Southgate International

  APRIL 10. “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the FATHER OF LIGHTS, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning” (James 1:17) The true identity of the believer is located in the word of God, particularly the epistles which is the revelation of the Old Testament. It is in the epistles that we’re described and the summary of it is that we’re on Christ; we look exactly like the resurrected Christ. So if you must see us well, it must be in Christ, take us outside Christ you will see a wrong person. By revelation Apostle Paul affirmed this when he said, “wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we  him no more” (2 Corinthians 5:16). Our theme verse lets us to know our source which is God. At salvation we became part of God; He is the Father of Lights and we’re children of light. We’ve been brought out of darkness into God’s marve...

 APRIL 9. “… Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven”  (Matthew 5:14, 16) God’s word is what you need for spiritual growth and development. God’s word is what you need for a balanced and successful life that you now have in Christ. Reason being that you were created by the word of God which means the word of God is your life; it’s your source and you would only be victorious and successful to the degree you’re willing to stay on the word. The Master is saying, “Let your light shine”, it means that wherever I go, I have the responsibility to shine; shining should be my way of life. No matter the circumstances of life, regardless of the challenges confronting me, it’s my responsibility to shine.  Where your light is not shining, people in your sphere of influence will be left in the dark; challenges and circumstances of life will likely overwhelm them. Light is that which describes; it ...

  APRIL 8. “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16-30) This is wonderful; the master in the above scripture instructs us to shine with blazing intensity. He wants you to know that men are watching; they want to see out of your life things that corresponds with your nature and status in Christ. Prophet Isaiah prophesied saying, “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the lord is risen upon thee” (Isaiah 60:1). This was a prophecy announcing then the arrival of men and women that will take over the world by storm; this was a pointer to the emergence of a superman who will be unstoppable even in the midst of thick darkness. I am talking about you, the new creation. You’re a special breed; you belong to a special class-God’s class of being; you’re a partaker of the divine nature, an associate of the God-kind. You have the very life of God. So when we say, for example, th...

APRIL 6.   “By now it was noon. The whole earth became dark, the darkness lasting three hours – a total blackout. The temple curtain split right down the middle. Jesus called loudly, “Father, I place my life in your hand! Then he breathed his last” (Luke 23:44-46 MSG )   It is a proven fact that the darkness that took place while Jesus hung on the cross wasn’t a natural but a supernatural occurrence. It is a known fact that the darkness lasted for three hours but the longest duration of a full solar eclipse is approximately 7.5 minutes. What took place that day was beyond science-it was a supernatural occurrence with huge implications. When Jesus hung there on the cross, and there was darkness-total blackout in the entire world, figuratively this speaks of a separation or a break in communication and that was why Jesus cried with a loud voice saying, “Eli, Eli lama sabathani?”that is to say, “my God, my God why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:4-6). This was ...

APRIL 4 “… God… calleth those things which be not as though they were” (Romans 4:17) Theodore Harold White , an American Political journalist and historian once said, “For those men who, sooner or later are lucky enough to break away from the pack, the most intoxicating moment comes when they cease being bodies in other men’s command and find that they control their own time, when they learn their own voice and authority”. It therefore means that if I want to make meaningful progress in life, I must consciously choose my words. Just as great architects take raw materials to build great edifies and timeless monuments, your words are like raw materials that can form the life you’re meant to live. Words carry great power and scripture is replete with principles that support the power of the tongue. To me, one of the greatest privileges we have as God’s children is that of reaching out into the realm of God and calling those things which be not as though they were. We should...

 APril 3. “I will declare the decree of the Lord: He said to me, you are my son; this day (I declare)  I have begotten you” (Psalm 2:7 AMP ) Understanding is the key to everything in the kingdom that is why the word of God say, “wisdom is the principal thing, therefore get wisdom: and with all your getting (no matter what other things you get), get understanding” (Proverbs 4:7 Paraphrased). You cannot enter your inheritance without understanding. Jesus speaking to His  disciples in Mark chapter 4 verse 11 and 12 said, “…Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the Kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables. That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understanding, lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them”. It therefore means that when you became born again, you were ushered into the realm where you’re able to take delivery of the keys of...

