Machaira With Apostle Bennie

Category: Sufferings of Christ

  • EPISODE 798 – THE CLIMAX OF SALVATION 4 –  TOGETHER WITH THE LORD

    EPISODE 798 – THE CLIMAX OF SALVATION 4 –  TOGETHER WITH THE LORD

    CHRIST COMMONWEALTH-COMMUNITY

    The Love-Life Agency

    Download PDF
    Tongues speaking is one of the quickest means by which a believer experiences personal edification. Don’t ever undermine the benefits of tongues speaking. Don’t go a day without speaking in tongues. Selah!
    Apostle Bennie
    Author
    Monday, 31st March, 2025
     

    THE CLIMAX OF SALVATION 4 –  TOGETHER WITH THE LORD

    “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.” 

    1 Thessalonians 5: 9-10 (KJV)

    The goal of Jesus’ suffering was for us to be made whole through Him. Jesus didn’t only suffer horrific scourging and die a shameful death on the cross.

    He was also raised from the dead according to the exceeding greatness of God’s power and glory. The resurrection was the work of the Godhead (the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit).

    As we know, Jesus declared His authority to lay His life down and to raise it again (John 2:19; John 10:18).
    We also see in Galatians that

     Jesus was raised by the Father (Galatians 1:1).

    The matter of Jesus’ resurrection was of great interest to the Godhead. Without His resurrection the salvation plan would have been incomplete. It is the bedrock of our faith in Christ.

    Our Lord Jesus died for our offenses, and for our justification He was raised (Romans 4:25).

    To be justified is to be declared not guilty or to be declared righteous. Through His resurrection, now we have the ability to stand in God’s presence without any sense of guilt. Every born-again is in right standing with God because of our Lord Jesus.

    As we have right standing with God, we also have the ability of His life in us, so that we can walk in the Newness of Life.

    “Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” Romans 6:4 (KJV)

    When you believe and receive Jesus as your Lord, you are baptized into Him. This means when Christ died, you died with Him, buried with Him, and as He was raised, even so you have been given the ability to walk in the Newness of life.

    The Newness of life is not a life lived in isolation from the Lord. The Newness of Life is the organic life in Christ. This life is lived in oneness with God.

    This has always been the dream of God. It is His eternal dream or purpose that His will become one with Him. Through Christ’s work on the cross, God brought all who believe into the communion and oneness of life with Him.

    At the appearing and coming of Jesus, we shall experience our oneness with the Lord in a more practical way.

    At the Lord’s coming, we shall behold the full reality of oneness with the Lord. As it is now, when we speak of being seated together with Him (Ephesians 2:6) many see it as a mere imagination. However, it is a present truth fellowship with the Lord.

    The Lord established us with Himself to fulfill the climax of Salvation.

    Presently, people do not see us (the saints) as being together with the Lord.

    But when Christ comes, many shall see all the saints alive together with the Lord. As long as you are born again in Christ, your destination is secured through His death and resurrection.
    Your destination is that you shall be together with the Lord forever and ever.

    There is no need for you to be anxious and afraid at the coming of the Lord Jesus. 

    His coming is to fully manifest the climax of salvation, which is all the saints being together with Him.

    Comfort your heart with this truth of your salvation.

    Hallelujah!

    DIG DEEPER
    (Romans 6:5; 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17; 1 Corinthians 15:51-52; Colossians 3:4; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-6)
     
    WE PRAY
    We pray that our hearts will not be troubled, but we shall be comforted in this reality that the coming of our Lord Jesus shall be the climax revelation that we are together with Him.
     
    BIBLE READING IN THE YEAR 2025
    1 YEAR PLAN
    1 Samuel 31
    2 Samuel 1-2

    2 YEARS PLAN
    Exodus 40

    DECLARE THESE WORDS:
    – Thank you Lord for your love demonstrated towards me through your death.
     
    – I dont’ trivialise the precious salvation that Christ obtained for me through his sufferings.
     
