THE BELIEVER’S UNUSED ABILITIES!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

SUNDAY DECEMBER 11, 2022.

SUBJECT:  THE BELIEVER’S UNUSED ABILITIES!

Memory verse:  "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." (First Peter 2 vs 9.) 

READ:  Second Peter 1 vs 3 - 4:

1:3: As His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 

1:4: by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

INTIMATION:

Many Christians still have not understood fully the finished work of Christ for them, haven made available to them the power of God as “partakers of His divine nature.” The finished work is like undeveloped resources in the African Continent. The finished work still remains the only source of our ability to live for God, have a relationship with Him, and obtain and harness all the promises of God to believers, live a prosperous life and have good success. 

 

Notice carefully, in the passage we read today, that He has given to believers all things that pertain to life and godliness and that they have become the partakers of His very nature—divine nature, that was lacking in creation. This nature is called “Eternal life,” the power of God to live forever. That life is the substance and being of God. He allows the believers to be "partakers of the divine nature" in order to keep them from sin and help them live for Him. When you are born again, you are born of the Spirit, therefore, you are spirit. God is Spirit, and by His Spirit, empowers you with His own moral goodness.  

Who has imagined or knows what it might mean, or what it means if that nature of God is fully harnessed, and  utilized by every human who has received it. This nature of God comes with the operation of the Spirit of God in us. The Bible in Romans 8 vs 11 says, "But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you."

The Spirit grants believers the creative ability manifested in creation. The miracle-working power that was manifested in Jesus is imparted to the believers. In fact, all the nine gifts of the Spirit are made available to believers. It is for this reason that Jesus said, "I have come that they may have life, and they may have it more abundantly." (John 10 vs 10.) In new creation, you are born of the Spirit, and you are spirit (John 3 vs 6). You have been born of incorruptible seed through the Word of God which lives and abides forever—Eternal. (First Peter 1 vs 23.)

Not many Christians have realized that they have in them divine ability. You then ask, "How can this be utilized?" It is acting upon His Word, living the Word life, knowing that all His promises are real and for you to receive if you believe. Knowing that you have your inheritance in Him as is expressed in Colossians 1 vs 12, "Giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light." Believers take Him, by grace, to lead them into all the fullness of their inheritance.

Believers will know that Philippians 2 vs 13 is real and at work in them, "For it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." God is at work in the believer, thinking through their minds, operating through their recreated spirits. He has actually taken them over. Let Him Rule! While He is at work in the believer, they, as theatre of His marvelous works, should show the excellencies of Him. The Scriptures in our memory verse, made that clear, "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a dedicated nation, [God's] own purchased, special people, that you set forth the wonderful deeds and display the virtues and perfections of Him, Who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light." (First Peter 2 vs 9 Amplified Version.)

Here is the gold mine. The believers are an elect people. They are God's own possessions. He set them apart that they may unveil the hidden treasures of grace of God at work in them. He is illuminating them, leading them into all the truth and reality. 

In Colossians 2 vs 3, the Scriptures says; "In Whom are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge hidden." And He has given the believers light and ability to know what these treasures are: The knowledge of what He has done; knowledge of what He is to do in them; knowledge of what they are; knowledge of what they may do with His ability. And He has also made available the wisdom to utilize all these varied knowledge.

It is therefore, a sin for believers to be commonplace. It is wrong for them to be weak. It is a lack of wisdom for them to depend any longer upon simple sense knowledge when they have the ability of God to put them over. They only perish when they lack this knowledge (Hosea 4 vs 6). 

Now, imagine what will happen if all these divine abilities available to the believer are fully harnessed by the believer, displaying the virtues and perfections in Him. Such life will be exceedingly glorious. It’s for the believers to live, but it has been substantially underutilized.

Prayer: Abba Father, in all the earth there is none like You. You have graciously imparted in us Your divine nature.Give me the grace to live in Your fullness, manifesting Your divine abilities, utilizing fully the huge treasures of wisdom and knowledge revealed to us in redemption, and in the adoption of us as Your children, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

Why Jesus Came

 

Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. (Hebrews 2:14–15)

This, I think, is my favorite Advent text because I don’t know any other that expresses so clearly the connection between the beginning and the end of Jesus’s earthly life — between the incarnation and crucifixion. These two verses make clear why Jesus came; namely, to die. They would be great to use with an unbelieving friend or family member to walk them step-by-step through your Christian view of Christmas. It might go something like this, a phrase at a time:

“Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood . . . ”

The term “children” is taken from the previous verse and refers to the spiritual offspring of Christ, the Messiah (see Isaiah 8:18; 53:10). These are also the “children of God” (John 1:12). In other words, in sending Christ, God has the salvation of his “children” especially in view.

