Miscellaneous devotionals of 2024

April 21^st,2024

KINGDOM MANIFESTO FOR ENDTIME TRIUMPH

 There he waits until his enemies are humbled and made a footstool under his feet [NLT]

 From that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool [KJV] 

Hebrews 10:13

In writing the book, ”The Triumph of Christ,” I dedicated a significant portion to the teaching of advanced eschatology. This decision stems from the book being the culmination of my theological studies, following “After God’s Heart,” and because eschatology represents a crucial aspect of biblical revelation that challenges Christians universally. The perspective advocated in the book aligns with pre-tribulation rapture theology. I believe the Bible reveals that the End Times will be marked by dwindling love and escalating lawlessness. Concurrently, those who truly know God will perform great exploits, completing the tasks of the Great Commission and ensuring the Gospel of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ reaches the remotest parts of the earth [Matthew 24:12, 14]. We shall overcome the world before the rapture, which is not merely an escape for a defeated and feeble bride [1 John 5:4-5; 1 John 4:4; John 14:1-3; Psalm 45]. Both Old and New Testament prophecies foretell the Gospel’s triumph prior to the church’s rapture, presenting a paradox in the End Times as despair and hope coexist.

Action 1: Being Yielded to the Will of God

To be part of this End Times army and receive a share in the harvest that the Lord will grant to the church, we must submit fully to His divine and perfect will for our lives. The time is short, the rewards plentiful, and the battle intense [1 John 2:18; 1 Corinthians 7:29-31; Revelation 22:12; Galatians 6:7-10; Ephesians 5:15-16; Ephesians 6:10-18].

Our goal should be to emulate the Master.

Hebrews 10:7 [Psalms 40:7]:

Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come—In the volume of the book it is written of Me—To do Your will, O God.’

Had Jesus not adhered to the Father’s will in every detail of His life [John 5:19; Matthew 3:17], His sacrifice would not have been perfect or a fragrant offering to God at the cross, on our behalf [Luke 22:42; Hebrews 5:7]. Whenever we face a choice between prayer and leisure, we should consider what the books of heaven record about an End Time victorious soldier of the cross. Our days, tears, cultural battles, and arguments for public holiness, along with our good works and even our names, are all recorded [Psalms 139:16; Psalms 56:8; Malachi 3:16; Numbers 25:11; Ephesians 2:10; Jeremiah 1:5; Luke 10:20; Revelation 3:5; Revelation 20:15]. The reprobate and the elect do not follow the same path; the former are guided by a “reprobate mind” towards impurity and rebellion [Romans 1:28], while the latter are led by “the mind of Christ”  towards pleasing God in all wisdom and knowledge [1 Corinthians 2:16; Colossians 1:9-10]. True believers distinguish good from evil [Hebrews 5:12-14], unlike impostors who profess Christ but whose hearts remain distant from the kingdom [Matthew 15:8; Hosea 10:2; Luke 11:52; Matthew 23:15; 2 Timothy 2:19; James 1:8; 2 Peter 2]. Pastors after God’s heart and self-serving shepherds do not interpret or debate Scripture similarly [Jeremiah 3:15; John 21:17; Ezekiel 34:1-12; John 10:13; Acts 20:26-30; Ephesians 4:14]. The persistent and the quitters follow different paths [1 Thessalonians 3:3; Mark 4:17]. What does God’s book say about us? Can we honestly claim that our activities honor and glorify His name?

We must aim to live as Jesus did, placing our faith in the Son of God as taught in Galatians 2:20:

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

The old life is gone; sin no longer dominates us. The new life has begun, richly filled with divine glory. We thrive like the cedars of Lebanon in the house of Adonai, bearing fruits of righteousness like the Juniper virginiana tree at maturity. We follow in the footsteps of saints like the Apostle Paul who faithfully followed Christ, as stated in 1 Corinthians 11:1:

Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.

We should aspire for God to be pleased with our walk, just as He was with Jesus. We can learn from men of God who found favor in His sight:

• Jesus
• Paul
• Peter
• John
• Elijah
• Elisha
• Moses
• Joshua
• Samuel
• David
• Enoch
• Daniel

These 12 men provide guidance for us in these End Times through their diverse perfection, career paths, and challenges. Their scriptures, prophecies, teachings, relationships, and mighty deeds offer a balanced benchmark for facing contemporary challenges. They represent the most inspirational biographies in my view, crucial for preparing us to be part of God’s End Time army as I strive through Christ Our Hope Ministries. We should fully devote ourselves to God like these men, consecrating ourselves to His service so that He may use us to establish His kingdom’s banner across numerous nations. We should desire for the fulfillment of Hebrews 10:13 through our churches, outreaches, and ministries, just as I pray Christ Our Hope Ministries will witness the fulfillment of Joshua 21:45. Jesus patiently waits for every person to repent [2 Peter 3:9], yet He is also prepared to humble every defiant foe of His kingdom. He will accomplish this not through violence, as His kingdom is spiritual [Matthew 26:51-52; Acts 12:22-23]. Knowing that no opponent can withstand Christ encourages the faithful like those in Philadelphia [Revelation 3:8-9], who find that when Christ opens a door, it truly cannot be shut. This is evident in the account of Elymas, who attempted to prevent a proconsul from hearing Paul in Acts 13. In our era, we might be the ones God uses to spark a major revival in America and Europe, to open revival doors in China and India, and to break through resistant regions of the 10/40 window [Isaiah 45:1-3]. We demand that the world prepare for our King. Christianity should be freely debated among world religions, without restrictions on preaching the Gospel anywhere.

We should desire to be the generation that God will use to trigger the rapture of the church and take God’s children home in glory [John 14:1-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17; 2 Peter 3:12; Revelation 19:7-12]. We should be consumed with and dedicated to seeing this happen in our lifetime. Every generation has believed that eschatological events could occur in their appointed times in history, and it is our turn not just to believe that this is possible, but also, by the grace of the Lord, to hasten that day to see it as a reality. It is a “high calling“—a “heavenly calling“—Philippians 3:12-14, 2 Peter 3:12, Hebrews 3:1. Have we devoted ourselves fully to this? Is everyone seeing our progress toward this mark [1 Timothy 4:14-16]?

This is not something that we would be able to see fulfilled if we are aiming for the quasi-worldly, banal goal of “success” that we hear thrown around in recent years by all and sundry. It is something we can only attain if we are truly aiming for the #TriumphOfChrist [Psalms 110:1-3], with all the attendant sacrifices we will have to make. It is possible that in our generation, which I am going to call ‘The Joshua Generation’, EVERY nation will OPENLY accept Christianity as the rule of life. I came to this conclusion while reading Matthew 12:20-21 as part of Christ Our Hope Ministries’ vision casting many years ago. In short, it says that in addition to Christ bringing judgment to victory, in His name the nations will put their hope. Why wouldn’t the nations want the hope we have in Christ? His love is sure and a cure for the hatred we see. His truth is unchangeable, a much-needed escape from the whims of man and the oppression of tyranny. Even His economic principles we read in Proverbs and Deuteronomy are more reliable. No country can reasonably claim to have discovered better alternatives. Do we know of any nation today that is without billion or even trillion-dollar debts [Deuteronomy 15:6; Deuteronomy 28:12-13; Proverbs 22:7]? No! Why? Because modern nations have rejected the Lord’s laws, and He has closed His storehouses of abundance that would allow them to be debt-free because of robust economies. There’s more the unreached and pagan nations would want as benefits in the “Desire of all nations” than they will find to be of sacrifice or pain [Haggai 2:7-8]. Often nations think that once they become Christianized, they will lose their indigenous identity, but this is a misunderstanding of what the Gospel intends to create. Christ is the Lord of all, not just the Savior of the West or Israel. No indigenous people of any land will be robbed of their uniqueness because they have embraced the Lordship of Christ. So, because of our faith in the Word of God and the promises He has given, we will win that war. We have no other choice [Matthew 24:14; Mark 16:15-20; Romans 15:18-20].

For this to happen, we understand that we must be found in God’s perfect will in career, businesses, partnerships, marriage, residence, and time management. These and other areas are some of the circumstances that Satan could attack us and prevent us from fulfilling what God wants for us to attain. Remember, everyone has always wanted to see the rapture, but not everyone is an Enoch or Elijah. Those were rare men of God [You may want to see a 2022 devotional on Genesis 5:24, October 22nd, and Hebrews 12:22, October 8th]. We simply have to accept that we must set our desires, wishes, will, and choices aside so that we can embrace divine wisdom, peace, resources, and power. We should want to have God by our side and on our side. This surrender is even stricter for those who aspire to be Bible teachers who teach with authority [Matthew 7:29], prophets, evangelists, and pastors. It is written for those who lead God’s people, like the High Priest Joshua of the Jewish returnees who had been released by Cyrus and was tasked: “Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘If you will walk in My ways, And if you will keep My command, Then you shall also judge My house, And likewise have charge of My courts; I will give you places to walk Among these who stand here‘ “—Zechariah 3:7. The fact is that Zechariah 3 starts with a vision of Satan standing at the right hand of the High Priest to accuse him before God. What sin he had committed to stand accused, we don’t know, but Satan is rebuked by the angel there because Joshua was a brand plucked from Satan’s hellfire. Since Zechariah 3:2 is quoted by Jude 1:23, could Joshua have made himself morally unclean and therefore unable to offer the sacrifices of a High Priest? Whatever sin that was, it was atoned for. But it should serve as a warning that those who want to do great things for God should not want Satan to tell them, “Jesus I know and Paul I know, but who are you?” Satan should henceforth be under our feet and no longer our accuser, because we have decided to be blameless [Revelation 12:10; Luke 22:31; Job 1:11; Job 2:5; John 14:30; 1 John 5:18; 1 John 3:8; Psalms 91:13; Judges 14:16; Daniel 6:22; Philippians 2:12-15]. While the door that Satan used to join the angels and appears in heaven’s council meetings to accuse Job and Peter has been shut by the cross [John 12:31; Revelation 12:10], the devil remains the greatest adversary of God’s people today and understands all the legalities of the kingdom to use against the saints if they are not fully consumed with God’s glory. If anything, he still works through “wanna-be Christians” on earth who are able to articulate in God’s presence what Satan would not be allowed to say before the Father’s majesty. Having a perfect High Priest in Christ who will advocate for us using the merits of His sacrifice is no reason to live loosely and let Satan wreak havoc [1 John 2:1-2; Hebrews 7:25; 1 Thessalonians 2:18; 1 Corinthians 16:9]. We must present ourselves before God without blemish so that He can boast about our standing [1 John 3:21; Job 22:26-28; 2 Corinthians 1:12]. God will honor our words and execute our judgments to the extent we are only submitted to the same. If we are zealous for the purity and power of God’s house in America, Europe, Asia, and Africa, the Lord can entrust us governing and judgment powers to establish His righteousness in those churches, whether we belong to them or not, since His kingdom is invisible and borderless, but this is a trust, not a gift. Our walk must be consistent with what has been entrusted to us [2 Timothy 1:14; 1 Timothy 6:20]. Where there’s rebellion in Christian communities across the world, the church cannot turn back the gates of hell, and those called to judge will fail that battle if they are not living in faith, love, and holiness.

Action 2: Entering an Open Door No Man Can Shut

Despite these considerations, there has never been a time when many Christians, whether in the USA, Europe, Australia, and beyond, have seemed so unsure and uncertain about the church’s ability to maintain its testimony in a dark world. The cause is both internal weaknesses and external pressures. In some places, the churches have split on doctrinal and practical issues. The recent split between the United Methodist and Global Methodists serves as an example. These are only the tip of the iceberg and reveal the overall weaknesses of the church. There have also been efforts from outsiders to influence the beliefs and practices of Christians, often succeeding in secularizing and corrupting the faith of the gullible, greedy, and fence-dwellers who were double-minded to begin with.

However, a clear revelation of Scripture guarantees victory for the church. Here are a number of Scriptures, from both Old Testament and New Testament, to keep in mind when considering the resistance and opposition to the Gospel. They should reassure us that the dominion of the saints rests on a sure foundation and the Triumph of Christ is not a wishy-washy thing, but a divinely inspired message, and guaranteed to be fulfilled with certainty.

• Joshua 10:24, When they had brought these kings to Joshua, he summoned all the men of Israel and said to the army commanders who had come with him, “Come here and put your feet on the necks of these kings.” So they came forward and placed their feet on their necks.
• Hebrews 10:13, And since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool.
• Psalms 149: 5-9, To execute the judgment written against them. This honor is for all His saints. Hallelujah!
• Daniel 2:44, In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever.
• Matthew 21:44, Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.
• Acts 17:30, In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.
• Acts 14:16, In the past, he let all nations go their own way.
• Matthew 28:18-20, Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
• 1 Timothy 1:20, Among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme.
• Acts 13:9-11, Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.” Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand.
• Luke 10:19, I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.
• Psalms 111:6, He hath shewed his people the power of his works, that he may give them the heritage of the heathen.

Action 3: Just Believe the Son of God

Often, Christians become overwhelmed when discussing the challenges of modern times. During the COVID-19 pandemic and the resultant closure of businesses and churches, it was common to detect a foreboding spirit among the faithful. Some of the pessimistic views we observed were justified, while others were mere conspiracies. Although Satan may project an air of authority, this was actually nullified at the cross and was definitively brought under subjection when Christ rose from the dead and ascended to sit at the right hand of the Father. The weaknesses of the churches and pastors are simply due to unbelief. We will perform the works of God expected of us when we fully grasp all the benefits of redemption we have through the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Once we do, we will rest, not fret [John 6:28-29; John 19:30; Hebrews 4:1-11].

Remember this:

Jesus didn’t die as a victim; He died as a Victor.

The cross is not a guillotine; it is the throne of grace.

When He died, He didn’t cry, “I am finished!” Instead, He proclaimed, “It is finished.”

Because the work of redemption was completed!

And the kingdom of Satan was finished!

Indeed, in 1 Corinthians 2:8, we read: None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. The cross was the means through which Christ fulfilled the prophecy of the seed of the woman to regain what Adam and Eve had lost. If Satan had known Christ would triumph through the cross, take the dominion of the fallen world from his dark bondage and transfer it to the Father’s just rule, he wouldn’t have enlisted Judas, Caiphas, and the Roman empire to do his bidding [Colossians 2:15; Isaiah 53:11; 1 John 5:19; John 14:30; Revelation 2:10; 2 Corinthians 4:4; 1 John 3:8; John 12:31; Revelation 12:1-11; Genesis 22:17-18; 1 Corinthians 15:24-25; Ephesians 4:8; Ephesians 3:10; Ephesians 1:17-23; Philippians 2:9-11; Psalms 2:1-12].

The following Scriptures show that the devil and the world that many Christians fear are already defeated:

• Isaiah 27:1, In that day the LORD will take his terrible, swift sword and punish Leviathan, the swiftly moving serpent, the coiling, writhing serpent. He will kill the dragon of the sea [NLT].
• John 12:31, Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.
• Colossians 2:15, And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
• Genesis 3:15, And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.
• Genesis 22:16-18, And said: “By Myself I have sworn, says the LORD, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son, blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”

Whatever remains to be fulfilled is not a matter of doubtable prophecy or promises, but rather a guaranteed victory that is still in progress:

• Matthew 16:18-19, And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
• Romans 16:20, The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

April 13^th,2024

FAITH TO JUDGE LAWLESSNESS

I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” [NIV]

I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth? [KJV] 

Luke 18:8

When Christ, apostle Paul, and apostle John spoke of the last days, they spoke of perilous times of lawlessness [Matthew 24:12, 2 Timothy 3:1-13; 1 John 2:18]. I have observed over the years that this lawlessness has not only increased in the unredeemed world, but it has also slowly creeped into the church and increased in those who claim to be Christians. The fact that the fallen world would be ungodly is obvious. If people do not have Jesus Christ in their hearts, what would make them immune from this prophesied chaos ? The question is, why should those who name the name of Jesus as their Redeemer refuse to turn away from iniquity [2 Timothy 2:19] ?

When you read Paul’s prediction of what people would become like in 2 Timothy 3, you can recognize that some of the “Christians” you have known have been that way.

• Lovers of themselves- not understanding self-giving sacrifice ? Check-✔
• Lovers of money- putting it before relationships ? Check-✔
• Proud- Of their worldly achievements and disordered affections ? Check-✔
• Boastful- Flaunting their wealth, luxury cars on social media ? Check-✔
• Scoffing at God [NLT]- Pretending they are masters of the universe ? Check-✔
• Disobedient to parents- “Prodigal sons and daughters”- Check-✔
• Ungrateful- Not returning thanks for blessings received ?-Check-✔
• Unholy- defiling of sacred things of God-Check-✔
• Unloving or Heartless [ESV]- “Raca” throwing mouths ? Check-✔
• Slanderous- Saying things to defame other people and calling it free speech ? Check-✔

And this is just to name a few. 

It would be bad enough if these sins existed in their hearts and had no impact beyond what they thought inside their heads. But the love of many will grow cold because of the increase of these things. So, this lawlessness spreads like gangrene [2 Timothy 2:17]. Every unscriptural or unbiblical thing you see and hear is a demon trying to attach itself onto you. If you are not careful, it will soon get into you. Some of these sins lead to real world harm such as unfair litigation in courts like the widow of the Parable from which the above text is extracted [Luke 18:1-8], false balances in courts and ungodly judicial rulings, lost careers, broken marriages and dating relationships, bankrupt businesses, hacked bank accounts, kidnapped children, sex slaves trafficking, political corruption, government authority abuse, “Antichrist spirit” empowerment, discrediting of Gospel ministry, suppression of divine truth, spread of false beliefs, high level fraud, inappropriate dependence on social benefits programs, and violence that leads to bloodshed. So, just like a surgeon is considered compassionate and right when he amputates a gangrenous foot to preserve the upper part of a leg, the saints must understand that the judgment of these putrid sins preserves society. It is the only way to stop their spread and prevent their chilling effects on the hearts of the innocent. 

 While we may enumerate some of  these sins and many people could feel good about themselves that they have not done this or that, John tells us that sin by nature is lawlessness [1 John 3:4]. So, as long as sin is cherished, not crucified, it is allowed to grow unchecked, not mortified, the little foxes will turn into elephants in the room [Song of Solomon 2:15; Proverbs 17:14; James 1:13-15]. Even the holiest of saints still has indwelling sin [Romans 7; Hebrews 3:13]. It must be resisted by abiding and walking in the Spirit. So, even those of us who think we are standing strong should be careful that the lukewarmness and coldness around us do not cause our fire to be quenched and ebb away. Christians lose their joy, faith, and love when they are not being continually spirit-filled. Why did Paul have to instruct the saints, “do not quench the Spirit ?” 1 Thessalonians 5:19. Because what fell on Pentecost was not guaranteed to stay if the Spirit was grieved [Isaiah 63:10; Ephesians 4:30; Genesis 6:3]. Sure, all Christians have the Spirit in them, but how many can say like Jesus that the Holy Spirit is upon them to heal the brokenhearted, cast out demons, heal the sick, and raise the dead [Romans 8:9; Ephesians 1:13-14; Luke 4:18; Acts 10:38; Hebrews 13:8; John 14:12] ? And without the Holy Ghost fire like Peter and Paul had, what do saints have to transform this world better than the rest of mankind could do ? ZERO. Yet, how many times have we seen churches and pastors who discourage the spirit of revivalism and wherever it broke out they rushed to pour cold water on it ? How many times have we seen passion for God mocked, attacked, and opposed by those who claimed to know Jesus ?

Yet, despite all of these things, Jesus said there was hope. 

• There was hope if people prayed for God’s will to be executed on earth as angels do in heaven [ 1 Timothy 2:1-5; Matthew 6:9-13]. 
• There was hope if the saints did not faint [Isaiah 40:28-31; Isaiah 62:7; Luke 11:5-8].
• There was hope if they called upon the Lord, praying without ceasing [1 Thessalonians 5:17; Ephesians 6:18; Jude 1:20; Daniel 6:10]. 
• There was hope if Christians would persevere in prayer [Luke 21:36; Matthew 26:41; James 5:17; 1 Chronicles 4:10]. 
• There was hope if they believed in the Lord Almighty, who created heaven and the earth [Jeremiah 32:17, 27; Isaiah 51:13; Isaiah 7:4; Isaiah 10:24-27; Isaiah 40:15; Mark 9:23; Mark 11:22-24; Hebrews 11:6; Matthew 19:26]
• There was hope because He who did not spare His own Son, but freely gave Him up for us all would also find nothing too good to be true for us, too good to be handed to us, too  amazing to be gifted to us [Romans 8:32; John 14:13; John 15:7; 1 John 5:14-15; 1 John 5:4; John 11:42; Hebrews 7:25; Revelation 1:5-6; Matthew 7:7-11; 1 Corinthians 14:1; 1 Corinthians 1:7; Proverbs 18:22]
• He would be attentive to our cries. He would say that we have not because we asked not [Psalms 34:15; Job 36:7; Psalms 18:6; Psalms 113:7; James 4:2-3]
• He would stretch out His hand to heal sick bodies, deliver those oppressed by demons, and heal the lands where His people have chosen a fast that pleases him and humbled themselves before the throne of grace [ Hebrews 4:15-16; Acts 4:25-31; 2 Chronicles 7:14; Isaiah 58:6-11; Psalms 144:14]
• He would also grant them justice in whatever situations there was a misunderstanding, misrepresentation of facts, obfuscation of the truth, unfair treatment, and a challenge against divine purposes [Daniel 5:12; 1 Samuel 24:12; Genesis 18:25; Psalms 58:11; Genesis 40:13-15; Acts 4:17-20; Acts 9:1-9; Zechariah 2:8;  Jeremiah 12:14; Titus 1:2; Proverbs 14:5; Proverbs 19:5; Numbers 23:19; Judith 8:16; Isaiah 46:10; Acts 5:39; 1 Timothy 1:18; Psalms 89:19; Psalms 43:1; Psalms 31:18; Jeremiah 1:10; Jeremiah 51:20; Psalms 55:11-15; Psalms 73:8-20; Numbers 16:30-33; 1 Peter 4:17; 1 Corinthians 10:22; Romans 1:18-31; Ephesians 5:11]
• He would defend His covenant, build a church against which the gates of hell shall not prevail, and fulfill every promise and prophecy that lifts up the cause of His people, which the devil had said would never come to pass [Matthew 16:18-19; Psalms 149:5-9; Ezekiel 21:15; 2 Corinthians 1:20; 1 Kings 8:56; Joshua 21:45; Psalms 2:1-12; Psalms 110:1-3; Hebrews 10:13; Matthew 12:20-21; Exodus 15:3; Isaiah 42:13; Psalms 82:8].

Yet, despite all of these great and precious promises that God has given to us, when Jesus finishes the parable of the persistent widow of Luke 18:1-8, He asks: when the son of man comes, will He find faith on the earth ? It is like He was astonished that God would be so ready to vindicate His people and yet they would be foolish of heart and slow to believe what the prophets have spoken. What have we done with all of these promises ? Indeed we may ask like Gideon, “O my lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the LORD has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.”- Judges 6:13. A question arising out of a confused state for the experiences of the real world that do not match the promises of the Word of God. But we know what would be the answer. Immanuel, God with us, has not left us [Matthew 1:23]. He said “Lo, I am with you always“- Matthew 28:18-20. The question is, do we believe the Lord our God will arise to avenge and give us justice ? Do we believe that if our cause is right, then His judgment will be in our favor ? Do we expect Him to do it speedily ? Even now ? Do we know that we serve a Risen Savior who entered rooms without knocking and is now in our midst ? Do we know that this Judge stands at the door and can storm inside even now ? [James 5:9]

 April 11^th,2024

IMPACT OF BIBLE STUDY AND PROPHETIC WORDS ON OUR LIVES

The benefits of the Bible are undeniable. The Word of God is the very breath of God. It is useful for teaching and training us in righteousness [2 Timothy 3:15-16]. No saint can ever outgrow their need for regular Bible reading, serious study, and iron-sharpening iron in the Word of God in a Christian community. Prophetic words also can be quite powerful in transforming the lives of the saints. In 1 Timothy 1:18, we see Paul linking the fulfillment of Timothy’s destiny to how the latter would wage spiritual warfare to enforce the prophecies “once made” about him. It did not matter how long ago they were made. It mattered that Timothy believed them, prayed through them, and took action. 

Sometimes prophecies that come to us through night dreams can be quite hard to determine that they are from God, but actually the theology of prophetic dreams is quite solid. Scriptures like Joel 2:28, Job 33:14-18, Acts 2:17, Acts 16:6-10, Acts 18:9-10, Acts 27:22-24, Matthew 1, Matthew 2, Daniel 2, stories of Joseph about himself and Pharaoh’s dreams in Egypt, and many others, show us how God has used dreams or affirms that He will continue to use dreams to speak to people. Ultimately, the best test of a good prophecy is the impact or fruit it has on the person who received it either from another saint or directly from his/her own dreams. It’s hard to question whether a prophetic dream is a divine promise when you are dealing with perfection of spirituality itself. We are talking about unusual performance in a holy walk, miracle-producing faith, great joy, peace about the future, purity, wise business and career choices, and all things that can bring one’s life to peak performance. This is similar to what basketball players like Michael Jordan call “THE ZONE” Not every basketball player can be like Michael Jordan and not every Christian lives in the ZONE— when the spiritual, psychological, and physical aspects of a person converge into an apogee—peak experience that can hardly be engineered by human effort. This is the edge that the prophetic can give to us and we should never want to lose, especially when the prophetic dreams God has given to us are challenged, tested, questioned, and doubted. Joseph did not need his brothers to believe in his dreams. He himself would be tested by God because of those prophecies and we read in Psalms 105:19 these words: Until the time that his word came to pass, The word of the LORD tested him. The first part of the verse is translated as till what he foretold came to pass in the NIV while the Berean Standard is translated as until his prediction came true.

Often it is the testing period of the personal prophecies that brings about the success or failure of those prophecies. No personal prophecy, however true, would ever be fulfilled if God has not tested and approved the recipient. There are many reasons why God wants to test us before He can fulfill what He has spoken about our lives, including protecting us from harm if the promotion, provision, and product that result from the prophecy could come between us and him, cause us to become proud, reduce our zeal for his kingdom, or cause any other problem in our walk with Him. These tests are also used to determine our elevation in the kingdom of God, especially for future eternal rewards, and we should be proven faithful in little things if we want to inherit bigger things. That waiting period is most likely to lead to the fulfillment if we use it to build our character, to become more like the Giver Himself, rather than yearn for the possession of the promised gift. A true test of a godly prophecy is how much it will impact us for the better in our sanctification. Are we growing more patient, loving, kind, zealous, honest, transparent, and faithful ? We are allowed to question any spiritual experience whose fruit does not conform us to the perfect image of Jesus Christ. 

When God speaks prophetically, He speaks according to His riches in glory and His outstretched arm that created the heavens and the earth, and therefore we should avoid any temptation to question Him [Jeremiah 32:17, 27]. Response to the prophetic Rhema word of God can determine whether that word will be fulfilled or not. Looking at Luke 1, we see how Mary and Zacharias responded differently to prophetic words about having babies, with one being flabbergasted because of his old age while another said Amen though she was a virgin. She had accepted that “nothing is impossible with God.”  The tendency for humans to doubt what God says is seen in how Sarah responded when she was told she would bear a child in Genesis. We read that she laughed. This is why Isaac was named so, because his name means laughter. To a certain degree, this is what every promise should produce in us. Hope is released in the midst of hopelessness and joy is released amidst sorrows because of the prophetic word.

Paul said “Now these three abide” when he was juxtaposing spiritual gifts and the “more excellent way” of love in 1 Corinthians 12, 13, and 14. He said those three were love, faith, and hope [ 1 Corinthians 13:13]. The evidence of our hope and faith is in the joy of the Lord that oozes out, flows from, and springs out of our hearts because we know that God’s love is as steady as the mountains and His “𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒌𝒚”- Psalms 36:5. Our eyes of faith must “𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝑯𝒊𝒎 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒗𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒆”- Hebrews 11:27, and our hearts should hold Him close for all that He is, all that He has said, and all we know He is able to do for us. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒚 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉- Romans 1:17. The joy that faith has produced throughout church history is unfathomable. Look for example at the joy that filled the city of Samariah when Phillip went to preach the Gospel there [Acts 8:5-8]. However, we are told that these 3 things will also be severely tested in the last days. The love of many will grow cold because of increasing wickedness [Matthew 24:12]. Jesus seemed concerned whether He would find faith on the earth at His return [Luke 18:8]. And the hearts of many will fail them, bringing hopelessness, fear, and anxiety, as they see unfolding events of the last days [Luke 21:26]. So, these three things abide as long as the church is here, but they will be tested as long as we live in a fallen world. The prophetic is given to us to bring comfort and stir up the flame of God to keep these 3 things burning in our hearts, when we believe that He who has promised is also able to perform [Romans 4:17-21; 2 Timothy 1:6-7; 1 Corinthians 14:3]. 

The natural mind is one of the greatest impediments to the wonders that the prophetic can bring about in the church. We are told that the natural person cannot accept the things of the spirit [1 Corinthians 2:14]. They may be set, fixed, stubborn in their old ways that they will not want to change or readjust according to the revelation of the prophetic word. This makes them to lose the potentials of what the Holy Spirit can do in their lives because “the flesh profits nothing“- John 6:63. The outcome of a life led by the eye of the Lord cannot simply be the same with the results of those who try to produce things in their own efforts, desires, and wit [Psalms 32:8, Romans 8:14, John 15:1-5]. Without Christ we can do nothing of eternal significance. God knows the “who, where, why, when, and how” for the perfection of His destiny for our lives, and bring us into that ZONE where all things are possible for us to leave behind a rich legacy of love, faith, and hope. Unfortunately, this is something that is generally missed by millions of Christians either because they do not believe the Holy Spirit can speak to them or give them genuine prophetic words of biblical proportion. When we embrace the prophetic, we will maximize our potential in spiritual, psychological, and physical assets the Lord has deposited inside of us. 

Michael Jordan living in the zone, as compared to other basketball players, is an example that there’s such a thing as a mystical union between the spiritual, psychological, and physical that brings about peak performance in a human being. I am not sure who is the G.O.A.T between Michael Jordan and LeBron James [current 40,017 points, the highest in the history of Basketball]- as I am not an expert in Basketball analysis, but I think that is good enough for us to understand that this kind of performance is rare. Michael Jordan’s peak performance was in the 1990s and it is only in the 2020s that we talk about someone being able to outpace him. Imagine all the basketball games and tournaments that were played in the US, UK, France, Asia, and Africa throughout that time, for someone to emerge to show that this thing, this peak performance, can be done. 

To a certain degree, the prophetic will trigger and release something inside of us that must be linked our kingdom identity. As long as see ourselves as grasshoppers, we will be limited, and we will not be able to enter and take possession of the land that the Lord our God has graciously given to us. Jesus understood the role identity plays in the fulfillment of His destiny, and this is an area that Satan attacked him in sorely, challenging him saying “If you are the Son of God.”  While dealing with the Jews later on in His ministry, Jesus quoted Psalms 82 when He was defending His assertion that He was the Son of God, by reminding the Jews who they were: “𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒈𝒐𝒅𝒔”- John 10:34-35 [See Psalms 82:6-7]. Interestingly, He also added “And Scripture cannot be broken,” which emphasizes that point even more. What does that mean ? For us who are born again, we know it means that the fact Scriptures declare that we are partakers of God’s divine nature should be taken seriously [2 Peter 1:3-4]. QUOTE: 𝐻𝑖𝑠 𝑑𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 ℎ𝑎𝑠 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑢𝑠 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑤𝑒 𝑛𝑒𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑎 𝑔𝑜𝑑𝑙𝑦 𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤𝑙𝑒𝑑𝑔𝑒 𝑜𝑓 ℎ𝑖𝑚 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑑 𝑢𝑠 𝑏𝑦 ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑔𝑙𝑜𝑟𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑔𝑜𝑜𝑑𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠. 𝑇ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑠𝑒 ℎ𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑠 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑢𝑠 ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑔𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑜𝑢𝑠 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑚𝑖𝑠𝑒𝑠, 𝒔𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆, ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑝𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑟𝑟𝑢𝑝𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑙𝑑 𝑐𝑎𝑢𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑒𝑣𝑖𝑙 𝑑𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑠.

• Yet, how many Christians have seen their shadow heal the sick like Peter [Acts 5:14-16]?
• Handkerchiefs that they have touched cast out demons like Paul [Acts 19:1-12] ?
• And were teleported in the Spirit like Philip [Acts 8:39] ?

It is easy to show that even many Christians today are below the standards of the Old Testament prophets like Daniel, Ezekiel, Isaiah, and Moses, when Scriptures declare that they had far less treasures and inheritance in God than the least of all saints is supposed to have in Christ [Matthew 11:11-12; John 14:12; Matthew 13:17; Ephesians 3:8].

Do you know why we don’t see these things happening today ?

• It is not because miracles have passed away like the cessationists would have us believe.
• It is not because the Joel 2:28 was meant for the first generation of Christians only like those who deny prophecy, visions, and dreams would try to claim.
• It is not because Jesus has changed from what He used to be, as obviously that is proof that someone doesn’t know Jesus. It is not because Scriptures have become powerless, since heaven and earth would pass away before the Bible loses its potency.

Rather, it is because apotheosis is no longer believed and practiced in Christianity. It is because Christians are no longer taking advantage of their divine nature participation. It is because many Christians end up in marriages, careers, jobs, circumstances, countries, cities- that are outside of “the zone” that God had designed for them to live in peak performance. It is because many Christians want to apologize for spiritual gifts, divine promises, and God’s anointing in order to appear humble before the church hiring boards, friendship with the world, and looking cool in the midst of a perverse generation.

They are ashamed of the Gospel.

They are ashamed of the power of God.

They are shamed of “𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒅𝒐”

May we all yield ourselves to the voice of the Holy Ghost that we will know who, when, why, where, and how for us to show the world what to be “gods” looks like. May we command the lame to walk, the blind to see, the dead to rise, and Pharaoh to heed the voice of Jehovah or else.

April 10^th,2024

 UNDERSTANDING TEMPORAL JUDGMENT AND QUALIFICATION FOR ITS MINISTRY

Psalms 107:17-20

𝑺𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒐𝒍𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒓𝒆𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒖𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒇𝒇𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒍𝒐𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒇𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒘 𝒏𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒃𝒍𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔. 𝑯𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎; 𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒖𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒗𝒆.

By July 2024 it will be 9 years since I rediscovered the doctrine of Temporal Judgment and I cannot even begin to say how much it has saved my life. I strongly believe that it is the missing link in the sanctification process of the body of Christ as a whole. The more people understand, embrace, and practice it, the faster we will see the church attain the maturity we desperately need. As I have faithfully taught it, God has expanded my understanding, granted me to see firsthand its effects on me personally, then on a small circle of thousands of Christians I would consider acquaintances, and the whole world at large. My confidence in its necessity, appropriateness, and efficacy has grown as a result. 

In this devotional, we will aim to have a basic understanding of “the how and the why” temporal judgment. This is a vast topic, though probably not as vast as “eternal judgment“- Hebrews 6:2, another topic I covered in the book “Basics of Christianity” as that is considered a foundational doctrine. I see temporal judgment as a way God reduces the costs and pains that some people might have to suffer in eternal judgment, as it convicts them of their errors and brings them to repentance, much faster than a rational approach to appeal to their cognition might be able to achieve. 

In Psalms 107:17-20, temporal judgment is presented as “afflictions.”  This term has a quite wide interpretation and application in Scriptures. For example, when Paul writes “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory” in 2 Corinthians 4:17, he means the afflictions that the early church saints suffered as part of their entrance into the kingdom. These are also generally seen as tribulations [Acts 14:22, John 6:33], suffering [Romans 8:17, 2 Timothy 2:12], and persecutions [John 15:20; 2 Timothy 3:12]. All these 6 Scriptures I have chosen for this illustration show that afflictions, tribulations, suffering, and persecutions are necessary, unavoidable, and understandable for the true saints who have been chosen to reign with Christ. First, they are necessary per Romans 8:17 because those who will inherit the kingdom and co-reign with Christ must be proven fitting for that honor. The same rationale is expressed in 2 Timothy 2:12. If we suffer, we will reign. We must go through tribulations to enter and inherit the kingdom of God. Second, they are unavoidable per 2 Timothy 3:12 because the saints walk in godliness while the world is full of ungodliness, and children of the great serpent will be triggered to hate the children of light, as godliness and ungodliness cannot mix, just like water and oil cannot mix. The hatred the ungodly have towards the godly is natural to them, and that hatred leads them to hurt and persecute those who are godly. Third, they are understandable. Peter wrote that the saints should not consider them strange, that is foreign, unheard of, alien to Christianity [ 1 Peter 4:12-14]. They are understandable in light of what Christ suffered. A disciple is not above his Master. If the world hates us, we are reminded that it hated Christ first. Jesus set a pattern of how we are to live and we follow that pattern faithfully, it is understandable that we will experience some of the things that He experienced. However, these are often “light afflictions.” Many of us will not need to be crucified by Roman Soldiers downtown our city where we live. 

There’s also a second category that would be considered to be non-persecution afflictions that are outside of the sufferer’s control, and usually have nothing to do with the consequences of sin that the saint has committed. The story of Job can be given as an example. These are usually instigated by Satan. They are part of spiritual warfare from the heavenlies, and though they will also have some human beings involved, the motivation is often not necessarily systematic hatred, rather, instantaneous and unexplainable assault. Thieves and raiders attacked some of the flock of Job and it is unlikely they did so because he was righteous, rather because they were covetous and greedy. So, in that he suffered afflictions not as part of persecution, but as a consequence of the general fall of humanity. Yet, Satan was involved in sending those marauders. The same would be said of things like car, motorbike, and all accidents. They also originate from the second heaven, that is from Satan’s realm. There’s a famous sermon of Charles Spurgeon titled: “Accidents are not punishment.” Simply in a fallen world bad things will happen, to the good and to the bad, just like good things will happen to the good and to the bad. If those good things are called “common good” then those bad things can be called “common calamity.” This can explain why some unsaved people will at times be in solidarity with Christians, because they are faced with common suffering. 

With the above being said, Not everyone who suffers affliction like stomach ulcers, malaria, rheumatoid arthritis, strokes, gonorrhea, HIV, ovarian cancer, prostate cancer, COVID 19, and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis is because he is a sort of biblical Job, a righteous man, who is suffering afflictions because of righteousness [James 5:10-11; Job 1, Job 2]. Some actually suffer afflictions because of their rebellion.

It is what I call #TemporalJudgment [A searchable term/ hashtag on Twitter].

It is what Paul had discovered in 1 Corinthians 11:25-34 as an explanation why some people in the church of Corinth were sick and others had died. When people ignore the Word of God, when they choose Satan’s lies, when they are rebellious in their ways and walk in ungodliness, when they twist Scriptures and lower the standards of holiness, when they act in selfishness, greed, lust, and other sins of darkness, when they are secretive about bad things they think, plan, and would do, when they are despisers of the brethren in the church and thus fail to discern the Lord’s body, when they ignore, deny, suppress, and oppose the truth, when they are prayerless and slack in doing the Lord’s work, cancelling church services, Bible studies, and prayer meetings for no godly reason, they are acting as rebellious children and that can be a reason they will suffer affliction. There are hundreds of Scriptures to prove each and every point mentioned here, but time is short to do so. So, God hands the unfaithful over to Satan to be their tormentor so that they can learn not to be wicked and will determine to call upon the Lord, their Redeemer [Deuteronomy 32:20]. If they do so sincerely, with intent of repenting and doing the things they should have done in the first place, submitting themselves to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and leadership of the Holy Spirit, then their migraines will disappear. Their multiple sclerosis will be healed and they will raise from wheelchairs. Their strokes paralysis will vanish and they will be able talk and walk again. He will send “𝑯𝒊𝒔 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎”- Psalms 107:20.

With the “how and why” of temporal judgment, then let us proceed to talking about temporal judgment being a ministry. Scriptures show us that Peter and Paul, at the very least, were used by God in a form of temporal judgment ministry, as a specialized aspect of ministry for the purpose of the sanctification of the church. There have been many other prophets in the Old Testament who were used the same way, for the purpose of bring Israel back to repentance. However, this is a high degree ministry that requires maturity in the things of the Spirit. Temporal judgment must be rooted in love because the wrath of man cannot accomplish the righteousness of God. All the men of God who have been used in temporal judgment had no other interest than advancing the kingdom of God and the general prosperity of the church, as a whole, not sectarian denominationalism. 

In Romans 2:1, we read: “𝒀𝒐𝒖, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆, 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒏𝒐 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒖𝒔𝒆, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒑𝒂𝒔𝒔 𝒋𝒖𝒅𝒈𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒐𝒏 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒆𝒍𝒔𝒆, 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒋𝒖𝒅𝒈𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒎𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇, 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒑𝒂𝒔𝒔 𝒋𝒖𝒅𝒈𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒅𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔.”

I believe that the saints who understand and gain mastery of these teachings will be a great blessing to the church of the 21st century. This is because, as explained earlier, temporal judgment is more likely to effect change faster than appealing to reason alone. Many Christians have been poisoned in mind and have unrenewed thinking despite being born again, and therefore their minds are not capable of arriving at divinely inspired conclusions, like the sunesis of Paul would lead him to know better and do better. Such saints must be awakened by judgments.  I believe we can change the course of history by fulfilling the Ephesians 4:11-16 calling of the church, reaching the full stature of Christ.

Since the revelations of #TriumphOfChrist and #TemporalJudgment    I had in late 2015, I have taught a lot on 1 Peter 4:17 that says: 𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝒊𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒋𝒖𝒅𝒈𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒏 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝑮𝒐𝒅’𝒔 𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒅; 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒇 𝒊𝒕 𝒃𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒖𝒔, 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒃𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒅𝒐 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒐𝒃𝒆𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒐𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝑮𝒐𝒅. There are actually plenty of Scriptures, but this has been one of the most effective and clearest to people of the 21st century. It shuts down debate on the timing of this judgment, as often false teachers always want to argue that judgment is only in the eternal future, after the Second Coming of Christ. They fail to argue when they read: IT IS TIME. 

This was actually strongly practiced in the early church as we read 1 Corinthians 5, 1 Corinthians 6, Acts 5, Revelation 2-3, 1 John 5:16, John 9:39-40, John 7:24, Matthew 18:17, 1 Timothy 1:20, Acts 8:20, etc. There are more than a hundred Scriptures that refer to temporal judgment in the New Testament alone, and if we look at the Old Testament, these could be as many as three to five hundred Scriptures.

I have considered that some form of ministry in temporal judgment to be the next step after any Christian has sufficiently progressed in sanctification. If you look at Paul’s arguments in 1 Corinthians 5, you will see that he believed the laity that walks with the Holy Spirit could do this. There are also obviously apostles and prophets that  God has anointed and appointed for this task to help the body of Christ.

In God’s eyes, sin is disqualifying for this kind of teaching and ministry. You cannot be judging other people for the same things that you are doing yourself. However, the body of Christ desperately needs this help. This means that if God is calling you to be in a prophetic or apostolic ministry similar to that of Peter, Paul, and a John of our generation, you cannot afford to be doing the same things you want to have dominion over. You cannot afford to sin. You cannot afford to be imperfect. Now, this may trigger additional debates, as the doctrines of Christian perfection have also been murky in the last 100 years. However, these were quite established during the 1st great awakening. A good teaching to read regarding this is John Wesley’s “Plain Account of Christian Perfection. “

In Matthew 5: 48, we read: “𝑩𝒆 𝒚𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” So, Christians have been called to perfection. It is not something we can afford to argue with. Scriptures that are often flaunted to lower this standard are Philippians 3:12-14 and 1 John 1:7-9.  There’s a right way and a wrong way of using Paul’s confession- “not that I have obtained all of this or already been made perfect” [Philippians 3:12-14] and John’s “if we claim we have no sin we deceive ourselves“- 1 John 1:7-9. The right way to use them is to keep them in context. We will never be God, so as long as we are on this side of heaven there will always be need to be conformed to Christ’s perfect image. Philippians 3:12-14 is about Paul’s pursuit towards that. 1 John 1:7-9 is about allowing the Holy Spirit to search our hearts so that we can confess our sins [Psalms 139:23-24; Psalms 19:12], however small they may appear in our own eyes, they are still sins Christ had to be nailed to the cross for. Note that John writes in the context of “if we walk in the light as He is in the light.” There’s no 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒄𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 for those who dwell in darkness.

Christians do not just get forgiven because they asked, if sin still has dominion over them. This cleansing is only granted for those who walk in the light, who are perfectly transparent about their lives and have no hidden secrets and compromise. They are as clear as a glass before the church. They understand God’s will and submit to it. The Word of God is their lamp and walk in its instructions. Their footsteps are ordered of the Lord. Those are the only forgiven saints. The rest may pray to be forgiven without actually getting cleansed by God, and therefore they are self-deceived. Forgiveness was always preached as part of the message of repentance in the early church [Luke 24:47; Acts 3:19]. It has never been a pardon granted to those who intend to continue sinning [1 John 3:9]. 

So, John’s and Paul’s cautionary statements about our lack of infallibility this side of heaven do not change Christ’s command. They point to the humility we need, not a readjustment of God’s demands. We are still expected to obey what Christ taught: “𝒃𝒆 𝒚𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕!”

So, if Paul was not yet perfect, how was he used by God in the ministry of temporal judgment ? For every role that God has designed to serve as a spiritual growth and sanctification model in the church, there will be ministers that God has called for that purpose, and He will equip them to fulfill, which will allow them to progress to reach near perfection, though they may still have areas that themselves need help in. As part of their qualifications, they must present themselves before God as approved servants, that is tested and recognized competent for that task, not just by head knowledge or “revelation”, but also by faith and character. So, to practice judgment the way Paul did as we see in 1 Corinthians 4:17-21; 2 Corinthians 10:3-6; 2 Corinthians 13:1-10 you must also be ruthless against yourself in terms of how you pursue perfection. Errors, faults, unbelief, doubts, hypocrisy, and weaknesses are not allowed. A call to temporal judgment is a call to superhuman abilities and lifestyle. There should never be the charge Paul brought against the Corinthians, “are you not acting like mere humans ?”- 1 Corinthians 3:3. We have a divine nature and as we grow in sanctification this should obliterate and swallow up the crucified flesh, and even the not-so-sinful natural inclinations. There are things we may have liberty to do but are unprofitable. Doing those things may not be consistent with building God’s house with precious stones and pure gold [1 Corinthians 10:23; 1 Corinthians 3:15]. Those have to go as well. This is non-negotiable in God’s eyes. One has to get rid of the log in their own eyes before they can try to get a speck out of another.

Temporal judgment isn’t like a teaching ministry in which a Bible teacher might still be able to teach things he, himself, is still learning. Once you decide that you want this mantle, you have also decided that you have grown up beyond having to confess that you failed the lessons you are trying to enforce in the body of Christ [1 John 3:21]. You are a living epistle of the power of judgment you are releasing in the body of Christ [2 Corinthians 3:2]. You live on a raptured plane [Colossians 3:1-4]. Holy, Holy, Holy is your anthem, the air you breathe, and the whole theme of your waking, walking, and practice [Isaiah 6:1-8; Revelation 4; Revelation 5]. As Christ is, so are you [1 John 4:17-20]. You are part of the first-fruits of the spotless bride [Ephesians 5:25-30; Psalms 45:11-12; 2 Peter 1:5-11].

There’s a long way to go in building the body of Christ in the 21st century. We have the Sanballat, Bishlam, and Mithredath type of people, inside and outside of the church, who have normalized a weak and defeated church, and would obviously not want the body of Christ to come into the full stature of Christ, as such the ministry of temporal judgment is a threat to their apostate doctrines. The apostasy that was seen in the church between year 2000 and 2020 did not happen by chance, rather by design. So, the minister who has been called to serve the body of Christ this way, must be especially careful. This is because in personal relationships, in ministry leadership, in “survival” in the real world of business and career, there will be many traps that Satan sets in order to try to disqualify them from doing this, to make it harder to stand in perfection [Hosea 9:8]. Those ministers must stand firm and fight so that they will be victorious and triumphant. Father of Creation, unfold your sovereign plan. Raise up a chosen generation that will march through the land. Let your glory fall upon us and let it go from us to the nations. 

April 9th, 2024 devotional

THOUGH YOU HAVE LITTLE STRENGTH

I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.

Revelation 3:8

When apostle Paul looked at his successful apostolic ministry despite lack of much resources, he said: “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service.” Spiritual strength cannot be underestimated in accomplishing our life’s goals. Even in the physical, when people have cancer, COVID 19, AIDS, severe depression, and autoimmune disorders, one of the most concerning symptoms they complain is their depleted energy. They feel like they do not want to wake up in the morning and do something useful for themselves. On the other hand, those who are healthy, especially the muscular types, they feel like they can run over walls, and can lift heavy weights. Looking at Paul’s missionary journeys, and what he said was doing more than all the apostles [1 Corinthians 15:10], we can recognize that indeed God’s strength through the grace of Jesus Christ and the anointing of the Holy Spirit energized him to accomplish those things. Interestingly, he did not seem to think that strength was only available to an apostle like himself. He prayed for the saints of Ephesus to be strengthened in their inner man [Ephesians 3:14-21]. He wanted them to be filled to the measure of all  the fullness of God. That certainly would make all Christian believers powerful and strong. 

We live in a world that is full of challenges, losses, antagonism, hatred, betrayals, lies, competitions, and obstacles. Those things can sap the energy of God’s people. There have been times I have felt little strength and those circumstances were usually triggered by something that went against what I had hoped for, believed in, desired, or had worked hard to try to achieve. It happened because of disappointment. Solomon tells us that “hope deferred makes the heart sick“- Proverbs 13:12, and those circumstances that deplete our energy, steal our joy, and cause us to be disappointed can indeed be seen as sicknesses of the soul. How we deal with those events will determine whether we will emerge victorious or whether we will be defeated. There are many reasons circumstances that expose our weaknesses will happen in the lives of the saints, some could be due to misplaced hope, and others could be due to failure to attain what we believe is a divine objective. Obviously in case of the former what we need is repentance. The “desire of other things” [Matthew 13:1-23] were some of the harmful things that caused the seed of the Word to fail to produce an expected harvest in some of the seeds that were sown in the Parable of the Sower. Not every desire we have, however, impressive, pleasing, and fanciful is a good one. We must watch out that our desires are not carnal or originating from Satan’s temptations. However, Scriptures also state that if we delight in the Lord, He will give us the desires of our hearts [Psalms 37:4; John 15:7]. This is presumably the good desires that have been planted in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. However, we know that we live in world filled with devils, as Martin Luther suggests in the song, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” and our good and godly intentions are likely to be opposed, and because of that we need to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might so that our hopes arising from those godly desire are not cut off by the enemy of our destinies.

Whether the desires were planted there by our pursuit of the truth as we grew in the things of the Spirit, such as a desire to go to seminary for theological education, have a healing ministry that blesses millions of people, grow a great company to billion dollar valuation, or from a prophetic dream, such as a desire to be married, or whether they were even aroused sermons, teachings, and lectures we were exposed to, they are all valid and must be protected [2 Timothy 1:14; Luke 19:11-27]. Godly desires do not need to be suppressed and ignored. They must be fought for and possessed. Jesus expects a return on investment for the deposit of the faith, the precious promises, and prophetic destinies He has placed on our lives. 

Yet, just because a desire originated from God does not mean that its fulfillment will be automatic. There might still be things to do to get there. We know that we receive all divine promises by grace and faith, and yet there’s no Scripture that teaches that faith should always be passive. Indeed faith without works is dead [Ephesians 2:8-10; James 2:14-26]. So, what happens when one feels like the desire that God inspired is unattainable because there doesn’t seem to be a feasible way to get this fulfilled ? That can be quite disheartening. However, the Bible has many stories and teachings that show us that God is able to do exceedingly above all we ask or imagine. If a desire was born of a prophecy, for example, we can trust that He who promised is also able to perform. We do not need to know all the details of where we are going and how to get there, before we will leave what we have known behind, and start a journey of a thousand steps with the first step. We do not need to know how God will perform all His promises and prophetic words, only believe. Indeed the phrase “only believe” has done wonders throughout church history, as people came to see the simplicity of faith in the fulfillment and performance of God’s word [Mark 5:36; Mark 9:19-23].

Yet, our fallen nature wants a share of glory, the proof of toil, the sweat of the brow, and evidence of activity to be assured that we will produce the results of the things we hope for. The flesh has not learned to rest, trust, and lean on God’s everlasting arm [Hebrews 4:1-11; Deuteronomy 33:27; John 6:28-29; John 19:30; Isaiah 42:8]. The world keeps telling us toil more, work harder, and send those cold e-mails.  Philip Bliss wrote: “It is finished was His cry”  in the hymn “Man of Sorrows” and perhaps that’s something we should always keep in mind when we start to be heavy laden and weary. We should remember His call for the oppressed to come to Him and bear an easy yoke. We should understand that no matter how many promises GOD has made they are YES in Christ, because of His glorious power, and not our zealous efforts [Matthew 11:28-29; 2 Corinthians 1:20; Romans 4:17-21]. 

We can rest assured that our weaknesses, weariness, disappointments, and frustrations will not shock God and make Him incompetent to fulfill His promises and perform the prophetic words that He has given to us. Paul is an example of someone who knew that God’s power was perfected in human weakness [2 Corinthians 12:8-10; 1 Corinthians 1:25]. Myself, as someone who has a lot of energy and strength all the time, this is something that seems mysterious to me. How can I see God’s promises successfully fulfilled in my natural weaknesses, helplessness, exclusion, and inadequacy [2 Corinthians 3:5; 2 Corinthians 1:9] ? Do I really believe in the things of the Spirit ? Do I believe in relying on God’s mighty arm ? Another example of “little strength” not hindering great promises is the church of Philadelphia. I have had those moments when I have felt like the church of Philadelphia recently. We read: “𝑳𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉” in the verse of Revelation 3:8. This is how the church was known from a worldly point of view, but Jesus saw something entirely different.  If we look at that church of Philadelphia [Revelation 3:1-10], we see that it was one of the only 2 churches that Jesus praised and affirmed as faithful in Revelation 2-3 messages to the 7 churches. For those who have an allegorical interpretation of these messages, it is the 18th and 19th century church of George Whitefield, John Wesley, Francis Asbury, Smith Wigglesworth, William Booth, Keswickianism or “𝑯𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝑳𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝑴𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕,” Hudson Taylor, William Carey, David Livingstone, D.L. Moody, Saint Charbel, Charles Finney, Charles Spurgeon, and Charles Ryle.

It was the church of open doors. The church of daring missions, open air crusaders, high point evangelism, strong doctrinal preaching, and holiness movements.

When we feel like we have little strength, we should remember this church. From my experience, my little strength has meant that I had little interest to keep fighting for what I believed in, desired, or thought was God’s plan for me. We should always understand that our personal strength has never been a factor when God releases prophetic words, rather His riches in glory and His outstretched arm. God does not consult our strengths and weaknesses when He is giving us prophecies or decreeing the end from the beginning [Isaiah 46:10; Isaiah 41:10; 1 Corinthians 16:9; Deuteronomy 11:23; Deuteronomy 4:38; Deuteronomy 9:1]. He has never been impressed by the number of our opponents, the skills of our competitors, and possessions of those who hate us. David did not even need Saul’s armor, let alone Goliath’s sword, to be able to defeat that giant. The Bible is full of stories like these, where the weak defeat the strong. Indeed we are told, “let the weak say I am strong“- Joel 3:10.  At some point, Gideon did not consider himself to be a warrior who could fight for Israel, God’s people, or fulfill a divine cause. In Judges 6:15 we read his misgivings about what God had sent an angel to tell him: 𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒆, 𝒎𝒚 𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒅,” 𝑮𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒐𝒏 𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒅, “𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝑰 𝒔𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝑰𝒔𝒓𝒂𝒆𝒍? 𝑴𝒚 𝒄𝒍𝒂𝒏 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝑴𝒂𝒏𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒉, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑰 𝒂𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒚 𝒇𝒂𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒚.” Yet, what was Gideon commanded before he would see victory with just a handful of 300 soldiers ? 𝑮𝒐 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒚 𝒎𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 [Judges 6:14].

So, when we feel weak, when we feel our patience wearing thin, when we feel encircled, when we feel depleted, when we feel like we are at loss for what to do, we should simply embrace the rest of faith. Our faith does not need to be as big as a papaya fruit for God to work wonders through it, rather all it needs to be is as a small as a mustard seed [Luke 17:5-6]. Isaiah 7:9 says, 𝑰𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒅𝒐 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒎 𝒊𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍. And that is quite powerful because we do not need to stand on the basis of anything else, only what God has promised and has shown Himself capable of doing. The small seed mustard faith is all we need. It is enough for us. It is our “Go in this thy might” like Gideon’s. Let’s keep our faith so that we will also hear the same declaration from the lips of the King of Kings:  “I know your works. 𝑺𝒆𝒆, 𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒕 𝒃𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒏 𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒏 𝒅𝒐𝒐𝒓, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒏𝒐 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒔𝒉𝒖𝒕 𝒊𝒕; 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉, 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒌𝒆𝒑𝒕 𝑴𝒚 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅, and have not denied My name.”  

If we feel like we are strengthless, fixing our eyes on Christ is how we will be able to regain our strength again. We started from zero at our new birth, and yet look at how far we have come [Romans 5:6]. We can certainly believe God that He who began a good work in us will also bring it to completion [Philippians 1:6]. We can believe that He who has taken us through waters, fires, and winds will also bring us to our desired haven [Psalms 107:25-30; Psalms 66:12]. This is how our ancestors of Bible days obtained a good reputation. We read in Hebrews 11:33 -35: “𝑾𝒉𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒔𝒖𝒃𝒅𝒖𝒆𝒅 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒅𝒐𝒎𝒔, wrought righteousness, 𝒐𝒃𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒆s, stopped the mouths of lions Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒈, waxed valiant in fight, 𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒇𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒎𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒔. Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection.” And that is a formula we can follow. God has never disappointed those who trust in Him [1 Peter 2:6; Psalms 25:3]. – END.  [See April 8th post below]

April 8th, 2024 devotional 

THE COSTS OF IGNORANCE AND BEING DECEIVED

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

Hosea 4:6

One of the warnings that Jesus gave in Scriptures is how deception will be rampant and many Christians will be at risk of being deceived [Matthew 24:24]. Apostle Paul warned that there would be deceiving spirits that would cause many to depart from the faith, forbidding marriages or proper teachings on marriage, and restricting what Christians may be able to eat. John wanted us to test all spirits, because not every spirit is from God. Those spirits can often be detected through what people say, and they can help us distinguish the voice of the Shepherd and the voice of wolves [1 John 4:1-3; John 6:63; Matthew 12:34; John 10:27].

Unfortunately, many Christians are deceived easily. Paul was worried that the Corinthian church would be deceived just like Eve was deceived in the garden of Eden [2 Corinthians 11:3]. He also saw every wind of doctrine, especially false teachings propagated by cunning men, that tossed infants of the early church here and there as a major hindrance in attaining the full stature of Christ [Ephesians 4:11-16]. 

In the 21st century, a deep sanctification work is enjoyed by a minority of believers, not the majority. This is because many Christians are still in the category of those infants who are tossed about by every wind of doctrine, every social media post, every YouTube video they watch, every church split they hear about, every scandal of a pastor who was caught in sexual indiscretion, and every challenge they face in their jobs, careers, and homes. This instability of course is not incurable. It could be mitigated by strong knowledge of the Word of God.

In Daniel 11:32, we see prophet Daniel predicting how the Maccabees would be able to push back against Antiochus Epiphanes, and his Hellenization of the Jewish traditions, saying: Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery; but the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits. What is interesting is that the Maccabees were known for their military successes despite being outnumbered, outgunned, and out-moneyed. Their success is attributed to knowing God. Yet, this was a time of the “silent years” as their exploits were after prophet Malachi had finished the last book of the Old Testament. There weren’t many great visions and miracles in those years. The golden days of Moses, David, Solomon, Elijah, and Isaiah were gone. These were days of increasing darkness and trying to obey God through tough times. So, most of the knowledge of God the Maccabees had must have come from their understanding of the Law of Moses. They were after all priests. However, not every Jew was faithful during that testing time. Some of them became Hellenized by Antiochus Epiphanes, “through flatteries.” There’s no question that smooth talks have done more damage to God’s people than accurate rebukes [Proverbs 29:5, Proverbs 28:23, Job 32:21-22, Romans 16:18, Psalms 5:9, 1 Thessalonians 2:1-5, Psalms 12:3, Psalms 36:2, Proverbs 6:24, Psalms 12:2, and Revelation 3:19]. Flatteries can be ways that some people either deceive themselves, if they think of themselves more highly, more favored, more successful, more talented, more gifted, more spiritual than they actually are, and they can also be ways others deceive them by suggesting those things in their minds.  When we talk about rebukes here we are not encouraging unfair criticism, insinuations, hate, discouraging comments, and competitive urges to ruin a perceived rival’s reputation. We are talking about evidence-based failures being addressed in a loving and yet firm manner [Galatians 6:1-3]. We are talking about speaking truth in love in order to restore the fallen, encourage the disheartened, and strengthen feeble knees. It is how those who know more of the Word of God can supply to the wants of those who are ignorant of the Word of God. Only the Word of God can make us strong and cause us to fight back against the schemes of the devil 

Lack of knowledge of the Word disqualifies someone from priesthood according to Hosea 4:6. God rejected them as priests because they had ignored His law. Disqualification from priesthood is disqualification from offering “acceptable sacrifices” such as praise, worship, and prayer [Hebrews 13:15; 1 Peter 2:4-10; Proverbs 28:9; Revelation 5:8; 2 Corinthians 2:15; Psalms 141:2; Romans 12:1; John 4:23-24].  How can a Christian even survive in a such cruel world while being cut off from effectual prayer ?

Some Christians make themselves prime targets for deception not just by their ignorance of the Word of God, but also for their refusal to obey the Word of God they already know. Consider this, when Paul talks about the perilous times of the last days, of those who will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived [2 Timothy 3:1-13], he highlights a certain category of people who can be easily deceived. We read in 2 Timothy 3:6-7 thus: “For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of 𝒈𝒖𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒏 𝒍𝒐𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒅 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒔, led away by various lusts 𝒂𝒍𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒍𝒆𝒅𝒈𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒉.”  As we can see, when Paul talks about those being deceived here, he talks about women taken advantage by those they open doors to inside their homes and lives, mostly because of the indwelling sin that deceives them [Hebrews 3:13]. This can lead them into premarital sexual activity because obviously such men are predators, not godly. These women are controlled by various lusts and yet, interestingly, Paul acknowledges that these women are also always learning. How can that be ? They go to church. The read their Bibles. But exposure to the truth doesn’t actually lead them into a place of submission to the truth, which is what Satan takes advantage of to keep them his captives. They lack in discernment in who they surround themselves with and what things they accept, which keeps them in recurrent cycles of defeat, sexual immorality, stagnation of destiny, and financial mismanagement. They waste their precious and prime years in wrong relationships and commitments as a result of those lies. They are destroyed not because of lack of knowledge, but because of refusal to submit to the light and knowledge they already have. 

Obviously the above observation may be triggering and feel like it is hurtful for some of our Christian brothers and sisters, and yet, how else do we get a pure and spotless bride in the church ? This will not happen by surrendering to cultural opinion, but by teaching the truth of the Word of God. In Ephesians 5:26 we read: To 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒚, 𝒄𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒆𝒓 by the 𝒘𝒂𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 with water through the 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅. This is how Christ will sanctify His bride, the church. 

What constitutes a risk for possible deception is disagreed upon among the churches and Christians of the 21st century. This is a result of church history and inter-denominational fights. For example, there are denominations and churches that reject the spiritual gifts we read in 1 Corinthians 12, either because of the negative things they might have experienced about them in the past, or simply because they believe that such gifts have ceased to exist since the days of the apostles of the First Century. Those who believe in such gifts on the other hand, believe that the very lack of evidence of the power of God and manifestation of the gifts of the Spirit in a local church proves deception. How can someone claim to believe in God Almighty and fail to raise a stroke victim from his wheelchair and cause him to walk like Jesus did  [Hebrews 13:8; Matthew 4:23-24; Matthew 8:16-17; Matthew 9:35; Matthew 12:15; Matthew 14:14; Matthew 15:30; Luke 13:14-16; Acts 10:38; 1 John 3:8 ] ? Do they preach the same Jesus as the one of the Bible or do they preach another Jesus ? 

There will be situations in which God will be called to witness, especially if there are disputes in interpersonal relationships, church leadership, and national apostacy, and if spiritual gifts are not believed and practiced, that can be hard to deal with. There has to be signs and wonders in the church for us to be able to stay focused on God’s glory, not man’s intellectualism and brilliance [1 Corinthians 2:1-5; Mark 16:15-20]. Are we more impressed with persuasive words of the eloquence of human wisdom or with the a demonstration of the raw  power of God ? 

There are also those who are in the middle. They are not exactly for spiritual gifts but they also do not oppose them. They like the idea that Jesus should be the same today as He was yesterday, but they will not want to engage in meaningful discussion when “the men who have turned the world upside down” – Acts 17:6, show up in their cities, homes, and churches. Self-interest, self-preservation, love of praise or flatteries, false sense of dignity in reasonings of the flesh and intellectualism, and total apathy have been reasons many have behaved this way [John 5:44; John 9:21-22; John 12;10, 19; John 7:47-49; John 12:39-40]. Some Christians do not seem sincerely interested to want to address their beliefs regarding spiritual gifts, whether they may consider them sufficient to guide their future and deliver them in times of calamity or whether they are inapplicable to speak into their lives and change difficult circumstances. They do not want to seem primitive that prophetic gifts could be God’s leadership. In all sincerity, this puts them in the same category like those who oppose them. When it comes to following Christ, we are either all in or all out [Matthew 12:30]. Lack of curiosity when one sees the bush burning is shocking. Imagine if Moses had been unimpressed when he saw that on Mount Sinai. Israel would not have been delivered. Neglecting the use or inspiration of spiritual gifts is tantamount to challenging of spiritual gifts [1 Timothy 4:14]. This puts a huge burden on those who already believe in spiritual gifts. They cannot afford to be slack, prayerless, and doubtful about the things they believe to be true. If they will manifest the glory of God, and make His knowledge to fill the earth as the waters cover the sea, they will also have to confront the unbelieving church and the lost world with the reality of God’s manifest presence through spiritual gifts. 

For example, most people in America believe that if a prophecy is proclaimed and supernatural signs and wonders do not affirm that prophecy, it is false. We know the names of the pastors and Bible teachers in America who have said this, at least once in their ministry. This means that in America, for a prophecy to be considered of God, the standard must be that the prophecy is actually supernaturally unchallengeable. Would those who proclaim things they hear and see, and believe to be originating from God, accept that their words and prophecies are challenged. If those words are indeed of man, they are worthless. Nobody should fight to preserve or enforce what originates in the head of another human being. But if a prophecy is from God, then those who have the burden of the Lord should consider what Paul and David had learned. Paul taught Timothy that He should wage a good warfare in accordance with the prophecies made about him [1 Timothy 1:18]. And David said in Psalms 89:19, Once you spoke in a vision, to your faithful people you said: “I have bestowed strength on a warrior; I have raised up a young man from among the people. The prophetic and the fulfillment of destiny of God’s people through spiritual warfare are directly linked [2 Corinthians 10:2-6]. As long as we live in this fallen world, idols, the love of money, the love of pleasure, and disinterest in the prosperity of God’s house will cause many to shipwreck their callings, blaspheme God’s name, and derail the projects of the church. Unless they are powerfully impressed with the reality of God through confrontation with unexplainable things that can only be attributed to the raw power of God they will not believe and behave.  1 Kings 18:24 must become relevant again in the 21st century: Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒐𝒅 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒃𝒚 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒆—𝒉𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝑮𝒐𝒅.” Then all the people said, “What you say is good.” This is like sitting the final exam in the school of prophecy for those who believe in spiritual gifts. Ultimately, the kingdom of God is not in word or logos, but in a demonstration of the power of God [ 1 Corinthians 4:17-21]. 

Expanded Posts For March 2021 Devotional- Summer through Winter 2022

Sunday, August 7th, 2022

Yes, in the way of Your judgments, O LORD, we have waited for You; The desire of our soul is for Your name And for the remembrance of You. With my soul I have desired You in the night, Yes, by my spirit within me I will seek You early; For when Your judgments are in the earth, The inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness- Isaiah 26:8-9

 

Monday, August 8th, 2022

He is the Rock, His work is perfect; For all His ways are justice, A God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He- Deuteronomy 32:4.

• God never oppresses -Job 37:23
• The promise He gives, He also keeps-Numbers 23:19; Deuteronomy 7:9; Psalms 18:30
• He is an immovable Rock-Isaiah 28:16

Wednesday, August 10th, 2022

Isaiah 40:28-31 tells us why those who wait upon the Lord are in good place: 

• His understanding is infinite. 
• His power is infinite.

“He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.”

• He promised
• He is willing
• He is able                                                                                                                                             

Thursday, August 11th, 2022

…from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows…James 1:17 Ah, Sovereign LORD…Nothing is too hard for you- Jeremiah 32:17 God is faithfully unchanging. All things are too easy for Him and nothing is impossible- our grounds for boldness.

Friday, August 12th, 2022

For when Your judgments are in the earth, The inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness- Isaiah 26:8-9 One of the tell-tale signs of apostasy is how modern Christians think there’s only room for mercy, not judgment, to bring about revival and righteousness. Very wrong!

Saturday, August 13th, 2022

And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? Luke 18:7-8 Heard someone say that because God promised justice, we don’t need faith for it. Read Verse 8. It’s precisely lack of faith hindering justice.

Sunday, August 14th, 2022

One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God-Luke 6:12 This week we ask Jesus what the apostles asked “teach us to pray”- Luke 11:1 –Not recitals or memorized prayers, but the intense passion of Mount Tabor.

Monday, August 15th, 2022

What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord- Philippian 3:8 Most Christians may read the passage and like it or even quote it, but how many truly live this? Often money or other things loom large in a Christian’s life.

Tuesday, August 16th, 2022

Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. Psalms 73:25 Everyone who has progressed to something of value has had someone who played a role of helper. Yet, helpers can become as idols as money-Isaiah 36:6 David’s main help was God-Psalm 121:2

Wednesday, August 17th, 2022

But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her- Luke 10:42 One thing simplifies life but we have been conditioned to think that many things are required of us. A saint shut in with God face to face needs nothing else.

Thursday, August 18th, 2022

I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread-Job 23:12

One could say this is a higher level of desperation than (1)giving up wealth (2) giving up career advancement that earlier Scriptures suggested.

We can’t live without food.

Are we so desperate for Jesus?

Friday, August 19th, 2022

And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself- John 12:32

• Rees Howells
• Praying Hyde
• John Knox
• George Whitefield
• Father Nash
• Apostle Paul

All these are great examples of prayer warriors.

We can be too, since the exalted Christ promised to draw us closer to Himself.

Saturday, August 20th, 2022

Therefore, since we have a great high priest…Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence- Hebrews 4:14-16 The glory of Mount Tabor can be ours since Christ has entered the holy of holies for us and the veil between us and God has been torn We pray, He shows up!

Sunday, August 21st, 2022

At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Shout louder!” he said. “Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened- 1 Kings 18:27.

Jehovah sets Himself apart from Baal. He hears, He answers!

Monday, August 22nd, 2022

When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple- 2 Chronicles 7:1 Instant miracles and answers to prayers are part and parcel of Christianity (John 14:13; Acts 4:31).

Tuesday, August 23rd, 2022

The idols of the nations are silver and gold, made by human hands. They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see- Psalms 135:15-16 Israel may have followed Baal in Elijah’s days but today’s idols are more sophisticated. Still, idols can’t save their worshippers.

Wednesday, August 24th, 2022

Does he who fashioned the ear not hear? Does he who formed the eye not see? Psalms 94:9 Unlike Baal, Jehovah’s priests don’t have to cut themselves to be answered. Indeed, God wants us to be full of faith when we ask. 2 Kings 22:19 Numbers 14:28 2 Corinth 6:2 Mark 11:22-24

Thursday, August 25th, 2022

Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk-Acts 3:6 In both OT and NT we see a God who answers prayers and demonstrates His power. Some, like Laodicea (Revel 3),may make gold god that won’t deliver.

Friday, August 26th, 2022

You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked- Revelation 3:17 It’s dangerous to trust in riches as an idol (Proverbs 11:28, Job 31:24,Jeremiah 48:7). Christ wants poverty of spirit.

Saturday, August 27th, 2022

For, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”- Roman 10:13 Paul says it makes no difference who calls, Jew or Gentile. God answers all with no favoritism-Roman 10:12;Act 10:34 As hard-hearted Baal worshippers saw Jehovah’s answer to Elijah, they bowed. Rain came.

Sunday, August 28th, 2022

Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The LORD will fight for you… Exodus 14:13-14

Monday, August 29th, 2022

So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him- Isaiah 59:19 Pharaoh indeed got his army flooded by the Red Sea.

Tuesday, August 30th, 2022

And in the greatness of Your excellence You have overthrown those who rose against You; You sent forth Your wrath; It consumed them like stubble- Exodus 15:7 When the saving and delivering arm of the Lord has been revealed to the saints, they should sing high praises to Him.

Wednesday, August 31st, 2022

They surrounded me on every side, but in the name of the LORD I cut them down- Psalms 118:11 At the Red Sea, God told Moses, “why are you crying out to me ?”- Exodus 14:15 God had given Moses His name and authority in His staff. Often the victory is in decree of God’s truths.

….Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me… John 17:11

Thursday, September 1st, 2022

And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?- Mark 4:38 How come Jesus could sleep in the storm while disciples were terrified and accused him of being uncaring? “Where was faith ?”

Friday, September 2nd, 2022

What have you done?” asked Samuel. Saul replied, “When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Mikmash…I felt compelled… 1 Samuel 13:11-13

Saul refused to be still and trust God.

He lost it all

Saturday, September 3rd, 2022

Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes- Psalms 37:7

Unlike Saul, David knew that the source of success was more important than the results of performance.

Holy Spirit vs Self.

Sunday, September 4th, 2022

Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually! Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered.

Psalms 105:4-5

Another week we get to pursue the Lord diligently and seek His Holy face!

Monday, September 5th, 2022

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart- Jeremiah 29:13.

We seek ,pray, and believe God with our hearts, not our minds first. Heart here is “Lebab” in Hebrew or “inner man.”

Mind as in Isaiah 26:3 is Yetser.

Also read Scriptures: 1 Corinthians 14:15 Romans 10:10 Romans 8: 26-27

Tuesday, September 6th, 2022

I have not spoken in secret, from somewhere in a land of darkness; I have not said to Jacob’s descendants, ‘Seek me in vain.’ I, the LORD, speak the truth; I declare what is right- Isaiah 45:19

Seeking the kingdom of God first is not a call to misery [Matthew 6:33]. God will add to us blessings upon blessings. We don’t seek Him in vain. 

Wednesday, September 7th, 2022

For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants- Isaiah 44:3

Our seeking of God’s face should result in the out-pouring of the Holy Spirit. If we seek God acceptably (Hebrews 13:15), God promised that He would pour out the Holy Ghost (Acts 2:17). 

Thursday, September 8th, 2022

Remember the wonders he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced- Psalms 105:5

• Lot’s wife turned to pillar-Genesis 19:26; Luke 17:32
• Isaac’s birth-Genesis 21:2-3
• The fall of Jericho- Joshua 6:20
• The resurrection of Lazarus- John 11
• The fall of Jerusalem-Matthew 23:35-36

Friday, September 9th, 2022

But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him- Hebrews 11:6

Diligently seeking God must involve acting on what we hope for.

• We come to Him
• We believe Him
• We act on the Word
• God performs.

Seeking God without acting on the Word is not due diligence. It is dead faith (James 2:26). God is a rewarder- misthapodotes in Greek- of those who seek Him this way. He pays what is due, according to His own personal values [e.g. Sermon on the Mount]. We do not seek God in vain. 

Saturday, September 10th, 2022

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you- Matthew 6:33.

We seek the kingdom of God first when we are seeking with all our hearts [Jeremiah 29:13], seeking Him early/ earnestly [Proverbs 8:17], diligently- by craving His presence, scrutinizing His ways, and acting on His promises [Hebrews 11:6]. Seeking his righteousness involves obedience to the Scriptures and submitting to God’s plan [Matthew 3:14-15] and acting justly [Micah 6:8; Matthew 23:23].”All these things will be added”- means that we actually lose nothing that we give up in the visible world while prioritizing the unseen realm of God’s reign. Ultimately, it is paid back to us multiplied [Mark 10:30]. We do not seek God in vain. 

Sunday, September 11th, 2022

The trumpeters and musicians joined in unison to give praise and thanks to the LORD. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals and other instruments, the singers raised their voices in praise to the LORD and sang: “He is good; his love endures forever.” Then the temple of the LORD was filled with the cloud, and the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the temple of God. 2 Chronicles 5: 13-14

The glory of God came down when they had finished to build the temple and were busy singing praises to Him. They may have sung for God before, but this was the first temple built to the honor of Jehovah in Jerusalem and He has delight and pleasure in the house built for His glory (Haggai 1:7-8)

Monday, September 12th, 2022

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.”- Isaiah 6:1-3

The palpable glory that filled Solomon’s temple in Jerusalem when the priests were ministering to the Lord, Isaiah saw it from a heavenly point of view. He saw angels crying Holy, Holy, Holy, even as that glory filled the whole earth. Since Christ is the glory of the Father tabernacled among us (John 1:14), that glory has been given to us in Christ and when we behold Him, we behold the glory and face of the Father [John 14:9]. 

Tuesday, September 13th, 2022

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth- John 1:14

The 3 paragraphs below are taken from our December 2020 Christmas season devotional. 

We worship you, O Eternal Word of God!

As we continue our “Hail The Incarnate Deity” theme for this Christmas season, we have John 1:14 today. In this we read that the “Word became flesh.” In this phrase, John summarizes the entire virgin conception, birth, and human life of Jesus Christ. For it was the Word becoming flesh when Mary got pregnant by the Holy Spirit and power of the Almighty. The Word had become flesh when Mary went to visit Elizabeth and John the Baptist who was still in the womb could not stay still. We read: “When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.”- Luke 1:41. Sure, the flesh might have been a fetus at that time, it was flesh, nonetheless. It was the Word becoming flesh when Mary delivered the child in an animal stable. With all the stinking, terrible odor, that we could imagine might have been there. I used to go to cows stables at my Grandpa’s farm as a kid and they weren’t the best smelling places in the world. The Word became flesh in a place like that, coming from the womb to the world. By the time Jesus called John to be one of His 12 disciples, the flesh had grown up into an adult, though he had never known “the works of the flesh.”- Galatians 5: 19. He was fully human and yet He did not sin. Jesus tells us that this is one of His qualifications to judge us on the last day (John 5:27). Because He trod where we tread, He dealt with the issues we deal with, and was tempted in the same way we get tempted. He is the Son of Man. Our perfect and sinless Savior lived a human life and experienced several aspects of humanity that we are all familiar with. 

“Made His dwelling among us.” The Greek Word here is “Eskenosen” and it means to set up a camp or tabernacle. John probably used it to allude to the tabernacle of divine Shekinah in the wilderness that Moses had set up in accordance with God’s instructions. Christ tabernacled among us, carrying the divine glory and presence. The One “in whom are hidden all the treasures of Wisdom and knowledge”- Colossians 2:3. The One who “upholds all things by the power of His Word”- Hebrews 1:3, walked among men and they could see, hear, and touch with their hands (1 John 1:1). What a message! What a story of hope and joy He is ! What had He come to do here? It is a common observation that when a dignitary is expected to arrive at a location, say a president, prime minister, or attorney general, the people or institution those leaders are visiting are under maximum pressure to prepare very well. Things that need to be cleaned up are cleaned, the speeches are practiced and polished, decorum and protocol are a sight to behold. Now the Lord of the universe had come to the earth He had created. Was Israel ready? Are we prepared? Let every heart prepare Him room!

“We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only son.” They saw His glory indeed. When Peter asked Jesus if he could build a tabernacle for Him, Moses, and Elijah, he had seen His glory. He even mentions that event again in 2 Peter 1:18: “We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain,” he reminds us. But for 3.5 years, they saw a whole lot more than that. They saw Him turn water to wine and that first miracle is what John calls the first in which He showed them His glory (John 2:11). They saw Him raise Lazarus from the dead after 4 days. And what did Jesus say to Mary who cautioned to open the tomb because Lazarus’ body might have been stinking ?  “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”- John 11:40. And a moment later, He was calling Lazarus to come forth. No god, no magician, no religion could claim to be able to raise a dead person from the dead like that, after 4 days. Only Jehovah can do that and Jesus did it. The Greek Word used for “the only son” is monogenous, which clearly shows us that there’s a difference between the Son of God who came from heaven and the sons of God He has come to raise from the earth: “born that man no more may die, born to raise the sons of earth, born to give them second birth.” We are blessed as sons of God but we are not the only begotten Son.

Scriptures summary:

 

Wednesday, September 14th, 2022

Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.” And the LORD said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.  Exodus 33:18-19

Moses had seen:

• The burning bush
• The rod turned to serpent
• The 10 judgments on Egypt
• The Passover
• The parting of the Red Sea
• The 10 commandments

Yet, he still cries “show me your glory.”  Since man lost his glory in Eden, this has been the cry of the redeemed [Romans 3:23; 2 Corinthians 5:1-7]

Thursday, September 15th, 2022

We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to prevent the Israelites from seeing the end of what was passing away…And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:13,18

Somehow Satan has not only succeeded to hide the glory of Christ from the unbelievers [2 Corinthians 4:4], he has managed to hide it from Christians as well, and most believers don’t see it [John 1:48-51; John 1:14; John 11:40; Numbers 14:21-23]. Some may even think that the burning bush, Red Sea, or Ten Commandments encounters that Moses had are greater than the cross, resurrection, and outpouring of the Holy Spirit that we have. Paul says that’s just not true, because what we have in Christ is far more established, far greater, and ever-increasing in glory. The supernatural workings of the Holy Ghost and His abiding presence are continually conforming us into God’s own likeness. 

Friday, September 16th, 2022

 ‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the LORD of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the LORD of hosts.”- Haggai 2:9

The glory of the temple of Ezra and Zerubbabel was prophesied to be greater than the temple of Solomon at a time when its outward structure made older Jewish returnees embarrassed. This should encourage us because the glory of the church is not a result of what we can achieve, but rather what Christ promised to do. The glory of the church that Christ is building now is greater than the glory of any temple or tabernacle or work of God of the Old Testament [2 Kings 21:14; Isaiah 54:8; Psalms 94:14; Matthew 16:18-19; 1 Samuel 2:22; 1 Peter 2:9-10; Ephesians 2:19-20; 1 Peter 2:5; Ephesians 4:11-16; 1 Corinthians 12:24-29].

 

Saturday, September 17th, 2022

In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. Revelation 1:16-17

In John 14:23, we see Jesus promising faithful disciples that not only they would see His glory, He and the Father will make their dwelling with those disciples. The Greek Scripture has “ean”, which is translated as “if” , a conditional particle, this suggests that this manifest presence would not be for everyone who professes the name of Christ, but those who are diligent in seeking the kingdom of God first and His righteousness [Revelation 2:5; Revelation 2:16; Revelation 2:23; Revelation 3:3; Revelation 3:17-18]. The Greek word used for “dwelling” in John 14:23 is “Mone”- which is the same as in John 14:2, used for the mansions He will prepare for us. The Old Covenant with its many shekinah manifestations of God’s glory can’t be expected to have better and greater wonders than those enjoyed by New Testament saints. Failure to see this would place us in a perilous position as our accountability is in proportion to the glory we have seen [Numbers 14:21-23; 1 Corinthians 10:5-15; Hebrews 2:1-4; John 1:14; John 1:48-51; John 2:11; John 11:40] 

Sunday, September 18th, 2022

You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Exodus 19: 4

The redemption of Israel from Egypt is often compared to the redemption of New Testament saints from their sins. Just like Israel was destined for Canaan, we are also destined for heaven. However, God adds that this was a redemption unto Himself. The Land of promise is indeed part of the plan and very prosperous, but God is even a better catch. His worth is greater than heaven itself. Being carried on eagle’s wings reminds us that they played no role in their deliverance and neither do we. Our salvation was accomplished by Christ’s redemptive work on the cross and delivered to us by the grace of God, through the power of the Holy Spirit, and not a result of our own striving [Ephesians 2:8; 2 Timothy 1:9; Titus 3:5]. 

Monday, September 19th, 2022

And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus- Ephesians 2:6

Our waiting to be transported on eagle’s wings or being carried by the Lord on a daily basis in our jobs, ministries, callings, and activities may often seem overwhelming but that promise is sure [Isaiah 40:28-31; Psalms 34:4; Psalms 56:3; 1 Samuel 21:9-11; Psalms 40:17; Psalms 18 verse 19 & verse 33; Psalms 66:12; Psalms 4:1]. Even so, there often seems to be a lot we can do ourselves as we wait and the overwhelming nature of our tasks is usually felt-weakness that is graciously given to us so that we would not rely on ourselves [ 2 Corinthians 1:8-10; 2 Corinthians 12:9]. In those waiting moments, we must remember every success, work, and achievement in our lives is of God and what is a better way to help us meditate on this than going back to the beginning of our salvation- that we actually did nothing to raise ourselves from the graves of our sins and Christ burst those tombs open and we rose in flame and followed Him [Psalms 100:3; 2 Corinthians 1:21; 1 Corinthians 1:8; Philippians 1:6; Ephesians 2:8; Colossians 1:13]. We are seated in heavenly realms with Him at the right hand of God already and none of our own future achievement will ever equal that. 

Tuesday, September 20th, 2022

Behold, I send forth the promise of my Father on you. But wait in the city of Jerusalem until you are clothed with power from on high- Luke 24:49 [World English Bible]

Another thing that was done for us at the beginning of our heavenly journey, that we should remember in our daily fights, was the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Throughout the New Testament and in the experiences of many Christians, we see that this happened after they sought God, days or weeks after their salvation [Acts 2:1-4; Acts 8:14-18; Acts 19:1-6; John 7:37-39; Ezekiel 47:4-5; Romans 1:11]. The Holy Spirit is the ultimate Eagle who carries us. He is our Strength-Renewer who will refresh us. Disciples had to wait in Jerusalem to receive that promise “To be clothed with power from on High.“- The Greek word for “clothed” is endisesthe/enduo, which denotes a sense of sinking into a garment, and is used in Acts 12:21, where we see Herod was arrayed in royal apparel. Disciples had healed the sick while Christ was still with them, they had seen Him risen, and Jesus had even breathed on them to receive the Holy Spirit [Luke 10:17-21; John 20:22; 1 Corinthians 15:3-6]. Yet, we see Jesus telling them to wait on the promise until they were clothed with power. It is the strength worth waiting for. Once we have received that Baptism, it is worth waiting on being in-filled by the Holy Ghost so that we can be covered by that mantle of glory on a daily basis [Ephesians 5:18; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Romans 8:14; Acts 4:30-31; Colossians 1:29; 1 Corinthians 15:10; Ephesians 1:19].

Wednesday, September 21st, 2022

I will remember the deeds of the LORD; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago- Psalms 77:11

The Lord often reminded His people of how they were carried on eagle’s wings and all past miracles they had witnessed to inspire future trust [Psalms 78:7]. The Psalm that follows this, Psalms 78:2-22, is a detailed example of how this works. “They forgot His deeds And His miracles that He had shown them.”- Psalms 78:11. That forgetting had a negative influence on their faith and this resulted in their judgment. What miracles David could have had in mind ? The flood and Noah’s rescue, the judgment of Sodom, Isaac’s birth, Joseph’s prophetic interpretation of dreams, the 10 judgments on Egypt, the Passover, the Red Sea parting, Manna from heaven, water from rocks, clothes that never grew old or deteriorated in the wilderness, the fall of Jericho, Joshua’s decree to the sun, the parting of Jordan waters, Gideon’s victories, Samuel’s prophetic gifts, and more. In our generation, we can remember Charles Finney, John. G. Lake, Smith Wigglesworth, Charles Price, F.F. Bosworth, William Branham, T.L. Osborn, Reinhard Bonnke, D.G.S. Dhinakaran, Brother Yun,  Paul Yonggi Cho, Chris Oyakhilome, T. B. Joshua, Alph Lukau, and more. We remember those past miracles so that we can believe in the Lord for the present, as He is the same, yesterday, today, and forever [Hebrews 13:8; Malachi 3:6; Hebrews 6:18; Numbers 23:19; Exodus 15:26; Psalms 103:3; Matthew 4:23-24; Matthew 9:35; Matthew 12:15; Matthew 14:14; Matthew 15:30; Mark 8:16-21; Mark 9:18-23; John 14:12; John 20:30-31; Acts 5:14-16; Acts 19:11-12]

Thursday, September 22nd, 2022

Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him- Isaiah 64:4

The key of this verse is obviously “any God besides you”- as many people can testify that they have seen that Jehovah does great and mighty things on behalf of those who wait on Him. We sang this in “You Deserve The Glory” by Terry MacAlmon yesterday. There’s no one like Jehovah. Look at Abraham, for example. He is called the father of all believers. We read of Him in Romans 4:17, “As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations, before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.” It’s like Abraham exercised the faith in a dead-raising God twice. First, because his and Sarah’s body were aged and needed a reproductive miracle after her menopause (Romans 4:19-21). Second, because by offering Isaac, he technically received him back from the dead (Hebrews 11:19). What other God does this ? [Judges 10:14-16; 2 Kings 3:13; Isaiah 57:13; Isaiah 2:8; Isaiah 17:8-9; Proverbs 11 verse 4 & verse 28; Psalms 118:8; Isaiah 25:4; Isaiah 49:8; Isaiah 56:7]. We must understand that waiting on God is not sitting idle. It can involve searching the Scriptures to understand, seeking counsel, hearing insightful preaching, praying intensely, and doing due diligence [Psalms 132:4-5; Psalms 55:17; Psalms 77:2; Luke 2:37; Matthew 7:7-11; Luke 18:1-8]. God enlightens us and strengthens us by the Word. Then, He lifts us and carries us. He raises the dead by calling them to life [Ezekiel 37:4-10]. The outcome of waiting upon Him is “what eyes have no seen, what ears have not heard.”- 1 Corinthians 2:9. Not only in heaven will we finally see His radiance face to face, but even now He still does mind-blowing signs, wonders, and miracles for those who take hold of Him. He acts on their behalf on a magnitude and scale like never seen before. [Ephesians 1:19; Ephesians 3:20; John 14:12]. 

Friday, September 23rd, 2022

Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall.But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint- Isaiah 40:28-31

As people wait on the Lord, they could be tempted to lean on their own understanding, with serious consequences [Proverbs 3:5]. The birth of Ishmael has often been said to be an example of this. Now, we are talking about Abraham, the father of faith.  It should alert everyone and cause us all to pause and ponder. The fact is, the fallen mind is too fertile to wait on God’s promises sometimes. This is why we need to be reminded that God’s understanding is infinite and our own is not. When we face difficult decisions and challenging circumstances, waiting on God means searching for His mysteries as He wants to share them with us so that we do not attempt to leap into the dark, but rather walk in the light. [Psalms 147:5; Jeremiah 33:3; Psalms 25:4; John 15:15; Romans 8:14; Isaiah 48:6; 1 Corinthians 14:1; 1 John 1:7; Isaiah 30:21; 1 Corinthians 1:20; 2 Peter 1:21; 1 Kings 13:17; Genesis 13:10; Galatians 4: 30; Genesis 21:9-10; John 11:9-10; Proverbs 4:18; Psalms 119:105; Exodus 23;20; Hebrews 1 verse 7 & 14; Numbers 20:16; Daniel 6:22; Genesis 24:40; Acts 8:26; Matthew 2:19-20; Psalms 34:10; Ecclesiastes 9:11; Zechariah 4:6; Isaiah 28:16; Psalms 138:3; Ephesians 3:16].

Saturday, September 24th, 2022

But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body- Philippians 3:20-21

In the world we wait for many things that sometimes may seem frustrating and yet at the same time they are not a big deal. Have you had to stop at traffic lights like 3-4 times when you were running behind schedule ? I have seen  people who were waiting for doctors at healthcare facilities talking about leaving because they had been in the waiting room for 30-40 minutes. We often see tasks that may have been expected to complete at a certain date having to be delayed 1 more month. As frustrating as these waiting experiences are for all of us, they are not remotely close to the most important event that we are waiting for- the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. That’s going to be so big and terrifying that He said we should pray to “be able to stand before the Son of Man”-Luke 21:36. The magnitude of that day is so big, God Himself exercises patience and delays it [2 Peter 3:9]. Since He wants everyone to be saved, the delay is to bring in as many souls as possible. This is why there’s good reason to believe in a coming revival and great awakening before that great and awesome day of the Lord. After all, He is also “The Lord of the harvest.”- Matthew 9:38. The judge of the world is also the Lord of revival and He will send us an awakening if we ask. Then, He will come in glory to carry us on His wings. Sinners are eagerly waiting for us to show them the glories and wonders of our Returning King right now [ John 4:35; 2 Chronicles 7:14; Zechariah 10:1; Ezekiel 34:26; Psalms 2:8; Revelation 1:7; Isaiah 64:1; Luke 19:27; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-8; Matthew 10:8; Malachi 4:2; 1 Corinthians 14:24-25; 2 Timothy 1:6; 1 Timothy 4:15; Romans 15:18-20; Deuteronomy 33:25 Psalms 147:20; Deuteronomy 4:7; Psalms 33: 12; Isaiah 60 verse 3 & 20; Matthew 6:10; 2 Peter 3:12; John 14:1-3]

 

Sunday, September 25th, 2022

Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone-Matthew 14:22-23

It’s amazing to see the multitudes that followed Jesus, a prophet who had no much financial means, drove fancy cars, or had the backing of the Sanhedrin [Isaiah 53:2; Matthew 8:20; John 9:22]. We read that people “pressed upon Him to hear the word of God”- Luke 5:1. Though, by the word of knowledge, He could have known the woman who touched him in that massive crowd, He asked to be informed [Luke 8:45]. There must have been real and great power in His ministry that drew such huge crowds [Matthew 12:15; Matthew 4:23-24]. After all, men will give all their belongings to keep their health [Job 2:4-5; Luke 8:43]- now they had a mighty physician healing them for free [Matthew 10:8; Isaiah 55:1; Matthew 7:29]. So, why do we see Christians in America bragging of minimal success as though we are in in an awakening ? Though God delights in the salvation of one single soul, should we be satisfied until everyone is born again and heaven-bound ? [Luke 15 verse 4 and verse 7; Matthew 9:38; John 4:35; Mark 16:15; Matthew 24:14]. The dry and barren land is not because people don’t want to hear the Word of God or know God. People are starving [ John 7 verses 3-8 & verses 14-39; Amos 8:11; Joel 2:24-28]. We are in a less Word and Gospel saturated society and age than the early church [2 Chronicles 15:3;Psalms 74:9; Acts 4:4; Acts 6:7 ]. International frontiers are even more desperate for Gospel power than America. So, it’s incumbent upon us to bring them to Christ [Luke 14:23; Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 14:16; Romans 15:18-20]. God will bless our efforts [1 Corinthians 3:7; Luke 8:11 Acts 16:9; 2 Timothy 2:2]. What we need more is that power that Christ had and it will begin in our face-to-face communion with the Father, the Lord Almighty [Matthew 6:6].

