Delightsome Agbabo

April 1 SEATED TOGETHER Even when we were dead in sins, [God] hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. — EPHESIANS 2:5,6 The very act that raised the Lord from the dead also raised His Body. (The head and the body are naturally raised together.) Furthermore, the very act that seated Christ also seated His Body. Where are we sitting? In heavenly places! Right now! We’re not going to sit there sometime; God has made us sit together now in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Christ is seated at the Father’s own right hand. Therefore, we are seated at the Father’s own right hand! (The right hand is the place of authority. God carries out all of His plan and program through His right hand — through Christ, through His spiritual Body, which is the Church.) The right hand of the throne of Majesty in the heavens is the center of power of the whole universe (Heb. 8:1)! The exercisin

March 31 RAISED TOGETHER And what is the exceeding greatness of his power . . . Which he wrought in Christ, WHEN HE RAISED HIM from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places. . . . AND YOU hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins. — EPHESIANS 1:19,20; 2:1 If you were to open your Bibles to Ephesians 2:1, a King James Version would look something like this: CHAPTER 2 AND you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins. When a word is italicized in the King James Version, that means the word is not in the original manuscripts; the translators have added it. So the original reads, “And you who were dead in trespasses and sins.” I wanted you to see that the verb which controls Ephesians 2:1 is back in Ephesians 1:20! (Paul didn’t write in chapter and verse; men divided Paul’s writings later for easy reference.) Our text today makes it clearer for you. Notice the capitalized words: “. . . WHEN HE [GOD] RAISED HIM [Christ] from the dead. .

March 30 TO USWARD Many, O Lord my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward . . . . — PSALM 40:5 Did you notice this phrase in Ephesians 1:19, “. . . the exceeding greatnessof his power to usward who believe . . .”? All the demonstration of the glory of God shown in the manifestation of His omnipotence pointed to man — “to usward.” The Cross of Christ — with what is revealed of obedience to God, atonement for sin, and crushing defeat for the enemies of divine authority — shows us a representative Man. Christ was our Representative, our Substitute — overcoming for mankind and preparing a throne and a heavenly ministry for those who should overcome through Him. Therefore, the source of our authority is found in the resurrestion and seating of Christ by God. In the Book of Ephesians, we learn that God wants the Church to gain revelation knowledge of all that this means to us. Confession: I am a believer. I am receiving the spirit of wisdom a

March 29 RESURRECTION POWER That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection . . . . — PHILIPPIANS 3:10 Paul was actually praying in Ephesians that the Church would receive revelation knowledge of spiritual things. If you’ve been praying the Ephesian prayers for yourself, as I’ve suggested, you know that Paul wanted the believers at Ephesus to know: “. . . the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come” (Eph. 1:19-21). There was such a manifestation of the divine omnipotence of God’s power in raising Jesus from the dead that it is actually the mightiest working of God! And God wants us to know what happened when this occurred. The resurrection was oppose

March 28 SOURCE Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing shall in any wise hurt you. — LUKE 10:19 (ASV) Authority is delegated power. Its value depends on the force behind the user. Jesus said, “I have given you authority.” Who gave it? Jesus did. Who is Jesus? Jesus is God manifested in the flesh! That means that God said it. Therefore, God said “I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy.” (Serpents and scorpions represent demons and evil spirits and the power of the enemy.) God Himself is the Power, the Force, behind this authority. The believer who is fully conscious of divine authority can therefore face the enemy without fear or hesitation. Behind the authority possessed by the believer is a Power far greater than the power that backs our enemies. And those enemies are compelled to recognize that authority! No wonder John says, “. . . greater

March 27 WHOM RESIST Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith . . . . — 1 PETER 5:8,9 In 1942, I had a battle with symptoms in my body. I prayed, appropriated the promises of God, and stood my ground. But at times it looked like I wasn’t going to make it. One such night I had a dream. I dreamed another man and I were on some kind of a parade ground. It was like a football field. There were stands on either side. As we walked along talking, suddenly the man looked back and yelled, “Look!” and he started running. I turned and saw that two ferocious lions were almost upon me. I ran about two steps. Then I hollered to the other man, “You’ll never make it! You can’t outrun them!” I stopped still, turned around, and faced them. I was trembling. My flesh was covered with goose pimples. But I said, “I stand against you. I refuse to budge in the Name of Jesus Christ.” The lions stoppe

