THE WORD YOU BELIEVE PERFORMS IN YOUR LIFE !

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

FRIDAY JANUARY 10, 2025.

SUBJECT: THE WORD YOU BELIEVE PERFORMS IN YOUR LIFE !

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 17 - 24:

4:17: (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 things which do not exist as though they did;

4:18: 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.” 

4:19: 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.

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 is 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 hinged on our faith or believe.

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, His 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 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 your heart, (3) Confess your believe with your mouth, (4) Walk the talk, that is, walk in the consciousness of that Word you 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 case of Abraham, he 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 You, 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). 

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 settles 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!

How Believers Will Be Judged

 How Believers Will Be Judged

I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. (Revelation 20:12)

What about the last judgment? Will our sins be remembered? Will they be revealed? Anthony Hoekema puts it wisely like this: “The failures and shortcomings of . . . believers . . . will enter into the picture on the Day of Judgment. But — and this is the important point — the sins and shortcomings of believers will be revealed in the judgment as forgiven sins, whose guilt has been totally covered by the blood of Jesus Christ.”

Picture it like this. God has a file on every person (the “books” of Revelation 20:12). All you’ve ever done or said (Matthew 12:36) is recorded there with a grade (from “A” to “F”). When you stand before “the judgment seat of Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:10) to be judged “for what [you have] done in the body, whether good or evil,” God will open the file and lay out the tests with their grades. He will pull out all the “F’s” and put them in a pile. Then he will take all the “D’s” and “C’s” and pull the good parts of the test out and place them with the “A’s”, then put the bad with the “F’s.” Then he will take all the “B’s” and “A’s” and pull the bad parts out of them and put them in the “F” pile, and put all the good parts in the “A” pile.

Then he will open another file (“the book of life”) and find your name, because you are in Christ through faith. Behind your name will be a wood-stick match made from the cross of Jesus. He will take the match, light it, and set the “F” pile, with all your failures and deficiencies, on fire and burn them up. They will not condemn you, and they will not reward you.

Then he will take from your “book of life” file a sealed envelope marked “free and gracious bonus: life!” and put it on the “A” pile (see Mark 4:24 and Luke 6:38). Then he will hold up the entire pile and declare, “By this your life bears witness to the grace of my Father, the worth of my blood, and the fruit of my Spirit. These bear witness that your life is eternal. And according to these you will have your rewards. Enter into the everlasting joy of your M

aster.”

THE CALLED OF JESUS CHRIST!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY JANUARY 09, 2025.

SUBJECT: THE CALLED OF JESUS CHRIST!

Memory verse: "Among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ.” (Romans 1 vs 6.)

READ: Romans 8 vs 28 - 30:

8:28: And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

8:29: For whom He foreknow, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.

8:30: Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called: whom He called, these He also justified: and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

INTIMATION:

The called of Jesus Christ are the Christians who are invited by Jesus Christ to belong to God’s family, and to be saints (to be holy), set apart, and dedicated for His service. In being reborn into God’s family we have the greatest experience of love and the greatest inheritance. And because of all that God has done for us, we strive to be His holy people. What a wonderful experience of what it means to be a Christian!

The calling of Christ is a calling of an appointment or election to apostleship, to preach about Him. Each Christian has a job to do, a role to take, or a contribution to make. One assignment may seem more spectacular than another, but all are necessary to carry out God’s great plan for His world and for the Body of Christ. Therefore, as the called, be available to God by placing your gifts at His service. Then as you discover what He calls you to do, be ready to do it, and do it with all your might.

As the called of Jesus, your attitude should be of a complete dependence on, and obedience to Christ. Our willingness to serve and obey Him enable us to be useful and usable servants to do work for Him—work that really matters. Obedience begins with identifying yourself with Jesus, discover His will and live according to it, and consciously turn away from conflicting interests, even if these interests have been important to you in the past.

God’s unparalleled love—His nature, is commended toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us, and through His death, called us and reconciled to God. And we have been justified by His blood, and will be saved from wrath through Him if we believe. To those that believe, these are the called, and God has given them the ministry of reconciliation that they would continue His work of reconciliation on earth as His ambassadors.  

In obedience to this call. Christ promised to be with us always till the end of the ages (Matthew 28 vs 20), and all things will work together for our good in the end. Note that God is not working to make us happy but to fulfill His purpose. Note also that the promise is not for everybody. It can be claimed only by those who love God and are called by Him, that is, those whom the Holy Spirit convinces to receive Christ, and turn completely to God.

