

him. Will you lay down your life for my sake?

Most assuredly I say to you. the rooster shall

crow, shall not crow, till you have denied me

three times. Okay? Let's move to the next chapter.

Then the conversation continues into the next

chapter. Then he continues telling them, let

not your heart be troubled. You believe in God,

believe also in me. Okay? Now, this is Jesus

answering the question now of Peter. Are we together?

In my Father's house are many mansions. If it

were not so, I will have told you, I go toward,

so where he's going, he's going to prepare a

place for you. All right? Verse three. And if

I go and prepare a place for you, I will come

again and receive you to myself. That where I

am, there you may be also. Hallelujah. So in

verse two, We see the word house and we've said,

we've agreed, we've seen from scriptures that

the word house there means what? Oikia, right?

Referring to an inhabited edifice, a dwelling

or a house, a household, household, people. All

right. Additionally, the word mansions is derived

from the Greek word money, which is also used

in verse 23. Give me verse 23. Verse 23 of Rasen,

John 14, 23. Jesus answered and said to him,

if anyone loves me, he will keep my words and

my father will love him and we will come to him

and make our home with him. That home, right?

Is that same word mansions or what we call money

in the Greek. It means we make our dwelling place.

This means that the mansion or what we call the

money in Greek is a metaphor of God indwelling

believers as we've seen in this verse 23. So

what Jesus is saying is this, that in my father's

household, in my father's family, meaning people,

there is a dwelling for you. My goal is to what?

is to prepare a place for you in this family.

And this preparation will be seen in his death.

He's going, he's going to die. And in his death,

he's going to establish this access for them

to be in the family of God. Through his death,

Jesus will establish this. He will have to die

for this to be achieved. So this idea of household,

will be seen first in scriptures. House, not

just household, but household of God. Right?

The concept of the household of God will be seen

first where? In Genesis 28. Where Jacob had an

encounter. Let's go there. Let's go to Genesis

Genesis 28 · chapter mention

chapter 28. Verse 10 to 18. We're trying to trace

where the word household of God was used or was

seen first. Now let's read from verse 10 to 18

verses. Now Jacob went out from Beersheba and

went towards Haran. So he came to a certain place

and stayed there all night because the sun had

set. And he took one of the stools of that place

and put it at his head. And he lay down in that

place to sleep. Then he dreamed and behold, this

is his dream. A ladder was set. I can't see the

screen here. Yes. A ladder was set on the earth

and its tops reaches to the heavens. And there

the angels of God were ascending and what? And

descending on it. They were ascending and descending

on it. And behold, the Lord stood above it and

said, I am the Lord, the God of Abraham, your

father, and the God of Isaac. The land on which

you lie, I will give you and your descendants.

Also your descendants shall be as the dust of

the earth. You shall spread abroad to the west

and to the east, to the north and to the south,

and you and your seed in you and what? Seat or

seat? Seat, right? Singular. You, in you and

in your seat, all the families of the earth shall

what? Shall be blessed. Behold, I am with you.

I will keep you wherever you go and will bring

you back to this land. For I will not leave you

until I have done what I have spoken to you.

Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, This

is his translation of what he saw when he woke

up from sleep. He said, show me the Lord is in

this place and I did not know it. Okay? And he

was afraid and said, how awesome is this place?

This is none other than what? Than the house

of God. And this is the gate of what? Gate of

heaven. The house of God. The gate of heaven.

Now, it is important to note that God reiterates

in verse 13 and 14 the promise he made to Abraham

and Isaac. Okay? This is the same promise God

made to Abraham and Isaac. If we read verse 13

and verse 14, we'll see some important component.

Number one, we'll see the word land. Alright?

So land is there as part of the conversation.

So land is important. We also see the multiplication

of descendants as the dust of the earth. All

right? As the dust of the earth. I will see this

sentence that through his seat, all the families

of the earth will be blessed. By the seat of

Jacob, the whole families of the earth, the people

of the earth will be blessed. In verse 17, Jacob

explains what he saw as the house of God. The

house of God. The word house is translated from

the Hebrew word bayit. Okay? B -A -Y -I -T. It's

referred to a household or a family. So, metaphorically,

bayit is referring to a household. For example,

I said I'm going to Kostin's house. Pastor Kostin's

house. What am I referring? I'm going to visit

his family, right? I'm going to Pastor Chidi's

house. It simply means I'm going, if I say I'm

spending my time in Pastor Chidi's house, it

means that I'm spending time with his family,

his household. Are we together? So, it means

household or a family. That means that what he

saw was what? The household of God. What he saw

was a family of God. And then to further, that

this that he saw wasn't something physical. He

says the house of God, he says that there's a

gate of heaven. Heaven simply means spiritual.

