Radical Effects of the Resurrection

 

If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. (1 Corinthians 15:19)

Paul concludes from his hourly danger, and his daily dying, and his fighting with wild beasts, that the life he has chosen in following Jesus is foolish and pitiable if he will not be raised from the dead.

If death were the end of the matter, he says, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die” (1 Corinthians 15:32). This doesn’t mean: Let’s all become gluttons and drunkards if there is no resurrection. Drunkards are pitiable too — with or without the resurrection. He means: If there is no resurrection, what makes sense is middle-class moderation to maximize earthly pleasures.

But that is not what Paul chooses. He chooses suffering, because he chooses obedience. Ananias came to Paul after his encounter with Christ on the Damascus road, with the words from the Lord Jesus, “I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name” (Acts 9:16). Paul accepted this suffering as part of his calling.

How could Paul do it? What was the source of this radical and painful obedience? The answer is given in 1 Corinthians 15:20: “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” In other words, Christ was raised, and I will be raised with him. Therefore, nothing suffered for Jesus is in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58).

The hope of the resurrection radically changed the way Paul lived. It freed him from materialism and consumerism. It gave him the power to go without comforts and pleasures that many people feel they must have in this life. For example, though he had the right to marry (1 Corinthians 9:5), he renounced that pleasure because he was called to bear so much suffering.

This is the way Jesus said the hope of the resurrection is supposed to change our behavior. For example, he told us to invite to our homes people who cannot pay us back in this life. How are we to be motivated to do this? “You will be repaid at the resurrection of the just” (Luke 14:14).

This is a radical call for us to look hard at our present lives to see if they are shaped by the hope of the resurrection. Do we make decisions on the basis of gain in this world, or gain in the next? Do we take risks for love’s sake that can only be explained as wise if there is a resurrection?

May God help us to rededicate ourselves for a lifetime of letting the resurrection have its radical effects.

When God Becomes 100% for Us

 

. . . among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. (Ephesians 2:3)

All of God’s wrath, all of the condemnation we deserve, was poured out on Jesus. All of God’s demands for perfect righteousness were fulfilled by Christ. The moment we see (by grace!) this Treasure, and receive him in this way, his death counts as our death and his condemnation as our condemnation and his righteousness as our righteousness, and God becomes 100% irrevocably for us forever in that instant.

The question this leaves unanswered is, “Doesn’t the Bible teach that in eternity God set his favor on us in election?”

In other words, thoughtful people ask, “Did God only become 100% for us in the moment of faith and union with Christ and justification? Did he not become 100% for us in the act of election before the foundation of the world?” Paul says in Ephesians 1:4–5, “[God] chose us in [Jesus] before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ.”

Is God then not 100% for the elect from eternity? The answer hangs on the meaning of “100%.”

With the term “100%” I am trying to preserve a biblical truth found in several passages of Scripture. For example, in Ephesians 2:3, Paul says that Christians were “children of wrath” before they were made alive in Christ Jesus: “We all once lived [among the sons of disobedience] in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.”

Paul is saying that, before our new birth — before we were made alive together with Christ — God’s wrath was on us. The elect were under wrath. This changed when God made us alive in Christ Jesus and awakened us to see the truth and beauty of Christ so that we received him as the one who died for us and as the one whose righteousness is counted as ours because of our union with Jesus. Before this happened to us, we were under God’s wrath. Then, because of faith in Christ and union with him, all God’s wrath was removed and he then became, in that sense, 100% for us.

Therefore, exult in the truth that God will keep you. He will get you to the end because in Christ he is 100% for you. And therefore, getting to the end does not make God to be 100% for you. It is the effect of the fact that he is already 100% for you.

FAITH ENGENDERS FULFILLMENT OF GOD’S PROMISE!

EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2023.

SUBJECT: FAITH ENGENDERS FULFILLMENT OF GOD’S PROMISE!

Memory verse: "And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord.” (Luke 1 vs 45.)

READ: Romans 4 vs 20 - 24:

4:20: He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;

4:21: And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.

4:22: And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.

