Category: July 2016

Genesis 8:24

Then the ark rested in the seventh month, the seventeenth day of the month, on the mountains of Ararat.

For 40 days and nights, it rained so hard that the whole world perished, except for Noah and those who were with him in the ark. At the end of 150 days, on the 17th day of the seventh month, the ark rested on the mountains of Ararat. In Hebrew, the word “Ararat” means “the curse is reversed”. The waters of judgment receded, causing the ark to rest on the mountains of Ararat, on new ground where the curse is reversed. And it happened on the 17th day of the seventh month on the Feast of Firstfruits – the exact date that Jesus rose from the dead 4,000 years later!

When Christ rose from the dead, we were raised together with Him. (Colossians 2:12). We who are in Christ our true ark stand on resurrection ground where the curse has been reversed (Galatians 3:13), where diseases, poverty and failures have no right to operate!

As a believer, you are on no-curse ground. You stand in the blessings zone where it is very easy for God’s blessings to rain all over you!

Leviticus 2:11

No grain offering which you bring to the Lord shall be made with leaven, for you shall burn no leaven nor any honey in any offering to the Lord made by fire.

Imagine yourself walking past the prodigal son sitting in the pigpen. (Luke 15:11-24) You look at him and see him salivating for the pigs’ food. Believing that it is good to show kindness, you give him money to buy food for himself. That is human kindness which says, “I am a Christian. I should be kind, good and forgiving.” Such human kindness may be likened to honey. Interestingly, while we elevate it, God tells His people not to bring Him a grain offering with honey in it. The grain offering speaks of Jesus’ life on earth. Not mixing honey in the grain offering speaks of how the compassion and goodness we see in Jesus during His earthly ministry were all divine. There was no “honey” of human goodness that is tainted with human weakness.

In retrospect, the worst thing one could do for the prodigal son was to give him money when he was in the pigpen. Not only would he not have gone home, but what the Lord was doing in his heart would also have been spoiled. This is what happens when we go by the goodness of our human hearts instead of the goodness of God in our hearts, which is directed by His love, wisdom and perfect timing. God does not want you to be moved by what you see but by His Spirit. There were many needy folks surrounding Jesus during His time on earth. But He did not heal every sick person around Him, feed every hungry stomach he passed or raise all who were dead. Isaiah 11:2-3 tells us that the Lord was not moved by what He saw or heard. He was moved only by the Spirit.

You too have the Spirit in you. (1 Corinthians 3:16) Be moved by Him. Follow the peace that He puts within your spirit to do or refrain from doing something. That peace is the peace of God. Acting on that peace will cause God to be exalted, and His divine goodness and kindness to really be a blessing to you and others!

Mark 8:29

He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered and said to Him, “You are the Christ.”

Do you know that how you see Jesus determines what you receive from Him? If you see Jesus as your healer, you will receive healing. If you see Jesus as your refuge and fortress, you will receive protection.

The people of Nazareth, Jesus’ hometown, saw Jesus in the natural. They said, “Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas? And His sisters, are they not all with us?” (Matthew 13:55-56) They saw Jesus in the natural. They did not see Him as God in the flesh. As a result, He could not do many mighty works there. (Matthew 13:58)

Today, many people, including some philosophers, see Jesus of Nazareth as a good person who led an exemplary life. They feel that if all of us could live our lives like Him, the world would be a better place. They don’t see Jesus as the bread of God who came from heaven to give life to the world. (John 6:33) They don’t see Him as the one who came to give them living water, so that they would never thirst again. (John 4:14) They don’t see Him as the Lamb of God, who took away the sin of the world. (John 1:29) They don’t receive from Him what they need because they don’t esteem Him correctly.

Jesus did not come just to set a good example for man to follow. He came to be our Redeemer. (Galatians 3:13) He came to be our righteousness. (1 Corinthians 1:30) He came to be our shepherd, so that we will not lack anything. (Psalm 23:1) Jesus asked His disciples once, “But who do you say that I am?” How you answer this question depends on how you see Jesus. And how you see Jesus will determine how and what you receive from Him. So see Him as your God, as everything He claims to be in His Word, and He will do mighty works in your life.

Romans 13:1

Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established.

God’s word makes it perfectly clear that we are to submit ourselves to governing authorities. Even though we may or may not like a particular person, we are still to abide by the laws that are established by our government. However there are times when we should not submit to the government. We should never allow government to force us to disobey God. Jesus and His apostles never disobeyed the government for personal reasons; when they disobeyed; it was in order to follow their higher loyalty to God. Their disobedience did come at a price; they were threatened, beaten, thrown into jail, tortured, and even executed for their convictions. Nothing advocates rebelling against or refusing to obey the government’s laws or regulations unless those laws clearly require you to violate the moral standards revealed by God. We must be responsible citizens as well as responsible Christians.

There are a lot of views regarding the upcome presidential election. We have two candidates that clearly go against God’s word in certain areas of their thinking. We really need to understand what God is saying when His word says,”For there is no authority except that which God has established.” Now some might twist this verse saying that God is establishing an authority that lies, cheats, and uses any means to promote themselves. That is far from the truth. God allows things to happen so that in the end it will glorify God. When the leader of Egypt refused to let the Israelites go from 425 years of slavery, God showed His power by crushing Pharaoh. For Scripture says to Pharaoh: “I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.” Romans 9:17 Yes God allowed all of this to show His power so that He would be glorified.