    – I walk daily in the consciousness of the victory which Christ has obtained for me through His death and ressurrection.
     
    – I enjoy the salvation of the Lord.
     
    Oh, glory to God!

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  • EPISODE 795 – THE CLIMAX OF SALVATION 3 – HIS SUFFERING 2

    EPISODE 795 – THE CLIMAX OF SALVATION 3 – HIS SUFFERING 2

    CHRIST COMMONWEALTH-COMMUNITY

    The Love-Life Agency

    Download PDF
    A man of faith doesn’t waste words. Present your thoughts and genuine opinions or ideas wisely at all times. Spending time to engage in discourse with a fool is not profitable. Selah!
    Apostle Bennie
    Author
    Friday, 28th March, 2025
     

    THE CLIMAX OF SALVATION 3 – HIS SUFFERING 2

    “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.” 

    1 Thessalonians 5: 9-10 (KJV)

    The salvation which you have obtained in Christ wasn’t cheap. It was costly!

    The satisfaction you find in Christ was worked for you through the sufferings of Christ.

    He was not just beaten, mocked, and tied to the cross. The death of our Lord Jesus and the method or process to which His crucifixion was executed were horrific.

    There are some who thought He was tied to the cross.
    No! Jesus was nailed to the cross.

    Read a summary of how our Lord was scourged from here. He was tortured and bruised for our transgressions.

    “…the chastisement of our peace was upon Him…” (Isaiah 53:5)

    Our Lord Jesus’ body was disfigured through the horrific scourge.
     
    That was a fulfillment of Prophecy by the Prophet Isaiah:

    “But many were amazed when they saw him. His face was so disfigured he seemed hardly human, and from his appearance, one would scarcely know he was a man.” Isaiah 52:14 (NLT)

    The people were determined to see Jesus crucified.

    “Pilate said to them, “What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?”
    They all said to him, “Let Him be crucified!”
    Then the governor said, “Why, what evil has He done?”
    But they cried out all the more, saying, “Let Him be crucified!”     Matthew 27:22-23 (NKJV)

    Before a cross weighing about 200 pounds would be placed on him to carry, Jesus was taken to the Praetorium, where they stripped him naked, placed a scarlet robe on Him, placed a crown of thorns on His head, and put a reed in His right hand [as a scepter]. Kneeling before Him, they ridiculed Him, saying, “Hail (rejoice), King of the Jews!” They spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him repeatedly on the head. After they finished ridiculing and mocking Him, they stripped Him of the scarlet robe and put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified. (Matthew 27:27-31).

    According to some historical and archaeological evidence, some scholars have estimated that from the Praetorium (Pilate’s palace) to Golgotha is between 650–900 metres.

    Jesus probably might have carried the 200-pound cross alone for about 600 or 650 metres. This is because He was also helped by Simon along the way.

    Considering the horrific torture His body had undergone, and carrying the cross, it was clear our Lord Jesus was in extreme pain.

    As I mentioned in yesterday’s episode:
    Our Lord Jesus carried the cross while his internal organs and muscles around His spine were exposed, His lungs were bruised, His rib cage was visible on both sides, and He was also losing a lot of blood.

    It wasn’t just about the measurement of distance to Golgotha. At that moment, every step was as a journey into eternity. Time and distance seem longer than their physical measurements.

    He had tremors, traumatic shocks, seizures, and fainted along the way. And still the hard crown of thorns pierced His skull and facial nerves.

    Remember, Jesus had bruised lungs, ripped and fractured ribs. And these organs support breathing, thus our Lord Jesus struggled to breathe even while He was carrying the cross.

    The burden of the cross was not just its physical weight. The burden of the cross was the weight of human sin and condemnation.

    The nails used to crucify the Lord were seven to nine inches long. These were made of heavy iron with square edges.

