God, Gods, and Africa

Walk, Loop, Hamba

What is the name of God in Africa

Umvelencayi - Modimo

The one who was created/born of his own will.

Unkulunkulu

The great Great one.

The stories of what they did are very different and different from place to place in Africa. But, the similarity is that this is the first personal being and omni potent power to create.

Body and Soul - Structure and Space

We are a spirit with a body, not a body with a spirit.

Build a small house here with the rooms. The space is there in the rooms. they were there before we built this building. Break it, the same space is still there. Can I move the space, Can I move the building. Can I destroy the space, The house? But, I can fill the house and fill the space?

When you are born, you get a body that encapsulates this space, that holds this space and limits it. When you live, the space is inside you. When you die, this building is destroyed and your spirit is not destroyed. It lives on.

2 Corinthians 4:7 ESV

7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.

2 Corinthians 5:1 NKJV

1 For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

2 Corinthians 5:6–10 NKJV

6 So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. 7 For we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. 9 Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

You see the Body is just a jar or clay a tent. He is refering to a spirit when he says when “We are at home in the body, we are away from the Lord?” and rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord”

How can you be at home in the this tent, and also be the tent?

How can you be absent from the house if you are the house?

Coz you are not the body, you are the spirit? You are not the body, you are in the body.

The differences between Body and Soul

The body is material and comes from this earth, your spirit is divine and comes from God.

The body is not unique, the atoms that are inside you were ones part of a cow, a pig, an apple, and the compost it grew from. Your soul is unique and clean and will never be mixed with anyone or anything else.

If I lived 100 years ago and i was buried in a field that grew the apples and cows you at, some of my atoms are in you. So when we say your body will be resurected, who will get those atoms, will be missing an arm so that I can have face? Rediculous, the body we are going to get will be new.

If the body is the soul. And the ressurection body will be new. Then that body is not you. You see the problem with beliving your body is a soul? No sense!!! If I Break down the house of wood and 30 years later i build a brick house , it is not the same house.

But if you see yourself as a soul who is currently in a body, then I can take you out of the this body and put you in a new body, It is still you. When I break the house 20 times in this space and rebuild it, it is still the same space the same spirit.

In Africa, we have alwasy known this. We have always known this is the building, and that the spirit inside you is you. So, in Africa, we have the same concept. That your spirit is in you and eternal. When you die, that space, that spirit still exists. That person, is your ancestor, that person is a Dlozi.

What is a Dlozi?

It is a the soul of a person who was here before. When you mention their name and celebrate their life, you are not worshiping them. You are celebrating them.

I find it so hypocritical that people would have birthday parties, graduation parties, and memorial services, Columbus Day, MLK Day, Mandela Day - and then accuse an African of witchcraft when they Celebrate their mother’s birthday, even after she has passed.

If you believe that your mother’s body was her soul and when her body dies her soul is gone, then this would not make sense to you. Because the person is gone and no more. But, if you believe, like we do that the person is a spirit and this body is merely a tent to engage with the physical world, and that that soul lives on like the space after the tent is broken, then you keep acknowledging them .

My Mother, Luzaan, My grandparents have died and their bodies were simply the food they ate. They’re bodies were merely atoms of this world. Their bodies were made of this earth, made of the dust. But God put a part of himself into that body, and it became a living soul.

When you die, Africans will call your soul a Dlozi. And we constantly acknowledge that person, we do not ignore them.

Acknowledging - not worshipping - our ancestors.

Matthew 1:1–17 NKJV

1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham: 2 Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers. 3 Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram. 4 Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon. 5 Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, 6 and Jesse begot David the king. David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah. 7 Solomon begot Rehoboam, Rehoboam begot Abijah, and Abijah begot Asa. 8 Asa begot Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat begot Joram, and Joram begot Uzziah. 9 Uzziah begot Jotham, Jotham begot Ahaz, and Ahaz begot Hezekiah. 10 Hezekiah begot Manasseh, Manasseh begot Amon, and Amon begot Josiah. 11 Josiah begot Jeconiah and his brothers about the time they were carried away to Babylon. 12 And after they were brought to Babylon, Jeconiah begot Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begot Zerubbabel. 13 Zerubbabel begot Abiud, Abiud begot Eliakim, and Eliakim begot Azor. 14 Azor begot Zadok, Zadok begot Achim, and Achim begot Eliud. 15 Eliud begot Eleazar, Eleazar begot Matthan, and Matthan begot Jacob. 16 And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations.