March 26 BE STRONG Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. — EPHESIANS 6:10,11 What would you think if you saw a traffic policeman in front of a car, trying to hold it back? You’d think, He can’t do that. He’s no match for that car! Some people read Ephesians 6:10 and think that the Lord is telling them to be strong in themselves. And they’re trying to be strong. They’ll say, “Oh, pray for me that I’ll hold out faithful to the end!” But God didn’t say a word about our being strong in ourselves or in the power of our might. That traffic policeman steps right out in front of those cars and holds up his hand, because he knows they’re going to stop for him. He doesn’t have to exert any strength himself; he’s strong in the authority that’s been given to him. That is what the Lord is telling us. He’s saying, “Be strong in the Lord. Be strong in the authority of His

March 25 DELEGATED POWER And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power [authority] is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore . . . . — MATTHEW 28:18,19 The authority on earth that is invested in the Name of Jesus Christ and was obtained by Him through His overcoming Satan was then delegated by Jesus Christ to the Church. Jesus spoke these words in Matthew 28 after His death on the cross, after His burial, after His defeat of Satan in hell, after His resurrection, after His ascension with His own blood to the heavenly Holy of Holies — but just before His ascension to be seated at the right hand of the Father. Jesus said that all authority in Heaven and on earth is given to Him. Then He immediately transferred this authority on earth to His Church, saying, “Go ye therefore . . . .” Mark records that Jesus said at this same time, “And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take

March 24 AUTHORITY Behold, I give unto you power [authority] to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you. — LUKE 10:19 The Greek word “exousia” means authority. However, it is often translated as “power” in the King James Version of the New Testament. In our text, for example, two different Greek words are translated as “power,” yet the correct translation of the first word is “authority.” Our verse should read, “I give you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy . . . .” What is the difference between power and authority? Well, what can one uniformed police officer do to direct the flow of rush hour traffic? He can do a great deal. Is it because the policeman has the power to hold back these mighty machines? No! His most strenuous efforts couldn’t stop the swiftly passing cars. He doesn’t have the power to do it, but he has something far better. He is invested with the author

March 23 FOR ANOTHER I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth. — 3 JOHN 1:4 When a Spirit-filled relative of mine couldn’t seem to grasp certain important Bible truths, I prayed the Ephesian prayers for him every morning and night, inserting his name in the appropriate places. Lord, I’m praying this prayer for “Joe.” God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, give unto “Joe” the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. I pray that the eyes of “Joe’s” understanding be enlightened; that “Joe” may know what is the hope of His calling, and what is the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints . . . . And I continued on through both prayers. I prayed these prayers for him morning and night for ten days. Finally he wrote me, saying, “It’s amazing how things have opened up to me. I’m beginning to see what you’ve been talking about.” No human teacher had talked to him about spiritual matters. People frequently want to know how to pray

March 22 WISDOM AND REVELATION [I] Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers. — EPHESIANS 1:16 Ephesians 1:17-23 and 3:14-21 are Spirit-given prayers which apply to the Church everywhere. The turning point in my life came when I prayed them a thousand times or more for myself. I would kneel, open my Bible, and say, “Father, I’m praying these prayers for myself. Because they are Spirit-given prayers, this has to be Your will for me, just as it was Your will for the Church at Ephesus.” Then I would continue to pray by reading from these passages, except wherever Paul said, “you,” I would substitute “me,” as follows: That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto “me” the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of “my” understanding being enlightened; that “I” may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness of his

