Is Christ Worth It?

 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:26–27)

Jesus is unashamed and unafraid of telling us up front the “worst” — the painful cost of being a Christian: hating family (verse 26), carrying a cross (verse 27), renouncing possessions (verse 33). There is no small print in the covenant of grace. It is all big, and bold. No cheap grace! Very costly! Come, and be my disciple.

But Satan hides his worst and shows only his best. All that really matters in the deal with Satan is in small print on the back page.

On the front page in big, bold letters are the words, “You will not surely die” (Genesis 3:4), and “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me” (Matthew 4:9). But on the back page in small print — so small you can only read it with the magnifying glass of the Bible — it says, “And after the fleeting pleasures, you will suffer with me forever in hell.”

Why is Jesus willing to show us his “worst” as well as his best, while Satan will only show us his best? Matthew Henry answers, “Satan shows the best, but hides the worst, because his best will not [counterbalance] his worst; but Christ’s will abundantly.”

The call of Jesus is not just a call to suffering and self-denial; it is first a call to a banquet. This is the point of the parable in Luke 14:16–24. Jesus also promises a glorious resurrection where all the losses of this life will be repaid (Luke 14:14). He also tells us that he will help us endure the hardships (Luke 22:32). He also tells us our Father will give us the Holy Spirit (Luke 11:13). He promises that even if we are killed for the kingdom, “not a hair of your head will perish” (Luke 21:18).

Which means that when we sit down to calculate the cost of following Jesus — when we weigh the “worst” and the “best” — he is worth it. Abundantly worth it (Romans 8:18; 2 Corinthians 4:17). 

Not so with Satan. Stolen bread is sweet, but afterward the mouth is full of gravel (Proverbs 20:17).

YOUR HEARTBEAT FOR GOD!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

TUESDAY MAY 23, 2023.

SUBJECT : YOUR HEARTBEAT FOR GOD!

Memory verse: "As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God." (Psalm 42 vs  1.)

READ: Exodus 33 vs 8 - 11:

33:8: So it was, whenever Moses went out to the tabernacle, that all the people rose, and each man stood at his tent door and watched Moses until he had gone into the tabernacle. 

33:9: And it came to pass, when Moses entered the tabernacle, that the pillar of cloud descended and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the LORD talked with Moses.

33:10: All the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the tabernacle door, and all the people rose and worshiped, each one in his tent door.

33:11: So the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. 

And he would return to the camp, but his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle.

INTIMATION:

A wise person once said, "When God measures you, He puts the tape around your heart, not your head." So what is your heartbeat for God? Our memory verse indicates the heartbeat of David to God; His heart relationship with God that God gave testimony of him and said, "I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will." ( Acts 13 vs 22.)  In the passage we read today, Moses had such heart relationship with God that he enjoyed the presence of God most times. Consequently, God spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. 

Throughout our lives, we look for those rare individuals with whom we feel relaxed and comfortable and can share our heart and our secrets and know they will not betray us, who will always be there for us, and in whom we can have confidence; individuals we can respect and who in turn admire us and want us to be successful.

God wants to be in that type of role with us, but He is even better than any earthly companion. For God is a perfect companion: the One who knows the road we are traveling on and all of the problems that lay ahead; the One who can give us dependable advice; the One who wants to share our life with us and will not put us down when we stumble; the One who will never desert us if we fail or do not live up to His standards. He accepts us just as we are, wants to be with us forever, is able to help us be all that we can be, and can enable us either to avoid or overcome every obstacle or problem in our lives.

Spiritual heart relationship can best be explained through a human illustration. Some children grow up in families where their father is a strong disciplinarian. They obey because they do not want to suffer the wrath of their father. Although they may even respect the father and his accomplishments, they want nothing to do with him on a personal basis. It is not unusual for such children to dread the return of their father in the evening. As adults they spend as little time with him as possible. They have a physical relationship with obedience, but not the close heart relationship out of love. Fear and mistrust are barriers to their ever being close.

On the other hand, some have fathers who have definite standards and rules to obey, but the relationship is one of love and respect. They are excited when Dad walks through the door at night. They love the weekends because Dad can be with them and they do fun things together. Such children obey because they love and trust their father, not because they fear him or the consequences of disobedience. 

In our relationship with God we can respond and obey either out of love or out of fear.

