Psalm 126: 3  #devotional thoughts # bible studies # word of God
The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.

Psalm 126 is a psalm of joy describing the happy occasion when the Jews were able to return to Jerusalem from their exile. Joy is the gift from God to us when we become His own. Jesus invited us to hand over all our burdens and sorrows to Him and he will give us joy in exchange.

It had always been God’s plans to give us happiness when we know Him. God also spoke through the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 61: 3 …to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness…. Our relationship with God is always about joy and happiness, blessing and honour and promotion.

When Jesus came He continued with this trend of blessing the believers, in John 15: 11 Those things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be fill. Just as the Father had given joy to His children in the Old Testament times; Jesus too came to give us joy. The blessing of the Kingdom is joy and happiness and Jesus promised that these two will follow us aall the days of our lives.

In continuity of this the apostles also followed in this direction, Paul wrote in 2 Cor 2: 3 And I wrote this same unto you, lest, when I came, I should have sorrow from them of whom I ought to rejoice; having confidence in you all, that my joy is the joy of you all. Paul continued to say that it was out of the zeal for the believers that he wrote so that they may know the love that he had in abundance for them.

In fact all leaders must have this love and joy for his flock; they must be true shepherds who must lay down their lives for the flock. They musts be loving and concerned for those who are under him.

Paul said in 2 Cor 2: 8 Wherefore I beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward Him. Christian relationship are two ways, when God loves us we are also commanded to do the same, fist to love God in return and secondly to love one another. When brothers and sisters fail to ove each other, then Satan will have a foot hold in our lives and He will bring destruction to us.

Paula gain said in verse 11 Lest Satan should get an advantage of us….. The central theme of the Kingdom of God is love and joy, we have received it from Jesus Christ and in turn we are to give the same to others so that we can uphold and build the whole body of Christ.

In Churches today where they is love, there is stability and unity but where love and joy is not present, then we see strive and rivalry in the Church. Then will unhappiness, fear, lack of love and joy and a lot of bitterness and anger will fill the Church.

Therefore we must build on the love and joy that we have received and pass it on to the rest of the body.

Devotions for 12th Jan 2017

Heb 4: 13  #bible studies # daily devotions # word of God # scriptures
Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight.

The writer reminds that all things are known to God, In verses 12-13 “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and lay bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”

From these two verses we are reminded that God is omniscience and He knows all things, He is able to judge our thoughts and attitude of our hearts; our emotions etc. are revealed to God. We can hide and lock ourselves even in a dungeon in complete darkness where there is no light and visibility is zero.

Even in such darkness God knows what we do and what we think in our mind as well as in our hearts. Nothing in all creation can be hidden from God. We may think that man cannot see us and therefore we can keep secrets but this is not so because God can see and knows every word or thought that is in us.

The scriptures remind us that everything is uncovered and lay bare before the eyes of God and the worst thing is that we would have to give an account of everything to God one day when we stand before Him. On that day, everything would be played back to us and as they are played back we would have to account for everything one by one. God is a fair and just God; He will judge us according to our words and deeds.

If we stand on this alone we will surely have no hope of salvation for we know that Paul said in Roms 3:23 For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Coming short means missing the mark of acceptance of God, this would interpret as missing the qualifying mark to enter into heaven.

In the recent weeks, there have been many prophecies by established international prophets in the world giving the prophetic word for the Church in 2017. An outstanding word that has come out is that the universal Church today is not ready to be taken up to heaven. Many Christians think that they are already saved and would be assured of inheriting heaven.

However the warning has come from God that many Christians today in Churches are not living right and not walking right with God. They come to Church but their hearts are not pure and righteous. Even today there is a posting in the social media boasting that a Church in America has just hired a married couple of lesbians to be the pastors of their church and to look after the congregation.

What theology would they be teaching and bringing to the Church. The scriptures tell us in Rev 21: 8 But as for the cowardly the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulphur, which is the second death.

Lesbians and gays are the sexually immoral and they are destined for the pits of Hell where they will burn forever. How can gay and lesbians be ordained and accepted as pastors and Church workers. They will bring the sin into the Church and contaminate the Church and the people will follow them into Hell.

The Church leaders who permit and employ these sexually immoral people as pastors and leaders will have to answer for their words and actions as well to God. They have caused the Church to become an abomination in the eyes of God. The people are also mislead and will also sin as a result.

