Freedom, either for an individual, group of people, or for a nation does not come on a platter of gold. In most cases, heads may roll; blood flows and sacrifices are made in terms of imprisonment or sacrificial deaths. In any way it comes, the people who survive it are happy, having been delivered from of either satanic or man-made bondage.
In some cases the opportunity for victory may abound, but the people may be ignorant of the ways and means to embrace it, just like some people who are ignorant of the freedom obtained in embracing the finished work of Christ on the Cross of Calvary. Our Lord Jesus Christ through His sacrificial death on the Cross of Calvary has given us freedom from the bondage of Satan.
However, many people, today, have not embraced the redemption work. Through His death, burial, and resurrection, He has defeated the power of death and the bondage of the Devil. That is why Isaiah 45:2-3 says: “I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron. 3: And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the Lord, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel.”
Isaiah, whose name means salvation of the Lord, is the greatest of the writing Prophets, he gave the most holistic and comprehensive predictions in which he foretold of our Lord Jesus Christ’s birth (7:14, 9:6), His deity (9:6-7) His ministry (9:1-2, 42:1-7), His death (52:1-52), and resurrection as well as His future millennial reign. Prophet Isaiah assured us of the benefits derivable in following our Lord Jesus Christ. Through the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, we are purged of sins in order to have freedom from the bondage of the Devil and his agents.
He defeated death and the power of grave and came back to life, breaking the gates of brass of death and cutting asunder the bars of iron of death. Our Lord Jesus Christ, in the course of His ministry, brought to the front burner the need for man to realise his potentials in subduing the earth and having dominion over it. This is evident in scientific discoveries, making man explore the natural earth resources for further production of his needs. That is why our Lord Jesus Christ in the book of Matthew, in the lead scripture, said His father has given Him all things and we should then come to Him to have our rest.
Christ has given us salvation through his sacrificial death on the Cross of Calvary. He has given us healing and even raised the dead back to life. Christ has given us wealth and even shown us how to realise our potentials to make wealth. In the course of His ministry on earth, Jesus Christ gave us all except one, that is, the baptism of Holy Spirit and fire. That is why John the Baptist was surprised to see our Lord Jesus Christ come to him in River Jordan for baptism. John refused to baptise Him, telling Jesus Christ that he, John, has the need to be baptised by Him, Jesus Christ, (Matt. 3:13-15).
When Jesus said: “Suffice it to be so, in order to fulfill all righteousness,” John consented expecting Jesus to do the needful at the appointed time. John the Baptist, the forerunner of Jesus Christ, introduced Him as, “the One mightier than himself” whose shoe latchet, he (John) is not worthy to loose. In other words, he (John) baptised with water, but the One coming, will baptise with Holy Spirit and fire (Lk.3:16-17). John was waiting for the baptism of Holy Spirit and fire. When it seemed that this delayed, that prompted John the Baptist to ask Jesus Christ whether He was the one to come or should they wait for another?
Our Lord Jesus Christ knew He will empower His disciples through the baptism of fire and giving them the Holy Spirit, the comforter for the boldness to preach and win souls even at the point of death, but it will be hard and counter-productive starting with the unknown. Hence, He started with healing, raising the dead, feeding the hungry with physical food and giving them the words of the truth of the God’s Kingdom. These were preparatory to the main menu.
Normally, it is always better to start from the known to the unknown. So, these physical things (known) were preparing them for the Holy Spirit and fire (unknown). The disciples at a time became hungry of healing the sick and raising the dead by themselves, just like their master. Jesus knew that they would not comfortably do this, if He were with them, so he made them to understand that it was expedient for Him to go away so that the Holy Spirit would come. And as soon as he left them and went back to heaven, he sent them the Holy Ghost, which was witnessed on the day of Pentecost. Acts 2:1-4 says: “And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2: And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3: And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. 4: And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
This baptism of Holy Spirit and fire was the completion of the fulfillment of the prophecy of John the Baptist concerning our Lord Jesus Christ, unfortunately when it finally happened, John who was hungry of it, was no longer on earth to receive it. King Herod had beheaded him. The baptism of Holy Spirit and fire gave the disciples the boldness and power of utterance.
Our Lord Jesus Christ has given us all the things we need and we have the freedom and the boldness to operate as children of the kingdom. Christ has broken the gates of brass and cut the bars of iron asunder. This means He has broken the cage where sin holds the people of the earth in bondage. It is a complete work, as He said this in John 19:30: “When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, it is finished….”
The work of redemption is finished. It is now left for the disciples to occupy and continue from where the Lord stopped, till He comes to rapture the saints to be with Him forever. Let nobody be ignorant of the work of our Lord Jesus Christ; He has given us everything and empowered us. We should discover the talent and potentials He has endowed us with; work for the perfection of the saints and edification of the body of Christ. In the course of serving Him and doing the assigned work, we are in preparation for the rapture of the saints — expecting to be with Him forever.