When we realize God's desire to be our ‘Faithful Companion’ in our relationship, we find Him less an authority figure and more a desirable companion—a Loving Father—Who is no less in charge in our lives. We now realize He is on our side, wants the best for us, and how absolutely dependable He is. The inborn unhealthy fear of God that stems from our sin nature, and is often stirred up by the enemy of our souls, is weakened as we get a clearer picture of who He really is.

Unfortunately many people never really seek Him with all their hearts. They are content to learn as a child would, that is, learning and following rules in order to avoid big problems, but not as willing to spend any great period of time with the Lord in the free time they have. There is little delight in the relationship, only obedience out of necessity. Such persons have salvation from penalty of sin, but they will enter heaven "through the flames" (First Corinthians 3 vs 15). They have yet to cross that line of spiritual familial relationship into spiritual heart relationship.

First Corinthians 3 vs 15 states "If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire." This means that good work will be rewarded; unfaithful or inferior work will be discounted. Though unfaithful workers will be saved, but like people escaping from a burning building, all their possessions (accomplishments) will be  lost. Those are the people Jesus Christ described as ‘the least in the kingdom of God.’

Prayer: Abba Father, I desire You as my companion. Build in my heart Your steadfast Spirit, that I may follow and obey You in every aspect of my life out of my love for You. My utmost heart desire is an intimate relationship with You. But by my strength I can do nothing. Help me to accomplish this, in Jesus' Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

 

Jesus Knows His Sheep

 

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them.” (John 10:27)

Jesus knows those who are his. What is this knowledge?

John 10:3 is a close parallel to John 10:27. It says, “The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.”

So, when Jesus says, “I know them,” this means at least that he knows them by name; that is, he knows them individually and intimately. They are not anonymous, lost in the flock.

John 10:14–15 provides another insight: “I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father.”

There is a real similarity between the way Jesus knows his Father in heaven and the way he knows his sheep. Jesus sees himself in the Father, and he sees himself in his disciples.

To some degree Jesus recognizes his own character in his disciples. He sees his own brand mark on the sheep. This endears them to him.

He is like a husband waiting for his wife at the airport, watching as each person disembarks from the plane. When she appears, he knows her, he recognizes her features, he sees in her eyes a happy reflection of his own love. He delights in her. She is the only one he embraces.

The apostle Paul puts it like this: “God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: ‘The Lord knows those who are his’” (2 Timothy 2:19).

It is hard to overemphasize what a tremendous privilege it is to be known personally, intimately, lovingly by the Son of God. It is a precious gift to all his sheep, and it contains within it profound, personal fellowship and affection and the promise of eternal life.

PRAYING IN THE SPIRIT!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

MONDAY MAY 22, 2023.

SUBJECT : PRAYING IN THE SPIRIT! 

Memory verse: "But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit." (Jude 20.) 

READ: Romans 8 vs 26 -27; Ephesians 6 vs 18:

Romans 8:26: Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 

8:27: Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the Will of God.

Ephesians 6:18: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being and watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.

INTIMATION:

Praying in the Holy Spirit means praying in the power and strength of the Holy Spirit. And it is a God ordained program for your spiritual build-up. God knows our weaknesses, and imperfections. For this reason He sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to do that which is impossible with us. And for the same reason Christ promised us the Holy Spirit, who will dwell with and in us when He goes back to the Father to ensure we remain connected to Him; "And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever. I will not live you orphans; I will come to you." (John 14 vs 16 & 18.)

As a believer, you are not left to your own resources to cope with problems. Even when you don't know the right words to pray, the Holy Spirit prays with and for you, and God answers. With God helping you pray, you don't need to be afraid to come before Him. Ask the Holy Spirit to intercede for you "according to the Will of God."

The forces against us are spiritual, so we have to confront them from the spirit realm, as the flesh hasn't enough force to handle them; "...The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak" (Mark 14 vs 38). The Holy Spirit helps us transcend the physical realm into the heavenly. Until you are able to engage the help of the Holy Spirit in prayer, you may never experience true breakthrough in your Christian life.

The apostle Paul says in Ephesians 6 vs 12, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." Since these forces of opposition operate from the spirit realm, which most times are beyond our human comprehension, God has also given us a weapon that grants us access to the throne room of heaven, which they also do not understand; "For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men, but to God: for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries." (First Corinthians 14 vs 2.)

