Holy Ghost Service Leeds by Apostle Michael Orokpo: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

The Purpose of Man's Creation

Genesis 1:26 — God said let us make man in our own image after our likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth. This scripture defines holistically the essence and purpose of humankind.

Before God created man, the earth realm was already in existence. We are not the first inhabitants of the earth. Genesis 1:1-2 — in the beginning God created the heaven and the earth, and the earth became void — the word tohu bohu means disorderliness, chaos and waste. Judgment came upon that first earth, it was destroyed, and God recreated it. The earth we are living on is actually the recreated earth.

When God wanted to put an agent on the recreated earth to facilitate his kingdom agenda, he decided not to use spirits anymore. So in Genesis 1:26 he said let us make man in our image after our likeness — let them have dominion. We were created because God has an agenda to advance his kingdom upon the face of the earth, and he needed a governor to supervise that kingdom.

Man was created as a ruler, not as a slave or a servant. Every man hates oppression — that is because we were created as rulers, not servants. The word dominion is the word rada — to king and to reign through life.

The Image and Likeness of God

For man to rule the earth, he must have God's image. That is why the lion is not ruling the earth — it is not just power that makes you able to rule the earth, but having God's image and DNA. The word image is the Hebrew word tselem — meaning essence, glory, the character of a being. So God gave us his essence.

Beyond his essence, he also gave us demute — his likeness. The word likeness speaks of excellence and expertise in creation; it is also translated as model. When a company creates a prototype, they are demonstrating the excellence of the company through it. Man is called the demute of God — created to model God's ability. Ephesians 2:10 — you are his workmanship, you are the proof of God's creative power.

God had to hide the full glory of man inside dust — because if the glory of man were put on the outside, creation would mistake man for God. 2 Corinthians 4:7 — we have this treasure in earthen vessels.

The Fall and Redemption

The devil discovered what man was before Adam discovered himself. There was nothing external that could affect the man in Eden — no sickness, no epidemic, because man was operating literally like God. The only thing the devil could find was that man's dominion was hinged on his nature and his likeness.

So the devil lured the man to rebel against God. Romans 3:23 — for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Because man fell from the glory God gave him, he lost the power for dominion.

But God had planned a strategy to redeem man — and that strategy was Jesus Christ. Romans 8:29-30 — whom he foreknew, he predestinated to be conformed to the image of his son; whom he predestinated, he called; whom he called, he justified; whom he justified, he glorified.

Jesus did not just come to pay the price for your sins — he also came to make you like God. If you are forgiven but not yet like God, the assignment is not complete, because the plan was for you to be like God. Salvation became necessary because we fell — but once sin is removed, you have to become like God again.

Christianity is not about joining a church or a religion. Christianity is God living through a man. Christianity is God at work in a man.

When the apostles received the Holy Ghost, the world saw a new dimension. Peter — the same coward who denied Jesus — walked out and his very shadow healed the sick. 2 Peter 1:3-4 — according as his divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness; he has made us partakers of his divine nature. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 11:1 — mimic me the way I mimic Jesus. We are here to mimic Christ.

Nine Strategies of the Devil

John 10:10 — the thief comes not but for to kill, to steal, and to destroy. But God also came — and what God came to do will always topple what Satan came to do.

1. Deception

   1 Timothy 4:1 — in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of the devil. The devil uses deception to make you accept the position of defeat and vulnerability — about your appearance, your background, your capacity — so that you never think you were created in the image of God.

2. Attacking Those Who Love God

   The moment you say you belong to God, you become the enemy. People make you feel it is wrong to stand for God, until those who should be proud serving God become ashamed. They quench your fire through subtle peer pressure, threats, and social rejection.

3. Promoting Worldliness and Pleasure

   Everything becomes about how it makes you feel. People live perpetually in pursuit of pleasure. When you follow this deception long enough, you are programmed not to be able to respond to God. The day you want to ascend in the spirit, your soul can no longer rise.

4. Offense and Bitterness

   Matthew 24:10 — many shall be offended and shall betray one another. The devil turns the blessings of others into your despair — making you lose focus on your own calling because others are doing well. Bitterness destroys your conscience, and a damaged conscience cannot sustain faith.

5. Persecution

   John 16:33 — in this world you have tribulation. The devil uses pressure to silence you so you don't play your part in the history of God. But Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego stood their ground in the fire — and it was inside the fire that God appeared. There is a level of stand you will maintain that will convict even your enemies.

6. Corruption

   Luke 22:31 — Satan desires to sift you like wheat. The devil wants to corrupt both the children of God and leaders in the kingdom. All kinds of momentary pleasures corrupt and defile your sanctuary — a corrupt conscience cannot host glory or sustain the power of faith.

7. Resistance in the Place of the Spirit

   You want to read the Bible and you start yawning. You kneel down to pray and five minutes feels like ten hours. Demons show up the moment you kneel and begin reciting all your problems, touching your appetites, distraction, sleep. Meanwhile, it is in the height of the spirit that your strength is renewed.

8. Lawlessness and Rebellion

   The system itself is designed to propagate rebellion. Stand up for God and it is hard to be heard. Speak against God and it goes viral. They sponsor it with millions to let people know: don't care about the Bible. It is a strategy to ensure God's children no longer play their part in history.

9. Counterfeit Signs and Wonders

   Everything God does, Satan has agents imitating it — to discredit it. So that when God sends a real man to you, you already have a resistance built up. Satan has more counterfeit apostles, prophets, and pastors than Jesus — the idea is to make you stop listening to anyone speaking for God, truncating your own maturity.

God's Counterstrategy: The Holy Spirit

When God wanted to counter what Satan was doing, he put the Holy Ghost on our inside. When the Holy Ghost came, he came with empowerment:

• Revelational empowerment — Ephesians 1:17-19 — that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ may grant unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him, that the eyes of your understanding being enlightened that you may know. There is a knowing you know not because you read but because the eyes of your understanding is enlightened. That whisper from within — Satan cannot stop it.
• Restorative empowerment — Romans 8:11 — if that same spirit that raised up Jesus from the dead lives in you, he will quicken your mortal body. When the Holy Ghost does a surgery, he does not repair — he recreates. Dry bones did not rise as men; dry bones rose as an army.
• Miracle-working power — Acts 1:8 — you shall receive the Holy Ghost and power and you shall be witnesses. Signs and wonders become natural. People cannot explain it, but they cannot deny it.
• Transformative power — the appetites the devil mastered to disarm you will die, and you become an impregnable fortress.

Darkness can be around for a long time. The moment light shows up, there is no negotiation — instantly darkness disappears. The Holy Ghost steps in, the devil gets out.