Have you ever been told of a miracle coming your way but after a long time, you saw no miracle?
Have you ever wondered why despite the fact that the preacher was genuine and inspired, the prophecy was never fulfilled?
“Or was he lying? ” you might have asked within yourself.
Well, he was not lying 😊
Romans 3 vs 4 says, “Let God be true but every man a liar ”.
Those prophecies were totally true. Why didn’t they happen? You ask.
Truth is, certain prophecies are not assurances that a certain thing will happen in your life! They are not.
What do I mean?
Take for example, a high ranking official in the government promises to give you a job, a well paying job.
Knowing how genuine this man is, you immediately become rest assured that the job is now yours.
Though he has promised you the job, you still have your part to play in getting it. You have to prepare and submit your CV and prove to be competent in an interview. The job will only be yours when these procedures have been followed.
Getting blissful prophecies to manifest in our lives is similar to this.
Prophecy has two major purposes,
1. Faith
2. Alignment
Prophecy strengthens our faith in God. It gives us the assurance of a better future in spite of the difficulties we may be experiencing.
Prophecy is also released to put us in alignment with God’s will.
However, that a good promise has been prophesied to us does not mean it will automatically come true.
It is not magic. You have a part to play in its fulfilment.
1 Timothy 1:18 “This charge I commit to you…. according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare”
In the aforementioned verse, Paul admonishes is that the prophecies and promises that God has made to us aren’t just released to make us feel good.
They are given to us to equip us for spiritual warfare. In the text, Paul charges us to wage a good warfare with the prophecies.
This is because there exist several powers and forces that will fight against us in our Christian journey.
This is further revealed in Ephesians 6:12;
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
These principalities and powers are working daily to bring obstacles and hindrances our way. Their mission is to ensure we do not achieve our God-given purpose.
It is with God’s revealed promises and prophecies that we pray and stop their activities. So when you see poverty in your life even when God has promised you great wealth, do not relax thinking it will come true.
The Prophecy did not come to make you relax, it came to equip you to fight for its fulfilment. Go to God in prayer and constantly remind Him of His Promise to you.
Keep declaring it in your life. Even when everything around you seems to contradict the promise, keep declaring it and praying for its fulfilment.
When we do this, we nurture the seed of Prophecy to germinate and become a reality in our lives.
What is that promise that God has given you? What positive prophecy have you received that has not come into manifestation yet?
Now is the time to go to God and remind Him of the promise and demand for its fulfilment!
Whether it is long life or business opportunities or a prosperous future, keep praying with it and expecting its fulfilment in your life.
Hosea 2:7: “Then she will say, ‘I will go and return to my first husband, For then it was better for me than now”
God used the metaphor of a husband and wife relationship to speak to Israel in the preceding passage. They had abandoned God in favor of idols and carnal desires, and they were on the verge of facing severe punishment for their sins.
When a believer abandons God’s work to do the work of the flesh and the enemy, that believer is like a bride who has abandoned her husband for another. Jesus referred to Himself as “Our Love,” (Revelation 2:4) and we are referred to as “His Bride” in the book of Ephesians.
Since we are His Bride and in a mystical union with Him we must ask ourselves if we are faithful to this marriage with Jesus. It is critical that the believer performs a constant heart check to determine whether he is conscious and faithful of his union with Christ.
Just as when a lady gets married, her groom places a ring in her middle finger as a reminder that she is married no matter where she goes, when Christ married us in faith, He gave us His Holy Spirit as a sign in our hearts to remind us that we are married to Jesus and that our lives must be lived for Him alone.
Some believers, however, have grieved the Holy Spirit and have lost this consciousness. Instead of living in devotion to Christ, they have joined forces with sin and demons. They have abandoned their first love because they were deceived by another, who poses as a true lover.
However, the Bible teaches that Christ is the only true Love. He not only loves us, but He is Love Himself. Jesus embodies all of love. Love is the essence of His Being and the driving force behind His nature and actions. Only Jesus can truly love us, bless us, and give us the kind of future we desire.
If you have not been faithful to Jesus, in your fellowship with Him, in your obedience to His commands; if you have not been faithful with Jesus, now is the time to return to Him, repent of your unfaithfulness, and renounce any ungodly union you have had with the world or with the voice of the flesh.
Every unfaithful Christian, like the prodigal son and this unfaithful bride, will eventually realize that Christ is the better husband. Some, like the prodigal son, will realize this here on Earth. Some, however, may not have the opportunity to repent here and will only come to that realization in hell.
