Getting to Know God
"But when the Friend comes, the Spirit of the Truth, he will take you by the hand and guide you into all the truth there is." (John 16:13)
Today's Word
God wants to help us make the right decision. He's there to warn us when we're about to make a mistake, or about to get into areas that are questionable and may bring us harm. It's just like an alarm clock going off in our conscience. He is that nervous feeling you get, that uneasiness we all hear telling us when we are about to do something that is not in our best interest. The Holy Spirit can speak through an inner feeling, an impression not in your head but in your heart. God speaks through your conscience and you can learn to hear His voice. The more time you spend with God the more you will be able to discern His voice guiding and directing you and leading you to a new level of joy and fulfillment.
A Prayer for Today
God, when I spend time with You, I grow closer to You and learn to better hear Your voice. Thank You for giving us Your Spirit, that we may grow wiser. I will hear Your voice and I will obey it. In Jesus' name. Amen.
By,
Shreedhar Jaysingh
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Word becomes flesh
Text to read I Kings 18:41-46
There had been no rain in the land for three and half years. The Word of the Lord comes to Elijah saying, “Go, and present yourself to Ahab. I will send rain on the earth” (1 Kings 18:1) Elijah thus becomes an heir of a promise – a promise of rain; a Word from the Lord. Most of us have a Word from the Lord - you may call it your vision, or a prophecy over you, or your dream, or your destiny. However, it takes a process for that Word to become flesh i.e. for that Word to manifest itself physically. If you are a recipient of a spoken Word from God and in the process of waiting for that Word to be manifest physically, then please take into consideration the principles listed below:
1. Spoken word – never needs a “battery change”.
It eventually rained after three and a half years. Regarding this incident, James writes in Chapter 5, verse 17 “…the heaven gave rain and the earth yielded its harvest” Notice two keywords in this verse .i.e. “gave” and “its.” Both these words indicate a sense of personal belonging. Heaven gave rain – which means heaven had rain within itself to give. The earth yielded its harvest – which means the earth had harvest within itself to yield. Both the earth and the heaven had it in them to prove the spoken word of God to be true. Hebrews 1:3 says “The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word…” In other words, there isn’t a single thing that God has created, for which He does not have the power to sustain. Appliances manufactured by the spoken Word, do not need a battery change. If God has spoken a Word into your life, He will not only do it, He will sustain what He does too.
By,
Sujith Alex
Text to read I Kings 18:41-46
There had been no rain in the land for three and half years. The Word of the Lord comes to Elijah saying, “Go, and present yourself to Ahab. I will send rain on the earth” (1 Kings 18:1) Elijah thus becomes an heir of a promise – a promise of rain; a Word from the Lord. Most of us have a Word from the Lord - you may call it your vision, or a prophecy over you, or your dream, or your destiny. However, it takes a process for that Word to become flesh i.e. for that Word to manifest itself physically. If you are a recipient of a spoken Word from God and in the process of waiting for that Word to be manifest physically, then please take into consideration the principles listed below:
1. Spoken word – never needs a “battery change”.
It eventually rained after three and a half years. Regarding this incident, James writes in Chapter 5, verse 17 “…the heaven gave rain and the earth yielded its harvest” Notice two keywords in this verse .i.e. “gave” and “its.” Both these words indicate a sense of personal belonging. Heaven gave rain – which means heaven had rain within itself to give. The earth yielded its harvest – which means the earth had harvest within itself to yield. Both the earth and the heaven had it in them to prove the spoken word of God to be true. Hebrews 1:3 says “The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word…” In other words, there isn’t a single thing that God has created, for which He does not have the power to sustain. Appliances manufactured by the spoken Word, do not need a battery change. If God has spoken a Word into your life, He will not only do it, He will sustain what He does too.
