Psalm 119:162 “I rejoice at thy Word, as one that findeth great spoil”.

Great spoil means great treasure. It is important to rejoice as God's Word is unraveled in your spirit, because there's no treasure like it! Someone may wonder, “What if I don't fully understand it yet?” and I reply, “Rejoice all the same, you're quickening your own understanding!”

I recall when I was a child, I'd rejoice at birthday presents even before unwrapping them, and that's how to rejoice at God's Word, because “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the hearts of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him (1 Corinthians 2:9)” See also Isaiah 64:4.

That's why getting a tight hold of God's Word is like finding treasure hidden in a field (Matt 13:44). Such marvelous treasure can only be found by asking God and seeking the revelation of His Word.
Luke 11:10 says "For everyone that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh it shall be opened”.

The word translated “receiveth” is the Greek word Lambanõ, which means “to SEIZE or remove something, rather than just have it offered to you”. This same word can be used to describe a lion that has seized a young goat and wants to eat it. You just go ahead and try to collect it from the lion! Okay, maybe you haven't seen a lion before, but I can bet you've seen dogs. When a dog is served a big chunk of meat and it sees other dogs coming to take out of it, have you seen how it grabs the meat and flees? That’s Lambanõ. Try to remove the meat from its mouth!

Lambanõ (as used 261 times in the Bible) is not passive, it's active, it's a personal application to oneself. It's the word used in Mark 11:24, “Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them” and John 16:24, “Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full”.

In fact, to receive the Word you need to Lambanõ because John 1:12 uses that word when it says “But as many as received Him, to them gave He the power to become the sons of God, to them that believe on His name”. Even more interesting, every single time (6 places) the New Testament directly tells of someone receiving the Holy Spirit, the word Lambanõ is used! To receive the Word and the Spirit, you must receive in a Lambanõ way.

The parable of the sower (Matt. 13) tells of six (Four? No, Six) different ways in which people hear God's Word and what happens after (i.e. the wayside, stony places, thorny ground, and the good soil in 30, 60, and 100-fold measures). Please note that the Bible says they all HEARD the Word, but not all RECEIVED it. Hearing the Word and Receiving it are not the same thing!

(1) THE WAYSIDE (v4, v9)
These heard it and didn't understand it. They took no heed of it, took no hold of it, didn't bother and didn't really care so the devil came and STOLE what they heard. These guys see church like a fashion or routine, but hey! Even the devil knows how precious God's Word is, he had to steal it!! Don't let him steal the Word you hear. Remember the example of the Lion, Lambanõ the Word and watch the devil flee from you!

(2) STONY PLACES (v5-6, v20-21)
These heard the Word & received it, but because they had no root in themselves, they sprang up quickly. Without chewing the Word, they swallowed it. There can never be good digestion in their systems!

1 Thessalonians 5:21 says “prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” These guys are happy to go to church, pleased with the Sermon, they don't argue with the Pastor but deep down inside, they're not changing! It's hypocrisy, in essence. They endure for a while, for as long as they feel the impact of the Word they got.
Yes, that’s it, they go by their feelings, until persecution comes and finishes them off. Every time you hear God’s Word, persecution will arise for its sake, to try those who received the Word sincerely. e.g. after a splendid teaching on healing, the devil will come and suggest malaria to you. Expect him, and slap him back HARD with God’s Word.
After receiving the Word, you must let the Word of Christ dwell richly in you (Colossians 3:16). This means that the next step is meditation. You need to chew on God’s Word over and over again, repeating it to yourself until the Word becomes flesh to you, until it becomes the very reality of your own experience!

(3) THORNY GROUND (v7, v22)
These heard the Word and received it, but the little thorns that they had initially ignored sprang up and choked the Word in them!
These thorns did not appear overnight, but the soil thought they could be ignored. Worldly cares greatly hinder our profiting by the Word of God, taking the time devoted to fellowship with God, and distracting men from their duty and call in God. They eat up the vigour of the soul meant for divine things, and just like the thorns in this parable, they start like little foxes (see Songs 2:15) that spoil the vines if you don’t catch them young.

Same also for the deceitfulness of riches! Riches are not evil, but it’s the deception that often hangs around it, tempting people to put their confidence and expectation in the riches. Consider a young woman who is steadily growing in her church, she gets a job with a telecommunications company as a customer service agent and she’s told that she must be coming to work on sundays. She thinks to herself, “It’s a nice job! Since I will be earning a lot of money, I can just be buying the church Message CDs every week. God won’t mind since I will pay my tithes and offerings to the church”. That’s the deceitfulness of riches! But when true riches come from God, it prospers you and there is no sorrow added (see Proverbs 10:22).

