RETURN GOOD FOR EVIL!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY OCTOBER 12, 2023.

SUBJECT : RETURN GOOD FOR EVIL! 

Memory verse: "See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all." (First Thessalonians 5 vs 15.)

READ: Matthew 5 vs 38 - 44; First Peter 3 vs 8 - 9:

Matthew 5:38: "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.'

5:39: But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. 

5:40: If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also.

5:41: And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.

5:42: Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.

5:43: You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'

5:44: But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,

First Peter 3:8: Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous;

3:9: not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing.

INTIMATION:

It is often fashionable, and often our desire, in this our fallen world, to return evil for evil, tear people down verbally or get back at them, if we feel hurt. God encourages us to pay back wrongs by praying for the offenders, return good for evil, to seek peace and pursue it. In God's kingdom, revenge by self rather than God is an unacceptable behavior, and therefore, is ungodly. If we love life and desire to see good days, we should eschew evil and do good. "For the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their prayers; but the face of the LORD is against those who do evil." 

Rise above getting back at those who hurt you. Instead of reacting angrily to such people, or speak guile words, pray for them. When our speech is motivated by Satan, it is full of bitter envy, selfish ambition, earthly concerns and desires, unspiritual thoughts and ideas, confusion, and evil. But when our speech motivated by God and His wisdom, it is full of mercy, love for others, peace, consideration for others, submission, sincerity, impartiality, and righteousness.

In our memory verse, the apostle Peter warns us against returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling (abusing, maligning, belittling, defaming, or deriding). But, on the contrary, we should bless our offenders, knowing that God called us to this, and in so doing, we inherit blessing; "But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you." (Matthew 5 vs 44.) 

It is difficult or near impossible, in this fallen world to love our enemies, or bless those who curse us, or do good to those who hate us. When we are wronged or feel wronged, often our first reaction is to get even. Instead, Jesus said, we should do good to those who wrong us! Our desire should not be to keep score but to love and forgive. However, this is not natural, but supernatural! 

If you love your enemies and treat them well, you will truly show that Jesus is Lord of your life, and this is only possible for those who give themselves fully to God, because only Him can deliver people from natural selfishness. Only Him gives us strength to love as He does. Instead of planning vengeance pray for those who hurt you. Our praying for our offenders rather than revenge helps us not to take laws into our hands and to overcome evil with good. Jesus, our Messiah, and 'role model,' prayed for His enemies, His accusers, His persecutors, who abused, maligned, belittled, defamed, and derided Him, even on the weight of excruciating pains as He hung of the cross; "....Father forgive them, for they know not what they do...." (Luke 23 vs 24.)

Too often we see peace as merely the absence of conflict, and we think of peacemaking as a passive role. But an effective peacemaker actively pursues peace by building good relationships, knowing that peace is a by-product of commitment. The peacemaker anticipates problems and deals with them before they occur. When conflicts arise, they are brought into the open and dealt with before they grow unmanageable. Making peace is hard work, you have to search for it and work to maintain it, and it results in God's blessing.

Never be worried or bothered about the ills of others to you. The revenge for whatever wrong done to you is God’s responsibility, not yours. Though revenge is not wrong, but only God should do that on our behalf. The Scripture says in Second Thessalonians 1 vs 6, “Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you.” It is a just thing for God to avenge those who have persecuted His people. Those who set themselves against His work (Believers are His work) have set themselves against Him. It is not the right of Christians who are persecuted to seek revenge, for those who have persecuted them have actually persecuted the work of God through them.

Prayer: Abba Father, endue me with Your spirit of love, and help me to tame my tongue, that I may manifest the fruit of the Spirit at all times. Give me the grace to live justly and peaceable life with all. Strengthen me to pay back good for evil. Above all, to obey Your Great Commandment; "to love my neighbor as myself," in Jesus' Name I prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

We Can Do Nothing

 “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)

Suppose you are totally paralyzed and can do nothing for yourself but talk. And suppose a strong and reliable friend promised to live with you and do whatever you needed done. How could you glorify this friend if a stranger came to see you? 

Would you glorify his generosity and strength by trying to get out of bed and carry him? No! You would say, “Friend, please come lift me up, and would you put a pillow behind me so I can look at my guest? And would you please put my glasses on for me?” 