Monday, September 26th, 2022

And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding- Jeremiah 3:15

As we continue our meditation on Matthew 14:22-23 this week, I see how this promise of Jeremiah was fulfilled in Christ, and should encourage us as we ask God to send us more laborers in his vineyard, prophets, evangelists, and pastors [Matthew 9:38; Ephesians 4:11-16]. We saw how crowds pressed upon Him to hear the Word of God and He had to dismiss them often in order to spend time with the Father. Jesus fulfilled the saying that a true man of God speaks to God for the people before He speaks to people for God [Luke 22:32; 1 Samuel 12:23; Ezekiel 22:30; 1 Timothy 2:1-5; Romans 9:3]. We want such pastors with God’s own heart speaking straight from the throne [1 Kings 22:14; John 5:19; 1 Kings 18:15; 1 Peter 4:11; John 6:63; 1 Corinthians 2:3; Jeremiah 23:29; Isaiah 6:6-7; Jeremiah 15:19] He was a pastor after God’s own heart, a Good Shepherd indeed [John 10 verse 11 and verse 15; Luke 24:19]. He taught the people glorious truths they delighted to hear, and then, rather than go to sleep, he engaged in intense and prolonged prayers on mountains [Colossians 4:12]. No wonder so much power and divine glory followed His ministry. As we seek to follow His example, not only should we press on to study and understand “great things He has taught us“- we should be “With Christ In The School of Prayer” to learn the secrets that made Him so effective in touching so many lives. God does indeed want to show forth knowledge and understanding when we preach [Hosea 4:6; Proverbs 4:7; Ephesians 1:17-19]. But He wants us to release more than that. He wants the whole world to be fed with the bread that came from heaven and that will happen as the anointing of God is demonstrated, which can only increase as we stand and worship before His throne, seeking His Holy Face [John 6:51; 1 Corinthians 2:4; Acts 4:30-31; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Hebrews 12:22-29; Isaiah 57:13B; Psalms 134:1]. 

Tuesday, September 27th, 2022

Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear- Isaiah 59:1

Christ did so many miracles because He believed in miracles. One could say “No, He believed in God.” That’s true [Mark 11:22-24; John 14:1]. But what I mean is that Christ believed in the necessity of divine supernatural intervention [Matthew 12:28-29;John 5:6-7; Luke 5:5]. Paul calls this a “demonstration of the Spirit and power”- 1 Corinthians 2:4. So, they were not just necessary for people who needed them, like Lazarus’ family, they were credentials [Matthew 11:2-6; John 11; John 10:37-38]. Moreover, in Matthew 14:14, we see that Jesus was moved with compassion to heal. That’s a third element, beyond people’s needs and Christ announcing His credentials. God actually cares about people’s problems. “In all their afflictions, He was afflicted“- Isaiah 63:9.  Without this realization, prayer becomes of little benefit, if not completely pointless. Christ did so many miracles that if they had all been recorded, there would not have been enough books to write them. [John 20:30-31; 1 John 5:13; Ecclesiastes 12:12; 1 Kings 4:32; Luke 16:29-31; Luke 1:37]. Prayer and faith connect us to God’s miracle working power. It’s after His prayers of Matthew 14:22-23 that we see Him walking on water [Matthew 14:25-31]. Our devotion to prayer or lack of it is a true indicator of how much we believe in God’s power and love. Every time there are no miracles, it’s either because people are not asking or they are asking amiss [Isaiah 59:2; James 4:2-3]. It may sound harsh to read “You have not because you ask not”- but that’s what Holy Scriptures say. Whether we need the arm of the Lord to save people from drug addictions, sicknesses, accidents, demonic oppression, bondages, sins, hunger, death, debts, attacks, wars, and apostasy, we can find Scriptures that speak about all of these things and many testimonies that confirm to us that God’s arm is indeed not too short to save. The lack of revival or awakening is not because of God’s weakness, rather the failure of God’s people [Jeremiah 32 verse 17 and verse 27; 1 Corinthians 1:25; 2 Corinthians 13:4; 2 Chronicles 7:14].

Wednesday, September 28th, 2022

On another day the angels came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came with them to present himself before him- Job 2:1.

As testimonies of many saints show us, prayer can usher us into God’s glorious presence. D.G.S. Dhinakaran is an example. Considering how transformative and powerful that can be, it is odd how little of it is experienced even by Christians. Yesterday, we saw how our devotion to prayer or lack of it is a true indicator of how much we believe in God’s power and love. While prayerless Christians, who are really functional atheists, and the actual sworn atheists, may both neglect prayer, Satan knows how “the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” Reinhard Bonnke used to say “the devil loves atheists, though He is not one himself” [James 2:19; Matthew 8:29; Psalms 14:1; James 5:16].  Though prayer-less Christians fail to present themselves before the Lord, or bring their requests to Him in faith, [Philippians 4:6], we see how before Satan was cast out of heaven’s courts, he used every opportunity to present himself with the angels and bring accusations against the righteous. Job is an example. Even after Satan’s expulsion from heaven, he has not stopped destruction in the world [John 12:31; Revelation 12: 3-10; Zechariah 3:1; John 10:10; 1 Peter 5:8; 1 John 5:19; 2 Corinthians 2:11; Revelation 2:10; Acts 12:5; Matthew 13:24-29; John 14:30; John 6:11; Colossians 2:15]. So, why should Satan be more zealous for spiritual and invisible realities than the saints of the Most High God ?  Why don’t we present ourselves before the Lord in earnest when, not only have we been redeemed and made His children, we have been given an invitation to ask anything and everything, with the promise that we will be heard [Isaiah 58:4; John 14:13; Romans 8:32; Matthew 17:25-27; Psalms 50:15; Psalms 23; Matthew 9:35; Matthew 12:15; Matthew 7:7-11; Luke 6:38; Philippians 4:19; John 15:7; 2 Corinthians 1:20; 2 Corinthians 6:2]. What we should learn from Job’s book is that there’s a real war waged in the heavenlies. Our duty is to fight the good fight of faith by holding onto promises and and boldly presenting ourselves before our Father’s throne. Presenting ourselves before Him means being conscious of where we stand, that we are standing in the presence of the Almighty. God’s presence is not so much His coming into a room, as His glory already fills the whole earth; rather, it consists of us entering into that presence [Isaiah 6:3; Numbers 14:21; Psalms 72:19; Habakkuk 2:14; Acts 7:49; 1 Kings 8:27; Ephesians 1:23; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 1 Corinthians 12:27; Jon 1:16; Matthew 5:33-37; 2 Corinthians 1:20; 1 Chronicles 16:11; Psalms 95:2].  Doing so through prayer should not be a passive, weak, or indifferent activity. Prayer should be the most passionate activity of our day. 

Thursday, September 29th, 2022

Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers- Luke 22: 31-32

We had said that Christ fulfilled the saying that a true man of God speaks to God for the people before he speaks to people for God. What proves that saying more so than this verse ? In Jesus’ prayers for Peter, we see a preview of His intercessions for the saints as Scriptures say “Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”- Hebrews 7:25. Robert Murray M’Cheyne is credited with saying “If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a million enemies. Yet distance makes no difference. He is praying for me.” How true! We need not fear Satan’s malicious schemes against us like He had against Job and Peter [ Job 2: 4-5; Romans 8 verse 31 and 34]. In Christ’s intercessions for Peter we see what makes Him such a great High Priest for us. Firstly, it is His perfect knowledge. Though Peter himself didn’t know his fallibility, Jesus already knew and prayed for His restoration. Secondly, it is His consistent, 100% success in prayer. As He says “I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me“- John 11:42. Thirdly, it is His compassion. “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses.”- Hebrews 4:15. Fourthly, it is His sufficiency. “He is able to save to the uttermost.” We definitely do not need Virgin Mary, Saint Charbel, Pedre Pio, Saint John Bosco, Joseph of Cupertino, Saint Francis, John Paul II, to intercede for us, after their departure from this life [1 Timothy 2:5; Psalms 73:24-26; Hebrews 2:14-17; Hebrews 3:1-4;  Hebrews 12:23; 1 Samuel 28; Colossians 2:17-18; Revelation 22: 8-9; Acts 14:13-14; 1 Thessalonian 3:1; Isaiah 65: 3-4; 1 Chronicles 10:13; Galatian 1:9; Revelation 22:18]. Those saints may have gone to glory, but Christ is sufficient as our High Priest, Mediator, and Intercessor. Any addition to this is unbelief and weakens the covenant sealed in His blood [1 John 2:1; Hebrews 12:24; Romans 3:23-25; Hebrews 3:12-19; Romans 4:17-24]. Finally, “He ever lives to intercede for us.” There’s no expiration date of His office, except when the trumpet of the Lord shall sound and time shall be no more. When books are opened to judge the quick and the dead. At that time “every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”- Matthew 3:10

 

Friday, September 30th, 2022

One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples- Luke 11:1

Though Abel is said to have offered a sacrifice that pleased the Father, it wasn’t  until his replacement brother, Seth, had a son called Enosh, that people started to call upon the name of the Lord [Genesis 4:25-26; Genesis 5:3-7; 1 John 3:12; Hebrews 11:4]. We are not even told that Abel prayed. We are told that he offered sacrifices. If men waited for the birth of Enosh to start to pray, that was at a time Adam was 235 years old, as Adam was 130 when he had Seth and Seth was 105 when he had Enosh. That’s quite a long time of broken fellowship with God, considering that we are taught to “ pray without ceasing“- [1 Thessalonians 5:17; Leviticus 6:13]. There must be an infirmity in fallen man to connect with God, making him an invalid in spiritual matters, or “asthenic”, to use Romans 5:6 Greek language. Spiritually, we are like the invalid man at the pool of Bethesda[John 5:6-7; Ephesians 2:1; Isaiah 64:6-7; Psalms 40:12; John 3:3-8; 1 John 1:2; John 1:11-13; 1 John 5:11; John 6:63; Psalms 138:3; Ephesians 3:16]. We are naturally strengthless and powerless in seeking God and praying fervent, acceptable prayers. We needed help. Thankfully, throughout history there have been men who were able to break through that lethargy of spirituality and it gives us hope that we can have a fruitful prayer-life ourselves. We can name Abraham who birthed Isaac, Jacob who wrestled with God and became Israel, Moses who talked to God face to face, Samuel who revived a fallen Israel in the times of judges, David the Psalmist, Elijah who brought the fire and rain down, Hezekiah who cried for his life to be spared, little known Jabez who prayed for God to enlarge his territory, and Daniel a man greatly beloved. It seems the greatness of these men is in the great testimonies they received after prayer [Hebrews 11:2; John 3:27; Genesis 20:7; Job 42:8-10; 2 Samuel 24:13-25]. The Lord turned their invalidity into validity. If our lives are going to count for the kingdom of God, we must be masters of prayer [John 15:5; Luke 6:40]. The disciples struck the right chord in asking Jesus to teach them to pray. Effective prayer, as we see in Scripture, has 2 main ingredients. Firstly, it has good content. We can’t offer God the sacrifices of fools [Matthew 6:7-13; Ecclesiastes 5:1-2; Leviticus 10:1-2; Hebrews 13:15]. This is what we see in the Lord’s prayer and Christ’s teachings in John 14-17. Secondly, it is done by the help of the Holy Spirit, who overcomes our infirmities [Romans 8:26-27; 1 Corinthians 14:15; Jude 1:20; 1 Timothy 2:8; Ephesians 4:30; 2 Corinthians 13:14; John 14:26; Psalms 141:2; Revelation 8:3-4]. Regardless of where we are in our prayer level, we won’t get answers until we get started and practice it constantly [Jeremiah 33:3; Psalms 50:15; Isaiah 55:6-7; John 14:12-13; Matthew 7:7-11; Romans 8:32; 2 Chronicles 7:14]. May the Lord teach us all to pray!

Saturday, October 1st, 2022

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need- Hebrews 4:16

The Greek word used for “approach” here is “Proserchomai” which means to come, draw near, visit, and present oneself. We see it used in Matthew 9:20, of a woman who came from behind and touched Christ. That woman had quite a lot of confidence and boldness. Who does that ? Would you run behind a prime minister, president, king, or even a bishop and grab the hem of his garments ? While that could look awkward, we have a situation where we are actually invited to do this, before the throne of grace. Scriptures say that “through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.”- Romans 5:2. There’s no qualification, credential, embellishment, cost, offering, or anything else that we need to bring to be accepted before God. We have been “accepted in the beloved.” We are already qualified [Ephesians 1:6; Colossians 1:12; Philemon 1:6; Ephesians 1:17-23]. We can receive what is our now. “ Now is the accepted time, now is the day of God’s favor“- 2 Corinthians 6:2. We have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. Through Christ who loved us, and was not spared by the Father for our redemption, we will freely receive all things pertaining to life and godliness. We are heirs of the kingdom of God and He will answer our pleas now [Ephesians 1:3; 2 Peter 1:3-4; Luke 12:32; Luke 15:31; 1 Corinthians 3:21; Colossians 2:3; James 1:5; Luke 11:21; Jeremiah 27:5; Psalms 24:1; Haggai 2:8; Psalms 50:10-11;  Romans 8 verse 17 and 32; Galatians 3:29; Romans 7:4; Revelation 3:8; Ephesians 5:26; Ephesians 3:20]. We are children of God, joint heirs with Christ, the bride of Christ, and all that belongs to Christ is ours right now. We can receive knowledge for innovation, wisdom to carry out our callings, businesses, and ministries, creativity for music with melodies of angels that no one has heard before. These are things that even Seraphim, Cherubim, and angels who are continuously present and singing before the throne of God long to look into [1 Peter 1:12]. The New Covenant with its message of the Gospel, the blessings and privileges of the Gospel, all these have been entrusted to us. So, let us be bold in coming to receive grace and mercy in our time of need. As long as we breath on the earth, there will always be a need. If not of our own, may be of our family members, of our neighbors, of our churches, of our workplaces, of our communities, of our nations. There’s no need so great that it cannot be supplied through the blood and intercessions of our Lord Jesus Christ [ 1 Timothy 2:1-5; 2 Thessalonians 3:1; Luke 1:37; Jeremiah 32 verses 17 and 27; Hebrews 7:25; Mark 9:23; Matthew 9:29; Matthew 8:23; Mark 11:22-24; John 14:12; Romans 10:13; Isaiah 33:24; Psalms 103:3; Genesis 22:17]. We should avail, or take advantage of the offer the Lord has given us. We can either do this alone, in secret place, like Jesus did on those mountains in the days He walked upon the earth or we can do it corporately, like the church in Jerusalem did [Mark 1:35; Matthew 6:6; Acts 4:30-31; Acts 12;5-18; Hebrews 12:18-29; saiah 57:13B; Matthew 16:19; Matthew 18:18-20]

 Sunday, October 2nd, 2022

I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; They shall never hold their peace day or night. You who make mention of the LORD, do not keep silent, And give Him no rest till He establishes And till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth. Isaiah 62:6-7

The Lord who watches over Israel neither sleeps nor slumbers [Psalms 121:4]. Only Him can raise intercessors who are that zealous like Himself, to intercede for Israel and the church [John 2:17;  Isaiah 9:6-7; Galatians 6:16; Romans 9:3]. Just like David was called to fight the Lord’s battles, the church age is a 2000-year-period of intense spiritual warfare for souls, righteousness, and God’s kingdom [1 Samuel 25:28; Matthew 16:18-19; Matthew 11:12; 2 Corinthians 1: 7-10; Psalms 110:1-3]. This age differs from the coming age of the millennium, in which Christ will reign for a  1000 years in Jerusalem, in peace and security. This prophetic difference between the church age and the millennium has often been compared to the difference between the reign of David and Solomon. David’s kingdom was a type of the kingdom of Christ, the Son of David, during the bloody and battlefield of the church age; Solomon’s kingdom was a type the kingdom of the Messiah, the Son of David, when He returns to rule in Jerusalem in peace and justice [1 Kings 5 verse 3 and 4; 1 Chronicles 22:8; 2 Samuel 7:5-13;  Acts 14:22; 2 Corinthians 11:22-28; Isaiah 11:8-9; Isaiah 2:2-4; Revelation 20:4-8]. It is in this age we fight and win battles for which we shall enjoy everlasting victory. For us to be set on walls of Jerusalem and the church as watchmen, first of all we have to hear the Lord call us. It is not something we could decide to become the undertakers without the Lord’s appointing and anointing [Acts 19:15; 2 Corinthians 1:21; 2 Corinthians 2:14; 1 Corinthians 15:32; Acts 19:20; Luke 1:71; Psalms 111:6]. The knowledge, the determination, the passion, the the warfare, the dangers, the victories, and all things related to this are all humanly impossible. So, Scriptures say, “I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem.” Because only the Lord can call, equip, anoint, strengthen, guide, provide, protect, and give victory through such perilous wars. The end game is for Christ to make Jerusalem excellence in the world and the church a mighty force that cannot be vanquished, till He appears in the sky to take the redeemed [1 Thessalonians 4:14-17; Acts 5:31; Hebrews 10:13; Acts 2 verse 17; verse 38 and 39; John 14:1-3; Revelation 19:7-15; Philippians 2:5-11].

Monday, October 3rd, 2022

On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves- Zechariah 12:3.

After the rapture of the church to heaven, there will be a celebration known as “the wedding supper of the Lamb“- this will take place in heaven [Revelation 19:7-10; John 14:1-3; Psalms 45:2-17].  However, since not everyone is born again and sanctified, there will be some who will be left on the earth. The rapture will be for sanctified saints only. A conservative speculation could be 10%-25% of the current 2 billion professing Christians. We do not have the exact number of those who will be raptured, but they will probably be a minority of those in the visible church. In the rapture, Christ comes “like a thief” and many will be caught unprepared. In the Second Coming 7 years later, He comes openly and every eye will see Him. [Matthew 7:13-14; Luke 13:24-25; Revelation 16:15; Matthew 24:43-47; Luke 17:35-36; Revelation 1:7; Zechariah 12:10-11; Luke 21:27]. Still, those who will be taken are a lot of people being caught up into heaven and disappearing for 7 years. Suddenly, the man of sin, also known as the man of lawlessness, also known as the antichrist, will be revealed [2 Thessalonian 2:6-8; Daniel 11:31-45; Daniel 12:1-10;Matthew 24:21-22; Jeremiah 30:7; Revelation 13]. He will first establish a deceitful treaty with Israel, a covenant of peace. But as they are still saying peace and safety, a war will break out in the middle of the 7 years, when the antichrist will declare himself supreme ruler, curse God, and take over the reins of power in a large swath of the world [Daniel 9:24-27; Matthew 24:15; 2 Thessalonian 2:4; Daniel 7:25]. He will declare a war against Israel and Jerusalem. It is towards the end of the 7 years that Jesus Christ returns and wages a war against the antichrist armies and defeats them. Since the millions of Bible readers can calculate 1260 days, the Second Coming won’t be “like a thief.” Christ’s war against the Antichrist is also known as the battle of Armageddon. It will be the bloodiest war ever recorded in history[Revelation 16:16-21; Revelation 19:11-15]. What will make it so bloody is because technology will deceive the world’s armies to attempt to clash with heaven’s spiritual armies [Psalms 2:8-12]. While the rapture will happen in the twinkling of an eye, the brightness of His second coming will take 75 days because of the battle of Armageddon. This is why Daniel uses 1335 days calculation rather than 1260 days of the book of Revelation as those 75 days come after the tribulation is over, when Christ is clashing with the millions of soldiers of the Antichrist [1 Corinthians 15:52; Daniel 12:11-13; 2 Thessalonian 2:8; Revelation 12:6]. Christ and all the hosts of heaven will crush those armies in the fullness of his fury “I trampled the nations in my anger; in my wrath I made them drunk and poured their blood on the ground.”- Isaiah 63:5. And 2 verses before that we see in Isaiah 63:3: “I have trodden the winepress alone; from the nations no one was with me. I trampled them in my anger and trod them down in my wrath; their blood spattered my garments, and I stained all my clothing.” This is the same language used in Revelation 19:15.

Tuesday, October 4th, 2022

The LORD will march out like a champion, like a warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle cry and will triumph over his enemies- Isaiah 42:13. 

When Scriptures tell us that the Lord neither sleeps nor slumbers in watching over Israel and His people, they are to assure us of security at all times. We are protected against all foes, whether we are vigilant ourselves or not. We know that no enemy or army would ever match Jehovah Sabaoth, who is “mighty in battle”- Psalms 24:8. The world’s armies won’t be a match on the day of the Lord when He will bathe the the nations in their own blood in Jerusalem.  Pharaoh was not a match at the Red Sea, when Jehovah sank all Egypt’s soldiers in the bottom of the sea, with all their chariots. Even now, Satan in all his fury is not a match as Christ continues to advance His kingdom, reigning and ruling through His church [Exodus 14:14; Exodus 15:3; 2 Kings 19:35; Isaiah 63 verse 3 and verse 5; Zechariah 12:3; Revelation 19:11-15; Isaiah 59: 16-19; Luke 19:27; Matthew 16: 18-19; Matthew 18:18-20; Psalms 110:1-3; Hebrews 10:13; Matthew 28:18-20; Colossians 2:15; Matthew 24:14]. We have seen that on the day of the Second Coming the Lord will crush the nations that will have attacked Israel in the battle of Armageddon. In that day, He will be visible to everyone and how the war will happen will be in the eyes of all flesh. However, during the church age, He is still waging an invisible war against Satan and his forces. He will continue to defend, rescue, and establish His saints in his church in their daily struggles against the forces of darkness. 2000 years of church history have left us with a gigantic record of how the church has gone from victory to victory, from glory to glory, and the increase of Christ’s government shows no sign of slowing down. We participate in this warfare but the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, rather they are spiritual and pull down strongholds. Still, the battle is the Lord’s and He will soon crush Satan under our feet. Some of the invisible spiritual weapons that Christ uses in the church age are judgments against people. These can affect both Christians and non-Christians. They affect Christians who resist the Holy Spirit and provoke the Lord to jealousy. They also affect unbelievers who are obstinate in wickedness, defy Christ, stand in His way, or frustrate His purposes. [Ephesians 6:10-18; 2 Corinthians 10:4-6; Romans 16:20; Luke 10:19-22; Acts 12:22-24; Daniel 2:37; Acts 19:20; Acts 13:8-13; Luke 1:74; Acts 12:5-18; Acts 14:22; 1 Corinthians 15:25; Isaiah 9:6-7; Psalms 2:8-12; Psalms 66:3; Psalms 111:6; Matthew 12:20-21; Luke 18:1-8; 1 Timothy 2:1-5; Acts 2:32-25; Matthew 6:9-10; Revelation 3: 7-8; Isaiah 22:22; Ezekiel 37:4-10; Ephesians 5:26-27; 1 Corinthians 2:9; Jeremiah 51:20-26; Jeremiah 1:19; Isaiah 41:15-16; 1 Peter 4:17;  1 Corinthians 10:22; Acts 5:5-10; 1 Corinthians 11:25-31; Revelation 2:22-25; John 2:17; Isaiah 45:9; Revelation 1:5-18; John 17:11; John 16:33; Job 38:12-13; Psalms 7:11; Romans 1:18-31; John 3:18; John 9: 39; Luke 17:1-2; John 20:23; Psalms 1:4; Psalms 35:5; Matthew 3:12; Psalms 97:3; 2 Samuel 22:8-9; Hebrews 12:29; Luke 12:19-20; Hebrews 9:27; Luke 13:7-9; Acts 17:30; Acts 14:16; Revelation 5:5; Daniel 2:35; Exodus 15:3; Isaiah 26:11; Isaiah 54:17; Job 42:2; Proverbs 19:21; Psalms 33:10-11; Deuteronomy 32:39; Romans 11:22 ].

Wednesday, October 5th, 2022

Has any god ever tried to take for himself one nation out of another nation, by testings, by signs and wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, or by great and awesome deeds, like all the things the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes? – Deuteronomy 4:34

In this verse we see Moses opening our eyes to 2 things that are unique. The first is that “any god ever tried to take for himself.” Jehovah compares himself to other gods often so that He may affirm His glory [1 Samuel 2:2; Exodus 15:11; Deuteronomy 4:35; Deuteronomy 32:31; 2 Samuel 7:22; Psalms 96:5; 1 Chronicles 16:26; Jeremiah 10:11; Psalms 135:15-16; Judges 10:14-16; 1 John 5:21; Ephesians 5:5]. Idols compete with Jehovah in claiming divinity without actually having the credentials and worth of being elevated to the same status as God [Deuteronomy 32:37; Jeremiah 2:28; Isaiah 45:20]. Think of how many millions of people have worshipped Baal, Ashteroth, and Molech in the Old Testament. Think of many who still believe in polytheistic religions in Asia and Africa, to this day. What about technology, money, and power in the West ? These are the new gods. The Bible tells us there’s only one God, who created the heavens, the earth, peoples, and animals. We are His creatures. This God wanted this to be known and all people to leave their false gods [Jeremiah 4:1; Deuteronomy 4:30; Jeremiah 3:22; Jeremiah 7:5-7;  Isaiah 31:6; Hosea 7:16; Acts 17:25-28]. One of the ways He was going to reveal this was to choose a people and make a covenant with them. This is the second unique that Moses is telling us about. Jehovah chose Israel and grew them into a powerful nation that He delivered from the hands of Egypt by signs, wonders, and miracles. Other nations fought with spears, swords, arrows, horses, and chariots, but here was a nation that did not need those weapons to walk out in freedom. Many nations envied Israel for taking the land of Canaan, but often they were unwilling to be ruled by the God of gods, Jehovah Most High and His laws [Number 21:21-29; Joshua 1:5; Joshua 23:9-10; Psalms 111:6; Deuteronomy 9:4; Leviticus 18:3; Deuteronomy 18:9; Jeremiah 10:2]. Israel was His special possession. We see that language of Exodus 19:5-6 used by Peter in 1 Peter 2:9-11. A fulfillment of Hosea 2:23. This is further confirmed by Paul in Ephesians 3:6 and Ephesians 2: 19-22. I have seen debates, and even fights, between Jewish and Gentile Bible teachers whether the church inherits the promises and blessings of Israel. The truth is rather obvious. It is YES and NO at the same time. Yes, because all promises are Yes in Christ [2 Corinthians 1:20; Jeremiah 31:31-34; Matthew 26:28; Hebrews 4:1-11; Hebrews 6:15-20; Hebrews 8:10; Hebrews 10:16-23; Galatians 6:16 ]. Whoever is in Christ inherits those promises, like Exodus 19:5-6 and 1 Peter 2:9-11 we have just seen. But some promises are rather unique to Israel and specific to geographic Jerusalem, and therefore would not be applicable to Gentile Christians. For example, Aliyah, or the return of Jews from Europe to Israel in the 20th century was prophesied 2500 years ago by Ezekiel [ 7 chapter from Chapter 33 to Chapter 39; Romans 11:26]. We also see post-Cyrus, post- Ezra prophets like Zechariah prophesy a return, which obviously would not be a reference only to the events that had just been fulfilled [Zechariah 10]. Even Isaiah had earlier written about that [Isaiah 11:12; Isaiah 43:6;  Isaiah 49 verses 12, 18, 20, and 22; Isaiah 60:4]. The Gentile church and Israel are not competitors for God’s promises and blessings, but fellow heirs.

Thursday, October 6th, 2022

And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.- Matthew 16:18-19

With the 21st century church that is Gentile-centric, we tend to forget that the early 12 apostles were all Jews. Christ Himself is a Jewish Messiah first. Of course, He is also the Savior of the whole world. Apart from Jesus Christ no one has eternal life. These 12 apostles who founded the church are very special, their very names are at the foundation of New Jerusalem, which comes down from heaven [Matthew 19:28; Revelation 21:14; Ephesians 2:19-22]. While Christ gave more gifts to the church upon His ascension, for Scriptures say “When He ascended on high He took captivity captive and gave gifts to men…”- Ephesians 4:11-16, those ascension gifts of apostleship and prophets were to equip the saints and perfect the church, but they would not be on the same rank and level as the foundational apostles. It must be noted that though the church is currently majority Gentile in numbers, the Jews are not forbidden from becoming born again and following Jesus Christ. The number of “Messianic Jews” has been increasing. Paul deals with this topic in Romans chapters 9, 10, and 11. So, there’s now neither Jew nor Gentile, we have become one new man [Galatians 3:28; Ephesians 2: 14-16; Galatians 6:15]. The fights between Paul and Peter in Galatians 2 show us how this unity and reconciliation won through the cross was not an easy process in church practice. Even today, there are various issues that cause factions among different church groups. It is this united church that Christ has founded and that He continues to build that will continue to prevail against the forces of darkness [John 17:11-26; Acts 19:20; Acts 11:26; Acts 14 verse 16 and 22]. We live in an information-filled age, and every day, it seems we are flooded with more news of what Satan is doing to cause more chaos in the world. Often it seems like the devil is raising his fists against the church of Jesus Christ. However, Christ remains the Rock upon which the church has been built and Peter was his representative. We are now also His ambassadors. Whoever stumbles on this rock is broken into pieces and whoever it falls upon is crushed. Either way, no one can afford to be confused about Christ, resist Him, or try to sabotage His work [Matthew 21: 42-45; Isaiah 28:16; Psalms 118:22-23; 1 Corinthians 10:4-5; 1 Peter 2:7-10; John 21:14-18; 2 Corinthians 5:20]. The prevailing and triumphant church is a decree of Christ Himself that all saints should delight to rest in. Christ is the Lamb upon the throne, ruling the world for the sake and benefit of His church. He is walking amidst the lampstands, supervising the work of His church. He is administering gifts and preparing His bride for glory to reign with Him [1 Corinthians chapter 12; Matthew 18:18-20; Revelation 1:15-18; Revelation chapter 2-3; Revelation 4:9-11; Revelation 5:5; Revelation 19:7-10; John 14:1-3;  Ephesians 5:26-27; 1 Corinthians 15:25; Hebrews 10:13; Psalms 110:1-3; 1 Corinthians 4:7; Acts 20:26-30; 1 Peter 5:2-4; John chapter 10].

Friday, October 7th, 2022

I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Sovereign LORD. Every man’s sword will be against his brother. I will execute judgment on him with plague and bloodshed; I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him. And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.- Ezekiel 38:21-23.

It’s not just at the end of the great tribulation, when the Messiah returns in glory to rule in Jerusalem, that those who try to move Jerusalem are prophesied of risks of injuring themselves [Zechariah 12:3]. In Ezekiel chapter 38 and chapter 39, we see a pre-raptured, pre-tribulation scenario, in which Russia and its allies in the Middle East, will attack Israel and end up with destruction. This war will be followed by the last Jewish Revival in Israel in Ezekiel 39:21-29, in which a large number of Jews become believers in Jesus Christ. The revival will come after 7 months of burying the dead soldiers of invading armies. The description of this war clearly differs from the battle of Armageddon. Gog and Magog usually refers to Russia in prophetic terms. It will attack Israel before the rapture of the church to heaven. Armageddon will come later. It will involve Western armies led by the Antichrist, after the rapture of the church to heaven. Considering that this is a war prophesied 2500 years ago, and the stakes of the war in Ukraine have shown how far Russia is willing to go to assert itself, the fulfillment of this prophecy seems much closer to reality than at any other time in history. Russia already has 2 allies in the Middle East that are sworn enemies of Israel, Iran and Syria, which will be part of the coalition we see prophesied in Ezekiel 38. The Lord will gather them to attack Israel only to be burned up in a whirlwind of a firestorm. “Persia” is in Verse 5 and it’s modern Iran. These prophetic issues may seem like secondary to the life of faith of many Christian saints, but in Romans 9-11 and Ephesians 2:14-20, Paul lays out a doctrine of one-ness between the redeemed of Israel and the church.  Paul says that Gentiles are no longer strangers to the covenant with Yahweh. In the New Covenant, God creates one new man, who is neither Jew nor Gentile, but we are One Body in Christ.  New Testament gentile saints inherit all promises of the Old Testament, without replacing Jewish Israel. Israel still has a standing before God. It’s because of this that the Lord, “The Lion of the Tribe of Judah,” will defend Israel when Russia rises to attack her. Russia and its allies will be defeated by Jehovah Sabaoth. Ultimately, the entire nation of Remnant of Israel that Jesus will find at His Second Coming will be saved. In the church age, gentile saints are called upon to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. There are rewards and blessings for those who intercede for Israel [ Ephesians 6:16; Galatian 6:16; Psalms 122:6; Psalms 137:5; Genesis 12:3; Galatians 3:28; 2 Corinthians 1:20;  Psalms 121:4; Daniel 12:1; 1 Samuel 17 verse 26 and verse 45; Ezekiel 22:30; 1 Corinthians 16:3; Romans 11:1-5; Isaiah 66:10; Psalms 51:18; Jeremiah 51:10; Matthew 23:37-39; Numbers 24:8-9; Joshua 2:10; Genesis 49:9; Revelation 5:5;  Romans 11:26].

Saturday, October 8th, 2022

But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly- Hebrews 12:22

In Galatians 4:26, apostle Paul introduces a new concept of the Jerusalem from above. “But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.” At the time Paul wrote this, the Jerusalem below was not free. It was simply a province of the Roman empire. It had killed Jesus and was persecuting the church. Paul himself had been part of the persecuting Pharisees. That Jerusalem would be destroyed by the Roman army years later [Matthew 23:37-39; Matthew 24:1-3; Luke 2:1-5; Acts 9:1-21; Acts 22:3-18]. Jerusalem has always been a prophetic mirror of the city of God . The ultimate city of God is in heaven above and will come down to the earth when God’s prophetic counsels are fulfilled. Long before David conquered Jerusalem and took it from the Jebusites, Abraham was looking for a city whose architect and builder was God [2 Samuel 5:1-12; Psalms 48:1-3; Matthew 5:35; 2 Samuel 6:1-20; Psalms 2:6-12; Psalms 132:8-15; Psalms 50:2; Jeremiah 30:18; Hebrews 11:10]  . Now, we know that God is the builder of all things. He is the one who built America. But there’s a specific city that has no human hands involved in its building. It is a supernatural and glorious city [Hebrews 3:4; Hebrews 11:16; John 14:1-3;  Hebrews 13:14; Revelation 21 verse 2, verse 10 to verse 14]. Thanks to the grace of Jesus Christ and the anointing of the Holy Spirit, we can take a peek into that city now, just like Moses saw Canaan after climbing Mount Pisgah. Scriptures don’t say we look it from afar because we are already its citizens. Scriptures declare that we have already come to Mount Zion. This is a very profound revelation that all our days on earth will be spent scratching [ Deuteronomy 3:26-27; Deuteronomy 4:21; Deuteronomy 32:49-50; Isaiah 52:1; Colossians 3:1-2; Philippians 3:20; Revelation 21; John 16:13-14; Philippians 3:13-14; John 21: 25; 1 Corinthians 13: 9-12; Job 36:26; Job 42:5-6; Habakkuk 3:2; Ephesians 3:19-20; Romans 11:33-36; 1 Corinthians 2:9]. We have come to that city of Mount Zion where no one becomes sick. We have come to that city of Mount Zion where Christ reigns. We have come to that city of Mount Zion where angels sing 24 hours a day, 7 day a week, crying “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord.” We have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly where gloom and doom do not abide. We have come to the mount of fire and of God. We have come to the spirits of just men made perfect. We have come to the abode of Moses, Elijah, Abraham, David, Daniel, Ezekiel, and Enoch [Psalms 103:3; Isaiah 33:24; Matthew 12:15; Matthew 9:35; Revelation 22:2; Malachi 4:2; Revelation 5:5; Revelation 4:9-11; Isaiah 6:1-8; Hebrews 12:18-19; Genesis 5:24; Hebrews 11:5; 2 Kings 2:9-12; Matthew 17:1-6]. We have come to the church of the First born, to Christ Jesus the Lamb upon the throne, to the One who has called us into a kingdom of priests and kings for our God. We have come to praise and adore Him. We have come to receive answers to our prayers, miracles, provisions, mercies, and showers of blessings that will bring down a revival to  the Jerusalem below and all the nations of the world on earth. We have come to a place where we behold the glory of the Lord and are transformed in His very image, going from victory to victory, overcoming sin and Satan, and rising above all storms and afflictions of the world. We have come where we belong for eternity [Matthew 16:18-19; Matthew 18:18-20; Deuteronomy 16:16; 1 Corinthians 12:27; Acts 3:19; Ezekiel 34:26; Psalms 46:4; Acts 19:11-12; Philippians 4:3; Luke 10:19-22; Revelation 3:5; Revelation 20:15; 2 Corinthians 3:18;  Revelation 2:7; Revelation 3:21; Matthew 25:21; 1 Timothy 1:17; 1 Timothy 6:15-16; Psalms 84:4-7].

Sunday, October 9^th, 2022

He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire. He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”  Psalms 46: 9-10.

It may seem paradoxical to read in Scripture that “The Lord is a man of war“- Exodus 15:3, and then to read that Christ, His anointed One, is the “Prince of peace.”- Isaiah 9:5-7. It may seem even more contradictory to hear the Lord call us to war and at the same time call us to pursue peace [ 2 Corinthians 10:4-6; Ephesians 6:10-18; Colossians 3:15; Hebrews 12:14; James 4:1-2; James 3:14-15]. So, which is it ? Is He a man of war or is He the Prince of Peace ? Are we called to war or are we called to peace ? While there are situations in which we are to obey God implicitly whether we understand His commands or not, like Abraham offering his son Isaac for example, God has given us His Word to be a lamp unto our feet so that we can actually understand His thoughts, which are often above our thoughts, in how His commands and decrees are reasoned [Isaiah 55: 8-9; Psalms 147:5; Romans 11:33-36; Genesis 22; 2 Kings 21:1-7; Isaiah 40:28; Psalms 119:105; Deuteronomy 29:29; Acts 1:7; 2 Peter 1:19]. The underlying principle behind His call to war is because Satan is at war against His kingdom and against our own souls and lives. Satan does not want Christ’s purposes to succeed. He certainly does not want us to have a place in that kingdom. Sadly, Satan has supporters, whom the Bible calls “children of disobedience” and his evil spirits work through them to advance his agenda. This makes war often inevitable, though it does not make peace utterly impossible. The only reasons that the Millennial kingdom will be full of peace will be because of Christ’s physical presence and reign in Jerusalem and Satan’s absence from the world affairs [Ephesians 2:1-3; 1 John 5:19; 1 Peter 5:8; John 10:10; Colossians 2:15; Romans 16:20; Revelation 20 verse 2, verse 3 ,and verse 8; Revelation 1:7; Matthew 23:37-39; Zechariah 14:4]. In the church age, fallible man is still in authority and Satan’s deceptions continue to charm ignorant souls [Romans 13:1-2; 1 Peter 2:17; 2 Corinthians 11:3; 1 Thessalonians 2:18;  Daniel 10:13; Acts 19:32; 1 Corinthians 14:33; Luke 22:53; 2 Corinthians 2:11; Hosea 4:6; Isaiah 5:13; Proverbs 10:21; Ezekiel 44:23]. The Lord also calls us to peace because that was His original intent. Satan’s interjection in between has not changed the nature of the kingdom of God [Romans 14:17; Isaiah 32:17; Matthew 5:9; Romans 15:13; Galatians 5:22]. What the world was before the fall, it will become again, and even better, after the Lord Jesus Christ returns to reign in Jerusalem. Peace is our end, not war. The Lord also has established the rules of warfare that make the battle His, not our own. We are to be quiet and still as He instructs, guides, and helps us. We are to follow His leadership. So, peace is also our process towards that final destiny of peace. Notice that though Psalms 46:10 is often quoted for individual tranquility, actually the context of the verse, the proper way to read any Scripture really, is one of wars ceasing, and wars are generally not individual matters. They usually involve nations, regions, and international players. So, while the peace should certainly start on an individual level, it must extend to families, tribes, and nations. In this age, one of the ways the Lord stops wars is by shattering spears, rather than men voluntarily beating them into pruning hooks [Isaiah 2:4; 1 Thessalonians 5:3; 1 Timothy 2:3; Romans 13:4; Isaiah 32:18; 2 Peter 3:13]. We know this because we have enjoyed the post-Hitler world relative peace that way since 1945. Peace and law still need enforcement during the church age. God ultimately helps us achieve that.

Monday, October 10th, 2022

“Their feet are swift to shed blood, ruin and misery mark their ways, And the way of peace have they not known- Romans 3:15-17

What caused the war in Ukraine ?  And what causes wars in general ? Geopolitical analysts can certainly come up with some key events to explain these things, but the Bible will tell us the bottom-line is the sin of man. Sin is so deceptive, it can make what is destructive to look like it is reasonable [Hebrews 3:13; Ephesians 4:22; Romans 7:11]. The Lord makes wars to cease and bring peace after those wars, but we are called to learn His ways of peace so that we do not end up in wars in the first place. Paul charges gentiles of wickedness in Romans 1 because they had ignored natural law. Then, he charges Jews of hypocrisy in Romans 2, as they should have known better,  having received revealed law. Paul concludes that all have sinned in Romans 3 [See verse 23]. Sin is at the root of all sins. Sin is a principle from which all evils we do not want to see in the world flow. In the process of reaching that conclusion, Paul declares that the way of peace sinners have not known. So, how can there be peace in the world, if the way of peace is uncharted, unknown, untried, and not followed ? It would not be possible. If wars are to cease in the world, then we have to be familiar with the way of peace and walk in it. It’s after opening that sore wound that Paul brings the balm of Gilead to heal it [Jeremiah 8:22; Isaiah 1:6; Jeremiah 14:19; Jeremiah 30:13; James 3:6; Proverbs 16:27;  Psalms 38:3; Matthew 9:12;  Matthew 12:36; 2 Chronicles 7:14; Isaiah 30:26; Isaiah 59:1-2] . In Romans 5:1, Paul starts to declare to us the way of peace. “Since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Peace, after all, starts with a vertical relationship, between mankind and the Creator [Romans 3:24-25; 2 Corinthians 5:19-21]. When David had stolen Uriah’s wife and killed his faithful soldier, he astonishingly prays “Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.”- Isaiah 51:4. Wait a minute! We can list a number of people David sinned against. He certainly sinned against Uriah by taking his wife. He did sin against Bathsheba, by making her fall into sin and killing her husband. He did sin against Joab, by instructing him to get Uriah killed, involving a third party in his own sin. We could argue that he did sin against Israel by using his official hours to commit iniquity, when he should have been at the battlefield, fighting the battles of the Lord. And finally, didn’t he have a family ? He sinned against them too [2 Samuel 11; 2 Samuel 11:15; 2 Samuel 12:11]. Yet, God accepts his pleas for forgiveness, by claiming that He sinned against God alone. This is something we must grasp. After all, God is the Maker of all people and we are all His children and creatures. If we sin against any of His creatures, we sin against the Almighty. An injustice towards a creature, even “ the least of these,” is an offense towards God [Matthew 25:40; Proverbs 7:15; 1 John 3:17; Luke 15:21; Genesis 39:9; 1 Samuel 15:24; Job 33:27;  Luke 17:1-2;  Psalms 103:10; Ezra 9:13; Job 31:29; Romans 3:4; Job 40:8; Lamentation 3:22; Acts 17:30-31 ]. This makes sin exceedingly sinful. For, how dare we affront such a Majestic, Benign, Good, and Holy being ? How dare we offend God ? Peace with God is the first step towards peace with men. Honoring God is the first step towards honoring men. If we find a way to have peace with our Maker, we shall find a way to have peace with fellow brethren. The way to that peace with God, to being reconciled with the Almighty, was provided for us through the blood of Jesus Christ. He is Our Peace with God. Peace has terms and conditions and Christ is the only way of truth to that peace [Psalms 50:21; Ecclesiastes 8:11;Isaiah 42:14;  Psalms 90:8; Isaiah 45:22; Ephesians 2 verse 14 and verse 17; Colossians 2:14; John 14:6; Acts 4:12; Acts 13:38; Luke 24:47; 1 John 1:7-9; 1 John 2:1-2; Hebrews 10:2; Hebrews 9:14].

Tuesday, October 11th, 2022

The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace- Romans 8:6

On July 8th, 1741, Jonathan Edwards preached the famous sermon “Sinners In The Hands of An Angry God.” The Sermon is so famous that some people study it as a historical document, even if they may not have any interest in Christianity. However, as its title indicates, and it shall happen on judgment day, this sermon is much more than a historical document. All sinners who have not been reconciled with God through the blood of Jesus Christ will eventually fall into the hands of an angry God. And “it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”-[ Hebrews 10:31; Isaiah 19:16; Matthew 10:28; 2 Corinthians 5:11; Isaiah 33:14; Deuteronomy 32:35; Romans 12:19; 2 Peter 2:3; Exodus 33:24]. Sodom knows this. Pharaoh knows this. Korah knows this. Saul knows this. Zedekiah knows this. Herod Agrippa I knows this. No one in their right mind would ever want to have God as an enemy. Reconciliation and peace with God is an emergency [Genesis 19:24; Numbers 16:32; 1 Samuel 28:15; 1 Chronicles 10:13; Romans 9:17; Exodus 14:24-31; Jeremiah 52:7-11; Acts 12:21-23; Isaiah 63:10; Deuteronomy 32:21; 2 Chronicles 36:16; Isaiah 45:9; Jeremiah 7:19; Jeremiah 44:8; Hebrews 3:15; Psalms 95:7; Hebrews 4:7]. This is why Paul pleads earnestly for sinners to make peace with God, to be reconciled with the Almighty . This is possible because Jesus paid the penalty for the sin of mankind, through His blood.  When God sees the blood of Jesus covering those who believe in Christ, the destroying angel passes over. The blood also cleanses the conscience and the Holy Spirit helps the believer to be acquainted with, accept, and receive assurance from Christ’s redemptive work. If God is satisfied with the blood of Jesus but man remains in the dark about the removal of his guilt, peace will not come. God is no longer an enemy, but man does not know about it. This is why assurance of forgiveness is an important part of walking out the reconciliation that Christ effected on our behalf. Not only are we forgiven of the sins we had, we are credited a righteousness we did not have. We have become the very righteousness of God. Christ is Jehovah Zidkenu. [2 Corinthians 5:19-21; Romans 4:5; Romans 3:24-25; Hebrews 10:2; Hebrews 9 verse 14 and verse 22; Hebrews 10:22-23; Colossians 2:14; Ephesians 1:6; 1 John 2:1-2; Isaiah 43:25; Psalms 103:12; Jeremiah 23:5-6; Romans 10:4]. The next step, according to Paul, is to be victorious over sin. This includes the dual work of the cross and the Holy Spirit. The cross has already provided a path to victory through death, the Holy Spirit has provided a new life, created after the image of God, to walk in good works that were prepared for the born again saint. The saint accepts the freedom the cross offered and begins to fellowship with the Spirit, know His presence, and walk with Him in the new life. This step is as important as reconciliation, because the new life can only be powered by the Holy Spirit [Romans 6 verse 6 and verse 11; Galatians 2:20; 2 Timothy 2:11;  Ephesians 4:24; Galatians 6:14; John 8:36;.1 John 2:15-17; Ephesians 2:6-10]. There’s no point of exchanging an old car with a brand new car that has no gas in the tank to drive it. It will not get anyone anywhere. The Holy Spirit is the fuel, the fire, the energy, the power for the new life. The Holy Spirit powers the zoe, eternal life of God. It is a life that originates outside of us and could never be lived out from within our own wisdom, intelligence, knowledge, or other aspects of human resourcefulness. The life of God can only be lived by God Himself inside of us. Christ comes to dwell inside our hearts through the Holy Spirit. As He governs our thoughts, plans, goals, and destiny, we walk in divine peace. Thus, the righteous government of Christ’s kingdom of peace begins within us. This is a step we cannot miss [John 15:5; Colossians 1:27; Romans 8 verse 11 and verse 14; 2 Corinthians 5:7; .John 14:26;  Isaiah 54:13; John 16:13-14; 1 John 2:27; Isaiah 26:3; Isaiah 48:18; John 6:63; Romans 14:17; Luke 17:21; Isaiah 9:5-7].

 

Wednesday, October 12th, 2022

For anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience- Hebrews 4:10-11

Since, “There is no peace,” says the LORD, “for the wicked.”- Isaiah 48:22, it makes sense that those who are interested in having peace in the world would start at an individual level with the first 2 steps we have already seen. First, peace with God is absolutely necessary. That also brings peace in our conscience as the effects of the blood are applied there by the Holy Spirit. We proceed then to be victorious over sin , by appropriating the work of the cross in our dying with Christ and walking with the Holy Spirit. Abundant shalom is our portion as our minds are governed by the Spirit. [Psalms 119:165; Proverbs 3 verse 2 and verse 17; Psalms 37:11; Isaiah 32:17; Isaiah 57:21; Isaiah 48:18; Deuteronomy 5:29; Isaiah 66:12; Psalms 81:13-16; Psalms 147:14; Isaiah 26 verse 3 and 12; Romans 6 verses 4, 6, and 11; Romans 8:4; John 8:36]. Being in sanctification does not mean that we forget the blood and the cross of Jesus we needed in the beginning, as we still need them in our day to day living [Romans 5:2; Hebrews 10:22; 1 John 1:7-9]. The work of the cross is the only work God will accept for our redemption. Because of the revelation of the cross, we have ceased from trying to seek justification from our own endeavors and works. We accept that we have nothing to bring to the table for our salvation in either justification or sanctification. We cannot reason and sweat ourselves into sanctification. This is the work of the Holy Spirit. It is the work in which we must rest as well, because the Holy Spirit is the Almighty and already knows where we are headed and what God requires of us. We must be filled with the Spirit to the brim. He will teach us the Lord’s ways, write His commandments and laws into our hearts, renew our minds, help us to set our minds on things above, and start to lead us step by step in what we need to do to align our lives with the will of God. Our entire souls now have become fully surrendered to the work of the Holy Spirit [Hebrews 10:10; Ephesians 2:6-10; Titus 3:5; Colossians 1:12; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; John 6:63; John 3:8; 1 John 2:27; John 19:30; Colossians 3:1-2; Romans 8:26-27; 2 Corinthians 8:5; John 15:5; Acts 6:3; Acts 11:24-26; Proverbs 27:2; 1 Corinthians 4:5; 2 Corinthians 3:2; Acts 4:32-37]. First, what we think and plan has to be approved by Him. Scripture actually says we must “test and approve what the will of God is“- Romans 12:2, which is only possible with renewed minds. Second, what we desire and long for, has to be consistent with God’s holiness—beauty of the Lord Jesus Christ, His glories, His affections, His wounds, His love, His compassion, His promises, and His power. The Holy Spirit will reveal to us these things to draw us closer to Him and induce in us burning zeal for His glory and desiring those things which are above. Third, our will also has to be conformed to God’s will. It would be pointless to know what is right in our mind, desire to have it in our affections, and yet are unwilling to fight for it and take hold of it. [Romans 12:1-2; Philippians 2:13; Song of Solomon 3:4; John 13:23-25; Ephesians 4:23; Matthew 13:22; Ezekiel 36:27; Romans 1:8; Romans 16:19-20; Matthew 5:14-16; Philippians 3:8; Ephesians 3:8; Deuteronomy 33:26;  Exodus 15:11; Luke 19:37]. This conformity to Christ is the way of peace and we must walk in it. The work of the Holy Spirit brings rest because we are free from the responsibility of carrying the loads and consequences of our own decisions. If He says it, we believe it. If surrendered souls hear Him instruct them what to do, there cannot be doubt that He knows better than we do. We must follow that, even if sometimes it may seem like it is hard, inconvenient, or unprofitable. We have entered His rest. We are trusting children, dependent upon our Father for our nourishment and sustenance. The Holy Spirit is the One who teaches us how to profit, succeed in righteousness, grow in wisdom, and advance the kingdom of Christ [Romans 8:28-30; Isaiah 48:17; Psalms 32:8;  Isaiah 30:21; Isaiah 45:11; Matthew 6:8; Psalms 62:8; Psalms 18:2; James 1:5-8; Romans 11:33-36; Psalms 147:5; John 1:12-13; Galatians 4:1-7; Matthew 15:26; Luke 11:3; Isaiah 33:16].

 

Thursday , October 13th, 2022

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord- Colossians 3:15-16

Scriptures declare that “the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”- Romans 14:17. This tells us what the kingdom of Christ looks like. It’s rather amazing that many of the desires of the people of the world who do not know God are actually things that arise from the light God created them with, even if dimmed by the fall of man, but which can be elements the Lord could use to begin to reveal to them the value and benefits of coming to Christ. Scriptures list the aspects of the fruit of the Spirit and then add “against these, there’s no law.” — Galatians 5:23—neither the law of God nor the law of man. We will never have too much kindness, too much love, too much peace [John 1:4; Romans 2:14; Daniel 4:34; Romans 1:19; 2 Corinthians 4:4; 1 Corinthians 9:21; Romans 3:10; Luke 18:19; Isaiah 64:6; Acts 26:18; 2 Peter 1:5-11; Colossians 1:10; 1 Timothy 1:9-10; Daniel 6:5; Ephesians 4:1; Titus 3:14;1 Peter 3:16; Hebrews 13:8]. This is why preaching the kingdom of God is not sufficient. We must manifest it in our living. While Protestants often discount Francis of Assisi words “preach at all times, use words if necessary“—arguing that lived Christian example is not the Gospel and would not save anyone—both Scripture and experience show that the way saints live can have an impact on outsiders. Of course, we cannot elevate our example to the same level as what is written in Scripture, or even the example set by Christ Himself. We must preach because “Faith comes by hearing the Word.”- Romans 10:17. Nevertheless, we may be the only epistle some unbelievers will ever read [2 Corinthians 3:2; 1 Peter 3:1; Romans 2:24; Isaiah 52:5; Ezekiel 36:20; 2 Peter 2:2; 2 Corinthians 2:16; 1 Corinthians 11:1; Ephesians 5:1; Hebrews 13:7; 1 Timothy 5:10; Genesis 18:19; 2 Samuel 18:27; 1 Kings 1:42; 2 Kings 9:20; 2 Timothy 1:7; Titus 2:7; Job 1:8; Numbers 12:7; Ezekiel 14:14]. Thankfully, living that way is possible because of the transformative power of the Holy Spirit. In John 13:35, we see Jesus saying that by the love disciples have for one another the world will know we are His disciples. This is our badge. In John 17:21, He prays to the Father that we may be one, that the world may believe in Him. We cannot ignore these things. Unity among different groups of Christians is part of our witness and it is only possible through the bond of peace. After all, we are members of one another and members of One Body in Christ. Unfortunately, this is not what Christians are known for these days. We see many fights. While Scriptures urge the saints to “contend for the faith once delivered to the saints.”— Jude 1:3, in the long run, it is peace that must rule in our lives and the church, not contention [1 Timothy 4:11-15; Matthew 5; Romans 12:18; 1 Corinthians 12:21]. Clearly, there are standards that cannot be compromised, both in doctrine and holy living. However, this should be done by speaking the truth in love.  We should learn to be slow to speak, insinuate, accuse, contradict, or break the “bond of peace” among the saints—and seek to investigate the truth fully and understand things as they really are—then we can minister without being involved in meaningless controversies. Peace must be our umpire or as the Greek language for “rule” puts it “brabeuo.”  Peace should be our arbitrator. Only when we are filled with the Word of God and are satisfied with where Christ has brought us is this possible. This is why Paul appeals to “any comfort from His love.” in Philippians 2:1, when he instructs the saints not to do anything from selfish ambition. Usually trouble-seekers have a deficiency of knowledge of who Christ is or they have received little grace, to be able to abide and walk in His love. They are conflicted and comfortless. The Holy Spirit is our comforter who satisfies us with divine joy and peace. He gives us guidance, miracles, songs of worship, prophecies, and all the blessings of the kingdom[James 1:19-20; Ephesians 4:3; 2 Timothy 2:23; James 4:1; Romans 14:19; Proverbs 11:12; Proverbs 10:19; Hebrews 12:14; Proverbs 3:30;John 15:25;  Proverbs 26:17; 1 Peter 4:8; Proverbs 17:14; Proverbs 10:12; Psalms 103:9; Job 42:8; Matthew 5: 23-24; Colossians 4: 6; Colossians 3:12; Ephesians 4:15; 1 Peter 4:11; 1 Samuel 7:12; Psalms 124:2-8; Psalms 109:3; Deuteronomy 33:7; Psalms 35:1; Job 9 verse 3 and 32; Zephaniah 3:5; Psalms 141:5; Philippians 2:12-16; Romans 8:31; Acts 20:12; 1 Corinthians 14:3; Isaiah 40:1; 2 Corinthians 1:4; Jude 1:21; John 14 verse 16, 18, and 26; Psalms 68:5-6; John 15:26; Mark 10: 29-30; Romans 8:26-27; Psalms 69:33; Psalms 113:7-8; 1 Corinthians 14:15].

Friday, October 14th, 2022

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus-Philippians 4:6-7

Our faith will be tested in this world and we will go through trials. This is God’s design for our growth and maturity, so that we can reach a point we lack nothing. We will also be attacked by Satan,  who is always looking for someone to devour. Satan’s attacks and divine tests have different purposes, but in the end they both work for our good. God’s tests have good intention while Satan’s attacks are meant for harm, but God is able to turn what is meant to destroy a saint into a blessing. James says that the trial of our faith produces perseverance, while Paul says perseverance produces character.  Perseverance and character must endure the heat and pain of struggles in order to reach perfection. When James says that we won’t be lacking anything, he is not suggesting that we will be having plenty of money after trials. There are Scriptures that talk about divine provisions but this is not it. This is about reaching the full stature of Christ. Jesus was perfect and did not need anything in character or virtue or holiness or union with God. He was one with God and whoever saw Christ saw the father. Ultimately, this is where sanctification should lead us [James 1:2-4; Psalms 105:17-19; 1 Samuel 22:5-23; Matthew 5:48;  Romans 5:3-5; 1 Peter 1: 7; Isaiah 48:10;  Luke 21:19; Philippians 2:22; James 1:12; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; Hebrews 6:19; Hebrews 12:14; John 10:30; John 17:21; Ephesians 5:1; 1 Peter 1:16; Ephesians 4:13; 1 Peter 5:8; Job 23:10; John 10:10; Psalms 17:3; 2 Corinthians 2:11; Job 2:3; James 5:11; Genesis 50:20; 2 Peter 1:5-11; 2 Corinthians 7:1; 1 Corinthians 2:3; 2 Corinthians 5:11; Luke 6:40; Psalms 66:10 ]. We know that this is a long journey, going through mountains and valleys. Even when Paul was at the end of his ministry, he said he had not yet attained it. However, he was pressing on towards that goal of his calling.  Knowing the end of our tests should keep our eyes fixed upon Christ, as challenges are means that Satan could use to cause anxiety and discouragement. While meditating on the eternal life we have received is one of the things we are encouraged to do in order to keep our eyes on the prize of the destination, Paul is also encouraging us to deal with situations as they are, by the prayer of faith. “But in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”— there may be several situations that will arise—going from point A to point Z, with A being our faith starting-point and Z being our final destination—but we can point to how many of these have already revealed to us the bountiful mercies of God and His great power. If someone is at point Q and they have already gone from A to P, they surely should believe God for the remainder of the journey [Philippians 3:13-14; Romans 8:28-30; Romans 11:29; Ephesians 1:3; Romans 8:32; 2 Samuel 7:8; Psalms 113:7-8; 2 Corinthians 1:20; Numbers 23:19; James 5:15;  Malachi 3:6; Titus 1:2; 1 Peter 1:13; Hebrews 3:1;  Hebrews 12:2; Psalms 126:5; Matthew 17:24-27; Mark 8:15-16-21; Matthew 8:23-27; Isaiah 40:4; Proverbs 4:18; Psalms 42:2;  Numbers 33:3-52; Psalms 84:4-7; Hebrews 12:22 ]. The reason many unsurrendered Christians overwhelm themselves is because they try to reason and act outside of faith parameters and instructions, reducing life to success and failure, rather than to God’s workings and leading. But such is the nature of modern apostasy. It involves a mixture of pagan philosophies with their unbiblical terms and Christian doctrine, ending up with teachings that confuse God’s children. Are Christians trying to be like John McAfee ? He was once a billionaire, lost his money, was at one point arrested for drug possession, and died in Italy before extradition to USA. But this is what modern “Christian teachings” are after. That’s rather too easy to do. If so, why are we still praying for a revival ? When are we going to fill all of Asia with the Gospel like Paul ? Christianity is not about what Christians are able to achieve in their own ability, it is about God’s work. His working will never fail. This is why surrendering to the Holy Spirit’s work is necessary. Jesus says “come to me ye who labor…”- Matthew 11:28. Our teachings should lead people to rest their souls in Christ. We do this by pointing them to God’s past faithfulness and His promises so that they can trust Him with their challenges. We all should stay thankful about what the Lord did in the past. In Scripture, God often reminded His people those miracles He had done for that purpose. He will never forsake His inheritance. Christ is a faithful friend who sticks closer than a brother. He has called us not just to be servants, but to be trusted intimate companions. We are treading where Peter, John, and Paul trod. It is the Father’s good pleasure to give us the kingdom with all its glories. He shall perfect all things that concern us and the peace from the realms of glory shall saturate our hearts. Shalom [Psalms 34:1; Psalms 55:22; 1 Peter 5:7; 1 Corinthians 13:8; Deuteronomy 32:20; Hebrews 13:5-6; Psalms 107:41; Isaiah 60:22; Habakkuk 2:3; Psalms 91:14; Exodus 14:14; Psalms 78:3-8; Psalms 46:10; Matthew 11:28; Proverbs 18:24; Proverbs 17:17; Psalms 94:14; 1 Samuel 12:22; James 2:21-23; Genesis 22:12-17; Obadiah 1:17; Romans 4:13; John 15:14-15; Psalms 138:8; Philippians 1:6; Psalms 57:2; John 3:27; Psalms 113:7-8; Jeremiah 32:27;  Luke 12:32; Luke 22:28-29; Matthew 7:7-11; John 14:27; 2 Peter 1:2-4; Ephesians 3:19-20; Mark 9:23; Hebrews 11:6; Luke 18:7-8] 

Saturday, October 15th, 2022

You stilled the roaring of the seas, the pounding of their waves, and the tumult of the nations-Psalms 65:7

We read of Joseph in Scripture, “Until the time that his word came to pass, The word of the LORD tested him.”—Psalms 105:19. Looking at the book of Genesis, we don’t see Joseph in anxiety during those years that the Word of the Lord tested him. Now, we know that the Word of God itself is tested, pure, perfect, and infallible. So, it was not the Word of God that was being tested, rather it was Joseph. That Word had come to Joseph in a form of a dream. There’s no doubt that this is one of the ways that God has spoken throughout history, to this day, though we have now a more sure word of prophecy in the gospels of Jesus Christ and the epistles written by the apostles. Scriptures say “When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.”- Matthew 13:21. This wouldn’t be said of Joseph or David. They stood firm on their prophecies during tribulations. They finally reached a place of exaltation in which they fulfilled their prophecies. This is important for us because the victory of the church is in proportion to the collective faith of the saints. Both Joseph and David are types of Christ and many aspects of their stories can be studied in parallel with Christ’s own life. But there are similarities between their lives and what is prophesied of the church as well. I have covered this in one of my books called “Basics of Christianity.” [ Psalms 18:30;Psalms 12:6; Psalms 19:7; Matthew 24:35; Numbers 23:19; Psalms 119:89; Isaiah 55:11;Isaiah 40:8; Genesis 37:5; Matthew 13:21; Job 33:15; 1 Samuel 3:1; Matthew 2:13-15; 2 Corinthians 12:1-4; 1 Timothy 1:18-19 ║Genesis 37:3 vs Matthew 3:17; Genesis 37:4 vs John 15:25; Genesis 37:11 vs Mark 15:10; Genesis 37:18 vs Matthew 27:1; Genesis 37:23 vs Matthew 27:28; Genesis 37:28 vs Matthew 26:15; Genesis 39:4 vs John 3:35; Genesis 40:2-3 vs Luke 23:32; Genesis 40:13 vs Luke 23:43; Genesis 40:15 vs Hebrews 4:15; Genesis 41:46 vs Luke 3:23; Genesis 41:55 vs John 2:5; Genesis 45:1 vs Luke 24:31 ║1 Samuel 16:11 vs Matthew 16:16 vs Revelation 19:16; 1 Samuel 17:14 vs Psalms 23:1 vs John 10;  1 Samuel 17:2 vs Micah 5:2 vs Matthew 2:1;  2 Samuel 15:30 vs Matthew 26:38;  1 Samuel 17:50-51 vs Colossians 2:15; 2 Samuel 7:13 vs Acts 15:16;  Psalms 16:9-11 vs Acts 2:27-35 ]. An example of similarities between these men and the saints today is that we must go through tribulations to enter the kingdom. Scriptures also say that we are heirs of Christ’s kingdom, if we share sufferings with Him [Acts 14:22; Romans 8:17; Philippians 3:8-10].Now, we know that God’s prophetic counsels will eventually be fulfilled. Christ will reign with the church during the millennium in Jerusalem. It will be a kingdom of peace [Revelation 20:4;  Daniel 7:18; 2 Timothy 2:12; Matthew 19:28; Luke 22:28-30; Romans 5:17; Isaiah 2:2-4]. The question is, how about now ? How much is possible ? How much of the kingdom can we experience before Christ comes back ? When He was born, angels sang “And on earth peace, goodwill toward men“—Luke 2:14. Was this merely intended to be a prophecy of the millennium after Christ’s second coming or could this apply to the church age, after the first coming of Jesus Christ ?  There are 3 things that show us we can experience great peace on earth now. First, in Mark 9:23, Jesus sets things straight that the limits of how much of the kingdom can be experienced are quite blurred when faith is alive. “All things are possible to Him who believes.” That’s not just about healing miracles, but all things pertaining to the kingdom of God. Second, the Psalms 65 we took today largely deals with the earth in its fallen state. “You answer us with awesome and righteous deeds, God our Savior, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas.”- Psalms 65:5. That’s certainly true now. And, as we see in Psalms 65:7, the tumult of nations, that is not something expected for the millennial kingdom, because it will be a  reign of peace. None will be able to resist Christ then and Satan will be bound for 1000 years. It is now that Christ calms the tumult of the nations with the same authority that told the raging seas “Peace, be still“—Matthew 8:26-27. Finally, 1 Timothy 2:1-5 urges us to pray “For kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.” Because “He wants all men to be saved.” We would not be instructed to pray for peace during the church age if it was not possible now. The goal is to allow the Gospel to be shared freely. Though the early church in Jerusalem was persecuted, we read that after Paul’s conversion, “The church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers“- Acts 9:31. With the chief persecutor, Saul of Tarsus, now part of God’s family, churches could enjoy rest and peace. Surely this was done by Christ Himself. When Peter is detained later on, what happens ? Does the church fold hands and say, “well, persecutions are God’s will, Peter is growing stronger in trials of prisons.”- That’s sadly an error of modern Christianity. We read in Acts 12:5  “So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.”- Acts 12:5. What happens next ? An angel bursts Peter out of prison. Christ taught us to pray with perseverance, expecting God’s justice to be done in answer to our prayers [Luke 18:1-8; Matthew 12:20-21]. Coming back to 1 Timothy 2:1-5, peace is not just for the benefit of Christians or the church as we see in this passage. We pray for kings and those in authority, regardless of their beliefs or religion. What God gives us a “go-ahead to do”, He also gives us the benefit or privilege to expect. The prayer of faith is always supported and strengthened by the revealed and written Word. The Lord has spoken. Let’s believe!

Sunday, October 16th, 2022

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all- 2 Corinthians 13: 14

In Christianity, there have been various movements that emphasized one person of the Trinity, some even suggesting that you can be more successful in your relationship with God and ministry, by focusing on One Person alone. There have been “Jesus Movements“- there have been “Holy Spirit Encounters” and there have been “The Father’s Heart.” While God did work through these movements to build up His church, it is possible that He was overriding human weakness and misunderstanding, rather than endorsing each and every teaching that arose in those movements. Splitting the persons of the Trinity or having a sense that one is more likely to recognize your prayer than the other was not taught in the early church, as we see in the epistles written by the Apostles [John 10:30; John 16:13-14; Genesis 1:26; 1 Corinthians 11:7; Genesis 11:6-7; Isaiah 6:8; Matthew 3: 16-17; Matthew 17:15; Luke 4:18; Acts 10:38; John 14:28; John 17:21]. We know, of course, that each person of the Trinity has had His own separate role in our salvation, from election to justification to regeneration to sanctification. For example, we were not chosen by the Holy Spirit, we were chosen by the Father. The Father was not crucified for us, it was Jesus Christ who was crucified for us. The second coming of Jesus was not on Pentecost, it was the Holy Spirit who descended and baptized the church on Pentecost. We do not ask for blessings in the name of the Holy Spirit, we pray in the name of Jesus. Despite these distinct roles we see, God is one in three persons, acting in harmony, and what one does, the other is in full agreement, and there would not be a request granted by the Holy Spirit that could be denied by the Father or Jesus Christ. In the Nicene Creed, we see where it is said of the Holy Spirit “We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified.” And yet, despite this confession, we do not actually see Jesus teaching that we would pray to the Holy Spirit in John 14-17 teachings that prepared the apostles for His departure. He kept saying that we would pray to the Father and He would ask the Father. In the Lord’s prayer, He starts His teaching as “Our Father who art in heaven.” None of the three persons in the Trinity feels jealous, envious, frustrated, that the other is worshipped, honored, feared, served, or mentioned [Ephesians 1:3-5; John 10:36; John 8:58; John 3:3-5; John 3:16; John 5 verse 17 and 19; Acts 2:1-4; 1 John 2:27; Romans 8:9; Matthew 6:9-13; John 14:16; Acts 1:4; Romans 8:26-27; 1 Corinthians 12:11; Matthew 7:7-11; John 1:11-13; John 14:12-14; John 16:24; Acts 19:2; Revelation 1:5-18; Acts 4:30-31; Philippians 2:9-11; Mark 3:28-29; John 20:17; Matthew 16:28; John 7:33-39; John 3:34; Matthew 12:28; Isaiah 11:2-3].  But Scriptures have given us quite plenty of material to teach us about God, reveal us His nature, His power, His ministration, His works, and the distinctiveness of these 3 persons, who are One God. It is part of growing into maturity to know these things and not confuse them. Let’s rejoice in what our God has done for us. Christ has indeed given us His grace. He bled and died for our sins and reconciled us with the Father. He added grace upon grace. He taught us, saved us, and is interceding for us. We are so happy to have such a wonderful Father. We lack nothing in His kingdom. We are accepted in His love and are clothed in righteousness, honor, and glory. We are His precious children. Our Father lavishes us upon us good gifts. We are also so thankful to the Holy Spirit, who has come to dwell with us and be with us. He reminds us the great and amazing things Jesus taught. We would have forgotten them if it was not for His teaching. He opens our minds to understand the Scriptures. He gives us healing gifts, prophetic gifts, speaking in tongues, evangelism, teaching, administration, and more. He is so kind to abide with those who are so apt to grieve Him or ignore His promptings, revelation, and Omnipotence [Romans 15:4; John 5:39-40; Luke 24:45; John 17:17; 2 Timothy 2:15; Matthew 4:4; John 6:63; Luke 15:11-32; Romans 5:8; 1 John 4:19; Matthew 26:28;  Hebrews 10:5; Revelation 4:1-11; Revelation 5:5; John 16:33; Ephesians 4:30; Isaiah 63:10; 2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:14; 1 Thessalonians 4:8]. 

Monday, October 17th, 2022

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life- John 3:16.

In Paul’s benediction of 2 Corinthians 13:14, he gives each person of the Trinity a certain attribute, for which the saints know God and are related to Him. He talks about the love of the Father being with us. This reminds us of John 3:16, where Jesus tells Nicodemus that “God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son.” The New Testament tells us a lot about God the Father. While we will come back to the voice of the Father at Christ’s baptism when discussing the Trinity from Matthew 3:16-17, the first time we see Jesus mentioning the Father after that in the Gospel of Matthew is in Matthew 5:16, where He says that we should let our good works shine so that men would see them and would glorify the Father in heaven. Towards the end of Chapter 5, He admonishes us to look like our Father in character [Matthew 5 verse 45 and 48]. When Jesus goes into Matthew 6, we see Him again talking about the Father. Now He is saying that we will not be rewarded by the Father if these good works, or alms-giving, are simply done for show [Matthew 6:1]. The Father sees in secret and what we do, praying and giving, should be done in secret, and our Father will reward us openly. The same is said about us fasting in verse 18. It is after these introductory remarks, that we see Jesus teaching us to pray “Our Father who art in heaven.”  Further down again in Matthew 6, we see Jesus talking about the birds of the air being taken care of by the Father and they do not lack food. His question is, if the Father cares for His creatures of so little value, won’t he take care of you, O you of little faith ? He comes to the conclusion of Chapter 6 that the pagans run after all these material things of the world and our Father knows that we need them. That we should seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness instead, because all these other things shall be added to us [Matthew 6:26-33]. In Chapter 7, we see Jesus telling us to ask and ask big, expecting to receive. He asks questions of whether men had the habit of giving snakes to their kids who asked for fish. Of course not. Then He concludes, if you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, won’t the Father in heaven give the gifts of the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him ? [Matthew 7:7-11]. Matthew seems to be focused on God’s love for His creation. He makes His sun to shine on good people and evil people, because evil people are His creatures. He provides for birds and makes roses beautiful, because they are His creatures. He gives so liberally to His creatures that anxiety and doubts should be seen as very dishonoring to Him. In terms of redemption, we see the Father involved significantly. In the Gospel of John, we see Jesus talking about being sent by the Father [ John 3:16-17; John 3:34; John 5 verse 30, 36 and 38; John 6 verse 38 and 57; John 7 verse 29 and 33;  John 8 verse 16 and 29; John 9:4; John 11:9; John 12:35; John 17:18; John 20:21]. Christ sees Himself as a missionary, from heaven to earth. This is foundational to His reasoning for the great commission “as the Father sent me into the world, I am sending you into the world.” Obedience to the great commission must be pleasing to the Father as it seems to be at the very center of what Christ was doing. We must do the works of the Father while it is still day. They are not just supposed to be done, they should be prioritized and done urgently. When Paul writes about Christ’s coming in Romans 8, He says that the love of the Father in giving us Jesus to die for our sins is all the proof we need that He would not withhold anything good from us. If God gave us the most expensive gift, how much more will He freely give us other less expensive and significant gifts [Romans 8:32]. One of the most heart-wrenching illustrations of the cross I believe is in Genesis 22, when God asked Abraham to give Isaac. It is possible that humans may not be gripped by the love of the Father giving His own Son to die for humanity unless they have a similar example, from their own race. Can you imagine putting your own child on the altar, bringing down a knife and killing the child ? And then sacrificing that child by fire ? It’s unthinkable humanly speaking. Which is why some false teachers, usually who also tend to be universalists, deny the substitutionary death of Christ. They consider the cross simply a consequence of human rage and hate, rather than of God’s plan and giving. Finally, Paul blesses the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ in Ephesians 1:3-5 and then adds that “He chose us.” What does that mean ? John 6:37 may be the easiest explanation to understand: “All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.” Our inclination to seek Christ, believe in Him, and serve Him does not arise from ourselves. It is a desire and a passion put there by the Father. It is a result of the Father’s electing love. We do not love God first. It is Him who loved us first and we love Him because He loved us first [1 John 4:19]. Failing to see the love of the Father must be the worst form of blindness. Failing to love and serve the Father must be the worst form of ingratitude.

 

Tuesday, October 18th, 2022

The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again- John 10:17

Paul associates Jesus with grace. This is not to say that Christ’s love is less than that of the Father. Jesus tells us “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends“—John 15:13. And, as we know, Paul was not actually part of those friends when Jesus died. He would become a zealous enemy of Christ until confronted by Jesus Himself “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me ?” —Acts 9:4. He would later write, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”— Romans 5:8. Paul would also become known as the apostle of grace. Many of the teachings of Paul on grace can actually be understood from the Gospels, seeing how Jesus interacted with various groups of people— sinners, Pharisees, disciples— and what He taught as God’s spokesman. Arguably, Paul’s most concise definition of what grace is we find in Ephesians 2:8— “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.”— [Also see Ephesians 2:9; Romans 3:28; 1 Corinthians 1:28-29; 2 Timothy 1:9; Titus 3:5; Galatians 2:15-20; Revelation 3:9; Matthew 8:11-12; Galatians 3:1-9].This was an important teaching taught by a “former outsider.” Sometimes Christianity can feel like an insider’s club, in which people who do not belong feel like they will never be able to fit in. But the stakes of Evangelism— seeking and saving that which is lost—make that situation untenable. Paul reminisces the grace of Jesus Christ he received in these words: “Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.”— 1 Timothy 1:13-15. To be clear, Paul has a different approach in sharing his testimony in Philippians 3:4-10. Many of us who grew up in the church— even if it was the Catholic church—can relate to some aspects of Paul’s testimony in Philippians 3:4-10, probably more so than those in 1 Timothy 1:13-15. Religious upbringing, Scripture studies from infancy, and ministry activities in the church—can all make someone feel like they have performed well enough to get into heaven. Paul says that by these types of  accomplishments no one will be justified. Which is why his second testimony in 1 Timothy 1:13-15 sheds a clearer light on how the grace of Jesus Christ works. In 1 Timothy 1:13-15, Paul focuses on the law he had broken, not the law he had kept. Though, of course, we know that no one will be justified by keeping the law, it has always been seen that breaking the law makes you an outlaw and an outcast, casting you into outer darkness [Matthew 8:11-13]. Look at what happened whenever Jesus dealt with sinners and Pharisees in the Gospels. In Mark 2:15-17 we read: “While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners? On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”” Obviously, Jesus wasn’t saying the Pharisees were healthy. He was basically emphasizing that a Savior is only here for saving sinners. We also see a similar confrontation in Luke 7:39 “When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.”— this was the woman who was shedding tears on his feet and wiping them with her hair. Let’s just say that this looks scandalous in many ways. Hardly any Christian preacher in America today would put himself in a such a situation because simply there’s no interest and urgency in seeking and saving the lost, at any cost. Other similar stories in the Gospel would be like Zaccheus in Luke 19:1-10 ; the paralytic brought down from the roof in Mark 2:1-5; And last but not least, the woman that the Pharisees wanted to stone in John 8:3-11. It must be emphasized that the grace of Jesus Christ towards sinners was not to make them comfortable in their sins. Look at Matthew chapter 5 to Matthew chapter 7, sermon on the Mount. Even those who accused Jesus of being too lenient towards sinners would not be able to claim they had obeyed every single line of the sermon on the Mount. How many who consider themselves righteous have— made vows or sworn unnecessarily ? Been angry ? Refused to help the poor ? Served God for showmanship ? Lusted ? Brought offerings to church before reconciling with those they offended ? Slandered ? Judged the sins they themselves committed ? Spoke ill of tithing ? Worried about finances ? Put first their careers before the kingdom of God ?— and all other things that Jesus preaches against in the Matthew 5-7 and Luke 6:17-49 sermon on the Mount ? Isn’t it obvious that “all have sinned” and the grace of Jesus Christ was never meant to be a license to sin ? Even after salvation, the sermon on the Mount is the cornerstone of our obedience. Restoring our relationship with the Father is why Jesus had come and had accepted to lay down His life, so that sinners could be on a path to holiness, having been cleansed and empowered by the Holy Spirit to walk in righteousness [2 Timothy 1:9]. Jesus says, “this is why the Father loves me.” He suffered the worst of scorn, had sleepless nights, many times went without food, was often endangered in his ministry, serving at no apparent financial or worldly advantage, and finally dying the death of the worst criminals on the cross of Calvary [2 Corinthians 8:9]. This is our God, the Servant king. 

Wednesday, October 19th, 2022

As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”— Matthew 3:16-17

We know that it was because of the love of the Father that Jesus Christ came to seek and save that which was lost—all of us sinners. The Father gave us His most precious gift while we were still ungodly and ungrateful. We also know that it was because of the grace of Jesus Christ we were able to know the love of the Father and were brought into God’s family—we were washed, sanctified, healed, and anointed to serve God in ministry. Because of Jesus we are able to approach the throne of God with boldness so that we can receive grace and mercy, not just for ourselves and our families, but also for all the nations of the world. But what about the Holy Spirit ? Who is He ? What has He done or does for us ?  Right at the beginning of the ministry of Jesus, we see the Holy Spirit descending on Him in the form of a dove. Though we read that John the Baptist was full of the Holy Spirit from birth, the dove did not go on his shoulder at the Jordan River. It went on Jesus only. The Holy Spirit is very specific in His work. Though the Father had decided to prepare a body for Jesus, which would be offered for our sacrifice and redemption [Hebrews 10:5], the Holy Spirit is generally invisible,  even though He may take up a form of dove like we see here. The Holy Spirit was the power behind Christ’s miracles. When Peter is giving a testimony at Cornelius’ house, we read: “how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.”—Acts 10:38. The Holy Spirit is the anointing on the Anointed One. The good works of healing those oppressed by Satan were done under His anointing [Luke 5:17; Luke 6:18-19; Matthew 12:28]. When Jesus started His ministry, He confessed “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me to preach the Gospel.” — Luke 4:18. This was a fulfillment of Isaiah 61:1, Isaiah 42:1, and Isaiah 11:2-3. Jesus clearly honored the Holy Spirit’s presence and the Holy Spirit honored Jesus’ ministry. He anointed Jesus to heal, save, deliver captives, and proclaim the year of Jubilee. Jesus had the Spirit without measure [John 3:34].As Jesus was preaching in the temple during the feast of tabernacles, He talked about the Holy Spirit flowing from within those who would believe, like rivers [John 7:37-39]. This would be a fulfillment of Ezekiel’s prophecy—of a river above the knees, shoulders, and head—in which we can only swim in and would carry us—Ezekiel 47:4-5; 1 Kings 18:2; Acts 8:39; Ephesians 3:19-20. This promise would be fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit descended like a mighty rushing wind [Acts 2:1-4]—They began to speak as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit [Acts 2:17; 2 Peter 1:19; 1 Peter 4:11]. Jesus had said “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.”— Acts 1:8. This was a difference-maker and Jesus had said that His ascension to the throne at the right hand of the Father was to our advantage. After the Holy Spirit came, He could indwell billions of Christians, rather than have Jesus alone walking down the streets of Jerusalem. The Holy Spirit empowers more people to carry out the work of redemption and do even greater works [John 16:7-8; John 14:16; John 14:12]. That difference the Holy Spirit made could be seen after Pentecost, when in one day, 3000 people believed in Jesus, as Peter preached in the power of the Holy Spirit. It did not happen at a Buddhist temple in Shandong or at the Osiris temple in Egypt. The Holy Spirit is always specific in His work. He knew that the only believers in Jesus who were waiting for Him were at a particular upper room in Jerusalem and He went straight right there. On that day, the difference was also physically apparent. On one hand, the disciples spoke in other tongues they had never spoken. On another, they looked like they were drunk with wine. The Holy Spirit is other-worldly and His presence and influence can cause euphoria sometimes. Often Christians confess of weaknesses, endless weaknesses—where did the Holy Spirit go ? Once the Holy Spirit comes upon a Christian and the Christian becomes filled with the Spirit, the first identifying difference is power. Not only does He anoint us for ministry, He also works in us to will and to do according to His good pleasure [Philippians 2:13]. Someone will say, what about Paul’s thorn in the flesh ? Isn’t that a weakness ? Oh, what about Paul’s handkerchiefs that healed the sick ? Humans remain humans after they are anointed with the Holy Spirit. But Paul’s primary goal was to minister with a demonstration of the power of the Holy Spirit [1 Corinthians 2:4-5; 2 Corinthians 12:9]. Coming back to the scene of the baptism at the Jordan River— we see the Trinity. There’s Jesus being baptized. There’s a voice of the Father endorsing His ministry. Jesus was already pleasing to the Father and holy[Hebrews 1:9]. We also see the Holy Spirit descending upon Him. A number of times we see God speaking of Himself in plural. In Genesis 1:26-27, He says, “Let us make man in our image…”— at the tower of Babel, when man has rebelled against God, He says, “Come, let us go down and confuse their language.”—Genesis 11:7. After Isaiah sees a vision of heaven, with seraphim crying Holy, Holy, Holy, we see God asking, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” To which Isaiah answered, “Here am I. Send me!”—Isaiah 6:8. Jesus said “I and the Father are One”—John 10:30—and “The Father is greater than I”—John 14:28. Clearly distinct persons in the Trinity. The Holy Spirit is God and He has come to dwell with us. Let us give Him the honor, glory, and obedience due Him. 

Thursday, October 20th, 2022

So he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the LORD Almighty— Zechariah 4:6

Since Jesus said that it was to our advantage that He would go and send us the Holy Spirit, it is important that we get to know Him and be good partners with His work [John 16:7; 1 Corinthians 3:9; John 14:16; John 16:13-14; 1 John 2:27 ]. In Paul’s benediction he writes that He wants us to have fellowship with the Holy Spirit. The Greek word he used is “koinonia” We find used in Acts 2:42, where disciples broke bread together and spent time enjoying each other’s company. It is used in Romans 15:26, where Paul is talking about the church’s contribution for the welfare of the poor. It is used in 1 Corinthians 10:16, where Paul talks about the elements of communion, the cup of thanksgiving and bread, saying that the meaning of these is our participation in the Body of Christ and sharing His blood. Koinonia involves spending time together, partnership in labor, and giving gifts and offerings. Since He is God and our best offerings would be meagre—and sacrifices do not impress Him that much anyway—offering ourselves would be part of this fellowship. Are we His ? Do we belong to the Holy Spirit entirely ? Are we men and women of God ? Do we spend time in His presence, hearing Him speak to us through Scriptures ? Of course, we should give to God’s work, but the emphasis is in us being, first of all, consecrated to the Lord. Do we spend time listening attentively to His instructions, whether in private or in public worship ? This is how He chose Paul and Barnabas to go become missionaries, as we read in Acts 13:2—While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” We know that there are churches today that recognize this type of instruction from the Holy Spirit, while other churches have a more intellectual approach. You go to seminary, you find a job you like in ministry, they evaluate whether you qualify, hopefully they pray, but ultimately, they determine whether you are a “good fit” based on their interests, doctrinal beliefs, salary expectations, and missional goals. In a way, not different from any secular business. There may be hoping that God will work out all things for good but not this level of prophetic accuracy we see in Acts 13:2, of what God actually wants to do for the church and the region. The challenges of building the church—which is really not our ultimate responsibility—but the Lord’s own burden— is not very different from what Zerubbabel had when he was the leader of the Jewish returnees that king Cyrus had released to go back to Jerusalem to try to rebuild the temple [Matthew 16:18-19; Ezra 1:2-11; Ezra 3:1-3; Haggai 2:1-4; 2 Timothy 1:16; Acts 9:23-25]. You will see in the verse that follows the prophet writes “What are you, mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground. “—Zechariah 4:7. We already know how older Jews were frustrated by the foundations of the building as we see in Ezra 3:12. In Haggai, we see that there was an issue of money, as the Jews were more concerned with building their own houses, while the house of the Lord was laying in ruin. We read in Haggai 1:4— “Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?“— Generally speaking the saints, both in the Old and New Testament look to God for what He can give to them, not what they can give to Him. This could explain why there has been spiritual decline in the West despite the prosperity of “Laodicea.”—which is the church spoken in Revelation 3:14-21—used to compare with the modern church. There’s actually nothing wrong with wanting to be blessed by God financially. The problem, as we see in the teaching of Jesus in Matthew 6:26-33, is the priority. It takes time to pursue money and it takes time to pursue God, so what should come first ? People will not have a mastery of Scriptures overnight. Even some fulltime ministers who have dedicated their time to serve God for 20-30 years don’t understand it. Their denominations are falling apart and churches are closing. So, how will carnal, self-serving, “secular Christians“—be of any use in the hands of the Holy Spirit to revive the church ? And how can we be effective if we do not even know or agree what the will of the Lord is for ourselves, families, communities, and nations ? So, in the end, the resources we spend most of our time seeking for ourselves—give us an illusion of might and power— like emphasizing having “a successful secular business” or a “debt-free multi-million dollar church building“—turn out to be worthless in the eyes of the Holy Spirit—since they are in the hands of people who barely know His ways—and therefore cannot accomplish His purposes. We should remember that the Lord has generally gained most glory when we depended less on the arm of the flesh, on our own abilities, our own philosophies, our own resources—and simply prayed and trusted Him— and He saw us through difficulties supernaturally. “Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?”—Jeremiah 32:27—the way saints would pray after being gripped by this Scripture is different from the way they would if they were to reason in the flesh what is and is not possible. I have seen it in my own life. A ministry that has been exemplary in this regard is YWAM. I remember reading the book “Is that really you, God“—by Loren Cunningham—and the book talked about the growth of their missionary organization through the voice and leading of the Holy Spirit. God would tell the leaders that He would give them this or that building, something that would be costly and they would get it. That’s how faith works. That’s how the Holy Spirit works. We have to listen to Him [Isaiah 31:1 Jeremiah 17:5 2 Chronicles 16:12 2 Chronicles 32:8 Jeremiah 12:5 Deuteronomy 17:16 Deuteronomy 20:1; Isaiah(2:22; 20:5; 30:1); Psalms (118:8; 146:3)].

Friday, October 21st, 2022

Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies. Test all things; hold fast what is good— 1 Thessalonians 5:17-21

Since in Paul’s benediction we are told to have fellowship with the Holy Spirit and Jesus had said that His ascension to heaven would be to our advantage, it is a great loss if we do not walk with Him and receive from Him whatever gifts and instructions He has for us. Not only we will never be as powerful, intelligent, and wise as the Holy Spirit is, it is actually offensive to God to try to take His role in our lives and ministries. He is our leader, we are just followers. He is our Provider, we are just recipients of His manifold graces [ Exodus 13:21; Romans 8:32; Matthew 7:7-11; 1 Corinthians 12:8-11; Ephesians 4:11-16; 1 Timothy 6:17; Luke 1:52-53; Isaiah 63:9; Romans 8:26-27; Isaiah 31:1; Jeremiah 17:5; 2 Chronicles 16:12; 2 Chronicles 32:8; Jeremiah 12:5 Deuteronomy 17:16; Deuteronomy 20:1; Isaiah 2:22; Isaiah 20:5; Isaiah 30:1; Psalms 118:8; Psalms 146:3]. It is as we lay all things in His hands that we will experience His amazing guidance and great miracles. When you graduate high school, which college major should you take ? If you get approved by 5 universities, seminaries, Bible schools—which one will be the best for you ?  If you have 5 job offers after graduation, which one should you take ? Which city or country should you live ? Sometimes what looks good on the outside may not be God’s will. Lot was told by Abraham to choose where He wanted to take his cattle, and Lot chose Sodom, because He saw it as pleasant. We know how this turned out for Lot [Genesis 13:10-11; Genesis 19 verse 24 and 26; 1 Samuel 16:7; 1 Corinthians 2:9; Acts 1:24; Psalms 32:8; Isaiah 30:21; Romans 8:14; Acts 16:9; Matthew 21:2; John 1:47-51; John 16:13-14]. Because of how highly complex these decisions can be for us, we not only need to continuously fellowship with the Holy Spirit, we also should be asking Him guidance. Brother Lawrence’s book “The Practice of the Presence.” has often been mentioned as useful for us to learn this practice. It may seem difficult to pray without ceasing if we have a full schedule of meetings and activities. However, communion with the Spirit is based on union with God primarily, not so much how long we have to spend alone with Him—though we should find time to do that as well. “But whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit.”—1 Corinthians 6:17. If we are one with the Holy Ghost, then where we go, He goes. What we are doing, He is there. He is with us always. The  issue is not about location or activity, rather acknowledgement, attention, adoration & asking, assurance, and action. We have to acknowledge His supreme authority and follow His guidance. Where we are, we have to acknowledge His presence. We have to be attentive to His instructions and revelations, as He will minister to us throughout the day. We have to worship and adore Him. We should ask Him His thoughts on what we are doing or want to do—like David used to do when he consulted the Urim and Thummim— “shall I go up to the Philistines ? Will you deliver them into my hands ?“—2 Samuel 5:19. We should then have assurance and confidence that He is hearing us and working with us. We are His partners. Finally, we should take action on whatever He reveals to us. Faith without works is dead. Ultimately, all the things we hear from God, we have to act on them. This is how we release the Spirit’s power, which is at work within us. Otherwise, it will remain dormant and unproductive. We can do this in our busy schedules, though we should find time alone to pray in private, just as we should pray in public gathering. When the Holy Spirit shook the house where the disciples were praying, they had been asking the Father to give them boldness to preach and stretch His hand to heal. They had dedicated that time to seek God for a supernatural answer [1 Samuel 23:2; 1 Samuel 14:41;.2 Corinthians 4:18; 2 Chronicles 20:12; Psalms 121:2; 1 Chronicles 16:11; Amos 5:6; Psalms 139:7; Ephesians 3:17-20; John 15:9; John 17:26; John 14:16; Matthew 28:18-20; Isaiah 55:8-9; James 2:26; Hebrews 10:22-23; Romans 4:17; Acts 14:9; Acts 4:23-31]. Paul also says we should be thankful. It has never been good for God’s people to grumble, murmur, or be anxious. Paul further says we should not quench the Spirit. The atmosphere of worship and exhilarating joy we have in church meetings on Sundays or in crusades in remote parts of the world, should not be left there. The glory and awe of a holy convocation should be with us in private life. Finally, Paul says we should not despise prophecies but test all things. I have been amazed by Paul’s standards of ministry validation. We are told by one of Paul’s companion that the audience of Berea was “more noble” than the one in Thessalonica, because they tested everything Paul said against Scripture [Acts 17:11]. How often do ministers today feel slighted and dishonored when people use Scripture to validate teachings, whether they are from God or from men ? Paul saw it as a positive thing. The same would be true for utterances that are not sermons or Bible teachings, but words that are claimed to be “prophetic messages.” Scriptures tell us not to believe every spirit. Being open to prophecy and not despising what people have to say, does not mean being open to deceptive spirits [Psalms 104:4; Colossians 1:12; Psalms 100:4; Numbers 14:28; 2 Corinthians 2:17; Deuteronomy 29:29; Luke 16:15; Acts 20:32; 1 John 4:1]. We should eat the meat of God’s words and throw out the bones of men.