When you pray in the Spirit, no one, including the devil, knows what you are saying as you are speaking to God alone in mysteries. The Spirit takes you into heaven's frequency, enabling you to pray with precision the express Will of God; interceding on your behalf, He picks up what is in your heart, presents it to God, and in turn delivers the answer from God to you.

There is a limit to which your physical strength can take you in prayer. Though we recognize our limitations, we will not congratulate ourselves and rest at that. Instead, we will turn to God to seek pathways for effectiveness. Jesus said in Second Corinthians 12 vs 9; "....For My strength is made perfect in weakness." We receive the strength to overcome our weaknesses through our 'Helper'—the Holy Spirit. 

Praying in the spirit is a spirit-to-Spirit communication, and thus is our surest way of connecting heaven for earthly interventions. If the enemy is coming against you like a flood, you can't expect to resist him as a stream. But when you switch over to the spirit, the Holy Spirit helps you to raise a standard against the enemy (Isaiah 59 vs 19). What happens when you switch over to the Spirit is that you are releasing the rivers of living water that flows in you as a Spirit-filled believer. The Spirit of God knows the things of God, and when the Spirit helps us in our weaknesses, our victory is guaranteed. 

It is time to lean on the help of the Spirit, to kindle an unquenchable fire on your prayer altar. Call on Him to help you. "Spirit of God, Helper of the Church, help me! Put a new fire in my prayer altar. Help me to maintain a winning prayer life." Until you realize your helplessness without the Holy Spirit, you may die in struggles. But when you lean on the Spirit, you keep on leaping through life.

There are times when you pray and you know your prayer is not going beyond the ceiling. It is as if heaven is locked up and you can't get through. Switch over to the Spirit. Let Him clear the way and create a thoroughfare to heaven for you, so you can enjoy sweet communion with your Heavenly Father. The Holy Spirit not only boosts our access in communication, but also helps us overcome every prayer weakness in order to sustain the fire of God on our prayer altars.

Prayer: Abba Father, empower me in my prayer altar with the help of my Senior Partner—the Holy Spirit, who intercedes for me and praying aright according to Your will, that I may receive my petitions, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

God Works for You

 

I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. (Psalm 121:1–3)

Do you need help? I do. Where do you look for help?

When the psalmist lifted up his eyes to the hills and asked, “From where does my help come?” he answered, “My help comes from the Lord” — not from the hills, but from the God who made the hills. “My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.”

So, he reminded himself of two great truths: One is that God is a mighty Creator over all the problems of life; the other is that God never sleeps. “He who keeps you will not slumber.”

God is a tireless worker. He never wearies. Think of God as a worker in your life. Yes, it is amazing. We are prone to think of ourselves as workers in God’s life. But the Bible wants us first to be amazed that God is a worker in our lives: “From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides you, who works for those who wait for him” (Isaiah 64:4).

God is working for us around the clock. He does not take days off and he does not sleep. In fact he is so eager to work for us that he goes around looking for more work to do for people who will trust him: “The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him” (2 Chronicles 16:9).

God loves to show his tireless power and wisdom and goodness by working for people who trust him. The sending of his Son, Jesus, was the main way the Father showed this: “The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve” (Mark 10:45). Jesus works for his followers. He serves them. The gospel is not a “help wanted” sign. It is a “help available” sign.

This is what we must believe — really believe — in order to “rejoice always” (1 Thessalonians 5:16) and “[give] thanks always and for everything” (Ephesians 5:20) and have “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding” (Philippians 4:7), and “not be anxious about anything” (Philippians 4:6), and hate our lives “in this world” (John 12:25), and “love [our] neighbor as [ourselves]” (Matthew 22:39).

What a truth! What a reality! God is up all night and all day to work for those who wait for him.

HOW TO WALK HUMBLY WITH GOD!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

SUNDAY MAY 21, 2023.

SUBJECT : HOW TO WALK HUMBLY WITH GOD!

Memory verse: "He has shown you, so man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?" (Micah 6 vs 8.)

READ: Deuteronomy 10 vs 12 - 13:

10:12: And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul,

10:13: And to keep the commandments of the LORD and His statutes which I command you today for your good?