And so your visitor would learn from your requests that you are helpless and that your friend is strong and kind. You glorify your friend by needing him, and by asking him for help, and counting on him.

In John 15:5, Jesus says, “Apart from me you can do nothing.” So we really are paralyzed. Without Christ, we are capable of no Christ-exalting good. As Paul says in Romans 7:18, “Nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh.” 

But John 15:5 also says that God does intend for us to do much Christ-exalting good, namely bear fruit: “Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit.” So as our strong and reliable friend — “I have called you friends” (John 15:15) — he promises to do for us, and through us, what we can’t do for ourselves.

How then do we glorify him? Jesus gives the answer in John 15:7: “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” We pray! We ask God to do for us through Christ what we can’t do for ourselves — bear fruit. 

John 15:8 gives the result: “By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit.” 

So how is God glorified by prayer? Prayer is the open admission that without Christ we can do nothing. And prayer is the turning away from ourselves to God in the confidence that he will provide the help we need.

SPIRIT MIND VERSUS FLESHY MIND!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 11, 2023.

SUBJECT: SPIRIT MIND VERSUS FLESHY MIND!

Memory verse: "For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.” (Galatians 6 vs 8.) 

READ: Romans 8 vs 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:

According to the passage we read today, there are two minds, not one mind. There is the mind of the flesh, and there is 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 (through which the Holy Spirit communicates directly to us).

The apostle Paul divides people into two categories: those who are dominated by their sinful nature, and those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit. Those who are controlled by their sinful nature are those who take instructions from their mind of flesh—being carnally minded. Their minds are focused on their own desires. In a religious context, they are the ones who focus on their ability to perform law in order to save themselves. The carnally minded person is walking in sin, though he or she may not recognize the fact that he or she is in sin. All of us would be in the first category if Jesus hadn’t offered us a way out. 

Those who take instructions from their spirit mind are those who are controlled by the Spirit of God—Holy Spirit. They are not led by their carnal minds, but by the Holy Spirit Who indwells them. (Romans 8 vs 14; Galatians 5 vs 18.) The Holy Spirit is the only One who knows the mind of God, and is the revealer of the truth. (John 16 vs 13). Daily they consciously choose to center their lives on God, using the Bible to discover God’s guidelines, and then follow them. In every perplexing situation, they ask themselves, “What would Jesus want me to do?” And when the Holy Spirit points out what is right, they do it eagerly. 

In First Corinthians 2 vs 16, the Bible says, "For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ.” This Scripture tells us that because the Holy Spirit lives in the believers, they have the mind of Christ. The problem is that although they have the mind of Christ and know the Word of God, they don't listen to their spirit which is being enlightened by the Holy Spirit. Instead, they listen to their natural mind, which relies strictly on sense and reason without the Holy Spirit.

In all situations of life, our head will be trying to give us information. It will be yelling at us so loudly that if we don't turn our attention to our spirit we will never hear what the Lord is saying to us in any situation. That is why we must learn to live out of our spirit and not of our head. You see, evil spirits constantly bombard us with negative thoughts. If we receive them and dwell on them, they become ours because the Bible says that 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," our belief 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. 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 your spirit is trying to tell you just the opposite. Instead of saying, "I'm not going to believe that because it's a lie," you get in a cross-fire, going back and forth between the two thoughts.

If you and I are ever going to live the happy, victorious and successful Christian life the Lord wills for us, we are going to have to decide which fountain of information we are going to drink from. We are going to have to learn to live out of our spirit and not out of our head. The individual who persists on remaining “in the flesh,” is actually working against the plan of God to have all men trust in Him for direction. Such a person is focusing on himself or herself and not God’s grace. This is the man or woman who seeks to walk by sight and without the faith that is necessary to please God (Hebrews 11 vs 6). 

Prayer: Abba Father, give me the grace to always listen to the prompting of the Holy Spirit indwelling me who knows the things of God, that I may always be lead by Him, and I will please You at all times, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

THERE IS NO PARTIALITY WITH GOD!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

TUESDAY OCTOBER 10, 2023.

SUBJECT : THERE IS NO PARTIALITY WITH GOD! 

Memory verse: "And, behold, I am come quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according as his work." (Revelation 22 vs 12.) 

READ: Galatians 6 vs 7 - 10; Ephesians 6 vs 8; Colossians 3 vs 25:

Galatians 6:7: Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.

