Blog Archives
My kingdom is not of this world
The Lord’s wisdom has already been unfurled,
For He said, “My kingdom is not of this world”.
Yet many don’t understand this at all truly,
For they seek things which are vain, profane and unruly.
Many are complacent and sit down in silence,
Instead of praying about the world and its violence.
Anyone of God’s kingdom won’t be undiscerning,
But be mindful that unto God they’re returning.
In God’s kingdom there is justice always,
But for sinful pursuits there is no hope nor praise.
The kingdoms of the world are in chaos and dread,
Because they have rejected the Lord’s Supper – His wine and bread.
Those who are called by the Lord’s name, unto the Scriptures take heed,
Lest anyone of the world by deception does mislead.
Therefore as forewarned reject all false prophets and false christs,
Lest your faith be lost in these last days heists.
In the times of deception cling on to the Word of God
And the world with its lust is passing away, but the one who does the will of God remains forever. (1 John 2:17)
Face it O believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, you are living in a fallen world. A world fallen that has rebelled against God and has fallen from the grace of God. It’s a world that delights in the darkness and tries to flee from the light. And this is a world that deceive itself and tries to deceive the innocent, the naive and unwitting and even those who are the faithful of God.
The innocent, the naive and unwitting are mostly those who are younger but can be of any age. They do act morally right but are not necessarily going by faith in Jesus Christ. While the faithful of God in Jesus Christ, carry the light of Christ. Therefore the Enemy uses those who are under his grip to tempt believers in Christ. Beware, the Enemy is not that interest in affecting your health and wealth, but rather after your faith, which means he tries to pollute it with sin and lack of faith. Sometimes, affecting health and wealth are just a means to a bigger end ie causing a loss of faith.
In such times its important for those who believe in Jesus Christ to firstly hold to the Word of God, secondly reject all worldly deceptions and thirdly proclaim the Gospel by both word and deed. This will help one to remain undefiled by the deceptions of the world and also give glory to God as you continue your walk with Christ unto the very end!
If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
O believers in Jesus Christ the Son of the Living God, take heed that though we are in world we are not of this world. For this world rejects God and rebels against the Word of God. But we are called to repent and believe in the Gospel. Honor God and give glory to God because He deserves and the judgements of God are true.
We are not to hate people but instead to hate the deceptions that they hold dear without ourselves getting overwhelmed by the temptations they give into. Don’t enticed by the clothes of sinners nor their debauchery. We can preach the Gospel of Jesus to those we encounter but we must never give up on the Gospel ourselves no matter what the outcome.
But you, beloved, build yourselves up on your most holy faith; pray in the Holy Spirit; keep yourselves in the love of God; wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. And convince some, who doubt; save some, by snatching them out of the fire; on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment spotted by the flesh. (Jude 1:20-23)
Your mind and heart must always be focused on giving glory to God by believing and upholding the Word of God in your thoughts, words and actions. Loving the world becomes a snare for those who want to confirm to this world of sin and vanity. Never ever give up on believing that Jesus is the Son of God just because your want to keep your friends and neighbors happy and end up losing your friendship with God. No wonder God through his Holy Word has already warned us, so that we do not stray away from God but rather remain in the will of God.
Verses for reflection:
- Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God. (Romans 12:2)
- Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. (James 1:27)
- Unfaithful creatures! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. (James 4:4)
- For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? (1 John 5:4-5)
The Parable of the Prodigal Son
Jesus calls men, women and children to repentance. There are many who have not yet come to Lord God, and there are some who have chosen to leave the Lord God and go into a world of sin and deception. The Parable of the Prodigal Son brings to mind the stark reality of the consequences of leaving God and misusing the benefits that God has given you. Let’s read this parable as mentioned below in Luke 15:11-30 :
11 And Jesus said, “There was a man who had two sons. 12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.’ And he divided his property between them. 13 Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. 14 And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. 16 And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything.
17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”’ 20 And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.
25 “Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.’ 28 But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, 29 but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ 31 And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.’”
Reflection:
- Leaving the presence of God the Father by living in sin has its negative consequence. It may not immediately bear fruit but eventually the evil fruit shows up. It may show as poverty, despondency and bad health but even if these never show up, the final outcome is always death and damnation.
- Never misjudge this that no evil befalling anyone due to being sin as a sign of God’s approval but rather that its the mercy of God for that person to repent before its too late.
- The quicker you realize that throwing yourself to the mercy of humans instead of God the Father is futile, the lesser time you will waste in vain pursuits and instead come to the mercy of the Living God!
- Unlike the older son who undoubtedly did good deeds but couldn’t grasp the Prodigal Son’s repentance nor his father’s love for the younger son, Jesus Christ clearly understands God the Father’s love for each repentant sinner. Jesus waits along with God the Father for the return of those who repent of their sinful deeds.
- Like the Prodigal Son acknowledge your sinfulness before God so that you can receive his mercy. For there are many who refuse to call sin as sin and neither feel the need to repent and so end up in hell forever.