INTIMATION:

Walking with God is walking by faith in Him. We can only walk with God when we please Him, and, "Without faith it is impossible to please Him" (Hebrews 11 vs 6). Therefore, our faith walk with God is what pleases Him. 

How then do we obtain this essential 'faith?' The Scripture says, "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" (Romans 10 vs 17). It is only by hearing the Word of God that we increase in the knowledge of His Will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding: "For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God," (Colossians 1 vs 9 - 10.)

Often we ask, "What does God expect of me?" In our memory verse, the Scripture gives a summary of how to walk with God that is simple in form and easy to remember. Here are the essentials: (1) Fear God - have reference for Him. We must fear God’s awesome being.(2) Walk in His ways. We must obediently walk according to His will. (3) Love Him. We must respond to His being with love. (4) Serve Him with your heart and soul. Our lives must be one of service for His glory. (5) We must keep and obey His commands. 

Compliance with all that God requires results in our well-being on earth among ourselves. When we understand that all the galaxies of the heavens to the minute particles of existence on earth originated from God and that He is over all, then our response to Him is obedience to His will. 

We often complicate faith with man-made rules, regulations, and requirements, which are known as "religious rituals." But such religious rituals are not a substitute for faith, they only compliment our faith. Are you frustrated and burned out from trying hard to please God? Concentrate on His real requirements and find peace: Respect, follow, love, serve, and obey Him.

Prophet Micah noted how Israel responded to God's request by trying to appease Him with sacrifices (Micah 6 vs 6 - 7), hoping he would then leave them alone. But sacrifices and other religious rituals aren't enough; God wants changed lives. He wants His people to be fair, just, merciful, and humble. 

God does not seek ceremonial worship from those who would seek His favor. Countless ceremonial sacrifices will not forgive sins, neither will the ceremonies produce a spiritual life. There is no offering that a man can give that will atone for any sin. 

What God requires comes from the heart. That which is good does not come from outward performances of law. In one’s relationship with his fellow man, he is required to be just and have mercy. Walking humbly with God involves being led by the will of God, not one’s own inventions of religiosity. Heartless obedience to ceremonial law is rejected by God. 

God wants us to become living sacrifices (Romans 12 vs 1 - 2), not just doing religious deeds, but living rightly: "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. And do not conform to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." (Romans 12 vs 1 - 2.) 

People have tried all kinds of ways to please God, but God has made His wishes clear: He wants His people to do what is just, love, be merciful, and walk humbly with Him. In your efforts to please God, examine these areas on a regular basis. Are you fair in your dealings with people? Do you show mercy to those who wrong you? Are you learning humility? What have you sacrificed yourself to the Lord? It is impossible to follow God consistently without His transforming love in your hearts. (Hebrews 9 vs 14.)

Prayer: Abba Father, I love You with all my heart. Search my heart and know there is no deceit. I fall short of Your standards as the human I am. Circumcise my heart, and renew the right spirit within me. And let the Holy Spirit, my Senior Partner, take over my words, thoughts, and actions, that I may consistently walk according to Your precepts, in Jesus' Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

How to Hate Your Life

 

“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” (John 12:24–25)

“Whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” What does that mean?

It means, at least, that you don’t take much thought for your life in this world. In other words, it just doesn’t matter much what happens to your life in this world.

If men speak well of you, it doesn’t matter much.
If they hate you, it doesn’t matter much.
If you have a lot of things, it doesn’t matter much.
If you have little, it doesn’t matter much.
If you are persecuted or lied about, it doesn’t matter much.
If you are famous or unheard of, it doesn’t matter much.
If you have died with Christ, these things just don’t matter much.

But Jesus’s words are even more radical. Jesus is calling us not just to endure experiences we don’t choose, but to make a choice to follow him. “If anyone serves me, he must follow me” (John 12:26). Where to? He is moving into Gethsemane and toward the cross.

Jesus is not just saying: If things go bad, don’t fret, since you have died with me anyway. He is saying: Choose to die with me. Choose to hate your life in this world the way I have chosen the cross.

This is what Jesus meant when he said, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24). He calls us to choose the cross. People only did one thing on a cross. They died on it. “Take up your cross,” means, “Like a grain of wheat, fall into the ground and die.” Choose it.

But why? For the sake of radical commitment to ministry: “I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24). I think I hear Paul saying, “It doesn’t matter what happens to me — if I can just live to the glory of God’s grace.”