Proclaiming God’s kingdom with power and boldness – Taiwo Akinola
Archbishop Taiwo Akinola
“And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power” — 1 Corinthians 2:4.
Introduction
The Gospel of the Kingdom was never intended to be whispered timidly in the ears of a hostile world. It is good news to be proclaimed with conviction, holy boldness, and in the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus declared, “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations” (Matthew 24:14).
Throughout Scripture, God raised men and women who refused to bow before the intimidating voices of their generations. Moses confronted Pharaoh; Joshua spoke boldly in the midst of battle; Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal; Peter preached fearlessly at Pentecost; and Paul carried the Gospel across cultures, cities, religious systems, and hostile territories.
The Church must recover this consciousness: we have not been commissioned merely to survive in the world; we have been empowered to proclaim and advance God’s Kingdom within it (Matthew 28:18–19). Our confidence is not in ourselves, but in the authority of the King who sends us.
GOD’S WORD STANDS ABOVE EVERY CULTURE
Kingdom proclamation begins with the supremacy of God’s Word. John declares that in the beginning was the Word; the Word was with God, and the Word was God. In Him was life, and that life was the light of men (John 1:1–5).
Before human culture existed, there was the Word. Before traditions developed, there was the Word. Before philosophies, customs, ideologies, rituals, and civilizations arose, the Word was already there.
Cultures may embody beauty, accumulated wisdom, and valuable traditions. But whenever culture, custom, philosophy, or ritual contradicts the revealed Word of God, the Word must always have pre-eminence (Mark 7:13).
We preach Christ across cultures, but we must never place culture above Christ. God’s Word judges culture; culture does not judge God’s Word. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but His words shall never pass away (Matthew 24:35).
KINGDOM AUTHORITY IN ACTION
Scripture repeatedly demonstrates what happens when people become conscious that the Almighty stands behind His Word.
When God sent Moses into Egypt, He sent him into confrontation with one of the greatest political and spiritual powers of his generation. Moses boldly declared, “Thus saith the LORD … Let my people go” (Exodus 5:1). Pharaoh defiantly responded, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice?” (Exodus 5:2). Yet Moses remained unwavering in his divine mandate.
His authority did not come from Pharaoh’s permission; it came from God’s commission. Eventually, even Egypt’s magicians confessed, “This is the finger of God” (Exodus 8:19).
Joshua similarly demonstrated extraordinary dominion faith. In the heat of battle he commanded, “Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon” (Joshua 10:12). Scripture records that the sun stood still and the moon stayed, adding that there had been no day like it, when “the LORD hearkened unto the voice of a man” (Joshua 10:14).
Faith must do more than contemplate the mountain—faith must speak. Jesus declared that whoever speaks to the mountain in faith shall see it moved (Mark 11:23). Faith-filled proclamation is the voice of a heart persuaded by God and anchored in His Word.
Paul carried the same consciousness into New Testament ministry. Though highly educated, he refused to make intellectual sophistication or human eloquence the foundation of his Gospel ministry (1 Corinthians 2:4).
At Ephesus, God wrought special miracles through Paul (Acts 19:11). At Lystra, a man crippled from birth walked (Acts 14:8–10). At Philippi, imprisonment could not silence Paul and Silas; as they prayed and praised God, the prison foundations shook and the doors opened (Acts 16:25–26).
Moses before Pharaoh, Joshua on the battlefield, and Paul among the nations reveal one enduring truth: when God commissions His servants, opposition does not possess the final authority.
JESUS: THE KINGDOM PROCLAIMED AND DEMONSTRATED
Jesus did not merely explain the Kingdom; He demonstrated it (Matthew 4:23). He spoke to storms, and they became calm. He commanded demons, and they departed. He ministered to the sick, and they were healed. He called Lazarus from the grave, and death released its prisoner. No wonder the people marveled: “his word was with power” (Luke 4:32)!
The Kingdom is therefore more than an intellectual proposition (1 Corinthians 4:20). We need sound doctrine, but we equally need dependence upon the Holy Spirit. The believer must proclaim the Christ who saves, heals, delivers, transforms, restores, and reigns.
KINGDOM POWER PREVAILS OVER OPPOSITION
Jesus never promised that Kingdom advancement would encounter no resistance; He promised that no resistance could prevail: “I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18).
Balak hired Balaam to curse what God had blessed, but Balaam discovered, “He hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it” (Numbers 23:20). Scripture further declares, “Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel” (Numbers 23:23).
Opposition may arise, but it cannot possess ultimate authority over God’s purpose. Paul experienced persecution, rejection, imprisonment, storms, and spiritual opposition, yet testified, “Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me” (2 Timothy 4:17).
Resistance must therefore never become our excuse for retreating from the proclamation of the Kingdom.
GO FORTH WITH HOLY BOLDNESS
When the early believers were threatened, they prayed, “Grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word” (Acts 4:29). God answered by filling them afresh with the Holy Ghost, and “they spake the word of God with boldness” (Acts 4:31).
Our generation needs believers who are loving but fearless, gracious but uncompromising, intellectually responsible but spiritually powerful.
We must carry the Gospel into homes, schools, marketplaces, professions, businesses, communities, governments, and nations—not arrogantly, but confidently; not coercively, but boldly; not trusting in human strength, but depending upon the Holy Ghost.
CONCLUSION
The Kingdom of God is advancing, and we are its witnesses. The God who empowered Moses still reigns. The God who hearkened unto Joshua has not changed. The Jesus who proclaimed and demonstrated the Kingdom with authority is alive forevermore. And the Holy Spirit who empowered the apostolic Church still dwells within believers today.
We must, therefore, refuse to subordinate God’s eternal Word to passing cultures, hostile traditions, or human philosophies. Go forth with the Word in your mouth, faith in your heart, Christ within you, and the power of the Holy Ghost upon you. Advance in the power and authority of the King!
In the authority of the Name of Jesus Christ, as you speak in agreement with God’s Word and purpose, mountains shall give way, and seemingly immovable circumstances shall bow to divine intervention.
Every Pharaoh resisting what God has ordained for your life and assignment shall encounter the superior authority of the Almighty. Every Red Sea standing between you and divine purpose shall give way by the intervention of God! Every enchantment, divination, occult manipulation, and spiritual conspiracy fashioned against God’s purpose concerning you is rendered powerless in the Name of Jesus Christ!
The power of the Holy Ghost rests mightily upon you. Your mouth shall not be silenced. Your witness shall not be extinguished. Your God-given assignment shall not be aborted.
You shall proclaim Christ with clarity, demonstrate His Kingdom power, and fulfill your appointed course with joy. The Word shall prevail. The Gospel shall advance. Jesus shall be glorified. And His will shall be done on earth as it is in heaven. You will not miss your place in this glorious Kingdom advancement, in Jesus’ mighty Name. Amen. Happy Sunday!
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Archbishop Taiwo Akinola (Ph.D), Rhema Christian Church, Otta, Ogun State, Nigeria.
Connect with Dr. Akinola via these channels:
Website: www.rhema-christian-church.com
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SMS/WhatsApp: +234 802 318 4987