March 18 STEP 4: TELL IT O give thanks unto the Lord; call upon his name: make known his deeds among the people. Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him: talk ye of all his wondrous works. — PSALM 105:1,2 Step 4: Tell it. This woman, “. . . knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth” (Mark 5:33). Not only did Jesus hear her, but the whole crowd heard her. Jesus said to me concerning this step, “Tell it so that others may believe it and receive it.” There is a difference between this step and the first step. The first is, Say it. This fourth step is Tell it. The woman said what she believed. Then, after she received, she told what had happened to her. 1. Say it. 2. Do it. 3. Receive it. 4. Tell it. I asked Jesus, when He gave me these steps, “Are You telling me that any believer, anywhere, can write a ticket of victory over the world, the flesh, and the devil?” “Emphatically, yes,” Jesus answered. “And if they don’t do it, it won’t be done. They’

March 17 STEP 3: RECEIVE IT And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague. And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes? — MARK 5:29,30 Jesus knew that power had gone out of Him. At that time, Jesus was the only representative of the Godhead at work upon the earth. He was anointed with the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:38). In that day, to get to where the power was, you had to go where Jesus was. Today, the Holy Spirit in the Person of the Godhead is at work upon the earth. He is everywhere present — and wherever the Holy Spirit is, there is power. Nuclear bombs release radioactivity into the atmosphere — a power that can neither be seen nor felt, but a power that is both dangerous and deadly. However, there is a power working upon the earth this moment that is neither dangerous nor deadly; a power that is good, that heals, and that

March 16 STEP 2: DO IT What good is it, my brethren, if a man professes to have faith, and yet his actions do not correspond. . . . some one will say, “You have faith, I have actions: prove to me your faith apart from corresponding actions and I will prove mine to you by my actions. . . .” You notice that his [Abraham’s] faith was co- operating with his actions, and that by his actions his faith was perfected. — JAMES 2:14,18,22 (Weymouth) Step 2: Do it. It wouldn’t have done that woman with the issue of blood any good to have said, “If I may but touch His clothes I shall be whole,” if she hadn’t acted on what she said. Jesus said to me in that vision, “Your actions defeat you, or they put you over. According to your actions, you receive, or you are kept from receiving.” That’s important. Read it again. The Book of James is written to believers. James said, “What doth it profit, my brethren.” Most people think James was writing about salvation, but he was writing to people who were alr

March 15 STEP 1: SAY IT For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole. And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague. . . . And he [Jesus] said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague. — MARK 5:28,29,34 The Lord Jesus Christ gave me a sermon during a vision in 1953. He told me to get pencil and paper and to write down 1,2, 3, 4. Then He said, “If anyone, everywhere, will take these four steps, or put these four principles into operation, they will always receive whatever they want from Me, or from God the Father.” The steps Jesus gave me are simple. They are (1) Say it; (2) Do it; (3) Receive it; and (4) Tell it. Jesus used the healing of the woman with the issue of blood to illustrate these four steps. Step 1: Say it. What was the woman’s first step toward being healed? “For she SAID . . . .” Jesus told me, “Positive or negative, according to what

March 14 OBSTACLES . . . And much people followed him [Jesus], and thronged him. And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years. . . . When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment. — MARK 5:24,25,27 To receive her healing, this woman had a number of obstacles to overcome. In her religious tradition, a woman with an issue of blood was considered in the same category as a leper. She was not supposed to mingle in public. If anyone came close to her, she was to cry, “Unclean! Unclean!” In fact, the women in ancient Israel didn’t have the same rights and privileges to mix freely in public that most women in the modern world have. You could say that a multitude of people stood between this woman and her healing. Public sentiment and her own religious teachings stood between her and getting to Jesus. But she overcame all obstacles. She got into the very midst of the crowd, and she reached through to touch Jesus’ clothes. This woman didn’t pray

March 13 GOD’S MEDICINE My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life unto those that find them, and health [medicine] to all their flesh. — PROVERBS 4:20-22 A marginal note in a good reference Bible will show that the last phrase of the above text can read “and medicine to all their flesh.” This means that God has “prescribed” His words for our healing and for our health! But medicine, even in the natural, won’t do any good unless you take it according to directions. You could go to a doctor, get a prescription, have it filled, take it home, set it on your bedside table — and still grow steadily worse! You could call the doctor and complain, “I don’t understand it. I paid good money for this prescription, but I’m getting worse.” The doctor might ask, “Are you taking your medicine according to the directions?” “Well, no, but I’ve got it right here in the bottle at my bedside.”