Nonetheless, it is not God’s will for anyone to perish. He desires that we repent and serve Him in true love and faithfulness. So let us return to the Lord. Let us repent of our disobedient actions and recognize that only Christ can truly love and bless us.
The next verse is also of utmost priority;
Hosea 2:8 She has not acknowledged that I was the one who gave her the grain, the new wine and oil, who lavished on her the silver and gold– which they used for Baal. (NIV)
The starting point of spiritual complacency is in the failure to acknowledge God for the blessings He has bestowed on us. Archbishop Trench says,
‘How prone are we all to ascribe to chance or fortune those gifts and blessings which indeed come directly from God–to build altars to Fortune rather than to Him who is the author of every good thing which we have gotten. And this faith of men, that their blessings, even their highest, come to them by a blind chance, they have incorporated in a word; for “happy” and “happiness” are connected with “hap,” which is chance; how unworthy, then, to express any true felicity, whose very essence is that it excludes hap or chance, that the world neither gave nor can take it away.’
The unfaithful bride used the gifts given to her by God to serve idols. We must not be like the bride, who failed to recognize God as the source of all her talents and gifts.
Let us make it a habit to acknowledge God as the source of all blessings in our lives, both rare and common, even the breath in our nostrils.
This is what God expects of us: fidelity to our relationship with Him. Keeping His commands in the face of pressure and temptation to disobey. Let us walk this path of faithfulness so that, in the end, we will be known as the Lord’s faithful bride.
We have a physical heart as well as a spiritual heart. This is evident in the case of the tangible ears and the ears that exist within these ears, as well as our brain and mind. This intangible heart is the essence of man’s being. It is the center of our existence.
The heart is the link between the spiritual realm and the physical realm. Through the heart, we connect to/with people around us, as well as to God.
“…. discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12. The heart is the epicenter of our thoughts and our motives for whatever we do.
This spiritual force is the most powerful of all the structures that comprise man’s metaphysical realm. All inventions, innovations, and ideas originate in the heart. It is the inner proving ground for human innovation.
Throughout this series, we will learn how to train our hearts and increase their capacity to generate creative, superhuman ideas and innovations. But this post is about the most important thing we need to learn as Christians: how to engage God with our hearts.
James 4:8: “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.”
When the Bible tells us to draw near to God, it does not mean that we should do so literally. This is due to the fact that none of us can be physically close to God.
God cannot be seen in our physical world unless He opens the spiritual eyes of men to see Him on rare occasions. God, on the other hand, is very close to us, even closer than we expect. James’ admonition to the Church to draw near to God is motivated by God’s proximity to us.
However, many of us are unaware of this, which explains why humans, including believers, frequently experience feelings of fear, abandonment, and despair.
The Heart is God’s House within us
We can reach out to God through our hearts. Nothing can frighten you when you develop this close heart-to-heart connection with God. You gain the courage of a lion. This intimacy with God is what gives hope for a better future even in difficult times.
This intimacy has an impact on our emotions as well; it causes us to rejoice and live in joy because we can feel God no matter where we go. Jesus had a heart-to-heart connection with God. It was so strong that it inspired and influenced everything He did.
He wept in grief when He lost this connection on the cross because it was His main source of strength and fortitude. There are three steps towards enjoying this strong, unbreakable connection with God;
1. Awareness:
The Church needs to go beyond looking for the Presence of God to being aware of the presence of God. The Presence of God is not locked up somewhere in Heaven as many think. His Presence is within us – our heart is the tabernacle of God’s glory and presence. But due to either ignorance or being busy, very few believers enjoy this presence.
Moreover, it is almost impossible to be aware of God’s presence almost twenty-four hours with the kind of turmoil we’re experiencing, but awareness of God is like an art that can be developed and mastered.
– See God both inside and outside of yourself.
Psalm 23:4: “….For You are with me…”
We pray because we are aware of God’s indwelling presence. It inspires us to worship. Furthermore, God is said to ‘fill the universe’ in the Bible (Ephesians 1:23). God, as the creator of the universe, has left His imprint on all of His creations.
In fact, everything God created is intended to bear witness to Him and reflect His attributes.
Therefore, let us see God’s glory in the brightness of the sun; let us see God’s grace in the raindrops, His beauty in the lilies, and His creativity in the mountains.
