KNOW YOUR AUTHORITY IN CHRIST!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY JUNE 03, 3021.

SUBJECT : KNOW YOUR AUTHORITY IN CHRIST!

Memory verse: "Behold, I give you authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the powers of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” (Luke 10 vs 19.)

READ: Mark 16 vs 15 - 18: 

16:15: And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.

16:16: He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.

16:17: And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues;

16:18: they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

INTIMATION:

Knowing Him reveals your authority in Him. Knowing the people He has divinely called us to be sets the precedent for understanding and operating in His authority. For this reason the apostle Paul never seized to pray for the believers in the churches he planted in his missionary journeys for the spiritual insight and wisdom in their knowledge of whom they are in Christ and the authority of the believer in Him:

“Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power,” (Ephesians 1 vs 15 - 19.)

Unused authority of the believer, creates a spirit of poverty and limitation. How grievous it must be to the Lord when His own people do not understand the authority they possess in Him, and therefore live in apathy and purposelessness!

In our memory verse, the Bible teaches us that when we operate in the supernatural authority He has implanted in us, we trample on the head of the enemy and over all their powers, without being hurt in anyway. We are also equipped to preach the Gospel to the nations, witnessing signs, wonders and miracles, according to the passage we read today.

I believe the most powerful aspect of our authority in Christ, however, is that we share in His rule and reign with Him; “This is a faithful saying: For If we died with Him, we shall also live with Him. If we endure, we shall also reign with Him.” (Second Timothy 2 vs 11 - 12).

Christ’s work of propitiation for our sins include; redeeming us with His blood, gathering the believers into the kingdom, making us priests, and appointed us to reign upon the earth.; “And have made us kings and priests to our God, and we shall reign on the earth.” (Revelation 5 vs 10.) In the future we will reign with Him.

This is even more empowering when we realize “as He is, so we are in this world” (First John 4 vs 17). Although we can never be God Himself, the fact that He has called us to be as He is in this world makes changing it impossible. If we truly believe this, our authority to influence and transform communities, cities, and nations will be a very tangible reality.

Pray for God to give you the courage to utilize the authority He has given you. Remember that faith requires action! Step out in your God-given authority to pray for others, lay hands on the sick and boldly preach the Gospel.

Prayer: Abba Father, You are so great, loving, and faithful. Thank You for all You wrought for us in redemption. Engrace me to fully utilize the authority You have given me in Christ, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

Who Are the Children of Abraham

 

“In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Genesis 12:3)

You who hope in Christ and follow him in the obedience of faith are Abraham’s descendants and heirs of his covenant promises.

God said to Abraham in Genesis 17:4, “Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations.” But Genesis makes plain that Abraham did not father a multitude of nations in a physical or political sense. Therefore, the meaning of God’s promise was probably that a multitude of nations would somehow enjoy the blessings of sonship even though physically unrelated to Abraham.

That’s no doubt what God meant in Genesis 12:3 when he said to Abraham, “In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” From the very beginning, God had in view that Jesus Christ would be the descendant of Abraham and that everyone who trusts in Christ would become an heir of Abraham’s promise. Paul says in Galatians 3:29, “If you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.”

So, when God said to Abraham 4,000 years ago, “Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations,” he opened the way for any one of us, no matter what nation we belong to, to become a child of Abraham and an heir of God’s promises. All we have to do is share the faith of Abraham — that is, bank our hope on God’s promises, so much so that, if obedience requires it, we could give up our dearest possession like Abraham gave up Isaac.

We don’t become heirs of Abraham’s promises by working for God, but by being confident that God works for us. “[Abraham] grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised” (Romans 4:20–21). That’s why Abraham could obey God even when obedience looked like a dead-end street. He trusted God to do the impossible — like raise his son from the dead.

Faith in God’s promises — or today we would say, faith in Christ, who is the confirmation of God’s promises — is the way to become a child of Abraham; obedience is the evidence that faith is genuine (Genesis 22:12–19). Therefore, Jesus says in John 8:39, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works Abraham did.”

Children of Abraham are people from all nations who put their hope in Christ and, like Abraham on Mount Moriah, therefore don’t let the loss of their most precious earthly possession stop their obedience.

You who hope in Jesus Christ and follow him in the obedience of faith are the descendants of Abraham and heirs of his covenant promises.

WHAT GOD SAYS ABOUT US THAT BELIEVE!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

WEDNESDAY JUNE 02, 2021.

