Our Unspeakable Privilege

 Our Unspeakable Privilege

God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” (Exodus 3:14)

One implication of the magnificent name, I AM WHO I AM, is that this infinite, absolute, self-determining God has drawn near to us in Jesus Christ. 

In John 8:56–58 Jesus is answering the criticism of the Jewish leaders. He says, “Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” The Jews then said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”

Could Jesus have taken any more exalted words upon his lips? When Jesus said, “Before Abraham was, I am,” he took up all the majestic truth of the name of God, wrapped it in the humility of servanthood, offered himself to atone for all our rebellion, and made a way for us to see the glory of this infinite, absolute, all-sufficient God — without fear.

In Jesus Christ we who are born of God have the unspeakable privilege of knowing Yahweh as our Father — I AM WHO I AM — the God

who exists

whose personality and power is owing solely to himself

who never changes

from whom all power and energy in the universe flows

and to whom all creation should conform its life.

May those who know the name of God put their trust in him (Psalm 9:10).

SERVE THE LORD HEARTILY!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 19, 2024.

SUBJECT: SERVE THE LORD HEARTILY!

Memory verse: "So he answered and said, ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and your neighbor as yourself.’” (Luke 10 vs 27.)

READ: Deuteronomy 11 vs 13 - 15:

11:13: And it shall be that if you earnestly obey My commandments which I command you today, to love the LORD your God and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul,

11:14: then I will give you the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the latter rain, that you may gather in your grain, your new wine, and your oil.

11:15: And I will send grass in your fields for your livestock, that you may eat and be filled.

INTIMATION:

God demands our love and service (total devotion) to Him, in sincerity of heart, not with eye-service, but doing the Will of God from your heart. Doing the Will of God is obeying His commandments passionately, that is from your heart! This is called the “Great Commandment.”

How do you know when you are serving God from your heart? The first telltale sign is enthusiasm—your excitement, and great interest in serving Him. When you are doing what you love to do, no one has to motivate you or challenge you or check up on you. You do it for sheer enjoyment. You don't need rewards, or applause or payment, because you love serving in this way. This is exactly what God requires of us. Hallelujah!

The second characteristic of serving God from your heart is effectiveness. Whenever you do what God wired you to love to do, you get good at it. Passion drives perfection. If you don't care about a task, it is unlikely that you will excel at it. In contrast, the highest achievers in any field are those who do it because of passion, not duty or profit.

God’s interest in the man’s heart is because the heart is the center of the man. Your heart reveals the real you—what you truly are, not what others think you are or what circumstances force you to be. Your heart determines what you say, the things you do, why you feel the way you do, and why you act the way you do. The Bible, in Proverbs 27 vs 19, says, "As in water face reflects face, so a man's heart reveals the man." 

The Bible uses the term heart to describe the bundle of desires, hopes, interests, ambitions, dreams, and affections you have. Your heart represents the source of all your inspirations—what motivates you, you love to do, and what you care about most. Even today we still use the word in this way when we say, "I love you with all my heart." It’s for this reason that God demands our heart (our passion) in loving and serving Him.

Our heart—our feelings of love and desire—dictates to a great extent how we live because we always find time to do what we enjoy, hence God’s interest in our hearts. In Proverbs 4 vs 23, the Scripture says, "Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it springs the issues of life." It tells us to guard our heart above all else, making sure we concentrate on those desires that will keep us on the right path—the path of God. When your heart is centered on God, your affections push you in the right direction—the path of God, and consequently, you put boundaries on your desires, and will not do or go after everything you see. 

Another word for heart is passion. There are certain subjects you feel passionate about and others you could care less about. Some experiences turn you on and capture your attention while others turn you off or bore you to tears. These reveal the nature of your heart. Your emotional heartbeat is the second key to understanding your shape for service. God gave each and everyone of us some inborn interests. Don't ignore your interests. Consider how they might be used for God's glory. 

Now, what is your passion for God? God wants you to serve Him passionately, not dutifully. Let the service come from your heart. The Bible repeatedly tells us to "serve the Lord with all your heart."  People rarely excel at tasks they don't enjoy doing or feel passionate about. God wants you to use your natural interests to serve Him and others. The reason you love to do those things you love doing is because you derive great passion in doing them. Listening to inner prompting (signals from your heart) , points you to the ministry God intends for you to have. 