 

Saturday, October 22nd, 2022

And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him- Genesis 5:24

Paul writes in Romans 5:12, “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned.”— to tell us the consequences of the fall of man before Christ became our righteousness. Sin is at the root of the curse, thorns, sicknesses, hardships, killings, wars, and natural death. Everyone in the world suffers consequences of sin, if not because of the sins they have committed, they can be because of sins other people have committed. Even Jesus who knew no sin suffered whips, thorns, and nails at the hands of sinners. So, sin has been destructive from the foundation of the world and death was by far its worst consequence. When Jonah ran away from God he carried the wrath of God with him and those in the ship were at risk of suffering the consequences of his sin. They had to throw him out for the waves of the sea to be quiet. So, how did Enoch and Elijah escape the major consequence of sin—death ? Consider how astonishing and mind-blowing that is in a world full of sin and after being born with a sinful nature. It is not like Enoch and Elijah had a virgin birth like Jesus. They were men just like us. Further, consider this— Abraham the friend of God died. Joseph the forgiving brother died. Moses the man of God died. Joshua the warrior of God died. Samuel the intercessor died. David the worshiping king died. Solomon the wise man died. Elisha the miracle worker died. Peter, Paul, John Wesley, Francis of Assisi, George Whitefield, John. G. Lake, Smith Wigglesworth, Joseph of Cupertino, Saint Charbel, and Billy Graham—all died. Sure, some could say that Saint Charbel’s body was incorruptible and kept in the state it was in for 70 years after he died, only appearing like he was simply sleeping a natural sleep, and yet he died nevertheless. The only man I am aware who is documented not to have died in the church age is the Maharishi of Mount Kailash we read in Sadhu Sundar Singh’s biographies. But he has not been raptured to heaven like Enoch. All these great men of God suffered the consequence of Adam’s sin. So, what made Enoch and Elijah break this law of gravity— the law of sin and death— that has brought down the best of men down to their grave ? In Acts 2:27-35, Peter tells us that David’s Psalms 16:10—”because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, nor will you let your faithful one see decay. “—was not actually about David—as he died like everybody else. It was about Jesus “who was declared the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness by the resurrection from the dead.”—Romans 1:4. That Psalm was about Jesus who rose on the third day. Christ effectively dealt with all consequences of sin, though the benefits of that redemption will happen in phases [Galatians 3:13; 1 Peter 2:24; Colossians 2:15; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Revelation 8:23]. Paul tells us about being caught up to the third heaven and seeing unspeakable things— yet he was not sure if it was in body or spirit only—and he surely did not stay there forever in that state. The same we hear of D.G.S. Dhinakaran in his testimonies. Rapture to heaven and staying there has happened only to Enoch and Elijah. We know a lot about Elijah because we read of him in 1 Kings and 2 Kings. In the book of Malachi, Elijah was also prophesied to come back to prepare the way of Jesus Christ—and he did come back, according to Jesus [Matthew 17:10-13]. Elijah fulfilled the saying that God “makes His angels spirits, His ministers a flame of fire.”—Psalms 104:4. He had fanned into flame his whole life and was a servant of fire [2 Timothy 1:6; Mark 3:21; John 4:34; Acts 2:3; Acts 19:11-12; Acts 5:14-16; Luke 6:18-19; Matthew 12:15; 1 Corinthians 1:7; 1 Timothy 4:12-15; 1 Kings 17:1;  James 5:17; 2 Kings 1:12; Matthew 11:11-15]. We don’t have many chapters that tell us about Enoch but he must have had similarities with Elijah in his fellowship with God. His life was essentially one of communion and union with God. He walked with God and He was not. We know Enoch had a family and I am sure he had fields and cattle to take care of his family, yet God did not consider his family could miss him after his departure. Glorification is the ultimate end of our fellowship with the Holy Spirit. We should be so in love with Him, fellowship with Him, serve Him, and walk with Him—have our whole conversation in heaven—till we are raptured from the earth to heaven. Paul often spoke of this blessed hope with such great anticipation. “After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.”— [1 Thessalonians 4:17; Philippians 3:20; Colossians 3:1-2; Hebrews 11:10; Hebrews 13:14; Luke 14:25-27]. Could we be that generation ? Could we be the spotless church, without wrinkle, that Jesus Christ will gather ? Could we the bride of Christ who has adorned herself and will be caught up to be in the wedding supper of the Lamb ? Could we be those who will be taken into our heavenly mansions Christ has prepared without tasting death ? There surely will be a generation that will be and if it will be us, it will not cost us anything less than walking with God like Enoch and Elijah did [Ephesians 5:26-27; Revelation 19:7-15; John 14:1-4; 2 Peter 3:12; Psalms 45:10]. Are we asking a hard thing —[2 Kings 2:10; John 10:34-38; Psalms 82:6-8; 1 Corinthians 15:51-53] ? We do not have to spend all our days only talking about rapture anymore than Jesus did not spend 3.5 years talking about leaving. We can live for God and serve Him where He has placed us, even as we look forward to that blessed hope [Acts 1:11]. We must serve in the fullness of His anointing and fire—let anyone who is thirsty come—John 7:37. Our service should be nothing less than the measure of all the fullness of God [Ephesians 3:19-20]. It is impossible to be the Enoch generation without that.

Sunday, October 23rd, 2022

The glory of this present house will be greater than the glory of the former house,’ says the LORD Almighty. ‘And in this place I will grant peace,’ declares the LORD Almighty.”— Haggai 2:9.

The glory of the temple of Zerubbabel was prophesied to be greater than the glory of the temple of Solomon, though Zerubbabel was not anywhere close to being as wealthy as Solomon. But being rich was not necessary for Zerubbabel because “The silver is mine and the gold is mine,’ declares the LORD Almighty.”—Haggai 2:8.  God was going to help them build the temple and give them the resources they needed. This would happen on two fronts. First, He would give the people willing hearts to contribute, rather than hold onto what belongs to God. Second, He would use Darius to help them just like He had used Cyrus at the beginning of their journey back to Jerusalem [Exodus 25:2-8; Exodus 35 verse 21 &29; Exodus 36:2-3; 1 Chronicles 29:29; 2 Chronicles 35:8; Haggai 1:4-8; Ezra 6:1-4; 2 Corinthians 9:7-11].This second temple was the pride of the Jews in Jesus’ days. One day, after seeing what Jesus was doing in whipping the money changers who had turned the temple into a supermarket—[John 2:15-17]—and hearing Him say that He could rebuild it only in 3 days if it were to be destroyed—the Jewish leaders replied: “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?”—John 2:18. This second temple was the fruit of close to 5 decades of construction, from the year that king Cyrus had released the Jews to go back to rebuild it in 538 BC,  counting in the years it took later to do remodeling and expansion. But its glory wasn’t just the length of time spent in labor. It was truly impressive. Its magnificence even struck the disciples of Jesus so much that one day while he was leaving the temple “his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings“— Matthew 24:1, though Jesus Himself was not impressed with what their eyes were seeing [Matthew 24:2-3]—ultimately, God judges things by their end, not just their beginning or their present state—even if He may have encouraged the beginning [Jeremiah 31:28; Jeremiah 45:4; Acts 7:48; Deuteronomy 28:63; Jeremiah 7:4; Romans 11:22; Isaiah 46:10; Philippians 1:6]. But God’s instruction is always not to live feeling sorry for the past failures or fearful of possible future judgments, but to seize the present opportunity—to redeem the time—and enjoy His blessings [Nehemiah 8:10; Nehemiah 1:6; Luke 19:44; Hebrews 3:13; Zechariah 1:3-6; Jeremiah 31:33-34; Zechariah 2:4-5;  Ephesians 5:15-16]. At that time His command was clear: “build it.” The building of the temple of Zerubbabel was started in earnest with the blessing of king Cyrus, but had to be interrupted after Cyrus died, as his successors like king Ashurbanipal were not keen on letting the Jews rebuild their temple [Ezra 2:1-36;  Ezra 3:1-3; Ezra 3:6; Ezra 3:12-13; Ezra 4:1-24]. They had wasted their years of favor with king Cyrus focused on building their own houses and now they would have even a stronger excuse from completion of the temple, as they no longer had the legal permission to complete construction. It is in the second year of king Darius the Word of The Lord came to Haggai challenging the Jews —“These people say, ‘The time has not yet come to rebuild the LORD’s house“—Haggai 1:2. The persecutions they had suffered had caused them to give up on their spiritual pursuits. When Haggai began to prophesy in 520 BC, about 18 years since they had left Babylon, the house of the Lord was still in ruin. However, despite their earthly pursuits and complacency, all was not well in their harvests[Haggai 1:4-8; Revelation 3:14-21]. After hearing the prophetic word of Haggai, they started to seek how they could rebuild again. At the same time, they had the favor of king Darius and were able to finish the work of rebuilding. God leveled the mountains that had hindered them. The day of small beginnings was eclipsed by the celebrations of a great ending [Zechariah 4:6-10; Ezra 6:1-15]. This should give us hope in our generation, as we see many similarities with these Jews. The doctrine of the church, the purity of its saints, the commitment to giving to ministry and missions, the respect of the church in the culture—are all way below what they were in the days of Charles Finney, D. L. Moody, Charles Spurgeon, Hudson Taylor, Smith Wigglesworth, John. G. Lake, Billy Sunday, and William Seymour [1830-1950]. Can the church be revived ? Are the best days of the church behind it or are they ahead ? When Jesus said that He could rebuild the temple in 3 days if it were destroyed, He meant His own Body [John 2:21].  If so, then the “good old days” do not have to be only in our nostalgia, they can be in our future. Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever [Ecclesiastes 7:10; Judges 6:13; Malachi 3:6; Hebrews 13:8; Psalms 84:4-7; 2 Corinthians 3:18; 2 Samuel 3:1; 1 Chronicles 11:9;  Proverbs 4:18; Esther 9:4; Genesis 22:17; Matthew 13:31-33] ! The Lord can rekindle the love for His truth. He can sanctify Christians by that truth. He can give us a passion for giving to missions. He can raise pastors who are after His own heart. He can even cause nations to come to the brightness of our rising. Jesus Christ can build a church against which the gates of hell shall not prevail. He can restrain evil in the culture and shut the mouth of Leviathan. He can still the whirlwinds that hit the ship of His sailing pilgrims and bring them to safe harbor. He can build even a church with glory greater than the early church [Hosea 11:4; Luke 5:5-10; Ezekiel 20:44; John 17:17; Psalms 23;3; Matthew 16:18-19; Matthew 9:37; Jeremiah 3:15; Matthew 5:16; Isaiah 60: 1-3; Isaiah 27:1; Romans 16:20; 1 Samuel 12:22; John 14:13]—for His name’s sake!

Monday, October 24th, 2022

But the temple he had spoken of was his body— John 2:21

When Jesus was before the Sanhedrin, one accusation they had was, “This fellow said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.”— Matthew 26:61. Obviously, they had not understood what He meant. The temple had become an idol. Look at what they said after He rose Lazarus —John 11:48.  Even though the nation and the temple were given by God in His providence—these good gifts given by the Father had become idols. So, what exactly is John trying to tell us about the temple being Christ’s body ? In the Old Testament, God had told Moses, “And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them“—Exodus 25:8. This sanctuary was God’s place of habitation among His people. Exodus, Leviticus, and Hebrews teach a lot about this. In Hebrews 8:5 we read that priests served: “At a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. This is why Moses was warned…make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.’—quoting Exodus 25 verse 9 and 40; Exodus 26:30; Exodus 27:8. So, these things were shadows, “but the reality is in Christ“—Colossians 2:17; Hebrews 10:1. The tabernacle was rectangular in shape. The entrance was at the eastern side and the Holy of Holies, which was the end of it was at the western side. After the entrance there was the Outer Court, after the Outer Court there was the Holy Place, and after the Holy Place there was the Holy of Holies. The outer court had the brazen altar and the bronze laver. No one could reach the Most Holy Place without that entrance. This set up reminds us what Jesus said “I am the Way, the Truth, and Life, no one comes to the Father except through me“—John 14:6. Christ is the gate of our entrance towards the Father [John 10:9]. The brazen altar was made from acacia wood and was laminated with a bronze surface. It is the place where daily animal sacrifices were made [Exodus 27:1; Leviticus 6:8-13]. This is where atonement for sin was made [1 Chronicles 6:49; Hebrews 13:12; John 19:17]. This altar was in a form of a square and had 4 horns, which were sprinkled with blood of the animals they sacrificed there [Exodus 27:2; Leviticus 4:7]. Since David talks about the Lord being the horn of his salvation and the horn is a symbol of a growth, rising on the head of an animal, it meant that growth, being raised up, being lifted in altitude, and attaining exaltation were only possible through a foundation of salvation, sprinkled with the blood—with no guilt [Psalms 18:2; Psalms 75:10; Psalms 89:24; Psalms 112:9; Psalms 89:17; 1 Samuel 2:1; Psalms 92:10; Hebrews 10:22]. Sinners who had done wrong unintentionally could be saved by taking hold of the horn, while the rebellious were to be removed [Exodus 21:12-14; 1 Kings 1:50-53; 1 Kings 2:28; Amos 3:14; Hebrews 10:26-27]. The blood was used for atonement because life is in the blood. Since God accepts redemption of life by another life, the life of Christ was poured out for us. [Leviticus 17:11; Ezekiel 3:18; Matthew 20:28; Matthew 26:28]. Passed that altar was a circular bronze laver, halfway to the tent of meeting [Exodus 30:17-21; Exodus 38:8; Exodus 40 verse 7, verse 30-32]. That basin was filled with water so that the priests who had sacrificed animals could wash hands there. It was also used for washing feet. That passage in Exodus 30:20-21 clearly states that the reason they were to do this was “so that they would not die“—atonement for sin without washing was not going to save them. It was made from mirrors of bronze of the women who served at the tent of meeting, which means that it could reflect images of those who were washing. This shadowed looking intently—closely and with great attention—”into the perfect law of liberty“—James 1:25—as the washing was meant to make priests holy [Psalms 19:13; 2 Peter 1:9; John 8:36]. This cleansing or washing happened after the altar, which means the cleansing of God’s people is continuous [1 John 1:7-9; Ephesians 5:25-27; John 13:8-10]. As soon as we go from here, we come into the holy place, passed the women who served at the tent of meeting. In the Holy Place, we find 3 important things: there’s the lampstand—the Menorah—made of pure gold, on the left side from the entrance. There’s the table of shewbread on the right side from the entrance—also known as the Bread of the Presence. And there’s the golden altar of incense in the center towards the end of the Holy Place Room—much closer to the Holy of Holies. The priests who served there attended to these 3 on a daily basis [Hebrews 9:2; Exodus 25:30-31; Exodus 27:20; Leviticus 8:10-12; Exodus 37:17-24]. Christ fulfilled all these as well. He is the Bread of Life and He is the Light of the world [John 6:35; John 8:12; Matthew 4:4; Deuteronomy 8:3; Psalms 119:105; Revelation 1:13; Philippians 2:15; Matthew 5:14-16; Matthew 25:2-4; John 6 verse 51 and 63]. He satisfies us with good things so that we no longer hunger or thirst again [Luke 1:53; Psalms 107:9; John 4:14]. This is why often the temple is also seen as a picture of man—body, soul, and spirit [1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; 2 Corinthians 5:4; John 4:23-24; 1 Corinthians 3:16]—the work of renewing the mind with the illumination of God’s word starts after salvation [Romans 12:2; Ephesians 1:17-18]. It would be impossible to shine without this light, as we are simply branches[John 15:5].The longings of the soul are also satisfied after salvation, becoming holy desires. Since the altar of incense came towards the end, it was right next to the veil that separated the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies [Exodus 30:1-10]. Incense was burned there continually and its fragrance arose before God [Exodus 30:9; Revelation 5:8; 1 Thessalonians 5:17-21]. Its significance was waiting before God and drawing near. It is a place where our will is conformed to Christ’s will. It’s a place of intercessions [1 Timothy 2:1-5; Psalms 141:2; Revelation 8:3]. Finally, in the Most Holy place was the majestic Ark of the Covenant with its cherubim. It was beyond the veil. The mercy seat was on it [Exodus 25:10-12; Hebrews 4:15-16]. Only the High Priest could go inside once a year. When Christ died on the cross that veil was torn [Hebrews 9:7; Leviticus 16:2; Matthew 27:51; Hebrews 10:5; Hebrews 10:20]. Christ indeed was and remains the temple.

 

Tuesday, October 25th, 2022

For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves. That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep. But if we were more discerning with regard to ourselves, we would not come under such judgment— 1 Corinthians 11:29-31

In Malachi 3:1 we read: “I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple…“—and what would the Lord do after suddenly appearing in the temple ? In Malachi 3:3 we see the answer: “He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness“—we know that messenger who was a forerunner of Christ was John the Baptist. We know this prophecy was fulfilled in John 2—as He declared the temple to be a house of prayer for all nations. The zeal for God’s house that consumed Him did not end with that temple in Jerusalem. It continued in the church He founded. Which brings us to a rather solemn writing of 1 Corinthians 11:25-32, by apostle Paul, regarding this. In order to help us see how the situation faced by the church of Corinth is not necessarily foreign to the modern church, we can take a quick look at the “Halfway Covenant“—an interesting topic regarding the Lord’s table that I came across as I was studying various evangelists and revivalists —and reviewed Jonathan Edwards biography—especially the cause of his departure from the Northampton church he pastored. Other notable biographies would be Solomon Stoddard and Increase Mather. This Halfway covenant basically stated that since some of the people who were baptized as infants were not regenerate—or born again—they should not partake of the Lord’s Supper—unless they had evidence of the New Birth. They could still get many other benefits of church membership except this. A problem arose when those who did not have evidence of conversion outnumbered those who were true converts. They were “church members”—and therefore could vote which pastors they wanted and which they did not. That’s how Jonathan Edwards was voted out as he was opposed to giving communion to “Christians” who did not appear to be sincerely born again [See Matthew 22:8-14]. That’s obviously relevant in studying the 1 Corinthians 11:25-32 passage. Paul’s concern is about properly discerning the body of Christ so that those who come to the Lord’s table do so in a worthy manner. The first area of lack of discernment of the Body of Christ that we will look at is what is apparent in this passage Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 11. That church was basically treating the Lord’s table like some big social party. Some got drunk with wine while others got nothing. Imagine 3 members drinking a whole bottle of wine in a congregation of 300 members. This is why Paul asks a rather simple question, “Don’t you have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God by humiliating those who have nothing ?”—1 Corinthians 11:22. This rather raises even another question. What were they doing if Paul talks about “humiliating those who have nothing ?”—could it mean that donations and offerings used to buy the bread and wine for the Lord’s supper played a role in partaking it ? That can certainly be inferred because those who did not bring offerings would be considered to “have nothing“—and therefore be humiliated by not taking part in Holy Communion. The church is not the secular and individualistic capitalist world. In the Body of Christ, which is a Holy Community born out of the love of God and the grace of Jesus—nobody brought anything of value—except Christ Himself—therefore no saint should be left out of the Lord’s Supper. In Acts 2 and Acts 4, we see this oneness went further than this. The second issue on discerning the Lord’s Body properly is what we see Paul talking about in the following chapter. He writes: “The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!”—1 Corinthians 12:21. This is much deeper than the platitude of “we all need each other“—however true the aphorism. Paul understood the church as a body. What would happen if someone was to cut off their right and left hands [don’t try this] ?—we know they may not be able carry a box of foods. Without hands, it may not matter that the eyes can see and the ears can hear— as the body would be unable to carry out the tasks that only the hands can do. Paul finishes the passage of 1 Corinthians 11 by talking about the consequences of not discerning the Body of Christ. “That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep”—1 Corinthians 11:3o. In some Pentecostal and Charismatic churches that practice divine healing, there are often comments that healing is a mystery whenever a church member dies unexpectedly. After all, if someone who professes to have strong faith is prayed over by a dozen healing evangelists or a congregation of 1000 people—how else could they die—unless it was some kind of mystery ? Paul doesn’t seem to prevaricate on this topic. Death = Sin, period. Since there are hundreds of possible sins Christians could commit, from gluttony that leads to diabetes to a number of other sins that can cause not-so-obvious diseases—it may seem to be a mystery—but the bottom-line in most cases is that sin will be at the root. Moreover, what are the prophetic gifts for ? Many prophets today can discern this. Is there a Bible passage that talks about Jesus being sick ? So, in the presence of sickness a better posture would be the one Paul has “If we were more discerning with regard to ourselves, we would not come under such judgment”—1 Corinthians 11:31. It’s better to tell the saints to examine themselves and repent, rather than hide them the truth in an effort to build faith in divine healing. The 20th century healing movement was born out of the holiness movement and Scriptures throughout connect these 2 aspects of redemption [Psalms 103:3; Isaiah 33:24; Acts 10:38; Mark 2:5;  Matthew 8:16-17; Exodus 15:26; Exodus 23: 24-26; Luke 13:16; 1 John 5:18; John 5:14; Acts 5: 1-11;  Exodus 9:8-35; Revelation 16:10-11; Psalms 107:17-20; Numbers 21:4-7; 1 Peter 4:17; Revelation 2: 20-23; James 5:14-16] 

Wednesday, October 26th, 2022

To make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless—  Ephesians 5:26-27

An interesting conversation happens between Jesus and Peter during the Last Supper. Jesus gets down to wash the disciples’ feet and comes to Peter, who says “you shall never wash my feet.”— John 13:8— to which Jesus replies: “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”— as soon as Peter understands the meaning, albeit partially, he changes his posture and goes to the other extreme—” ‘ Then, Lord,’ Simon Peter replied, ‘not just my feet but my hands and my head as well’ “—John 13:9—Jesus corrects Peter one more time, “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you.”— John 13:10. Later on that evening, after telling them about the promise of the Holy Spirit, now telling them about the Vine, He says “You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.”—John 15:3. So, what does it mean that Peter was clean but not fully clean or had dirty feet that needed washing ? Remember going back to the temple study we did before yesterday, we had talked about the brazen laver coming right after the bronze altar. A priest made atonement for sin at the bronze altar and then sprinkled with blood the horns on the four corners of the altar. Then he moved on towards the tent of meeting and  had to make a stop at the brazen laver to wash hands and feet. We saw that even though the atonement was the propitiation of sins proper, the brazen laver could not be bypassed [Exodus 30:20-21]. He who bypassed it and did not wash hands and feet, still died, even after the atonement for sin at the bronze altar. This can help us understand why Jesus told Peter that if He was not going to wash his feet then Peter would have not part in Christ and yet Christ refused to wash his whole body because he was already clean. Now, we know that Peter would also deny Christ three times that same night. Yet, he would be restored because Jesus had made intercessions for him. This is a perfect picture of the progressive cleansing of the saints after their initial salvation. A born again Christian who just got saved—even if he is an ignorant rapper musician—is as saved and free from God’s wrath as the holiest of saints who has been in ministry for 20-30 years. There are no degrees or differing positions in justification. We are all perfect in Christ—“For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being sanctified.”— Hebrews 10:14—one is already complete and faultless—the other is in progress and being refined. Peter was clearly in Christ and an affirmed believer. He had been a faithful follower and had clung to Christ—knowing that only Him had the words of eternal life. He had no other place to go and was not looking for any other Savior. He delighted in Christ’s service and was determined to preach His kingdom. Yet, when trial came that same night, he vacillated, stumbled, and fell. As we see Jesus telling us in John 15:3, what had made them clean was the washing of the Word He had spoken to them [John 15:3]. We see that this is the same language that Paul is using in our opening passage of Ephesians 5:26-27, where he talks about the church as the bride of Christ, who is being sanctified with the washing of the word—in order to be presented to Himself spotless and without wrinkle [Also see Colossians 1:28-29; Ephesians 4:13]. The Word of God is the truth that sanctifies us [John 17:17]. There’s no sanctification outside of it. There’s no sanctification in the opinions of men. “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.”—Isaiah 8:20. It does not matter how famous, well-intentioned, or even close they are. They get a “get behind me Satan” admonition. Sanctification can only happen through the Word and it cannot be compromised. It is only the radiant and perfect church that Jesus Christ is coming for in the rapture to take to the wedding supper of the Lamb in heaven. It is stainless from the head to the toes. That’s long passed beyond outward wickedness or gross sins—because those must be taken care of by salvation. It has no wrinkles— creases, folds, corrugation, depression, or rough edges—is this what we are as individual members of the church and in our local church bodies ? Paul lists 5 things that Timothy had to set an example for in 1 Timothy 4:12—speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity.  It is sad to say that if each was given a 20% score, that even many older Christians would not be able to get above 40%, let alone the younger ones. So, how can we be the church that Jesus Christ will come to take ? We have churches that will tell Christians that they do not need faith to be healed—despite hundreds of Jesus’ own words to the opposite. Many “Christians” in America are known for their hate, not their love. The speech for others is clearly out of line, for “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks“—Matthew 12:34. If the heart is devoid of faith and love, how can the speech be holy ? Purity goes hand in hand with love and faith, just as speech does. Obviously all these are worked in us by God in His grace and mercy, but we must actually be wanting them. Conduct or “anastrophe”  as we see in the Greek language that Paul uses, could be one of the easiest to fake—before untrained eyes. But the more knowledgeable we become, the higher standards of behavior we see. Paul appeals to his conduct when speaking to the Elders of the church in Ephesus—Acts 20:18-35. Samuel does the same in his farewell speech in 1 Samuel 12:1-23. These people knew them as they dealt with them personally on a daily basis. Are we like them—free from the blood of all men ? Do we intercede and fight for all saints as though we were fighting for our very own last breath ? Are we generous and free from greed ? That’s the church Christ wants. Judgment day we reveal it [2 Corinthian 5:10; 1 Corinthian 3:11-15; 1 Corinthian 4:5; Hebrews 4:12-13]. 

 

 

Thursday, October 27th, 2022

This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord. God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them— Acts 19:10-12

While preparing a sermon to preach at a church many years ago, it dawned on me that Jesus had actually whipped the money changers twice. The passage was chosen for me and I simply worked on preparing it. It seems quite deep. When Jesus confronted the money changers inside the temple for the second time—after his triumphal entry into Jerusalem—He said, “My house will be called a house of prayer”—Matthew 21:13, quoting Isaiah 56:7. That verse in Isaiah 56:7 actually adds “for all nations“—which would have been a surprising concept for the Jews of the first century, as we see the resistance the missions to Gentiles aroused later. The Father had made a promise to the Son that we read in Isaiah 49:6, “It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”—and what a great promise to remember as we take a look at Paul’s ministry in Ephesus to plant a church there and see it grow into a mighty church in 2 short years. Paul arrived in Ephesus around 52 AD and the first thing he did was ask if they had received the Holy Spirit since they had believed [Acts 19:2]. This leads him to baptizing them and then placing hands on them to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit [Acts 19:6]. Noticing that is rather important because normally a preacher doesn’t place hands on new converts to be saved or to ask the Holy Spirit to come and indwell them. Anyone who believes in Jesus Christ has the Holy Spirit automatically [Romans 8:9]. So, why then did Paul lay hands on them ? Because this had been a practice in the early church for the Pentecostal experience the disciples had received in the Upper Room. Even when Peter and John went to Samaria, they did the same thing—laid hands on those who had believed the message of Evangelist Philip [Acts 8:14-18]. While the disciples in Acts 19 could be assumed not to have received a proper Gospel message for salvation as they had only received the baptism of John, such an assumption would be clearly wrong in Acts 8 as Philip had shared the proper and full Gospel. Laying hands to receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit was never taught anywhere in the epistles as that only happens automatically after someone believes in Jesus. It was only done for the Pentecostal outpouring of the Spirit for the purpose of carrying out the great commission with the Spirit’s supernatural works. This was standard church practice in the early church—because the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit for Christians and His supernatural work in evangelism and missions are totally different. After Paul did this, he had  3 months of fruitless labor, trying to argue with those who simply did not want to commit to Christ and had endless objections [Acts 19:8-9]. He learned wisdom from that mistake and left them and took willing disciples instead and started to pour into them [Acts 19:9]. He preached every single day to these hungry disciples for 2 straight years. We can imagine some brought others on their following lectures or discipleship classes and this chain led to the greatest harvest Paul had ever witnessed, “all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord.”—Acts 19:10. This is why church planting will always be more powerful than hit-and-run 1 week evangelistic crusades—though I strongly believe in the value of such crusades—considering that God endorsed them in the ministry of Philip we see in Acts 8. Sustained power demonstration, Gospel sharing, networking with families, and numerical growth for a prolonged period of time ultimately is what effective church planting is about. When later Paul wrote the church of Ephesus an epistle, he said “you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone“—Ephesians 2:19-20. By that time the Ephesus church had become one of the most powerful Gentile centers of Christianity. It is in the midst of that growth explosion we read of quite unusual miracles that happened through the hands of Paul. It reached a point that people who took handkerchiefs home to those who were sick were able to see them miraculously healed, without Paul’s physical presence. The anointing is limitless in power when Christians sincerely believe. This was so successful that even some sons of Jewish priests tried to imitate Paul’s ministry. As the chapter progresses, we read “So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed.”—Acts 19:20. That’s what church ministry should be. Spiritual decline is foreign to the book of Acts and Paul’s ecclesiology. This is going to happen in the coming great awakening in America. We are going to witness the most shocking demonstrations of power ever recorded—we will heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out devils, shut the mouths of lions, judge the wicked, move mountains, walk through walls, and consume evil with the fire from heaven. Acts chapter 20 is no less powerful. We see Paul giving his farewell address to the Elders of the church of Ephesus. One can read it in Acts 20:18-35. But if you read the earlier verses, you can also see the overnight preaching and the accident that happened to Eutychus and how he got raised from the dead. If our hearts are truly burning for Jesus, why don’t we take this challenge of Paul as the kind of example we should seek to follow ? [Psalms 111:6; Psalms 66:3; Deuteronomy 3:24; Judges 6:13; Joshua 3:5; Mark 16:15-20; Romans 15:18-20; Acts 8:8; Acts 5:14-16; Luke 6:18-19; John 14:12; Isaiah 53:11; Acts 17:30; Acts 14:16; Psalms 2:8; Genesis 49:10; Psalms 22:27; Psalms 65:8; Psalms 72:8; Isaiah 42:6; Isaiah 60:3; Joel 3:14; John 4:35; Isaiah 60:22].

Friday, October 28th, 2022

And his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength, he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way— Ephesians 1:19-23.

When the church of Ephesus read these words, they were not some theory of what God could do for those who believe. They had witnessed these things as we have seen in Acts 19 study. Neither are these things confined to the first century church. They have been witnessed throughout the church age, including the 20th and 21st century. In an evangelism manual I wrote for our ministry in 2021, I have this testimony from a biography of Smith Wigglesworth written by Stanley Frodsham, called “The Apostle of Faith” — He narrates like this: My friend said, “She is dead.” He was scared. I have never seen a man so frightened in my life. “What shall I do?” he asked. You may think that what I did was absurd, but I reached over into the bed and pulled her out. I carried her across the room, stood her against the wall and held her up, as she was absolutely dead. I looked into her face and said, “In the name of Jesus I rebuke this death.” From the crown of her head to the soles of her feet her whole body began to tremble. “In the name of Jesus, I command you to walk,” I said. I repeated, “In the name of Jesus, in the name of Jesus, walk!” and she walked— Smith Wigglesworth’s life story [1859-1947] testifies that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. But he is not alone. We know that there have been many other ministries like that. So, perhaps it is easier for us to read and understand Paul when he writes “And his incomparably great power for us who believe“—Ephesians 1:19. We already know that no one can be compared to Jehovah Most High. We praise Him that way in Psalms all the time. But Paul adds  “for us who believe.” If it were to tell us that God’s power is incomparable—”all for Himself”— we would have a whole list of miracles and stories that confirm this in the Bible. But that’s not what Paul says. As soon as we read  “for us who believe“—we realize the Gospel has called us into partnership. We are partakers of God’s divine nature and can do the same things that Jesus did [2 Peter 1:3-4; John 14:12]. This is important considering how it played a role in the success of Paul’s ministry in Ephesus. What happened in Ephesus would have been impossible for Paul without that power. This power that God has given us by the Holy Spirit is similar to the power the Father exerted when He shook the grave and resurrect the dead body of Jesus Christ. It is the same power that elevated Him in ascension and placed Him on the Father’s throne. Christ now is far above all rule, authority, power, and dominion. He is certainly above the angels of God [Hebrews 1:4]. He is above Satan and all forces of darkness [Philippians 2:9-11]. At the name of Jesus all these spiritual beings bow. Jesus is also above man—however intelligent ,sophisticated, and powerful. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Him [Matthew 28:18-20]. The world we live in is held together by the power of His Word [Hebrews 1:3]. “He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in. He judges the great people of the world and brings them all to nothing.”—Isaiah 40:22- 23. We are all like dust in His presence, though the redeemed have been “called out” [Ekklesia= church]—from the world and have been changed from servants to friends of the king of kings [John 15:15; Revelation 1:5-18; 1 Peter 2:9-10]. Jesus has the name that is above every name and title. All things at interpersonal, institutional, city, provincial or state level, national, international, continental, or even at the United Nations, work “according to the counsel of his will“—[Ephesians 1:11; Romans 8:28-30; Isaiah 46:10; Job 42:2;  Job 34:29; Romans 11:33-36]. His understanding, knowledge, and wisdom are all infinite. His power has no limit [Colossians 2:3; Job 37:23]. Not only does Jesus have this power now in the church age, He shall even have this same power and authority when He comes to reign in Jerusalem in the millennium. In this age, Christ’s authority means that all things have been placed under His feet positionally—though they may not yet appear to be bowing at his feet in reality—they will be at some point [ Psalms 110:1-3; 1 John 5:19; Hebrews 10:13- again Matthew 28:18-20 and Philippians 2:9-11]. He is also the head over everything for the church and governs all affairs in the world for the spiritual benefit of his church. He is the head of all 5 ministries we read in Ephesians 4:11-16. He is certainly head of all pastors and denominations. All who have disagreements in their denominations can count on Him to help them in all their ecclesiastical matters. This church is the Body of Christ and “the fullness of Him.”—no other institution on earth is said to have the fullness of Christ Himself. Jesus is not in the church with the legs only or somehow “looking at us from above“—He is really in the church—in all His fullness, in all His glory, in all His power, in all His compassion [Matthew 18:18-20; Matthew 16:18-19; 1 Corinthians 5:4; Galatians 3:5; John 1:14;  2 Corinthians 6:16; Exodus 25:8; Isaiah 7:14]. There’s nothing impossible when the Lord Jesus Christ Himself is in our midst [Ephesians 3:19-21]. This is why the glory of the church is greater than any temple of the Old Testament. 

 

Saturday, October 29th, 2022

Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready. And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’ ” And he said to me, “These are the true sayings of God.”— Revelation 19:7-9

All Christians are not going to die. Paul writes that some of us will be translated to glory without tasting death—when the rapture takes place [1 Corinthians 15:51-53; 1 Thessalonians 4:14-17; John 14:1-4]. While John talks about a wedding that will follow, Paul also teaches that we will appear before the judgment seat of Christ [2 Corinthians 5:10; Romans 14:10]—we do not see this judgment seat clearly mentioned in the book of Revelation. We do see the big white throne in Revelation 20, but the big white throne will be to judge damned sinners. It is generally believed that Christians will not stand before the big white throne, since their judgment will not be about determining their destination, whether heaven or hell, but about determining their rankings and positions in heaven. There will be Christians who will take 10 cities or 5 cities. There will be Christians who will suffer loss after the judgment seat of Christ, when the fire of God consumes all their works, having built in the kingdom using cheap hay and straw. Even our glorified bodies will not be the same, some will be like the moon in glory while others will be like megastars [ 1 Corinthians 3:10-14; Luke 19:12-27; 1 Corinthians 15:41-42; Philippians 3:21; 1 John 3:1-2; Daniel 12:3; Revelation 3:18]. In His grace, Christ provides rewards for little services like giving water to anyone who is a Christian [Matthew 10:41-42; Galatians 6:10]. Unfortunately, some will lose their rewards for not caring about people [Matthew 25:36-40; Revelation 3:11]. I have heard that if someone sows a seed into a prophet’s ministry, they will receive a prophet’s reward—that is a prophetic word or encounter or impartation —that will change their circumstances. I think we can all agree that there are always blessings associated with giving, both in this life and in the life to come [Luke 6:38; Matthew 6:19-21]. We also agree that those that benefit from any ministry are expected to support that ministry financially [Galatians 6:6]. However, Scriptures are rather clear that the most important rewards for our good works on earth—whether giving, helping, serving, healing, teaching, guiding—will all be ultimately rewarded in heaven [Matthew 5:12; Galatians 6:9; Revelation 22:12; Jeremiah 51:56; Isaiah 40:10; Genesis 15:1-2; Matthew 19:21]. This is not to say that Scriptures don’t promise temporal blessings [See Malachi 3:10, Proverbs 3:9-10]. it is to say that what is temporal should not be our greatest motivation. Look at how Paul worked hard for the kingdom of God  in Ephesus and then suffered after he left [Acts 20:23-24; 2 Timothy 2:9-10]. Yet, he said, “ I endure all things for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.”— 2 Tim 2:10. This seems to be like the best way to calculate the return on investment of what we do for the kingdom of God. We would not do the things we are supposed to do, to the extent we should do them, with the excellence we should do them, hastening the day of His coming—if  every service we offered was only a transactional one like businesses have with their customers. I have heard some Christians say, “don’t attempt to do great things for God, just rejoice in the fact that Jesus has done great things for you.”—that’s Satan’s deception. Indeed Christ loved us and called us. We love Him back and have answered His call. He promised to reward us for that. It is our services or good works that John sees arraying the bride in glory in Revelation 19:7-15—And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints [Rev 19:8]. Our good works don’t save us, but once we are saved, we serve diligently [ Ephesians 2:8-10; James 2:14-26]. Considering that we will wear all the good works we have done for God as our wedding gown, it would be lack of wisdom to be slack in serving God. We should be zealous for good works and do plenty of them [Romans 12:11; Ecclesiastes 9:10;  Acts 20:19; Matthew 20:6-14]. Our primary goal in service should be please the Lord who called us. We should serve according to the standards the Lord has set for us [Matthew 6:2-4; Matthew 5:14-16; 2 Timothy 2:5; 2 Corinthians 8:21; Galatians 1:10; Romans 15:2]. A soccer player cannot grab the ball and run with it in the hands, “as long as he can win.“—that’s a worldly mentality of success. Rewards are only for those who compete according to the rules—which means we have to actually know what those rules are and follow them. Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’ ”—the Good News is that all Christians are the blessed invitees. But many are called and few will be chosen. Are we rapturable? Are we without wrinkle or blemish in God’s eyes ? Are we walking in holiness ? Do we serve to please God ? Are we telling others about this wedding banquet and “compelling them to come in ?“—Luke 14:23. When that day arrives, we will be walking down the golden streets of the Heavenly Jerusalem—with the blessed ones  like apostle Paul, apostle John, apostle Peter, Mary Magdalene, Enoch, Elijah, John Bunyan, George Whitefield, Saint Charbel,  Smith Wigglesworth, Billy Graham—and of course Jesus Christ Himself. What a day that will be!

Sunday, October 30th, 2022

Wait on the LORD; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the LORD!— Psalms 27:14

On the day I got born again, one fair evening of February, I had come into the conference hall for the evening session about 15-30 minutes earlier than the start time. Other people were socializing all around me, but I was reading John 3:3-8. I was 20 years old and I had been a Catholic my whole life. I had had 2 years of intense pursuit of God—having studied various authors, both Catholic and Protestant—including “The Imitation of Jesus Christ” by Thomas A Kempis, books on fasting and prayer by Zacharias Tannee Fomum, and another book by Watchman Nee—just to name a few—and having attended 6:30 am morning Catholic church mass on a daily basis. Even though I had grown up in a very religious Catholic home, these were some of the earliest authors to challenge my beliefs in spiritual matters. Some people could say I got born again at age 18 as I started to seek God intensely—and saw many incredible answers to my prayers—but I think that the real awareness of my New Birth was that evening when I was reading John 3:3-8—a passage that was not covered by the Protestant Evangelist I was listening to during the conference [James 1:18; John 1:12-13]. I got baptized by immersion the following day—a very hard decision considering I had been “baptized” as an infant at 9 months—as a Catholic. But when I was reading John 3:3-8, during that waiting time in the sanctuary by myself—for the very first time the reading of the Scriptures seemed to be very different than what I had been used to. There was an actual voice, still small voice, very clearly illuminating. It was like Jesus or the Holy Spirit were saying “This is the true way of salvation.” Just like Nicodemus, I had been religious—but I was not born again. And Jesus said “unless you are born again, you cannot see the kingdom of God“—John 3:3. I wanted to see the kingdom of God. That was the whole purpose of my religious activities. I did not care about the traditions I had known or followed up to that time—if I was going to follow Jesus and obey whatever He commanded me. If Jesus said “this is the only way you can see the kingdom of God“—then the matter is settled. Going to church cannot make someone enter the kingdom of God—even though it is commanded. Partaking of the Lord’s Supper or the “Eucharist“—as we called it in the Catholic church—cannot make someone see the kingdom of God. Participating in choirs, writing liturgical songs, and even teaching on the Bible—all cannot make someone see the kingdom of God—only being born again can. But I had never realized this in all my religious upbringing until that evening when I was waiting in the sanctuary, 30 minutes before the evening service. While waiting itself is not what brought me to God—as I had the habit of being in church services 15-30 minutes early and sitting quietly praying before services—for many years—it was only that time that I discovered the voice of God in my waiting in the sanctuary. We can say that God had chosen that moment to reveal Himself to me. This is important because no one can break from religious traditions without being led by a supernatural and powerful force. There are more hindrances to a religious person to embrace the reality of Christ and His kingdom, than there are for those who have never been involved in religion—and therefore already know that they don’t know anything. Our attentiveness in waiting and receptivity will be awakened by our humble recognition of what we lack. If we think we know, when we do not know, then we will never really know. The ignorant have their own blessings—in a way—as they are less likely to pretend to know God when they do not. David tells us in our opening passage of Psalms 27:14— “wait on the Lord“—and he says “he shall strengthen your heart.” One precedes the other always. We see this in the well-known passage of Isaiah 40:29-31—”those that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.”— I have always been touched by Paul’s words—”I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength“—1 Timothy 1:12. Paul wasn’t saying that Jesus made him muscular. The Greek word used is “endunamoo“—which means to fill with power and increase in strength. While we know a lot about Paul and he attributes his successful ministry to the strength that Jesus gave him, it is safe to conclude that he obtained that strength through the established pattern of waiting on the Lord [Acts 9:9-17; Galatians 1:15-18]. Strength does indeed arise as we wait upon the Lord. Let us get into His presence, read the Scriptures, hear His voice—pray over what we have heard—receive a fresh impartation of His strength—and go to do what He instructed us, with “good courage.” Obeying God in what we know He has revealed to us as we waited upon Him—and received His strength—should not be with hesitation or trepidation. We cannot be like Peter when Jesus told him to walk on water and go to him [Matthew 14:29-31]. The Hebrew word David uses for courage is “Amets”—which can also mean being bold, alert, determine, steadfastly minded, established, hardened, and stout. We see it used in Joshua 1 verses 6, 7, 9, 18.  Joshua must have paid attention to Moses because strength and courage became his stamp on history [Joshua 10:1-43]. He had also known God through waiting in the tabernacle too [Exodus 33:11].

Monday, October 31st, 2022

I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service—1 Timothy 1:12

Few days after Saul’s conversion, we read that “Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ—Acts 9:22. Days earlier he had been among Jewish leaders who persecuted Christians and now he was an unashamed defender of the way of Jesus [Romans 1:16; Galatians 1:23-24]. Where did apostle Paul gain that much strength to go against his former comrades in darkness and courage to stand upon the truth—in a such short period of time ? Do new converts in the churches of our cities and nations start doing this in their first 6-12 months after conversion ? Well, normally they should. Scriptures declare, “If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.“— James 4:17. This means that if we know that winning souls is wise and standing idly when the name of Christ is maligned is foolish — and we fail to witness for the Lord, we are sinning [Mark 8:34-38; Proverbs 11:30; Ezekiel 3:18; Matthew 20:6-14; Matthew 9:37-38; Acts 20:26; Jeremiah 48:10]. If we know that God answers prayers and has called us to pray for our families, cities, and nations—and yet fail to pray fervently, then we are committing sin [1 Samuel 12:23; Romans 9:2-4; 2 Chronicles 7:14; 1 Timothy 2:1-5; Isaiah 31:1; Ephesians 6:10-18]. If we know that we should work hard to provide financially, not just for our own needs and families—but also have more left over to give to others and fail to do so, that is a sin [Acts 20:34-35; Galatians 2:10; Romans 15:1; Acts 10:3-4; Proverbs 12:24; Luke 6:38; Matthew 6:2-4; Proverbs 13:22; 1 Timothy 5:8]. If we know that Jesus went about doing good and healing all the sick that were oppressed by the devil, and we fail to do the same, then that’s also a sin [Acts 10:38; Matthew 14:14; Galatians 6:9; Matthew 10:8; Luke 6:46;  John 14:12; Luke 12:47]. In fact, Scriptures declare, “Whatsoever is not of faith is sin.”—Romans 14:23. We also know that in the Great Commission that Jesus gave us, He said “To teach them to obey everything I have commanded you“—Matthew 28:18-20, which gives us 2 tasks: first, we have to obey everything Jesus commanded ourselves, and then, we have to make disciples who obey everything that Jesus commanded. We cannot make disciples teaching them to obey what we are not obeying ourselves. Both tasks will be enormous and would be impossible without divine strength. We cannot accomplish them by our own human efforts. We need divine strength for living the Christian life [Matthew 26:41; John 6:63; Romans 8:4].  We also need God’s strength for ministering to others [1 Peter 4:11; Acts 1:8; Luke 24:49]. So, how did apostle Paul gain the strength to do these things, then ? Our opening Bible verse of 1 Timothy 1:12 provides us an answer: Jesus Christ gave Paul His strength—and sight—as he prayed [Acts 9:9-17]. Since God is no respecter of persons, if we seek Him like Paul did, then He will also give us the strength we need, both to walk in holiness and to fulfill the great commission, serving others [Acts 10:34-35; Romans 2:11; Acts 20:21]. God distributes His graces to all who seek them diligently and sincerely [Hebrews 11:6; Jeremiah 29:13; 1 Corinthians 14:1; Matthew 7:7-11]. Since Paul knew that his spiritual children in the faith could only be effective with supernatural strength from above, he prays a prayer asking for the same in Ephesians 3:16-20. “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being.”—Ephesians 3:16. That’s like giving blood transfusion to an anemic patient. I have heard a proverb that goes like “give man a fish and you will feed him for a day. If you teach him how to fish, you will feed him for a lifetime.”—That’s how I see Paul’s prayer of Ephesians 3:16-20. If people have spiritual, relational, physical, and financial problems and they keep going to a prophet or an apostle to give them a word from God and help them sort out their troubles—they will keep going back to the same person for as long as they remain weak. But If they are prayed for to receive divine strength in their inner being and taught how to receive and walk in that strength—God will lift them up and carry them—then they will be free to solve their problems and can go and teach others to do the same—that’s the essence of discipleship, reproduction, and multiplication. Jesus had strengthened Paul in his inner-man. He could be thrown in a jail in Philippi and be burst out supernaturally with an earth-shaking seismic activity, as he prayed and praised God [Acts 16:25-31]. He did not need anyone to rescue him. He had all the rescue he needed deposited on the inside, because he had been “strengthened with God’s power in the inner man.”—And don’t think that the Romans 7 Paul who was too weak to obey God’s law stayed there either. We read the Romans 8 and Galatians 2 new Paul who walked after the Spirit and lived the life by faith in the Son of God—effectively annulling himself—and allowing Christ to live His own life in him [Romans 7:19; Romans 8:4; Galatians 2:20]. Christ’s strength in Paul’s inner man was Christ’s own presence [Luke 1:49; Romans 5:6; 2 Corinthians 12:9; Colossians 1:27]. Some Bible versions translate “Seek the Lord and His strength“—1 Chronicles 16:11; Psalms 105:4 [KJV; NASB], as “look to the Lord and His strength” [NIV], while the GNT reads “Go to the Lord for help“—what a powerful revelation for our total obedience—both in our personal lives and and serving the needs of others! We have the strength of Christ ! [ 1 Corinthians 1:25; Ezekiel 37:10]

Tuesday,  November 1st, 2022

That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death—Philippians 3:10.

In Daniel 11:32 we read “but the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits“—where we see him prophesying about the Maccabees, who resisted Antiochus Epiphanes, despite being outnumbered and less equipped militarily. This came from a firm resolution they had not to defile themselves with the abomination that he had brought to their land [2 Maccabees 9:1-12; 2 Maccabees 7:1-32; 1 Maccabees chapter 1, 2, and 3]. They knew their God and held firm and God delivered them. Even Daniel himself with the Jewish friends that were with him in Babylon were strengthened by their firm convictions—that came from knowing God intimately. The book of Daniel with many dramatic events that took place in Babylon is a testimony of what God can do with those who know Him.  But God had even better promises for the least of the saints of the New Testament [Matthew 11:11; Luke 10:24].  As we continue our devotionals on Psalms 27:14, on waiting on God and being strengthened as we wait—we should consider that knowing God and being known by Him is usually part of this process, which we can call a bridge towards becoming strong. This is confirmed to us when we consider how apostle Paul rewrites Isaiah 64:4—”Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him“—in 1 Corinthians 2:9, saying that no eyes has seen, no ear has heard what God has prepared for those who love Him. We wait on God because we love Him. And “whoever loves God is known by God“—1 Corinthians 8:3—or is recognized by God. Such a  person has a divine seal of approval and even Satan knows them and fears them [Acts 19:15]. Waiting on God as we search the Scriptures, worship, pray, and seeking guidance for our steps to be ordered of the Lord—quietly submitting ourselves to His light— is a place where we get to have intimate knowledge of God and God gets to have intimate knowledge of us—we become His friends. Spiritual knowledge usually comes to us in the form of revelation—the divine light is switched on and that brings us understanding of spiritual mysteries. The coming of Jesus was described this way—the people who walked in darkness have seen a great light [Isaiah 9:2; Matthew 4:16]. While multitudes of people saw that light, there were disciples that He chose that got access to even more mysteries and secrets of His kingdom [Matthew 13:11-13; John 12:38-40].  The role revelation plays in knowing God and understanding the kingdom prompted Paul to pray for it for the churches He had ministered to or heard about [Ephesians 1:17-19; Colossians 1:9]. This revelational knowledge, or “epignosis” as Paul called it is inexhaustible. At the end of our lives we will still know in part [1 Corinthians 13:9; Romans 11:33-36; Psalms 147:5].  Even though Paul was already advanced in his knowledge of Christ, he kept saying that he had not yet been made perfect [ Philippians 3:13-14]—and that he wanted to know Jesus and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship with His sufferings. We all can agree that many of us already know Christ, know that He was crucified for our sins, and that He rose on the third day. Are we automatically as strong, powerful, anointed, and greatly used by God to advance His kingdom like apostle Paul ? In many situations this may not be the case. Why then ? The knowledge of our Lord Jesus is meant to be productive and bring us into ” all the good things we have in Christ.”—2 Peter 1:8; Philemon 1:6. It is not meant to be ” Oh, I know that!” It should be transformational for ourselves and world changing. It should lead to dispelling darkness, defeating Satan, and advancing the kingdom of God in all its aspects.  So, if we conclude that we do not have what Paul had, our goal should be to know Jesus and the power of His resurrection like Paul did. We should long for the intimate relationship that Paul had with Jesus. We should count the cost of discipleship to lose the things of the world for the sake of the kingdom and follow Jesus all the way. We should learn to wait upon God and not be like the world that is always in hurry because of the cares of bios-life. Paul, like many other people, had known Jesus initially through a vision when he was not pursuing Him. But to know Jesus intimately everyone has to seek Him and pursue Him diligently. Waiting upon God will bring us to know His heartbeat—the things He cares about, the things He is concerned about, the things He wants, the things that make Him angry, the things that please Him, the things that He loves, the things that He is passionate about and zealous to see happening in the world. Waiting upon God is instrumental in helping the saints attain intimate knowledge of the Lord’s ways and heart [Psalms 103:7]. It is that intimate knowledge that makes them strong and helps them to carry out great exploits. The Holy Spirit descended upon the church for this very purpose. Jesus is away from us and yet He is with us always through His Spirit. He says “ Blessed is the man who listens to me, Watching daily at my gates, Waiting at the posts of my doors“—Proverbs 8:34.  Why ? Because those are the only people who will come to know the living God. Jesus Christ is alive and is worthy to be pursued. The power of His resurrection is the answer to all the problems of the world. May He use us to reveal that power to our generation!

Wednesday, November 2nd, 2022

They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion.—Psalms 84:7

It is our intimate knowledge of Jesus Christ that will make us strong and effective for the kingdom of God [Daniel 11:32; 2 Peter 1:8; Philemon 1:6; Ephesians 1:17-19]. To understand spiritual concepts, often the Bible uses earthly or physical examples or metaphors to help us [John 3:11-12; Hebrews 5:11; 1 Corinthians 2:7-8]. For example, we read in Proverbs 14:4, “Where there are no oxen, the manger is empty, but from the strength of an ox come abundant harvests.” We know that Solomon is talking about an ox, but this has also been used as a metaphor for Christian ministers of the Gospel [ 1 Timothy 5:7-9; 1 Corinthians 9:9-14; Matthew 10:10]. When Paul quotes Deuteronomy 25:4, he asks “Is it about oxen that God is concerned?“—to imply that this was a figure of speech.  But if Paul is comparing Christian ministry to oxen treading out the grain—then the minister of the Gospel is expected to be strong and productive. From that strength and productivity will come abundant harvest. Some have suggested that the meaning of the “manger is clean” of Proverbs 14:4 to mean that ministry can get messy sometimes—while I am not necessarily sure if that is what Solomon meant, my focus is on the strength of the ox. Thankfully, the strength to produce spiritual and supernatural results does not come from ourselves, it comes from Christ [John 15:5; Zechariah 4:6]. So, we now have a Biblical pattern of progression. Waiting on God leads to loving God. Loving God leads to being recognized by God. Being recognized by God leads to God revealing Himself to us and giving us the knowledge of the Holy One [Proverbs 9:10; Psalms 111:10; John 15:15; Psalms 25:14]. It is that revelational knowledge that we work with to grow strong.  Knowledge must be worked otherwise it will be unproductive. This is also known as obedience. If we receive Rhema word of God while waiting upon God or if we get a revelation spoken to us in our spirits or through a vision, God expects us to act upon it to get the results of what it promised. This is why the work of ministry is compared to oxen because the word and the work go hand in hand. There would be no harvest without such a combination. Faith without works is dead. Revelation without action is unproductive. Knowledge without obedience is ineffective. We only get a harvest from the knowledge we work with [Matthew 13:11-13]. Each time we come out of our waiting time before God we should ask ourselves, “What did the Lord speak to me today and how am I going to obey Him ?” The Psalms 84 that we are reading today is another good example of how this works. It starts with saying “How lovely is your dwelling place“—in Psalms 84:1, and then goes on to say, “Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you.”—Psalms 84:4. This is the very core of waiting upon God. The Hebrew word that is used for “dwell” is Yashab and it means to sit still, abide, stay, inhabit, and settle. They are in the house of God but they are not waiting like patients wait at a doctor’s office or restaurant patrons wait in the drive thru. Waiting upon God should not be an occasion for falling asleep in the couch. We see Jesus waiting upon the Father in the garden of Gethsemane, but he was wrestling in prayer [Luke 22:44; Hebrews 5:7]. There were loud cries and sweat of blood. Hardly is waiting upon God these days carried out like the work of oxen. Which may explain why there’s little harvest in our waiting. Those who dwell in the house of God are ever praising Him. They abide there, continuously offering sacrifices. He goes on to say, “Blessed are those whose strength is in you.”—Psalms 84:5. People usually boast of where their strength comes from. They could say “we have 500 F-35 fighter jets and feel confident we could defeat that nation in war.” Sometimes they may even boast of the strength they have accumulated, but which did not come from their own efforts, rather was given by God—to their own detriment—as God will be jealous for His glory being taken [Daniel 4:30; 2 Chronicles 26:16; Hebrews 3:4]. We praise God because our strength comes from God. I remember reading the book “The Glory: Experiencing the atmosphere of heaven“—by Ruth Heflin. She talks about how praise has been used by God as an instrument of harvest and warfare—then somewhere shows how Jesus quotes Psalms 8:2, where David wrote that “from the mouth of babes God had ordained strength“— to interpret that “God had ordained praise from the mouths of children” [Matthew 21:6]. Of course David doesn’t want praise to be in the mouths only. He wants “everything within me“—Psalms 103:1; Matthew 15:8—not just the mouths. So, praise is in fact synonymous with strength. This reminds us what happened in Philippi when Paul was praising God in prison. Waiting upon God while praising Him is one of the ways we can grow in His strength. In Psalms 84:6 we see what this garment of praise does for the saints. They pass through the Valley of Baca, also known as the Valley of Weeping, a dry place that would normally be discouraging, but they do not lose their courage or zeal for God. It is a fact that in this world all saints will face tribulations. The question is whether we shall overcome those tribulations—only the strong saints will be able to. “They go from strength to strength till they appear before God in Zion“—Psalms 84:7. Far from being slowed down by that hard valley, they become emboldened even more, with ever increasing faith, ever increasing strength, and ever increasing joy [Nehemiah 8:10; Romans 4:20]—till they appear before God in Zion. Usually that’s always a place of abundance, flowing with milk and honey—where glory and goodness dwell [Psalms 84:11; Isaiah 33:24; Obadiah 1:17; Hebrews 12:22; Isaiah 61:3; Isaiah 54:3; Psalms 65:1;Psalms 110:2]. Thus, they are able to display God’s splendor. 

Thursday, November 3rd, 2022

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go—Joshua 1:9

We had talked about how Joshua was a man who knew how to wait on God, while mentioning Exodus 33: 11, at the beginning of this week. I find Joshua to be such a good example of leadership training that I wonder why modern leadership courses tend to be full of secular psychology and management lessons—even when they are done by Christians in church settings. I am all for learning from everyone out there, but the church is a different institution and things that are taught—such as leadership or pastoral training should actually be endorsed by the Bible. So, what are the lessons of leadership that we learn from Joshua ? The first one is the waiting lesson. When Moses was speaking to God face to face, Joshua would be there. It doesn’t say that Caleb was there or Eleazar was there. These could have joined in, but Joshua was attracted to God’s glorious presence more. I wonder why other people did not take this opportunity. Many of us have heard of amazing spiritual experiences, miracles, and revivals and we were like—I wish I was there. Don’t you think it would have been great to be there when William Seymour prayed for 4 hours every morning asking God to pour out the Pentecostal blessing ? I wish I was there. Don’t you think it would have been great to see William Seymour, F.F. Bosworth, and John.G.Lake team up to build part of the early networks of Pentecostal Revivalists ? What about John.G. Lake’s glorious revivals in South Africa ?The truth is, there are often glorious things that God does in the world and they pass before the eyes of the saints before they realize their value and take advantage of them. There are men and women of God who are here today and could be instrumental in training young ministers but those young ministers are not hungry to learn. This gripped me last year when T.B. Joshua died. Are we hungry enough to learn from anointed servants of God in the world today ? This is something that Joshua did not miss. He took the opportunity to learn from Moses. He was not always perfect, as we see him arguing that people who were prophesying outside of the camp should be silenced [Numbers 11:21-30]—yet when Moses corrected his mistake, he understood. So, Joshua gained significantly from those moments he lingered in God’s glory. Those moments he stayed behind even after Moses left. There were seasons I was so hungry for God—I would stay at church on Sunday nights praying till 3-4 am. Of course, I have become even hungrier as I gained more wisdom and understanding has become my sister [Proverbs 7:4]. Revivalists we read in church history most likely made much of sermons they heard because of prayer. Often the value of God’s presence, His teachings, His revelations, and miracles—produce different results—because earnestly seeking God plays a role in preparing the soil of those who hear or see them [Matthew 13: 18-23]. The harvest is proportional to the fertility of the soil we provide for the Word to work in our hearts. After Moses died, Joshua became the leader of Israel. God had told Moses about this to prepare him [ Deuteronomy 1:37-38; Deuteronomy 3:27-28]. This brings us to the second trait of Joshua—faithfulness [Numbers 11:28]. As he took command, we see  God telling him to be “strong and courageous“—Joshua 1: 3, 6, 9,  18. Waiting and faithfulness may qualify men of God for service, but if they will not deliver on the day of battle it would not be of much benefit. We can wait in silence, pray for hours, fast, and read our Bibles—but how we minister to various needs the people have will be successful only if we are strong and courageous in our faith—ready and able to release the power of God to demonstrate that Jesus Christ is alive and reigns as king. Even the battles that Israel did not need much fighting in like Jericho—required Joshua’s strong leadership [Joshua 6]. Some battles were more fierce than others [Judges 7:1-14]. Other situations required the use of authority within the camp of Israel [Joshua 7:15-26; Joshua 1:18]. Both required strength. Only when we are broken enough in the secret place of our waiting can we understand how challenging these decisions can be. God had sent them to conquer the land, but adherence to divine instructions was paramount. I have often been reminded that even though we may not be called to fight like Joshua—with swords and arrows—we have been instructed to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might—which involves the full armor of God [Ephesians 6:10-18; 2 Corinthians 10:3-6]. We need the belt of truth for example. This is a hard one. What happens if Christians you would agree with politically or culturally embrace lies and deception ? Would you disagree with your own camp ? Well, the truth is blind to personalities, parties, and partnerships [Acts 10:34-35; Galatians 2:11-20]. We either keep it as a weapon to win divine favor or sacrifice it to please people and lose God’s blessings. The truth is often bigger than most people realize. If I wake up and think that Santa Claus is real, does that automatically make it so because millions of children may have been told this story to make Christmas fun ? Thankfully, we have the Bible. The Word of God is truth and unchangeable. In the midst of various opinions and guesses of fallen creatures, Scriptures unite the saints regarding God’s declared will. If our waiting on God does not anchor us in the truth, we will find it hard to gain strength from anywhere else [Isaiah 7:9; Hebrews 12:12; John 17:17; Acts 17:21; Proverbs 12:11; Numbers 23:19]. May the grace of Immanuel embolden us with courage! He will be with us always, even to the very end of the age [Mark 16:20; Matthew 28:20].

Friday, November 4th, 2022

Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.—1 Samuel 30:6.

The old days were not always good—we see that in what happened to David in Ziklag. We often compare the present to the past and could relish the past with a blanket absolution of all that went wrong, simply because we were not there, while condemning the present because of the evil we see surrounding us. To be clear, even Jesus condemned his generation. But He did not necessarily exonerate the past. [Matthew 11: 16-26; Matthew 16:1-4; Luke 11:46-51]. So, what happened to David in Ziklag ? Marauding Amalekites attacked the city and burned it [1 Samuel 30:1]. The Philistinian army had gone to fight Saul on the mountains of Gilboa, where Saul and Jonathan would end up dead. David also was not in town. The city had been left unprotected. The Amalekites came and killed people, looted, raped, kidnapped, and burned it down. This is really the succinct story of humanity after the fall of man. David was the leader of hundreds of men who had joined him in exile, while he was with the Philistines, running away from Saul. Yet, even these loyal soldiers and brethren could not stand defeat, loss, and humiliation—they blamed him. Some of the soldiers with David included the sons of Zeruiah, his own sister—they were Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. For security reasons, David had moved his own father—Jesse—and his mother, Nitzevet, to the kingdom of Moab, when he left the cave of Adullam he was hiding in [1 Samuel 22:1-4]. The times were hard. He did not have much except the word of the Lord that all would work out in his favor in the end. Now, this happens in the midst of all those hardships. Even as a hardened soldier in the wilderness, he could not take the abuse, insults, and threats from his own contingent. He wasn’t distressed simply because of the loss—even though that was painful—he was distressed because his own companions were talking about stoning him. Often responsibility for unfortunate things and calamities that fall upon camps, cities, and regions is on the shoulders of those who are in leadership. Sometimes the losses could be so significant that people aren’t just considering of abandoning, voting out, or dismissing the leader—but they are actually enraged enough to kill the leader. They were mostly bitter because of their families and relatives who had been kidnapped. The Hebrew word for “distressed” here is “Yatsar”—which also can mean being straightened in straits and being vexed. Many people have felt that kind of heartache, sorrow, grief, and sadness—that built up into real torment, suffering, and agony. Even Jesus felt that in the garden of Gethsemane, when considering the trial, whips, and nails of the cross. We want both our bodies and souls to prosper—but more importantly—that’s how God meant things to be—He wants the same for us [3 John 2; Jeremiah 29:11; Isaiah 13:6-7; Jeremiah 6: 23- 24; Jeremiah 50: 42-43; Psalms 35:27; Psalms 20:1; Isaiah 55:12; Jeremiah 23:5-6; Jeremiah 30:10; Lamentation 3:26]. So, distress is natural in the face of tragedy. Betrayal can compound that distress and create real anguish. “But David strengthened himself in the Lord“—the first thing we note here is that inner-strength is voluntary and independent of our surroundings, friendships, and circumstances. Encouragement from other people is good, but there may be situations in which a person will not be able to get that—and even if they do—it may not be enough. Courage and strength are resources of the spirit. They are like calories for the body, ATP for the cells, or glucose for the brain. If our bodies are energy-deficient, they will not function properly. If our spirits are strength-less, we cannot be joyful, peaceful, or hold firm to holy convictions. The Hebrew word for “strengthened” here is “Chazaq”—which can also mean to collect strength, be securely established, give powerful support, prevail, gain ascendancy, sustain, recover, and uphold. How did David strengthen himself in the Lord ? Knowing that David was a Psalmist and looking at Psalms 18, for example, we can get the idea of how David might have strengthened himself in the Lord. It starts with the words—”I love you, LORD, my strength.”—Psalms 18:1. Then he goes on to praise the Lord in all His attributes of strength—”The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”—Psalms 18:2. This is what we should do when we are waiting on God in all circumstances, especially challenging ones. The good thing about knowing God is that we will realize that there’s a name of Jehovah attached to every situation we may face. We know He is Jehovah Nissi, our banner or our victory [Exodus 17:14-15]. He is Jehovah Sabaoth, the Lord of the armies or the Lord of the heavenly hosts [1 Samuel 1:11; 2 Samuel 7:27; 1 Samuel 17:26]. And He is Jehovah Milchamah, the Lord of Battle or Man of war [Exodus 15:3; Isaiah 42:13]. He is all of this for the sake of His people who trust in Him. So, David strengthened himself in the Lord by remembering who God was to Him. He probably sang praises. The entire Psalm 18 shows us how David’s victories were rooted in this type of strength in the Lord [See verses 6, 14, 17, 19, 29, 31, 32, 34, 37-43, and 50] . It is after he received that impartation from above he gained the courage to command the army and go after the Amalekites and—”fought them from dusk until the evening of the next day“—and recovered everything they had taken [1 Samuel 30:17-18]. May we look to Him and be radiant ! May the Lord be our strength and victory today !

Saturday, November 5th, 2022

The war between the house of Saul and the house of David lasted a long time. David grew stronger and stronger, while the house of Saul grew weaker and weaker.—2 Samuel 3:1

We read in 2 Samuel 2: 9-10, that Abner, the former commander of Saul’s armies took Ish-bosheth, a surviving son of Saul, and ” made him king over Gilead, Ashuri and Jezreel, and also over Ephraim, Benjamin and all Israel. Ish-Bosheth son of Saul was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he reigned two years. The tribe of Judah, however, remained loyal to David.”—so, for a period of 2 years, the land of Israel was divided into 2 camps or kingdoms. This, again would occur after Solomon died, during the reign of Rehoboam. So, what tore the nation apart, what brought it together, and what divided it again ? The root of the initial breaking was envy and jealousy. Saul became envious of David after he killed Goliath. That’s strange because usually the less powerful people are supposed to be the ones envying the more powerful ones. But when power is involved, holding onto it at any cost can become an idol. So, the powerful can become ruthless and envious of little harmless individuals, because everyone who is blessed by God becomes a threat to them. That’s how Herod ended up killing all the children of Bethlehem, simply because he had heard the news that baby Jesus was born to be king [Matthew 2:1-2; Matthew 2:11-19]. Surely young babies under 2 years of age were not a threat to him! What about Pharaoh in Egypt at the time Moses was born ? We see the same thing [Exodus 1:8-22]. A murderous king killing infants who were not a threat to his rule. But he feared that one day the men would grow up and rise up against his kingdom. The fact is, earthly dominion has been like this since the fall. It doesn’t matter whether there’s a monarchy, a republic, or democracy, or “theocracy“—the name or intention of dominion is not the issue—the heart of man is. The more selfish, chauvinistic, and earthly the rulers are, the more wicked they become. So, the initial tearing of Israel was because of envy. Now Ish-bosheth would reign over the 11 tribes for 2 years while David was in Hebron at the same time. Their armies would clash during those 2 years. David won Israel to reign over the whole land not only because of the increasing power of his army, but his evident kindness and gentleness. Look at how he mourned Abner, a former general of Saul’s army, who was killed by Joab, in vengeance for Asahel’s life [2 Samuel 2:18-23; 2 Samuel 3:20-37]. The 11 tribes of Israel took notice that David had separated himself from Joab’s cold blood killing—and was not responsible for his general’s crimes. People were pleased and trusted his rule. We see the same thing when some of Ish-bosheth’s soldiers betrayed him and killed him while he was sleeping and brought his head to David in Hebron, to prove their loyalty [2 Samuel 4:5-11]. So, the 11 tribes of Israel surrendered not because of military defeat, but because of the trust David built through kindness and generosity. He also had proven faithfulness and leadership over the years [2 Samuel 5:1-4]. That’s what united the country for a space of 2 generations—the kingdom of David and Solomon—a total of 80 years—40 years of reign for David and 40 years of reign for Solomon—before it broke again when Rehoboam ascended to power. That second tearing apart was because of Rehoboam’s youthful rashness, irrational thinking, and maintaining forced labor to increase state productivity. In short, arrogant authoritarianism and high taxation in form of slavery—citizens forced to work for the state unpaid. Solomon had been able to do this and his kingdom stayed united because of the respect other tribes had for his excellent wisdom and the economic prosperity that wisdom had brought to the nation—but Rehoboam didn’t have that—so they were no longer bound to work for free without that respect for the king or economic apogee [1 Kings 12:1-19]. In one word, David and Solomon succeeded because of credible—divine-inspired—justice. They may not have been perfect in everything—but their sincerity towards that goal was obvious to everyone. From a military point of view, this strategy of wisdom paid off for David during the 2 years his army clashed with that of Saul’s family. 1 tribe fighting 11 tribes was outnumbered. But David had the divine anointing, his army was more organized and disciplined, and his decisions were wise, kind, and firm. He was not going to compromise God’s call or anointing, so he had to fight. But his authority was not going to exceed what was appropriate, so he negotiated whenever opportunity for peaceful resolution came up. He fought when he should and kept quiet when he shouldn’t fight. He also understood his limits in controlling his own army—”And even though I am the anointed king, these two sons of Zeruiah—Joab and Abishai—are too strong for me to control“—2 Samuel 3:39—they were very loyal and efficient militarily [2 Samuel 23:13-20]—but they were stiff-necked, oppressive, stubborn, and harsh [translation of the Hebrew word, “Qasheh”—in “too strong for me”— in 2 Sam 3:39]. Because David knew his limits, he understood that part of managing his own camp was delaying taking action on some of the most beneficial and yet evil soldiers [1 Kings 2:5-6]. Bringing Joab to justice was part of David’s unfinished business that Solomon had to take care of. Christians often fail to maintain this kind of balance we see in David. They either vacillate to seek the advancement of the kingdom of Christ in appropriate warfare and strategic decisions or they seek to do advance it through unbiblical tactics. But the goals of the great commission can’t be compromised—all spheres of society must be affected—at the same time its implementation should be done in God’s way—according to the Scriptures, by the Holy Spirit. 

Sunday, November 6th, 2022

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls—Matthew 11: 28- 29

Saint Augustine is credited with the famous quote, “Thou hast made us for thyself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in thee.”—so, it is rather a great blessing that the restlessness of the human heart is not a burden that has no solution—indeed the answer to this has been given by our Lord Jesus when He said “Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” The burdens humans carry vary from individual to individual, from culture to culture, and from nation to nation—and though Scriptures teach us to “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”—Galatians 6:2, it is a command that the holy saints obey while knowing that ultimately Jesus is our all-burdens carrier. To him all people—small and great; all nations—rich and poor—can look with hope, entrusting Him all their burdens, whether they are easy to carry or heavy to lift. They may be burdens of iniquity, burdens of financial debt, burdens of slavery in all its forms, bondages of addictions, burdens of troubles, pressures of hostility— a  yoke of workplace oppression and labor exploitation—demonic oppression, the strife of tongues—and all other kinds of hardships that push down the soul and prevent it from flourishing and excelling into its God-intended purposes[Isaiah 10:27; Isaiah 61:1; Luke 4:18; Exodus 1:14;  Exodus 3:7; Acts 7:34; Exodus 6:6; Genesis 21:17-19; 2 Kings 4:1-7; Isaiah 54:17; Romans 8:32; Galatians 3:13; Psalms 31:20; James 5:4; Acts 10:38; Luke 13:16; 1 John 3:8; John 10:10; Psalms 66:12; Psalms 68:11-12; John 8:36; 2 John 2; Psalms 1:3; John 15:16; Galatians 5:1]—Jesus has come to declare the year of Jubilee—that is the Good News of the Gospel dispensation—when debts are cancelled, slavery ended, bondages broken, oppression terminated, diseases healed, and captives are set at liberty. No other philosophy, teaching, religion, or even government on earth can offer this to human souls. Jesus calls us to come to Him and He gives these things to us, “without money and without price.”—Isaiah 55:1-2. The question is whether we will believe who He says He is and is able to do what He says He can do for us. Will we keep trying to “pull ourselves by our bootstraps“—or will we entrust such a task to the Lifter of our heads ?—do we believe that Christ’s offer is for real ? [Hebrews 11:1; Romans 4:17-21; 2 Corinthians 1:20; Numbers 23:19; Psalms 3:3; Psalms 113:7-8; Psalms 27:6; Psalms 30:1]. When we read the Gospels, we find that the Jesus there is a caring Savior. Remember the time when thousands of people who had come to hear him were hungry ?— He said: “I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat. And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way; for some of them have come from afar“—Mark 8:2-3—surely this compassion has not dried from His heart. Will He let his followers faint now ? If people’s needs were physical, He had bread and fish to give them multiplied. If the needs were spiritual, His compassion looked upon their souls with mercy and called for the Lord of the Harvest to send to them more laborers [Matthew 9: 35-38; John 4:34-36]. He did not neglect their bodily needs and He understood the greater benefits of their spiritual good. Both our bodies and souls were made by God for His glory and He cares for His creation so deeply that no need goes unnoticed and all those who call upon Him sincerely—in faith—are answered [Jeremiah 33:3; John 15:7; 1 John 5:14-15; James 4:2-3; John 14:13; Psalms 72:12; Psalms 145:16; Luke 1:53]. In exchange for our burdens, He asks us to take His yoke—accept His leadership, friendship, teachings, instructions, cross, and service. He is a Good Shepherd, so His leadership is gentle and wise [Psalms 23:1; John 10:11]. He is a Good Friend—who will be closer than our brothers, who will fight for us in adversity, and tell us the deepest secrets of the Father’s kingdom [John 15:15; Proverbs 18:24; Proverbs 17:17; James 2:23; Exodus 14;14; Romans 8:31; Jeremiah 33:3]. He is a Good Teacher—who will teach us how to profit in divine commandments and things that will benefit us, not just in our walk now but also for eternity [Isaiah 48:17; John 3:2; Jeremiah 3:15; Hosea 4:6; Isaiah 30:21; 1 John 2:27; John 14:26; Luke 6:40]. His instructions guide us with clarity and bring us into the Promised Land [John 14:6; John 16:13; Romans 8:14; Psalms 32:8; John 8:12; Proverbs 4:18; Psalms 119:105; Psalms 66:12; Joshua 21:45]. His cross frees us from the world and all the burdens that it casts upon us, so that we can share in the inheritance of His kingdom [Galatians 6:14; John 16:33; Acts 14:22; Romans 8:17; Mark 10:30; John 17:16; Luke 9:23-27; John 12:24; Philippians 3:10]. His service is delightful and rewarding— yielding precious silver, gold, and eternal glory [Proverbs 8:19; Hebrews 11:6; Isaiah 45:19; Revelation 22:12; Genesis 15:1; John 14:1-3; Psalms 73:24; Psalms 84:11; Malachi 3:10; Revelation 2:27; Revelation 3:8; Revelation 3:21; 2 Timothy 2:9-10]—why would we refuse this yoke ? Why would we reject this offer ?—Christ is our peace [Ephesians 2:14; Judges 6:24]. Our anxieties will be healed in Him. Our worries will find their rest in Him. Our concerns will be answered by Him. Let us come to Him with great expectation!

Monday, November 7th, 2022

The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering—Exodus 3:7

In Exodus 2:23, we read: During that long period, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned in their slavery and cried out, and their cry for help because of their slavery went up to God— how the prayers of Israel led to God putting in place a plan for their deliverance [Exodus 3:9]. God had already told Abraham that his descendants would be slaves in Egypt for 400 years [Genesis 15:13]. So, they already knew they would be delivered at some point based on that prophecy. The time of their cries coincided with the time that Moses was nearing 40 years in Midian. Moses had fled to Midian because he had initially failed, while trying to save Israel in his own strength and by his own initiative [Exodus 2:14-15]. Even for the most compassionate leaders, seeing oppression or injustice does not guarantee a solution. Dealing with that requires at least 2 things: the leader is empathic or willing to change the situation and he has the authority/power to carry out the deliverance. The reason Moses failed in Exodus 2:14-15 is that he had the willingness to help but did not have the authority/ power to help—ultimately Pharaoh was the ruler, had an army, and Moses could not stand before an army that powerful to rescue the Hebrews. This is where we see God step into the picture—since no man could save Israel—God would save them Himself. Pharaoh could have set them free but he did not want that. He had free labor to build him cities, bigger barns, and temples of his gods—and he was not going to let them leave. We see his attitude when Moses confronted him to let Israel go: “Who is the LORD, that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD and I will not let Israel go.”—Exodus 5:2—even after Moses encountered Jehovah on Mount Sinai—Pharaoh was still not willing to listen to instructions alone. He could not be reasoned with. Such callousness has been the nature of many rulers after the fall—[Exodus 5:12; Romans 9:17; Romans 1:18-31; Daniel 3:14-26; Ephesians 2: 1-3; Philippians 3:18-20; Ephesians 4:17-20; Isaiah 51:13; Luke 18:2; Jeremiah 5:28]. Authority and power had to be demonstrated to break Pharaoh’s yoke on Israel’s children. God told Moses to let the people of Israel know this as we read in Exodus 6:6—“Therefore, say to the Israelites: ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.“— We see 2 things that Moses had lacked being given a solution after Moses returned from Midian. First, he was now an authorized prophet. He had authority from God to speak and to act on his behalf [Hosea 12:13]. God had told him on Mount Sinai: “now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.”—Exodus 3:10. When God gives leaders authority, He commissions them to do certain tasks that are part of His great plan. Obedience is shown by accomplishing that mission. While we may speculate that God could have used anyone to carry this out, we see that Moses already had the willingness to take risks and do something. Secondly, Moses received power. God first revealed Him that power in the wilderness when He put his rod to the ground and it became a snake [Exodus 4:3]. This was meant to overcome Moses’ own doubts and hesitancy—What if they do not believe me or listen to me ? Being authorized by God to speak on his behalf has never been enough to carry out His missions. Power always has to be demonstrated for people to believe. Despite the resistance of Pharaoh—after 10 judgments and the Passover of the destroying angel that killed the sons of the Egyptians, while saving the sons of Israel— he realized it was impossible to resist the hand of the Almighty. Their day of deliverance would become a tradition to pass onto future generations to remember what the Lord had done for them—”Commemorate this day, the day you came out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery, because the LORD brought you out of it with a mighty hand.”—Exodus 13:3. This redemption was a shadow of even a greater deliverance that Jesus would bring to the whole world through His cross and resurrection [Isaiah 9:2-4; Isaiah 9:6-7; Isaiah 53; Matthew 1:23;Matthew 20:28;  Matthew 26:28; Mark 2:1-5; Matthew 8:16-17; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; John 3:16; Colossians 2:15;  Philippians 2:5-11; 2 Corinthians 8:9; Romans 8:32]. After Jesus rose from the dead, He gave authority and power to His disciples to preach this message of redemption to the world [Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-20; Luke 10:19; Matthew 10:1; Acts 1:8; Acts 2:1-4; Acts 10:38; Hebrews 2:2-4]. Sadly, we do not see many modern Christian leaders passionate about justice or breaking the yoke of oppression like we see Jehovah does. Back in the US Civil war when Abraham Lincoln was US President, there were “Christians” in the South who were fighting to maintain slavery. Since that ended more than 150 years ago, the US has made huge progress towards justice, but this came at a high cost, as see when we read biographies of people like Martin Luther King Jr. As we will be seeing this week, Jesus lifts heavy burdens, sets captives free, and has come to break all yokes of oppression—this is an essential part of His gospel— as we see Him proclaiming these very words during His own hometown first sermon in Luke 4:18, after He read Isaiah 61:1-2. Neglecting this part of the Gospel disfigures the beauty of the Savior, corrupts the Gospel, and is poor evangelistic outreach. It’s high time the church told the world “come to Jesus, all ye who are heavy laden“—again. Sure, He will give us eternal life after we die or are raptured to heaven—but His redemption breaks the yokes of oppression even today! [Isaiah 58]

Tuesday, November 8th, 2022

Praise be to the LORD, who has given rest to his people Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises he gave through his servant Moses—1 Kings 8:56

Moses’ risk taking behavior and initiative to rescue Israel was born of faith—but at the time he did not have the authorization of Jehovah and had not received the miracle-working power to deliver Israel [Hebrews 11:23-26]. That faith led him into the wilderness, where we are told that He went gladly, because —”By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible.”—Hebrews 11:27. That faith had set him apart from Egypt and caused him to lose the privileges of an Egyptian prince and the pleasures that were seen in Pharaoh’s court. Genuine faith at the very minimum should lead the saints to act this way. Where Christians are still in love with Egypt or worldly things and they are still slaves to worldly pleasures—it may indeed be questioned whether they have saving faith [ 1 John 2:15-17; James 4:4;  Romans 12:2; John 7:9; John 15:19; Exodus 16:3; Numbers 14:2; Matthew 4:8-9; James 1:27; 2 Corinthians 6:14-17]. However, we also see that faith that set Moses apart was not enough to effect the rescue of Israel. He needed authority and power and once He received that from the Most High, he was able to break the resistance of Pharaoh and bring Israel out of Egypt. He would later pass on the baton to Joshua, who brought Israel into the promised land [Joshua 21:45; Joshua 6; Joshua 10; Joshua 12; Joshua 13:1-6]. It is after they had possessed the land and king Solomon was building the temple of the Lord that we see him praying the prayer in 1 Kings 8:20-66. After remembering all the Lord had done to bring Israel out of Egypt and bring them into the Promised Land, Solomon ends saying the Lord had “given rest to his people just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises he gave through his servant Moses“—The Lord had indeed freed them from the yoke of slavery—working for Pharaoh long hours without pay. He had ended their wandering in the wilderness and brought them into Canaan. He had rescued them from the Midianites in the days of Gideon, the Amalekites in the days of Saul, and the Philistines in the days of David [Judges 6:11-24; Judges 7:1-25; 1 Samuel 15:1-35; 2 Samuel 5:1-11; Deuteronomy 12:7-10]. We sang this yesterday in the 18th century hymn of Baptist Pastor—Joseph Swain—”We know he is coming to gather his sheep and lead them to Zion in love, for why in the valley of death should they weep or in the lone wilderness rove?“—They now could rest in Zion, free from all battles, build homes to live in, have families, prosper in their own land, worship the Lord in peace, and pass on an inheritance of blessing to their children. This is what rest meant to Israel at the time. As we are going to see in Hebrews 4 and Psalms 95:11, there’s more to the rest that God had prophesied, but by the days of Solomon, the promises He had given to Abraham and Moses had been fulfilled. The Hebrew word used for rest here is “Menuchah“—it can also mean comfort, permanent place, quietness, and refreshment. A homeless person or nomad who moves around, without owning a house, would not be considered to have a permanent place or a resting place. Property ownership and having one’s own home is an example of being in a resting place. We see that Jesus had been prophesied to bring a glorious resting place [Isaiah 11:9-13]. While this will eventually be fulfilled during the Millennial kingdom of Christ—rest for the Christian today involves 3 things. First, it means ceasing from efforts of reaching righteousness and acceptance before God by works alone [Ephesians 2:8; Hebrews 4:10; John 19:27; Titus 3:5; Galatians 2:11-20]. Second, it means relying on God’s strength and power for our sanctification, our ministries, and our jobs. God expects us to do those things out of rest [John 15:5; Philippians 2:13; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; Matthew 11:28-29; Hebrews 11:1; Hebrews 11:6; Matthew 6:26-33; Psalms 127:1-2; Luke 5:4-6]. Third, it means reaching the peak of what our redemption meant—fulfilling the destiny that God assigned each one of us—coming into our earthly Promised Land, so to speak—by attaining the full stature of Christ, building strong families, reaching the world with the Gospel, and transforming the nations with the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ [2 Corinthians 1:20; Deuteronomy 1:11; Psalms 68:5-6; Psalms 115:14; Jeremiah 29:11; Acts 2:39; Deuteronomy 11:19; Matthew 19:14; 1 Timothy 5:14; Malachi 2:13-17; 1 Thessalonians 4:10-12; Philippians 4:19; Joshua 24:15; Matthew 24:14; Acts 1:8; Matthew 12:20-21; Psalms 111:6; John 14:13; Luke 6:40]. God’s plan isn’t just to save us and think of rest as simply relaxing and doing nothing. We are saved to serve others and fulfill His perfect plan for each of us.  This stage involves escaping the trap of “ the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches“—Mark 4:19. There are Christians who are constantly overwhelmed and burdened with the worries of how their financial bills will be paid—their housing, education, transportation, energy, communication, clothes—all the important things we need—which prevents them from making the Gospel priority. Reaching the lost becomes irrelevant while survival gains precedence. Others become financially secure, but are caught in the deceitfulness of riches—in which the focus becomes themselves and their earthly comfort. Both are wrong. Christ wants us to enter rest, while still being responsible for our obligations in life. It is a rest we enter by grace through faith—being in the Spirit—not by “pulling ourselves by our bootsraps.”

Wednesday, November 9th, 2022

And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing— Isaiah 10:27

The prayer of Solomon in 1 Kings 8:20-66 that we saw yesterday seemed to express concerns Solomon had about possible future instability because of Israel’s unfaithfulness. As we look at Isaiah 10, like verse 24, for example, we see God talking about the threat of Assyrians as similar to the subjugation of Israel in Egypt. While Isaiah 10:27 is often quoted by many in deliverance ministries to talk about deliverance from demonic oppression, it was actually about the yoke of Assyrians. I have no issue with its use for deliverance, after all we see many New Testament authors re-interpreting Old Testament Scriptures with more allegorical or spiritual meanings, including names such as ‘Babylon‘ for example [Revelation 17:5]; however, the original text was about subjugation. The chapter itself starts with Verse 1 saying, “Woe to those who make unjust laws, to those who issue oppressive decrees.”—that reminds us that just because something is law or is an ordinance of a city or nation, it does not make it just or right. Neither does it make it blessed by God, though the rulers may have authority from God [Romans 13:1-3]. By verse 5, we see, “Woe to the Assyrian, the rod of my anger.”—which becomes a focus of later verses. We see that God had uses the Assyrians initially, and then later on the Babylonians, to humble many nations of the regions, including Judah, however, God had made it clear that their overreach and excesses would not go unpunished [Isaiah 10: 12; Jeremiah 25:12; Isaiah 13:19; Isaiah 14:25; Isaiah 33:1; 2 Chronicles 36:22; Jeremiah 27:7; Jeremiah 50:1-2;  Psalms 137:8]. Isaiah had seen the vision of the throne of God in the year king Uzziah died, around 733 BC—and about 32 years later Sennacherib came from Nineveh with the most threatening attack that Jerusalem had ever experienced coming from Assyrians. Thankfully, Hezekiah was a king who feared God at the time, was extremely wealthy, and was delivered by God [ 2 Chronicles 32:27-29; Isaiah 37]. Samaria would fall in 722 BC when Shalmaneser V attacked the city. Both the Northern and Southern kingdom had been weaker for quite sometime [2 Kings 14-20; 2 Kings 15:19; 2 Kings 16:5-9; 1 Chronicles 15:26]. Though Judah was spared from falling for about 125 years, they were under constant threat. During the reign of Hezekiah, we see how he was willing to pay tribute of large sums of money to the Assyrians, but their excessive demands back-fired [ 2 Kings 18:14-37]. This was the time that not only Isaiah prophesied to Hezekiah, but also to Shebna, the palace administrator, who had given bad advice to Hezekiah, about relying on Egypt [Isaiah 37:6-37; Isaiah 22:14-22; Isaiah 31:1-2]. God delivered Hezekiah when an angel from God attacked Sennacherib’s army and killed 185,000 soldiers in one night. What a turn around that was—going from paying tributes to an invading king—to trampling over the dead bodies of his soldiers few days later as you walk out of the city gates. That was a mighty breaking of the yoke of the Assyrians. It was not because of Hezekiah’s great wealth. It was not because of the palace administrator’s war strategies of calling on Egypt. And it was not even Hezekiah’s idea of drying the water flows going outside of the city gates. It was not fortifying the city walls [2 Chronicles 32:1-23]. All of those efforts would have utterly failed. It was because Sennacherib had provoked Jehovah, Isaiah had subsequently given a prophetic word,  and Hezekiah humbled himself before the throne of the Lord’s majesty and earnestly prayed to God for deliverance. The yoke was destroyed by the anointing of the Holy Ghost. Though Assyria remained a powerful empire for 68 more years, it finally fell to the Babylonians in 633 BC as foretold in Nahum 1:14. It had survived when it repented after Jonah’s preaching [Jonah 3: 1-10], but its judgment would come eventually [Isaiah 10:15-18]. When looking at Hezekiah’s deliverance, we see that angels of God indeed excel in strength—in executing judgment [Psalms 103:20]. Even David had unfortunately witnessed that [2 Samuel 24:14-17]. God has proven time and again that all supernatural power to save and destroy in His hands [Deuteronomy 32:39; Isaiah 43:13; Job 9:12; Isaiah 14:27; Psalms 62:11]. For close to 100 years after Hezekiah, Judah would survive till Nebuchadnezzar attacked Jerusalem in 597 [2 Kings 24:12-14]. Even so, God had also foretold of the freedom from captivity that would occur under Cyrus [Isaiah 45:1-16; Ezra 1:2-5; Jeremiah 51:1-39]. God has controlled, reigned, and managed history by raising up prophets and kings to carry out His great plan with authority. He has released angels in those missions—the common denominator in all of these is that the cries and prayers of God’s people reached the throne of God—as they asked in faith—and God answered their prayers. When we started this week we mentioned various yokes that Christ will break—burdens of iniquity, burdens of financial debt, burdens of slavery in all its forms, bondages of addictions, burdens of troubles, pressures of hostility— a  yoke of workplace oppression and labor exploitation—demonic oppression, the strife of tongues— on these we can add political instability, post-war captivity, and military attacks[Luke 1:74; Psalms 66:3; Psalms 111:6; Acts 14:16; Acts 17:30; Acts 12:23; 2 Maccabees 9:5; Acts 13:9-12]. If we come to Jesus in faith, these yokes will be broken because of the anointing of the Holy Ghost [Isaiah 59:19; Isaiah 30:27-28; Acts 10:38; 1 John 3:8; Luke 10:19; 1 John 4:4; 1 John 5:4; Colossians 2:15; 2 Corinthians 10:3-6; Ephesians 6:10-18; Matthew 12:20-21].

Thursday, November 10th, 2022

For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day— Hebrews 4:8

God had seen the misery of Israel, had heard the groaning and cries of His people, and He had sent Moses to rescue them from the house of bondage [Exodus 1:14; Exodus 2:23; Exodus 3:7-9; Exodus 6:6; Exodus 13:3]. After Moses died, Joshua had completed the mission by defeating the nations in Canaan and bringing the people into their inheritance in the Promised Land [Joshua 1:8-9; Joshua 21:45; Joshua 6; Joshua 10; Joshua 12; Joshua 13:1-6]. We saw how Solomon prayed in 1 Kings 8:20-66, thanking God and praising Him for bringing them into their Menuchah— their resting place and permanent home. Though they became unfaithful and were under the yoke of Assyrians, paying tributes, God broke that yoke with His anointing. God even delivered them from Babylonian captivity. So, why is Hebrews 4:8 bringing up this argument that Joshua had not brought them into rest and God had spoken of another day of rest ? First, we can see that the rest they had was not uninterrupted. It was not an eternal rest. Also, based on the book of Hebrews, we know that the Old Covenant was simply a shadow of the New Covenant—of better things to come. Joshua was a type of Jesus—the Savior of Israel and the whole world. There’s another promise of rest awaiting God’s people [Hebrews 4:1]. This chapter starts with the verse that says that because we have this promise, we should be careful so that we do not fall short. That’s warranted because only 2 people who left Egypt as adults, Joshua and Caleb, were able to enter that rest [1 Corinthians 10:1-15; Numbers 14:21-35]. Clearly God was not impressed with the numbers of those who would inherit the land but was firm with the demands of His own standards. The word used for “careful” in Hebrews 4:1 is “phobeo”—from which we get the English word, phobia. We see a similar word of “phobos” used with the same promise of future hope in 2 Corinthians 7:1. Does this mean that we should live as Christians who are fearful, frightened, and alarmed ? That’s not really what reverence for God intends. Usually people who live fearful of judgments are those who have not been made perfect in love [1 John 4:17-18]. They may fear coming under judgment but they do not fear being found unloving, partial, practicing tribalism, or envious. They have no shame of falling short of Agape love [Romans 13:8]. God’s standards are not their concerns, His benefits are the only reason they seek Him. Thus, theology simply becomes another field of study, like philosophy or history, and not a call to experience God in His fullness. They will talk of reconciliation and forgiveness with some hypothetical situations, but have no actual relationship with the brethren whom they expect to do this. Remember the saddest words a Christian could hear on judgment day would be—”I never knew you“—Matthew 7:21-23—which will be told to Christians who served God but were never actually sincere in their love [1 Corinthians 8:3]. Real love develops and grows in face to face koinonia or fellowship. Once we come into that love, like the disciples had in the early church [Acts 2:42-47], then we would see real unity and reconciliation in the church. We would have the perfect love that casts out fear. So, the phobia we see in Hebrews 4:1 is the caution to take care of the treasures we have received. We must be transgression-phobic. Paul said that our eternal treasures are carried in jars of clay [2 Corinthians 4:7]. If someone was tasked to carry hot tea to a very important guest—holding it in a glass that has no handle for grip, the person would have to be careful because if the glass was too hot and hands couldn’t hold it, it might fall to the ground, breaking the glass and spilling the tea. Thankfully, the treasure of the salvation we carry is not kept into our hands by our own strength, it is preserved by God’s powerful hand [John 10:28; Philippians 1:6; Jude 1:24-25; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; Romans 16:25-27]. That eternal rest that still stands as a promise is far different than what Joshua had brought Israel into in Canaan. First, it remains in the future age to come, not in this present world—it is “another day“— we are to live encouraging one another as long as it called today [Hebrews 3:13]—but the inheritance is in the future. Second, there are people in the visible church who will not enter that rest—as God said—”So I declared on oath in my anger, ‘They shall never enter my rest.’”—Psalms 95:11. This is terrifying because whatever God vows will be fulfilled [Matthew 13:41; Revelation 3:1; Revelation 3:16; Matthew 5:13; Luke 17:1-2; Galatians 5:19-23; 2 Peter 2:1-9; Luke 13:24; Ezekiel 44:10-23; John 17:12; John 6:66; 2 Timothy 4:10; Matthew 22:12]. Are our names in the Lamb’s Book of Life ? Are our names on the lips of the High Priest interceding for us ?  Are our face shining like that of Moses, assuring us seeing, knowing, and intimacy with the King of Kings ? Are we groaning for our final redemption like Paul ? [Romans 8:23; 2 Corinthians 5:1-10]. Our groaning to be clothed with immortality will be rewarded with eternal rest. In the book “The Saint’s Everlasting Rest” by Richard Baxter—he writes that this rest is for persevering believers, adhering to the conditions of its offer, attending to the means of it, and in them is evident the work of grace as they follow what God has proposed. He admonishes that many in the visible church will not make it. Third, we can only enter it by faith—like Enoch entered glory—for “the just shall live by faith“—Hebrews 10:38. This means that we are forward looking—looking unto Jesus—we do not look back to the world, to the past, to the things we have left behind—we look heavenward. [Hebrews 12:2; Philippians 3:20; Colossians 3:2]. We cast all our cares and weights on Christ so that we do not get hindered by them and trust Him to lift them for us [Hebrews 12:1; Psalms 55:22; 1 Peter 5:7; Luke 9:59-62; 1 Corinthian 8:9]. 

