Newton's 1st Law: Exposing the External Forces

As a physics student in my secondary school days, way back when dinosaurs wore school uniforms (laughs hysterically), we were taught several things, one of which was Isaac Newton's laws, which include the law of inertia and the laws of motion. In particular, the first law which states that “Everything remains in the state of rest until an external force acts on it.”

As I was pondering on numerous discussions with people, it dawned on me that Newton's 1st law might be reiterating to us a phrase from Jesus which says "from the beginning it was not so," for God created everything good until another opposing force acted on it.

Being a mentee of great men of God (names withheld), I have been made to understand that some of the things we experience—some of which we have intellectually categorized with medical terms—might be orchestrated by another force. Living in Europe, I hear loads of sermons where, in the act of maintaining faces or the fear of losing members, preachers shyly avoid talking about the force or source behind most of the situations people are going through. To be frank, one can also see that some of these pastors don't even know about the forces behind some of the things their members are going through. Like I would always say, I don't claim to know more than anyone, but whatever the Holy Spirit reveals to my tiny self in the secret place I will tell on the mountaintop. For no one lights a candle and puts it under a bushel (Matthew 5:15).

The objective of this post, therefore, is to shed light on the forces and not to antagonize the men God has called to lead His flocks. The word of the Lord reveals that Paul planted, Apollos watered, but it is the Lord Kurios that gives the increase (I Cor 3:6). So those who are planting shouldn't be bothered about the little efforts of some of us who are watering, because we're all in the service of the Lord of the harvest.

Some pastors preach moral sermons to the youth about fornication, addictions, pornography, masturbation, substance abuse, and other issues plaguing this glorious generation, without laying emphasis on what's truly going on behind the scenes in the spirit realm when engaged in such acts. Oh, trust me, as someone who was changed by grace I know! And I can tell you that Satan lies and uses those tiny pleasures to rob one of great destinies. It's a trap!

Pastors have preached about the issue of sicknesses and diseases but failed to explain to the members that that same sickness they faintly mentioned in Greek terminologies has in its background a spiritual force motivating it.

They talk about joblessness, financial issues, and others, but allow the spiritual forces motivating these issues to keep having free lunches. As mentioned earlier, I am here to shed light on this, and I say boldly: he who has ears, let him hear what the Spirit is saying.

Let me take you on a quick journey to the book of Mark 4:37–39. A case study was presented by Mark about Jesus. Jesus and His disciples were in a boat, in this case, Jesus was noted as sleeping on the boat. But a storm of wind arose. The disciples did everything humanly, intellectually, and mechanically possible to save the day, I mean, four of them were fishermen, which means they had the requisite knowledge in navigating and responding to different levels of storms. However, on this day their expertise failed, because this particular storm was not the average storm they'd encountered before. This storm was of a spiritual nature. But Jesus's action gave us a template to prove exactly how we should respond. With authority, He (Jesus) got up and first rebuked the wind. Thereafter, He commanded the sea, saying "Peace, be still." As teachable children of God, shouldn't we explore what just happened? Jesus's first action was to rebuke the force, the source and cause of the storm, which was the wind that arose. His next action was to restore peace through a simple command-line to the sea, after the force behind the storm had been rebuked. A misused or misplaced authority is tantamount to giving the same result as those who don't have authority.

Believers, you might be sailing on the stormy sea of health, marriage, finance, business, and career. I implore you to stop rebuking what you should simply command. The pastors that preached the sermon about commanding the sea didn't preach amiss; they only created an avenue for another Apollos to water the seed they have planted.

Another case was when Jesus visited the house of the first pope (see Matthew 8:14–15 and Luke 4:38–39). He met his mother-in-law accosted by fever. He simply rebuked the force behind the fever, and it was accounted that the force that held the mother-in-law of St. Peter bound let go of their victim.

You might be wondering, it seems these forces are bold because they didn't even mind going after Jesus's disciples even when Jesus was in the boat with them. These forces even went after Peter's mother-in-law, knowing he was with Jesus and on His mission. These forces even poached Jesus's friend (Lazarus) and so many others. But the truth is that these forces are not as strong as you think, they know their boundaries (Psalms 18:44-45). However, the boundary these forces have is directly proportional to the understanding of the believer's covenant right in Christ and its appropriation in their lives. So what they're checking is: Does this person know they're more than a conqueror? If yes, how much knowledge about their right and power do they know? How well do they trust the source of their powers? Do they even know the guaranteed safety in the name of Jesus Christ? Do they know about the potency in the precious blood Jesus shed on the cross of Calvary?

Brothers and sisters, it is not just about praying, because the disciples were taught directly by the Word of God Himself how to pray, for they even asked Jesus, saying "How come we couldn't cast out this force?" It is about effectuating the fervency of our prayers with faith and practical steps just like Jesus did (James 2:17 & 26).

To conclude, the forces behind some of the challenges you are going through are spiritual in nature. So before you go to see a doctor, lawyer, financial adviser, legal practitioner, therapist, psychiatrist, psychologist, or counselor, etc., make sure you have done your spiritual due diligence by first rebuking the forces behind the issues. Stop wasting precious time rebuking the sea, for Jesus didn't teach us so. To give our members total freedom in Christ, they have to be exposed to their full rights in Christ and taught how to stand up against those spiritual forces behind their addictions, frustrations, depression, and sicknesses. By shodding our feet with the gospel of peace, we have been endowed to trample upon serpents and scorpions.

According to Newton's 1st Law, everything will remain in the place of rest until an external force acts on it. Having Jesus doesn't mean external forces won't come to attack; on the contrary, that even makes them come incessantly. But as Bishop Oyedepo fondly says, It is not unscriptural for a child of God to be challenged, but it is unscriptural for a child of God to be overcome by those challenges.

We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers and rulers of darkness of the world. As a child of God, with faith in Christ Jesus, you can say to the spirit force behind your issues "Be thou removed and cast into the sea," and like they responded to Jesus Christ in Matthew 8:32 and Luke 8:28–33, they will surely obey you.

Shalom aleichem brothers and sisters.

Babasile Daniel I