It is true that “God so loved the world, that he gave [Jesus]” (John 3:16). But it is also true that God was especially gathering “the children of God who are scattered abroad” (John 11:52). God’s design was to offer Christ to the world, and to effect the salvation of his “children” (see 1 Timothy 4:10). You may experience adoption by receiving Christ (John 1:12).

“ . . . he himself likewise partook of the same things [flesh and blood] . . . ”

This means that Christ existed before the incarnation. He was spirit. He was the eternal Word. He was with God and was God (John 1:1; Colossians 2:9). But he took on flesh and blood, and clothed his deity with humanity. He became fully man and remained fully God. It is a great mystery in many ways. But it is at the heart of our faith — and what the Bible teaches.

“ . . . that through death . . . ”

The reason he became man was to die. As God pure and simple, he could not die for sinners. But as man he could. His aim was to die. Therefore he had to be born human. He was born to die. Good Friday is the purpose of Christmas. This is what most people today need to hear about the meaning of Christmas.

“ . . . he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil . . . ”

In dying, Christ de-fanged the devil. How? By covering all our sin. This means that Satan has no legitimate grounds to accuse us before God. “Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies” (Romans 8:33) — on what grounds does he justify? Through the blood of Jesus (Romans 5:9).

Satan’s ultimate weapon against us is our own sin. If the death of Jesus takes it away, the chief weapon of the devil — the one mortal weapon that he has — is taken out of his hand. He cannot make a case for our death penalty, because the Judge has acquitted us by the death of his Son!

“ . . . and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.”

So, we are free from the fear of death. God has justified us. Satan cannot overturn that decree. And God means for our ultimate safety to have an immediate effect on our lives. He means for the happy ending to take away the slavery and fear of the Now.

If we do not need to fear our last and greatest enemy, death, then we do not need to fear anything. We can be free. Free for joy. Free for others.

What a great Christmas present from God to us! And from us to the world!

SAVIOUR IS BORN BY CLAUDGOD

 

Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh

 

When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. (Matthew 2:10–11)

God is not served by human hands as though he needed anything (Acts 17:25). The gifts of the magi are not given by way of assistance or need-meeting. It would dishonor a monarch if foreign visitors came with royal care-packages.

Nor are these gifts meant to be bribes. Deuteronomy 10:17 says that God takes no bribe. Well, what then do they mean? How are they worship?

Gifts given to wealthy, self-sufficient people are echoes and intensifiers of the giver’s desire to show how wonderful the person is. In a sense, giving gifts to Christ are like fasting — going without something to show that Christ is more valuable than what you are going without.

When you give a gift to Christ like this, it’s a way of saying, “The joy that I pursue (notice Matthew 2:10! “When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy”) — the joy that I pursue is not the hope of getting rich by bartering with you or negotiating some payment. I have not come to you for your things, but for yourself. And this desire I now intensify and demonstrate by giving up things, in the hope of enjoying you more, not things. By giving to you what you do not need, and what I might enjoy, I am saying more earnestly and more authentically, ‘You are my treasure, not these things.’”

I think that’s what it means to worship God with gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. Or whatever else we may think of giving to God.

May God awaken in us a desire for Christ himself. May we say from the heart, “Lord Jesus, you are the Messiah, the King of Israel. All nations will come and bow down before you. God wields the world to see that you are worshiped. Therefore, whatever opposition I may find, I joyfully ascribe authority and dignity to you, and bring my gifts to say that you alone can satisfy my heart, not holding on to these gifts.”

THE SPIRIT-LED LIFE!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

SATURDAY DECEMBER 10, 2022.

SUBJECT:  THE SPIRIT-LED LIFE!

Memory verse:  "For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace." (Romans 8 vs 6.) 