Friday, November 11th, 2022

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.”— Galatians 3:13

When Jesus died on the cross, He said “it is finished!“—John 19:30. What was finished ? The work of redemption was completed. There are about 7 crucial effects of the work of the cross we can easily see in Scripture, but these are by no means exhaustive. A Christian can only progress to the degree the Father reveals more of the work of His Son—in his death and resurrection. These 7 fundamental benefits of the cross are a good place to start. First, Jesus died for our sins [Matthew 26:28; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; John 1:29; Colossians 2:14; Romans 3:23-25]. This is a mighty deliverance that should be taken seriously. Fallen man tends to prioritize benefits that can be analyzed, such as poverty and wealth—however sin remains the cause of all the world’s problems. The sins of the world were a major burden that Christ removed by dying for us on the cross. Second, we died with Christ [Romans 6:6; 2 Corinthians 5:14]. We could only inherit the kingdom of God by becoming new creatures, not simply being forgiven our past sins. Moreover, the forgiveness of sins would not have been enough with the issue of a sinful nature hindering our sanctification. Therefore, we had to die. But God wasn’t going to kill all humanity to deliver us from the power of sin. We were crucified with Christ [Galatians 2:20]. Third, the law still stood in the way of the new creatures. John tells us that if we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us [1 John 1:7-9]—anyone who understands the Scriptures, the sermon on the Mount for example, would agree with John the Apostle. The standards of the law are very high. Thankfully, our death freed us from its demands [Romans 7:4; Romans 10:4]. The only way we get to keep the law is as New Creatures, with it written in our hearts and minds, and us being Spirit-energized souls, not our old selves [Romans 8:4; Ezekiel 36:27; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Hebrews 8:11]. Fourth, Christ took our sicknesses and diseases. By His stripes we were healed [Isaiah 53:4-5; Matthew 8:16-17; 1 Peter 2:24; Psalms 103:3]. We no more need to carry sicknesses in our bodies than we need to carry hatred in our hearts—the same redemptive work that took the sins of believers, also took away their sicknesses. Fifth, Christ freed us from outside influence of any kind. It was for freedom that He set us free [1 Corinthians 7:23; Galatians 5:1; John 8:36]. This freedom in no way abolishes certain human obligations that require interdependence or union, but where those obligations would be corrupted and turned into a form of bondage, the freedom applies. Sixth, Christ gave us dominion through the cross. He triumphed over the principalities that ruled the world before He ascended on His throne—and His triumph was our victory. In His authority we have the same dominion that was granted to Abraham after he enacted a pre-Calvary sacrifice that mirrored the cross, when he offered Isaac [Genesis 22:13-17; Colossians 2:15; Matthew 28:18-20; Isaiah 53:12; Revelation 5:5; Psalms 110:1-3; Hebrews 10:13]. Seventh, Christ became a curse for us. How does this differ from Christ becoming sin so that we may become the righteousness of God ? How does this differ from Christ carrying our sicknesses and giving us healing by His stripes ? As we all know, sicknesses were some of the consequences of the curse of the law. For example, if you read Deuteronomy 28: 15-68, you will see that though sicknesses were part of the curse of the law, they were not the only things we see in the curse, which means the curse of the law is much bigger than sicknesses. We also know that forgiveness, as the solution of sin, does not always deal with the consequences of sin. For example, someone who is an alcoholic and has liver cirrhosis—a condition that can develop after years of drinking excessive amounts of alcohol—could receive forgiveness for the sin of drunkenness, but that may not automatically erase the fact he could end up dying shortly afterwards because of liver failure. Thankfully, Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, which annuls those consequences of past drunkenness—if that new Christian has faith to lay hold of this spiritual offer and redemptive benefit. Not only can the sinner be forgiven past sins, they can be healed of their liver cirrhosis and be free from death because of it. The curse of the law went far and included: being cursed in the city [verse 16]; crops of the land [verse 18]; having no rain [verses 23-24]; losses in war [verse 25]; engagement for marriage broken before wedding as well as the tragic raping of a partner by someone else [verse 30]; children taken into captivity [verse 32]; subjugation by enemies [verse 48]—clearly all of these cannot be covered by the promise “By His stripes we are healed.” Healing wouldn’t cure those curses. Notice that there’s a difference between the curse of the law and the curse of the fall [Genesis 3:14-19]. Even after Christ died, creation still groans because of the fall [Romans 8:22]. Men still die even after Calvary [Romans 5:12]. Many effects of the curse of the fall are still in effect—however Christians have a promise that when Christ returns He will renew all things—and later on, after the Millennial Kingdom of Christ is over—and the little time granted Satan to deceive afterwards is complete—God will create a new heaven and a new earth, where sin and Satan shall never be. That’s the time all curses of the fall will no longer be an issue. So, Christ redeeming us from the curse of the law relieves the saints now of major burdens—they do not have to worry about the consequences of repented and forgiven sins. Christ becoming a curse for us effectively annuls them forever. 

Saturday, November 12th, 2022

The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”— Luke 4:18-19

What is the Gospel ? This question sounds so easy, but answers we may get are not similar. A Pentecostal evangelist may say that the “full Gospel” includes salvation from sins and divine healing [Mark 2:1-5]. A Baptist evangelical may point to Paul’s 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, saying it’s a proclamation of the death and resurrection as the basis for the forgiveness of our sins and promise of eternal life. Yesterday, we saw how Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law [Galatians 3:13]. We saw at least 7 crucial redemptive benefits we have through the cross and those are by no means exhaustive. Christ is the Lamb of God that the Father has provided for the redemption of humanity [Genesis 22:8; John 1:29]. Every provision that a born again child of God who believes in Jesus will ever need is hidden in the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ [Romans 8:32; Ephesians 1:3]. There’s no redemptive benefit or spiritual provision outside of this [John 19:30]. The power of God for the deliverance of fallen creatures is all bound up in the work of Christ in His death on the cross and His resurrection from the dead [1 Corinthians 1:18; Romans 1:4; Philippians 3:10; Romans 8:11; Ephesians 1:19-20]. In the Luke 4:18-19 passage we read today, we see Jesus telling us what the Gospel is about. First, Jesus says that He is anointed to preach the Gospel—the Spirit of the Lord is upon me. Christian ministry is not similar to any other public speaking activities. A preacher is not a motivational speaker. A preacher is not a psychology analyst. A preacher is not a politician. Those speaking activities can be done with human intelligence. Preaching always requires the presence and power of the Holy Ghost—who is God of very God. If Jesus needed the anointing of the Holy Spirit, we Christian believers definitely need the Holy Spirit desperately. I remember reading the biography of Charles Finney. On the day he received the baptism of the Holy Spirit in the woods of Adams town in New York, he describes receiving “waves of liquid love“—he had been earnestly crying to God. The Second Great Awakening mighty harvest of souls can be traced to that Holy Encounter. Jesus was anointed when the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in the form of a dove at the Jordan River, after being baptized by John the Baptist. The Holy Spirit makes preaching a work of rest. We do not attempt to conjure up results. Shouting won’t heal the sick. Longer sermons won’t convert more souls. The power of preaching is in the power of the anointing of the Holy Ghost. In the Shandong Revival of 1920s in China, sinners would come under conviction just by seeing Marie Monsen. Second, Jesus says that He was anointed to proclaim the Good News to the poor. The Gospel is Good News worth listening to. It must be proclaimed because ” faith comes by hearing the Word“—Romans 10:17. Most of us are saved because someone preached to us. Notice the target group for Jesus-kind of ministry—the poor. There was a rich young ruler that Jesus met and “He loved him“—Mark 10:21. Yet, that love Jesus had for the rich man when He looked in his eyes did not translate into salvation. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor—that turned the rich man off. There were rich people who followed or believed in Jesus and were saved—like Joseph of Arimathea. But majority of those who followed Jesus were poor. So, how did the rich countries of the West become possessors of the Gospel long before Asia and Africa that were poorer ? Because though the Gospel is preached to the poor, they do not necessarily remain poor. The light of the Gospel over centuries created a culture of freedom of enquiry, pursuit of knowledge, innovation, and excellent work ethic—four pillar of economic transformation that changed the course of history for Western countries. Third, Jesus said that He was sent to proclaim liberty to the captives or prisoners. We can understand this from a spiritual point of view—as people who were bound in the shackles of sin or addictions. Jesus declared sin to be a slave-master [John 8:24-36]. But there are also real prisoners in real jails. It doesn’t matter that they may have gotten there because of justice or injustice. All prisoners have hope [Zechariah 9:12; Acts 5:19-20] Nations in the days of Jesus were under what some would call “open prisons“—a term often used for authoritarian regimes—where people walk freely but their liberty is conditional—people may not have been in jails—but they were under the dominion of the Roman army—which could capture and kill anyone who opposed the emperor’s rule. Our liberty no longer has to depend upon the capricious decisions of fallen rulers—Christ is our Lord and King—and His kingdom is that of freedom [2 Corinthians 3:17]. Fourth, Christ’s Gospel included recovery of sight for the blind and deliverance of those who were oppressed [Acts 10:38; Matthew 11:2-6; Luke 13:16]. Divine healing and deliverance from demonic activity are essential aspects of Gospel ministry. Fifth, the Gospel proclamation is a dispensation of Jubilee [Acts 8:8]. It is the “acceptable year of the Lord“—the entire 2000 church history has been “the acceptable year of the Lord”—now is the accepted time, now is the time of God’s favor—2 Corinthians 6:2. I remember watching the film of “Ali Baba and the forty thieves“—and how shocked He grabbed the gold in the cave hurriedly—quickly grabbing the treasure He had found. It’s a picture I have in mind when thinking of the treasures of the Gospel in the year of Jubilee [Matthew 13:44]. It is worth our treasures and sacred honor—and we must grasp it at once—immediately [Hebrews 11;1; Matthew 15:21-28; John 2:4-5; 2 Peter 3:8; Isaiah 49:8; John 11:24-40; Acts 3:6; Acts 14:9-10; Acts 20:9-10; Romans 15:18-20].

Sunday, November 13th, 2022

For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet, till her vindication shines out like the dawn, her salvation like a blazing torch—Isaiah 62:1

Our March- April 2021 “DEVOTIONALS OF REST” were done using 7 themes for 7 days a week. For Wednesdays, the main theme was Psalms 121:4, “Indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep“—to avoid being redundant, and in an effort to cover as many Scripture passages as possible—that said the same thing for the theme chosen for each day—we added Scriptures that would be considered to remain faithful to the theme—while giving us a different view of God’s work for His people. Psalms 121:4 is a powerful Scripture for Christians who desire rest. Knowing that God will not go to sleep while we go to sleep should relieve us of worries, anxieties, overwork, and burn-out. It is in that context we look at Isaiah 62:1 today. The prayers we see in the weekly outline this time mentions the Israel of the Middle East and “The Israel of God“—Galatians 6:16—to distinguish the geographical Israel and the church of the Lord Jesus Christ—which is what Paul referred to as “The Israel of God.” In one of our devotionals 7 weeks ago, we had discussed Isaiah 62:6-7, talking about the dual application of many Old Testament promises for Israel—that the church of Jesus Christ now inherits many of them through faith in Jesus [2 Corinthians 1:20]—and yet by no means replaces Israel of the Middle East [Romans 11:1-31; Romans 9:1-5]. This is not our effort to simply try to find a middle ground between those who say that the church has replaced Israel and those who say that the promises of the Old Testament apply only to the Israel of the Middle East, and not the church. It is actually what the Bible teaches. For “No matter how many promises God has made, they are Yes in Christ. So, the Amen is spoken by us to the glory of God“—2 Corinthians 1:20. Christ is the fulfillment of “all the good promises the Lord gave to Israel”—Joshua 21:45; 1 Kings 8:56. Christians can safely claim those promises and be right [Ephesians 2:19; Ephesians 3:6]. Today, we see those eternal promises bring the Lord to affirm His determination to fight for Israel. “For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent“—Isaiah 62:1. It is great folly for anyone to argue with His Maker [Isaiah 45:9]. It does not matter what political power they have, what religious convictions they follow, or how much money they have. If God says that for Zion’s sake He will not keep silent, anyone going against the Lord will fail [Job 42:2; Isaiah 14:27]. Lest anyone misunderstands what Zion means, God repeats Himself by saying “For Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet” —this is especially important where we are trying to delineate what promises can be claimed by the church and what promises belong only to the physical Israel in the Middle East. The Bible sometimes calls the church Zion [Hebrews 12:22-24]—in that passage, which is probably my personal life theme—we read “You have come to Mount Zion…to the heavenly Jerusalem…to thousands upon thousands of angels…to the church of the firstborn…to the Judge of all…”—it is clear here that Mount Zion here is spiritual and applies only to the church. However, whenever the Scripture does not specify whether the Jerusalem that is being talked about is “heavenly” or “above” [Galatians 4:26]—we can safely interpret the Scripture to understand it as the Jerusalem below, in the Middle East, and we would be correctly understanding what God meant. So, for Jerusalem’s sake God will not remain quiet means that, for the Jerusalem city in the Middle East, God will make His case heard, His hand revealed, His power known. Till her vindication shines out like the dawn, her salvation like a blazing torch. Vindication is a legal term, while salvation is generally spiritual, though it may also be physical deliverance. The English dictionary says that “vindication” is the action of clearing someone of blame or suspicion. We know Satan is the father of all lies [John 8:44]. He is also known as an accuser [Revelation 12:10]. So, often the blame and suspicion that Satan uses, through the mouths or writings of those who serve him, are accusations based on lies. The good thing for us God’s people is that God has promised vindication. Ultimately, the hammer of truth is in Jehovah’s hands. He knows everything and He has the power to act. The Hebrew word used for Isaiah 62:1 word translated as “vindication” is actually Tsedek, which can also mean righteousness, fair, just, and accurate.  We see a promise that follows a similar pattern in Isaiah 1:26, “I will restore your leaders as in days of old, your rulers as at the beginning. Afterward you will be called the City of Righteousness, the Faithful City.” —one of the ways that God works for the Tsedek of Jerusalem is to raise up leaders who are equal to that task— I will restore your leaders—both for its domestic well-being and international standing. Salvation will follow that vindication or righteousness. First, we can consider this to be physical deliverance. We often hear of bombing and rumors of bombing in the Middle East [Matthew 24:6]. New technologies such as Israel’s Iron Dome have been credited with protecting many lives in Israel. These weapons come from God who protects Israel—imagination or ideas to build and the skills requisite to accomplish that—all come from God [Exodus 31:3; Exodus 35:31; 1 Kings 4:29-30]—Sophia wisdom provides us the blueprint of what should be done, the ideas in our minds. Techne wisdom provides the skills of how to do it to bring a product ready for market or wide use. That salvation will also be spiritual in 2 phases. Before the rapture of the church to heaven, Israel will experience revival [Ezekiel 39:8-29]. After Christ’s Second Coming, all the surviving people of Israel who will escape the Antichrist will be saved [Matthew 23:39; Romans 11:26].

Monday, November 14th, 2022

 And when the Israelites saw the mighty hand of the LORD displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant—Exodus 14:31. 

When Scriptures tell us of the brotherhood of mankind, they write, “From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands.”—Acts 17:26. We do not need to have been there when Adam, Abel, Cain, and Seth were there, to recognize that we are their descendants. Similarly, Israel in the days of Jesus prided itself in being the children of Abraham, though he had died 2000 years earlier [Matthew 3:9; John 8:37-39; Acts 13:26; Romans 4:1; Luke 19:9]. Abraham had obtained a good reputation with the Lord and they wanted to be associated with His name [Isaiah 41:8; James 2:23]. This makes sense. It is  not uncommon for people to look for a well-known ancestor or even seek to be associated with famous people who are currently living. Identity is powerful for faith and confidence. Thankfully, when it comes to the people of Israel, God does not cut them off from their past or ancestry. Even when the Lord Jesus Christ returns on earth, the capital of His millennial kingdom will be in Jerusalem—not New York, London, Tokyo, or Shanghai—which are far bigger and wealthier cities. He is not ashamed to be called “The Lion of the tribe of Judah“— Revelation 5:5, even though Judah lived 1800-1900 before Jesus was born—and Judah was far from being a perfect man [ Genesis 37:26-27; Genesis 38].The stories of Israel we read in the Old Testament do not get old because the Lord who did them never changes. Not only do they give us examples of things that happened in the past, for which we can expect similar occurrences in our own times, they also remind us what the Lord has decreed and will fulfill—what He has promised and stands ready to accomplish [ 1 Corinthians 10:11; Romans 9:4-5; Ezekiel 12:25; Malachi 3:6; Numbers 23:19;  Ecclesiastes 1:9; Isaiah 28 verse 16 and 21; Deuteronomy 32:4; Psalms 44:1; Psalms 51:18; Psalms 102:13]. In the verse of Exodus 14:31 that we read today, we see how Israel reacted to the parting of the Red Sea and deliverance at a time they were pushed against a wall, so to speak. This was a time Israel was being birthed as a nation. God had surely multiplied them as He had promised Abraham and Jacob [Genesis 15:13; Genesis 21:12; Romans 9:7; Hebrews 11:18; Genesis 25:20-27; Genesis 26:24; Genesis 46:3-31; Exodus 1:12] —yet despite growing to hundreds of thousands of people—they were not militarily trained—they had no resources for war—they were not even ready for battle [Exodus 13:17]. God knew their weaknesses and He would see to it that this would not be an obstacle to their progress. So, it is a miracle that with the first major military attack after their new-found freedom would be crushed—not by their intelligence, might, or skills—but rather by “The God of Israel“—[Psalms 121:4; Psalms 73:1; 1 Samuel 17:26; Deuteronomy 7:6-8; Deuteronomy 14:2; 2 Samuel 7:23-24; Psalms 105: 8-15; Psalms 135:4;  Isaiah 41:8; Isaiah 43: 1-3; Isaiah 44:21; Jeremiah 31:1-4]. This wasn’t the first sign they were witnessing of what being in covenant with Jehovah meant—the blessing of being His special possession. They had already witnessed the Passover and other miracles. We see that this miracle produced a proper response—when the Israelites saw the mighty hand of the LORD displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD—Exodus 14:31. Many Christians today are fond of making arguments against miracles—and yet one would have to be starving of the heavenly manna that is the Word of God to come up with such notions—everywhere you look in Scripture, God is doing miracles. How can it be concluded that they are no longer relevant ? And if we were supposed to argue that miracles will not always produce a positive result [Luke 16:31], we see Jesus arguing that the queen of Sheba coming to see Solomon’s supernatural wisdom and the potential repentance of Sodom if miracles had been there—He is showing us that there are people who are likely to benefit from such works—and even come to salvation [Matthew 11:23; Matthew 12:42]. Should we seek to minimize or maximize ways people could be saved ? At the very least, miracles remove potential excuses for unbelief. Israel was in awe of God’s power after they saw what happened at the Red Sea. These miracles would be the basis for God giving them the Law [Exodus 20:2]. Their remembrance would become a possible source of hope for future repentance [Hosea 2:15; Hosea 11:1; Jeremiah 2:2; Psalms 78:7; Habakkuk 3:2; Judges 6:13]. The absence of God’s supernatural works was often a sign of His displeasure [1 Samuel 4:17-18; Psalms 44:9]. This would lead God’s people to be in distress and their repentance and prayers were in hopes of rekindling God’s love in their hearts and seeing His face turn towards them again [Isaiah 37: 17-20; 2 Chronicles 20:12]. They expected His mighty deliverance accordingly [ 2 Chronicles 7:14]. Whenever God answered them and demonstrated His power, it led them to putting their trust in Him, which is ultimately His desire [2 Chronicles 20:20; Isaiah 30:1; Isaiah 31:1-2; Psalms 106:10-12]. Though the times have changed and God has many ways that He works that may not necessarily be the dramatic Red Sea parting that happened 1500 BC, He is still as powerful, great, and committed to fight Israel’s battles, as He has ever been. He is still formidable in battle. He is Omnipotent. He is still Israel’s Redeemer and He will continue to guide the nation of Israel, provide for its needs, and defend it against its enemies [ Ezekiel 28:26; Ezekiel 34:10; Amos 9:11-15].

Tuesday, November 15th, 2022

 So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart. But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and the people of Ashdod heard that the repairs to Jerusalem’s walls had gone ahead and that the gaps were being closed, they were very angry. They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it. But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat— Nehemiah 4:6-9

The book of Nehemiah starts with pretty bad news: “They said to me, “Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire” — Nehemiah 1:3. And we are told how Nehemiah responded to those news when he first heard them- “When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.”—Nehemiah 1:4. When I read these things my first impression is that the hearts of men of our times have become rocks. People don’t respond like this anymore. Where are the Nehemias, Josiahs, Daniels, and Hezekiah’s of our times ? Where are the torn garments ? Where are the sackcloth? Do we understand what our times require ? Indeed, is this the time for mirth, gaieties, spiritual blindness, folly, tardiness, poor understanding, spiritual lethargy, lack of zeal for God, and being ashamed of the Gospel ? When Josiah was fired up and started a revival in Jerusalem in 640 BC, he had about 35 years before Nebuchadnezzar attacked. If we were talking about a hypothetical nuclear attack on New York in 2030, do you realize 35 years would have been counted from 1995 ? Even if we had a great awakening happening in 2022, we may not have enough time to save America ? Is this the time for playing around with intellectual Christianity ? Where is the fire of God ? Fast forward 100 years after Josiah, Cyrus comes on the scene and releases the Jews to go back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. They struggle, but under the prophetic ministry of Haggai and Zechariah, the priestly ministry of Ezra, and royal-gubernatorial role of Zerubbabel, they finish to build the initial phase of the temple some 23 years later. Fast forward another 100 years, these great men of God have died and their children are still struggling for survival in Jerusalem. They have the temple, but now they cannot even maintain the wall. Nehemiah comes on the scene in the years of 446 BC to 433. He is still living in Susa, about 40 years after Esther had become queen there. He is servant of king Artaxerxes [Nehemiah 2:1], who by that time had been king for 20 years. Which leaves us to conclude that his father, king Ahasuerus- Xerxes I, the man who had married Esther, had died around 466-465 BC. Nehemiah is shaken by the news from Jerusalem. He cries to God and his whole demeanor changes. One day the king asks him why. To which he answered—“Why should my face not look sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?”—Nehemiah 2:3. It is at that time Artaxerxes becomes interested in helping Nehemiah and giving him what he needed to rebuild the wall [Nehemiah 2:4-8]. Despite this favor from the emperor, Nehemiah runs into trouble with local officials. Satan wasted no time to begin opposing God’s work. “When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about this, they were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites.”— Nehemiah 2:10. That’s where the drama we find ourselves in the passage we read of Nehemiah 4 started from. Nehemiah secretly inspects the walls and then proposes a rebuilding plan to the Jewish leaders who were in Jerusalem [Nehemiah 2:11-17]. But eventually the word got out and it was no longer a secret —“But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official and Geshem the Arab heard about it, they mocked and ridiculed us. “What is this you are doing?” they asked. “Are you rebelling against the king?”—Nehemiah 2:19. So, by the time we reach Nehemiah 4, this hostility had intensified to the point they planned to attack them for harassment, sabotage, and even assassination. What did Nehemiah do ? First, Nehemiah purposed to continue building. All the opposition in the world was not going to stop him from rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem. He knew this was God’s will. He had prayed and received answers to His prayers. He knew he had the emperor’s blessing. So, he had just to focus and fight for completion of the work. Second, he encouraged his co-laborers. This was a major project that he could not have done alone. It is always good to work with those who are trustworthy [2 Timothy 2:2]—but even so, they should be encouraged, especially in hard times. Third, he knew who their enemies were. This is especially important in situations where trust is important in working for God. You do not want to be deceived that someone is a friend of Zion when he is a sworn enemy.  Sabotage often works with inside information. I had someone message me on social media 3-4 weeks ago with some bogus requests and God told me everything about him—pretty insane and evil the world we live in. Fourth, Nehemiah instituted a wartime strategy. Not only were they going to build the wall, they would take swords and spears [Verses 9-17]. What were the swords for ? The swords were for war. It’s important to understand that there’s a time for peace and there’s a time for war [Ecclesiastes 3:8]. Even Jesus said that we should not think He had come to bring peace but a sword [Matthew 10:34-39]. I have been convinced for quite some time that the great awakening that many American Christians have prayed for won’t come without judgments [1 Peter 4:17]. If it was supposed to come peacefully, it would have come already. It did not because the resistance to the Gospel is so stiff that judgments must occur [Romans 11:22]. We must understand the times correctly [Luke 12:56].

Wednesday, November 16th, 2022

For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this ?— Esther 4:14

The book of Esther starts with the words, “this is what happened during the time of Xerxes“—Esther 1:1, NIV. He was the son of Darius I and ruled over 127 provinces. Darius I had helped the Jews complete the temple in Jerusalem. So, the father of Xerxes I is the one we read in Ezra 4:5, who helped the Jews finish the temple [Ezra 6:1-13]. Despite these Medes and Persian kings having the influence of prophets like Daniel during the Cyrus and Darius years, and seeing what God had done during the years of Ezra, they largely remained pagan. By divine providence, Esther was chosen to replace Vashti and she became the wife of this world-emperor. Nobody knew she was a Jew—” But Esther had kept secret her family background and nationality just as Mordecai had told her to do, for she continued to follow Mordecai’s instructions as she had done when he was bringing her up.”—Esther 2:20. Just imagine having to hide your race or family background for fear it could hurt your opportunities and even get you killed. Though we live in the 21st century and these things took place in 480 BC, in many parts of the world the last 2500 years have not changed much about this. It is soon after queen Esther became queen that Mordecai uncovered the first plot to assassinate Xerxes [Esther 2:21-23]. This discovery that protected the life of the king would eventually work in his favor to elevate him in a high position. But in the meantime they would have to deal with a nuisance that would be Haman, the agagite. Since Agag was a well-known name of Amalekites’ kings [ 1 Samuel 15:9]—just like Pharaohs in Egypt—some say that Haman was a descendant of Amalekite royalty. This would make sense, at least prophetically, since God had sworn to “utterly destroy” the Amalekites [ Exodus 17: 14-15; 1 Samuel 15:3; Deuteronomy 25:17-19]. It is on occasion of defeating the Amalekites that Moses had built an altar for the name Jehovah Nissi—the Lord our Victory or Banner. This consideration reminds us of how enmity works, from a divine point of view, “And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.”—Genesis 3:15. Despite enmity being quite unfortunate, considering the brotherhood of all humanity, in redemptive history it has served an unusual purpose. Looking at the Old Testament, we see Isaac vs Ishmael, Israel vs Egypt, Israel vs Amalekites, Israel vs Midianites, Israel vs Philistines, Israel vs Assyrians, Israel vs Babylonians—it’s often been the case that being loved and chosen by God resulted in being excluded and hated by the world [Exodus 19:5-6; Deuteronomy 7:6-9; Matthew 10:22; Matthew 24:9; Acts 14:22; 2 Timothy 3:12; John 15:18; James 4:4; John 7:7]. Though the whole world belongs to God—as we are reminded in Exodus 19:5-6—God has a people he made a special possession. This distinction is what creates envy and then later on enmity. It shouldn’t be the case, but it’s been that way [Genesis 22:18; Isaiah 42:6]. This may explain why Mordecai had instructed Esther not to reveal her identity. When Haman began to plot against the Jews, he had no idea that the wife of his boss was Jewish. The trigger of this plot was rather strange—Mordecai had refused to kneel down before Haman—though every other noble and royal official did that [Esther 3:2-6]. Since Haman realized this was a religious and cultural issue, killing Mordecai did not seem sufficient for him. He had to kill all Jews. Considering that he was the Vice-emperor, he had great authority to carry out this plot. So, the plot went very far before Xerxes could analyze its consequences [Esther 3:10-13]. His name was being used in the things He did not fully understand. The Jews began to mourn, fast, and pray [Esther 4:1-3]. But Esther being so highly privileged in a pagan court, barely knew what was going on outside. She had to enquire what was wrong with Mordecai [Esther 4:5]. It is at this time Mordecai tells Esther and where our verse of Esther 4:14 brings us. First, Mordecai did not think that relief of the Jews entirely depended upon Esther—relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews—since God has always delivered His people of Israel, it did not matter so much which person He would use, as much as it mattered that the Lord Himself would be involved. Second, Mordecai warned that even though God could have saved his people eventually, through the hand of someone else, the waste of time to act on the threat would have resulted in the loss of many lives—including Mordecai and Esther. Third, he realized that her elevation was divine providence—who knows why you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this—God’s providence and opportunities come at particular Kairos moments—which we must wisely make most of or take advantage of [Acts 17:26; Ephesians 5:15-16]. For example, the rise of Cyrus 2 generations earlier, had been an opportunity to build the temple. If a Kairos moment is missed, it could take a long time to get another opportunity, as we see in Ezra chapter 3-5, in the delays of the completion of the temple. This was Esther’s “appointed time“—but it was a scary move. Haman was very powerful and her entrance into the king’s palace to intercede for the Jewish people could have resulted in the exposure of her identity and immediate death. So, she determined—I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish—Esther4:16. At a certain point, redemptive purposes for all God’s people should outweigh personal comfort, even in the midst of the most dangerous risks. The God who watches over Israel saved His people because of this act of courage [Esther 7 & 8]. 

Thursday, November 17th, 2022

 I will allow no sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids, till I find a place for the LORD, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob— Psalms 132:4-5

In the Isaiah 62:1 we read this week, we see, “For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet, till her vindication shines out like the dawn, her salvation like a blazing torch.”—Isaiah 62:1. As we progress in this chapter, we see that it is not just the Lord who won’t stay silent. We see that He has called and set up watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem who will not stay silent either—I have posted watchmen on your walls, Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the LORD, give yourselves no rest—Isaiah 62:6. The reason those watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem have been instructed to give themselves no rest is the same that the Lord has not given Himself rest—till the Tsedek of Jerusalem is shining forth. Till Jerusalem becomes a praise in the earth [Isaiah 62:7]. The Hebrew word for praise in Isaiah 62:7 is “Tehillah“—which we also see in 2 Chronicles 20:22 and Psalms 22:3. This is often associated with making joyful music to the Lord because of His greatness and His goodness. The greatness of His name itself is worthy of praise even if He did not do anything for us. When we look at the starry sky, we see the majesty of the Most High. For this, He deserves to be praised. But we also praise Him for His goodness towards His people—like when He delivered the Jews in the days of Esther—it would have been a good occasion to praise the Lord [Esther 8:16-17 ]. So, the Lord instructing the watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem to give Him no rest till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth—would ultimately lead to God’s own honor, as we would recognize the Lord had done that. Jerusalem is not the end of our praise and worship, God Himself is. But it would be a great joy for us to see God make Jerusalem prosper [Psalms 51:18; Psalms 102:13]. This brings us to the passage of Psalms 132:4-5 that we are reading today. In this, we see David having the same zeal that God calls the watchmen to have in Isaiah 62:6-7. The Psalms 132:1 starts with the words, “LORD, remember David and all his self-denial.”—what a good thing to think about. God remembers our self-denial, our labor of love [Hebrews 6:10; Nehemiah 13:14; Proverbs 19:17]. This is important because when we give ourselves no rest to obey God, in seeking the advancement of the kingdom of God, the growth of the church, and the prosperity of Zion, we deny ourselves many things. Think about the risks Esther was incurring in the passage we read yesterday. There were costs to that. There are costs to being a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ [Luke 14:26-33; Mark 10:30]. Rest is ultimately one of the joys of life and God will reward His dying saints with rest [Revelation 14:13]. On the days I have worked the hardest, it has dawned on me that when our lives on earth are over, death is actually a good thing—who wants to work that hard on earth forever ? The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty; yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away—Psalms 90:8. When we read Acts 19 and Acts 20, we see apostle Paul giving us an example of what serving God is like, when it is holy toil. We see, for example, in Acts 20: 18-19 Paul saying, “You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia. I served the Lord with great humility and with tears and in the midst of severe testing by the plots of my Jewish opponents“—this is a good example of self-denial we should keep in mind, even as Christianity becomes full of grifters who don’t understand what holy toil is [Acts 20:20-31]. As the Psalm 132 progresses, we see what David did in denying himself. He said “I will allow no sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids, till I find a place for the LORD”—Psalms 132:4-5—we know that David had it in his heart to build the temple of the Lord and he is the one who made the architectural plans as well as the financial provisions for the temple that Solomon ultimately built [2 Samuel 7:3-28; 1 Chronicles 28:3-5; 1 Chronicles 28:8-21]. Though Solomon is the one who fulfilled that calling, David poured His whole heart and life into preparation. Each generation of the people of God has always done this. Moses may not have led Israel into the promised land, but Joshua needed Moses to get Israel out of Egypt. Younger generations that inherit God’s promises are not necessarily superior to older generations that may not have inherited those promises. They are often raised up, educated, taught, and given inheritance by their elders. Our Spiritual parents may not see the rapture, but we wouldn’t be strong and powerful enough to be the church of the rapture without their services. David did all of this for Solomon—so that Jehovah would have a glorious temple in Zion—and Jerusalem would become a city where the Tehillah of the Lord is. This is the zeal Jesus wants us to have for His kingdom and His church, as we pray and preach day and night [John 2:17; John 4:34-35; Mark 3:20-23; Romans 12:11; Revelation 2:5; 2 Samuel 11:11; Job 23:12; Mark 2:19-20; Matthew 16:18-19; Isaiah 9:6-7; Matthew 6:26-33; 1 Timothy 2:1-5; Romans 9:2-5; Psalms 78:6; Psalms 112:18; Romans 15:4; Psalms 22:30-31].

Friday, November 18th, 2022

This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus—Ephesians 3:6

In Esther 8:17, we read: “In every province and in every city to which the edict of the king came, there was joy and gladness among the Jews, with feasting and celebrating. And many people of other nationalities became Jews because fear of the Jews had seized them.” On one hand, there were Jews celebrating deliverance. On the other hand, there were other nationalities that were taking on a Jewish identity. Why was this happening ? They were looking for safety and were in awe of what God had done for the Jews. While physical threats may be easier to understand for the natural mind, whenever Israel was involved in precarious situations, there was always a mystical nature to the deliverance they received. Remember the night of the Passover when they left Egypt, they put the blood on the doorframes—the sons of Israel survived, the sons of Egypt died [Exodus 12:3]. If Egypt had known about this and brought their sons under the blood, they would have survived too [Exodus 12:29]. The Lord’s plan in choosing Abraham and blessing Israel was ultimately for the purpose of blessing all nations and saving the world through Jesus Christ [ Genesis 22:18; Acts 10:34-35]. What Christ brought for the gentile Christians is much bigger than what these foreigners in Susa were doing in taking on Jewish identity. Ephesians 2:19 tells us, “Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.”—how did this happen ? Through what Paul calls “grafting” —But some of these branches from Abraham’s tree—some of the people of Israel—have been broken off. And you Gentiles, who were branches from a wild olive tree, have been grafted in. So now you also receive the blessing God has promised Abraham and his children, sharing in the rich nourishment from the root of God’s special olive tree—Romans 11:17. Paul is telling us that gentile Christians are no longer “aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise“—Ephesians 2:12. It has generally been taught to gentiles that salvation in Christ involves receiving Jesus. It was also understood as being part of the church of Jesus. Both of these things are true [Acts 4:12; John 1:12; Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:27]. But Paul’s understanding of what gentile Christians come into at their new birth goes way beyond these 2 major concepts. He writes that the commonwealth of Israel that involved all the blessings of Abraham and the covenant of promises are also now part of our inheritance as gentile Christians [2 Corinthians 1:20; Galatians 3:29]. In order to help us understand of this “one new man” [Ephesians 2:15], Paul tells us that through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary, the fence or dividing wall that separated the Jews and Gentiles was removed. A good illustration of this dividing wall is the temple. It played a major role in this covenant and the gentiles had only access to the outer court. It was not a matter of what they wanted to be or how close they wanted to get to God. Their station was already assigned by race. The death of the Lord Jesus Christ ended this. Therefore, the church is the house of the Lord for all nations [Isaiah 56:7; Matthew 21:13]. Gentile Christians became “fellow citizens with the saints.”—as the Gospel went forth from Jerusalem to Samaria, and then to other nations, gentiles who became part of the church weren’t just converted to Christ, they were “grafted into” citizenship with the saints of Israel—Paul is using a metaphor of a vine with an olive branch grafted in [Isaiah 5:1-4; John 15:1-5; Romans 11:18-22]. Grafts are also used in medicine, like a person could receive a kidney transplant from somebody else. Since the recipient’s body immune system may have incompatibility with the foreign organ that was donated, rejection can happen. Rejection makes grafting difficult. However, what is hard for men, is easy with Jesus. Despite the early resistance of those who were in the church in Jerusalem, it became clear eventually that gentiles had been offered the same grace and the same salvation through faith in Jesus [Acts 10; Acts 11; Acts 15; Galatians 2]. Paul says that this grafting should be cause for humility, not pride. First, because there were original branches that were cut off. People like Caiphas who was High Priest when Jesus stood before Pilate did not receive Christ and lost their salvation, as did millions of other Jews. Paul asks, if God cut off original branches, would He hesitate to cut off the wild olive branches that He had grafted ? Second, it should lead to humility because we played no role in the grafting. This was a supernatural surgical operation. Jesus did all the work. It is a mysterious work that He continues to do through the preaching of the Gospel—Gentile Christians share with original saints in Israel 3 things: One Lord, One Body, and the covenant of promises. The Greek word that Paul uses for “fellow heirs ” in Ephesians 3:6 is “synkeronomos/ sugkleronomos“—which means sharing inheritance or being closely identified with or synchronized.  I do not believe that Gentile Christians have an inheritance of land in the church age, like the tribe of Ephraim [Joshua 16:4-5] and Benjamin would have had [Joshua 18:11-13]. What Paul is describing is spiritual inheritance. The promises of the Lord are rich and their value far outweigh entire continents. They are ours through Jesus Christ [John 14:12; John 15:7; 1 John 5:14-15; 2 Peter 1:3-4; Numbers 23:19]. Also, as members of one body, all the things that Paul tells us about the Body apply—these include interdependence, serving one purpose, sharing one hope—of being with our Lord Jesus Christ forever in glory. 

Saturday, November 19th, 2022

Look upon Zion, the city of our appointed feasts. Your eyes will see Jerusalem, a peaceful pasture, a tent that does not wander; its tent pegs will not be pulled up, nor will any of its cords be broken….And no resident of Zion will say, “I am sick.” The people who dwell there will be forgiven of iniquity— Isaiah 33:20, 24

We had seen that some of Scriptures that mention celestial Zion like “You have to come to Mount Zion…to the heavenly Jerusalem…to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly…to the church of the Firstborn…to God, the Judge of all…” —Hebrews 12:22-24, usually speak of the church. While often Scriptures that talk about the Jerusalem below and the Jerusalem above can be easily distinguished, there are times that the promises of Zion seem to overlap. This is not surprising since the promises inherited by the Gentile Christians belong to the “commonwealth of Israel” anyway [Ephesians 2:12,19 ;Ephesians 3:6]. In Isaiah 33 we see such promises that could be understood as overlapping. It starts with Isaiah 33:1 talking about the woes of the destroyer, which would be understood to be Babylon. So, this Isaiah 33 would have been a promise for a post-captivity Jerusalem. It progresses to verse 5, where we read: “The LORD is exalted, for he dwells on high; he will fill Zion with his justice and righteousness.”—as we have seen in Isaiah 62, this is consistent with God’s intent for the Jerusalem below, the city of Tsedek, that the Lord wants to make a praise in the earth [Isaiah 62 verse 1,6, and 7; Isaiah 1:26]. Further down in verse 6, we read: “He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the LORD is the key to this treasure.”—this is still consistent with the Jerusalem below because the store of salvation would be for those who are still on pilgrimage, not the glorified. The fear of the Lord being the key to the treasures of wisdom and knowledge is also not something for those who are in heaven, because those in heaven no longer know in part, as we do on earth [1 Corinthians 13:9]. Nor are the “the spirits of just men made perfect“—Hebrews 12:23—instructed to have the fear of God as the means of growing in the grace of revelational knowledge and wisdom. Growth in grace is for those who are still below. One of the causes of fear is the revelation of divine majesty in contrast to man’s sinfulness [Isaiah 33:14]—The sinners in Zion are terrified; trembling grips the godless: “Who of us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with everlasting burning?”—yet this trembling and fear is not found in those who walk uprightly [Verse 15-16]. The verses 18 and 19 establish the understanding that this promises applies to post-captivity Jerusalem—the people of God who are no longer under the realm of “those arrogant people…people whose speech is obscure...”—it is after this we read the precious promises that could have a dual application and some could even say a triple application, if we add on the glorified Zion, after Christ’s Second Coming. The Zion that the Lord is talking about here is peaceful and has a tabernacle that is established in one place. It does not move from place to place like in the days of Moses in the wilderness. Then comes one of the most glorious promises—inhabitants of Zion will not say I am sick and their sins will be forgiven. Before we stagger at the promise of not getting sick, let’s first consider the easiest promise to believe—the inhabitants of Zion will have their sins forgiven. No one would challenge the possibility of forgiveness for those who dwell in Zion, whether we understand it as the Jerusalem below or the mystical body of Christ—the “church of the Firstborn.” Psalms 103:3 is similar to Isaiah 33:24 in terms of connecting forgiveness and healing. Other Scriptures that are worth reading on forgiveness of sins are Psalms 103:12; Micah 7:19; and Isaiah 43:25. “As far the East is from the West, so has He removed our transgressions from us.“—this forgiveness is complete and brings us into reconciliation with the Lord. The question becomes—how can we accept one promise and doubt the other—how can we agree with “Who forgives all your iniquities” of Psalms 103: 3 and still disagree with “Who heals all your diseases“—how can we say Amen to “their iniquities will be forgiven” —of Isaiah 33:24, as already applicable to all saints now—and yet argue “no inhabitants will say ‘I am sick’ ” of the same Isaiah 33:24, as only applicable to the saints who will be glorified and taken to heaven. That’s an inconsistent way to read and understand the Bible. As we see in Mark 2:1-5 healing of a paralytic man that Jesus told “Your sins are forgiven“—we can see that Jesus already fulfilled these promises by putting together the forgiveness of sins and the healing of sicknesses, in the same redemptive provision. We have already come to Mount Zion and this is a great privilege. Not only can we say all our sins have been forgiven—we have been cleansed—we have been freed from sin—and we have the power of the Holy Spirit working in us, to sanctify us, and transforming us into the glorious image of Jesus Christ—we have also been brought into divine healing and a supernatural state of divine health. We will never say we are sick. That does not belong to those who dwell in Zion. Sickness is inconsistent with the redemption of Christ. Diseases are incompatible with Christianity. “Is anyone sick among you ? Let him call the Elders of the church…the prayer of faith shall save the sick…“—James 5:14-16. James, the brother of our Lord Jesus, like the evangelists who wrote the Gospels, shared the conviction that sickness was not agreeable with the Gospel dispensation. It is high time the saints of the Most High of our times affirmed this promise we have inherited [Matthew 4:23-24; Matthew 9:35; Matthew 12:15; Matthew 14:14; Matthew 15:30; Acts 5:14-16; Acts 19:11-12; Acts 10:38; Matthew 10:1; John 14:12].

 

Sunday, November 20th, 2022

‘Therefore do not fear, O My servant Jacob,’ says the LORD, ‘Nor be dismayed, O Israel; For behold, I will save you from afar, And your seed from the land of their captivity. Jacob shall return, have rest and be quiet, And no one shall make him afraid— Jeremiah 30:10.

At the beginning of Jeremiah 30, we read in verse 3, “The days are coming,’ declares the LORD, ‘when I will bring my people Israel and Judah back from captivity and restore them to the land I gave their ancestors to possess,’ says the LORD ”—the Lord foretelling of the return of Jewish captives from Babylon back to their ancestral land in Israel. The Lord had afflicted them because of their disobedience and unfaithfulness [Jeremiah 4:18; 2 Chronicles 36:21; Jeremiah 25:11; Jeremiah 29:10; Daniel 9:2]—So the message of the LORD spoken through Jeremiah was fulfilled. The land finally enjoyed its Sabbath rest—2 Chronicles 36:21—in their unfaithfulness, they had worshipped idols, gods that had never saved them or could save anyone. In their disobedience, they had worked on the Sabbath day, a day of rest that God had given them to rest from their labors—and spend it worshiping and seeking Him. Their captivity is declared to be a time God stepped in and seized the land by force and granted its rest that they had robbed it for 490 years, going back to the days of Solomon. Jeremiah not only had prophesied their judgment, he had also prophesied their restoration. His punishment was temporary, not permanent. Their affliction was for a moment, not perpetual [Isaiah 54:7; Psalms 30:5]— For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back. The Lord is a God of mercy and judgment—that should be known—but mercy triumphs over judgment [James 2:13; Psalms 103:8; Exodus 34:6]. We can see a lot of judgments that Jesus declared towards Pharisees and Jerusalem for example [Matthew 23; Luke 13:34; Matthew 21:32-43]—and yet spent most of His ministry doing miracles of mercy, healing the sick and feeding the hungry [Matthew 4:23-24; Matthew 9:35-36; Matthew 9:13]. The danger has always been the risk of considering one without the other. As the Lord spoke through Jeremiah, their restoration from captivity was a form of salvation— I will save you from afar, And your seed from the land of their captivity—the Hebrew word used for “save” here is “YASHA”—which can also mean deliver, avenge, and rescue from enemies. It is a common practice even in those who claim to know God to find themselves false Messiahs, be they political saviors or business gurus. Even Christians can surround themselves with people who say what their itching ears want to hear. When they see things in the world go wrong, such as political instability or government, going in the direction they do not want—rather than seek the way of salvation in what God has prescribed—they try to invent even new ways of sinning by seeking other false Messiahs—to dig even a deeper hole for themselves [2 Chronicles 7:14; 2 Timothy 4:3; Isaiah 30:1; Isaiah 31:1-2; Jeremiah 8:11]. It never worked for Israel, it would never work for Christians. God alone is our Savior, our king, our lawgiver, and our judge [Isaiah 33:22]. Yet, there’s no pit so deep that God would be unable to rescue His people from, if they look to Him for deliverance [Hebrews 7:25; Psalms 40:2]. Jeremiah proceeds to tell the people—Jacob shall return, have rest and be quiet, And no one shall make him afraid.  We know that though they did return, there were quite a few upheavals in the years that followed their return. After Cyrus released the Jews to go back to rebuild the temple, we read of Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, Rehum, and Shibshai—lodging accusations against Zerubbabel and his partners and successfully stopped them from rebuilding the temple as a result [Ezra 4:1-21]. We also know what Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite did 100 years later when Nehemiah was trying to rebuild the wall [Nehemiah 2:10; Nehemiah 4:1-16]. It may seem like the promise of rest and quietness upon their return did not materialize at least for 100 years. However, God’s promises of peace and rest are not dependent upon circumstances [Philippians 4:6-7]. His command not to be afraid or dismayed does not suggest that there won’t be reasons that could cause fear and worry. Rather, in the midst of those trials, those who make them afraid will be found to be nothing. If their eyes are focused on the Majesty of the Most High, rather than the foxes that steal their treasures, then they will really see things as they appear from heaven’s point of view. The return of Jews from Babylon to gather in Jerusalem was prophetic of Christ’s ultimate gathering of His people—The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people—Genesis 49:10. Shiloh was a prophetic name given to Jesus—the ultimate “King of the Jews“[Luke 23:3]—Shiloh means heavenly peace. Shiloh was also the resting place for the Ark of the Covenant during the early years of Samuel as a prophet [1 Samuel 4:1-4]. Considering that the Ark of the Covenant was the embodiment of God’s presence in Israel—and their source of victory [Numbers 10:35; Joshua 3:14-15; 2 Chronicles 6:41; Psalms 68:1]—we understand that the coming of Shiloh from the tribe of Judah was not just going to be for the gathering of His people—but also for the scattering of His enemies [Luke 1:74; Matthew 12:30; Psalms 2:1-12; Psalms 33:30; Luke 1:52-55; John 9:39; John 12:39-41; Acts 9:31; 1 Timothy 2:1-5; 2 Thessalonians 1:6; Exodus 23:22; Jeremiah 50:29; Matthew 16:18-19; Colossians 2:15; 1 John 3:8; Ephesians 4:8; Isaiah 54:17]. 

Monday, November 21st, 2022

In the fight with the Babylonians: ‘They will be filled with the dead bodies of the people I will slay in my anger and wrath. I will hide my face from this city because of all its wickedness. Behold, I will bring it health and healing; I will heal them and reveal to them the abundance of peace and truth. I will bring Judah and Israel back from captivity and will rebuild them as they were before—Jeremiah 33:5-7

As Jeremiah 33 begins, we see one of the most powerful Bible promises in verse 3: Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know. When Jeremiah prophesied about the fall of Jerusalem, many people who heard him thought he was out of his mind, hated Judah, or was prophesying falsehood. Those 3 accusations have often been seen whenever prophecy involved “negative” things that people did not like to hear—even if they may be prophetic words that are based on Scripture—not just “hearing or seeing things” other people may not be able to hear or see. Jesus experienced all of these things [Matthew 12:22-28; Mark 3: 20-22;John 2:17-21; John 7:12; John 7:47-48]. Sometimes misunderstanding is intentionally rooted in malice. Our hearts must be pure to receive from God. Spiritual things that have been freely given to us to unlock the treasures of the kingdom can only be understood by the help of the Holy Spirit [1 Corinthians 2:9-16]. This is why often Jesus said “He who has an ear, let him hear“—obviously He wasn’t saying those who have two auricles—everyone has earlobes—He meant whoever has the ability to recognize what the Lord is saying [Matthew 13:14; Matthew 11:15; Matthew 13:43; Revelation 2:29; Revelation 3:22; Mark 4:12]. So, what were the great and unsearchable things that the people Jerusalem did not know that Jeremiah knew ? He knew of the fall that was coming and how they could have prevented it. He knew which invading nation’s army would execute their fall. He knew how many years they would stay in Babylon. He knew which prophets were telling them lies, like Hananiah we see in Jeremiah 28:1-9. We can see that what Hananiah was doing could be categorized as “motivational speaking” in today’s language, but it was false prophecy. God was clear that people had to be careful to distinguish their own assertions with divine oracles—God’s word is authoritative and final while man’s words can be mere guesses at best—meaningless chaff and wind [Jeremiah 23:28-29]. Jeremiah had access to the rich secrets of the Lord [Psalms 25:14; Ephesians 3:8]. As Jeremiah spoke with authority those “unsearchable things” —He talked of how Babylon was God’s battle axe [Jeremiah 51:20-24]. God used Babylon to punish Judah but Babylon went too far and its excesses were overboard. So, God would in turn punish Babylon. We see God saying in Jeremiah 33:6 that the houses in Jerusalem would be “filled with the dead bodies of the people I will slay in my anger and wrath”—though the Babylonian army would be attacking Jerusalem—God was saying He would be the one slaying them “in my anger and wrath.” However, the God who afflicted them was also clear that this affliction was temporary and He would restore them again—I will bring it health and healing; I will heal them and reveal to them the abundance of peace and truth. The Hebrew word used for “healing” is “marpe“—which is from “rapha” and can also mean cure, remedy, and soothe.  The Hebrew word used for “peace” is “shalom“—which can also mean welfare, well-being, favorable, safety, soundness, and prosperity. The Hebrew word used for “truth” is “emeth“—it can also mean firmness, faithfulness, stability, sureness, and reliability. It is good to note that the NIV and ESV translated “emeth” as “security.” We are seeing another angle to healing here. We often see divine healing as usually physical. For example, someone who has prostate cancer or breast cancer being healed by God. However, divine healing can involve psychiatric issues—emotional or mental health. In this context, it was about national woes—backsliding, calamity, economic ruin, and property destruction [Hosea 14:4; Jeremiah 33:5; Jeremiah 18:17;  Jeremiah 21:10]. God’s healing power goes beyond bringing bodies back to physical health like we see Jesus did in His ministry [Matthew 4:23-24; Matthew 9:35; Matthew 10 verse 1 and 8; Matthew 12:15; Matthew 15:30]. God’s healing power extends to curing bad memories and emotional wounds—”By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion“—Psalms 137:1. Why did the Jews weep when they remembered Zion while sitting on the banks of rivers in Babylon ? They had bad memories of the invasion that ruined their nation. They had emotional wounds. Their kids were crushed. Their daughters were sexually assaulted or married to foreigners against their consent. They had seen their houses burn. They had lost their freedom and had become slaves. All these things can be depressing and cause anguish. But before that fall, the nation had lost soundness judicially, politically, militarily, and strategically. Even citizens did not trust each other, which hurt human relations. Their kings did not know how to make wise decisions. Their judges were blinded by bribes. Their soldiers were scared of war. They had become a laughingstock in neighboring nations. Lebanon was no longer offering a hand of friendship. Not only were individuals crushed, the whole nation had no strength or health [Jeremiah 14:13; Jeremiah 12:5; Jeremiah 25:37; Jeremiah 20:10; Jeremiah 38:22; Leviticus 26:6; 1 Kings 5:26; Deuteronomy 20:10; Isaiah 33:7]. Do we have faith that God can give this kind of restoration or healing to nations with similar problems ? The restoration and rest that we started to talk about yesterday in Jeremiah 30:10, would happen after their captivity. God would bring them healing first, then they would experience rest and quietness [Isaiah 14:3].

Tuesday, November 22nd, 2022

So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, The crawling locust, The consuming locust, And the chewing locust, My great army which I sent among you- Joel 2:25

While the timeline of Joel or timing of his prophetic message has not been agreed upon, the timelessness of the message is clear. It could be that Joel prophesied before Babylonian captivity as many scholars seem to believe, but it is also possible he may have prophesied after captivity. Neither would affect the applicability to our current DEVOTIONALS OF REST. Joel 3 is particularly in mind as I try to look at what Joel 2:25 could have implied to a post-captivity Jewish population. Joel 3 verse 2 talks about God putting nations on trial for what they did to Israel. Joel 3 verse 5 talks about the charge the Lord has—they plundered the gold of His temple. Joel 3 verse 6 talks about the Jews being sold as slaves to the Greeks. While some think that Joel prophesied during the years of Athaliah’s reign as queen or shortly afterwards, around 840-830 BC decade, the Arameans who harassed Israel and Judah during those years did not damage God’s people to the extent we see in Joel 3. Once Hazael, the Aramean king, took gold that belonged to the temple, but Joash gave it voluntarily as a deal to avoid war [2 Kings 12:16-19]. No Jew was taken as a slave during that attack. At one point king Amaziah of Judah foolishly provoked Jehoash of Israel, friend of prophet Elisha. Amaziah lost the war, which resulted in some articles of the temple in Jerusalem being captured by Jehoash, but that again does not seem consistent with what we read in Joel 3 [See 2 Kings 14:8-15]. So, the message of Joel 3 would have been relevant to a post-captivity audience. It is with this consideration that we will look at Joel 2:25, even if the locusts mentioned could have come much earlier. The judgment that involved locusts was not a new thing. Moses had unleashed this judgment on Egypt by the command of the Lord [ Exodus 10:13-19]. Indeed, if it happened in pre-captivity Israel, it could have been a harbinger of future judgment with real militaries. God calls the locusts “my great army which I sent among you.”—we live in an age where the John 10:10 interpretation by some Pentecostal and Charismatic preachers has been taken to the extreme. In John 10:10, we see Jesus saying that He had come to give abundant life while Satan is a thief, who comes to steal, kill, and destroy. Some have concluded that all destructions or all things that appear to be bad news/ losses must be from Satan. As we see in Joel 2:25, God takes credit for the famine. In fact, there’s almost no reference of a famine being caused by anyone else other than Jehovah throughout Scripture [Amos 8:11; Jeremiah 8:13; Amos 4:6-9; Ezekiel 30:12; Isaiah 30:20; Revelation 6:8; Revelation 18:8]. In Ahab’s years when Elijah prayed ? It was God [James 5:17-18; 1 Kings 17:1-9]. In Elisha’s days when there was such a severe famine that women boiled a child in Samaria ? Again it was the Lord’s doing [2 Kings 6:24-33; 2 Kings 7:1-10].So, we understand that the locusts that had consumed the harvest in Joel 2 were indeed sent by the Lord. Even the afflictions where we see the hand of Satan or at least his accusations involved—such as in Job’s case for example—God ultimately had given permission to Satan to do it [Job 1:6-21]. This means that in times of famine and adversity, God’s people should concern themselves with bowing down before the Lord’s majesty rather than be found rebuking Satan [Malachi 3:10-11; Haggai 1:11; Deuteronomy 11:14; Acts 14:17; Proverbs 3:10]. This doesn’t mean demons should not be addressed while doing deliverance ministry for those who are demon-possessed, but that is an entirely different topic. The key here is that famines usually have the hand of the Lord in them and we don’t deal with God’s hand by binding and casting out—we deal with God’s hand by humbling ourselves and bowing down. The people who understand this are more likely to pray correctly and see God’s answer and turn around—So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten. When God’s people suffer financial losses, harvest losses, economic ruin, and property damage—they do not just lose their livelihoods or “filthy lucre“—they may lose precious time or years. The 70 years that Jews spent in Babylon did not add anything to Judah’s GDP. The toils for Nebuchadnezzar was not building them houses and cities. 70 years is a long time to lose and it should be an encouragement for Christians who have lost a few years in one way or another—because of various afflictions and losses—So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten—God will restore those years. First of all, God is outside of time. He is eternal—with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day—2 Peter 3:8. God can accomplish for us in 1 week what takes some families 40 years or even 200 years. This means that when the Lord has us waiting and asks us patience, we cannot fret like those who act restless when they fear that they are losing time [Psalms 37:7]. Anxiety and worry birth Ishmaels and works of the flesh. God can give us 1 year what worldly people dream of acquiring in a whole lifetime [Matthew 6:26-33; Luke 5:5-6]. Second, now is the day of the Lord’s favor [2 Corinthians 6:2; Hebrews 11:1; John 2:4-5; Matthew 15:21-28; Isaiah 43:19; Mark 11:22-24]. In the Gospel dispensation, Christ took captivity captive and gave gifts to men [ Ephesians 4:8; Psalms 68:17-19]. The Lord daily loads us with the benefits of His redemption. We live in the age of open doors that no man can shut. We are in that season in which whatever the Lord has taken to discipline us over the years, He will repay back to us, with double for the trouble endured [Job 42:10-16; James 5:11; Psalms 107:17-20; Psalms 136:3-5; Mark 8:17; Psalms 23:6; Jeremiah 29:11; Romans 8:32; John 14:12-13; John 16:24].

Wednesday, November 23rd, 2022

For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son —Colossians 1:13

 In Joshua 21:44, we read: “The LORD gave them rest on every side, just as he had sworn to their ancestors. Not one of their enemies withstood them…”—We see that as Joshua led Israel into the Promised Land, though they had to do battle initially, they eventually reached a point of rest—after conquering many battles. Sadly, as they became unfaithful to the Lord centuries later, they became weaker and lost battles. God gave them over to their enemies. They were defeated and carried as captives into foreign lands. Yet, the Lord in His mercy restored them back to Jerusalem, where they returned to rebuild the temple and live in security. We saw how through Jeremiah’s prophecies, God promised rest and quietness to those who would return. As we continue our devotionals for this week, we will try to apply these meditations to a New Testament context. People of our times may not be taken as captives into Russia, Iraq, or even China —but this does not mean they have no enemies—be they spiritual or physical. And the greatest enemy of humanity is powerful—Satan himself. Scriptures tell us a lot about Satan. He was once a cherubim in heaven. When he rebelled against God, he was able to bring one third of angels down with him. In Revelation 12:7-17 we read: “there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels“- verse 7. The conclusion of this war was that Satan was cast out of heaven. In verse 12, we read that he came to the earth with fury. Satan set up his kingdom on earth. He is certainly on social media! The Bible tells us in Ephesians 2:1-2, “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.”—Satan is the one called here the “ruler of the kingdom of the air.”  He also wages war against us “in the heavenlies“—Ephesians 6:10-18. Angels are invisible and spiritual beings, not just invisible like Nitrogen, but also spiritual. The dark angels who fell down along with Satan are still invisible. Despite their invisibility, they do a lot of things in the visible world, which can be visible, harmful, and wicked. Consider the Gospel story of a father who had a son with seizures and came to Jesus. He described how evil spirits that tormented the young man thus: “Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not.”—Mark 9:18. These are typical symptoms of epilepsy. These are the works of an enemy we cannot see. He has ability to cause visible physical symptoms. Majority of people think of Satan as only working through suggestive thoughts, ideas, and ideologies. A story that may have helped us to think of this is Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. We see Satan saying: “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.”—Matthew 4:3. But as we see in Mark 9, he also has power to cause physical manifestations in our world. He is definitely behind world wars. One of the 2 main reasons the Millennium Kingdom of Christ in Jerusalem will be peaceful is because Satan will have been bound [Revelation 20:1-8]. In meantime, Satan is still at work here, though Jesus has entered enemy territory, preaching the Gospel. Jesus tells us that one of the manifestations of His kingdom was casting out demons—Matthew 12:22-28: “If I drive out demons by the finger of God, the kingdom of God has come upon you.” Satan wants to control people, but Jesus came “to destroy the works of the devil“—1 John 3:8. Christ came to deliver the entire human race from the kingdom of Satan—which is a kingdom of darkness. Those who believe in Jesus have been blessed enough to get out of Satan’s control. For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son—Colossians 1:13. Satan is so powerful that such a deliverance would not have happened by human willpower or following the Law. Human beings have no ability to deliver themselves out of Satan’s clutches—at least not before they come to Jesus. I know we have been taught by modern psychology that we can choose how we want to live—and to a certain degree this is true—especially if those choices start with believing in Jesus Christ. However, for someone who doesn’t know Jesus, choices are rather limited because Satan is “the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.” When people go to bars and get drunk or use cocaine, did they make those choices ? Certainly they made those choices. But it can be hard to distinguish which choices they are making themselves and which ones Satan is influencing. Remember, he is a “spirit at work in them.”  For people who are “dead in trespasses and sins“—Satan’s control is so entrenched that their choices are largely influenced by him, though they may not be aware they are being led by him or doing his bidding. When Judas betrayed Jesus, we read “As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him. So Jesus told him, “What you are about to do, do quickly”—John 13:27. Not only did Jesus know Judas would betray him, He knew the moment Satan entered into him to possess him and lead Christ to the cross. Judas may have yielded his choices to Satan long before that time—but he was certainly under Satan’s control in those moments he betrayed Jesus. Thankfully, the Father has delivered us from Satan’s grip and His kingdom of darkness [John 10:27-28]. He has translated us into the kingdom of Jesus Christ, which is a kingdom of light. It was a power-rescue. Our own will could not have been strong enough to get us out of that prison. We were lost and Christ broke us out [John 1:12-13]. Indeed, striving in our own efforts would have been unhelpful in leading us to rest in spiritual matters. Satan will try to hunt down his captives who escape His kingdom. Only God Almighty can give His people rest from the battles Satan wages against souls and give the saints total victory.

Thursday, November 24th, 2022

So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: “Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them, who by the mouth of Your servant David have said: ‘Why did the nations rage, And the people plot vain things?—Acts 4:24-25

After the miracle of the beggar who sat by the temple, thousands of people were curious to know how he had been able to walk. Peter had been clear that it was not their godliness that raised the man who had been disabled for many years—rather, it was the faith in Jesus Christ that had raised him [Acts 3:1-21]. That miracle had been an opportunity to declare to the people of Jerusalem the heinous evil they had done in crucifying Jesus, the glorious redemption that the Father worked through that crucifixion, and the majestic resurrection of Jesus from the dead—that proved He was Lord and God, as He had taught throughout His ministry. The Jewish leaders had come to join the thousands who were listening and were disturbed by this doctrine they considered to be heretical—so they arrested them and put them in jail. But Peter did not back down. When he was asked how the man had been healed, he declared the same things, adding that salvation could not be found in any other person, because there’s only one name given to mankind by which we can be saved from eternal damnation in hell and brought into God’s glorious eternal life in heaven—the name of Jesus Christ . The Jewish leaders were surprised how these uneducated fishermen could be so bold or even accomplish such a feat [Acts 4:12-13]. Rather than rejoice in the healing of the man, they flogged them, and sent them away with a warning not to do that ‘mischief‘ again. That’s where we see this prayer in Acts 4:24-31, of how the apostles and all disciples in Jerusalem responded to those threats. Yesterday, we had largely focused on Satan as our main enemy in a New Testament context. We had been trying to apply what we had seen earlier regarding the captivity of Jews in Babylon and their restoration. We had seen that Satan is an invisible enemy, though he can cause visible physical symptoms and is the source of serious damages in our world. Satan being the primary enemy of everything good the Lord has given to the saints—he must have been working through the Jewish Sanhedrin when they threatened the apostles, Peter and John. Satan hates divine healing, that’s for sure. You can see this in America and around the world. He does not want the sick to praise the Lord Jesus Christ for their rescue. Satan can even use religious leaders to attack divine healing ministry done in the name of Jesus. This is not to say that there are not some healing evangelists with ungodly behaviors—but that’s generally not always the case when you analyze how divine healing ministry is attacked. Indeed, the more godly a divine healing minister is, the more likely to be persecuted because those who are ungodly attract no serious attention anyway. There have been healing evangelists with a terrible conduct, such as A.A. Allen of Arizona, who died of alcoholism and drug overdose at a hotel in San Francisco. There have also been godly healing evangelists like Smith Wigglesworth and T. L. Osborn—but still even those who were godly were attacked. Only Satan’s involvement can be the proper explanation of why religious leaders would be angry that someone who was dead is able to walk or someone who who was in a wheelchair no longer needs it [John 11:44-48; John 12:9-10]. Details or material facts usually don’t matter—the bottom-line is to silence the Gospel preached with a demonstration of power. The Jewish leaders were also angry because, as they charged, the apostles had  “filled Jerusalem with their doctrine and determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood“—Acts 5:17-28; Acts 4:10. It’s like the Sanhedrin had proudly killed Jesus, but now that the masses were turning to Christ for salvation, they were trying to distance themselves from that murder, and silencing anyone who would talk about it. So, the prayer of the apostles in Acts 4:24-31 is rather instructive for Christians who minister in any hostile environment. The apostles were not the kind of people who would let their enemies—the enemies of the Gospel—triumph over them—stop them from ministry, evangelism, and missions—or silence the praises of God’s people. They had not corrupted the “Sermon on the Mount” teachings to translate that meekness means weakness. They were going to preach in the temple despite the ordinance forbidding them to do so because they had rather obey God than men [Acts 5:29]. They church enjoyed years of rest after emperor Constantine claimed to be a Christian—and even more so after the Protestant Reformation of the 15th century—but the early years of any new kind of divine work is struggle against a mortal enemy. It was not just Israel when they were trying to enter the Promised Land, it has been the circumstances of all saints throughout history—especially so of the early church apostles. They were fighting for future generations to receive the authentic Gospel. They raised their voices in prayer to God and acknowledged His greatness in creation. This is the first step to cast out fear [Isaiah 51:13]. They quoted Psalms 2, a song of Messianic Triumph—Why do the nations rage, And the people plot a vain thing? [Psalms 2:1-12]. Any Christian under persecution must have a Psalms 2:1-12 mentality, otherwise Satan will win. There’s no victory without that. Real prayer must destroy Satan’s works. As they prayed, God heard them, shook their gathering, and filled them with the Holy Spirit again, so that they could spread the Gospel boldly.  

Friday, November 25th, 2022

’For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws– Ezekiel 36:24-27

In the Jeremiah 30:10 Scripture that is our main text for this week, we had seen that God had promised to save the Jews from the distant land where He had banished them, and He would return them to Jerusalem, where they would be in rest and quietness. They had lost peace and their land because of their unfaithfulness, but God would have mercy on them and restore them after 70 years. Today, we turn to the prophecy of Ezekiel regarding Jewish restoration, which seems to also connect to the promise of a New Covenant that God would have with Israel. The estimated year of birth of Jeremiah is 645-644 BC while Ezekiel was born around 625-623 BC. Jeremiah prophesied in the Southern Kingdom for 40 years before he ended up in Egypt at the age of 58-59 [Jeremiah 43:1-13]. On the other hand, when Ezekiel begins to prophesy, he had already been taken to Babylon, as he saw the visions of God in his 30th year by the Kebar river. Many of the prophecies of Jeremiah about captivity had already been fulfilled since Ezekiel begins to prophesy in exile. Since Daniel is believed to have been around 15-17 years old when Nebuchadnezzar took Jews to Babylon, he would have been roughly 5-7 years younger than Ezekiel, having been born around 622-620 BC. The imposing image that Nebuchadnezzar saw in his dreams that Daniel interpreted is estimated to have occurred around 603 BC, about 4 years after Nebuchadnezzar had conquered Jerusalem. Daniel would have been around 20-23 years old when he interpreted Nebuchadnezzar’s dream—which would have been around 10 years before Ezekiel began to prophesy as well. Though Ezekiel was older than Daniel, Daniel became known as a prophet 10 years before Ezekiel. Jeremiah was still in Jerusalem at that time and would remain there 16-17 more years. So, we have an overlapping period of 3 major prophets prophesying to the Jewish people and the nations about similar things, yet spoken in different places, and at different times. The opening text we have today is somehow similar to Jeremiah’s chapter 30 verse 19 and Jeremiah 31:31-34, which would be good to study in parallel. First, Ezekiel says that God would take them out of the nations in which they had been taken captive or scattered. In Jeremiah 30:19 we read the promise: “There will be joy and songs of thanksgiving, and I will multiply my people, not diminish them; I will honor them, not despise them“—the promises had a dual application—first, to the Jews of that period who would return to Jerusalem. Second, to the Jews who would form the nation of Israel in the 20th century, immigrating from Europe and United States. We had talked about this restoration in detail. Second, Ezekiel says that the Lord would sprinkle clean water to cleanse them from their impurities and give them a new heart and a new spirit. God was promising to remove from them a heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. He would give them the Holy Spirit, who would move them to follow God’s decrees. This is similar to Jeremiah 31:31-34, where we see that God would make a new covenant with the Jewish people, different from the one He had made with Israel when they left Egypt. ” ‘This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,’ declares the LORD. ‘I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.’ “—Jeremiah 31:33.  Since these passages are quoted by New Testament authors [see Hebrews 8:6-17], the second part of these prophecies had a distant fulfillment. They would return to the land first, but God would make a New Covenant with them 500 years later.  This would be a covenant of spiritual rest—because it would no longer be about what they could do to please God or earn His favor—but rather what God was going to do for them to bring them closer to Himself. They would get physical, economic, and national restoration to their ancestral land, but the underlying issue of their unfaithfulness and captivity was their iniquity—and it had been proven that they had no power to solve that one. Since they could not save themselves from their sins, and their sins were their downfall, they could not save themselves economically and militarily either. The New Covenant involves much more than forgiveness and justification of sinners. In forgiveness, God wipes the slate clean and pardons sinners of the evil they have done [Romans 3:23-25; Jeremiah 31:34]—I will remember their sins no more. In justification, God actually credits an obedience they never had—the righteousness of Christ—the obedience of the Son of God [Romans 4:22-25; Romans 5:1; Jeremiah 23:5-6; 2 Corinthians 5:21]—Christ is Jehovah Tsidkenu—the Lord our righteousness. As glorious and comforting this aspect of the New Covenant is, it would be dishonoring to God to consider it the only offer He gave His people. He also promised to give them a new heart and a new spirit. The obedience would be worked in the hearts of His people by the Holy Spirit—”and move them to follow my decrees“—Ezekiel 36:27. This is far from being the things we do ourselves—it is God’s own work in us [Romans 8:4; Galatians 2:20]. “No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the LORD,’ “—Jeremiah 31:34. Why ? Because it would no longer be necessary for the spirit-filled believer [1 John 2:27; John 14:26]—the Holy Spirit would work in them to “walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing“—Colossians 1:10. The ultimate rest is living and walking in the pleasure and glory of the Lord—not because of what we have accomplished, but because of what the Holy Spirit is teaching us and working in us [Philippians 2:13]. 

Saturday, November 26th, 2022

In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious—Isaiah 11:10

Isaiah 11 starts with verse 1 saying, “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.”—Jesse was the name of David’s father. When prophets used this language, they were prophesying about the future Messiah—Jesus Christ. Then in verse 2-3 we read: “The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the LORD. His delight is in the fear of the LORD, And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, Nor decide by the hearing of His ears“—this is clearly about Jesus again. Isaiah is talking about the 7 spirits of God that rested upon Jesus. While the Holy Spirit is One and is God, He has 7 characteristics that are sometimes called “the 7 spirits.”  We read them in Revelation 4:5: “From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. In front of the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God.”—This is written by John the Apostle, when Jesus encountered him on the island of Patmos and was giving him the book of revelation. He was caught up to the third heaven and saw the throne of God. So, what we read in verse 5 is one of the things he saw during that encounter. He saw lightnings coming from the throne. He saw rumblings of thunder coming from the throne of God. Before the throne there were seven lamps, which would be considered to be similar to the Menorah—remember everything Moses built and put in the tabernacle in which God was worshiped, had been done according to the pattern God showed him on Mount Sinai [Hebrews 8:5; Exodus 25 verse 9; Exodus 25:31-33; Exodus 25:40]—these 7 lamps that Moses built were shadows of the 7 spirits of God—and represented Christ being the Light of the world [John 8:12]. So, these 7 spirits of God that rested upon Christ are the same 7 spirits that we see burning as lamps before the throne of God. What are they ? According to Isaiah, they start with the spirit of wisdom. We know that all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Christ [Colossians 2:3]. These are not limited to spiritual things. Just like God gave Solomon expansive wisdom, it is available to Christians who want to make an impact on the world in the name of Jesus [1 Kings 4:29-34; Luke 11:31]. There’s no scientific discovery that has ever come on the scene that Jesus didn’t know about. Yet, when Christ came into the world, He came as a humble preacher of God’s Word. His focus was on eternal things. Understanding and counsel are other spirits that rest on him. Christians often talk about not seeking to understand because divine things are beyond our understanding as a sort of humility—but this is false humility according to the Scriptures—in Ephesians 1:16-19  and Colossians 1:9-11, we see Paul praying for the churches to have understanding. In John 9:39, John 12:39-40, and Matthew 13:15 we see that lack of understanding of spiritual realities is a divine judgment on the unsaved, proud, and hypocrites. However, we must acknowledge that our understanding has to be sustained by faith and it will always be far less than what God has, which means there will be situations in which our trust matters more than our understanding—since God’s understanding is infinite and limitless, while ours is not [Psalms 147:5; Isaiah 40:28-31; Romans 11:33-36; Hebrews 11:3]. And when the Lord counsels, with the spirit of counsel, it is according to His infinite wisdom, knowledge, and understanding—which means we should pay attention. He is a Wonderful Counselor [Isaiah 9:6]—so following His counsel will lead us into divine wonders. Christ also had the spirit of might. Raising Lazarus, walking on water, multiplying bread and feeding thousands, cursing the fig tree, healing all that were sick—all those were “mighty works” [Matthew 11:21]—that proceeded from the spirit of might. Isaiah also tells us how with these spirits of God resting on Christ lead Him to make right judgments. “He will not judge by what His eyes see, and He will not decide by what His ears hear.”—this is one of the flaws of human judgment, which thankfully shall not be found in Christ’s justice. If I were to tell people that John Dalton or Isaac Newton cheated in a Physics exam, it is possible that 5%-10% could believe it without having any sort of credible evidence that it is true. Now imagine making consequential decisions of injustice for people with hearsay like that. It is after giving this background of who Christ will be, the spirits guiding him, and the nature of His justice [Isaiah 11:3-4]—that Isaiah looks forward to the Millennium Kingdom of Christ in Jerusalem—Mount Zion—and what it will be like. Isaiah had prophesied about the peace of the millennial reign of Christ before—see for example [Isaiah 2:2-4]—there will be no wars, no protests in the streets, no commotion, no noisy streets—it will be the golden age of Israel and all humanity—”The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat“—Isaiah 11:6—no fear, terror, destruction, avarice, greed, devouring one another, betrayals, malice, hatred, envy, jealousy, racial supremacy, ethnic conflicts, self-seeking behaviors—these are some of the flaws that cause unrest and take peace from the world. Imagine a 3-year-old boy playing with a wild lion or cobra and not being afraid that those animals will eat him. They will not destroy on Mount Zion [Isaiah 11:7-9]. Imagine tribes that had been known for strife in political matters, like we see in the Ethiopian war of 2021-2022, being able to walk together in harmony, with no fear that one is trying to hurt the other. Imagine our wildest aspirations of what the world peace would be like—things that even non-Christian poets sang about like—Heal The World—by Michael Jackson—that’s not a dream—it will happen during the Millennial reign of Christ in Jerusalem—His resting place will be glorious—all nations will be under this banner—because He is the desire of the nations [Haggai 2:7]—despite many ignoring His call to salvation today—Jesus will be finally seen for who He really is—the Prince of Peace.

Sunday, November 27th, 2022

You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory—Psalms 63:1-2

The original devotional with the above text that we will expand on this week was done on Friday, March 19th, 2021. It followed the chosen theme for Fridays last year—”Seeking the Lord’s Presence and Strength”—from 1 Chronicles 16:11 as the primary Scripture for all Fridays. This means all devotionals we did on Fridays were more or less variants of 1 Chronicles 16:11, saying the same thing in a different way. For better orientation and effective Bible study of the DEVOTIONALS OF REST, we had Mondays covering the theme “Those That Wait Upon The Lord“—Isaiah 40:31, focused on waiting on God. Tuesdays were “Jesus Withdrew From The Crowd to Pray“—Mark 6:31 & Luke 5:16—focused on the example of Jesus in praying alone and taking rest from burdens or busy schedules. Wednesdays were for “He Who Watches Over Israel Never Sleeps“—Psalms 121:4, to remind us that God works for us while we rest. On Thursdays, we had “In Quietness/Stillness And Trust“—Isaiah 30:15 & Psalms 46:10 & Exodus 14:14. On Friday, we focused on seeking the Lord’s face. On Saturday, the theme was “Arise O Lord To Your Resting Place“—Psalms 132:8, focused on the manifest presence and glory of the Ark of the Covenant. This week, we will use Psalms 63:1-2 and the weekly prayer outline to try to see what it means to seek the Lord’s presence. Seeking the Lord is an invitation we have been given by God [1 Chronicles 16:11; Psalms 27:8; Luke 14:16-24; Proverbs 2:2-5]. David is saying in our text of Psalms 63:1-2 that he will seek God earnestly. If the King of Kings gives you an invitation to come into His palace, it is not something you would take lightly. The Hebrew word used here is “Shachar“—it means to seek diligently, to seek eagerly, to seek with longing, to enquire early, and to search painstakingly. God never said to seek Him in vain [Isaiah 45:19]. Seeking God is a well-paid employment [Hebrews 11:6]—for  “He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” So, David took it seriously and sought God earnestly.  David also says “I thirst for you“—the Hebrew word he uses is “Tsame” —which simply means to suffer thirst. There was a time David was thirsty and asked for water from his hometown of Bethlehem, where the Philistines had positioned an army—his soldiers fought through and went to draw water—but when they brought it to him, he refused to drink it, saying it was the blood of the soldiers who fought to draw it from the well[2 Samuel 23:14-17]. If such was the passion they had to fight for physical water, how much more should we have for Jesus Christ, the Living Water ? David was a man acquainted with suffering thirst because of living so many years in the wilderness, but the greatest thirst of his life was God Himself—”As the deer panteth for the water, so my soul longeth after thee”—Psalms 42:1. Deer are some of the favorite wild meat. Many people in America love to hunt for deer meat. However, they do not usually have to chase them down too long because of the convenience of hunting guns. Yet, in David’s days, hunting involved chasing the deer, which had to run for its dear life. Since a thirsty deer that has not had water while on the run for a long period of time could collapse from dehydration, it must find water for survival. This imagery is what David has in mind to describe His desperation for God’s presence. There’s a difference between having God as a nice addition at the end of the week—on Sunday mornings—and seeking God as the very essence of life—One we could not exist or live without—One we need so greatly and achingly, without whom we will collapse spiritually and in other areas that are not spiritual. He is our everything—For in him we live and move and have our being—Acts 17:28. He says “my whole being longs for you“—”my flesh cries out”—Psalms 84:2. Seeking God does not have to be loud, but when David says he cried out, we must understand that he vocalized his desire with a loud volume. Even Solomon says that when we are seeking wisdom and understanding, we should cry aloud [Proverbs 2:3]. Let the Lord hear our voice—He gave it to us so that we can praise Him, sing to Him, and call upon Him! Jesus wants to give water to those who are thirsty [John 4:6-14; John 7:37-39]. The Lord promises: “For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.”—Isaiah 44:3. If we are thirsty and unsatisfied, it is because we have not sought the Lord’s water diligently. If the Holy Spirit is not filling our imaginations, emotions, and firing up our zeal for the things of God, it is because we have not longed for Him to the point of desperation. If there’s no revival in the land and sinners are lost—without God and without hope in the world—it is not the Lord’s fault [Ephesians 2:12; Hosea 10:12; Ezekiel 36:37]. David had seen his longing satisfied. He beheld the Lord’s power and glory in the sanctuary. He knew God really answered prayers. No reason we should wonder why the passed generations saw miracles and we are not seeing them in our generation [Judges 6:13; Psalms 44:1; Psalms 22:27-30]. The Lord remains the same and the head of the church is the same throughout the world—He will not bless some sheep and ignore others—unless those sheep do not want to be fed [Deuteronomy 32:15; Psalms 23:1-6; John 10:16; Ezekiel 34:23; Psalms 36:8-9; Matthew 16:18-19; Luke 5:17; 1 Corinthians 5:4; Galatians 3:5; Acts 19:11-12; Acts 19:20; Ephesians 1:16-19]. 

Monday,  November 28th, 2022

And Isaiah boldly says, “I was found by those who did not seek me; I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me.”—Romans 10:20

Apostle Paul here is quoting Isaiah 65:1, “I revealed Myself to those who did not ask for Me; I was found by those who did not seek Me. To a nation that did not call My name, I said, ‘Here I am! Here I am!‘—apostle Paul would know this to be true because while he was still a persecutor of the church, Jesus had mercy on him and encountered him on the road to Damascus and saved him—Acts 9. It is refreshing to know that we do not seek God first, He loved us first, came to seek that which was lost, and saved us [Luke 19:10; John 15:16]. This is a promise that gives us hope for those who are far from God—that the Lord has the ability to bring them—I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd—John 10:16. This understanding shows us 2 responsibilities that those who are privileged to know Jesus have. The first one is intercessory prayers for the lost. The second one is evangelism and missions. In 1 Timothy 2:1-5, Paul tells us about the first responsibility. “I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people “—1 Timothy 2:1—God is telling us what should be our first priority and duty to a dying world. We pray for kings and for peace among the nations, of course, but the goal is to create the perfect conditions to spread the Gospel—”in all quietness and godliness.” There are people in our neighborhood, in our schools, workplaces, and nations that do not know the salvation that is in Christ Jesus—and God wants us to stand in the gap for their redemption just like Abraham stood in the gap for Sodom—like Jeremiah would have done before captivity if God had not forbidden him—like Ezekiel understood when the Lord revealed to him what could have prevented Jerusalem’s fall—like Daniel interceded for the Jewish captives—like Moses stood in the gap for Israel— and like Paul wanted his countrymen to be saved [Genesis 18:17-33; Exodus 32:30-35; Exodus 34:6-7; Exodus 22:30; Jeremiah 7:16; Daniel 9:1-22; Romans 9:1-8]. Charles Spurgeon could not have made our duty for intercessions clearer when he said: “If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our dead bodies. And if they perish, let them perish with our arms wrapped about their knees, imploring them to stay. If hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions and let not one go unwarned and unprayed for.” The encouragement we have for these intercessions is that God wants all men to be saved and many people we pray for will come to know Him as a result of our pleading [1 John 5:14-15; 1 Timothy 2:4; 2 Peter 3:9; John 17:20]. We must create prayer lists for them and track answers to our prayers. We should keep in mind that before we came to salvation we ourselves needed someone to love us and pray for us [Acts 26:18; Romans 10:1; Matthew 9:37-38; 1 John 4:19; Romans 5:8; Ephesians 2:1-10; Jude 1:23]. Once the gentiles were not a people, but now we are the people of God—and that was not a result of our seeking [Hosea 2:23; 1 Peter 2:10; Romans 9:25]. Our second duty is evangelism and missions. This requires us to be prepared at all times as well as being faithful with opportunities the Lord will open for us [1 Peter 3:15; Colossians 4:6; 2 Timothy 2:25-26; 1 Corinthians 12:7-11; Acts 8:26-39; 1 Corinthians 16:9]. There are people that the Bible shows us that the Lord made them restless, troubled, and inquisitive—and only the saints prepared for those circumstances can be effective messengers of the Most High. “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”—Acts 16:30. These were the words of the prison guard in Philippi, where Paul and Silas had been detained until an earthquake shook the prison. The jailer realized these were not ordinary prisoners, they were the servants of the Most High God. Nebuchadnezzar and Pharaoh are other examples. Pharaoh had a dream about the coming years of famine, but it was a mystery that troubled him, and he could not find an interpretation [Genesis 41:9-38]. It required someone who had a gift of the Spirit of God to interpret the mystery and give a practical solution. Nebuchadnezzar, who was a pagan king, acknowledged God after his troubling dream was interpreted by Daniel [Daniel 2:28-48]. The greatness of our God has not diminished one bit in our “secular age.” IF we are anointed by the Spirit of God, gifted like we are called to be, and prepared for ministry—even the darkest places on the planet can see that God puts a distinction between His people and those of the world [Exodus 8:23; Exodus 11:7]. Let’s shine our lights [Matthew 5:14-16; Isaiah 60:1-3]. If the lost do not want God, it is because we have not created hunger and thirst in them by revealing them the healing compassion, words of knowledge, words of wisdom, miracles of provision, and all the wonders of our Lord Jesus. As for faithfulness in our contacts with the lost, this will involve us ministering even to those who are not inquisitive [Luke 14:23; Acts 8:5-8; Acts 17: 16-30]—the Athenians were not troubled by their idolatry, but Paul was, and he proclaimed them the way, the truth, and the life in Christ Jesus.

Tuesday, November 29th, 2022

Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame…The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing…The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry—Psalms 34:5, 10, 15

When I look over my life—my past and present—I can see how the way I pray and seek the Lord has changed over the years. I grew up Catholic and attending Catholic mass—and thankfully also Catholic schools—my seeking God efforts as a kid was not more than church attendance with family and family prayers with rosaries, done in groups of Catholic worshippers. I even served as an altar boy and could have said the entire Mass myself, having memorized every word spoken in regular Mass from age 8. Protestants could say that doesn’t count as seeking God and I wouldn’t blame them. It does not seem like it was serious.  In high school, by virtue of having so many Pentecostal friends who were already awakened to the Holy Spirit, I started to be “infected ” with a different kind of spirituality. Sometimes I would join Pentecostal Bible studies on week-days, like Wednesdays, while I went to the Catholic church services on Sundays. That was really the first time I got challenged spiritually. So, I really started to put my soul into praying, rather than doing memorized rosaries that were already made. I started to set goals of things I wanted from God and would pray for them. As a high school student, obviously my studies were my number one target for prayers. My intense competitive nature meant that I wanted to pray for the best academic scores I could get. To my shock, God answered those prayers. So, I kept asking for more. Until I became born again—and changed from Catholic to Protestant at age 20—my prayers were nothing more than seeking divine favor for academic performance to have a better financial future. At age 20, everything changed in how I prayed and sought the Lord. I began to pray for people to be saved—intercessory prayers for the lost. I really believed in this fire and eternal life I had received at my new birth. The day I got saved, I also spoke in other tongues, but I had no clue of the differences of the Pentecostal theology and other Protestant theology at that time, so my speaking in tongues were occasional at that time, until I met a generous Pentecostal missionary family that started to mentor me and give me some of their books for reading. Even so, early on I was cautious, as I wanted to investigate everything, and not end up in some Protestant heresies. As I began to read more books, so my prayers began to expand. The prayers of Paul in Ephesians 1, Colossians 1, Ephesians 3, and other prayers of Paul became some of my focused prayers by the 2nd year after new birth experience. Since they were prayers for the saints, I also started to pray for more than conversions of the lost. I started to pray for spiritual growth and maturity for myself and other Christians I knew in my surrounding. I really loved prayers and devotionals in the mornings. I loved especially singing “Holy Holy Holy, Lord God Almighty, early in the morning, my song shall rise to thee…” to kind-of-remind myself I had woken up and not rush outside before prayers.  I remember praying for one guy randomly and the Spirit’s anointing was very strong upon me. I prayed with tears, as I had been pouring my heart into that guy’s life, though he was much older than me—an organic chemistry professor. To my shock, when I met him later on, he told me how he jumped from a burning bus that was travelling from one city to another city—after they had a traffic accident—and I recognized that the time he was rescued was just a few hours after the Spirit had seized me and caused me to intercede for him with passion and tears. That blew my mind and literally changed my prayer life. There was an authenticity, a passion, an intensity, a fire in my first 3 years after new birth—that it was almost impossible for me to pray without having floods of tears flowing from my eyes [2 Timothy 1:4]—even if I was just praying over food for dinner—I could really tell that “something happened”—at my New Birth experience. By now, of course, my prayers have become something else, as I cover pretty much every topic in prayers—my own personal needs, my spiritual growth, my ministry, friends and the church, the nations, the lost, sending out series of judgments, and extended times of praises and worship [1 Timothy 2:1-5]. From this spiritual journey, I can recognize many things that David puts in Psalms 34 as really my own life experience. He starts Psalms 34 saying “I will bless the Lord at all times“—verse 1. Our prayers should not just be about our needs and wants. We should have a time we thank God for His mercies, praise Him for His greatness and goodness, and then have sweet worship to grow more intimate with Him. By verse 4, David says that He sought the Lord and the Lord answered him. This should be our testimony. We should have clear set-goals in prayer, which we shall see God answer, so that we can recognize that the Lord is real and answers our prayers. In verse 5 he says, “those who look to Him are radiant“—His glory and beauty is on our faces as we seek Him—like Moses—Exodus 34:33-35; 2 Corinthians 3:13-18. It transforms us inside-out. Then, in verse 10 he says that lions may grow hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. Though we should not seek the Lord for His gifts or miracles of provision—and God Himself should be the prize our seeking— Psalms 27:4; Luke 10:42; Philippians 3:13-14; Proverbs 2:3-5; 1 Corinthians 9:24; Matthew 13:44; Psalms 16:11; Psalms 18:12 &28; Isaiah 60:5; Psalms 97:11—David reminds us here that we do not seek the Lord in vain [Isaiah 45:19; Hebrews 11:6; Psalms 145:16]. He blesses us as we bless Him [Numbers 6:24-26]. The Lion of the tribe of Judah hunts for our meat and brings it to us [Isaiah 40:28-31]. His ears are attentive to the cries of the redeemed, who sincerely love Him [Romans 8:32; John 14:12-13; John 15:7;  James 4:2-3; Matthew 7:7-11; 1 John 5:14-15]. May this encourage us as we seek the Lord this week!

