Hello my name is Seun Ayilara I'm presenting my side of perspective about how to recognize God's presence how to define that God is in a space and these conversations will be guided by Genesis chapter 1 the beginning story or what popularly called The Creation story why is it important that we start from Genesis chapter one or why is it that I am looking at Genesis chapter 1 to establish this fact you know that will take me to a passage of the Bible in Matthew Chapter 19 Verse 8 Matthew Chapter 19 Verse 8. there was a conversation that led to this but this was Jesus response to that conversation Jesus answered Moses allowed you to divorce your wives because you refused to accept God's teaching but divorce was not allowed in the beginning so Jesus perspective was not just to answer this question that they raised which is not the question that they raised is not the focus today but the focus is that Jesus Will revert them back to the beginning that Jesus would say that the whole point of the beginning should Define whatever it is that we want to Define now. so if we want to prove God's Assistance or God's reality in our midst or in a space we then have to go to the beginning because that beginning will give us the perspective needed for us to accurately define whether God is present or not and that is what we will be doing today that is what I want to do with you today so let's go to Genesis chapter 1. yeah you have to be ready. mind you this is study time and not a presentation of that so we're going to be studying and we're going to be drawing out the lessons from our study. so Genesis chapter one, this is Genesis this is the first passage of the Bible and the first passage of the Bible would introduce God to us the question I would want to ask as we go on is why is this the first passage of the Bible is it just because it's the beginning story or because there are certain things that the Bible wants us to know about the incidents that happened in Genesis chapter 1. That the Bible also wants us to start the knowledge of the Bible by understanding the presence of the Creator the person behind the whole existence of man these are questions that will pop up in my head but as we go on we'll answer some and I hope you would also come up with questions don't expect me to answer all the questions my job is to start and raise an argument that you could take further with the god in you Holy Spirit talking about holy spirit so let's start Genesis chapter 1 verse 1.
in the beginning, God created the sky and the Earth in the beginning according to how it started God created the sky and the Earth and for the sake of understanding where I'm coming from talking about the version of the Bible I'm using I'm using ICB International Children's Bible so in the beginning, God created the sky and the Earth God created. creation is one of the characteristics that define God God created, in the beginning, the very first statement that would be made in the Bible about God was what he did and that would sum up Jesus' perspective on how to recognize someone and Jesus would say that in order to acknowledge anyone or to identify properly the person's perspective you must understand their fruit because their fruit will Define who they are their fruit will tell you more about the person that they are what is God's food here is action, he created
God created so look at our perspective look at this Africa is one of the most consuming Market you know without creating Nigeria specifically is a consumption Market
In fact everybody is no longer news when you say that we need to start creating it's no longer news it has even affected our economy so anyone to understand the god Factor the the reality of God's presence in the space check whether they are creating check whether there are witty inventions happening around that space if there is none then there is no God there I don't need to because in the beginning, God created so and in other to perfectly identify those places where we can see God obviously and based on the things that they have created for instance the last World Cup that just finished go and check the things that were created by the by the organizing Nation come on check marvelous interesting in fact they made the stadium a stadium out of containers I was shocked the first time I saw that news I thought I was I thought that was fake but of course I googled this I checked it I Googled I researched so I researched and I discovered that that was true they made a whole stadium out of a container wow that there is there is nobody to tell me that there is no God there there's God there the presence and the personality of God is there I don't need anybody else to tell me... so check places where God is God this God will create. So in Matthew 19 verse 8, we've talked about that that why should we start from the beginning because that is the reference point that is that should be a reference point that is the original plan
Then before you start asking and saying oh but that's God I don't necessarily need to create because only God can create that's a fallacy you are God in fact you are supposed not just to be God but to do the things exact things that God did in Genesis chapter 1. maybe not exactly those things according to the event but you are supposed to do similar things that's what we are going to be discussing here also in Psalm 82 verse 6. I read from ICB again International Children's Bible David the Psalmist said I said you are gods you are all sons of the most-high God. So the psalmist would say to us that you are God Jesus Will emphasize this statement when he mentioned that his father and himself are one in John 10 verse 30. John chapter 10 verse 30 I and my father are one
So if there is Holy Spirit in you which is the Trinity carrying the Trinity the God the Father the god the son the God the Spirit that you claim that you have as a Christian then you are God if Christ is in you then you are God
because Christ and his father God are one so there should be similarities of happenings, yes creation should be a continual thing with places or in places that is obvious that God is
creation should be normal creation should be ongoing in fact this creation will lead to what proverb and in Proverb 4 verse 18 says that the part of the righteous leads to a brighter, keeps shining till it gets to a brighter day you know it keeps improving that your best was not yesterday that your best is not in 2022 that's your best provided you are God and you are creating is tomorrow yes it's tomorrow it's perpetually tomorrow that you keep improving consistently every day by day that is what it means that God created.