How can matured Christians fall into such sins of sexual immorality, they have been deceived by the devil and they deceive themselves that God hates the sin but not the sinner. This is a lie from Satan who is blinding the eyes of Church leaders as they permit such people to take leadership of the Churches.

They will be judged and would also be found coming short before God and such leaders will join the sexually perverted in the pits of Hell.

Devotion for 11th Jan 2017

Roms 8: 28 #daily devotions # word of God # scriptures # bible studies

We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Paul reminds the believers in Rome that no matter what circumstances that they are in and no matter what hardship that they have to endure, God would use the circumstances to perform good works for the sake of His people. Let us remember that the believers at that time were being hunted and persecuted and in the natural they would have been tormented and traumatized.

However we see that though the believers were fearful but they had the peace and joy of God with them and they were able to remain composed throughout the ordeal. When the believers were flogged and imprisoned, they were rejoicing in the prison as they sang and worshiped God. This baffled the Roman soldiers and also the temple priests and leaders who tried to break the faith and joy of the believers.

What happened to the believers was that Jesus Christ had done a transformation in their lives. Their natural man looked the same but their spiritual man was not. All of them have been transformed into believers with strong zeal to continue on the work of the Gospel which Jesus Christ has started in them.

They were commended for the good works that they had performed under duress. This was described in Titus 2: 14 …who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purity unto himself a people for his own possession, zealous for good works.

As the saying goes, “when the going gets tough, the tough gets going.” The apostles and the early Christians were not timid but they were bold and courageous. Not a single one was afraid to pay the price for the sake of the Gospel. They were first hand witnesses of the miracles that Jesus did with them. They heard His preaching and teaching and their faith was strong. What better way to build our faith than to hear and learn directly from Jesus Christ.

Paul also said in Roms 10: 17 …’faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.’ Their lives were living proof of the working of faith. Having heard and learned from Christ and the apostles, the faith of the believers were unshakable. Whatever persecution that the temple leaders and Roman army threw at them, none of the believers lost their faith. It must have been very frustrating to the persecutors for failing to break the believers.

Paul also described the conditions of the believers as in Eph 2 :10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God afore prepared that we should walk in them. Paul said that they were called and prepared to do good works for the Gospel sake. These good works include sharing the Gospel, winning converts, healing the sick, driving out the demons, raising the dead and every other miracle that needed to be done.

In fact the bible said that if all the miracles were to be recorded then there would not be enough books in the world to record them. This was their lifestyle, so different from our present time.

However, the good news is that Jesus had promised that in these End Times, we will soon be able to do the same works that He did and even greater works shall we do in His name. Jesus promised in John 14: 12 Verily, verily, I say unto you. He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do, because I go unto my Father.

Devotion for 10th Jan 2017

Ruth 2: 10  #daily devotions # bible studies # scriptures # word of God

Why have I found such favour in your eyes that you noticed me – a foreigner?

The context of this verse was the expression of surprise from a foreign woman from Moab who was poor and did not know the culture of the Jews. Ruth was surprised that a total stranger whom she had never met before was so kind to her. In this verse we notice two key points. First was the favour that she enjoyed and secondly she was a foreigner in the fields of a Jew.

There was no reason that she could enjoy this as a stranger but we also read that Boaz gave special instructions to the reapers to purposely leave extra grain for Ruth to gather. Boaz showed her exceptional favour because he was a godly man and practiced the teaching of the law. The law as given to Moses was all about godly living and a command to be kind to others.

Lev 19: 18 Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people but love your neighbour as yourself. God gave this command that all believers must love their neighbour as themselves. This means that they must have mercy and compassion to everyone who comes in contact with them and who is under their hospitality as in the case of Ruth who came to the property of Boaz to glean some wheat.

Christian living is all about kindness and love, this is a universal virtue with all Christian brothers and sisters as we can experience this genuine love and compassion wherever we go. When we go into the mission fields in foreign nations and when we meet our Christian brothers and sisters, we will be able to experience that great outpouring of love from our hosts. They may be from another culture, another rung of society but their demonstration of love and compassion is genuine when they host us and open their homes to us.

Some of us have been to the tribal areas where the natives are so much poorer and less blessed than we in the cities are, nevertheless the native brethren will do their very best to provide for our needs and comfort.