4:23: Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him;

4:24: But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead.

INTIMATION:

To believe is to be persuaded of, to place confidence, to trust in; it is to put our reliance upon, not mere credence. Therefore, when you believe the word of God, you are persuaded of its efficacy, and truthfulness. And because it’s God’s word, you are certain of its performance if you believe.

God is the same with His word—immutable or unchangeable, and remains forever. God’s Word has the backing of His Throne, hence the Scripture says, “...For You have magnified Your word above all Your name” (Psalm 138 vs 2). And consequently, He says, “...For I will hasten my word to perform it” (Jeremiah 1 vs 12). In Numbers 23 vs 19, the Scripture says, “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent: has He said, and will He not do? or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” God’s Word is forever settled in heaven.

Performance of God’s word in our lives is hinged upon our faith or believe in the word. Therefore, knowing the certainty in God’s word, our responsibility for having His word performed in our lives is to have our faith or believe anchored in God and His word.

In the passage we read today, Abraham had great faith in God and His word, and that was credited to him as righteousness. He never doubted that God would fulfill His promise made to him; that he will be the father of many nations, even when he had no child, and had grown old. Abraham had to his credit that he consistently trusted God, the imperfections in his life not withstanding. His life was marked by mistakes, sins, and failures as well as by wisdom and goodness, but he consistently trusted God. 

He was strengthened in faith by the obstacles he faced, and his life was an example of faith in action. For instance, if he had looked only at his own resources for subduing Canaan and founding a nation, he would have given up in despair. But Abraham looked up to God, obeyed Him, and waited for God to fulfill His word. And God did! Or if he had considered his age of about a hundred years—his own body now dead already dead, and the age of his wife Sarah—her womb also already dead, he would never believed they can bear a child. 

However, the word of God never fails. God says, “For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55 vs 10 - 12.)

Nonetheless, to ensure the performance of God’s word in our lives, we must do the following; (1) Receive the word (2) Believe the word in our hearts, (3) Confess our believe with our mouths, (4) Walk the talk, that is, walk in the consciousness of that word we believed, (5) Be expectant to reap the promise in the word, (6) Continually walk in that consciousness and expectancy, (7) Give thanks to God for the expected provisions.

In the case of Abraham, the Scripture says, “(As it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations”) in the presence of Him whom he believed—God, who gives life to  the dead, and calls those things which do not exist as if they did, who, contrary to hope, in hope  believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, “So shall your descendants be.” And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body now already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah's womb. He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God; and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.” (Romans 4 vs 17 - 22.)

Abraham received the word; “I have made you a father of many nations” and believed the word in his heart; “in the presence of Him whom he believed—God, he confessed the word with his mouth; “So shall your descendants be,” he walk in the consciousness of that word he  believed; “so that he became the father of many nations,” he was expectant; “he did not waver at the promise through unbelief, he continually walked in the consciousness of his believe; “but was strengthened in faith,” and was giving thanks; “giving glory to God. And there was a performance of those things that the Lord said to him. Hallelujah!!

Abraham’s believe or faith was imputed to him as righteousness, and the Scripture says, “For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour will you compass him as with a shield” (Psalm 5 vs 12). God Blessed him in all things (Genesis 24 vs 1). 

In the passage we read today, the Scripture says, “And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; but for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead.” (Romans 4 vs 22 - 24.) If you believe just as he did, it will be counted for you as righteousness, and will be blessed by God, and there will also be a performance of the word of the Lord in your life!

Prayer: Abba Father, You said it, I believed it, and that settled it. Give me the grace never to waver at Your promise through unbelief, and strengthen me in faith and confidence in You and Your Word, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD! 

You Are Greatly Loved

 We all once lived among [the sons of disobedience] in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ — by grace you have been saved. (Ephesians 2:3–5)

Would you not love to hear the angel Gabriel say to you, “You are greatly loved”? 

Three times this happened to Daniel.