    The Lord was in a dolorous agony, considering the radiating pain that went through His entire body from His hands and legs. For about 6 hours that the Lord was hanging on the cross, He had to struggle to breathe. Every moment He took in air, He had to pull His body up with the nails holding him to the cross. And each time He tried to breathe, His exposed back muscles and tissues would rub up against splintered wood. The pain is definitely unimaginable.
    There was no moment of relief during His crucifixion.

    He endured to the end that He would completely satisfy the demand of justice.

    Is there any price greater than this?

    Is there any love greater than this?

    Do you think our Lord will suffer these for nothing? He suffered this horrific torture and the death penalty for you so that you will obtain salvation.

    When Paul the apostle said, “God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation BY OUR LORD JESUS, WHO DIED FOR US…”; this was the kind of death he meant.

    Beloved, enjoy the salvation of the Lord. And don’t let your heart be troubled.

    Hallelujah!

    DIG DEEPER
    (Romans 5:8; 1 Peter 3:18; Isaiah 53:2-3; 1 Peter 2:24; Matthew 8:17; 1 John 2:2; Hebrews 9:28)
     
    WE PRAY
    We pray, thanking the Lord for His demonstrated love towards us through His death. And we pray that we shall also walk in the consciousness of the victory which He obtained for us through His death and resurrection.
     
    BIBLE READING IN THE YEAR 2025
    1 YEAR PLAN
    1 Samuel 22-24

    2 YEARS PLAN
    Exodus 37

    DECLARE THESE WORDS:
    – Thank you Lord for your love demonstrated towards me through your death.
     
    – I dont’ trivialise the precious salvation that Christ obtained for me through his sufferings.
     
    – I walk daily in the consciousness of the victory which Christ has obtained for me through His death and ressurrection.
     
    – I enjoy the salvation of the Lord.
     
    Oh, glory to God!

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  • EPISODE 794 – THE CLIMAX OF SALVATION 2 – HIS SUFFERING 1

    EPISODE 794 – THE CLIMAX OF SALVATION 2 – HIS SUFFERING 1

    CHRIST COMMONWEALTH-COMMUNITY

    The Love-Life Agency

    Download PDF
    Beloved, as the blessed of the Lord, you are lavished by the Lord with super-abundance. You have the capacity and ability to generate resources. Refuse to think POOR!
    Apostle Bennie
    Author
    Thursday, 27th March, 2025
     

    THE CLIMAX OF SALVATION 2 – HIS SUFFERING 

    “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.” 

    1 Thessalonians 5: 9-10 (KJV)

    The security of our Salvation is that our Lord Jesus DIED for us.

    The effect and impact of our Lord Jesus’ death and resurrection were not temporal.

    What our Lord Jesus accomplished through His death is eternal.

    And at His coming, we shall be saved from the slavery of corruption and the coming destruction according to His death.

    As I mentioned in the previous episode, the matter of the death of our Lord Jesus and the method or process by which His crucifixion was executed was horrific.

    Our Lord Jesus didn’t just die for us, He also suffered for us. He wasn’t just beaten and mocked, He was tortured and bruised for our transgressions.

    “…the chastisement of our peace was upon Him…” (Isaiah 53:5)

    Pontius Pilate didn’t want Jesus to be crucified. Therefore, he decided to scourge our Lord to appease the people.
    This scourge was a Roman torture which was so horrific and shameful that Roman citizens were not allowed to go through such torture.

    He wasn’t just flogged, He was scourged with a rope whip called the flagrum or flagellum.

    This whip is more dreadful and terrific than the one referred to as a “cat o’ nine tails” (which originated from ancient Egypt, but was made popular by the English Navy around the 1700s).

    As I said previously, a detailed description of Jesus’ scourge wasn’t necessary in the gospels, because anyone who heard of the Romans’ scourge and crucifixion in the first century knew its dreadfulness.

    Usually, the victims of such horrific scourging will be stripped naked and strapped or shackled to a lower column or a pole, and skilled soldiers will each have a flagellum to take turns in beating the victim continuously until he’s a step away from death.

