In this article, we will be looking at a subject matter, and it's like a phrase; a confession and an understanding that God wants us to come into. And, what are we looking at? His Ownership of Me. That’s what we'll be considering as the Holy Spirit leads us.
Now, we are going to start with a Scripture in Matthew chapter 21:1-3. I believe that by the time the Lord is done with us, we will come into the consciousness of who owns us, and how we ought to respond to His ownership in the name of Jesus.
Matthew chapter 21 verse 1-3, 1“Now when they drew near Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me. 3 And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them.”
Now, this Scripture is very interesting, because when the Lord was opening my eyes to this Scripture, I found it very fascinating because it speaks to the truth about His ownership of us. The Bible says, Jesus told His disciples, go into a village opposite you, when you get there, you will find a donkey. You see, the interesting thing about the ownership of God concerning our lives is that no matter where you are, God can find you. Wherever you are located, God can do what? Find you!
The same way He sent those disciples to find the donkey and the colt, God can find you anywhere that you are. Why? He is the Lord. What's the meaning of the Lord? He is the owner. The location of the donkey and the colt, God was specific about it. Wherever you are on the face of the earth. God knows your address, He knows where you are, and He knows what you are doing.
Jesus said, you will find a donkey tied. Specific, and a colt with her! When the disciples got there, did they find the donkey loosed? No! They found it tied as the Lord has said. Wherever you are, and whatever is going on in your life, God knows where you are, and He knows where you are at in your journey right now. And the reason why this donkey and this colt were loosed was because it was the set time. The donkey and the colt had been there in preparation for an appointed time.
I want us to read further to verse 4 down. “All this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: 5 “Tell the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your King is coming to you, lowly, and sitting on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”
So, the donkey and the colt were not an accidental vessel. They were vessels that had being prophesied, preordained, and predestinated in the agenda of God. If a donkey and a colt can be so meticulously provided for in the agenda of God, how much more you? If a donkey and a colt can be so arranged into the will of God, into the agenda of God, how come you think you are an accident?
Verse 6, “So, the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them; nothing was amiss. They brought the donkey and the colt, and laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them.” The purpose you and I have been born is to fulfill the will of God. Where you are right now is part of God's agenda in His will, to bring out something beautiful and wonderful out of your life. There are many times we look at where we are, what is going on with our lives and we wonder, “God, how does this give You glory?”
I'll share a story with us. There was a man that was born blind, and they brought him to Jesus. And they asked Jesus, how can somebody be born blind? Is it his father that sinned? Is it his mother that sinned or is it his own sin himself? And Jesus said, none of it. He said all of these; the situation, the circumstance, everything about this man is to the glory of God.
So, there are many things in our lives we don't understand. There are many things in our lives that we are confused about. And that's why when it comes to God, you must trust Him. It is when you get to a zone of confusion, when you get to a zone, where you don't understand the direction, that is when you need to trust. Now, when people that go on expedition; that go to different places to do things, and they get in the middle of thick forest, is it not when you are lost that you bring out the compass? Why do they trust the compass? That instrument had been with them for a long time, and they know that when they get to a point that they no longer know the road, they bring out the compass to show them the direction. If it can show them the true north, they can find where they are. And that's an instrument; that's a mundane instrument, how much more God?
I'm going to show us the reason why we need to trust Him as our owner. We are going to read a lot of Scriptures, but, I'm just going to mention them quickly so that we can see in the pages of the Scripture, that God, before we were formed in the womb of our mothers, He had known us. He has given us a place in His agenda that no man can take, if we align with His will. Job chapter 41 verse 11, “Who has preceded Me, that I should pay him? Everything under heaven is Mine.”
Who has preceded Me, that I should pay him? Can we answer this question? Is there anyone that has preceded God? What does He mean? Is there anyone that is before God? No one! That's why we call Him, the Alpha and the Omega, He is before the beginning of all things, and the end of all things. He is the First. Everything under heaven is Mine! Did we see it in the pages of the scripture? Everything, including you and I. God said, is Mine. That's why He is the Lord. There is no Lord greater than God. He is the Lord. Everything under heaven is Mine.
