"The essence of ACTION!" [Book excerpt from The Central Laws of Productivity].

Doing precedes teaching! This is evident in Acts 1:1 "All that Jesus began to do and to teach."
"He did those things until the day he was taken up to heaven..." (Acts 1:2).
However, we have empty speakers conning audience, coharsing money off the masses today. Yet they are doing nothing! We have seen numerical increase in church planting, without increase in impacts! We have seen numerical church growth with increased separation of our Faith from the "secular world".
Sadly, most people have given up on churches! And some feel that there is no God.
And what i tell such people is this: It is not that there is no God; but the people who are supposed to show you God have let Him [God] down! It is not that there is no power, the people who are meant to demonstrate the power of God that will make the world wonders are far asleep!
This is why there is need for action in our day. The essence of action is to show you the raw power of God. It is to point in the direction of the grand purpose of God for the church.
 "In many ways he [Jesus] proved to them..." (Acts 1:3). How many ways? In many ways! What did He prove? That He [Christ] has risen from the dead! "But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep."(1 Corinthians 15:20).
"For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures" (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).
Why did Jesus rise again? So that our redemption can be sealed. And much more for our justification.
What does it mean to be justified? "and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain." (1 Corinthians 15:14)."and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless;you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied." (1 Corinthians 15:17-18).Still missing the purpose of Christ coming, the disciples asked the Christ a critical question: When they had come together, the apostles asked Jesus, `Lord, are you now going to set up the kingdom of Israel?'(Acts 1:6). Now, you cannot understand the meaning of this question the disciples asked Jesus if you did not meet Cleopas and his friend on their way to Emmaus. So let's back up and review the trip to Emmaus.
The Emmaus' Trip
Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem.  They were talking with each other about everything that had happened.  As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them;  but they were kept from recognizing him.  He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?” They stood still, their faces downcast. One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, “Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” “What things?” he asked.“About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him;  but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place.  In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning  but didn’t find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive.  Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see Jesus.”He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself." (Luke 24:13-26).
So what is it about this story concerning the trip to Emmaus? This is it: one of the greatest prayers a man must pray while on this planet earth is in Luke 24:45."Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures." Why?Because you cannot understand the scripture and not take productive actions!
"The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple."(Psalm 119:130).
"Understanding is a fountain of life to those who have it, but folly brings punishment to fools."(Proverbs 16:22).
Why will Jesus appear again and again to His disciples? Is it to merely prove a point? Is it for the sake of showing himself and his designer clothes? Is it to show his audience his designer suit on the pulpit? No! It is to open their understandings. Jesus appeared again and again to the disciples (just as the preachers of today appear every Sunday morning) so that they [disciples] may see the scriptures. Jesus wanted His disciples to know that He is the fulfillment of the law and prophets. He is the one that the scriptures was talking about. He is the one that even the angels longed to "look" into.
"Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ"" (1 Peter 1:10-13).

A call to ACTION!
"Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in speech and action."(Acts 7:22).
This is a call to action. The man who God used was educated in all literature of his day. He would not fall for the crap of "i am anointed so i don't need to read", "I am called by God, so i wont stay under authority", or "I am being used by God, so i wont be accountable"
Please notice where Moses was learning his ministry.It was NOT in a theological school. [And i personally giggled at that statement]. Why because we have religion in our world today. Many people do not feel called and accepted until they have passed through certain seminary! Sadly, to see.Most of the greatest prophets of the scripture such as Elijah who called down fire and even went up into heaven in a chariots of fire never attended a Seminary. "As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind."(2 Kings 2:11).And as far as i know, his predecessor was even "bad". Can you believe that this guy by the name of Elisha died and his dead body even rose another dead man to life! Oh my God! It was as if Elisha said that there cannot be two dead men in one tomb. So, you go back to life and allow me to continue resting!"Once while some Israelites were burying a man, suddenly they saw a band of raiders; so they threw the man's body into Elisha's tomb. When the body touched Elisha's bones, the man came to life and stood up on his feet" (2 Kings 13:21).
I am NOT against attending Seminary and theological schools. By the grace of God, i have attended and i am still going to attend more.Meanwhile i am saying this because of protegees and friends that comes to me asking my advice before they enroll in Theological schools. Just few days ago, my cousin came to seek my counsel on this same matter.And i told him go back to school. Get your Masters' degree and PhD if you can! You pick your Bible as you go through your study and devour it like a mad man.You will be more resourceful to God's kingdom that way. Meanwhile, you may leave seminary and totally backslide from following God. Thinking that you have seen it all. Why? because i have seen that happened to people. Not once or twice.