SUBJECT : WHAT GOD SAYS ABOUT US THAT BELIEVE!

Memory verse: "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His Name.” (John 1 vs 12.)

READ: First Peter 2 vs 9 - 10: 

2:9: But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;

2:10: who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.

INTIMATION:

Knowing Him causes you to know what He says about you. If you truly desire to know what the Lord says about your identity, dive into His Word! Take these for instance:

1. He calls us His children; “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His Name.” (John 1 vs 12.)

2. We are new creations; “Therefore, If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” (Second Corinthians 5 vs 17.)

3. We are His righteousness; “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (Second Corinthians 5 vs 21.)

4. We are citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven; “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 3 vs 20.)

5. We are forgiven and set free; “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.” (Ephesians 1 vs 7.)

“For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.” (Romans 8 vs 2.)

6. We are royal priests and a chosen generation; “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” (1 Peter 2 vs 9.)

7. We are special to Him; “His own special people” whom He has given all that pertains to life and godliness.

8. He has made you king and priest to our God to reign on earth; “And have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth.” (Romans 5 vs 10.) 

9. We are God’s work of art; “For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2 vs 10.)

When we become alive in Christ through salvation, He infuses our spirits with the reality of His DNA and His Kingdom. This is the primary building block of our identity in Him. That infusion makes us complete in Him; “And you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.” (Colossians 2 vs 10.)

Haven known the truth of what God says about you, your response is expected. Do a self-evaluation of your own life to identify existing gaps. Are there lies you have believed about yourself that contradict what the Lord has said about you? Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal areas where you have negated your self-worth.

Be encouraged to seek Christ more! Allow Him to reveal His character and nature, and form your true identity that will lead to living out the destiny He has prepared for you.

Prayer: Abba Father, You made me what I am; marvelously and fearfully made. Forever Your praise will be in my mouth. O Lord, impart me with the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of the riches of the glory of Your inheritance in me, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

The Faith That Magnifies Grace

 

I do not nullify the grace of God. (Galatians 2:21)

When I lost my footing as a little boy in the undertow at the beach, I felt as if I were going to be dragged to the middle of the ocean in an instant.

It was a terrifying thing. I tried to get my bearings and figure out which way was up. But I couldn’t get my feet on the ground, and the current was too strong to swim. I wasn’t a good swimmer anyway.

In my panic I thought of only one thing: Could someone help me? But I couldn’t even call out from under the water.

When I felt my father’s hand take hold of my upper arm like a mighty vice grip, it was the sweetest feeling in the world. I yielded entirely to being overpowered by his strength. I reveled in being picked up at his will. I did not resist.

The thought did not enter my mind that I should try to show that things aren’t so bad; or that I should add my strength to my dad’s arm. All I thought was, Yes! I need you! I thank you! I love your strength! I love your initiative! I love your grip! You are great!

In that spirit of yielded affection, one cannot boast. I call that yielded affection “faith.” And my father was the embodiment of the future grace of God that I desperately needed and craved under the water. This is the faith that magnifies grace.

As we ponder how to live the Christian life, the uppermost thought should be: How can I magnify rather than nullify the grace of God? Paul answers this question in Galatians 2:20–21, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God.”

Why does his life not nullify the grace of God? Because he lives by faith in the Son of God. Faith calls all attention to grace and magnifies it, rather than nullifying it.

THE BLOOD COVENANT WITH JESUS!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

TUESDAY JUNE 1, 2021.

SUBJECT : THE BLOOD COVENANT WITH JESUS!

Memory verse: "To Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel.” (Hebrews 12 vs 24.)

READ: Hebrews 13 vs 20 - 21: 

13:20: Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of everlasting covenant,

13:21: make you complete in every good work to do His Will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever, Amen.

INTIMATION:

Jesus came as a propitiation for our sins, and His death on the cross ushered in the new covenant or agreement between God and us. Jesus said, “For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins” (Matthew 26 vs 28). Jesus Himself was the ultimate and final sacrifice for sin. Rather than a lamb without blemish slain on the altar in the pre-Christ era, the perfect Lamb of God was slain on the cross, a sinless sacrifice, so that our sins are forgiven once and for all. 

All those who believe in Christ receive that forgiveness. Our new covenant is sealed with the Blood of Jesus Christ. Deity and humanity united in the incarnation. How much better is the Blood of Jesus Christ than the blood of an animal! How much better is the life of the Son of God than the life of a mere animal! We are bound to Him by an indissoluble covenant. He is bound to us as Jehovah was bound to Abraham in the old covenant. Now all people can personally approach God and communicate with Him. 