Prayer: Abba Father, Your Will is that I serve You passionately with all my heart, and to serve others likewise. Give me the grace to serve You with heartfelt passion, O Lord, and to serve others likewise, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

The Only True Freedom

 The Only True Freedom

Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31–32)

What is true freedom? Are you free?

Here are four things that need to be true if we are going to be fully free.

If you don’t have the desire to do a thing, you are not fully free to do it. Oh, you may muster the willpower to do what you don’t want to do, but nobody calls that full freedom. It’s not the way we want to live. There is a constraint and pressure on us that we don’t want.

And if you have the desire to do something, but no ability to do it, you are not free to do it.

And if you have the desire and the ability to do something, but no opportunity to do it, you are not free to do it.

And if you have the desire to do something, and the ability to do it, and the opportunity to do it, but it destroys you in the end, you are not fully free — not free indeed — when you do it.

To be fully free, we must have the desire, the ability, and the opportunity to do what will make us happy forever. No regrets. And only Jesus, the Son of God who died and rose for us, can make that possible. 

If the Son shall set you free, you shall be free indeed (John 8:36).

Prayer for Financial Breakthrough

 Today, we're praying for financial breakthroughs. Some people are working like an Elephant but are eating like ant. Any power hindering your financial breakthroughs, today will be terminated in Jesus Name 🙏🙏🙏. 

 - My Father, bombard me with the anointing of prosperity without adding no sorrow, in the name of Jesus.

 - My money in the hands of unfriendly friends, return it by fire, in the name of Jesus

 - Every power that has buried my money, be exhumed by fire, in the name of Jesus

 - My life, reject the spirit of poverty and servitude, in Jesus name.

 - Any wicked landlord attacking the source of my financial blessings, O heavens arise and put fire on their body, in Jesus name.

 - Fake anointing of the false prophets opening my life to financial struggles, expire!

 - Any wicked blood relation, assigned to make me suffer in life, marriage, backfire

 - I break the backbone of every devourer eating my money, in the name of Jesus.

 - Any power tying down my money to the graveyard of my forefathers, catch fire, in the name of Jesus.

 - I receive the anointing of a financial giver, in the name of Jesus.

 - O Lord break me down to the level where you can trust me with your riches, in the name of Jesus.

 - Let the yoke of poverty fall upon the life of my enemies, in the name of Jesus.

 - I recover my financial glory from the body of the water, forest and satanic banks, in the name of Jesus.

 - I refuse to lock the door of financial breakthrough against myself, in the name of Jesus.

 - Any power stealing money from my hands, catch fire, in the name of Jesus.

 - I blind the eyes of any witchcraft rats organizing loss in my life, in Jesus name.

 - I reject, reverse and revoke, every curse of poverty in my life and glory, in the name of Jesus

 - Let my life magnetize favour for breakthroughs, in the name of Jesus.

 - I will be rich and prosperous here on earth, in Jesus name.

GOD’S GRACE IS IN OUR FAITH WALK!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 18, 2024.

SUBJECT : GOD’S GRACE IS IN OUR FAITH WALK! 

Memory verse: "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified." (Galatians 2 vs 16.)

READ: Galatians 3 vs 2 - 7:

3:2: This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 

3:3: Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?

3:4: Have you suffered so many things in vain - if indeed it was in vain?

3:5: Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 

3:6: Just as Abraham "believed God, and it was accounted to him as righteousness."

3:7: Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham.

INTIMATION:

The Holy Spirit (the Spirit of grace) gives Christians great power to live for God. People still feel insecure in their faith because faith alone seems too easy. Some Christians want more than that. They want to live in a state of perpetual excitement. They still try to get closer to God by following rules. While certain Christian disciplines may help us grow, they must not take the place of the Holy Spirit in us or become ends in themselves. 

In the passage we read today, the apostle Paul is asking the Galatian believers, "Did you receive the Lord through your own works and efforts or by hearing the Gospel message and saying, 'I believe that?'" He further asked them, "Are you really so foolish and senseless and silly as to begin your new life by the Spirit and then try to reach perfection by depending on your own weak human flesh?"