Psalm chapter 24:1, “The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein.” The earth is the Lord's, and all its fullness! When they say the fullness of something, it means everything that is inside of it; the world and those who dwell therein. Where are you and where are we located? Are we in the world? Are we on the earth? Then we belong to Him. These are Scriptures that establish His ownership of me. God owns me, can we declare that? That’s the truth.
Hebrews chapter 3 verse 4, “For every house is built by someone, but He who built all things is God.” He builds all things, including your life and my life. So, He has the ownership of us.
I want to show us an interesting Scripture in Zephaniah chapter 3 verse 17. This is just to settle in our hearts the truth about the ownership of our lives. Zephaniah chapter 3 verse 17, 17 “The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.”
The Lord your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, why? He owns you. He owns me. When God owns, that's why you see the verse started with the Lord, the Lord your God in your midst. Why is He in your midst? He is the Lord. The Mighty One is your Lord. He is the One that rejoices over you with gladness. He is glad that He owns you. He will quiet you with His love, that's how He owns you.
Another word for He will quiet you with His love is, He will pamper you, He will take care of you. He will be concerned about you, He is interested in you, and He will rejoice over you with singing. That's the kind of Lord that owns you. The Mighty One, the One that is able to save you, the One that rejoices over you with gladness, the One that quiets you in His love.
What is the Lord bringing our way, assurance! Many of us are not assured of the ownership of our lives. We feel that we are just one in a billion people in the world, but this is the truth about who owns you. He is interested in you. He will quiet you with His love. He will rejoice over you with singing, the Lord!
Jesus said concerning the Pharisees and the Sadducees that they lord over their own ruthlessly, but He said, it shall not be so among you: because you don’t have that example in God. He will quiet you with His love. He will rejoice over you with singing.
Proverbs chapter 21 verse 1. “The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes.” This particular verse, there is a way we read it but the Lord wants to help open our eyes. The Bible says; "The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord". Now if you see in your Bible, you’ll see the Lord was written in capital letters in the New King James Translation, the king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord. When He is the Lord, hearts are in His hand. Your heart is in His hand. The king’s heart, put your name in that king’s. Omolara’s heart is in the hand of the Lord like the rivers of water. He turns it. His ownership of me! When God owns me, my heart is in His hand. And God, like the rivers of water, He turns it. He turns my life, He guides my life, and He directs my life wherever He wishes.
So, if He wishes that I am tied for a season, if He wishes that I am in a place for a season, my heart is in His hand. If He wishes for me to be loosed for His glory, my heart is in His hand. Do we understand it? Your heart is in the hand of the Lord like the rivers of water, He directs, He turns wherever He wishes.
If God owns you, can He turn your heart wherever? Does He own you or you own yourself? Are you the one directing yourself wherever or He is the One directing you wherever? Are you turning yourself or He is the One turning you? Are you leading yourself or He is the One leading you? His ownership of me, it is not just in saying it; it is in the practicality of how we live our lives?
Does He turn us? Do you allow Him turn you? Is your heart in His hand? Because the first point of duty is that your heart is in His hand. If your heart is not in His hand, He cannot turn you. You know some of us we pray, “God lead me, wherever I will go,” but your heart is not in His hand. I keep my heart but I say God lead me, it can't work! The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water, He turns! When Jesus needed to go to the cross, God turned His heart and He went to the cross.
When Jesus had to go into the wilderness 40 days and 40 nights, the Lord turned His heart and He went. How many times have our heart been turned by the Lord? If He is truly the Lord, is He turning our hearts or we are turning ourselves? Apostle Paul says rejoice in the Lord always, I say again rejoice, but you have mood swings. You choose to be happy. You choose to be sad. You're the one turning it. If He has the ownership of you, you will allow Him to turn your life.
Why does He need to turn our lives? Psalm 104:24, O Lord, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all. The earth is full of Your possessions—When I saw this Scripture, I paused. The earth is full of Your possessions! Am I part of His possessions? Are you part of His possessions? When you have possession, you own it. It is yours; you can do with it as you will. This Bible now, is my possession; I can choose to carry it anywhere that I want to carry it to. I'm sure the shoes we are wearing, we did not borrow them, they are our possessions, true or false? Can God have us as His possession? Can God carry us to anywhere He chooses?