The significance of the new covenant include: (1) Christ died for us—self-sacrifice by the guiltless Christ. (2) God is directly involved in our lives; it focuses on the reign of Christ in the heart of the believers, and we have unlimited access to God. (3) It’s not temporal, but eternal and a reality. (4) Believers have access to limitless promises of God, and can trust God on them. (5) It’s a conclusive sacrifice—Christ’s sacrifice is complete and final. 

Participating in this new covenant has its price. You have to leave the world behind, follow Christ accepting Him as your Lord and Savior, obeying His commandments. When you do that, His sacrifice applies to you. You are now under His protection and benefit from His perfect relationship with God. This blood covenant with Christ is not to be entered into lightly. The penalty for not doing your part is separation from Him, and the consequences are overwhelming.

In the passage we read today, the verses include two significant results of Christ’s death and resurrection. God works in us to make us the kind of people that would please Him, and He equips us to do the kind of work that would please Him. The Scripture in Philippians 2 vs 13 says, “For it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” This is consummated in us through the power of the indwelling Spirit. 

God, knowing our weaknesses and imperfections, offers to work in us; to change us to what we should be that will be pleasing to Him. We are now called to the supreme privilege of fellowshipping with the Father and the Son. That is what our Christ wrought for us in redemption. How proud we should be of Him. How we should brag about Him before men. He is our Lord. He is our Savior. We are partakers of His nature. Remember He is the vine and we are the branches. We are one with Him, and should rejoice in the fact we have such oneness.

Prayer: Abba Father, You are so merciful and loving. You gave Your all to save me, even the ultimate sacrifice of the life of Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ our Messiah, who shedded His blood on the cross to save us. Empower me with the grace to give my all to follow You, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

The Gain of Serving God

 “They shall be servants to him, that they may know my service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.” (2 Chronicles 12:8)

Serving God is utterly different from serving anyone else.

God is extremely jealous that we understand this — and enjoy it. For example, he commands us, “Serve the Lord with gladness!” (Psalm 100:2). There is a reason for this gladness. It is given in Acts 17:25. God is not “served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.”

We serve him with gladness because we do not bear the burden of meeting his needs. He has no needs. So, serving him can’t mean meeting his needs. Instead we rejoice in a service where he meets our needs. Serving God always means receiving grace from God to do what we have to do.

To show how jealous God is for us to understand this, and glory in it, there is a story in 2 Chronicles 12. Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, who ruled the southern kingdom after the revolt of the ten tribes, chose against serving the Lord and gave his service to other gods and other kingdoms.

As judgment, God sent Shishak, the king of Egypt, against Rehoboam with 1,200 chariots and 60,000 horsemen (2 Chronicles 12:2–3).

In mercy God sent the prophet Shemaiah to Rehoboam with this message: “Thus says the Lord, ‘You abandoned me, so I have abandoned you to the hand of Shishak’” (2 Chronicles 12:5). The happy upshot of that message is that Rehoboam and his princes humbled themselves in repentance and said, “The Lord is righteous” (2 Chronicles 12:6).

When the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, he said, “They have humbled themselves. I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance, and my wrath shall not be poured out on Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak” (2 Chronicles 12:7). But as a discipline to them he says, “They shall be servants to him, that they may know my service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries” (2 Chronicles 12:8).

The point is plain: serving the enemy and serving God are very different. How so? Serving God is a receiving and a blessing and a joy and a benefit. Serving Shishak is exhausting and depleting and sorrowful. God is a giver. Shishak is a taker.

This is why I am so jealous to say that the worship of Sunday morning and the worship of daily obedience is not at bottom a burdensome giving to God, but a joyful getting from God. That is the true service that God demands. In all you do, trust me as the giver.

“They shall be servants to him, that they may know my service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.” (2 Chronicles 12:8)

Serving God is utterly different from serving anyone else.

God is extremely jealous that we understand this — and enjoy it. For example, he commands us, “Serve the Lord with gladness!” (Psalm 100:2). There is a reason for this gladness. It is given in Acts 17:25. God is not “served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.”

We serve him with gladness because we do not bear the burden of meeting his needs. He has no needs. So, serving him can’t mean meeting his needs. Instead we rejoice in a service where he meets our needs. Serving God always means receiving grace from God to do what we have to do.