March 12 A PSALM Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs . . . .— COLOSSIANS 3:16 Here is the psalm the Holy Spirit gave me on the subject of words. Words seem so insignificant and small that men oft times take no note of them at all. But words spoken in faith, create realities . . . So rise up and speak, like the Creator of the universe, Who, in faith, said, LET THERE BE — and THERE WAS. Words — you speak them all the time, filled with negativism and defeat, Those words create defeat, and make you unsuccessful, unhealthy, and unwise. But Words given by God, inspired by His Spirit, called by men, the Holy Writ, These words heard with the ear of faith, And spoken out of a heart filled with faith, Will create in your life, and your family’s too, Success and victory; health and healing; Circumstances and darkness and troubles too, will run away from you. Filled with His Word, inspired by His Spi

March 11 SAYING THE SAME THING Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession [confession]. — HEBREWS 4:14 The Greek word translated “profession” here is translated confession elsewhere in the King James Version. The literal Greek meaning of this word is to speak the same thing. Soinstead of saying, “Let us hold fast our confession” we could say, “Let us hold fast to speaking the same thing.” Notice that words are involved here. The thing that defeats many people is that they have a double confession. One time they confess one thing, and the next time they confess something else. For example, they may say to you, “Yes, the Lord is my Shepherd, and I shall not want. According to Philippians 4:19, my God shall supply all of my need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus — and I’m believing God to supply my needs.” But when they leave you and meet someone else, their mind may revert back to the

March 10 FRUIT OF THE MOUTH A man’s belly shall be satisfied with the fruit of his mouth; and with the increase of his lips shall he be filled. — PROVERBS 18:20 You won’t get the blessings of God just because you believe. You don’t get saved, healed, or get answers to prayer just because you believe. Most Christians think that is the case, but it isn’t what the Bible teaches. The Bible teaches that you must believe and you must say something. For example, in order to be saved, Romans 10:9 and 10 says, “That if thou shalt CONFESS WITH THY MOUTH the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Notice it doesn’t say you’ll be saved just because you believe. The very next verse says, “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; AND WITH THE MOUTH CONFESSION IS MADE UNTO SALVATION.” Jesus didn’t conclude Mark 11:23 by saying you’d have whatsoever you believed. He concluded it by saying, “. . . he shall have whatsoever he

March 9 OVERCOMING FAITH For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. — 1 JOHN 5:4 I may be in the world, but I am not of the world. I am of God. My citizenship is in Heaven. And while I am in this world, I have the Greater One living in me. Greater is He that is in me, than he that is in the world (1 John 4:4). Who is in the world? The devil. He’s called the god of this world in Second Corinthians 4:4. What is in the world? Sin. But the Greater One in me is greater than sin. The Greater One conquered sin. What else is in the world? Sickness. It’s not of God. It doesn’t come from Heaven. There’s no sickness up there. Sickness is of this world. But the Greater One in me is the Healer. What else is in the world? Trouble. Adverse circumstances. Seeming impossibilities. But when I’ve faced such things, I’ve just remembered who is on the inside of me and what the Bible says. I didn’t even have to pray about it. I just

March 8 TRANSFORMED TALK Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly . . . — PSALM 1:1 . . . Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind . . . . — ROMANS 12:2 When God’s Word tells us not to be conformed to this world, notice that it relates conformity to the area of the mind. In other words, we are told not to think like the world thinks; we are to get our mind renewed with the Word of God and think in line with the Word of God. Then we will talk and believe in line with the Word of God.The world is programmed negatively. The world thinks sickness, fear, doubt, defeat, and failure. That’s because the world without God is in spiritual death. Therefore, it is programmed to death instead of life. Listen to what people say: “That scares me to death.” If Christians do not renew their minds with the Word of God, they will make the same mistake the world makes. They’ll talk themselves into sickness. But if we’ll renew our mind with