READ:  Romans 8 verse 5 - 8:

8:5: For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.

8:6: For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

8:7: Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.

8:8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

INTIMATION:

We observe from our memory verse that we relate with two minds in us. These are the mind of the flesh, and the mind of the spirit. That does not mean you and I have two brains, it simply means that we receive information from our natural mind (which operates without the Holy Spirit), and we get information from our spirit mind (through which the Holy Spirit communicates directly to us).

According to the Scriptures, to be a child of God, we are not to be led by our carnal mind, but by the Holy Spirit: “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God” (Romans 8 vs 14). The evidence of our sonship is being led by the Spirit of God. The Spirit-led life is a life of victory, and conquest of the devil, because it manifests the fruit of the Spirit that has no law against it, therefore, the accuser of brethren has nothing to accuse you of: “For the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. (Galatians 5 vs 22 - 23.)

The fruit of the Spirit is the spontaneous work of the Holy Spirit in us. The Holy Spirit is the only One who knows the mind of God, and is the revealer of the truth. (John 16 vs 13). Therefore, the Spirit produces these character traits that are found in the nature of Christ. They are the by-products of Christ control. We cannot obtain by trying to get them without His help. 

This Scripture tells us that “we have the mind of Christ.” This is because the Spirit of  Christ—Holy Spirit lives in us. The problem is that although we have the mind of Christ and know the Word of God, we don't listen to our spirit which is being enlightened by the Holy Spirit. Instead, we listen to our natural mind, which relies strictly on sense and reason without the Holy Spirit. And this mind “is enmity against God, hence cannot please Him.”

In every situation of life, our head will be trying to give us information. It will be yelling at us so loudly, and if we don't turn our attention to our spirit we will never hear what the Lord is saying to us in the situations we encounter in life, nor know those things which pleases God. That is why we must learn to live out of our spirit and not of our head; we must be led by the Spirit.

Incidentally, evil spirits constantly bombard us with negative thoughts. If we receive them and dwell on them, they become ours because, according to the Scripture, as we think in our heart, so are we. (Proverbs 23 vs 7.) If we accept the lies of the devil as reality, then they will become reality to us because of our "faith," that is, our believe in them.

That is why in moments of worry, stress and turmoil we have to simply take the time to turn to our inner man, the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit, and say, "Lord, what do You have to say about this?" If we listen in faith, He will speak to us and reveal to us the truth of that situation, and what we will do to please Him.

You and I have two huge vats of information within us. One is carnal information that comes off the top of our head. The other is spiritual information which wells up out of our heart. One is muddy. polluted water, and the other is clean drinking water. It is up to us to decide which source we are going to drink from.

Some people try to drink from both sources. That's what the Bible calls being double-minded. (James 1 vs 8.) Do you know what it means to be double-minded? It means that your mind is trying to tell you one thing, and the your spirit is trying to tell you just the opposite. Instead of saying, "I'm not going to believe that of the mind because it's a lie," you get in a cross-fire, going back and forth between the two thoughts.

If you are ever going to live the happy, victorious and successful Christian life the Lord wills for us, you are going to have to decide which fountain of information you are going to drink from. You are going to have to learn to live out of your spirit and not out of your head; you must be led by the Spirit.

Prayer: Abba Father, You have adopted me as Your son, and has graciously given me Your Spirit. Help me to always listen, and take counsel from Your Holy Spirit indwelling me that I may lead a victorious and conqueror’s life, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

 

MAKE WISE CHOICES IN YOUR PURSUIT OF EARTHLY THINGS!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

FRIDAY DECEMBER 09, 2022.

SUBJECT: MAKE WISE CHOICES IN YOUR PURSUIT OF EARTHLY THINGS!

Memory verse: "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the world that are in it will be burned up." (Second Peter 3 vs 10.)

READ: Luke 12 vs 16 - 21:

12:16: Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully.

12:17: And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 

12:18: So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods.

12:19: And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”

12:20: But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you, then whose will those things be which you have provided?’

12:21: “So is he who lays up treasures for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

INTIMATION:

Every choice you make has eternal consequences, so you better choose wisely. In our memory verse, the apostle Peter warns us about the futility of earthly possessions. Then he continued in the next verse (v 20), asking the pertinent question to us all, “Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness?"

