Understanding the Open Door From Alpha And Omega
“…I have set before thee an open door”
The omnipotence and omniscience of God are absolute. He has all the power and He knows everything that is going on under the sun, in heaven and beneath the earth. By His power, He gave to every faithful Christian or congregation, of any age and time, open door to preach, prosper and live above the enemy’s limited power on earth; a door, which no power whether on earth or in hell can shut. God said:
‘I know your works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for you have a little strength, and have kept my word, and have not denied my name’ (Revelation 3:8).
At some point in his ministry, Paul acknowledged this mystery when he wrote, ‘…I will tarry at Ephesus until Pentecost. For a great door and effectual is opened unto me, and there are many adversaries’ (1 Corinthians 16:8-9).
If believers can activate their faith and trust in God to use even the smallest amount of strength, opportunity or resources available to them to fight their earthly battles, no power on earth is able to stop them from achieving greatness or fulfilling the great commission that Christ Jesus gave to His church. By the way, all power is given unto Jesus who made it clear here:
‘All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost’ (Matthew 28:18-19).
The Call to Action for Believers
True believers who use even the smallest amount of strength, opportunity or resources available to them to fight can keep God’s Word anywhere even where Satan’s seat is located. If only we could use our little strength to serve God, He is more than able to humble all satanic agents, be it Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar or Herod to bow and worship before our God or to die. God is capable of safeguarding believers in the northeast of Nigeria, where Boko Haram rages and in Southern Kaduna, and all northern parts of Nigeria where God’s law is being threatened and believers are murdered continually. This is a message to the church in the northern part of Nigeria today,
‘I know your works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for you hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name…Behold, I will make them (your persecutors) to come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved thee. Because you hast kept the word of my patience’ (Revelation 3:8-10) underlined texts in the verse are mine.
No matter the amount of adversaries that have you besieged today, if you would only activate the power God has put on the inside of you, no matter how little, you will surely overcome the enemy. Jesus was clear about us having tribulation in this world. But the good news is that He admonished us to ‘be of good cheer; I have overcome the world’ (John 16:33).
‘You are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world’ (1 John 4:4).
The Role of the Church in Times of Persecution
Nigeria and other countries of the world like America are blessed to have received the gift of God’s Constitution (that is the scriptures) and enjoy the freedom of worshipping God among other things. Nevertheless, some wicked principalities have vowed to turn Christianity into brothels and bring the government of Satan right inside the body of Christ (see Psalms 74:1-11). The works of evil shall fail woefully but the counsel of the LORD shall stand strong.
Nigeria has many Christian bodies such as Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), etc. Inside these bodies, there are so many Bishops, Reverends, Pastors, Preachers, Teachers, Evangelists, Prophets and all manner of professionals. The only problem with some of these bodies is that they are not using their strength in full capacity to resist the enemies of the gospel in police stations, National assemblies, the courts, etc. Their potentials have become depressing. Some of these bodies are ready to compromise their faith and sell their birthrights. They are not using their positions, abundant grace, financial provisions and huge human resources to fight the adversaries assigned by the devil to close the doors opened to us by God. Inside PFN, CAN, etc. are professional lawyers, Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN), professors of Law in Parliament, Executives, Ex and serving Ministers but we are not hearing them condemn in strongest terms the attacks on Nigeria churches and places of worship.
We do not hear their voices in the lower or Supreme Courts when the door opened by God is being threatened in the north, south, east and western parts of Nigeria, and even in the parliament. Do they not know that silence of Christians in the face of evil is capable of blocking access to doors that God had opened to the church, paralyze the church of God and subject them to bow to Islamic laws instead of the constitution of the land? It is wrong to keep quite when the door opened by God is under attack by the wicked principalities. It is wrong to be neither cold nor hot, no matter your reasons. God is warning all of us this day, ‘…because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth’ (Revelation 3:16).
The church has the power to confront any principality that has risen against the church and people of God. When Herod cast Peter in prison, the church, though very few, rose up in prayers. It wasn’t long, the Angel of the LORD went to the prison and brought Peter out miraculously. So ought the church of our present times to do always.
‘Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison. And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands….’ (Acts 12:5-7)
This shows that if church could use even the smallest amount of power God has given to her through His Son Jesus Christ, every oppressor will be humbled before the church, Christ’s beloved.
One of the biggest problems in our churches today
One of the biggest problems in our churches today is that membership is no longer tied to genuine spiritual experience. There is a big difference between church attendance or bearing a Christian name and being a thoroughbred Christian. True church attendance and church membership is likened to belonging to a family and is called the body of Christ, a flock or vineyard. The state of our churches must be measured by spiritual experiences, love, faith, prayer life, knowledge and obedience to the Word of God by members. Unfortunately, many idol worshippers, occult members, wicked sinful people today claim to be Christians without the power of God working in them.
A natural man, that is man in his unregenerate state, is spiritually dead. It is therefore wrong for any nation to tolerate counting of the dead and foreigners among its citizens. Whoever is still under the control of sin, or fears losing his position because of obedience to God, or fears authorities, the princes, powers and principalities of this world more than God is a child of disobedience because he fulfills the desires of the flesh and he remains under divine wrath because he is not a follower of Christ.
Faithful Christians are those who have repented, confessed their sins, forsook them and their names are written in the book of life. Such people do all things without pride; they give credit to God for every progress and success. They work in harmony, motivate each other to live holy. They pray together and fight every enemy of their blessings. They are sanctified, filled with God’s Spirit, fellowship together, love and forgive each other, keep healthy relationship with each other, recognize the place of others in the body of Christ. They speak, act, minister in co-operation, not in competition with anyone. They respect and obey the leadership of the church. Are you one of such people?