Paul the apostle to the gentiles also had experienced the same like what we have just discussed. He had endured hardship, seen hardship and understands hard ship. He also empathizes with the poor who are experiencing lack and needs. He looked to the poor and had compassion for them. Paul wrote in Eph 4: 32 …and be ye kind one to another, tender hearted, forgiving each other, even as God also in Christ forgave you.

Again he wrote to the Church at Ephesus in Eph 5: 1-2 Be ye therefore imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, even as Christ also loved you, and gave himself up for us, as an offering and a sacrifice to God for an odor of a sweet smell. Paul had personally experienced the kind of sacrificial love of the poor brethren who have given their best to Paul even when they are yet in great needs. he therefore encouraged that for all of us who are able to, then we must operate in the love and compassion of the Lord Jesus Christ.

So this is the clear instruction given to all believers, we must love one another, care for one another; have compassion with one another especially those who are in need. The rich and privileged must extend their hand of charity to those who are less fortunate as in the life of Boaz.

Today I saw a TV advertisement seeking for donations to support school children from poor homes. These children do not have pocket money to buy food during recess time, they have no money to join school outings and excursions, and they are meek and lack self-confidence. These will grow up to have low self-esteem and may become social recluse. If we can, we must do whatever little we are able to because that would mean so much to our brethren who are in need.

For us who are able and have in abundance, we need to be kind and compassionate as Boaz was in today's text, when we can bless others then we will in turn be blessed as we obey the commandment of God.

Rev 21:5  #daily devotions # scriptures # bible studies

He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new.”

This is the revelation that John received when he was brought up to heaven and he received the full message for the End Times. In this scripture God is telling John that He is making everything new. What do we understand from this? This would refer to the future when WW III would be over and the world would have gone through vast destruction upon the earth as a result of war, earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions and severe flooding all over the earth.

What we know is that the whole earth will become a very unliveable place and there will be famine all over the earth after the natural disasters that would come and create unimaginable destruction worldwide. Eyes have not seen and ears have not heard of what disasters that would be coming ever since the beginning of the earth.

What would happen to the people upon the earth? The non-Christians will have no hope as they would fall into Hell where there will be eternal judgement and torment. Billions of people will perish in hell. At the final battle in the valley of Megiddo we are told that over 2 billion people will die when Jesus personally come against them from all over the antichrist nations.

The question we may ask is how can we escape from the wrath of God which He had planned for the world? In fact God had already given us the escape route. He sends His Son to earth to grant this escape from Hell to all men. Jesus told us in John 3: 3 ..verily I say to you, except a man is born again, he cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven. And again in verse Vs 5 … except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God. So Jesus had revealed the salvation plan of God to us. There has to be a renewing of our lives before we can enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

God says that He is going to make everything new, a new heaven and a new earth and the people who are going to inherit this would be a people who would be renewed. They would not be living in sin as before because they would have been renewed in the mind and their spirit man. Those who would inherit the new earth and new heaven would not be the same carnal people that are around today. They would be literally changed through the regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit.

This is what we read in Titus 3:  5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the holy Ghost. There will be a whole new generation of people who would be purified and sanctified by the Holy Spirit and they would be the saints of the New Earth and new Heaven.

In the natural this would be very difficult but we live in the Spirit and by the Holy Spirit. When we totally surrender our lives to Him, He will take it and transform our lives to become a new creature. To explain this Paul wrote about this mystery in 2 Cor 5: 17 therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things have passed away, behold, all things are become new.

This transformation is not instant; in fact it is a life long journey and we need to choose to live purposefully in the Spirit and for Christ. We need to ask Jesus to change our hearts and create a new heart and a new spirit within us so that from now we would continually progress forward and onward into achieving a transformation that would change us into a new man for Christ. 

Devotions for 8th Jan 2017

Matt 11: 28  #bible studies #daily devotions #word of God #scriptures

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

It is so often that when I am in Church that the Lord will reveal to me that there are people inside the Churches that have so heavy burdens. Sadly these are the ones who are not walking by faith and trusting Jesus who had invited us to hand over all our heavy burdens to Him.

This week while I was in Church again the Lord spoke that there were a few people who came with such heavy loads, they knew that Jesus can take away their burden but they could not exercise their faith in giving their burdens to Him. They still needed to wait for the pastor or leader to pray from them.  