It is very simple and practical to accomplish this feat. Prepare your daily schedule and set aside an hour, thirty minutes, or even fifteen minutes to focus all of your heart energies on being conscious of God’s presence.
When you’re in trouble or confused, instead of trying to mask your feelings by drinking or having a good time, be still and know that God is with you. Although this state will not solve the problem, it will bring peace and joy to your soul.
You’ll have a strong sense that God is working out something good for you. You’ll even get the strength and faith you need to bring the issue to God in prayer.
This is something I do a lot when I’m too tired to continue my studies due to financial constraints. It works!
Worship creates awareness
I don’t think there’s anything that awakens the awareness of God’s presence like music. Playing cool worship songs and meditating on the song lyrics can help you feel God’s presence both inside and outside your home.
Allow the lyrics to reach the depths of your soul. Don’t just listen with your ears; listen with your heart as well. Connect to the music’s words; they are the wings that carry the soul to God and the antenna that connects the heart to God.
Being aware of God is one level of engagement; being able to relate to Him as God is an entirely different level, and it is one that every Saint must achieve. Why not talk to God while He is with you?
Being aware of God without attempting to engage Him in conversation is akin to knowing your mother is sitting next to you but ignoring her as if she were a stranger. You will never benefit from God’s wisdom if you do not communicate with Him.
Unfortunately, many believers wait to hear God’s voice before responding to God; however, this is not how it works.
Remember how James stated that when we draw near to God (through our hearts), God draws near to us. Thus, we will begin to recognize God’s voice when we choose to converse with Him as our Father and Friend.
How do I start?
This is the question that many Christians ask when they are told to pray to God. There is no definite way to communicate with God. But it is best to begin by praising Him, thanking Him, and admiring His glorious works.
Here’s an exercise for you:
Visualize God sitting beside you. This requires a lot of inner effort, but it strengthens the heart’s spiritual muscles. After that, begin to thank Him in the same way you would thank a sponsor or a helper who has done something good for you.
Remember to keep your mind on the fact that God is present with you. After thanking Him, go ahead and pour out your heart to Him. Talk to Him about everything you can think of.
This is one of the most effective ways to pray; however, communicating with God can also be done informally, particularly by those who have mastered the art. Here’s one more:
– Begin practicing whatever you see here as you read this post on your device. Simply tell God how much you appreciate Him.
This is one of the most effective ways to pray; however, communicating with God can also be done informally, particularly for those who have mastered the art.
Here’s another exercise: while reading this post on your device, start practicing whatever you see here. Simply tell God how much you love Him, how much you want to be close to Him, and so on. Keep doing this; it will strengthen your flow with God.
3. DO WHAT HE SAYS
Our relationship with God is harmed by disobedience. It is the highest type of dishonor, though ignorant defiance is far more dangerous. The majority of us are unconsciously disobedient. When you ignore a leading to preach to others, enter a trade, make friends with someone, or do something else, you are simply disobeying the Holy Spirit’s leading.
Probably you’ve been feeling an inner pull leading you towards a certain decision, and you are fully convinced that this is not your mere emotions playing a trick on you.
You can seek counsel from spiritual leaders in your Church, and if you remain convinced that it is God’s leading, go ahead and do it!
The more we do what God says, the more we know what God says. Likewise, the more we do what God wants, the more we know what God wants.
Every morning, we’ve been taught to tell God how we want our day to go, but we’ve never been taught to ask God how HE wants our day to go.
The latter is the way of absolute surrender. It is the highest form of worship, and it is what makes God to take abode in everything we do.
It takes more than a trial to develop heart-heart relationship with God. These activities must be done intentionally and must become an integral part of our daily lives. If you practice them daily, you will be in awe at how real your fellowship with God will become.
The Bible is God’s tool for building His Saints. It must not be approached as an ordinary book.
The Bible is a spiritual book that can only be understood by spiritual men.
THE REVEALER OF TRUTH
“But when He, the Spirit of Truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth [complete truth]. For He will not speak on His initiative, but He will speak whatever He hears [from the Father—the message regarding the Son], and He will disclose to you what is to come [in the future].” John 16:13 (AMP).
The mysteries in the scriptures are subtly hidden from the knowledge of a carnal man. It takes the revelation of the Holy Spirit to unveil that which is hidden in God’s Word.
Anyone can read the Bible and to an extent, understand its message. But to be able to relate with the scripture and profit from its richness, we need the help of the Holy Spirit.