“At the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word went out, and I have come to tell it to you, for you are greatly loved.” (Daniel 9:23)

“O Daniel, man greatly loved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for now I have been sent to you.” (Daniel 10:11)

And he said, “O man greatly loved, fear not, peace be with you; be strong and of good courage.” (Daniel 10:19)

I admit that each year when I read through the Bible and come to these verses, I want to take them and apply them to myself. I want to hear God saying to me, “You are greatly loved.”

In fact, I do hear this. And you can hear it too. If you have faith in Jesus, God himself says to you in his word — which is more sure than an angel of God speaking — “You are greatly loved.”

There it stands in Ephesians 2:3–5, 8: We “were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. . . . For by grace you have been saved through faith.”

This is the only place where Paul uses this wonderful phrase “great love.” And it is better than an angel’s voice. If you have seen Jesus as true and received him as your supreme treasure, that is, if you are “alive,” you are greatly loved. Greatly loved by the Creator of the universe. Just think of it! Greatly loved!

HOW WILL YOU COME FORTH WHEN TESTED?

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

SATURDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2023.

SUBJECT : HOW WILL YOU COME FORTH WHEN TESTED?

Memory verse: "But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold." (Job 23 vs 10.) 

READ: Job 23 vs 1 - 10:

23:1: Then Job answered and said,

23:2: Even to day is my complaint bitter; my hand is listless because of my groaning.

23:3: Oh, that I knew where I might find Him, that I might come to His seat!

23:4: I would present my case before Him, and fill my mouth with arguments.

23:5: I would know the words which He would answer me, and understand what He would say unto me.

23:6: Would He contend with me in His great power? No! But He would take note of me.

23:7: There the upright could reason with Him, and I would be delivered forever from my Judge.

23:8: “Look, I go forward, but He is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive Him.

23:9: when He works on the left hand, I cannot behold Him, when He turns to the right hand, I cannot see Him.

23:10: But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold.

INTIMATION:

Life is a race (we all have our finishing lines and destinations), a trust (entrusted to us by the Owner for our use here on earth; our time, energy, intelligence, opportunities, relationships, and resources are gifts from God that He has entrusted to our care and management), a test (the Owner has given the guidelines regarding our sojourn here, and will test us in line with the required conducts as He has given; your character, faith, obedience, love, integrity, and loyalty will be evaluated), and a temporary assignment (it is transient;  this place is not our home, we are just passing through). 

Against the backdrop enumerated above, when God evaluates you, how will you come forth? Can you answer with certainty, like Job did? God never promised a Christian life void of tests, trials, temptations, struggles, hardship, and so on. But He promised to be with us even in those storms of life. All of life’s circumstances we pass through are for His purpose, plan and grand design. When you understand that life is a test, you realize that nothing is insignificant or trivial in your life. Even the smallest incident has significance for your character development. Every day is an important day, and every second is a growth opportunity to deepen your character, to demonstrate love, or to depend on God.

All of life is a test. You are always being tested. God constantly watches your response to people, problems, success, conflict, illness, disappointment, event, weather, and every circumstances in life. God is interested in your simple attitudinal actions, like how you smile to others, open a door for others, reacts to filths in your environment and so on. We don't know all the tests God will give us, but we can predict some of them, based on the Bible. We know obviously, from the Scripture, that we will be tested by delayed promises, major changes, impossible problems, unanswered prayers, undeserved criticism, senseless tragedies, and so on. 

Some tests seem overwhelming, while others we don't even notice, but all of them have eternal implications. The good news is that God wants you to pass the tests of life, so He never allows the tests you face to be greater than the grace He gives you to handle them (First Corinthians 10 vs 13). He works behind the scene for our good (Romans 8 vs 28). God tests our character to reveal our weaknesses, and to prepare us for more responsibilities. The very most important test is how you act when you can't feel God's presence in your life. Sometimes God intentionally draws back, and we don't sense His closeness. 

Every time you pass through test, God notices and makes plans to reward you in eternity (James 1 vs 12). The worst temptation you will ever face is being tempted to abandon Christ. That is the only sin that cannot be forgiven. If you have come into the household of God through Christ, rest assured no temptation can overwhelm you because Christ promises that He will be with you forever in accordance with the Father’s will (Matthew 28 vs 20; John 6 vs 37 - 40).