    The flagrum is a whip with multiple pieces of metal or bones attached to the end, which lacerates and rips out chunks of flesh when wrenched, ripping small blood vessels, nerves, muscle, and bruising and exposing internal organs.

    The soldiers scourge the victim from the upper torso, down to the back, including the chest area, up the back of the legs above the knees, calves, and up the arms, even around the neck and face.

    Josephus (a first-century historian) stated in his historical account that certain rebellious Jews were torn to pieces by the scourge before being crucified.
     
    Remains of scourge victims were found by archaeologists, and realized, these victims were scourged in the face and on top of the skull.

    According to Ecclesiastical History, victims who narrowly survive such torture live disfigured forever. They become a sign of caution to others that, “Don’t mess with Rome. If you defy the Romans, this is the consequence.”

    What does it remind you of?

    Isaiah the Prophet said concerning Jesus:

    “But many were amazed when they saw him. His face was so disfigured he seemed hardly human, and from his appearance, one would scarcely know he was a man.” Isaiah 52:14 (NLT)

    This was exactly what our Lord Jesus suffered for us. He went up to Golgotha, carrying a cross of more than 200 pounds in weight, while His lungs were bruised, His intestines and inner organs were hanging out, His rib cage was visible on both sides, and the muscles around His spine were exposed. He was also losing about  125 millilitres of blood.  He wasn’t just walking for miles to Golgotha carrying the heavy cross. Moments when he experienced tremors, seizures, and fainted, he was still beaten. With thorns piercing and stabbing the facial nerves and causing traumatic shock even through the skull, He did not complain.

    The steady loss of fluid caused the heart to be unable to pump blood to the body. His injured lungs caused pleural effusion (abnormal accumulation of fluids in the lungs and chest area). And this would definitely make breathing difficult. The ripped and fractured ribs would make breathing painful.

    Apart from suffering these physical tortures, He was verbally abused and mocked so that He would also be crushed and bruised emotionally or mentally.

    Don’t attempt to imagine yourself in such a horrific state.

    Jesus chose to suffer these for you. He didn’t just walk up for many miles to the cross to die for you.

    Even His suffering was to endure all infirmities of the body. It wasn’t just for our Lord to heal or deliver you from eternal damnation. His suffering was proof that He has conquered all present physical infirmities as well.

    Every physical condition one may experience, Jesus experienced it on the cross. Is it a condition about lungs, heart, spine, bones, brain, kidneys, other internal organs, or what really will be the condition that you will not find Jesus enduring for you?

    He endured it all.

    The salvation which you have obtained in Christ wasn’t cheap. It was costly!

    Walk in this consciousness and hope of this salvation, that is your helmet!

    Hallelujah!

    DIG DEEPER
    (Romans 5:8; 1 Peter 3:18; Isaiah 53:2-3; 1 Peter 2:24; Matthew 8:17; 1 John 2:2; Hebrews 9:28)
     
    WE PRAY
    We pray, thanking the Lord for His love demonstrated towards us through His death. And we pray that we shall also walk in the consciousness of the victory which He obtained for us through His death and resurrection.
     
    BIBLE READING IN THE YEAR 2025
    1 YEAR PLAN
    1 Samuel 19-21

    2 YEARS PLAN
    Exodus 36

    DECLARE THESE WORDS:
    – The salvation which I have in Christ is eternal.

    – Thank you Lord for your love demonstrated towards me through your death.
     
    – I walk daily in the consciousness of the victory which Christ has obtained for me through His death and ressurrection.
     
    Oh, glory to God!

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  • EPISODE 793 – THE CLIMAX OF SALVATION 1

    EPISODE 793 – THE CLIMAX OF SALVATION 1

    CHRIST COMMONWEALTH-COMMUNITY

    The Love-Life Agency

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    Beloved, until you speak forth the Word, you shall not see a performance. No matter the matter, don’t speak your fears, don’t speak your challenges, SPEAK THE RHEMA OF GOD IN YOUR HEART! Selah.
    Apostle Bennie
    Author
    Wednesday, 26th March, 2025
     

    THE CLIMAX OF SALVATION 1

    “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.” 