Wednesday, November 30th, 2022

I have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread—Job 23:12

Though God will reveal Himself to those who did not seek Him and bring them to salvation [Romans 10:20; Isaiah 65:1; Acts 9]— once we have come to know the Lord, we should pursue Him diligently and seek Him every day in prayer, worship, and the Word of God. These 3 areas of seeking are important for our growth as Christians. Prayer and worship were mentioned or covered in at least one of our previous posts for this week. On Sunday, we talked about seeking God as the very essence of life—not just a nice addition at the end of the week—but like living water that we cannot live without. On Monday, we mentioned prayer while looking at the duty the saints have to help the lost. Since those far from God do not seek Jesus or know Him, we are here to help them by praying for them. Yesterday, we talked about how those who seek the Lord are radiant, reflecting the glory of the Lord they behold, and receive provisions from His hand, even when lions may be going hungry. We do not seek the Lord in vain. Seeking God is a well-paid employment [Hebrews 11:6].Today, we will add on seeking the Lord through His word, in addition to seeking Him through prayer. In Job’s musings of Job 23, he had just said: “But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.”—Job 23:10. This was after he complained: “When he is at work in the north, I do not see him; when he turns to the south, I catch no glimpse of him.”—Job 23:9. Basically Job was saying, I do not know God’s address, but He knows my address—I cannot find Him but He knows how to find me. Finding God is one of the promises for those who seek Him [Jeremiah 29:13; Matthew 7:7-11; Isaiah 45:19]. We see that Job finally found God in Job 42, but in his days of sorrow his perspective was somewhat blurred. This was before Calvary, before Immanuel rent the heavens and came down [Isaiah 64:1-2; John 1:1-18]. In the New Testament we do not need to have these doubts that Job had because our God is always with us and has given us an ever-present Comforter [Matthew 27:51; Hebrews 13:5; Deuteronomy 31:6; John 14:16]. However, we can still learn some of Job’s best practices in seeking the Lord, like treasuring the words from the mouth of the Lord. The way Job sought the Lord reminds me of David after he said that he sought the Lord as the deer pants for the water. “My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?“—Psalms 42:2. The thirst he had was not one he felt could go or would go unsatisfied. We see even more so the intensity of his praying in verse 3, where he says: “My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me all day long, ‘Where is your God?’ “—Here it almost sounds like David had friends similar to the friends Job had. God’s presence needed proof. Even Jesus faced this scorn on the cross: ” ‘He saved others,’ they said, ‘but he can’t save himself! He’s the king of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. ‘ “—Matthew 27:42. While God’s presence will not be withheld from us to the point we cry “Eli Eli lama sabachtani”—Matthew 27:46—we know that the saints must enter the kingdom through tribulations and the cross is still part of our experience as saints. Trials do not suggest the absence of God. Without the cross, there’s no resurrection or resurrection power. Unless the kernel dies, it won’t rise to produce many fruits [Acts 14:22; John 16:33; Romans 8:17; 2 Timothy 3:12; 1 Peter 1:7; Philippians 3:7-10; Matthew 28:1-6; John 12:24; 2 Timothy 2:12]. The breaking of the outer shell of the flesh is crucial for the release of the inner fragrance of the spirit. Because of this, such trials are as nourishing as prayer and the word. Jesus said that man shall not live by bread alone and that He himself was the bread that came from heaven [Matthew 4:4; John 6:51]. So, if we treasure the words of God’s mouth, we have to feed on Christ—we have to long and seek this much more than we do our breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Some days we must fast just so we can seek to be filled with Christ’s words. When Paul wrote Timothy a message he expected to reach the church, he said: “If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained.”—1 Timothy 4:6. If we feed on Christ through His Gospels, we will be nourished up in the words of faith and not be forgetful hearers. The unbelief, doubts, dishonor of God’s name, and treating God like trash that we see among majority of Christians and pastors today—especially on social media—is a result of lack of this kind of nourishment. Christ’s words must fill us to the point that the only thing coming out of our mouths is love, faith, and hope [Mark 11:22-24; 1 Corinthians 13]. As for Psalms 42:1-3, we see that prayer must be mixed up with our Bible reading, in order to receive the Rhema of God, not just the Logos. We need the quickening voice of God inside our hearts, not just memorize Bible facts in our head. There’s a point where intense, passionate, zealous, groaning, powerful, sweet, intimate prayer brings us face to face with God like Moses on Mount Sinai or like Jesus on Mount Tabor [Exodus 33:11; Matthew 17:1-5; Romans 8:26-27; Isaiah 66:7-9]—we must seek to reach that place where prayer will sustain us like food. Let’s ascend the Mount of God [Psalms 15:1-5; Hebrews 12:22-24]—God’s glorious presence is our potion and portion.

Thursday, December 1st, 2022

Now set your heart and soul to seek the LORD your God. Get started building the sanctuary of the LORD God, so that you may bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD and the holy articles of God into the temple that will be built for the Name of the LORD—1 Chronicles 22:19.

David was a very good father to Solomon. We are told by Solomon that a good father leaves an inheritance to his children’s children [Proverbs 13:22]—and what we read in 1 Chronicles 22 is a quite significant inheritance that David left for Solomon. One of the most important assignments that the Lord had for Solomon was build the temple and David did his best to make sure the work would be easy for Solomon. David found workers who would build the temple, both foreigners and Israelites [1 Chronicles 22:2; 1 Kings 7:14; 2 Chronicles 2 verse 7 and 14].David also was the one who provided the iron, the bronze, the timber, the silver, and the gold. His reasoning was: “My son Solomon is young and inexperienced, and the house to be built for the LORD must be exceedingly magnificent…I must make preparations for it. “—1 Chronicles 22:5. This is what any good and reasonable father would do. David knew what the Lord wanted Solomon to do—build the temple—but he also knew that Solomon was no match to the kind of tasks that the Lord had called him to do. So, he had to make preparations and get everything for his son. Often the work of the Lord fails in some generations because either the fathers did not leave an adequate inheritance or the younger generations had no idea what the complexity of building the kingdom of God will be like. If the glory of God’s house is too little in our eyes we will not have ample provisions and preparation to build it. There are no problems that America faces in 2022 that would have been considered unpredictable in 2000 or 1990 or even 1975. Many ills and evils of society take decades to develop. But Christians who were in leadership in those years probably thought like Hezekiah in Isaiah 39:8—”…For the king was thinking, “At least there will be peace and security during my lifetime.’ “—Though God had helped Hezekiah to defeat the Assyrians without a fight, he had opened the door for the Babylonians who would later wreak havoc on his children—and when he got confronted by prophet Isaiah, rather than repent like he would normally do—he shrugged his shoulders because the destruction would not occur during his reign. That was very selfish. David was not that kind of father. The Hebrew word used for “inexperienced” is “rak” and it can also mean soft, tender, delicate, weak, timid, and faint. God wants a strong people and those who are strong are called to carry the burdens of the weak [Romans 15:1-2; Romans 14:1; 1 Corinthians 9:22; 1 Corinthians 10:24; Acts 20:35]—David made sure to use his strength to help Solomon’s generation. From 1 Chronicles 22:7, we see David’s instructions to Solomon about building the temple. A striking acknowledgement of the pre-requisite for this assignment was the peace the Lord granted Solomon. “But a son will be born to you who will be a man of rest. I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side; for his name will be Solomon, and I will grant to Israel peace and quiet during his reign.“—1 Chronicles 22:9. David’s job had been to subdue the enemies through warfare—2 Samuel 7:1; 1 Kings 5:3— and when his time on earth was complete, his son would be a man of rest—yet God takes the credit for Solomon’s rest. No amount of warfare that David did in the previous generation would have given Solomon rest—especially if the enemies of Israel thought that Solomon would be weak. Satan never goes to sleep in any generation. Unless Satan is bound, he will always deceive somebody somewhere that troublemaking is a good idea. Only God can give His people rest. This quietness came with a responsibility— Now set your heart and soul to seek the LORD your God—you have no Goliaths to defeat like I did, so you have no excuse for being slack in seeking God. “Set your heart and soul“—”devote your heart and soul”— in NIV—”determine in your mind and heart”—in CSB—the heart is what New Testament authors, especially Paul and John, also call the spirit. The mind is the intellect. Our destiny in what we will accomplish for God can be determined in our hearts and chosen minds and will [Proverbs 23:7; Matthew 5:8; 2 Chronicles 19:1-11; Ezra 7:10; 1 Samuel 7:3]. We devote ourselves to do those things we have been called for. There’s no mysterious gate Satan will use to attack us other than our hearts and minds—if we do not buy his lies, he has no entry—so, “guard your heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.”—Proverbs 4:23. We have nothing good and glorious outside of God’s kingdom—so we might as well set our hearts on the things of God above all things and before everything else [Psalms 16:2; Psalms 73:25; 2 Samuel 12:8; Genesis 17:1; Psalms 23:1; Romans 8:32; Exodus 19:5-6; Jeremiah 7:23; Joshua 1:8; Proverbs 3:15; 1 Peter 3:15]. When the heart is unguarded, deception is easy [Jeremiah 17:9; 2 Chronicles 12:14]—even evil things could be called good because of deception [Isaiah 5:20; Galatians 6:7]. We are blessed by God when our hearts embrace the light of God and is in alignment with His standards of truth—the only source of enduring success and prosperity [Psalms 36:9; Psalms 119:130; John 8:12; Psalms 97:11; Isaiah 60:1-5]. Solomon would be doing physical work of constructing the temple and then later on bringing the Ark of the Covenant inside the temple, but God does not delight in sacrifices as much as He delights in obedience [1 Samuel 15:22; Hebrews 10:6-7; Psalms 40:6-7]. No amount of religious activities done supposedly to honor God can atone for one sin. So, walking holy before the Lord and seeking the Lord with all his heart was to come before all the other labor that had to be done for the Lord. The offerings of our hands are acceptable when the worship of our hearts is pure [ Romans 12:1-2; 2 Corinthians 2:14-17; Hebrews 13:15-16; Matthew 15:8; Psalms 50:9-17]. We are only on earth to do God’s will and pleasure and nothing else. Let us seek how we can promote the cause of Christ in our generation by building the church that Christ will glory in and that He will use to destroy the gates of hell—with wholehearted devotion and authentic worship. 

Friday, December 2nd, 2022

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things—Colossians 3:1-2

Yesterday, we had seen David instruct his son Solomon, “Now set your heart and soul to seek the LORD your God. Get started building the sanctuary of the LORD God…” —1 Chronicles 22:9. It is possible that some of us could think like—”Solomon was a king or a leader and I am just part of laity, so that does not apply to me as a regular Christian”—That’s usually a misunderstanding because the priesthood of all believers is taught in 1 Peter 2:9-10. Moreover, John the Apostle also says that all saints are kings in Revelation 1:5-6. Christ has made all of us priests and kings for our God. The nature of the New Covenant means that we all have access to God, not just those in formal priesthood or professional ministry or five fold ministries [Romans 5:2; Ephesians 2:18; Hebrews 4:15-16; Hebrews 7:25]. Moreover, seeking God should not just be for the sake of building a temple or the church, we seek God as individuals for His worth for our own personal lives, not just the corporate gathering of the saints. As Paul always does in his epistles, he starts by talking about the redemption we have received through Christ, the salvation we have by free grace, and then proceeds to talk about the implications of that for holy living. We see that in the Romans 1-5 first section of the book of Romans dealing with sin and God’s redemptive plan. Then Romans 6-8 in the second section of the book of Romans he talks about sanctification. We see that again in Ephesians 1-3 that are focused on the salvation by grace and God’s redemptive plan at the beginning of that epistle and then Ephesians 4-6 focus on sanctification and how those who follow Jesus are supposed to walk in a manner worthy of their calling. This is the same method he uses in Colossians 1-2 talking about our translation from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of Christ, the forgiveness of sins, and our perfection in Christ through justification. Then, in Colossians 3-4, he talks about our progressive sanctification and walking wisely in our day-to-day living. God may have revealed Himself to us when we were not seeking Him and we may have been born again simply because somebody else prayed for us and then shared with us the message of the Gospel [Romans 10:20; Isaiah 65:1]. But at some point all of us will have to seek God for ourselves. We will have to set our minds and hearts on seeking God beyond what our spiritual fathers and mothers taught us—beyond what our friends, mentors, and Bible study groups have been able to show us. Spiritual growth has a huge personal aspect. Paul is saying “if ye then be risen with Christ“—if you are no longer dead in your trespasses and sins [Ephesians 2:1-10]—if you are not ignorant of Christ’s resurrection from the dead and if you are no longer an unbeliever destined to perish in your sins [1 Corinthians 15:17-19]—If you have the hope of being resurrected from the dead when the Lord Jesus Christ appears to take the redeemed [John 5:24; John 11:25; 1 John 3:1-3]—then, consequentially, because of our assertions/conclusions in the previous chapters—set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Paul says in Ephesians 2:6 that the saints have been raised with Christ and are positionally seated at the right hand of God right now. If God has seated me in heaven at His right hand positionally, why shouldn’t I want to be there mentally, visually, mystically, and eventually taken there through the rapture when Christ appears ? If God has brought me to Mount Zion positionally, why shouldn’t I want to imagine thousands upon thousands of angels in Joyful assembly crying holy, holy, holy—whether I am at church or at home—why shouldn’t I want to seek to join them through spiritual encounters like apostle Paul and John—why shouldn’t I want to see Jesus standing or sitting in heaven like Stephen did ? [2 Corinthians 12:2-4; Revelation 4:1-11; Acts 7:55; Psalms 34:7; Hebrews 1:14; Psalms 104:4; Exodus 23:23; Luke 12:8; Psalms 103:20; Acts 8:26; John 1:51; Genesis 28:12-16; Ezekiel 1:3-28; 1 Corinthians 2:9-16]. Seeing heaven, seeing angels, being caught up to glory, encountering the throne of God and all other supernatural experiences are not for the Old Testament prophets, first century Christians or some Catholic mystics in the 12th-20th century—that should be looked upon as unattainable for the Protestants, Pentecostals, and Catholics of the 21st century—we are to called to study these things freely given to us as we read them in the Scriptures—to set our hearts and minds on those things above so that we can desire them and ask God to manifest Himself to us [John 14:18]. The book of Revelation has provided us quite an imagery we can fill our minds with to help us in this process of renewing our minds with things above [Romans 12:2]. We see the 24 elders bowing—we see a multitude with palm branches—we see the glassy sea—we see the throne from which flashes of lightning emanate, where rumblings of thunder come from—and we see the Lamb upon the throne—”those wounds yet visible above, in beauty glorified“—we see the Ancient of Days sitting in judgment and books opened before Him [Revelation 4:10; Revelation 5:1-4; Revelation 7:9 Daniel 7 verse 9,10, and 14; Hebrews 12:22-24; 1 Kings 22:1-38; Isaiah 6:1-8; Job 2:1-7; Luke 22:31]. We are to called to dwell there in our imagination—Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things— think of angelic zeal and their cries of Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty—rather than how to accumulate money, seeking worldly pleasures, or political tricks to get political issues win by carnal means. Notice that the Scriptures don’t say that government on earth doesn’t matter or that working for an income at a secular job is wrong. We have plenty of Scriptures that talk about those things as well. But if we look to God as the creator of all of these things, we are more likely to trust Him for His ordering these things for our good—rather than spend our days overly concerned about what the far left or far right are trying to do in politics—what the economic trends, recessions, and stock markets could mean for our future. These things will go the way we want them to go if we seek the kingdom of God first and His righteousness—and our will aligns with Christ’s [Matthew 6:33; Psalms 127:1-2; Hebrews 11:6; Luke 5:5; Luke 10:19; Colossians 2:15; Philippians 4:19; Psalms 23:1-6; Luke 12:32; 1 Timothy 2:1-5; Acts 5:19-20; Acts 12:7; Acts 9:31; Psalms 149:4-9; Psalms 2:1-12; Jeremiah 32:27; John 15:7; 1 John 5:14-15]

Saturday, December 3rd, 2022

And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring—Number 15:39

Many of the Scriptures that we see are rather strong and they can create disturbance in unstable minds. There are people who would never hear a preacher teach on the cross during the Passion Week/Holy Week, like Good Friday for example, without construing that somehow the death of Jesus on the cross means they should not do God’s work since “It is finished” or that the preacher is giving a license to sin in teaching that Christ is the Lamb of God who takes the sins of the world or anything to do with the Old Hymns of Redemption we learned as children [John 19:30; Romans 6:1; John 1:29; Psalms 103:12; Micah 7:19; Hebrews 8:12]. I witnessed that back in March-April season. But I have long heard from God and learned that strong passages must be preached accurately and faithfully when they are given to us by the Holy Spirit because what people think or how they react is irrelevant if we want to see the great awakening. In the modern church in America, we have Christians who don’t understand the atonement or believe in justification because preachers are afraid to teach on those topics clearly. If preachers cannot teach the whole counsel of God for fear they will be accused this or that, they will end up with a diluted Gospel that can hardly save anyone. The same is true with the teachings on the fear of the Lord, obedience, sanctification, and holiness. With that background in mind, let us turn to Numbers chapter 15. What re the things we see taught in Numbers 15 ? It starts with verse 1 telling us “The Lord said to Moses“—this is the word of the Lord. Then He proceeds in verse 2: “After you enter the land I am giving you…”—these would be their instructions after possessing Canaan-land. God’s rules are not just for the facilitation of us reaching our destiny, they are the commandments we must keep while living the dreams of our destiny. In verse 3, we see these rules applied to offerings that were a fragrance before the Lord. These offerings included animals and grains. They were the fruits of their farming/husbandry. Some of them are called “freewill offerings” or “voluntary offerings”—which would distinguish them from sin offerings or cleansing offerings [Leviticus 23: 37-39; Ezekiel 46:12; Leviticus 19:3-25; Leviticus 5: 1-13; Leviticus 1:3-17; Leviticus 4:13-20; Leviticus 14:34-53; Leviticus 22:18-32; Deuteronomy 12]—in short, worship cost something in the Old Testament [2 Samuel 24:24]. This is interesting because there are Christians in the New Covenant who speak against tithes and offerings, not only because they see them as sources of prosperity for the preachers, but also because those Christians are against the idea of giving anything at all—which in either case—the refusal to give is unjustified [Malachi 3:10; Matthew 23:23-24; Mark 7:11-14; Matthew 10:10; 1 Timothy 5:18; 1 Corinthians 9:14; Luke 10:7]—I have seen preachers, who in their anti-prosperity Gospel, nullify the Word of God we know regarding tithes and offerings. The sin of greed of some preachers should not lead to extremes that corrupt the Word of God. Getting closer to God and building His kingdom will cost us something—but whatever we give comes from God anyway—and we would never out-give God [Luke 6:38; Philippians 4:19; Psalms 50:9-12; Haggai 2:8; 2 Corinthians 8:9; 2 Corinthians 9:7]. Coming back to Numbers 15, we see in verses 13-15 that these rules applied both the Israel citizens and foreigners in the land. In verses 20-21, we see that the Lord required the firstfruits. It would have been inappropriate, ungodly, and dishonoring to give God the left-overs. If the tenth of the produce was to be given to the Lord, it had to be taken out before any other expenses or consumption for one’s own needs. God’s offerings and gifts came first. The following passage of Numbers 15:32-36 is one of the hardest ones. A man was caught gathering wood on the Sabbath day—a day of compulsory rest. Israel had no revelation what to do with him so they kept him in custody until the Lord told Moses what to do—have the whole camp of Israel stone the man to death for breaking the Sabbath rest. This gives us a glimpse of God’s anger and wrath against unwarranted and forbidden labor. Rest is not an option among many others. It is a life and death issue. It is after that passage we see the verse of our opening Scripture today. The Israelites were told to make tassels on their garments. The Hebrew word used here is “Tsitsith“—which can also be written as Tzitzit and has also been called “tallit.” These were to remind Israelites the commandments of the Lord so that they would not seek after their own lusts. I have seen people who question things like imagery of celestial realities we are to imagine when we set our minds on things above—as though they are superfluous, unnecessary, and unnatural. This is nothing other than carnality and offense with the Word of God. If we do not think of heavenly things, we will think of carnal things. If we do not remember the commandments of the Lord, we will seek after worldly lusts, greed, and idols. Sanctification does not develop in a vacuum. We look and we remember. We must set our hearts on things above. Our minds and consciences must become captive to the Word of God [2 Corinthians 10:5; Joshua 1:8; Psalms 1:2; Genesis 24:63; Psalms 119:11; Psalms 25:5; Psalms 63:6; Psalms 112:1; Psalms 40:8; Psalms 119 verse 35, 47, 72; Deuteronomy 6:7; Deuteronomy 11:19; Ephesians 6:17; Genesis 18:19; Psalms 104:34; Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16; Deuteronomy 17:18-19; 1 Samuel 15:22; Jeremiah 17:9; Jeremiah 16:12; Matthew 13:15; Matthew 23:5; Matthew 5:1-48; James 1:22-27; 1 Samuel 16:7; Matthew 6:4; 1 Peter 3:15; Jeremiah 31:31-33; Hebrews 8:8-12; Hebrews 10:16-23; Exodus 36:27; 2 Corinthians 3:2-3]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Expanded Posts For End of February 2021 Devotionals-Spring 2022

Sunday, March 20th, 2022

Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest- Mark 6:31

Monday, March 21st, 2022

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

 

Devotionals, April 12th to December 31st year 2021

THESE 4 weeks DEVOTIONALS WILL BE REPOSTS

First week of January repost is below. Click on “continue reading” or the title.

Second week of January repost is below. Click on “continue reading” or the title.

Third week of January repost is below. Click on “continue reading” or the title.

End of the Month of January repost is below. Click on “continue reading” or the title

Devotionals, First Ten Days of April

April 1^st,2021

Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who obeyed. 

“Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said, “So I declared on oath in my anger, ‘They shall never enter my rest.'” And yet his works have been finished since the creation of the world.

For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: “On the seventh day God rested from all his works.” And again in the passage above he says, “They shall never enter my rest.” Therefore since it still remains for some to enter that rest, and since those who formerly had the good news proclaimed to them did not go in because of their disobedience. God again set a certain day, calling it “Today.” This he did when a long time later he spoke through David, as in the passage already quoted: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.” For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. Hebrews 4:1-11.

This is Day 46 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for making us the beneficiaries of both the works of creation and your work of redemption (Psalms 8:4-6; Genesis 1:26-28; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; 1 John 2:2). All things that you created were beautiful indeed but we failed our assignment to rule over them and manage them in a way that displays your glory because of sinning against you (Genesis 1:31; Psalms 139:14; Ecclesiastes 3:11; Job 5:9; Romans 3:23). We thank you for sending your beloved Son, Jesus, to redeem us, Father (Galatians 4:4; Romans 6:23; John 3:16; Romans 5:10; Galatians 1:4; 2 Corinthians 9:15). As we remember His cry “It is finished!” while on the cross, bleeding for our sins, we want to thank you for bringing us into this rest (John 19:30). We thank you that our salvation is not by works and we can enter rest knowing that His work is perfect and we are forever righteous because of that work. We have nothing to boast in because we couldn’t achieve this salvation, Father, but we boast in your Son, Jesus Christ, in His death and resurrection ( Deuteronomy 32:4; Romans 5:1; John 6:28-29; Ephesians 2:8-9; Romans 5:17; Hebrews 10:14; 1 Corinthians 1:28-31).  He was forsaken so that we would be accepted. He was crushed so that we may be healed. He was thirsty so that we would have the living waters to drink. He drank bitter vinegar so that we would drink the sweet wine of the Spirit. He bowed His head on the cursed tree so that we would lift our hands before your glorious throne. Our boast is in His magnificent work of redemption (Matthew 27:46; Ephesians 1:5-7; 1 John 2:12; Isaiah 53:4-5; John 4:14; John 7:38; Acts 2:13-17; 1 Peter 2:3; Romans 11:33). Lord, we have our eyes and ears open to what your Holy Spirit is showing and saying to us so that we can do those works that you have prepared for us beforehand. Awaken all the saints around the world to your perfect purpose because your plan is to give them a hope and a future by walking in those works you prepared in eternity (Ephesians 2:10; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Jeremiah 29:11;Jeremiah 33:3; Psalms 94:9; Isaiah 65:24; Numbers 14:28; Matthew 11:15; Revelation 2:7; Revelation 3:13,22; Psalms 40:6; Hebrews 10:7; John 5:19; John 8:29; Isaiah 50:5; Philippians 2:12-13; Romans 13:11; Romans 8:14; Psalms 32:8) . We want to serve you out of rest; with our activities, ministries, businesses, jobs, education, relationships, partnerships, trips, and all projects we are involved in flowing from the revelation that you give us about our calling in your kingdom and the impact that you want us to have in our appointed times in history (Acts 17:26; Acts 15:18; Psalms 33:11; Proverbs 21:30; John 16:13-14; 1 Corinthians 12:3-11; 1 Corinthians 14:1; Isaiah 48:3; Jeremiah 1:5; Psalms 139:16; Malachi 3:16;  1 Thessalonians 1:3; Romans 15:4; Hebrews 6:10; Hebrews 13:20-21). We pray that you equip us for every good work and may our work that flows from your rest please you and bring you glory, Lord. In the name of our precious Redeemer, Jesus, we pray. Amen !

April 2^nd,2021

For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumblingblock and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. 1 Corinthians 1:22-25

This is Day 47 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for the invitation to seek your face and your strength, and to seek your presence continually (1 Chronicles 16:11; Psalms 105:4; Psalms 63:1-2; Psalms 27:8; Zephaniah 2:3). We thank you for your power we have received by seeking you. Lord, open our eyes to understand what seeking your face and strength means so that we will not approach your throne with the vain imaginations of the world (Ecclesiastes 5:1-2; 2 Corinthians 10:5; Ephesians 1:17-23; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Psalms 96:9; Luke 23:48-49; Matthew 27:3-4; John 12:36-40). Lord, we do not seek you for a sign like Jews, because we believe the sign of Jonas, that Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and on the third day rose from the dead. We do not seek you for worldly wisdom like Greeks, to make us fashioned in the image of the world and its pursuits of carnal wisdom, with the resulting acquisition of wealth and power. Neither do we want to seek you like false disciples who betrayed our Lord and crucified Him (Matthew 12:38-41; John 2:16-19;1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Isaiah 7:11-14; Matthew 27:50-54; John 20:24-28; 2 Corinthians 5:7; 1 Timothy 6:5-14; 1 Timothy 4:8-9; Matthew 6:32-33; John 18:4-8; 2 Timothy 4:10-Colossians 4:14; Hebrews 6:6; 1 John 2:15-17; Numbers 15:39; Psalms 4:2; Psalms 10:4; Ecclesiastes 7:25; Proverbs 8:10-12; Isaiah 31:1; Ezekiel 28:5-7; Luke 16:1-8; Romans 12:2). We want to seek you like John who stood by the cross when everyone deserted Jesus. We want to cling to the cross that gave us the life we didn’t deserve when death was our sentence. We want to be like Paul and Padre Pio, carrying the effects of the cross and resurrection with us (John 19:25-28; Luke 14:25-27; Mark 8:34-38; 2 Corinthians 11:24; Galatians 6:17; John 12:24; Luke 23:26; Luke 22:19; Hebrews 13:11-15; Philippians 3: 7-10). We pray that you give us the strength to follow Jesus all the way. We pray that the testimony that comes from that will defeat Satan. Help us uncover the mysteries of the cross and its power to break chains. Anoint us to preach on the blood of Jesus with conviction and cleansing of sinners (John 16:7-11; Acts 2:36-38; Acts 5:28; Exodus 12:13; Hebrews 9:14,22; Revelation 12:11; Acts 20:28;Matthew 26:28; 1 Peter 1:18-19; Hebrews 10:19-23; 1 Corinthians 7:23-25; Colossians 2:15; 2 Corinthians 5:14; Genesis 22:1-17; James 2:21; Hebrews 12:2). May your Spirit help us bring the acceptable sacrifice of a humble and broken heart (Isaiah 49:16; Isaiah 53:3-5; Isaiah 57:15; Isaiah 66:2; Genesis 41:9-13; Romans 9:15; Luke 18:9-14; Luke 22:61-62; Psalms 51:17; John 3:14-16; Numbers 21:1-9; John 19:30). As the truth of your Gospel and the cross is proclaimed, we ask that you turn sinners from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to the kingdom of Christ (John 3:19; Matthew 12:28-29; Acts 26:18; Colossians 1:13-14). Give us understanding in your truth so that we can delight in the things you call wisdom, even though they may be considered foolishness by the world, and stay away from worldly wisdom that is considered foolishness in your presence (Luke 16:14-16; Colossians 2:3; Exodus 31:3; Genesis 39:1-6; 1 Kings 3:28; 1 Kings 4:29-34; Luke 11:31; Matthew 6:28-29; 2 Corinthians 8:9; Isaiah 5:20; Isaiah 55:8-9; 2 Corinthians 10:4). Deliver us from evil and Satan’s schemes. In the merciful name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

April 3^rd,2021

 Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem. And they talked together of all these things which had happened. So it was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know Him. And He said to them, “What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?” Then the one whose name was Cleopas answered and said to Him, “Are You the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have You not known the things which happened there in these days?” And He said to them, “What things?” So they said to Him, “The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened. Yes, and certain women of our company, who arrived at the tomb early, astonished us. When they did not find His body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said He was alive. And certain of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but Him they did not see.” 

 Then He said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?”

And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself. Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther. But they constrained Him, saying, “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.” And He went in to stay with them. Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight. And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?” So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying, “The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” And they told about the things that had happened on the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of bread. Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, “Peace to you.” Luke 24:13-36

This is Day 48 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for opening our eyes to behold the glory of the Risen Christ. We rejoice that death could not hold Him and His resurrection is our hope of life. We thank you for the countless times our hearts have burned within us as we heard His words in the Gospels. We thank you for all the blessings we have received in communion when breaking bread. We thank you for forgiving our sins, justifying us, and healing our diseases.(Acts 2:24; Titus 1:2; Isaiah 12:1; Isaiah 54:7-8; Hosea 6:2; 1 Corinthians 15:6; Acts 9:1-15; John 17:20-24; Matthew 27:57-61; Psalms 30:5; Psalms 126:5;  Acts 13:35-37; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Psalms 103:1-3; Psalms 103:9-12; Isaiah 53:10-12; 1 Corinthians 15:19; Acts 2:42). Lord, we pray that you will complete your work in us. Open to us the Scriptures. Give us understanding of what the prophets and the apostles have spoken. We have been called into your marvelous light and to show forth your excellencies, and yet oftentimes, for many of us, for the church here in America and elsewhere, it seems like the power of God that the disciples witnessed, that we see displayed in the book of Acts, does not appear to be a reality. We are sorry that often our reasonable conversations are the same like these disciples, full of unbelief and foolishness (Acts 17:6; Philippians 1:6; Jude 1:24-25; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; Romans 16:25; 1 Peter 2:9; Psalms 145:4,6 ; Psalms 102:18; Psalms 78:4; Psalms 22:24-30; Galatians 3:1-5; Matthew 23:17-19; Romans 1:22-23; 2 Corinthians 11:19-23; Matthew 12:34-38; James 3:1-2; Ephesians 5:15-16; Matthew 16:6-9; Matthew 18:1-3; Matthew 20:20-28; Matthew 17:15-17; Acts 2:41; Acts 4:4) . We read that Jesus is the same yesterday and today, and yet, the experience of the church is not the same today as it was 200 years ago when Charles Finney was here, much less 2000 years ago when Peter and Paul were here. Your power is not demonstrated like Paul showed the Corinthians. While many of us seem to enjoy the freedom that Christ has won for us, we also see demonic forces raging, when you had promised that we would soon crush Satan under our feet and that old dragon would also flee from those who resisted his schemes. Father, in many ways we are like Cleopas on his road to Emmaus, we are like we thought Jesus would turn states after states upside down, from churches to universities, from universities to businesses large and small, from the homeless to the government leaders in authority, all touched by the glory of God—We thought that nothing was impossible with God—We thought that Jesus was the Savior of the world—We thought that you were Jehovah El Elyon, the Lord Most High—your greatness is in doubt in American churches and many nations today, Lord—rather than the glorious transformation we hoped for—we see confusion, darkness, and hopelessness (Isaiah 60:1-3; Luke 1:37; Jeremiah 32:17; Mark 9:23; 2 Kings 3:18; Matthew 19:26; 2 Corinthians 1:20; Psalms 76:12;  Ephesians 3:16-20; Psalms 66:3-4; Ephesians 1:21-23; Psalms 47:2; Philippians 2:9-11; 1 Timothy 4:1-5; Matthew 24:12; 1 John 2:18; Nehemiah 1:5; Deuteronomy 33:29; Psalms 18:44;  Revelation 2:4; Mark 13:8; 1 Timothy 2:1-5; 1 Corinthians 2:2-5; Hebrews 13:8; John 8:36; Galatians 5:1; John 18:8-9; Philemon 1:22; Hebrews 13:23; Acts 5:18-19; Acts 16:25-30; 2 Thessalonians 3:1; Romans 16:20; Ephesians 6:10-18; Matthew 16:18-19; James 4:7; Colossians 1:6; Romans 10:18; Matthew 24:14; Matthew 28:18-20). Father, we ask that your kingdom come in power, that your glory that was poured out on Pentecost will come like a tornado of fire in churches in America and beyond. We pray that we will be able to witness the miracles Peter saw on the streets of Jerusalem. We long for the angelic visitations that we see throughout the stories of these early disciples. We pray for the powerful evangelism that Philip witnessed in Samaria. We ask for multiplication of disciples on a daily basis throughout America, in all states, a revival that awakens hundreds of millions of souls in this country and billions more outside of America (Matthew 6:9-13; Mark 9:1; Acts 2:2-4; Acts 19:2; Acts 8:8;Acts 5:14-16; Ezekiel 34:26; James 5:7-8;  Isaiah 44:3; 2 Peter 3:9; Luke 10:19-21; Acts 16:5; Acts 19:20; 1 John 4:4; Ephesians 1:3; 2 Peter 1:3-4; Colossians 1:27; John 14:12; Psalms 110:3; Hebrews 10:12-13). Father, in your rich mercies and great patience, we ask that you prepare the church and the world for the final return of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. In the name of our High Priest, Jesus, we pray. Amen !

April 5^th, 2021

 Behold, I send forth the promise of my Father on you. But wait in the city of Jerusalem until you are clothed with power from on high. Luke 24:49 (WEB)

This is Day 50 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for having raised us up with Christ and made us to be seated with Him in the heavenly places. We thank you for his body we share on the Lord’s table and his blood with drink by faith in His crucifixion. We thank you for having given us a family in the body of Christ, Jews and Gentiles, from North and from South, from East and from West, who all share the same bond of the Spirit (Ephesians 2:6; Colossians 2:12;Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 10:7; John 17:11; 1 Corinthians 12:27; Ephesians 4:3;  Luke 13:29; Revelation 7:9; Galatians 3:28-29; Genesis 28:14; Isaiah 49:6). Lord, as we still remember the joys of the empty tomb and Risen Christ, we pray that your Spirit will work upon our affections, to help us lift our eyes towards your throne and our minds to be set on the things above, because our citizenship is in heaven, Lord, and we await our Savior coming from there for the redemption of our bodies—that will be transformed like His glorious body. Teach us to live from that place where our life is hidden, how to live by Spirit, walk by the Spirit, pray in the Spirit, sing in the Spirit, preach under the Holy Spirit’s unction, plan our future by the Spirit, and have everything we do solely done for the glory of God ( Matthew 28:6; Colossians 3:1-2; Matthew 16:21; John 20:1-9; Revelation 1:14; Revelation 19:12; Mark 16:19; Psalms 110:1; Philippians 3:20-21; 1 Corinthians 15:48-52; Galatians 5:16, 25; Romans 6:5; Romans 8:4; Galatians 6:8; Romans 8:26; 1 Corinthians 14:14-16; Nehemiah 5:13; Matthew 18:19; Jude 1:20; 1 Corinthians 10:31; Matthew 5:16). Lord, we want to see more presence and power of the Holy Spirit than the current experience of the church in America and elsewhere. Lord, we know we should not be in the state we are in because Christ has purchased our salvation and obtained that gift of the Holy Spirit for us, and yet, in many ways, the manifestations of the Holy Spirit in the church are not what they should be. The explosive growth of the church that your Spirit brought after Pentecost is not seen here in America and beyond, and many churches don’t see 3000 thousands people added in an entire decade, let alone in one year or one month. So, we wait upon you Lord to bring us out of this weakened and impoverished state. We had said that we were increased in goods and riches, that we have acquired wealth and did not need anything, now we realize how poor and desperate we are, how wickedness is increasing and the church is impotent to overturn the trend or change the course of history like we have been reading happened in the past centuries (Luke 5:17; Acts 10:38; Acts 1:4; Isaiah 44:3; 2 Corinthians 1:20; Acts 2:17,39, Numbers 23:19; Joel 2:28; Isaiah 32:15; Isaiah 59:21; Psalms 27:14; Psalms 25:13; Psalms 40:1-5; Psalms 130:5; Lamentations 3:25; Habakkuk 2:3; Revelation 3:14-21; Jeremiah 2:28; Revelation 2:4; Philippians 1:9; Jeremiah 14:19; Jeremiah 7:1-7;Deuteronomy 32:20;  Hosea 12:8; Zechariah 11:5; Matthew 5:3; Isaiah 66:2; Acts 2:1-4; Acts 16:5; Joshua 23:10; Deuteronomy 28:7;  Isaiah 29:17;Isaiah 35:2;Ezekiel 37:14; 1 Chronicles 4:10; Zechariah 12:8; Ezra 9:5; 1 Kings 8:54-56; Ephesians 3:14-21; Deuteronomy 4:24; 2 Timothy 1:6; Hebrews 12:22-29). Father God, we pray that you strengthen the saints of your inheritance as we wait for that tornado of your Spirit’s fire. Cloth us with power like a garment until everything we touch is electrified with your glory. In the name of the Faithful Savior, Jesus, we pray. Amen !

April 6^th, 2021

Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, “It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables. Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business

 But we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

Acts 6:2-4 (NKJV)

This is Day 51 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for the light we receive by the unfolding of your Word and its entrance into our hearts. Lord, no matter what light or brightness we had a month ago, we want to have more light this month and a brighter path. We know that this is the destiny of your righteous saints. We pray that you teach us how to go from glory to glory with the help of your Word (Psalms 119: 105, 130; Malachi 4:2; Psalms 84:11; 2 Peter 1:19; Joshua 1:8; Proverbs 4:18; Psalms 43:3;  Matthew 5:14; Luke 1:78; John 5:35; 2 Corinthians 4:6; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 2:10; Acts 26:18; Ephesians 1:18; 1 John 1:5-7; 2 Corinthians 3:18) . We ask that you also teach us the importance of prayer so that we can give our full attention to this. Help us learn how to devote ourselves to prayer, to be steadfast in it, persevere under all circumstances, have staying power in prayer, and prevail through prayer. Give us a taste of your glory in prayer so that we can shun the enticements of TV, news, social media, and other distractions. Lord, we ask that even legitimate duties will not come between us and our time spent with you, that you will give us the wisdom we need to prioritize prayer before all things and above all things. Where we need assistance with other duties, we pray that you will send helpers who are suitable for such tasks so that prayer and the study of your Word can have a preeminent role in our ministry. Bring us to our knees by the prompting of your Spirit so that we will not be brought to our knees by a surge of calamity. Show us where we have gone wrong in neglecting the Word and Prayer so that we can repent and make necessary changes ( Isaiah 41:21; 1 Thessalonians 5:17-19; Luke 18:1-8; Hosea 14:2; Ephesians 6:18; Numbers 3:9; Luke 11:5-8; Isaiah 26:9; Matthew 15:22-28; Isaiah 65:1; Matthew 7:7-11; Romans 8:32; Isaiah 63:7; 1 Chronicles 12:1; Nehemiah 4:16; Acts 19:22; Psalms 65:1; Psalms 116:14,18; Psalms 132:3-5; Psalms 25:6; Psalms 69:16; 1 Kings 19:18; Philippians 2:10; Isaiah 45:7; Ephesians 3:14; Isaiah 31:2;  Isaiah 47:11; Psalms 95:6; 2 Kings 19:25; Psalms 34:8; 1 Peter 2:3; 2 Chronicles 7:3; Hebrews 6:5; Psalms 86:16; Numbers 6:25; Psalms 68:35; 1 Corinthians 7:35; Matthew 6:24; Psalms 19:14; John 14:27) . Break the fallow grounds and hardness of our hearts towards intimacy with you and give us sweeter and sweeter moments of glory in your presence. Rather than dullness in prayer, give us fervency. Rather than sloth, give us zeal. Rather than sleepiness, give us awakening. Rather than feeling distant, bring us closer and nearer. Multiply answers to our prayers. Let us see more breakthroughs in the things we pray for in healing the sick, in the salvation of souls, in the provision of resources, in the strength to persevere, in the intercessions for those who are in authority, in the peace and tranquility in our regions, and acceleration of your kingdom in all areas ( Jeremiah 30:19; Acts 16:5; Isaiah 50:4; Psalms 145:19;  Psalms 10:17; Jeremiah 33:3; Luke 1:53; Psalms 20:4; Exodus 19:4; Psalms 95:2; Hosea 10:2;12; Mark 16:14; Genesis 27:28; Haggai 1:10; Deuteronomy 33:13; Leviticus 26:19; Proverbs 3:20; Ezekiel 34:26; Zechariah 8:12; James 4:8; Isaiah 58:2; Jeremiah 4:14; Acts 3:19; 1 Timothy 2:8; Psalms 28:2; Isaiah 44:3; Isaiah 45:8; Isaiah 48:18; Romans 12:11; Acts 12:5; Hebrews 3:5; John 12:40;  1 Timothy 2:1-5; Hebrews 4:7; Isaiah 55:1; Acts 4:29-31; Isaiah 61:9; John 7:37-39; Psalms 46:4; Psalms 23:2; Psalms 36:8; Genesis 22:17; Isaiah 6:8; Acts 9:31; Isaiah 51:3; Acts 12:24) . In the name of our exalted High Priest, Jesus, we pray. Amen !

April 7^th, 2021

 But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’ “- Matthew 25:5-6 (NKJV)

This is Day 52 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for being our defender and protector, without sleeping or slumbering (Psalms 121:4). We thank you for giving us Christ as our Shepherd, the Chief Shepherd of the sheep, who laid down His life for the sheep and through whom we lack no good thing (John 10:14-15; Psalms 23:1-3; 1 Peter 5:4). We thank you for giving us so many faithful and watchful pastors in America, and around the world, who tend the sheep carefully, gently, firmly, wisely, and generously (Jeremiah 3:15;John 21:15-17; Acts 20:28-29; Ezekiel 34:1-10; 1 Samuel 17:34-36; Revelation 2:14; 2 Timothy 2:18; 1 Timothy 6:5; 2 Corinthians 11:2-4; Titus 1:11-13; John 10:10; Zechariah 10:3; Zephaniah 3:3; James 3:1;  1 Timothy 5:17; Isiah 40:11; 3 John 1:1-4). Lord, we know that you have called us to follow the example of Christ and be watchmen, engaged in Spiritual warfare, fighting for the Israel of the Middle East (Isaiah 62:6-7; Matthew 23:37-39; Romans 9:3; Romans 11:12-13, 24-25), and the Israel of God, the church of Jesus Christ ( Galatians 6:16; Galatians 3:29; 2 Corinthians 1:20; Ephesians 6:10-18; Matthew 16:18-19). Lord, we are sorry that just like Peter and the disciples slumbered and slept at Christ’s hour of trial, we ourselves have often slumbered and slept in the days when the church is facing a great crisis and the world is falling apart. We are sorry for the moments of resting that turned into lethargy. There are times we have felt like the church is a car on a highway, running out of fuel, and we have not put sufficient oil in to be able to run the engine to the end of the road. Father, have mercy upon us and awaken us. Lord, show us your kindness and give us the oil, the anointing of your Holy Spirit, so that we can run and not be weary, so that we can arise and shine, so that we can soar on wings like eagles. We are rushing here to buy that gold tried in heavenly fire. Give us that gold, Lord! (Psalms 57:8-10; Isaiah 51:17; Matthew 26:40; Matthew 24:12; 1 John 2:18; 2 Thessalonians 2:3-10; Revelation 2:4; Revelation 3:14-21; 1 Peter 1:7; Acts 9:40-42; Haggai 2:8; Isaiah 55:1-5; Matthew 15:14; Matthew 23:24; Isaiah 9:16; 1 Corinthians 10:10; Matthew 3:9; Luke 16:24; Psalms 49:7; Matthew 13:20-21; Job 8:13-14; Numbers 22:27-33; Numbers 14:37; Ephesians 5:14; Acts 22:9; Proverbs 27:23-24; Isaiah 52:1; Isaiah 60:1-3; Psalms 133:1-2;Hebrews 1:9; Acts 1:8; John 16:13; 1 John 2:27). Teach us to walk with you. Fill us with your Spirit, love, and power. Make us the vessels that you can use for the glory of your name, the awakening of your church, and the salvation of souls that are lost in the darkness of the world. Make us worthy warriors, men of valor, who defeat the forces of darkness. (Leviticus 6:13; Psalms 84:11; Judges 6:12; Isaiah 42:13; 1 Timothy 6:12; 2 Timothy 2:4-5; Psalms 149:5-9; Esther 4:14; Joel 2:17; Psalms 79:10; Isaiah 37:20; 1 Samuel 12:22; Psalms 94:14; Psalms 106:8; Jeremiah 14:21; Isaiah  48:11; John 9:4; 1 John 3:8; Acts 10:38; James 4:17; Revelation 12:10-11; Isaiah 60:20; Isaiah 30:19; Ezekiel 36:25-27; Ephesians 3:16-20; Philippians 2:13-15; Ephesians 2:6; Psalms 113:7-8; Colossians 2:12; Colossians 3:1-2; Ephesians 1:19-20;  Psalms 18:28; Revelation 16:15; 2 Peter 1:19; Psalms 16:7; Proverbs 23:23; Revelation 1:12-17; Malachi 3:1-3; Luke 21: 36; Matthew 3:12) . In the name of our Chief Shepherd, Jesus, we pray. Amen!

[Noticed an encouraging video testimony on the topic- adding it before the worship song for the day- the link “Awaken the Dawn” below will lead to a Facebook page of that video testimony]

Awaken the Dawn

April 8^th, 2021

 Then had the churches rest throughout all Judaea and Galilee and Samaria, and were edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied. Acts 9:31 (KJV)

This is Day 53 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for the blessing you put upon the early church that inspires us. We thank you for the astonishing conversion of Apostle Paul that ended his zeal for persecuting the saints, and launched him into ministry to defend the Gospel he was trying to destroy. Lord, we acknowledge you as the One who brings rest to churches and the saints, who stops harassment and persecutions, in your power and wisdom. Father, we look to you for continued rest and tranquility, that the churches will be edified, and see their numbers multiplied ( 1 Kings 5:4; Proverbs 16:7;  Galatians 1:23-24; 1 Timothy 1:16; Psalms 46:9; Psalms 76:3;  1 Samuel 2:4; 2 Thessalonians 1:5-7;  2 Samuel 3:1; Psalms 143:12; Psalms 136:15; Jeremiah 50:29; Psalms 145:18-19; Proverbs 21:30; Acts 5:39; 1 Kings 8:56; Isaiah 10:27; Psalms 23:2; Jeremiah 30:10; Jeremiah 33:12; Acts 20:32; Jude 1:20; 1 Thessalonians 5:11; Philippians 2:1; 1 Corinthians 14:3; Acts 6:1; Acts 16:5 ). Teach us to still our souls and know that you are God. We want to see you exalted among the nations. (Psalms 46:10; Exodus 14:13-14; Isaiah 30:15). Give us the wisdom we need not to be trouble-seekers unnecessarily— in the things that are not central to the Gospel ministry—that we may learn to focus on what you have commanded in order to enjoy the peace that you give us in those things. Open our eyes to potential dangers that we might have been blinded to (Romans 14:19; Jeremiah 50:6-7;  Numbers 33:55; Psalms 92:5-6; Psalms 107:17; Deuteronomy 2:9; Jeremiah 4:18; Lamentations 3:39; Acts 9:23-25; Acts 20:23-24; Matthew 10:23; Jeremiah 26: 20-21; Acts 8:4; John 14:27;  Acts 11:19; John 16:33; Proverbs 22:3; Genesis 13:10; Joshua 9:3-4; 1 Samuel 16:7; John 7:24;  Number 14:9; Deuteronomy 1:29; Nehemiah 6:9; Isaiah 26:20; Psalms 57:1; Psalms 31:20; Psalms 91:4; Luke 2:14; Isaiah 48:18) . As these churches walked in the fear of the Lord while being edified, we pray that you continue to give us revelations of who you are, so that in our generation, we can see increasing awareness of the fear of the Lord among the saints, and walking in holiness. We pray for increased manifestations of the presence of the Holy Spirit among the saints and the churches today, that we will know and see more of His mighty works, and we will find solace in Him. Lord, if there ever was a need for church growth, it is now. We pray for multiplication of believers—that you give us the knowledge, wisdom, anointing, strength, strategies, and resources to get that done—open the eyes of many who are blind and in the darkness of the world—that they will see the beauty of  Jesus, experience His love, witness His power, and taste His goodness (Proverbs 9:10; Job 28:28; 2 Corinthians 7:1; Acts 5:11; 1 Corinthians 14:24; Luke 10:22; Ephesians 1:17; 2 Corinthians 5:11; 2 Chronicles 14:14; 2 Chronicles 17:10; 2 Chronicles 20:29; Psalms 76:8; 1 Peter 2:3; Psalms 119:103; Isaiah 26:3; Romans 15:13; Jeremiah 29:11; Isaiah 41:10; Philippians 4:6-7; Acts 4:24-31; Daniel 3:28; Daniel 4:35-36; Acts 6:7) . Break the walls of those who are hardened, convince those who are skeptical about Christ, and astonish those who know little of your power. In the majestic name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

April 9^th, 2021

Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” She, supposing Him to be the gardener, said to Him, “Sir, if You have carried Him away, tell me where You have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”

Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him, “Rabboni!” (which is to say, Teacher).Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.’ ” — John 20:15-17 (NKJV)

This is Day 54 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for raising us from death to life, from dust to glory, from sin to righteousness, from enemies of God to sons of God. We thank you for the cross of your Son, Jesus, that made it possible, and for His burial we took part in, when we accepted to be baptized after our new birth, and His majestic resurrection that has made us partakers of your divine nature (Ephesians 2:4-6; Romans 1:4; Daniel 7:13-14; John 3:16; John 15:13; 2 Corinthians 5:19-21; Titus 3:5; Colossians 2:12; Galatians 2:20; Romans 6: 4-5; 1 Peter 3:20-22; Psalms 113:7-8; Luke 1:52-53; Psalms 68:13; Colossians 1:21; Romans 5:10; Ephesians 2:12-15; Isaiah 63:7; 2 Peter 1:3-4; Hebrews 2:11;  2 Corinthians 3:18; John 1:12; 1 John 4:17; Revelation 1:5-6). Father, we ask that you bring to completion what you have started in us. We do not want to think of Jesus as a mere gardener, or as a mere ghost, a mere prophet, a mere healer, a mere philosopher, and a mere financial advisor. We want to know Christ as our wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. We want to be among those who will be counted worthy of the resurrection of the just. We want to be renewed in our thinking, have the mind of Christ, have supper with Him, tread where He has trodden, do greater works than He did, convert the whole world to His Gospel, and die the death of the righteous if He tarries, or be raptured to glory, if He comes in our generation. ( Philippians 1:6; Psalms 138:8; 1 Corinthians 1:8; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; Jude 1:24-25; Acts 20:32; Mark 6:49; Luke 24:37; Mark 16:14; Mark 8:12;  1 Corinthians 15:13-15; Matthew 22:29-33; John 5:24-25; John 11:25; Matthew 16:13-19; 1 John 2:18-22; Luke 24:21-26; Hebrews 13:8; John 6:26-29; 1 Timothy 6:5; Romans 12:2; 1 Corinthians 2: 9-16; Colossians 2:3; Luke 11:21; 1 Corinthians 1:30; Revelation 3:14-21; Mark 16:15; Matthew 28:18-20; Matthew 24:14; Hebrews 10:12-13; John 14:12; Romans 15:19;  Numbers 23:10; Isaiah 57:1; Psalms 116:15; Philippians 1:21-26;  1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; 1 Corinthians 15:51; John 14:1-6; Revelation 19:6-8;Psalms 45:3-13).  Teach us to set our minds on the things above where He has ascended at your right hand, Father, that our hearts will not be attached to the things of this world, that we will not cling to the things you say will pass away and melt in the heat of your judgments, rather seize the life that you have offered to us and be perfect as you, our heavenly Father, are perfect. We pray that you will enable us to be genuine and fervent seekers of your kingdom and all that your kingdom brings to us. Lord, help us to discern things that may be a stumbling block in the pursuit of our calling and give us the wisdom to overcome them. Teach us to worship you in truth and in Spirit. Help us to serve you with fear and trembling. Help us to give the life and love we owe you without murmuring or looking back. Give us the extravagant oil of gladness and laughter, with the fragrance of holy sacrifices and worship, that will make the world hunger for your goodness, blessings, and favor upon our lives (Song of Solomon 3:3; Song of Solomon 2:5; Colossians 3:1-2; Matthew 18:20; 1 John 2:15-17; Mark 4:19;  2 Peter 3:11; Matthew 24:35; Proverbs 1:10; Matthew 16:23; Genesis 3:17; Deuteronomy 13:8; 1 Samuel 15:22; 1 Corinthians 8:9-11; Galatians 2:13; 1 Corinthians 7:23; John 8:36;  1 John 4:4; 1 John 5:4; Isaiah 51:6; James 1:11; Isaiah 40:8; Revelation 21:1; Isaiah 65:17; 2 Corinthians 5:17; 1 John 3:1-3; 1 Timothy 6:12; Philippians 3:12; 1 Timothy 1:18-19; Romans 8:12; Mark 8:34-38; Luke 9:62; John 4:23-24; Matthew 7:7-11; Isaiah 26:9; 1 Corinthians 14:1,12; Matthew 13:44; Matthew 5:6;  Mark 8:20-21; Ephesians 1:17; Genesis 21:19; Isaiah 43:19; John 1:50; Numbers 24:3; Acts 7:55; 1 Samuel 3:1; 1 Samuel 16:7; Isaiah 30:10; 2 Kings 6:17; Colossians 2:5; 2 Kings 5:26; 1 Corinthians 5:3; Matthew 17:3-4; Matthew 17:27; Matthew 27:51; Hebrews 10:19-23; John 14:21; John 20:26-28; Revelation 5:6; 2 Corinthians 12:2-4; 2 Corinthians 5:7; Hebrews 11:27; Matthew 3:11; Acts 2:1-4; Acts 2:17; Philippians 2:12-15; 1 Corinthians 2:3; Hebrews 12:28-29; Romans 14:17; Romans 15:13; 1 Corinthians 13:4-8; John 13:35; John 17:23; Hebrews 13:16; James 1:27; Hebrews 1:9; Philippians 3:7-10; Matthew 5:14-16; Matthew 5:48;  James 4:17; John 15:7-8; Isaiah 58:8; Isaiah 55:1-6; Matthew 6:28-33; Luke 12:32; 1 Corinthians 3:21; Luke 15:31;  2 Corinthians 2:14-16; Mark 14:3-7; Luke 21:1-4; 2 Corinthians 9:7; Matthew 22:37). In the name of our Risen Savior, Jesus, we pray. Amen !

April 10^th, 2021

And since I could not see for the glory of that light, being led by the hand of those who were with me, I came into Damascus.

Then a certain Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good testimony with all the Jews who dwelt there, came to me; and he stood and said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight.’ And at that same hour I looked up at him. Acts 22:11-13

This is Day 55 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Starting next Monday, April 12th, the devotionals posted in the “Today’s Devotional” section will be reposts of the older devotionals. I am thinking of starting with those from January. Will do that until we are able to return to Colossians later on. I hope that by reposting those, I get more time to spend on other projects I am working on.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for revealing the glory of the Risen Christ to so many people He appeared to, providing us with factual testimonies that build up our most holy faith (Acts 1:3; 1 Corinthians 15:5-8; John 20:30; John 21:25; Hebrews 1:3; 1 Timothy 6:15-16; Matthew 28:18-20; Jude 1:20). We thank you for the joy you have given us in the hope of the glory of God to be revealed to all saints when we see Jesus (John 17:24; Romans 5:2; John 14:1-6). We are grateful for the converting power of your glory and the work of the Holy Spirit within us, who has taken what belongs to Christ and revealed them to us, indwelling us, and manifesting His mighty power in transforming our lives. We thank you that He helps us to overcome even in the midst of great tests. (John 16:14; Romans 8:9-11; 2 Corinthians 13:5; 1 Peter 1:7; Isaiah 48:10; James 1:2-4; Psalms 66:20; Deuteronomy 4:20; Hebrews 12:2; Colossians 1:27; Colossians 2:7 ;Galatians 2:20 ). Father, we are humbled that your glory was bestowed upon us, as we have become your temple, and that it fills us, giving light, knowledge, revelation, and salvation to those we come across. We thank you that we have become the resting place of your glory as we partake in your divine nature, becoming portals of your majesty, and having your commandments written upon our hearts. (John 17:22; Acts 7:48; Isaiah 66:1-2; John 14:20; 1 Peter 2:5; Psalms 104:2; 1 Corinthians 3:16-21; 1 Corinthians 6:19; 2 Corinthians 6:16; Ephesians 2:21-22; Hebrews 3:6; Revelation 3:20; James 5:9; Song of Solomon 5:2; Luke 12:36; 2 Corinthians 4:4-6; Matthew 5:16; John 15:8; 2 Corinthians 2:14-16;  1 Corinthians 2:8; John 9:39-41; John 1:14;  2 Corinthians 3:2-3; Ezekiel 36:25-27; Psalms 40:8; Hebrews 8: 10-11; Jeremiah 31:33-34; 1 Thessalonians 4:9; 2 Peter 1:3-4; Genesis 1:26-27; Ephesians 4:24; 1 Corinthians 11:7; Colossians 3:10; Ecclesiastes 3:11; 1 Timothy 6:12; Jeremiah 33:3; 1 Corinthians 1:7; Ephesians 1:7; Job 5:9; 1 Corinthians 2:10; 1 Corinthians 10:31; 1 Peter 4:11; 1 Thessalonians 2:4;  2 Samuel 16:23; Proverbs 13:14; Colossians 1:9). Lord, we pray that you will open our eyes so that we may comprehend your mysteries and by faith we may grasp the perfect significance of your glorious inheritance for us and help us in our pursuit of heavenly things, to behold your face, and be transformed from glory to glory (Ephesians 1:18; Hebrews 3:11; Hebrews 11:1, 3; Matthew 13:11;  Mark 9:23; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Psalms 84:7; Haggai 2:9). Lord, we know there’s so much more to learn in your presence, so much more beauty to behold, so much goodness to taste, more praises of your glory to sing, more joy in walking with you, more miles to run to you, more virtue to be imparted to us, and much more power to witness in ministry. We know that you want us to be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. We ask that you establish our feet on Mount Zion, and continue to perfect the saints, the church of Jesus Christ. We pray that you work mightily to bring your people, all saints in the church, into the full stature of Christ, so that we can testify to the world the fullness of who He is, and be prepared for His coming to take us (John 1:16; Romans 1:11; Ephesians 1:19; Ephesians 3:16-20; Ephesians 4:11-16; 1 Corinthians 2:6; Galatians 4:19; Colossians 1:28; 1 Peter 2:3; Titus 3:4-5; 1 John 2:27; John 14:18, 26; John 15:26; Romans 9:17; Psalms 76:10; Ezekiel 28:22; Ezekiel 30:19; Ezekiel 39:13; Deuteronomy 28:63;  Psalms 63:5; Psalms 71:8; Psalms 96:6; Hebrews 12:22-28; Ephesians 5:26-27; 1 Peter 1:15-17; Hebrews 12:14; Genesis 5:24; 1 John 1:7; 2 Chronicles 7:1-3; Luke 5:17; Luke 8:46; Matthew 4:23;  Matthew 9:35; Matthew 10:1; Matthew 12:15; Matthew 14:14; Jeremiah 30:17; Isaiah 33:21,24; Mark 16:18; 1 John 5:18;  Psalms 78:16;  Exodus 33:18-19; Acts 7:2; Romans 9:4; Nehemiah 9:25; Psalms 111:6; Psalms 2:8; Psalms 22:28; Deuteronomy 6:11; Philippians 3:14; 1 Corinthians 9:24; 1 Timothy 4:7-8; Psalms 119:32; Isaiah 26:9; Psalms 119:20, 55; Psalms 42:1; Psalms 84:2; James 4:5; Deuteronomy 4:24; Psalms 78:34; Psalms 105:7; Psalms 122:1-2; Psalms 87:2; Psalms 65:1; Psalms 48:2; Ephesians 2:19; Philippians 3:20; Ephesians 5:18; John 7:37-39; Psalms 81:10; 1 Corinthians 14:18; Romans 8:26-27; 1 John 5:14-15; John 3:34). In the glorious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen !

Devotionals, Month of March year 2021

March 1 st,2021

Yes, in the way of Your judgments, O LORD, we have waited for You; The desire of our soul is for Your name And for the remembrance of You. With my soul I have desired You in the night, Yes, by my spirit within me I will seek You early; For when Your judgments are in the earth, The inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness. Isaiah 26:8-9

This is Day 15 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” and will return to this in 7-21 days as the Lord leads. From December 1st to February 13th we have done a 75-day marathon of lengthy devotionals and a slowdown with a single verse/or few verses seems wise at the moment.

I sense my current projects need focused attention through the end of March- so likely the break will be 45 days in total. Actually, I think that can be a good 120-days pattern, spend 75 days doing longer version devotionals and 45 days of single verse devotionals, and repeat the cycle. 

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that you have established your Word and it is forever fixed in heaven [Psalms 119:89] and nothing will change that because, you, O Lord, will never change [Malachi 3:6; Numbers 23:19]. You are our Rock, your works are perfect, AND ALL YOUR WAYS ARE JUST [ Psalms 18:30; Deuteronomy 32:4 ].

We thank you for the promise that the Word you have breathed gives to us, the laws that guide our lives it has taught us, and your action to defend its truth and deliver your saints who put their hope in your Word [ Psalms 119:114; Jeremiah 1:12; Acts 16:25-26;Psalms 34:19; Luke 18:7-8; Matthew 18:19]. We pray that your resurrection power will be with all of us who wait patiently, believing in your covenant, and choosing righteousness even in dead circumstances that are beyond human ability to resolve[ Isaiah 40:28-31; Romans 4:17-22; Ezekiel 37:3; Jeremiah 32:17; Psalms 15:4; Psalms 24:4; Psalms 25:14; Psalms 111:6; Deuteronomy 1:8; Deuteronomy 7:9; 2 Chronicles 16:9; Psalms 36:5; Psalms 115:1; 2 Timothy 2:13; James 1:17; Luke 1:37].

In the ways of your judgments, O Lord, we wait. Our hearts are steadfast in your holy will [Psalms 57:7; James 1:6; Colossians 1:9]. Early in the morning we seek you for this [Psalms 63:1; Proverbs 8:17; Jeremiah 29:13; 2 Chronicles 15:15; Psalms 119:2; 1 Samuel 7:3; Isaiah 55:6; Isaiah 45:19; Hebrews 11:6]. We ask that all contrary things that would derail our heavenly calling will be annihilated by your heavenly fire [Isaiah 54:17; Isaiah 57:14; Isaiah 62:10; Psalms 97:3; Psalms 18:8-14]. Let your terrible swift sword pursue and punish Leviathan and his collaborators in the matters that concern our lives[ Isaiah 27:1; Romans 16:20; 2 Corinthians 10:3-6; Exodus 14:14].

In the powerful name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 2 nd,2021

One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. Luke 6:12

Prayer: Father God, I thank you for the opportunities you give us to spend time in your presence on earth here and our privilege of spending eternity in your presence hereafter [Psalms 73:24; Genesis 5:24; Numbers 9:23; Psalms 139:5-8]. There’s nothing that can compare to you Lord and there’s no good thing apart from you. You are more precious than gold for us and all things are rubbish in our eyes when they are compared to the surpassing excellence of being filled with your Spirit, instructed in your Word, seeing your wonders, and knowing your delight [Psalms 4:6-7; Psalms 17:15; Philippians 3:14; Isaiah 9: 2-3;Proverbs 3:15; Proverbs 8:10-11; Philippians 3:7-10; Psalms 63:3; Psalms 73:25-26; Matthew 13:44-46; Mark 8:37; Psalms 16:11; Psalms 36:8; Job 36:11 ; Jeremiah 27:5; Deuteronomy 2:7; Ezekiel 44:28].

Indeed, one day in your courts is better than a thousand days elsewhere, whether work, shopping, business, or anything else this world may consider to be of value. One hour beholding your face, and intensely interceding for the world,  is better than a whole month mining gold or enjoying the best of pleasures the world can offer [Psalms 84:10; Psalms 27:4; Luke 10:42; Romans 14:5-7; Luke 11:1; John 6:27; John 12:5;  1 Samuel 12:23; 1 Timothy 2:1-5; Ezekiel 22:30; 2 Corinthians 16:9;Joshua 24:15; Psalms 26:8; Psalms 42:1-4; Job 23:12; Hosea 2:19-20; 1 Corinthians 6:17; John 4:23-24; Hebrews 11:6]. 

Let your dazzling light blind our eyes to anything else that doesn’t reflect your face or reveal your heart. Help us to be set apart from the world and the distractions that consume our time and erode our passion for you and your kingdom. May our days only be spent in knowing you and making you known [Acts 9:3; Acts 22:6; Acts 26:13; Psalms 119:37; Psalms 101:2; Isaiah 33:15-16; Hebrews 12:29; Exodus 24:17; Deuteronomy 4:24; Song of Solomon 8:6; 2 Corinthians 6:14-16; 1 Peter 2:9; Isaiah 6:1-8; Hebrews 10:7; 2 Corinthians 3:18; James 1:25; Isaiah 40:12, 15; Matthew 4:8-10; Romans 2:7].

Teach us more how to grow in intimacy with you, how our prayers can become flames ignited by your Spirit within, and how our ministries can be a raw demonstration of your majesty like Jesus, your Son, did [John 12:32; Isaiah 49:15; Song of Solomon 1:4; Hosea 11:4; Deuteronomy 30:6; Leviticus 16:13; John 15:16; 1 John 4:10; Ephesians 1:5; Jeremiah 1:5; Jeremiah 31:3; Isaiah 63:9; James 4:8; Jeremiah 29:13; 1 Timothy 6:12; Psalms 34:8; 1 John 1:1; Hebrews 5:14; John 17:21; Ephesians 3:17-20; Galatians 2:20; John 3:6; Acts 17:28; Hebrews 11:27; Psalms 19:14; Psalms 141:2; 2 Corinthians 2:15; Hebrews 1:7; Psalms 104:4; Matthew 17:2; Matthew 27:51; Hebrews 4:14-15; Hebrews 10:22-23; Leviticus 6:12; 1 Thessalonians 5:17; Revelation 7:15; Hebrews 12:22-23;Psalms 84:4-7; 1 Corinthians 2:4-5; Mark 16:17; Romans 15:19-20; John 3:34]

In the glorious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 3 rd,2021

At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Shout louder!” he said. “Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened. 1 Kings 18:27

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that you are a God that answers by fire when we call upon you. We thank you that all who call upon the name of Jesus will be rescued. You will neither sleep nor slumber, and anytime we will come to you with an emergency or challenge we face, you will not put us off, telling us that you need a break [1 Kings 18:24; Hebrews 12:29; 2 Kings 1:14; 2 Chronicles 7:1;Acts 2:3; Isaiah 65:24; Psalms 135:15-17; John 4:23-24;Acts 3:6;  Revelation 3:14-21; Proverbs 11:4, 28; Job 31:24; Jeremiah 48:7; Psalms 94:9; Exodus 4:11;2 Chronicles 16:9; Acts 4:31; Proverbs 18:10; Isaiah 42:13; Isaiah 40:28-31; Romans 10: 12-13; Acts 2:21; Acts 10:34-35; Psalms 145:18; Joel 2:12-28; 1 John 5:14-15; John 15:7; Psalms 50:15; Psalms 121:4; Isaiah 62:6-7; John 5:17; Jeremiah 33:3; Luke 18:7-8; Psalms 109:4; Psalms 34:4; 2 Corinthians 6:2].

We also thank you that we can rest well knowing that you  are ever ready to sustain us and will always lift us up and carry us. We pray that in the midst of trials, tribulations, and tests we go through, you will set yourself apart as greater than Baal, Dagon, Buddha, Mao, Gold, Silver, and every name that is named under the sun—that you are our protector, keeper, provider, and great shepherd [ Exodus 15:11; 1 Samuel 2:2; Deuteronomy 4:35; Acts 4:12; Philippians 2:6-11; John 16:33; Revelation 5:5; Psalms 55:22; 1 Peter 2:7; Isaiah 63:9; Psalms 12:6; Daniel 3:25-26; Daniel 6:22; Acts 27:23; Hebrews 11:33; 1 Kings 19:10;  2 Timothy 4:17; John 10:10-11; Genesis 22:8; Matthew 6:11; Philippians 4:19; Romans 5:8; Romans 8:32; Romans 5:3; James 1:2; Isaiah 46:4; 1 Peter 1:18-19; Psalms 34:19; Psalms 20:1; Job 33:26; Psalms 27:5; Psalms 91:13-15; Luke 10:19; John 14:13; Matthew 11:28;Psalms 113:7-8; 1 Kings 8:56]

May the nations see that you are matchless in excellence, magnificent in beauty, invincible in battle, and terrible in your judgments [Ephesians 1:19; 2 Timothy 1:6;  Psalms 145:3-5; Psalms 111:3; Psalms 71:17-18;  Exodus 15:3; Exodus 3:20; Exodus 8:10-11; Job 5:9; Job 11:7; Job 37:23; Psalms 139:5-6; Psalms 147:5; Revelation 4:8; Psalms 57:11;  1 Timothy 6:15-16; Ezekiel 1:4-28; Isaiah 40:15; Psalms 2:8-12; Psalms 66:3; Romans 11:33-36; Ephesians 1:21-22]

In the majestic name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 4 th,2021

 And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace. Exodus 14:13-14

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that when we are surrounded by danger infront and behind us, we can stand still, unafraid, knowing that you have a plan and will rescue us from destructive circumstances [ Deuteronomy 31:8; Psalms 93:1; Job 42:2; Isaiah 59:19; Isaiah 54:17; Luke 13:17; Hebrews 12:3; 1 Peter 5:8; Philippians 1:28; Isaiah 27:1; 1 Corinthians 16:9; Revelation 2:10; Exodus 15:7; Psalms 118:11; Exodus 14;15; John 17:11; Psalms 5:8; Psalms 110:1; Psalms 119:157; Psalms 7:6; Isaiah 1:24; Psalms 8:2; Psalms 13:4; Isaiah 63:4-7; Psalms 18:39; Psalms 18:48; Psalms 23:5; Isaiah 11:13; Psalms 27:2; Psalms 27:11; Psalms 31:11; Isaiah 26:11; Psalms 38:20; Psalms 42:10; Isaiah 41:11; Psalms 44: 5, 7; Psalms 54:5; Psalms 59:10;Isaiah 42:13;  Psalms 60:12; Psalms 68:1, Psalms 69:19; Isaiah 64:2;  Psalms 71:13; Psalms 74:4;Psalms 78:66; Jeremiah 30:16;  Psalms 89:23; Psalms 92:9; Psalms 97:3; Jeremiah 46:10; Psalms 102:8; Psalms 105:24; Ezekiel 30:16;  Psalms 106:11; Psalms 108:13; Psalms 109:4; Psalms 109:20; Psalms 109:29; Micah 5:9; Psalms 119:98; Zephaniah 3:15; Psalms 136:24; Psalms 143:12; Nahum 1:2; Luke 21:15]

We also thank you that when we need rest in the work we do, we can be still and know that you are going to keep running the machinery, a wheel within a wheel, as your angels continue to work mightily to help us all who are destined to inherit your salvation [ Mark 6:31; Matthew 11:28; Numbers 10:33-36; Hebrews 4:1-9; 1 Kings 8:56; Matthew 14:30-32; Isaiah 35:4;Psalms 46:1; Ephesians 6:10-18; 1 Peter 5:10; Psalms 136:12; Exodus 6:1; Deuteronomy 4:34; Luke 1:51; Ezekiel 1:16; Psalms 121:4; Hebrews 1:7; Psalms 104:4; Genesis 12:3; Deuteronomy 28:7; John 5:17; 2 Kings 19:35;Acts 12:23; 2 Chronicles 32:21; Isaiah 17:14; Exodus 12:29; Luke 1:71,74; Psalms 63:5; Psalms 111:6 ]

May the raging seas that stand in our way part at the name of Jesus so that we can march forth for the glory of your name. May your mighty arm be revealed in producing a harvest where we have ceased all efforts, as we wait upon your own works [ Hebrews 11:29; Exodus 14:22, 27;  Joshua 2:10; Matthew 8:23-27; Mark 4:36-40; Psalms 89:9;  Joshua 23:10; Acts 16: 25-31; 2 Timothy 4:16-17; 2  Corinthians 9:10; John 4:35; Haggai 2:19; Genesis 26:12; 1 Corinthians 3:6; Colossians 1:6; John 9:4; John 11:9-10; Colossians 1:29; Hebrews 6:12; Psalms 127:1-2; Psalms 46:6-11; Proverbs 19:21; 1 Samuel 13:11-12; Psalms 37:7; Isaiah 30:15; Isaiah 28:16; Job 25:2; Isaiah 53:1; Psalms 76:1-7; Psalms 98:1;  Psalms 2:1-12; Daniel 4:35;  Isaiah 39:1; Isaiah 37:20; Zechariah 2:13; Habakkuk 2:20; Zephaniah 3:14-17]

In the powerful name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 5 th,2021

Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually! Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered.

Psalms 105:4-5

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that you have called us to seek your face and presence continually, knowing that when we do it with all out hearts, we shall find you. When we find you, we find strength, blessing, favor, deliverance, salvation, and answers to many things we face [Matthew 6:9-13; Jeremiah 29:13; 1 Corinthians 14:15; Romans 10:10; Romans 8:26-27; Isaiah 55:6; 1 Chronicles 16:11; Acts 17:26-27; John 4:23-24; Psalms 34:4-8; Psalms 84:4, 11; Psalms 145:18; James 5:16; Hosea 10:12; Isaiah 44:3; Isaiah 48:18; John 7:37-39; Psalms 55:16-18; Psalms 32:6; Isaiah 45:19; Hebrews 11:6; Joel 2:12-28; Psalms 50:15; Isaiah 45:22; Ezekiel 34:11; Luke 15:4; Luke 19:10; Proverbs 8:17; 2 Chronicles 34:3; Psalms 27:4]

O, Lord, we pray that you give us hungry hearts that will desperately cling to your Word to find nourishment in your truth and thirsty souls that will not be satisfied with any other joy but your glorious presence [Matthew 5:6; Psalms 63:1; Matthew 4:4; Psalms 36:8; Revelation 3:20; Isaiah 55:1; Deuteronomy 26:9; Exodus 3:8; Deuteronomy 27:3; Psalms 107:9; Jeremiah 31:25; Psalms 23:1-5;  2 Corinthians 9:8; Psalms 37:11; 1 Timothy 6:17; Acts 14:17;  Psalms 119:14; Psalms 119:28; Psalms 119:162; Acts 12:24; Acts 6:7; Acts 19:20.]

May your strength and might increase in our lives and may your power be demonstrated to this generation so that even millions more people will be brought to seek your treasures and presence [ Psalms 44:1; Psalms 105:4 ;Psalms 22:30-31; Mark 16:15-20; Romans 15:19-20; John 14:12-13; Judges 6:13; Acts 13:8-13; Romans 1:18; 1 Peter 4:17; Genesis 19:26; Luke 17:32; Revelation 3:18; Matthew 13:44; Luke 12:32; Matthew 6:33; Mark 10:30; Jeremiah 23:6; Deuteronomy 4:34; Joshua 24:31; Judges 2:7; 2 Chronicles 24:4-16; Isaiah 49:6; Isaiah 42:16; Isaiah 53:10-12; Psalms 111:6; Joshua 23:4-5; Acts 14:16; Acts 17:30; Jonah 3:7-10; Hosea 2:21-22; Revelation 5:8;  Jeremiah 33:3; Jeremiah 5:24; Deuteronomy 11:14; James 5:7; 1 Kings 18:41; Ezekiel 34:26;  2 Chronicles 7:14; John 4:35; Psalms 126:6; John 17:23 ].

In the gracious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 6 th,2021

The trumpeters and musicians joined in unison to give praise and thanks to the LORD. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals and other instruments, the singers raised their voices in praise to the LORD and sang: “He is good; his love endures forever.” Then the temple of the LORD was filled with the cloud, and the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the temple of God. 2 Chronicles 5: 13-14

 March 6 th,2021

The trumpeters and musicians joined in unison to give praise and thanks to the LORD. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals and other instruments, the singers raised their voices in praise to the LORD and sang: “He is good; his love endures forever.” Then the temple of the LORD was filled with the cloud, and the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the temple of God—2 Chronicles 5: 13-14

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that your glory dwells and fills your temple—our bodies and the whole church. Lord, we long for the Chabod, the glory that rested upon the ark of the covenant, to rest upon us and the Shekinah glory to accompany our church services and ministries—drawing millions of your people into a deeper fellowship with your Spirit, knowing the depths and heights of the love of Christ, and having a manifest visitation of Jesus Christ, as it has been promised to us in your Word before Jesus died for us, and as you did for John on the Island of Patmos [ Isaiah 6:1-3; Ephesians 3:19-20; Acts 2:4; John 7:37-39; 1 Peter 2:9-20; 1 Corinthians 3:16; John 2:19; Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:27; 2 Samuel 6:7; Psalms 132:8; 2 Chronicles 6:41; Acts 4:30-31; Acts 5:15-16; 2 Corinthians 13:14; John 14:23; John 1:14; 1 John 1:1; Revelation 1:5-18;  1 Corinthians 15:6-8;1 Corinthians 5:4; Matthew 18:20; Matthew 28:20 Haggai 1:7-8; Haggai 2:9  ].

We pray that you give us the gold tried in the fire and put eyesalves on our eyes so that we can be the church with radical faith and perfect holiness, without wrinkle, spot, or blemish. Come and dwell with us and have dinner with us—we want to eat of that hidden manna that was in the ark of the covenant—we want to taste and see that you are good and glorious and that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever—ever saving, healing, casting out demons, raising the dead, and transforming all nations—even to the very ends of the earth. [ Exodus 33:17-23; 2 Corinthians 3:13-18; Revelation 3:14-21; 1 Corinthians 2:9; 2 Kings 6:17; Genesis 21:19; 1 Samuel 9:29; John 1:48;  Colossians 2:5; Genesis 19:11; Numbers 22:30-31;  Mark 8:34-35; Matthew 15:14; John 9:39; Matthew 13:16; John 12:40;  Exodus 4:21;  Exodus 10:1; Isaiah 29:10; Mark 9:23; Mark 11:22-24; Matthew 17:20; Romans 12:6; Ephesians 5;27; Colossians 1:28; 2 Corinthians 7:1; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; Matthew 10:7-8; Psalms 34:8; Psalms 84:11; Romans 3:23; 2 Corinthians 4:4;  Hebrews 12:22-29; Acts 19:11-20; Matthew 12:20-21; Revelation 2:17; Ephesians 3:8; Hebrews 13:8 ]

In the glorious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 8 th,2021

You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself—Exodus 19: 4

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that as we wait upon you, we are having our strength renewed and receiving an impartation of your anointing. We thank you that you are speaking to us and reminding us what you have done in the past—how you delivered the people of Israel and carried them on eagle’s wings [Ephesians 2:6; Colossians 1:13; Psalms 18:33; Isaiah 40:28-31; Psalms 40:1; Psalms 27:14; Luke 24:49; Romans 1:11; Psalms 119: 28; Psalms 138:3; Acts 8:26; Isaiah 30:21; Ezekiel 47:4-5; Ephesians 3:16; Joshua 2:11;  Psalms 77:11; Psalms 105:5; Psalms 28:5; Psalms 78:2-22; Psalms 18:17; Psalms 35:10; Matthew 6:13; Deuteronomy 29:2-4; Deuteronomy 32: 10-11; Isaiah 63:9; Deuteronomy 10:12]

As they waited on Mount Sinai for your law, we have come to Mount Zion trembling in worship and adoration. We pray that you will carry us on your wings too, Lord. Your Word says that what eye has no see you have prepared for those who wait for you. We pray, Lord, that this will be fulfilled in our lives and this country this year. That you will amaze us with miracles, breakthroughs, outpourings of the Holy Spirit, provisions, blessings that we have never seen before—causing your people to be in anticipation of even a greater glory—the rapture of the church [ Exodus 19:18-25; Hebrews 12:18-29; Psalms 18:7; Isaiah 46:4;  Deuteronomy 1:31; Psalms 68:19; Isaiah 43 verse 1-2; Psalms 71:18; Hosea 2:19; Isaiah 30:18; Isaiah 64:4; 1 Corinthians 2:9; Isaiah 41:10; Isaiah 43:1; Psalms 13:5; Psalms 36:5; Psalms 57:10; Psalms 108:4; 1 Corinthians 13:8; John 14:13; Matthew 7:7; 1 John 5:14; Genesis 22:14; Hebrews 6:14; John 14:1-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:14-17 ].

We pray that the promise of the Redeemed being your treasured possession above all peoples of the earth will be fulfilled in the church. We want to be the church of the glory and the rapture, Father. We say, Come O Lord. Come in glory today and baptize your church in fire like you did on Pentecost. Fill us with your Spirit as we wait in our own “upper rooms.” [ Philippians 3:20-21; 1 Peter 2:9-10; Exodus 19:5-6; John 17:16; Matthew 24:45-46; Proverbs 14:35; Acts 2:17; Ephesians 5:27; 1 Corinthians 16:22; Revelation 22:20; Hebrews 10:37; Matthew 25:1-13]

In the mighty name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 9th,2021

 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone—Matthew 14:22-23

This is Day 23 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians., ” and will return to this in 21-45 days or few weeks later depending on how the Lord leads, based on the final analysis. 

Yesterday  (March 8th ) I was able to do a tally of how much time I spent in the book of Colossians devotional—doing an exposition from verse 1-16 between February 1st and February 14th—considering some paragraphs are revised 2-3 times for theological and aesthetic reasons, it came down to 4170-8340 minutes or 3-6 days. Even if we take the lower estimate of 3 days- that is 3 days out of 14 days, 21% of my time, spent on a devotional alone, doing exposition of one verse at a time. I have reaped immense spiritual benefits in just 75 days of devotionals- I can’t even calculate how my already super-blessed life has become even more richly saturated with God’s glory-but I think we will need to move beyond studying into action. For that to happen, it is wise to free as much time as possible. Our initial 75 days will serve as a useful retreat to help us in the years ahead. I really feel like the devotional has made me an impenetrable fortress and I can’t complain about that. That’s what “the shield of faith”—Ephesians 6:16, is given us for. The Word of God is so powerful. I just need to think of ways this ministry can reach more people—not just save a few hundreds but as many as possible.

For accountability purposes, I looked at the time vs paragraphs in the Colossians devotional Chapter 1:1-16 and I found out that it had taken 139 paragraphs— some of the paragraphs are so long they could be cut into 3-4 paragraphs—after identifying which ones— it came to 196 paragraphs for those 16 verses. This means that all the 96 verses of this epistle are likely to be 1175 paragraphs or approximately 15-30 days worth of fulltime Bible studying and resource development. 

Realistically, I need a I new strategy.

I am contemplating that  starting April 1st, the new plan should be to take time to develop the devotional offline until it is ready and then release one verse over 3-6 days depending on how long each verse is during the exposition. For example if Colossians 3:1  “ If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God, ” turns out to be 15-18 paragraphs and each 3-6 paragraphs portion of the devotional can have “subtitles”—we can post Colossians 3: 1 over a three-six day period Monday-to-Wednesday or Monday to Saturday. For example, in the first one on a Monday we can cover “If ye then be risen with Christ” and the second one on Tuesday we can cover, “Seek those things which are above” and then on the third one on Wednesday we can cover, “where Christ sits at the right hand of God”—This would allow a thorough study like we were doing before –no compromising on the objectives—we have to contemplate the Word fully—at the same time free up hours to do many other things that are important. At the moment I do not do “ministry fulltime,” I think that, realistically, that is the best way to do it. I was telling some friends that Dr Zacharias Tanee Fomum has been an inspiration. He used to be a university organic chemistry professor and he managed to publish over 100 Christian ministry books. Even before I got saved, still a Catholic in high school, I had been blessed by his books on prayer and fasting and I used to practice that long before I got born again. I used to wonder how he did all that but now I think it’s time to follow that kind of innovative practice. It’s similar to Paul’s (Acts 20).

I will decide if this new strategy will be effective on April 1st or if it will be implemented 1-3 months after that, based on how many verses I can work on this month of March. I think it would be good to complete at least the initial 4-7 verses offline (4-7 weeks) to see how this goes “in the laboratory” before posting it online for the public. 4-7 verses done in advance would give me 4-6 weeks to complete devotionals one month ahead before they are ever posted online. That way, there would be non-stop stream of devotionals that are shorter and concise. As a result of all of this, the expected date to Colossians is sometime between May 1st and August 1st.

Addendum: After the single verse devotional done between February 15th and April 10th- we will be doing a repost of older devotionals until we return to Colossians. 

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that you are the LORD of the the harvest, and that harvest is so plentiful and we do not so much need to worry whether we will have thousands of people to hear the Good News, as much as we should focus our attention on being faithful laborers of your vineyard who are saturated with your glory [Matthew 9:38; John 4:35; Luke 5:1; Amos 8:11; 2 Chronicles 15:3; Psalms 74:9; Malachi 3:10; Proverbs 3:10; Deuteronomy 28:8; Genesis 26:12; Joel 2:24-28; 1 Corinthians 3:7; Luke 8:11; Joel 3:14; 2 Peter 3:9; Genesis 26:4; Galatians 3:16; Isaiah 42:6; Isaiah 53:12; Acts 14:16; Psalms 72:10; Isaiah 49:23; 2 Timothy 2:2; Colossians 3:16; Jeremiah 15:19; Jeremiah 3:15; Zechariah 3:7; Mark 3:35; Acts 17:32; Acts 16:9]

We want to be servants who spend our time in your presence. We want souls saved and discipled, but we also want to learn to lean on you more and learn how to pray intensely and spend hours in fellowship with you Father, just like Jesus showed us by example. Teach us how to lose contact with the visible things that are temporal so that we can behold your face, meditate before your throne, and invisible things that are eternal [Deuteronomy 33:27; Isaiah 50:10; Isaiah 41:10; Deuteronomy 31:6; Isaiah 59:1; Isaiah 51:9; Isaiah 52:10; Psalms 46:1; Psalms 33:7; Psalms 5:11; Psalms 57:1; 2 Corinthians 13:14; 1 Corinthians 11:1; Ephesians 5:1; Matthew 11:29; Matthew 16:24; 1 John 2:15-17; Colossians 3:1; Hebrews 12:22-29; Luke 10:38-42; 2 Corinthians 4:18; Hebrews 12:2; Hebrews 4:14-16; Colossians 1:16; 1 Corinthians 3:1; 2 Kings 6:17; Exodus 24:15-16]

As we soar like eagles, you are the one we want to encounter in heavens. Even if we may not leave cities like the spiritual sages of old—who went into the mountains—like Sadhu Sundar Singh or Desert Fathers or Apostle Paul in Saudi Arabia—that we will be conscious of how we can go into the closets of our homes and ignore the world around us and all duties that seem to be ever-present, and just enjoy who you are and casting all our burdens at your feet [ Exodus 33:11; Numbers 12:8; Hebrews 1:2; Isaiah 26:8; Psalms 130:5; Matthew 18:19-20; Psalms 121:1; Psalms 123:1; Isaiah 40:26; Luke 2:37; Galatians 1:17; Matthew 6:6; Daniel 2:22;  Psalms 90:1-2; 1 Peter 5:7.]

In the name of our Prince of Peace, Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 10th,2021

 I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; They shall never hold their peace day or night. You who make mention of the LORD, do not keep silent, And give Him no rest till He establishes And till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth— Isaiah 62:6-7

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that not only are you the LORD who watches over Israel of the Middle East and the Israel of God, the church of Jesus Christ, with no sleep or slumber, but also that you call us to allow you no sleep or rest. You fight a relentless war on our behalf [ Exodus 14:14; Exodus 15:3; Psalms 78:65; Isaiah 42:13; Psalms 121:4; Psalms 24:8;  Isaiah 8:13; Jeremiah 1:19; Isaiah 26:11; Isaiah 31:4; Zechariah 12:3; Micah 4:11-13; Revelation 19:11]

Lord, we want to partner with your Holy Spirit who intercedes through us with groanings that cannot be uttered, to pray the kind of prayers you want to hear for Israel and the body of Christ. Place the burdens upon our hearts so that we will not rest or give you rest in our intercessions, supplications, requests, thanksgiving, and praises. When we rest in other activities, we pray that you help us to become even more  zealous, passionate, and urgent in the prayers of faith for the excellence and praise of Zion in this country and all over the world. Let Satan’s captives be plundered, given liberty, healed, sanctified, and launched into their own ministries to tell of the wondrous miracles you have done in their lives [Romans 8:26-27; Psalms 122:6; Psalms 102:13; Psalms 68:1; Numbers 10:35; Deuteronomy 4:34;  Ezekiel 22:30; Psalms 106:23; 1 Timothy 2:1-5; Isaiah 59:16; Romans 9:3; Romans 10:1-4;  Psalms 68:18; Ephesians 4: 8; Luke 4:18; Acts 26:18; Matthew 12:28-29; Acts 10:38; Acts 1:8; Isaiah 49:11-16]

Rise up laborers who are faithful in your vineyard, evangelists who plunder hell and populate heaven by the millions. Rise up a group of spiritual warriors, prophets and intercessors who demolish the strongholds of Satan in every nation [1 Corinthians 5:5; 1 Timothy 1:20; 2 Timothy 4:14; Luke 18:7; 1 Peter 4:17; Acts 5:3-11; 1 Corinthians 11:30-32; John 20:23; Acts 13:10-12; Luke 17:1-2; Acts 12:21-24; 1 Corinthians 16:22; 2 Corinthians 10:4-6; 1 John 5:16; Revelation 2:20-24). 

We pray that the fear of God, righteousness, anointing, and glory of this latter house will be even greater than the glory of the early church—even as we acknowledge that they are our founding apostles and fathers. O Lord, ourselves who are gentiles, pray for the peace of Jerusalem, even more so, that they may know the Prince of Peace, Jesus. We know they are our roots and of them belong the promises we have inherited and pray that in the gentile church you  you continue to reap a harvest of souls [Acts 9:31; Job 28:28;  Psalms 33: 8; Psalms 25: 14; Luke 1:50;  Psalms 66:3;  Psalms 111:6; Deuteronomy 3:24; Acts 16:5; Isaiah 11:1-3;  Romans 11:20-22; Romans 9:4; Ephesians 2:20; Revelation 21:14; Isaiah 9:6-7; Romans 11:26; Acts 4:12; Acts 5:31; Romans 1:13]

 Open the floodgates of heaven to the point they will stir our Jewish brothers to holy jealousy. Let every tongue that does not agree with this be silenced, in Jesus’ name.  Let every weapon fashioned against the Church of Jesus Christ be neutralized and its maker be burned down  in the name of Jesus, our Chief Builder, Cornerstone, and Warrior [Malachi 3:10; Zechariah 10:1; Romans 11:13-14; Isaiah 54:17; Proverbs 10 verse 13 and 31; Psalms 63:8-11; Romans 3:19; Job 5:16; Isaiah 37:32;  2 Kings 19:31; Isaiah 10:20; Isaiah 59:17; Matthew 16:19; Galatians 6:16; Hebrews 12:22].

Let it be so, even today. Amen!

March 11^th,2021

He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire. He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”—Psalms 46: 9-10.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you break bows and shatter spears and make wars to cease. Indeed, we echo the prayer of Matthew Bridges, “Crown him the Lord of peace! Whose power a scepter sways, from pole to pole, that wars may cease, and all be prayer and praise.” Lord, we pray for those in authority that you give them such wisdom, especially now as we hear of a new cold war between America and China, and we also see TV images of an open warfare between Russia and Ukraine, that you will continue to sustain peace in the world as you have done so in the past [1 Timothy 2:1-5; 2 Thessalonians 3:1;  Isaiah 9:5-7; 1 Samuel 2:4; 2 Samuel 3:1;  Psalms 37:15; Psalms 76:2-4; Psalms 125:2; Isaiah 2:4; Jeremiah 49:35; Isaiah 59:8; Romans 3:17; 1 John 3 verse 12 and verse 15; Acts 17:25-28]

We pray that you teach us to be still and calm our thoughts as we behold your glory, seeking you in the secret place, and seeing how you do wonders in working out peace for the saints in the earth. Our heart’s cry is for your name to be exalted among the nations. Defeat the enemies of Christ and His Gospel, according to your promise, in the name of Jesus. Raise up a church that is strong in the Lord and in the power of your might, relying on your victorious arm, and resting in your promises for our salvation and deliverance. As you parted the Red Sea when Israel stood still in a time of trouble, make a way where there seems to be no way for your saints who serve you day and night [Philippians 4:6; Colossians 3:15; Ephesians 2:14-16; Romans 5:1; Hebrews 12:14; James 4:1-2;  Genesis 13:8; James 3:14-15;  1 Corinthians 7:15; John 14:27; 2 Corinthians 10:5; Ephesians 6:10-18; Hebrews 10:13; Psalms 110:1-3; 1 Corinthians 15:25; Exodus 15 verse 3 and verse 16; Exodus 6:6; Deuteronomy 7:19;  Deuteronomy 5:15; Isaiah 53:1; Isaiah 52:10; Deuteronomy 4:34; Deuteronomy 33:27; Psalms 89 verse 10 and verse 21;Psalms 98:1; Isaiah 63:12; Psalms 44:3; Isaiah 40:10; Isaiah 30:30; Isaiah 43:19; Exodus 17:6; Deuteronomy 8:15;  Psalms 126:4; Isaiah 30:25; Matthew 6:11; Isaiah 48:6; Jeremiah 33:3] .

We pray that you help us to live quietly, in godliness, and see all men come to know Jesus and trust in Him as the Mediator of the New Covenant. As we still our souls and seek you in secret, help us to know you more, pursue you as the prize of our highest calling, taste your glorious presence, and see your majestic throne, so that we can reveal your nature and power to the world [1 Timothy 2:3; Matthew 24:14; Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; Matthew 12:20-21; Isaiah 30:15; Philippians 3:13-14; Psalms 19:9-10; Psalms 12:6; Psalms 119:72; Proverbs 8:11; Psalms 34:8;  Hebrews 6:5; 1 Peter 2:3; Hebrews 4:15-16; Ezekiel 1:24-26; Psalms 89:14; Psalms 89:39-44; Psalms 9:7; Job 19:29; Matthew 26:52; Daniel 4 verse 3 and verse 34; Psalms 77:19;  Isaiah 25:1; Daniel 2:44; Psalms 111:3-4; Psalms 96:6; Psalms 112 verse 3 and verse 9; Psalms 145:4-5; Psalms 104:2-3; Psalms 93:1].

We ask for this in the glorious name of Jesus. Amen!