Matthew was not in Jesus’ family. Where did he get this from? He got this from Jesus. Jesus knew his Anscestors and acknowledged them. Just like in Africa, when you see Jesus, you also see these people him. He is a culmination of them.

Dumelang.Sanibonani

Dumelang, We are a representation of all who have gone before. He lives in you. So when we say hello it iss plural, not singular, we are not just greeting you alone, we are greating you and them.

Next time you say, Sanibonani or Dumelang think of the depth of what you are saying. You are not greating that person, You are at tip of the pyramid, and you are acknowledging everyone that person is based on.

And, NB, Be brave enough to be african. When they oppose you, it is an opporuntity to be Brave and a Teacher.

We must be careful that we do not confuse Christianity, with European Language and Culture.

If I wear a suit and I am preaching the word of God, If I was wearing a Swazi outfit, Would I be less Christian?

If I preach in Zulu instead of the Queen English, am I less Christian?

If I went to Church wearing a dress robe and sandals, would I be less Christian no.

2 Peter 1:5 NKJV

5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge,

Be Brave enough to be what you believe, and proudly. You do not have to say it in English and you are not more Christian is you refer to God as Jahovah instead of Unkulunkule or Mvelincayi. You are not a withc if you acknowledge your Dlozis. Be Brave enough.

This bravery to stand for what ou believe is very relevant in this day and Age.

Bravery

1 Samuel 17:26 NKJV

26 Then David spoke to the men who stood by him, saying, “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?”

Someone had to do something about this Blasphemy against this insult. David stood up. David Spoke up.

There are too many of us out here who will see something going wrong and just keep quiet and go along.

you see that your church is starting to condemn what God condoned/commanded and start condoning what God condemned. You go along…

False teachings arise, you go along…

They start sugar coating the word so that they do not offend… you go along…

Why would you follow anybody when you know they are going the wrong way?

Because it is difficult and scary or dangerous to go the other way.

It is easier to simply join the crowd and remain silent.

It is easier to remain in your comfort zone.

But the whole Bible is a story of Bravery.

Jesus was chased out of Nazareth, arrested and crucified

Genesis 12:1 NKJV

1 Now the Lord had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a land that I will show you.

Exodus 5:1 NKJV

1 Afterward Moses and Aaron went in and told Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘Let My people go, that they may hold a feast to Me in the wilderness.’ ”

Joshua 24:15 NKJV

15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

1 Samuel 17:45 NKJV

45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.

Acts 7:52–53 NKJV

52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers, 53 who have received the law by the direction of angels and have not kept it.”

they stoned him to death.

Bravery is more vital today than ever.

These days it seems that being brave is still a very dangerous thing even when you are fighting for what is right.

John Brown

Abraham Lincoln

JFK and his brother.

Malcolm X

MLK Jnr

Mandela

Just last week, Charlie Kirk, You may not agree with everything he said, But that gives nobody the right to hurt him. `

99% of us are not called to Die

Most of us are not called to be public speakers and debators. But all of us are called to be brave in our own life.

When you are asked how you make your ethical decisions - Be brave enough to say In a christian manner.

When someone tells you your African culture and dress is witchcraft - Be brave enough to say I follow Christ, not Christoper. I follow the creed, not your culture.

When your Church saying the bible is contradicting itself becuase it does not align with modern ideas of Feminism or sexuality . - Be brave enough to Leave.

When your school is teaching that boys can be girls and girls can be boys - Be brave enough to challenge it or move them.

When we are living in a world where men’s feelings and ideas come before the truth and God. The Devils loves it when people raise their feelings and opinion above the Truth of God - This is exactly what happened to Eve. And those who try to speak up against it, are targets because you are making his job difficult.

But, I call on you and say, it is better to struggle for what is true and right than to live in evil and false teachings. Come judgment day, what will your excuse be?

be brave

Amen