The way you carry your slippers to anywhere you want to go; you're entering the toilet; it goes with you. You have a separate one for the toilet, you have a separate one for the house, you have a separate one that goes out to important places with you. Can our lives be like that in the hands of God? If He owns us, and if we are His possession. We are part of the possessions of the Lord on the earth. Can He take us anywhere that He wills? It is more of a probing message. Let's examine ourselves, where we stand in His ownership of us. Does He own us or is it lip service? Is our heart far away from Him? Does He own us? In my note I wrote, are you His possession? As I'm asking you, I'm asking myself also, am I His possession?
Have you seen anything that you own (non-living things), when you want to take it that it argues with you? “Oga, calm down oh, I cannot follow you enter that place oh!” But how many times have we argued with God that we can’t enter those places, we can’t do those things, we can’t be that person, how many times? Prophet Agabus said to Apostle Paul, he took Apostle Paul’s girdle and he bound himself and said that is how they're going to bind the owner of this girdle when he enters Jerusalem. And Apostle Paul had held the word of the Lord; I am his possession. He said, I'm not only willing to be bound, I'm willing to die. That’s God’s possession.
Are we His? Do we belong to Him? Can God wake you up in the middle of the night and say “my son, tomorrow I'm sending you to Borno state, and this is what I want you to do for me when you get there.” Like Abraham, will you depart immediately or you are going to say, “God give me time? Lord let’s argue this thing out, you said I should bring forth my strong reasons. Lord, let me bring forth my strong reasons.” Was that what Apostle Paul did? Was he bringing forth his strong reasons? Did he say, “God, how come you showed Agabus that they are going to bind me like that?” It is a sign that I should not go. Was that what he did? No! He knew that God owns him.
Psalm chapter 50 verse 10 to 12, 10“For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. 11 I know all the birds of the mountains, and the wild beasts of the field are Mine. 12 If I were hungry, I would not tell you; for the world is Mine, and all its fullness.”
You see the reason why we started from verse 10. For every beast of the forest is Mine. When God needed a raven to feed Elijah; ravens are birds that are naturally selfish, they can’t even carry food for their own children, talk less of another person. And God commanded a raven bird, and the bird obeyed Him. How much more you and I that are made in the image and likeness of God? Can we see how much we break God’s heart? If the mountains, the birds, the beasts will obey Him, how much more you made in His image and likeness?
The donkey remained there until God needed it. Remember Matthew 21 that we read, the colt remained there until God needed it. How much of obedience and submission do we show to the will of God? Does He own us? Ezekiel chapter 18 verse 4, “Behold, all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine; the soul who sins shall die.”
The reason why this Scripture is very important; many of us are in that realm where we say God has my spirit. We fraction ourselves into body, soul and spirit. God owns my body. After all, I'm not committing fornication, I'm not committing adultery, I'm not doing this, I'm not doing that. God owns my spirit. When I gave my life to Jesus, I gave Him my spirit, but my soul, there is nothing you cannot think. There is no place you cannot take your soul to.
See what God said, behold all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine; the soul who sins shall die. His ownership of you is not just your body. Do you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost? He said, behold all souls! So, in your ownership of you, does God own your soul? Does He own your soul?
We are admonished in the New Testament, the things that are pure, the things that are lovely, the things that are of good report, he said think on these things. So, there are some things you should not think on. If He is your Lord, does He own your soul? What are you thinking about? Jesus said, it is not in committing the act. He said if a man looks at a woman lustfully, he has committed the act, why? God has judged his soul, and he saw that in that soul, he has committed the adultery; he has stripped the woman naked in his soul and done all manner of things in his soul. And don't think because you've not done it physically, you have not sinned, no! He said the soul who sins shall die.