March 12th,2021

 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all—2 Corinthians 13: 14

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that before we ever learned how to seek your face and your strength, you loved us, chose us, called us, and you sent your Son, Jesus, to die for us. Your love for us is eternal and nothing can separate us from this love. We seek your face because you sought us first. We abide in your presence because you became Immanuel, God with us [Jeremiah 1:5; Ephesians 1:5; 1 John 4:19; John 15:16; Romans 5:8; John 6:44; Hosea 11:4; Matthew 11:27; John 14:8; John 3:16; Romans 8:35; Philippians 1:6;  Song of Solomon 3:4; 1 Chronicles 16:11; Psalms 27:8; John 15:9 ; Isaiah 9:6-7; John 1:1; Proverbs 8:23-31; John 8:58; John 10 verse 28 and 30]

Lord Jesus, we thank you for all that you have done for us, for your great teachings, which we eagerly obey to the minutest details, with great delight, by your overflowing grace in us. We also thank you for the great miracles you have done and continue to do today, which we behold with utter astonishment and give you praise for. We thank you for the painful cross you bore for us, taking every nail for our salvation and every whip for our health, shedding your blood to cleanse us from past sins and giving us a clear conscience now, so that we can serve you with full assurance of faith [ Luke 19:37; Luke 18:43;  Luke 4 verse 32 and 36; Matthew 7:28; Luke 2:47; John 7:46; John 6:63; Matthew 5; Matthew 6; Matthew 7; Matthew 24; Matthew 22:17-22; John 1:18; John 11:23-45; Psalms 150:1; Psalms 68:34; Psalms 29:2; Psalms 115:1; Isaiah 9:2; John 3:27; Mark 16:15-20; Hebrews 13:8; Romans 15:18-20; Malachi 3:6; Numbers 23:19; Hebrews 6:16; Titus 1:2; Isaiah 53:4-5; Matthew 8:16-17; 1 Peter 2:24; Psalms 103:3; Hebrews 9 verse 14 and 22; Hebrews 10 verse 2, 22, 23; Romans 3:24-25; Romans 5:2]. 

We thank you, Holy Spirit, for coming to dwell with such worms like us—making our bodies your temple. We worship you, adore you, glorify you, just like we do love and worship the Father and the Son. You are here with us in ordinary and extraordinary circumstances, in usual and unusual situations, teaching us, guiding us, revealing divine mysteries, strengthening the church—the bride of Christ—and perfecting the saints in holiness. You are here healing, raising the dead, making a way in the wilderness, performing all kinds of miracles, and opening our eyes to heavenly realities [Acts 1:8; John 14 verse 17 & 18; John 15:26; 1 John 2:27; Genesis 18:27; Isaiah 41:14; Job 25:6; Psalms 22:6-19 ; Job 42:6; Job 4:19; Philippians 2:5-11; Ephesians 4:2; Isaiah 57:15; Psalms 34:18; Luke 19:5; Luke 1:43; 2 Corinthians 4:7; 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; Colossians 1:27; 1 Corinthians 6:19; Ephesians 3:19-20; 2 Corinthians 6:16; Romans 8:9; Ephesians 2:21; 1 Corinthians 9:13; Acts 8:26; Acts 14:9; Acts 16:9; Mark 3:29-30; Matthew 12:36; 1 Corinthians 2:9; Jeremiah 33:3; Ephesians 5:26-27; Acts 5:14-16; Acts 8:14-18; Acts 20:12; Acts 19:11-12; 2 Corinthians 7:1; 2 Timothy 1:14].

We pray to you, Father, that you continue to reveal us more of your Son, the Lamb upon the throne, in His glory. We ask that you teach us how we can be better partners of your Holy Spirit and walk in His presence. Father, we pray that you enable us only to live from our heavenly position, where we are currently seated at your right hand. Help us to receive the fullness of all the gifts your Holy Ghost has for us, and see a full manifestation and proof of your glory in our earthly ministries, as you have charged us to do before your elect angels, and as it is on display in heaven. Help us to move beyond the basics of Christ’s doctrines by training our senses in righteousness so that our hearing, seeing, and tastes are restored to glory—so that we can properly appreciate what the Spirit is saying to the churches, what He is showing to our eyes in our daily walk, and our tastes bring you pleasure, aligning with your perfect will as the greatest good for our souls, the whole body of Christ, and your glorious purpose for all nations of the earth [Revelation 1:5-18;  Revelation 4:1-11; Revelation 5:5; John 14:18; Ephesians 2:6; Acts 2:27-35; Colossians 3:1-2; Hebrews 10:13; Psalms 110:1-3;  1 Corinthians 12:8-10; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Ephesians 4:11-16; Romans 12:3-10; Haggai 2:4-10; Nehemiah 4:6; Psalms 122:3; Nehemiah 6:14-16; 1 Peter 2:2; 1 Corinthians 3:1-2; Hebrews 5:14; Genesis 5:24; 1 Kings 3:9; 1 Kings 4:29-30; Luke 11:31; Colossians 2:3; Ephesians 1:17-23; 1 Timothy 5:21; Luke 12:8; Hebrews 1:14; Exodus 23:20; Genesis 24:7; Romans 12:2; Philippians 2:13; John 6:38; John 5:19; Isaiah 30:21; Psalms 32:8; Romans 8:14; Romans 3:22; Matthew 13:15; Revelation 2:29;Luke 19:41-42; Revelation 2:7; John 12:40; Luke 6:40; Psalms 34:8; Hebrews 6:5; Acts 20:32; Mark 9:23; Matthew 12:20-21; 1 Timothy 2:1-5].

In the gracious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 13th,2021

‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the LORD of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the LORD of hosts”—Haggai 2: 9

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you are the Lord who takes your people from glory to glory and from strength to strength. We thank you that backwardness does not dwell with you and shrinking back is not in your presence. Let all judgments that are written in Deuteronomy 28 overtake every Christian who misrepresents this truth, who has stepped out of Gospel faith, in the name of Jesus. We pray for the church to live up its prophesied destiny — in ever increasing faith, ever increasing power, and ever increasing glory [ 2 Corinthians 3:18; Psalms 84:4-7; Romans 1:17; John 1:18; Hebrews 10:38; Luke 17:32; Malachi 3:6;  Proverbs 4:18; Psalms 18:33; Job 17:9; Deuteronomy 32:13; Song of Solomon 2:3; Habakkuk 3:19; 2 Samuel 3:1;  Psalms 66:12; 2 Samuel 2:18; 1 Chronicles 11:9;Esther 9:4; Genesis 22:17; Isaiah 9:7; 1 Chronicles 4:10; Matthew 13:31-33; Deuteronomy 28:15; Jeremiah 17:5; Mark 9:19; Matthew 17: Matthew 17:17; 1 Corinthians 5:6; Mark 8:17-21; Ephesians 3:19-20 ]

Lord, open our eyes so that we do not despise the day of small beginnings, like the returning Jews were doing when they compared the temple of Zerubbabel to the temple of Solomon, and their carnal thinking was limiting what you were envisioning for the new temple. We pray that our eyes will be opened to see beyond historically famous churches like Crystal Cathedral in California or the Saint Peter’s Basilica in Vatican—and what they may mean—that, rather, we will really and fully see that the glory of your house is not in the structures—however their magnificent architectural designs and millions of dollars poured into the buildings—rather your presence that rests in the worshippers, the wisdom of its shepherds, and the holiness of the saints who are members of the body. We pray for vitality, revelations, wisdom, understanding, truth, purity, reverence, faith, miracles, provisions, revival, and awakening to be in all churches all over the world—in all continents—in Europe, in North and South America, in Africa, in Asia, in Oceania—that your glory and presence will be palpable in this year 2021 / 2022—whether churches are small or big, known as little churches or megachurches, rich or poor, denominational or non-denominational, that your glory will fill those churches so much so that the priests, bishops, deacons, prophets, evangelists, pastors, elders, and all saints will be unable to minister because of conviction that your Holy Spirit brings to those who are sinful — and because of overflow that the Holy Spirit brings to those who are faithful—that everyone will be ministered to according to their station in their pilgrimage—that the unfaithful will be rebuked and turned from destruction and the faithful will see an explosion of growth and miracles [Acts 7:48; Zechariah 4:10; Ezra 3:12; Haggai 1:4; 2 Chronicles 16:9; 2 Kings 4:2; Luke 9:13; Psalms 78:41; Numbers 14:22-24; Numbers 16:9; Philippians 2:14; Luke 17:17-18; Matthew 24:1-3; Matthew 15:8; Matthew 23:26; Jeremiah 7:14; Revelation 3:14-21; 1 Corinthians 11:25-32; 1 Samuel 4:21-22; Jeremiah 2:11; Psalms 26:8; 1 Corinthians 3:16; Isaiah 57:15; Mark 12:41-43; 1 Chronicles 16:11; Jeremiah 3;15; Acts 20:28; 1 Peter 5:2; 2 Peter 2:2; 1 Corinthians 1:26-30; Psalms 48:2; Ephesians 1:17-19; Matthew 16:18-19; Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27;  Acts 19:11-12; Acts 20:17-26; Proverbs 22:2; James 2:5; Psalms 35:27; Proverbs 10:22;  Revelation 2:1-7; 2 Timothy 2:22; 2 Chronicles 5:14; Job 42:6; Revelation 1:17;  John 4:35; Matthew 9:37 ]

We pray that a new day of Pentecost, like a mighty rushing wind, will be ushered in by the Holy Ghost.  We pray for a revelation of the mystical body of Christ to be upon all church leaders everywhere so that true unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace can occur without carnal ecumenism. We pray that we will know that we are one body in Christ, one flesh, and when one member prospers, we will all be, and when one member suffers, we will all be. May all believers know that you delight in the prosperity of your saints and want to pour your favor upon all of them. May sincere love, without hypocrisy, abound among all saints.  We pray that every Christian who does not have this perfect love is cut off, even today, in the name of Jesus. Arise O Lord, to your resting place, and let the glory that rested upon the ark of the covenant be fully manifest in your temple today [Acts 2:1-4; Acts 8:14-18; 1 Corinthians 12:28; Ephesians 4:11-16; Ephesians 1:19-23; Ephesians 5:26-27; 2 Chronicles 6:15; Colossians 3: 15-16; 1 Corinthians 12:26;  Psalms 84:11;  Psalms 132:8; Numbers 10:35; 2 Chronicles 6:41; 1 Corinthians 6:19; Acts 17:24; 2 Corinthians 5:1; John 15:2; 1 Corinthians 16:22; Romans 12:9; Revelation 19:7-15]

In the all consuming name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 15th,2021

Wait patiently for the LORD. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the LORD—Psalms 27:14

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for your invitation to wait upon you for our strength to be renewed. Your understanding is infinite and we want to learn wisdom and revelational knowledge in your presence [Isaiah 40:28-31; Psalms 147:5; Ephesians 1:17-19; Colossians 1:9; Colossians 2:3; 1 Kings 4:29-30; Luke 11:31; Psalms 145:3; Romans 11:33-36; Job 37:23; Jeremiah 33:3; Ephesians 3:8]. We want to capture your heart, know your truth, and be filled with your understanding. We pray that you will illuminate our path as we wait. We want our lives spent in what you want us to do and pray that as we wait not only we will be strengthened but we will also be able to run in your paths without fainting [1 Samuel 13:14; Acts 13:22; Jeremiah 3:15; John 8:32; Psalms 119:105; Psalms 46:10; John 17:17; Ephesians 4:21; 2 Peter 1:19; Proverbs 6:23; Psalms 19:8; Matthew 6:22; Matthew 13: 11-12; Psalms 16:11; Philippians 3:10; Jeremiah 8:20; John 6:27; Proverbs 10:5; Proverbs 8:17; Isaiah 55:2; Luke 10:42; Psalms 119:32; 1 Timothy 4:6; Psalms 119:32; 1 Corinthians 9:24; John 20:4-8; Ecclesiastes 9:11; 2 Corinthians 12:9-10; Isaiah 60:5; Psalms 18:36; Luke 18:1; 1 Samuel 30 verse 10, 21, 22, 23, and 24; Jude 1: 22; John 20:27; Proverbs 4:18].

We know that there’s greater fruit in being led by your Spirit as we see evangelist Philip being led to an Ethiopian eunuch, who was reading Isaiah without understanding. So, Lord, in our wait times, we pray that you lead us to ready hearts that are hungry for revival, that our steps will be ordered of the Lord, so that we will harvest much fruit in minimum time. We want to see a multitude of salvations and exponential church growth in America and other countries like we read in the book of Acts and like you have always done in revivals [Acts 8:29; Psalms 32:8; Isaiah 30:21; Psalms 25:8; Psalms 29:24; Isaiah 42:16; Matthew 15;13-14; John 9:39; Mark 4:12; John 12:40; Acts 16:9-10; Psalms 37:23; John 9:37-38; John 4:35; Isaiah 32:15; Isaiah 30:15; Acts 2:47; Acts 6:1; Acts 6:7; Acts 12:24; Acts 19:20]

We know that you want no one to perish and we want to find out what are your strategies to bring the lost home. Here we stand, waiting to hear your voice and standing upon your generous promises for salvations, healing, provisions, and revival. We ask that your righteousness will prevail as your Word grows mightily. Give us the courage to do what is right when you show us the way, so that we do not fall into the sin of knowing the good we should do while not doing it, rather be brave to fulfill your will, perfect design, and mission for our lives [ 2 Peter 3:9; 2 Corinthians 1:20; Isaiah 6:8; 1 Samuel 3:10; Psalms 103:3; Matthew 8:16-17; Philippians 4:19; Matthew 17:24-27; Joshua 1 verse 6,7, 9, and 18; Deuteronomy 1:21; Deuteronomy 31:8; Joshua 8:1; Joshua 10:8; Deuteronomy 31:7; James 4:17; Romans 14:23; Romans 4:20; Acts 9:22; 2 Samuel 3:1; Esther 9:4; Matthew 4:24; John 9:41; Luke 12:47; Matthew 11:22-24; Luke 8:18] .

In the gracious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 16th,2021

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls—Matthew 11: 28- 29

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that when we were weary as pilgrims, carrying heavy burdens of sins and despondency, we heard your Good News calling us to look to the gentle and lowly Christ who hung on a tree, with a bowed head, a crown of thorns, and pierced hands—and all our burdens were rolled away [Luke 4:18; Isaiah 61:1; Isaiah 10:27; Psalms 81:6; Psalms 40:12; Galatians 3:13;  Psalms 25:17; Matthew 26:28; Psalms 65:3; 1 Peter 1:18; Isaiah 9:4; Job 19:25; Exodus 1:14; Exodus 6:6; Exodus 18:10; Romans 5:19; 2 Corinthians 5:21]

We thank you for the peace we have with you because of His sacrifice. We thank you for the peace that surpasses understanding because of the Holy Spirit who has come to dwell with us—giving us overflowing life, ending earthly things from us, and healing all our anxieties and worries. We thank you that your goodness and mercy will never forsake us—that we will find answers to our prayers as we cast our burdens upon you today, knowing well that you care for us [Romans 5:1; Ephesians 2:14; Judges 6:24; Philippians 4:7;  Isaiah 26:3; John 14:27; 2 Peter 1:2; Numbers 6:26; John 6:63; John 10:10; Romans 15:13; Ephesians 3:19-20; Psalms 23:6; John 14:13; Matthew 7:7-11; Romans 8:32; John 15:7; 1 John 5:14-15; Psalms 68:18-19; Psalms 55:22; Psalms 32:7; 1 Peter 5:7]

We thank you for your rich mercies in hearing our cries, providing for our needs, healing the sick, and rescuing nations from bondage into freedom, so that they can know you and serve you. As we kneel before your throne of Lapis Lazuli that Ezekiel saw, we thank you for the rainbow that reminds us that your promises are not in vain. Help us not to debase your name by ignoring them or being found staggering at what you have promised to us, weeping unnecessary tears of unbelief [Psalms 34:17; James 5:4; Exodus 2:23;  Deuteronomy 24:15; Psalms 34:6; Exodus 22:23; Proverbs 21:13; Psalms 72:12;  Philippians 4:19; Hebrews 13:5; 1 Kings 9:3; Jeremiah 33:3; 1 Timothy 2:8; Psalms 123:1; Psalms 2:4; Psalms 141:8; Ezekiel 1:24-27; Revelation 4:2-11; Isaiah 6:1-8; Psalms 95:6; Philippians 2:9-11; 2 Chronicles 6:13; Ephesians 3:14; 2 Corinthians 1:20; Numbers 23:19; Matthew 24:35; Isaiah 45:19; Hebrews 11:6; Romans 4:17-21; James 1:5-7; Genesis 21:17-19; Exodus 3:7; Acts 7:34; Hosea 11:1; Acts 14:16; Matthew 24:14; Acts 17:30; Genesis 31:42; Exodus 13:3; Isaiah 64:4; 1 Corinthians 2:9; 2 Kings 6:16-18; 2 Kings 4:1-7]

Thank you for deliverances and gifts richly bestowed upon us. We owe it all to you, Lord—and we want to hold nothing back. As we hear your voice calling us to come into a deeper intimacy with you, of withdrawing from the noise, ascending the mountain of God—we pray that we will encounter your presence, love, and find your rest. You fight our battles so that we can rejoice in your victory. You took our sorrows so that we can have your joy. You buried our old-selves so that we can walk in newness of life and holiness. Thank you for the exchange. Thank you for the love. Thank you for your abundant grace shown to us [Ephesians 4:11-16; 1 Corinthians 12:9-11; 1 Corinthians 14:1; Luke 1:53; Mark 8:18-21; Matthew 17:1-9; Hebrews 12:22; Isaiah 53:4-5; 1 Peter 2:24; Matthew 8:16-17; James 1:2-4; Romans 5:3-5; John 16:33; 1 John 5:4; Revelation 2:26-27; Revelation 3:8; Revelation 3:20-21; 1 John 4:4;  Exodus 14:14; 2 Chronicles 20:17; Jeremiah 51:20; Jeremiah 1:10;  John 10:11; 2 Corinthians 8:9; Romans 6:4; Romans 8:4; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-34; Philippians 2:13; Psalms 46:10; Psalms 65:7; Matthew 8:23-27; John 16:23-24]

In the name of your precious Lamb, Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 17^th,2021

For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet, till her vindication shines out like the dawn, her salvation like a blazing torch—Isaiah 62:1

This is Day 31 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that when we are weary and tired, you carry on the work on behalf of your people, anyway [Psalms 121:4]. We can rest, knowing that the kingdom and the cause of your people will continue to advance under your strong leadership [Matthew 16:18-19; John 5:17; Numbers 23:19; Exodus 14:14; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; Exodus 14:31;John 2:11; Joshua 4:24; 1 Samuel 12:16-18; Psalms 119:120; 2 Chronicles 20:20; Deuteronomy 32:4; Isaiah 28:21; Isaiah 29:14; Isaiah 43:13; Mark 6:5]. We can sleep and be silent, knowing that you will neither sleep nor slumber, that you will keep speaking for the cause of your people at all times [Matthew 11:28-29; Isaiah 40:28-31].  Thank you, Father, for fighting for us. Lord, as you have called us to be watchmen [Ezekiel 22:30; Genesis 18:28-32; Isaiah 30:18], joining you in the struggle for truth and the prosperity of your people—and giving you no rest in our fervent intercessions—we pray for the Israel of the Middle East and the Israel of God (Galatians 6:16), the church of Jesus Christ [Lamentation 4:2; Zechariah 2:8; Psalms 35:27; Ephesians 6:10-18; Romans 15:26; Acts 19:21; 2 Kings 12:11; 2 Kings 22:5; Ezra 6:7;  Nehemiah 7:71; Nehemiah 13:10; Isaiah 1:26; Isaiah 46:13; Isaiah 52:10; Psalms 51:18; Psalms 102:13; Isaiah 14:1; Isaiah 60:10; Ezra 1:1-4; Daniel 9:2]

We want our passion to be intense for the same things that your passion is intense. If you fight for Zion and call us to do so, that’s what we want to do, Lord. So, Father, raise up a church that fights for Zion, that is not silent about Jerusalem [ Psalms 132:4-5; Nehemiah 4:6-11; Nehemiah 5:16; Nehemiah 6:9-16; 1 Samuel 4:17-18;  2 Samuel 11:11; 2 Samuel 20:6; 2 Samuel 21:17; 1 Corinthians 9:23; 2 Corinthians 1:4-11; Philippians 4:3; Philippians 2:20-22; Habakkuk 3:2; Haggai 1:14]  . We pray that you raise up the 2 Jewish witnesses that you have prophesied in Revelation 11. We do not know their times, but you know their times. Lord, you have instructed us to hasten the day of Christ’s appearing [2 Peter 3:12] and we want to pray that you commission and send those 2 Jewish witnesses who will preach in the same city where their Lord was crucified. Release them now, in Jesus’ name [Matthew 7:7-11; Acts 1:7; Deuteronomy 29:29; Daniel 9:20-21; Luke 5:34-35; 1 Kings 21:20] 

We pray for the church to be prepared as a spotless and holy bride for Christ [Ephesians 5:26-27; Revelation 19:7-10; Isaiah 4:4; Colossians 1:28].Though the church be accused when standing up for righteousness, holiness, and against moral depravity, you are the vindicator of your people [Isaiah 5:20; Proverbs 17:15; Malachi 2:17; Malachi 3:15; Proverbs 11:10; 2 Kings 11:20; Proverbs 11:11; Proverbs 28:12; Proverbs 29:2; Esther 8:15-16; Esther 9:14; Psalms 9:16].. We pray that the light of the church will not go out in the midst of increasing darkness, rather that your vindication will shine like the rising sun, and as a city on a hill that cannot be hidden, let the truth coming from the church shine ever brighter, like a torch magnified by your beaming sun. Bless those who bless the church and Israel and bring judgment to those who hurt Israel and the church, like you promised Abraham, our father. We are the seed of Abraham, Father. Send forth your angels to fight on our behalf in this season [Genesis 12:3; Psalms 44:1; Galatians 3:7; Luke 19:9; Romans 4:16; Numbers 24:9; Genesis 49:9; Psalms 2:2-12; Isaiah 9:2; Isaiah 49:6; Isaiah 52:12-15; Isaiah 60:3-15; Isaiah 45:9; Isaiah 10: 12; Jeremiah 25:12; Isaiah 13:19; Isaiah 14:25; Isaiah 33:1; 2 Chronicles 36:22; Jeremiah 27:7; Jeremiah 50:1-2;  Psalms 137:8; Matthew 5:14-16; Isaiah 60:20; Philippians 2:15; Revelation 5:5; Psalms 121:4; Psalms 34:7; Psalms 110:1-3; Psalms 119:126; Luke 1:74; Psalms 66:3; Psalms 111:6; Hebrews 10:13]. We pray that you sharpen your sword and make those who trouble Israel and the church be overtaken by the troubles that you have decreed [Exodus 23:22; Jeremiah 50:29; Deuteronomy 32:41; 2 Thessalonians 1:6; Isaiah 34:6; Isaiah 63:1; Revelation 19:11-15; Isaiah 63:5; 2 Thessalonians 2:8; Exodus 15:3; Isaiah 42:13].

In the name of our mighty deliverer, Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 18^th,2021

‘Therefore do not fear, O My servant Jacob,’ says the LORD, ‘Nor be dismayed, O Israel; For behold, I will save you from afar, And your seed from the land of their captivity. Jacob shall return, have rest and be quiet, And no one shall make him afraid—Jeremiah 30:10

This is Day 32 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you are the initiator of everything good we hope and have in you. Indeed, you are the Author and Perfector of our faith. To those in slavery, you spoke freedom.  When they were chased by an army, you said to stand still and they saw your salvation. To those in captivity, you prophesied hope of return.  When they were persecuted in rebuilding the temple, you said it would be even more glorious. You are amazing, O Lord, and we give you thanks for all the good you have done [ Philippians 1:6; Psalms 138:8; Hebrews 12:2; 1 Corinthians 1:8; Philippians 2:13; Acts 3:15; John 15:16; Exodus 19:5-7; Deuteronomy 7:6-9; Exodus 14:14; Psalms 46:10; Isaiah 45:1-7;  Jeremiah 30:3; Isaiah 14:3; Isaiah 41:13; Isaiah 43:5; Isaiah 44:1-2; Isaiah 60:4; Isaiah 46:27-28; Deuteronomy 31:6-8; Jeremiah 3:18; Jeremiah 33:14-16; Ezra 1:2-6; Haggai 2: 8-9; Ezra 6:1-16]

You are our Father, our Liberator, our Friend, our Restorer, and our Peace. Thank you for breaking through our darkness and bringing us into your marvelous light and excellencies. We know that there are even other sheep who are still in captivity as of today—we ask Lord that they will be brought into the fold—that the year of jubilee will be proclaimed to all those in bondage of any kind, that they will find their liberty, forgiveness, and joy in your presence. Remember refugees, immigrants, and all those who are separated from their ancestral lands or families for various reasons and give them tranquility and restoration [Isaiah 33:22; Matthew 6:9; Isaiah 45:9-11; Matthew 5:48; Luke 4:18; Acts 10:38; 2 Corinthians 3:17; James 1:25; Galatians 5:1; 1 Peter 2:9-10; John 10:16; Ezekiel 34:6; Jeremiah 50:17; Luke 19:10; Ezekiel 34:12;Luke 15:4; John 11:52; Genesis 49:10; Acts 15:14; John 10:27-28; John 6:37; 1 John 2:8; Romans 13:12;  1 Thessalonians 5:4; Ephesians 5:8; Deuteronomy 16:14; Deuteronomy 10:18;  Deuteronomy 27:19; 2 Chronicles 19:7; Deuteronomy 26:11; Jeremiah 50:6; Matthew 9:36; Psalms 119:176; Jeremiah 23 verse 1 and 11; Jeremiah 10:21; Isaiah 56:10-12; Luke 2:8; 1 Samuel 17:34-35; Psalms 23:1-5]

Help us who have known you to still our souls in your presence and know that you are God and see you exalted among the nations of the earth. We want that quiet confidence that all things are working out for our good, even in the midst of storms. Father, let us be captivated by your love and rest in your presence, as we sit before your throne of Lapis Lazuli and behold the breathtaking rainbows above your throne. Reveal to us what eyes have not seen that you promised to us. Save us from distractions that count for nothing in eternity so that we can spend our days in pressing matters of the kingdom and what will bring you most glory. Restore the wasted years that the cankerworms and Babylon had eaten, in the name of Jesus.  We pray for increasing strength and wisdom to be able to manage the days ahead so that they can bring fruit for your kingdom and be transformative for our lives and the nations of this world. Father, as you rejoice over us with singing, shower your blessings upon us so that we can reveal your grace to the world, out of the fullness we receive [ Psalms 46:10; Psalms 65:7; Matthew 8:23-27; Romans 8:28-30; Isaiah 30:15; Psalms 74:22-23; Psalms 2:1-12; Psalms 89:9; Psalms 93:3-4; Psalms 107:29;Isaiah 33:17; John 21:5-7; Revelation 1:5-18; Revelation 4:1-11; 1 Corinthians 2:9; Luke 9: 58-62; Matthew 11:12; Luke 13:32; Joel 2:25; Isaiah 3:1; Song of Solomon 2:15; Ezekiel 13:4-6; John 10:10; Malachi 3:11; Jeremiah 24:10; Joel 1:14; Ezekiel 14:21; Haggai 1:10-11; Ezekiel 5:16;  Deuteronomy 28:48; Isaiah 40:28-31; Exodus 19:4; Psalms 84:4-7; Ephesians 3:16; 1 Timothy 1:12; 2 Samuel 3:1; Esther 9:4; Zechariah 10:6; Deuteronomy 32:39; Jeremiah 33:6;  Isaiah 30:26; Isaiah 58:8; Isaiah 66:12; Jeremiah 3:22; Psalms 126:1; Zephaniah 3:17; John 1:16]

In the name of our Prince of Peace, Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 19^th,2021

You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory—Psalms 63:1-2

This is Day 33 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for the invitation to seek you and your strength, to seek your presence continually [1 Chronicles 16:11]. We long for you as the deer pants for the waters [Psalms 42:1]. We want to drink from your rivers of delight in the wells of Jacob, give us the living water of the Son of David [Psalms 36:8-9; Genesis 26:20-22; John 4:5-13; Luke 16:24]. We want our souls to grow fat with the meat in your house, nourished up in the words of faith [Psalms 63:5; Psalms 23:2; John 6:51; Matthew 4:4; Job 23:12; Psalms 46:4; Psalms 65:4; 1 Peter 2:2; Hebrews 5:12-13; 1 Timothy 4:6]. We don’t want to be thirsty ever again. Let the river of your Spirit flow in our personal lives and the river of revival flow in this nation this year of 2021/2022 [ John 7:37-39; Ezekiel: 47:1-5].

You are the prize of our seeking, O gracious Father, beholding your face in the sanctuary brings radiance and favor to our lives [Psalms 27:4; Luke 10:42; Philippians 3:13-14; Proverbs 2:3-5; 1 Corinthians 9:24; Matthew 13:44; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Psalms 16:11; Psalms 18:12; Psalms 34:5; Isaiah 60:5; Psalms 18:28; Psalms 97:11; Numbers 6:24-26]. In your light we see light. We will never walk in darkness because your Sun will never go out [John 8:12; Isaiah 60:20; Psalms 84:11; Isaiah 24:23; Isaiah 30 verse 19 and 26] . We find everlasting brilliance in you, O God. Open our eyes to see the wonders of that light and let it shine brightly, not only in our lives, but also in this country, wherever there seems to be confusion, ignorance, and demonic influence [Ephesians 1:16-19; Proverbs 4:18; Psalms 89:15; Psalms 78:14; Psalms 112:4; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Psalms 139:11-12; Psalms 119:130; Ephesians 5:11; John 3:20; Ephesians 4:18; Acts 26:18] .

We pray the same for all nations, O Lord, because you are the light of the world. Everlasting Father, reveal your miraculous power and your manifest glory to our generation. We do not want to be like the Israelites in the book of Judges, inquiring, we heard what God has done in the generations of our forefathers, but where are the miracles they told us about ? You said, surely I am with you always, even to the very end of the age and let that be revealed in greater dimensions this year [Judges 6:13; Deuteronomy 31:17; Psalms 44 verse 1 and 9;  Mark 16:15-20; Romans 15:18-20; Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; Exodus 33:14-16; Acts 5:14-16; Acts 8:6-8; Acts 19:11-12; Acts 19:20; Acts 6:7; Acts 12:24; Isaiah 55:11; Psalms 147:15]. Let your power and glory be revealed in the sanctuary, let the saints see it in the church. Stretch forth your hand that signs and wonders will be done in the name of your Holy Son, Jesus, that the sick will be healed, and miraculous provisions will bring joy to those who call upon you [Acts 4:24-31; Matthew 4:23-24; Matthew 8:16-17; Matthew 9:35; Matthew 10 verse 1 and 8; Matthew 12:15; Matthew 14:14; Matthew 15:30; Luke 5:17; Luke 6:19; Luke 9:11; Luke 10:18; Acts 10:38; Hebrews 13:8] . Let the vain imaginations of the pagans and raging of the nations be shut down, in the name of Jesus. Let your voice go out to those who do not know you now, who are bound in shackles of sin and indifference, that those who were not called your people will be called your people, that you will be found by those who had not sought you [2 Corinthians 10:3-6; Isaiah 2:11; Psalms 2:1-12; Revelation 11:18; Psalms 33:10; Psalms 39:6; Psalms 46:6; Daniel 4:34; Psalms 18:40-45; Isaiah 40 verse 6 and 8;  Jeremiah 23:28-29; Psalms 138:2; Isaiah 66:2; 1 Peter 1:24-25;  Psalms 29:4-5; Psalms 33:9; Matthew 8:8-10; Proverbs 8:34-35; Isaiah 65:1; Romans 10:20; Romans 9:25; Hosea 2:23; 1 Peter 2:10; Luke 4:18; Isaiah 61:1-2].  

Bring restlessness to those who are wandering in darkness, that they will be hungry for the things of the Spirit, and find satisfaction when they call upon you. Open doors that no man can shut and shut out everyone who tries to do do so, in the name of Jesus. Take your people from victory to victory, as David saw you do in his life, and as the church has seen the last 2000 years [Genesis 41:8; Daniel 2:1; 1 Samuel 6:1-2; Daniel 1:20; Exodus 11:17; Exodus 14:24; 1 Samuel 16:14; 2 Samuel 4:1; Job 12:25; Psalms 107:27; Isaiah 24:20; Deuteronomy 28:29; Isaiah 19:14; Isaiah 59:10; 1 Kings 18:17-18; 2 Kings 6: 6-22; Isaiah 9:1-7; Psalms 81:10; Matthew 5:6; Colossians 3:1-2; Psalms 107:9; Matthew 5:3; Luke 1: 53; Isaiah 22:22; Revelation 3:8; 1 Corinthians 16:9; Isaiah 45:2; Isaiah 43:16-19; Isaiah 84:4-7; 2 Corinthians 2: 14; Matthew 16:18-19; Matthew 18:18-20; Psalms 149:4-9]

In the majestic name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 20^th,2021

The trumpeters and musicians joined in unison to give praise and thanks to the LORD. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals and other instruments, the singers raised their voices in praise to the LORD and sang: “He is good; his love endures forever.” Then the temple of the LORD was filled with the cloud and the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the temple of God—2 Chronicles 5:13-14 (Saturday, March 6th)

When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple. The priests could not enter the temple of the LORD because the glory of the LORD filled it. 2 Chronicles 7:1-2 (Today)

This is Day 34 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for the greater glory that has been prophesied over the church. We want to host your presence and have our churches be your dwelling place, where your glory rests. We see what your Holy Spirit did in the book of Acts with great longing, Lord, and we know you can do that again, and even more. Teach your saints in the church today to be completely consecrated like the priests in Solomon’s days were consecrated when your glory filled the temple. Raise up ministers who proclaim sanctification in a clear and powerful way, like Apostle Paul, Peter, and John did. Equip the saints for ministry, from every tribe, tongue, and nation, to be competent ministers of the New Covenant, to know your heart intimately, to be saturated with the knowledge of your Word, with gifts of the Spirit, with various natural talents, with good relationships, with provisions, with everything they need so that your Word can grow mightily and prevail in this 21st century. “Silver is mine, Gold is mine,” says the Lord (Haggai 2:8), and as you commanded so for the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem, cause many who have the financial means in this country and elsewhere, to give to your work in seminaries, Bible schools, churches, missionaries, evangelists, and many other organizations that are serving others to spread the Gospel. Lord, teach us how we can yearn for your presence more, how we can set ourselves apart from the world, sin, and the flesh in order to be used by you more, how we can surrender to your voice—and bring your palpable presence to the world. Help churches that may not be able to articulate prayers asking for experiences that happened at Pentecost— let your manifest glory be real to all saints, Lord— so that everyone can taste your great majesty and power. Let the fire of the Holy Ghost be experienced in a tangible and visible way, in the church today. O, Lord, make it impossible for ministers with carnality to stand in the church. Increase your reverence and glory for those who are faithful so that they can bear even more fruit for your glory. Let those saints, leaders, pastors, ministers, rulers, and kings who are truly penitent, brokenhearted, who have invested years in your presence in all sincerity, receive more glory than Nebuchadnezzar received after you healed his insanity and restored his power, and far more than your eternal praise Mary received after pouring her alabaster box. As they seek you, let them find that you really care, O Lord, and that your majestic throne is worth it all. In the marvelous name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 22^nd,2021

 After this, Job lived 140 years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation—Job 42:16

This is Day 36 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for ordering the steps of your righteous people and working out all things for our good according to your perfect purposes. As we wait upon you, teach us to join the fruit of patience to the faith in your promises, so that we can let patience do its perfect work of maturing us, completing us, and bringing us into a place where we lack nothing in the kingdom. We do not want to come behind in any gift (1 Corinthians 1: 7, Romans 8:32; James 1:17; Matthew 7:11), or health (3 John 2; Psalms 103:3; 1 John 5:18), or miracles (John 14:12; Matthew 11:11; James 5:17; Matthew 12:13-15; Acts 19:11-12), or anointing (1 John 2:27; John 16:13; Isaiah 10:27; 2 Corinthians 10:4-6; Jeremiah 51:20; 1 Timothy 1:18), or zeal (John 2:17; Isaiah 9:6-7; 1 Corinthians 7:31; Romans 15:18-19), or revelations ( 2 Corinthians 12:1; Ephesians 1:17-19; 2 Corinthians 8:7; 1 Corinthians 14:18), or blessings ( Psalms 1:3; 2 Corinthians 8:9; Luke 15:31; 1 Corinthians 3:21; Isaiah 60:22), or holiness (2 Corinthians 7:1; Matthew 5:48; Ephesians 4:2; John 15:3; John 17:17; Hebrews 1:9). We rejoice in this inheritance you have given us, O Lord!  Father, we know that no purpose of yours can be thwarted, and we pray that you help us in trials and challenges, that we will not imbibe philosophies of those who savor things of this world, whether they are unbelievers or they are Christians who don’t follow your Word.  We want our hearts to remain planted in your eternal truth, where our holy identity is rooted and established, so that our heavenward journey will continue unhindered, regardless of the circumstances we find ourselves in, as your Word sanctifies us, and ordains heaven’s reality in everything we put our hands to do. Lord, we pray that where we wait in the midst of losses, ways of the cross, and confusing situations, that you give us the tenacity of Job— who waited upon you— and not only saw you renew his strength— but also saw your faithfulness in bringing all things to a better than expected end— when you doubled his blessings and prosperity. We thank you for that revelation and truth, Lord. Help us discern Satan’s deception that says otherwise. We pray that you teach us the faith of Moses, who saw you when you were invisible, so that we can walk in your resurrection power. Teach us to fight the good fight of faith with the riches of your promises, your abundant grace, and all the weapons of our warfare in heaven’s arsenal. We trust in your dominion in our patience and we ask that our eyes will be opened to see things from your perspective. Help us discern your appointed times for things we wait for, as well as our own distractions that we should avoid, in order to hasten your triumph in our lives. In the Faithful name of Jesus, we pray. Amen !

March 23^rd,2021

 After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus—Matthew 17:1-3

This is Day 37 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for the privilege to be your adopted children, your friends, and heirs of the kingdom. We thank you for the access we have before your throne, through the new and living way, allowing us to come to you with our requests and see you answer our prayers. We thank you for the seat we have with you in heavenly places and the fellowship we enjoy with you in your presence. Lord, we want to know your Word, your heart, and your ways. We pray that we will experience your presence and power that the disciples came into contact with on that mountain. Lord, time is short in the days we have on earth and also in the hours left before the final drama of world history, and we want to store up for ourselves treasures in your eternal kingdom, as well as pluck sinners from the burning. We pray that you teach us the wisdom to prioritize prayer, give us the knowledge how we can do it effectively, and help us in teaching others to pray by being good examples of intimacy with you. We pray that our mere presence with people or in meetings stir up longings for your presence and heaven, and cries of repentance, simply because you have clothed us with your glory. Lord, tear apart the clouds, walls, confusion, barriers, and remove blindness, ignorance, and dullness, that hinder us from entering the holy of holies to behold your glory and experience your presence in ways that are available to us in this New Covenant. We thank you for melting our hearts in your presence to burn with that flame of love. As Jesus prayed for us before His departure to become our High Priest, grant that we may behold His glory now and prepare us to become a holy, spotless bride, without wrinkle, so that we can be ready for His glorious return, for our rapture to heaven. Help us in the fights ahead, as we await that day of His appearing to take the church. Father, clothe us with your glory and use us to prepare the Bride for the imminent rapture. Lord Jesus, come quickly, riding victoriously to bring us into the heavenly mansions you have prepared for us so that we will no longer itch for simply dwelling with you in tabernacles we have built for you on earth. Father, we ask that we will soon behold you in that city, of which you are the architect and builder, and where thousands upon thousands of angels cry holy, holy, holy, day and night. In the precious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 24^h,2021

 He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it—Genesis 28:12

I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” Genesis 28:15

This is Day 38 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for the cross of your Son, Jesus, that has reconciled us with you. We thank you for the new and living way of coming into your presence, through His body broken for us, the veil that separated us from the holy of holies. We thank you for your abiding presence with us and how we have access before your throne to bring our requests. Lord, we come before you today, thankful for all the good promises you gave Israel of the Middle East and the Israel of God, the church of Jesus Christ (Galatians 6:16; 2 Corinthians 1:20). We thank you for the promise of returning Jacob to the land and the promise of returning Israel back, which you have fulfilled after thousands of years of waiting (Joshua 21:45; 1 Kings 8:56; Isaiah 48:3; Jeremiah 30:3; Ezekiel 11:17; Ezekiel 34:13; Ezekiel 36:24; Amos 9:14). Lord, in this we can trust that all other promises will be equally fulfilled. Again, Lord, as your Word in Psalms 121:4 says that you will neither sleep nor slumber in fighting for your people, we ask that you continue to watch over Israel and bring judgments to all people who are trying to harm your people there, whether they are from the region, Europe, or America. Let the angel of the Lord persecute them and chase them from office (Psalms 35:5). Pulverize them and blow them away like wind, in the name of Jesus. Lord, we still ask that the 2 messengers prophesied in Revelations 11 who will minister in Israel will be sent quickly, in the name of Jesus. In the meantime, we pray that you continue to prepare the church for the rapture. As you watch over us, you have promised “I will give them Shepherds after my own heart”- Jeremiah 3:15, and we ask that you raise up such pastors in the church. Shepherds who watch over your people and teach them the Word of God, like Peter, John, and Paul did, so that your people can be strong in your truth. We pray that the Word of God will grow mightily this year and prevail. As you promised that you will build the church and the gates of hell shall not prevail, let all deceptions of Satan spreading be exposed now, in the name of Jesus. Let the people you created delight in their natural creation, in the name of Jesus. We pray for continued deliverance of those who are in error, that their shackles will be broken, and they will be brought into the kingdom. Paralyze every effort to muzzle or silence the church, in the name of Jesus. Destroy anyone who tries to do so, in the name of Jesus. Lord we pray that your hand will be heavy against the brains of those sponsoring wicked laws and trying to pass them in America, punish them with glioblastomas, like it was against those in Ashdod who tried to capture the ark of the covenant (1 Samuel 5:6). We command those mountains to flee from our presence, in Jesus name. Let that happen today. We rejoice and dance in your triumph, Lord (Psalms 2:4; Psalms 149:5-9). In the majestic name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 25^th,2021

 There he went into a cave and spent the night. And the word of the LORD came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?” He replied, “I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too. The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.” Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”—1 Kings 19:9-13

This is Day 39 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for creating us in your own image and fellowshipping with man since creation. Even when our parents, Adam and Eve, sinned, you did not abandon humanity but came to them and showed them their wrongdoing and showed them a plan to be clothed in righteousness. We thank you for reconciling us with yourself through the gift of your Son, Jesus, something we could never have been able to achieve in our own efforts. We thank you for making your plan known to man and communing with us in different ways. Lord, as you tell us to stand still and see your salvation (Psalms 46:10; Exodus 14:13-14; Isaiah 30:15), we pray that you will indeed teach us how to still ourselves in your presence and not be terrified by potential enemies running after us like Pharaoh was running after Israel and like Jezebel was running after Elijah, but we will see how majestic is your awesome power to deliver and that you rule all things on earth, and we can trust that you will be exalted among the nations. When all we are looking for are signs or wonders to show us what you are doing, desiring to see your forceful wind blast mountains open, and you want to speak to us through soft whispers instead, we pray that you will gently move our hearts to be among those who believe without demanding to see the signs of Christ’s scarred hands, who are attentive to your hushed whisper, and take you at your Word and obey it. We believe your Son is risen indeed, with all authority in heaven and earth given to Him, and is as really-present, powerful, miraculous, glorious, and gentle like the disciples saw Him 2000 years ago, and we pray that you will equip us with your truth so that we will find it easy to walk by faith and not by sight in all the problems we have to solve on earth. Teach us how we can be better in approaching your presence with reverence, hear your voice, and then go to be your voice, to share the Good News of your salvation. Raise up more faithful laborers like Elisha who replaced Elijah, because the harvest is indeed plentiful but faithful ministers are few. In the glorious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

March 26^th,2021

Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek humility. It may be that you will be hidden In the day of the LORD’s anger—Zephaniah 2:3

Seek YHWH, all you humble of the land, “” Who have done His judgment, “” Seek righteousness, seek humility, “” It may be you are hidden in the Day of the anger of YHWH. (Literal Standard Version)- also see Young’s Literal Translation

This is Day 40 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for being a Good and Just King towards us. We humbly and gladly bow down before your throne. You have made us kings and priests; all we are and have is from you, O Lord (1 Corinthians 1:30; Revelation 1:6 ; 1 Peter 2:9; John 10:34-35; John 3:27; James 1:17). As your Word calls us to seek you, O Lord, your kingdom, your righteousness, and your strength, we come to seek your face in humility (1 Chronicles 16:11;Psalms 27:8; Psalms 63:1-2; Matthew 6:33). Lord, we empty ourselves of all things that we have relied on that are not your strength because it is only through your strength that we can do all things (Jeremiah 17:5; Psalms 118:8; Psalms 146:3; Isaiah 57:15; Philippians 4:13; John 15:5; Ephesians 3:16-20). We empty ourselves of our own righteousness, because it is like filthy rags, that can neither clothe us for the wedding with the Lamb or hide us in your day of wrath (Isaiah 64:6; Matthew 22:11-13; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; Romans 5:9). We thank you for Christ’s righteousness that you have freely given to us (Jeremiah 23:6; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Romans 5:17; Romans 10:4). We thank you for calling us to do justice in the earth, with “righteous judgments” (John 7:24). We thank you for the triumph that you have achieved through those judgments (Psalms 2:2-12; Psalms 110:1; Hebrews 10:13; Psalms 111:6-7; Deuteronomy 3:24; Psalms 149:5-9; Jeremiah 51:20; Micah 3:8). We also thank you for calling us as ambassadors of reconciliation who proclaim peace through the blood of your Son, Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:20; Ephesians 2:14; Romans 5:1). Lord, you know that we carry this honor and glory in the jars of clay (2 Corinthians 4:7). We do not want to misrepresent your image even when we proclaim the mercy and judgment that you have commanded us (Psalms 85:10; Psalms 89:14; Luke 10:12; Luke 17:1-2; Luke 24:47; Matthew 26:28; John 20:23).  We pray that the sick who are healed through your mercies, the lost who are saved through your grace, the disobedient who are judged through your hand, will all remind us that none of us is sufficient for these things, except you Lord (2 Corinthians 2:14-16; John 9:39-41). We pray, especially, that your mercy in healing the sick we minister to will triumph over the judgments that they may have come under (1 Corinthians 11:30-32; 1 Peter 4:17; Revelation 2:22-23; James 2:13). Teach us the humility to judge ourselves soberly and zealously so (1 John 2:27)! Lord reveal us your heart in this so that we can properly carry your glory. Father, teach us your ways that you revealed to Moses and Paul, who have done all of these things, ministered your compassion and judgment, and yet remained the meekest people on earth (Numbers 12:1-3; Ephesians 3:8; Exodus 7:16-17; Numbers 21:9; Numbers 16:40-42; Deuteronomy 32:29; Acts 13:7-12; 1 Corinthians 5:4-5; 1 Corinthians 4:20-21; 2 Corinthians 10:6; 2 Corinthians 13:2-3; Titus 1:11). Mold our hearts into yours like you worked in them (Ezekiel 36:26-27; Exodus 32:32-24; 1 Timothy 1:16; Romans 9:3; Exodus 34:6; Romans 9:15 ). Lord, we are dust, rescued from the Fall by your mercy, and yet you made us for glory, and to express your image (Genesis 18:27; 2 Corinthians 3:18). We ask that you help us to grow in loving doing mercy, justice, and walking humbly with you, O God ( Micah 6:8; 1 John 2:6; 1 John 4:17; Genesis 5:24; Matthew 10:8; Matthew 14:14; Matthew 12:20-21; James 5:17; Ephesians 5:21;Daniel 4:24-36; Acts 5:29; Galatians 1:10; 1 Peter 5:6; Luke 14:8; Matthew 18:10). In the gracious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen !

March 27^th,2021

When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!” “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”— Luke 19: 37-40

This is Day 41 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for the embodiment of your Ark of the Covenant revealed through Christ. We thank you that Your Word became flesh, one of us, and tabernacled among us, Father. We thank you for the healing of the servant of the Centurion, the multiplication of bread, the drying of the fig tree, the calming of the raging seas, the revelation on the mount of transfiguration, the resurrection of Lazarus, the healing of Marcus’ ear, and the opening of the tombs of the saints in the Holy City. Great things He has taught us, great things He has done, indeed! Father God, give us hearts that are full of praise and teach us heaven’s melodies, joining us with angelic hosts, to sing the praises that your glorious Son, Jesus, deserves. We lay down our coats, our crowns, and indeed our lives, as He deserves it all. Use us as you see fit, Lord, and let the praises be to your majestic name. Open the windows of heaven for the floodgates of blessing to fall upon your people and let those ancient doors open up, let the king of glory come down to take His bride for the wedding supper (Revelation 19:6-9; Psalms 24:9-10; Psalms 45:1-13; John 14:1-6; 1 Corinthians 15:51; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18). Maranatha, come O Lord ! (1 Corinthians 16:22; Revelation 22:20). Arise, O Lord, let your glory rest where it belongs in your temple, the church of Jesus Christ. As we wait for that glorious day, we pray that the church will be purified to become a spotless bride, and that billions of lost sinners, as many as the sand on the seashore, will be gathered and harvested as the reward of your suffering. You were whipped to heal them, nailed on a cross to save them from sin, and purchased them unto yourself through your precious blood, O Lord Jesus (Isaiah 53:11-12; Colossians 2:15; 1 Corinthians 2:8-10; Mark 16:15; Matthew 28:18-20; Matthew 24:14; Acts 1:8; Acts 19:20). Father, we pray that you dispatch your Chief-battling angels to wage war against demonic forces that try to silence the saints of the Most High. (Hebrews 1:14; Psalms 103:20; Psalms 91:11; Psalms 104:4; Daniel 12:1; Revelation 10:1-7; Luke 12:7-8; Psalms 34:7; Acts 12:5-7; Acts 12:23). Let that Stone, that has become the Cornerstone, fall upon people who partner with those forces today. Deliver your fearful saints who have trusted in you, O God (Matthew 21:44; 1 Corinthians 10:4; Isaiah 28:16; Matthew 16:18-19; Luke 18:7-8). Let even higher praises and more songs be sung in Christ’s honor (Psalms 22:3-4; Zechariah 9:9; Revelation 1:17; Revelation 4:8-11). We continue to pray for the blind to see, the deaf to hear, the lame to walk, cancers to be healed, incurable genetic and congenital disorders to be completely gone, the dead to be raised, in the glorious name of the king of the kings, Jesus, we ask for this. Amen!

March 29^th,2021

 Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation; On You I wait all the day—Psalms 25:5

This is Day 43 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for your promise that those who wait upon you shall renew their strength (Isaiah 40:31) and also that no eye has seen and no mind has conceived what you will do for those people who wait upon you (Isaiah 64:4). We see that testimony in Job’s life and we bless your name, giving you glory for your faithfulness. Lord, we do not want to be the kind of people who talk of what is potentially possible while our hands and eyes are far from reaching that. We know there’s so much more glory, power, revival, blessing, salvation, healing, fruit, and prosperity  that your Word has promised to us and from all the things we have sown into your kingdom, raising our hopes up because of that Word. We are waiting upon you to manifest all of that in our lives and in all the 200 nations of the earth. Lead us in your truth through what we read daily, what we hear, what the Scriptures say, what we sense in our spirits, what you show us in dreams and visions, and what is happening all around us—so that our waiting will be saturated by your wisdom, insight, understanding, and revelation. Teach us how to weigh our actions and steps so that we can only spend our energies and hours in the things that will bring the most return for the kingdom of God. Lord, your Word says that you will perfect the things that concern us (Psalms 138:8), things that may seem like a mystery to us are not a mystery to you, Lord. We wait upon you to shed light on what we cannot understand or grasp. We trust in your unfailing love and your awesome power to lift our burdens, turn around unexpected situations, and bring us the expectations of your salvation, deliverance, and miracles (Jeremiah 29:11; Psalms 62:5; Psalms 125:1; Psalms 5:3; Micah 7:7;11; Jeremiah 1:12; Psalms 105:5; Psalms 40:2-5; Psalms 38:22; Psalms 18:32; Psalms 80:16-18; Matthew 11:28; Philippians 1:6; Psalms 98:4). In the Everlasting name of Jesus, we pray. Amen !

March 30^th,2021

During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission—Hebrews 5:7

This is Day 44 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for the teachings your Son, Jesus, gave to us on how to pray to you to ask for your kingdom to come down and your will to be done on earth as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:9-13). Lord, we see that, largely, your will is not being done on earth and we are to blame because we have not loved you and sought you with all our hearts, souls, and strength ( Isaiah 59:1-2; 2 Chronicles 7:14; Psalms 62:8; Luke 18:13; Mark 12:29-31). Teach us how we can find solitary places to pray our hearts out with fervent cries and tears. We want to be in those mountains or gardens like Jesus did at Mount Tabor and the garden of Getshemane; or in the closets of our own homes and offer up our heartfelt prayers. May our deepest longings rise up to you. Lord we know you can save and deliver us, from a myriad of harmful situations, those we are aware of and those we are unaware of, and we want to be like Jesus in entrusting our lives to you. We also pray that you give us deep compassion for our neighbors so that groanings by the Holy Spirit will be uttered from the depths of our hearts, for those who are in all kinds of pardonable bondage and sins. Help us to discern those who are in unpardonable sins (1 Timothy 2:1-5; Romans 8:26-27; Job 37:19; Ephesians 6:18; Psalms 42:7-8; Psalms 99:1; 1 Samuel 12:23; 1 Thessalonians 3:10; 1 John 5:16-17; Hebrews 10:26-29; Hebrews 6:4-6). Teach us the godly fear and reverent submission that will make us heard on high when we fast and pray ( Isaiah 58:4-7; Acts 10:30-35; Matthew 6:2-6). Teach us how to pray for those who are sick, at the gates of death, before their appointed times, people who could be more useful on earth much longer, so that we can minister healing to them and see them rescued from untimely death (Isaiah 38:15; James 5:15; Proverbs 3:2, 16; Deuteronomy 11:21; Psalms 91:16). We thank you for the immortality that Christ has brought to us after you heard His prayers and did not let His body suffer decay, rather, through your Spirit of holiness, you confirmed Him to be the Son of God with power (2 Timothy 1:10; Acts 13:35-37; Romans 1:4). His glory we are here to see today, Father. Show us the beauty and power of your Son, far above all authority, dominion, and every title that can be given (John 14:23; John 17:24; Revelation 3:20; Ephesians 1:17-23; Hebrews 10:21-23). Let that resurrection power continue to flow in our lives by the Spirit and let us hear your voice beckoning us to ascend higher into Mount Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem, and walk among fiery stones and anointed cherubim (Hebrews 12:22-24; Philippians 3:10; Revelation 4:1; Ezekiel 28:14). Lead us into your presence until we are filled to the measure of all the fullness of God (Ephesians 3:16-20; Isaiah 32:15). In the glorious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen !

March 31^st,2021

Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour ?”  Matthew 26:40

This is Day 45 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians.”  The plan for the devotional going forward was posted in the March 9^th devotional.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you will neither sleep nor slumber in watching over Israel (Psalms 121:4), you watch over us faithfully and we are eternally grateful for that. Thank you for the example that Jesus set for us in teaching us how to watch, being at war against the world, the flesh, and the devil. Father, we want to follow in Christ’s footsteps in being watchmen over Israel’s walls in the Middle East (Isaiah 62:6-7; Matthew 23:37-39) and the Israel of God, the church of Jesus Christ (Galatians 6:16; Acts 20:28; Ephesians 6:18). Father, we don’t pray for the churches in America enough and we don’t pray for Israel enough. The state of the church and the world testify to our lack of glory that we see is possible in the Bible, and we pray that you pour out a spirit of supplication so that there will be prayer movements in all denominations in America— among Pentecostals and Charismatics, among Baptists and Presbyterians, among Methodists and Anglicans/Episcopal churches , among Lutherans and Catholics— that there will be a genuine hunger for a move of the Holy Spirit, repentance of prayerlessness, increased watching in prayer and fasting, separation from sin and total consecration, and a strong cry for revival in America and beyond. Lord, start by giving us burdens to pray for an hour, then increase our hunger and longings for calling upon your name and seeking your face to much longer time and extended periods of several days of standing in your glorious presence (Matthew 5:6; Luke 2:37; 1 Thessalonians 5:17; Isaiah 32:15-16; Acts 2:17). May our yearning for rest never be for the excuse of luke-warmness and lack of watchful prayer. Awaken our hearts to your overwhelming love and envelop us in the blanket of your glory, O Lord (Psalms 71:20; Hosea 6:2-3; Lamentation 5:21; Jeremiah 31:3; Hosea 11:4; 1 John 4:10; John 15:16;  Matthew 7:7-11; 1 John 3:1-3; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Habakkuk 3:2). As we meditate on Christ’s sufferings during this Holy Week, let us receive your grace in our meditations, more revelations of the cross and resurrection, and infuse us with a new sense of urgency to proclaim His death and resurrection, as well as being set ablaze to see your glory saturate the church and touch America and beyond (1 Corinthians 2:2-5; 1 Corinthians 11:26; John 14:26; Acts 4:31; Isaiah 49:6 ).  Lord, we want to do all things for your glory. Though we know you will reward us and bless all nations —our burning passion is not the rich rewards we will receive and the nations that will come to the brightness of your Sun ( Matthew 5:16; Matthew 6:4; Hebrews 11:6; Revelation 22:12; Matthew 25:22-23; 2 Chronicles 7:14; John 4:35-38; Isaiah 66:8; Genesis 22:18; Acts 17:30; Acts 14:16; Matthew 28:18-20; Romans 15:18-19; Matthew 12:20-21)— our consuming zeal is for the glory of God (John 2:17; John 4:32-34; 2 Chronicles 7:1-2; Colossians 3:17;  1 Corinthians 10:31) . In the name of our chief Shepherd, Jesus, we pray. Amen !

Devotionals, 3rd & 4th Week Of February

February 15th,2021

Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest- Mark 6:31

This is Day 1 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” and will return to this  in the future as the Lord leads. 

The upcoming devotionals will consist of a single random verse that the Lord is impressing upon my heart.

The study of the Colossian epistle has turned out to be so rich and I wish to keep doing in depth consideration of every single verse to explore the book perfectly to complete the book. In the meantime, I am grateful for other projects that God has given to focus on (Ecclesiastes 9:10; Colossians 3:23-24).  

In addition to the random/ inspired verses for the day —we can also have one song to help us in our praise and worship for our daily walk with the Lord. We may be slowing down in the voluminous studies of devotionals we do but we won’t slow down in the essence of the devotional love of Jesus, intimacy, soaring in the Spirit like eagles, and walking in perfect holiness (Isaiah 40:28-31; 1 Thessalonians 5:17; Ephesians 3:19-20; 2 Corinthians 7:1; John 15:1-4).

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for all works we do to serve you and other people and also thank you for opportunities for rest (Hebrews 4:1-9; Matthew 11:28; Psalms 55:22; 1 Peter 5:7; Psalms 68:19)

We join the prayer of Moses in Psalms 90 asking that you grant us favor and establish the work of our hands (Psalms 90:17; 1 Corinthians 3:7; Psalms 37:5; Proverbs 16:3; Job 22:28; Psalms 33:11; Proverbs 16:1 &9 )

In the gracious name of Jesus, we pray. AMEN!

February 16^th,2021

Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the LORD, The Creator of the ends of the earth, Neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, And the young men shall utterly fall. But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:28-31

This is Day 2 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” and will return to this in 7-21 days as the Lord leads. From December 1st to February 13th we have done a 75-day marathon of lengthy devotionals and a slowdown with a single verse/or few verses seems wise at the moment.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that when we do not understand the world events, the challenging circumstances, or even the Scriptures we study—you do understand and you will give us understanding when we ask. We pray, Lord, that you increase insights we have in the life you have given us so that we may become overcomers. Increase our strength and might to be victorious. Raise us up so that we can soar on wings like eagles. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

 February 17^th,2021

Indeed, He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. Psalms 121: 4

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you watch over Israel of the Middle East and you also watch over your redeemed people, the “Israel of God”- Galatians 6:16, the church of your Son, Jesus Christ. We thank you that you are building your people up in the faith and strengthening us even as we rest in you (Jude 1:20; Matthew 16:18-19; Ephesians 2:22). We thank you that you will never sleep or slumber as you shepherd our souls, the Chief Shepherd of the sheep. I thank you that you lead us to green pastures and restore our souls (Psalms 23:1; 1 Peter 5:2-4). I thank you for all you accomplish on our behalf even as we rest—putting all our faith in you (Hebrews 4:1-11; ). We pray that you fight our battles and your terrible swift sword overtake and punish Leviathan and his collaborators, in this nation and around the world (Isaiah 27:1-3; Romans 16:20; Exodus 15:3-6; Colossians 2:15; Revelation 5:5; Revelation 1:18; Matthew 27: 51-53). May your powerful arm achieve us the victory we need today in the areas that concern us (Psalms 98:1; Psalms 138:8). In the everlasting name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

February 18th,2021

This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it. Isaiah 30:15

This is Day 4 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” and will return to this in 7-21 days as the Lord leads. From December 1st to February 13th we have done a 75-day marathon of lengthy devotionals and a slowdown with a single verse/or few verses seems wise at the moment.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that during this period of Lent you graciously call your people and everyone else to repentance and receive your salvation. We thank you for having enabled us to be forgiven and sanctified in Christ. Thank you for bringing us into this grace where we stand. We thank you for your grace that has established us in holiness and clothed us in white robes of righteousness. We pray, Lord, that you help us to go higher and higher so that we become like you in every way, being as perfect as you are, heavenly Father, and bringing a sweet fragrance sacrifice of worship to your Holy name. We also thank you that you continue to work mightily on our behalf, unleashing your fire to the enemy camp, and extinguishing the fiery darts Satan throws at us as we seek rest in you. We pray that you open our eyes to see a new thing you are doing today—that we may see your direction and plan for our lives—so that we can step in the works you want us to be a part of. In the powerful name of Jesus, we pray. Amen. 

February 19th,2021

 Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually! 1 Chronicles 16:11

This is Day 5 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” and will return to this in 7-21 days as the Lord leads. From December 1st to February 13th we have done a 75-day marathon of lengthy devotionals and a slowdown with a single verse/or few verses seems wise at the moment.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that in our human weakness Jesus came so that through Him we may find your strength. We thank you for strengthening us with your omnipotent Spirit. We pray that you give us the grace we need to hunger for your presence continually so that when your eyes run to and fro around the world they will find us steadfast in your truth and holding to your eternal promises. We pray that you will show yourself strong in all the areas we deal with in this life—in our sanctification, in our services, in our jobs, in our relationships, in our states and nations, and in the whole world. We want to do all things from the flow of your anointing and divine strength. We pray that that you reveal your face and show us your glory. In the gracious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

February 20th,2021

Now arise, LORD God, and come to your resting place, you and the ark of your might. May your priests, LORD God, be clothed with salvation, may your faithful people rejoice in your goodness. 2 Chronicles 6:41

This is Day 6 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” and will return to this in 7-21 days as the Lord leads. From December 1st to February 13th we have done a 75-day marathon of lengthy devotionals and a slowdown with a single verse/or few verses seems wise at the moment.

I sense my current projects need focused attention through the end of March- so likely the break will be 45 days in total. Actually, I think that can be a good 120-days pattern, spend 75 days doing longer version devotionals and 45 days of single verse devotionals, and repeat the cycle. 

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that as we rest in you, wearing our white linens ministering to you on your holy mountain, the glory of your Spirit’s presence rests upon us. What else can we possibly desire besides this ? Whom have we in heaven but you, O God ? No angel, no saint, no cherubim we look up to for our help, only you, Lord.  On earth there’s no good thing we desire besides you ! No friend, no possession brings us as much delight as your glorious presence. We pray that you touch your people with failing hearts—whether the physical hearts that pump their blood or those who are fainting in their faith—to be able to be strong in the power of your might during their times of rest—so that they can continue to serve you. Our eyes are upon you as our deliverer—so we pray that you arise in your glory and fight our battles and defeat Satan and all his schemes. In the majestic name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

February 22nd,2021

For since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him!  Isaiah 64:4

This is Day 8 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” and will return to this in 7-21 days as the Lord leads. From December 1st to February 13th we have done a 75-day marathon of lengthy devotionals and a slowdown with a single verse/or few verses seems wise at the moment.

I sense my current projects need focused attention through the end of March- so likely the break will be 45 days in total. Actually, I think that can be a good 120-days pattern, spend 75 days doing longer version devotionals and 45 days of single verse devotionals, and repeat the cycle. 

Prayer:  Father God, we thank you that as we rest in you, you have promised to work for us. Even though we would gladly work for you without expecting any rewards—because spending eternity to behold your excellencies is worth it all—we take pleasure in the promises you have given us that you will reward us and that you continually work for our welfare, even when our eyes cannot see it and our hearts are not able to discern what is happening. We pray, Lord, that you will perfect those things that concern us today. That you will grant the specific requests we make—beyond what can even ask or imagine and that your kingdom will advance, and our services will bring you glory. In the generous name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

February 23rd,2021

Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake. Mark 3:7

This is Day 9 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” and will return to this in 7-21 days as the Lord leads. From December 1st to February 13th we have done a 75-day marathon of lengthy devotionals and a slowdown with a single verse/or few verses seems wise at the moment.

I sense my current projects need focused attention through the end of March- so likely the break will be 45 days in total. Actually, I think that can be a good 120-days pattern, spend 75 days doing longer version devotionals and 45 days of single verse devotionals, and repeat the cycle. 

Prayer:  Father God, we thank you for the opportunity to serve you, even when that makes us sweat and exhausted. We also thank you for your call to us to withdraw from activity and spend time before your throne, sitting at Christ’s feet, waiting upon you, and receiving strength in our spirits and souls. We pray that you teach us the value of resting in your presence, that you reveal to us things that flesh and blood cannot give to us, even your very nature—so that like Peter, Paul, and John, we can live to fellowship with your Son, Jesus, and also bring others into fellowship with Him. In the precious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

February 24th,2021

Unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, To sit up late, To eat the bread of sorrows; For so He gives His beloved sleep. Psalms 127:1-2

This is Day 10 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” and will return to this in 7-21 days as the Lord leads. From December 1st to February 13th we have done a 75-day marathon of lengthy devotionals and a slowdown with a single verse/or few verses seems wise at the moment.

I sense my current projects need focused attention through the end of March- so likely the break will be 45 days in total. Actually, I think that can be a good 120-days pattern, spend 75 days doing longer version devotionals and 45 days of single verse devotionals, and repeat the cycle. 

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that  in everything we do or build, you are here with us, helping us. We are aware that without your help, we cannot do anything of lasting value. We want to know you, seek first your kingdom , hear your voice, and see you work wonders, like John and Peter saw you do at the sea of Galilee, when they saw fruit where they had toiled in vain all night . We want to work hard as though all our jobs were a sweet aroma offered to your altar, but we accept your wisdom of seeking you first and giving you our all—knowing that you are the one who will add to us the blessings that the pagans run after, as they toil day and night. In the majestic name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

February 25th,2021

The fruit of that righteousness will be peace; its effect will be quietness and confidence forever. My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest. Isaiah 32:17-18

This is Day 11 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” and will return to this in 7-21 days as the Lord leads. From December 1st to February 13th we have done a 75-day marathon of lengthy devotionals and a slowdown with a single verse/or few verses seems wise at the moment.

I sense my current projects need focused attention through the end of March- so likely the break will be 45 days in total. Actually, I think that can be a good 120-days pattern, spend 75 days doing longer version devotionals and 45 days of single verse devotionals, and repeat the cycle. 

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that as we lay down at Christ’s feet listening to His Word and voice, we hear you promising the Holy Spirit’s outpouring to all nations where there’s mourning for sins and true repentance. You also made the same promise for these last days, for our very desperate generation. Lord, we long for the rest that outpouring will bring and seeing a spiritual wasteland become a fertile field while a fertile field becomes like a forest. We say, Yes, Lord, make that happen. We want to rest in the fulfilment of that promise. In the faithful name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

When You said, “Seek My face,” My heart said to You, “Your face, LORD, I will seek.” Psalms 27:8 

This is Day 12 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” and will return to this in 7-21 days as the Lord leads. From December 1st to February 13th we have done a 75-day marathon of lengthy devotionals and a slowdown with a single verse/or few verses seems wise at the moment.

I sense my current projects need focused attention through the end of March- so likely the break will be 45 days in total. Actually, I think that can be a good 120-days pattern, spend 75 days doing longer version devotionals and 45 days of single verse devotionals, and repeat the cycle. 

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that you have called us to seek you and your strength so that everything we do will flow from your anointing and not our own striving. We say, Yes, Lord, your face we shall seek. Let the light of your countenance give us favor and peace. Let us behold you face to face as in a mirror, and enjoy the transformation of our lives into your image without struggles or failures. In the beautiful name of Jesus we pray. Amen!

February 27th,2021

 Arise, LORD, and come to your resting place, you and the ark of your might. Psalms 132:8

This is Day 13 that we are putting on hold our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” and will return to this in 7-21 days as the Lord leads. From December 1st to February 13th we have done a 75-day marathon of lengthy devotionals and a slowdown with a single verse/or few verses seems wise at the moment.

I sense my current projects need focused attention through the end of March- so likely the break will be 45 days in total. Actually, I think that can be a good 120-days pattern, spend 75 days doing longer version devotionals and 45 days of single verse devotionals, and repeat the cycle. 

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that the glory of your presence that once dwelt upon the ark of the covenant has been given to us, who are in union with you Father and Jesus, your Son. We thank you that we are being built into an edifice—one holy church that is spotless, without wrinkle and blemish, maturing into the full stature of Christ you have designed the bride to be. We pray, Lord, that you will complete the work you have begun in us and through us. In the glorious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

 

Devotionals, February-July Colossians

February 1st,2021

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother. To God’s holy people in Colossae, the faithful brothers and sisters in Christ: Grace and peace to you from God our Father. Colossians 1:1-2

Today we will launch our devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” as we start the month of February. It is anticipated that this will be completed at some point next year. Though the book is short, about 96 verses in total, that could be completed in 12 weeks with verse by verse exposition, we had to take a break in April. 

One of the interesting challenges of studying and teaching the Word of God is to balance topical teachings and Bible book verse by verse exegesis/exposition. There’s strong support for both, with one preferred by one group of people and the other preferred by another group of people. From personal observations, both are equally important. It is possible to get “strong meat”—Hebrews 5:14 in both. It is also possible to get foundational doctrines such as the sin of man, the cross, and resurrection in both. 

It is believed that Paul wrote this letter in Rome around 62 AD. That would be 1-3 years before he died. So, it is one of his late epistles. The map below shows where Colossae was located. You can see that Laodicea is not too far away from Colossae, about 15 km (9 miles) northwest. 

1. Paul starts by acknowledging God’s sovereign will in calling him. We can read detailed stories about this in Acts 9 and Galatian 1:15-through Galatians 2:10. We read: “But when God, who set me apart from my mother’s womb and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, my immediate response was not to consult any human being.”—Galatians 1:15-16. Paul understood that His calling was not something that took place by surprise some time around 35 AD. For him and the people who knew him, yes, it was a surprise. But for God, it was something planned a long time before that. He had been set apart from the mother’s womb. Perhaps Paul remembers Jeremiah 1:5 that says “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” It was true for Jeremiah, it was true for Paul, and is true for everyone else whom God calls. Realizing this not only brings God all the glory—as the work of God cannot be attributed to the messenger He calls, it is also a doctrine that brings relief or rest to the person who is called, as the challenges of the call, which are always going to be there, can be considered to be “light affliction, which is but for a moment…working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.”—2 Corinthians 4:17. Many of us may never see the kind of challenges that these early disciples faced and yet we may also never be able to see the same level of fruitfulness. When Paul was called, he did not consult any human being. Not relatives;  not fellow journeymen on the road to Damascus; not Gamaliel, his mentor; not the apostles in Jerusalem. There was a guy that Jesus called to be a disciple and the guy requested time to go and say goodbye to his family. Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.“—Luke 9:62. This probably could disqualify 90% of Christians in the West, pastors included. There is a lot of “flesh-consulting” these days, but the flesh is never a good consultant. Most Christians I have come across do not have this mindset at all. There are some who do, but they are not that many. For many Christians, serving God is a job like you could be hired at Walmart. It’s rarely understood as a sovereign call of God. Even for other New Testament figures like Peter, John, Timothy, and Matthew, the call of God was personal. For Mark, who had family connections with Barnabas, that relationship “after the flesh”— 2 Corinthians 5:16, once created a big fight between Barnabas and Paul. They had to go separate ways over that, though later Mark reconnected with Paul. If this is how family members who are in ministry together can be affected, imagine the liability brought by partnerships of family members who are not even born again. It’s always good to ensure that family members are truly born again and committed to the mission before they can be involved in Gospel ministry, otherwise it could create a discipleship journey problem. 
2.   Paul was with Timothy when he wrote this epistle from Rome. In Philippians 2:19, another epistle believed to have been written in Paul’s final stage of ministry, Paul says that he plans to send Timothy to the Philippians. It is amazing that Christians in the early church were willing to stand together in midst of challenges and high costs of following Christ. Today, people who are imprisoned for the Gospel may not enjoy the same support and fellowship. You can see the coldness of love and hearts all around among Christians today. 
3.   The saints in Colossae, faithful brethren. Members of the church are considered “saints.” Ananias was once afraid of Paul because of what he had done against the “the saints in Jerusalem.”—Acts 9:13.  This epistle is addressed to people who are holy and faithful. People who are cleansed by the blood of Jesus and sanctified by the Holy Spirit. That’s how we become saints. Christians do not need to wait till they die to become saints. The blood of Jesus, not canonization, is what makes us saints. Faithfulness usually takes time to build and notice. The Greek word he uses is “pistois,” which can also mean “trustworthy.” Faithfulness is an important aspect of the fruit of the Spirit we should have (Galatians 5: 22-23). Faithfulness is proof of real faith. In many Bible passages, “pistis” is seen where the intended meaning is the faith that moves mountains and the faithfulness of remaining loyal to Jesus in obeying His commandments. This double meaning can be lost sometimes. It’s probably why it is not uncommon to see people who have “big faith” but are unfaithful. That’s like saying people can have “financial breakthroughs” by trusting God and yet they are not walking in holiness. It’s also common to see people you can find to be faithful in many areas—relationships, work, church, family, ministry—and yet they have little faith. They would not be  what William Carey calls “attempting great things for God.” They just hope they make it to heaven. That falls short of what Jesus considered faith useful for (Mark 11:22-24; Matthew 17:20). There’s no single place in the gospels where Jesus spoke of “little faith” in a positive way. He cheered a Roman with “great faith” (Matthew 8:8-10) and departed from his own hometown because of lack of faith (Matthew 13:55-58). Considering God’s generous promises and immutable nature, not trusting Him is very dishonoring (Numbers 23:19; Titus 1:2; Malachi 3:6).  Faithfulness and faith are equally important for the saints. Faithfulness was one of the 3 things that Jesus said the  Pharisees were lacking in, even though they were tithing faithfully (Matthew 23:23). So, even faithfulness can be split. It’s possible to commit to be faithful in giving finances to a missionary organization or ministry of the church and still be unfaithful in other areas. For Jesus, that’s hypocrisy. That’s not considered faithfulness.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for the glorious calling that you gave to Paul and we thank you that all of us have our own callings and he is an example we would like to imitate. We pray that you bring us clarity where we may be unsure about our callings. We pray that you will bring along brethren, partners, co-laborers, so that we can advance your kingdom together. We pray that you continue to work in us powerfully in sanctifying our hearts so that we can walk worthy of our calling and remain faithful to your truth. In the precious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

February 2nd,2021

We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God’s people. Colossians 1:3-4

We will be continuing the devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” looking at Colossians 1:3-4 today.

1.   We always thank God, the Father, when we pray. Apostle Paul was clearly happy for the Colossians and thanked God for their faith. Later, he will explain more the benefits of redemption that they had received for which Paul, and everyone else, should be thankful. For example, He has translated us from the kingdom of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of light of His son (Colossians 1:13). Salvation is so comprehensive that we will probably be in heaven before we can fully comprehend the depth and height of it. However, there are many things that we already know that salvation offers to the saints and for those things we should be thankful. The Psalmist encourages us to enter God’s gates with thanksgiving (Psalms 100:4) or enter His presence with thanksgiving (Psalms 95:2). So, it’s fitting that as we read Paul’s letter we see him starting with thanksgiving. When we have a good relationship with the Lord and practice His presence, we do not solely go to Him in seasons when we are overburdened with worries of life. Sure, the Word of God encourages us to “cast all your anxieties on Him”—1 Peter 5:7 and we ought to do so when we are burdened with cares, but there are always many testimonies of God’s goodness, blessings, and redemption that we can bring before Him on a daily basis. In the New Testament we no longer bring animal sacrifices in God’s house, but we are still taught to bring sacrifices of thanksgiving and praise (Hebrews 13:15; Leviticus 7:12; Psalms 50:14; Psalms 116:7; Hebrews 10:14). The sacrifice that Christ has made has perfected us in righteousness forever and for that we should be grateful. Paul is praying for the church as He thanks God. Why is Paul concerned and  praying for people he has never met ? This should be an example for all of us to remember to pray beyond our own needs. We should pray for our local churches as well as the church in the nation where we live and around the world. We probably know specific needs of the churches we are closest to and those we should bring to the Lord in prayer. They can be in the same city or the same county or province—we can lift up their pastors, their ministries, their visions, their missions, and financial needs—and different other needs. Proverbs 11:25 says “A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.” This can be said of someone who refreshes others materially but it can also be said of someone who refreshes others spiritually or seeks their spiritual well-being (2 Corinthians 9:6; 1 Corinthians 9:11; Luke 6:38; Matthew 6:12). What this means is that in our prayer time we should make sure we always pray beyond our own personal needs—and also include the needs of the church family. We may even pray for some specific church members that we know have certain needs. When we do, we can be sure that God also will take care of our needs. I am yet to hear of someone who has lived a godly life helping others whom God has forsaken. Each thing I thought I did in sacrifice, God has returned to me several times above and beyond my initial seed.
2.   Because we have heard of your faith in God and love for all God’s people. In this we get more specific things that Paul was thanking God for. Salvation is a gift of God. We are saved by grace. Even faith is apportioned to us, we do not fabricate it (Ephesians 2:8-10; Romans 12:3). In that Romans 12: 3 verse we read “in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.” So, not only we are not saved by our own works, even the faith that saves us is by God’s grace, it is a gift of God. To a certain extent, every Christian has a gift of faith—perhaps not in the context of 1 Corinthians 12 spiritual gifts—“charismata”—miracle working faith—but in the context of Romans 12, that includes saving faith. And that faith that saves us is actually enough because when it comes to difficulties we face or mountains—Jesus said that the size of faith that was apportioned to people is not relevant (Luke 17:5-6). The words we see used for “little faith” in places like Luke 12:28 is actually “oligopistis.” So, those people had faith but it was so undeveloped that they were worried all the time and it was not producing kingdom results. Perhaps rather than pray for God to increase our faith, we should thank God for the faith He has already given to us and exercise it daily in the battles we face and needs we have. Paul also thanked God for the love they had for all people. Faith works by love (Galatians 5:6) and wherever true faith is, sincere love will be. The “love for all saints,” is clearly universal. While we should never overemphasize the global body of Christ—universal church at the expense of the local church—we should not be so selfish as to consider only the concerns of the local church and forget the universal church. For example, Paul had requested the church in Corinth and the Galatian church to collect offerings for the saints in Jerusalem (1 Corinthians 16:1-4) and other places (2 Corinthians 9:2-4). Surely if the churches in Corinth and Galatia should have been loving and financially helping other churches that were not local—then praying for people beyond the state/city limits or even the nation is the least we can do. Of course, we understand that this love that the people in Colosse were expressing for all God’s people went beyond just prayers and well-wishes (James 2:15-17; 1 John 3:17; 1 John 4:20). Because such faith and love prove that salvation has come to the people who have them, Paul thanked God the Father for such marks of the new birth—such evidence of regeneration—that kind of fruit that testified their salvation.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for saving us through your Son Jesus Christ and giving each of us a measure of faith. Father, regardless of the size of faith each us has received, we pray that you teach us more about faith and how we can develop it into strong and mountain-moving faith—so that we can glorify you regardless of the storms, obstacles, and problems that we will have to deal with. May those who don’t know you see that our God is an awesome God. We thank you for the love shed abroad in our hearts, for all saints in our localities as well as beyond the state and nation, we pray that you hear the cries of your people who cry day and night for justice and relief in the midst of persecutions, and those who seek your anointing to help them spread your Gospel to the nations. In the generous name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

February 3rd,2021

The faith and love that spring from the hope stored up for you in heaven and about which you have already heard in the true message of the gospel that has come to you. In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world—just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God’s grace. Colossians 1:5-6

We will be continuing the devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” looking at Colossians 1:5-6 today.

1.       Faith and love spring from eternal hope. The NIV is careful to connect verse 5 from the previous verse by repeating faith and love from verse 4 but the ESV, NKJV, and NASB go directly to “because of the hope.” In 1 Corinthians 13:13, Paul writes “now these three abide: faith, hope, and love.” While he says that love is the greatest of all in those 3, here he is saying that it is not possible to have love without hope—which itself is the basis of faith (Hebrews 11:1)—since faith is the assurance of things hoped for. First, hope. Second, faith. Third, love. But the greatest of these is love. The hope is “stored up for you in heaven.”—which means that something objective has to be depicted or painted to us before faith can seize it. We have to see Christ crucified and risen for us to believe (Galatian 3:1; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4). Faith is subjective, hope is objective. Our eternal reality is fixed but faith must be lived out by experience. God shows us what He has laid in store for those who love Him, we accept to come and take it (1 Corinthians 2:9). Faith is the substance of the invisible treasures of our hope in Christ. By faith, we sit at the right hand of God in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2: 6). It is as real and substance to us now as it will be when it happens “physically.” Modern man has been deemed to be more inclined to facts than faith, seeing than believing, proof than trust, material than spiritual, science than religion; and yet, we know that “God has also set eternity in the human heart.”—Ecclesiastes 3:11. Because of this, man’s intellect may not be the fortress that sometimes Christians think it is—even for the atheists. Aren’t they afraid of death? Everyone who does not know Jesus is virtually likely to be afraid of death. It is natural. But there’s hope of resurrection in Christ (John 11:25). That’s actually a realization that God can use. Fear of death is not a bad thing for those who need it to reconsider their eternal destiny.  In the “Case for Christ,” Lee Strobel tries to do a forensic research about the claims of Christianity. He investigates many claims and proves them to be factual. Jesus died and rose from the dead, this is a Bible claim and a historical fact. The question is, would someone just choose to disappear into the “void of eternity” without hope, or is it easier and more peaceful to “sleep in Christ?”—1 Thessalonians 4:14. At a certain point, fighting God and faith makes no sense, since everyone of us is like a grass that withers. But in Christ, we become more than grass appointed unto fire, we become “oaks of righteousness.”—Isaiah 61:3, that will endure for eternity. It is this hope of resurrection that the Colossians had heard, and they seized God’s offer by faith.  The Greek word used for “stored up” is “apokeimenen,” from “apokeimai,” which means to reserve, to store, to lay up. If you plan to go on a long trip for vacation, you will probably do hotel reservation. If you plan to go to Disney World, you will need to make a trip reservation. The hope of resurrection is described this way. In 2 Corinthians 5:1 we read: “For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands.”—NLT. That “eternal body” has to be reserved and God is the one who reserved it for us. We will not just stop by unannounced. It has to be planned in advance. We must prepare ourselves for heaven. That “eternal body” is a hope, so we don’t see it, but we can receive that by faith in Jesus Christ. Mortality is so predictable and preaching immortality is the easiest task given to the Christian saint because death is so obvious and incontrovertible and no advance in science and technology will ever change this. If there’s an area apologetics should aim, this is the most crucial point. People can resist truth all they want but in the end, “it is appointed unto man to die once, and after that to face judgment.”—Hebrews 9:27. What happens after you die ? That’s a question every single person should answer honestly with all seriousness. Nobody else will give an account for us. Nobody we can blame. It is personal. It is a question we can never afford to answer wrong. This hope of the resurrection the Colossians came to know when “they heard the true message of the Gospel.” It’s Good News but it has to be preached. “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?”—Romans 10:14. It is amazing how much people are willing to do once they get this revelation of eternal life. They will cross seas and nations to preach the Gospel. They will give to the needy and some are even willing to die for this truth.They know it is true. They believe everyone must know it. Hope of resurrection is truly the spring of faith and love. 
2.       This message spread to the whole world and bears fruit. The same message of hope preached to the Colossians has produced the same results elsewhere. In the scientific inquiry, something discovered in a researcher’s lab is accepted as universal once it can be replicated by other people. We have a 2000-year history and a multitude of saints in the “cloud of witnesses”—Hebrews 12:1, who can testify to us that the Gospel works. But, “we have church decline in the West over the last decade. It doesn’t work for this generation,”someone may say. That objection cannot cancel 2000 years of proven church history and multiple witnesses in various cultures and countries who have proven otherwise. The Gospel can work to the extent we believe it does. Jesus expected that it would continue to bear fruits until the end of the age (Matthew 24:14). God wouldn’t want to sit and wait out apocalyptic prophecies, unless He knew that it is possible to get more penitent sinners who receive this hope (2 Peter 3:9). Just imagine the feeling when the person you could be talking to at the airport or Walmart is the last soul to accept or reject Christ one minute before the rapture. I mean, this will happen to somebody. As long as God is patient, our job remains to keep doing the best to proclaim this message of hope. The harvest remains as plentiful today as it has ever been and the Gospel will continue to bear fruit all over the world whenever a preacher stands up and proclaims the hope of the resurrection that Jesus Christ offers those who believe.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for storing for us this hope of resurrection—when our body given to corruption will be raised incorruptible. Lord, we pray that you fill us with your Sprit and power so that we can proclaim to those who are under fear and subjugation of death—that there’s eternal life available by faith in Christ Jesus. We pray that you open the eyes of many in this nation to see your truth and life in the Gospel and receive that. In the precious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

February 4th,2021

You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit. Colossians 1:7-8

We will be continuing the devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” looking at Colossians 1:7-8 today.

You learned it from Epaphras, who is a faithful minister on our behalf. The person who evangelized Colossae had a name. His name was Epaphras. We read again about him in Colossians 4:12, where Paul writes that he was “always wrestling in prayer” for the Colossian church. That may help us here in trying to create a somewhat useful profile for this otherwise easily forgettable name. We also see in Philemon 1:23 that he was in prison with apostle Paul in Rome, where he had gone to visit the apostle. It is believed that even though apostle Paul did not bring the Gospel to Colossae himself, it had been impacted as a ripple effect of his ministry in Ephesus approximately 53-56 AD, since Ephesus was 100 miles West of Colossae and “all Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the Word of the Lord.”—Acts 19:10. The map below shows the province of Asia in the Roman Empire of those times.

Epaphras had been the pastor of this church in Colossae that was meeting in the house of Philemon. He is not as well-known as Timothy, Titus, and Silas—other people who were part of Paul’s apostolic mission group. They had many of these coworkers who don’t have a significant profile in the New Testament. For example, Clement, the Bishop of Rome, who replaced Peter after the apostles died is mentioned in Philippians 4:23 and as Paul mentions him he adds “and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.” I love that statement. Jesus once cautioned the disciples not to rejoice that the demons were submitting to their delegated authority as they cast them out in His name, rather to rejoice that their names were written in the book of life (Luke 10:17-20). Why is that ? When he healed the demon-possessed man in Gadarenes he told him to go sharing his testimony—which was Good News of great joy—but why did he tell the disciples not to rejoice in casting out demons? Because as exciting as miracles are, it means nothing if someone ends up in hell after doing all of that. Casting out demons is part of our great commission, but having our names written in the book of the Lamb is our most important objective. Judas cast out demons too (Matthew 10; John 17:12; John 6:70). It’s not so much about being part of a ministry team or being known for doing some great work of God as it is about securing our seats in heaven and having our names written down in the book of the Lamb. Some of the things that Paul wrote regarding this book of life can cause great theological debates between Calvinism and Arminianism, between Predestinarians and Free Will-ers, but our goal here is to keep those things simple. There’s a such a book and apostle Paul was so bold as to state he knew that those people were in the book. Can we say the same with great certainty for people in the churches today ? This is not a small talk because there are people Jesus threatens He could blot out of the book of life (Revelation 3:5). We should never grow complacent in our confession of being justified by faith and zealous pursuit of holiness (Philippians 3:9,14). What we can take away is that Epaphras was a wrestler and such overcomers in Christ, who are in the book of life, are the people who constantly wage war against the flesh, the world, and the devil—not just for their own souls but also for the souls of those in their church. He who is in us, the Spirit of Jesus Christ, is greater than He who is in the world (1 John 4:4). So, we have been equipped with all the power we need to be overcomers. Epaphras was the kind of pastor who was not satisfied with preaching the Gospel and wrestled for souls in prayer. He did it day and night, not just on Sunday afternoons or week-ends. His prayers for the members of his church are in God’s book of remembrance just as His own name was (Malachi 3:16; Acts 10:4). Few days ago, I read a news report at Christian Post about someone who worked at a certain church and was disillusioned because they could not remember his name, inspite of being involved in church activity as a volunteer for months, doing for free something he could have been paid $100 an hour. Hopefully, we will all do our best to remember people who give out their time in sacrifice like that, love them and remember them (2 Corinthians 3:2).

Who also told us about the love for others that the Holy Spirit has given you (NLT). Jesus had said that the disciples will be known by their love (John 13:35). When people have tasted the presence of the living God and the powers of the age to come, they fall in love with the Holy Spirit, who then pours His love in their hearts for other people (Romans 5:5). Love is the first aspect of the fruit of the Spirit mentioned in Galatians 5:22 and it brings God great glory when we bear this fruit (John 15:8), which touches many souls, who also taste and see that the Lord is good. Love is not in word only (1 John 3:18), even though kind words can be expressions of love (Ephesians 4:15; Colossians 4:6; Proverbs 15:1; Proverbs 15:4; Proverbs 16:24). Actions usually are the true demonstrations of love, but they have to be motivated by what is pure and holy as people could give their entire estate worth of millions of dollars in philanthropy and still be void of divine agape (1 Corinthians 13:3), when it is done for being recognized and boasting. When words and actions are full of love and done for the comfort, blessing, and sanctification of others, with no personal desire for boasting of doing good, then true love is present. The Colossian church that met at the house of Philemon had this. I have known by experience that church cell groups or small house churches allow people to bond in a way that larger congregations may not necessarily be able to. There’s nothing wrong with large churches doing both big and smaller meetings. Our lives should be known for the kind of love that marked the Colossian church. There are Christians I see and I am like, I wish I had love like that—Heidi Baker comes to mind. The Colossian church might not have been that big but their love was big. A church does not have to be big or own a luxurious sanctuary in an upscale part of the city to be known in heaven for its love for other people. There’s nothing wrong with having those luxuries but there’s nothing virtuous about having them either. “The goal of our instruction is the love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and a sincere faith.”—1 Timothy 1:5. This is the goal we should aim for as Christians whether our church is big or small, persecuted or in freedom, with a big church building or a modest one. Our hearts and consciences have to be guilt-free, cleansed by the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus and sanctified (Hebrews 9:14; Hebrews 10:22; Acts 15:9), so that through that cleansed heart and clear conscience we can have genuine faith in Christ and love people the Biblical way ( 1 John 3:18-22; 1 Corinthians 13:4-8; Philippians 4:8). Christians can’t love people with divine agape if their consciences are burdened with guilt, but once they have been cleansed thoroughly, they should pour out their lives for others (1 John 3:16; Philippians 2:17).

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for all the people whose names are written in the book of life—whom you have used to get the Gospel to this generation of ours. They may be well-known or not even known at all—but precious in your eyes is their death and glorious their lives that faithfully continued the propagation of this Good News. We pray, Lord, that in our times and seasons, we will be overwhelmed by your love—that your Holy Spirit will pour it in our hearts like He did for the Colossians—so that we can bless people with words we say—and also have actions that accompany our words to bring healing, salvation, hope, and restoration in the lives of many. In the precious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

February 5th,2021

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives.  Colossians 1:9

We will be continuing the devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” looking at Colossians 1:9 today.

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We do not have the exact dates that Epaphras evangelized Colossae and started a church there. But since we have noted that this was probably an expansion of Paul’s ministry in Ephesus, which was 100 miles West, and where Paul was approximately 53-56 AD, then this letter written in 61-64 AD would suggest that apostle Paul and his apostolic mission group had been praying for the Colossian church for 5-8 years non-stop. That’s a long time to pray for a church and especially when you are praying for several churches. Do we wonder why the purity and the power of the early church is often seen as unattainable by the churches today—even though we serve the same Savior and are under the same covenant? Could it be that prayer was the driving force of their missions and churches and we have little of this going on today ?

Paul explains why they were praying non-stop. Because the church had heard the hope of resurrection, had put their faith in Christ, and were walking in love. Because Epaphras had told him about their sweet fellowship in the Spirit and the love they had for all the saints.  Scriptures tell us to “strengthen the feeble knees”—Hebrews 12:12, encouraging people who are weak to stand strong in the evil day or helping those who may be weak to be able to stand on their feet. But encouragement to stand strong should not be considered unnecessary for those who are already strong. Paul warned: “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!”—1 Corinthians 10:12. Churches that are strong should not be assumed that they will always be. Movements that start on fire for God cannot be guaranteed to remain so.

Have you ever heard of William Booth and the Salvation Army? Once upon a time, this was one of the greatest revivalist and evangelistic movement in the late 19th century. When I read the books of Smith Wigglesworth (1859-1947), I see how highly he talks about their evangelistic missions in the 1890s. But even Wigglesworth had changed his opinion about them by the 1930s. There may remain some  few franchises/districts of the organization that are still faithful to the original mission, but for the most part we now see it like the Catholic Caritas non-profit, solely focused on giving Christmas goodies to kids and food banks for the poor without serious evangelistic outreaches. Those things are good but Jesus is more about the bread of heaven that feeds the soul than the bread that feeds the stomach (John 6:26-35). When Jesus sends a letter to the Ephesian church we see Him saying “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first.”—Revelation 2:4. The best way to maintain that kind of fire is “to strike the iron while it is hot.” To take opportunity of revival and people’s initial enthusiasm and continually pray for them to remain strong in the faith. Doing that for 1 week or one month or even one year is not enough.

I will confess that there are times I have been limited in geography in my prayer life. Times when I have had to move from one city to another and stopped praying for brethren or churches in the previous city. Now, I realize this shouldn’t be the case. But perhaps that also may have been because of the strength I had at the time to do all that. At some point, being busy with complex secular work can create difficulties to cover so many people in prayer. In any case, when God gives us the ability, it is important for us to pour our hearts in praying for our current cities and churches without forgetting to mention others we may have known or been a part of in the past. Recently, I am doing this more intentionally—rather than waiting to hear about a specific problem to pray for.