APRIL 2. “And Jesus, replying, said to them, Have faith in God (constantly). Truly I tell you, whoever says to this mountain, Be lifted up and thrown into the sea! And also not doubt at all in his heart but believes that what he says will take place, it will be done for him” (Mark 11:22-23AMP.) From the opening verses above, it’s clear that your entire life and future is in your own hands. If you would use your mouth well or rightly, by speaking positively in line with God’s word, your life will be a blissful experience. This is because if you learn the value and practice of speaking in line with God’s word, you’ll experience victory after victory, and success after success. The answer is under your nose; the power to change things is in your mouth; the victory is in what you say. So you must therefore permanently use your mouth to talk your way forward. The power of the spoken word is one of life’s revelations; all that you’ll ever become and accomplish hinges on how you ...

April 1. “And Jesus, replying said to them, Have faith in God (constantly). Truly I tell you, whoever says to this mountain, Be lifted up and thrown into the sea! And does not doubt at all in his heart but believes that what he says will take place, it will be done for him” (Mark 11: 22-23 AMP) Have you ever had the gnawing feeling on the inside that you were not getting enough out of life as you were supposed to – a feeling that life is full of possibilities, but somehow you could never figure out how to tap into them? Have you ever looked at another person’s life, marriage, financial status, or career and wondered, “what’s wrong with me?” Many people have come to the conclusion that life is a mystery that cannot be solved; they think that success and prosperity are for others except them; they feel powerless and victimized as the events of their lives spiral out of control. But they could do something about it if they knew what to do; the truth of the matter is that they ...

March 27 “ That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith…” (Ephesians 3:17). God expects every child of His to excel in every good work: it means we are graced to excel in life. 2 Corinthians 9:8 says, “And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work”. The new creation is furnished with super ability and competence. This puts him in a position where he displays excellence in all things. “Eutarkeia” is the Greek word for “sufficiency” as captured in the above verse of the scripture and it indicates a state of self-sufficiency to the point where one requires no support. That’s the proof of the God-life you have now; it is effective, efficient and balanced. “Hikanotes” is another Greek word for sufficiency and its usage is found in 2 Corinthians 3:5 that says, “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God”. And this refers to comp...

March 23. “Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: And by him all that BELIEVE are justified from all things, from which you could not be justified by law of Moses” (Acts 13:38-39). Because of ignorance, a lot of religious folks think that by their works of righteousness, they are justified before God. but the scripture speaking says, “Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin…” (Isaiah 53:10). That’s why I keep saying that what Jesus did on the cross has eternal impact; He (Jesus)having understood the extent of the impact of His death, burial and resurrection can boldly boast by saying, “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pick them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand” (John 10:28-29). T...

March 21 “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (2 Peter 1:4). In Habakkuk 2:14, the scripture says, “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea”. So this is the age and time where knowledge is essential, important and critical. In this age, if you do not have enough knowledge of God’s word, you will become a victim of the devil’s deception. The Bible also says, my people are destroyed because they lack knowledge (Hosea 4:6 ) knowledge is the key that opens the door to eternal things. It is through knowledge that we partake in what’s available to us in the kingdom we now belong to and not by our senses. That is why aside the Holy spirit that is in you now, you need so much of God’s word because the word is now your mirror; you can only see of yourself as much a...

March 20 “According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that called us to glory and virtue: whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (2 Peter 1:3-4). The main reason for failure in the body of Christ has been a lack of the knowledge of redemption as contained in the New Testament (the epistles). A lot of believers have false assumptions about God and you know when a person has a false knowledge about God, he or she will also have a false assumption about his personality in Christ. These false assumptions are what have robbed the church of their faith in God and these assumptions are products of inaccurate teachings. We see an example of having a wrong mindset about the character of God in Job; it was obvious later on in his life that everything he knew...

