Dear Partner,
Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed!!
I grew up in the Anglican Communion and we always greeted each other at home on Resurrection morning with this greeting. Even after I got born again and decided to leave the Anglican Communion I still love to share this greeting with loved ones on Resurrection day. So, Partner, Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed!!
This month I want to share some thoughts on the Resurrection, which incidentally I had shared with the Circle of Freshdew Partners well over a decade ago. It was so good that it certainly bears repetition. When you get a good meal you are likely to ask for a second helping. No one else but true Bible believing Christians can magnify this season the way it ought to be magnified. The whole world celebrates Christmas but if the enemy could de-emphasize this season and reduce it to Easter eggs and Easter bunnies and two free public holidays – he definitely would.? We can shout at the rooftop that our Saviour and Redeemer is alive and well! Hallelujah!!
There are so many exciting things about the Resurrection.?Probably one of the things that thrills me a lot is the thought of an empty grave. We must celebrate the uniqueness of our faith as Christians, for every other religion / belief system has the bones of its founder and leader in their graves – but the grave of?Jesus the Christ is empty!
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Sometimes when I need a good opportunity to laugh at the devil (which we should learn to do), I imagine a grave that was thoroughly sealed off by a big stone and guards and yet when the power of God hit that grave – it was evacuation time! No stone and no number of guards could hold back the purpose of God being accomplished. Same goes true in your life where Satan has tried to seal you off with a big stone that locks you out of the light of God’s will in your life.
Imagine the shock for Mr. Satan when he would have observed the unthinkable – Jesus Christ had conquered hell and death forever more. Can you just see the expression on his face??Shock and disbelief and wait for this…fear! Fear because of Jesus? Not just Jesus but also fear because of you and I also.
Some of you (even those who have been exposed to the real Word of God in their lives) still find it difficult to fathom that the devil is afraid of them!? Well, look at this.
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20?which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,
Ephesians 1:20 NKJV
5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)
6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.
Ephesians 2:5-6 NKJV
Raised in verse 20 means from the Strongs Concordance: to waken (through the idea of collecting one’s faculties); i.e. rouse (literally, from sleep, from sitting or lying, from disease, from death; or figuratively, from obscurity, inactivity, ruins, nonexistence):
Raised us up?together in verse 6 means to rise in company with.
When God raised up Jesus, He saw us and considered us as raised up in company with Him. So He sees us as i.e. roused from death, disease, obscurity, inactivity, ruins, etc!
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God sees Partner as raised from death, sickness, disease, obscurity, inactivity, ruins!!?If that is not good news then I don’t know what is! This is a good place to stop reading and shout Hallelujah!
Now, did this happen physically? No, it happened positionally in the spirit realm and that is why the enemy is afraid of you –?for that is the deciding realm – the realm that really matters. Did you get that? Even the devil is smarter than a lot of Christians – he knows the spirit realm counts for everything and the physical/natural realm is just a reflection of it. If he can find a Christian who does not know who he is in the spirit realm, then he can sell you a lie in the natural realm.
Resurrection Day was the worst day of his life so far and this was not just because Jesus was raised but also because you and I were raised in company with Him Hallelujah! From that day forward, the enemy no longer had a legal right over you – in any way and he knows it. God knows it too.?The real issue is do you know it??
When Jesus was raised up He declared,
18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All?authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
Matthew 28:18-20 NKJV
Authority (Exousia) means authority, jurisdiction, privilege, competency, mastery, token of control. Simply put it means delegated power.
Jesus received all authority and turned around and handed it to us. We received authority or delegated power to exercise the authority of Christ here on earth. He doesn’t expect to do it outside of us. This is why you don’t see anywhere in the NT telling you to tell God to do something about the devil. You take care of things yourself in His Name.
20?which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,
Ephesians 1:20 NKJV
5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved) 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
Ephesians 2:5-6 NKJV
Jesus sat down indicating a state of rest and triumph and accomplishment, and we?sat down with Him. If we are expected to be executing His authority here on earth then there’s work to be done!?Why on earth are we not standing up and fighting?– why did He have us sit down with the big responsibility of executing His authority?
This reveals a profound truth.
Exercising your authority is not a stressful, warring, exercise.
We are seated with Him and He is seated at the right hand of God, which is the place of authority. It is like Central Command, Head Quarters. He expects us to operate from being seated with Him and exercise our authority over a defeated foe from a vantage point of relationship and of victory.
Partner, Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed!! Let’s celebrate our victory in all areas of our lives this season.
Something else worth dancing about is the 20th Anniversary Of Freshdew coming up on April 4th, 2018. Freshdew began on April 4th, 1998. I am so excited at the faithfulness of God and I believe him for great strides this year into our 21st anniversary that will portion us exactly where the Father appointed for us to be. The professional camera and editing Freshdew are currently working on a video documentary on the story of Freshdew so far. It promises to be an impactful production and will air the first and second week of April depending on which station you watch. There are so many ways to watch Freshdew: on TV, on Facebook (FreshdewTV), on YouTube and you can listen on radio as well. These details are on our website:?freshdew.tv.
Please enjoy my gift this month of the message?Three Significant Truths About The Resurrection as preached on TV by clicking?here.
I would like to ask our partners to do a sample giving exercise on our website. We are currently fine-tuning our site so it is easy for people with debit/credit cards to give online. It would be nice to get your feedback on this at info@freshdew.tv.?The phone line for calls from within Nigeria is 0700-FRESHDEW, which is 0700-3737 4339. For calls from outside Nigeria the number would be: +234-700-FRESHDEW, which is +234-700-3737 4339. The lines are open from 8?a.m. to 11 p.m. daily except on Sundays when it is open from 2 p.m. to 11 p.m. daily.
Thank you for your partnership and your prayers. May all our partners continue to partake of the anointing and grace on Freshdew and more!
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Love unfeigned,
Electronically signed by
Pastor Nkechi Ene