We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of His will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives. The Greek word used for pray in the previous sentence is “proseuchomenoi” from “proseuchomai,” which means offer prayer, supplication, and worship. We see it used in Matthew 6:6, where Jesus says that when we pray we should go into the closet or secret place and pray to the Father who sees in secret. The one used for “ask” in this sentence here is “aitoumenoi” from “aiteo,” which means to beg, make a request, petition. We see it used where Jesus talks about a son who asks a father fish (Matthew 7:10) and Herodias asking for the head of John the Baptist on a plate (Matthew 14:7).

There are two attitudes that should be balanced when we come before God in prayer:

The first is the attitude that we are sons of God and come before our heavenly Father. We know that as a good Father, we receive from Him whatever we ask for in prayer (1 John 3:22). If we ask for an outpouring of the Spirit or gifts of the spirit for a demonstration of His power, we know that we will receive that (Matthew 7:7-11; John 16:23). Because of this, we approach His throne with boldness. 

The second is the attitude that we are dust and ashes before the Sovereign king of the universe (Genesis 18:27; Job 30:19) and we approach Him with reverence and learn to pray in a submissive way according to His perfect will (Luke 22:42; James 4:2-3; Psalms 66:18; 1 Kings 3:11; Proverbs 1:28; 1 John 5:14). Petitioning or begging does not sound like a bold way you come and take what belongs to you—and it is true that through Christ’s redemptive work those things we ask for already belong to us ( 1 Corinthians 3:21; Romans 8:32;  Luke 15:31), but sometimes when mercy is what we need, then petitioning and begging can be appropriate (Luke 18:38; Psalms 62:12; 2 Kings 13:23; 2 Kings 24:20; Hebrews 12:28; James 4:8). If we are praying to God to save America, Europe, and the world from judgment, perhaps we need the same attitude Abraham had when praying for Sodom ? (Daniel 9:6-7; Ezra 9:7; Isaiah 53:6; Romans 3:23; 2 Kings 36:16; 2 Kings 18:12; 2 Chronicles 7:14).

I have heard teachings that disparage petitioning and begging—and yet we see apostle Paul having such prayers (2 Corinthians 12:8-10). We need both confidence and humility, standing both in our perfect righteousness in Christ and our limited understanding of God’s counsel, receiving our redemptive benefits that already belong to us and petitioning for God’s continued mercies.

Paul was petitioning the heavenly King on behalf of the Colossian saints to be filled with divine knowledge. The Greek word he used is “epignosis,” we see in the New Testament used differently from “gnosis,” another word for knowledge. For example we see this in Matthew 11:27, “No one knows the son except the Father and no one knows the Father except the Son, and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.” So, the knowledge Paul is praying for is revelatory. It is not the kind of knowledge you would acquire by going to a library and picking your favorite book to read. God has been pleased to give revelatory knowledge to a select group of people (Luke 10:21; Galatians 1:15; Matthew 13:11; 1 Corinthians 1:28). Even for a person who usually gets “epignosis,” it is possible that occasionally he/she may be stuck in “gnosis” and not get revelation about something (2 Kings 4:26-27; Luke 24:16; Acts 18:24-26; Galatians 2:13; Luke 19:42). Epignosis is what distinguishes weak believers and strong saints, because revelatory knowledge is power. It is not just any knowledge. Paul is praying for the eyes of their understanding to be enlightened—just like He does for the Ephesian church (Ephesians 1:18). This is something that we should pray for.

What is sin? For some people sin is something desirable, too difficult to defeat, associated temptations are scary, sometimes excuses for sin are acceptable. To others, sin is deadly, easily defeated, temptations are enticements that reflect an evil heart, and sin should be avoided at all cost. Based on how they view sin, those two groups of people are not operating from the same knowledge. Not everything you read about God or spirituality comes from epignosis. Many of the things we see—especially on social media—that purport to teach us about God or how we should live spiritually—are simply useless gnosis instructions that would not get us anywhere. Trained eyes know to distinguish epignosis from gnosis and staying away from gnosis gibberish that comes from the fallen human intellect and has no power to transform us into Christ’s image. Make no mistake, we do need certain “gnosis” to be effective in the ministry of the Gospel (2 Peter 1:5). Our faith is most strengthened by revelatory knowledge as we hear the Word but God does not want us to be ignorant of important practical ,earthly facts. We should just make sure we are highly selective of the things we read and accept as truth. Knowledge that influences our beliefs should not be taken lightly. Paul prayed for the Colossians to have revelatory knowledge that would be useful to distinguish things that are from God and things that are of human wisdom.

The word used for God’s will is “thelematos,” which means wish, determination, inclination, decree, purpose, volition, choice. If you are applying to an institution for something—say mortgage/loan for a house or building at a bank—they will make a “determination.” It is their decision that will be communicated to you about the course of action they have chosen to take—whether to agree or disagree. God has already revealed His prescriptive will in the Scriptures and yet—you can’t just possibly say that because you read king David killing Goliath you are going to physically kill some giant—and you have to enlist in the army in order to achieve such a feat. It may not be God’s sovereign or dispositional will for your life to join the military if He has another calling for you. That story of David paints a picture of valiance in standing up for God in the face of gigantic opposition rather than a general invitation for everyone to join an earthly army (1 Samuel 17:26; Philippians 2:25; 2 Timothy 2:4; Psalms 18:29). We could use a different example from the Bible to talk about God’s will regarding marriage and how to choose a spouse or which city to choose to live. You need God to reveal His will for your life.  There’s a high chance you won’t necessarily see all the details of that will in the Scripture. However, God’s prescriptive will can help you to have enough guidance since it is a lamp unto your feet (Psalms 119:105; 1 Thessalonians 4:3; John 8:12; Psalms 32:8; Romans 8:14).

Making good decisions that are in accordance with God’s will can only happen through spiritual wisdom and understanding. This is why Paul spent so much time praying for those churches. It is so easy for many Christians to confuse ideas that come from God and ideas that come the world. Worldly wisdom teaches you how to be successful according to the world’s standards and if you follow that, there are many kingdom-focused decisions that you will miss because you won’t be able to reach them as you will be pulled in a different direction. You can’t possibly learn to evangelize, plant a church, raise the dead, or run a Christian school from Steve Harvey’s TV show. It takes time to invest in God’s word to be able to start to understand how God thinks (Romans 12:1-2; Matthew 6:33). Understanding is “sunesis.”  It simply means facts joined together or sanctified, inductive reasoning, done under God’s light. It usually occurs after years of meditations have reached maturity.

I have studied Scriptures since I was a kid but it was not until a certain time into adulthood—particularly starting in 2015—that it seemed like the floodgates of understanding had been opened to me. Even when I would be at a random place doing random things—pick DMV or tag agency for example—standing in line for car registration renewal—I would get a Scripture quickened in my Spirit—out of the blue. It felt like I couldn’t see or hear anything—without seeing hundreds of Scriptures flashing in my eyes or hearing them in my heart and instantly knowing what is right and what is wrong (2 Timothy 3:15;1 John 2:27; John 16:13). Some Bible doctrines I had read with a “hazy” picture, that even teachings or books I respected had almost never touched—became as clear as day. God seemed to emphasize balance of “all truth” (John 16:13) in that season. “Mercy and justice kiss each other.”—Psalms 85:10. “Scriptures and power” are both important to be free from error (Matthew 22:29). “Love and truth” always go together (1 Corinthians 13:6; Ephesians 4:15).  “Salvation with no works and the good works after salvation” should be balanced (Ephesians 2:8-10; Titus 3:5; James 2:17; Acts 26:20; Philippians 2:12). “Faith and patience” should be balanced (Hebrews 6:12; Matthew 17:20; Luke 17:6; Luke 18:1; Romans 5:4-5; James 5:7; James 1:4; Hebrews 11:13). “Encouraging people to be self-sufficient by working hard and helping those who are weak or constrained” should be balanced (2 Thessalonians 3:10-11; 1 Thessalonians 4:11; Acts 20:34-35; 1 John 3:17; James 2:15-16; Ephesians 5:15-16). We could go on and on and cite about 50 topics like these, in which you will find one church or Christian movement emphasizing A at the expense of B or vice-versa.

For example, the 2 attitudes of prayer Confidence vs Humility—mentioned earlier in this devotional may not be embraced by all Christians. There may be some churches that will emphasize the rights of sonship. Healing is the children’s bread, they expect to be healed. They expect to get what they ask for all the time. There may be other churches that emphasize submission and suffering. They do not necessarily expect healing to take place all the time. While healing is such an easy topic, where I believe doctrines are clear-cut, this can get more complex in other doctrines such as the doctrines of dominion of man on earth and how governments should function. Does man still have the dominion God gave Adam ? Did Satan take it all ? If so, what should Christians expect when they pray ? Do they expect governments to be just ? Do they submit to unjust authorities ? To what extent ? What about democratic constitutions in Western countries that give rights to citizens to participate in good government ?  One church could emphasize a “Biblical worldview” that is similar to the Davidic kingdom while another would be Okay with a different view point like Daniel in Babylon for example. And how does the cross and resurrection change all these dynamics ? If all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Jesus, what should be the attitude of the church ? Government on earth in Scripture is not as clear cut as healing because healing is usually personal while government concerns society. You can choose to see a doctor or trust God for healing but you cannot choose to have a driver’s license before you drive a car because the government has already made that decision for you. But does this mean that Joseph Stalin as head of the Soviet government was right in establishing Gulags ? If we say the government can require people to have driver’s licenses, where and how do we draw the line that it cannot force them into concentration camps ? Were Gulags an abuse of power ? Who decides what an abuse of power is ? What if there’s an abuse of power and citizens and legislators have no ability to stop that ? It is a complex topic in which various Christian churches may have differing opinions or “understanding of things.” Christians who believe in greater individual freedom will have a different attitude in prayer from those who are fine with greater government control. Some will want deliverance and freedom while others will choose to accept suffering and submission. Our goal here is not to give an exhaustive “correct understanding”  on this specific topic, rather to show how 2 different understandings contrast within Christianity. For our short-to-medium length teaching on this topic, you can look at the 2020 Christmas devotional “Hail The Incarnate Deity” expositions on Isaiah 9:6 and Isaiah 9:7. Even those teachings were not exhaustive.

Understanding gives us an “operational framework.” When facts are joined together, they give us an expansive picture of what action we should take. A person with understanding would never be out of options because there are always a million doors you could go through, a million projects you can build, and a million more topics you could discuss (Proverbs 24:25; Proverbs 4:7; Proverbs 24:6; Proverbs 8:14; Proverbs 20:5; Proverbs 21:22; Psalms 147:5; Isaiah 40:28-31; 1 Kings 4:32-34; Malachi 3:10). Divine understanding opens us the gates of infinity.

Wisdom is different from understanding because you can’t possibly do all the amazing things that God will give you understanding about. People say that wisdom is applying knowledge and this is certainly true. It means nothing if we have a revelation of holiness and we make choices that lead us in being unholy. It means nothing to understand mysteries of how we can transform the world for Christ if we do not have the time to do all of that. It means nothing to have the understanding of breakthrough discoveries that we enjoy alone while lacking the wisdom to be able to bring it to the market—so to speak—or on a platform where other people can share in the same joy. Wisdom helps to be highly selective and prioritize things—what should come first and what should go second and what will come third. We know how facts are joined together by understanding, and then, in wisdom we begin to put the first where it should be and the second after that—and so on and so forth.

Sometimes people could scream that they want to see the letters XYZ when you are still on EFG, and you calmly ignore it because something is in the works—they have no idea what it is. God’s wisdom teaches you to go one step at a time. Worldly wisdom does not necessarily follow that because its definition of success is different from God’s definition. Even in the church everyone does not define revival or awakening or success the same way. Some Christians are happy “to do church,”  while others believe everyone should be born again. This doesn’t mean God has no definition for those terms. It simply means that not all Christians actually care what God thinks. People who are not expecting the same results cannot possibly share the methods.  Apostle Paul prayed for the Colossians to have revelatory knowledge in order to recognize God’s will and be filled with spiritual wisdom and understanding. We need this more than ever. We should be praying this over ourselves, our families, and the churches in this nation and around the world.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you want us to go higher in your kingdom and even if we may have walked in faith and love last month and last year, you are calling us to increase in greater love and demonstrations of power by faith. We thank you that your understanding is infinite, and your wisdom is unsearchable, and we will never be able to exhaust the revelations of knowledge in the Scriptures as well as hidden mysteries that are not written. We want to grow in intimacy with you and know your thoughts as you renew our minds and receive your wisdom—so that we can prioritize things of your kingdom—and even those things of the kingdom we know can further be selected based on what you want to be placed ahead of others  or done first to see your kingdom fill the whole world. In the glorious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen! 

February 6th,2021

So that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God —Colossians 1:10.

 We will be continuing the devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” looking at Colossians 1:10 today.

So that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please Him in every way. Hope, faith, and love were already evident in the Colossians. For that reason, apostle Paul prayed for them to be filled—that is, to have an abundance and flooding of divine knowledge, understanding ,wisdom, and will —and this prayer request had a goal in mind—so that they may live a life worthy of the Lord and please Him in every way.

The Greek word used for walk is “Peripatesai,” from “Peripateo,” which means to conduct yourself, deport yourself, to live, to go full circle. The word for “worthy” is “axios,” and it means “suitable, recognized as fitting, matching the value.” We see this used again in Ephesians 4:1, where Paul writes “I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called.” In this Ephesians 4:1 verse, calling is “kleseos,” from “klesis,” which means a divine call, an invitation. Revelatory knowledge, understanding, wisdom, determination of God’s will precede holiness because you need those things first to help you in your sanctification and walking worthy of your high calling in Christ.

Yesterday, we gave an example of how 2 groups of people can define sin differently: how it arises, temptations associated with it, how it is dealt with, whether victory is easy or difficult. To go further, we can say that even though temptation is not sinful—the very fact that temptation exists cannot tell us a whole lot about how a person is living. Jesus had temptation in the wilderness but He was driven by the Spirit to go there (Mark 1:12). So, he was in God’s will when He was tempted. He won the victory there and did not sin. In James 1: 14 we read: “but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed.” Here, James does not have a very positive view of temptations—he places it solely at the feet of the sinner. There are temptations that Christians are simply not supposed to have—and if they have them, it is because they have opened the door to Satan in some kind of way. They are enticed by evil desires because they are not killing indwelling sin or getting sanctified (Romans 8:13; Colossians 3:5). This view of James 1:14 on temptation is different from the one of Mark 1:12.

Christians who are lacking in divine wisdom may not realize the snares of the fowler (Psalms 91:3; Psalms 124:7; Hosea 9:8; Galatians 5:26; Luke 6:29; Proverbs 1:10; Proverbs 1:17; Luke 21:34; Proverbs 6:5; Proverbs 29:6; Ecclesiastes 9:12; Matthew 6:13; James 1:5). So, the very existence of temptation, can sometimes, be proof of stupidity (being a fool—Proverbs 1:32). We need to be able to understand these things, without necessarily knowing the deep secrets of Satan (Revelation 2:24; 2 Corinthians 2:11; Revelation 2:10; Luke 22:31; 1 John 5:19; 2 Corinthians 11:3), in how he actually lays such traps for people or creates a world of new dogmas, philosophies, rights, ideologies, divisions, heresies, hostilities, entitlements, tolerance, and a whole host of other things that he will manipulate in order to keep people in bondage. To be able to walk worthy of the Lord you need divine revelation how to stay away from temptation before it can even develop into sin. That’s what our high calling in the kingdom of Christ demands. That’s how we walk in a manner worthy of our calling.

The Greek word for “pleasing” is “areskia,” and it means the effort to fully and properly please. It can also mean “complaisance, obsequiousness, and willing service.” This is a disposition to live your life in order to accommodate  the taste, feelings, and wishes of someone. It is complying with the requirements and promptings without giving troubles or difficulty. It is the opposite of being “stiff-necked”— 1 Corinthians 10:5; Exodus 32:9; Exodus 33:3; Numbers 14:11; Deuteronomy 9:13; Deuteronomy 31:27; 2 Kings 17:14; Acts 7:51

In the media and political news we often see the word “sycophant” used—sometimes we see it with one president or another—about a group of journalists or other professionals—who make an effort to please a government leader—usually in hopes of currying favor or advancing propaganda. This does not happen only under dictatorships with “state media” but can occur in the West as well in both mainstream and emerging independent media. While the word is used often in a negative way—it is good for Christians to be “Christ’s sycophants”—that is work hard to learn how to please Him. When a church is asking for volunteers who should host a Bible study in their homes—is it difficult to get people signed up ? What about unpaid teachers for Sunday school ? What about church parking attendants ? What about those going on mission trips abroad ? What about those going to full time Bible schools ?

King David was the kind of man who knew how to please the Lord. Not only in the way He danced before the Lord (2 Samuel 6:14; 1 Samuel 13:14), but also in general willingness to serve and live holy ( 1 Samuel 18:14; 1 Kings 9:4; Psalms 84:10; Psalms 101:1-6; Psalms 119:1; Psalms 104:33; Psalms 63:4; Psalms 34:1). Dancing for God and singing to Him in praises and worship please Him, but we know that worship goes much further than that (Romans 12:1; Matthew 15:8; John 5:23; Proverbs 23:26; 2 Corinthians 2:15; Luke 1:9). God’s pleasure is not limited to dances and songs like king Herod was pleased to see someone dance before him (Mark 6:22), so when the King of Kings is going to give out blessings and kingdom benefits, He looks at something else—keeping the commandments (John 15:7; 1 John 5:14; James 4:3; 1 John 3:22; James 1:6-7; Hebrews 11:6; Mark 11:22-25; 1 Kings 3:4-5).

Obedience should be done for its own sake, but God has been pleased to add rewards for obedience (Psalms 62:12; Galatians 6:7-9; 1 Corinthians 15:58; 2 Timothy 4:8; Matthew 6:33).  There’s nothing wrong with expecting divine blessing and rewards for obedience because it is God Himself who has saturated His Word with such promises. We should all desire to please God. We should aim to be His delight. Our words, our relationships, our jobs, our ministries, our projects, and our songs should be like a sweet fragrance incense ascending to heaven’s altar (Leviticus 6:13; Revelation 5:8). As you read how God tips the bowls of prayer from heaven to earth to birth revivals and blessings—how much do you wish you would please Him more and worship more? That should fire us up into passionate prayers.

Bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God. Before you can bear fruit in every good work, first of all, you have to agree that you must do good works.

Today, many churches teach that because we are saved by grace and not by works—therefore you have to be a couch potato and watch TV all day. Others believe that though we should do good works, we are not to try too hard—which is untrue—because as we saw in the “Contending To The End” devotional for the end of the year—contending for the faith, as seen in the Greek original, will involve striving (Jude 1:3; Colossians 1:29). As you can see, really apostasy in the West is a self-inflicted wound—because churches teach a false Christianity that tells believers to be idle and lazy (Matthew 20:3-4; Luke 19:12-27; 1 Corinthians 9:16; Revelation 3:11; Hebrews 6:12). So, first of all, we have to get that out of our head and realize that God has work for us to do. If you are told that serving God is striving and bad and you should stop, you will end up being lazy. If you are told that God saved you by grace and He has prepared good works for you before you were even born again and you should walk in those works in confidence, you will wait upon the Lord, seeking to know what those good works are and do them (Ephesians 2:8-10).

It is when we walk in holiness, living lives that are worthy of our calling, and pleasing God in every way, that the good works  we do are blessed to bear fruits (1 Corinthians 3:6-11; John 3:27; John 15:5, 16; Psalms 90:17; Haggai 1:9; Proverbs 27:18; 2 Timothy 3:17; Hebrews 13:21).

The Lord also wants us to grow in the knowledge of Him. I am thrilled by this prayer. I mean, think about all the mind-blowing things we saw yesterday in what Paul writes about “epignosis” in Colossians 1:9 and how we expounded it to see what that divine revelatory knowledge entails. Now, in verse 10, God wants us to grow or increase in that knowledge. I mean, where does it all end ? Paul writes that despite his abundance of revelations that God had given him, he knew in part (1 Corinthians 13:12). When we get to heaven, we will know fully. This means that until we get to heaven, there are more and more mind-blowing revelations of God that He will give to us.

God could snatch you and take you to heaven and give you a tour of all the mansions that Jesus has prepared for His bride and give you a 10 minutes lecture on Botany/Phytology, telling you all the plants that Solomon knew (1 King 4:33)—and the pharmaceutical product each of those plants in the world can be used to develop medicine for all the incurable diseases that exist (Revelation 22:2; Revelation 2:7; Ezekiel 47:12; Genesis 1:29; Genesis 2:9; Isaiah 38:21-22; 1 Timothy 5:23; 2 Chronicles 16:12-13; Jeremiah 8:22; Job 13:4; Colossians 4:14; Matthew 9:12; Jeremiah 30:17 ; Lamentations 2:13; 2 Kings 5:10)—not the Digitalis drug level stuff that are used by cardiologists today—which relieve symptoms but cannot cure people permanently, and yet with all that mind-blowing knowledge that cures all diseases and gives you insight about the glorious wedding awaiting the Bride of Christ—you would have been in heaven for just 10 minutes and you couldn’t possibly know the same things as we shall know by being with God in eternity.  With that brief visit, you would continue to know in part and see in part (2 Corinthians 12:2-4). We won’t know fully until we are finally home. In the meantime, we understand that revelatory knowledge is progressive and we should expect it to continue to increase.

There’s no-good reason we should be stuck in what we knew 5 years ago or 10 years ago or even last month. God wants to reveal Himself to His children. He also wants that knowledge to be applicable, to have an impact, to be transformative—so that it can help us in walking in a manner worthy of His holy calling as well as produce good works that will transform the nations.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that your revelations, understanding, wisdom, and knowledge of your will shall lead us into holiness and all your paths are pleasantness. Lord, we acknowledge that we know the schemes of the devil in creating divisions, laziness, backsliding, apostasy, persecutions, immorality—and we want that to be exposed so that the church will be a pure and spotless bride—walking worthy of the high calling you have given the saints and we will all be zealous for good works to advance your kingdom. Lord, we ask that you help us crush Satan under our feet like you promised you would soon do—and fill us with greater and greater knowledge and wisdom so that we can finish your assignment for the church. In the glorious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

February 8th,2021

Being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience. Colossians 1:11

We will be continuing the devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” looking at Colossians 1:11 today.

Being strengthened with all power according to His glorious might.  The Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit love the church intensely. It is a shame that this love is not fully reciprocated. “Love always trusts”—1 Corinthians 13:7. Why don’t we trust the Lord always? Why do we doubt His power that He has made available? Why would God go out of His way to “strengthen with all power”—the saints in Colossae—if not for the love God loves the church ?

•         The Greek word for “strengthened” is “dynamoumenoi,” from “dunamoo” and it means to empower, to fill with power, and enable. He is not going to strengthen the saints with some power, with a little bit of power, with a certain measure of power, rather  “all power.” Again the word for “power” there is “dunamis.”—which is what we often call “the anointing,” but literary is translated as ability, energy, force, and might. It is the ability to perform in God’s power. It is the believer’s ability to achieve things by the Lord’s inherent abilities. How many Christians and churches do you know believe this?  From my observation—at best 10% of churches and pastors believe this kind of power is available to Christians. At worst, it could be less than this because most Christians are really “unbelievers”—they want Jesus as a ticket out of hell—but don’t talk about God’s inherent abilities given to them. We can’t stand powerless Christianity. Christ has called us to power. Dunamis is noted in 120 instances in the New Testament and includes both the sanctifying power as well as the miracle-working power. When Jesus told the disciples that they will receive power (Acts 1:8), this is the word that is used. That promise was fulfilled on Pentecost and we went through “The Gospel Is Power” devotional to look into this in detail in the last 10 days of January 2021. Since that was completed and the final edits have been done as well—usually final edits take 24-48 hours as some initial posts may not properly convey the intended message—so, whoever is interested in final edited devotionals may go back and read those. In 1 Corinthians 12:10, the word used for the gift of miracles is “Dunamis“—literary the gift of power. Considering the context of what Paul is writing here, I believe he is focused on the sanctifying power of this dunamis because he talks about endurance and patience—aspects of the fruit of the Spirit we all need in sanctification.
•         According to his glorious might. God doesn’t meet our needs according to our intelligence, our financial resources, our country/state’s political environment, our relatives, friends, and connections; He may use those to bless us—but He meets our needs “according to His glorious might.” This is Good News because Christians in Pakistan, Japan, Norway, and USA—will have the same access to this power—even though their social, economic, and political situations may be different. As I go through this, I am remembering a Christian minister in a foreign country who contacted us recently and I am lifting him up in my prayers . We really should pray more for our brothers and sisters in Christ abroad. It is amazing what God’s power can do when people truly believe and I certainly hope that Christians who are blessed with the comforts that the West can provide, will not wait to be in difficult situations to learn to pray like this and avail themselves of the same power that Christians in hardships elsewhere simply cannot live without. The Greek word for “glorious” is from “doxa”—which can mean glory, honor, splendor, praise. When God does those powerful things to strengthen His people or do wonders, it brings Him honor and praise. It reveals His splendor. When Paul prayed for the Ephesian church, He prayed that they would know “the hope of their calling, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints.”—Ephesians 1:18. Do we have the hope of this calling ? Do we see the riches of His glory for our inheritance ? The word for “might” is “kratos,” and it can also mean dominion, strength, power, and vigor. The Lord wants us to be spiritually vigorous—not weak. He already knows our weaknesses and sympathizes (Hebrews 4:15)—but this is not for keeping us in those weaknesses. It is for strengthening us with all His power according to His glorious might. If you are weak before you pray and remain weak after you pray—then probably you don’t believe in the same Jesus of the Bible. We must believe in God’s power and His ability to strengthen us in our weaknesses as failure to do so can result in having a form of godliness while denying the power of God. In that state, we would not be able to be patient and have endurance when we face situations that test us mentally, emotionally, and our kingdom commitment.

So that you may have great endurance and patience. We all know the hardships the early church went through in those days of the launch of Christianity. In Hebrews 10:34 we read: “ You suffered along with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. “ Have you been in prison for preaching the Gospel ? Has the police confiscated your car and house because of believing in Jesus ? These were the costs of discipleship back then. When you read the book “Tortured for Christ” by Richard Wurmbrand, you will see how the Romania and other Eastern Europe Christians were persecuted during the years of the cold war as the Soviet union continued to push communism. That’s much closer to what the early church endured. I don’t believe that it’s God’s rule for the whole world (Galatians 5:1; Colossians 2:15; 2 Thessalonians 3:1; Acts 6:7; Acts 26:18; Romans 16:20,23; Matthew 10:23; 1 Timothy 2:1-5), but it gives us a modern example of what endurance means under persecution. As pagans got converted, persecutions in the Western world disappeared. I do not know any Christian who would regret the conversion of the pagans that ended persecution. When Julian the Apostate was dying, on June 27th, 363, he groaned “You have conquered, O Galilean.” He meant that Christ had defeated opposition to His purposes. But before that happened, the early church Christians had situations that required great endurance to be able to hold to their faith without scandalizing the Gospel—being offended and falling away. We may not face these things—but how do we fare when we deal with less difficult situations politically, financially, relationally, and socially ?  And I am not even talking about certain situations that could be caused by our own errors—because there are Christians who may suffer losses because of making poor decisions socially and politically, for example, decisions rooted in earthly conspiracies, that have no Biblical ground and therefore lack divine support (1 Peter 2:20; 1 Peter 4:15)—I am not talking about these, rather I mean Christians who may have legitimate troubles that are simply a result of the fallen world we live in—when Satan strikes to try to ruin them. How do we fare in those circumstances ? Because it is in those situations where our true treasures are revealed, where our hope and faith will be tested and whether we actually believe in this supernatural power to strengthen us to have “great endurance and patience.” (1 Peter 1:7; Matthew 6:19-21). The fact is, even though persecution in the Western world is currently stealth and and not-so-obvious, it does happen, not just from outsiders, but also between differing Christian tribes. When you read the book “The Heavenly Man” by Brother Yun, you see him mentioning this in his book chapter “A New Kind of Persecution” that he noticed after he fled communist China into Europe. As long as Satan is in the world, he will try to discourage and put out the fire and love the saints have for God and those who are weak will have their love for Christ grow cold and lose their passion to serve. This is why we need that power that works through faith to give us endurance so that we can be immovable and run our race to the finish line (Acts 20:24; Hebrews 12:2).

•         The Greek word used for “great” in NIV is actually “pasan” and it can also mean full, every kind of, and all. This means that God is not just going to give us patience in certain situations but  prove to be insufficient or powerless in others. There are no circumstances when His power will fail because our problems have become too much for Him (Luke 1:37; Mark 9:23; Ephesians 3:19-20). Every single difficulty, regardless of how it started or its magnitude—God has sufficient power to give us the grace to endure and be patient. We should lift up our hands and thank Jesus for that power given to us.
•         The Greek word for endurance is “hypomonen,” from “hupomone,” which means steadfastness or “remaining in faith while under challenges.” That means, we are fully persuaded that God’s sovereignty actually has taken into account our situations (Romans 4:19-21)—and He will not allow trials and temptations that are beyond what we can handle (1 Corinthians 10:13; Hebrews 10:23). A passage that can encourage us about this we read it in Luke 21:13-19. There, we see Jesus telling disciples the hardships they could face and then He finishes by saying “by your patience possess your souls.” When these challenges come—something is at stake—our souls. We can choose to give up, save our lives and lose our souls; or we can choose to be steadfast and save our souls (Mark 4:17; Mark 8:35-38; Isaiah 48:10; James 1:21; 1 Peter 1:16-18). Endurance and patience are part of denying ourselves, taking our crosses, and dying to ourselves—aspects that are crucial for discipleship. Is it possible to be “saved,” without actually going through discipleship like that ? Not according to those passages. Perseverance of the saints in holiness under all circumstances is as important as initial justification by faith without works. Our initial salvation involves our belief in a crucified Savior who rose from the dead and regenerates our spirit (Romans 3-5). We then consecrate our bodies and start to walk in holiness (Romans 6-8), but once that is done, our minds should be renewed too (Romans 12), and as we progress, we start to learn how death and resurrection work in the Christian believer—not objectively—as Christ died and rose and He will not repeat that process—but subjectively—we live the experience (John 12:24; Galatians 6:17; Philippians 3:10; Romans 8:17). The story of Joseph is a good pattern to remember (Genesis 37-Genesis 46). It can help us reinforce this teaching in our minds. What Christians don’t realize is that there’s always resurrection on the other side. There are denominations that preach a false Gospel of the cross only without resurrection—of suffering without victory—of a kernel falling into the ground and remaining there dead—not rising up to produce many fruits. We must stay away from such a false gospel(Isaiah 8:20). A person is not a false teacher only by proclaiming unscriptural prosperity, a preacher can be a false teacher for proclaiming unbiblical suffering. We are not the saviors of the world. Our blood has no redemptive power to cleanse sinners their guilt. If it could wash away their sins, it may be a good idea for all Christians to die so that every lost soul in the 8 billions that dwell on earth can have eternal life. That’s not God’s plan for salvation. Look at Matthew 10:23 mentioned earlier in brackets, for example. If Jesus wants disciples to suffer, why does He encourage them to flee to a different city after persecution ? Wouldn’t they suffer more by staying in the same city they are persecuted ? We must learn to balance this truth. Just like the objective death of Christ was followed by a resurrection—our subjective or experiential death is followed by a “resurrection.” This prepares for a future physical death and physical, bodily resurrection, when the Lord comes to take His people. In the meantime, through patience and endurance, we will possess our souls—that means more than just “keeping your sanity,” in a crazy world—it means you remain steadfast and immovable in your faith in the Lord—not giving an inch of your soul to the world, the flesh, or Satan to deceive and destroy. As you do, you watch the Lord give you beauty for ashes, crown for despair, and splendor for shame (Isaiah 61:3; Romans 5:17; Hebrews 13:13-21).
•         Our whole souls should belong to the Lord just like our spirits became His dwelling place when we were born again (John 3:5; Romans 6:4) and our bodies became His when we became consecrated (Romans 6:13-14). The decisions of our intellects, the feelings of our emotions, and the determination of our will should remain firmly in the kingdom regardless of the dangers, attacks, betrayals, persecutions, and deceptions. Some call this resilience—but that sounds more like a psychology and secular term than a Bible and spiritual term. It is possible to be resilient in the midst of challenges while compromising integrity or denying the faith—what modern psychology calls coping—doing what you have to do to survive physically and financially. When you see a psychologist in the midst of problems, you will be taught coping skills. They won’t necessarily be inspired by Scriptures. Trials such as career pressure, material losses, and religious tribulations can cause backsliding even though some people may find a way to thrive or prosper by reducing their kingdom commitment to worry about this life on earth. When it comes to the proper way to endure and have patience—look at Job in the Bible. Even his wife wanted him to curse God and die (Job 2:9), but that would not have been endurance. Even Job’s friends were like modern therapists (Job 13:4). Job refused ungodly advice from “fallen gnosis” and stood firm in “epignosis” and faith. And when the fullness of time came, he received his own resurrection (Job 42; James 5:10-11), having already believed in the one of the Redeemer he knew by “epignosis” (Job 19:25). This call to endure in trials as we await the coming of the Lord or going to be with Him in heaven is similar to the enduring power and patience that the bride and bridegroom have for years of relationship as they walk in purity and holiness before their wedding. God calls the church to have that endurance and patience as we wait our heavenly bridegroom, Jesus, who will come to take His church to heaven (1 John 3:1-3; 2 Timothy 4:7; Philippians 1:21). This is why we should keep our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfector of our faith in order to run with endurance the race marked out for us (Hebrews 12:1-2).
• The NIV does not add “joy” in verse 11, but the NLT, NKJV, and NASB do. In Greek, the word used is “chara.” It means gladness, cheerfulness, or rejoicing exceedingly. God does not just want us to endure tribulations like a patient closes both eyes to endure a needle in the arm when blood is being drawn to check for infection or other possible blood abnormalities. He actually wants us to laugh and rejoice (Matthew 5:11; 1 Peter 3:14; 1 Peter 4: 13-14; James 1:2; Philippians 4:4; Romans 5:3-5; Nehemiah 8:10). It demonstrates the power of the kingdom of God within us when not only we remain unshakable in the midst of difficult circumstances, but also rejoice and keep our enthusiastic service for the Lord going strong— proving that we are more than conquerors through all things (Romans 14:17; Luke 17:21; Hebrews 12:26-28; Romans 8:35-37; Acts 19:20).

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that you strengthen us with all your power according to your glorious might to be able to be patient and have endurance in every kind of difficult situation and challenge. Lord, we pray, that you will reveal to us more and more of this truth, so that we can be strengthened in our faith and patiently bear the crosses that may come in life. We also pray that we will have the faith to believe in the resurrections that will come from those sufferings here on earth—and ultimately where they point us towards—the resurrection of our bodies for eternity. In the glorious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen. 

February 9th,2021

And giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. Colossians 1:12

We will be continuing the devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” looking at Colossians 1:12 today.

We had seen that Paul started to pray for the Colossian church the moment he heard about their faith (Colossians 1:9). He is still praying several years after that initial news. Though there are certain things he is looking forward to have as he prays for them, there are certain things they already have, that they have already received, and for that, he is thankful. We had already talked about the importance of entering God’s presence with thanksgiving for mercies already received (Colossians 1:3). The Greek word used for thanks comes from “eucharisteo,” and it means thanksgiving or receiving with thanks. It is an acknowledgement of God’s grace at work in the lives of people for His own glory and their eternal gain. From this word we get Eucharist, which is probably a word more commonly used in Catholic traditions than Protestant traditions—as the Catholics use it for the Holy Communion done during the mass. 

I received my first Eucharist as a catholic at the age of 8 and it was a thrilling experience. Though I am a protestant now, I treasure that memory. The reason this is the name given to the holy communion is probably linked to the Last Supper, when Jesus was about to be delivered for our sins. “And when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.”—1 Corinthians 11:24; Matthew 26:26-28. But what thanks was Jesus giving and to whom ? The thanks were given to the Father and the content of the prayer ? This was likely a Jewish prayer of Berakha (thanksgiving, blessing) that goes like “Blessed are You, O Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, Who creates the fruit of the vine.” At that time, God’s greatest work was creation and now He was about to do another work, which would be even greater—the work of redemption.

We thank God for the works of creation and the work of redemption because we are the beneficiaries of both. When He created man, he gave him dominion over His works (Genesis 1:26-29). Those works of creation yield a harvest and fruits that sustain life on earth. The work of redemption deals with the curse that came after the fall of man and restores man into a relationship with God by reconciling God and man and paying the penalty for sin that man should have paid. And how much thanks do we owe our God who not only has richly blessed us with the beautiful and glorious creation but also has reconciled us to Himself through the shedding of the blood of His own son ? (John 3:16; Romans 8:32; Matthew 26:28; 2 Corinthians 5:19; 1 John 2:2).

The Father also is thanked that the provision has had an impact on the saints—He has qualified them to share in the inheritance. The Greek word for “qualified” is “hikanosanti” and it can also mean to make sufficient, render fit, to help in reaching the place of sufficiency, to make someone competent. It is amazing that the qualification to attain the most glorious inheritance is by grace and not by works—that is we do not work or earn it (Ephesians 2:8-10). 

People who are educated—who get university masters or doctorate degrees attain qualifications in their field through years of laboring in their study courses. They have homeworks, exams, research projects, and a host of other works that they have to do to qualify for future jobs or positions that they will hold. They earn their qualifications. When it comes to salvation, we cannot qualify ourselves for heaven and it would not work even if we tried hard. If God does not qualify people, they will never be qualified regardless of how many times they pray, how many sacrifices they make, and how long they have been doing that.

No one will be saved by being a good person and salvation is not possible outside of faith in Jesus Christ who was given as a ransom for our sins (Acts 4:12; John 14:6; Galatians 2:21). It does not matter how many people can testify to a person’s goodness, kindness, generosity, or clean life—all have sinned (Romans 3:23) and one sin is enough to arouse the wrath of God (James 2:10). God is so holy that He will not behold iniquity, no matter how one considers it a justifiable compromise ( Habakkuk 1:13).

The Greek word for share is “Merida,” from Meris. It means a portion, a part, a district of a country, a province. We see it used in Luke 10:42, where Jesus said that Mary who sat at the feet of Jesus hearing whatever He had to say had chosen the good part. Jesus was speaking and she was taking in everything—in His presence. Martha, her sister was overwhelmed with all the works that had to be done—and she even chided her sister because she needed help in the kitchen. That attitude almost suggests that Jesus cared more about spending time in His presence and hearing the Word of God than the practical things that needed to be done to keep life going like cooking, shopping for groceries, washing dishes, cleaning, and all other important aspects of the home life. These things are important. Jesus didn’t say they were insignificant. But in comparison—one thing is needful—one thing is considered to be the most important—to know Jesus intimately. No matter how much service is done for him—it is of less value than actually spending time with Him, talking to Him, hearing Him speak, and following His instructions. Loving Him is more important than serving Him and if anything is to be done for Him, it should not be out of our own initiative but out of His direction. This is what Martha did not get. This is why Mary was considered to have chosen the better inheritance. Because our inheritance is spiritual—this helps us understand what that portion or province or dividend we have been qualified for is. We are shareholders in the heavenly kingdom. We are not just citizens (Philippians 3:20).

When Abraham was called out of Ur and followed God, we are told that he wasn’t actually looking for Canaan, in which his children of Israel would inherit, rather “He was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”—Hebrews 11:10. It is amazing that the beloved passage of Hebrews 11 that tells us about all the heroes of faith and the feats they performed for God—none is regarded so highly as what lies beyond the grave (Hebrews 11:13). Joshua entered Canaan, David had a kingdom, and Solomon was the wealthiest man in history—and yet with all of those accomplishments, miracles, and blessings received on earth—they had not yet received the better part of the promises. “For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.”—Hebrews 13:14. God wants us to serve Him now—have victories in this life—but we have to make sure we balance the kingdom message (Acts 13:22, 36; 2 Samuel 7:12; Psalms 40:10; Joshua 24:15;.Acts 20:27; Matthew 28:18-20; John 14:12).  Ultimately, the message of the kingdom is not only about what we can do and have now—rather what we are going to become and inherit in eternity (1 John 3:1-3; Job 19:26; Luke 20:36; John 17:24; Colossians 3:4).

The people we share the kingdom of God with are called “the saints in light.” There are no saints in darkness, that is for the devil’s kingdom and his works of darkness ( Ephesians 2:2; Ephesians 6:12; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Isaiah 29:15; Job 22:13; Isaiah 28:15;  Hebrews 4:13;  John 8:32; John 8:44; Ephesians 5:11; 1 John 1:7-9;  Romans 13:12-14; 1 John 3:10). Being a child of light is both a positional and experiential truth. A person who has just been born again, who may have had a life of darkness for years is instantly in the kingdom of light. A good example is the story of the conversion of apostle Paul in Acts 9. At one time, he was persecuting the church and had an encounter with the Lord of glory, Jesus Christ, in a dazzling light, and the next moment, he was a convert and became a saint. It is experiential because we start to walk in the light after we are born again and our lives are marked by God’s glorious presence and the holiness that emanates from that glory.

Do you share in the inheritance of the saints in light as those verses show what light and darkness mean ? If you do not, then this is the better part—the better portion—the better inheritance to seek after and take hold of. No saint will ever be qualified through personal endeavor but by God’s grace—all of us who believe in Christ will be qualified to share in that inheritance.

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that you have qualified us for sharing in the inheritance of the saints in light. We thank you for the cross of Jesus who bore our sorrows, paid our penalty, and filled us with the Holy Spirit so that we can live to serve you and glorify you. Lord, we ask that you shine your light and let more people see that light in this nation and around the world so that they can be awakened to your love and grace—and choose this inheritance that you are offering us. In the compassionate name of Jesus, we pray. Amen !

February 10th,2021

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves. Colossians 1:13

We will be continuing the devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” looking at Colossians 1:13 today. There are positive and negative things mentioned in Colossians 1:12-13.

The positive thing we saw it yesterday, we have been brought into an inheritance among the saints in light. The Father qualified us, called us, Christ redeemed us, and the Holy Spirit sealed us to guarantee our salvation.

When a seal of guarantee is placed upon official documents—say of an FDIC-backed bank, we know that there’s protection against loss as the deposited money is insured—backed by the “the full of faith of the United States.” When there was a financial crisis in Liban in 2020, people couldn’t withdraw the cash they wanted from their bank accounts. If the government decided that $100 was the limit, that was it. While such a situation has not yet happened to FDIC-backed banks in USA, the world always has uncertainties. Thankfully, we have inherited a kingdom of certainty and our inheritance is guaranteed (2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:14; Ephesians 4:30). In that Ephesians 1:14, Paul actually calls the Holy Spirit “the pledge of our inheritance.” Who made the pledge ? What is the pledge? When will it be ours ? God the Father is one who made it because the Holy Spirit is also known as “the promise of the Father.”—Luke 24:49. Some Christians may have been atheists before coming to faith, demanding evidence that God was real, but now they do not need one. The “Spirit testifies”— Romans 8:16. They have seen God’s power at work and have full assurance that not only God exists, but also that He is working wonders in their own personal lives. He has made that guarantee through an inner and evident experience. So, being brought into this inheritance among the sanctified, who are in God’s eternal light, is a positive thing. It will be in our full possession on the “day of redemption,” which “is to come,” as those verses say. So, that will be the day of the rapture of the church.

The negative thing we read in these verses—is where we were before our new birth experience—and where billions of souls are located—their spiritual address. It is called “the dominion of darkness” or the kingdom of darkness. We had to be rescued from there. Though Adam and Eve’s sin in the garden of Eden was volitional—that is they had the free will to choose to sin and rebel against God—their reconciliation with God, restoration into relationship with Him, freedom from sin, and walking in holiness couldn’t have been willed—they couldn’t rescue themselves from the clutches of sin and Satan by their own effort. They needed help—they required a Savior.

The Greek word used for “rescued” is Errysato, from “rhuomai,” which means to pull, to snatch, and to deliver. Though the Greek word used for “snatch from the flames of fire” in Jude 1:23 is “Harpazo” and therefore has a close, but different definition, it rings a bell with the described state of those who are not born again. It is not just that the kingdom of darkness is full of evil—open or secret—seen or invisible—recognized or hidden—it is also a place of torment. The demons, known as “Legion,” that possessed the man of the Gadarenes that Jesus delivers in the Gospels feared being sent into the abyss—even though that is where they will eventually go. For the time being, since their final judgment has not yet arrived, they wanted to make a prayer request to Jesus. So that is a very negative place—that even demons do not wish to be. When sinners are hearing the Gospel through evangelism, they are being “snatched from the flames of fire.” The saints in Colossae had been snatched from those flames as Epaphras preached to them. They had been delivered from the dominion of darkness.

The word “rhuomai” is used in Matthew 6:13, where Jesus teaches what we call “The Lord’s Prayer,” and He finishes by saying “deliver us from evil.” This deliverance or rescue removed us from danger, oppression, bondage, slavery, and potential eternal destruction by God’s fire “that will consume His enemies.”—Hebrews 10:27, they are also known as people who are “appointed unto wrath”—1 Thessalonians 5:9. For sinners, eternal judgment is only a matter of time—and considering that it is everlasting—no gain or pleasure in sin for 100 years on earth—and for many people it is much shorter than that—would equal the torments, stench, and agony of that place. There will be no purgatory—where people can be for 10 years after death or even 50 years—and have them transferred to heaven after prayers of the saints on earth are heard. It is either heaven or hell—that is the correct teaching of Scripture. There’s no “middle kingdom.” Not now, when we are still alive, and not at all after we die. 

The rich man and Lazarus story in Luke 16:19-31 tells us about the situation between those in heaven and those in hell. The rich man died and went to hell while the poor man died and went to heaven. While social status does not determine who goes to heaven or hell—Jesus tells that story of a rich man who used to unleash his dogs and they would go to lick the sores of poor Lazarus. Now, in hell, he is praying for Lazarus to come and bring a drop of water to soothe his parched throat. If he could only have a drop. So, the torments of hell that Jesus describes there are conscious and people go there immediately after death—if they are not saved. Millions of people around the world will probably go there to burn for eternity by the end of this month. To avoid having relatives join him in hell, the rich man asked that Lazarus would be sent back to the earth from his glorious rest in Abraham’s bosom and go to warn his surviving brothers that it was not pretty in hell—so that they would no longer continue to live the same lifestyle of luxury, pride, pleasure, and earthly attachment that led him to that place. Abraham told the rich man that if his brothers couldn’t heed the Written Scriptures, they may not be convinced even if someone was to be raised from the dead.—showing us the power God has put into the written word to rescue sinners—if they are attentive to heed what it teaches. The power of the preached Word can be as efficient as miracles (Luke 16:31; John 3:18; John 5:36; John 10:25, 38; John 8:24; John 12:48; Luke 13:1-3; Luke 13:24; Acts 8:9-19; Acts 13:10-12)

The rescue that Jesus effected was a show of force—it was a demonstration of power because sinners cannot be rescued from their oppressor by human effort—but it was the task that God could successfully do.

First, the cross crushed Satan’s head. Then, the Gospel rescues sinners from Satan’s weakened grab on their lives.

People’s thoughts and feelings can be very powerful and sometimes they may not understand the hooks that Satan has in their emotional soul ties, in their generational curses, in their governments policies, in their friends’ parties, in their psychology therapist sessions, in their business dealings, in several deceptive services they are offered, false religions, addictions, political turmoil, and in a whole host of other things that Satan will use to ruin souls. It is a whole industry of deception and bondage that goes beyond those 10 possible schemes—it is really a “kingdom of darkness.” It is invisible and works through suggestive thoughts, seducing or depressive emotions, and sometimes even threatening verbal or legal commands—and sinners always cannot deliver themselves out of that (Genesis 3:15; Luke 10:18; John 12:31; Revelation 12:12; Colossians 2:15; Ephesians 3:10; Isaiah 49:24-25; John 10:28; Luke 11:20-23; Luke 22:3; John 13:27; Luke 22:31; Luke 22:59-60; Mark 8:35-38; Acts 5:3; 2 Timothy 2:26; John 8:34; 1 John 3:8; Acts 26:18; 1 Timothy 1:13; Isaiah 60:1-2). They live contrary to God’s will as they “practice lawlessness.”—1 John 3:4. Someone could say “my friends invited me to a party,” without discerning that the actual meaning is that the devil invited him/her to destruction (1 Peter 4:4; 2 Corinthians 6:14; Proverbs 1:10, 17; 1 Peter 5:8; 2 Corinthians 11:4; Matthew 16:22-23). This is why intercessory prayers for sinners while they are still on earth is very important since they have no hope if they die without converting to Christ (1 Timothy 2:1-5).

Jesus prayed with tears of blood for having the cup of the cross pass and yet He was willing to accept to pay that price for our salvation. While carrying that cross to Golgotha, a group of women were weeping for him, but Jesus told them to weep for themselves and their children (Luke 23:27-31; 1 Timothy 2:4; Acts 16:31; Acts 2:39; 2 Samuel 18:33; Jeremiah 6:26; Revelation 1:7; James 4:9; Ezekiel 3:18; Acts 20:26). Weeping may happen now or later, but what Jesus has assured is that weeping will happen. Praying for the lost is a serious business that we should approach with a heavy heart. If you have family members who are not saved, Jesus instructs you to weep over their sins and lost souls until they are converted and walk in holiness—without which none shall see the Lord. If Jesus does not rescue them, they will perish. Only someone stronger than the devil can pluck sinners from the clutches of the evil one and eternal destruction.

The kingdom that we have been brought into is the kingdom of the Son, Jesus. It was a translation as the KJV calls it or a transference as the NLT and ESV call it. A translation reminds us of Enoch and Elijah—who were translated from earth to heaven without dying as they pleased God and walked with Him—having been filled by His presence and having given a testimony of a walk of holiness and a call of repentance to the sinners of their time. The Greek word used for that word is “Metestesen,” from Methistemi and it can also mean to carry away, to exchange, to seduce. We see it used in 1 Corinthians 13:2, about the faith that removes mountains. We see it used in Luke 16:4 when the shrewd manager hatched a plan of how he would survive in case he were to be removed from his position. We also see it in Acts 13:22, that God removed Saul from his position as king, he departed from life and died. Even though God had initially decided to remove Saul, consulting a medium was the final straw that led to his death (1 Samuel 13:14; 1 Chronicles 10:13). We can see that in each of these, removal has a cause. It’s a cause-and-effect relationship to be translated or transferred into the kingdom of Christ.

Even if the Bible version translation that had been chosen was the lesser likely, “seduce,” it would still be correct theologically, because God woos us with the “chords of his love.”—Hosea 11:14 (also see Jeremiah 31:3). He does not just crush Satan and break off his hands, he also appeals to our hopes, longings, and curiosity. At any given time, either Jesus or Satan is seducing someone, one promises earthly happiness but his wages are death, the other promises eternal life and His rewards are thousands of promises for our life on earth along with crowns and mansions in heaven.

When Moses was initially called, he had seen a fire burning in a bush but the bush was not being consumed. His curiosity was aroused. Before he knew it, he was on his way to Egypt to meet his brother Aaron. The Lord, then, used him to carry away Israel from Egypt to Canaan.  As Hosea 11:14 tells us, the Lord actually wooed Israel as they saw His signs and wonders and all the miraculous provisions that He gave them.

It is true that the goodness of the Lord leads people to repentance (Romans 2:4). When God delays judgments for sins committed, His goodness that leads to repentance is at work. Refusing to turn to Him during that period of God’s patience is called “despising God’s mercies.” When God answers the prayers of a sinner who doesn’t know Him and that answered prayer leads to conversion, it is God’s goodness at work. When Christians show kindness to unbelievers and that kindness melts their hearts, it is God’s goodness leading them to repentance. So, we see that His deliverance has a two-fold or two-front action—against the devil and upon our hearts.

The New Testament makes it clear that there’s a difference between the kingdom of the Son and the kingdom of the Father, even though the Father and the Son are one. This may take us into an unnecessarily long explanation if we were to try to do a comprehensive study on it. But let it suffice to say that in 1 Corinthians 15:24, Paul talks about Jesus handing over the kingdom to the Father, after all opposing forces have been destroyed. So we can see that the kingdom of the Son has a certain time specificity in which it started and in which it will end—and all things shall be submitted and handed to the Father—even the kingdom of the Son Himself—after all rebellious forces have been destroyed.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you have delivered us from Satan, who was too powerful for us and we couldn’t have possibly known all his schemes, trickery, and snares to get away from him. Thank you for exposing sin, ignorance, and fear that kept us in bondage and bringing us into revelation, love, and faith so that we could be free.  Thanks for earthly blessings, miracles, and your kindness that we witnessed that showed us your goodness and made your face look attractive to our blind hearts. We pray Lord, that you teach us to intercede and weep over souls that are still held in bondage, so that they can be snatched away from the flames that may consume them. In the merciful name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

February 11th,2021

 In whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:14

We will be continuing the devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” looking at Colossians 1:14 today.

The Father has translated us from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of His beloved son, through whom we have redemption. Jesus is our Redeemer. It is important that we understand what this means. First, it is that redemption is only found in Christ.  Redemption is not found in anyone else. 

To explain the concept of redemption fully, we should start from the Old Testament.

When God told Moses how someone who was to become a slave could be redeemed by a relative, He said “If a foreigner residing among you becomes rich and any of your fellow Israelites become poor and sell themselves to the foreigner or to a member of the foreigner’s clan, they retain the right of redemption after they have sold themselves. One of their relatives may redeem them. An uncle or a cousin or any blood relative in their clan may redeem them. Or if they prosper, they may redeem themselves. ”—Leviticus 25:47-49.  Earlier verses like Leviticus 25:25-27 had mentioned about redeeming the land that belonged to the family if it had been sold to someone else during times of economic hardships and the family that sold it wanted to return their inheritance. A Hebrew couldn’t do this to another Hebrew (Leviticus 25:39; Jeremiah 34:8-13; 1 Kings 9:22; 2 Chronicles 28:10). God’s people were to treat each other with dignity. So, a Hebrew could only hire another Hebrew as an employee (Leviticus 25:40, 43).

We see that slavery could be caused by poverty and a person could sell himself as a slave to someone of economic means—he would be laboring and getting food, perhaps a little bit of money for clothes, but not really enough to be considered an employee ( Exodus 1:11-14; Acts 7:19;  2 Kings 4:1; Matthew 18:25)

There’s a difference between a hired employee and a slave. Employees have many rights that slaves do not have . Slaves are given enough remuneration just to survive so that they can be more productive for their masters and increase harvests for their owners. They are owned like property; they are not employed (Exodus 21:20-21). Slavery is oppressive. Relatives retained the legal right to redeem those slaves. The slave master couldn’t refuse to release the slave if the right price was paid by the relatives to buy back those slaves so that they can be set free (Nehemiah 5: 5, 8). Even if the family couldn’t raise the money to redeem the slave, God made a legal provision in which the masters were to free slaves and employees in the 7th year. (Deuteronomy 15:12-15; Exodus 21:2-3). A servant could decide to work for his master for life—for that to happen, a judge had to be involved (Exodus 21:5-6; Deuteronomy 15:16-17). 

Considering the long history of slavery in America and the post-civil war years of Jim Crow and all other things we know from the civil rights movement of the 1960s, America is a land that is ripe for revival—through revelatory understanding of redemption. There are floodgates of forgiveness, healing, and reconciliation that are hidden in this doctrine. It is also a land where judgments could be greater if redemption is not a concept understood by majority of people as we have quite plenty of resources, history, and knowledge to turn us into master preachers and practitioners of redemption. To whom much has been given, much will be required. In America, almost everyone understands what slavery is. It is part of the national fabric. For Christians, this should be even easier to understand. I do not believe there’s anything excusable for Christians who fall short of this. We must have revival and an awakening, and this is a major deficiency or shortcoming that cannot be left standing. As it is now, it has always been a weak point through which the enemy has come to steal, kill, and destroy. Should it be resolved, American Christianity would become unstoppable. The problem is that many Christians are actually not interested in seeing the church thrive. 

Rabbi Jonathan Cahn deals with related topics in the book “The Mystery of Shemitah.” That book may help because lack of understanding of redemption has made America remain stuck in its past and it doesn’t seem to have been released or forgiven by God (Deuteronomy 15:1; Exodus 2:23; Exodus 6:9; proverbs 28:15; Galatian 3:10; Isaiah 58:6).  Sure, salvation is personal and millions of people have received Christ, but the practice of mercy and justice itself doesn’t suggest that this redemption has been widely received. Faith in redemption produces those fruits. Absence of these reveals lack of understanding and receiving the redemption we have in Christ. You can’t be redeemed and wicked at the same time. You can see evidence of this on TV each time America is at an inflection point—the heat, the arguments, the counter-arguments, the riots, the flames, the political rhetoric—clearly divine forgiveness and redemption are foreign concepts in America—despite having all necessary opportunities to be masters of this truth.

I have never seen a topic that gets so many people fired up in America like the topic of race. It arouses even more passions than socialism vs capitalism debates. It gets so intense that usually my policy is to stay away from it as much as I possibly can. For many, even attempts to resolve these problems result in greater hardness of hearts, which compounds and increases the chasm (Jeremiah 30:12; Jeremiah 46:11; Micah 1:9; Micah 3:8; Micah 6:13; 2 Chronicles 36:16; Isaiah 1:5). Failure to resolve this 200-year-old issue is why American Christianity is so feeble internally, inspite of blessing many nations with missionaries. It is a mystery of mysteries. There are just countries that are less likely to understand this topic so easily, as they don’t have a similar history, like Canada for example, and yet may actually fare better in racial and intercultural relations. Most of the acrimonious debates seen in USA are not seen in Canada. This doesn’t mean that Canada does well in other areas—like religious liberty or Christian fervor/ revivalism. The good news is that since that book of Rabbi Jonathan Cahn got out, many ministries and churches seem to have had an interest into this truth of redemption, forgiveness, and reconciliation, and that might be a turning point for America. It won’t be an easy climb, though.

We shouldn’t have to pay the price of release through bloody wars (1860-1864) when there’s a Redeemer who paid the price with His own precious blood (Ezekiel 33:11; Jeremiah 8:22; Ephesians 2:15; Ephesians 6:9; Romans 3:17; Luke 19:42; Acts 3:19). We should hope for days of refreshing rather than days of confrontation. Warfare may not necessarily end in society—until Satan is bound and stopped from deceiving the nations, people will always seek troubles—but there are certain victories that are attained through release more so than through persistent prosecution of past problems and their current consequences (Matthew 18:32-33; James 2:13; Romans 3:19; Matthew 6:12, 15; Ephesians 4:32).

For Jesus to effect redemption, He had to be born as a man in order to be a legitimate “kinsman redeemer” (Hebrews 2:11, 17; Ruth 4:1-10; Isaiah 9:6; 1 Corinthians 15:45; Romans 5:17; John 1:12). He had to become one of us; be born like a man, live like a man, work like a man, and be under the same rules and laws man was under (Galatians 4:4). The redemption that Christ brought was comprehensive, even though many Christian denominations usually teach a few things about this redemption, not the full Gospel. For example, Christ in His redemption, redeemed us from the law and its curses (Galatians 3:13; Deuteronomy 21: 23; Romans 7:4; Colossians 2:14; 2 Corinthians 5:21). Now, the curses attending the law were quite comprehensive (Deuteronomy 28) and punishments could extend to the third and fourth generation (Exodus 20:5).

Attributes of God’s holiness are often ignored to focus on those of His mercy, but it doesn’t change how He governs the universe when something is missing in our teachings or understanding. If God says that judgments will continue to the 3rd and 4th generation of those who hate him, does it matter if someone doesn’t believe that ?  It will happen regardless of the attitudes of people. Thankfully, Christ became a curse for us—so for those who are born again, who have received Jesus Christ, they receive this benefit of redemption—they are not just redeemed from the law, they are also redeemed from the curses that accompanied disobedience.

Even though the law and curses that followed its infraction were important aspects of our redemption, the law wasn’t our only problem. Redemption goes much further than redeeming us from the law. The curse had started long before Moses came on the scene (Genesis 3:17-19; Romans 5:14). The ground was cursed, the days of man on earth became few, and even relationships became troubled as we see Cain killing his own brother Abel. For death to occur, man had to go through pain and suffering, that often involves sicknesses, even though that is not the only cause of death on earth.  So, the law helped us understand what redemption could do, it was our schoolmaster (Galatians 3:24), but it was not our only problem. 

In Christ’s redemptive work, all the consequences of the fall were dealt with. Sin, sickness, creation under bondage/ barren lands, slavery, the law, enmity, Satan, and of course death. The benefits of redemption would be released in phases. For example, though we are assured that we have passed from death to life by believing in Jesus, many people, except those who will be alive on the day of the rapture, will still die (John 5:24; 1 John 3:14; John 11:25; Romans 8:10; 2 Timothy 2:18; 1 Corinthians 15:26; Philippians 3:11). The Greek word used in Philippians 3:11 for “attaining” resurrection comes from “katantao” and conveys the meaning of reaching the shores after crossing a sea. Events like Israel crossing the red sea were merely shadows while Christ’s own death and resurrection provide us a pattern.

Death will be the last enemy to be destroyed, therefore the last consequence of the fall to be free from. Resurrection will be the last benefit of redemption to receive. However, in meantime, we can enjoy tastes of God’s glory and the powers of the age to come because redemption has provided for healing of sicknesses and occasionally, raising from the dead of a few people as a testimony of things to come (Isaiah 53:4-5, 1 Peter 2:24; Matthew 8:16-17; Psalms 103:3; John 11:43; Acts 20:8-10; Acts 9:36-42). When Paul wrote Philemon, he said that he was praying that Philemon would have epignosis—revelatory knowledge (translated as understanding in NIV but knowledge in ESV) of every good thing we have in Christ (Philemon 1:6). “Every good thing” is quite a prayer because we cannot even enumerate all of those things.  

Could we with ink the ocean fill, And were the skies of parchment made; Were every stalk on earth a quill,  And every man a scribe by trade; To write the love of God above, Would drain the ocean dry; Nor could the scroll contain the whole, Though stretched from sky to sky.

The first benefit of redemption we received is “the forgiveness of sins.” When we believe in the Gospel and receive Jesus, our transgressions are wiped out (Ephesians 1:7; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Job 19:25; Romans 4:7,25; Romans 3:25; 1 John 2:2; Psalms 103:12; Micah 7:19; Matthew 26:28; Hebrews 8:12; Jeremiah 31:34; Isaiah 43:25). Jesus is the only authorized Redeemer and since only blood can provide redemption, only the blood of a perfect Redeemer could meet God’s holy standards (Hebrews 9:22; Leviticus 17:11; Ezekiel 18:20; John 1:29; Revelation 5:2-6; 1 Corinthians 6:20). Jesus is the only legitimate Redeemer (John 10:8-10; Jeremiah 23:1). He is a quite sufficient one (Hebrews 7:25).

There’s no forgiveness of sins outside of the blood of Jesus, therefore, there’s no salvation outside of faith in Jesus Christ (1 Timothy 2:5; John 14:6; Acts 4:12). This is why we love Jesus and we will sing eternal praises—because He has lifted our burdens, taken our sorrows, and wiped out our sins.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you have given us redemption through your son, Jesus Christ. We thank you for all the good things we have in Christ Jesus, we thank you that the redemption gives us the hope of being free from slavery where Satan would have us be, from sin that would ruin us, from the law that wouldn’t give us peace, from generational curses, because of sins of our forefathers that we cannot undo, from our own sins, of which you have richly forgiven us. We pray that we may understand more fully the benefits of redemption so that we can bring those around us into Jubilee and proclaim the year of liberation for all who are still in all sorts of bondage. In the gracious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen. 

February 12th,2021

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. Colossians 1:15

We will be continuing the devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” looking at Colossians 1:15 today.

The Father has translated us into the kingdom of His beloved Son. In the name of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, repentance and forgiveness of sins are preached (Luke 24:47; Acts 3:19; Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:13-14). In the Son, we have redemption and all its glorious benefits. But who is this Son ? If the Son will ultimately hand over the kingdom to the Father after all opposition to His purposes has been destroyed (1 Corinthians 15:24), isn’t he a “smaller god” or not even God at all? Just a man given to us as a mediator of the New Covenant, who simply happened to be perfect ? Who is this Son of God that Paul is talking about?

Paul starts this Christology portion by affirming that Jesus Christ is God of very God. “He is the image of the invisible God.”

God is invisible and yet His eternal power and divine nature have been revealed to us through creation. “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”—Romans 1:20. Even though God is invisible, He is not unknowable. His qualities have been clearly seen. Even before Jesus came to reveal to us the image of the Father, many people had been able to know God. Though God has existed in eternity—as far as faith on earth is concerned—the knowledge of God has a beginning: “since the creation of the world.”  Man was part of that creation and He was made in the image of God.

Adam and Eve understood God’s eternal power. They fellowshipped with Him face to face, even though He was invisible. He talked to them, asked them questions, could put Adam to sleep if He wanted, make another human being out of one his ribs, and the new person could be totally human without any physical weakness and defects—after being taken out of one of the bones of her husband. Adam witnessed that power with his own eyes and told his children about it. Adam and Eve would then, become one flesh, reproduce children who also bore God’s image, and they were surrounded by all the amazing creatures like animals and trees (Matthew 19:4-5; Genesis 1:26-29). They knew God made it all. His power was undeniable to them. Their descendants Enoch, Noah, and Abraham knew that too.

God’s invisibility doesn’t diminish His omnipotence. Lack of faith or unbelief in an invisible God is what drove many ancient people to “exchange the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being.”—Romans 1:23. They made statues from perishable and decaying items to represent an incorruptible, immortal, and holy being—what a disgrace! (Exodus 32:1-4; Isaiah 44:17; 1 Kings 18:26; Acts 19:27; Isaiah 2:8; Isaiah 45:20; Isaiah 46:6; Hosea 13:2). It was not just thousands of years ago, in Bible days, when people bowed down to images of what they had built. To this day, there are still places where images of gods made by human hands are revered as worthy of worship and sacrifices.

I have seen such places and my heart has always been as heavy as when Paul was in Athens when he saw that (Acts 17:16). I love different cultures and their people and I know how each of them are valuable in God’s eyes—there are just people who may not have been as blessed as Israel to know the true God or blessed to grow up with the Christian faith— it is a privilege that many Christians seem to take for granted. We should pray that the eyes of all people—especially those who haven’t had a Christian influence for centuries may be opened to this true God (2 Corinthians 4:4; Acts 26:18). God is invisible and is everywhere. Jehovah detests images of idols that misrepresent Him. (Psalms 139:7-18; Proverbs 15:3, 11; Job 26:6; Jeremiah 23:24; Acts 17:24; Isaiah 66:1; John 4:24; Jonah 2:8; 2 Kings 17:15; Psalms 31:6; Jeremiah 10:8; Judges 10:4; 1 John 5:21; 1 Corinthians 10:14).

Idolatry can often take on a form different from the “traditional” meaning of making a wooden or stone image. Greed—the love of money is called idolatry in Ephesians 5:5, for example. So, a greedy person would be as detestable to God as a polytheistic or pantheistic pagan. Hollywood culture can seem to be the same. There’s even a TV show called “American Idol.” People are worshipped or praised without giving glory to God (Isaiah 42:8; Acts 14:15; Acts 3:12; Acts 12: 22-23).

If man longed for an image to be able to see God face to face, he got what he sought when Jesus Christ came because “He is the image of the invisible God.” Jesus is the exact representation of Jehovah (Hebrews 1:3).

The Greek word used for “image” in Colossians 1:15 is “eikon.” We see it used in the story of Jesus answering those who were trying to trap him when he asked for a coin and asked “whose image is this? “ (Matthew 22:20; Mark 12:16; Luke 20:24). They all answered “Caesar.” They did not say Nebuchadnezzar or Cyrus or Herod. An image of someone represents that person exactly, so there’s no room for error or mistake or mid-identification. They all knew the image on the coin was Caesar. There was no debate whether it could have been someone else. Now, we are told that Jesus is the image of the invisible God.

The Greek word used for “representation” in Hebrews 1:3, where we read about Jesus being “the exact representation of His being,”  is “charakter.”  It means an engraving, a stamp, an impress, an impression, exact reproduction. We should be familiar with this in the age when we are asked to show photo ID or passport photo in order to receive various services. Because people’s faces change, a passport photo at age 20 may not be an exact representation of how they look at age 45, even though 25 years is not a very long time, from an eternity perspective. This is not the case for Jesus.

The image of the Father that Jesus showed the world 2000 years ago has not changed by one bit. People may have changed, cultures may have changed, the way the Gospel is presented to sinners may have changed, how the church prays and ministers healing to the sick may have changed, but Jesus Christ remains the same yesterday, today, and forever—He is the image of the invisible God (Hebrews 13:8; Malachi 3:16; James 1:17; Numbers 23:19; Psalms 102:27; Daniel 6:26; Luke 1:50; Habakkuk 1:12; Exodus 3:14-15).

Representing God in anyway is an incredible, terrifying, transcendent, holy, and honorable task. Misrepresenting God is awful, disgusting, destructive, demonic, and ruinous. Nothing could ever be gained by misrepresenting God. Nothing could ever be gained by teaching wrong things about God—neither for the teacher of false doctrines nor for the hearers. Nothing could ever be gained by being a false Christ-ian, misrepresenting Christ’s character to the world while blaspheming His Holy name (Romans 2:24; Isaiah 52:5; Ezekiel 20:27; Ezekiel 36:20; 2 Timothy 2:19; Acts 11:26; 1 Samuel 2:29-30; Luke 13:26-27; Matthew 7:21-23; Titus 1:16; 2 Timothy 3:5; 1 Corinthians 13:2; Hebrews 12:14).

It is beyond amazing that a God who is so holy, so powerful, so eternal, so perfect would declare “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”—Matthew 3:17. That testimony of the Father before Jesus preached any sermons, healed any sick, raised anyone from the dead, or accepted the cross in the garden of Gethsemane, is so powerful. The Father trusted the Son completely. He was satisfied in the image Jesus was representing long before His public ministry and sacrificial death for our sins. Jesus Christ is the image of the invisible God.

He is also the firstborn who is over all creation. He was begotten but He was not created (John 1:14). He is the only begotten of the Father. Through Him, God will bring many sons to glory (Hebrews 2:10),  but He is the firstborn. He is over all creation—“ktisis” in Greek, which is God’s product, Divine work, something made out of nothing. The Son of God was Himself involved in the creation of the universe (John 1:1-3). For a detailed study on this, one can check “Hail The Incarnate Deity” devotional for the 2020 December Christmas season.

The Lord Jesus Christ made all creation, it belongs to Him, and He is over it—ruling and managing it as He wills. Some of the creatures may be rebellious, refuse to acknowledge Him, work against His purposes, but He sits there and laughs it all (Psalms 2:4). Jesus scoffs: what do they think they are doing ? (Psalms 50: 3, 21; Isaiah 42:14; Isaiah 65:6; Proverbs 21:30;  Isaiah 45:9; Job 5:12; Psalms 33:10; 1 Corinthians 3:19-20; Acts 5: 38-39). Occasionally, He suddenly converts some of them and they realize what folly it was to oppose His plan (Acts 26:14; Daniel 4:34; Acts 16:30; Hosea 11:9; Romans 9: 13-15). Other times, He crushes them like a house owner crushing an annoying fly in his house (Psalms 2:12; Psalms 110:1; Acts 12:21-23; Deuteronomy 32:39; Hebrews 12:29). All creatures serve Him, whether they know what they are doing or not (Isaiah 45:1-5; John 11:49-51; 1 Corinthians 2:8). He rules over all creation wisely, magnificently, graciously, sovereignly, and powerfully.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that your image is so well represented in Christ Jesus and what a beautiful image it is ! You are so awesome, magnificent, beautiful, glorious, and majestically rule over everything that you have created. We give you our eternal praise and adoration—we bless your holy name now and forevermore. Lord, help us be free from any idols that we may have embraced unknowingly so that we can worship you the true God, in truth and in spirit. Help us to know you more intimately, so that we can be worthy representatives of your Holy Name. In the name of your perfect Son, Jesus, we pray. Amen.

February 13th,2021

For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. Colossians 1:16

We will be continuing the devotional “Epistle To The Colossians,” looking at Colossians 1:16 today.

We had previously seen that the Son of God, Jesus Christ, is the image of the invisible Father. He is the exact representation of the Almighty. He is also the firstborn Son of the Father, begotten not created. Through Him, many sons will be brought to glory. He is the Lord over all creation and rules everything sovereignly and graciously.

Verse 16 starts telling us that “in Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible. “ Yesterday, we saw the creation of man and woman. John 1:3 tells us “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.”  Name anything in the universe, Christ’s imprint is upon it. Material things in the visible and in the invisible realm were made by Him.

One day, 11 years ago, I was visiting a family in Newberg, Oregon and we watched a documentary about the galaxies. The documentary was mostly about the Milky Way. This is our galaxy, which contains the solar system and has been called this name because of how it appears from the earth. The first thing that seemed shocking in that documentary is that there are approximately 100-400 billion stars in the Milky Way. A TED Talk by Juna Kollmeir puts the number at 250 billion with plus or minus 100 billion. So that’s within the same range just mentioned.

To put the magnitude of the stars of galaxy into perspective, let us look at the ratio of man to star in size. On earth there are 8 billion people. Every single person on earth would not even be the size of an ant if they were to be compared to the size of stars. The brightest star in the Milky Way is Rigel in the Orion constellation and its radius is 34.1 million miles. It is 78 bigger than the sun. That’s huge. But it is not even the largest one. The largest star is called UY Scuti and its radius is 1700 times larger than the sun’s.  The sun’s radius is 432,690 miles, which is 109 times that of the earth. So, the radius of the UY Scuti is roughly 734,400,000 miles.  On earth, there’s nobody we know who is 10 feet tall. The tallest person we know, Robert Wadlow, has been 8 feet and 11 inches. So, say 9 feet. Converting feet into miles, 9 feet are 0.0017 miles. This is the tallest person on earth, while UY Scuti has a radius of 734,400,000 miles. If we consider the diameter of the UY Scuti at 1. 4688 billion miles and the height of the tallest man at 0.0017 miles, we see that the ratio is 1.15 e -12. That’s our size when we are compared to the stars. Shocking indeed. “…though I am nothing” of Paul, in 2 Corinthians 12:11, rings a bell. The greatness of God fully displays our nothingness. We are dust, in the literal sense of the word (Genesis 18:27; Genesis 3:19). Now we understand why sinners will ask the mountains to fall upon them when they see Jesus returning because ” who will endure the day of His coming ? ” (Malachi 3:2; Luke 21:36).

Now, we have just picked one instance to get a concept of the wonders of space, but remember, not only there are over 100 billion stars in the Milky Way—in our galaxy—there are approximately 120 billion estimated galaxies in the whole universe. Consider that it is possible each galaxy has its own 100-400 billion stars just like the Milky Way does and you will find that mind-boggling. The Milky Way is shocking but there are even more astonishing galaxies. For example, the Andromeda galaxy is one of the closest galaxies to our Milky Way, it contains 1 trillion stars. That’s roughly 3-10 times bigger than the Milky Way. It’s fair to estimate roughly 30-100 trillion stars total in all galaxies combined. Nobody knows exactly. 

The Milky Way and all the other 100 billion galaxies are part of the visible things that God created. They can be studied using specialized tools to be able to study them. Invisible things would not be found on a telescope. You can’t take a telescope and try to locate Archangel Gabriel or Michael because they are invisible creatures. So, through Christ and in Him, God created all the amazing things we have on earth—plants, animals, and people. He also created the stars and the galaxies they are situated in. “For He spoke, and it came to be.”—Psalms 33:9.

The stories of creation do not have the term “Big Bang.” They have the stories of how God spoke the worlds into existence—therefore, the voice of the Lord is the “bang.” It’s like Paul going to Athens and finding the “altar to an unknown God.”—Acts 17:23. He said, the God whom you worship that you do not know, we come to proclaim to you. The same way, the “bang” of the big bang that seems like a mystery to astronomers is no other than the very voice of God saying “Let there be…”

The invisible things that were created in Christ that we see Paul mentioning here include thrones, powers, rulers, and authorities. He did not include, the seraphim, who are also known as the burning ones, we read them in Isaiah 6:3. These cover their eyes before the throne of God as they endlessly cry and sing “Holy, Holy, Holy…”—doing so 24 hours for 7 days a week and 365-366 days a year and have been doing so since they were created without stopping. They are among “invisible things” that God created.

There are other invisible things that are not included in Paul’s list. For example, angels known as “cherubim.” We see them guarding the garden of Eden in Genesis 3:24, when God cast Adam and Eve out of the garden.  So, from there we gather that one of their roles is being the guardians of paradise.  Referring to Satan, Ezekiel 28:14 states “ You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones.” This seems to be the same roles as the cherubim of Eden. However, the previous verse suggests that Lucifer may have had several roles in heaven as Ezekiel 28:13 talks about “ the workmanship of your timbrels and pipes.” This is likely  referring to heavenly music. He definitely had warring capabilities as well because we read that Satan had a dispute with Archangel Michael in Jude 9 and Archangel Michael invoked the name of the Lord to rebuke Satan.

Yesterday, we referenced Proverbs 21:30 when discussing about the rebellion of some creatures—”There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the LORD.” While our focus was about rebellious men on earth, it certainly applies to invisible creatures as well. One third of heavenly beings were cast out of heaven after there was a rebellion and they lost their position (Revelation 12:7-10). Since the sin of man was instigated by the temptation of Eve that Satan orchestrated, the fall of Lucifer must have occurred before that. He is at war against God but he will be defeated in the end. When Christ returns to reign on earth in the Millennial kingdom, Satan will be bound during that 1000 year period (Revelation 20:1-3), before his final doom later on. 

There are also cherubim  who stayed in heaven. We read about a group of cherubim who are known as “ the four living creatures.” Ezekiel 1:4-24; Ezekiel 10:1-2; Revelation 4:6-11. They guard the throne of God.

Paul also mentions thrones, powers, rulers, and authorities. Some of these are on God’s side while others are opposed to God’s purposes. We know this because when we read in Ephesians 6:12, we see that Paul writes saying that our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against principalities, powers, rulers, and spiritual forces of darkness. For example, when Gabriel brought the prophetic word for Daniel, he couldn’t pass through the heavens for 21 days because the prince of Persia withstood him (Daniel 10:3). Since Gabriel is invisible to human eye unless he is revealed for a reason—the prince of Persia who fought against his travel is an angelic being.

I have heard teachings that only in the Old Testament were demonic forces able to stop divine messages and they are no longer able to do so in the New Testament . Though Christ’s cross has accomplished a great victory for us, as we read in John 12:31 that the time for judgment of the world had come and Satan would be cast out, and we further see this again taught in Colossians 2:15, it would be inappropriate to underestimate the capabilities of Satan even in his weakened state. In 1 Thessalonians 2:18, we read that Paul planned a trip to see the Thessalonians and Satan blocked his way. Opposition to the Gospel usually occurs because Satan is fighting against the spread of the Good News (Revelation 2:10). The whole world is under the control of Satan—this is as true about USA and Europe as it is about Asia and Africa (1 John 5:19)., even though Jesus has all authority to act on earth (Matthew 28:18-20).  Jesus will not establish full control on earth until the Millenium. In the meantime, warfare with Satanic forces rages on. 

We should not fear because the good angels are on our side, helping those who shall inherit salvation—Hebrews 1:14. Also, the Holy Spirit who dwells in our hearts is greater than Satan who rules the dark world (1 John 4:4). We are the temple of the Living God. 

At this moment, the world is split into two—the world of the children of obedience also known as the saints in light and the world of the children of disobedience also known as the kingdom of darkness (Ephesians 2:2; Colossians 1:13). People belong to either based on what they are agreeing with in their walk. While in some places the New Testament makes these distinctions positional, other times they are simply described as obedience vs disobedience. At the end of the day, we are servants or slaves of the one we obey. The disobedient are slaves of Satan, regardless of whether they consider themselves Christians. There’s no neutral ground since Jesus said ” Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.”— Matthew 12:30. So, it’s a real possibility that someone could be a Christian in name only, while working to advance a demonic agenda. Since dark forces are invisible, we have to be on alert (1 Peter 5:8), as a red- faced demon with 2 horns is unlikely to appear in our homes or on the streets to say that it is tempting people to commit sins on the streets or in their homes.

Invisible beings are only visible for those who can see the “spiritual realm.”—that is, angels would be able to see other angels easily because they belong to the same realm. Christians who receive the Word of the Lord by open vision would also be able to see that ( John 1:51; Luke 22:31; Acts 8:26; Acts 12:7; 1 Samuel 3;1; 2 Kings 6:17; Acts 2:17; Revelation 4:1). I go through the seer gift /seeing in the spirit or seer anointing in much greater detail in my yet-to-be published book “After God’s heart.” Because ‘seeing or not seeing in the spirit’ is a fall-related problem that can be easily established from Genesis (See Chapter 3:6 and Chapter 3:7, for example). Since regeneration raises the dead spirit-man from the death that took place after the fall, seeing and hearing in the spirit become possible for those who are born again, though this may vary in degree depending upon the baptism of the Holy Spirit and spiritual gifts. Always remember that New Testament saints have a greater access than any Old Testament prophet (Matthew 11:11; John 14:12; Matthew 27:51; Romans 5:2;  2 Corinthians 12:1; 1 Corinthians 2:9; Luke 11:11-13; 1 Corinthians 14:1). What Samuel, Elisha, and Ezekiel had in the Old Testament is even more so available now under the New and Better Covenant. There are lots of Scriptures that can help those who are interested. 

Invisible beings may be able to pass through closed doors just like Jesus did after resurrection (John 20:19). Since Jesus said we will become like angels after the resurrection, that suggests our resurrected bodies will have the same capability (Matthew 22:30; Luke 1:11; 1 Corinthians 15:48-50).

All these creatures were created through Jesus Christ and for Him. While all creatures were made for Christ, there are some that do not live for Him. However, God, in His sovereignty, ensures that they serve His purposes anyway. They were created for His praise, worship, and glory.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you created all things and for your glory they were created. We thank you for the Milky Way and other galaxies that reveal to us your majesty in the stars that you flung into the heavens. We thank you that as heirs of your kingdom we have angels who assist us in our pilgrim walk here on earth and Jesus confessing our names to those angels on a daily basis to help us in our struggle against the dark forces, who often block our path to advance your kingdom. We pray that you will open our eyes to see the invisible realm like Elisha—to be able to have courage and faith when we face challenges that we can’t conquer without having full assurance of your presence, power, and support. In the majestic name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

Devotionals, January End Of The Month

January 22nd, 2021

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. Romans 1:16.

For the remaining 10 days of the month of January, we will be doing a devotional on the theme “The Gospel is power.”  We will start this topic with this verse from Romans 1.

Apostle Paul had not yet visited the church in Rome (Romans 1:15) but was looking forward to go there and preach the Gospel there. Jesus had sent the disciples to go to all nations (Matthew 28:18-20) and Jesus would eventually save people and raise up a church in Italy (Hebrews 13:24). With Rome being the center of the Roman empire, there was something significantly strategic in preaching the Gospel there. Thanks to this divine wisdom of how He ordered the Gospel to go to the nations—starting with Europe first, it has eventually reached the whole world.

Now, there’s talk that places that had the Gospel first are actually now becoming secularized and places that had the Gospel last are becoming the centers of church growth. This is something I do not find to make sense or even want to accept. I don’t believe that God has less power to save sinners in USA than He does in Nigeria or South Korea or Brazil. God remains the same. So why do we talk of decline or apostasy in the Western Church? Why not revival? Why not an awakening?

Paul starts by saying that he is not ashamed of the Gospel. For him, it was personal. Despite the “I” of the Christian being often a testimony of God’s work—many religious people—who may or may not be true Christians can have a problem with the “I.” To be honest, it is possible that “I” can be sinful and self-centered.

“I” can be associated with the “pride of life” (1 John 2:15-17). The Greek word used in 1 John 2:17 for life is “bios.”  In the New Testament, it is used not just to talk about our biological life, but also everything else related to the biographical or natural condition of our lives. People can be proud of their skin color, their birth in rich families, citizenship in free societies, pretty looks, lean bodies, expensive cars, high-paying jobs, and accomplishments measured by worldly standards. Because since the time the new birth and its accompanying immortality have been proclaimed the only thing that matters now is the Zoe life, Paul wrote that “we know no man after the flesh” —2 Corinthians 5:16. So, if someone boasts, “I have a 2 million US Dollar house” or “I bought a $100,000 Tesla car” or “I was voted as Miss California and everyone said I was the hottest in the pageant,” or any other “I” related to the bios life, they are making fools of themselves. “Therefore, as it is written: ‘Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.‘ “—1 Corinthians 1:31. This is actually a quote of Jeremiah, which says ” let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me” (see Jeremiah 9:23-24). So, it is not any kind of boasting in God. It has to carry a spiritual or eternal significance. Even if someone were to say, I thank God for giving me a $100,000 Tesla, though it would be theologically correct to attribute God the blessing rather than owning it as a personal achievement, and therefore that gratitude would be better than simply flaunting the wealth, that in itself would be saying nothing about that person’s soul. It would remain a bios thing, a temporal life object. Does he or she know the Lord ? Have understanding of Gospel mysteries ? Is he or she born again ? Is he or she holy ? We know no man after the flesh and those are the most important questions we have to answer first.

Boasting in the Lord is praising Him for what He has done. Fanny Crosby sings “ Praise Him! Praise Him! Tell of His excellent greatness. ” That’s really what boasting in the Lord means. ” Let the weakling say, ‘I am strong!’ -Joel 3:10. Why ? Because it is God’s work! It is what the Lord has done for them (2 Corinthians 12:9-10). So, the use of “I” is not always prideful or as some would say narcissistic.  We see Paul using it a lot and he always gives God the credit. It can be difficult to judge the use of “I” if we do not know the person’s motives. While Scriptures say that Christians can judge fruits, which are self-evident, they do not teach that they can judge motives. There’s a difference between wrong motives, which are hidden, and outward wickedness, which is obvious. One awaits the day it will be revealed and judged at the judgment seat of Christ, the other is judged today and will be judged on judgment day as well. One is only God’s concern, the other may also be our concern. (1 Corinthians 4:5; 1 Peter 4:17). Just like other vices such as partiality, judging motives with no evidence of actual wrongdoing can put Christians in the crowd of those James confronted “have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?“—James 2:4. If the Christian with the “I” is abiding by written Scripture, then those actions done in obedience to God matter more. 

When we take a closer look, for Paul, often the “I” and the “me”  were written or spoken in an utter amazement, not self-glorification. “Unto me is this grace given”—Ephesians 3:8. It’s like, why me? I am less than the least. “I worked harder than them all yet not I but the grace of God”—1 Corinthians 15:10. So, it’s not Paul who is to be praised here for working hard because he did not accomplish anything—the grace of God did. “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners–of whom I am the worst.”—1 Timothy 1:15. So, if the worst sinner can become one of the greatest apostles, who will ever have an excuse on judgment day? “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.”—1 Corinthians 11:1. Who is he to say that? Well, that’s a challenge he is giving us. “If I can do it, you can do it too “- kind of thing.   “I no longer live but Christ lives in me, the life I live, I live by faith…” Galatians 2:20, etc, etc. Could the lack of the testimonies of God’s works like these be the first symptom of a “head-faith” of Western Christianity, and therefore, one of the possible culprits for apostasy? There’s a difference between head-knowledge and heart-believing. “With your heart you believe.“—Romans 10:10. A personal testimony is not the Gospel but without the power of the testimony, incarnation does not have a whole lot of meaning for those who hear the Gospel. The Gospel must become flesh in us. 

What has the Lord done for you? Do you know Jesus personally ? Are you washed in the blood of the lamb ? Do you walk with the crucified Savior ? Are you born again ? Have you seen Jesus raise someone from the dead with your eyes? Have you laid your hands on someone who was seriously ill to see the person miraculously rise up after the power of the Holy Spirit fell upon him/her? If you lost your job today, would you trust God to provide for you ? God is not a book knowledge. God is a real, supreme being, directly involved in the affairs of mankind every day. This is the God that Paul knew. This is the Jesus that Paul preached. This is why he says “ I am not ashamed.” Who is ashamed of the Gospel ? Christians who do not know God by experience. There are Christians who wouldn’t even be willing to answer the question whether they are Christians (Luke 9:26).

I remember watching an interview between a media personality and a Hollywood movie director—who happened to be a Christian. He said that there are many Christians in Hollywood but they are usually hiding because they fear that it could cost them their career if they were to be known as Christians. Now, that’s really one of the most heartbreaking things true Christians can hear. That’s tragic in God’s eyes. “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”—Mark 8:36-38.

Perhaps to understand why Paul  had unshakable faith in Christ and was not ashamed, we should look at the reason He gives us: “it is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes.” One of the things that I have seen in USA is how churches are uptight about members who do “church shopping.” I do not think it’s a good idea either. I think it’s good for church members to stay with the same church for as long as possible. But I am afraid that stability is not the only concern when some people talk about church shopping. Possibility that some church members could go elsewhere is another underlying concern. This betrays the actual serious problem—the conversion rate of those who are non-Christian is small at best and negligible at worst. There’s no earth-shattering revival in city to city that ensures a steady stream of new comers who turn to God and make the pastoral work too laborious to carry on without having “left-overs” who can be taken by other churches with less members. That is the major problem that should be confronted and solved. Not only should churches expect new members added to the church daily, they should also expect that they will stick around long enough to mature into complete disciples. For this to happen, we have to first of all believe that the Gospel is power. It is the power of God that saved us and if we are humble to believe that we are bad enough—the chiefs of sinners—then that power should be enough for everyone else.

I am not one who does a lot Christian apologetics—at least not in the traditional way it is done—like the reasons we are alive on earth or expose underlying assumptions that unbelievers may have. There are some people who have been very good at doing that. Like Tim Keller who wrote “Reason for God” or Ken Ham, the leader of Answers In Genesis. I think Christians need those resources to educate themselves—as Scriptures command us to have “gnosis” that would be useful for the kingdom (2 Peter 1:5; 1 Peter 3:15), but I realize that traditional apologetics is not my kind of ministry based on how I understand how the church unfolded through supernatural works of God in the book of Acts.  I am on the Blaise Pascal’s skeptical side on the strategy of Christian apologetics. He once quipped “He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; He is not the God of philosophers.” Blaise Pascal, a world-renowned Mathematician and philosopher, known to discover the calculator at age 16, believed that God was primarily known by experience not by reasoning. In his book “Pensées” he wrote: “It is an astounding fact that no canonical writer has ever made use of nature to prove God. They all strive to make us believe in Him. David, Solomon, etc., have never said,  ‘There’s no void, there’s a God.’ “They must have had more knowledge than the most learned people who came after them, and who have all made use of this argument. This is a worthy attention. “- I agree with that.

I want as many people saved as possible and if there are those who are saved through Christian apologetics, praise the Lord for that.  God forbid we should discourage something that can save even a single soul from eternal flames. However, based on what we see in the book of Acts, this is probably not the most effective way to evangelize. The Gospel is power and the way that power works is less often about reasoning with sinners—it is more about showing and telling sinners what the Lord has done and what He is doing. The cross and resurrection carry enough power to save—so we can cut out the middleman of reasoning and jump to faith (1 Corinthians 2:2). Wisdom or philosophy is reserved for the mature— even with that, our approach is not like that of the world— as the world’s wisdom has little value in God’s eyes (1 Corinthians 2:6).

I would rather see unbelievers have an impartation of God’s presence and their eyes opened by the grace of Jesus Christ. There might be room for reasoning where other religious faiths are involved—for comparative religion purposes like what does the Bible vs any other Holy Book teach—why do you guys believe what you believe? In this instance—for example between Judaism vs a Christian debates —might find application in witnessing to outsiders. What about atheists? Should we leave them unevangelized? They have no religious book of reference—unless we count “The communist manifesto” of Karl Marx or Philosophies of Rene Descartes or publications of the New York Times as authorities of reference. By all means, atheists who demand reasoning or want to engage in apologetic debates should not be left unevangelized. Apologists can do their part in reaching atheists in such situations. However, we must understand that Power Evangelism—a term coined by John Wimber—he actually has a book on the topic—is probably closer to the way the early church reached the lost than how apologetics is done today. There are many gifts and God uses those gifts. There are different talents and God uses those. But what we all must agree on is that the Gospel is power and it can turn the world upside down today as it did 2000 years ago. Perhaps we could even do “Power apologetics” or “Supernatural apologetics.” Why not ? The driving force of the Gospel is and has always been supernatural power. If we don’t believe that, then we really don’t believe the Gospel.

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that you have given us salvation in Christ and we know you personally. Who am I to know this God of the universe—the creator of all things? Who am I to fellowship with Him? Father God, as we start the new year of 2021, we pray that you will reveal the power of the Gospel again to America, Europe, and beyond. We believe Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever—and your arm is not too short to save. Awaken your people so that they can seek you, find you, and testify about your power in the Gospel. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

January 23rd, 2021

The people went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus’ feet, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. Those who had seen it told the people how the demon-possessed man had been cured.  Luke 8: 35-36

“Return home and tell how much God has done for you.” So the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him. Luke 8:38

We continue the devotional “The Gospel Is Power,” for the remaining days of January. Today, we will be looking at this miracle that took place in the region of the Gerasenes as we read in Luke 8:26-39.

The man is described as not to have worn clothes or lived in a house for a long time. He was demon-possessed. At the very beginning, we can take note of a huge chasm that exists between now and then. Today, this person may not even know or be told to have demon-possession. But this is what the Bible calls it. In the 21st century, this person who was naked everyday for a long time and lived in tombs rather than houses—would most likely be in a psychiatric hospital or perhaps even long term institutionalization in an asylum. There are many places where deliverance ministry for people like these is still done all over the world, even here in America. For that to happen, first of all, you have to believe that the spiritual world is real and demons can cause this. Those who wish to have that or family members who believe that Jesus is still able to heal should seek that help. Modern medicine has somehow developed many medications for conditions that would have been in a such category. Such medications work on the brain and can help regulate the thought processes and calm people. The way Haloperidol, for example, works as a dopamine antagonist and all the details of psychiatry will not be addressed here, as this is simply a Bible study. Those medications usually do not deal with the spiritual aspect of such illnesses. They also usually do not uncover the possible underlying cause that might have started that or opened a door to that.