Then finally he concluded by asking them, "Does God supply your every need and work miracles among you because you keep the law perfectly or because you put your entire faith and trust in the message you heard?" The believers in Galatia received the Lord by faith, but were trying to perfect themselves by depending on their own flesh, trying to change themselves and their lives by human effort rather than by trusting in God, and His grace to live a changed life.

Now, effort has a place in the Christian life. It does have a part to play. But even then, anything done outside the grace of God will have no real lasting effect. The law is not bad in itself. Even the Scripture says, "The law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good" (Romans 7 vs 12). The law can make us acceptable to God. 

Yes, the law still has an important role to play in the life of a Christian. The law (1) guards us from sin by giving us standards for behavior; (2) convicts us of sin, leaving us the opportunity to ask for God's forgiveness; and (3) drives us to trust the sufficiency of Christ, because we can never keep the Ten Commandments perfectly. The law cannot possibly save us. But after we become Christians, it can guide us to live as God requires.

Are you struggling with changes that need to be made in your personality? Do you ever get frustrated and confused, trying to believe and have faith and confess and do all the right things to bring about change in yourself and your life, yet it never seems to happen? You wanted to change everything you saw wrong about yourself and life, but for some reason you just couldn't do it. 

Most believers will blame the devil. They will spend better part of their time binding and casting the devil away, instead of turning to the Lord for help. I have learned that the Lord constantly requires us to turn to Him. Why? Because when we do anything apart from Him, we take the credit and glory that rightfully belongs to Him. For this reason He will frustrate any of our own efforts to do things outside of Him. Jesus said, ".........For without Me, you can do nothing." (John 15 vs 5).

The Scripture says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works lest anyone should boast.” (Ephesians 2 vs 8 - 9.) The plan of salvation was initiated by God without any meritoriously devised good works of man or perfect law keeping. Because men could not live in a manner to save themselves, salvation had to be by grace in conjunction with man’s faith response. God extended grace to man regardless of the sin of man. The condition upon which the grace of God is made effective for the salvation of man is that one must receive or accept the free gift. 

For this reason, the effect of God’s grace in reference to the salvation of man must be conditioned on the response of man. If grace is without conditions toward all men, then all men would be saved without having to respond. All humanity would thus be saved while living after the course of this world. Therefore, the application of grace in one’s life must be based on some condition. The condition is obedient faith, and thus, we are saved by grace through obedience of faith. Our Obedient faith is our response to the grace of God. 

We are saved by grace (unmerited favor) from God, and only the grace we receive that empowers us to meet specific situations in life. Our duty then is to ask for the grace from God that we can receive. (See Matthew 7 vs 7 - 8). We are to do the asking and God Himself does the work. Therefore, turn to God in prayer, because only God can bring about changes that you desire in your life. But our duty is to ask in faith. Get your face before the Lord on a regular basis and say,

Prayer: Abba Father, I can't help myself. I am coming to You like a little child. I am totally helpless. I lay this whole situation before You, asking for Your grace. I don't deserve Your help, Father, but You are my only hope. Please do for me what I can't do for myself, in Jesus' Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

Worship in a Lightning Storm

 

Worship in a Lightning Storm

“For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day.” (Luke 17:24)

I was flying at night from Chicago to Minneapolis, almost alone on the plane. The pilot announced that there was a thunderstorm over Lake Michigan and into Wisconsin. He would skirt it to the west to avoid turbulence.

As I sat there staring out into the total blackness on the east side of the plane, suddenly the whole sky was brilliant with light, and a cavern of white clouds fell away four miles beneath the plane and then vanished.

A second later, a mammoth white tunnel of light exploded from north to south across the horizon, and again vanished into blackness. Soon the lightning was almost constant, and volcanoes of light burst up out of cloud ravines and from behind distant white mountains of clouds.

I sat there shaking my head almost in unbelief. O Lord, if these are but the sparks from the sharpening of your sword, what will be the day of your appearing! And I remembered the words of Christ: “As the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day” (Luke 17:24).

Even now as I recollect that sight, the word glory is full of feeling for me. I thank God that again and again he has awakened my heart to desire him, to see him, and to sit down to the feast of Christian Hedonism and worship the King of Glory. The banquet hall is very large. Come.

SURRENDER YOUR LIFE TO GOD!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 17, 2024.

SUBJECT: SURRENDER YOUR LIFE TO GOD!