APPROACH TO STUDYING THE BIBLE
1. Meekness:
“Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which can save your souls.” James 1:21.
In order to be properly taught by The Word, the Saint must be ready to let go of his/her preconceptions and previous mind-set. He must come to God’s Word with an open heart, willing to accept its reproof and obey its instruction.
The Saint must approach the word as a student approaches his teacher. He must acknowledge that he knows nothing and he is capable of knowing nothing outside what The Spirit of Truth teaches him.
2. Consistency:
Spiritual Growth happens not in the quantity of time we spend in God’s Word alone, but also in how consistent we are in studying God’s word.
The Saint must not be lazy and sluggish in his approach to the Bible. It must be a daily habit and necessity. It must be cherished like the material food and must be mused on morning, noon and night.
Psalms 1:2: “….. on His law (the precepts, the instructions, the teachings of God) he habitually meditates (ponders and studies) by day and by night.”
If the hardest of mathematical equations and formulas written by men cannot be fully understood in inconsistent and unserious studying, how much more a book written from the inspiration of God?
The Saint who will profit from the Word must be habitual student of it. He must be willing to devote at least an hour of the day and night to studying the scriptures.
MEDITATE ON IT
Source: Crosswalk
In order to apprehend the knowledge of The Divine, our minds must be conditioned into silent meditation.
It is in meditation that illumination is received. This great principle remains the secret of the wisest of men who have received the revelation of Christ.
In meditation, we ponder upon what we see in God’s word; we make it ours – we personalise it and apply it to our lives. Knowledge is processed from mental knowledge into conviction through meditation.
Meditation gives us insight into a knowledge. It opens us to a practical and real experience of Truth.
Meditate on God’s promises towards you. Ponder on His instructions;. Meditate on His wondrous works recorded in scriptures. The more you do this, the more God’s word becomes real to you.
PRAY-READ THE SCRIPTURES
Accompany your study of God’s word with prayers. Prayer deepens our understanding of the word and solidifies our faith to expect what the Word has promised us.
There are promises we come across in scriptures that we are to pray about and declare over our lives. When you come across such while studying God’s word, do not hesitate to instantly begin to declare it over your life and your family.
Conclusively, ensure you study your Bible with a pen and jotter, and desire to practice everything you’re learning from the scripture.
Love was one of the most powerful weapons God used in redeeming Mankind back to himself; and that weapon is still very much active today.
The Bible says in John 3 vs 16;
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his ONLY begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life”.
Jesus was the only Son God ever had, yet, God was willing to sacrifice Him for the salvation of the world.
God gave Jesus out into the cold hands of death just because of you and I and in doing this, put both Heaven and Earth in Great danger.
Great danger?
Yes! Because the fate of both Heaven and earth depended on whether Jesus would fulfil or fail in His mission.
Jesus faced several temptations, yet, He overcame them all. He refused to be distracted in His mission to save mankind. Scriptures tell us that He prayed with so much fervency – not for Himself, but for you and I. (Hebrews 5 vs 7)
He had the power to disappear before even when the soldiers came to arrest Him at Gethsemane.
But He said, “Not my will Lord, but thy will be done”.
His great love for us made Him willing to sacrifice His freedom and dignity.
He even bore our curse;
Galatians 3:13 – “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:”
Folks, God’s display of love on calvary remains the highest display of love for eternity.
St. John 15:13 “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
Even when we fall, He picks us up and wipe the stains of sin and guilt away with His Blood.
This is the incomprehensible love of Christ – the love that passes understanding.
If you ever feel like anyone hates you, remember that two thousand years ago, a Divine Being named ‘Jesus’ made the greatest love sacrifice on the cross.
Are you feeling hopeless or in despair? Look unto the cross and be strengthened.
If you ever feel like an outcast, Remember you have been adopted by God through Christ and you are now a part of God’s Household {Ephesians 2:12-13}
Meditation involves studying, which is a step higher than reading. The word of God is not meant to be read alone, but to be meditated upon. It is PRIMARILY meant for us to encounter.
Meditation is the practice or act of pondering (focusing) on a written or spoken discourse. It means expressing considered thoughts on a subject.
Wikipedia defines meditation as ‘a practice where an individual uses a technique –such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity –to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state.’
If you want to meditate, the basic things to do, includes:
1. SUSTAINING THE APPROPRIATE POSTURE
It was Apostle Edu Udechukwu that said that “the feedbacks you get from the scriptures, is dependent on the posture that you sustained before approaching it.”