In my ministry the Lord has revealed various types of problems of people who have been struggling on their own, some had to deal with domestic problems where family relationship are at breakdown point. Others are problems in their businesses  and some are problems at work. In fact there are problems in every aspect of life in the world. These are not unknown to God because He already knows what we have to go through.

This is why Jesus made this call for all believers to come to Him and give Him all our problems and to find rest in Him. How can we do that? Firstly we must have a regular prayer life because it is through prayer that we communicate with Him. It is through prayer that we hand over all our problems and needs to Him.  

The apostles and early disciples were the people who had experienced the most problems and hardship but they knew how to trust in God and gave all their burdens to Him. Paul said in Acts 26: 22 Having therefore obtained the help that is from God…. 

Learning from the apostles no others would have suffered as much as them but also no one would have been blessed as much as them as well. They lived in persecution on a day to day basis, they had to face the burden of basic needs, they did not draw a pay, they had no financial security, they had no permanent home, and there was no guarantee of any sort.

These were the conditions of the life and ministry of the apostles as Paul said in 2 Cor 11: 26 ..in journeyings often, in perils of rivers, in perils of robbers, in perils from my countrymen, in perils from the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren, in labor and travail, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.

The price of ministry is very high, sufferings, hunger, dangers of all sorts are the rewards of ministry then and even now as in some countries. The truth is in these last days, there will be many troubles in the world, times will be very challenging and many will be tested to the fullest for their faith. Many will even be challenged to renounce Christ at the cost of death.

From what we have seen of the martyrs of the pastors/leaders/ believers in the persecuted countries, all of them held on to their faith like the apostles and early believers and died happily for Jesus Christ and they have inherit the Kingdom of heaven.

The key is because they know their Saviour and Master Jesus Christ personally and they handed over their burden and their lives to Him.

Devions for 7th Jan 2017

Psalm 145: 18
The Lord is near to all who call on him.

Again this is David who is expressing his personal experiences with God who has been a faithful God to him. David was more than just an ordinary man, firstly because he was a man after God’s heart. He delights in worshiping and fellow-shipping with God and there is no other worshiper like him.

It was recorded that he worshiped and danced before God he gave his whole heart to it, he even removed his outer garments so that he would not be hindered in his expressive way of worship. In the same manner God also delights in receiving David’s worship and has always him for it. It is always recorded in scriptures that God loves David’s worship.

Worship has been a practice of David from his young days and it has been a lifestyle for him. He knew the heart of God and the promises of God just as the prophet Jeremiah wrote in  Jer 33: 3 call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not. God had always wanted to bless His children and this is an open invitation to His children to call to Him in their times of need.

To be able to receive a response from God, we need to build our relationship with Him; we must not come to Him only when we are in need. Instead we must come to Him on a daily basis and build that communication line with God just as David did. When we have that in place, we would be able to call to our Abba Father at any time and He will surely delight in receiving or prayers and answering them.

This is God promise to us, first we draw near to Him and then He will draw near to us. Again he spoke through the prophet Jeremiah in Jer 29: 12 Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will harken unto you. Here is the secret to answered prayers. We must call out to God, not only during our times of need but even when times are good, offering our adoration and thanksgiving, praising Him for all His goodness and blessing.

Again we learn from David who has built a close and personal relationship with God that he could even call to God like a friend. He could talk to God like he would talk to his earthly father or an earthly friend. He could express his words in earthly terms that we would normally use as we talk to our friend.

Look at the example of how David speaks to God in Psalm 103: Hide not thy face from me in the day when I am in trouble; incline thine ear unto me: in the day when I call answer me speedily. David is asking God not to hide His face from him and ignore him when he is in trouble. Who else can speak to God like that on a personal one to one basis unless they have a mutual respect for each other?

Would we be able to do that? The answer is no because we have yet to build up the relationship with God the Father, and to do that we need to do what David had done. We need to spend time talking to God and hearing from Him throughout the day and night. David said that he would worship God when he wakes up and also when he lay down to sleep.

Throughout his waking hours David worshiped God. We can also do this as we walk, as we do our work, even as we engage in our sports and hobbies. A good example is some of the devoted Christians who are Olympians and professional sportsmen and sportswomen. We see that they are not ashamed to thank God and worship Him after achieving every victory in the sport. Right in front of the TV cameras they worship God and let the whole world know that it is God who had helped them to win.

In the same manner we musts never be ashamed to thank God publicly for all the goodness and blessing He has showered upon us.