6:8: For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.

6:9: And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.

6:10: Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who were of the household of faith.

Ephesians 6:8: Knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free.

Colossians 3:25: But he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done, and there is no partiality.

INTIMATION:

Our God is certainly not a partial God, His reward is with Him, to give to everyone according to his or her works. There is God's judgment awaiting everybody. Although His judgement is already working in our lives, there is a future, final judgement when Christ returns (Matthew 25 vs 31 - 46), and everyone's life will be reviewed and evaluated. Jesus will look at how we handled gifts, opportunities, relationships, and responsibilities in order to determine our rewards.

It would certainly be a surprise if you planted corn in your farm and pumpkins came up. It's a natural law to harvest what we plant. It's true in other areas, too. If you gossip, and guile found in your tongue, know it now, you will definitely reap what you sow, and God's final judgement will find you out. Every action has result. If you plant to please your own desires, you'll harvest a crop of sorrow and evil. If you plant to please God, you'll harvest joy and everlasting life. 

Neglect is common among all, especially when we are not adequately supervised. And this is an area that the accuser of brethren has always hyped. How is your responsibility and integrity on your assignment or job? Do you neglect your job or responsibility because of poor supervision? Christian employees should do their jobs as if Jesus Christ were their supervisor. Can you be trusted to do your best even when the boss is not around? Do you work hard with enthusiasm? Remember that no matter what you do or whom you work for, the one you ultimately should want to please is your Father in heaven.

In God's final judgement, He will separate His obedient believers from pretenders and unbelievers. The real evidence of our belief is the way we act. We are to treat all persons we encounter as if they were Jesus. Though it is not an easy task, but what we do shows what we really think about Christ's words to us. The Word of God in Luke 6 vs 37 - 38 says, "Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you."

How is your relationship with other people? What do you give to others? What do you give to God? Are you resentful? speaking guile? gossiping about others? Do you give love and care to others? Are you judgmental? Do you easily flay? Are you always returning to others as they did to you, especially in wrong doing? These are not Christlike! If we are critical rather than compassionate, we will also receive criticism. If we treat others generously, graciously, and compassionately, these qualities will eventually come back to us in full measure. We are to love others, not judge them. 

Those who are doing God's commandments are those who are seeking to purify themselves from a sinful way of life. They strive daily to remain faithful and ready for Christ's return. A daily personal review of the "Ten Commandments" of God against your performance, will always put you on the guard. Above all, let your guiding principle be the "Great Commandments" of God; Love for God, and your neighbor. In this, all the commandments of God are fulfilled. (Matthew 22 vs 36 - 40.)

Prayer: Abba Father, without You I am nothing. In keeping Your commandments I demonstrate my love for You. Let your commandments be as sweet as honey in my mouth. Endue me with the spirit of love for You, and others, just as You loved me, these I pray in Jesus' Name. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

God’s Wise Mercy

 We preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. (1 Corinthians 1:23–24)

Over against the terrifying news that we have fallen under the condemnation of our Creator and that he is bound by his own righteous character to preserve the worth of his glory by pouring out eternal wrath on our sin, there is the wonderful news of the gospel.

This is a truth no one can ever learn from nature. The truth of the gospel has to be told to neighbors and preached in churches and carried by missionaries.

The good news is that God himself has decreed a way to satisfy the demands of his justice without condemning the whole human race. 

Hell is one way to settle accounts with sinners and uphold his justice. But there is another way. God provided another way. This is the gospel.

The wisdom of God has ordained a way for the love of God to deliver us from the wrath of God without compromising the justice of God. There it is. The gospel. Let me say it again slowly: The wisdom of God has ordained a way for the love of God to deliver us from the wrath of God without compromising the justice of God. 

And what is this wisdom? The death of the Son of God for sinners! “We preach Christ crucified . . . the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:23–24).

The death of Christ is the wisdom of God by which the love of God saves sinners from the wrath of God, all the while upholding and demonstrating the righteousness of God in Christ.

Our Good Is God’s Delight

 “I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me. I will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul.” (Jeremiah 32:40–41)

God’s pursuit of praise from us and our pursuit of pleasure in him are one and the same pursuit. God’s quest to be glorified and our quest to be satisfied reach their goal in this one experience: our delight in God, which overflows in praise.