Your soul has an identity. Does God own your soul? Your emotions, your will, your intellect; does God own it? Or you allow your soul to travel? When we sing that song of consecration that we use to sing in primary school, “take my life and let it be, consecrated Lord to thee, take my moments and my days, let them flow with ceaseless praise.” Does your soul magnify the Lord? Does He own your soul? Or your soul is yours, and your body, you said you have given to God. Behold, all souls are Mine! All souls are Mine! If you don't magnify God in your soul, you have not magnified God. Does He own you?
We have touched many areas of His ownership of us, that's why it is not really necessarily arranged, it is just to probe; it is just for examination. Can we examine ourselves? As the word is coming to us, can we examine ourselves? Does God own me? His ownership of me, is it question mark? Or I can say with exclamation mark that Yes, He owns me! Like that donkey and that colt that was tied. He said, if anyone asks you anything, tell them, say to them, the Lord! Let’s go back to that scripture, Matthew chapter 21, If anyone says anything, including the devil, including the world, including the times you live in, if anyone says anything; how come you, you are like this? Other people are having fun, and you are not having fun with them? The Lord has need of me!
While I was meditating, the Lord said to me, if your eyes will not behold evil and there is a question that is being asked; “you don't even watch the things people are watching;” The Lord has need of them! “You don't even listen to the things people listen to. You don't go to the places people go to,” the Lord has need for them! I can't go because the Lord has need for them.
I remember my husband was sharing with me when he was having his youth service, and people were just having fun. And they were asking him, hope there's nothing wrong with you? or you did not come with it? He said to them, “yes! He did not come with it.” The Lord has need for them.
When you understand that the ownership of your life is not your own, you will know that the king’s heart is in the hands of the Lord, He turns wherever He wishes. The Lord has need of them! You can’t live your life anyhow because the Lord has need of this life. You cannot abuse your body and just eat all manner of things and go to all manner of places because the Lord has need of them. You can't give your soul to just anything; watching anything, listening to anything. You are not listening to the lyrics, you are listening to the sound, the Lord has need of them! The ownership of me!
Based on this understanding, how should we respond to the ownership of the Lord in our lives? Colossians chapter 3 verse 17 and 23, “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him”.
And whatever you do, please, this is the Scripture, whatever!! Whatever you do, you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Can you go and drink alcohol in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ? Can you go and womanize in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ? The Bible says, whatever you do. Can you go and gossip in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ? Can you lie in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ? Whatever you do, do in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. This thing I am doing, I'm raising my children in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. I am faithful to my husband in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is not about what he has done or what he will do tomorrow. It is about the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. “Ah! It's not my fault. I was not like this before. They showed me pepper. So I said, I'm going to show them tomatoes.”
Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God, the Father through Him. The ownership of me makes me to do whatever I do; whether I'm talking, whether I'm walking, whether I'm acting, whether I'm singing, all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. You cannot be singing Wizkid in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Verse 23, “And whatever you do, do it heartily; joyfully, as to the Lord, and not to men,” knowing that from the Lord, the owner, you don't say to yourself, “people are not worth it. If you know what I've been through in the hands of people.” See what the Bible says, don't do it unto people, not to men, as to the Lord. Not to men! Even though they don't worth it but God worths it. Knowing that from the Lord, you will receive the reward of the inheritance, for you serve the Lord Christ. You serve the Lord with your body, you serve the Lord with your soul, and you serve the Lord with your spirit. 1st Corinthians 10; based on this understanding, how do we respond to the ownership of God in our lives?
1st Corinthians 10:31, Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. The first one we read in Colossians, do it in the name of the Lord Jesus. 1st Corinthians 10:31; do it to the glory of God. God does not get glorified in iniquity. He does not get glorified when you don't pursue excellence. He doesn't get glorified in foolishness. Do it to the glory of God! That place where you are working, work to the glory of God. Don't say that this people I am working for, they don’t even deserve it: I'll just do it anyhow. Do it to the glory of God! That God can be praised.
When Daniel was in Babylon, he was not working in Babylon to the glory of Nebuchadnezzar. How many of us noticed this about Daniel? It was not about Nebuchadnezzar, because if not, in Daniel chapter 1, he could have eaten the king's delicacy and say, “is it not the king that wants to spend money, let him spend it.” Rather he said, “see, give us lettuce, that’s what we will eat, and come and check us, and you will see the glory of God radiating in our lives.” And when they came to check them, they were ten times better to the glory of God.