- Humble yourself greatly for the punishment of sin is death and hell.
- Accept and don’t run away the mercy of the Lord God but most importantly be dead to sinfulness but alive to God’s will in your life!
Lessons from the instance of Jesus and the woman at the well of Samaria
Jesus and the woman at the well of Samaria Image: Henryk Siemiradzki
Jesus was aware of the thoughts of the people around him. He knew that he needed to be in Samaria to preach the Gospel. Now, there was a woman living in sin, she lived an adulterous life at large and by the the time she met Jesus Christ at the well at Samaria, she was living in fornication which today is sometimes called as a live in relationship. If you read the above text it was about the sixth hour that Jesus was at the well around which the Samaritan woman came to draw the water from the well. She came at time where she could go alone to draw water from the well. Jesus gently convicted her of her sinful living by offering the living waters, so much so that she accepted that she sinned and then confessed Him as the Messiah. She then gave her testimony to the people of the town of Sychar in Samaria where she lived. These people then encountered Jesus and believed in the Word of God and confessed Jesus as their Messiah and Savior, despite the fact that the Jews and Samaritans of those times didn’t have much dealings with each other. Please do go through the Gospel account of this instance as mentioned below, in a prayerful manner so that your soul will benefit from this.
Gospel of John 4:1-42:
Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John 2 (although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples), 3 he left Judea and departed again for Galilee. 4 And he had to pass through Samaria. 5 So he came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the field that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob’s well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.
7 A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” 8 (For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) 9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” 11 The woman said to him, “Sir, you have nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? 12 Are you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock.” 13 Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.”
16 Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.” 17 The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.” 19 The woman said to him, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.” 21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” 25 The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things.” 26 Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am he.”
27 Just then his disciples came back. They marveled that he was talking with a woman, but no one said, “What do you seek?” or, “Why are you talking with her?” 28 So the woman left her water jar and went away into town and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?” 30 They went out of the town and were coming to him.
31 Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.” 32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” 33 So the disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought him something to eat?” 34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work. 35 Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the harvest’? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest. 36 Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. 37 For here the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ 38 I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.”
39 Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me all that I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them, and he stayed there two days. 41 And many more believed because of his word. 42 They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.”
43 After the two days he departed for Galilee. 44 (For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own hometown.) 45 So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast.
Here are a few lessons we can learn from the instance of Jesus and the woman at the well of Samaria:
- The Words of Jesus which were said to the woman at the well are true for us even today – Refer John 4:13-14 “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” And also refer to Revelation 21:6 which mentions ; And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the fountain of the water of life without payment.”
- But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth. (John 4:23-24)
- Let the Word of God be preached to people of all backgrounds because Jesus reached to both Jews and non Jews.
- Reach out to the lost and preach the Gospel to them that they repent and believe in the Gospel.
- Preach the Gospel for the glory of the Lord God always and be willing to spend time with those who receive the Gospel so they build up their faith.
- Worshiping the Lord God is our privilege and we must honor God our father who is seeking such people for himself.
- A prophet has no honor in his own hometown (John 4:44)
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil! These are the words which are of God which have power. And they are relevant today even as they were relevant in the past and will continue to be relevant in the future. While each may claim to that they are entitled to their opinion, that does give any assurance that their opinion is wise. Any human logic that tries to defy the knowledge of the Living God is not fitting to part of those who claim to believe in Jesus Christ.
Do not let anyone deceive you by their crafty words. For humankind to worship mortal man or birds or animals or reptiles or anything which is not the Living God, is always going to be a foolish act, not matter how many people claim it to be wise. The Word of God stands a testament to their vile words when they try to beguile the unwitting into thinking that anything and everything is to be worshipped.
And in the same manner there are people who in the name of liberty are encouraging various sins to be passed as just another way of life to which no one must add condemnation. The Word of God condemns them and all such sinners who persistently reject the natural order of things in which the Lord God created things to be. Blaming the Church or blaming Christians won’t in anyways justify the things of this fallen world. The world is moving more and more into darkness but falsely calling this the light of freedom. However this is darkness which will eventually lead them to damnation for those who reject the truth especially the truth which comes from God.la
God has not given anyone the permission to sin. Don’t bring up exceptions to this in the name of anyone who did wrong to anyone in the past or present. God will never authorize such exceptions to the Word of God. A fault finder will never be able to prevail with the Lord God who gives us the wisdom of the Bible to live a life that is holy.
Verses for reference:
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28 And God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.” (Genesis 1:26-28)
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! (Isaiah 5:20)
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and wickedness of men who by their wickedness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 Ever since the creation of the world his invisible nature, namely, his eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse; 21 for although they knew God they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking and their senseless minds were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man or birds or animals or reptiles. 24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed for ever! Amen. 26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. Their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural, 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in their own persons the due penalty for their error. (Romans 1:18-27)
O Christians do not celebrate Halloween
Thus says the LORD:“Do not learn the way of the Gentiles; Do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven,For the Gentiles are dismayed at them. (Jeremiah 10:2)
O Christians do not celebrate Halloween. Because Halloween is a celebration of witchcraft and demons which is inconsistent with the Gospel and the Holy Bible. It doesn’t matter how much secular it seems you should just concerned yourself about how sinful is this celebration and how much you should distance yourself from this occult event. Take a moment to consider that when you focus on celebrating Halloween you are just doing a modernized version of non Christian or Pagan traditions.