Psalms 19:14 “Let the words of my mouth, and the MEDITATION OF MY HEART, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.”
If your heart must receive divine revelation, the state of your heart must sustain the appropriate posture of: “entering the scriptures in the spirit, encountering the word beyond the mind, and interacting with the Spirit of the Word.”
With that in place, you will not be distracted and, your mind, body and spirit will be aligned and ready to meditate on the Word.
II Timothy 2:15 (NASB): “BE DILIGENT to present yourself approved to God as a worker who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling (expounding) the word of truth.”
Diligent meditation will create pictures of the events that happened and what led to it.
By this, you will have insight and understand the contextual meaning of the passage.
If the appropriate posture is not sustained, you certainly will have problem with meditation.
You will look mechanically into the scriptures, but will not be able to BEHOLD the person of Jesus Christ.
You will be unable to apprehend divine realities in your spirit. You will be far from COMFORMING to the image of Christ. This is what leads one to explain scriptures only with the natural human intellect.
2. CONSIDER THE CONTEXT
“Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.” 2 Timothy 2:7
Your mind and heart must be exercised to gain insight that is embedded in the scriptures. This is what the above scripture entails.
You have to consider by meditation, before the Lord will give you understanding. You ca not get right understanding of scripture (by the Spirit) until you consider by medication.
Considering the context of scripture is necessary for application. It is wise to ask questions such as these:
To whom was it written? By whom?
What were the circumstances?
What are the precise meanings of the words in the original language?
What related scriptures might provide additional insights?
With the following questions, you will see yourself digging deep and understanding it through the help of the Holy Spirit.
Psalms 8:3 “When I CONSIDER thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained.”
From the aforementioned verse, David –The Psalmist, was meditating on the handiwork of God, and that led to what he said in the next verses.
“What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet” Psalms 8:4,5, 6.
Reading without meditation, is what causes misconception.
Misconception of scriptures leads to misinterpretation, and misinterpretation leads to misapplication of scriptures. This is how some heresies come into the body of Christ.
3. PERSONALIZING THE PASSAGES
Personalize it by rereading it in the first person; using I, me, and my.
For example, John 3:16 could be personalized by saying,
“For God so loved ‘ME‘, that He gave His only begotten Son, that if ‘I‘ believe in Him, ‘I‘ will not perish but have everlasting life.”
Colossians 3:16 could be personalized by saying, “Let the word of Christ dwell in ‘ME‘ richly in all wisdom.”
When you personalize the scripture, it becomes a living expression within your heart. This is also an aspect of meditation.
After that, read the personalized verse repeatedly. That will make room for better understanding of that
verse.
However, this method is not applicable for all scriptures because not every scripture is meant to be personalized.
MANTRA MEDITATION
Mantra in this context refers to a phrase REPEATED to assist concentration during meditation.
You can do mantra meditation by repeating a verse, phrase, or a word in the scripture. For example;
“Let the Word of Christ dwell in ME richly in all wisdom.”
Do some ‘figuring out‘ in your spirit to substantiate the passage. You can do this by representing some items in a coded way which only you may understand.
As you continue meditating, your understanding of the verse deepens, your illustrations will expand.
While asking yourself questions, you can give answers to them by introspection. You can be linked to other related scriptures, you will get to know a verse from other passages, it will widen your understanding and enable you to balance the context of scriptures.
When you have done your diligent meditation of a particular verse, chapter or book, then you will be able to illustrate and summarize the main concepts found within the passage(s).
Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, THINK on these things.”
While you diligently read and meditate, the Holy Spirit will drop a message(s) in your heart.
When this happens, you will able to discover where you had ignorance and deficiency in accurate Understanding.
Apply them accurately in the areas they are required.
Let me talk a little on Angels today: ”Do you know you’ve encountered Angels and maybe severally?”
UNUSUAL APPEARANCE
You’ve ever observed a person you rarely see but always see when you’re in some grave danger and when it’s resolved, they’re no more? And on and on like that It goes…
They may not appear in the form you expect as with wings and in white garment and the likes but they do severally appear besides those appearances in human form to men. They did with Abraham(Gen.18). They did with Lot(Gen.19). They did with much more…
When they do, some men of the Spirit could realize it and some others do not but irregardless, they must accomplish their task at the time.
I’ve had Angelic visitation too of the white garment and the likes we do know of but of this I speak now, very often. This happens many times in the lives of God’s children.