God’s ultimate goal for us is to make us like Christ (First John 3 vs 2); “He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Romans 8 vs 29). As we become more and more like Him, we discover our true selves, the persons we were created to be. And in the end, we would be glorified at His appearing. 

How can we become like Christ? By reading and heeding the Word, by studying His life on earth through the Gospels, by spending time in prayer, by being filled with His Spirit, and by doing His work in the world. It’s noteworthy that the four gospels are Jesus introducing the Father, and the epistles are the Father introducing Jesus and what He did. They also introduce the sons and daughters of God to the world.

From the passage we read today, we understand that God’s purpose for His people was not an afterthought: it was settled before the foundation of the world. People are to serve and honor God. If you believe in Christ, you can rejoice in the fact that God has always known you. God’s love is eternal. His wisdom and power are supreme. He will guide and protect you until you one day stand in His presence.

Prayer: Abba Father, thank you for what You accomplished for me in Christ, and Your calling me to serve Your purpose on earth. Endue me with the spirit of raw obedience to You, and give me the grace to serve with the best in me, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

Only a Little While

 Only a Little While

After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. (1 Peter 5:10)

Sometimes in the midst of the afflictions and ordinary stresses of daily life, we may cry out, “How long, O Lord? I can’t see beyond today’s pain. What will tomorrow bring? Will you be there for that affliction too?”

This question is utterly urgent, because Jesus said, “The one who endures to the end will be saved” (Mark 13:13). We tremble at the thought of being among “those who shrink back and are destroyed” (Hebrews 10:39). We are not playing games. Suffering is a horrible threat to faith in God’s future grace.

Therefore, it is a wonderful thing to hear Peter promise the afflicted and weary Christians, “After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you” (1 Peter 5:10).

The assurance that he will not delay beyond what we can endure, and that he will abolish the flaws we bemoan, and that he will establish forever what has tottered so long — that assurance comes from the God of “all grace.” 

God is not the God of some grace — like bygone grace. He is “the God of all grace” — including the infinite, inexhaustible stores of future grace that we need to endure to the end.

Faith in that future grace, strengthened by the memory of past grace, is the key to enduring on the narrow and hard road that lea

ds to life.

January Prayer in 2025

 

Gain What You Cannot Lose

 Gain What You Cannot Lose

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.” (Mark 10:27)

Here are two great incentives from Jesus to become a World Christian and to dedicate yourself to the cause of Frontier Missions. As a goer or a sender.

1. Every impossibility with men is possible with God (Mark 10:27). The conversion of hardened sinners will be the work of God and will accord with his sovereign plan. We need not fear or fret over our weakness. The battle is the Lord’s, and he will give the victory.

2. Christ promises to work for us, and to be for us so much that, when our missionary life is over, we will not be able to say we’ve sacrificed anything (Mark 10:29–30).

When we follow his missionary prescription, we discover that even the painful side effects work to improve our condition. Our spiritual health, our joy, improves a hundredfold. And when we die, we do not die. We gain eternal life.

I do not appeal to you to screw up your courage and sacrifice for Christ. I appeal to you to renounce all you have, to obtain life that satisfies your deepest longings. I appeal to you to count all things as rubbish for the surpassing value of standing in the service of the King of kings. I appeal to you to take off your store-bought rags and put on the garments of God’s ambassadors.

I promise you persecutions and privations — but remember the joy! “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:10).

On January 8, 1956, five Waorani Indians of Ecuador killed Jim Elliot and his four missionary companions as they were trying to bring the gospel to the Waorani tribe of sixty people.

Four young wives lost husbands and nine children lost their fathers. Elisabeth Elliot wrote that the world called it a nightmare of tragedy. Then she added, “The world did not recognize the truth of the second clause in Jim Elliot’s credo: ‘He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he

 cannot lose.’”

THE BELIEVERS’ DUTY TO THE WORLD!

 

EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 08, 2025.

SUBJECT: THE BELIEVERS’ DUTY TO THE WORLD!

Memory verse: "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hidden." (Matthew 5 vs 14.)

READ: Matthew 5 vs 13 - 16:

5:13: You are the salt of the earth: but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be salted? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.

5:14:  You are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hidden.