Halloween is a holiday celebrated each year on October 31, and Halloween 2022 will occur on Monday, October 31. The tradition originated with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts.This day marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with human death. Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31 they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. You might hear of Halloween therefor a Samhain or even as Feralia or Pomona (both ancient Roman festivals).
There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD, and because of these abominations the LORD your God drives them out from before you. You shall be blameless before the LORD your God. (Deuteronomy 18:10-13)
O Christians do not try to be friends with the Lord while trying to follow demons in any way. Just focus on doing what pleases the Lord God and it’ll go well with you. Despite the good counsels of the Holy Scriptures if someone who still wants to kowtow to demons its their own fault, do not blame God for this!
“You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons.” (1 Corinthians 10:21)
“But test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.” (1 Thessalonians 5:21-22)
“Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.” (Ephesians 5:11)
Just because someone thinks they can speak in favor of following Pagan traditions while claiming to love the Gospel that doesn’t make their claims is valid.
“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20)
“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:15-16)
Just because a so called Christian leader says that Halloween or Samhain or Feralia or Pomona can be followed without being in sin, doesn’t mean what that one says is truly right. Refrain from this sinful practice and be true to Jesus Christ!
Lessons from the parable of the dishonest steward
Let’s read about the parable of the dishonest steward which was mentioned by Jesus in Luke 16:1-13:
1 [Jesus] also said to his disciples, ‘There was a rich man and he had a steward who was denounced to him for being wasteful with his property.
2 He called for the man and said, “What is this I hear about you? Draw me up an account of your stewardship because you are not to be my steward any longer.”
3 Then the steward said to himself, “Now that my master is taking the stewardship from me, what am I to do? Dig? I am not strong enough. Go begging? I should be too ashamed.
4 Ah, I know what I will do to make sure that when I am dismissed from office there will be some to welcome me into their homes.”
5 ‘Then he called his master’s debtors one by one. To the first he said, “How much do you owe my master?”
6 “One hundred measures of oil,” he said. The steward said, “Here, take your bond; sit down and quickly write fifty.”
7 To another he said, “And you, sir, how much do you owe?” “One hundred measures of wheat,” he said. The steward said, “Here, take your bond and write eighty.”
8 ‘The master praised the dishonest steward for his astuteness. For the children of this world are more astute in dealing with their own kind than are the children of light.’
9 ‘And so I tell you this: use money, tainted as it is, to win you friends, and thus make sure that when it fails you, they will welcome you into eternal dwellings.
10 Anyone who is trustworthy in little things is trustworthy in great; anyone who is dishonest in little things is dishonest in great.
11 If then you are not trustworthy with money, that tainted thing, who will trust you with genuine riches?
12 And if you are not trustworthy with what is not yours, who will give you what is your very own?
13 ‘No servant can be the slave of two masters: he will either hate the first and love the second, or be attached to the first and despise the second. You cannot be the slave both of God and of money.’
Jesus was well aware of the sinful behaviors of the people, especially towards the use of money. He knew that some sinners are sly enough to avoid a nasty outcome due to being caught in their sins. However he wanted to highlight that even if a sinner seemingly escapes punishment while on earth, there’s no such escape in the afterlife. No wonder Jesus used this parable to rebuke the love of money which leads to sin and which in turn leads to punishment in hell forever. This is also a calling by Jesus to give up all greed towards money and give up all dishonesty even those that might seem small sins.
Here are a few lessons we can learn from this parable:
- You are accountable for whatever has been entrusted to you, so do not misuse things for you will need to given account for it. For example, this can be money, resources, privileges etc.
- Even while on earth its possible for sinners to be asked by the earthly authorities to give an account for their sins and face the due consequences.
- The eternal consequences of your sin will take you to hell unless you repent in the name of Jesus.
- The children of this world are more astute in dealing with their own kind than are the children of light. Therefore a child of light must learn to interact in a wise and holy way with another child of light instead of avoiding each other for the sake of it.
- Even if sinners are able to get favorable outcomes in their dealings with fellow sinners, they will only end up increasing their punishment and fellow friends to accompany them in hell.
- Money that is gotten by dishonest means will eventually fail you.
- Anyone who is trustworthy in little things is trustworthy in great; anyone who is dishonest in little things is dishonest in great.
- If then you are not trustworthy with money, that tainted thing, who will trust you with genuine riches?
- And if you are not trustworthy with what is not yours, who will give you what is your very own?
- No servant can be the slave of two masters: he will either hate the first and love the second, or be attached to the first and despise the second. You cannot be the slave both of God and of money
Disciples of hope 