You must not be ignorant of the divine and of Angelic operations. You must be sensitive as a child of God. Sometimes we get distracted and it’s okay. But, come right back. Get in the race. Run with speed. Run with determination.
Speaking of these Angels, they’re ministering spirits to the saints and to the church. Seeing such important role they play, why ignore their operation?
OTHER SCENARIOS
There were times too you’ve been delivered from some accidents maybe on road and from some harm and others. Those are Fruits of Angelic operations!
HOW TO RELEASE THEM
–Prayer: Prayer has always and always will be key.
Angels do not move till God speaks. God does not move till we speak (Pray). This should tell you how important prayer is. It should be for us as breathing itself for of such was it to the Apostles and early Church and thus could they last.
Our prayer releases God into action which brings Angelic interventions.
A WAR
There’s a war going on in the earth whether you realize it or not. But as a Soldier of Christ, you should know that. We’re not the ones fighting but we play a major role in the battle.
By our prayers, we empower the divine and Angels and when we don’t pray, we don’t. I know it may seem hard to get but, the prayers of the church releases and empowers Angels. What happens then when they don’t?
Today, they pay less attention to the battle they’re in and tangle in worldly affairs, seeking after wealth and much more and rarely after deliverance of the oppressed and darkness destruction. As the scripture says, we shouldn’t be ignorant of the enemy’s wiles (2 Cor. 2:11).
JESUS AS EXAMPLE
Want much of Angelic visitations in your life? Got to be prayerful!
Jesus prayed in the wilderness after which Angels came and strengthened Him.
He prayed at Gethsemane and Angels came and strengthened Him.
He prayed much more times and received Angelic visitations and intervention (not all were accounted in the scriptures).
1 Corinthians 3:12 If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw,
1 Corinthians 3:13 Their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work.
It is weight that counts. Wood, hay, stubble are cheap, light, temporary; gold silver, precious stones are costly, weighty, eternal.
Here is the key to value.
The heavy metals, the gold of the divine character and glory, the silver of His redemptive work: these are the materials He prizes.
Not merely what we preach, please note, but what we are, weighs with God; not doctrine, but the character of Christ wrought out in us by God’s orderings, by God’s testings, by the Spirit’s patient workings.
Work that is of God is work that has been to the Cross. When our work has been that way, we can rest assured that it will in the end survive the fire.
Not, “Where is the need most evident? What ideas and resources have I got? How much can I do? How soon can I put that doctrine into practice?” but, “Where is God moving? What is there of Him here? How far does He will for me to go? What is the mind of the Spirit on this?”—these are the questions of the truly crucified servant. He recognizes God’s “Go” and His “Speak,” but also His “Wait,” and His “Go,” but say only so much. Aware of his own weakness and emptiness, the greatest lesson he has to learn is to commit his way to God and wait to see Him move.
The problem lies in our failure to understand that, in God’s work, man in himself is of no use. Wood, hay, stubble, these suggest what is essentially of man and of the flesh.
They imply what is common, ordinary, easily and cheaply acquired—and of course perishable. Grass today may clothe the earth with beauty, but where is it tomorrow?
Human intellect may give us a grasp of Scripture; natural eloquence may have the power to attract; emotion may carry us along; feelings may seem to supply a guiding sense—but to what? God looks for more solid values than these.
Many of us can preach well and accurately enough, but we are wrong. We talk of the flesh but don’t know its perils; we talk of the Spirit, but would we recognize Him were He really to move us?
Too much of our work for God depends not on His will and purpose, but on our feelings—or even, God forgive us! on the weather. Like chaff and stubble, it is carried away by the wind. Given the right mood we may accomplish a lot, but just as easily, in adverse conditions, we may give up entirely. No, as the fire will one day prove, work that is dependent on feelings or on the wind of revival is of little use to God. When God commands, feelings or no feelings, we must learn to do.
The God-prized values are costly. Those unwilling to pay the price will never come by them. Grace is free, but this isn’t. Only a high price buys costly stones.
Many a time we shall want to cry out “This is costing too much!” Yet the things wrought by God through the lessons we learn under His hand, though we be long in learning them—these are the really worthwhile things.
Time is an element in this. In the light of God, some things perish of themselves; there is no need to wait for the fire. It is in what remains, in what has stood God’s test of time, that true worth lies. Here are found the precious stones, formed in what
God graciously gives us of sorrow and trouble, as He puts us “through fire and water” to bring us to His wealthy place. Man sees the outward appearance; God sees the inward cost. Do not wonder that you experience all sorts of trials. Accepted from His hand they are the sure way to a life that is precious to Him.