March 19 “But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name” (John 20:31). When a man hears the Gospel, believes it, he is saved and being saved mean that such a person has been reconciled back to the father. He now has peace and access to all that the kingdom of God has to offer. Remember mankind became estranged from God his creator through Adams disobedience. But today anyone who hears and believes the Gospel is reconciled back to God; has his relationship with God restored (the Gospel is the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ) (I Corinthians 15:1-4). The above claim is what our today’s theme verse talks about. It reveals that the messages of the four gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John)are messages given for a man to hear and be born again but there’s more to being born again. God’s desire is to have all men saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (I Timothy 2:4...

March 18. “That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the ACKNOWLEDGING of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus” (Philemon 1:6). Our relationship with God must be based on proper understanding of His word especially as contained and revealed in the Epistles. To walk in the consciousness of who you’re in Christ, a believer must be properly taught and instructed from the word of God. You must understand that the believer can never be more efficient in his Christian experience than he is in his understanding of the scriptures. According to our theme verse, Apostle Paul’s prayer for his son Philemon was for him to “acknowledge” (Greek: “epignosis” Having a precise, comprehensive knowledge) as it has to do with who he is in Christ; what he has in Christ; and the abilities he has in Christ. Because if these truths remain muddled up in any believer, understands that the believer will be short in his Christian experience and the benefits of his identificat...

DMarch 15 “And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled…” (Colossians 1:21 NKJV). Christ Jesus initiated and established peace between God and man through His death on the cross; man had become alienated from the life of God through disobedience; but that was in the past because Jesus in the body of His flesh through death has reconciled us back to Himself. God is no more angry with mankind. All of His anger was put on Jesus when He hung on the Cross. Jesus did all of that on our behalf. That is why the Bible says,” To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them…” (2 Corinthians 5:19). God is not angry with the world, He loves the world (John 3:16). He is not counting anybody’s sin now, it is when a man rejects His offer of salvation and dies as a sinner, that such a fellow will meet God’s anger and judgment. Ephesians 2:14-15says, “For he is our peace, who ...

March 14 “My little children, these things write i unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:1-2). You might have come across certain people who have been Christians for long, yet not grounded and settled in simple realities and truths of the kingdom. They aren’t growing hence it is hard for them to accept all of what the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ has made available to them. This has left a lot of believers disquieted, unsettled and tormented. As a Christian, you need to be deeply rooted and grounded in faith and it is having precise knowledge of the truth about your personality in Christ that will help the believer get to that. And your personal study of, and meditation of the word of God is very vital. Just going to church isn’t enough. I’m always overwhelmed by the de...

                                            March 13. “Jesus the mediator of the new covenant and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel”  (Hebrews 12:24 NKJV). God does not condone sin but a believer shouldn’t be afraid of sin. God doesn’t compromise His standards; He does not relax His demands, hence, rather than dismiss sin, He assumed the responsibility of sentencing Himself. In Genesis 4:10 God testified of the unusual voice of Abel voices that was crying from the ground which implied that the cry of Abel blood was so strong to be silenced by any human force or by time. Much more God acknowledges the distinct nature of Jesus blood before His throne. The blood of Jesus is what advocates, pushes for and argues in our favour and this is one of the effect of Jesus’ substitutional sacrifice on our behalf. The blood ...

March 12 “And Jesus, said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62). A ‘touchstone’ is something that provides a standard against which other things are compared or judged. It is a reference point, a basis which other things can be evaluated. A lot of believers are unable to stay on course in pursuit of their God-given assignment because they’re easily distracted. In Paul’s admonition to the brethren in the church at Corinth he said, “Not that we (have audacity to) venture to class (even to) compare ourselves with some who exalt and furnish testimonies for themselves. However, when they measure themselves with themselves and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding and behave unwisely”(2 Corinthians 10:12 Amp). Apostle Paul is saying that when people begin to measure themselves with themselves and compare themselves with one another, they’re behaving unwisely. This is what ...