Memory verse: "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service." (Romans 12 vs 1.)

READ: Luke 9 vs 23 - 24:

9:23: Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.

9:24: For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.

INTIMATION:

God wants us to offer ourselves as living sacrifices to Him. This means to  be totally devoted to Him. He desires that we daily lay aside our own desires to follow Him, putting all our energy and resources at His disposal and trusting Him to guide us, embracing what He does for us as the best to happen to us at the time. This is because He has good, pleasing,  perfect, and best plans for us. Devoting ourselves to Him is reasonable, and the most proper thing to do. Also, for Him to have given His only Son to make our new lives possible, we should joyfully give ourselves as living sacrifices for His service.

Surrendering your life is not a foolish emotional impulse but a rational, intelligent act, and the most responsible and sensible thing you can do with your life. In our memory verse the apostle Paul calls surrendering your life "your reasonable service." Another version translates it "the most sensible way to serve God." Nobody can know your life and manage it better than the Creator and Owner of your life. Therefore, surrendering to the Owner and best Manager is the most reasonable thing to do. The apostle Paul, being conscious of this fact, says, "..We must make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him." (Second Corinthians 5 vs 9.) Your wisest moments will be those moments when you say yes to God. 

The Owner of your life designed it for worship to Him, and if you fail to worship Him, you will eventually create things (idols) that are gods to you, and you give your worship or life to them. God also allowed us the freedom of choice. You are free to choose what to surrender to, but you are not free from the consequences of that choice. There is freedom before worship, but no freedom from the consequences after worship. 

Everybody eventually surrenders to something or someone. If not God, you will surrender to the opinions or expressions of others, to money, to resentment, to fear, to your own pride, lusts, ego, self-defeat, or pity. If you don't surrender to Christ, you surrender to crisis. Why? Because without Him you can do nothing! (See John 15 vs 5.) Inability to do anything is real crisis! Since outside of Christ is crisis, the only way to live life devoid of crisis is surrender to the Owner. Nothing else works. All other approaches lead to frustration, disappointment, and self-destruction. 

Sometimes it takes years to discover this most sensible way to live. When this happens, you eventually discover that the greatest hindrance to God's blessing in your life is not others, it is yourself—your self-will, stubborn pride, and personal ambition. You can't fulfill God's purposes for your life while focusing on your own plans. The time of the discovery in your life is immaterial, the important thing is that you have turned to your Owner. You need to discover yourself, if God is going to do His deepest work in you, and it starts from this discovery.

Give all of you to God: your past regrets, your present problems, your future ambitions, your fears, dreams, weaknesses, habits, hurts, and hang-ups. Put Jesus Christ in the driver's seat of your life and take your hands off the steering wheel. Never you be frightened; nothing under His control can ever be out of control. You may not understand the circumstances you are in with Him, but it is the best for you, because all the things He does, work together for your eventual good, and in line with His purpose of your life. (See Romans 8 vs 28.)

Our place, time, and how we surrender differs. The apostle Paul's moment occurred on the Damascus road after he was knocked down by a blinding light. For others, God gets our attention with less drastic methods. Regardless of how, surrendering is never just a one-time event. Paul said, "I die daily." (First Corinthians 15 vs 31.) There is a moment of surrender, and there is the practice of surrender which is moment-by-moment and lifelong. 

Remember, when you surrender, you become a living sacrifice, and the problem of a living sacrifice is that it can crawl off the altar, so you may have to re-surrender your life several times a day. You must make it a daily habit. Don’t be tired or ashamed. He understands you, and sympathizes with your weaknesses (Hebrews 4 vs 13). In the passage we read today, Jesus said, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me." 

Let me remind you: When you decide to live a totally surrendered life, that decision will be tested. Sometimes it will mean doing inconvenient, unpopular, costly, or seemingly impossible tasks. It will often mean doing the opposite of what you feel like doing. 

Have you surrendered to Christ? Or are you still arguing and struggling with God over His right to do with your life as He pleases? If you have not, now is your time to surrender to God's grace, love, and wisdom; receiving His Nature!

Prayer: Abba Father, thank You for the privilege of adopting me as Your son, which was planned even before the foundation of the earth. I now live, and move, and have my being in You. Give me the grace to live in total obedience to, and trust in You, turning my life totally to You for Your desired use and purpose, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!