It is a know fact that when things get bad in our lives we instinctively turn to God for help. If you look at the interviews from the recent police shootings we see politicians on national television leading prayer asking God to help this country and the families of the victims. You don’t see prayer in the daily routines of some of these same politicians. If it takes this country getting bad to turn us back to God, then we need to realize that the end result is worth more eternally than any current situation. Please remember that this world is fallen along with Adam and that is the reason bad things happen. God’s heart it also crushed at these kinds of devastation. However we need to focus the big picture, that is the eternal picture. God allows bad things to happen, He never causes bad things to happen, so that people will hopefully turn to Him for salvation. God wants everyone to be saved, no matter what it takes to get them there. We are here on this earth for a short period of time. God will punish those who do these things in His time, which is coming soon. God loves you and wants to spend eternity with you.

Please pray for the world and the victims of all these tragedies.

Luke 7:13

When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.”

There is no trial, difficulty or challenge we face today that our Lord Jesus cannot identify with. The moment we experience a trial, right there and then, because He “was in all points tempted as we are” (Hebrews 4:15), He feels it too and is able to sympathize with our weaknesses.

Jesus’ compassion for you is the same compassion He felt for the widow at Nain when He saw the dead body of her only son being carried out of the city gate to be buried. (Luke 7:11-15) It must have been terrible for her to experience the death of her only son after having already experienced the death of her husband. What a horrible thought to be left all alone in the world with no means of support! When Jesus saw her, He was moved with compassion and said to her, “Do not weep.” Now, some religious leaders might also be moved to approach her, but only to say, “Something is terribly wrong. Your husband died. Now, your only son has died. You better ask God what sin you have committed and repent. Or perhaps there is a curse in your life that needs to be broken.”

Isn’t it beautiful that Jesus did not extend more confusion or condemnation toward her? He only extended His compassion to her, telling her, “Don’t weep.” This same Jesus will also come to you when you are most distraught and say, “Don’t cry.” And Jesus’ sympathy does not stop at “Oh, you poor thing! I am so sorry about what has happened to you.” No, His sympathy will move Him to give you the miracle you need in your life. That is why He raised the widow’s son back to life!

Rest in the truth that He who is seated at the Father’s right hand today understands what you are going through and sympathizes with your weaknesses. The compassion of Jesus toward you causes Him to breathe life into your dead situation and turn it around for your good!

1 Corinthians 1:24

…to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

People today run after two things: miraculous signs and wonders, and knowledge. It was no different in Bible times. The apostle Paul acknowledged that “Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom”. (1 Corinthians 1:22) So when Paul preached Christ crucified as God’s solution to them, the message was “to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness”. (1 Corinthians 1:23) They didn’t understand how getting a revelation of Jesus and His death could give them the miracles they needed or the wisdom they wanted.

We don’t have to run after miracles or wisdom today. We just need to run after Jesus because He is “the power of God and the wisdom of God”. The more we know Christ and Christ crucified, the more we will have the power and wisdom of God.

Let me give you an illustration. Let’s say a man, whose wife has left him, looks to Jesus to bring his wife back. Christ, the power of God, brings about a miraculous restoration of their marriage. But it is Christ, the wisdom of God, who will teach the husband how to keep his wife by showing him what he had done wrong and how to strengthen the marriage. If the husband does not have this wisdom, it will only be a matter of time before the same problems surface and his wife leaves him again.

Christ is both the power and wisdom of God to us. As the power of God, He removes obstacles in our paths. As the wisdom of God, He continually directs our paths!

Psalm 91:14

“Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name”.

Jesus was in a house in Bethany when a woman came to Him with an alabaster flask containing very costly fragrant oil. She poured the oil on His head. (Matthew 26:6-7) This woman loved the Lord. She had set her love upon Him. But those who were present considered what she did a great waste because the oil could have been sold for an amount equal to one year’s wages, and the money given to the poor instead. Even Jesus’ disciples were indignant and asked her, “Why this waste?” (Matthew 26:8)

But Jesus defended her, saying, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a good work for Me.” (Matthew 26:10) Not only that, He accorded her the highest honor when He added, “Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her.” (Matthew 26:13) Two thousand years have passed since this woman anointed Jesus with the expensive oil. She never expected in her wildest dreams that her act of love would be told down through the ages. Many kings and rulers have come and gone. Their great acts have faded from the memories of men. But what this woman did for Jesus is still told today around the world today as a memorial to her!

When you get a revelation of how much Jesus loves you, you will set your love upon Him. And when you act out of love for Him, though others may see it as a waste of time, energy or money, He will defend you and deliver you from your critics. He will also set you on high. Your ministry will become powerful and life-changing. Your work will be highly esteemed among your peers. Your company will be prominent and highly successful. And it will not just be a job that you have, but a position of influence to impact many lives.

So set your love upon Jesus. Make Him the love of your life today, and He will defend, deliver and set you on high!