May God have mercy on the clever people who pass on merely what they have read or received from another. Not even speaking for God can be done without cost.
It is all a question of whether the person’s life is light or weighty, for weight shows the quality of the material. Two men may use the same words, but in the one you meet something you cannot get past; in the other— nothing.
The difference is in the man. You always know when you are in the presence of spiritual worth. No amount of theorizing about the Lord’s return, for example, will take the place of a life that has been daily lived looking for Him.
There is no escaping this difference, and no substitute for the real thing. Alas, some of us are so unlike our words that it might be better if we said less about spiritual things.
Do not wonder, then, at God’s concern for the materials of His house. Imitation jewelry may have a certain beauty, but what woman who has once possessed the real thing would give it another thought?
The apostle Paul leaves us in no doubt of his own valuation. Ten coolie-loads of stubble can never approach the price of one single gemstone.
All flesh, all mere feelings, all that is essentially of man, is grass and must vanish away. What is of Christ, the gold, the silver, the costly stones, these alone are eternal, incorruptible, imperishable.
It is this lasting character of God’s Church that must now claim our attention.
One of the great qualities a of Medical doctor is that he pays absolute attention to his medical books.
Whatever he sees in the Book, he practices in the Theater, whatever he sees in the theater, he goes back to study in his books.
The same with a law student. A Law Student does not joke with his books because he knows his success is tied to the knowledge he gains and practices from them.
Do you know that Christianity is far greater than these professions. Paul referred to Christianity as a ‘high calling’.
It is being called out of the world to have a relationship with God. Everything you ever need to succeed as a Christian is in a Book.
That book is called the Bible. The Bible is God’s manual to us on how to succeed even in the midst of darkness and enemies. It is one of the commonest, yet, neglected books.
Take a stroll within your church hall after the Sunday service and you’ll observe several Bibles littered on the ground, neglected by their owners. This shows the value that they place on their Bible.
The Bible is God’s letter to Believers. The Epistles of Paul, Peter and the Apostles are not really their Epistles, they’re simply the Epistles of God written to His Church through those men.
Neglecting your Bible is the same as neglecting the voice of God. This is because the Bible came as a result of God speaking to men.
God said to Joshua, ‘…. Ye shall meditate therein day and night, for it, thou shalt obtain good success’
God was telling Joshua, if you want to be successful, meditate on my word, that is the textbook for success in this Kingdom.
In turbulent times like this, the media is throwing poisonous diets to us through their news. They’re ever reporting news of death, tragedies going on around the world.
If you’re not careful, these things can cause weeds to grow within you and choke up your faith. Instead of giving yourself to negative news, why not give yourself to God’s own News.
Hallelujah!
The Media calls theirs, News Feed, Well, after getting their News Feed, make sure you flush it out of your system and take in God’s own News Feed, the Bible. Every day with the Bible offers new information, new Instruction, new insight that has never been seen before.
Update your spirit with God’s Word. Hold onto it. Let God’s word become more real to you than even your situation. Everything you’re going through has already been spoken about through His Word, it’s left for you to search it out and believe in it.
Act 27:25: “(Paul speaking) Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me.”
Paul was in a ship being taken on a journey. But on the way to their destination, a severe storm began. It was thunderous and frightening.
The men in the ship with Paul began to panic. From the look of things, they were going to lose both their properties and their lives. But at night, the Angel of the Lord appeared to Paul and gave Him a Word from the Lord saying, ‘Neither you nor the men with you shall lose their lives’.
This is a tough season for many, we’ve never had deaths like this in history. Here in Nigeria, death is becoming like a trend. In the US, Covid deaths keep getting higher. This is like a storm; a storm so frightening, that it seems we might all be destroyed in it.
You might have lost a loved one to it, and you’re wondering whether you’re next, do not be afraid. God has said in His word that He will shield you from the arrows that flies by day and the plagues at night (Psalm 91).
Like Paul, declare, ‘It shall be even as I was told’. Believe that this situation shall end up as God promised in His Word.
In all, get addicted to God’s word, feed on God’s promises, hold onto them as an anchor, and in time, you’ll pass through this storm Hale, hearty and more stronger than ever.
God Bless You!
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KOINONIA ART 