Realizing that the earth will be burned up, we should put our confidence in what is lasting and eternal and not be bound to earth and its treasures or pursuits. What are you obligated to? Do you spend more of your time piling up possessions, or striving to develop Christlike character? Now that we have been warned about the impending end, the choice is yours to make. Be morally clean and spiritually alert because you don’t know the hour of His coming!

Earthly possessions are not bad or evil in themselves, but the manner of your pursuit of them is where the problem lies. The Bible, in Ecclesiastes 7 vs 12 says, "For wisdom is a defense, as money is a defense: but the excellency of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who have it."

How wisely then do you pursue these earthly things? Do you pursue them with the excellent knowledge which comes from wisdom; knowing that at the end they are all vanity? Even life is a vapor, stripped of the life-giving spirit breathed into us by God, our bodies return to dust. Stripped of God’s purpose, our work is in vain. Stripped of God’s love, our service is futile. Therefore, we must put God first over all we do and in all we do because without Him we have nothing. Knowing that life is futile with God motivates the wise person to seek Him first.

Wealth, possessions, and money are all good, and the blessing of God to mankind, but we are deceived by the notion that they provide answers to every problem, hence we throw them at our problems. Though these material things are good in themselves because God has given them to mankind for our enjoyment (First Timothy 6 vs 17), but being obligated to them is sinful. The apostle Paul, in First Timothy 6 vs 10, says, "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through many sorrows."

These earthly possessions, are dangerous because they deceive us into thinking that they make life easy, and help us get everything we want. Consequently, we put our trust in them rather than God, who controls all circumstances. Those who pursue the empty promises of earthly possessions, rather than seeking God, will one day discover that they have nothing because they are spiritually bankrupt.

Your life is shaped mostly by what you are obligated to. They can develop you or mar you, but either way, they will define you. If you tell me what you are obligated to, I'll tell you what you will be in the years to come. We become whatever we are obligated to.

Usually many people miss God's purpose for their lives at the point of committing themselves, or being obligated to their choice in life. Many are also afraid of getting committed or obligated to anything, and prefer to just drift through life. Many others

make half-hearted commitments to competing values, which leads to frustration and mediocrity. And many more make a full commitment to worldly goals, such as becoming wealthy or famous, and end up disappointed and bitter. Your total obligation should be to God who owns and controls all circumstances.

Guard against wrongful pursuit of these material things so as not to be a servant to them. They are created by God to serve you, and not you serve them, while you are created to serve God. When you loose your mark, you will serve them instead of God which is an error, and sinful. Jesus said in Matthew 6 vs 24, "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon."

Can you honestly say that God, not money, possessions, and wealth, is your master? One test is to ask which one occupies more of your thoughts, time, and efforts.

Prayer: Abba Father, all things are Yours, and by You all things consist. Endue me with Your excellent spirit to put You first in all things, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen. 

PRAISE THE LORD!

Two Kinds of Opposition to Jesus

 

When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. (Matthew 2:3)

Jesus is troubling to people who do not want to worship him, and he arouses opposition against those who do. This is probably not a main point in the mind of Matthew, but it is an inescapable implication as the story goes on.

In this story, there are two kinds of people who do not want to worship Jesus.

The first kind is the people who simply do nothing about Jesus. He is a nonentity in their lives. This group is represented at the beginning of Jesus’s life by the chief priests and scribes. Matthew 2:4 says, “Assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, [Herod] inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.” So they told him, and that was that: back to business as usual. The sheer silence and inactivity of the leaders is overwhelming in view of the magnitude of what was happening.

And notice, Matthew 2:3 says, “When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.” In other words, the rumor was going around that someone thought the Messiah was born. The inactivity on the part of the chief priests is staggering: why not go with the magi? They are not interested. They are not passionate about finding the Son of God and worshiping him.

The second kind of people who do not want to worship Jesus is the kind who are deeply threatened by him. That’s Herod in this story. He is really afraid. So much so that he schemes and lies and then commits mass murder just to get rid of Jesus.

So today, these two kinds of opposition will come against Christ and his worshipers: indifference and hostility. I surely hope that you are not in one of those groups.

And if you are a Christian, let this Christmas be the time when you ponder what it means — what it costs — to worship and follow this Messiah.