Then in verse 2. the earth was empty and had no form Darkness covered the ocean and God's spirit was moving over the water. so let's analyze it what God created was empty emptiness means void in Isaiah the Bible says that your land shall be called Hephzibah it shall be filled with people and not desolate you know emptiness means problem Emptiness is bad is what we call evil emptiness is negative when something is empty it's nothing it's negative so God created something and immediately He initiated the creation He ran into a problem I like to see this as He runs into a problem so what is the lesson here is that God when God run into problem God fixes his problem that's the lesson that whenever God runs into a problem God fixes his own problem so you know some people would ask to say oh but people too are fixing their problem Nah
would God live his creation to look for other people's solutions or would God continue on his creation to make it better God fixed so some would say well I was not part of the people who created this environment that I am in for instance Africa or Nigeria God fixed you don't necessarily need to be part of the problem isn't that what Christ came to do John 3 16 was Christ part of the crime no was the guilty of sin no was he in any way qualify for the kind of torture that he went through no absolutely no
but he paid the price he paid the price he fixed the problem
see Christ didn't come to fix the problem for God because the problem directly affects God and Christ didn't come to fix the problem for himself because not necessarily because the problem affects him, He came to fix the world. So when people use individualistic ways of solving problems to bring them into God and to use all of God to solve problems at the individualistic level they don't understand God you don't understand God that God was not creating according to this story God was not creating this Earth for himself it was already living somewhere he was already existing somewhere so God could not have been doing this for just himself so when the opportunity is presented for us to pay the sacrifice to fix our nation to join a protest to join a crusade to start a movement to start an NGO when that opportunity presents itself we should jump at those opportunities which will be glad and jump at them because it presents us the opportunity also to prove that God truly exists that God is present in that situation in that places. That is why Africans are not solving our problem we are not willing that's why everybody is thinking of how to escape at whatever cost that is not God's nature God is not running away from his own problem God did not God fixed. So it was empty and they had no form Darkness covered the ocean and God's spirit was moving over the water so the spirit of God was moving over the water the spirit of God became action oriented in solving problems you know enough of rhetorics enough of prayer what are the actions presented enough of telling us that is the government's job, yes we know is the government job
but if God is present if you claim that God is present and that God is present you will become action oriented towards Solutions why should you be action-oriented towards Solutions Matthew chapter 5. verse 13 Jesus would say to us you are the sword of the Earth but if the salt loses its salty taste it cannot be made salty again it is good for nothing it must be thrown out for people to walk on
it must be thrown out you are the light that gives light to the world to the world, not to a church
not a building not to a family not to a particular section of people
you are the light that gives light to the world a city that is built on a hill cannot be hidden so we must begin to reflect God in our lives if God is truly present what are your actionable solutions to fix Nigeria that's the proof if your actionable solution to fix the space called Nigeria or Africa is to Japa from it is to run away from it then there that's a proof that there is no God in this place and that actionable solution that a lot of people have chosen has even proven the damage further Whenever there is also a testimony shared in the church in the places where they are supposed to replicate Christ and God are sharing escaping from their soul from their problem which God will not do this God did not do that according to Genesis chapter 1 verse two three verse 2 rather God did not Japa from his problem God faced his problem
A whole almighty God ran into a problem that should have been a lot discouraging some people would have said ah I'm bigger than this God God but God went to work he went to work his Spirit started moving there was the inspiration he started strategizing on how can we solve this problem for all. there is a bad educational system in Nigeria your spirit hovering over your mind thinking and you're not bothering on how to proffer the solution there is scarcity and hunger in the land what is the God in you moving you to do, it's not moving to do anything? right there is no God here.
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