Infinite Fellowship Ministries

Identity – The Reflection Of Glory: Sermon By Rev. Richard Muendo

For His divine power has bestowed upon us all things that [are requisite and suited] to life and godliness, through the [full, personal] knowledge of Him Who called us by and to His own glory and excellence (virtue).

2 Peter 1:3 (AMPC)

For I always pray to] the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, that He may grant you a spirit of wisdom and revelation [of insight into mysteries and secrets] in the [deep and intimate] knowledge of Him, by having the eyes of your heart flooded with light, so that you can know and understand the hope to which He has called you, and how rich is His glorious inheritance in the saints (His set-apart ones).

And [so that you can know and understand] what is the immeasurable and unlimited and surpassing greatness of His power in and for us who believe, as demonstrated in the working of His mighty strength, which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His [own] right hand in the heavenly [places], far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named [above every title that can be conferred], not only in this age and in this world, but also in the age and the world which are to come.

And He has put all things under His feet and has appointed Him the universal and supreme Head of the church [a headship exercised throughout the church], which is His body, the fullness of Him Who fills all in all [for in that body lives the full measure of Him Who makes everything complete, and Who fills everything everywhere with Himself].

Ephesians 1:17-23 (AMPC)

If then you have been raised with Christ [to a new life, thus sharing His resurrection from the dead], aim at and seek the [rich, eternal treasures] that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.And set your minds and keep them set on what is above (the higher things), not on the things that are on the earth. For [as far as this world is concerned] you have died, and your [new, real] life is hidden with Christ in God.

When Christ, Who is our life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in [the splendor of His] glory. So kill (deaden, deprive of power) the evil desire lurking in your members [those animal impulses and all that is earthly in you that is employed in sin]: sexual vice, impurity, sensual appetites, unholy desires, and all greed and covetousness, for that is idolatry (the deifying of self and other created things instead of God).

Colossians 3:1-5 (AMPC)

Death to self is what will make us access the throne of God.  

There is no way to understand what is right and wrong based on facts that are presented before us. We need to transcend to a higher place to relate and connect with the attributes of God.

Performance is the expression of ones limited understanding. If you conform to the standards of the world, one tends to adopt comparison with people around, which is therefore not Christ-like.

The throne of God only understands the heart of an individual.

Death is required to be able to understand the spiritual realm. Sharing in the glory of another is competing with a person. We weren’t fashioned to compete glory. 

The standard of God’s throne is righteousness. It is established on justice and righteousness.  

There is no competition on the throne of God. The Godhead is one. There is innate submission therein. 

God’s glory is unique as expressed in the Trinity. There is an interconnectivity of the Trinity and their persona. Glory spreads within the Trinity and there is no striving among them.

I am One [of the Two] bearing testimony concerning Myself; and My Father, Who sent Me, He also testifies about Me. Then they said to Him, Where is this Father of Yours? Jesus answered, You know My Father as little as you know Me. If you knew Me, you would know My Father also.

 John 8:18-19 (AMPC)

There is an interruption of glory when there is competition, which stems from lacking identity.

Paul, an apostle (special messenger) of Christ Jesus (the Messiah), by the divine will (the purpose and the choice of God) to the saints (the consecrated, set-apart ones) at Ephesus who are also faithful and loyal and steadfast in Christ Jesus:May grace (God’s unmerited favor) and spiritual peace [which means peace with God and harmony, unity, and undisturbedness] be yours from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. May blessing (praise, laudation, and eulogy) be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah) Who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual (given by the Holy Spirit) blessing in the heavenly realm!

Ephesians 1:1-3 (AMPC)

We have been called to partake of the glory of God. To receive the glory, we need to be one in Christ and found in Him. We need to be an integral part of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Our identity is founded in our primordial state. The reason why we struggle in our walk is because we have not accessed resources in our primordial state.

That they all may be one, [just] as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be one in Us, so that the world may believe and be convinced that You have sent Me. I have given to them the glory and honor which You have given Me, that they may be one [even] as We are one: I in them and You in Me, in order that they may become one and perfectly united, that the world may know and [definitely] recognize that You sent Me and that You have loved them [even] as You have loved Me.

Father, I desire that they also whom You have entrusted to Me [as Your gift to Me] may be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory, which You have given Me [Your love gift to Me]; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.O just and righteous Father, although the world has not known You and has failed to recognize You and has never acknowledged You, I have known You [continually]; and these men understand and know that You have sent Me. I have made Your Name known to them and revealed Your character and Your very Self, and I will continue to make [You] known, that the love which You have bestowed upon Me may be in them [felt in their hearts]and that I [Myself] may be in them.

John 17:21-26 (AMPC)

The goal of life is to be found in Christ. In the spirit realm , there is a call for unity that everyone may flow in the expression with the Spirit.

The highest placement in the call is to be found in Him; not to be perfect in what we do for Him. Our primordial state was configured for God’s glory. If you have a deficiency in identity, you need to delve into the Father’s glory.

If you have died, the only way one expresses life is through Christ. All links that are linked to the world need to be severed.

Times and seasons determine the visitation of God.

I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul will exult in my God; for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

Isaiah 61:10 (AMPC)

To be clothed in God, we need to de-link from the world. There is the washing of the word and the enthronement of the Lord in your heart. The living substances emanate from the Lord Himself.  