Okay? The house of God is not a physical building

but something spiritual and eternal. Something

spiritual and what? And eternal. He called the

place gate of heaven meaning something spiritual.

Now let's step back and see God's promise to

Abraham in Genesis chapter 12. Now we've seen

Genesis 12 · chapter mention

Jacob, right? Now let's go back and see God's

conversation with Abraham. Genesis chapter 12,

Genesis 12:1–9

verse 1 to 9, quickly. Yes. Now the Lord had

said to Abraham, get out of your country from

your family and from your father's house to a

land that I will show you. I will make you a

great nation. I will bless you and make your

name great and you shall be a blessing. I will

bless those who bless you and I will curse him

who curses you and in you all the families of

the earth shall be blessed. This is similar to

what we saw with Jacob. Alright? So Abraham departed

us. We are reading this with the apostles and

we receive one translation. You know, that for

Abram to be blessed. God added Ham to his name.

And that's what made Abram blessed. Is that what

made Abram blessed? Hallelujah. So Abram departed

as the Lord had spoken to him and the Lord went

with him. And Abram was 75 years old when he

departed from Haran. Then Abram took Seba his

wife and Lot his brother's son and all their

possessions that they had gathered and the people

whom they had acquired in Haran. And they departed

to go to the land of Canaan. We see land evolving

here, right? So they came to the land of Canaan.

Abraham passed through the land to the place

of Shechem as far as a terebinth, tree of Moriah.

And the Canaanites were then in the land. Verse

7. Then the Lord appeared to Abraham and said

to your descendants. Do we see descendants? I

will give this land. And there he built an altar

for the Lord, to the Lord who had appeared to

him. And he moved from there to the mountain

east of Bethel and he pitched his tent. Bethel.

Do we know Bethel? Is it familiar? Where is Bethel?

Was that the place Jacob had an encounter? All

right. Please, this thing is not showing. Yeah.

He went to Bethel and... Either team, please

find a final solution. This is so we can be fast.

Okay? Which verse are we? Verse 8. So Abraham

said to Lot, Please let there be no strife. Yes,

sorry. I have gone to cartoon. And he moved from

there to the mountain east of Bethel and pitched

his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the

east. There he built an altar to the Lord and

called on the name of the Lord. So Abraham journeyed

going on. still towards the south. Hallelujah.

Now let's jump to chapter 13, verse 14. Chapter

13, verse 14 to verse 18. And the Lord said to

Abraham, after the Lord had separated, when the

Lord, they had some issues and they separated

with the Lord. And the Lord said to Abraham,

after the Lord had separated from him, lift up

your eyes now and look. From the place where

you are, northward, southward, eastward, and

westward. For all the land which you see, land,

right? All the land which you see, I give to

you and your descendants for when? Forever. I

think this is the claim that the nation of Israel,

they are holding and they are fighting. And I

will make your descendants as the dust away of

the earth. So that if a man could number the

dust of the earth, Then your descendants also

could be numbered. Arise, walk in the land through

its length and its width, for I give it to you.

Then Abraham moved his tent and went and dwelt

by the turbulent trees of Mamre, which are in

Hebron, and built an altar there to the Lord.

Amen. Let's jump to chapter 15, verse 4 and 5.

And behold, the word of the Lord came to him,

saying, This one shall not be your heir, but

one who will come from your own body shall be

your heir. Then he brought him outside and said,

Look towards the heavens and count the stars,

if you are able to number them. And he said to

him, So shall your descendants be. Hallelujah.

So we can see clearly that all the promises God

made to Jacob were the same as the one he made

to Abraham. Land was involved, okay? Multiplication

of his descendants and his seed. And all the

families of the earth will be blessed through

the seed. Hallelujah. Now let's briefly examine

how the writer of Hebrews interpreted these promises.

Alright? Let's go to Hebrews. Hebrews chapter

Hebrews 11:8

11, verse 8. Hebrews 11, verse 8. Hebrews chapter

Hebrews 11:8 Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

11 from verse 8 to 16. By faith, Abraham obeyed

when he was called to go out to the place he

will receive an inheritance. That land is an

inheritance, is it? And he went out not knowing

where he was going. By faith, he dwelt in the

land of promise. as in a foreign country, dwelling

in the tents with Isaac and Jacob? Did Abraham

dwell with Jacob? Amen. By faith he dwelt in

the land of promise, as in a foreign country,

dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs

with him of the same promise. The same promise

to Abraham is the same promise to Isaac, is the

same promise to Jacob. and to Moses, and to the

prophets, to the nation of Israel, and to you,

and to us in our own generation. So, for he waited

for the city, verse 10, for the city which has

foundation, what we saw in land, and now Hebrews

is saying a city, okay? For he waited for the

city which has foundations, whose builder and

maker is who? It's God. So it means that this

city or this land is not a physical land. It's

not a physical city. Hallelujah. The foundation

is what? The foundation, which one has foundations?