By,
Sujith Alex
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
You are highly favored
"And the angel said, 'Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.'" (Luke 1:28)
Today's Word
Did you know that as a child of God, you are highly favored? No matter what you may have done in the past, as soon as you make Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior, you have favor with God! Mary didn't understand how or why she had God's favor, or what that favor was for. At that moment, she didn't know that she was chosen as a pure and holy vessel to bring Christ to the world. Friend, you have God's favor for the very same reason as Mary–because God chose you and made you a pure and holy vessel to bring Christ to your home, workplace, and even the world.
A Prayer for Today
God, I am blessed to be highly favored! There are friends, boss, co-workers, even family members who need to hear Your message. God, You can count on me to share Your Word with the world. In Jesus' Name – Amen.
By,
Shreedhar Jaysingh
"And the angel said, 'Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.'" (Luke 1:28)
Today's Word
Did you know that as a child of God, you are highly favored? No matter what you may have done in the past, as soon as you make Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior, you have favor with God! Mary didn't understand how or why she had God's favor, or what that favor was for. At that moment, she didn't know that she was chosen as a pure and holy vessel to bring Christ to the world. Friend, you have God's favor for the very same reason as Mary–because God chose you and made you a pure and holy vessel to bring Christ to your home, workplace, and even the world.
A Prayer for Today
God, I am blessed to be highly favored! There are friends, boss, co-workers, even family members who need to hear Your message. God, You can count on me to share Your Word with the world. In Jesus' Name – Amen.
By,
Shreedhar Jaysingh
Sunday, September 16, 2007
LET US ENJOY LIFE HERE AND NOW
Once a philosopher asked the emperor Alexander: “Your Excellency, what will be your next goal after conquering Rome?” “Cicily is next to Rome. It will be an easy task. So my next aim is to conquer Cicily,” he replied.
“After that…?” the philosopher continued.“After that I will turn to Africa and defeat Carthage.” “After Carthage?”
“Greece will be my next target.”
Again the philosopher asked courteously, “Your Excellency, if you don’t mind, please explain me the advantage of all these victories?”
“After conquering the world I will enjoy my life in peace.”
“Then why don’t you enjoy your life now?”
History reveals that his dreams were not fulfilled. He had to bid farewell to this world long before he could sit and enjoy life in peace. His kingdom got divided. He met with the same fate that doomed the lives of many who wished to become the wealthiest and mightiest in the world. Life cannot be maintained happily with our achievements and gains. We do not need anything new in order to make our life more joyful. The presumption that more wealth and status would give us more happiness is foolishness. We can maintain happiness in life, here and now. For that, we need a serene heart. We can derive it from our faith and dependence in God.
Ambition to become bigger and greater will gradually destroy our serenity of heart. When we travel in a fast-moving vehicle, we would feel the trees and the crowd outside flashing away quickly. On the other hand, if the vehicle runs in a moderate speed the pictures by the wayside can be seen very clearly. Similarly, we will be able to experience the beauty of a flower, the warmth of moonlight and the tenderness of relationships only if we make our minds calm.Over speed can always cause danger. So we must find out enough time to pray, to love, to be alone in solitude… If we gain everything in life and miss happiness, that will be a big tragedy. “This time you will not have to leave in a hurry; you will not be trying to escape. The Lord your God will lead you on every side”
By,
RSV RAJ
Once a philosopher asked the emperor Alexander: “Your Excellency, what will be your next goal after conquering Rome?” “Cicily is next to Rome. It will be an easy task. So my next aim is to conquer Cicily,” he replied.
“After that…?” the philosopher continued.“After that I will turn to Africa and defeat Carthage.” “After Carthage?”
“Greece will be my next target.”
Again the philosopher asked courteously, “Your Excellency, if you don’t mind, please explain me the advantage of all these victories?”
“After conquering the world I will enjoy my life in peace.”
“Then why don’t you enjoy your life now?”
History reveals that his dreams were not fulfilled. He had to bid farewell to this world long before he could sit and enjoy life in peace. His kingdom got divided. He met with the same fate that doomed the lives of many who wished to become the wealthiest and mightiest in the world. Life cannot be maintained happily with our achievements and gains. We do not need anything new in order to make our life more joyful. The presumption that more wealth and status would give us more happiness is foolishness. We can maintain happiness in life, here and now. For that, we need a serene heart. We can derive it from our faith and dependence in God.