To show how jealous God is for us to understand this, and glory in it, there is a story in 2 Chronicles 12. Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, who ruled the southern kingdom after the revolt of the ten tribes, chose against serving the Lord and gave his service to other gods and other kingdoms.

As judgment, God sent Shishak, the king of Egypt, against Rehoboam with 1,200 chariots and 60,000 horsemen (2 Chronicles 12:2–3).

In mercy God sent the prophet Shemaiah to Rehoboam with this message: “Thus says the Lord, ‘You abandoned me, so I have abandoned you to the hand of Shishak’” (2 Chronicles 12:5). The happy upshot of that message is that Rehoboam and his princes humbled themselves in repentance and said, “The Lord is righteous” (2 Chronicles 12:6).

When the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, he said, “They have humbled themselves. I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance, and my wrath shall not be poured out on Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak” (2 Chronicles 12:7). But as a discipline to them he says, “They shall be servants to him, that they may know my service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries” (2 Chronicles 12:8).

The point is plain: serving the enemy and serving God are very different. How so? Serving God is a receiving and a blessing and a joy and a benefit. Serving Shishak is exhausting and depleting and sorrowful. God is a giver. Shishak is a taker.

This is why I am so jealous to say that the worship of Sunday morning and the worship of daily obedience is not at bottom a burdensome giving to God, but a joyful getting from God. That is the true service that God demands. In all you do, trust me as the giver.

THE NEW COMMANDMENT OF LOVE!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

MONDAY MAY 31, 2021.

SUBJECT : THE NEW COMMANDMENT OF LOVE!

Memory verse: "A new commandment I gave to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.” (John 13 vs 34.)

READ: First John 3 vs 13 - 18:

3:13: Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you.

3:14: We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. 3:15: Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal  life abiding in him. 

3:16: By this we know love, because He laid His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.

3:17: But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?

3:18: My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.

INTIMATION:

God is love, therefore, “Love” gave birth to us and we are the children of love. “Love” planned our redemption. Through Jesus Christ “Love” consummated it, gave us a new creation and then Jesus gave us the new law.

God the Father and God the Son set an example of the new commandment and how we should walk; “By this we know love, because He laid His life for us.” (First John 3 vs 16.), and then in the new birth, He gave us the ability to walk even as He walked. He does not ask us to do a thing that cannot be done. Godhead demonstrated that real love is an action, not just a feeling; it produces selfless, sacrificial giving. And the greatest act of love is giving oneself for others. 

You understand that we have the nature of God. The very substance of God has come into our spirits. We are in God's family. God is our Father, we are His very sons and daughters. God so loved the world that He gave us His Son as a propitiation, and the Son laid down His life for us. Therefore, in union with them in the new birth, we are to walk in love.; laying down our lives for others. Love is to govern our conversation; our conduct toward one another. When we step out of love into selfishness, we break fellowship with love.

The passage we read today, in verses 17 and 18, gives us an example of how we can lay down our lives for others—serving others with no thought of receiving anything in return. We are to help those in need; being generous with your possessions, knowing that they are just entrusted to you by God who owns all things.

The apostle James collaborated the apostle John’s teaching in James 2 vs 14 - 17, saying, “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” But you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” No one can walk in selfishness and pray the prayer of faith.

The Scripture, in the fourteenth and fifteenth verses, of the passage we read today, says, 

"We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal  life abiding in him." This is putting the case very clearly. We have passed out of the realm of Satanic union, spiritual death, into the union of eternal life and love.

Jesus laid down His life for us. Now "Love" says, "that we ought to live for the brethren," and then He says that remarkable thing, "But whoever has the world's goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?" (First John 3 vs 17.) The world's goods are the things that we prize most highly; land, houses, money, beautiful things, valuables etc. In holding tight to those things, we have taken Satan's appraisal of their value. These world things have made us selfish. 

This new commandment of love is to break the monopoly of selfishness and establish a new order of life. The new man is no longer to live unto himself, but is to give his life for others. If he shuts up his compassion from his brother and refuses to bear his burdens, he, at once, sins against love, and God says, "How does the new kind of love abide in him," Unless we walk in love and have yielded to the lordship of love, God cannot manifest Himself through us. The ability of God is realized only in love's freedom to act. Selfishness imprisons love.

Prayer: Abba Father, You have poured out Your love in our hearts through the Holy Spirit given to us. Consequently, as You are so You have empowered us to be in this world. Endue me with the spirit of selflessness that I may put, in right manner, others desires first, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!