We know what foundation is. Beginning from a

foundation. By faith, Sarah herself also received

strength to conceive. This word conceived is

the word foundation. Conception. Amen? By faith,

Sarah herself also received strength to conceive

seed, and she bore a child when she was past

the age, because she judged him faithful who

had promised. Therefore, from one man and him,

as good as death, were born as many as the stars

of the sky, in multitude, immeasurable, as the

sun which are by the seashores. Verse 13, these

all died in faith, not having received the promise,

but having seen them afar off, were assured of

them, embraced them and confessed that they were

strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For those

who say such things declare plainly that they

seek a homeland. Homeland simply means father's

land, right? Homeland simply means a father's

land. A homeland. And truly, if they had called

into mind that country from which they had come

out, they would have had the opportunity to return.

But now, hallelujah, they desire a what? A better.

What does better mean? Heavily, permanent, better.

The opposite of better here is not worse. All

right? Better means a permanent one. They desire

a permanent, that is, a heavenly one. Okay? Therefore,

God is not ashamed to be called their what? Their

God. For he has prepared a city. He prepared

a city for them. So, is this city a physical

city or a spiritual city? So what is city? City

is translated from the Greek word polis. P -O

-L -I -S. Polis. Alright? From whence we have

politics. Affairs of the city. Politics. Political.

Cosmopolitan of the city. Cosmopolitan. Or which

other word again? Metropolis. Yes. What other

word again? All the wonder comes with this. So,

city is from the word polis. And it refers to

people. Alright? We can conclude that what they

were looking for was a spiritual people, a spiritual

family. This land is also called, this land,

we've seen that the land, number one, we've seen

that it's a household, isn't it? Look up please.

We've seen that the promise is a household, right?

It's also a land, okay? It is also a city, all

right? Now we'll see that this same concept is

what it refers to the church. The land is also

called the church of Jesus Christ. Hebrews chapter

Hebrews 12:22

12, verse 22. Hebrews chapter 12, verse 22. Hebrews

Hebrews 12:22

12, 22 to 24. But you have come to Mount Zion

and to the city. City simply means what? People,

right? Family, household, land. What else? Did

you see from scriptures that we've seen? People,

right? We have come to a people, we have come

to a city of the living God. That means that

these people are of the living God. This household

is what? It's of the living God. The heavenly

Jerusalem, the spiritual Jerusalem, not the one

in the Middle East, a spiritual one. Okay? To

an immeasurable company of angels. Let's continue

verse 23. To the general assemblies, assembly

of people, right? Not the one in New York. General

assembly of people. Which is what? The church

of what? the firstborn who are registered not

in CAC, Nigeria, but were registered in heaven.

To God, the judge of all, to the spirit of a

just, made perfect. 24. To Jesus, the mediator

of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling

that speaks better things than that of Abel.

Hallelujah. So we've moved from seeing it as

what? We've introduced another name for it. It's

called what? A church. So what did Abraham see?

What was promised to Abraham? A people, right?

And we can trace this down and we'll see the

evolution to the concept we call, what we call

a church. And a church is what? Is it this building?

It's what? It's a people. So are you part of

the promise that God promised Abraham? Are you

in the promise of Abraham? Hallelujah. So having

seen what God has started, okay, please bear

me to conclude. Having seen what God has started

from the foundation of the world, what did he

start? A building, a project, right? From the

foundation of the world, building a house, which

is a family of God, also referred to as a land.

We now have another term to describe it, the

church of Jesus Christ. Now we can also refer

to this house. Is that the house of David? Is

that the house of David? Amen? Answer me. Yes?

Okay. Now let's see God's promise. Let's see

how it was promised to David. 2 Samuel, 2 Samuel

2 Samuel 7:11

7 verse 11. 2 Samuel 7 verse 11 to 13. You see

2 Samuel 7:11–13

that this house was called the house of David.

The household of David. Yes. Since the time that

I commanded Judas to be over my people, Israel,

I have caused you to rest from all your enemies.

And also the Lord tells you that he will make

you a what? He will make you a house. When your

days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers,

I will set up your seat. Seat also, you see.

I will set up your seat. After you. Who is this

seed? The seed was promised to Abraham. It was

promised to Jacob. And now we see it to David.

Who is this seed? The seed is Christ. Right?

Now, the seed after you is not Solomon. Forget

about Solomon. Look at Christ. Your seed after

you, who will come from your body and establish

his kingdom. Another word for that church. His

what? His kingdom. Alright? He shall build a

house for my name and I will establish the throne

of his kingdom. When? You know, the promise of

the house of David is the house of David will

be forever. Referring to the kingdom which will

live forever. Are we together? So the house in

verse 11 is also referred to as a household.