Ambition to become bigger and greater will gradually destroy our serenity of heart. When we travel in a fast-moving vehicle, we would feel the trees and the crowd outside flashing away quickly. On the other hand, if the vehicle runs in a moderate speed the pictures by the wayside can be seen very clearly. Similarly, we will be able to experience the beauty of a flower, the warmth of moonlight and the tenderness of relationships only if we make our minds calm.Over speed can always cause danger. So we must find out enough time to pray, to love, to be alone in solitude… If we gain everything in life and miss happiness, that will be a big tragedy. “This time you will not have to leave in a hurry; you will not be trying to escape. The Lord your God will lead you on every side”
By,
RSV RAJ
Be Blessed
"All these blessings will come upon you and overtake you if you obey the LORD your God." (Deuteronomy 28:2)
Today's Word
Moses told the Israelites that God's blessings would not only follow them in response to their obedience, but overtake them like a flood! Think about it, God wants to bless you so that you will become even more of a blessing to those around you! Every area of need in your life is an opportunity for blessing from God. Are you being obedient in every area of your life that you can think of? If not, give it over in faith to God and be prepared to be blessed beyond your wildest dreams!
A Prayer for Today
God, give me strength and obedience so that You may pour upon me Your blessings. I desire to be a bigger blessing to those around me. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
By,
Shreedhar Jaysingh
"All these blessings will come upon you and overtake you if you obey the LORD your God." (Deuteronomy 28:2)
Today's Word
Moses told the Israelites that God's blessings would not only follow them in response to their obedience, but overtake them like a flood! Think about it, God wants to bless you so that you will become even more of a blessing to those around you! Every area of need in your life is an opportunity for blessing from God. Are you being obedient in every area of your life that you can think of? If not, give it over in faith to God and be prepared to be blessed beyond your wildest dreams!
A Prayer for Today
God, give me strength and obedience so that You may pour upon me Your blessings. I desire to be a bigger blessing to those around me. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
By,
Shreedhar Jaysingh
Sabbath or the Lord’s Day?
Jesus came to fulfill the Law (Matt. 5:17-20). He didn’t remove it, but enriched it and took it to greater heights. His standards of the law and its adherence are much higher (Matthew 5 and Romans 6). It is seen from the N.T. that the Law is for the unbelievers (I Tim. 1:9), but not for the believers. The believer is not under the Law, but grace (Rom. 6:14). Law has only led us to a sense of sinfulness, but Jesus Christ has led us to Salvation (Gal. 3:24-25). For the believers, there is a “new” Testament, a new set of Laws written in their hearts and not on stone tablets. So NT believers are to adhere to the laws as they are enriched by the Lord Jesus Christ and as He enables them through His Spirit.
The Lord Jesus who came to fulfill the Law as the Passover Lamb has in essence repeated 9 out of 10 commandments in a much enriched way in the N.T. and He expects us to keep all of those in their full gravity. But the question remained whether the commandment of the Sabbath was to be kept by the NT believer. The truths as revealed in the NT emphasize that the Sabbath has been replaced with the Lord’s Day which is the First Day of the week on which we commemorate the resurrection of the Lord. This has been the day observed as a day of remembrance, for breaking of bread and set apart as a special day of the week by the believers as seen in the Acts and the Epistles. The following Biblical contexts have led the Church throughout the last 20 centuries to keep Sunday, the first day of the week, as the Lord’s Day.
By,
Deepesh P
Jesus came to fulfill the Law (Matt. 5:17-20). He didn’t remove it, but enriched it and took it to greater heights. His standards of the law and its adherence are much higher (Matthew 5 and Romans 6). It is seen from the N.T. that the Law is for the unbelievers (I Tim. 1:9), but not for the believers. The believer is not under the Law, but grace (Rom. 6:14). Law has only led us to a sense of sinfulness, but Jesus Christ has led us to Salvation (Gal. 3:24-25). For the believers, there is a “new” Testament, a new set of Laws written in their hearts and not on stone tablets. So NT believers are to adhere to the laws as they are enriched by the Lord Jesus Christ and as He enables them through His Spirit.