    1 Thessalonians 9-10 (KJV)

    The hope of Salvation from slavery of corruption and the coming destruction is not rooted in the self-effort of the believer but in the finished work of Jesus through His death.

    From the opening verse, you can see that Paul the apostle didn’t want the saints to assume that the Salvation they have and that which they shall experience is dependent on their self-efforts.

    There are some who preach that, though we are saved (to become born again or new creation in Christ) through the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus, at His coming, He will judge each man by their own works. And the saved shall lose their Salvation.

    They base their argument on:

    “Behold, I am coming quickly!
        I bring my reward with me
        to repay everyone according to their works.”     Revelaion 22:11 (TPT)

    The believer will be judged on the grounds of the works of Christ. The reward is according to the works of your faith in Christ. The Lord’s judgment for the believer will be according to the works of faith. It is not a judgment unto condemnation (Romans 8:11). It is not a judgment according to the works of the flesh.

    The salvation which we have in Christ is eternal.

    “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me” John 10:28 (NLT)

    The salvation which we have in Christ is eternal because the value of the sacrifice which our Lord Jesus made is eternal.

    And that is why Paul the apostle has to remind the saints that the Salvation which we are appointed to obtain is not by our Lord Jesus, who DIED for us.

    The basis of your salvation is Christ’s death, not your own works

    Sometimes when believers talk about the death of our Lord Jesus, we water down the torture. Anyone who understands the crucifixion of Jesus will understand that His death was a cruel and severe death of agony. It was a painful death that no natural person can sustain for even an hour. But Jesus did that for many more hours. He was nailed to the cross for approximately 6 hours and was scourged hours before His crucifixion. And definitely took some hours before He got to Golgotha.

    Yet the Lord endured these moments of torture.

    There was no way any human strength would be enough for such torture. Though it was rare for people to go through such a high degree of torture, people who are scourged in such a manner become unconscious and sometimes die. They never even make it to the crucifixion. But Jesus, with you on His mind, remained conscious and survived it to the crucifixion.

    The people in the first century understood what it meant to be scourged and crucified. They didn’t need any further explanation for such a horrific ordeal.

    Through several laws of human rights, such torture has been stopped. And after many centuries, we have lost the true picture of what Jesus went through.

    This was so terrible and shameful that the Romans didn’t even allow their most deadly criminals to go through such torture.

    But Jesus had to go through it. He could have stopped Himself but kept the situation under control because of His love for you.

    Jesus could have ordered thousands of angels to defend Him. He said to Peter:

    “Don’t you realize that I could ask my Father for thousands of angels to protect us, and he would send them instantly?” Matthew 26:53 (NLT).

    This touched my heart!

    Why did Jesus make the choice not to defend Himself?

    He was ready to suffer for the penalty of your sins. This was an eternal sacrifice that will bring those who will believe in Him into eternal salvation.

    Always remember this, you are appointed to obtain eternal salvation because our Lord Jesus DIED for your offenses and was raised for your JUSTIFICATION!

    Hallelujah!

    DIG DEEPER
    (Romans 5:8; 1 Peter 3:18; 1 Corinthians 15:3; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 2:2; Hebrews 9:28)
     
    WE PRAY
    We pray, thanking the Lord for His love demonstrated towards us through His death. And we pray that we shall also walk in the consciousness of the victory which He obtained for us through His death and resurrection.
     
    BIBLE READING IN THE YEAR 2025
    1 YEAR PLAN
    1 Samuel 16-18

    2 YEARS PLAN
    Exodus 35

    DECLARE THESE WORDS:
    – The salvation which I have in Christ is eternal.
     
    – Thank you Lord for your love demonstrated towards me through your death.
     
    – I walk daily in the consciousness of the victory which Christ has obtained for me through His death and ressurrection.
     
    Oh, glory to God!

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