5:15: Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

5:16: Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father in heaven.

INTIMATION:

Jesus said, “I am the light of the world...” (John 8 vs 12.)That same Jesus—the Light of the—world created us in His own image and after His likeness. He also said, “I have said, You are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.” (Psalm 82 vs 6.) Therefore, we are the light of the world because “the Light of the world” created us in His own image and after His likeness, and also called us gods. As the children of the most High, we are the same with Him.

But this our light was dimmed when our first parents committed the treason at the garden of Eden by doubting God’s integrity, and believed Satan, the known enemy of God. We were thrown out of the garden, and were subjected to the rulership of this world headed by Satan. The world was full of darkness—spiritual and moral decadence, emblematic of sin and evil which we were subjected to under the rulership of Satan. 

God is a just God, and has already said, “The soul that sin shall die” (Ezekiel 18 vs 4 & 20). All mankind ought to die for the consequences of sin. But God, in His love nature, sent His only begotten Son as a propitiation for us, who came in human form to save us from the consequences and penalty of the sin committed by our first parents. Christ paid the wages of sin—death—we owed, set us free, and reconciled us back to God. 

The only condition for partaking in the free gift of saving us (salvation) is to accept what Christ has done for us, believing His word to us, and confessing with our mouth, His Lordship over us as our Savior. The entrance of Christ’s word gives us back the light we were, and lost under Satan’s rulership, and are under the new rulership of Christ. He then makes us His representatives or ambassadors in this world, and now as light of the world, we should illuminate the dark and depraved world. 

Light illuminates, and the entrance of it dispels darkness which cannot comprehend it. Darkness represents spiritual and moral darkness, emblematic of sin and evil. As children of God, and as gods, we are light of the world that dispels darkness. 

As children of God, and in the likeness of Christ, we should live like Him and for Him, and glow like light we are, and showing others what Christ is like. We should illuminate the world with our light to expose, counteract or dispel the darkness; the moral decay in our society. When we don’t, our light is hidden. We hide our lights, that is, conforming with the world, and shutting off our lights from the rest of the world, instead of being a beacon of truth. We do this by (1) being quiet when we should speak, (2) going along with the crowd, (3) denying the light, (4) letting sin dim our light, (5) not explaining our light to others, or (6) ignoring the needs of others. 

Many Christians today are hidden from sight, reluctant to be identified as Christians. Such a Christian is like a brand-new light that never leaves the carton it came in. If a lamp doesn’t help people see, it isn’t worth much. Does your life show other people how to find God and how to live for Him? If not, find out how you have hidden your light. Such things as complacency, resentment, embarrassment, stubbornness of heart or disobedience could keep you from shining. If your light is not shining, find out what you need to do to let your light shine.

When the light of the truth about Jesus illuminates us, we have the duty to shine that light to help others. Our witness for Christ should be public, not hidden. We should not keep the benefits for ourselves alone but pass them on to others. In order to be helpful, we need to be well placed. Seek opportunities to shine your light when unbelievers need help to see.

Many Christians blend into the world and avoid the cost of standing up for Christ. But Jesus said, if Christians lose their distinctive saltness, or fails to emit the light so as to illuminate the world and dispel darkness, they become worthless. Just as salt flavors and preserves food, we are to preserve the good in the world and bring new flavor to life. And as light dispels darkness, we should reveal sin and evil, and dispel them. This requires careful planning, willing sacrifice, and unswerving commitment to Christ’s kingdom. But if a Christian fails to be “salt,” or “light,” He or she fails to represent Christ in the world. 

If a seasoning has no flavor, it has no value. If Christians make no effort to the world around them, they are of little value to God. If we are too much like the world, we are worthless. Christians should not blend in with everyone else. Instead, we should affect others positively, just as seasoning brings out the best flavor in food.

The Scripture, in Philippians 2 vs 15, says, “That you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world.” Our lives should be characterized by moral purity, patience, and peacefulness, so that we will “shine as lights” in a dark and depraved world. A transformed life is an effective witness to the power of God’s Word. 

Are you shining brightly or are you clouded by compromises or dissensions? Don’t let anything of the world snuff out your light. Shine out for God. Your role is to shine until Jesus returns and bathes the world in His radiant glory.

Prayer: Abba Father, give me the grace to shine brightly as the light of the world, and let me shine until Christ’s return to illuminate the world in His radiant glory, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!