The Lord Jesus who came to fulfill the Law as the Passover Lamb has in essence repeated 9 out of 10 commandments in a much enriched way in the N.T. and He expects us to keep all of those in their full gravity. But the question remained whether the commandment of the Sabbath was to be kept by the NT believer. The truths as revealed in the NT emphasize that the Sabbath has been replaced with the Lord’s Day which is the First Day of the week on which we commemorate the resurrection of the Lord. This has been the day observed as a day of remembrance, for breaking of bread and set apart as a special day of the week by the believers as seen in the Acts and the Epistles. The following Biblical contexts have led the Church throughout the last 20 centuries to keep Sunday, the first day of the week, as the Lord’s Day.
By,
Deepesh P
Friday, September 14, 2007
"This man receiveth sinners."-Luke 15:2
Observe the condescension of this fact. This Man, who towers above all other men, holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners-this Man receiveth sinners. This Man, who is no other than the eternal God, before whom angels veil their faces-this Man receiveth sinners. It needs an angel's tongue to describe such a mighty stoop of love. That any of us should be willing to seek after the lost is nothing wonderful-they are of our own race; but that He, the offended God, against whom the transgression has been committed, should take upon Himself the form of a servant, and bear the sin of many, and should then be willing to receive the vilest of the vile, this is marvellous.
"This Man receiveth sinners"; not, however, that they may remain sinners, but He receives them that He may pardon their sins, justify their persons, cleanse their hearts by His purifying word, preserve their souls by the indwelling of the Holy Ghost, and enable them to serve Him, to show forth His praise, and to have communion with Him. Into His heart's love He receives sinners, takes them from the dunghill, and wears them as jewels in His crown; plucks them as brands from the burning, and preserves them as costly monuments of His mercy. None are so precious in Jesus' sight as the sinners for whom He died. When Jesus receives sinners, He has not some out-of-doors reception place, no casual ward where He charitably entertains them as men do passing beggars, but He opens the golden gates of His royal heart, and receives the sinner right into Himself-yea, He admits the humble penitent into personal union and makes Him a member of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones. There was never such a reception as this! This fact is still most sure this evening, He is still receiving sinners: would to God sinners would receive Him.
By,
Saji Abraham
Observe the condescension of this fact. This Man, who towers above all other men, holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners-this Man receiveth sinners. This Man, who is no other than the eternal God, before whom angels veil their faces-this Man receiveth sinners. It needs an angel's tongue to describe such a mighty stoop of love. That any of us should be willing to seek after the lost is nothing wonderful-they are of our own race; but that He, the offended God, against whom the transgression has been committed, should take upon Himself the form of a servant, and bear the sin of many, and should then be willing to receive the vilest of the vile, this is marvellous.
"This Man receiveth sinners"; not, however, that they may remain sinners, but He receives them that He may pardon their sins, justify their persons, cleanse their hearts by His purifying word, preserve their souls by the indwelling of the Holy Ghost, and enable them to serve Him, to show forth His praise, and to have communion with Him. Into His heart's love He receives sinners, takes them from the dunghill, and wears them as jewels in His crown; plucks them as brands from the burning, and preserves them as costly monuments of His mercy. None are so precious in Jesus' sight as the sinners for whom He died. When Jesus receives sinners, He has not some out-of-doors reception place, no casual ward where He charitably entertains them as men do passing beggars, but He opens the golden gates of His royal heart, and receives the sinner right into Himself-yea, He admits the humble penitent into personal union and makes Him a member of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones. There was never such a reception as this! This fact is still most sure this evening, He is still receiving sinners: would to God sinners would receive Him.
By,
Saji Abraham
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