When Nebuchadnezzar had a dream, Daniel interpreted the dream of Nebuchadnezzar, not to the glory of Nebuchadnezzar, but to the glory of God and he served four kings successively. Why? He understood that God owned him. When they made a law in the time of Daniel, when King Darius was king, and they said nobody should pray to any other god or consult anybody apart from the king. And Daniel said, king Darius does not own me, I will pray to the One that owns me. I will worship the one that owns me and he opened his window as his custom was.
His habit did not change because they made a new law. He remained consistent based on the understanding of who owns him. And Daniel prayed, and in the consistency of Daniel, they saw that he prayed, they knew he was going to pray, so they were ready. Immediately they saw him pray, they came to take him and off to the lion’s den. And God showed Himself, God showed that He is the owner of Daniel. Darius could not save him. Imagine if he was doing eye service to Darius. Could king Darius save him in the lion’s den? Our loyalty must be to God. Our faithfulness must be to the One that owns us because vain is the help of man, He will show up for us.
Matthew chapter 6 verse 24, 24 No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other; like the example of Daniel, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. If money owns you, you will serve it. When they tell you now, they are giving people ten thousand each in ASO Rock, you won’t even think about the transport fare, you are already preparing to go. And God says, “stay and worship Me, I need you for two hours.” And you say, “God, let that one wait. I will come back and do it. Let me go and get that ten thousand first.”
See what Jesus said, no one! When Jesus says no one, it means you can't do it. And you say, “there is a way I balance it. No! I have a lot of balance; I'm graced for balance.” it is not possible, Jesus said no one. No one can serve two masters for either he hate the one and love the other. I'm a living testimony of that, you cannot. You will be loyal to one and despise the other. At the time you are showing loyalty to one, you are despising the other. When you switch again and show loyalty to another, you're despising the other. Be loyal to the One that owns you. You cannot serve God and mammon.
Lastly, Proverbs chapter 3 verse 9-10, 9 Honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the first fruits of all your increase, 10 so your barns will be filled with plenty and your vast will overflow with new wine. Now, let me read it in the context of which you must understand it. Honor the Lord with your possessions, what are possessions? What you own! What you have! What does it mean? It means that, what you own must be used in the name of the Lord. Whatever you own should be used to glorify God. Your children, your house, your land, your car should be used to glorify God. You say, no, I just borrowed them, it's my possession but that means you have dishonored God by borrowing somebody that dishonours God.
Please, I want us to understand this Scripture very well. Honor the Lord, it is not money. It is when they want to take offering that they usually read this verse, so we are used to it. God is not concerned about your money, what God wants first is you. When God owns you, does He not own your money? God is not interested in your pocket. God is interested in your heart. God is not interested in the change that He has given to you. He gave it to you in the first place. God is interested in you, don't mix it up. You go and steal from somebody and come and pay tithe. You are rejected, and so your offering is rejected. Don't be confused; don't let any babalawo Pastor confuse you.
God accepts the person and his offering. If the person is not accepted, the offering is not accepted. Honor the Lord with your possessions. Because you have a guest in your house, you cannot pray. You say, “that my uncle, he doesn't like prayer, I don't like to disturb him.” You have dishonored God. Is the house your uncle's house? No! It is your house! Because, when your uncle is going, he will give you five thousand, you could not pray so that you will not offend him, but you can offend God. “God understands, I'll tell Him sorry, that my uncle is very difficult.” Honor the Lord with your possessions!
Let everything around you, in you, about you, honor God. That's how you show that He owns you. You own a business, because your customers don't like praying, you don't pray before you start your business because you don't want them to be offended. And I want us to see that Scripture properly; honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the first fruits of all your increase, so your barns. So, if you don't honor God with your possessions; your barns will be empty. And you'll be praying and God is saying, you have not been honoring Me. Because when you honor God with a possession, God shows that He owns it, and God takes charge of it.
Honor the Lord with your possessions and with the first fruits of your increase, so your barns will be filled with plenty and your vats will overflow with new wine!