If you are not dead to the world, you will not be able to access the garments of righteousness. God’s glory is only reflected from the heart; the spring of life.

Everything on earth existed in the sphere of glory prior to one’s manifestation.

The sphere of glory needs to be stewarded daily in our hearts. The heart is a spiritual portal that accesses spiritual realities in the spirit that are then manifested on earth.

The heart needs to reflect the pattern of God established in eternity. The pattern is key. The manifestation of glory should be daily stewarded and the connection to the primordial state not interrupted.

God created us perfect in Him – perfect and complete. Glory is the native element for man. This is what God desires for us to have access to. In every person’s heart there is a void that only God can fill. He is the only One that satisfies the need of every living creature. 

You open Your hand and satisfy every living thing with favor.

Psalm 145:16 (AMPC)

You cannot radiate the glory if you are not connected to Christ.

You cannot worship is you are not alive, in a coma or asleep. If you are not walking in your identity, you major on acts of worship. Spiritual worship reflect and radiate the understanding of who God is.

Truth is found in one’s identity and what is in the spirit. You cannot worship God from outside of God. In Christ, you learn to worship Him. There are truths that we embrace in God that lead us to freedom. The heart is a spiritual portal that cause us to access realities established in God.  

When the Lord speaks, a future has been defined. The manifestation of a thing on earth requires uninterrupted connection to the source. This forms the basis of our inquiry that gives drive to prophetic thrust. The spirit of inquiry is the seedbed of prophetic thrust.   

The rumination of divine vision takes place within the place of identity.

Bishop John Gobanga

You cannot worship when you do not know your identity. Void of that, you will only be engaged in acts of worship. Worship is a response of the revelation from your identity.

Identity is the summation of your function in the jurisdiction of purpose expressed by your heart. Purpose is the jurisdiction of your heart.

In the Kingdom, the purpose is as important as the pattern. There is nothing like the end justifies the means. 

Identity and worship are connected. Worship is a response to God and resources from our identity – the thing that God has said we are. It is the summation of your function within the jurisdiction of purpose as expressed by the spring of your heart. The heart is what will be judged and not our actions.

For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show Himself strong in behalf of those whose hearts are blameless toward Him. You have done foolishly in this; therefore, from now on you shall have wars. 

2 Chronicles 16:9 (AMPC)

When you strive with your purpose, you give the enemy a foothold; giving the enemy legal right and therefore leaving one with no jurisdiction. You will then be susceptible to attacks.

From the context of your jurisdiction is authority derived. This is on the seedbed of purpose and identity. One needs to be united with God’s word. Authority is sourced from its primordial state.

We fight with Rhema because we have not prioritized purpose over function. When you prioritize function over purpose you reject the call. The result of it is violence of loss of a kingdom. The only solution is death to self and self-inspired thoughts to embrace the thoughts of God for one’s self.  

For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, says the Lord.For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain and snow come down from the heavens, and return not there again, but water the earth and make it bring forth and sprout, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, So shall My word be that goes forth out of My mouth: it shall not return to Me void [without producing any effect, useless], but it shall accomplish that which I please and purpose, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.

Isaiah 55:8-11 (AMPC)

Purpose is heavily dependent on cultivating relationship with God. He defines us.     

But now [in spite of past judgments for Israel’s sins], thus says the Lord, He Who created you, O Jacob, and He Who formed you, O Israel: Fear not, for I have redeemed you [ransomed you by paying a price instead of leaving you captives]; I have called you by your name; you are Mine.

Isaiah 43:1 (AMPC)

If we live by the [Holy] Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. [If by the Holy Spirit we have our life in God, let us go forward [walking in line, our conduct controlled by the Spirit.] 

Galatians 5:25 (AMPC)

The heart is constantly shifting and one needs to track where God is in various times and seasons. 

The Kingdom is dynamic. It is progressive. Revelation is dynamic. The word is living and active.  

For the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power [making it active, operative, energizing, and effective]; it is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the dividing line of the breath of life (soul) and [the immortal] spirit, and of joints and marrow [of the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart.

Hebrews 4:12 (AMPC)

Abraham understood that God’s move is constantly changing. He lived in tents and was hungry for the next move of God.

Identity is a language used to understand spiritual lingua.

It is the glory of God to conceal a thing, but the glory of kings is to search out a thing.

Proverbs 25:2 (AMPC)

Something that was intended to reflect does not have the capacity to absorb. This is why stars implode. We need to decrease for God to increase.

The wilderness moments in one’s life smoothen the surface and one progressively ceases to be absorptive. When you absorb glory that isn’t yours, you can explode thereafter.

Pride that’s most dangerous is one that masquerades as humility. Humility is the appropriate estimation of self. Humility requires revelation, knowledge and understanding to even appropriate  and accept correction.

Bishop Gobanga’s Addendum:

The challenge in the human race is that people struggle with identity. When you know who you are, you are able to access the grace to function.

We are created in the image and likeness of God. To have dominion is to have supreme authority; power to govern which is vested in identity.

When we reign with Christ Jesus, we are on the throne. We are operating from the position of our identity to derive resources to bear fruit for the Kingdom.

There is a difference between dominion and dominating. Having dominion is to have authority. To dominate means you are manipulating, controlling and putting people down. Man was not created to rule over fellow man.