Anyway, Jesus found this man, and as soon as they met, the demons began begging Him not to torture them. The man had had seizures and was able to break metal chains with which he was handcuffed. Deliverance ministry concerns Jesus because “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.”—1 John 3:18. Do you or the church you belong to practice deliverance ministry? If not, why not? This is something to consider. Jesus did it. This is one of many other reasons that He came to the earth. It’s amazing that Jews that weren’t necessarily Christians were doing deliverance before Jesus came and even after Pentecost they did, but as the name of Jesus became more and more widely known, some started to actually use His name to cast out demons, even though they may not have necessarily been His followers.  (Matthew 12:27; Acts 19:13-17; Luke 9:49-50). So, exorcism has traditionally been considered a major part of spirituality. Whether in Judaism of those days or early church Christianity, this was taken seriously. Unfortunately, this is not the case today. As we mentioned earlier, a person diagnosed with schizophrenia is unlikely to know of possible demonic activity involved in that— even those who are Christians—because both the religious world and the scientific world solely look at things from a somatic perspective. The religious may offer counseling, and perhaps even Biblical counseling for those who are willing, but counseling is not exorcism. Demons must be cast out. Jesus indicating the anointing and power involved in deliverance ministry asked a question the Pharisees who charged that Jesus may have been possessed by Beelzebub in His ministry  “How can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house.”- Matthew 12:29. Deliverance ministry demonstrates the superiority of Christ’s power over the dark forces. Satan does not like it because he knows the damage it does to his kingdom. His kingdom will not stand wherever deliverance is taken seriously (Matthew 12:25; Mark 3:23-24; Luke 11:20).

 “Jesus asked him, ‘What is your name?’ ‘Legion,’ he replied, because many demons had gone into him.”—Luke 8:30. The demons then entered a bargain, pleading not to be sent into the Abyss. Demons have always had great fear and trembling in the presence of Christ’s majesty, even though they have been shut out of redemption and cannot repent their rebellion (James 2:19).There was a large herd of pigs and demons wanted to go there. It seems that demons prefer to be in some kind of body. If they are cast out and go into the wilderness, they are restless and usually try to find some kind of weaknesses in the person they were driven out of and once there’s an open door, they come back (Matthew 12:43-45). An open door gives Satan and his demons some “legal entry.” Satan would not enter a consecrated body of a Christian who is sanctified in spirit, soul, and body. They have no legal entry there. The topic of whether a Christian can ever be affected or not will not be reached—because that’s simply beyond the scope of this devotional. But a book “Healing through Deliverance,” by Peter Horrobin, which has Volume 1 and Volume 2, is an excellent resource that can help those interested in that topic. Those books are scholarly and rigorous for those who enjoy a solid and challenging theological study. It’s kind of unfathomable that demons are afraid of going to the Abyss, because they know the torment of that place, and yet men and women, who weren’t made to go there, make choices that will lead them there eventually. Why do you think demons can be more sensible about the torments of hell than majority of people ? Jesus allowed them to go into those pigs because the time for demons to be cast into hell forever has not yet come—in the meantime they continue to wage warfare on earth. Now, if these demons can extract such small concession out of the Son of God, how much more the saints who have Christ as their High Priest should be crying to God expecting answers to their well-intentioned requests and holy desires ? This is not the only time we see the Lord making concessions to the Devil (Job 2:6). I don’t know how some Christians may think about this but, for me, this reminds me of Jacob having his name changed from Jacob to Israel, the name of the prevailing prince, when he stood adamant that God was going to bless him. We read in Genesis 32:26 “Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” It reminds me of Jabez, who had been called such a name perhaps because of a difficult childbirth, and did not want “sorrowful” to be the end of his testimony, and cried out to God to bless him indeed and enlarge his territory, and that prayer was heard because our God is so wonderful (1 Chronicles 4:10). His night was turned into morning, his mourning into joy because of the power of God to change destinies. Is this the Christ you hear preached in your church or is it another Jesus ? We have a generous and mighty Savior, we must be bold and full of faith in asking large.

It is after this man is healed; we see the multitudes of the town coming out to see what had just happened. The thousands of pigs that went into the sea had people who looked after them and they were shocked that their properties were drowning in the sea. It is at that time they begin to beg Jesus to leave town. They were shocked by the deliverance of the man, but they were also terrified by the magnitude of power they had just witnessed. The man, then, comes at Jesus’ feet and asked the Lord to become one of his disciples. Jesus, in His wisdom, sends the man to his home and friends in the town instead. Since the town did not want to have Jesus there, perhaps the miracle that had just taken place would be enough evidence to touch and convert that town. The Greek word used for “proclaim,” in the verse we read how this healed man started to tell the town about his deliverance, is “Kerysson,” associated with “Kerusso,” which we see used in Matthew 3:1, where John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness; and Matthew 9:35, how Jesus went about preaching in the Synagogues. So, this man who had no theological training, who had been demon-possessed just 5 minutes earlier, was considered by Jesus to be ministry-ready through telling testimonies of his own deliverance. The only reason we may not be seeing this on a large scale today is simply because many churches do not love Jesus. Sinners are going to hell and Jesus died for them. Why exactly don’t we see this happening everywhere ? Just 1 person who is born again converting 3 sinners per month would result in a national awakening by the end of the year. 20 million saints would easily reach 300 million lost souls. The Gospel is power and if you have a testimony of something powerful that Jesus has done for you after you prayed and asked of Him, it will be astonishing for many people who do not know Him who will hear that testimony.

In Mark 5:20 we read of the effects of this man’s ministry: “So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.” The area was large and those 10 cities included Gerasa, Capitolias, Beit She’an, Hippos, Gadarenes/Gerasene, Pella, Philadelphia/Amman, Canatha, Raphana, and Damascus. So, the area was quite large, the guy was quite busy. In America, cities like New York, Chicago, Washington DC, Seattle, Portland, Boston, and Philadelphia are seen less and less places of thriving churches and much less revivalism. Biblical Christianity now is considered to be the opium of rural people.  Even if those cities happen to want churches, they want a Christianity different from that of the Bible. How amazing it would be if those cities heard awesome stories like that of this man and were transformed! We see that people who heard that man were “amazed” and the Greek word used is “thaumazo,” for “wonder” or “admire” or “marvel.” The power of the Gospel eventually leads witnesses and hearers to marvel and wonder.

It’s true that wonder or awe is one of the emotions that stirs in us worship, a crucial goal of the Gospel (John 4:23-24). To be able to worship in spirit and truth, you have to be willing to accept the Lordship of Jesus and submissive to His holy will. You cannot worship and also try to make up your own rules of Christianity. Since worship leads to submission, it is an important objective of proclaiming the Gospel. Worship starts the moment people stand in awe of God’s majesty. That’s what that miracle did.

How long does it take for people who have met Jesus at your church to start touring 10 cities proclaiming the Gospel ? How many strangers have you seen who heard the Gospel for the first time and immediately started to worship Jesus? Shouldn’t that be something we want to see happening ? Not years of theological training before someone can be ministry-ready. Yes, Jesus had 12 disciples who went through intensive training for 3 years, but we can see that this man could minister through testimonies in a pretty short time. After witnessing that kind of power or watching those testimonies, people may not need months of learning about God before they can start to worship in spirit and in truth. This sounds like something that could birth a revival.

Prayer: Father God, I thank you that we all have testimonies of how good you have been, the power that you have shown us, the leadership of your Spirit, the provisions from your hands, the healing of sicknesses, and mighty spiritual transformations after knowing your saving grace. We pray that you will help us to be good stewards of your works, that each of us will at least touch 10 cities around us—perhaps by your grace even the very ends of the earth. In the mighty name of Jesus, we pray. Amen !

January 25th, 2021

How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him- Acts 10:38

We continue the devotional “The Gospel Is Power,” for the remaining days of January. Today, we will be looking at this verse in Acts 10.

Apostle Peter had been sent by God to go to Cornelius house when Peter spoke the words of these verse.

In our previous devotional, we saw how Jesus healed a demon-possessed man in Gerasene. The man walked around naked, lived in tombs, hurt himself—the kind of things commonly seen in some psychiatric conditions/mental illnesses. The name of the demon was Legion, because they were many demons inside of him. It’s possible that people could be afflicted with more than one demon. Impure spirits are clearly behind people who hurt themselves, commit suicide, or do many other obviously abnormal things. The challenge is that, today, with advanced science, people who are agitated could be given Benzodiazepines to calm them down—and they could assume that just because their brains have been inhibited—the root cause of the problem is going away. This is also why many people end up drug-dependent. If you are drugging a person who has emotional and mental health problems, you are only managing the symptoms. It is superficial. You are not going to the root to deal with the underlying holes that have opened a door to the mess. A decade ago, Michael Jackson died of Propofol overdose for that reason.  Whitney Houston followed 32 months later, dying of possible Cocaine and Methamphetamine intoxication in a bathtub that drowned her because of reduced consciousness. These are stories of superstars that everyone has heard about but millions of victims of ordinary people suffer without having that kind of publicity. America is now known to be in an opioid crisis, not forgetting the benzodiazepines crisis, antidepressant crisis, catecholamines/amphetamines crisis, and hypnotics crisis. Marijuana for recreational use, not just medicinal purposes, is being encouraged by legislation in some Western countries though it remains a prosecutable offense in many countries. All these come to add to the most ubiquitous drug of all time, alcohol. In short, the methods and opportunities to get intoxicated have multiplied.

One of the works of the flesh that Paul mentions in Galatians in 5:20 is sorcery and this sounds clearly outlandish and sinful that no Christian or even non-Christian reasonable person would want that. However, the Greek word that Paul actually uses is “Pharmakeia.” That word doesn’t necessarily translate as sorcery if we want to be diligent. Besides the use of spells in magic, it can also mean the use of drugs. Clearly, heroin and cocaine are illegal—so their use would be prohibited even by law. But what about benzodiazepines that are used for anxiety, insomnia, and other behavioral issues ? Is dependence on such drugs compatible with Christian spirituality ? I believe addiction to these drugs or dependence upon them would fall under the works of the flesh “Pharmakeia” that Paul forbids in Galatians 5:20. Even by law, these are controlled substances, and when they are prescribed inappropriately, it can jeopardize the practice of the provider who prescribes them. So, we can see that a demonic attack that leads to enslavement to one problem could orchestrate addiction to something else—thus compounding the problem. Meanwhile, the underlying cause that is at the root of all these things remains untouched.

For many people, the cause-effect of spiritual dark forces and mental illnesses is obvious, but what about other diseases that affect the body ? Could there be a link? Or is the link established only for mental illnesses?

In Acts 10:38, Peter says that God anointed Jesus with the Holy Spirit and power and He went about doing good and healing all that were oppressed by the devil.  This is true because we read in Matthew 9:35: “Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness.” We also read in Matthew 12:15: “Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. And many followed him, and he healed them all.” We can see that Jesus healed everyone.

Sometimes John 5:5-6 is quoted to say that Jesus does not necessarily intend to heal everyone because that invalid man by the pool was picked from the rest of other disabled people and was healed alone. If we want to speculate like that, perhaps we should add “ they were not healed that day.” We don’t know if all of those people remained disabled the whole time. We don’t know if they would later meet him in those of Matthew 12:15, ” …A large crowd followed him, and he healed all who were ill, ” or perhaps in those of Matthew 14:14, “And having gone out, He saw a great crowd and was moved with compassion toward them, and He healed their sick ,”and who knows if they could have been healed in Matthew 15:30 “ Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them.” The point is that Jesus generally healed everyone. The John 5 passage doesn’t seem to outweigh the entire New Testament record. Remember John 5 was on the Sabbath. The man was actually confronted that he should not even take up his mat after being healed by the Lord because it was the Sabbath day. While Jesus did heal on the Sabbath, He was also conscientious and did not necessarily try to arouse controversy for no good reason. We can settle the interpretation of John 5 by simply saying that we don’t know why He picked that man from the crowd and healed him while leaving the rest with their infirmities, this way we would be affirming the overall revelation of the Gospels that shows us Jesus healing everyone. This is what we should believe for those who are sick today. This is the bottomline. Jesus is always the same, yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). You need to have a demonic agenda to ignore this record. You need to want to have another Jesus to say that He can’t do this anymore. If the Bible is true and God really does not change, then we would expect Jesus to do the same things today (Numbers 23:19; Malachi 3:6; Titus 1:2; Exodus 15:26; Exodus 23:25; Psalms 103:3 Matthew 4:23-24; Matthew 9:35; Matthew 8:16-17)

For divine healing to occur, 4 things must be understood: God’s power to heal, God’s willingness to heal, God’s compassion on those who are sick, and God’s timing. God is Omnipotent, so His power to heal everyone is never in doubt. God’s will to heal is revealed in Scriptures. They are inalterable, therefore, it is fixed what He has revealed to mankind in Scriptures about His will (Psalms 119:89; Matthew 24:35). His love and compassion are unmatched. If the saints and the Elders want to anoint the sick with oil in obedience to the Word of God and they are moved with compassion for the afflicted, we may be sure that God’s love and compassion are even greater ( Colossians 3:12; James 5:14-16 ;Luke 10:36-37; Isaiah 54:10; Isaiah 49:15; Jeremiah 33:6; Psalms 145:8; Exodus 34:6; Numbers 14:18; Matthew 7:11; Romans 8:32; Matthew 15:26-28). As for timing, this varies from one person to another, but timing was never something that Jesus spent time teaching. He spent more time urging people to have faith in God. Some people like the 10 lepers He told to go to show themselves to the priest did not get healed immediately. They were healed as they obeyed His instructions. Sadly, only one remembered the Lord healed him and came back to give thanks. If we consider that healing was the default ministry of Jesus, John 5 will not become a stumblingblock. It will just help us have a more robust divine healing theology. Jesus only followed the Father’s leading (John 5:19).There must be a reason He healed one person that day. No sickness was ever too complicated for Jesus. No afflicted person who asked to be healed was ever turned away. He healed them all.  He healed every sickness and every disease among the people. That’s the Jesus we know. That’s the Jesus of the Bible. That’s the only Jesus we will ever accept. A mutated Jesus is a false Christ. Our Lord has not changed. 

Peter tells Cornelius that the people Jesus healed were oppressed of the devil. We must understand that after the fall of man in the garden of Eden, “the whole world is under the control of the evil one”—1 John 5:19. This means Satan is involved in more things than we realize. Not just diseases but also public policy and other things. For example Jesus tells the church in Smyrna “Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. “—Revelation 2:10. Is persecution caused by God or by the devil ? Clearly, it is the devil. Are government authorities in communist countries who persecute Christians considered the devil ? No, they are not. They are human beings. However, their decisions are influenced by the devil. If they do something good mixed in with the evil they do, does it mean they have stopped working for the devil ? No, they have not. The good could deceive, but it doesn’t change that the devil is influencing them. This is what Jesus told that church in Smyrna. Jesus may allow it, but it is the devil’s work. He also sets a limited time for that to take place, and then, through providence, puts a stop to it. That’s why He mentioned 10 days. 

Is sickness caused by God or by the devil ? As we see in Job’s illness, God may allow it, but it is the devil who actually causes it. When Jesus healed the woman who had a back deformity we read: “and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all… … …Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?”—Luke 13:11, 16. Here, we have a clear situation of someone who is bent over with a musculoskeletal deformity, whom Jesus says had been bound by Satan for 18 years.  From a medical point of view, this could have been discussed otherwise. Pathophysiology in medicine studies how diseases develop—how someone goes from the normal to the abnormal—discussing, for example, how cancer develops in a human body or how hormonal changes take place in the thyroid and other endocrine glands. Jesus is looking at the disease from a spiritual world point of view. 

In order to put Luke 13 into context, let’s suppose someone has Potts disease. It is a complication of tuberculosis that affects the spine. A person could have a mass that protrudes from the back on the spine and the person could seem like being bent forward while walking. This disease is less common to see in the developed world, where tuberculosis incidence rate is low. But in Asia, Africa, and Latin America it is common to see. This can be taken as a positive thing about modern medicine. Why ? If TB cases are fewer in developed countries, that should be considered to be a good development brought about by modern public health strategies and early treatment of tuberculosis. Our understanding of communicable diseases has significantly reduced the mortality rate of these infectious diseases. However, this did not work well with COVID 19 that spread around the world in 2020 as it was a novel virus in humans. This is a warning that modern public health strategies do have certain limitations about predicting deadly diseases, preventing them, and limiting the damage they can cause to people’s health, their businesses, and macroeconomics of the whole world. No matter how much man advances in science, the spiritual world that Jesus lived in and revealed presents to us an undeniable answer to many things we are still trying to figure out intellectually. He just arrived at solutions from another angle different from the scientific method. Somehow, Jesus said the woman who had a bent back was under Satan’s oppression. We are not very sure what caused her back to be like that; but, for Jesus, Satan was behind it. The Bible doesn’t present modern pathology and pathophysiology. It is primarily a book of spiritual principles and spiritual realities behind those principles. It opens our eyes to see the spiritual realm. Like Elisha’s servant who could only see enemy armies and was terrified while Elisha could see chariots of fire from heaven and was full of faith, the way we see and interpret spiritual realities can have an impact on our faith and the results we see (2 Kings 6:17-20). If Jesus says Satan caused that bent back, that’s the truth we want to focus on. So, in conclusion we see that not only Satan is behind illnesses of the soul—or what we call mental illnesses, he is also involved in diseases of the body—those that may cause physical abnormalities.

The world has changed in the last 2000 years and somehow because we usually focus on what we can see with our eyes—we walk by sight—we may not necessarily interpret things the way Jesus did—as He walked by faith not by sight. We speak of what we study under the microscope and what we see on MRI or laboratory data, Jesus spoke of what He saw in the spirit. Could this explain why Jesus healed everyone and why today we do not see everyone healed ?

How did Jesus do all of this ? He was anointed with the Holy Spirit and power and went about doing good. The Holy Spirit has been given to us for a purpose—to do good works that the Lord has prepared for us beforehand (Ephesians 2:10). Even though many Christians do good works, they still give misleading teachings about good works, that themselves are doing, which can confuse people who are not necessarily trained well theologically. Works do not save us. We are saved by grace through faith. That’s the teaching of Ephesians 2:8-9. But the verse that follows tells us that, as new creations in Christ, we have been created to do good works. So we are not saved by good works but we are saved to do good works through faith. Good works are various—they can be helping the poor like Mother Theresa in Calcutta, India—it’s understandable that such works do not save—at the risk of being self-repeating—but for those who are born again, such good works adorn the Gospel. It could be running an orphanage. It could be committing to give $100 a month to a missionary organization. It could also be being involved in healing ministry whether in a small capacity or on a large scale. We are commanded to do good works like these (Galatians 6:10; James 4:17). It is not good to block the power of God to heal. In fact, James says that if we know the good we ought to do and do not do it, we are committing sin. If we have divine revelation about healing the sick as the good thing that Jesus did and that we should follow and reject that, we are sinning. Misery loves company, so those who refuse to do good in healing the sick, will obviously not want other Christians to do it. 

Jesus did good works by being involved in healing ministry on a large scale. How were the sick healed ? By the power of God.  In Luke 5:17, we read: “One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick.” This is the NIV. In the NKJV we read “And the power of the Lord was present to heal them.” So when Peter says that the Father was with Jesus, he is saying, the presence of the Lord was involved in healing the sick. Even though Jesus was doing teaching ministry here in Luke 5:17, the power to heal was also present. He did not do split sessions—one for teaching and another for healing. He could do both. When Luke writes a sequel book to Theophilus, in Acts 1:1, he says that he had mentioned what “Jesus began to teach and to do.” Jesus was teaching and doing. 

This is what we see in the Luke 13:11-16 story we mentioned earlier. The woman was healed of her infirmity after a teaching session. We read that Jesus invited her to come forward in the synagogue after he finished teaching. If we have been filled with the Holy Spirit, we have the anointing to teach us and help us understand divine revelations and also help us articulate those truths to other people in ways they can understand (1 John 2:27). That anointing doesn’t stop with teaching. The Holy Spirit’s presence also moves in power to heal those who are sick. As Don Moen sings echoing Exodus 15:26  “I am the Lord that healeth thee, I am the Lord, your healer.”

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you have shown us the power, willingness, and compassion to heal sicknesses through your Son Jesus. We thank you that He went about doing good and doing all of this to relieve those who were afflicted. We pray, Lord, that you help us to know the works of your Holy Spirit today, that you will anoint us with the Holy Spirit and power, so that we can heal every sickness and every disease in all who are afflicted that you will bring our way—in the compassionate name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!

January 26th,2021

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit  has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.  Acts 1:8

We continue the devotional “The Gospel Is Power,” for the remaining days of January. Today, we will be looking at this verse  in Acts 1 where Jesus promised Pentecost, which was fulfilled in Acts 2. In the previous 2 devotionals we had looked at how Jesus walked in power to heal and deliver; today, we see that we have the same promise.

Many of us have heard about Charles Finney. But I do not think we read as much about him as we do read about George Whitefield—at least from my experience. It’s not because of lack of curiosity. Since I got born again, much of the Christian literature that came my way was Calvinist and many of the authors did not seem to have a high regard of Charles Finney for doctrinal reasons. For that reason, I may have developed less interest into him than I had had in George Whitefield. My love for George Whitefield was fired up by reading Bishop J.C.Ryle’s biography of the leaders of the 18th century revivals. I wasn’t aware of an equally powerful biography for Charles Finney written by someone of the same status as J.C.Ryle.  This is important because it’s crucial to steward testimonies of God’s works for the next generation. Somehow denominationalism can stand in the way of this.

The Psalmist reminds us: “One generation shall praise Your works to another, And shall declare Your mighty acts”—Psalms 145:4 and “Posterity will serve Him; they will declare the Lord to a new generation”—Psalms 22:30. This is not a small matter because the more one generation understands and appreciates the great works of God done in the previous generation, the more likely to sustain reverence for God in future generations (Judges 2:10-11; Deuteronomy 31:16; Deuteronomy 4:9; Deuteronomy 6:7; 2 Timothy 2:2). Inspite of all of this, what we read about Charles Finney is not short of awe-inspiring.

Here are a few accounts: 

“The whole community was stirred. Religion was the topic of conversation in the house, in the shop, in the office and on the street. The only theater in the city was converted into a livery stable; the only circus into a soap and candle factory. Grog shops were closed (liquor stores); the Sabbath was honored; the sanctuaries were thronged with happy worshippers; a new impulse was given to every philanthropic enterprise; the fountains of benevolence were opened, and men lived to good.” This testimony is given by a pastor in New York who witnessed it. Quoted from Eddie Hyatt’s book on church history of the last 2000 years. The influence of the second great awakening on the movement to abolish slavery in the USA is also well documented.

Another story goes like this: “There was one old man in this place, who was not only an infidel, but a great railer at religion. He was very angry at the revival movement. I heard every day of his railing and blaspheming, but took no public notice of it. He refused altogether to attend meeting. But in the midst of his opposition, and when his excitement was great, while sitting one morning at the table, he suddenly fell out of his chair in a fit of apoplexy. A physician was immediately called, who, after a brief examination, told him that he could live but a very short time; and that if he had anything to say, he must say it at once. He had just strength and time, as I was informed, to stammer out, “Don’t let Finney pray over my corpse.” This was the last of his opposition in that place.” This is quoted from Daniel Jennings’ writing of the Supernatural Occurrences of Charles Finney.

Behind all of the powerful stories we read about Charles Finney, there was a sustained passionate intercessory prayer led by Daniel Nash, who sometimes worked with Abel Clary.  These would go ahead of Finney for 3 days to 2 weeks to prepare the city for revival. We read: “On one occasion when I got to town to start a revival a lady contacted me who ran a boarding house. She said, ‘Brother Finney, do you know a Father Nash? He and two other men have been at my boarding house for the last three days, but they haven’t eaten a bite of food. I opened the door and peeped in at them because I could hear them groaning, and I saw them down on their faces. They have been this way for three days, lying prostrate on the floor and groaning. I thought something awful must have happened to them. I was afraid to go in and I didn’t know what to do. Would you please come see about them?’ “‘No, it isn’t necessary,’ Finney replied. ‘They just have a spirit of travail in prayer.‘” This is narrated in the Prevailing Prince of Prayer by J Paul Reno.

When we read these stories we can exclaim: surely, the promise of the Lord Jesus that He gave in Acts 1:8 came to pass in those years of the 1830s in the USA.

The moment Jesus said “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you,” He was giving an enduring promise. It was a promise for Peter and John. It would later be a promise of Paul who had initially persecuted the church. And it would become the promise of millions of other Christians who would come later (Acts 2:39). It is a promise with no expiration date. You will receive power.

Besides lack of thirst to be endued with power from on high (John 7: 37-39; Luke 24:49), the second common reason I have noticed that seems to hinder this outpouring today is false humility about our own weaknesses. Our frailties are beyond obvious. But if we truly believed that, then we would seek to be endued with power from on high until that’s the only thing that the church is known for. The fact that God’s power is little to be seen proves that our own confession of weakness is self-contrived and fake. Once Christians are truly sensible of their weaknesses and admit them, they receive power (James 4:6; Zechariah 4:6;Hebrews 4:15; Hebrews 11:34; 2 Corinthians 12:9). When the disciples heard about the promise of the Father, they waited, prayed in one accord and Jesus did not disappoint (Acts 1:14; Acts 2:1-4; Matthew 18:19-20). They were very thirsty for the river of the Holy Spirit that Jesus had promised. If people have not been baptized in the fire of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 3:11), they should fervently seek that. The complete doctrine of the baptism of the Holy Spirit will not be addressed in this devotional. The bottom line is that Christ promised power to the saints and all Christians should earnestly seek that.

Here are some motivations that seem compelling for those who are seeking this power of the Holy Spirit.

The first compelling motivation is the cross and blood of Jesus. Our Lord paid a price too great for it to go to waste. Sure, God doesn’t need us and He is satisfied with Himself. But Jesus did not go to the cross thinking that way. He went there because He wanted to save. Jesus wants more sinners radically saved than we will ever desire, wish, or pray for. He died for them for that reason (1 John 2:2;Ezekiel 18:23-32; Ezekiel 33:11). So, He stands ready to pour His spirit upon this generation like He has never done in the past (Acts 2:33; Acts 2:17; Isaiah 53:12).

The second compelling motivation is that these are the last days—of the last days—and our God has delayed the apocalyptic prophecies for one simple reason—He does not want anyone to perish (2 Peter 3:9; 1 John 2:18; 1 Timothy 2:4-5). In other words, the need of humanity—with over 8 billion people on earth today—is great. Yet, the need of humanity is not greater than divine compassion. Somehow when Jesus told disciples to pray—He didn’t tell them to pray for the harvest—he told them to ask the Lord of the harvest to send laborers (Matthew 9:38). In other words, the harvest is already plentiful, what is lacking is equipped laborers—those with fire and power from on high (Jeremiah 23:29; Acts 2:37; Jeremiah 3:15).

The third compelling motivation is to know the Lord. Each time I have witnessed a life-altering miracle after prayer, it dramatically shifted the way I understood God and His ways. Those moments God’s presence is palpable. When Christ’s power is manifest, there’s a deep-knowing that goes beyond a mere acknowledgement of Christ’s presence among believers (Matthew 18:19; Acts 4:31). I know that the Holy Spirit does teach all Christians regardless of their theology on the baptism of the Holy Spirit (John 14:26; 1 John 2:27); however, there are different dimensions of learning when it comes to the power of God (Deuteronomy 3:24). Learning about God as a distant sovereign King who will do what He will do when He feels like it and walking with Him and see Him actually do miracles when we call upon Him to heal the sick, seek to understand His secrets and mysteries, and bring other pressing needs to Him produce different kinds of believers (Isaiah 65:24; Genesis 18:17-18; Amos 3:7; John 15:15; Isaiah 59:1; Isaiah 64:4). I have reached a point where I can’t finish a sentence of prayer without being 100% certain that God will do it. It was not always that way. I remember being challenged to earnestly seek a close relationship with the Holy Spirit as a young believer. I was told “He is the Author of this book—the Bible. If you want to know the Bible in-depth, you need to know the Holy Spirit, His presence, and manifest power (2 Timothy 3:15-16; 2 Peter 1:20-21).” A great benefit of this is a heightened sense of the Holy Spirit as a person of the Trinity—rather than a mere anointing or power. There are magnitudes of divine power that will shake foolishness out of our hearts no matter how much we have known or reverenced the Lord in the past. It is one thing to read that God is great in the Bible, hear other people affirm or sing that in a praise song, it is something out of this world to actually witness His astounding greatness with your eyes (Job 42:5-6). Such terrifying moments of beholding God’s majesty with our eyes can shake even the holiest of saints (Isaiah 6:1-5; Exodus 3:5; Revelation 1:17). They do not necessarily have to be in forms of visions though visions were prophesied to be associated with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:17). Powerful manifestations could simply give a sense that you are standing on holy ground. With one miracle one may be able to learn something that could take 10,000 sermons. Since knowing and experiencing the Holy Spirit in that way is so important, we must know Him and how to please Him. Though pleasing certain friends can be sinful if it goes against God’s truth, we know how important it is to seek to work with friends, accommodate their wishes, and please them (Galatians 1:10; Romans 15:1; Amos 3:3; Philippians 2:2; Ephesians 4:3; Galatians 2:5; Luke 16:15; James 4:4). This balance can be challenging for Christians, especially in ministry, where there’s risk of being too soft or too harsh when doctrine is involved, but generally speaking, friendship is cultivated by pleasing people. There’s a person with whom we can never go wrong when it comes to please Him—the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 4:30 says “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” The Holy Spirit is more than a power for miracles or anointing for prophecy and teaching. He is the third person of the Trinity who has come to help us reach the world for Christ and bring us close to the Father. He is the One who guarantees the resurrection of our bodies on the day of redemption (Romans 8:11; 1 Thessalonians 4:16; Ephesians 1:14). We will never know Him or experience His delight beyond what pleases Him (Colossians 1:10). For some Christian traditions, friendship with God can sound a bit extraordinary, but this is really what we were called for (John 15:15; James 2:23). The Holy Spirit will help us cultivate this friendship through fellowship with Him (2 Corinthians 13:14; Romans 8:26-27). We must be sensitive and zealous for the things that He delights in like evangelism, church planting, healing the sick, deliverance, discipleship, standing for doctrinal truth, living by faith, and walking in holiness. The more we experience His manifest presence and miraculous power, the greater our responsibility to make sure that He is properly honored, His truths are cherished, and God’s Word is received, believed, and obeyed. 

When we understand these things and earnestly desire and pursue experiences of His presence, intimacy with His person, and manifestations of His power—we will see a great revival in America, Europe, Asia, Jerusalem, Samaria, and to the very ends of the earth. God’s arm is not too short to save (Isaiah 59:1-2). The saints simply need to repent. Repent of apathy, repent of doubts, repent of unbelief, repent of worldliness, repent of self-sufficiency, repent of all the sins that Jesus accuses Laodicea—the church obsessed with money (Revelation 3:14-21), and seek out this fire that comes from the throne. Let those cherubim bring that fire from heaven’s altar like burning coal to touch our hearts and lips so that we can proclaim His gospel and demonstrate His power. Do we want the next generation to see the works of God through our lives and exclaim “my God, my God, the chariots of Israel, and their horsemen ?“— 2 Kings 2:12. Then, we must accept and receive this divine power that even Elijah was not privileged to walk into. 

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that Jesus Christ baptizes us with the Holy Spirit and fire and this promise has no expiration date. As it was for Peter, Paul, and Charles Finney; it is also for us and those who may come after us. Lord, we humbly and reverentially ask that in your great compassion you will forgive our sins—how we have forgotten and forsaken all of these promises—and we see increasing darkness and ungodliness around us. We acknowledge you as the answer and ask you to pour your Spirit upon the church so that He may move in power and glory to save, heal, cast out demons, raise from the dead, and strengthen those who believe. In the name of the Faithful Savior, Jesus, we pray. Amen!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

January 27th,2021

After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. Acts 4:31

 We continue the devotional “The Gospel Is Power,” for the remaining days of January. Today, we will be looking at this verse in Acts 4, when the disciples called upon the Lord in the midst of great trials they were going through.

By this time the promise of Acts 1:8 had already been fulfilled. Pentecost had come (Acts 2:1-4) and they had started to witness for Jesus in Jerusalem. On the day of Pentecost alone, 3000 people repented and believed in Jesus Christ. “Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.”—Acts 2:41. That was the first day of the church-proper. Up until that time, they were just “disciples.”

After a little while, the day that the crippled man who used to beg, sitting near the temple, was healed; we see the Lord adding thousands more believers again: “But many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand.”—Acts 4:4. That healing of the crippled man is seen in Acts 3:6. We don’t see Peter making supplication or requesting or even praying. He told the man “In the name of Jesus, rise up and walk.”  It was a command of authority (Luke 10:19; Matthew 10:1). That authority they had already been given had now been set ablaze with the power they received on Pentecost. They were baptized in fire. The exousia to heal and the dunamis to heal are different. The authority to heal was delegated by Jesus while He was still with them, the power was because of the presence of the Holy Spirit. Even the disciples who had already healed the sick through that authority of Jesus Christ (Matthew 10:8; Luke 10:17), still needed to be baptized in the Holy Spirit.  As the healed man began to jump and praise God, crowds came and Peter preached. That’s when more thousands of people repented and believed in Jesus.

The figures of 5,000 we are getting are those of men.  So, if we count women and children, this could have been close to 15,000 in just a few short days after Pentecost. The growth that the Holy Spirit brought to the church was spectacular and this did not go unnoticed by the powers-that-be. Immediately after that verse, we see that in Acts 4:5, a council of political and religious leaders convened to discuss “the new problem.” Peter was called to testify before the Sanhedrin where the rulers and priests were. He tells them that it is by the name of Jesus, whom they crucified, but whom the Father raised from the dead, that the crippled man was healed. He, then, quoted an Old Testament Scripture of the stone the builders rejected, which they should have been familiar with (Isaiah 28:16; Matthew 21:42). It is after that time that He speaks one of the most quoted verses in evangelism: “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”—Acts 4:12.

This new revelation was problematic because these were the gatekeepers of Judaism he was talking to—they weren’t just anybody. They had been opposed to Jesus all along, but now that Jesus had died and these people were claiming that He rose from the dead—the miracle intrigued them “But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say”—Acts 4:14. They had the evidence and it was against their prejudice. The testimony spoke for itself. It is after being harassed, flagellated, imprisoned, and told not to preach in the name of Jesus again that we see them praying in Acts 4:30 and God answering them as we see in the verse that opens our devotional today—Acts 4:31.

What did they pray about? “Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”—Acts 4:30. Does your church pray like this? If not, why not ? This is how the true church of Jesus Christ prays—so if you do not pray this way, on what other Scriptural basis are you a true saint or a true church ? This seems like a simple and yet powerful prayer. The results were shocking and there’s no way we could say the prayer was unbiblical or too ambitious or any other similarly blind comment. Why were they going to change a strategy that Jesus Himself had used, that themselves had seen working more than once since the day of Pentecost? 

In the book “Mighty Manifestations,” Reinhard Bonnke writes: “the challenge to experience must come from Scripture. Experience must not challenge Scripture, nor adapt Scripture to what happens to happen.” Sometimes when I look at what some denominations of Christians teach today, I wonder, do these people have the same book of Acts like we do? If they do, they surely don’t believe what is written in the whole book (Acts 7:51). There’s no way you can read the book of Acts chapter 1 to 28 and miss the importance of healing ministry in the church today. We have to believe the whole truth. We must preach the full gospel.

Notice that in their prayer they didn’t ask for a gift of miracles. They asked for God Himself to stretch His hand and be involved. Of course, they did receive that gift and it’s likely that some of the miracles took place because of spiritual gifts “ As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed ”—Acts 5:15-16, but seeing this as a development solely brought about by a healing gift can make many Christians miss the Giver as the one doing all of this. God is Jehovah Rapha. Gift or no gift, He heals. It is His nature. This was not just for Peter as we see later Stephen and Philip healing the sick. And even later on apostle Paul. Outside of the book of Acts, there’s even a passage where Paul mentions of Epaphroditus almost dying because of illness, still God healed him as Paul prayed (Philippians 2:27). The whole early church firmly stood in faith about this.

Now, there is something amazing about Peter’s shadow healing the sick. It is just like the woman who touched the hem of Christ’s garment being healed. We see the same with handkerchiefs that Paul had prayed over that were taken to people in distant locations. I think this phenomenon is often misunderstood, even in those who practice divine healing. Let’s first of all be clear that Peter’s shadow and Paul’s handkerchiefs themselves have no sacred value. God only cares about the faith people have in His power to heal and in His abundant mercy He may allow His power to flow through certain objects or instruments prayed over by His servants simply because of lack of people who are qualified to do the same where they are or there is no sufficient time to pray for everyone. It also raises questions about how far supernatural manifestations can go and what are we supposed to consider to be red flags. Can people fall over or be “slain in the spirit” after prayer ? Well, there was a time when Jesus answered his captors who had come to take Him to be crucified that He was the one they were looking for and they fell to the ground (John 18:4-9). He did not even touch them. Surely, God’s power can do this. Is it possible for this to happen out of emotionalism or desire to impress ? It is possible.

I remember reading how F. F. Bosworth, one of the Pentecostal pioneers who was among the founders of the Assemblies of God denomination in 1914 later left that denomination over concerns that some evangelists within that Pentecostal denomination would push people to speak in tongues during services and it seemed that the emphasis of saying that speaking in tongues is the evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit had reached a point where tongues had become more important than the presence of the Holy Spirit himself, he worried whether some manifestations were being faked. So, clearly, it is possible that manifestations can occur because of emotionalism of recipients, manipulations of ministers who are trying to impress observers, or simply ignorance of both recipients and ministers. A person does not have to fall to be healed but we would never limit the possibilities of what God could do that someone might fall while they are being prayed for. When Hezekiah was going to be healed through Isaiah’s ministry, the shadow of the sun moved by 10 steps (Isaiah 38:5-17). This was a “sign.” It is part of the Gospel that signs and wonders follow preaching the message of the cross and resurrection of Christ. A sign does not have to occur to assure someone of God’s willingness to heal or prove that God will perform what He has already promised. Some Christians have prayed for hundreds of thousands of people and saw the lame walk, the blind see, the deaf hear, without any such thing as falling to the ground or shadow manifestations, or even handkerchiefs. The name of Jesus was invoked and the authority invested in that name manifested God’s power. Do people who are healed through that simple method experience “less divine power” than those who have more dramatic experiences of signs and wonders ? I do not believe God operates in that limited box like many groups or denominations may think. So, we can expect just about anything when the Lord’s presence is in the room or outdoor field. 

If a church prays for God’s power to be revealed, should it expect for flames in the form of tongues of fire to be upon all believers in the church like it happened on the day of Pentecost ? Absolutely not. We do not see that happening in this passage of Acts 4. Should all churches expect “shaking of a building” as a sign that God heard their prayers like He did here. Again, that’s an error. Remember, Jesus said blessed are those who believe without seeing (John 20:29; 2 Corinthians 5:7). So, healing miracles do not necessarily have to be attended by some kind of outward manifestations to be real or have permanent effect, though there is nothing wrong if such manifestations happen. 

It should suffice to us that we are encouraged to pray like these early disciples because there is no Bible passage that teaches that we cannot pray the prayer of Acts 4:30 today and expect the same results. God heard their prayer and the place where they were was shaken and they were filled with the Holy Spirit. This is very interesting because Pentecost—the day they were baptized in the Holy Spirit and fire—is described as being filled with the Holy Spirit. So, we are seeing that it is possible to receive a post-baptism of the Holy Spirit impartation or infilling or re-empowerment—whatever we want to call this.

As Christians on earth, receiving power does not have a destination or limits because there’s always greater power we can receive and higher levels in God we can climb. This is important because if people are baptized in the Holy Spirit and begin to believe there’s nothing more God has for them, they could end up being stagnant in their walk with the Holy Spirit and their prayers could become dry because they are no longer thirsty and hungry for more of God’s presence and power.  They become deceived that they have arrived. That was not the attitude of the church in Jerusalem when they prayed in Acts 4:30 and that’s definitely not what God thought when He answered them in Acts 4:31. There’s more. So much more. The fact is that, if we could receive all that God is and has for us, we could probably be immediately taken to heaven and be there permanently. Then, perhaps we may not need more as we would be in heaven already. But until the earth is a copy of heaven and until our lives are fully conformed to that of Jesus Christ, or until we have been glorified, there’s always going to be more we can pray, more we can request, more we can pursue, more we can receive, and more we can enjoy. That will be answered according to the authenticity and passion of our cry and hunger.

After that new infilling of the Holy Spirit, we read that they spoke the Word of the Lord boldly. Looking at that location that man had been healed—on the sidewalk not far from the temple—and how Peter had witnessed to the Sanhedrin—they did not think that sharing this Gospel message was limited to “church service.” It was part of life. It was everywhere. What are you going to do next time you pass by a blind beggar or lame fellow ? If you have the name of Jesus and the authority of that name like Peter had, you now know what to do. The Greek word used for boldly in the Acts 4:31 verse we read is “parresias” and it could also be translated as publicity, all out-spokenness, frankness, and assurance. They had assurance of what they spoke of and preached with conviction. They did it publicly and were no longer the timid disciples who hid inside the house like they had done after Jesus was crucified (John 20:19). This is how we are to live out the resurrection power that flows inside of us. This is how we manifest the glory of Christ that we carry. 

Public witness naturally flows from loving Jesus and having assurance of His resurrection and glory. It doesn’t matter who thinks otherwise—the believer is fully persuaded and that truth is as real as the palm of his right hand that he/she sees infront of him/her. Lord, stretch forth your hand to heal and fill us with your Spirit like you did for that early church.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you have been patient all this time, not wanting anyone to perish, but that all may come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Lord, we pray that in the little time that is left for human history, that you will stretch forth your hand to heal diseases and raise many from the dead—on a global scale—that many signs and wonders and miracles will take place to convince those who doubt that Jesus is risen. May the lost billions of souls be translated from the kingdom of darkness and brought into the kingdom of God. In the name of your Holy Son, Jesus, we pray. Amen!

January 28^th,2021

His incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms–Ephesians 1:19-20

We continue the devotional “The Gospel Is Power,” for the remaining days of January.

Today, we will be looking at this verse in Ephesians 1. The passage of Ephesians 1:17-23 is really one of my most favorite in the Bible. I remember as a young believer being challenged to pray this prayer daily by one of the leaders who influenced me in those honeymoon months after the new birth, and at one point, I might have prayed this prayer for no less than 6 months straight. It takes probably 2 minutes to read through Ephesians 1:17-23 while praying through that, but the benefits and impact are incalculable.

The invitation we find in this prayer of Paul is that there’s no limit to the power of God that He wants His children to experience. This is something that sounds far-fetched for some Christians who come from denominations where they are constantly beaten with harsh words of unbelief, but it is the Word of God, nevertheless. 

A story that has impressed me about God’s “incredibly great power” for  us who believe, having expanded my understanding for many years, is the one of John.G.Lake in South Africa during the bubonic plague. It was during an epidemic in South Africa 100 years ago. The dates of that plague are close to the Spanish flu pandemic but it seems it was a different epidemic. Many people were as afraid of being infected just like they are afraid of COVID 19 now. Except that in the 1910s they didn’t have the advanced medical science that we have today. What John.G.Lake did is not something I would recommend for anyone to try with COVID 19. It is simply a testimony of God’s power I am posting. The story can be read in several biographies of John.G. Lake. As far as I am aware, its authenticity is indisputable.

It goes like this:

They walked into a plague in the area so contagious that the government was offering $1000 for anyone who would help. Lake and his assistants went to help free of charge. He would go into the houses bring out the dead and bury them – no symptom of the plague ever touched him. A doctor sent for Lake and asked: “What have you been doing to protect yourself?”. Lake replied, “I believe that as long as I keep my soul in contact with the living God so that His Spirit is flowing into my soul and body, that no germ will ever attach itself to me, for the Spirit of God will kill it”. Lake asked the doctor to experiment by taking the foam from the lungs of a dead plague victim and put it under a microscope. The doctor did, and found masses of living germs. The doctor spread the deadly foam on Lake’s hand and found that the germs died instantly.

Again, don’t try this on COVID 19, please. It’s just a testimony of what the “incredibly great power of God” that He has for believers can do.

In 1 John 5:18, we read “We know that God’s children do not make a practice of sinning, for God’s Son holds them securely, and the evil one cannot touch them.”- NLT. In the NKJV we read: “but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him.” The Greek word used for “cannot touch” is “haptetai,” it can also be translated as “fasten to, attach one self to, lay hold of, know carnally, modify or change by touching, touching something or someone in a way that alters.”  We see it used in Matthew 9:20-21, when the woman with the issue of blood touched the hem of Christ’s garment. We see it used in Matthew 9:29, where Jesus touched the eyes of the blind and healed them. We can see that this is a bodily touch. Someone could say, isn’t eternal life the only thing we should be concerned about ? Not true. Jesus spent a significant part of his ministry healing sick bodies. He even fed those who had no bread and caught fish for those who had toiled all night without catching anything. Paul prays for the Thessalonians to be whole and blameless in spirit, soul, and body (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24). On one hand, we see that God is not concerned about souls alone, He also cares about our bodies. On the other hand, we discover that we should not be overly concerned about our bodies, we should make sure we also feed our souls.  When Jesus healed people, he was concerned they could be sick again and admonished them how to stay healthy (John 5:14), by remaining in faith and obedience to God. Jesus also did not shy away from warning those he healed that something worse could happen to them if they did not walk with God, just like He told the man by the pool of Bethesda, and what could have been worse than 38 years of disability than going to hell to burn for eternity ?

We have already seen that Jesus believed that Satan was the one who had bound the woman with a back bent forward (Luke 13:16), that He healed all who were oppressed by the devil (Acts 10:38), that He came to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8). We also know that Jesus himself had nothing the devil could use against him (John 14:30). Maintaining health is spiritual warfare and that can only be guaranteed not just through forgiveness and cleansing by the blood (1 John 1:7-9) and imputed righteousness (Romans 5:17), but also “perfect holiness.”—2 Corinthians 7:1. If our conscience accuses us of anything we may have fallen short in, we should repent and ask forgiveness quickly (1 John 3:20-21). Our spirit, soul, and body have to be sanctified at all times. We are a single entity and God is concerned with our whole being. If the devil can touch the soul, he can touch the body (look at 1 John 3:8 and 1 John 5:18 again). So, John assures us that if we live consecrated lives, the devil cannot touch us. Sickness is for sinners. Christians are not meant to get sick.

In December 2020 I travelled to Orlando to attend the Jesus Conference. Some of my housemates of 9-10 years ago when I used to live in California had rented an Airbnb apartment and invited me to stay with them the day before the conference. When we started to talk about Coronavirus—they said—we know you can’t get sick, so you don’t even need a mask. I said “No way I would go to a 10,000 or more crowd without a mask .” God protects me, but I am not stupid. Not wearing a mask to me sounds like the devil tempting Jesus to cast himself from the pinnacle of the temple while quoting Psalms 91:11 to claim safety . Divine protection does not mean we should be reckless. God protects us by His power, but we should also be good stewards of our health. Believing in the power of God should not be confused with testing God.

Besides recklessness, now I have realized that even when we take good precautions, it’s still very hard to walk in that kind of Christian perfection and maintain health. In 2018, I was diagnosed with diabetes. The endocrinologist actually put DKA as my diagnosis at the time as my blood sugar was above 600 mg/dl (33.3 mmol/L). I think it’s highly debatable that it was really DKA. Before that diagnosis, I used to put syrup on pancakes or honey on my bread and drink milk with honey mixed in it. After being diagnosed, I was given treatment. I started to take it but I used it only for 1 week and my blood sugar started to fall below 60 mg/dl (3.3 mmol/l).  I realized that if I were to continue taking treatment, I would be hypoglycemic. I stopped it because my blood sugar had stabilized. I was healed. I had calculated the algorithm of my life expectancy which had fallen from 84 years I could live to 69 years with that diagnosis.  I decided I didn’t want that in my 30s. It’s been 3 years and it has remained stable. I discovered that just by eating vegetables, chicken, other proteins, and stopping rice and macaroni was enough to keep my blood sugar normal.

As I write this, my reading before lunch yesterday was 83 mg/dl (4.6 mmol/L) and I had eaten breakfast. Clearly, God did this. Now, I do not even mind eating apple pie on Thanksgiving. Praise God!

If you read this and have diabetes, you have to keep taking whatever treatment you were given whether Metformin and others for type 2 diabetes or Insulin for type 1 diabetes, until HbA1C is <5.7%. You have to follow all the instructions of your doctor. I stopped mine because after changing my diet, the treatment would reduce my blood sugar below the normal levels and I no longer needed that. Besides, I decided that I could save $350 a month or $4,000 a year by being healed. Praise God!

Health is a very complex thing. Even if you are free from communicable diseases, you still have to be careful about metabolic diseases that can be associated with diet. Not only you have to be soaked up in the Word of God and pray without ceasing, you also have to eat healthy and exercise and all of those things. The more I understand the complexity of Scriptures, the more I realize how difficult walking in that kind of spirituality and faith it is. I still want to walk in the same faith and God has protected me for the last 15 years I have been believing this—excluding that 1 week I was diagnosed with diabetes, which was self-inflicted, but from which nevertheless God saved me—yet, now I have become more understanding that some other Christians can be sick for different reasons. Also considering that Paul recommended Timothy to take wine for his stomach, Christians who may need medications for some reason and feel that’s where their faith is, they should take them(1 Timothy 5:23). This power is available for Christians only. If you are not born again, don’t try it. 

The Greek word that Paul uses in Ephesians 1:19 that has been translated as “incomparably” in NIV is “hyperballon.” It is translated as “surpassing” in NASB, as “exceeding” in NKJV, as “immeasurable” in ESV, and as “incredible” in NLT. The dictionary says it means to throw beyond the usual mark. To exceed transcendence. We could never hype the resurrection power of Christ because it is that great. We must embrace that lifestyle.  The word that is used for great or greatness is “megethos” and it can also mean vastness or magnitude. This is like the power that shook the prison cell in Philippi, like a great magnitude earthquake, causing Silas and Paul’s chains to break off as they praised God (Acts 16:25-26). This is the power that is so incredible that your first response after hearing its manifestation could rightly be “No way that happened.” Paul is praying that the saints in Ephesus will know this power. I want every Christian in the 21st century from Guangzhou to Cape Town, from Moscow to Monrovia, from Inuvik to Ushuaia to walk in this power. This is our inheritance that Paul wanted us to possess. 

The Greek word used for “mighty” is “ischyos” and it can mean “absolute strength” or “forcefulness,” while the one used for strength is “kratous,” which can also mean dominion, vigor, and mighty deed. God, the Father, forcefully plucked His Son, Jesus, from the tomb. Life came into His dead body and He rose up. To whom is this power given? “For us who believe.”  Isn’t that amazing? It is not just for the apostles and prophets. It is for Christian believers. All saints. Think about some of the greatest Pentecostal evangelists of the 20th century you admire, some of the greatest apostles of the 1st century, the most amazing Catholic mystics of the 3rd-19 th century, the anointed charismatic prophets of the 21st century, all that power, is given to all saints. Paul says that not only this is the same power that the Father used to raise Jesus from the dead, it is also the power that exalted Him in ascension to sit at the right hand of God (Ephesians 1:20). It is going to be the same power at our rapture when the trumpet is blown (1 Corinthians 15:51; 1 Thessalonians 4:17).

I want all of us to eagerly desire and possess this incredible dunamis power that Paul is talking about. I have seen it at work in healing people but I want more of it. I have seen it at work in judgments but I want more of it.  I believe there’s more divine power we can experience. I believe we should be hungry and thirsty for this. We should fast and spend some night vigils for this. The world doesn’t believe in Jesus and we who believe owe them a demonstration of God’s transcendent power so that they can make up their minds whether they want to be saved by Jesus or damned in hell for eternity.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you have made available to us who believe your incredibly great power that surpasses understanding and blows our minds away. We pray that this power will not be imprisoned by doubts and unbelief, that as your people we will manifest to the world that all things are possible for those who believe, and there’s absolutely nothing impossible with God.  We pray that you will open the heavens that all kinds of miracles will take place to heal, raise people from the dead, deliver supernatural provisions, deliverances from calamity and danger, and demonstrate the glory of the Risen King who is above all authority, dominion, power, and every title of honor that can be given. In the majestic name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.

January 29th,2021

Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.” Matthew 22:29

We continue the devotional “The Gospel Is Power,” for the remaining days of January. Today, we will be looking at this verse in Matthew 22.

There has been an observation made by different leaders that some of the disputes between Calvinists and Charismatics in America are a mirror of this Scripture. It is reported that Charismatics love to talk about the power of God and miracles without a rigorous study of the Bible. Calvinists, on the other hand, see themselves as the true defenders of Scriptural integrity, even though they may not embrace signs and wonders. This part of our devotional does not intend to settle those disputes, rather to try to continue our journey to understand the power of God we should be walking in to see our generation touched by Jesus, and how we can balance these 2 important things.

I contend that since the “Gospel is power,” current apostasy in America and church decline throughout the Western hemisphere are artificial problems that have a solution—the power of God (2 Corinthians 10:3-6; Proverbs 21:22; Ezekiel 37:2-12; Romans 4:17). Secularized cities and lost sinners can be radically saved by the power of God. In this devotional, we understand that Jesus doesn’t tell us to choose between knowing Scriptures thoroughly and walking in supernatural power like He did Himself. He considers both equally important. 

Why could knowing or having one without the other produce error?

First of all, let’s look at the context.

The Jewish leaders had a hypothetical question of a woman who married 7 husbands.  One died, the other too, and the third one, and so forth and so on. It’s like the Pharisees are quoting the story of Tobias and Sarah, from the apocryphal book of Tobit, considered to be Scripture by the Catholic church.

Sarah had a demon that killed every man that wedded her on their wedding night, until Tobias came around and was helped by archangel Raphael, the healing angel of God. Rapha-el is one of the 3 archangels highly involved in spiritual activity on earth besides Michael, the commander of heaven’s armies; and Gabriel, the messenger (Daniel 10:13; Jude 1:9; Luke 1:19; John 5:4; Tobit 12:15; Exodus 23:20; Genesis 24:40; Hebrews 1:14). The Greek word used in Hebrews 1:14 for “ministering spirits” is “Leitourgikos” from which we get the English word, “liturgy,” meaning holy service or ministry consecrated to a Holy God. This suggests that angelic activity is not limited to the Bible days but is a present reality in church services and outreach ministries. Archangel Raphael’s healing ministry is only specifically identified in the book of Tobit. Though the book of Tobit is considered apocrypha by Protestants, for the purpose of analyzing the 7-husbands challenging question of Matthew 22, we will look at that story in Tobit from a non-inspired historical or Jewish oral tradition perspective. We read in that book that after several men die, killed by the demon that possessed Sarah, Tobias is rescued by Raphael, as the angel helps cast out the demon. The wedding goes smoothly, and they live happily ever after. The Jewish leaders wanted to ask Jesus—which husband will get Sarah after the resurrection? Jesus considers that question proof of their ignorance. None of those men would have her as wife in heaven because there are no virgins to marry in heaven or any marital relationships like those that exist on earth. Glorified saints, ‘considered worthy of resurrection,’  become like angels and are immortal beings not involved in marriage (Luke 20:35-36).

Our sonship or adoption as children of God will be perfected in the resurrection, which is why Jesus calls them “God’s children SINCE they are children of the resurrection,” that would imply a difference of sonship before and after resurrection. They are God’s children not because of the new birth, that was what they were while they were still mortals on earth, but God’s children since they are children of the resurrection. We know that born again children of God on earth can get married. The Greek word used in this Matthew 22 passage to say children is “huios,” which the New Testament prefers when it is talking about mature sons of God (Romans 8:14), not immature babies in Christ, usually called “nepios” (Galatians 4:1-3; Luke 10:21; 1 Corinthians 3:1)  or brephos for infants who are newly born again (1 Peter 2:2; 2 Timothy 3:15) or  “teknon” that focuses on our dependence upon the Father (John 1:12; Matthew 7:11; Matthew 15:26). Only mature sons are fit for inheritance.

The Brephos infants are instructed to drink milk, learn the Gospel well, know about the cross of Jesus, and how His blood washes away their sins. They learn about how they can be free from sin through the Gospel. Nepios is generally used in a negative sense, 1 Corinthians 3:1 for example, it’s like children who are stunted willfully, they have growth delay. They may doubt their salvation even though they are genuinely saved, perhaps because of their struggles in sanctification. They do not understand prayer and getting answered prayers, therefore, they look to the world to meet their needs. Their spiritual state is constantly in danger of wolves from without and mortal sin from within. They are always “tossed about” (Ephesians 4:14; James 1:5-7). The place where Nepios is used in a positive way is Luke 10:21. The 70 disciples were babies in Christ but they were able to cast out demons, something that doctors of the law could not do. As long as someone is in the kingdom of God, even if he barely knows a few things about Christ, he is still better off than a scholar or PhD expert who is outside of the kingdom. The Teknon are dependents. They have a right to be children of God, who are dependent upon the Father, both for their earthly needs as well as their heavenly calling. They can expect God to provide for them housing and jobs. They know they have the right to be dependents, therefore patiently wait on the Father to handle things for them. They can trust the goodness of God and His care. They know healing is the children’s bread. They can expect God to give them spiritual gifts for ministry. That’s what we see in John 1:12, Matthew 7:11, and Matthew 15:26. The Huios have advanced knowledge of Christ through rigorous Bible study and close walk with the Holy Spirit. They are “led by the Spirit.” They understand the mysteries of the kingdom. God does not need to speak twice to them. They know how to interpret dreams and visions and when they hear God’s voice directing them in a certain direction, they obey promptly. The perfect will of God and fulfillment of His purposes on earth have become their food and passion. They are ready to take over the Father’s business just like Jesus was ready at age 30. Even though by the age of 12 Jesus already had enough knowledge to debate Pharisees and they were amazed at his insights, He was not ready to take over the Father’s business until age 30. At that time the Father was already well pleased with His only begotten Huios. God is willing to forgive and host in his house the Nepios who falter and make mistakes but He is pleased with the Huios who are ready to represent the interests of His kingdom as faithful ambassadors on earth. They know they have the authority and power to do things on a divine scale— doing “the works of God” (John 6:28-29; Deuteronomy 3:24; Psalms 111:6; Psalms 71:17; Psalms 66:3; Psalms 92:4; Acts 2:11; John 14:12). They are well trained to walk in that authority and power to advance the kingdom of God. A fully trained disciple becomes like his Master (Luke 6:40). The fully trained huios, who have attained maturity, can see, hear, say, and do things like their Risen Master, the Lord Jesus Christ. Even the mature Huios are imperfect sons who may occasionally make mistakes (Philippians 3:12-14), as we see Peter and Paul arguing in Antioch, a story recorded in Galatians 2. 

After our resurrection, we will become the perfect Huios like angels are (Job 1:6, Job 38: 7, 1 Kings 22:19, Matthew 18:10, Psalms 103:20, 2 Kings 19:35; Daniel 3:25 ). In the book of Job, the angels are known as sons of God. Right now, we are able to taste and experience portions of the glories of the coming age (Hebrews 6:5; John 14:12; James 5:17; Acts 19:12-13; Acts 13:8-13; 2 Corinthians 12:4; Acts 28:3-6; Mark 16:18; Acts 5:19-20; Acts 12:7) , but we will not know it fully until the rapture of the church and the resurrection of the just. In our resurrection we will not be mere resurrected spirits, we will have resurrected bodies (1 Corinthians 15:19-54). It’s because angels are not meant to marry and have children that God had to destroy the world polluted by the Nephilim in the days of Noah (Genesis 6:2-6). They had procreated strange human beings with superhuman powers, men of renown, who were powerful just like Samson was physically powerful, but in a dark way. The antediluvian world had grown exceedingly wicked. Procreation will be over on the resurrection day and a new dawn of the new creation will be ushered in. So, the children of the resurrection will not marry or be given in marriage. Our current state as new creatures in Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 4:24; 2 Peter 1:3-4), recreated after the image of God and partaking in His divine nature, prepares us for that glorious apotheosis after the resurrection. 

What was the error of the Pharisees? They did not understand our state after the resurrection. They also did not realize the power of God involved in arranging that state. They had studied the Scriptures but in many places we can see that they did not understand. They were like that Ethiopian eunuch of Acts 8 that Philip finds reading Isaiah 53 in his chariot. Scriptures are understood by study and revelation, and then, internalized or become flesh as we obey what they say. Miss any of those 3 steps and you could be in error as far as the Scriptures are concerned, unable to reach fruitful maturity (Mark 4:27-29; Isaiah 28:9-10; Hebrews 5:12-14; Galatians 4:19). First, you study. Second, you understand. Third, you apply what you know. In that Isaiah 28:9-10 passage, in its KJV translation we read “whom shall He make to understand doctrine?” We see a pattern there how truth is perceived precept upon precept, line upon line. The Word of God is the seed that Jesus plants. Our hearts are the soil, and the seed will germinate based on the nature of the soil, how well watered and soft, and the fertilization of that soil. For example, soil fertilization can ensure a chemical pH of 5.5 -7.0 for plant growth because some plants may not grow in acidic or alkaline environments. God makes the plant grow without man’s efforts, which is why in Mark 4:27-29, Jesus talks about growth even when the husbandman is sleeping. There is also a space of time for the seed to grow to produce after its own kind.  One can look up the growth stages of a corn that is planted as a seed until its tasseling stage, silking, dough, and maturity to understand more. Truths and revelations we learn from God will go through these stages in our lives. 

Study is our obligation but understanding and revelation are given by divine grace. Usually when I do a series or post something on social media, I use combined synthesis of hundreds of Scriptures in one teaching or one post. I have been surprised by how sometimes even people I suspected were mature Christians will not catch on until I expand the teaching in a longer and more detailed teaching. We must all grow to the point where, not only we memorize Scriptures like God had commanded Joshua to do (Joshua 1:8), but also have the ability to combine a multitude of doctrines, passages, verses, and books into a 140-2800 character post or teaching that could sound like it is a brand new revelation for the uninitiated, but is nothing more than what is actually “thus says the Lord” from Scripture. The Bible is a single entity, which is why we see Paul talking about Christ as our Passover in 1 Corinthians 5, referring to the time the Israelites were redeemed from Egypt’s grip by the blood of a lamb, and in 1 Corinthians 10 he writes that the Rock that provided water for the Israelites in the wilderness was Christ. He manages to link unrelated things effortlessly. Established eternal truths are transferable and can be connected. Since the current state of the church is much like these Pharisees, with rote memory but poor understanding, it is good to also use simple teachings that even babies can understand. But the goal of Hebrews 5:12-14 still stands. We should not be derailed by those who are satisfied with an infinitesimal knowledge of the Word of God when God has clearly marked out our race of how to reach the full stature of Christ in Hebrews 5:12-14, Ephesians 4:11-16, and several other Scriptures. So, we know that those who emphasize little knowledge of the Scriptures are liars. 

Everything God wants us to know and considers to be of utmost importance has already been revealed in Scripture (Deuteronomy 29:29;  2 Timothy 3:16; Isaiah 8:20; Acts 1:7). Scripture can never be broken (John 10:35; Matthew 24:35; Matthew 5:17-19; Psalms 119:89). God expects all Christians, from rich and poor countries, from highly intellectual societies to poorly educated villages, to study the Scriptures to get to know Him (John 5:39; Acts 17:11; Luke 24:25; 2 Timothy 3:15; 1 Peter 2:2). But studying the Scriptures is never enough, we also need revelations from God because that is how grace is imparted to us to be able to grow and be transformed by the Word of God.

Why did Jesus mention David eating the consecrated shewbread when he was confronted by Pharisees about His disciples who were eating grain on the Sabbath? (Matthew 12:1-7). This is a random question, not connected to this particular passage of Matthew 22 of the 7-husband challenge, but it is used as an illustration that shows you how Jesus dealt every challenge he faced with quoting Scriptures. Do you understand why Jesus used that question about David in that passage of Matthew 12 ? Jesus was connecting both stories by revelation—the story of the disciples eating wheat on the Sabbath day and the story of David eating the consecrated shewbread. On the surface, there seems to be no connection between the Pharisees’ challenge and the Lord’s explanation. It almost sounds like Jesus is trying to justify the disciples’ breaking of the Sabbath by an out-of-context Old Testament quote. If David broke the law, are the disciples supposed to break the law ? Could that be the message that Jesus was conveying ? That would be strange considering that Jesus taught Scripture cannot be broken. As we look at the details, we realize that the issues Jesus raises show that the Pharisees were selective in their Scripture application. The Sabbath was made for man and man was not made for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27). Yes, in the 10 commandments, they were commanded to honor God on the Sabbath and keep it holy (Exodus 20:8), but that did not change God’s final intent of creating the Sabbath: it was made for man and not the other way around. It was lawful to do good for man on the Sabbath. Man could be healed on the Sabbath if he was sick. Man could eat on the Sabbath if he was hungry. Now, we are discovering something about the glory of man that we actually hear little about in today’s Christianity (Hebrews 2:6-10). We are also seeing that there are degrees and dimensions of truth that have to be understood and discerned spiritually because one truth of Scripture may have priority over another truth of Scripture.

Let us explore those degrees of truth in Scripture and how we can balance them so that we will avoid the same pitfall of the Pharisees. For example, we know humanity fell and in many ways we must be humbled to know the dust we are (Genesis 3:19, Genesis 18:27) , on the other hand, we must also correctly confess what the Lord has made us both in creation and redemption (John 1:12, John 10:34-35; 2 Corinthians 5:21, 1 Corinthians 15:10). We have just had a breakthrough understanding with what is wrong with modern Christianity just like it was with the Pharisees: selective doctrinal beliefs breed ignorance of what is left out. It is not uncommon today to find Christians with an overemphasis on the fall and sinfulness of man at the expense of the redemption and justification of the saints. This can be quite destructive to people’s faith and ability to pray with results or engage in spiritual warfare with courage. Here are a few Bible truths we are going to contrast for the purpose of practicing our knowledge. It is true that man sinned against God and fell from glory; it is also true that the saints are the righteousness of God and have come to the glorious Mount Zion. It is true that God will bring about the glorious Second Coming of Christ in His own time; it is also true that the saints can hasten that day. It is true that Jesus prepares His bride, the church, for glory, but it is also true that the bride will make herself ready. It is true that God is full of mercy and pardoning iniquity but it is also true that mercy and justice kiss each other. It is true that mercy and justice kiss each other but it is also true that mercy triumphs over judgment.  It is true that Satan caused Job’s illness though he had done nothing wrong but it is also true that those who were sick or died in the Corinthian church were under the judgment of God because they had done something wrong. It is true that justification gives us access before the throne of God and we can boldly approach the throne on the basis of Christ’s obedience, not our own performance, but it is also true that Jesus promised to do the will of the obedient children of God who are filled and possessed by His words. It is true that we are children of God by grace and Jesus is our High Priest who sympathizes with our weaknesses, it is also true that we shall be called sons of God when we are perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect. There are degrees and dimensions of truth that may be prioritized based on situations and circumstances where those truths are applicable. If you think that only the Pharisees were selective in their doctrinal beliefs and it is no longer the case with the Catholics, Baptists, Presbyterians, and Pentecostals today you will be in shock on judgment day. 

Selective doctrinal beliefs are rampant today and sometimes churches even claim being justified because perhaps another church made some mistakes in adopting a certain doctrine, as though churches should measure themselves by how they fare compared to other churches, rather than measure themselves by the standard of the Word of God. Just because a healing evangelist made some false comments in some doctrines, it does not change God’s command that the sick should call the elders of the church to pray for them with anointing oil, expecting a supernatural healing (James 5: 14-16). But what if the Elders of a church don’t believe in miracles or do not want to practice James 5:14-16 ? Well, they are disobedient to God and they are not fulfilling their duty as elders. Who serves who ?Are they God’s boss or is God their boss ? Just because a church does not want to preach healing will never change the fact that God is Jehovah Rapha. Just because a pastor does not believe that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and this belief will affect the interpretations of the church on the doctrine of divine healing, will not alter Christ’s nature or character as a Healer. Since miraculous healing results from believing that Jesus does heal today, absence of miracles would not prove God’s intent to heal or not. It would prove unbelief, however (Mark 9:23). So, our study of Scriptures must be illuminated by the Spirit of God for us to benefit from studying them (Ephesians 1:17-23; John 14:26; John 16:13; 1 John 2:27; Psalms 119:30; John 8:12; Philemon 1:6; Ephesians 3:4; Matthew 13:11; Matthew 11:27). Searching the Scriptures is a pre-requisite to understanding the Scriptures but searching the Scriptures does not guarantee revelations in those scriptures. You have to open the book to be able to study it, but you need another key beyond the pages you see to start to receive revelations (Mark 8:18; John 9: 39-41;Matthew 6:22-23; Luke 24:45; Acts 16:14  Revelation 3:7; Job 32:8; Psalms 147:5). We must plead with God to show us His mercy and grace and give us revelation and understanding in His Word.

Understanding increases as we prayerfully meditate upon the Word of the Lord and even more so when we have become so hungry for God’s presence that we choose to let go of food to hear the words of His mouth (Matthew 4:4; Job 23:12;  Psalms 43:3; Psalms 25:5; Psalms 143:10; John 7:17; Isaiah 54:13) . Understanding is crucial for worship and obedience as you cannot worship or obey what you don’t know or understand ( John 4:22-24; Matthew 15:8; Psalms 119:104; Joshua 1:8; Luke 8:11; Matthew 13: 19; Hosea 4:6; Ephesians 4:18; Proverbs 10:21; Ezekiel 44:23; Titus 2:14). Obedience of the faith is the end of studying Scriptures (Romans 16:26; Romans 6:16; Romans 8:29; James 1:22) . If that’s not the goal of studying the Word of God, then all efforts to learn Scriptures are pointless. Every truth we don’t understand, will be stolen by Satan as we see in that parable of the Sower. We will be in error as a result of stolen truths. Satan doesn’t just steal truth just by making you forget what you heard when you are busy with your daily work, or after exhaustion at home, but also when you hear false teachings from preachers who have no reverence for the Word of God. Last night I read online that a certain prophet in West Africa told people that “if you give to the poor you will never prosper. You can only prosper if you give to anointed men of God” —now, this is clearly, a heretical teaching. Remember how an angel visited Cornelius in Acts 10 ? His alms and prayers had ascended before the throne of God as a memorial (You can also read Matthew 6:3-4 and Isaiah 58). So, that false teaching that you cannot give to the poor and receive divine blessing would steal this truth because it is from Satan. We must guard the truth of the Word of God we read so that it will not be stolen. We must also obey it after understanding it. Every truth we understand but don’t obey, will result in false worship and judgment.

Our hearts must be in tune with our lips. We can’t worship God with our lips while our hearts are away from Him. It is only after we understand the truth of the Word and obey the truth of that Word that we are able to worship in truth. Once we worship in truth, we know that the power of the truth will work in us and transform us from our previous stage of glory to a new level of glory (2 Corinthians 3:18; John 4:22-24; John 8:32; Psalms 119:144; Ezekiel 36:27; 2 Corinthians 3:2-3; John 15:3; John 17:17). Ultimately, all of this has to have an impact upon our lives or what Jesus calls to be “fruitful.”—John 15:4-5. Whether for the fruit of the Spirit in us or to influence others who will want to know the same God that we know. It is in this light we see that Peter encourages wives to behave in a such a way their husbands could be impacted by their behavior (1 Peter 3:1-2). There may even be a high likelihood of conversion, simply by fleshing out the Word of God in the home. Some people carry this teaching to extremes and say that preaching is not necessary only living the Gospel will touch lives. There has been a quote falsely attributed to Francis of Assisi, “Preach the Gospel at all times. Use words if necessary,” used for that misleading purpose, but no single biographer of Francis ever mentioned this, though the Fransciscan rule commended that friars can preach by their deeds. Thomas of Celano wrote a biography that shows how Francis of Assisi highly spoke of the ministry of the Word of God preached in sermons. We can apply our earlier lesson of truth contrast here: It is true that you can convert sinners by showing them the transformation of your life without using words, but it is also true that God has commanded the foolishness of preaching the Gospel as the primary means of salvation (1 Corinthians 1:21; Romans 1:16).Our goal is not to create a conflict between character that comes from obedience and the preaching of the Word in the Gospel. The point here is that complete obedience to Christ is the end-game of discipleship (Matthew 28:19). We must conform to Christ’s image. The Word of God we know profits us nothing if we are not a reflection of the Word. 

The devotional we did for the Christmas season “Hail the incarnate deity,” especially the study on John 1:1 and John 1:14 can further complement in understanding well the importance of the Word of God for those who need it.

Now that we have addressed the issue of Scripture, let us address the issue of God’s miraculous power, dunamis. The power of God that works miracles is often described as the Holy Spirit upon us (Acts 8:16; Acts 10:44; Acts 1:8). In the book of Acts, this was accompanied with visible manifestations. But the power of God that transforms us through His words is the Holy Spirit within us (Romans 8:9-13). While in these series we have focused our study on the Holy Spirit who is upon us to do wonders, we must realize that our eternal safety is only guaranteed by what He does within us. Sanctification supersedes visible signs and wonders. The power to walk in holiness is greater than the power to heal sick bodies (Matthew 7:21-23; Hebrews 12:14).

I have heard stories of Lonnie Frisbee, one of the most well-known charismatic preachers of the Jesus Movement who died of HIV/AIDS in 1993. Hopefully, he had the opportunity to receive forgiveness in his last hours. But nobody should ever wait the final moments of life to commit life to Jesus entirely. That preacher simply did not know Jesus throughout his ministry and we know several similar stories of people who walk in supernatural power with a scandalously poor knowledge of Scripture, just like that prophet in West Africa mentioned in a paragraph above. What about signs and wonders that followed Lonnie Frisbee’s ministry ? That was God’s power upon him. It was not proof of the power working within him (Luke 10:20; 2 Timothy 3:5; Titus 2:11-12).  It’s like the Spirit falling upon Saul to change him into another man even though in the end he proves to be a reprobate (1 Samuel 10:6; 1 Samuel 28; 1 Samuel 31:4; 1 Chronicles 10:13). Being changed into another man and being changed into a new creature are two totally different concepts. Saul was unfaithful and was killed despite the initial anointing that he had. Faithfulness is the fruit of the Spirit working within. That kind of disconnect can only occur when a person is selective by choosing to focus on knowing the power of God upon him to do miraculous exploits  while ignoring the practice of the truth of the Scriptures from the inside.

The Scriptures have the ability to make the saints wise unto salvation by reproving them, correcting them, and turning them into mature people of God—who work out salvation with fear and trembling so that they can receive an inheritance among those who are sanctified (Philippians 2:12; 2 Timothy 3:15-16; Acts 20:32). Understanding eternal judgment and reading some of the Old-Time sermons, like the sermons of George Whitefield, John Wesley, J.C.Ryle, and Charles Finney, for example, can help many people in the 21st century to put emphasis on holiness because simply many contemporary churches are way out of line in this regard. Surely many Holy Fathers and mystics, like Sadhu Sundar Singh and Francis of Assisi, who have left the world for Christ, teach us that being holy and obeying God’s commandments is not burdensome (1 John 5:3). The Spirit makes it all easy when you have a passion for His presence and want nothing but Christ alone. Are you hungry to eat of Christ as your heavenly bread ? You can ! (John 6:53, 63). It is the glory of His presence that makes obedience as easy for us as it was for Christ (1 John 4:17). Now, that’s the bread you can eat legally without the Pharisees haunting you. We must be hungry for more of Christ. There is nothing in this life that is worth losing heaven’s treasures over. We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses that reminds us of the greatness and worth of Christ (Hebrews 11; Hebrews 12:1-3). We must take note of the end of their holy lives and imitate their faith by following their example (1 Corinthians 11:1; Hebrews 13:7). All Christians can gladly and confidently walk away from the world and live for one thing—knowing God and making Him known—because being considered worthy of the resurrection into God’s kingdom and furthering the Gospel to the ends of the earth is great gain indeed.

We conclude our study by observing that the goal of miracles is to produce reverent worship, and when this is grasped, it can help with the work of sanctification (Deuteronomy 3:24, 2 Chronicles 7:3). If we miss that invitation, our hearts could be hardened rather than softened by signs and wonders.    

Satan is, night and day, looking for new tricks to deceive and destroy us. We should wake up learning new wisdom to defeat and destroy His works. Walking in the miraculous power of God, with signs and wonders, without holding to the truth of Scripture and obeying that truth is deception. Knowing the Scriptures without believing in the supernatural power of God and practicing the miraculous is deception (Mark 9:18-19;1 Corinthians 4:20; John 6:28; Mark 16:17-18; John 14:12; John 11:40;  Hebrews 11:6; 1 Corinthians 2:4;  Hebrews 1:3) . Either camp today would be in error as far as Jesus is concerned. We don’t have the option to be selective which doctrine we want to obey. We need both.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you have given us your Word as we read in Scriptures and have access to the stories of Moses, David, Jonah, Isaiah, Jesus, and Paul to be able to learn from their examples and revelations. We also thank you for giving us the Holy Spirit to help us understand what is written in Scriptures as well as anointing us for the supernatural works of God that display the surpassing greatness of your majestic power. We pray that you will correct our errors in the knowledge of the Scriptures and help us to learn how we can correct our deficiency in understanding and walking in your supernatural power—so that we can be complete, lacking nothing, and faithfully testifying the message of your Gospel. In the compassionate name of Jesus, we pray. Amen. 

January 30th,2021

And to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us. Ephesians 3: 19-20

Today we will finish our devotional “The Gospel Is Power,” for the end of the month of January. We will end this panorama of revival-bringing revelations with another of my most favorite Scriptures in the Bible. When I say “revival-bring revelations” I am not saying it lightly or hyping things. We have already shown that you can’t hype the “incredibly  great power of God for us who believe.”— Ephesians 1:19. We saw that the English word translated as “incredible” or “surpassing” or “incomparable” is actually “huperballo” in Greek. So, God’s power is already great and you can never believe in miracles too much. If anything, you can only dilute and undermine it. The power that shook Paul’s prison cell in Philippi has not changed but the saints no longer push like they used to do. So, yes, this message that has worked for 2000 years is still a revival-bringing revelation wherever preachers will take it seriously. 

I would challenge any discouraged Christian who prays for revival in America or anywhere else to go through “The Gospel is Power” devotional of the last 10 days for at least once every quarter or three times this year of 2021. I purposely wrote the devotional to clear out all stumbling blocks that seem to create unbelief in people’s hearts and minds and convince them that God’s promises have expired, falsely believing that this generation has no hope. There are also plenty of other resources that can really stir up anyone who is hungry. I have been finishing up a “Miracle Evangelism Manual” , which we will be using as the soul-winning standard for our ministry evangelists, and in my final chapter I wrote short biographies of the 20 greatest evangelists of the last 300 years. I had read the lives of these people several years ago at least twice for each of them. But this week, it did not feel like simple reading for inspiration as I couldn’t stop praying. I love to pray always, but as I have been reading about them again this week it has been different. When I read how people laid prostrate at Bowland Mission in Bradford where Smith Wigglesworth was a minister before he went to Sunderland to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit, I just want to lay prostrate as though I am back there in that very building in 1907. Or on Azusa Street in Los Angeles. I want that uncontainable spiritual hunger that is like lavas of a volcano that John. G. Lake was experiencing before he left Zion city, IL.

Are you really seeing thousands of people saved every week in your city ? Becoming committed disciples who will also disciple other people ? That’s the Bible way. I don’t want just to read stuff. I want all of these things we see in George Whitefield, Charles Finney, John. G. Lake, F.F. Bosworth, Smith Wigglesworth, Reinhard Bonnke, and Billy Graham. I want souls and more souls.  I want to see the power of God so demonstrated that people can’t leave a church building without surrendering to Christ.  So, I believe that If we are reading or hearing any teaching about the power of God, we should do so prayerfully in order to see the fruit of this. “God is no respecter of persons“—Acts 10:35, Peter said, when he realized what the power of God was doing for the Roman soldier, Cornelius. He realized that even a pagan soldier who had truly repented and diligently sought God could receive the same anointing as the holy apostles of Jesus Christ.  Wherever Christians will become very hungry, the same thing will repeat over and over again. 

John. G. Lake tells a testimony of how William Seymour used to wake up and pray from 4 am to 8 am everyday for 2.5 years before Azusa Street Pentecostal revival and the Holy Spirit told him “you must pray more.” I believe that if we will love God and be hungry for His presence like that, Jesus Christ will touch our desperate generation. I have also worked hard to ensure that this information can fit into a small booklet that answers many dilemmas some Christians seem to assume they have so that they can actually see that we do truly have Scriptural basis to hope and have faith for a turnaround. The truth is, it is easier to have unbelief and doubt than it is to have faith like this. It is easier to think that the Christ of George Whitefield and John Wesley was great, but ours is sleeping or His arm is too short to save. Some of us are so timid that we can’t even say “where is the God of Elijah?” as we strike our Jordan to cross to the other side. There are people who seem to think that apostasy in Western Christianity should be the norm. No, it should not. The statistics of thousands of churches that close every year in America and Europe can be reversed. “They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated.”—Isaiah 61:4. Somebody says, don’t dream of building on past revivals or restoring former things, think of something new. I am like, which Bible are they reading ? Certainly not Isaiah. Definitely not Habakkuk.  “O LORD, I have heard the report of you, and your work, O LORD, do I fear. In the midst of the years revive it; in the midst of the years make it known; in wrath remember mercy.”— Habakkuk 3:2, ESV.  The NIV of this passage says “ LORD, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, LORD. Repeat them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy.” That restoration of Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit, Geneva, and Montreal to their former glories is for us who believe in this “incredibly great power.” You see, that Isaiah 61:4 of restoring cities and rebuilding ancient ruins comes right after the Isaiah 61:1-3 that Jesus quoted “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because He has anointed me…” We can’t claim we are anointed and then accept decline, desolation, and apostasy at the same time. But this generation does not want that, times have changed, someone could say. Well, can a tectonic faultline tell lavas that a volcano will not erupt ? Revival and awakening are not upto the world to decide. 

Until Christ returns, the great commission remains in force, so are the promises to be endued with power from on high to fulfill it. That’s why God is patient. He does not want anyone to perish (2 Peter 3:9). He will certainly supply the power to make that possible. There are no excuses not to see revival and abundance of miracles. 

Don’t we all want to see the nations turn to Jesus? Don’t we all believe that nothing is impossible with God? Don’t we all believe that God has been slow to bring about apocalyptic prophecies because He doesn’t want anyone to perish but that all people may come to repentance? Don’t we all believe that the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe? So, why not go from teaching to practice ? Why not go from believing to receiving ? Why not go from knowing this is true to start seeing this happening all around us? Why not stop wishing things were different so that we can actually be compelled with love to become the change agents of our cities, states, and nations? Why not cancel news, TV, food, and everything else in order to pray until God moves ?

“Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men…For the love of Christ compels us…” 2 Corinthians 5:11,14. Some preachers misunderstand John’s teaching in 1 John 4:17-20, where he says that there is no fear in love. They think that preaching hell causes fear, therefore, if you love people you can’t preach it. If so, Jesus must have been the most hateful person in the world (see Luke 16:19-31). What John is actually saying is that “God is greater than our hearts”—1 John 3:19-21. If our hearts condemn us in fear, If we have not attained the assurance of salvation, if we are standing in fearful expectation of the fire that will consume God’s enemies, it is proof that we are not really the Christians we should be, because we have not yet embraced the blood of Jesus through which we should approach the throne of grace with boldness, we have not seen our sins washed away by that blood, and we are not living like Christ lived—because only those who can say “as He is so are we“—1 John 4:17— can live without fear of judgment. Now, these days, there are plenty of Christians who can say that there is no fear in love, but they will never be able to join John in saying that as Jesus Christ is so are they perfectly like Him. They are deceived. “As He is, so are we” must always precede “ there is no fear in love.”  Also, keep in mind that it is this same John who wrote John 3:18. In other words, if you are not born again, or if you identify yourself as a Christian but you are not living a perfectly holy life both in moral behavior and the inner principles of your heart, you have good reasons to fear (Acts 24:25; Isaiah 33:14). So, next time you want to say there’s no fear in love, you must say “as Christ is, so am I.” Not positionally, as that’s not what John says, rather practically, really, in experience. Positionally, we are already seated in heaven (Ephesians 2:6), but are we living from Mount Zion, by experience, day to day (Hebrews 12:22-29) ?  Since Paul knew this, the love of God compelled him with passion, “warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.”—Colossians 1:28.

Longing for God and acting on those longings to pursue your passion for God has a way of shaping desires to deepen for the things of God—this in turn creates a sense of a call to serve Him, and when that happens, a choice has to be made to surrender the will to God. Desiring to know and worship God ultimately leads to submission under His Lordship. Perfection is a process but it does not have to take years or even months. When God draws you with the cords of love and you accept His embrace, you find that there is pleasure rather than anxiety or fear in knowing Him. When you look at the disciples in the Gospels, you find that they were very excited to be with Jesus, even though they had so many questions about Him. Of course, we know that there was one disciple who did not make it in the end. It’s terrible when such deceived disciples are caught by surprise, having banished all fear that could have warned them. So, it is important to do an honest assessment of one’s relationship with the Lord and see if there is really progress and perfection taking place. If you are burning for God intensely, it will usually result in an automatic sense of continued acceptance in His presence. You know you belong to Him. 

With that being said, let’s turn to our Ephesians 3:14-21 passage that we have today. The starting verses open our eyes into the second prayer that Paul was praying for the church in Ephesus as we see him kneeling down to pray, just like he had made supplication on their behalf in Ephesian 1:17-23. Both of these are powerful prayers that can have a great impact on any saint who prays them regularly. As he concludes this chapter, he is praying for both power and love. We know that even if we have the faith that moves the mountains but have no love, we are nothing (1 Corinthians 13:1-2). It doesn’t say, we have nothing. After all, we could have the gift of speaking in tongues, the gift of faith, and the gift of prophecy—and yet be nothing. We should pursue the gifts but we are only something according to the love we express. Jesus wants us to have the faith that moves mountains (Mark 11:22-24)—that’s just something we should not forget—but He is showing us that having that faith along with love is the most excellent way. There are people who say, well, love is the most important thing, we should not worry about the faith that moves mountains. Is that really what Jesus taught ? Not at all. We should not exchange one false teaching with another false teaching. Love is at the core of Christian identity and true faith will work by love (Galatians 5:6).

What is love ? When I was younger in the late 1990s I used to hear the song by the Trinidad-German singer, Haddaway, asking “what is love ?” There are probably hundreds of secular songs like that trying to define what love is.  The love that Paul was praying for the church in Ephesus to experience is Agape. We do know that he certainly wanted Christians to have storge love, as he saw lack of natural love between family members or blood-relatives as evidence of God’s wrath (Romans 1:31; 2 Timothy 3:3). We also know that he encouraged Phileo love, to spread brotherhood among the saints (Titus 3:15), just like other New Testament passages show us the benefits of that Phileo love (John 11:3; John 20:2; Hebrews 13:1)—but we are called to a higher love than brotherly love—we are called to agape. We are called to sacrifice and laying down our lives. That love cannot be defined by the world.  It cannot be defined by Hollywood. It cannot be defined by corporations. It cannot be defined by the government. The world in its false wisdom does not understand the cross of Jesus. That love can only be defined by Jesus and what we see in Scripture. Anything called love that is unbiblical is demonic (1 Corinthians 5:1-5; 1 John 2:15-17; 1 John 3:8; James 4:4; Romans 1:25;  2 Corinthians 6:14; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; 2 Timothy 3:1-5). He that loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. Friendship with the world is enmity with God. Saints can’t drink on the altar of idols and then share in the communion at Christ’s altar, no matter how good their intentions are, since light has no fellowship with darkness. All of those are strong words that show us that God holds a monopoly on defining what love is. “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God…”—Matthew 22:27, that love must always come first and define every other relationship. 

In 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, Paul tells us what that agape love is. In those 5 verses, he describes what agape love is and what it is not in 17 characteristics, before concluding that love never fails. None of us wants to fail, so we should want to be proficient in this agape love. A closer look of those 17 traits of love, however, reveals a disturbing fact: even many professing Christians don’t understand or practice love like this. For example, love always trusts. Who is trusted? Do you always trust? Love always protects. Who is protected? Do you always protect? Love endures all things. Is that what we see in Christian marriages? Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. We know plenty of churches that would not be willing to call what is sinful as actually sinful and they would give money, support, and advocate for something they know is Biblically wrong. We know Christians who will change their value system under pressure because rather than be persecuted they are willing to compromise the truth. So, we realize that love, in many ways, is not what we see people call it whether in the secular world or even in the church. Because love and God’s eternal truth are so intertwined that they can’t be separated, it’s almost guaranteed that we will all fall short in love at one point or another, but we have to press on to live in the fullness of this love.

We can’t talk about love without talking about holiness because Jesus who was crucified to save sinners was killed as punishment for their sins and is also the one who calls those who believe to walk in holiness. Love without holiness is deception. That’s really the only ground for miracles of judgment (1 Corinthians 5:5; 1 Timothy 1:20; 2 Timothy 4:14; Luke 18:7; 1 Peter 4:17; Acts 5:3-11; 1 Corinthians 11:30-32; John 20:23; Acts 13:10-12; Luke 17:1-2; Acts 12:21-24; 1 Corinthians 16:22; 2 Corinthians 10:4-6; 1 John 5:16; Revelation 2:20-24). When the Antichrist and the false prophet show up as prophesied in these last days, they will deceive only people who don’t understand this fact of love-truth union (2 Thessalonians 2:9-10; Revelation 13:1-4; Revelation 13:13-14; Revelation 16:13; Revelation 19:20). There will be working of signs and wonders—and demonstrations of power—but they will be done in support of a lie—a false religion, a false belief system, a false doctrine. Run away from preachers who talk about love without demanding truth, expressed in correct Biblical teaching. You can be 100% certain that the spirit of the antichrist is working through them, even though they may not be aware of what they are doing (1 John 4:3). Every miracle that is not accompanied with correct doctrine and leading to holiness can be associated with demonic activity. That may sound harsh for some Charismatic and Pentecostal churches. I have nothing against those churches, I actually would prefer Charismatic churches that practice signs and wonders over those that do not. But correct doctrine is extremely important. It is so important that Paul warned us that before the rise of Antichrist, lying signs and wonders would be preferred over the truth. Read 2 Thessalonians 2 over and over again until you get it. We must love the truth, no matter the costs. Go wrong on doctrine and it doesn’t matter how many miracles you have. We have sufficiently covered that in the last devotional, how it is possible to be in error because of failure to know, understand, and apply the Scriptures. The love that surpasses knowledge that Paul is praying for us to experience will be a well-rounded and balanced love, having all the 17 Biblical characteristics it should have. But Biblical truth can be offensive for some people, how can that be love ? Remember, God has a monopoly on defining what love is. Love always rejoices in the truth, not in error. If you believe that Biblical love pampers sinners without calling them to repentance and holiness, you are already deceived. When people are thoroughly sanctified, we can be sure that God’s power and love are at work within them.

It is when we have this amazing combination of love and power that we are truly filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Think about all the things you could see happening if this was true in your life. Think about how the world would change even if just 50% of all born again Christians were like this. 50% of  Christians caring for those in need like the Good Samaritan. 50% of Christians fellowshipping in love like the disciples in Antioch. 50% of all churches seeing the shadow of their pastors raising people from wheelchairs like it was in Jerusalem. If we had that, we wouldn’t even be praying for revival or an awakening, we would be living in it. Being filled to the measure of all the fullness of God is the reason we were saved. It is the reason we are alive. It is what we should wake up obsessed with in our minds, every morning, and what we should go to bed overwhelmed with at night (Song of Solomon 2:5; Song of Solomon 5:8;Song of Solomon 8:6; Matthew 22:37; Psalms 27:4; Philippians 1:21; Psalms 17:15; Ephesians 6:24; Ephesians 5:18). Smith Wigglesworth used to say that he wanted to be so filled to the measure of all the fullness of God to the point that the only thing that would ooze out of his body would be divine, that whenever he touched someone with an infirmity that person would be instantly healed. How true is that ! Jesus wouldn’t place his hand on someone with cancer and the tumor continue to have life. It would be dead and vanish from that person’s body. It is a disgrace to claim that you are filled to the measure of all the fullness of God and yet pray for someone in a wheelchair and the poor fellow goes away like he/she was when you started to pray. Jesus is not like that. That’s not the measure of all the fullness of God.

It is after we are filled to the measure of all the fullness of God that we will be able to witness that He is “able to do infinitely more than we ask or imagine.” What about you sit down and write down 10 Great Commission goals that you want to see in the world that are not yet visible and see for yourself whether God is able to do more than you imagine ? Does this mean that God will raise every dead person we pray for? The rules of the fall remain in effect until the resurrection of the just (Romans 5:14; Romans 8:10). That’s the correct doctrine (2 Timothy 2:18). But Jesus also commanded us to raise the dead (Matthew 10:8; Acts 9:36-42; Acts 20:9-11). So, we can expect that some people will be raised from the dead while others will not be raised. Our motivation shouldn’t be about fleshly love for the people we want to raise but rather the glory that Jesus will get and the value of the testimony that can come out of that miracle. But we must have expectations that people will be raised.

Many Christians have decided to live a substandard faith. Jesus says that the least in the kingdom is greater than Elijah or John the Baptist (Matthew 11:11; Matthew 17:10-13). We know that not only Elijah was mightily anointed and raptured to glory with chariots of fire, one of his disciples, Elisha, was also so anointed that even his bones raised someone from the dead after he had passed away (2 Kings 13:21). That’s an Old Testament level power-impartation. How much more the New Testament ? James challenges us to have the faith of Elijah in praying the prayer of the righteous but Jesus already identifies us as greater than Elijah and expects us to do greater works than He himself did (James 5:16-18; John 14:12; Acts 5:15-16; Acts 19:11-12). So, even if we did all the miracles of Elijah and Elisha, we would still be considered to live below the New Covenant promises. We, the saints of these final days of world history, who have been baptized in the Holy Spirit and fire, should be expecting much more 

Whether we are praying for those who are sick or we are trying to raise someone from the dead, we should be sensitive to what the Holy Spirit is prompting us to do—If He wants to do a miracle—He knows far better than we do why He wants to do that. While God is able to give us many luxuries of life, it would be wise to focus our asking on the things that will accelerate the advance of the kingdom around the world. Not every imagination that we can pray and receive is always wise, but “he who wins souls is wise”—Proverbs 11:30 (see also  Daniel 12:3). So, why don’t you go ahead to start fasting and asking God for the salvation of 3 billion souls? God is omnipotent and great in compassion and He does not want anyone to perish. That’s the kind of prayer that not only will result in a multitude of miracles and conversions but will also delight His heart greatly.

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you have called us to know the depth and heights of the love of Christ and to be filled to the measure of all the fulness of God. We thank you Lord that you are faithful to answer our prayers and as Jesus has called to ask and receive so that our joy may be full, we pray that your Spirit will continue to bring opportunities that we can receive to enlarge our territory and expand your kingdom. Lord, we approach your throne with boldness, knowing that you are able to do immeasurably above and beyond what we ask or imagine, and therefore, we plead the blood of Jesus for the salvation of 3 billion souls between now and the rapture. In the generous name of Jesus, we pray. Amen