Job faced the testing of the Lord. He was amazed at his suffering, and said that his suffering would be more bearable if only he knew why it was happening. If there was sin for which he could repent, he would! Job wavered back and forth, first proclaiming loyalty to God and then complaining at being abandoned by Him. His friends’ words and his own suspicions undermined his confidence in God. His friends condemned him by identifying some secret sin that he may have committed. 

His overriding desire was for God to clear his name, prove his righteousness, and explain why he was chosen to receive all the calamities. At some point Job was saying that God appeared to be avoiding him. Thereafter, he expressed confidence in his integrity and God’s justice, and that God knew every detail about his situation and would come to his rescue.

We are always likely to have hidden sin in our lives, sin we don’t even know about because God’s standards are so high and our performance is so imperfect. If we are true believers, however, all our sins are forgiven because of what Christ did on the cross in our behalf (Romans 5 vs 1; 8 vs 1). The Bible also teaches that even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings (First John 3 vs 20). His forgiveness and cleansing are sufficient, they overrule our nagging doubts. 

The Holy Spirit in us is our proof that we are forgiven in God’s eyes even though we may feel guilty. If we, like Job, are truly seeking God, we can stand up to others’ accusations as well as our own nagging doubts. If God has forgiven and accepted us, we are forgiven indeed.

When afflictions come to a believer, it is sometimes natural to blame God, and to think our suffering must be divine punishment. But we must not assume that God has rejected us. His purposes go deeper than our ability to grasp all that is really happening. While this sounds like a pat answer, it is the same answer God gave Job in chapters 38 - 42. We should not demand to know why certain calamities befall us. Often we cannot or are not meant to know. 

Job’s suffering is a testimony of how God works with His saints. Suffering, therefore, draws faith out of God’s people. And faith must grow to the point of being able to count it with all joy when one is suffering (James 1 vs 2 - 4). Those who trust in God undergo tests or trials. They do not always understand why they suffer, but they must understand that God is there through their suffering, and will receive their rewards if they endure, and are approved by God (James 1 vs 12). Job concluded that whether or not he could find God, God knew where he was. Knowing that God knows our calamity reassures us that He is working all things for our case. Job, however, was confident that when God had tried him, he would come forth as pure or refined gold

Prayer: Abba Father, You are All-wise! You are perfect, and never go wrong! For I know the testing of my faith is for my profiting, therefore, give me the and grace,O Lord, to excel in all life’s texts for me, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

God Opens the Heart

 

One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. (Acts 16:14)

Everywhere Paul preached some believed and some did not. How are we to understand why some of those who are dead in trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1, 5) believed and some did not?

The answer why some did not believe is that they “thrust it aside” (Acts 13:46) because the message of the gospel was “folly to [them], and [they were] not able to understand” (1 Corinthians 2:14). The mind of the flesh “is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot” (Romans 8:7).

Everyone who hears and rejects the gospel “hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed” (John 3:20). They remain “darkened in their understanding . . . because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart” (Ephesians 4:18). It is a guilty ignorance. The truth is available. But “by their unrighteousness [they] suppress the truth” (Romans 1:18).

But why then do some believe, since all are in this condition of rebellious hardness of heart, dead in their trespasses? The book of Acts gives the answer in at least three different ways. One is that they are appointed to believe. When Paul preached in Antioch of Pisidia, the Gentiles rejoiced and “as many as were appointed to eternal life believed” (Acts 13:48).

Another way of answering why some believe is that God granted repentance. When the saints in Jerusalem heard that Gentiles, and not just Jews, were responding to the gospel, they said, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life” (Acts 11:18).

But the clearest answer in Acts to the question why a person believes the gospel is that God opens the heart. Lydia is the best example. Why did she believe? Acts 16:14 says, “The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul.”

If you are a believer in Jesus, all of these happened to you: You were appointed to believe; you were granted to repent; and the Lord opened your heart. The rest of your life you should be overflowing with amazed thankfulness at the miracle that you are a believer.

