Jesus went to pray on the mountain, and He took His disciples with Him: three of them, and when He prayed to some point; Moses and Elijah appeared to Him, and they were having conversations with Him. And we must understand as believers, that Moses had lived before the disciples were born; and they were allowed to be spiritually discerning to know that whom they were seeing was Moses and Elijah. And that's why in the realm of the spirit, there's a lot of knowing, if you truly want to know, then you must connect to your spirituality in Christ.

 

The disciples said to Jesus, what an experience; in our entire life, we've not had this kind of experience before. Right before our eyes, the people we have been reading about; we can see them. And they said, we can't allow this encounter to pass us by, we're going to build a tent around this revelation, and a voice came from heaven saying; “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased, hear Him!”. We are not to celebrate Moses and Elijah; we are to celebrate Christ Jesus. The first information is, this is My beloved Son, in whom I'm well pleased. The second information is; This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, hear Him!

 

So, God Himself had made us understand by the release of His voice and His word, that Christ Jesus is the one that we must celebrate. Christ Jesus is the one that we must honor and glorify because He is the Son of God. So, the triumphant entry is a sign that was given to us; to make us understand that this Christ Jesus we are talking about is not our errand boy. Even though He came in the flesh, and He lived among us; we must not know Him in the flesh, and we must not relate with Him in the flesh: He is due of honor and glory. In Mark chapter 11, “The people were saying hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, blessed is the kingdom of our father David that comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.”

 

When Jesus was born, the angels of God, praised and saluted, and also honored Him in this manner.  Christ is to be celebrated, and every day of our lives we must celebrate Christ. Why is it important for us to celebrate Christ?

 

Number One: Celebrating Christ is the fulfillment of Scripture. God has ordained and called us to celebrate Christ. I want us to see Matthew chapter 22:1-2, “And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said, the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son”. The kingdom you and I have entered into; is like a king, who is the King? The King is God; that arranged a marriage for His Son. So, when you come to that marriage, or you are permitted into that marriage, you must dress ready. That's why the first definition of ‘celebrate’ is very important. “Acknowledging a significant person with a social gathering or enjoyable activity”. The wedding that was organized is a social gathering. Whom was it organized for? It was organized for the Son. So, what is the Father saying in essence? The Father is saying to us, to celebrate the Son, or to celebrate with the Son.

 

And Jesus was speaking in parables, and He said that the kingdom of heaven is like a king that created a social gathering; a marriage, or a feast for his Son. So, when we come together as the church, and we worship and celebrate Christ, we are fulfilling Scripture. When we gather together, we can call it a gathering, but it is a celebration. What we’ve come to do, is to acknowledge a significant Person. Let’s see John chapter 12:27-28, It says; “Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose, I came to this hour. Father, glorify Your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, saying, “I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.”

 

So, when we celebrate Jesus, God is being glorified; it is the fulfillment of Scripture. All the glory is to the Lord, He does not share His glory with anyone. So, when we praise Jesus and celebrate Jesus, we are fulfilling Scripture, as God has ordained it. John chapter 17:5, “And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was”. So, when we celebrate Jesus, we are glorifying Him together with the Father; with the glory that He had with the Father from the beginning.

 

Number Two: Celebrating Christ is an acknowledgment of what God has done. When we celebrate Christ, we are acknowledging what God has done in Christ. I want us to see a Scripture in Jeremiah chapter 30:19, “Then out of them shall proceed thanksgiving,
and the voice of those who make merry; I will multiply them, and they shall not diminish; I will also glorify them, and they shall not be small”. This is possible in Christ. What God has done in Christ is that He has multiplied us and glorified us. And because of what He has done, when we celebrate Christ, we are acknowledging what God has done. What are the things God has done?

 

In John chapter 3:16, the Bible says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, whosoever believes in Him will not perish, but have everlasting life”. So, when we celebrate Christ, we are celebrating what God has done; it is important. You are acknowledging what God has done. The Bible says we are blessed with all spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus. In Revelation, He said, He has made us kings and priests unto our God, that we will reign on the earth.  Everything about us is actually done in Christ. So, when we celebrate Christ, we are acknowledging the things that God has done.

 

How do we celebrate Christ Jesus? Celebrating Jesus is acknowledging Him, and celebrating Jesus is expressing admiration and approval for His Person. That's why you cannot celebrate Jesus Christ without believing in Him and accepting Him as your Lord and Savior; because that's where it starts from. You start celebrating Christ by accepting and acknowledging Him, as your Lord and Savior, the significant Person that died for your sins on the cross, that took the place of you, that decided to take your iniquities upon Himself, that decided to take your infirmities upon Himself, that became poor so that we can become rich, that became all these. The Bible said He was stricken for our sake, and there was no comeliness about Him. There was nothing about Him that should attract us to Him. That was the kind of state He was in for our sake. The Bible says, scarcely will any man die even for a righteous man; while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us: that’s how significant is Person is. He said God gave Him up in hope.