March 7 HEALTH WORDS There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health. — PROVERBS 12:18 I first learned the secret of words — faith words — when I spent sixteen months on the bed of sickness, given up to die by five doctors. But one August day in 1934, as I lay in that bed, I acted on Mark 11:23 and 24, and I said . . . ! Words were spoken! I said, “I believe that I receive healing for the deformed heart. I believe I receive healing for the incurable blood disease. I believe I receive healing for the paralysis. I believe I receive healing from the top of my head to the soles of my feet.” Within the hour, I was standing on my feet beside the bed — healed! Now more than sixty-five years have come and gone, and I haven’t even had a headache. And I won’t have one. But if I did have one — which I haven’t— I wouldn’t say my head hurt. Why? Because Jesus said, “. . . he shall have whatsoever he saith” (Mark 11:23). If someone were to ask me in such a

March 6 WRONG WORDS Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles. — PROVERBS 21:23 When trouble comes, most people want to blame God. “Why did God let this happen?” they ask. After Job’s troubles came, he said, “For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me” (Job 3:25). Job opened the door and let the devil in! We cause our troubles ourselves much of the time. Many dear Christian people don’t keep their mouths and tongues under control. They’re always saying wrong words. Just about all they ever talk about is what a battle they’ve had with the devil. Words of defeat are wrong. Words of failure are wrong. Words about how the devil is hindering you, how he’s keeping you from success, how he’s making you sick and keeping you sick, are wrong. Such words give Satan dominion over you and create troubles. But when you have God’s Word in your heart, and speak it out of your mouth — right in the face of apparent con

March 4 PLEASANT WORDS Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones. — PROVERBS 16:24 Words bless or words curse. Words heal or words make us sick. Words that we hear in the morning will linger with us throughout the day. Wives and husbands need to realize that a biting, stinging word in the morning will rob their companion of efficiency the whole day long. But a loving, tender, beautiful word, a little prayer word, will fill that loved one with music, and lead them into victory. Parents and children need to realize that the home atmosphere is a product of words. Learn to make words work for you. Learn to fill words with power that cannot be resisted. How do you do that? By filling your words with faith and love. Confession: My words work for me. I fill them with a power that cannot be resisted. I fill my words with faith and love. My words bless. My words heal. My words lead my loved ones into victory. My words charge the atmosphere of my home with fa

March 3 WELL OF LIFE The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life . . . . —PROVERBS 10:11 Immediately after the birth of our son and daughter, I took those little ones into my hands and said, “Lord, I thank You for this child. Because I know the Bible, I realize it is my responsibility to train up this child in the way it should go, and when it is old, it will not depart from it. “I realize Your Word says to bring our children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, and I’m going to do that. I know that children are taught in two ways: By precept and by example. So I’m going to live right in front of this child. I will set the right example. Then, too, I know that you can have what you say, so I say over this child that it will grow up strong physically, without sickness and without disease; it will be alert mentally; and stalwart spiritually.” Our children grew up without sickness and disease. I never prayed a prayer that they would be saved. I never prayed a prayer that they

March 2 POWER OF LIFE Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. — PROVERBS 18:21 “No, I won’t pray for your son,” I told the startled widowed mother of a fifteen-year-old boy. “It won’t do any good. As long as you keep telling your son he’ll never amount to anything, you’ll undo the praying.” “Did the Lord reveal that to you?” she asked. “No,” I said, “I just know that the condition in life that we or our children are in was created by words.” “What shall I do?” she said. “There are some things you should have done when your sonwas younger, but he’s fifteen now. So first, quit nagging him about being saved. Second, instead of lying in bed at night worrying about him, say, ‘Lord, I don’t know where he is, but wherever he is, I surround him with faith and love.’ You’ve been surrounding him with doubt, fear, and condemnation. Say, ‘Lord, I’m going to tell You what I believe. I don’t believe he’ll end up in the penitentiary. I’ll neve