Okay? He's referring to a household of people.

God further calls it a kingdom in verse 12. And

13. The house is also the kingdom. So, what was

promised to Abraham? A kingdom. A people. A house.

A household. A family. Amen? So Isaiah will let

us prophesy about the keys of the house of David.

Amen? So what we say the keys of the house of

David, you know where we are headed to us? We

are headed to us Matthew 16 verse 19. Alright?

Matthew 16:19

The keys of the house of David. Isaiah 22 verse

Isaiah 22:22–23

22 to 23. Isaiah 22 verse 22 to 23. And then

Isaiah 22:22–23

we ran up. The key of the house of David. What

is the house of David? Is it the kingdom of David?

Is it referring to the people of David? I will

lay on his shoulders. On whose shoulders? On

Jesus, of course, the Christ. So he shall open

and no one shall shut. I shall shut and no one

shall open. Verse 23. I will fasten him as a

peg in a secure place and he will become a glorious

throne to his father's house. Hallelujah. Now

Jesus Christ is called a son of David. Matthew

Matthew 1:1

chapter 1 verse 1. He's called a seed of Jacob.

Isaac and Abraham. Matthew 1 verse 1. The book

Matthew 1:1

of the genealogy of Jesus Christ. The what? The

son of David and the son of Abraham. So, here

you have access to the keys of the house of David.

Alright? We see that Jesus, the son of David,

possesses the key to the house of David. The

house of David is also referred to as the kingdom

of David. Now with this key of the house with

which is called the kingdom, he shall open and

no one shall shut. He shall shut and no one shall

open. And we see the same key. We see the same

key that Jesus sees in Matthew. Final scripture.

Final, final, final for today. Final for today.

Matthew 16, verse 19. This same key. And I will

Matthew 16:19

give you what? The keys of what? Of the kingdom

of heaven. Now, is this kingdom the kingdom of

David? Is this the kingdom that was promised

to Abraham? Is this the people of God? Is this

the family of God? Is this the, what is the word?

The household of God? I will give you the keys

of the kingdom of heaven. And whatever you bind,

does it look familiar to whatever you open and

close and shut? And whatever you bind on earth

will be bound in heaven. Meaning that it is a

spiritual conversation, right? And whatever you

lose on earth will be lost in heaven. Hallelujah.

So what we're able to establish today is that

when we talk about kingdom, we're referring to

what? What God started from the beginning. So

the vision of God, the plan of God from the beginning

is a family. It's a people. It's a household.

Hallelujah. And then Jesus said, I give you,

he's referring to Peter, specifically here, I

give you the keys of the kingdom. So the question

is, what is the keys of the kingdom? Now, do

you know what the kingdom is? Without reasonable

doubt. Okay? We know what this kingdom is. Are

we together? So next time, hopefully. We'll try

to understand what is this key? Is it master

key? Maybe we'll come with key on Sunday and

we'll show, we'll duplicate the key and give

everybody. Hallelujah. Let's rise on our feet.

Let's rise on our feet. And thank God that we

are included in this family of God. Let's appreciate

God that we are part of this project that God

started from the foundation of the world. That

indeed, God's plan is eternal. He thought of

us right from the foundation of the world. He

thought about you. He had you in mind. What was

thinking of you? He was thinking of me. He was

thinking of all of us. He would tell Abraham

as the dust of the earth. so shall your descendants

be. And God is the father of the house. He is

the king of this kingdom. He is the shepherd

of this family. What a glorious opportunity to

be part of God's family. What a glorious privilege

to be part of God's church. What a glorious opportunity

to be part of God's plan. An eternal plan. A

plan that will never end. What a consolation

to be part of God's family. That God was thinking

of you, specifically about you. Not only that,

he has given us, now to Peter and to us, the

keys. And we say keys, refer to access into the

kingdom. We have access into the kingdom. We

can bring men into the kingdom because we have

access to the kingdom. Let's pray and say, Father,

in this season, let me have more understanding

of all that you have for me. We prayed from Ephesians

Ephesians 1:15

1 verse 15 previously. We may comprehend what

we have in Christ. Of all we have understanding

of what we have in Christ, we can walk in it.

That's how we understand, we begin to manifest

the kingdom. Okay? We see the kingdom in manifestation.

We see the kingdom of God in display. My life

becomes an instrument by which the family of

God is displayed. The works of God is displayed.

The plan and the purpose of God is displayed.

What God has prepared is displayed for His glory

and for His honor. We appreciate you being here

today. We hope you carry this word with you throughout

your week. Don't forget to check the show notes

for additional insights. Stay connected with

us through our website or follow us on social

media. If you are encouraged, share this message

with someone you care about. Until next time,

stay blessed.