 

How many of us will do things in hope, apart from raising our children in hope? I think that's one fundamental thing that human beings do in hope, you raise that child in the hope that the child will become a responsible person. And to what extent do we raise children in hope? The billions of us all over, and the generations that are yet to be born, generations that have passed. So, understand that it's not just us. The generations that have gone, He still died for them, generations yet unborn, He died in the hope for them that when they surface on the earth, they will look for Him. That's how significant Christ is. While we were yet sinners, while we were worthy of nothing; He died for us.

 

So, we celebrate Him for who He is. So, how do we celebrate Him on a daily basis? How do we acknowledge Him? How do we show our admiration and our approval of Him? Number one, we shout or sing for joy. How does this work? Shouting for joy is a principal way of celebrating. Psalm 145:7, “They shall utter the memory of Your great goodness, and shall sing of Your righteousness”. Another translation says they shall shout for your righteousness. Another word you can use for shout is to sing joyfully.

 

 If you don't shout joyfully, you are not acknowledging. Joy is spiritual, and it comes from within. So, when you shout joyfully, it is from within. See, things might not look like what you want them to look like; but what you are doing when you are singing joyfully from within, is that you are acknowledging a significant Person and you are creating an enjoyable activity. Singing is an enjoyable activity except you are singing a mourning song. Apart from singing a mourning song, an average joyful or good song that we sing is an enjoyable activity. You celebrate with an enjoyable activity; sing for joy, and sing with joy.

 

 The Bible says it is with joy that you will draw from the wells of salvation. Who has brought salvation to us? Christ Jesus brought salvation to us. So, when you sing with joy, you are drawing from all that Christ has done for you. Sing with joy! Whether your voice is good or not. Christ Jesus is not concerned about how melodious your song is, it doesn’t concern Him. He just wants to understand that from your heart, you acknowledge Him, you admire Him, and you approve of Him. That's what we do when we sing for joy. You sing, My God is good with every conviction within you, and what you are doing is that you are celebrating Christ Jesus.

 

Psalm chapter 95:2, “Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms”. To Christ Jesus and not to ourselves. There are songs that we sing; that in our heart we think we are singing praise, but you're not singing to Him; you're singing to yourself. To shout or sing with joy, you are selfless. There's nothing you are getting out of Him. He's getting a hundred percent of the glory, He is getting a hundred percent of the praise, and He's getting a hundred percent of the attention; that's how to celebrate Christ Jesus.

 

We celebrate Christ with gladness of heart. Psalm 68:3, “But let the righteous be glad; let them rejoice before God; yes, let them rejoice exceedingly”. Let your heart be glad without boundaries. What does it mean for your heart to be glad? I want to show us a Scripture in Isaiah chapter 30:29, “You shall have a song as in the night when a holy festival is kept, and gladness of heart as when one goes with a flute, to come into the mountain of the Lord, to the Mighty One of Israel”. When you have the gladness of heart, it is as one that as a flute. Gladness of heart means that your heart is excited, your heart is cheerful, and your heart is expressing joy from within.

 

If you see somebody that is really good at playing flute and the person is going around with it, you will see that the inspiration for that playing of the flute is not with sadness, but it is with gladness of heart; you are enjoying it. When you are celebrating Christ; do it: enjoying it, and not enduring it. The Scripture says you shall have a song, not the one they borrowed you. You shall have a song as in the night when a holy festival is kept and gladness of heart as when one goes with a flute: that’s gladness of heart. You are changing songs and they are intentional and meaningful. And the Lord is giving you a new song. As you are worshipping and celebrating Christ, you are enjoying it; you are not forced to do it.

 

Number Three: We celebrate Christ rejoicing. Psalm 118:24, “This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it”. Psalm 2:11, “Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling”. I want to show us a Scripture also in Deuteronomy chapter 14:26, “And you shall spend that money for whatever your heart desires: for oxen or sheep, for wine or similar drink, for whatever your heart desires; you shall eat there before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your household”. When you're celebrating Christ, don’t celebrate Him alone; celebrate with your household. You and your household rejoice. Celebrate Christ. What are you doing when you do that? You are acknowledging Him as a significant Person in your family, you are acknowledging Him as a significant Person in your household. What are you doing? You are admiring and approving Him. Do it rejoicing: meaning that you have joy before, then rejoicing, meaning do it again, and again. Anything ‘re’ is that you are doing it again, and again. No matter what you're going through, God is good. We sing God is good, all the time, and all the time, God is good. Apostle Paul said, rejoice in the Lord always; I say again, rejoice. It is important; that's how to celebrate Christ.

 

Number Four:  We celebrate Christ by worship. I want us to understand the significance of worship. Worship is important, and we must understand posture in worship. Number one, what did those people do in Mark 11, they put their clothes on the colt and He sat on it. The significance of worship is that number one; you put your heart into it. Jesus is Lord! When somebody is sitting on something, what does it mean? It is a posture that means that the person is above that thing, the person is in charge of that thing, and the person is greater than that thing. Whatever you sit on, it shows a posture of authority.