Activism and Productivity.
"Just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we will also bear the image of the heavenly."
(1 Corinthians 15:49). But before we become translated and change into heavenly image; there are
assignments here on earth that God would have us do. This is why we must be productive. We must become a people of action. Not in rhetoric. But in deed! in Spirit and in Truth.I do not believe that the reason for Jesus's death and resurrection was to form a church. Even though the church is great! I love the church. I will never allow myself to be sandwiched into church. I will never allow myself to be swayed away by every winds of doctrines! The danger in that is this: It is possible to get carried away by the activities of church and you lose relationship with the King himself. We can lose sight of the grand picture very easily that way!
I want you to look back at history.Consider the times of Martin Luther King Jnr and you will see that the times the church commanded the world's respect mostly, were those times when the church folks stepped out of the four walls of their cathedrals [pause and ponder].This is why i continually say that this thing is beyond the four walls of any church! The church that really made a difference are the activism-oriented church. And the church that will be relevant in the days to come are not necessarily going to be; based upon their sizes or their brands. It will be those churches who understood the times and seasons, and they knew what Israel are to do per time. They are the sons of Issachar whose brethren will be at their command.
They are the uncommon people who are willing to risk all what they have been known for; in order to explore the mysteries of the kingdom of God. I am not talking about going out of order. I am speaking about walking according to the word of God, in fulfilling our divine mandates! God's word contains ACTIONS. It is an account or record of myth-breakers, "tradition shatter-ers" and "crazy" folks! Those guys were not necessarily perfect; but they were "bad"! They make you wanna be "a believer" indeed!
And if we will make a difference, or leave our footprints on the sands of time; our generation must embrace their principles! Can you imagine that Jesus had an activist among his disciples in the person of Simon the zealot or Simon the freedom fighter? Why did Jesus add such a radical to his team? I do not know. But i think, he did so to teach us something. We love to have people like us on our team. They have to be some "predictable yes-men"! Little wonder we are not making God kind of progress!
Of course, activism must be tailored into the new covenant purpose and ideals. Why because all forms of
activism derives their inherent roots from the rectitude of man. And this rectitude springs from the Christ of God. In order words, to be transformed is to be shaped. And to be shaped is to be reformed by Christ, to fight against certain things that will not allow men (other men like you) attain their divine end. For which reason are we saved? Are we not saved unto good works? Even though we were not saved by our good works. There cannot be a complete salvation of man, where after he has been saved; he sits down warming the church benches on all Sundays of the year. The word that goes inside of him would not remain dormant. The word of God is quick and sharper than any two edged swords. That word works! And it will work through you after working in you. This is the word of the Lord. Kingdom of God is not in meat and in drinking! Let us beware of perverting this purpose. We are not into child's play.
Now, why will activism be necessary to reach the society? Because the society have a preconcieved idea, or prejudiced notion of the church. They feel this is a certain way a church must look and appear. And you don't catch a fish by showing the sharp pointed edge of your hook in place of a worm! "Sorry i am not going to eat that!" says the fish.The soul we are sent to win are seeing the sharp end of our hook: condemnations, hatred, envy and more. When these things should not be named among us. In our midst, we are seeing rivalry, when every man should be running his own course. Little wonder the people we needed most are not showing up in our services. Few come in on Sunday mornings, and they never return until Easter or Christmas time. Why? Because we are showing them the sharp edge of our hook! Don't we have churches that spy on members when they attend their services today? Some churches run a criminal record checks on their members before they are accepted. Who else needs a church the most? We have churches that Google-up their member's name to know people by the hand of the flesh rather than through discernment. Do we have problems here? May be we just need some help from God? We cannot continue this way. And i know that everybody wants to be a part of something big. People wants something larger than life itself to wrap their lives around. This is why Jesus told the disciples that they must wait for the promise of the Father. Because we cannot achieve such weight of glory without the Holy Spirit! (Acts 1:8).