PRAY FOR YOUR DAILY NEED!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 24, 2023.

SUBJECT: PRAY FOR YOUR DAILY NEED!

Memory verse: "Give us this day our daily bread." (Matthew 6 vs 11.)

READ: Exodus 16 vs 2 - 5: 

16:2: Then the whole congregation of the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness.

16:3: And the children of Israel said to them, “Oh, that we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots of meat and when we ate bread to the full! For you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

16:4: Then said the LORD to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you. And the people shall go out and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in My law, or not.

16:5: And it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.”

INTIMATION:

God relates with us on a "daily" bases, hence our request for our daily needs. All through the Scriptures one would discover that God is concerned about 'our days,' not 'our years.' The Bible used "days" in reference to man over 85 times. However, "years" for man is referred to about 5 times, but used In reference to God often. For instance, the Psalmist in Psalm 102 vs 24 says, "I said, "O my God, do not take me away in the midst of my days; Your years are throughout all generations."

When we ask in prayer for our daily need, we are acknowledging that God is our sustainer and provider. It is a misconception to think that we provide for our needs ourselves. We must trust God daily to provide what He knows we need. Jesus said, "Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' ...For your Heavenly Father knows you need all these things." (Matthew 6 vs 31 - 32.) Our daily needs are already known to God, and He promises to meet our needs. God is our ‘Source’ and we must remain connected to the source. If you are running low on strength, ask yourself, “How long have I been away from the ‘Source’?” 

God's provision is daily, not all at once. He is always testing us daily. This testing is out of His love and care for us that we don't fall away from faith, and ensures we trust in Him. God wants us to ask for our daily needs because of our tendency to relegate God to the background if He allows us to have all our needs in one go. By daily provisioning God is only helping us to remain focused on Him, not that He is miserly or that His hands are shortened that He cannot bless us exceedingly. The likelihood is that if we are allowed to store up His blessings, we might cut off communication with Him because we will believe we don’t need Him anymore. He never allows us to be self-satisfied. 

God wants us to completely depend on Him in everything. If He allows us to have all we need in one go, we would turn to depend on our possessions, instead of on the Provider. And depending on the provisions God has given us is idolatry which He forbids amongst His children. Job said, "If I have made gold my hope. Or said to fine gold, 'You are my confidence'; If I have rejoiced because my wealth was great, and because my hand had gained much; If I have observed the sun when it shines, or the moon moving in brightness, so that my heart has been secretly enticed, and my mouth has kissed my hand; This also would be an iniquity deserving of judgement, For I would have denied God who is above." (Job 31 vs 24 - 28.) Job affirmed that depending on the things God has given us is idolatry and denies our Father in heaven. 

The story of the children of Israel in the wilderness clearly showcases the way God relates with us on a daily bases. In the wilderness they had no meet or food to eat, and they were greatly disturbed. They cried to Moses, complaining that they will eventually die of hunger in the wilderness, and preferred they stayed back in Egypt where they had bread and meet to eat to their satisfaction. The Lord heard their complaints and rained bread from heaven in the morning, and quails in the evening for them to eat. But God warned that they will only take for their daily needs, except for the sixth day when they are allowed to take two days ration to make up for the sabbath (the seventh day) when they are not expected to work.

God, in His supreme wisdom, knows that our life is more likely to be effective if we have neither poverty nor riches, hence He deals with us on day-to-day basis, so that we can do all things relying on Him. The Scripture in Proverbs 30 vs 8 - 9 says, ".....Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food allotted to me; lest I be full and deny You. And say, "Who is the Lord?" Or lest I be poor and steal, and profane the name of my God." Solomon recognizes the attributes of man; in plenty man is likely to deny God; he is not in need of anything hence will remember less of God. And in lack man will do anything to survive, including stealing which will eventually profane God's name. Hence the reason God wants to daily provide for us. 

Prayer: Abba Father, daily will I seek You, for You have daily loaded me with benefits. I am fully persuaded You will supply all my daily needs to live for You. Give me the grace never to look away from You in all circumstances, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!