(4) 30-FOLD INCREASE, (5) 60-FOLD INCREASE, and (6) 100-FOLD INCREASE (v8, v23).
It is wonderful that God’s Word shall not return empty (see Isaiah 55:10-11), so there will be people to receive the Word and benefit fruitfully by it, although to varying measures (30-fold, 60-fold, 100-fold). These varying measures will depend on the measures of grace, and also the tenacity with which you receive (Lambanõ) the Word, meditate (chew and digest) on it in understanding, and RUN with it (see Habakkuk 2:2). Really, it depends on how ready you are to show the World what God can accomplish in a man!

Just like Isaac’s ground (Genesis 26:12), our target is the highest degree of profiting by God’s Word (i.e. 100-fold), although the other two are also measures of success. For those who love excuses, Jesus never said there were no stones or thorns on the good soil ; but the truth is that these external influences and circumstances never stopped it from profiting!

These guys not only received the Word, but by meditation understood the Word (not only the sense and meaning of the Word, but their own concern in it, how it applies to them in particular). They got a hold of the Word like how a business tycoon knows his business, and they ran with it; and their fruitfulness was evident to all.


    1 Tim 4:15
    Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all.(KJV)
    Practice and cultivate and meditate upon these duties; throw yourself wholly into them [as your ministry], so that your progress may be evident to everybody. (AMP)

    James 1:21 [AMP]
    “So, get rid of all uncleanness and the rampant outgrowth of wickedness, and in a HUMBLE (gentle, modest) spirit, RECEIVE and WELCOME the Word which IMPLANTED and ROOTED [in your hearts] contains the power to save your souls”

Maven! 

Re: How To Receive God's Word And Get Cool Yummy Profit From It?

na wa for title oh . . . lol. Anyways solid post. I was actually thinking about this lesson just yesterday.

Mavenb0x:

(4) 30-FOLD INCREASE, (5) 60-FOLD INCREASE, and (6) 100-FOLD INCREASE (v8, v23).
It is wonderful that God’s Word shall not return empty (see Isaiah 55:10-11), so there will be people to receive the Word and benefit fruitfully by it, although to varying measures (30-fold, 60-fold, 100-fold). These varying measures will depend on the measures of grace, and also the tenacity with which you receive (Lambanõ) the Word, meditate (chew and digest) on it in understanding, and RUN with it (see Habakkuk 2:2). Really, it depends on how ready you are to show the World what God can accomplish in a man!

Just like Isaac’s ground (Genesis 26:12), our target is the highest degree of profiting by God’s Word (i.e. 100-fold), although the other two are also measures of success. For those who love excuses, Jesus never said there were no stones or thorns on the good soil ; but the truth is that these external influences and circumstances never stopped it from profiting!

These guys not only received the Word, but by meditation understood the Word (not only the sense and meaning of the Word, but their own concern in it, how it applies to them in particular). They got a hold of the Word like how a business tycoon knows his business, and they ran with it; and their fruitfulness was evident to all.

Very very good observation. No soil is ever truly completely pure, and it is the same with our hearts. 30, 60 or 100 will be determined by how much stones and thorns we're able to rid ourselves of as we grow.

Thanks, dear sister!

Maven u re too much.I know Jesus will be happy with ur post.God bless u real good

Hmmm, interesting. So how do I make billions from this again?

JeSoul:
. No soil is ever truly completely pure, and it is the same with our hearts. 30, 60 or 100 will be determined by how much stones and thorns we're able to rid ourselves of as we grow.

Yeeess O!

@Pastor AIO: Yeah! And as usual, JeSoul has taken the core of the message and expressed it in just few words!

@JeSoul: Dear sis, I think we should write some stuff together sometime. ;-)

@Tudor: LOL I'm not really answering you cos I guess you are looking for trouble. But if you wanna make billions, please get involved in business enterprise. The great and wealthy people (like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Solomon) that many modern Christians (esp gospel ministers) try to emulate, did not get their immense wealth from the gospel or from the people of God. Rather, they were given insight by God to unlock wealth in hidden places, stored up in previously-inaccessible places. They were billionaires in their own right, but not by getting money from their congregation. Voila! They were not even really gospel ministers, and they even had no such congregation (maybe except Solomon, so to speak, but I think Solomon made Israel rich, and not vice versa). God seeks out people who will control immense wealth and use it to improve other people's lives, but they need not be mainstream preachers or something. Maybe i will make a post about business enterprise later when I have time.

@toba: God bless you too, sir

I like this! Let me highlight my favorite parts of the post.

Hearing the Word and Receiving it are not the same thing!

These heard it and didn't understand it. They took no heed of it, took no hold of it, didn't bother and didn't really care so the devil came and STOLE what they heard. These guys see church like a fashion or routine.

Without chewing the Word, they swallowed it. There can never be good digestion in their systems! These guys are happy to go to church, pleased with the Sermon, they don't argue with the Pastor but deep down inside, they're not changing! It's hypocrisy, in essence. They endure for a while, for as long as they feel the impact of the Word they got. Yes, that’s it, they go by their feelings, until persecution comes and finishes them off.