 

If you are seated on a throne, that means you have authority on that throne. What does worship mean? The Bible says in Revelation that when the 24 elders want to worship God, the One that sits on the throne, they cast their crowns; they remove their crowns. To cast something means to let it go. It was the same thing they did in Mark 11; they cast their clothes on the colt, and they cast their clothes on the floor that He should ride. You cannot worship successfully without casting something.

In Revelation, the 24 elders cast their crowns; in Mark 11, they cast their cloth. What are you casting in the name of worship? Go and see those that worship idols, there are some of them that need to cast their blood to worship, there are some of them that have to cast their food items to worship, and some people cast their children in the name of idol worship; it is not about Christ. The word cast is to sacrifice.

 

I want us to see Revelation chapter 5:8-14. It says; “Now, when He has taken the scroll, that's the Lamb: Christ, the four living creatures, and the 24 elders fell down.” Do we see? Something must be on the altar of worship. “They fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp and golden bowls full of incense; What are they trying to do? Are they creating an enjoyable activity? It says; “A golden bowl full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints, and they sang a new song saying; You are worthy; Acknowledgment!  To take the scroll and to open its seal, for You were slain, and have redeemed us to God, by Your blood. Out of every tribe, tongue, people, and nation. And have made us kings and priests to our God, and we shall reign on the earth. Verse 11, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders. And they were numbered ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power, and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing!  They were shouting for joy.

 

So, we see all these things linked into worship, and every creature which is in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying. When we looked at the importance of celebrating Christ, the first thing we said is because we must fulfill the Scripture, because that's how God has ordained it. There's another Scripture that comes to mind from this Scripture in verse 11. The Bible says that it pleased God to give Him a name that is above every other name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee bows, every tongue confesses; what are they confessing? What they're confessing is an acknowledgment that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father: celebrating Christ brings glory to the Father, so, we must not be found not doing it.

 

Verse 13 says; “And every creature which is in heaven and on earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb forever and ever. They are celebrating the Christ. Then the four living creatures said, Amen. And the 24 elders fell down and worshipped Him who lives forever and ever.” Worship is one thing that I know is eternal. Do you know when we get to heaven, we will not pray to God, but we worship Him? The Scripture made us to understand in Revelation, that there will be nothing to pray about. He said there will not be weeping, there won't be crying; all the things that we usually should pray about, are not present in His presence.

 

So, there is nothing to pray about. So, what are we going to do before His presence and before His throne when we get there? We are to worship, and that’s why we must get used to it now. For our spirit to be eternally relevant, we must teach our spirit to praise God and celebrate Christ; because that is what we will continue to do forever and ever. I've heard testimonies of people that slept in the Lord, and many of them sang till they transited. Their body was weak, but their spirit was alive. Many people will experience the second death because they have refused to understand that there is a personality that can prevent them, or that can save them from experiencing the second death. Celebrating the Christ and worshiping Him is making your spirit eternally relevant.

 

When the angels start taking worship of God and start celebrating Him; you cannot do what you're not used to. How will you do it? That's why we are doing rehearsal here on earth, getting used to the atmosphere; because this is what we'll do forever and ever: celebrating the Christ. Worship is a posture of humility. The Bible says God is looking for those that will worship Him in Spirit and in truth; that is how He wants us to worship Him. Your soul is not denying your spirit of worship, everything is aligned. In the Bible, Mary said, my soul magnifies the Lord and my spirit praises His name. When your soul magnifies Him, your spirit will praise Him; they must align.

 

Number Five: We celebrate Christ in praises. Psalm 47:7-8 says; “For God is the King of all the earth, sing praises with understanding.” God reigns over the nations; God sits on His holy throne. When you are celebrating the Christ, understand who He is. If you don't know who He is, you can’t praise Him. Sing praises with understanding! It is the understanding that you have of God, that will make you sing praises to Him. There are songs we cannot sing to God because we're praising Him, we must praise with understanding; knowing who He is. 

 

Number Six: We celebrate Christ when we Speak His words. In Luke chapter nine, Jesus made a very bold statement to the church; Luke chapter 9:26. “For whoever is ashamed of Me; (the opposite of celebrate is to be ashamed, according to this Scripture, so whoever does not celebrate Me is one who is ashamed of Me) and My words (In celebrating Christ, you must acknowledge His words, that's how to celebrate Him) of him, the Son of Man will be ashamed of when He comes in His own glory and in His Father’s and of the holy angels.” So, Jesus says, celebrating Him is a big deal. If you don't celebrate Him, then you're ashamed of Him. Celebrating Him is acknowledging, admiring, and approving of Him; but when you don't, you are showing that you are ashamed of Him.

 

So, as believers, don’t say everything must be done in moderation, not in celebrating Christ. It should be exceedingly done. It is only in celebrating Christ that we don't have boundaries. We don't have excesses and say, it's too much. There is nothing like you are celebrating Christ too much. Don't be ashamed of Him!

 

Thanks for the gift of your time, We are Lara Gboyega Adedeji and Obayomi Abiola Benjamin!

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