For God, praise is the sweet echo of his own excellence in the hearts of his people.

For us, praise is the summit of satisfaction that comes from living in fellowship with God.

The stunning implication of this discovery is that all the omnipotent energy that drives the heart of God to pursue his own glory also drives him to satisfy the hearts of those who seek their joy in him.

The good news of the Bible is that God is not at all disinclined to satisfy the hearts of those who hope in him. Just the opposite: The very thing that can make us happiest is what God delights in with all his heart and with all his soul. These are amazing words: “I will rejoice in doing them good . . . with all my heart and all my soul” (Jeremiah 32:41).

With all his heart and with all his soul, God joins us in the pursuit of our everlasting joy because the consummation of that joy in him redounds to the glory of his own infinite worth.

CRAVE FOR THE HIDDEN MANNA!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

SUNDAY OCTOBER 08, 2023.

SUBJECT: CRAVE FOR THE HIDDEN MANNA!

Memory verse: "He who has an ear, Let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden Manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.” (Revelation 2 vs 17.)

READ: Exodus 16 vs 13 - 16 & 31:

16:13: So it was that quails came up at evening and covered the camp, and in the morning the dew lay all around the camp.

16:14: And when the layer of dew lifted, there, on the surface of the wilderness, was a small round substance, as fine as frost on the ground.

16:15: So when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “This is the bread which the LORD has given you to eat.

16:16: This is the thing which the LORD has commanded: ‘Let every man gather it according to each one’s need, one Omer for each person, according to the number of persons; Let every man take for those who are in his tent.

16:31: And the house of Israel called its name Manna. And it was like white coriander seed, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.

INTIMATION:

“Hidden manna” suggests the spiritual nourishment that the faithful believers in Christ will receive. Christ is our daily bread who satisfies our eternal, and spiritual needs. In John 6 vs 48 - 51, Jesus compares Himself to manna: “I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.”

Jesus is the Living Bread (the hidden manna), which provides spiritual nourishment that satisfies our deepest hunger. To eat living bread means to accept Christ into our lives and become united with Him. We are united with Christ in two ways; (1) by believing in His death (the sacrifice of His flesh) and resurrection and (2) by devoting ourselves to living as He requires, depending on His teaching for guidance and trusting in the Holy Spirit for power.

The bread from heaven (the manna) was a special meal from God to His people that sustained them for forty years in the wilderness. As the Israelites travailed in the wilderness for forty years, traveling toward the Promise Land, God provided the bread from heaven (manna) for their physical nourishment. In ancient Hebrew, manna means "what is it?" And this was the question the famished Israelites asked each other when the manna first appeared? No one was sure. But because everyone was asking the same question, the strange milky white ground cover was called manna (What is it). 

Every morning, the desert floor east of the volcano and Red Sea was white with this mysterious substance. Like snow it lay evenly on the ground. Like frost it began to crystallize and evaporate in the midday sun. The wandering Israelites harvested the manna each day of their 40-years trek in the wilderness of Sanai. On the day it first appeared, their leader Moses declared this unusual seedless crop "bread from heaven." Most of the people were so hungry they spent less time questioning the dietary value of the manna than they did collecting it. It tasted sweet like honey. It resembled coriander seed with a waferlike consistency. 

The manna was nutritious enough. Men and women and children survived on this bread substitute. But "bread from heaven" was an awesome creation of God, a customized never-before-heard-of food just for His chosen people, the Israelites. The manna kept a whole nomadic nation of Israel alive when their survival seemed in jeopardy. It even fueled the amazing growth of the nation of Israel so that they could supplant the people living on the edges of the desert—the Edomites, the Midianities, and eventually the Canaanites. 

The same perplexing nature and nutritional value associated with manna in sustaining the life of the nomadic Israelites, is inherent in our believe in Christ. Jesus is the bread of life that was sent from the Father in order to nourish the spiritual poverty of humanity. Our believe in Him is the ‘hidden manna’ which satisfies our deep spiritual and eternal needs. In the hidden manna do all our need to live for God consist. Therefore, crave to have it.

Prayer: Abba Father, I crave for the hidden manna. Satisfy my thirst and let my eyes of understanding be enlightened that I may know what is the hope of Your calling, and what the riches of the glory of Christ’s inheritance in me that believe.Give me the grace to live for You forever, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!