These heard the Word and received it, but the little thorns that they had initially ignored sprang up and choked the Word in them! These thorns did not appear overnight, but the soil thought they could be ignored. Riches are not evil, but it’s the deception that often hangs around it, tempting people to put their confidence and expectation in the riches.

These guys not only received the Word, but by meditation understood the Word (not only the sense and meaning of the Word, but their own concern in it, how it applies to them in particular). They got a hold of the Word like how a business tycoon knows his business, and they ran with it; and their fruitfulness was evident to all.

@Mavenb0x: Thanks for sharing! Pls let's have the business enterprise post ASAP.

Mavenb0x:

@Pastor AIO: Yeah! And as usual, JeSoul has taken the core of the message and expressed it in just few words!

@JeSoul: Dear sis, I think we should write some stuff together sometime. ;-)

@Tudor: LOL I'm not really answering you cos I guess you are looking for trouble. But if you wanna make billions, please get involved in business enterprise. The great and wealthy people (like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Solomon) that many modern Christians (esp gospel ministers) try to emulate, did not get their immense wealth from the gospel or from the people of God. Rather, they were given insight by God to unlock wealth in hidden places, stored up in previously-inaccessible places. They were billionaires in their own right, but not by getting money from their congregation. Voila! They were not even really gospel ministers, and they even had no such congregation (maybe except Solomon, so to speak, but I think Solomon made Israel rich, and not vice versa). God seeks out people who will control immense wealth and use it to improve other people's lives, but they need not be mainstream preachers or something. Maybe i will make a post about business enterprise later when I have time.

@toba: God bless you too, sir

Yeah, why don't you send this in a detailed memo to contact@davidoyedepoministries.org. . . .thats where its most needed.

Tudor, why don't you forward it?  I'm sure you still have contacts from way back in college, to ensure the message is personally delivered to the MOG.

@Mavenb0x: no mind her abeg. 

ancel:

I like this! Let me highlight my favorite parts of the post. 

@Mavenb0x: Thanks for sharing! Pls let's have the business enterprise post ASAP.

Hmmm. . .everybody wants to be a billionaire.

Abeg leave the stuff for we hell bound unbelievers na. . . Afterall you go enjoy better in heaven.

@Lady Tudor, Who no like better thing?  After all, it could be a supporting aspect of our light that shines before mankind and will make men give glory to God.

Money, to God, IMO, is basically nothing. It doesn't cost him more to forgive sin, or to protect his own, than to make them rich. But the thing on God's heart, I believe, is the REASON WHY the person wants to be rich. If you want to be wealthy so as to be a blessing to others (like how Abraham was), then I guess it's fine. But if are accumulating wealth for the sake of it  , well, I dunno.

Tudor, I knew it. You never disappoint! I knew where you were gonna go.

ancel:

Tudor, why don't you forward it?  I'm sure you still have contacts from way back in college, to ensure the message is personally delivered to the MOG.

@Mavenb0x: no mind her abeg. 

You know what, forget it.

If i were to mail this piece to the fat oaf he'd probably steal it and repackage it in a book titlled "Get Your Yummies From The Lord by Tithing" thus making him even more money.

Chai, church business is good!

Mavenb0x:

@Pastor AIO: Yeah! And as usual, JeSoul has taken the core of the message and expressed it in just few words!

@JeSoul: [b] Dear sis, I think we should write some stuff together sometime[/b]. ;-)

Cool idea! something just crept into my mind . . . gimme a few to refine it properly.

@JeSoul: Great! If you want to email it, please use that email (the one I used to forward pictures to you yesterday). Knowing you, this should be fun!

@ancel: Thanks for this, I was actually going to post something like that.

But the thing on God's heart, I believe, is the REASON WHY the person wants to be rich.

Mavenb0x:

Tudor, I knew it. You never disappoint!  I knew where you were gonna go. 

I was merely trying the help steer the word of the lawd to those who need it most. . . . If that dozn't get me a front seat in heaven then by gawd whatever will?

Yeah, mavenb0x you are welcome. Great minds post alike  

Tudor!!! What's with the name-calling: fat oaf? Come off it already. And for saying he will steal and repackage, I gotta say Libel is haywire, no matter who you are speaking about. I think that statement's not fair.

Tudór:

I was merely trying the help steer the word of the lawd to those who need it most. . . . If that dozn't get me a front seat in heaven then by gawd whatever will?

@Tudor: LOL nice try there, nice try!

ancel:

Yeah, mavenb0x you are welcome. Great minds post alike  

Tudor!!! What's with the name-calling: fat oaf? Come off it already. And for saying he will steal and repackage, I gotta say Libel is haywire, no matter who you are speaking about. I think that statement's not fair.

A fat oaf is a fat oaf. . .prolly when he slims down he'll be a thin oaf.

Predicting the next possible step of a criminal isn't libel. . .efficient crime fighting units like the FBI are built on such principle.